//------------------------------// // Chapter 2 // Story: Bound to Darkness // by asylum1388 //------------------------------// Twilight opened her eyes, blinking away the blurriness to find herself sitting with her back against a cold dungeon wall, her front hooves pinned to the grey stone with a pair of heavy manacles. She didn't dare move and instead decided to try casting a spell. She gathered her magic and began to channel it into her horn but winced as something forcefully blocked it. She recognized the feeling. Someone had placed a magic ward on her horn; an enchanted silver ring that blocked the magic of whoever’s horn it was placed on. "You're awake," a feminine voice said to her. "Good. We have many questions for you." She shot to a sitting position and locked her eyes on the speaker. "Princess Celestia! Oh, thank heavens." "That is a most odd response from a prisoner," another voice muttered. Twilight turned to see Princess Luna glaring at her, wearing a bewildered and suspicious frown to match her sister's. "Wouldst you mind explaining to us why we found you laying unconscious at our city's gate?" "L-listen, this isn't what it looks like. I'm actually Twilight Sparkle," Twilight insisted desperately. Celestia recoiled, rage flashing in her eyes. “This is a new low! Impersonating Cadance is one thing, but impersonating Twilight is far worse. You nearly shattered the friendships that have become the center of her life and I shudder to think what might have become of her had you not sent her to the caverns.” “And for reference, your facade is far more convincing when you are properly disguised,” Luna grunted. "No, really! I was working on that scrying spell to spy on the changelings and accidentally ended up like this," Twilight pleaded. "Now she's in my body and she's free!" “I don’t know how you found out about Twilight’s project, but your story still doesn’t add up. Body-switching spells are magically impossible,” Celestia snarled. "Some of the best unicorns in history spent their entire lives trying. If you actually were Twilight, you’d know that." “I do know that but I—” “Enough!” Celestia bellowed. “I should lock you away forever for dragging Twilight into this, but first we will call her here to confront you face-to-face. Perhaps it will give her much-needed closure to know that you can never harm anypony ever again.” She turned around and started walking to the stairs, so Twilight turned to Luna. “Luna, please! Remember Nightmare Night? You said that after Celestia, I was the best friend you’ve ever had!” Luna recoiled, eyes wide with alarm and fear. She shook her head violently and stared at Twilight again, hesitancy crossing her features. “T-Twilight?” A spell flew over Luna’s shoulder and struck Twilight in the throat, paralyzing her vocal chords. “How dare you toy with my sister’s emotions like that!” Celestia snarled. “Twilight was the first new friend she made after her return, and I will not see you tear them apart.” Twilight winced at her mentors rage and glanced back at Luna. The Night Princess’ glared at her with deep loathing and turned away before calling for a guard. “Your Highnesses?” “Please send a chariot to Ponyville to fetch Twilight Sparkle for us. Immediately,” Celestia said to the guard, through gritted teeth. He saluted and galloped out. Celestia turned around and simply stared at Twilight. They waited, Celestia continuing to cast her venomous glare at Twilight and Luna pointedly looking away for only a few minutes before the sound of hooves on stone announced that somepony was descending the stairs to the dungeon. All three pairs of eyes turned as the form of Twilight Sparkle appeared in the doorway. Twilight tried to scream, but only managed to exhale loudly. "Twilight, what are you doing here already?" Celestia asked suspiciously. The skeptical frowns on both her and Luna's faces gave Twilight a moment of hope; she silently pleaded that the alicorns would see through the charade. "I came to Canterlot for a surprise visit when I heard you caught the changeling queen. I wanted to find out what you learned from her. And see if I could help," Chrysalis murmured hesitantly. Twilight's heart sank. Chrysalis was mimicking her mannerisms perfectly. Twilight didn't know how, but Chrysalis had vastly improved since the invasion. "Then I ran into a guard at the palace entrance who said you were looking for me and I came right away." "Thank you, Twilight," Celestia replied warmly. "So far she hasn’t given us anything useful. All she's done is claim to be you. I cast a silencing spell on her after she turned her poisonous words on Luna." "Really? Why would she say that she was me? She's not even disguised," Chrysalis muttered, eyeing Twilight suspiciously. "She said something about a 'body-switching spell'. Ridiculous, I know," Luna grumbled, she and Celestia both turning to their prisoner. That's when Twilight saw it. A vial, attached to a nearly invisible string around Chrysalis' neck, slipped from her mane and hung freely. The vial began to glow a bright blood-red as Chrysalis' horn glowed a matching color. Luna and Celestia noticed the glow behind them with just enough time for shock to register on their faces before the vial exploded with an ear-shattering crack, splattering them with blood. The Princesses collapsed where they stood, eyes wide open but completely limp. Chrysalis gave Twilight a twisted smile as a trio of guards rushed in. "What happened?" bellowed a large unicorn wearing a crested sergeant's helmet. "The changeling cursed the Princesses!" Chrysalis screamed, striking Twilight in the chest with a painful spell. The guards rushed forward to examine the fallen alicorns before turning to Chrysalis. "Lady Twilight, can you restore them?" Chrysalis cautiously stepped up to the Princesses and examined them closely. "I-I think so, but I'll need the Elements of Harmony. Can you get them for me?" she stammered perfectly. The sergeant nodded to his two subordinates, who rushed out of the dungeons, before turning back to Chrysalis. "And their bearers?" "Oh, yes. Them too," Chrysalis muttered, her mask slipping for the briefest moment. Unfortunately, the sergeant didn't seem to notice and rushed out. Chrysalis turned back to Twilight and smirked smugly. "That was much better than my last performance, don't you think?" she giggled. "I've been thinking about you a lot since then. I thought about every single thing I saw you do over and over. Could you tell?" "What about this? Do you like it? I call it 'Blood Bind'," she proclaimed proudly, pointing at the Princesses. She stepped over to the nearby wall and picked up a heavy, rust-covered chain in her magic, inspecting it closely. "It's an old spell I rediscovered a few years ago. Using the blood of the caster, it completely paralyzes the victim. They are effectively trapped in their own body. Their heart stops, their breathing stops, and they are completely unable to move. But they can still see everything, hear everything. Feel everything." She whipped the chain across Celestia's back, rending flesh. Chrysalis purred softly and turned back towards Twilight. "Right now, precious Celestia is screaming in agony, but only she can hear it." She dropped the chain and sauntered up to Twilight. "So here's what's going to happen: when your friends get here, we are going to turn you into a statue with those jewels of yours. It won't free the Princesses, but it'll keep my body safe and sound for a while. After that, poor Cadance will suffer a terrible, fatal, carriage accident on her way back to Canterlot." Twilight lunged at her angrily and Chrysalis laughed. She danced up to Twilight, standing just out of the chained mare's reach and planted a peck on her nose. "Of course with all three of Equestria's Princesses... indisposed, who else would they turn to but Celestia's beloved apprentice?" She reached up and wiped an angry tear from Twilight's cheek as rapid hoof beats announced the return of one of the guards. "It's the perfect plan," she whispered before turning to the guard. "I have dispatched a carriage to Ponyville. The bearers will be here in short order," the sergeant grunted with a sharp salute. "Good, good," Chrysalis sighed, shaking as if traumatized. "H-how long?" "A little over an hour." "Okay. In the meantime, I'm going to try to break the curse, alright?" Chrysalis asked hesitantly. "Yes ma'am." "Good. I think I'd be better if you leave though. I don't know exactly what's going to happen," Chrysalis replied. When the guard narrowed his eyes at her she continued quickly, "Both the Princesses and I will be safe, I just want to make sure... that there's no magical interference!" The sergeant's face flashed with comprehension and he gave her a quick bow. "Understood, ma'am." He gave her another sharp salute and galloped out. Chrysalis turned back to Twilight with a grin and danced giddily. "A whole hour? This is wonderful, Twilight! I've wanted to have some one-on-one playtime with you for a while now," she giggled. She sat down in front of Twilight with a contented sigh. "Did you know that I'm interested in magic? Well I am! And now that we have some time, we can practice together. Here, let me share a spell I invented with you." She stood up and backed away, pointing her glowing horn at Twilight. Soft warmth flickered in Twilight's breast and exploded into an agonizing burn. She gasped, breathing heavily as she tried to suppress the pain, but it only spread further. In mere seconds, it erupted into mind-numbing blaze. She couldn't breathe, couldn't think, couldn't even scream. Just as she began to believe that the spell had tore her apart, it subsided and she found herself hanging limply from her bindings, body contorted and writhing in pain. "Well? Did you like it?" Chrysalis squealed excitedly. Twilight wrenched her eyes open to find Chrysalis standing mere inches away from her, breathing heavily and covered in sweat. "I call it 'soulfire'; it's my favorite! Using it on someone is... indescribable! Best feeling in the world." She sat down, closed her eyes and moaned, trembling momentarily. Twilight gave a pained sigh and Chrysalis opened her eyes with a smile. "You’re right, soulfire isn't a very good name is it? Maybe you can help me come up with a better one. Here, I'll cast it again so you can get some inspiration." "Lady Twilight, your friends are here!" a voice called, echoing down the hallway. The sound of her name jerked Twilight back to consciousness. She felt nothing at first, but a headache quickly began to form as her brain slowly churned back into motion and the memories of the past hour began to surface. She couldn’t remember just how many different spells Chrysalis had ‘shared’ with her, but the deranged queen had insisted on casting all of them at least three times apiece. It hadn’t been long before Twilight’s mind shut down, merely accepting the pain for what it was: inevitable. "Send them in!" Chrysalis called back before turning to Twilight with a pout. "Too bad; this is the most fun I think I've ever had. Oh well, all good things must end." She fell silent as Rainbow Dash bolted into the room, closely followed by Rarity, Applejack, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie, all of whom immediately ran to the Princesses' limp bodies. "Wh-what in tarnation happened here?" "I don't know, this... monster cursed them!" Chrysalis snarled, pointing accusingly at Twilight. “Ah thought you said there was no such thing as curses!” Applejack said as she carefully stepped up to Princess Celestia. “Well I was wrong!” Chrysalis said exasperatedly. With the exception of Fluttershy, Twilight friends walked up to her with spiteful glares, and she simply stared pleadingly back, begging them silently to see through the facade. "We need to hurry and handle her. Did you bring the Elements?" "Uh... yeah. Yeah we did," Rainbow muttered. “But shouldn’t we try to help the Princesses first?” "No! We c- I mean we don’t know what else she can do. We need to take care of her now!” Chrysalis said forcefully. “After that, we can deal w— help Celestia.” “Okay. If you say so,” Rarity replied, slightly put off. She gently placed the Tiara of Magic on Chrysalis' head and distributed the necklaces before adorning her own. They surrounded Twilight, standing in a semicircle against the dungeon wall. Chrysalis began to channel her magic with a triumphant grin and Twilight jammed her eyes shut. Nothing happened. "Umm, Twilight? Y'all can zap her anytime now!" Applejack grunted through grit teeth. "I-I'm trying!" Chrysalis panted, pushing more charge into her horn for a moment before the magic flickered and died. "What's going on? Why isn't it working?" “Well this is certainly strange,” Rarity said softly. “The Elements have never behaved like this before!” Twilight let out a sigh of relief as Chrysalis tried again, her horn sparking and sputtering uselessly. Chrysalis let out a frustrated scream and took the Element off her head, shaking it angrily. “You’re supposed to turn her to stone, you stupid thing!” She shook it again, but the Element remained dim and silent. With one last enraged grunt, she hurled it against the ground and stormed away. It bounced noisily, landing a short distance from Twilight. As Twilight’s friends followed Chrysalis, attempting to console the angry unicorn, Twilight herself had her attention on the Element. It was nearly two meters away; out of her reach, but maybe if she stretched out... “Oh no you don’t!” Twilight snapped her head up to see Rainbow Dash glaring at her from across the dungeon. Without another moment’s hesitation, Twilight redoubled her efforts to reach her Element as Rainbow shot across the room. Straining against her binding and stretching out as much as she could bear, Twilight managed to nudge the tiara with her back hoof. The resulting light stopped Rainbow in mid-charge, drawing all eyes in the room to the Element of Magic as it glowed intensely. The chromatic pegasus backed away slowly, eyes wide with confusion and fear. “Wh-what?” “B-b-but only Twilight’s supposed to be able to use the Element of Magic!” Applejack stammered. “Why’s it reactin’ to her?” “I don’t know! This is... No. No, this can’t be right,” Rarity said, glancing rapidly between Twilight, Chrysalis and the Element. “Each of our Elements only responds to its wielder.” “That means that that thing is Twilight! But she can’t be Twilight, because Twilight’s right here,” Pinkie lilted, pointing between the two as she spoke. “But the Element is saying that that’s Twilight, and the Elements can’t lie. So if that’s Twilight, then who the heck are you?” All five of Twilight’s friends turned to Chrysalis in unison, their steely glares demanding an explanation. “Well, I... She... It’s obvious that...” Chrysalis gibbered, glancing around wildly at them. Finally, she closed her eyes and shook her head, a malicious smirk alighting her face. “Oh, screw it. You’ve got me.” Five jaws hung open as her posture changed and she slid into a more arrogant mannerism. “And I was so close this time too! I suppose that’s what I get for underestimating the Elements.” “Who are you really?” Applejack asked suspiciously. “Oh puh-leeese, you cannot truly be this dense!” Chrysalis groaned. “She’s the changeling queen,” Fluttershy said nervously. “Finally! I knew you wouldn’t be able to forget me,” Chrysalis said, elation glowing in her eyes as Twilight’s friends all gasped. “What did you do to her? Fix it now!” Rainbow bellowed, advancing on Chrysalis. “I will do no such thing! Unless... you intend to force me?” Chrysalis asked, her voice taunting and arrogant. “If we have to!” Applejack snarled. “Then, by all means, try,” Chrysalis said with a faked giggle. Twilight’s friends pounced on her, but were all thrown back by a ring of energy expanding from Chrysalis’ horn. Each of them slammed hard into the dungeon walls, pinned by Chrysalis’ spell. “You ponies are all so predictable,” Chrysalis sighed. She sauntered up to Twilight and gave her a wistful smirk. “Well, my dear Twilight, it seems that you’ve once again managed to foil my plans, and in a way that I could never have anticipated. I suppose I could just kill your friends now and take that small victory, but that just wouldn’t be playing fair, would it?” Chrysalis cooed patronizingly. “Instead, we will call this a draw. I will retreat for now and come up with a new plan so that we may play again. Soon.” She let the thinly-veiled threat hang in the air for a few seconds, then seized Twilight’s head in her hooves and kissed her forcefully. Not even bothering to avoid the fangs, she whipped her tongue around the inside of Twilight mouth, then backed away, scooped up the Element of Magic in her hoof, and teleported with a flash. As soon as she disappeared, her magic dissipated and Twilight’s friends all fell to the ground, confused, but ultimately unhurt. They immediately stood up and cautiously made their way over to Twilight, standing a length away from her. For the longest time, none of them spoke, mesmerized by the creature crying with relief before them; the being that the Element of Magic insisted was their friend. Finally, Applejack spoke, softly and skeptically. “Twilight, i-is that really you?” Twilight nodded vigorously. Rainbow lifted a hoof towards Twilight’s bindings, but Applejack stopped her. “Hold on now. As much as Ah wanna trust her, we can’t until we know for sure.” “Yeah, well how do we do that? She can’t talk for some reason,” Rainbow replied angrily. Applejack opened her mouth with a retort, but was cut off by Rarity. “I think I know this spell; some of the other fillies used to prank each other with it in high school. Let’s see if I remember how to undo it...” Rarity closed her eyes and began to channel her magic. Gritting her teeth with concentration, she released it and Twilight’s head glowed white for a mere instant. As soon as the feeling returned to her throat, she began speaking rapidly. “Your name is Applejack. Your brother is Big Macintosh. Your little sister is Applebloom. Her friends are Swee-” “Okay, okay! Ah believe ya,” Applejack interrupted, a mix of relief and amusement leaking into her voice. Without further hesitation, she and Rainbow undid the clasps keeping their friend bound to the wall and Twilight immediately hugged them both. “Thank you! You have no idea how glad I am to see you girls,” Twilight sobbed. “I-it’s okay, Twilight. We’re here for you now,” Rainbow said, shifting uncomfortably in Twilight’s hold. “This is so weird...” “Where’s Spike? I-is he here?” Twilight asked suddenly, glancing towards the dungeon’s entrance. "No, we thought he was with you. We haven't seen him since you left us that note," Rarity replied, concern rising in her voice. "What note? ...Maybe you should start from the beginning. What's happened since the last time you saw me in Ponyville?" Twilight asked, fidgeting nervously. "Nothin' that seemed too outta the ordinary," Applejack muttered. "'Bout five days ago we all noticed that the library wasn't open, so we went in and found a note from you sayin' that you 'n Spike had ta go to Canterlot and y'all would be back soon. That's a mite bit strange, sure, but nothin' too hair-raisin'. After that we didn't hear nothin' until this mornin' when the guards showed up and ordered us to come with 'em." "Oh no! Chrysalis must have written that note. That means she has him," Twilight groaned, sinking to the floor. “Uhhhh, Chrysalis?” Pinkie asked, all of Twilight’s friends mimicking her confused expression. “The queen. That’s her name,” Twilight muttered. Twilight’s friends all exchanged worried glances. Fluttershy stepped forward and gently placed a hoof on Twilight’s. “I-I’m sure he’s alright. I don’t think she’d hurt him.” “Yeah, not after kissing you like-” Rainbow began before Rarity cut her off by elbowing her in the ribs. “Ah’m with Fluttershy. She probably has him locked up somewhere like she did with Cadance,” Applejack said encouragingly. “Once we catch her, get you back into your own body, ‘n uncurse the princesses, we’ll just smack her around ‘til she tells us where he is. Then we can go rescue him!” “I hope you’re right,” Twilight sighed sadly. “Ah am right!” "What about you, Twilight?" Rarity asked. "Please don't take this the wrong way, but I think you owe us an explanation." "Yeah, I guess I do," Twilight murmured guiltily. "Okay, you know that spell I spent most of last week inventing?" She was met with a round of nods. "It was supposed to be a sort of spying spell. Without getting into the technical aspects of it, I was trying to mix unicorn and zebra magic so that I could use a piece of Chrysalis to feel all her senses for a bit. See what she sees and such. I guess it sort of worked... Right after I finished casting the spell, I found myself in the changeling nest, in full control of Chrysalis' body, rather than just, uhhh, 'riding along' with her." "You were in the changelings' home? What was it like? What were they like?" Fluttershy asked, ears perked with interest. “Fluttershy, please, you can ask those questions later. Let Twilight finish,” Rarity interjected, giving Fluttershy an apologetic smile. “Oh. Right, sorry.” “Anyway, Chrysalis’ leg was in a cast, and one of the drones — that's what the changelings who aren't queens are called — told me that it couldn’t come off for a couple days. So I basically just waited around until they took the cast off. After that a few of their soldiers offered to escort me to Ponyville so I could get this sorted out, but Chrysalis was waiting for us just outside of the nest. She took control of the hive and knocked me out, then I woke up here,” Twilight finished. “She actually brought you here? Why would she do that?” Pinkie asked. “I don’t know, she’s insane,” Twilight said wearily. “This is all some kind of sick game to her.” They sat in silence as Twilight’s words hung in the air like a dark cloud. Before long, the rapid echo of hoof beats reached their ears and they turned towards the door just as a dozen guards burst through, led by a glacial-blue pegasus stallion wearing a golden lieutenant’s helmet. He pointed at them and bellowed. “The changeling’s free! Grab her!” Four of the guards bolted towards Twilight and wrestled her to the ground as the others pulled her friends away from her. “Wait! Let her go. We can explain,” Rarity gasped, cringing away from the angry guards. “You had better. I have half a mind to arrest you all and be done with it,” the lieutenant growled. “You can’t arrest us! Who do you think you are?” Rainbow said arrogantly. "I am First Lieutenant Icewing, and I am in charge of the Canterlot garrison while Captain Shining Armor is away," he barked authoritatively. "The Captain is a good friend of mine and has placed a vast amount of trust in me, so you'll understand the distress I felt if one of my men came to me in a near-panic saying that our Princesses have been cursed. Now, after receiving assurances that Twilight Sparkle and the other Bearers had things under control, I received reports of screaming coming from down here and arrive to find Twilight Sparkle missing, our prisoner out of her chains, and the lot of you sitting around like nothing’s wrong." He stepped up to her and leaned in, staring her down. “In short, you will answer my questions, or else. Understood?” Rainbow searched for the buff in his face, but withered when she found none. “Yes sir,” she gulped. “Good. But first...” He turned to a unicorn mare at his left. "Corporal, status?" "Sir! Anti-changeling spells running at maximum efficiency, sir. Chances of even one of the bearers being under the changeling's influence are under point-two percent. The fact that the spell ward is still attached to her lowers that likelihood to less than a thousandth of a percent." "Perfect," Lieutenant Icewing grunted, turning back to Twilight and her friends. "So, where is Twilight Sparkle?" “She... is possessed by an evil spirit!” Rarity replied quickly. “It cursed the princesses to lure the five of us here so it could steal the Elements of Harmony, but when we realized what was happening it teleported away.” “W-wait, I’m sorry, I don’t think I heard you right. Could you repeat that?” Icewing stammered. “It’s true!” Pinkie said insistently. “It took over Twilight so that it could use her to take over Equestria!” "You are sure? You are absolutely sure that Twilight Sparkle is possessed?" Icewing asked skeptically. "Positive," Rarity retorted firmly. “And why are you so sure that the spirit cursed the Princesses and not this wretch?” he asked, gesturing to Twilight. “It, the spirit that is, told us as much,” Rarity said. "This is just great," Icewing groaned. "Now—" "Wait, that's it? You believe us just like that?" Rainbow asked incredulously. "It's no secret that the five of you are close friends with Twilight Sparkle. If you say that there's something wrong with her, then I believe you," Icewing muttered, fixing his eyes on Twilight. "That, however, still doesn’t explain why you freed this monster." “She’s not a monster, she wants to help!” Fluttershy squeaked. Icewing frowned at the buttery pegasus. “I very much doubt that.” “That’s true too! She said she’s very, very sorry for invading Canterlot and that it was a misunderstanding. She said that she wants to help us fix this to prove how sorry she is!” Pinkie screeched. Icewing glanced from Pinkie to Twilight and Twilight nodded vigorously, not daring to speak. Icewing groaned and slapped a hoof over his face. “Girls, this is a creature whose entire purpose is to lie and deceive. You can’t possibly say you trust—” "Listen, Shining Armor and Princess Cadance are in grave danger!" Twilight blurted. "W-what? Explain, changeling. Now!" the Lieutenant bellowed. "The, uhhhh, spirit told me it wanted them dead! It said it was going to attack their carriage and make it look like an accident," Twilight stammered. Icewing turned to the nearest guard and the Private took off running. He turned back to Twilight and took a step towards her. "Anything else I should know?" "Umm... Yes! She's in control of some changelings," Twilight replied quickly. "Members of my hive, highly-trained soldiers." "How many?" "Sixteen. Well, sixteen soldiers at most, she could have many more, but they'd be civilians and not a real threat to anypony," Twilight said nervously. Several more guards took off out of the dungeon. Icewing groaned, rubbing his forehead with a hoof. "This just got a lot worse..." He glared at Twilight, grinding his teeth. He turned to the remaining guards. "Take the changeling into custody and bring the Bearers to my office. I need some time to think." Nearly six hours later, Twilight frowned up at the ceiling from the bed she lay on. She felt absolutely helpless; the Princesses were still paralyzed, Chrysalis was still on the loose, and she was locked in this room. Still, the Lieutenant had been nice enough to imprison her in a dorm room instead of a cell. It was cold comfort, but it was something. Her friends knew the truth... That was no small comfort. She was in a terrible situation, arguably a far worse situation than being stuck in Chrysalis' hive while the villainous queen had free reign of Equestria, but she wasn't alone anymore. She had her friends back, and she knew that they would do everything they could to help her set things right. Maybe she wasn't so helpless after all... She rolled over onto her front and groaned at the sharp ache in her injured leg. Readjusting herself a bit to relieve the pain a bit, she let out a depressed sigh. She sort of wished Rarity had just told the guards the truth, instead of making up the whole 'possession' thing, but she understood why her friend did it. In this case, the truth really was weirder than fiction. Even Celestia didn't believe it... With a frustrated groan, she climbed off the bed and trotted to the sink in the attached bathroom. She turned the water on and let the faucet run cold for a few seconds before splashing the water on her face. She hovered over the sink and splashed her face again, then looked in the mirror and froze. The events of the past few days flooded through her mind. Seeing Chrysalis face staring back at her... it was just too real. A tight knot formed in her chest. Her heart rate increased to an uncomfortable level and she began to hyperventilate. She was mere moments away from a panic attack and she knew it. Luckily for her, a loud knocking on her door interrupted her thoughts just in time to avert a crisis. "Oh! Uhhh, come in!" She heard the door slam against the wall as it was thrown open and a voice bellowed, "Changeling, the Lieutenant demands to see you!" Twilight moaned internally; as much as she wanted to get out of the room and as much as she needed to feel like she was doing something, this was not a conversation she wanted to have. She looked in the mirror again and took a deep breath. "I'm coming!" she chirped in the perkiest voice she could muster, and trotted out to meet the pair of guards waiting for her. One on each side of her, they led her to the end of the hall, up one flight of stairs to the third floor, and to a door halfway down the hall. One of them knocked once then motioned her to go through. She took a deep breath and entered, finding herself in a very spartan office, near barren with sterile-white walls and a single desk seated at the center. Sitting behind the desk with a tired frown was Lieutenant Icewing. He motioned for her to sit on the cushion across from him and she did so silently, waiting for him to speak. But there was something wrong; an absence in her head... She couldn’t sense his emotions, but his glare told her all she needed to know. He was actively guarding himself against her. He had practiced suppressing his emotions, just in case he was in this very situation. He stared at her for a few moments before opening his mouth. "Two hours ago, Princess Cadance and Shining Armor's carriage was attacked by a force of one dozen changelings," he grumbled, allowing his words to hang in the air for a few seconds. "Fortunately, we had been able to pass some recently-gained intelligence to the Captain; and instead of finding him and the Princess, they opened the carriage to find a ready squad of soldiers armed with anti-changeling spells. Shining Armor and Princess Cadance are safe, and four changelings now lie dead. As elated as Twilight was, she couldn’t help but wince at the news. She wanted Shining Armor and Cadance to be safe more than anything, but bloodshed hadn’t been the way she had hoped it would go. The hive had already suffered enough without losing more of its sisters. “Princess Cadance has been taken to a safe house in a secret location and the Captain is being smuggled back to Canterlot. It will be slow going, but he’ll get here." “That’s good. I’m glad that they’re safe,” Twilight murmured. "Shining Armor is a good friend of mine and your warning quite probably saved not only his life, but the life of Princess Cadance as well. As much as I hate saying it, we owe you a debt, and the Royal Guard always repays its debts," he continued. "As such, I feel I should at least offer you the courtesy of informing you that every soldier in Equestria has been told to consider the... renegade members of your hive to be highly dangerous and expendable. Following Equestrian law, we will attempt to apprehend them unharmed if the opportunity arises, but our troops have been ordered to disable them as quickly as possible, even if it requires fatal measures." "I... understand," Twilight replied carefully, reminding herself once again to play the part of the changeling queen. "I'd prefer you didn't kill them, but I can't ask you to put your ponies at risk." "Good. I was afraid you'd make this difficult. Now, to business," Icewing grunted. He opened a drawer in his desk and took out a small, translucent crystal pyramid, and placed it gently on his desktop. "Do you know what this is?" "I-it's a vision crystal. They can record events as they happen and replay them, like a magical security camera," Twilight explained nervously, her heart rate increasing again. "They're experimental though, they can't record sound yet, and they're very expensive to make." "You'd be surprised how easy it is to procure one when national security is at stake," Icewing chuckled, smiling momentarily. Suddenly, he dropped the smile and locked his eyes on Twilight in a hard glare. "This one was in the dungeon you woke up in. Let me show you something." He tapped the crystal, and a scene appeared before them. A vial exploding and two Alicorns falling. "I don't think we need to see what happens next," Icewing muttered. He opened the drawer and slid the crystal back in before sitting back in his chair and massaging his temples. "I've never met Twilight Sparkle, but I know for a fact that she would never torture another living being. I had difficulty believing anything you or the Bearers had told me until I saw this." "So what happens now?" Twilight asked hesitantly. She knew she was pushing her luck, but couldn't help asking. "This has put me in a very uncomfortable position, changeling. May I call you that?" he asked with a sigh. Twilight nodded and he continued. "Equestria is in trouble and you know more about the danger that faces us than anyone. I have no way of knowing if anything you tell me is the truth or a lie beyond what I believe. I really have no choice but to trust you to be honest with me; I hope you'll do the same." "Okay." He sighed again and leaned forward. “The Element Bearers all assured me that you want to help us break the curses on the Princesses, and end the possession of Twilight Sparkle. Are they wrong?" "No. I want to help," Twilight said with an affirmative nod. “Why?” The question hit Twilight like a train; she hadn’t been prepared for that. “Because... I’ve made some mistakes in the past. Terrible mistakes. I just want to make things right.” Icewing cocked his head slightly at her, and for the first time, she could sense his feelings. Self-doubt, mixed with uncertainty. For whatever reason, her answer troubled him; unnerved him. He had expected that answer about as much as she had expected the question. "And just how can you help us?" he asked skeptically. "I... I am very good with magic. As good as Twilight Sparkle," Twilight explained hopefully. Icewing shook his head and groaned. "I am not removing the ward. That would require far more trust than I'm willing to give." "I can fix her," Twilight said insistently. When Icewing gave her a confused frown, she continued, "If you can bring her back to the castle, alive and unhurt, I can fix her and then she can try to break the curse on the Princesses. I might even be able to do it if you get me a piece of Twilight. A strand of hair or something." "Are you sure? Are you absolutely positive?" Icewing asked forcefully, leaning forward aggressively. "Yes. Without a doubt." He sat back in his chair again, considering her. After a brief moment, he slid an amulet across the table. "Put this on. It will monitor your movements and tell us if you remove it. You will wear it at all times and if you take it off, I'm locking you in a cell. If you leave this wing of the palace without my explicit permission, I'll lock you in a cell. If you become uncooperative or break into a locked room, I'll lock you in a cell. However, if you stay cooperative and helpful, you may wander this wing of the palace at your leisure. Deal?" Twilight stared at it a moment, then glanced at him skeptically. “R-really?” “Yes. I have ordered you to be placed under a form of house arrest rather than be incarcerated in the dungeon; consider this small freedom to be the reward you’re owed for saving my friend and my princess. That being said, you won’t be getting anything unless you agree to my terms,” he replied, a ghost of a smirk crossing his face. “So, do we have a deal or not?” Without a second thought, Twilight took the amulet in her hooves and slipped it around her neck. "Deal!" "Good," Icewing replied curtly. "You can stay in the second floor room you were locked in before. Is there anything you'll be needing?" "Some water and a sandwich would be nice. It's probably been at least a day since I've eaten," Twilight replied hopefully. "There is a mess hall on the ground floor. They'll prepare whatever you want, within reason," Icewing said with a solemn nod. "There's also a lounge on each floor you may bring your food to if you prefer." "Great! Are we done?" Twilight asked happily. "Yes, for the moment. I'll send somepony to retrieve you when I know more," he replied, motioning for her to leave with a hoof. She gave him a polite nod and trotted out. Twilight stumbled out of the mess hall, a satisfied grin on her face. She hadn't realized just how hungry she was until she took the first bite. She didn't know whether it was due to Chrysalis being malnourished or herself not eating anything that wasn't completely disgusting for at least four days, but once she started eating, she didn't stop until she had packed down three large daisy sandwiches. She slowly made her way back to her room, pushed the door open, and grinned at the sight within. "Girls! You came to see me!" “Of course we did! We wanted to make sure you were okay,” Pinkie said, bouncing over to hug her. “Yeah! We wanted to make sure that big jerk didn’t try anything too,” Rainbow grunted. “He’s not a jerk, Rainbow, I’m in the body of a changeling,” Twilight said impassively. “Still, dear, we were worried about you. We did our best to convince him that you weren’t a threat, but I don’t think he was listening,” Rarity replied nervously. “He listened. I’m under house arrest. I’m confined to this wing of the palace as long as I behave myself,” Twilight smiled. “Well that’s a relief! We were afraid that he was gonna lock you up again. Or worse,” Applejack said with a shudder. “Well he didn’t and I’m grateful. Thank you,” Twilight replied. She smiled at each of them in turn, stopping to giggle at the expression on Fluttershy’s face. “Let me guess. You still want to hear about the changelings?” “I-if you don’t mind...” Fluttershy said. “It’s alright if you’d rather not talk about it now. Or ever.” “No, it’s okay,” Twilight snickered. She trotted over to the bed and nestled down between Fluttershy and Rarity. “So, was it like? Was their hole all dark and slimy, and filled with the bones of ponies they’ve hurt?” Rainbow asked distastefully. “Not at all. Their nest was actually very clean all things considering. And the changelings themselves were actually pretty sweet. Well, most of them,” Twilight replied with a small smile. “Really? Do tell,” Rarity gasped. “They all really care for each other, and each one has a different role to play. Some gather food, some protect the hive, some dig new tunnels and so on,” Twilight explained. “They all cooperate for the good of the hive.” “You almost make them sound like ponies,” Fluttershy observed. "Well, almost. They’re still a lot different than us. They’re really sort of strange. Not in a bad way, mind you, but they’re still very strange creatures," Twilight muttered. "For instance, the drones all knew right away that I wasn't Chrysalis, but very few of them seemed to care. One went so far as to say 'a queen is a queen'!" "Whoa... That's really weird," Rainbow grumbled. "If something like that happened to Princess Celestia, we'd all freak!" "I know! And not only were they totally fine with it, they went about their business like nothing had even happened. Well, the uninjured ones did," Twilight replied softly. "That... was the worst part; the invasion really messed things up for them, they're all suffering." "Don't tell me you feel bad for them," Rainbow asked skeptically. "They attacked us!" "I know, and that's how I felt at first, but when I actually saw it..." Twilight murmured, staring away pensively as she trailed off. "Chrysalis forced them to invade Canterlot with their entire hive, 2,200 changelings; most of them weren't even soldiers, and they lost all but about 120 of them. Most of the ones that are left are too hurt to do, well, anything, and all of their healers were killed in the fighting. I saw the room they were using as a hospital; there was one there who was no bigger than a little filly. Sh-she had both her wings torn off." "Oh, heavens!" Rarity gasped, clapping her hooves over her mouth. "T-that's terrible! I-I had no idea." "It gets worse: they're all starving," Twilight sighed. "They're out of food and the few who are able to go out and look for food can't gather enough to feed the whole hive. And to top it all off, they said that instead of trying to solve the hive's problems, Chrysalis has just sat around pouting since the invasion." "Is there something we can do to help them?" Fluttershy asked. "I’d really like to, but we need to find Chrysalis first," Twilight grumbled. "Otherwise, I... I'll..." She trailed off with a deep yawn. "You look like you need some sleep, Twilight," Rarity said. "Yeah, today was... long," Twilight murmured, stumbling over her words. "We'll leave you alone. Just remember to let us know if the guards start messing with you," Rainbow growled. "Thanks, Dash," Twilight wearied. "I'll see you girls in the morning, okay?" Her friends all smiled at her and filed out but for Fluttershy, who lingered, frowning worriedly at Twilight. "Umm, Twilight? You were in the dungeon alone with her for a long time, weren't you?" Twilight stared at her for a few seconds, painfully aware of where Fluttershy's thoughts were headed. "Yeah." "Did she... hurt you?" For the briefest moment, Twilight considered lying. Simply shaking her head and letting Fluttershy walk away none the wiser, but she couldn't. She broke down and nodded slowly, beginning to cry as Fluttershy silently hugged her.