10: A Cold Return
- Warning, the second half of this chapter makes the story really earn the dark tag.-
Celestia could do little more than sit in awe as Chrys explained in exquisite detail the battle that Twilight had won so completely it even caused her a pang of worry that Twilight could be a threat. That thought hadn’t come up since then, though, as she was currently sitting across from Twilight in a royal carriage. Twilight had just concluded her Queen’s Dinner and Celestia was getting all the juicy details as they laughed.
“I wish I could have seen the look on her face. In a single battle she went from the largest population to the second lowest. Such loss of life revolts me but you held yourself admirably. Any other of those queens would have not only executed the injured, but just outright wiped their force out completely. It’s a shame she was attacked at her hive by that feral queen but such is the way of things it seems.” Celestia said, her laugh halting for now.
“I only spared her because of honor… but I hated killing her people. I just wish they weren’t so blindly loyal, it’s hardwired into their brains. I’ve been able to research other hive minds since we saved and rebirthed some of the injured. As part of my hive mind I can sift through their memories and it isn’t pretty.” Twilight hummed as she looked at the forest they were currently riding through. They were still a way aways from Twilight’s territory, but she was currently in Mira’s so it was safe enough.
“But they completely dropped the war correct?” Celestia asked.
“Of course. I gave her a clear warning and she was wise enough to take heed of it. Even Jordas thought she was an idiot and he’s a crystal construct older than you are. I was able to cement my alliance with Mira without the use of a binding contract like before, so there’s that. The other queens were secretly too afraid to ally with me and so they remain neutral in my eyes. Crystarium’s archives in combination with what Chrysalis kept and what Mira gave us have been enlightening in terms of the past of our people as well.” Twilight explained.
“Well if you ever feel like writing up a book or a report on it I’m sure the university of Canterlot would pay you for it, and I’d personally pay you for it to add to my personal archives. I know you don’t exactly use currency in your hive but the money would be helpful in trading with other nations and allies.” Celestia mused. Twilight was about to refuse, but a pang in the back of her mind reminded her that Ceren and Samuel could use higher quality alchemical tools.
“I’ll think about it. In the meantime, how did your peace talks with the Dragons go?” Twilight asks. Celestia gave Twilight a face that told her it went well. Which meant it was a horrific pain in the ass at best.
“I swear, I owe Spike all the gems in the treasury for his efforts. We had a major land dispute, and by dispute I mean they wanted almost half of our scattered farmlands for undetermined reasons. Spike dug in and slunk around a bit to figure out their reasons were mostly due to greed and confidence they had gained. Of his own accord, he challenged the Matriarch to see who could smith the best piece in one week.” Celestia started. Twilight nodded her head for the Princess to continue.
“I knew he had taken up the trade, but I didn’t know just how good he was at it. All dragons know the basics of smithing, seeing as they’re basically living furnaces and have a vanity only metalworking seems to satisfy. They were each to craft a suit of barding that would protect the wearer from their rite of passage. Which, if memory serves, is a gauntlet of arena battles meant to wear you down. Unarmored, you’re meant to go as far as you can and the opponents you defeat prove your worth. Spike’s barding went to one warrior and the Matriarch’s went to another. In the end they were the only ones standing, it was a tie.” Celestia continued. Twilight was on the edge of her seat, Dragons never settle for just a tie.
“So she donned her own suit and had Spike don his and they were to test each other’s armor until blood was drawn. Spike ended it in one strike, according to him he noticed a vulnerability in the armor due to the violent activity of the gauntlet. Basically ripped off half of a plate and a handful of scales to go with it.” She finished.
“He HURT her?!” Twilight squeaked, enthralled by the story.
“Well, yes, but in the Dragon culture these small wounds are nothing. To even be able to draw blood on the Matriarch is both a challenge and an honor. He was given rights as a high dragon then, and as a favor he had the land disputes settled. In the end all I have to do is allow them open trade with our farmers for livestock and a slight raise in their profit from our mining operations in their lands. Which, all things considered, is much better than a clan of angry dragons burning your farmlands down.” Celestia answered. Twilight let out a breath she didn’t know she was holding.
“So what, is he your official diplomat for Equestria now?” The Queen asked, curious.
“No, he refused the position. He wanted to stay in Draconis to get a better mastery of his smithing, armor and weapons are his only skills and he wants to expand. He’ll visit regularly he told me, to both Equestria and your hive.” Celestia replied. Twilight nodded.
“That sounds like him. Thanks for meeting me halfway, by the way. I wish I could invite you to the Dinner as a guest but I’m apparently not old enough to ask favors of the old hive yet. The company makes the trip far less boring, and I’d rather not risk arcane exhaustion from another teleport.” The queen said.
“Of course, Twilight. Do you need to stop by your hive for anything or are we good to head straight h-... straight to Canterlot?” Celestia asked. Twilight noticed the Princess cover her almost saying ‘home’ and smiled.
“Canterlot is still my second home, and we can head straight there yes.” The Queen said with a somber smile. Celestia nodded and they rode in silence for a while before starting up more chit chat and gossip.
When they passed near the Scarred Forest, most of the Changeling escort broke off to leave only Twilight’s Wraiths.
“Have you heard from my parents yet? The last letter I received from them was… concerning.” Twilight asked Celestia when Ponyville came into view. Celestia’s smile fell a little.
“Your father is right as rain, as far as I can tell. He still attends to his duties and teaches at the university as normal. Your mother ,however, as sequestered herself away in her room and only allows your father in.” Celestia explained. Twilight’s expression fell further.
“Their last letter seemed strange… Father was happy that I was unharmed, but Mother seemed like she was chiding me for not killing more of them.” Twilight started, shaking her head to get a bad feeling out of her body. “I’m just starting to worry about the fact that there’s more changelings around that aren’t friendly. It might cause a lot of unrest and senseless hostilities…” The queen continued. Celestia would have smiled at her old student if the subject wasn’t so sour.
“You’re really thinking like a ruler now, Twilight. I’m proud of you. I was thinking the same thing, which is one of the reasons why I wanted to be with you when you returned. You’re the queen of the most powerful hive, it help to show that we’re firm allies and friends still.” The Princess said, letting her smile form as she changed the subject.
“I guess that’s one way to do it.” Twilight agreed with a smile smile returning as well. The rest of the trip was in mild silence, occasionally Twilight conversed with one of her Wraiths flying around the magically led carriage or riding on top of it. Or she’d immerse in the hive mind for a few minutes to check on something back at the hive. Celestia had to admit she was a little jealous of that particular ability. Her most reliable source of quick long range communication was dragonfire, and even then it was only messages and letters. Long range telepathy was just not possible without exhausting even her massive energy stores in minutes.
They were both glad to see Canterlot finally close in as they made for the main courtyard of the palace. They made a show of leaving the carriage together happily and even sharing a quick embrace before Celestia returned to the palace and Twilight turned towards her family’s manor. Though the grounds were currently closed there were still plenty of reporters and citizens anxious to see what was happening.
“Oh there you are Twily! I was just coming to find you.” Twilight heard her brother’s voice from nearby. She turned and saw him walking up a separate path with Cadence at his arm. She smiled and hugged both of them quickly.
“I’m glad you guys are here! I was hoping I’d catch you.” Twilight exclaimed.
“Of course we’re here Twilight. When we heard about your war and found out you were coming to visit we had to come and give our support!” Cadence said, her smile turning to a line at the thought of war.
“You’ll have to give me the rundown later, sis, because I’d love to know exactly how you spanked those bugs in detail. For now, though, Dad really wants us to see mom. She’s been acting… strange.” Shining explained. Twilight nodded, concern showing on her face again. They walked towards the manor while talking.
“It wasn’t that long ago, maybe two months? It was kinda sudden at first. We thought she was just spooked at the fact you were going to war on your own. She got over it after a while, but in the past couple weeks it’s been really bad… She’s demanded that nobody be allowed on the premises without being scanned for deceptive magic and that the only people she’ll even let in her room are you and Dad. Mom always knew how to get through my shields so I didn’t want to push her if she was paranoid about something…” Shining continued as they neared the door. Twilight became acutely aware of the shielding array of glyphs around the property, all for the purposes of scanning. They entered easily enough, though something felt odd about them. They weren’t quite normal magic, but it was familiar.
“I’ll see what I can find out. I assume Dad can’t make heads or tails of it?” Twilight asked as the butler let them in.
“No I can’t, and I’m starting to really get worried. She latches on to me at night when we sleep like she’ll die if she doesn’t, then the second I leave the room after getting dressed in the morning the locks lock and the wards go up.” Dusk Sparkle said, joining the small party as they passed the lounge. He shared a quick hug with Twilight, the changeling basking in his parental love. “Glad you could come sweetie.” He added. They all stopped in front of the master bedroom, Twilight could feel the power behind the wards. These weren’t the kind of wards you put up for safe sleeping, these were weaved over the course of weeks and could stop even an archmage for some time. She made to knock, but a voice called out before she could touch the door.
“It’s open!” Dawn called out, her tone was almost frantic. Twilight cautiously opened the door, the wards letting her through with a small gap forming. The second she entered the wards shut ,but the doors remained open.
“Mom, what’s wrong? Has someone threatened you?” Twilight asked, very worried. She walked over to hug the woman, but she put her hand up.
“D-Don’t come near me… Not while you’re like… that…” Dawn snapped. She seemed almost angry at Twilight. Confused, Twilight looked down at herself. It took a few moments but she understood.
“You were happy to hug me last time I visited…” Twilight said softly. Dawn snorted.
“I was still figuring out what you WERE. what you still ARE. Those foul creatures ruined your brother’s wedding and almost conquered all of Equestria, and you became one of them?!” The woman exclaimed almost hysterically. Twilight’s expression darkened.
“Mother, you know what happened. I never expected to need to have this conversation with you, so I won’t. I am a Changeling now, and there’s nothing either of us can do about it.” The Queen said softly. Dawn humphed and took a few steps closer.
“Whatever you’re called you’re not my Twilight anymore. You’re just another of those foul creatures. I was hoping my wards would cleanse you of it, but I was wrong.” The woman growled. Twilight looked up at her ,tears almost forming in her eyes. This wasn’t right. This is not how her mother was acting before, there was no traumatic event or anything. On a desperate whim she tried to focus on her sense of love. There was none of it there for her. Her heart sank, her mother didn’t love her anymore.
But wait, there’s no love for anyone there. She had felt this in humans before, but according to her father they still slept together and she latched onto him for dear life.
Wait…
The tiniest of scanning spells was all it took. The wards in place were here to stop such spells, but Twilight now recognized that unique signature in them. It was changeling magic, she didn’t need the spell to work to know what was happening now.
“Twilight! What are you doing?!” Shining yelled out, smashing against the barrier the wards created as Twilight almost stomped forward and grabbed her mother by the throat, lifting her off of the ground. Dusk and Cadence could only stare in shock.
“What did you do with my mother?!” Twilight growled, fury in her tone. Dawn started yelling for help and even went as far as the remove the wards. Shining made to tackle them as soon as the wards dropped, but Cadence put a hand on his shoulder. There was a certain fear in her eyes, a fear he had only seen after the ruined wedding. He looked at them and used his own scanning spell. No longer hampered by the wards, the spell told him exactly what was in this room. There were two changelings in there, and both felt distinctly different.
Dawn realized what was happening as the spell washed over her and she gave Twilight a grin filled with Malice.
“What do you think I did with her? I wonder what’s left after all this time.” The woman choked out around Twilight’s grip. The woman gave the slightest glance towards the garden, which they all saw. Dusk and Shining immediately sprinted off towards it. Twilight hadn’t noticed her battle plating extend in her fury as she stared at the thing pretending to be her mother.
“Who is your queen?” She asked, the unwaveringly calm tone chilling cadence to the very bone. The woman sneered in her grip.
“You already know the answer to that question.” The woman gurgled an attempt at a laugh. Twilight only tightened her grip. She didn’t have to wait long for the cries of her father and brother to confirm what the disguised changeling had hinted at. That was all Twilight needed.
With an almost feral scream, Twilight extended the blade on her free arm and just started stabbing her fake mother over and over and over again as her grip tightened to the point where the creature couldn’t even scream. The woman had long reverted back to her drone state and was long dead, her body threatening to fall to pieces as Twilight maimed and tore at it with her blade. Her throat was getting raw from the screaming but she didn’t care. It wasn’t until she felt a hand with potent love attached to it touch her that she could stop screaming and finally let the mangled mess of flesh and chitin fall to the floor. In an instant her battle plating and blade had retracted as she turned and buried her face into Cadence’s embrace, her screams of fury turning to soft sobbing.
Cadence was utterly terrified by the violent display, but she finally found her courage and called out to the screaming queen. It went unheard, so she mustered up every ounce of courage and comfort she could and walked up to put a hand on her shoulder. She was still holding the crying queen when Shining returned. He was shocked by the mess of the room and the state of Twilight, covered in the pale red blood of a changeling crying into his wife’s arms. He had heard the screaming and rushed back. He spat at the mess on the floor and carefully guided his wife and sister to the garden.
Twilight could only stare at the corpse that had been magically dug from under a young bush. It was in the shade of a tree, so the decomposition wasn’t nearly as bad as it would have been should the earth have been warmer over her. Dusk was just kneeling next to it, utterly devastated by the loss of his wife. He wouldn’t respond to anything until Twilight and Shining kneeled down on either side of him.
Slowly he looked up at Shining, and then over at Twilight. He was almost taken aback by her state.
“Don’t worry… it’s not mine…” Twilight whispered. Dusk nodded and they all wrapped their arms around each other. They didn’t even notice the sound of feathers ruffling, but Cadence did. She turned to see Princess Celestia and Princess Luna, along with a contingent of both of their guards, enter the garden by air. The corpse was immediately identified as they landed, so they didn’t need to ask who it was.
“Whoever did this will pay, I will see to it myself if I have to.” Luna growled, walking over and surprising the three. Twilight looked up at her, and then over to Celestia. The Princess could see it in her tear stained eyes, the queen needed something only she could give. She swiftly walked over and wrapped her arms and wings around the queen, who had stood to meet her, and poured as much of her love as she could into the embrace. It was more than just love, though, it was the love of a mother. Or at least as close to it as possible. It was a feeble attempt to fill the now vacant hole, but it was the best she could do.
“Twilight… took care of it already.” Cadence said softly. She pointed out the bedroom and the guards went in to investigate and eventually clean up.
“We were having dinner with Chrys, discussing possible trade policies, and she just shoots into the air demanding we bring guards to this manor. By the time we assembled them she was in tears and not responding. As we flew over, we could see other changelings curled up in sorrow along rooftops or wherever they were standing…” Luna explained softly, walking over to grimace at the corpse. She used a flash of black tinted magic and the corpse seemed to be as if it was fresh. She shivered at using the necromantic magic, but a gentle repose spell was harmless enough.
“They’re all…?” Twilight started before she focused on the hive mind. She hadn’t realized the sorrow and fury she was experiencing was reaching her entire hive. Even the vague links to her harvesters revealed they were having emotional reactions to it as well. She slowly fortified her emotional state and immediately sent out reassurances and calming words to the hive. Celestia’s love was certainly helping, and she clutched the princess closer.
“I’m going to station one thousand warriors here in Canterlot to help protect you, Celestia… You’re the only mother I have now, I won’t let her take you from me.” Twilight whispered into their embrace. Celestia immediately wanted to protest, but the tone suggested it was non-negotiable. The words also meant that it must have been Crystarium’s doing.
“On the condition that you aid us in our war against Crystarium and try to keep the other queens out of it.” The Princess replied darkly. Twilight looked up. She too wanted to protest, but she didn’t have the energy to feel anything more than hatred for the cerulean queen at the moment.
“I’ll pass the message along.” The Queen said, burying her face into the embrace again. Shining looked over at them again at that. He wanted to demand to led the army, but he was no longer guard captain of Equestria anymore. He was in charge of the Crystal Empire’s forces now.
“You’ll have our support as well.” Cadence said softly. She hated the idea of war, but this could not stand. Not only was this the murder of a close personal friend of hers, but politically this was the murder of a very respected and high ranking member of the nobility. Dusk was a professor at Celestia’s school for gifted mages, and Dawn was an administrator. The act demanded war from Equestria, and as Equestria’s ally she was able to put her hatred for violence at ease should they request her aid.
Dusk stood up at that, softly thanking Luna for restoring the remains of his wife. He turned to Celestia and Twilight and walked over to them.
“Twilight… I cannot stop you from doing anything about this… I don’t want to lose my wife and my daughter, but I’ve never been able to dissuade you of anything when it mattered…” He started weakly. There was fire in his eyes, though. “Just do me a favor and come home after it all… but before that happens, I want you to give that monster of a queen a good thrashing for me.” He continued. Twilight answered by pulling one of her arms from Celestia to wrap it around him. It was awkward for him and the Princess to be embracing each other, but they both quickly put it out of their minds. They were comforting Twilight, and Celestia admitted that she was more than happy to embrace a subject if it could help them. She resigned to holding the embrace as long as they needed. Even Luna joined in after seeing to the guards. Twilight needed all the love she could get, not just for herself but the hundred thousand changelings she was linked to had taken her sorrow amongst them as well. She wanted to repay them.
She was certainly going to make Crystarium pay for it.
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it seem like no one ever learn you don't piss off twilight, for when she snaps she goes far down the gore dark side of things.
I kind of feel bad for Crystarium just little.....
ok... now you are fucked Crystarium
8024802 I don't really know, the only other changeling story I've read is LAP's hive series and that part was a ' hey I was going to do that too ' moment.
In all honesty the reason behind it is because love is so important to changelings, and a mother's love is powerful. Twilight's mother being lost signifies a major tie to equestria being cut among other things. It also shows just how low twilight's enemies are willing to go
8024802 and I've also had that particular part in mind since I started the series four years ago
8024793 epically so
does anyone want some seasoning for the roasted queen twilight is about to cook? or would yall rather have a bucket of popcorn as we watch the carnage that twilight unleashes on Chrystarium?
Wow, yeah, that was dark. Powerful, but dark.
... You know, if I wasn't so unbelievably furious at Crystarium, I would probably pity her. This will not end well for her at all.
'Your mother ,however, as sequestered' - mother, however, has
'it help to show' - it helps to show
'shut ,but the doors' - shut, but the doors
'at her ,tears almost' - at her, tears almost
I don't think even tartarus will touch Crystarium's soul now, if their smart.
Now she has to deal with : Equestria, including two goddesses \ The Crystal Empire, one goddess & one expert defensive caster \ Dragons, including Spike \ The Elements of Harmony \ Discord??
It is no longer IF she loses, but how LONG she can even SURVIVE !!
That strikes me as an impossibly-foolish move on Crystarium's part. "Hey, Imma provoke the queen of the hive I couldn't even begin to match in battle into a war of annihilation!" Which makes me think it might not be Crystarium's drone at all.
Well, Bitch is fucked now. No mercy left after this. If you would like a suggestion, have Twilight create a slave glyph array, and have her use it to make Crystarium her personal bitch. Ok, maybe not a bitch, but a slave none the less. Nothing will hurt her more than to be a slave to someone.
8026003 That's way off character bro, and besides. Slavery would be too kind.
I've seen variations of this a few times... all done for wonderful dramatic and emotional impact. On the other hand, I will say that ~this~ one is, perhaps, the most vicious and vindictive I've yet seen.
Nicely done. I'm no fan of matricide, let alone cold-hearted murder, but when it's done right, the power it adds to a story can be quite impressive indeed.
8026105 Off character, maybe. Considering her mercy has been betrayed multiple times by the same individual, with the latest betrayal being the death, and impersonation, of her mother, i'd say turning the bitch into a slave, even it was mostly just an array reinforced title, would be within the character of this version of Twilight. Mostly because she's currently being driven by grief and anger. maybe later she would regret the way she handled things, but in that moment, I can't imagine she would feel bad about what she was doing.
But hey, it's not my character, so I could be wrong. Just figured it wouldn't hurt to toss my idea into the ring. Worst thing that can happen is you don't like it, and it doesn't get used.
Wait... you keep mentioning 'Chrys' talking to people, or doing things, but isn't she still comatose?
8027886 chrys is not chrysalis lol, chrys is the diplomat that was first sent to equestria. It may not have been clear but twilight made her the equestrian diplomat again
8028049 Ohhh..! As out of the way as it might seem, I suggest changing her name a little to avoid confusion. Maybe some sort of suffix, like 'Chrysta'?
8030117 That would involve going back through both stories to amend it lol. And it was supposed to be close.
8025412 You have a strong point, there. Still, if it IS Crystarium, then may Faust have mercy on her.
As a parent myself, this struck a solid chord in me. If I ever lost my son to anything or anyone I'd be like twilight right now if not worse. Thank you for this beautiful story!
8135744
Any hive that tried that is doomed to failure.
Technically speaking what Crystarium did actually made sense tactically speaking the next bext thing one could do to strike at an enemy if one cant touch them physically and cant spy on enemy forces is to stike at their emotions and hope it shatters their psyche. After the enemy morale is broken you use the oppurtunity to break them further targeting others that they love eventually when they have no will left to fight in the darkest recesses of depression thats when you amass forces and attack with an intricate hive mind if you shatter the leader then you shatter the hive problem is there is 1) a second leader and 2) they are facing twilight 3) twilights drones have been shown to step up and support their queen when she is starting to doubt herself 4) chrystarium didnt strike any other targets to cripple twilight just her mother