//------------------------------// // Epilogue // Story: OTR: Darkness Zone // by The King of Hearts //------------------------------// //// Darkness Zone: Epilogue //// The hours following the disappearance of the Darkness Zone were crazy to say the least. Once they had full access to the outside world, the army swept the building, and under their Omega’s orders, arrested the members of the council. Following that, everypony from Equestria was taken in for questioning, at the insistence of the many Alpha’s in the kingdom. After hours of pointless conversations with them, Chrysalis finally returned from the hospital where she had rushed Stag, and had them all released from custody. Her plan was to address the entire hive that night, and have the Equestrians present when she did so, as a sign of good faith. As they had time to kill, and with the Queens blessing, everypony was given free access to most parts of the castle, provided that they return to the throne room at sundown so Chrysalis could give her speech. So, everypony split in to different groups, and headed in a different directions, all anxious to explore the foreign place. When Alex heard that they were given free access, he jumped at the chance to take Dash and her fixed wing on a tour of his old stomping grounds. He had spent the better part of two years in this place, and whether he liked to admit it or not, there were some fond memories to be remembered here. He had covered the quarters for the castle staff, and the offices of the Council, and was just reaching the last leg of the tour. “Here’s where they did all the training,” Alex said as they entered the sprawling dojo, “I spent days in here learning how to fight with my magic, and hooves at the same time.” “I don’t get it,” Dash said, blinking a couple of times as she looked up to him, “Why haven’t I seen you using any of those sweet moves in Ponyville?” “Pshh,” Alex laughed, “Way too lazy. Seriously, my blood pressure went through the roof while I tried to do that stuff. I’m more of a, ‘blow them up with magic from the comfort of my couch’ kinda guy.” “Yeah, no kidding,” She laughed, as she caught the eye of two changelings training on the far end of that room. “Shit.” Alex muttered, as the soldier narrowed his gaze to him. “What?” Dash asked, looking at him and tilting her head, “Do you know him? Uh… that is, if you can tell them apart.” “Beta,” Alex called to one of the changelings, “It’s good to see you again. How long has it been since we last saw each other?” “You mean, how long has it been since you betrayed the army, and sent us all back to the hive?” Beta asked. “Yeah, that question works too,” Alex laughed obnoxiously, as Dash jabbed him in the side, “But I mean, come on! You can’t hold it over me. I was brainwashed.” “It would have helped if some of us had known that,” Beta growled. “Some of you knew!” Alex said, as he tried to recall who had seen him outside of his armor, “Other Alpha’s knew. And so did Chrysalis. And that receptionist.” Beta didn’t respond. The Gamma next to him, however, did have a question. “So, what do you think is going to happen to the council?” Gamma asked, obviously not as upset with Alex as Beta, “Is Chrysalis going to kill them all?” Beta was obviously interested in this topic too, but was too proud to ask Alex for the info. “I don’t know much, to be honest.” Alex said, frowning a bit, “Some members of the council deserve punishment more than others... although Taurus probably won’t see much of anything. He orchestrated our escape.” “That’s good to know,” Gamma said, closing his eyes and sighing with relief. “Taurus always seemed to be against the rest of the Council,” Beta spoke up, “I guess it saved his ass this time.” “What about the others? Gamma asked. “That’s where I get lost,” Alex shook his head, “I hope Virgo isn’t judged too harshly. I think his main goal was getting laid. Not overthrowing the queen.” “Scorpios helped us a bit too, but Cancer and Aries were all in.” Dash added, “They wanted Chrysalis to be out of her mind, or dead.” The two soldiers grimaced. “Look, Chrysalis is going to answer all of our questions in about an hour.” Alex said, turning from the room, “Just hang tight.” “Now just wait,” Beta said, as Alex turned back toward him, “You and I have a score to settle.” “Look, dude,” Alex held back a smile, raising an eyebrow, “I’ve been through a hell of day, and I just want to kick back.” Beta paused for a moment. “Alright.” He said, feeling less animosity toward the stallion than he had anticipated, “It’ll have to be a rain check.” “Got it,” Alex said, “When this whole war ending business is over and done with, give me a call. We can set something up.” //// “The view… it’s breathtaking.” Twilight said, standing atop the hive castle next to Alpha, “You know, whenever I was told about ‘The Hive’ I always pictured, well, black. Lots and lots of the color black.” “It’s not the first time I’ve heard that,” Alpha said, standing comfortably next to her, “Quite often outsiders will be shocked to see just how much effort we put in to maintaining the aesthetics of our kingdom. Chrysalis makes sure to end every tour of the castle with this view.” The city around them divided in to several different districts with large roads dividing each one: the industrial district, the residential district, the commerce district, the royal district, along with many more. They were all built around the castle, and extended out in a near-perfect circle. It was this kind of architectural feats that Twilight found truly fascinating. However, the true beauty was what extended beyond the city. Rolling green hills were as far as the eye could see, and each one was decorated with what she could only assume were flowers. At the distance she stood, the colors all blended together and shone in the light of the soon to set sun. “Just wait until sunset. The entire city lights up in the twilight.” Alpha said softly. “I’ll bet I’m not the first mare you’ve brought up here,” Twilight joked, looking out the corner of her eye to try and gauge his reaction, happy to see how mystified the comment made him. “Oh, no.” Alpha shook his head, “It doesn’t take much for a mare to fall for me. The roof is hardly necessary.” “Oh…” Twilight said, trying to hide the emotions that his response brought up. “It’s so beautiful up here, I never wanted anypony else to get the wrong idea,” Alpha said, hiding his own smile expertly. Twilight was considered to be a genius in most fields, but she didn’t understand his meaning. “I mean, bring a girl up here, and I knew they’d be hopelessly in love with me,” Alpha continued, as Twilight’s expression brightened slightly, “So, I always thought to myself… when I finally do bring a mare up here, she’d better be the one.” Twilight finally looked up to him and gave him a bright smile. “Alpha…” She began, before pausing and giving him an odd look, “Or… should I call you Marick?” “Either is fine,” He replied, stepping close enough to brush his body against hers, “But, just so you know, you should be calling me Omega. You are my subordinate, after all.” “Oh, am I?” Twilight asked, looking up to him with a smirk, “If you ask me, it’s the other way around.” “Well, the military is going to be broken down in a couple of hours,” Alpha said, “I’ll go from being the highest ranking soldier in the Hive, to just another guy. So I’d better enjoy it while I can.” “Well, how many ways can you abuse your power in the next couple hours?” Twilight asked, “Maybe get some free stuff, or boss somepony around?” “Are you, Ms. goodie four-shoes herself, asking me how I can take advantage of my powerful position?” Alpha asked. “Of course not,” Twilight laughed, “To be perfectly honest, I’d really love to just… to just stand here until sunset, if you don’t mind.” “Of course not,” Alpha said. The two stood in a comfortable silence for several minutes before a question popped in to Twilight’s head. “So… were you totally conscious inside that cactus?” She asked, not looking away from the cityscape in front of her. “Oh yeah,” Alpha nodded, “I was just me, in a cactus body.” “And you had access to magic?” Twilight asked, hoping she would never have to be in that blaring heat ever again, “Even if you did- how did you make that tap appear?” “Oh, the tap was always there… in a sense.” Alpha answered. Twilight blinked a couple of times and finally looked to him with a horrified expression. “What do you mean by that?” She asked, her eyes wide in shock, “The tap was way up on the face of the cactus!” “Well yeah, but I was upside down in that sand. Think of the two arms on the cactus as my legs, and the center as my tail.” Alpha said, still stone faced. “Nope!” Twilight said suddenly, snapping her gaze back to the horizon, “You’re joking! Yep! Joking! Almost pulled one over on me, but I wasn’t born yesterday!” Twilight’s unsure tone was enough to break Alpha’s expression, causing him to burst out in to a fit of laughter. “It was a water tap, Twilight!” Alpha roared, almost falling over from his fit of giggles, “Aries gave it to me to keep you from dehydration!” Twilight didn’t even try to defend herself. //// “An’, uh are you sure… he was tryin’ tuh um… marry me?” Applejack asked, relaxing in to the hot tub they had been allowed access too inside Chrysalis’s personal room. “I’m afraid so, darling. He was taking advantage of your wedding fantasy.” Rarity laughed from across the tub, “I feel just horrible for laughing at you, but I can’t contain myself.” “Well, ah’ reckon that if you were in the same situation, ah’d have a good laugh at yer’ expense too,” Applejack said, “But what ah’ don’t understand, is why didn’t ah’ have a dark side in there?” “From what we gathered, you must have faced your dark side yourself at some point before all of this,” Rarity answered, “After seeing what happened to me, and Rainbow Dash, it only makes sense that you’d try to avoid it happening to you as well.” Applejack nodded slowly, “Well, ah’ guess ah’ did dig pretty deep down inside mah’self. Ah’ve never really hid anything from anypony.” “Oh- um, speaking of hiding things,” Rarity spoke up quickly, not wanting to have any secrets between them, “While I was looking after you, you spoke a bit about your parents. You told me some stories about them.” Applejack’s eyes lit up with surprise, “W-what did ah’ tell you?” “Nothing too revealing… you told me a story about being a bit of a tomboy when you were a filly.” Rarity answered, smiling at her own memories of Applejack at that age, “And you told me that your mother, after a day of you being picked on, and cheered you right up.” AJ was silent for a moment, before looking back up to Rarity with a smile, “She told me to always be mahself. But… After so many years of school kids bullyin’ me, ah learned to talk without this darn accent.” “It was surprising to hear you without it, that’s for sure,” Rarity said, taping a sip from the glass of water next to her. “I mean, I learned that it was a defining part of who I was, but I like having this voice in my arsenal.” Applejack said flawlessly, with no sign of her country accent, “But, these days… I only use it when I dress myself up.” Rarity loved hearing AJ talk in this voice for no reason that she could determine, it somehow made her feel like they were closer. Perhaps it was the fact that removing her accent was a vanity project, when Applejack was never known as being vein, while Rarity was almost exclusively known for that trait. “You know, darling,” Rarity said slowly, smiling softly to the orange mare, “Despite the stress of the last days on all of us, I truly feel as if you and I have grown closer… although you might not even remember it.” “Well, to be honest, some of it is there,” Applejack said, still out of her accent, having vague recollections of her experience in the DZ, “I can remember being angry with you, and I can remember that it was because you refused to leave my side... thanks for that, Rarity.” “Of course! I’d hope that you wouldn’t leave my side either!” Rarity laughed, thinking back to the pitiful groom, “However… I must say that I feel a little bad for Virgo, even after all he did.” Applejack nodded, “Yeah, I do too. Poor guy’s probably never had a proper mare in his life.” “Well, you know Applejack, you could be the solution to that,” Rarity said, wiggling her eyebrows. “Nnnnnnope.” Applejack said, shaking her head quickly as her accent slipped back in to her voice, “Ah’ don’t feel that bad for ‘em!” The two then burst out in to laughter. Rarity truly was happy to be spending time with her friend again, but couldn’t help but dwell on one more thing she had heard in the darkness zone. “She was going to tell you that she considered the ‘fashionista’ to be her best friend.” The filly’s voice echoed in her head. Did Applejack truly think of her as her best friend? Rarity smiled. She truly hoped so. //// Fluttershy sat in silence. She had escaped to the mess hall of the castle, and made sure to sit as far in the corner as she could, away from any potential changelings that might want to yell at her. She had just put her friends through the most stressful situation any of them had yet to face, which was really saying something. But, all of that was beside the point. All she wanted to do was sit silence for a couple of hours before Chrysalis addressed the hive, and feel terrible about all she had just put her friends through. She had to be strong to accept herself… but now, in the aftermath of everything, it seemed as if she had just about used every ounce inside of her, leaving her with nothing but weakness. She couldn’t wait until she could go home, and surround herself with her furry friends. They’d cheer her right up. “Hey, it’s Shutterfly!” A voice said, snapping Fluttershy back to the real world. Next to her was Chet, with a bright smile on his face. “Oh, wait.” He laughed, giving her a wink, “It’s Fluttershy, isn’t it?” She only gave a small nod, looking back down at the table. Being the oblivious man that he was, Chet happily walked to the opposite side of the table, and squatted himself down as comfortably as he could, considering he was a horse. “I just had a heck of a time in there, let me tell you!” Chet laughed to the distraught mare, completely unaware of her state, “I don’t really know what everyone else went through, but I think I had it pretty bad.” Fluttershy knew where he had been. Despite the darkness zone being akin to a sphere, the section Chet had been placed was detached from the sphere. The magic spells used to keep Stag hidden had caused that to happen. So, she had sent him there, to keep him away from the council. It was just a happy accident that he stumbled across Stag the way he did. “I had to walk down a never ending hallway!” Chet continued, “For like, a whole day! It was a good thing that I found that guy too, because I would have been pretty bored without him!” She didn’t respond. “You know, this whole cartoon world is pretty strange, right?” Chet asked, continuing the conversation by himself, “Well, it got a whole lot weirder when we showed up in this ‘Hive’.” Again, she was silent, and he continued. “It kinda weirds me out in a way,” Chet said, frowning as he looked at the few soldiers in the room, “I mean, how did the changelings evolve? Did a pony bang a bee or something?” “Equestria has several species of insect that are both intelligent, and the same size as we pony folk…” Fluttershy explained, shuddering at the thought of a pony having sex with a poor bumble bee, “The changelings are considered to be a cross between our kind, and… an insect kind. I’m not too sure which one.” “Huh.” Chet said, mystified even further, “You know, you’d think that I’d be used to it by now. Do they lay eggs? Or do they have regular babies?” “They can have both!” Fluttershy said, a smile forming on her lips at the amazing thought of two means of conception, “Males always, well… do it the normal way… but the females run on two different cycles. One for egg laying, and one for regular foal-bearing.” “That’s crazy!” Chet said, flabbergasted by what she was saying, “Are there any biology books on this stuff?” “Oh! Yes!” Fluttershy nodded, “I love learning about every kind of animal! Even if they’re not small and furry. I’d be happy to lend them to you.” “Thanks! But, uh, are they really technical?” Chet asked, “I’m not really well-read when it comes to pony literature.” “Don’t worry,” She giggled, “I’m not a genius myself, and I have a very good grasp of what they say.” “That’s good,” Chet exhaled, chuckling on his breath, “Oh, hey. Are you okay?” Her smile was replaced by a somewhat confused look, at his sudden conversation turn. “I heard all about what happened today, and I figured you’d be a little shaken up, so I came to look for you!” Chet said, still smiling as he fidgeted with his wing, “But who am I kidding, you’re here laughing and smiling. You’re waaaaaay stronger than I am.” “I- I am?” Fluttershy asked, blinking a couple of times at him. “Heck, if I were in your place, I’d be in tears!” Chet beamed, “All of you guys here are so strong! Maybe I should stay a little longer and try to get some of that thick skin!” Fluttershy didn’t respond right away. “You’re way stronger than I am.” Those words played over and over in her head. “Somepony actually thinks I’m strong…” She whispered to herself. “What was that?” Chet asked, as she looked up to him. “Stay as long as you like,” she said with a bright smile, “I’d be happy to teach you a thing or two about being tough.” //// Trixie and Pinkie stood in the royal garden, admiring the flowers that Chrysalis had apparently grown, and tended to herself. It showed them a side to her that neither thought existed. “So… Can you like, have a full on conversation with Aurora, since she’s in your head and everything?” Pinkie asked, having been working up the courage to ask her that. “Not really,” Trixie shook her head, still admiring the range of colors in front of her, “She comes and goes… but if I’m calling out to her, she always answers me.” “That’s so cool!” Pinkie beamed, hopping around in a small circle behind the blue mare, “Sometimes I hear voices in my head telling me to make somepony smile, or to throw a huge party! But I’m pretty sure that isn’t somepony else in there.” “Yeah, it is kinda cool,” Trixie had to admit, chuckling to the pony as she turned to face her, “Honestly, I can’t even begin to tell you how horrible I felt after she… passed away. I wasn’t sure what I was going to do with myself.” “What did you do?” Pinkie asked, hoping she wasn’t crossing a line. “I did exactly what she asked me to.” Trixie said softly, “She knew all about my past… how I used to treat others… so, she told me that I needed to go back out, and show those ponies I had wronged, what kind of mare I was.” “I’m glad you came back and brought Twilight that amulet,” Pinkie said, “Who knows how it might have been used by somepony else!” “I’m just glad I found it after I met Aurora,” Trixie sighed happily, “If I hadn’t met her, I probably would have come back to Ponyville for a rematch or something.” “Well, all that matters is that you didn’t,” Pinkie said, wrapping her arm around Trixie’s shoulders. “Excuse me,” A changeling said behind the two, as the both turned to face him. “The queen has requested you all return to the throne room,” he said seriously, standing at attention, “Please follow me to the throne room.“ “Isn’t it a little early?” Trixie asked, figuring they still had an hour before they were summoned. “Yes, she told me to say—“ “Hey! Mister!” Pinkie said suddenly, cutting him off, “Can I ask ya’ something?” “Uh, of course.” He said, giving them a single nod. “Is she pretty?” Pinkie asked, gesturing to Trixie. “W-what?” Trixie asked, lighting up with a blush, “You don’t have to answer—“ “Yes you do!” Pinkie demanded, “Answer me right now!” Relaxing slightly, the guard gave Trixie slight look-over, before giving her a small nod. “You think she’s hot?!” Pinkie cheered, jumping up and down excitedly, “See, Trixie? I told you that you were sexy! I mean, where the heck did all your confidence go anyway?” “What do you mean?” The mare shot back, still caught off guard, “I never considered myself really hot or anything...” “You were asking Alex to go for a pony ride when you first met him!” Pinkie laughed, as Trixie’s blush turned her face purple. “I- I don’t know!” Trixie huffed, “He’s certainly not a bad looking stallion! And with all the traveling I used to do, i-it’s rare that I got to spend time with men! Being forward meant that things were on my terms! I just… I- I don’t know!” “Well, if you’re looking for somepony to spend the night with…” The guard offered, looking back and forth between the two mares who were now glaring at him, “Ehh, never mind. Why don’t we head to the throne room?” “Yes. Please.” Trixie said, taking off back the way they had come. Pinkie only giggled for a moment, before she bounced off after Trixie. //// “Thank you all for meeting with me,” Chrysalis said to the collection of Equestrians that had gathered in the throne room at her request, “I just wanted to speak with you all in regards to the council, and just what I plan on saying to my people when they gather outside.” Everypony nodded, as the queen cleared her throat. “I spoke with Celestia as soon as we escaped, and we spoke at length,” Chrysalis said, eyeing Alpha and Twilight, noting just how close they stood together, “I explained everything in great detail to her. Some of you already knew that.” Twilight and Alpha both nodded, along with Dash. All of whom had pressed to talk to Celestia right away when they escaped. “Well, after telling her what I planned to do with the council, she urged me to reconsider,” Chrysalis continued, “She said that ending the war with four simultaneous executions would… perhaps send the wrong message.” “Some of them don’t deserve to be executed.” Alpha said, “And you know it, Chrysalis.” “Only three of them even knew about Stag,” Twilight added, hoping she wasn’t out of line by speaking up, “Taurus wasn’t told because of his loyalty to you, and Virgo simply wasn’t trusted with the information.” “And I’m pretty sure Scorpios helped us escape too,” Alex added. “Enough.” Chrysalis said with enough power to silence the few speaking within the group, “None of them will be executed. I’ve decided to imprison Aries indefinitely, along with Cancer.” “Thank goodness.” Dash exhaled, looking up to the queen, “After what we saw, he shouldn’t be allowed to see the light of day again.” “I couldn’t agree more,” Chrysalis nodded, strangely happy that she shared a small bond with the cyan mare, “Moving on, however. Scorpios is going to be stripped of her rank, and is going to be held in her quarters, while I think of a fitting punishment.” “What counts as a fitting punishment?” Fluttershy asked, her curiosity over the mare’s fate overpowering her anxiety of speaking over a crowd. “Nothing too serious,” Chrysalis shook her head, “She did aid in our escape, and I will remember that when the time comes.” "And Taurus?" Twilight asked next, assuming that he would be more or less in the clear. "Because he was ignorant to the holding of Stag, and orchestrated our escape, he'll be given a new position within the castle," Chrysalis explained, "Loyalty such as his won't go unrewarded, I assure you." Everypony seemed satisfied with that answer, but before long, they were all left with a single lingering question. “What about Virgo?” Applejack asked, looking around to see her friends nod along with her, “Ah’ hope ya’ ain’t gonna punish him too harshly.” “No,” Chrysalis shook her head, “His actions were… more or less in line with what he’s been taught. Brainwash, absorb love, reproduce… he never should have done it on an Equestrian ambassador- but you can’t really blame a dog for humping your neighbour’s leg when they come to visit.” They all laughed at the stallions expense a little too hard, before Chrysalis was forced to take a serious tone once again. “Truth be told, he’s excellent with some of our more advanced technology,” Chrysalis continued, wiping a tear from her eye, “And if he promises to continue his work in that field, he’ll be pardoned by me behind closed doors, and during my speech, perhaps I’ll embellish his role in helping us escape. That ought to get a few mares chasing after him.” “That’s… generous,” Alpha observed, tilting his head and narrowing his gaze toward the queen, “Since when do you let Equestria call the shots?” Twilight jabbed him in the side and stared daggers at him. “If you must know, Stag asked me—“ “Ah,” Alpha said instantly, raising a hoof and nodding, “Say no more.” “Well,” Chrysalis said, clearing her throat, “Aside from that I have little more to discuss with all of you. I would, however, like to speak with the stallion that saved Stag. Chet.” Everypony looked over their shoulders to the stallion, who was currently wide eyed, and tremoring ever so slightly. “W-what would you like t-to talk about?” He asked, knowing that nothing bad was coming, but was afraid none the less. “You risked your life to save somepony very dear to me,” Chrysalis said seriously, parting the crowd as she walked between the ponies and approached Chet, “And I don’t believe in leaving a debt unpaid.” “Oh, that?” Chet asked, shaking his head quickly, “That was nothing! You don’t owe me for—“ “Heroic, and modest… strange,” Chrysalis scratched her chin, “How could Alex be related to you?” “Psh, I’m awesome, and I know it.” Alex said, feigning anger, “It’s not my fault I have to remind everypony of that fact.” “So, what I am offering you, is a request,” Chrysalis said, ignoring Alex, “You may ask one thing of me, and my kingdom, and it will be yours.” Chet blinked a couple of times as he tried to process what he had just been told, “I can ask for… anything?” “Save for a few restrictions, if it’s within my power, I will grant it.” She said again. “Do… I need to do it now?” Chet asked again. “No,” Chrysalis shook her head, “In fact, I encourage you to think on it.” Then, in a move nopony expected, Chrysalis leaned forward and embraced Alex’s uncle. “Thank you.” She whispered, before pulling back and giving him an honest smile. “Now, that’s all I need from you,” Chrysalis said, turning to face her throne, “I’ve had the train back to Ponyville prepared for you. You may go now, or after my speech if you so wish. However, I’m going to be spending some time with Stag, so I can assure you all. You won’t be seeing me.” “I’m sorry, Chrysalis, but I have a question- or request,” Alpha spoke up. “You want to go back to Equestria with your mare.” Chrysalis said, not turning around. “Yes.” He said confidently, giving a single nod. “Well, you did betray me a few weeks ago,” Chrysalis said, thinking back to the failed attempt at talking over Canterlot, “So, I see no reason why you shouldn’t be banished for it.” Alpha chuckled, “I’d like to come and go from this place, you know. It is my home, after all.” “Yes, I suppose you would, wouldn’t you?” Chrysalis chuckled, pausing as she brought something else together, “Alright. I’ll need an ambassador that permanently resides on Equestrian soil, provided that you don’t mind frequent trips to Canterlot from Ponyville.” “I’d be happy to accept that position, my queen.” Alpha said, bowing slightly. “Good,” She said, her horn glowing as she cast a spell, “Take this as well.” A small sheet of chitin peeled from around her stomach, revealing her soft, light-green flesh to them, as she balanced it on his back. “You don’t need to do that!” Alpha said, shaking his head, as everypony gave him a somewhat disturbed look, “I’m just fine—“ “I insist,” Chrysalis said, silencing him, “You’ve earned it.” “What the heck do you need that for?” Pinkie asked, looking back and forth for some kind of answer from her friends. “I can craft a new wing from this…” Alpha said softly, looking over his shoulder to the material on his back, “On our bodies, we grow a hard plastic-like substance called chitin. Our wings are made of this substance.” “This material can be used to mend a ripped wing,” Chrysalis said, gesturing to the black spot from where Alpha lost his own wing, “But no drone in the entire colony has strong enough chitin to completely replace a wing.” “No drone.” Twilight said nodding. “But you’re not a drone.” Trixie added, understanding. “Exactly. My body is genetically built to withstand damage. A sword would break before it would pierce my stomach, wings, or sides.” Chrysalis said, turning away from them again to face her balcony, “It will make a durable replacement for you.” “Thank you.” Alpha said, looking to Twilight with a large smile. “Don’t tell anypony that I gave you that,” Chrysalis said, walking toward the open doors, “If you do, every disabled pony would be begging me to heal them.” Alpha chuckled and nodded. “You are all excused.” Chrysalis said, “My guard will show you back to the train. Your friends are waiting there.” “Friends?” Rarity asked, “You mean Spike?” “Along with Princess Celestia, and Luna… and a few others I believe.” She said, “They arrived on the bullet train, however I asked that they remain hidden until I can ease our countries in to peace.” “Thank goodness,” Dash huffed, as they all began filing out of the room, “I’ve got quite the report to give them, and doing it on the trip back will pass the time nicely.” “Captain- or… Rainbow Dash?” Chrysalis called to her, just before she left the room, “Would you mind if I wrote you?” “Uh… pardon?” Dash asked, blowing a bit of her mane out of her eye and cocking her head. “I don’t have many friends,” Chrysalis said quietly, “But after all we went through… well-“ “Feel free,” Dash said with a smile, “I’m glad we worked things out.” “Me too.” Chrysalis said. Alex stood by the door waiting, as Dash finally made her way to the door. “So, you two are friends now?” Alex asked, glancing over his shoulder to the queen one last time, “I thought you hated her.” “Being a changeling is weird.” Dash said, scratching her chin, “They don’t consider brainwashing ponies to be a terrible thing to do. So how can I stay mad, if that’s normal for them?” “Yeah,” Alex agreed, pressing against her as they walked, “I mean, even after all they did, I was never really mad at Chrysalis.” “It’s hard to be mad at a pony that gives it to ya’, huh?” Dash laughed, leaning her head against his. “Who am I to argue with their culture?” Alex laughed, sighing happily, pausing for a couple of moments as he mulled over a few things, his expression hardening slightly. “…Just Pinkie and Twilight now.” Dash nodded. “Then, well, who knows…” Alex said, looking at the ground and exhaling loudly. “...Are you scared?” ////