Intermission -- A Spark of Motivation
Thousands of miles north, right around the time Twilight and Chip were looking for a way to unmeld their minds...
* * *
Chrysalis was minding her own business – managing the thousands of drones under her control, sleeping or just hating on ponies. It was a day like any other and she already got fed up with searching for a new spark bearer for the day; the activity was quite draining, as it was hard to reach out to something that didn’t quite connect with the hive mind.
So far she had no luck and was angry with herself for so carelessly throwing away the previous one. There was a possibility Chip was dead, but she wanted to gloat over his lifeless body, sink her sharp teeth into the flesh. He was more of a pony now than a changeling. He betrayed his own kind, and for what? As far as she could tell, he was a mere slave. What did those ponies offer that she already didn’t give with all her love? Why was she destined to be alone, to be betrayed around every corner by creatures that could think more abstract thoughts than her regular subjects?
Deep in her own sorrow, the Queen didn’t notice a faint sensation tugging at the mental net of the hive mind. It was as if a wind blew, shaking up the delicate threads that connected the drones and Chrysalis. The black mare’s attention was drawn to this phenomenon when the tremor gained in strength.
A link that she forgot about so long ago was causing the stir – one that she recognized, but could not bring back to memory. There were a lot of dead ends in the hive mind – some of them were the rotting minds of dying changelings, others just connections that the Queen didn’t care to fix or erase.
Cautiously, the Queen shifted her mental weight over to the disturbance, inspecting the troublesome node. It wasn’t broken – it was sealed. She could tell it was in good shape, but for some reason it was neatly severed, a job that only she herself could so masterfully accomplish. Gently, Chrysalis blended into the consciousness that was on the other side – it felt strangely familiar. It was a changeling…it was…
Stop looking at me! Chrysalis heard in her head. And then it happened – a powerful surge knocked her away, a pulse of blinding pain that was burning, crushing, electrifying all her five senses. The Queen ran away, hurting, feeling the painful signal travel from node to node, from drone to drone, causing them all to howl with pain. Her mental net, the hive mind, was ablaze with white light; it shook violently, breaking apart, causing her subjects to die off by the dozens. She herself felt on the edge – the pain was crystal clear and all around.
She had to do something. Focus! Chrysalis gathered her resolve through tears and agony, making her resilient body an entry point for a counter-attack. Slowly but surely she forced her will along the feeble threads that scorched her mind – one by one her minions settled down, slumping to the floor or losing consciousness. As the Queen gathered momentum, 'curing' her minions from the blazing assault of pain, the signal throbbing from the suddenly open node weakened. She now knew what it was. She hated it. She banished it a long time ago. It was Chip.
The changeling somehow managed to reconnect to the hive mind. He was alive, and he wanted to kill her. Well, not today traitor scum!
Burn in hell, pony! shrieked the Queen, putting as much force through the node as she could. She felt the mind behind it bend, stretch and then snap off. There was no time to check if she managed to fry the changeling’s brain – she swiftly closed the node and broke it away from the hive, casting it into oblivion. For safety measures, she then also destroyed those points that were adjacent to the intruder – a few minions less was a small price for not giving the enemy a chance to try again.
* * *
The black mare came to when it was totally dark outside. Her head hurt like it had never before – her whole body was stiff and aching. It took some time to remember what just happened. Yes, Chip was still out there. And he was trying to get his revenge. Hopefully, Chrysalis at least reduced him to a vegetative state. It was hard to tell in the mental world what was what – one could not trust feelings, let alone images that were spawned there.
The Queen once again inspected the net, with relief confirming the danger was over. It was an unexpected attack, one of great force, and should she be less fortunate…only a husk would remain in the chambers in the northern part of the changeling valley.
Chrysalis couldn’t decide if she felt more sorrow, hate or satisfaction – probably a bit of each at the same time. She was sad that it has come to this – it would be best if Chip was just dead, not trying to hurt his former Queen; she was angry that the changeling was alive and that he grew in strength so much that he nearly extinguished her; she was happy, as this was the final straw, a challenge that would finally bring this cold war to an end. It was on. The ponies declared war on the changelings.
Chrysalis tried to keep this personal, just between her and the changeling. But it seemed that ponies decided it was high time to rid Chrysalis of her rule over her minions, using Chip as a direct assault weapon. Well, that was not going to work. She would remain alive – and she would be the one gloating over their ruined bodies, in a burning city, surrounded by despair and fear.
With a wide grin, the Queen limped towards her throne. She called out to her minions, which she regretted dearly as a thumping pain in her head nearly cracked her skull in half. The drones came nonetheless, ready to obey her every command. Without a word they moved the throne, revealing a hidden passage to a damp and steamy chamber.
It was huge, covered in green organic goo that gave an eerie green light to the room. Etched in the slime were eggs that she lay nearly a year ago – her future minions, obedient servants that would not dare betray her. The only ones she could trust, as they were in truth herself, spread across thousands of bodies.
“It is time to wake up, my dears. Mommy’s plans got a bit changed. Rise, my children. Mommy needs a new dozen of assassins.”
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Oh shit
I believe I sense just a dash of PDP Disorder .
997031
Love that image
997142
Wonder how Twi will feel about herself after she comes to...
997777
997818
What's that? The internets weren't useful and didn't tell me what it means
Wha? Oh, yes twelve more dozen Changelings, all to be vanquised when the Mane Six come in.
997891 Pinkamena Diane Pie Disorder.
Oh, looks like Twilight has unintentionally called upon the ire of the changeling swarm. That's not good at all. I do hope she is alright though, from the mental assault and everything; it must have been really traumatic.
As a reply to your previous comment to me:
I love giving complements to others, both to encourage them and because I really do mean the words I say. I do try to say at least one positive thing per review, but you deserve all I have said and more. Besides, your quality as an author really shows; you've been in the featured box multiple times already.
I do love me a bit of abstract imagery, it is always neat to see how each author attempts to convey something that can't truly be seen. Besides, I'm always a sucker for psychological stuff. You are pretty good in this department too, it is easy to understand and visualize the way you present it.
Anyways, I await the aftermath of this chapter and Twilight's "feeding session". See you again soon!
so twiligth died?, man if so that was sad. I mean she just became one whit someone else that is the epitome of spiritual love!, and now she is supposedly dead...
997891
And then you go and post a new one.
This chapter
dl.dropbox.com/u/12875849/reactions/youtouchmymind.png
My reaction
dl.dropbox.com/u/12875849/reactions/panic.jpg
998016
i'm pretty sure this chapter coincides with the last one. as in, this is what Chrysalis saw when Twilight broke through that mental gate in the mindscape, and saw all of the changelings standing beyond it. this would mean that Chrysalis' little counterattack was the reason Chip and Twilight got body swapped. am i correct, Zethariel?
998873
Yeah, That is true. I should have made it more clear
998897
*shrug*
made perfect sense to me.
And the rise of the Changeling branch of Assassins' Creed...
I know it's kinda late to ask this, but when/how was Chip banished? I thought Chip left because Chrysalis told him to go spy on the ponies, and he just didn't.
1018693
Chip more or less felt like Chrysalis meant something entirely different than what her words were implying,(which is probably correct) and thought that while she claimed she was sending him out on a mission, she was instead afraid of him betraying her and sent him away because of that.
Once again, excellently done.
" causing her subjects to die off by the dozens. "
Wait, did Twilight just accidently caused a geneoside, killing hundreds or thousans of changelings and starting a WAR.
This is not good.
Wow. She jumped right to conclusions and didn't bother thinking one bit about what might have happened. Yeah, she's definitely an irritating, egotistical, arrogant, ignorant, daughter of a stink-bug b***h... I really hope chip gets over her soon. Or at least comes to terms with not being able to convince said lunatic that changelings could get along with ponies.
One of the downsides of relying on the Internet for complete control. Disrupt the connection, disrupt the life.