The Canterlot wedding was a day of celebration. Ponies from all over the city had come to witness the grand event. As the Royal Guards position themselves throughout the city, the bulk remaining at the castle, the wedding itself had begun in full swing. The Cutie Mark Crusaders: Applebloom, Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle, were given the role of the flower fillies and once they reached the base of the alter, turned to the sides to make way for Princess Cadence as she got to her position beside her husband-to-be, Shining Armour.
The Mane Five had been given the honor to be Cadence’s bridesmaids after her old ones suddenly grew ill. Each one of them were wearing a dress made by Rarity just for this special day, even Rainbow Dash, though she’d still want to get out as soon as possible, and they all bore smiles on their faces for the happy couple. That is, all except Pinkie Pie, who kept staring worriedly at the purple/pink daystar that nopony else seemed to have taken any notice of.
Seeing that everything was in perfect order, Princess Celestia began to get the ceremony started. “Ladies and gentlecolts, we are today to join these two ponies in holy matrimony...”
The rest of the speech was interrupted when the sounds of rattling metal, the casting of spells and the clank of something metallic impacting on the ground. Everypony in the hall watched the large double-doors in eerie silence, soon interrupted by a light knocking.
“What the-“ whatever else Rainbow Dash had to say was interrupted when the doors suddenly burst open, slamming into the walls they were mounted on with such force the stone was heavily cracked and the wooden doors almost broke apart. The doorway was unusually filled by a grey smoke-cloud, obscuring the wedding crasher.
“Sorry I’m late everyone, but there were a few important things I had to take care of so that I could be ready.” A chipper, feminine voice called out through the smoke. The ponies sent glares into the smoke at whoever dared to ruin such a wonderful event, but their expression turned to wide-eyed shock and awe at whom came out from the now dissipating smoke.
The mare was a unicorn, but she was as tall and slender as Princess Luna with a just as promenade turquoise colored horn. Her coat was a violet-purple, her dark, three-toned mane was a wild and unkempt mess. It and her tail were a dark blue with a stripe of violet like her fur and lavender-purple side-by-side. Her eyes were most striking as her shrunken violet iris’ and glowing turquoise sclerae gave her a menacing look. Celestia was shocked to see that the Dark Mare was also wearing what appeared to be a corrupted version of the Element of Magic, and the Alicorn Amulet.
“I hope I’m not too late, I wouldn’t miss my brother and ex-foalsitter’s wedding for the world.” She said, earning confused murmurings from all the ponies that heard.
“T-Twilight?” a cream-coated unicorn, Twilight Velvet, asks worriedly. “W-what happened to you?” But her question was responded with a smile and wave from her changed daughter.
“Oh hi Mom, I’ve just been embracing my true destiny. So what do you think of my new look?” Twilight said as she struck a pose.
“Twilight Sparkle, where in the world did you find the Alicorn Amulet?” Princess Celestia asks once her mind refocused.
“What, this little thing? I just bought it from this really nice stallion at a small night store.” She replied.
“Are you trying to ruin my wedding in every way possible?” Cadence asks with a hint of venom in her tone.
“This isn’t your wedding!” yelled a very similar voice from the damaged doors. When everyone turned to the doorway, all except Twilight gasped at the sight of a second Cadence, this one having an unkempt mane, tail and dirty fur. “It’s mine!”
“What?! But how did you get past my bridesmaids?” the fake Cadence demanded angrily. Twilight turned back to the witch standing next to her idiot of a brother, who wasn’t reacting, and tilted her head in confusion.
“Wait… you mean you made some innocent ponies act as guards for Cadence?” she asks, then tilts her head to the other side and brings a hoof to her chin in thought. “Hmm… didn’t see ‘em. Though teleporting back to my home in Ponyville so that Cadence could rest in a comfortable bed and have some decent food from who knows how much time spent in old Canterhorn mines just before we came back to Canterlot about two minutes ago could be a factor.”
Celestia was shocked by this update of information; apparently her adopted niece was inside the mountain while she’d been with an imposter for Faust knows how long, and Twilight spoke about accomplishing feats of teleportation she couldn’t do before like it was nothing.
“Now then,” Twilight said as she looked at the imposter’s bemused expression with a devilish grin, “let’s show these little ponies what you really are, shall we?” she charged her horn and before Celestia could protest, released it. “Break-spell!”
The spell stuck the fake Cadence and she was suddenly engulfed in green fire, but she wasn’t burning. Pink fur turned into black chitin, hooves were riddled with holes, feathered wings turned to those found on an insect, her mane and tail went from pink, yellow and purple to a lime-green, the horn became jiggered and her eyes were emerald-green with slit pupils. When the transformation was complete and everypony gasped at the sight of her, she looked over her form with shock, panic and anger.
“My disguise! How?! How did you discover who I was and destroy my disguise?!” she demanded angrily of Twilight, who had an expression that showed she was unimpressed.
“To be perfectly honest, I actually expected something a little more… intimidating, for your true form. Now I see that Changelings are nothing more than bug-ponies.”
The Changeling Queen growled in irritation. “Well, if you know what I am, than it’s only proper that you know who I am. My name is Chrysalis, Queen of the Changelings, and we have come to Equestria to feed on its Love.” The now identified Queen Chrysalis proclaimed proudly.
“So when you found out about our preparations for the wedding, you foalnapped my niece and took her form?” Celestia accused angrily.
“And you were all none the wiser!” Chrysalis laughed. “You were all so caught up in preparing for the wedding, you didn’t even notice Cadence’s sudden change in behaviour.” She shifted her gaze to Twilight. “While the rest of you fell for my, and I admit, poor acting of being Cadence, only one of you were actually smart enough to know that something was wrong.” She said with a cocky grin.
“And I should actually thank you for that.” Twilight replied in a bored tone. To all their confused looks, she sighed and elaborated. “Despite your piss-poor performance of acting like Cadence, you helped me find out that the ponies who I thought cared about are nothing but naïve back-stabbing idiots.” The sound of a deflating balloon could be heard as Pinkie Pie’s mane went from poofy to straight, Rainbow Dash and Applejack were a mix of shock and anger, Rarity looked like she was about to faint and Fluttershy was on the verge of tears.
But Twilight either didn’t notice or completely ignored them for she continued. “I mean come on, who in their right mind would host a wedding when their city is being threatened? Speaking of which, has your army still not busted through the shield yet?” Twilight asks Chrysalis as she wonders to a window and looks up to the top of the energy dome around Canterlot and the Changeling swarm trying to get through it.
The Changeling Queen chuckled. “After feeding off of his love for Cadence, I’ve drained so much of Shining Armor’s power and strength I doubt that his little bubble would last another two minutes.” Just as she said that, the Dark Mare saw some cracks forming on the barrier.
“Call off the invasion this instant!” Celestia demanded with her wings flared open to make herself more intimidating.
“I think not!” Chrysalis countered as she and the princess locked horns. “We changelings have to feed on the Love of other creatures to survive, and Equestria has more love than any other place I have been to. So when I’m presented an opportunity to get my children well fed,” she pushed Celestia out of the lock, making her take to the air, “than you can bet that I will take it!”
“You may be doing this to help your people,” Celestia allowed, “but you are invading my nation and intend to harm my ponies.” The solar princess’s horn started to glow. “So you can bet that I will do all that is in my power to stop you!” she fired a golden beam of magic at Chrysalis, who instinctively fired her own beam to counter.
The magic lances collided in between them, but at the moment Celestia was overpowering the changeling queen. Twilight turned her attention from the waning shield and onto the confrontation, focusing on Chrysalis’ panicked expression, trying to put out more power in her magic. But the dual was decided when the Changeling Queen’s beam suddenly overpowered Celestia’s and when it collided, brought the alicorn princess plummeting to the ground, her crown falling off her head and the tip of her horn scorched.
After ridding herself of the shock of actually winning, Chrysalis laughed as Cadence and the Mane Five went to Celestia’s side. “Yes! Feeding off of his love for you has made me more powerful than even Celestia!” The sound of shattering glass could be heard throughout Canterlot, and to the horror of the ponies that looked to the sky, they could see for themselves that the Changelings had broken through Shining Armor’s shield and were now attacking the city.
“Get… get to the Elements…” Celestia spoke weakly to her niece and the five mares with her. “They’re our only hope.”
“But what about Twilight?” Pinkie Pie asks. “She’s gone all dark and mean and doesn’t like us any more.”
“It’s the Alicorn Amulet. She somehow found it and it’s corrupting her.” Celestia answered. “Once you have the Elements, you must remind Twilight of your friendship and get her to remove it; only the wearer can take it off.”
Applejack took a quick glance at the Dark Mare to see that she was looking out the window at the moment. “Alright y’all, let’s go get our friend back and run these bugs out o’ town!” she said with conviction, earning nods from the others.
“I’ll look after aunt Celestia and try to snap Shining out of the queen’s hypnosis.” Cadence decided. Applejack tilted her hat to the pink princess before she and her friends ran out of the broken doorway. By now all of the other ponies had run away in search of better safety, all except Twilight Velvet and her husband, Night Light, who stayed to make sure their children were safe.
Changeling drones by the dozen made themselves welcome in the wedding hall, and before any of the few ponies that remained realised it, they were trapped in place by some kind of green goo that quickly solidified. Celestia was hoisted to the ceiling and was being entrapped in a cocoon to the amusement of Chrysalis. And though they stood around the mare to do something, it seemed that the Changelings were afraid of getting too close to Twilight, much to their queen’s confusion and annoyance.
Chrysalis was getting irritated that her children were ignoring her commands through the hive-mind, and when they were unresponsive there as well, she decided to voice her frustration.
“What in the First Mother’s name are you fools doing just standing there?” she demands angrily as she steps closer to the group. “Just trap her like all the others! Is that so mu-“ she stopped mid-sentence and mid-stride as she got up to the ring surrounding Twilight Sparkle. Her heart was racing and her knees were shaking, and she didn’t know why.
‘W-what’s happening?’ Chrysalis asks mentally.
“Ah, so it does work on you, Chrysalis.” The Changeling Queen looks to the source of the voice, her vision blurry and erratic, causing her to second guess whatever she was seeing. For one moment the dark mare in front of her was normal, then she’d rapidly turn from that to pitch black with deep cuts, large gashes that showed stark white bone, claws in place of hooves, torn dragon wings and a mane and tail of raging hellfire. “But still not as well as it does on your drones.” Twilight turned her head to Chrysalis, only to turn like the rest of her body; her cheeks seemed to be torn open to show off a mouth of jagged fangs. She bore seven horns; two that went to the sides then forwards like a bull, two that went back and curved up at the ends to hold a small skull each, two smaller ones that seemed to as guards for her jaw, and one like Chrysalis’ own.
But what completed the nightmarish form were the pale, green, soul-less eyes that seeped purple miasma from the corners. All in all, it was more than enough to make Chrysalis take a few steps back, an act the changelings surrounding Twilight followed. Twilight herself smiled, and with a wave of her hoof dispelled her illusion.
“What... did you do to me?” Chrysalis asks.
“I merely made it so that there was an aura that made all those within a certain radius around me are filled unfathomable fear and dread.” The dark mare explained. “You just got within range. But don’t worry, it’s gone now, I was only testing it to see if it would work.” A grin formed on her lips. “And now that you’re close…”
Three things happened too fast for Chrysalis to process: 1), Twilight got right-up close and personal in her face; 2), when Twilight’s horn glowed their shadows expanded into a five-meter diameter circle; and 3), the shadows shot upwards to create a dome that trapped the Changeling Queen with the Dark Mare.
“Where am I? What are you doing?” Chrysalis asked in a panic. She found herself in some kind of open landscape that was nothing but empty whiteness as she stood on a seemingly nonexistent floor.
“Don’t worry, we’re in a little pocket of space and time where we can talk in private. Just the two of us.” Twilight explained.
“And what could we possibly talk about?”
“Your failure.” Twilight said simply. Chrysalis was confused, so she continued. “I have foreseen the future, Chrysalis, and you will lose. Cadence will break free from the slime and get to Shining Armor, then she will break him from your control and will attempt another barrier. He won’t have the strength on his own to do it, but Cadence uses her love for him to give Shining more power. Together they create an energy pulse that banishes all Changelings from Equestria.”
Chrysalis’ eyes widened in horror. “But they can’t!” she screamed. “I’ve had my Changelings living in pony society for years as love collectors. If what you say will happen happens, then not only would their covers be blown but they’ll be taken away from their families!”
Twilight arched an eyebrow, curious to the outburst. “Than how come you’re openly attacking Canterlot if it came at such a risk to your kind?
“Well, I… I…” Chrysalis stammered on her words, unable to come up with an answer. The Changeling Queen’s eyes glowed a faint blue before dissipating, and Twilight almost missed it. Almost. “By the First Mother, what in the whole of Tartarus made me thick that this was a good idea?” she asked out loud with tears threatening to fall from her eyes, fearful that she had brought doom to the Changelings.
Twilight was surprised to see the strong and confident Changeling Queen in front of her fall to the ground and cry her eyes out, much like what she did last night.
“W-what’s *SNIFF*… what’s wrong w-with me?” Chrysalis spoke between sobs. “I… I’m not n-normally *SNIFF* like th-this. The rudeness, the cruelty… I don’t even treat my soldiers like that!” she looked up at the dark mare with teary, sorrowful eyes. “Why *SNIFF*... w-why did I do all that? What’s wrong with me?!”
She didn’t know why, she didn’t know if it was the best idea given the situation, but she just felt that it was the right thing to do. Nevertheless, Twilight surprised both of them by bringing Chrysalis into a tight, yet comforting embrace.
“Shh… it’s okay.” Twilight said in a soothing tone as she rubbed the Changeling’s back. “Something was stopping you from thinking clearly, pulling you along with metaphorical strings like you were some puppet. None of this was your fault, and if someone else was the one who got this idea into your head, then it’s them you should be mad at; not yourself.”
Chrysalis returned the gesture and continued to cry on Twilight’s shorter shoulder even as she tried to talk. “B-but that’s the thing: it just came to me one day and I couldn’t stop thinking about it. I tried to ignore it, but it was a persistent thought.” She chuckled lightly. “It just kept scratching in the back of my mind until I couldn’t take it any more and just figured ‘What the heck?’ and just look at we’re that brought us.”
Twilight was relieved that Chrysalis was slowly getting her confidence back up, as she wasn’t shaking or crying anymore, and her sobs were few and far between. A small smile crept onto Twilight’s lips as she thought of how well she was helping, which was odd because she was within her rights to hate her; but just couldn’t bring herself to anymore.
“I’m sorry.” Chrysalis’ voice brought Twilight out of her thoughts. She slowly and carefully pushed out of the embrace to look eye-to-eye with the Changeling Queen. Seeing the mare’s confusion, she explained. “I’m sorry for everything I’ve done to you. I turned your brother, friends and teacher against you, and the only reason why your parents, or anyone else for that matter, didn’t go to see you was because I told them that we made up and you fell asleep.”
Twilight’s expression soured upon hearing that those she trusted the most had bought the lie so easily without question, and Chrysalis feared that she’d made a mistake. “I’m sorry.” She said again. “I’m sorry I sa-“
“No, it’s okay.” Twilight interrupted with a raised hoof as she looked down. “You don’t have to apologize for anything.” She lowered her hoof and Chrysalis tilted her head in confusion. “Before the wedding, I thought that I had the perfect life: I was the princess’ personal student, I was a master of magic, and I had the best friends one could ask for. But it was all a lie. They came to me to fix their problems, and the few times I tried to get their help with mine, they brushed me off and didn’t take what I said seriously.” She started to cry as she continued. “I… I was always there for them, but they weren’t there for me when I needed them most. They turn their backs on me the moment I stray from the status quo until I start agreeing with them again.” She raised her head so that Chrysalis’ emerald-green eyes could gaze into her teary lavender ones. “Like I said earlier, you helped me realize that I was only being used by those who I thought cared about me. Without you I would never have discovered what I could truly accomplish and wouldn’t have this power. So… thank you, Chrysalis. Thank you for setting me free.”
Twilight pulled her into another embrace, one that Chrysalis happily returned with gusto. For all her life the Changelings looked up to their queen with respect and even worship, but none had tried to get to know her as an equal. A few times in the past she had done to others what she did to Shining Armour, but only whenever absolutely necessary. Her eyes widened when she felt something from Twilight directed to her, for her, started to fill up like she just had a light meal. But what she felt couldn’t be what she thought it was… could it? Chrysalis smiled to herself; she hoped it was.
The peaceful, quiet hug was interrupted when both mares heard a faint clapping coming from the distance. They separated and stood up to take defensive stances as the clapping grew louder. When they looked to the direction it was coming from, they were awestruck by the sight of the figure coming towards them.
“Well done, Twilight. Well done indeed.” It spoke in a deep yet soothing male voice.
Twilight’s eyes widened. “Ainz?” she asks once she recognises where she’d heard that voice before, and receiving a nod from him.
“And I must say, you are already exceeding expectations.”
“What do you mean?”
“You see Twilight, I am merely one of several entities that have ascended to an existence beyond that of our previous one, allowing us to observe and interact with other universes and realities as we saw fit. In our observations we sometimes find individuals who we deem worthy to join us, seeing what choices they will make, how they interact with their world, how the world and those around them build up their character and so on and so forth."
“Uh… okay, I think I’ll ask you about all that another time,” Twilight said, “but for now, do you know what made Chrysalis want to attack Canterlot?” she asks, Chrysalis giving Ainz a hopeful look.
He sighed deeply. “Yes. It was by the will of one of my 'brothers', Cegorach.”
“What?!” Chrysalis yelled in anger and shock whilst Twilight was only experiencing the latter.
“We… have a rule,” Ainz continued, “we can only give our aid to those we find worthy to join us if they are in an appropriate situation where they will accept our aid, such as this wedding fiasco. We had decided that you had the potential to join us ever since you earned your cutie mark, Twilight, but nothing you faced was the ‘right moment’, as it were. So, one of us took it upon himself to create a situation, and the two of you know what happens after that.”
“Wait, what about Discord? I was very vulnerable when I’d given into despair.” Twilight asks as she recalled an event where these beings could’ve revealed themselves earlier.
“We were going to, honest, but Celestia had beaten us to it when she sent back all your friendship reports."
“So… what now?” Twilight and Ainz were confused by Chrysalis’ question. “What will happen to me and my Changelings?”
Ainz knelt down and placed a skeletal hand on her shoulder, Chrysalis feeling that he was trying to give her a reassuring smile despite his lack of skin. “Do not fret for your children, Chrysalis. Cegorach has already placed shields on those living in pony society, knowing of what would occur at the castle, so only your army and yourself will be affected.”
“Am I right to assume that that’s so the ponies will eventually forget that the invasion ever happened?” she asks, to which he nodded.
“Typical.” Twilight mumbled to herself.
“Now then,” Ainz started saying as he stood up, “I believe it’s time that the two of you returned to the outside world.” With that, his body began turning to mist until he was completely gone.
The two mares were quiet for a while until Chrysalis spoke up. “So… what now?” she turned her head to Twilight, who held a hoof to her muzzle.
“Hmm, we could cast illusions on ourselves so that it seems that we were fighting, and we’d also have to act like we hate each other to sell it.”
The Changeling Queen nodded as she and the Dark Mare cast the spells that made them look battle-worn. “So how do you suppose we do this when you dispel… whatever this thing is?” she asked, gesturing to the white, empty void.
Twilight smirked. “I thought that if I made the dome explode outwards and you and I jumped backwards, it would seem that we'd destroyed it in our fight.”
“And if we pretended to be out of breath and glare at each other, it would sell the act even more.” Chrysalis finished, being rewarded with a bright smile and sudden, sidelong hug from Twilight, feeling a flush of energy fill her.
“That’s right!” she said before stepping a few paces away from and turning to face Chrysalis. “You ready?” she asks as she bent into a pose that would allow her to leap backwards.
“Whenever you are.” Chrysalis replied, copying Twilight’s stance as the Dark Mare’s horn glowed.
“One…” the black space began to rumble and shake.
“Two…” cracks of immeasurable lengths shaped like lightning bolts stretched across the world-scape.
“THREE!!!” they screamed out as the void shattered and was no more.
Twilight Velvet and Night Light were worried sick for their children. Much like themselves, Cadence was trapped where she stood, still not having the strength to fight back the Changelings when they spat their strange saliva onto her hooves and horn. Things weren’t much better when they sealed the princess in some sort of cocoon and the couple’s son was still under the larger Changeling’s control.
Even though it hadn’t been so much as a minute, they were concerned for their daughter when that dark dome trapped her alone with the queen.
That concern spiked when cracks formed all around said dome until it exploded, sending their transformed daughter and Changeling Queen to opposite ends of the hall. The two of them were scorched, bruised, battered and breathing heavily. They were glaring at each other but both wore toothy grins.
“You’re a lot stronger than I thought considering that you’re not an alicorn.” Queen Chrysalis said.
“I’m still just a little impressed that you managed to destroy my spell.” Twilight Sparkle called back. Their attention was brought to the doorway as a group of a dozen changelings came in, bringing with them the now captured Mane Five.
Chrysalis smirked devilishly, though it was forced. “Well, Miss Sparkle, we can either do this the easy way or the hard way. Because despite what you said earlier, I doubt that you want to see these little ponies get hurt.” She hated that the threat left her lips, but she had to keep up the act.
Twilight dispelled the magic in her horn and sat down on her hunches. The other Element bearers were able to smile slightly seeing that at least a little bit of their friend was still in there, even as the six of them were being stuck to where they stood.
The Changeling Queen forced herself to laugh as she turned to the window, overseeing the invasion and only pretending to enjoy it. She even went as far as to sing a song about it.
Seeming to think that the mares were no longer a problem, most of the drones turned their backs to them whilst the others left to rejoin the attack. This was all Twilight needed to focus her magic and burn away the goo on her horn. She formed a ray of red light that did the same thing for her hooves to free herself, and quietly snuck around from behind the changelings to make her way to Cadence, using the rays to free her.
“Hurry, go to him and use your spell.” She whispered. Cadence just nodded and went to her lover, using her love to break him free of the hypnosis.
“Ugh… what happened? Is the wedding over?” he asks in a daze.
“Hurry, Shiny. You have to use your spell to protect Canterlot from the Changelings.” Cadence told her fiance.
Shining Armor quickly took in the state his wife-to-be was in and that of his parents and his sister’s friends. Not wanting to waste more time, he charged his horn to unleash his magic, but only managed a flickering spark before it completely dissipated.
“I can’t.” He gasped out. “I don’t have the strength to repel the changelings.”
“My love will give you strength.” Cadence embraced her lover and poured as much of her own magic into him. Their horns touched and their bodies began to glow and levitate. Soon when enough power was collected the couple to form a love heart and sent out a blast of energy.
Just before the pulse struck her, Chrysalis was thankful that she was able to catch a glimpse of Twilight giving her an apologetic look just as she was thrown through the open window and across the sky towards the Badlands, her army in tow.