//------------------------------// // Chapter 27: Revelations // Story: Fiddling with Her Heart // by Kevinltk //------------------------------// “Princess Celestia! Princess Luna!” Octavia cried out along with her friends while they galloped down a hall in the castle toward the two ponies. “What is the matter, my little ponies?” Celestia asked as she and the slightly shorter alicorn next to her turned to them. The other alicorn was dark-blue who had a mane that danced in the air, just like Celestia’s, except the color and the way it shimmered made it look like the midnight starry sky. Her crystal-like slippers went along with her black crown and collar denoted her as the other co-ruler of Equestria and the Princess of the Night. “Twilight is missing!” Rainbow Dash blurted out. Celestia’s usually calm demeanor was shattered when her eyes widened. “Missing? What do you mean?” “Well you see, we all met up yesterday and agreed that we all needed to talk with Twilight, but when we went to her room, she wasn’t there,” explained Applejack. “I never knew Twilight was so good at hide-and-seek because we spent all day and night looking for her,” Pinkie added with a frown. “Normally, I wouldn’t mind a game, but not when we’re all sad and worried for her.” “We have also asked around, and nopony seems to have seen her since the rehearsal as well,” said Rarity. “She’s probably mad at us since we weren’t there to help her feel better after everything,” Fluttershy guessed. “Oh, I do hope she’s alright.” “Oh dear.” Celestia sighed, and her head bowed slightly. “I should have known something like this might happen. Twilight never took rejection well, but I had hoped it would not have drove her to such drastic measures.” “But where could she be?” Applejack asked, a tinge of fear in her voice. “My sister came from Ponyville yesterday, and she said it did not look like Twilight went home.” Celestia shook her head. “It’s hard to say. Given her talents, she could easily hide herself or even sneak out of Canterlot.” Octavia and the rest of her friend hung their heads dejectedly. “Sister,” spoke Luna, “need I remind you that now is not the time for anypony to be wandering around by themselves.” Everypony’s heads snapped up to look at the moon princess. “What do you mean by that, your highness?” Octavia asked. “As you already know, my sister and I have been searching for this so called threat,” Luna reminded. “While we still have not found any decisive evidence to tell us what we’re facing, we are sure that there is at least something out there.” “Wait a minute, are you saying that Twilight could be in danger?!” Rainbow Dash cried out. “Unfortunately, that is a possibility,” answered Celestia. “It is imperative that she be found and brought back safely.” “Fear not,” Luna proclaimed, “I shall let the guards know to keep an eye out for her and organize a team to search for her. Do not worry, I shall personally lead the effort.” ” “We’re coming with you,” Rainbow Dash declared. Luna sternly glared at the blue pegasus and gave a blunt, “No.” “What?!” Rainbow Dash cried as she flew towards Luna with a scowl on her face. “She’s our friend! We should be the ones going after her!” “Whoa there!” Applejack chided before grabbing Rainbow’s tail in her mouth. She pulled the angry pegasus back while the dark alicorn stared with one of her eyebrows raised. “What she meant to ask,” Rarity began after stepping in front of Rainbow, “is that we would like to know why we are not allowed to assist in the search for our friend.” Luna nodded. “While your devotion to your friend is admirable, it does not change the fact that this should be handled by more experienced ponies.” This statement did little to improve Rainbow’s mood as she continued to scowl at the blunt princess. “She is right,” Celestia stated before Octavia or any of her friends could protest. “My sister and many members of the royal guard are adept in this sort of thing, so please trust them that they will bring Twilight back safe and sound.” Octavia and her friends all glanced at each other with small frowns and unsure faces. “Besides, there is also the matter of the wedding,” Celestia pointed out. “While I am worried about Twilight as well, if we delay the celebration, it will likely cause a lot of confusion and panic, and we cannot have that during these times of uncertainty.” “But—” Rainbow began. “I’m sorry,” apologized Celestia, “but right now, the best we can do for Twilight right now is allow Luna to go search for her and wait.” “Rest assured that I will not return until she is back,” Luna proclaimed. “I know this is a difficult situation for you girls, but I’m afraid we don’t have much time. We have only a few hours before the wedding starts, and I would very much appreciate it if you all start getting ready. In the meantime, we will do what we can for Twilight,” Celestia explained. “Is that alright?” Again, Octavia and her friends exchanged concerned looks with each other. After a few slow nods and some grumbling, Applejack answered for them all, “We’re still unsure about all this, but Ah guess if you really think it’s for the best, we’re okay with it.” Celestia nodded, a comforting smile on her face. “Thank you for understanding. I am sure everything will work out in the end.” She and Luna turned back around and resumed their walk down the hall. “I will see you all at the ceremony.” As soon as the princesses disappeared from view, Rainbow crossed her hooves and let out a big huff. “I still think this whole thing sucks. We’re her friends. We should be the ones leading the search, not the princess.” “Now, now,” Rarity chided the complaining pegasus, “I feel the same way, but you cannot get mad at the princesses. They are just as concerned as we are, but at the same time, they have to look out for everypony else. It was very generous of Princess Luna to personally lead the search.” “I hope she finds Twilight quick,” said Pinkie. “It wouldn’t be right if either of them missed all the fun.” “I’m so worried for her,” Fluttershy stated with a whimper. “For all we know, she could be scared or even hurt.” “Let’s not have any of that kind of thinkin’,” said Applejack. “Twilight knows how to take care of herself.” “But that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t be helping out,” Rainbow Dash declared. “We owe it to her after what we did to her.” “Yea, even though she was being a meany pants to Princess Cadance, we were meany pants as well for leaving her alone,” Pinkie remarked. Rarity sighed. “I must say that you’re right. We were caught up in the heat of the moment, but that does not excuse our behavior. I can only imagine how devastated the poor dear is.” “We weren’t there for her, so she probably ran away because she was feeling so upset and guilty over what she did,” said Fluttershy. “And that’s why we should stay and help the wedding,” Octavia proclaimed, causing all of her friends to turn their heads to stare at her. “What do you mean by that, sugarcube?” Applejack asked. “Think about it,” Octavia directed. “All this trouble started because she made a mistake with Cadance. If we went to search for Twilight, the wedding would suffer, and since she’s already feeling horrible for ruining the rehearsal…” She did not have to finish her explanation as she saw realization dawned on her friends’ faces. Rainbow Dash groaned. “So not cool…” Applejack let out a bitter laugh. “That sure is a kick in the teeth. If we try to help her, we just might make things worse for her instead.” “I’m not happy with the choice either,” Octavia stated, “but I don’t see any other viable solution.” “Then I guess that settles that,” said Rarity. “If we can’t help Twilight by looking for her, we can make it up to her by ensuring her brother and foalsitter have a wonderful wedding. It’s not much, but it’s a start.” They all mumbled less than enthusiastic agreements before disbanding to fulfil their duties, all hoping Twilight was alright. The ceremony hall was bustling with activity as ponies filed into the room, packing it to the brim with spectators and a few guards. All the preparations were finally culminating into one of the most memorable moments in Equestrian history. Octavia stood to the side along with Fluttershy and the other musicians as they played their instruments, barely audible over the din of the crowd, to help pass the time before the main event began. Fluttershy was the only one among them who was dressed up, given her dual role as a bridesmaid. Octavia also received a lovely dress from Rarity, but it was reserved for the reception later on. On one side of the stairs leading up to the altar were the rest of her friends. Just like Fluttershy’s outfit, they were all wearing a dress that Rarity made for them, tailored to their individual tastes and traits while still having a somewhat similar design that matched them together. On top of all their heads were a band of teal beads tied together by a brooch of three turquoise flowers. To the opposite side stood the four groomstallions, all wearing matching black blazers with red cuffs and a gold-colored collar. Leading them at the top of the steps was Spike wearing a dapper tuxedo, complete with a red bowtie and top hat, and holding a pillow that two golden rings, encrusted with small diamonds, rested upon. At the altar stood Princess Celestia and the groom. Shining Armor was a well-built stallion with a white coat and his mane consisted of three tones of blue. He wore a red blazer with gold-colored cuffs and collar, and a blue sash ran across his chest. Octavia had to say he looked very dashing, even if he did have a bit of a dazed stare and dopey grin. Despite the joyous occasion, Octavia found herself barely smiling. Looking back at her friends, she could see that they too were all wearing similarly subdued smiles. True to her word, Luna had left with a small band of guards, but with still no sign of Twilight or the night princess, it could only mean that the search was not going well. Octavia felt a nudge on her side and turned to see one of the other musicians was motioning with his head. Following the pony’s silent directions, she looked up to see Celestia was nodding at them. Understanding the gesture, Octavia helped subtly get the rest of the musicians’ attention, and they quickly brought an end to their current song. Many ponies in the audience started noticing what was about to happen, and the racket quickly died down. After nodding to each other, Octavia, Fluttershy, and the others started playing the wedding march song. Two guards at the entrance to the room gripped the grand door’s handles in their magic and opened them, revealing Apple Bloom and her friends. The fillies each wore pink dresses that had different patterns of violet and white flowers and frills, and a wreath of matching white and violet flowers adorned their heads. They merrily skipped down the red carpet leading to the altar, scattering magenta flower petals from the baskets they held in their mouths. Strutting right behind them was Cadance. She had tied her mane up so that it would fit behind her veil, and her dress was of a milk-white color with golden hemlines under each of its three layers and the train that dragged behind her. As Cadance walked down the red carpet, Octavia could see she had a smug grin on her face, and for some reason, even through the din of her own music, she could have sworn she heard the pink alicorn humming some sort of song. When Cadance stopped to stand beside Shining Armor at the altar, Octavia and the other musicians ended the wedding march and switched to a light melody. “Mares and gentlecolts,” Celestia began, her voice easily ringing through the hall over the muted music, “we are gathered here today to witness the union of Princess Mi Amore Cadenza and Shining Armor. What had started out as being mere acquaintances has blossomed into something wondrous.” Cadance’s smirk grew even bigger, gazing eagerly at her soon to be husband. Celestia fondly looked at the bride and groom. “Princess Cadance and Shining Armor, it is my great pleasure to pronounce you—” “Stop!” a familiar voice suddenly cried out from the open door. A wave of gasps was heard as everypony turned to see the pony at the door who had shouted. The newcomer was none other than Twilight. Other than a few patches of dirt sticking to her fur, she seemed alright. Octavia felt a surge a relief when she saw her friend, but it quickly dissipated when she saw the venomous glare Twilight was shooting at Cadance. She couldn’t possibly be still after Cadance after everything, she thought as she stared at her friend with wide eyes. She gulped. Could she? She glanced at all her friends and saw a mixture of fear, shock, worry, and disappointment on their faces. Celestia was staring at her student with her mouth slightly agape. To her surprise, Shining Armor was just gawking at the intrusion, while Cadance returned Twilight’s hostile glare with one of her own. Cadance let out a grunt and spat out, “Why does she have to be so possessive of her brother?” Her eyes shifted quickly darted around before she covered them with a foreleg and started letting out a sob. “Why does she have to ruin my special day?” “Because it's not your special day! It's mine!” declared yet another familiar voice. Octavia almost dropped her cello as she joined everypony in yet another wave of gasps that rocked the room. Another pony strode in to stand beside Twilight, and even though the new pony’s mane was an absolute mess, frayed and covered in debris, and numerous scratches could be seen through her dust-covered coat, there was no mistaking it. Standing right before everypony was a second Cadance. “Ah-Ah don't understand. How can there be two of them?” Applejack asked. “She's a changeling,” the new Cadance announced, pointing an accusing hoof at her double. “She takes the form of somepony you love and gains power by feeding off your love for them.” The Cadance at the altar scowled as her horn glowed with a ghastly green glow. A circle of emerald flames surrounded her before erupting into a pillar. Everypony shielded their eyes as the dazzling magic encased her within its green walls, and a chilling laugh echoed through the hall. When the magic cleared, there was no longer a pink alicorn, but something that resembled a hybrid between an insect and a pony now towered over them, her size rivaling Celestia’s. Black chitin covered her body instead of fur, and wasp-like wings jutted out of a green carapace on her back. Her dark-green, lanky mane was parted by a jagged horn and had a small black crown tipped with dark-green orbs resting on top of it. Her eyes had catlike-irises and were of the same green color as the menacing glow of her horn. Most notable and chilling of all were the holes that adorned the base of her legs, her mane, and her wings. “Right you are, Princess,” the changeling sneered, revealing her fangs. When she spoke, it was eerily distorted by what sounded like a second voice repeating what she said. “I am actually Chrysalis, queen of the changelings. It is up to me to find food for my subjects,” the black queen continued as she strutted towards Cadance with a smirk. “Equestria has more love than any place I've ever encountered. My fellow changelings will be able to devour so much of it that we will gain more power than we have ever dreamed of.” “They'll never get the chance!” Cadance defiantly cried out. “Shining Armor's protection spell will keep them from ever even reaching us! Chrysalis chuckled mockingly. “Oh, I doubt that.” She turned her head towards the altar, her horn glowing green. “Isn't that right, dear?” “Mm-hmm,” Shining Armor replied with a slow nod. His eyes had started to glow the same color as Chrysalis’s magic. Cadance looked up at the possessed unicorn with wide eyes for a second before gritting her teeth and charge towards him. She quickly stopped when the changeling stomped into her path. “Ah, ah, ah, don't want to go back to the caves, now do you?” Chrysalis warned as her horn glowed dangerously, causing Cadance to back away with a scowl. Chrysalis smirked and walked back towards Shining Armor. “Ever since I took your place, I've been feeding off Shining Armor's love for you. Every moment he grows weaker and so does his spell. Even now, my minions are chipping away at it,” she announced, directing everypony’s attention outside. Frightened gasps and murmurs filled the room. Black shapes could be seen right outside the barrier as they rammed and smashed into the shield. The skies were filled with what seemed to be thousands of them. “He may not be my husband,” Chrysalis continued as she gazed hungrily at Shining Armor, “but he is under my total control now, and I'm sorry to say, unable to perform his duties as captain of the Royal Guard!” “Not my Shining Armor!” Cadance cried out, reaching towards him with a hoof. “Soon, my changeling army will break through. First, we take Canterlot, and then all of Equestria!” Chrysalis gloated, flying into the air in excitement. “No, you won't,” Celestia declared as she walked towards the queen. “You may have made it impossible for Shining Armor to perform his spell, but now that you have so foolishly revealed your true self, I can protect my subjects from you!” Celestia charged right at Chrysalis, and the changeling met her head on. The two of them locked horns with each other, staring each other down. With a beat of her wings, Celestia pushed herself away from her opponent and into the air. A yellow beam erupted from the white alicorn’s horn and shot down at Chrysalis who retaliated with a green beam of her own. The two beams collided with each other, and the two entities were at a deadlock as they continued to channel their magic. Chrysalis let out a yelp and grunted as Celestia’s magic started to break through, but just as it seemed Chrysalis was about to lose the deadly tug of war, her beam suddenly started pushing back Celestia’s projectile. Before anypony could react, the beam slammed right into the white alicorn’s horn. With an explosion of green light, Celestia was sent flying through the air and crashed into the ground. “Princess Celestia!” Twilight cried out amidst everypony’s terrified screams and gasps. “Protect the princess!” commanded one of the guards that was in the room. A group of guards formed a wall between Chrysalis and their fallen ruler while others started ushering the terrified audience out of the room. Octavia bit her lip as she watched Twilight and the rest of their friends rush to the princess’s side. As much as she wanted to stay by her friends, she knew that she was not trained to fight nor had the ability to wield powerful artifacts such as the Elements of Harmony. Her ears drooped when she realized she would just get in the way. With a heavy sigh, she retreated into a corner of the room to watch what would happen next, still clutching her beloved cello in her hooves. Chrysalis cackled as she looked at her defeated opponent. “Shining Armor's love is even stronger than I thought! Consuming it has made me even more powerful than Celestia! With my changelings keeping Luna away, nothing can stop me now from taking over Canterlot! Soon, the changelings shall conquer the world, and I—” “Get her!” A group of pegasi royal guards divebombed into the monologuing changeling, causing them to all tumble together in a big heap. More guards immediately rushed in and threw themselves onto the pile. Despite there being at least twenty of them and all equipped with heavy armor, the pile of guards grunted as Chrysalis struggled, her efforts shifting the heavy horde desperately trying to pin her down. “The Elements of Harmony,” Octavia heard Celestia weakly utter. She turned to see the alicorn was unable to get up, and the tip of her horn was charred, rendering her unable to fight back. “You must get to them, and use their power to defeat the queen,” she instructed Twilight and the rest of their friends. With determination burning in their eyes, they all nodded at each other. Pinkie, Rainbow Dash, and Fluttershy threw off their dresses into the air before following Twilight out the door. Octavia saw Applejack turn her head towards her, and their eyes locked onto each other. She felt a pang of worry, but before she could respond, the orange pony discarded her dress and ran out of the room. The only one of them left was Rarity, and she was frantically trying to catch the airborne dresses. The sound of their friends’ admonishment made her pout before quickly, but gently, setting down the dresses, shedding her own, and catching up to them. Octavia looked forlornly at her friends as they ran off, wishing she could have been more useful. She did not have much time to lament because with a deafening roar and a flare of green light, Chrysalis erupted from the body pile, sending her assailants flying. “You idiots!” spat the seething changeling. “I was in the middle of my speech! What kind of dimwits interrupt a monologue?!” Chrysalis let out a huff as the guards groaned and shakily got to their hooves. “Where was I?” she asked, scrunching up her face. After a moment, her face twisted into an even bigger scowl. “Well that’s just great, you fools made me lose my place!” she screamed before starting to swat away guards with her magic. Seeing the situation grow more dire, Octavia hastily evacuated the room with the last of the guests. Even with her knowledge and strength to handle her cello, it was awkward trying to run with the big instrument, but she refused to abandon the precious keepsake her parents gave her. Just as the crowd she was running with was about to reach the building’s exit, the ground trembled, and the deafening sound of glass breaking rang through the air, stopping everypony in their tracks. Octavia’s head quickly darted around, and she gasped when her eyes saw what was happening outside through a window. The grand barrier that surrounded Canterlot was destroyed, shattering into tiny pieces. The swarm of black shapes were now rapidly approaching. One by one, the invaders wrapped themselves in green energy and dove into the city. To her dismay, Octavia saw that a large battalion of changelings were rocketing right towards the very building she was in. Screams and yells were heard as the changelings crashed through the windows and into the ground, leaving behind craters and scorch marks. The invaders quickly got to their feet, unfazed by their rough landing, and lunged for any nearby pony. Hearing a whistling sound from behind her, Octavia swiftly turned to see another wave of changelings was hurtling right towards her. Reacting by instinct alone, she dove out of the way right before a changeling rammed into the spot she was just standing in. Octavia let out a grunt when her body hit the floor. Her eyes suddenly widened when she realized she was no longer holding onto her cello. Hastily looking up, she saw that her instrument had slid across the floor. A hissing from behind her caused her to look behind her. Her eyes shrunk into pinpricks, and she let out a whimper when she found that a changeling was looming over her. It was similar to the queen except it had no manes and possessed teal eyes with no irises. Despite being a bit smaller than the average pony, the fact that it was snarling at her with bared fangs was terrifying. Suddenly, a guard tackled the changeling off her. “Move!” commanded the guard as he knocked his opponent out cold and charged into another. Octavia scrambled to her hooves and took a step toward her cello, only to find that the room was filling with changelings. She felt her heart sink when she realized there was no way she would be able to retrieve her instrument and escape. Suppressing a sob, she shut her eyes, clenched her teeth, and ran outside. Outside, the situation was not too much better. Changelings continued to drop out of the sky, but at least it was easier to see them coming and dodge them. Members of the royal guard were fending off the attackers, but even though it seemed the defenders were holding their ground, they were woefully outnumbered. Octavia rushed over to the castle gates and joined a group of ponies being escorted by the guard to a more secure location. When it was relatively clear, they hastily made their way down the streets. Despite making it through several blocks, everypony remained tense and silent, the sounds of destruction and ponies screaming doing little to calm their nerves. After making it through another block, one of the ponies suddenly yelled and pointed up. They all looked up to see a group of changelings were flying right at them. Amidst screams of terror, Octavia ducked into an alleyway as everypony else shot off in different directions. She hid behind a dumpster and held her breath, praying that none of the changelings saw her. Overhead, she saw that by sheer luck, she was also under a window balcony, keeping her out of view from any changelings flying through the alley. After it seemed like no changelings were coming after her, Octavia allowed herself to breathe. She took the opportunity to take a quick rest, trying to calm her furiously beating heart. While she would have liked to rest a bit more, if any changeling happened to run through the alley, she would be an easy target. She needed a better hiding place. With a small groan she got back on her hooves and started moving again. By sticking to the alleys and jumping from one hiding spot to another, Octavia managed to evade the changelings as she looked for a more suitable place to take cover. As she traversed the sieged city, she occasionally caught glimpses of changelings occupied with other ponies. While the royal guards were able to handle small pockets of the insects, the tides quickly turned when more changelings joined the fray. As for the civilians, Octavia could barely watch when she saw ponies succumb to the invaders. Those unfortunate enough to get caught were either restrained with slime or knocked unconscious to be carried away to who knows where. Octavia continued to move through the city, unsure where she was going or why. All she knew was that her body and mind were screaming at her to just run and hide. When she reached the end of another alley, she peaked out to see that there were no nearby routes she could safely reach. As she searched for an alternative, she noticed the door to the tall building next to her was slightly ajar, providing an opportunity to silently enter the building and hide. After checking to see that the coast was clear, she snuck inside. Seeing a front desk and mailboxes lining the wall next to it, she guessed the building was actually an apartment. Octavia made her way up several flights of stairs, hunting for a place to hole herself in. Along the way, she saw that many doors had been destroyed in one form or another, meaning that she had somehow managed to make her way into a place the changelings already ransacked. Even though it meant the changelings were less likely to come back here, she gulped when she thought about what possibly could have happened to the ponies that were here before her. Octavia finally came to a door that was still intact. She almost shouted out in joy when she found that the door was unlocked when she tried to open it. As soon as she stepped inside, she locked the door and propped a nearby chair against it. She let out a tremendous sigh of relief, knowing that she had at least found a decent place to lay low. Inspecting her surroundings, she saw that she had stumbled into a studio apartment outfitted with all the basic living amenities, and a window barely visible behind its curtains. With a groan, she plopped herself into the room’s bed. She had been running in fear for what seemed like hours, and now the exhaustion that was staved off by the adrenaline was hitting her full force like a speeding train, her body feeling sore all over. She was extremely grateful for the respite, however brief it may be. She lost track of time as her body slowly cooled down. Her mind stopped clouding her thoughts with survival instincts, allowing her to finally think things over. I can’t believe this is happening, Octavia lamented. Like many ponies, she was aware that Equestria was a relatively peaceful place, excluding the occasional monster attack or angry deity, and it has been ages since there have been any major conflicts. She never would have thought she would be thrusted into the middle of a full scale invasion. Octavia covered her face with her hooves, lightly shaking her head. And to think, this could have been prevented if we listened to Twilight. She was actually right. She saw something that we all failed to notice, but instead of believing her, we ignored her, and now we’re paying for it. She resolved that if they all made it out of this alive, she would do whatever it takes to make it up to Twilight. Octavia sighed, her hooves slipping back to her sides, now that her thoughts had strayed to her friends. She wondered how they were doing. They’re out there fighting, and all I can do is run and hide. Please let them be alright. If anything happened to them… She quickly shook her head. No, let’s not look down that path. After resting a bit longer, she got up with a groan. While the studio apartment was a pretty secure location, she needed to formulate an escape route of some sort in case things went sour. Carefully peaking through the curtain, so as not to reveal herself to any changelings that might happen to fly by, she saw that the window was pointed towards the middle of Canterlot. She instantly regretted looking outside. Her vantage point gave her a clear view of the destruction happening in the city. A few areas in Canterlot were saturated in the abhorrent changeling slime, and numerous buildings were defaced or vandalized in one form of another. The sky was darkened by plumes of smoke and squadrons of changelings flying around. Just before she turned away from the horrifying sight, she noticed a commotion not too far from her location. A horde of changelings appeared to be fighting something near the base of a tower that she recognized as Canterlot Tower. She let out a gasp, and her eyes shot wide open when she saw what was battling the changelings. It was her friends. She then recalled Twilight mentioning that the Elements of Harmony were kept in a vault inside Canterlot Tower during one of their get togethers back in Ponyville. They were so close to their goal, but the invaders certainly was not going to make it easy. To her surprise, her friends were actually dispersing the crowd of changelings with relative ease. She realized that despite their staggering numbers, the changelings were actually pretty poor combatants, and her friends were proving they were more than capable of putting up a fight. Rainbow Dash and Applejack used their physical prowess to their advantage, knocking out most changelings with just a single blow. Pinkie, armed with her party cannon, and Twilight were mowing down the changelings left and right under a hail of confetti and magical bolts. Even Rarity and Fluttershy, the more daintier members of the group, were holding out. Rarity demonstrated a somewhat disturbing mastery of martial art techniques, while Fluttershy was able to somehow avoid anything a changeling threw her way and trip them up. As Octavia watched her friends fight valiantly, she could not help but jump up and down, cheering her friends on. When she was able to reign in her excitement, she realized that most of her attention was focused on Applejack. It took a while, but her friends finally managed to clear out the horde. A big smile was plastered on Octavia’s face, realizing that her friends were about to retrieve the Elements of Harmony and surely end the invasion. Everything was going to be fine. Her grin quickly faded when she noticed another swarm were inbound towards her friends. Her friends also seemed to have noticed the reinforcements as they sprinted toward the tower’s entrance. They quickly flung the doors open and rushed inside, only to slowly back out a few seconds later. Yet another horde of changelings swarmed out of the building, catching them in a pincer formation. No longer concerned with concealing herself, Octavia flung the curtains wide open, and quickly pressed her head and forehooves into the window, staring wide-eyed at her friends as they resumed fighting. Octavia felt a pit in her chest growing, and her breaths became more and more ragged as the fight went on. Her friends’ movements were becoming increasingly sluggish, and the attackers continued to charge at them from all directions. “No… no, no, no, no, no, no!” Octavia cried out as her friends started falling one by one. Soon, the only one left standing was Applejack. “Run, Applejack!” Octavia yelled despite the distance, watching in horror as Applejack tried to buck her way through the army. A changeling managed to jump onto Applejack’s back, and when the orange pony turned her head to throw off the intruder, another changeling ran up to her and struck her hard at the back of her head. Time seemed to slow down as something snapped within Octavia. She gaped as her friend’s head realed back from the blow before falling on her side. As soon as she hit the ground, a bunch of changelings dove on top of her. “Applejack!” Octavia screamed louder than she ever did her entire life. Her hooves smashed into the window, cracks appearing where she had vainly tried to reach for her friend. “Get up!” Octavia continued to yell and bang on the window as a few changelings picked up her now unconscious friend and started moving her. Her other friends were also dragged off, either feebly struggling or also unconscious. “Get up…” Octavia weakly uttered as tears started streaming down her cheeks. She slowly slipped down the window and onto the floor. Lying on the floor, she continued to weep for her friends. It was a devastating blow each time one of her friends fell, but when Applejack succumbed, it felt like a dagger through her heart. Never before had she felt so scared and hurt. As she continued to cry, one thought came to the forefront of her mind, and it slowly grew. Eventually, she found herself no longer caring about anything else except seeing Applejack safe and sound. Slowly, she got up on her hooves and dried her tears. “I… I have to save her,” she said to herself. Never before had she felt such a burning desire for anything. She did not know how she would accomplish such a feat, but she knew that she could not just sit back and hide when Applejack was hurt. All of a sudden, she heard the doorknob rattle. She quickly crept up to the door and looked through the peephole. Two changelings were on the other side. One of them was backing away from the door, its eyes locked on the door, while the other stepped clear of its companion. Realizing the changeling was about to ram the door, Octavia kicked the chair to the side and flung the door open while pressing herself against the wall. The changeling flew through the air, missing her by mere inches. With no door to resist its charge, the invader ended up crashing face first into the floor. As the dazed changeling got up, Octavia swiftly gave it a buck right in the face. All that time spent on the farm applebucking paid off when the changeling was knocked out cold before falling back to the floor. Out of the corner of her eye, Octavia noticed the second changeling poke its head through the door. She threw a hefty punch with her right foreleg, hissing in pain as it collided into the changeling’s face. Seeing that her attack only dazed her opponent, she grabbed the chair, held it up high, and brought it crashing down onto the changeling’s back. All that remained was a bunch of splinters and another unconscious changeling. Panting heavily over her two opponents, her ears twitched when she heard a scuffling coming from outside the room. She gritted her teeth and charged out of the room. As soon as she turned to run down the hall, she saw yet another changeling, its eyes widening from her sudden appearance. She launched herself at the unprepared changeling, barreling right into her opponent and sent the both of them tumbling through the ground. “Ow…” Octavia muttered when they came to a stop. Looking up, she saw that she was on top of her third unconscious changeling. Despite everything that happened, she let out a laugh. “I… I actually did it…” she uttered between chuckles, the euphoria of victory flooding her body. “I can do this… I can save Applejack,” she told herself. She winced when her body ached as she got off the changeling. She let out a yelp when she took a step on the same foreleg she used on the second changeling. Apparently, she overdid it with that tackle. “I can’t do this…” Octavia muttered to herself as she flopped to the floor, realizing she was way in over her head. “Applejack…” Octavia thought about her friend and their time together. They had so much fun with each other, and whenever they were together, everything felt lighter. They helped each other overcome every obstacle that came across their path. A bond had been forged between the two of them, allowing them to confide in each other their deepest worries and secrets. Applejack filled a void within her that she never knew she had, and a life without Applejack terrified her. “No, I can do this… for Applejack…” She told herself as she slowly got back up. Testing her movements, it seemed that she would be able to run around just fine, but she was still unsure if she could last in another fight. She made her way back to the apartment lobby and snuck outside, immediately heading in the direction of where she last saw Applejack. Using the same tactics as last time, she rushed from one hiding spot to another, however it was proving increasingly difficult. Not only was she forced to hide from bigger groups of changelings, they were wandering closer and closer to her hiding spots. It was as if they were able to sense she was nearby. Barely slipping by another patrol, Octavia popped out of another alley, only to skid to a stop when she ran into the street. A large gathering of changelings were standing down the street, and they were all glaring at her. Octavia let out a yelp before sprinting in the opposite direction, the invaders following in hot pursuit. Heart pounding in her chest, she galloped through alleys and streets to try and shake off her pursuers, but no matter where she went, more just kept coming her way. She let out a growl when she realized she was just running in random directions and no longer knew where Applejack was. Running down yet another alley, two changelings suddenly popped in front of the other end. Instead of slowing down, Octavia increased her speed and snarled. “Get out of my way!” she roared as she propelled herself straight through the blockade. She broke through, but the maneuver caused her to trip and fall to the ground. A jolt of pain ran through her body from the impact. Octavia struggled to get back on her hooves, but before she could resume moving again, something rammed into her side and shoved her against the nearby wall. She let out a scream when her head hit the hard surface, filling her vision with stars. I… I failed… Octavia thought when could no longer not move her body. Tears started filling her eyes as she crumpled to the ground. All she could see were black shapes slowly moving towards her through her fading vision. “I’m sorry, Applejack…” Octavia choked out with a sob before everything sank into darkness.