21 - Revenge
“There it is.” The changeling escorting Chrysalis announced as Ponyville came into view. They were flying through the air at an irritatingly casual pace, disguised as random pegasi.
“It’s about time. I could have gotten here faster on my own.” Chrysalis grumbled. It was already dusk on the day after Winter Wrap Up, they could easily been there hours ago.
“There was no need to strain ourselves, you will not be missed.”
Chrysalis’ ear flicked in irritation at his assurance, and resisted the urge to snap back at him. He was probably referring to how they had a spy taking her place and not on how little anybody cared about her, and as much as she hated to admit it, if the spy had merely stayed locked up in her bedroom, then nobody would ever know the difference.
The changeling signaled for her to land, and Chrysalis followed as he glided to the ground.
“I suppose you’ll be following me in, on your Queen’s orders.”
“Our Queen, and no. I’m just a scout, not a spy. I am not trained in infiltration.”
“But there will be spies. More than just Skitter.”
“I can not speak to that.” He answered evasively.
“No. Of course not. Leave, then. You wouldn’t want to get caught near here. Pinkie Pie has an eerie tendency to know when somebody new is in town.”
“Noted.” The changeling nodded and leapt back into the air, flying back the way they came.
Chrysalis stared at Ponyville in the distance and sighed. She had little doubt their slow pace was intended to give whatever new spies they were sending time to establish themselves. Who would they try to replace? Probably not one of the element bearers, far too risky for a long term infiltration given how familiar she was with them by now. Maybe if she were a normal pony who didn’t know about changelings, but she wasn’t. A headache was creeping its way into her skull from thinking of how she’d have to be suspicious of every single visitor to the library going forth. She’d need to inform Time Keeper of the increased surveillance so that the idiot wouldn’t reveal too much in front of hidden changelings.
However, that all could be dealt with later. First she had to reclaim her stolen identity from the one that had taken her place. She couldn’t just waltz into town as Twilight if there already was a Twilight present. Settling on taking the form of Sage, with a flash of green flame she appeared as her pet. She ruffled her feathers, it was so weird to be covered in them, and flew towards home.
Chrysalis mentally scoffed at noticing the ponies had yet to finish wrapping up winter. Two whole days and they were at best half done, so much for their goal of completing it all in a single day. If they were this far behind, she didn’t think that even proper organization could have saved them. Oddly enough, she didn’t even notice any ponies outside trying to finish the job. It seemed as empty as the time that Zecora had first come to town. They must’ve already given up for the day.
Upon reaching the library, she landed on the window sill just like the real Sage had so often done. Her bedroom appeared mostly empty, no sign of Spike or the spy. Sage was inside sitting on his perch. Chrysalis looked around to ensure there truly was nobody around to see her, and then used her magic to open the window. Sage looked at her curiously.
“Hoo?”
Chrysalis transformed back into Twilight. “It’s just me.”
“Hoo.” Sage turned his gaze back to wherever he had been looking before, not caring about such a miraculous transformation in the slightest. Chrysalis walked up to him and gave him a gentle pat.
“Why couldn’t she have just been in here, huh?” She asked her pet rhetorically. “We could have just swapped places right now and been done with it. Now I have to worry about running into visitors downstairs.”
Sage just titled his head at her.
“Oh well, no sense complaining. At least Spike is still enchanted to not question it.”
She quietly stepped over to the door and cracked it open. The hallway seemed empty, though she did hear voices coming from down the stairs. She crept forward just enough to see at least some of the room below. Her jaw dropped at what she saw.
Princess Celestia was tied to a chair. She was gagged much as Spike had been the day before and had a metal band on her horn. It was such an unexpected sight that it took several seconds to properly sink in. What the fuck happened?
“You’re letting the fan droop!” A familiar voice complained from somewhere just out of view. “Pick up the pace!”
“Yes…mistress.” Time Keeper’s voice drifted from below, filled with barely restrained fury.
“The Great and Powerful Trixie does not like your tone!”
“Sorry, mistress.” He answered, his improved attitude clearly forced.
“Better. Not good, but better.”
What. The. Fuck? Trixie was back? Celestia was tied up, and apparently Time Keeper was serving her? Okay, that last one made sense, he lacked the spine to stand up against a wet napkin, but the rest? She had to get a better view. She crawled closer to the railing and looked between its columns to the scene below. Trixie was wearing a black, dark grey and red amulet around her neck, though she couldn't make out details at this distance, and was lounging on the couch, reading a book while Time Keeper fanned her with a large palm frond. She had no idea where he could have gotten one, but it barely registered next to the rest of the insanity in the scene. Had Trixie defeated Celestia? Why? Why were either of them here in the first place? And how was Chrysalis supposed to feel any pride in having bested Celestia in battle if a weakling like Trixie had done the same? She must have sucker punched the princess, just like she had done to Chrysalis all those months ago.
The door creaked open and she saw Spike entering nervously. “Uh, I couldn’t find any grapes, mistress Trixie.”
“Well, Trixie suggests you look harder!”
“We just got through winter! There’s no fresh anyth--” Spike paused as he noticed Chrysalis’ face poking through the railing upstairs.
“Hm? What were you saying? Why did you stop?”
“No reason! I was just saying there’s no fresh fruit because winter just ended.”
“Hmm…” Trixie’s eyes wandered up to where Spike’s had been moments earlier. Chrysalis considered hiding, but dismissed it. She had to confront her sooner or later, so why bother stalling?
“It’s me, Trixie.” She announced and began descending the steps. Trixie tossed aside her book, which landed open, face down in a way that clearly bent several pages. Chrysalis’ eye twitched. Books were an important resource for both information and recreation, one that changelings valued.
“Twilight Sparkle! So the coward finally returns!” Trixie held her nose up arrogantly. “Trixie thought you would not come back after our last meeting!”
Chrysalis took a deep breath. So, at least she knew what happened to her replacement, she had turned tail at the first sign of trouble.
“You mean the one where you ran away in terror from an ursa minor? I seem to recall a puddle of piss left where you had been standing.”
Trixie’s self assured smile turned into a scowl. “You will take back those words! The Great and Powerful Trixie is no coward!”
“More like the Tiny and Trembling Trixie.”
Time Keeper’s eyes looked like they were about to pop out of his head as he stared at Chrysalis, and she remembered what he had said about Trixie being important to the timeline. She sighed, mentally preparing herself for the humiliation of what she was about to do.
“Look, I’m sorry, I’m just a little irritable lately. Not just about what I said now, but about our entire encounter back when you first came to Ponyville.”
All four other residents looked on in shock at her words, but none as much so as Celestia, despite being bound and gagged.
“You’re…sorry?” Trixie stared in disbelief.
“Yes. We clearly got off on the wrong hoof. I humiliated you, and then you assaulted me, but if you’re willing to forgive me, I’ll forgive you. What do you say? Let bygones be bygones?” Chrysalis stuck out her hoof as a peace offering. Time Keeper had dropped the palm frond to face hoof, Spike was shaking his head and arms wildly while mouthing the word ‘no’ from behind Trixie, and Celestia was focusing closely on Chrysalis' face. Chrysalis ignored them all.
Trixie stared at her hoof for a few seconds in silence. A smile snaked its way onto her lips and she confidently bumped hooves with Chrysalis. Chrysalis smiled in turn. Never let it be said that she was unwilling to try diplomacy. Trixie’s horn and eyes glowed red.
“No.”
Immediately, Chrysalis was blasted halfway back up the stairs by a powerful wave of magic. She ground her teeth, trying to ignore the pain now throbbing through her entire body. That was it. She tried being nice for once and this bitch just sucker punched her. AGAIN.
With a scream of fury, Chrysalis leapt from the stairs, intent on tackling Trixie to the ground. Magic was too good for her, she wanted to feel her crushed beneath her hooves. With a smirk, Trixie snatched her out of the air with her red aura.
Wait, red? Didn’t she have a blue aura before? Before Chrysalis could dwell on it further, Trixie tossed her aside, breaking through the stairs’ banister and slamming into the chair that Celestia was tied to, knocking her over. The princess looked over to her in alarm. She was screaming something through her gag that sounded a lot like ‘run’. Chrysalis shook her head, trying to clear her suddenly blurry vision, and struggled to return to her hooves. Before she succeeded, she was lifted once more into the air.
“Forgive you? You haven’t the slightest idea what I have endured thanks to you. I could never forgive what you’ve done to me.”
“I…” Chrysalis struggled to speak.
“You’ve ruined my entire life, Twilight Sparkle! I was made out to be a lowly criminal. My entire life, all I ever wished for was to travel the world and perform for crowds of adoring fans, all in awe of my magical prowess! I was living my dream until you made a foal of me and branded me a criminal! A mare wanted by the law cannot perform in front of crowds of cheering ponies, she can’t find any honest work at all! I had to resort to theft just to survive, while you kept living in comfort inside your little library. Do you have even the slightest idea what it’s like to live like that?”
Chrysalis’ chest tightened at her words, and even Time Keeper seemed contemplative. She knew all too well what that was like. She may as well have been describing the life of a changeling. Trixie stepped face to face with Chrysalis.
“All I had left to me was the thought of revenge, but I knew I could not get that the way I was, so I did a little research and learned of this little trinket!” Trixie thrust her chest forward and seemed to regain a small measure of composure. “With this Alicorn Amulet, The Great and Powerful Trixie is unstoppable!”
“I’m sorry.”
“Trixie already told you, you’re apology is meaningless!”
“Not for that.”
Trixie raised an eyebrow. Chrysalis closed her eyes and channeled magic into her horn as quickly as possible, casting a simple spell for providing light to her horn, except amplified several times over. A very sudden, and very bright flash filled the library.
“My eyes!” Trixie screamed in pain and Chrysalis was dropped from her magic, landing hooves first and bolting for the door, straight through the disoriented Trixie who fell to the floor with a crash. She needed time to come up with a plan and recover if she wanted to defeat her. As she began pulling the door open, a red glow slammed it back shut.
“Oh, no you don’t! You won’t get away from Trixie that easily!”
Chrysalis turned to face her only to see Spike leaping onto Trixie’s back and clawing at the amulet’s chain. The magic blocking the door disappeared.
“Twilight, run!”
“Foal! Do you really think that you can remove this amulet?!”
Chrysalis did not want to see how it ended between the two, knowing full well it was at best a temporary distraction. It would be senseless to waste it by staying to help, even if her stomach churned with worry for Spike. He was a dragon, they were notoriously tough, he would be okay. Hopefully.
“What kind of idiot tries to make peace with a crazy bitch like that?! Did you not see that she’d overpowered Celestia!?”
Chrysalis scowled. Oh great, Time Keeper just had to follow after her, and he was still whining about how she did things as if she hadn’t even been missing for two days. Was it too late to go back to the hive and ask her younger self to lock her up? Or better yet, lock him up?
“You were the one who told me I should have been nicer to her last time, so shut the fuck up and run!”
In the distance, Chrysalis saw her first indication of ponies outside since arriving. Applejack and Big Mac were coming towards her, the latter of which was pulling a cart behind him. The two farm ponies stopped when they realized who was running madly in their direction.
“Twilight?!” AJ nearly shouted.
“No time to talk, Trixie is insane, super powered, and after me!”
“Eeyup.”
“Tell us somethin’ we don’t know. Quick, hide in the cart!”
In no mood to chat further, Chrysalis climbed in. The cart was filled with various jars, pastries and a pile of finely crafted cloaks. She dived for the clothing and buried herself beneath the fabric, and was joined moments later by Time Keeper.
“Hey, find your own hiding spot!” She hissed at him as he practically lay on top of her.
“What am I supposed to do? Hide in a pie?” Chrysalis’ stomach churned at the thought and smell of the freshly baked goods sitting practically right next to them. “Now shut up, she’s almost here!”
“Evenin’, Trixie.” Applejack spoke to an approaching set of hoof steps with faux cheer.
“That’s the Great and Powerful Trixie to you!”
“Er...evenin’ the Great and--”
“Shut your hick mouth for one second! Where is Twilight Sparkle?!”
There was a pause.
“I ain’t seen her since…well, it’s been at least a week. You seen her, Big Mac?”
“Nope.”
Hoof steps approached the cart.
“Hmm…what have we here?”
“Just what you told us to get you.”
“Trixie doesn’t recall asking for jars of anything.”
“Well, we couldn’t really get any fresh fruit given the time of year, but we had jars of jams and preserved fruit. Plus there’s the stuff baked at Sugar cube Corner, and the cloaks ya asked for too.”
There was a clinking followed by a low pop right next to her. Chrysalis held her breath, and she could feel Time Keeper do the same.
“The Great and Powerful Trixie finds your tribute acceptable…barely.”
“We appreciate yer generosity.”
“You’d better. Oh, and if you have been lying, Trixie will destroy that pathetic farm house you call a home, plus the bakery and tailor shop for good measure.”
“We haven’t seen her.” AJ repeated resolutely.
“Nope.”
“Hmph!”
Trixie’s hoof steps started up again and soon faded off in the direction they had originally come from. Chrysalis finally released the breath she had been holding, almost simultaneously with Time Keeper.
“She’s gone, ya can come out now.”
Chrysalis used her magic to lift the stallion from atop her and tossed him off the side of the cart where he landed in some mud with a heavy thud.
“Ow! What the fuck was that for!?” Time Keeper yelled indignantly.
“I’m sure you deserve it.” Chrysalis dismissed his concern before focusing on Applejack. “I can’t believe you lied to her for me. She said she’d destroy your home, Pinkie’s, and Rarity’s.”
“It’s just stuff, sugar cube. It’s not like she threatened my family. If I had to pick between my home or my friend, I’d pick my friend every time, and I’m sure the others would agree.”
Chrysalis fell silent. One would think that she would have grown accustomed to the element bearers’ ways after all this time, but it still threw her off how even the prickliest among them would still show her kindness.
“Thank you.”
“You’d do the same for me.”
Unseen to either of them, Time Keeper made a gagging motion.
“I hate to break up this tender moment, but we still have a crazy unicorn looking to kill us.”
“Right.” Chrysalis took a deep breath. “I can’t stay here in Ponyville, I need to get out of town and prepare for our next encounter.”
“Any ideas on how to deal with her? Dash found out pretty quick that nopony can take off that amulet except her. Took hardly any proddin’ for her to boast about it.”
“And she’s clearly too powerful to just face head on.” Time Keeper added.
“Hmm…” Chrysalis stared at the jars inside of the cart. “Can I take one of these?”
“I suppose, but what’re ya gonna do with some preserved apple slices?”
Chrysalis frowned. Is that what they were? They looked even more disgusting than usual apples. She shook her head and lifted up one of the jars in a hoof.
“Nothing.” With her magic, she twisted off the top with a dull pop and poured its contents onto the ground “I just need the jar. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have a trip to the Everfree Forest to make.”
____________________________________________________________
“So, what’s this plan of yours?” Time Keeper asked as they travelled through the outskirts of the Everfree Forest. Looking around to be sure they were definitely alone first, Chrysalis turned to him with a scowl.
“You said that nothing important was supposed to happen until Discord was released! What the fuck was that?!”
Time Keeper blinked stupidly.
“Answer me!”
“Well…” Time Keeper paused, choosing his words carefully. “Clearly, that wasn’t supposed to happen.”
“Really? That’s all you have to say? A crazy blowhard gains super powers and takes over Ponyville and that’s all you’ve got to say? It’s like you’re trying to be completely useless!”
Time Keeper’s eye twitched.
“Well, you’re the one that fucked her over. Maybe if you weren’t an incompetent piece of shit, this wouldn’t have happened!”
“Oh, you ungrateful mother fucker! I’m the one cleaning up the mess you made, remember!? I’m putting my neck on the line over and over living a life that isn’t mine, making enemies with my own people, all so that you can avoid getting in trouble with your people back home! Do you have any idea how hard this is on me!?” Chrysalis laughed hysterically and trembled, which metamorphosed into sobs as tears ran down her face. No, she couldn’t be crying like this. Not in front of this worm. She took a deep breath and forced her tears back.
Time Keeper stared at her with a hint of sorrow in his eyes.
“I…didn’t know you felt this way. For what it is worth, I’m sorry for what you’ve had to endure.”
Without warning, Chrysalis lashed out with her magic, pinning Time Keeper to a tree.
“Don’t give me your bullshit sympathy! You don’t even understand what empathy is! You killed Twilight Sparkle and all you could think about was your own hide! You could have gone back, faced the consequences and fixed things properly, but no! You came to me begging for help so that you don’t get punished! You are a loathsome, despicable, selfish monster!”
Time Keeper gritted his teeth, any sympathy he had had replaced with furious contemplation. After a few moments, he spoke in a low tone.
“You agreed to help me. What does that make you?”
Chrysalis’ breath caught in her throat and her vision blurred as the tears threatened to return despite her efforts to block them. She released him and turned away. In the end, he was right. She was the same as he was. She agreed to help cover up the murder. They were a perfect pair, stuck in an endless loop of barely restrained hatred and antagonism, punishing each other for their mutual crimes. Well, no more. She would put a stop to that.
“Leave.”
“What?”
“If I ever see your face again, I will tear your throat out with my teeth, just as I should have done when you first crashed your stupid box into my chambers.” Chrysalis stood silently with her back to him for several seconds, waiting for him to make a decision, half hoping he chose to keep arguing and give her an excuse to make good on her threat. Perhaps inevitably, the silence was finally broken by Time Keeper turning tail and galloping away.
Chrysalis forcefully exhaled, as if to remove any remnant of even the air they had shared from her presence. She was finally free of those shackles. She no longer had to put up with his constant disapproval, or his hypocritical holier than thou attitude. She could live her, or more accurately, Twilight’s life as she saw fit. With head held high, she trotted further into the forest.
The sun had set, an action that she noted Luna must be doing with her sister indisposed as she was, by the time she reached her destination. It was the clearing where she had been infected by poison joke all those months ago. It was completely buried in snow, and while that was not exactly unexpected, it was a little disappointing. She had hoped to find the snow melted and a few patches of the plant blooming early. Oh well, it had been worth a shot, and she hadn’t been counting on it anyway. She zeroed in on a moderately well worn path through the snow and followed it to her next destination.
Nearly half an hour later, she approached Zecora’s hut, a glowing beacon of relief in the night. She promptly walked up to the door and knocked, impatiently dancing back and forth to try and ward off some of the cold. A few moments later, the door opened and Zecora’s tired face became visible.
“Ah, what does this night bring, but an encounter with a changeling?” She opened the door wide and stepped aside. “My energy may wear thin, but it would be rude to not invite you in.”
“Thank you.” Chrysalis nodded with appreciation as she stepped into the small hut, blissfully heated by a roaring fire, which the two huddled around. Chrysalis felt as tired as Zecora looked. Flying from the Badlands to Ponyville, getting tossed around by Trixie, and then retreating to the Everfree Forest all made for one exhausting day, not to mention the events just before that.
“Though I was about to retire, I fear what brings you must be dire.”
Chrysalis took a deep breath while staring into the crackling embers. After putting her thoughts in order, she explained the situation with Trixie, even summarizing their first encounter to give Zecora better context. It’s not like they didn’t have time for explanations, she had no intentions of leaving that warm hut until morning.
“And so, I came here to rest, but also to see if you have any poison joke preserved around here.”
“I do have some poison joke, and will fetch it once we’ve awoke, but I warn that it is unpredictable stuff, an unlucky effect and your trial’s no less rough.”
“I know,” Chrysalis sighed, “but I don’t exactly have a better idea right now. Only she can remove the amulet, according to Applejack, but I don’t know how. Something tells me taking on the form of her mother and scolding her won’t do the trick.”
The light in the room cut out suddenly and the temperature seemed to drop several degrees, even though the crackling of the unseen flames continued unabated. Chrysalis shot to her feet, confused but prepared to defend herself. Moments later, the darkness seemed to coalesce into the form of Luna, standing on the other side of the room.
“Perhaps I have an idea.” Luna announced.
“What the fuck, Luna? You almost gave me a heart attack!”
Luna blushed slightly. “Sorry, I have been practicing for next Nightmare Night. I couldn’t help but overhear your conversation.”
“You were following me?” Chrysalis’ mind raced as she tried to remember if she had said anything especially incriminating during her argument with Time Keeper.
“Yes. Quite the interesting conversation you had with that pegasus, but that is not relevant now.”
Chrysalis swallowed the lump in her throat. She didn’t think she had said anything about time travel, but she knew for certain that she had mentioned the death of the real Twilight Sparkle. Chrysalis’ heart sank, knowing full well that mare suddenly had even more blackmail material on her.
“Do not worry, your secrets are safe with me. Regardless, I followed my sister to Ponyville after she received a letter from Spike detailing Trixie’s attack and how you had gone missing. My sister did not know that I had followed her, but I saw her confront this Trixie and get easily overcome. As amusing as it was, it certainly posed a problem. I had been contemplating how to succeed where my sister had failed when you mysteriously returned, and now with your story, I believe I know how.”
“And how might you do that?” Chrysalis prodded when she didn’t immediately reveal her plan. Luna slightly tilted her head.
“You said that Trixie had chosen to threaten your friends’ property rather than their lives, correct?”
“Yeah, so what?”
Luna smiled wickedly.
“I think I could use a little more practice for Nightmare Night.”
__________________________________
Nightmare Moon marched openly through Ponyville as the sun reached it’s highest point. Even the few ponies who had been brave enough to venture outside after Trixie’s arrival could be seen fleeing into their homes, not that she paid them any mind. She had more important matters to attend to.
She stopped a few meters away from the Golden Oaks Library and squinted up at the sun with a frown. She bowed her head, closing her eyes as she did so, and her horn lit up with tremendous magical power. Ponies the nation over gasped in fear as they looked to the sky and saw the sun reverse direction, within seconds it had fallen beneath the horizon and the moon had taken its place in the newly night sky. From within the library, a voice could just barely be heard as lights flickered on.
“What’s going on?” The door opened and a solitary figure stepped outside. “The Great and Powerful Trixie does not appreciate--” Trixie’s voice caught in her throat upon noticing the grinning alicorn awaiting her and she immediately disappeared back inside, slamming the door behind her. Nightmare Moon chuckled. With barely a thought, she channeled some of her power into the door, tearing it from its hinges and launched it inside where it landed in a mangled heap, almost, but not quite, torn in two pieces. She stepped inside.
Her eyes immediately were drawn to Princess Celestia, her dear, sweet sister, all tied up on that chair and with a magic inhibitor ring placed on her horn, powerless to even do her natural duty of raising the sun. She smirked at her look of horror before turning her attention to the slightly trembling form of Trixie.
“Who...who are you? How dare you attack me…I mean the Great and Powerful Trixie!?”
“You know who I am. You would not be trembling with fear if you didn’t.”
“Trixie is not trembling in fear of some two bit costumed freak!” Her voice was unsteady. “Trixie is trembling with rage!”
As if to prove she wasn’t lying, Trixie’s horn lit up. Before she had a chance to unleash her tremendous, yet unfocused power onto her, Nightmare Moon’s much more practiced horn rapidly turned herself into living shadow and dispersed through the room with a malevolent chuckle. Trixie’s red blast of magic soared through the spot she had been a moment earlier and through the open door.
“I am no pretender.” A hushed whisper seemed to resonate through the entire room as the lights were extinguished. “The night is my domain, and within it, not even you and your little amulet stand a chance. Perhaps you recognize me now?”
“N…Nightmare Moon!? But you’re just a story meant to scare foals!”
The darkness whispered from behind Trixie, right into her ear.
“And everything you’ve heard about me is true.”
Trixie jumped with a small shriek at the oppressive presence behind her. She turned and backed away only to trip on something unseen in the darkness, landing harshly on her rump. The lights came on, nearly blinding her, and Nightmare Moon towered over her with a terrifying, sharp toothed grin.
“And what do you want with Trixie?” She crawled further back, realizing she had tripped over Celestia’s hoof. The Nightmare stepped forward to stand in front of her sister.
“To admire your work.” She casually flicked Celestia’s horn with a hoof. “Such outright evil, I am impressed. You’ve inserted yourself as dictator over an entire town, ruling over it with an iron hoof as you hold its residents in the grip of terror.”
“I…I…evil?”
“Oh yes, a mare right after my own heart. It’s a little small time for my tastes, but a mare has to start somewhere, right? However, if you expand too far, you will most certainly infringe on my turf.” She frowned and lowered her voice. “You do not want that.”
Trixie swallowed. “What do you want? Why do you bother Trixie? Merely to threaten her?”
“No, of course not.” Nightmare Moon’s horn lit up and Trixie flinched. Instead of the attack she had expected, an image filled the space between them. Trixie gasped.
It was of Twilight Sparkle. She was collapsed, barely even breathing. Her horn was broken, a limb bent in an unnatural direction, and covered in blood. She barely looked alive. Nightmare Moon let the image hang there for several seconds, allowing for her audience to fully appreciate what they were seeing. Tears coursed down Celestia’s face as she stared, unable to look away. Trixie hardly fared any better, with horror plastered clearly on her face.
“She told me as I snapped her leg like a twig about how the Great and Powerful Trixie had taken over Ponyville, how she was hurting her friends. Well, more like she screamed it, but that hardly matters now. She told me between sobs that my dear sister had been one of your victims, tied up helplessly in the library. Told me that you were desperate to get your hooves on her.”
“Why did you torture her?” Trixie’s trembling was back in full force.
“Torture?” She shook her head and laughed darkly. “Oh no, no, no. You know the stories. I wasn’t torturing her, I was tenderizing her.”
“You…ate Twilight Sparkle!?”
“Well, I was going to, but after hearing how much you want her, I felt there was a better use for her. I came to you as an equal, one nightmare to another, to strike a bargain.”
Trixie’s eyes darted to Celestia.
“You wish to trade for your sister?”
Nightmare Moon caressed her sister’s cheek absently as she stared down at Trixie.
“No. I am quite content seeing her in chains. Just remember that if she ever gets free, you will face the consequences for your crimes. You would never set hoof outside of a prison cell ever again, unless of course she banishes you to the moon. She’s quite fond of that one."
“Then what--”
“If she were to die under your care, then I would technically become the sole ruler of Equestria. As such, I could grant you a full pardon for your crimes.”
“You want me to kill your sister?!”
“If you make it painful and let me watch, I might even reward you. But that’s a side matter for later discussion. I can offer you Twilight Sparkle on a silver platter, literally and in pieces if you so desire, and what I want in exchange is that pretty little amulet around your neck.”
Trixie’s gaze fell to the alicorn amulet.
“Make this deal and I will let you keep this backwater village for yourself, you may rule it as an official princess. We shall be equal in deed and title, then. Do we have a deal?”
Nightmare Moon extended a hoof with a smile and Trixie’s eyes darted between it, Celestia, and the face looming over her. She lifted her foreleg that trembled like a leaf in the wind, tentatively reaching for that hoof. The Nightmare’s eye twitched at this, though Trixie did not notice.
“I…I…”
Trixie unleashed the built up energy in her horn, launching Nightmare Moon into a bookshelf where she was buried beneath an avalanche of books. She lifted the magical inhibitor from Celestia’s horn with her magic and struggled to undo her bindings, only to be gently stopped by Celestia’s own magic as she freed herself with her restored powers.
“I’m sorry! I’m not like Nightmare Moon, I swear! If this thing makes me her equal, then I don’t want it! Take it!”
She reached for the amulet with a hoof and tore it from her neck, shoving it towards the now unbound princess.
“I believe you, my little pony, but we have no time to lose, we must stop my sister and save my student before it is too late!”
“That won’t be necessary.”
Chrysalis trotted through the hole that used to be the front door with an amused grin and a jar with a dried blue blossom inside. She had been waiting outside and heard the whole thing. She went straight to the pile of books and pulled some off of the princess beneath.
“Ow. That hurt.” Luna said plainly as she stood, returned to her usual form.
“Luna?” Celestia asked with concern.
“Indeed, it is I. The Nightmare Moon routine was merely a ruse to convince Trixie to remove her amulet.”
“Trixie has been tricked?”
“Yes.” Luna nodded. “I really had to lay it on thick, didn’t I? The way things were going, I thought for sure you were going to accept the deal. Not that it would have mattered. Either you would take it off out of disgust at what you were becoming, or you gave it up in exchange for Twilight.”
“Or if none of that worked, I would come in and try to hit her with this here poison joke.” Chrysalis set the jar containing the dangerous flower on a table and looked over to Celestia. “But she took it off and tried to make amends instead. I think that might warrant a little bit of forgiveness, don’t you, Princess?”
“Perhaps you are right.”
“Trixie does not believe she deserves forgiveness.” Trixie whispered.
“I wish to drop all charges from when she assaulted me. Both times.”
“Why would you do that? Trixie hurt you so much!”
Chrysalis sighed. She couldn’t really tell her the real reason was because Time Keeper told her she was important to the timeline. She suppressed the urge to sigh. Even with him banished, he still influenced her actions. No. She couldn’t let this be about him. Searching for a new personal justification, she quickly settled on one and was almost disturbed by it.
“I believe you truly regret your actions, so what would be gained from punishing you? We’ve all done things we wish we could undo, myself included. If I can forgive you, then perhaps I can forgive myself, too.”
The three ponies in the room stared at the changeling with varying expressions. Trixie wept tears of gratitude. Luna tilted her head curiously. Celestia stared with a sad, yet proud smile. The last of the three nodded.
“Very well. For your actions in defending the land against Nightmare Moon, I hereby declare you pardoned for your crimes.”
“But…Trixie did nothing! There was no threat!”
“Perhaps not, but you did not know that.”
“Trixie…” Trixie paused. “I thank you.”
Celestia smiled. “Just learn from your mistakes and do better next time.”
“I will. Trixie promises.”
________________________________
For the rest of the day, Trixie had gone through Ponyville, personally apologizing to every single resident, and then she had helped them finally finish wrapping up winter. Many of the town ponies were leery of her, but equally as many welcomed her change of heart. Somewhere in the mix, she had somehow come in contact with poison joke and had been rendered both invisible and mute. Chrysalis had no idea who that strange pony that had infected her was, or how she had gotten hold of that jar of poison joke that she had left in the library, and she most certainly hadn’t been Chrysalis in disguise. By complete and total coincidence, and totally not because Chrysalis had informed them ahead of time, Aloe and Lotus had already had the remedy bath prepared. Trixie, while not amused at first, seemed to take the prank in good humour.
Once winter had fully been wrapped up, Trixie prepared a fireworks show for after the sun had set. In gratitude, some of the ponies showed her where the cart she had left behind when she had fled on her first visit to Ponyville had been kept. Eager to return to her passion as a travelling performer after months as a fugitive, she had hitched herself up to it and left town.
Chrysalis was saying her farewells to the princesses, who had also stayed to help clean up the mess that Trixie had caused. As Luna left to enter the sky chariot that would return them to Canterlot, Celestia paused at the freshly repaired library door.
“Should I write a letter about what I learned today?” Chrysalis asked, half joking. Celestia laughed.
“No, I think I’ve witnessed it for myself this time. Once again, you push for forgiveness rather than punishment, though I feel this was more sincere than past instances.”
“Yeah, maybe.”
“If ever you wish to talk, I will always be ready to listen. Whatever it is that burdens you, I am willing to share that burden. I am not just your mentor, I am your friend, and whatever it is you believe you have done that is so unforgivable, I will forgive you, just as you should forgive yourself.”
Chrysalis gave a singular, humorless laugh. If it were only so easy. The damage Trixie had caused was a molehill next to Chrysalis’ mountain. Could Trixie say she had invaded the entirety of Equestria? Or that she had doomed an entire species? Even now as she tried to change the past, it seemed she was destined to watch herself make the same mistakes all over again. How could she possibly forgive herself for such twice borne failure?
“I’ll keep that in mind.” Chrysalis lied and then changed the subject before Celestia could press her further. “What’s going to happen to the alicorn amulet?”
Celestia sighed with disappointment.
“I will bring it back to Canterlot Castle where it will be locked up somewhere safe and studied. Only by those I trust entirely, and even then only with my supervision.”
“Maybe we should just destroy it?” Chrysalis suggested.
“It is incredibly dangerous and clearly a corruptive influence, but I fear it would be a mistake to merely destroy it. All too often with powerful magics, such attempts only make matters worse.” Celestia gave a tired smile. “I must leave now. Be proud of yourself this day.”
Chrysalis shuddered as she watched Celestia join her sister and be pulled into the night sky. That artifact disturbed her. If it could turn a weakling like Trixie into a credible threat, what would happen if it were to be held by somebody with actual power?
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How many chapters long will this story be?
So glad to see this story back! Really enjoyed this chapter and I definitely did not see that twist with Time Keeper and Chrysalis coming. I really like how everything went down though, especially in regards to how the Trixie situation was resolved this time around when compared to canon.
11124805
It's hard to say for sure, plans tend to change. I'd tentatively say about 29 chapters.
Loved the update! I kinda wanna see Luna and Chrysalis talk now about what Luna overheard. She clearly now knows more of Chysalis's story and whats going on, the question is what will she do (if anything) with the knowledge.
Yo! Straight up gasped when I saw this in my feed. Been searching up the story once a week this last year not to miss any updates. Was giving up hope and then here we are, back at it again. Thanks for continuing, comrade.
11124835
Well, I definitely couldn't just repeat what the show did, it's really not something Chrysalis would likely come up with, and even if she might have, it would hardly be a satisfying way to conclude it here.
Oh nice! It's great to see Chrysalis's alternative solutions to Twilight's problems.
Or, well, the show's problems, which here are Chrysalis's problems because now she's the originator.
Excellent as always can’t wait to see how you tailor make the story to better fit the new time line.
I had to reread the last chapter to realize Time Keeper is actually Chrysalis here. This conversation could not have gone any better since it kept the time travel secret. While Twilight's murder has been revealed, this isn't that bad of a reveal. Unfortunately, past Chrysalis now knows that Time Keeper murdered Twilight. I wonder how she'll use that info to get more info from Time Keeper.
Great to see another chapter! Neat alt take on the alicorn amulet conundrum.
I have to imagine that things are starting to spin out of control for poor Twilight/Chrysalis.
This time Chrysalis failed her infiltration mission after one dialogue. That's speedrunning failure :o
join, pulled
Lol! Turn the illusionist invisible!
Please, Don't Let Be Another Year Before The Next Chapter. Please..?
Great to see this being continued. It seemed like Celestia knew something was off with 'Twilight' already. From how she handled Chrysalis "attacking" Cloudsdale earlier, bringing her in on the grift, as it were, seems like the best long-term solution for maintaining the timeline safely.
11125827
I hadn't thought of that. I'm afraid the G5 Equestria doesn't fit the story, so I'll have to stick with my original made up one. Shucks.
11125231
I mean, it technically wasn't quite a full year, only 11 months >.>
I'll try to avoid it, though.
11125182
Wow, two in one sentence. I really dropped the ball there. I could search for typos a million times and still find something that needs to be fixed on the millionth and first time.
11125171
To be fair, she didn't blow her cover, her cover blew her.
Did Future Chrysalis just explain the whole thing to Past Chrysalis? I'm still unsure if Time Keeper was replaced or not.
11125939
Not everything, there was no mention of time travel or of her ("Twilight's") true identity. It was certainly some interesting tidbits of information, though. And yes, Time Keeper in this chapter was past Queen Chrysalis. The real one is very much inside of a changeling dungeon.
Great to see this story return!
I also had to take a bit of prompting to remember that Time Keeper was actually past Chryssie... She's definitely going to have a lot to think about. Not to mention, that Luna knows too... They're gonna have a talk eventually, I bet.
Only 8 chapters left? Interesting... That implies something will happen before the wedding... Methinks her cover may be a little unstable going forwards...
Just binged this story, and I have to say, this is absolutely amazing. I can't wait to read more. I hope it continues for a good, long time.
11125902
That's Ok.
Gasp! It's alive!
Well, at least she hasn't spilled everything, only set of it.
See, Friendship sometimes doesn't work!
I imagine Luna wouldn't mind keeping Celestia tied up for a while longer.
Hmm, that ending's not ominous at all.
right in front of her, too. absolutely brutal
Ooooooh the plot thickens yet again! Now Luna has an inkling of the truth!
11127170
She's learning, but she still messes up in the funniest of ways.
11126896
I'm sure the ending is fiiiine. That amulet will never be heard from again, just like in the show. Now excuse me while I pick up this gun for my friend, Chekhov. I don't know why he keeps leaving these things laying around, it's bound to go off with how carelessly it's thrown about.
Had to reread the last chapter before commenting, but wow, things have really started moving now.
Past Chrysalis and Luna are both in on what happened to Twilight Sparkle.
Also, Luna may know that our protagonist is called a 'changeling' unless she though Zecora was being poetic.
The chapter was wonderfully tense in places. I liked Trixie repenting before taking the amulet off this time. And also, it's become apparent Celestia has put a lot of pieces together, just not how many. Because this could be some quality doublespeak.
“If ever you wish to talk, I will always be ready to listen. Whatever it is that burdens you, I am willing to share that burden. I am not just your mentor, I am your friend, and whatever it is you believe you have done that is so unforgivable, I will forgive you, just as you should forgive yourself.”
Well, she's just told Zecora that there is a secret
As a bonus, Luna's primary role in saving Celestia here is (hopefully) a boost for her popularity. In Ponyville, at least; there are at least three separate reasons they wouldn't want to spread this story around nationally.
Younger Chryssi is going to have to find someone else to impersonate, now. I have an idea or two, but I don't want to spoil the fun.
It occurs to me that with Pinkie's memory altered, Rarity is now closest to figuring it out among the Mane Six. Since she's Chryssi's closest friend right now, that's a nice parallel.
Luna and Zecora now both know that the other knows. They can totally exchange gossip on Chryssi, now!
11129233
Zecora already knows "Twilight Sparkle" is a Changeling, I'm sure she suspects she has other secrets.
11131477
That was more of a comment on Luna's capability of keeping secrets
11125935
Oh no, Past Chrysalis is going to take the Alicorn Amulet to ensure the invasion succeeds, isn’t she? She knows about it and how it greatly increases your power, as a normal unicorn was able to effortlessly overcome and subdue Celestia herself, and she‘ll probably look closely at her invasion plans, hoping to bolster her chances at success now that Future Chrysalis planted that seed in her head. A natural conclusion for her to make would be to use the Amulet to ensure success. What she doesn’t know is that it corrupts the user increasingly over time... Chrysalis greatly cares for her changelings, but how will that change after she’s worn the Amulet for a prolonged period?
No matter whether my theory is correct or not, this story is very good, and I enthusiastically look forward to more!