Breaking Twilight

by Shaelyn

Into the Madness

Twilight sat alone in the room that had been provided for her. It was much larger and nicer than her previous accommodations, but it didn't feel right. The bed was too soft, and the velvet red walls felt out of place in the Changeling hive. She closed her eyes, shutting out the world around her and focusing on the question once more. Chrysalis wanted her to create a group of loyal ponies to feed the Changelings, using willing volunteers. Ponies that wanted to give themselves to the Changelings, but didn't have enough love to feed them all. Twilight had even met one, on Chrysalis' request. He hadn't seemed to be under any spell or even unhappy to be locked away, but his eyes... the way they stared at Twilight while she was there, it made her incredibly uncomfortable. Like there was a hunger in him that he couldn't fill. The same hunger she was feeling herself.

Twilight opened her eyes slowly, staring directly at Chrysalis. She didn't smile, or give any real response except for the fact that she continued staring. It isn't really there, she thought, this Chrysalis is just an illusion of her own mind. Still, Twilight could see every detail across the strange hallucination, right down to the tiny upside down Twilights staring back at her from Chrysalis' eyes. "Twilight..." it whispered ever so gently, flickering for a second as her mind tried to purge the image, "You can't hide it forever. You know deep down what you want."

"You're not real." Twilight responded briefly, glaring at Chrysalis. This was the third time the apparition had appeared, and each time it seemed to be getting somehow... stronger.

"You can't deny what I am, because if I weren't real then I wouldn't be here. You're a logical pony, you should know these things." The image flickered again, shifting to Celestia. "Maybe I'm not physical, but I'm a part of you. A part of all that you desire, the darkest of your beautifully twisted mind."

"I'm not going to listen to you. I can go back to being normal. I can ignore you and return to Ponyville and escape this nightmare."

"Silly foal, you can't escape me, because..." the image changed in the blink of an eye, becoming a mirror of Twilight separate from her movements, "I am you. I am the you that you want to be, and I can help you give into your hunger. You've been trying to repress me, but you've grown weak. You've always been weak."

"I'm not weak, I'm strong... I can fight these feelings. I can fight you!"

Chrysalis walked calmly through the door behind the mirror-Twi, looking somewhat concerned. "Is one of my children bothering you?"

The mirror-Twi smiled as the real Twilight looked over it, doing her best to ignore her doppelganger, "No, I was just... I had a bad dream."

Mirror-Twi tsked twice, shaking her head, "Now, Twilight, lying isn't going to get you anywhere in life. What would Applejack say?"

Twilight cringed and shook her head, "I'm going to lay back down..."

"Now isn't the time for sleep, I have something to show you." Chrysalis said, looking Twilight up and down suspiciously.

"Go with the Queen, I'm curious now!" Faux-Twi said excitedly, bouncing up and down in place.

"Fine, I'll go..." Twi sighed, moving from the bed to Chrysalis' side with Faux-Twi close behind. Twilight was making a conscious effort not to look back or think about it, in hopes that it would vanish again, but the more she focused the more she thought about it.

Chrysalis was already walking toward the maze of hallways and tunnels, but Twilight didn't let her get too far ahead. "It's time for your decision, and I won't have you avoiding it anymore. I've given you more than enough time." Chrysalis stopped, and Twilight ran face first into her flank. She had been so deep in thought that she wasn't sure how far they had traveled, but she'd never been to this part of the hive before. It was a single room, made of a waxy material like the majority of the hive, but there was something more to it. It wasn't the lavish bed, or the carpeting on the floor, or even the artwork lining the walls. Even without all of that Twilight would have been able to tell this room belonged to the queen herself.

"What if I don't have a decision?" Twilight asked delicately, taking a step back.

"Then you'd be a liar." Chrysalis replied, moving to a wall with a small hole in it. A window, Twilight realized as she noticed the sunlight pouring through it. "I know you've made a decision, and I know what it is. I'm not happy with it, but I know that you will return in time."

"Then it's time for me to go, isn't it?"

"Yes... but you could have left at any time. We both know that." Chrysalis continued to stare out the window, not even giving Twilight the slightest glance.

"How do I get back to Ponyville?" Twilight looked down at the floor, feeling both guilty and rejected at once. Wasn't Chrysalis going to fight her? To hold her down and make her stay... to hurt her for wanting to leave? Did Chrysalis not love her anymore, or had she never loved Twilight at all?

"There is a road beyond those mountains. Next to the bed is a bag with everything you'll need." Chrysalis waited for Twilight to go check for the bag before approaching, her looming form dwarfing Twilight by comparison. Twilight felt the shadow before she saw it, but it was still too late as a pair of hooves came down hard on her side, knocking her over. Before Twilight recovered Chrysalis pinned her down with a hoof on her chest, a smile on her face, "You belong to me now, Twilight. If you forget that, your punishment will be far more severe than you can begin to imagine." As if to emphasize the point Chrysalis' horn began to glow, and a sharp burning sensation seared Twilight's side for a moment. She wasn't sure what had just happened, but the flashing white lights that obscured her vision left her too dizzy to care. This was a new pain entirely, white hot and sizzling. She could almost swear she smelled her own burning flesh, but even that too faded into an obscure haze of excitement.

The high lasted for several long minutes until finally Twilight took back control of her senses, searching the room with her eyes for any sign of Chrysalis. She was gone, but something was still there... she looked down at her side to see a dark scorch across her left side, a stylized letter 'C', thinly etched in burnt flesh with the greatest of care. A mark from the Queen herself, no doubt claiming what she believed was rightfully hers. It made Twilight both sad and angry at once, sad that she still felt compelled to leave and angry that she now had no excuse for where she had been. Chrysalis was planning this all out, down to the most minute detail, and even Twilight couldn't figure out how it might end. With a tired groan she stood and grabbed the bag from where it was laid, then moved to the window. She could see the ground far below, and the mountains in the distance, nothing more stood in her way...

'You're a danger to your friends and yourself, are you really willing to risk unleashing yourself on the city that took you in so kindly?' came a voice from the back of her own mind, causing her to stop what she was doing.

"They're my friends. If I've learned anything about friendship it's that friends will stay with you no matter what."

'Then you'll drag them into your madness with you? You aren't normal. You're a monster, even if it is only on the inside. Maybe it's for the best, though. If you enjoy it so much, then I can't say they wouldn't enjoy it as well...' the voice laughed, the resounding laugh of Chrysalis.

"Hurting my friends... I can't. I..." Twilight stopped talking to think about it. If she could show them what it felt like, what it really meant to be in pain, then maybe she wouldn't have to be alone. Was it really hurting them if it was for their own good? She looked out beyond the mountains contemplatively, "I need to study it... the pain. I need to know why it does what it does to me. Once I understand that, then maybe I could safely... maybe..."

'I'm glad you're starting to understand, and see things our way. Don't worry, I'll help you..."

Twilight warmed up her magic, preparing to jump. Now there was truly nothing standing in her way. It was time to go... home.

Comments

[Lonely Hearts]

Now I'm getting seriously freaked out... I like it!