Love in Time Immemorial
Cadence wept. In the royal garden of Canterlot Castle, she laid a single rose over the grave of her husband. Raising her head, she saw the place where she and Shining Armor had been married, so long ago.
Next to her, Twilight Sparkle, her mane gray and her skin wrinkled, leaned her head on Cadence’s shoulder. They had not spoken all that day. They had not had to. That they stood together on this day was the final display of the lesson they had learned: that when a stallion had a wife and a sister who both loved him, the love was not divided but multiplied. Somehow Shining Armor had always found time for both.
Cadence wore a black veil. Although her body had not aged since maturity, it gave her the dignity of the widow. She reflected. She had always known that this day would come, the payment of a debt that she had taken on when she chose to marry a mortal. She regretted nothing. This fact did not stop her tears.
Her aunts had given her instruction in what it meant to be deathless among the dying, but she, not yet two hundred years of age, had not taken it to heart. Might she marry again? She would not say at that time. She would have plenty of time in the future.
She was greeted and comforted by her other friends. Fluttershy, heart so kind. To merely be in her presence eased Cadence’s pain. Rarity, whose emotions and the design of her black dress might make an onlooker think that she was the one who had lost a husband, and whose empathy Cadence felt. Pinkie Pie, around whom nopony could help smiling. Cadence would never object to a pony who laughed, even in a graveyard.
And two empty places in line. Rainbow Dash and Applejack. Cadence could feel them only in spirit. Both had lived full lives. She had stood proudly at their funerals. Would they be waiting for Shining Armor, wherever he was now? He would need friends.
This was the secret pain she could only share with Celestia and Luna, and neither of them had married mortals. Everypony else, every Earth pony who wed a unicorn, every pegasus who wed another pegasus, every one, could someday hope that they would meet their beloveds again, somewhere beyond all knowledge. Cadence could not hope. She would never see Shining Armor again.
And Shining Armor would never see Cadence.
He—or rather his body, for Cadence knew that the identity of Shining Armor was no longer in the frame—was bedecked in the uniform of the Captain of the Guard, even though he had long since passed those duties onto younger and more vibrant stallions. He lay in the ground without a casket, only a black cloth beneath him. In the pony tradition, the proper place for a body was in the earth whence it came.
Through the tears in her eyes and through the veil, she saw the body as it was so long ago, on the day they married. So much had happened that day. So much had happened since.
So much life left to live.
Was there none who she could turn to for true sympathy? Was there none who could understand? Was there none other who would know what it meant to be forever starved of the love of Shining Armor?
And then she had her answer. The logic of it was tainted only by the bitter taste of a long memory. But Cadence was an alicorn, who would live forever. If she were to hold grudges, they would consume her. Forgiveness was a survival quality.
The other mourners had proceeded out into the square. She was left alone. She leaned her head down and kissed him one last time. She returned to her room at the castle. She made her preparations.
When she asked for an audience with the royal sisters, she was of course brought in immediately. Their time was at her call, they informed her. She told them of her quest, the quest she would undertake. She concealed nothing. They would understand that much.
A long search. What is long to an immortal? When her aunt could spend a thousand years imprisoned and be restored with no malice in her heart, could Cadence complain about mere weeks of leads that went nowhere? Could she feel the months that flew by like seconds as she searched on rumor? The times she would have to divert from her quest far away and return for royal duty, or merely to see her mortal friends in the time they had left—did those matter?
Throughout Equestria, through the Everfree forest, through nameless and trackless lands, to the edges of the world, Cadence searched. At last she came to the place. It had to be the place. She had been everywhere else, for one. But she would have known even if she had come here first.
It was a wasteland. Craggy and twisted rocks were all the land had to offer. Nothing grew. Nothing tried. Nothing lived. Steam rose from unseen vents and rain dripped from cold clouds. The wind carried only a lament in its voice.
Into the center of the land Cadence marched. The land had only become more dreary and forbidding. Black and gray stone, broken only by veins of ice, formed the landscape. A hill stood, and at a certain angle provided all there was in terms of shelter.
To this Cadence came at last, and there she saw the one for whom she had quested for so long. One who she had seen only briefly, and that so long ago. There on the ground, still bent, torn, and twisted, still with only a few strands of hair and with a broken and perforated body, lay Chrysalis, queen of the changelings.
One eye was blinded. Half her body was paralyzed. Around her, six of the foul creatures lay, their heads up against the queen like kittens suckling at their mother. Chrysalis opened her one good eye, and saw Cadence.
“You?! After all this time, you?! Now I know that I am cursed, damned more than any creature ever to walk this world. Now at my end, when at last I looked forward to rest, I am instead made to relive my downfall. Very well, I accept it. Say your piece, alicorn.”
“Chrysalis. Tell me what has befallen you.”
“Do you not know? After my failure, after you banished me quite forcefully from your home, all I could do was to lead the remnants of my people here. No other place would have us. Stripped of our power to mimic and steal the love we need to survive, the changelings starved.
“No, you would not know. You appear before me in the same splendor as I last saw you. You know nothing of seeing your people, your children, those who you are bound and sworn to protect, growing weak and frail. Passing one by one. Forced into cannibalism, feeding on the dead to gain one more stay of execution. Staying alive one more day to know that tomorrow you will die. Living without hope.
“And you would know nothing of the impotence of watching that. Having to see your failure in the last breath of a thousand thousand of your people. And if the changelings had little, then I, Chrysalis, had none. I cannot remember the last time I fed. When we happened upon some small creature that might have the rudiments of the emotion we needed, I would see it and my mouth would water. But I knew I must have none. Why should I? I am immortal.
“At least, I think I am. I hope I am not. These few are all that are left of the changelings, and by my estimation they will soon die too. Perhaps, with no people to rule, I will be allowed to die as well. I would even welcome hell. If nothing else, it would be a change.
“Or perhaps I am already there, and my hell is to be watched over by you, and to see how you have flourished while I have fallen. Yes, that is appropriate for me, to live eternal in starving torment and in the presence of mine enemy who shines out in her health and happiness. Come, mock me! Let it begin!”
Tears formed in Cadence’s eyes. “So much time wasted, so much pain. Chrysalis, you have been guilty of a great error, and in your haste and greed you did not give anypony time to correct it.
“You feed on love. Did you never once consider that you could ensure yourself bounty everlasting, if you but had someone who loved you?”
Chrysalis was speechless. She relived thousands of years and thousands of deaths in a question.
“It is too late. We are dead.”
“You breathe. You have six left. Look into their eyes. See their pleas. See that they still hold out hope. Were you followed for so long out of fear? Whenever you passed the food of love onto your people, was there no love for your sacrifice? Chrysalis, I was your enemy. You would have ruined my life if you had the chance. But that was a long time ago. Will you not let me love you?”
The black head lifted. “You. . . you would love me?”
“I would. Not merely out of pity. You can give me something no one else can, and if you are willing, then I would love you for it.”
“I can give? What have I to give? Who in this world has less than I do?”
“Still you can give it. In all this world, Chrysalis, you are the only one who can let me see Shining Armor again.”
“My power is useless. I don’t have the strength.”
“That is what he said to me, all those years ago. I will give you the same response. My love will give you strength.”
Cadence lowered her head and placed her horn in the crook of Chrysalis’s own twisted appendage. Power flowed between the two. The black queen felt her hunger lessen. She cast her memory back for the image of the stallion she had tried to consume. Slowly, ever so slowly, her coat turned white. Her muscles regenerated. Her spindly bat-wings folded in and became a part of her body. She rose to her feet and took the form of Shining Armor.
“If you would but wear this form at need,” said Cadence, “then I would stay with you forever, and my love for you will never diminish. You will learn that indeed it will grow. I tell you again, this is not pity. It is selfishness. To see Shining Armor again is a gift for which I would exchange my heart.”
Chrysalis, now with a deep masculine voice, said, “And will there be enough for the others to feed as well?”
“All that I have to give. And we can teach them to love among themselves as well. You need not be parasites, consuming your hosts until you yourselves perish. Let me show you how to love and grow. Let these last six be the start of a new race. They will be hardy, since they survived the longest.”
“Hardy? Perhaps,” said Chrysalis. “But do not think that you are the only one who is selfish.”
The changelings began to cry. “Momma! Momma!”
“Momma is here, my dears. She may look a little funny now, but she has someone she wants you to meet. Cadence, is there room in your heart for my children as well?”
“Oh yes, my love. So long as there is room in yours. Come, little ones. Feed off your mother and I. Feel our love for each other and for you. Grow strong, for we have much to build in this world.
“And we only have forever in which to build it,” said Cadence.
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Damn... that was intense,
reminds me of zergs for some reason
You sir, have some apples for writing this.
Now I'm curious to see if anyone else wrote anything like this.
Good job! Thumbs up.
Though in a way, I can't help but think the thought process is flawed. Not too a bad extent, I mean, emotionally speaking, I can kind of see someone doing this. Its just that, no matter what, that won't be Shining Armor. It will just look like him.
Either way, good job.
I rather enjoyed that. Good work!
Shit. At first, I was like, "Dafuq? Why does she suddenly want to love Chrysalis? I smell plotholes!" but the Shining Armor thing was pretty good. I really should have seen it coming, but it's good.
Still, I wonder if the princesses would not object to her strengthening the opposition?
Well, that was interesting! I first saw this and went "This ship already? This ought to be worth a good laugh!" Instead I get something quite chilling and bittersweet. In exchange for shattering my expectations, you can have my cold bleeding thumbs!
Who in the seven fires of pony hell thumbed this down?
Too short
a.deviantart.net/avatars/t/r/truestoryplz.png
Wow, that's... powerful. But that's true if Chrysalis was given love and loved in return she'd be truly alive.
There's a whole lot of "you dun F-ed up" in this story. Not you the author, mind you, but the characters.
Cadence is going to find out pretty quickly that it takes more than just a physical appearance to mimic someone you've known and loved for so long. Also, I can see the Evil Queen taking advantage of this and turning her mind to mush, just like she did with Shiny Armor. After that, it's only a matter of time before the brood swells in number again, and plans another attack to take over Equestria or some other nation. That's the nature of evil, to betray and destroy and corrupt. It's no doubt that Cadence hasn't encountered it enough times to realize this.
Cadence really is a naive and selfish little moron here. She needs her aunt to step in and give a lesson on how to let go. Surely, Celestia has been well versed in that.
Potential abounds, and If it had been made longer, with more time for development, I could honestly love it.
As it is, it's a grand start.
...
*slow building applause*
Good story, there had been a huge amount of Queen Chrysillis stories as of late but this is one of the better ones.
kinda sad to see this as a one-shot. i could see this running for a few more chapters at least.
but anyhooves, you got my fav!
When I saw this and there was no comedy tag and more thumbs up than thumbs down, I was thinking "one day is all it took, how can someone possibly manage to ship such an unshippable character and an even less shippable pairing that has a chance to be decent in one day's time?" Well, the impossible happened. This was a clever angle.
486353
I agree that Cadence is being reckless here and having only the appearance of Shining Armor will probably eventually give her more grief and she will have to ask Chrysalis to never take on that appearance again, but Cadence might know this (does that make her more or less foolish?). Now about Chrysalis, I could actually see her not trying to take advantage of Cadence here, though it is highly likely that she will indeed try to take advantage of Cadence. Chrysalis has had decades to see her children die and starved herself to try to keep them alive as best she can and then her enemy comes to her to offer her a way out. That could change Chrysalis. Still though, I would not trust Chrysalis till she was blasted by the Elements of Harmony first.
Was not expecting one of these so soon after the finale.
Still very impressive.
486353
Remember that this is not our world. In Equestria love is magic, it will not be cadence who succumbs in the end, it will be Chrysalis. Luna can be redeemed so can she.
In truth though, I could see how a "the changelings learn to love" story could work...(strokes chin
)
Moar!!!!
486871
Luna was good to begin with and was twisted into nightmare moon. The Queen of Changelings strikes me as one who's very nature is evil from the start. If she was blasted by the elements of harmony, would there even be anything left after all the corruption was washed away?
i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii213/Yagamimoon/coolpics/manlytears.jpg
486269 , 486353
You're absolutely right, it won't be like having Shining Armor back. But the story is more about the loneliness of immortality than the specific pairing. Chrysalis is the only immortal* that A) Cadence is not related to, and B) won't turn the world into his own personal acid trip.
*At least, I'm calling her so on the basis of having both a horn and wings, which seems to be the criterion.
486717,486759
I'm just glad I got this out before the first clopfic involving her leg holes.
Edit: I hate being right sometimes.
To everypony: Thank you so much for reading!
486943
Amusingly this story and the comments on it gave me some interesting ideas on the origins of the swarm. (whistles "the Flutter Ponies")
At first I thought this would be an okay read. I got to the end and was like "Wait... That's it? There's no more?"
490680
No more yet. This story wasn't something I planned out and executed; it just grew within me when I thought about Chrysalis and had sympathy for her. Right now I'm working on setting up a serial, plus I've got general life commitments
, and another epic that I do have planned. So if they add an eighth day to the week, or if I get really on a roll, I may come back to this and expand upon it. In the meantime, I want to see what other writers and artists do with Chrysalis.
I saw that it was complete and you left it at a good point. It's just one of those stories that leaves you wanting more.
486871
Well, I think that Cadence's analysis of Chrysalis is right on. There is something in her that could be the basis for her redemption. Doesn't mean she will redeem herself but it is plausible.
...This is absolutely horrible.
One would think Chrysalis would be smart enough to realize how bad of an idea it is, if not Cadence.
"To be Shining Armor? Wake up, Cadence. He`s gone! I may take on his looks, but I`ll never be able to become him! If you think to replace him with me, you delude yourself. You may fool yourself for a day, for a week, for a month maybe. But not for much longer. Before long, the illusion will crack, and what do you think will happen then? I`ll tell you - you`ll hate me. You`ll hate me with every fiber of your being, as irrational as it could ever be, for daring to take the place of one you chose to love. And you won`t be stopped by the fact you asked me to, mark my words.
No, your offer promises nothing but ruin. Shining Armor is gone, and I can not replace him. Begone now, and do not come back. Not unless you lose it badly enough to decide you want to love me instead."
725016
I think you're absolutely right, but not on the point of the story.
Cadence, as I tried to write her, did not want Chrysalis to be Shining Armor, she wanted her to appear as Shining Armor. It was as if Chrysalis had the only remaining photo of him in the world, and Cadence wanted it.
But that is the minor point. Cadence is seeking out Chrysalis because she is the only other immortal that she (Cadence) is not related to. Chrysalis is the only one she can love without having to go through what she did with Shining. Taking on Shining's appearance is merely the ice-breaker.
725021
Love does not work like this.
If one could decide whom to love just like that, we would be spared of such things as romance and heartbreak. It would be all about social science and mathematical matchmaking.
No, Cadence wants to be with Shining Armor again. She may try to lie to herself about just wanting to see him but that`s just it - a lie. I quite refuse to believe it would be problematic for her to obtain a picture of Shining Armor - pony society has photography technology readily available to anypony (Including schoolfoals - as could be amply seen in Gabby Gums episode.) and a figure as prominent as captain of royal guard and a husband of princess would be definitely photographed more then once. Most likely, paintings of Shining Armor also exist and could be easily obtained or already owned by Cadence.
725041
That's why I said "as if." I'm sure there are pictures of Shining Armor, but there aren't 3-d solid ponies who look and sound like him.
And again, you're right in part. Love does not work like that--for us, who are mortal and have plenty of other mortals around to interact with. Maybe I'm dead wrong on the psychology of an immortal alicorn, but there isn't a whole lot of research I can do on the subject.
The one thing I think does make sense, and really hit me when I was writing it, is the fact that when two mortals fall in love, they can still hope that they'll meet again in the afterlife. And Shining Armor might hope that there isn't an afterlife, so that he's not personally losing anything by dying. But Cadence knows what her life is going to be: forever in Equestria, never to see her husband again. That fatalistic knowledge might make a pony react in a different way.
725055
That still does not change the fact that Cadence will resent Chrysalis for "replacing" Shining Armor, even if she is not aware of this resentment herself. No matter how benign her idea looks like, treating Chrysalis as facsimile of Shining Armor in any way whatsoever will eventually lead Cadence to harbor irrational hatred towards Chrysalis. And that - that would most definitely violate the agreement she tries to broker. I believe Chrysalis should be old enough to know that much.
Also, let`s not forget that Cadence had watched Shining Armor grow old, while she retains her perpetual youth. It`s very... strange that she would be that distraught at the end point, considering the ample forewarning she had.
No, Cadence would be flat-out unable to uphold her end of bargain in a presented case. She might think she can, but this is just a delusion. Her obligation could only be fulfilled if she could move on from Shining Armor, let that romance go and start afresh with Chrysalis AS Chrysalis. Not Chrysalis as make-believe Shining Armor.
not to sure about what to say to this one... some of it was pretty bad... and some of it was pretty good... i liked the idea of it but it still seemed off somehow... they would both live a lie would they not? but then again if that was the only way to survive without endless suffering, then i would guess everyone would do so in a heart beat? interesting concept but i think there could have been done a lot more with it... maybe i will give this idea a shot at some point and see how it turns out, but nonetheless you at least deserve a "thumb up" from me. and thanks for the inspiration i suppose =)
The way you made Chrysalis describe her downfall was... intense.
I'm not sure how to feel right now. 
...cool...
No.
1464055
No? You didn't like it?
1465279 No, I do not.
1465478
All right. I'm sorry I couldn't have written you a better story.
1465485 Just because one person doesn't like it doesn't mean it has to be changed.
It's so heart warming
Long live Chrysalis
YOU SIR ARE A GREAT WRITER!
But I wish it wasn't so short
and... 
t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcR0-hKbR_NB0AEF4ztYckRJ8BLp5L3VBfsLwgu2G90pvcvR_MnRKw
STUPID CLIFFHANGERS, THEY DRIVE ME TO DRINK!!!!
1842290 Thank you. This is still my favorite story that I've written. It's the only time I was able to go from idea to completed story in one session. And because of that, I don't want to add any more. I like to think that I've contributed a little to the fan canon of Chrysalis being more sympathetic and able to be a symbiont rather than a parasite.
It’s certainly nicely written, it runs very smoothly. Some of it feels fairly deep but the ending is quite the opposite. It’s shallow, brief and could use some expansion; it doesn’t address the issue of what will become of the illusion of having Shining Armour return. The falseality will eventually crumble and then what? I won’t jump to conclusions and say they’ll hate each other for it though there are a few good reasons why that would happen.
Reasons like the fact they are entering into a relationship based on cravings desperate desires. Cadence wants to see Shining again and Chrysalis needs food for herself and her children who have been left out in the cold to die. The fact that Cadence has the audacity to only seek out Chrysalis once she needs her to for fill a craving adds insult to that injury. Mortal lives have been lost before their time but could have been saved if helped at an earlier date. Chrysalis would soon grow to resent that relationship.
Unless these reasons are addressed and rectified the supposed happy ending collapses in on itself. I’m not saying this is a bad thing, not at all. Only it needs to be expanded, desperately.
Good luck with it, or anything else you choose to for that matter.
If there is any author I want to touch on the immortal lives of the Alicorns it's you.
That was great!
I have no idea what to think about this... here is a thumb anyway for provoking thought with well written stories.
3409061
Thank you kindly. I try.
well... that was certainly different. I won't say it was good but I will say that it was well written.
9:01
Maybe Cadence will learn to love Chrysalis. Because I can only see it doing more harm than health for both of them. But I like it.
Intense. I can see Cadence coming to live Chryssie with time and vice versa. After all, they have all the time in the world.
Cya
Raziel-chan