The streets of Canterlot were eerily silent as Twilight, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, Applejack and I snuck through them. It was honestly really creepy. The houses, clean, white and obviously taken well care of now seemed more appropriate for a horror movie. Doors stood ajar, and shutters on the upper windows creaked ominously in the slight breeze.
It did make it easier to stay undetected though. The sound of every footfall from a nearby patrol seemed to be magnified a hundredfold, causing us to freeze in panic, waiting in absolute silence for them to pass. We crept past a playground, a swing still swinging and a merry-go-round still moving slowly in the breeze. At one point as we were walking, I couldn’t stand the silence anymore. “How close are we?” I quietly whispered to them.
Twilight glanced around, “We’re getting close.” She whispered back, “There should be a back entrance that we can sneak through. It leads to the kitchens.” I nodded, but she wasn’t done talking yet. “What are you, Raiden?” She asked me, “In all of my studies, I’ve never seen anything like you.”
I thought for a moment, ’How to tell her…’ After a minute, I replied, “Do you know what a robot is?”
Twilight nodded, “A machine capable of carrying out a complex series of actions automatically, especially one programmable by a computer.”
I nodded, “And are you familiar with the concept of a cyborg?”
She nodded again, “Yeah, somepony with robotic enhancements. But that’s all fiction, there isn’t such a thing as a real cyborg.”
I snorted, deciding to ignore the use of “somepony”, “Well, you’re looking at a fully fledged custom made cyborg.”
Twilight stopped short, “T-that’s impossible!” She exclaimed way too loudly, her voice echoed loudly throughout the nearby area, “The technology needed to create something like a cyborg is far beyond what we have on Equus!”
I made to reply, only to hear a bunch of footfalls from a couple streets over. “They’re coming!” I hissed, grabbing Twilight and pulling her into a nearby alley. Everyone else seemed to also get the hint, running behind other objects in an attempt to hide.
Twilight and I crouched behind a dumpster, which smelled terrible by the way, her still staring at me with a mixture of shock and scepticism, “There’s no way that you can be a cyborg!” She whisper-yelled at me, “It’s scientifically impossible!”
I groaned, turning back to face her, “I think we have more important things to worry about!” I hissed, “We can talk after we take back Canterlot.” After a moment, she nodded, and I turned back to face the street, Twilight thankfully pacified for now.
The sounds of footfalls became louder, and soon enough, a large group of Changelings came into view, at least four times larger than the group I faced. “Are you sure the voice came from here?” The squad-leader asked. He was similar to the one I had faced before, taller, more heavily armored than the others, and a massive two-handed sword. This one had a scar running across his face and one eye. This one was a veteran fighter.
One of the other Changelings nodded. He was less armored than even the standard footsoldier, with what looked like the Changeling equivalent of leather armor, and with two short-swords on his hips. “Yes sir. They must of heard us coming and hid.”
The squad-leader nodded, “Spread out! They can’t have gotten far!” He ordered his troops. They spread out, moving around the street and the nearby alleys. A few came over to the alley that Twilight and I were hiding in.
They came closer and closer, until suddenly, a loud yell drew the attention of the small group of Changelings from us. Moving quickly, I leaped up and stabbed the Murasama through one of the Changeling’s chests, before punching the other in the head, knocking him out cold. Looking into the alley, to my horror I saw Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, and Applejack being held with swords to their neck, the leader Changeling staring straight at me. “So, you’re the unknown warrior that my troops have reported.” He said, “You took out Commander Strike. Impressive.”
I did my best to keep calm, even as I leveled my sword at him. “Let them go,” I said, “This doesn’t have to end in bloodshed.”
The squad-leader nodded, “You’re right on that regard. This doesn’t have to end in bloodshed.” He glanced at the three captive Ponies before looking back at me, “Surrender, and I won’t harm anyone. I swear upon my queen,” He told me, “But if you don’t…” The soldiers holding Pinkie, Rainbow and Applejack brought the swords closer to their necks, “I will have no choice but to kill them.”
I snarled at the leader, “You son of a bitch!” I tightened the grip on my sword, “They’re unarmed combatants! Face me, and let them go!”
The squad-leader glared at me, “Do you think me for a fool? Commander Strike was a skilled combatant, but he was too easily riled up, too easy for one to trick him into one on one combat. You will not find me the same. Now.” He motioned to his troops, “Surrender, or I will be forced to kill them.”
I growled, trying to think of a way out of this, ’Come on… What to do…’ There was no way out of it. If I didn’t surrender, there was no way I could make it to them in time, but if we did, they would bind us, and we would be in the same position as we were in before. Even if the squad-leader keeps his word, we would still be brought to the Queen... ’Wait a minute…’ I stopped as a thought hit me. It was an absolutely insane plan, but if it worked…
I sighed, lowering my sword, “Fine. I surrender.”
Twilight gaped at me as troops moved to bind us, “What are you doing!?” She screeched, trying to push the soldiers off of her, “We need to fight back!”
I made no move to stop the Changeling soldiers binding my wrists with similar chains to that Rainbow had been earlier, “We can’t fight back if we’re dead.” I told her as my sword was taken away.
Twilight continued to resist as she was bound. She, along with everyone else, were glaring at me as I was pulled over to the squad-leader, who looked at me in a different light, “Thank you.” He told me quietly as he began to pull me along, the murasama in his other hand. “I did not wish to kill anyone else.”
I snorted, “Coulda fooled me.” I muttered, before turning to him, “Make sure you make good on your promise.”
He nodded, “I swore that I would not harm them, and I shall keep that oath.” We all walked along, Rainbow, Applejack and Twilight still trying to get free. Pinkie was, strangely enough, conversing with the troops that were keeping guard on her. They seemed surprised that she didn’t seem scared of them, even as they held her at swordpoint. “Answer me something, warrior.” The squad-leader said to me without looking at me.
I glanced at him before looking back ahead, “My name is Raiden.”
The squad-leader snorted, “Fine then, answer me something, Raiden,” He said the word like it was exotic, which I suppose it was, “You clearly are from somewhere far away. Why come to the aid of the Ponies? It wasn’t your fight.”
“The first thing I saw of the invasion was three Changeling troops chasing a little girl with the intent to rape her.” I growled, making him look at me in shock, “What did you expect me to do?”
The squad-leader’s face set itself into a hard look, “I will make sure that they are court-martialed for that.” He growled, which took me by surprise.
Shrugging off my surprise, I snorted, “Good luck when two thirds of that group are dead.” I fell silent as we moved towards the castle. “Since I answered one of your questions, I’d like it if you answered one of mine.” The squad-leader nodded, so I went on, “Where are we going?” He gave me a disbelieving look, “All of us are bound. It’s not like we can break free.”
The squad-leader sighed, “Queen Chrysalis wishes to see the Elements of Harmony before her, and the one who killed some of her children.”
It was easier than I had expected to keep the smirk off of my face, but something he said caught my attention, “Her… Children?” I questioned, unsure, “Do you mean in a literal sense or…”
The squad-leader snorted, “I’ve said enough.” Then, he refused to say more. We walked in silence, other than the endless chatting of Pinkie Pie, which I quickly tuned out. Surprisingly easy when you’re mostly machine. We rounded a corner, and the main palace came into view. It was almost like a long corridor, with buildings on either side and Changeling troops milling about. Everyone moved to the sides as we approached, hissing and jeering at the girls, but snarling at me. Clearly, no one liked me.
At the very end of the ‘corridor’, there was a set of stairs that led to the main entrance. As we approached, a few Changelings attempted to grab the girls, but the squad-leader’s glare made them think otherwise. “No one is to touch them,” he intoned, “Is that understood?” The Changelings nodded, but didn’t seem to like it.
We walked up the stairs, and the ornate golden doors began to loudly creak open. “Someone needs to use some WD-40 on that thing…” I muttered, somewhat irked by the loud noise. I was pushed forwards for my quip, causing me to stumble slightly. Regaining my footing, I glared back at the squad-leader, whose face was just as it was before as he walked past me. Sighing, I walked forward, the squad-leader pulling me along. “I never got your name.” I said to him.
The squad-leader shook his head, “It would do you no good to know it now.”
“Dying man’s last wish?” I asked him, feeling strangely curious to know his name.
He snorted. “My name is Mandible,” was all he said before he fell into silence as he led us through the corridors of the palace. All of us walked in silence, even Pinkie Pie.
The hallways were dark, silent, and oppressive, and we passed by many a room filled with glowing green cocoons. I turned to Mandible, “What are those cocoons?”
It was Twilight who spoke up, “Changelings use them to hold Ponies in while they drain the positive emotions from them for sustenance.” She basically growled. “Leaving them as no more than husks who can feel nothing but negativity.”
I had glanced back towards Twilight as she said this, but I still noticed Mandible grimacing. Thinking on it, I decided to keep my mouth shut. We reached a set of very ornate, not to mention huge, doors. Seriously, these doors made a fucking Semi look small! The doors opened as we neared, this one a deep groaning rumble that shook us all to the core. “I would recommend being polite to the Queen.” Mandible advised us, “And she might be disposed towards showing you mercy.”
We entered what looked to be some kind of event hall, which was filled with masses of the same green cocoons. The room seemed to be bare of any living creatures, barring a small group on the other side of the room. Most of them seemed to be kneeling, while one stood over them triumphantly. As the door closed behind us, the figure took notice of us and smirked. “You were saying?” A decidedly female voice said, but there was something… Off… About it? The figure sauntered over towards us, and I was able to make out her figure better. She was a good few inches taller than me, with a figure that most females would kill to have, with breasts about the size of my head, and an ass to match.
Like all other Changelings, this one had chitinous skin, albeit slightly smoother looking. She had more differences than the average Changelings too. She had hair, for one, and a crown-like growth going through her hair, as well as a horn. As she came up to us, I could see her eyes actually had pupils, unlike the other Changelings, who had more compound-looking eyes. Her smirk grew as she regarded us, revealing fangs. “You do realize the reception’s over?” She said to her Changeling minions, “Go! Feed!”
Her minions nodded, and did some weird bow with their fists on their chests before leaving the room, save for Mandible. The figure regarded me once more, “So, you’re the one who slayed my children?” She said to me, her voice reaching a deadly tone. I assumed that this was Queen Chrysalis.
I stared back into her eyes, “When you see them attempting to rape a young girl, it kinda colors your perspective of them.” I said calmly. I took a bit of pleasure seeing the slight widening of her eyes, “Also, are you really their biological mother?” I questioned, “Cause Mandible mentioned it, and it’s been bugging me.”
Chrysalis stared at me, and I imagined that everyone else was, too. Suddenly, Chrysalis began laughing, “I may not like you,” She said as she calmed down slightly, “But at least I can respect your courage before you die.” She took a breath, “As to your question, no, I am not their biological mother.” She said, “But I treat every Changeling born in my hive as if they were my own child,” I finally realized what was off about her voice. It was as if two people were saying the same thing, slightly out of sync.
I frowned, “Is that voice thing normal for you, or is there something extra that makes it happen?” I asked. “‘Cause it’s kinda tough to understand what you’re saying sometimes.”
This time, I didn’t have to imagine everyone’s reactions. I could hear the group behind me make noises of disbelief, besides a giggle from Pinkie. Chrysalis stared at me, “I do believe I will enjoy killing you.”
I shrugged, “Good luck with that.” I said, almost nonchalantly. “I mean, the first time I’ve ever fought for my life was maybe an hour or two ago,” I said, “But…” With a quick flick of my wrists, I broke apart the chains holding them. Roundhouse-kicking to the side, I caught Mandible across the side of the head, knocking him out, before grabbing my sword and holding it to Chrysalis’s neck. “I’m incredibly tough to kill.”
Chrysalis reacted quickly, knocking me backwards towards the group. I took the sudden distance between us to cut the ropes binding Twilight. “All of you, go help them over there!” I told them, pointing to the group kneeling where Chrysalis was. They nodded and rushed over there.
Chrysalis attempted to stop them, but was forced to backstep as I attempted a leaping vertical slash at her, the Murasama slicing into the solid stone floor. Chrysalis’s horn lit up, and a halberd appeared in her hands, with which she managed to block my next horizontal slash. She then tried to stab me with the spear part of the weapon. I jumped over the stab and managed a diagonal slash on her face, causing a wicked scar. Turning around as I landed, I saw green blood drip onto the ground as Chrysalis held her head. She whipped around to face me, moving her hand from her face to hold her blade. The wound I had dealt her was already beginning to heal, and as she charged at me not a moment later, it was as if it had never happened. “I’ll kill you!” She roared, using the blunt end of the blade to knock me upside the head, stunning me.
That was all she needed to deal a multitude of hits on me. My health rapidly drained, from 80% down to 40%. With one final blow, she knocked me back. I flew backwards, landing just short of the group that I had sent Twilight and the others to help. Groaning, I managed to stand and hold my sword in a good stance. Chrysalis laughed, her previous smug confidence back in full force. “When you die, I’ll have the pleasure of draining each of the beautiful mares behind you…” She licked her lips, “It’s sure to be… delectable…”
As she said that, something snapped. Like before with Apple Bloom, the thought of this bitch raping the women behind me got me pissed. My mouth twisted into as much of a snarl as it could manage, I gripped the handle of the Murasama tighter, and my single showing eye flashed red. “Just try it,” I growled, “They’ll be scraping you off the walls when I’m through.”
She laughed once again, “I’ve broken stronger than them. By the time I’m done, their only existence will be serving-” I’d had enough of her bitchiness. With a roar, I charged at her, sword aimed straight at her heart. She managed to block just in time, but I wasn’t done. I kept up, slashing and stabbing at each possible moment. Although Chrysalis managed to block each one, I could see a crack appear in the halberd where my blade continually struck it. ’One last strike!’ I thought to myself, ’That’s all I need!’
With one final roar, I swung, impacting the halberd with a loud clang. The weapon flew into two pieces, the blade impaling itself into the wall, leaving Chrysalis with the bottom half of the polearm.
I punched Chrysalis with my free hand, sending her flying onto the ground. Leaping up, I stood over her, my sword pointed at her head. “It’s over.” I said emotionlessly. “You’ve lost.” She stared up at me, before her face twisted into a maniacal grin.
The next second, all I could feel was a massive impact in my abdomen. Chrysalis had morphed her arm into a spike and had impaled me. With a laugh, she threw me across the room, impacting the wall and dropping my health to 5%. I somehow managed to stand, but Chrysalis was already striding towards me. ’Is this really how it’s gonna end?’ I thought to myself, ’Fighting a magical shape-shifting bug queen?’ My vision fell upon the group of Ponies. All of them were staring at me with worry and horror. My vision locked itself with Twilight’s. Her eyes seemed so sad… ’I’m not going to die.’
A new rush of determination hit me as Chrysalis pulled back her arm, now changed into a blade, which she raised above her head. “Enjoy the afterlife!” She yelled as she brought her arm down. My vision became tainted with blue, time appeared to slow down, and my energy meter began to drain. I smirked as I aimed for the center of Chrysalis’s blade-hand. I swung, cleaving straight through her arm. She screamed as the top half of the blade fell to the floor and the bottom half changed back into her arm, or at least a stump slightly above the elbow.
My vision turned back to normal as she fell to the floor, still screaming as I stood over it. “Yeah… I’m told that hurts.” I said, a slight smirk on my face. I turned back to the group, then grunted as I remembered the hole in my stomach. “Thank god for pain inhibitors.” I muttered.
Twilight suddenly rushed over. “Raiden!” she yelled, clearly distraught, “Raiden, are you alright?”
“Not… fully,” I grunted, turning to her. She gasped as she saw the hole in my stomach, “I won’t die from it, but unless I can heal this up, it will not be a fun time.”
Her horn lit up in a second, “I know a few healing spells. Let me help you.” As she cast the spell, my health didn’t go up, but my energy, which had been left at about 50%, began to rise drastically.
I put out a hand to stop her, “Stop.” Reluctantly, she did so, “I don’t have enough organic parts for that to work. I have a self-repair system of little nanomachines, but they need a specific energy type to activate.” I looked away, “Unless we have something like that here…”
Twilight thought about that for a moment, “Let me try something.” She finally said. Her horn lit up a bright Magenta color, and a moment later, I was enveloped in an aura of the same color. It felt… weird. And inconsistent. “Tell me if you can feel them activate.” She told me.
I rolled my eyes, but nodded, not really expecting anything to happen. And for a few moments, nothing did. But all of a sudden, I felt something change. Looking down, I saw the hole in my stomach beginning to shrink, and my health beginning to rise. “It’s working!” I said, amazed.
My health eventually capped out, leaving me just as healthy as before my fight. Twilight, however, was looking drained. She was swaying where she stood, and would’ve fallen had I not caught her. “That…” she said, “was tougher than I had imagined it would be… I’ll have to find a way to make that easier if I have to do it again.”
I nodded, before glancing back to Chrysalis, who was still on the floor as her hand slowly regenerated, her grimace of pain evident as she scowled at them. “What do we do with her?” I asked.
Twilight shrugged, and looked back to the group, prompting me to follow. Apart from Applejack, Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie, there was a Unicorn male with white fur and blue hair, and two beings I hadn’t seen before. Both were female, judging by the huge breasts on their chests, one white and one pink, but they both had wings and a horn. The white woman spoke up, “There has been enough death today.” She looked to Chrysalis, “We will lock her up in the dungeon while we figure out what to do with her.”
I nodded, then a thought occurred to me, “Wait, what about the army currently invading Canterlot?” I asked, “The rest of the snake doesn’t know we’ve just cut off it’s head.”
This time, the pink woman spoke up, “Changelings have a hive-mind. Chrysalis can inform the rest of the swarm, if she hasn’t already.”
I looked back towards Chrysalis, whose hand was almost done healing. After making sure Twilight could stand without me, I walked over to Chrysalis and squatted down next to her. “That hurt, didn’t it?” I asked. She spat at the ground in response. I ignored this and carried on, “If you don’t want to feel it again, I would recommend telling the rest of your swarm to stand down.” She refused to respond. I frowned, “Look, there's been enough bloodshed today. I promise that if you surrender, I’ll make sure your swarm is treated fairly for what they’ve done.”
She glared at me, “And what good is your promise!?” She spat the word, “You’ve killed my children!”
I stared back, “Because I fight for justice.” I said calmly, “I only killed when I saw no other option. You’ll be punished for what has happened, that’s irrefutable, but I promise you no more will happen to you than that.”
Chrysalis stared into my eyes-hers were actually very pretty-before sighing. “Fine…” She said, “My Children…” She said aloud, “The fight is over. Surrender.” She slumped down.
I spied a window showing a courtyard outside. Walking over and looking out it, I saw Changeling soldiers surrendering themselves to white-furred Ponies in gleaming gold armor. “They’re surrendering.” I informed the room.
Pinkie Pie started bouncing in joy. “WE DID IT!” she yelled excitedly. I couldn’t help but chuckle, sharing in her enthusiasm.
I walked back to the group, making sure to keep an eye on Chrysalis. Each of the new Ponies looked at me, not sure what to make of me. “Warrior,” the white woman said, “I am Princess Celestia, and on behalf of all Equestria, I wish to thank you.”
I started, not knowing that I was in the presence of royalty. I gave a bow, “It is a pleasure to meet you.” I paused for a moment, then decided it was time for the truth. “I told Twilight my name was Raiden, but that is not fully true.” Twilight gave me a look, “My true name is Jack. Jack Crane.”
Celestia nodded, “Well, Mr. Crane,” she began, “Once again, I wish to thank you for your help in saving our city.”
I smiled, “It was no trouble. As I said to Chrysalis, I fight for justice. Now...” I looked over the assembled Ponies and Changeling, “...I believe I remember something about a wedding?”