The changeling queen continued to brush her multi colored hair at her vanity. For once everything seemed to be falling into place. She tried not to get her hopes too far up, but she had a feeling that her visit with Shade from the previous day had changed everything.
Making a face at the image that stared back at her from her mirror, she realized she didn’t like the over-styled look of this pony’s hair. Shining Armor chuckled from his place on her bed, causing her to lock eyes with him through the mirror. She shot him an annoyed expression despite the smiling of her eyes. He’d just gotten off work not too long ago and decided to drop in. For once her good mood was truly genuine and it made her all the more relaxed. Her beau had definitely noticed looking to take advantage.
The two had long since made up over cake- Shining Armor’s treat. Apparently his mare was overly fond of sweets.
Placing the book he’d been reading down, he hopped off the bed and came up behind her before taking the brush moving it through her thick mane. She purred at the feel of his firm strokes.
“Did you find what you were looking for?”
She hummed her confirmation. “You’ll be happy to know Galen wasn’t even there.” He nodded as a blush came over his cheeks as he thought back on the heated words she unleashed upon him the other day.
“You know you’re the only pony I’ll ever want, right?” Violet eyes were earnest as they locked eyes again through the mirror.
He smiled the goofy grin he gave the real Cadance in her fantasy and it made her heart ache.
She was a queen who had to bear the responsibility of her species’ livelihood all by herself. The thoughts of thousands resounded in her head just as her own. It was maddening at times, but Chrysalis never lost sight of what was important. But then whenever she felt herself the star of his gaze, she didn’t want to be that mare and it bothered her.
Why couldn’t she be normal? The thought made her sad as she realized she’d have to leave when all of this was over.
“You’ve been acting so strange lately…” Shining Armor murmured staring down at her. The sound of his voice fished her from her thoughts.
Candy colored eyes went wide, before the changeling queen schooled her features to something that looked more curious. “Oh?”
He placed the brush down, smiling as he pulled her into his grasp. “But it’s a good strange.” He breathed into her ear as he nuzzled her neck. Chrysalis shivered at the feel of him so close. “You’re just sooo…. Intoxicating,” he murmured placing kisses against her neck.
“Shining,” She moaned as she allowed him more access to her body. “Don’t start what you can’t finish.“
He chuckled as he turned her around and captured her lips in a kiss that made her knees weak. Chrysalis disguised as Cadance leaned into her stallion as she eagerly returned his passion.
Chrysalis felt herself being hoisted onto the vanity as Shining Armor continued to kiss her senseless.
His feelings since she’d infiltrated this form had grown enormously much to her delight. She had a penchant for love and his had always been exquisite in content and it had only seemed to better with time.
“The things I want to do to you,” He groaned into her mouth as his desire for her grew.
“What’s stopping you…” She returned just as far gone.
He paused long enough to stare into her darkened eyes. “Cadance…. Are you sure?” He’d been wanting to for a while now.
“It’s nothing we haven’t done before,” She breathed before initiating her own form of temptation.
Shining Armor groaned against her mouth pulling her form closer to his.
Making love with him was better than she remembered. Ever the gentlecolt, she let him know she was no gentle flower prompting him to love her with everything he had.
When the stallion beneath her had fallen asleep, the alicorn disguised changeling queen laid awake listening to the steady beating of his heart. She couldn’t believe she’d encouraged him to take her the way she did, but she‘d be even more of a liar if she said she didn‘t enjoy every minute of it.
The problem wasn't falling in love, as she would always have a spot in her heart for him, it was forgetting her task. And the words he'd groaned in her ear were making her forget her task. Displeasure and wariness ghosted through her body as the gravity of what she had allowed to happen was beginning to sink in. Chrysalis chewed on her bottom lip as she tried to focus, a nervous habit she couldn't shake. She made to move, but found that the pony beneath her was now awake staring at her with gentle concern.
“Mmmm… What’s the matter?”
Her gaze softened and she gave him a soft smile. “Nothing. Go back to sleep.”
His eyes darkened. “Do you regret-“
“No!” She rushed with wide eyes. “I could never regret that with you.”
“Cadance…” He scowled softly, prompting her to come clean. “Tell me.”
“When… when you said you wanted to be with me forever… did you mean it?“
He pressed a kiss to her forehead. “I did…”
“Were… you asking?”
He was thoughtful, “Are you telling me no?”
“No…”
“So it’s a yes?”
“No…”
He chuckled at the miserable expression on her pink face. “What’re you afraid of?”
“Everything,” She laid her head back down and allowed herself to be the filly she used to be before she became a queen. The problem wasn't really about what he said. It was more about who he was saying it to. “I don’t think you understand how important you are to me.”
He snorted good naturedly. “Obviously or I wouldn’t have asked.”
She forced herself to smile the saccharine way she knew the real Cadance did. “I know, Shining. I just wanted you to know that in this moment, for me, you’re everything I could ever want.”
“What about tomorrow,” he teased sleepily after yawning.
“Of course.” She smiled hiding the bitterness in her candy colored eyes.
“And the day after?”
“Forever,” she silenced with a kiss.
“So is that a yes?”
“… yes…”
*-*3333*-*
Elytra was said to have been an alicorn of love and unity. A beautiful mare with a buttercream coat and a mane the color of corals. But despite being a keeper of such a sentiment, she was very aloof, for her love was a love that inspired a communal well-being.
Her magic was powered by her subjects' adoration, and because of that there was balance within her kingdom. Her subjects were grateful for her fairness caring deeply for their monarch. But as anypony knows true love is most different from feelings of gratitude. Elytra’s love was a love born of responsibility- not a love of choice.
But one day she got a taste for real love and it was the most amazing thing she'd ever experienced. To have somepony love her simply because they chose to seemed like a gift from her maker and it changed her completely. Allowing herself the closeness of another made her realize there was more to life than the coldness of singularity for the sake of balance.
However, just as soon as she found true love, she lost it just as easily. For all her powers of fairness and well-being she could do nothing to stop the sickness that ravaged her lands and claimed her lover as well as many others in her care. The loss she felt was tremendous shaking her to her very core.
When her lover died Elytra was devastated. It seemed so unfair and utterly beyond her control that she became sick with grief. And because she was an alicorn whose powers were of love, such negative emotions were havoc on her mind and body. Unbeknownst to Elytra she was also pregnant. But when she had her baby it was a stillborn whose form had been warped by her negative emotions.
Driven to insanity by her anguish, the alicorn used her love magic as well as the life force of another to bring the baby back to life.
Some were terrified of her power and her obvious insanity, others were terrified of her unnatural foal and fled the country. The few that did stay were truly loyal to their monarch and knew that she needed them now more than ever. Because of the baby's unnatural circumstances and the warped magic that gave it life, it needed love to survive.
When word got back to Discord about the alicorn's trespass he punished her for her crimes by twisting her form to match that of her foal's. He cursed her subjects as well, rewarding their loyalty by intertwining their fate with their monarchs.
Chrysalis leaned back in her chair as she thought over what she had come to find out about the alicorn they called Elytra in the olden days. Once again she was tucked away in Celestia’s private office.
Could Elytra have been the first changeling queen? It certainly looked that way. Sadly, this new development only seemed to raise more questions than it did answers.
What she translated told her more about her origins than she had ever hoped to find, but it also left very little in terms of solutions. So Discord really did have a hand in their creation… But what did that mean for their salvation as nothing had seemed to come from the fact so far.
What was she supposed to do?
Tears of frustration welled up in her eyes and the candy colored irises flashed a bright green, a sure sign that she was in distress. Before she could stop herself, she violently swiped all her scrolls off the table with a cry of anguish.
“Cadance... what's the matter?”
Celestia! She hadn’t even heard the majestic alicorn come in.
The Changeling Queen was mortified to be caught by Princess Celestia in such a vulnerable state increasing her ire as her eyes widened in horror. “Aunty!” She managed to stutter as her cheeks flushed red. Wiping furiously at glassy eyes, she tried to save what little dignity she had left. “I didn't mean-“ She immediately began to collect the strewn items.
“It’s alright Cadance,” Celestia soothed as she moved to comfort her niece, urging her to still herself. She lightly nuzzled the younger trying to ease her emotional distress.
Chrysalis chewed on her lip nervously. She was a changeling queen who showed fear and uncertainty to no one. For Celestia to see her in such a state disguised or otherwise was truly upsetting. At the very thought of all she had to lose, the changeling felt unbridled tears come to her eyes.
The Equestrian Princess stared at her with such concern and patience that Chrysalis couldn't help but bury her face in her hooves as her frustration gave way to something more distraught. She could feel her 'aunt' pull her in for a hug.
“There, there Cadenza, it'll be okay.” Celestia lightly petted the distressed mare waiting for her to regain her composure.
After taking a few deep breaths, Chrysalis was finally able to calm herself enough to speak without crying. She wiped at her eyes again before placing her hooves on the table. Her mind raced to find a convincing explanation. She turned to speak to Celestia only to see that her attention was locked on something else.
The golden band located on the upper part of her right foreleg glinted softly in the light of day. It was a symbol of a mare intended. She was doing her best to not think of her pending engagement, now it seemed she had no choice but to dwell on the consequences of her actions.
“Cadance…” Amethyst eyes were genuinely surprised. Celestia had watched as her niece and guard grew closer. It really shouldn’t come as a surprise to her that the two would want to be together but it was. She trusted Shining Armor, but he was very much in-love with his work. It made her wonder if the two were together because they genuinely cared about each other or because everypony just assumed they would get together due to their titles.
“Shining Armor asked me to marry him!” Chrysalis blurted out feeling self-conscious about the jewelry he had presented to her earlier that morning before reporting to his station.
“Do you not wish to be married?” Celestia asked trying to find the reason for all the tears.
"Not at all!" she cried. "I'm just so afraid of making a mistake. I love him," she thought of her changelings as she let her voice tremble. "But what if it isn't enough? I'm afraid that if I'm not careful, then I'll make a mistake and lose everything. "
“Oh Cadance.” She hadn’t realized her niece had fallen so deeply in love with her Captain. “Making mistakes is inevitable, but as long as you're willing to fight for what you believe in, I do believe you can rectify just about anything.”
For whatever reason, Celestia’s cliché response just annoyed her. None of this was simple. “What would you know about making mistakes? You're perfect.” Chrysalis muttered petulantly as she rolled her eyes still playing the part of the distressed fiancée.
“I'm flattered you think so.” The Sol alicorn chuckled amused. “But I've made many and I've paid for them. I wasn't always confident and I don't think I'll ever be as wise as I think I should be. But all I can do is the best that I can. “
“But what if you make a mistake and it ends up hurting the people who need you most?” If her children died, she was sure she’d die of heartbreak.
“But what if you don’t?” Celestia countered brightly. “Failure is not always a mistake, sometimes it’s the best one can do under the circumstances. The real mistake is to stop trying.”**
“I don't want to hurt him...”
“Then don't... be with him if he makes you happy. And I've never seen you so happy before. Love can conquer anything- even our doubts and fears.”
Chrysalis looked up with a pensive expression on her face. “Love can conquer anything…”
Celestia gave the younger another moment to compose herself before saying anything more. “Discord…” It was still odd her niece would acquaint herself with the draconequus. “Inquired about you earlier…” The attitude change was instant.
“Did he?” Candy colored eyes narrowed as a calculating glint was shown within their depths. “Where is he?” She asked schooling her expression into something less hostile. Celestia blinked as a wild idea entered her cranium.
“He’s in the gardens.” Her niece was up and out the door before she could say anything else.
Amethyst eyes stared after the cerise colored mare with a mixture of concern and suspicion. Something was going on with Cadance and it was about time she’d looked into it.
*-*3333*-*
“You have to be the most wicked, and cruelest creature in the entire world to do what you did to her and not feel the least bit sorry!” Chrysalis had wasted no time after her talk with Celestia in finding the chaotic creature known as Discord. The garden was as peaceful as ever. Ironically, it seemed to be spot she always ended up talking to the disharmonious creature.
“I’ve always been a wicked creature…” Discord said with a roguish smile. “But I’m not so cruel anymore.”
“You cursed her!”
“I did.”
“For being out of her mind with grief?” Chrysalis didn’t even bother trying to hide the accusation in her voice.
“For murder!”
“For your own sick pleasure! If you were worried about maintaining balance you should’ve killed her for her transgression. What you did was worse…” She was still reeling from the information she had discovered as well as her talk with Celestia.
“As an alicorn she should’ve known better. I just opened her eyes to what being a God was really like.” He smirked as he flexed his talons.
“What about her subjects? Their only sin against them was loyalty-“
“It was only fair,” Discord countered offhandedly.
“I don’t…” The Changeling Queen was still trying to make sense of it all. “If Elytra was being punished why didn’t you ever change us back?”
“Well I was encased in stone…”
“What’s stopping you now?” She demanded with a furrowed brow. It all seemed so pointless now.
“And there lies the punch line of this terrible joke!” He cackled.
“What does that mean?” She pleaded in vain knowing that Discord wouldn’t shed any more insight. “Cursed… How do I break it?”
“How does anypony break a curse?” He asked as if the answer was obvious.
“But Elytra died thousands of years ago! This doesn’t make sense… You can’t break a curse unless the accursed is somehow involved.” She was so close and yet so far. Frustration was written all over her coquettish features. She seemingly deflated. “This isn’t making sense.” She sighed feeling more lost than ever. “What do I do?” She felt his talons on her shoulder as his snout rested near her ear.
Yellow eyes with red irises narrowed. “The answer lies deep within yourself.” He paused before striking again. “Congratulations on your engagement, by the way…” Discord grinned knowingly as he zeroed in on her engagement band. Violet eyes widened and suddenly Chrysalis felt some of her righteous fury leave. “It seems you took my advice after all.” She blushed at his implications. “Don’t be so bashful,” he swiped the air playfully floating to hover in front of her. “It’s not me you have to explain it to.” He nodded towards a pair of maids moving with tea trays in their possession.
“Would you like to receive tea in your room, Princess?”
Chrysalis turned to face Discord who poofed away leaving a cloud of smoke and laughter.
*-*3333*-*
“So it’s true…” The tea tray clattered to the ground as Jadzia narrowed her verdant eyes. She was livid and justly so. The changeling queen could taste both of her general’s emotions and she would be just as confused if she were in their hooves.
The Princess had smiled at her maids and thanked them for the offer of tea before leading them back to her quarters. Now that the doors were sealed, the gloves were off.
“I couldn’t say no.” Chrysalis stated choosing to ignore the accusation on champagne colored features.
“Couldn’t or wouldn’t?” Jadzia challenged glaring at the stoic mare in front of her.
Kirai, not liking the tension in the air, decided to speak up. “Odonata says things are getting worse… She doesn’t know what to do.” The two had just returned from a brief deployment the night before.
Unfortunately what they had to report only brought about more stress.
“We’re dying Chrysalis! I know you can feel it!” Jadzia raged taking a step forward. “You’re out of time and we can’t wait any longer. Watching the others pass around me was a nightmare, but when my Zendaya… the baby girl you blessed me with, passed away, it was nothing short of hell.” Chrysalis pursed her lips as she thought of the baby changeling her General was so ecstatic to have. She’d never seen Jadzia so happy before. “You’re not Princess Cadance! I’m sorry, we can see how much you want to be if only for him, but you’re not! You were made for us! Not him, not even yourself, but for us.”
“Jadzia,” Kirai admonished lightly, wary of the frost behind Chrysalis’ stare. “Calm down, Chrysalis knows more than she’s letting on. I’m sure she has good reason for what she’s done.” While she agreed somewhat with her companion, she could understand Chrysalis’ hesitation on the matter. She reached out with a hoof to calm her fuming comrade, only to be shrugged away as Jadzia continued her tirade.
“No, I won’t be calm! I wish it wasn’t this way but it is… We’re in a position to take this city! There are enough ponies here that we could restore our reserves and save whoever is left. And then we could keep these ponies on as a semi-permanent source of food.”
While she wouldn’t deny the logic behind her General’s thinking, Chrysalis thought she could do this without invading Canterlot. “Do you hear what you are proposing, Jadzia? If we lose we’ll die!“ She couldn’t give up now… Not when she was so close.
“If we don’t we’ll die! We could do it, my Queen! Not for ourselves, but for you we could! You’d just have to be willing to ask it of us. Please!” The false skinned creature pleaded like she’d never pleaded before as her ears flattened against her skull.
Contrary to the image she portrayed, Chrysalis was not made of stone. Jadzia’s plea did not fall on deaf ears but Chrysalis had already made her decision. “You said that I was made to serve you…” She turned to stare out of balcony doors. “And just as I serve you, you live to obey me.” She tossed her multi colored mane over her shoulders as she turned to regard her duo once more. “My decision is made and your life is mine to gamble. Do not question me again Jadzia or you will surely live to regret it.” Violet eyes flashed a bright green as Princess Cadance’s face twisted into something cold. “Am I understood?”
Jadzia bristled under her monarch’s gaze. Kirai stared between the two genuinely concerned.“Yes, my Queen.” Jadzia bit out with barely controlled ire.
“Good. You are dismissed.” The two moved to leave Cadance’s presence.
“Jadzia,” Chrysalis called when they had reached the door. “I… I… regret your loss,” was her quiet farewell. Jadzia stiffened before hurrying out.
Kirai turned to cast one last look at her monarch. She did not envy her position one bit.