//------------------------------// // 2. War // Story: A Queen's love - A Twysalis story // by nioniosbbbb //------------------------------// Twilight never expected to see the memories of her beloved first hoof. It was truly amazing how she could do that, but now that she was she wasn’t sure it was as interesting or exciting as it first sounded to her. They weren’t pleasant, that’s for sure. In fact, Twilight wondered if she should stop altogether, to drop the question and let it be. But even she understood that doing so now would be disrespectful. Chrysalis had taken the first step and opened up, and she had to capitalize on that chance right now. She had an objective here, and she wouldn’t go back. They walked inside the vision of her castle, burning from the raiders. The scene unfolded before them with the vision of the younger Chrysalis searching the ruins for the survivors, and Chrysalis took the chance to talk. “If you are interested as to who did this, it was House Masquerade. The second biggest House after my own. It was inevitable for us to clash, this was war. One would be standing in the end and in this challenge there was only one measure of success:kill or be killed.” “How did you know?” asked Twilight, looking at her. But Chrysalis wasn’t looking back, instead she pointed at one of the bleeding corpses ahead as her younger version picked up an emblem that resembled a theatre mask: half sad-half happy. It took nothing more than common deductive reasoning to understand that this was the sign that sealed the deal. The vision of Chrysalis in front of them screamed: it was a scream that shook the walls of the castle around her. It lifted her mane as her magic responded to her emotions and surged through her eyes. Twilight backhoofed a bit with wide eyes, not expecting this reaction. She fell to Chrysalis, who with a look of shame tried to envelop her in a comforting hug. Twilight could notice that the remembrance of the events was causing her discomfort as well. She took her in instead and gently caressed her back. “It’ll be okay my Chryssie… It’ll be okay. I promise.” The next scenes went on in relative silence. Twilight felt it herself… Chrysalis, young as she was then wouldn’t, couldn’t believe what she was seeing. Her eyes were frantically searching for the mirrors, the switches that hid the real Lord Abectrozeus and Mistress Amalthea, her parents. Though sight could have fooled her, touch confirmed it. The warm blood, the pitch-black eyes, the deep cuts… They were all there. After almost an eternity of respectful silence for her and her fellow warriors Chrysalis turned. “The Lords of this House are dead… who do you pledge allegiance to?” The question was simple, yet loaded with emotions. Chrysalis was brewing a storm. “Mistress Chrysalis!” answered the warriors, clenching their hooves and slamming them upon their chests proudly. “House Masquerade has crossed us for the last time. They have disgraced our house! Laughed as they stabbed our backs, scorned our dreams of unity! They thwarted our peace treaties with other houses, black washed our name on our friends and empowered our enemies! But now… now Lord Cyclomatooth Masquerade has crossed the line!” She slammed the emblem of the house on the ground and pounded it with rage, crushing it beneath her hoof. “Are we not changelings as well? Do we not share the same ancestry? Did we not treat their prisoners with honor? Did we not spare their families? Did we not offer mercy to those who surrendered? Did we not offer them the chance to join us? To unite? To find a common ground? A compromise?” There was an angry pacing back and forth. The young Chrysalis flipped her mane back as it mixed within her shaking anger. Twilight saw clearly the frustration, but there was something more. A faint shiver ran through her, intensifying as the younger Chrysalis continued her speech. The murmur of discontent was rising in volume. Bit by bit, as her own voice’s volume rose, so did their anger. “There be no surer foes than those who bestow no thanks! Is it not clear anymore that they have earned our enmity? Our revenge? Are we not entitled to VENGEANCE at this point? ANSWER ME!” Rhythmic screams of anger, hatred, and promises of blood were aired. Just as those warriors had been led to battles by Chrysalis’s order, so would they now be led to a battle of holy, no… DIVINE retribution. And there among them, their Mistress, soon to be Queen, was ready to reap the seeds of her work. The rallying cry echoed through the devastated halls. Mistress Chrysalis couldn’t wait, the tired, the helpless would stay behind. The few, the angry, the willing, they rushed behind her as glowing horns left a green trail in the fading darkness, a mark of the upcoming destruction. “What happened after that?” Asked Twilight, caught in the intensity of the moment. This experience was like a horror movie to her: she didn’t want to watch it but once it had started, she couldn’t unhook herself from watching. Chrysalis smiled at her, but it was an ironic smile, the lines on her face bending into one only after great effort. The image burned in response to her magic, the flames consuming the image from her horn and expanding outwards, revealing a flaming battlefield and a stronghold much like the one Chrysalis had held. Chrysalis silently pointed to the highest tower where two figures, their magic roaring through the dawn sky. Willing their spirits towards that spot, it was soon revealed that the fight was all but evenly matched. There was something different in Chrysalis’s eyes while she was fighting. They were wide-open, her characteristics were stretched and there were battlescars and bloody spots upon her face. The one she was fighting had a short, grey-black mane, purple eyes, lean composure and wore medium armor. He was missing one fang, from that and from the emblem shining upon the middle of his chestpiece, Twilight understood this was the one they called “Cyclomatooth”. His breath came in quick pants as he moved, trying to parry and dodge the blows and magic coming from Chrysalis. Terrified, Lord Cyclomatooth was frantically fending her off. Chrysalis was fighting like a possessed mare. The calamity she had beheld at her residence was gone. It now dawned upon Twilight that Chrysalis was merely holding back her rage. And the most terrifying thing? Chrysalis, whose voice Twilight enjoyed hearing, was singing a wicked battlesong. With one powerful blast, Chrysalis sent Cyclomatooth skidding across the ground. Chrysalis, with a faint glow in her eyes, slowly approached him, her eye twitching in anger. “W-who are you? WHAT ARE YOU? S-Siren! B-BLACK SIREN!” Cyclomatooth stuttered, terrified. “What you made me… what you were taught in villainy, but I improved the instructions. I am stronger and faster. I am what you wished you could reach. I sing your doom… and like a puppet you play your part. WRIGGLE PUPPET! STRUGGLE TO GET FREE! AT THE BOTTOMLESS PIT OF DESPAIR DON’T EVEN THINK YOU CAN BE SAVED!” There was a flow of magic and a loud scream that covered Chrysalis’s last blow as everything around her went dark for a moment. The next thing to be seen was the unconscious body of her enemy. Twilight couldn’t even think of it properly. Cyclomatooth was alive with a wooden stick inside him. He would die slowly and painfully from the pain and malnourishment or infection, rather than the injury. All the while watching his last fortress burning to nothing but dust. His followers would watch, and they would learn not to cross Chrysalis ever again. With a wave of her hoof, Chrysalis reversed the magic and returned both her and Twilight to the position they were before. “Do you understand now? What I did? What kind of monster I became to unite them all? What I lost that we could have peace? How I disappointed my parents? Why I couldn’t tell you?” There was a deathly silence as they looked into each other’s eyes. “Don’t…” there was a low whisper Twilight could barely hear from Chrysalis. “Excuse me?” Twilight asked. “Don’t…” said Chrysalis giving in to the tears she had been holding throughout the confession. “Don’t leave me…” Twilight couldn’t resist. How could she hold a grudge about all this that had happened in the past? Twilight gently hugged the exhausted Queen as she rested her head upon her shoulder, letting the tears go… The war was over… this was a time for peace, and love.