VOLUME FINALE - Chapter 5 - A Dam Broken
Celestia stares coldly at Chrysalis, but otherwise shows no outward signs of fear. Twilight does her best to lean closer to Chrysalis in order to plead her mentor’s case.
“But... but my friend isn’t able to carry foals! No alicorn can!”
“I am aware of that particular... how shall we say... biological shortcoming of hers. But don’t worry. Her womb isn’t necessary for such a process.”
Twilight appears confused. “It isn’t?”
Chrysalis shakes her head. “Not at all. As I hinted at earlier, an egg filled drone’s womb bursts a few hours after being put into the Spawning Pool. The eggs simply latch onto whatever flesh they can and begin feeding.”
She smiles wickedly at Celestia before walking over to the alicorn and looking down at her belly.
“As large as you are, I’m planning to have you filled especially full.”
Twilight shakes her head violently. “No, no! Put them in me instead!”
Chrysalis puts a hoof on Twilight’s cheek as she smiles. “Oh, I’m planning to, yes. But before we can move on to that particular event we must first take care of one thing.”
Turning to Thorax, she nods. The drones whom ferried Pharynx to the Spawning Pool enter its slimy waters and lay his body in the green muck as Thorax joins his brother in it. Pushing the body to the outer edge of the pool, he turns to those gathered and begins to speak.
“Today we bring forth my brother, Pharynx. He fought long and hard to protect the queen and the hive itself from any and all threats. Before dedicating his life to the defense of our lands, he started his life here, as we all do.”
He looks down at Pharynx’s form before continuing.
“And now... now we bring him back to the slime... to be reborn through our future generations. May his spirit always live on in them.”
Putting a hoof on his brother’s chest, Thorax gently pushes him down below the surface of the goo. A few bubbles surface as his chest cavity quickly fills. Holding him there until buoyancy is lost, Thorax slowly walks back to the edge of the pool and steps out. Approaching Chrysalis, he bows respectfully.
“I will continue my brother’s work, my queen. Now and forevermore.”
Chrysalis nods as she puts a reassuring hoof on Thorax’s shoulder. “And together we shall honor your brother’s memory by punishing his killer.”
Turning back to the drones, Chrysalis continues.
“Prepare the prisoners.”
The drones approach with two strange looking racks. Maneuvering them under Twilight and Celestia, they fasten the pair down with their rear legs spread. After verifying that all is secure, a drone casts a spell on both mare’s front hooves, freeing them from the hardened slime. Chrysalis steps in front of them and smirks.
“You will notice that while your midsections and rear legs are secured, your front hooves are not. Such is allowed for safety purposes only.”
Twilight grimaces. “S-safety?!”
Chrysalis nods. “Yes. As a drone’s womb is filled, their bellies will naturally extend. You will need to push yourselves up with your front hooves in order to be able to breathe at that point.”
She puts a hoof under Twilight’s chin to raise it as she begins visibly shaking from fear.
“But I am not without mercy. At least regarding you, Princess Twilight.”
“Huh?”
“Unlike my old foe Celestia, you came to us with an open mind and the honest desire to bring peace to our two nations. Rather than fill you to the bursting point, like the drone you saw earlier, I will order that you recieve only a small fraction of eggs deposited into you uterus. Rather than excruciating pain, yours will be more akin to indigestion and a slight feeling of heaviness. I will also order the drones attending you to feed you proper pony food at your command. This will further help lessen your discomfort during this time.”
“How... how long will I have to stay here?”
“That is entirely up to you.”
Twilight appears confused. “I don’t understand. Am I not a prisoner?”
Chrysalis nods. “You are, yes. But that is only because you asked to be. Just say the word and my drones will release you. However, the punishment you were taking will then be added to Celestia. And she herself will stay here until I am satisfied. Which will most likely be long after both her mind and body are broken beyond repair. So... what will it be, Princess Twilight?”
Twilight bows her head as she stammers. “I... will stay.”
Chrysalis smiles. “Very touching of you. Shall we begin?”
Twilight nods as Chrysalis motions to a drone nearby. She carries over a large bowl with half a dozen eggs (which are roughly the size of chicken eggs) floating in slime within. Setting it down in front of Twilight, Chrysalis picks up an egg and holds it up as she speaks.
“As you can see, they’re not very big at this point. A mild discomfort at worst when inserting them. However, they will grow to more than twice this size as they feed on their host, making things much more painful during delivery. But, as another form of mercy to you, I will order my drones to used their magic to put you to sleep during the most unpleasant parts. Again, out of respect for you and your ideals, princess.”
Chrysalis walks around Twilight and over to Celestia as another bowl of eggs is set in front of her. It contains so many eggs that she cannot even begin to count them. The queen grins wickedly as she stands before the bowl and looks down at Celestia.
“You however... will recieve no mercy whatsoever, Celestia. Every last one of these will be put inside you one at a time until you can hold no more.”
Twilight grimaces as she looks over. “But... but nopony’s womb could hold THAT many! Even before they start to grow!”
Chrysalis nods. “Very astute of you, Princess Twilight. And you are correct in that assumption. Only half of them, or as many as will fit, will be put inside your friend’s uterus. The rest will be inserted into her digestive tract in the most cruel method imaginable. I’ll let you figure that one out.”
Celestia’s eyes grow wide at this and she struggles to get free as Chrysalis shakes her head and sighs.
“Try all you want, you cannot escape these racks. Now then, unless you want your front hooves bound, and to feel the pain of suffocation, I suggest that you calm down.”
Grunting, Celestia begrudgingly complies. The drones take the bowls behind the pair and sit down in front of their backsides to await their orders as Chrysalis continues explaining the situation to Twilight and Celestia.
“Now then, before we start I need to be honest with you two about something. Do you remember that drone that was filled with eggs from earlier?”
Twilight grimaces. “Wha-what about her?”
“She was, unfortunately, the last of her kind.”
Twilight gasps. “So nopony else can carry eggs here?”
Chrysalis sighs. “Sadly, no. And that’s in addition to the severely limited supplies we have at the moment.”
She turns to Celestia before continuing.
“That’s why I stepped up my antics in Equestria these past few years. To force you to come here yourself and try to stop me. Had you simply ignored us, we would have all but died out within a few decades.”
Chrysalis leans in close and whispers in Celestia’s ear.
“Thank you for preventing that fate for us. Both then... and now.”
Stepping back, Chrysalis swings violently at Celestia’s head with a holey hoof. The heavy blow causes her snout to start bleeding profusely. Watching the blood pool on the floor before the elder alicorn, Chrysalis smiles wickedly as she continues.
“And that is but the tip of the revenge iceberg that is coming for you now!”
She walks all around Celestia several times before speaking again.
“Believe me when I say that I’m honestly not trying to stall things here. I just want to remember you like this, Celestia. As you were... before the eggs that I’ve laid ultimately destroy you.”
Laughing wickedly at her victim, she turns to Thorax.
“You will personally oversee and guard the prisoners until the process is complete. However, do not begin until you recieve word to do so. I’m waiting for a very special part of this experiment to arrive.”
“Yes, my queen. It shall be done.”
Walking back to Twilight and Celestia, Chrysalis smiles wistfully as she speaks.
“And now I must be off to rest. Egg laying is both time consuming and labor intensive. But, I do have one final surprise for both of you.”
Twilight groans. “Please... no more.”
“This will be the last one, I assure you.”
Picking up an egg, Chrysalis holds it up to Twilight’s face for a closer inspection before speaking again.
“I laid every last one of these myself. However, as you’ve probably already noticed by looking around, the changelings produced lately are far from adequate. That leads me to the pinnacle of my plan.”
Motioning for someone to approach, Chrysalis waits. Arc soon joins her in front of the pair. Chrysalis leans against him affectionately as she speaks.
“You see, I knew you both would come. And that your so-called Hero of Light wouldn’t be far behind when you did. We’ve been studying him for some time now, and were able to work wonders during his transformation. If my calculations are correct, and they always are, his modified sperm will make for the perfect next generation of changelings.
Looking to Twilight, she smiles warmly.
“I know of your feelings of lust, Princess Twilight. How you desire to be bred by him. So I am going to make that happen. After the eggs are carefully inserted within you, my champion will approach your backside and fertilize them inside of you.”
Twilight looks down as she blushes heavily. “That... um... isn’t exactly how I wanted my first time to be though. Restrained and watched by a bunch of strangers, I mean.”
Chrysalis nods. “Very well, Princess Twilight.”
She looks to Thorax.
“When the time for insemination comes, order the non-essential drones out of the room. However, you must remain here to guard them.”
Turning back to Twilight, she continues.
“That is the most privacy I am willing to give you.”
Shuddering, Twilight begins to whimper slightly as Chrysalis heads for the door.
“Notify me when the procedure is finished, Thorax. I will want to monitor the results very carefully and... personally.”
“It will be done, my queen.”
Laughing, Chrysalis closes the door behind her. Thorax turns to a nearby drone.
“We wait now for her message to begin.”
They nod respectfully as Thorax walks over to the mares. Grabbing Celestia’s head roughly by her mane, he raises it to look her in the eye.
“I don’t know why you killed my brother, Princess Celestia! And frankly don’t really care to hear your excuses at this point even if you could talk! But I’m going to do my very best to make sure that you suffer for what you did to Pharynx during this entire procedure!”
Twilight turns to him. “She didn’t kill your brother though! Queen Chrysalis did!”
Thorax grits his teeth. “Don’t lie! My brother was the most powerful among us! The personal favorite of the queen! For what reason would she do such a thing?!”
“I don’t know! But I saw her do it with my two eyes!”
“You’re fortunate that the queen has taken a liking to you, Princess Twilight. But your friend here isn’t so lucky. So for that reason I’m going to be stuffing her full of eggs with my bare hooves if I have to! And I promise I won’t be gentle!”
Without looking, Thorax smacks Celestia across the face as he keeps his gaze focused on Twilight.
“That’s just a sample of what will happen to her if you ever speak that horrible lie about my brother again!”
He storms away as Twilight looks to her mentor sadly.
“Princess Celestia. I... I’m sorry.”
Celestia nods slightly, unable to speak due to her muzzle being sealed shut as she closes he eyes and allows Twilight to continue.
“This whole thing is all my fault. If I had just listened to you in the first place none of this would have happened. I’m a terrible princess and a terrible leader!”
She begins crying before feeling a hoof on her cheek. Opening her eyes, Twilight sees Celestia wiping a tear from her face.
“Aren’t you mad at me?!”
Celestia silently shakes her head.
“But... but how?! I mean... look how things turned out for us!”
Patting her head, Celestia appears to be trying to console Twilight as the door behind them opens and two drones enter. Twilight hears them dragging something toward her. Looking to her left, she sees a third rack being set up. Suddenly, Hammer enters her field of vision. She stumbles toward the table and half falls towards it. Grabbing it, she is able to hold herself up and turns to Twilight.
“Princess Twilight?”
“Are you alright, Hammer?”
Hammer groans as the drones begin strapping her in. “I’ve been better. Uh... what’s going on here?”
“Um... I don’t really know how to tell you this.”
Hammer sighs. “You don’t have to.”
“I don’t?”
“Nope. I know torture when I see it.”
She turns to the drones before continuing.
“Let’s see what you freaks of nature got! I won’t talk!”
Thorax shakes his head. “It’s not that kind of torture, idiot.”
“Huh?”
Twilight bows her head. “They don’t need information.”
Hammer appears confused. “Then what are we doing here?”
Twilight turns to her. “You see...”
Thorax interrupts and motions to a large bowl of eggs as it is brought forward. “We’re going to be stuffing you full of these.”
Hammer rolls her eyes. “What a waste. That’s way more food than anyone could ever eat.”
Thorax smiles wickedly at her. “They’re not going in that end.”
“Then where...?”
Hammer stops talking as she puts two and two together.
“AW, HELL NAW!”
Thorax pats the eggs tenderly. “And I’m going to order the drones to fill you up till you nearly pop. And you will when these eggs are ready.”
Hammer gasps. “Those things are EGGS?!”
Thorax facehoofs. “Yes. What did you think they were?”
“I dunno. Can’t really see too good right now with the swelling around my eyes, genius.”
Two of the drones look Hammer over for a few moments. Grabbing her shirt near her midsection they pull it apart, tearing the buttons free and exposing her belly. Hammer gasps as she looks around.
“What the heck are you all doing?!”
Thorax smirks. “Believe me, that’s mercy.”
“How...?!”
“When your belly begins to distend you’ll thank us for unwrapping you.”
Nodding to the drones, they grab her pants and pull them roughly to her ankles as one of them looks to Thorax.
“The queen wanted me to tell you to begin as soon as the third prisoner was prepared.”
Thorax nods. “Good. I’m anxious to get started with this.”
Turning to the three, he continues.
“We’ll begin in just a few minutes. If there’s anything you want to say to one another, now is the time.”
He walks away as Hammer looks to Twilight.
“So... I guess this is it for me then.”
Twilight sighs. “It might very well be, yes. Sorry.”
“Don’t be, princess. Remember, I chose to follow you out here.”
She looks past Twilight to Celestia.
“You too, I guess.”
Celestia nods as best she is able as Hammer speaks again.
“If this is the end though, do you think that you could do me a favor, Twilight?”
Twilight nods fervently. “Name it!”
“When the cavalry gets here and saves you two, just be sure to tell Arc that I love him. And that I gave it my best shot. All the way to the end.”
Twilight appears confused. “He’s... actually standing behind us somewhere.”
Hammer grins. “We’re saved!”
“But they’ve turned him into one of them.”
Hammer groans. “We’re dead!”
Twilight looks back as best she is able. “Arc. I don’t really know if you can hear me or not, but... I’d just like you to know that I don’t blame you for what you’re about to do to us. Your being mind-controlled and can’t help it. So... just do what you have to do and don’t feel bad about what happens to me... er, us.”
“What are you talking about, Twilight? What’s he going to do?”
“After the eggs are... implanted into us, Arc will... ah... inseminate them.”
Hammer raises an eyebrow. “Uh... what’s that mean?”
“That he’s going to have sex with us to fertilize them.”
Hammer turns her gaze to Thorax. “Seriously?”
Thorax nods smugly. “Very much so, yes. In fact, he’ll need to fertilize both of your rear holes numerous times in order to make sure...”
“This whole thing is suddenly looking up!”
Thorax frowns. “Um... what?”
“The way I see it, if you’re going to kill me in order to make a bunch of freakish alien-looking bugs, then at least I can die happy!”
Twilight looks to Thorax. “She’s wanted Arc to have sex with her for a very long time now.”
Hammer grins. “Yeah! A REALLY long time!”
Thorax appears confused. “But I was told you wanted that, Princess Twilight.”
“I do, yes.”
“Really?”
Twilight nods. “Yes. We’re in love, after all.”
Hammer grins. “Engaged actually.”
Thorax rolls his eyes. “Next you’ll be telling me that he’s also dating Princess Celestia.”
Celestia glares at him silently as Twilight shakes her head.
“They don’t really get along very well.”
A drone steps forward. “We are ready to begin, Thorax. Whom shall we focus our efforts on first?”
Thorax puts a hoof to his chin as he thinks. “I’m not sure. The queen didn’t specify a particular order, so I guess it doesn’t really matter.”
Tapping his chin for a few moments, Thorax thinks before continuing.
“But she did make a point about treating Princess Twilight especially gently though. So perhaps you should start with her.”
Hearing this, Celestia begins violently thrashing in her stocks. Doing her best to scream through the slime on her muzzle, she motions to her backside with her neck as best she is able and lifts her tail as high as she can. The drone looks to Thorax again.
“It would appear Princess Celestia is eager to begin her sentence.”
Thorax grins wickedly. “Very well. But I want to do it myself.”
The drone appears confused. “Sir?”
Thorax grits his teeth angrily. “She killed my brother! I want to make her suffer for that!”
“Very well. We shall assist you in that endeavor.”
Hammer calls out. “Hey! I gotta question!”
Thorax groans. “What is it now?!
“Just to make sure I understand this whole thing, you’re going to fill my belly with those eggs, right?”
“Yes.”
“And when I say my belly, I mean literally my belly.”
“Are you getting at something?”
“Yeah! You said that after I’m filled up, Arc’s going to impregnate me.”
“That is correct. The eggs need to be fertilized, after all.”
“Do me first then!”
Thorax stares at her in disbelief. “I’m sorry, what?!”
Twilight looks to Hammer, confused. “But you’ll literally explode as they grow!”
Hammer smirks. “If it means I get what I want, then that’s fine with me!”
Thorax tilts his head to one side, confused. “What you... want?”
“At least this way I’ll die after having Arc blow his load in me! Multiple times and in both holes, no less! So let’s get this thing moving!”
The drones turn to Thorax for guidance. Shrugging, he looks to Hammer.
“Very well. If you’re truly that anxious to die, then who am I to begrudge a prisoner their final wish.”
Twilight gasps. “Can’t you at least be merciful to her though! After all, she was only following my orders in coming here!”
Thorax sighs. “I understand that, Princess Twilight. But the queen’s orders were explicit. She wants to use this one’s ruined corpse as a message to Equestria regarding what happens to those whom attack our hive.”
Hammer shakes her bare backside as she calls out. “Hurry up and get started then!”
Thorax shrugs. “We shall do as she asks. “
He points a hoof to two of the drones.
“You and you will carry out the procedure. Everyone else will now leave the room as per the queen’s earlier orders.”
Obeying, all the unnecessary drones begin filing out of the room. As they do so Twilight looks to Hammer and holds out a hoof to her. Reaching out, Hammer puts her hand around the fetlock and squeezes it tightly. Twilight smiles sadly as she speaks.
“I’m sorry, Hammer.”
“Don’t be, Twilight. Like I said, I came because I wanted to.”
“How can I...?”
Hammer interrupts her. “Hey. We don’t have a lot of time here, so I need you to do me one last favor.”
“Name it!”
“No matter what it takes, get Arc out of here.”
“But what about...?!”
“Forget me! I’m dead already! Just...! Just find a way to help him. Like he helped me. Do that and I’ll be satisfied.”
Twilight nods sadly. “I will. I promise. And thank you... for everything, Hammer.”
Hammer offers Twilight a nervous smile as the last extra drone leaves and closes the door behind them.
“Just... think of me once in a while, okay?”
Twilight sniffles as Celestia reaches out to her. Putting a hoof on her former student’s shoulder, she silently reassures her. The pair of drones from earlier walk over to Hammer’s stocks and sit on either side of her backside. Pulling the bowl to rest between them, they each pick up an egg and look to their... targets. However, as they move to begin inserting the eggs, Arc approaches. One of them turns to him and shakes her head.
“Please be patient, Wing Arc. We will be ready for you in just a short...”
They are cut off as Arc puts his hands on the back of their heads and slams them together. The pair fall to the ground, unconscious. Thorax gasps and steps back instinctively as he cries out.
“What... in the world...?!”
His horn aglow, Thorax prepares to attack. He fires as Arc steps forward, but his armor absorbs the blasts. Continuing his attack, Thorax backs up until his backside hits a wall. Feeling it on his flank, he grits his teeth and charges forward. Lunging at Arc, he quickly finds the young man’s gauntlet around his neck. Gasping, Thorax flails angrily in an effort to free himself. Looking at the changeling for a moment Arc eventually throws him against a wall, effectively knocking him out. Turning back to his friends, Arc calls out.
“Everything is going to be okay.”
Twilight gasps happily. “Arc?! Are you... alright?!”
Arc groans. “It’s... complicated.”
Hammer turns to look at him as best she is able. “Get us out of here, then we can talk!”
“Sounds good.”
Making his way over to Hammer, Arc releases her. Helping her stand up, she falls backwards. Arc quickly catches her.
“Are you okay?!”
Hammer grins mischievously. “Kinda. Admittedly that thing wasn’t exactly comfortable. But if you’d like to put me back into it...”
Arc rolls his eyes as he sets her up. “You just keep fantasizing while I release the others.”
Making his way over to Twilight as Hammer pulls her pants up, Arc undoes her binds. She rolls out of the stocks and turns to her rescuer.
“Thanks, Arc! Um... give me one second.”
Quickly undoing Celestia’s restraints, Twilight helps her friend from her stocks.
Come on, up you go.”
Celestia shakily stands and begins pawing at the slime covering her mouth with her hooves. Twilight jumps up onto a nearby table and tries to brush it away as well but to no avail. Hammer joins her and tries to claw it off with her fingers, but meets with no more luck than Twilight’s efforts. Looking to Arc, Hammer points at Celestia.
“Think you could help get that stuff off of her?”
Arc shakes his head. “Sadly, I don’t know how to. Even after whatever it was that Chrysalis did to me.”
Twilight frowns. “What DID she do?!”
Arc leans against the wall and puts a gauntlet to the cowl covering his head. “First I need to see something.”
Removing his headgear, Arc looks to Twilight and Hammer. They gasp and instinctively step back. Arc sighs.
“How bad is it?”
Hammer grimaces. “Not good.”
Twilight nods soberly. “You’re skin! It’s... it’s GREEN!”
Pulling off a gauntlet, Arc looks at his hand. Clenching a fist angrily, he turns and slams it down on a table nearby. Twilight and Hammer cautiously approach him.
“Things are going to be okay, Arc.”
Hammer nods. “Yeah. We’ll get you back to Equestria for some medical help, or something.”
Twilight turns to Celestia. “There IS a way to help him, right?”
Celestia silently nods and motions to the door with a hoof. Twilight turns back to the others as she speaks.
“We need to get out of here and find a way back to the main entrance!”
Hammer raises an eyebrow. “Why? What’s out there?”
“Our forces!”
Hammer gasps. “You mean you two weren’t captured like I was?”
Twilight shakes her head. “No, we came here willingly.”
“Why would you DO that though?! I’m not worth so much risk!”
Arc frowns. “Neither am I.”
Hammer looks to him. “They took you too?!”
Twilight appears confused. “Yes, you both have been gone since last night. Didn’t they take you together?”
Hammer shakes her head. “Nah. The last thing I remember is waking up to a weird clinking sound. Next thing I knew I was in their jail. Or brig, or whatever.”
Twilight looks to Arc. “And you?”
Arc folds his arms over his chest. “Hammer knocked me out.”
Hammer frowns. “Did not!”
“Yeah, I’m assuming it was actually a changeling that did it. You, or they, didn’t attack until I went for my helmet. They kept trying to keep me from taking it and get us away from the camp to investigate something or other.”
Twilight nods. “I believe you. Both of you, that is. But right now we need to contact our forces and mobilize them to attack the hive.”
Arc grimaces. “That... isn’t a good idea.”
Hammer raises an eyebrow, confused. “Not using the army we brought all the way out here isn’t a good idea?”
“Chrysalis is up to something... dark.”
Twilight tilts her head to one side. “What do you mean, Arc?”
“You see...”
A groan rings out from across the room. They turn to see Thorax slowly getting up. Frowning, Arc walks over to him and grabs the changeling by a hoof.
“You and I need to talk!”
Thorax looks away, angrily. “I have nothing to say to...!”
Arc interrupts him. “You want justice for your brother, right?”
“What would you know about him?!”
“When I grabbed you earlier, I... saw some things.”
Hammer frowns. “Saw... how?”
“A vision of some kind.”
Thorax scoffs. “That’s not possible. Only changelings can do such a thing with one another. And even then only with those whom are extremely close to one another.”
Twilight walks over. “Do what?”
“Share consciousness.”
Hammer rolls her eyes. “That cleared it up.”
Thorax frowns. “It’s something like telepathy, but more advanced.”
Arc nods. “Something to do with changelings whom maintain individuality while being part of a hive mind.”
“Which isn’t possible, because you aren’t a changeling and we aren’t close!”
Twilight gasps. “Unless he is!”
Hammer looks to Twilight. “Princess?”
“Chrysalis said that such was her plan all along. To lure us out here and capture Arc. She intended to turn him to her side by making him part of the hive!”
She turns to Celestia before continuing.
“Is that possible?!”
Celestia shrugs as Arc touches his face with a hand.
“She made me into a... one of them?”
Hammer smiles nervously. “You’re still you inside though, right?”
“I sorta feel... strange. Like my consciousness is loosely connected to others.”
He motions to Thorax before continuing.
“Even him. Which leads me to want to try something a bit... unorthodox.”
Thorax backs away “L-like what?!”
Setting Thorax down, Arc kneels in front of him on the floor.
“Celestia didn’t kill your brother.”
“She most certainly did!”
“Chrysalis did.”
Thorax looks away angrily. “You mock my brother’s memory!”
“Want proof?”
“Yes!”
“Then here!”
Grabbing Thorax’s head, Arc concentrates. Thorax’s mind appears to be elsewhere for a few moments before he frowns, leans forward to touch foreheads, and grabs Arc’s head in his hooves. They continue doing so for several moments. Eventually, Thorax pushes Arc back angrily and turns to walk away.
“That isn’t possible!”
Arc stands. “Believe me. It is.”
Twilight moves to join Arc. “I saw it happen. She killed your brother as he bowed to her.”
Hammer frowns. “That’s cold!”
Arc sighs. “It was all part of her plan.”
Thorax scoffs. “I don’t see how killing Pharynx could possibly have helped her defeat the Equestrians though.”
Arc shakes his head. “Not us. You.”
“Me?”
“Well, not you personally I don’t think. But at some point she... linked up with my mind and I saw her standing over a lot of dead changelings... smiling.”
Twilight appears confused. “But how would you have...?”
Thorax cuts in. “It’s probably when she attempted to realign your mind. Dominate you. It’s a risky thing to do though, as it requires her to momentarily link her mind to yours. If successful, she’d have a new warrior to set loose upon our enemies.”
Hammer frowns. “And if she failed?”
“The subject retains their faculties and gets to see that which is in the forefront of her mind.”
Arc nods soberly. “Which in this case was the changelings losing badly and her somehow being happy about it.”
Thorax puts a hoof to his chin. “It doesn’t make sense though. The queen, even as powerful as she is, wouldn’t be able to survive without the hive behind her.”
Arc looks to the door. “Then we had best go see her.”
Hammer clenches a fist. “With our forces at our back, yes.”
Arc shakes his head. “No, Hammer. Now.”
“Uh... what do you have against an army backing you up?”
“Like I was saying when Thorax woke up, Chrysalis is up to something really dark. We need to stop her, and now.”
Twilight sighs. “But we’ll stand a much better chance of succeeding with help, Arc.”
“There isn’t time!”
Hammer shrugs. “Fine, Arc.”
Twilight nods. “What do you need us to do?”
Thorax gasps. “Wait! You two are just going to go along with him on this, Princess Twilight?!”
“If Arc believes that’s the best course of action, yes.”
“But you two won’t survive a confrontation with the queen!”
Hammer smiles. “And if Arc hadn’t saved me in the past, and just now, I’d probably already be dead.”
Arc motions for them to approach him. “Alright. Here’s the plan...”
Sometime later Arc and Thorax approach the Throne Room door with Twilight, Hammer, and Celestia following them closely behind. Arc frowns at the changeling as they stop.
“Here we are.”
Thorax nods soberly. “Yes. Now then, I’ll remain outside the Throne Room with the princesses while you go in there and commit suicide.”
Arc rolls his eyes. “Glad to see you have faith in me, Thorax.”
Twilight points a hoof to Celestia. “Before we get started, can’t you remove Princess Celestia’s slime muzzle?”
Thorax frowns. “No.”
Hammer groans. “Come on! It’s not like her voice is gonna hurt you!”
Arc shrugs. “Or restore her magic.”
Thorax sighs. “Oh, very well.”
His horn aglow, Thorax casts a spell on Celestia’s muzzle. The slime runs down her neck to pool at her hooves. Gasping for breath, she falls to her knees as Twilight rushes over to her.
“Are you alright?!”
Celestia nods weakly. “Yes, I’m fine. Just a bit... tired.”
Hammer looks over her shoulder. “After what we went through back there, that’s understandable.”
Thorax shrugs. “That’s a known side effect of the muzzling slime. It keeps you from talking but also pacifies through draining the target’s energy.”
Arc looks to the door. “In any case, wish me luck.”
Opening the doors, Arc enters the Throne Room alone. Seeing Chrysalis lounging on her throne, he walks over to her and kneels respectfully.
“I have completely the task set before me, my queen.”
Chrysalis grins widely. “Very good, my servant. Now then, arise.”
Arc stands as he is told. Chrysalis flaps her wings and flies gracefully toward him. Landing, she looks him over for a few moments before speaking.
“Tell me, which of the mares screamed the loudest during the fertilizing?”
“Princess Twilight, my queen.”
Chrysalis raises an ‘eyebrow’. “That’s surprising. I had thought her to be built a bit tougher than that.”
“You misunderstand, my queen. She cried out the loudest when Princess Celestia’s turn came. Not her own.”
“Such makes sense.”
She spits before continuing.
“Loyalty to others. A foolish sentiment that is prevalent in the weak.”
Saying nothing, Arc listens as Chrysalis rambles on for a time. Eventually she finishes and turns to him.
“You will continue fertilizing Celestia daily as well as the officer. However, Princess Twilight shall not be touched again.”
“As you desire, my queen.”
“In the meantime, I have new orders for you. Proceed to the main entrance with Thorax and deal with the remaining Equestrian forces out there.”
“Just the two of us, my queen?”
Chrysalis nods wickedly. “Yes. That will be all that is needed. As I recall, you share a bond of some kind with the mongrel out there. Order it to join you and Thorax when you leave. Together the three of you should be able to easily defeat the weakened forces that foolishly followed their princesses out here.”
Arc nods. “It will be done, my queen.”
“Very good. Now then, there is one other thing I’d like done while you’re out there. After the last Equestrian dies, you are to kill Thorax.”
“My fellow ‘wing’, my queen?”
Chrysalis snarls. “He has become weak during his time away from us. Such things cannot be tolerated in a changeling. Much less a ‘wing’ of the queen.”
“If that is your desire, I shall obey, my queen.”
“You will then rally our remaining forces, which are little more than drones and a few guards at this point, and order them to fly to the Equestrian’s airships parked at our border to destroy them.”
“With drones, my queen?”
Chrysalis smiles wickedly as she speaks. “Most of them will die. However, that is a sacrifice I am willing to make in order to maintain the primary hive cluster. You will personally kill any whom survive the attack.”
She licks her lips as she pats Arc’s cheek with a hoof.
“With the weak changelings culled from the primary hive cluster and our enemies advancement slowed by the destruction of their two most powerful ships, we shall begin the next phase of my plan.”
“And what is that, my queen?”
“Building our forces back up, but properly this time.”
She eyes his pelvis before continuing.
“Your seed’s genetics, combined with my eggs, shall usher in an entirely new breed of changelings. Strong, resilient, intelligent, and fiercely loyal to me. With these improved changeling forces, we shall invade and conquer Equestria before moving north toward the Crystal Empire. Using both country’s resources to construct transports, we shall ferry our forces across the sea to the rest of the nations to repeat the process until everything is brought to heel before my hooves!”
“As you desire, my queen, so shall it be done. But if I may be so bold, for what reason are we taking control of the world?”
“First and foremost, to provide for the hive and its inhabitants.”
Chrysalis walks over to Arc and puts a hoof on his cheek before continuing.
“Before you came to us, the changelings were forced to go out into Equestria and scrouge for love wherever they could find it. Table scraps, really.”
“But no longer.”
Chrysalis shakes her head. “Not after the current world governments are brought to heel, no. We shall conquer and assimilate them into our own land. A one world order, if you will. However, I am not a mindless murderer of the innocent. Those whom submit to us will be allowed to live relatively similar lives to that which we are replacing. The only real difference will be a scheduled rotation of fresh faces to feed the changeling nation. Perhaps farms of sorts for those whom are... shall we say... particularly loving.”
“And what of Thorax? Should we not find a suitable replacement for him before starting your grand plan, my queen?”
Chrysalis waves a hoof dismissively. “That will not be necessary. Princess Twilight will soon be willing to fill that role rather nicely.”
“You believe she would so easily betray her land, my queen?”
“She would if it were to save those she cares about, yes. And if she will not... the little freak shall have her mind broken and her will shattered by me... personally.”
She looks to the fallen remains of the chandelier before continuing.
“Much like Pharynx was removed to make room for one much more... worthy of such a position.”
Suddenly the door to the Throne Room bursts open and Twilight, Hammer, Celestia, and Thorax rush inside. Thorax is the first to speak as he points a hoof accusatorily at Chrysalis.
“Murderer!”
Chrysalis frowns as she spots Twilight, Hammer, and Celestia approaching. “So you have freed the prisoners.”
Hammer nods matter of factly. “Darn right!”
“Why, Chrysalis! Why kill my brother when he was so loyal to you all these years?!”
“To replace him with one more adept at his job.”
Motioning to Arc with a hoof, she continues.
“Equestria’s Hero of Light makes even the considerable fighting prowess of Pharynx pale in comparison.”
Thorax seethes. “And me as well!”
Chrysalis shrugs. “One cannot build anew without first destroying the old.”
Twilight gasps. “But that’s just genocide!”
“I see it more as something akin to doing what’s best for the hive as a whole.”
Celestia grins. “So much for that though! Taking your own plan, we shall oust and replace YOU instead!”
Hammer smirks. “Right, queenie! Your reign is over!”
Chrysalis shakes her head. “A pity you still think that, little ones. Tell me, why do you think I would have openly admitted such a thing to you, Celestia, and Thorax?”
Twilight is suddenly taken aback. “I... uh...”
Celestia chimes in. “Because you’re overconfident!”
Chrysalis smirks. “Nay, Celestia. I have confidence that I hold all the cards here. You may have escaped my Spawning Pools, but now you have only succeeded in falling from the frying pan and into the fire!”
She turns to Arc and points a hoof smugly at the intruders.
“Now then... kill Thorax and return the princesses to the Spawning Pool for breeding, my wing.”
Arc turns to Chrysalis. “No.”
Chrysalis raises an ‘eyebrow’. “That is an order!”
“I suppose it is. However, you presume far too much.”
Chrysalis hisses. “Kill them! Kill Thorax NOW! Your queen commands it!”
Arc shakes his head. “Not going to happen.”
“You cannot resist a direct order from the...!”
Hammer laughs. “No one can control Arc!”
Twilight nods with conviction. “Right! He’s his own human!”
Celestia smirks as she steps forward. “Now then, Chrysalis. Will you come peacefully and surrender to our forces outside? Or will you allow this to become even more of a problem for you?”
Chrysalis seethes as she spreads her wings and grits her teeth. Flying back to her throne, she looks down at them with great contempt.
“Fools, all of you!”
Twilight glares at Chrysalis. “The only fool here is YOU! Killing your own subjects is just beyond disgusting!”
Chrysalis points a hoof at Twilight angrily. “You and Celestia are the real fools here, princess! Neither of you can see the big picture! I’m doing what I have to in order to...!”
She is cut off as Thorax charges forward and lunges at Chrysalis. She catches him in midair with a spell and holds him there for a moment before back hoofing him violently. Taking the opportunity, Celestia calls out.
“Enough of this, Chrysalis! Everypony, get her!”
Arc and his friends rush towards her. Shaking her head, her horn glows as a barrier forms around her and the throne. Try as they might, the barrier appears unbreakable by conventional methods. Chrysalis laughs as she continues channeling her spell.
“Try all you like! You’ll never get through!”
Hammer folds her arms over her chest. “For a firefly, you’re pretty dim! We can’t get in, but you can’t get out either!”
Twilight nods. “Right! Your magic will run out before long! And then we’ll have you!”
Arc sighs. “No, it won’t.”
Celestia turns to him. “What are you saying?”
“She’s sitting on the throne. It’s Chrysalis’ source of power. She could stay safe in there pretty much indefinitely.”
Chrysalis laughs wickedly. “Not actually forever, mind you. But long enough for all of your pony forces outside to be dried out husks from lack of water.”
She looks to Twilight before continuing.
“You should have just turned around and left when you had the chance. Now you’ll have all your dead followers on your mind for the rest of your life!”
Continuing her tirade, Chrysalis fails to see Thorax creeping toward her. Taking the opportunity to catch his opponent by surprise, he again throws himself at Chrysalis. Surprised, her spell falters momentarily. However, it is not weakened enough for Arc and his friends to get through. Shaking her head, Chrysalis looks to Thorax as she speaks.
“You just don’t know when to give up, do you?”
Thorax grits his teeth. “I need to avenge my brother!”
Chrysalis smirks. “Then by all means, go ahead! Just try and defeat me!”
Planting his hooves firmly, Thorax begins charging up his magical power. Waiting impatiently for him to finish, Chrysalis taps her hoof.
“Sometime today would be nice.”
Thorax grits his teeth. “Only... have... one... shot...!”
Chrysalis laughs. “Then you had best make it a good one. After all, it’s what you’ll be known for after I kill you.”
Leveling his horn at Chrysalis, Thorax takes a deep breath and mutters to himself.
“This is for you, Pharynx.”
Turning his head slightly, he fires at the throne next to Chrysalis. She cries out as it explodes, causing the barrier around them to fall.
“What... NO!”
Seething, she looks at Thorax as he falls to the floor exhausted.
“You have doomed our entire nation, idiot!”
Thorax smiles weakly as he gasps for breath. “Then... it is... over. “
Arc hurries over to Thorax along with Hammer as Twilight and Celestia step toward Chrysalis. Twilight looks to the defeated queen and smiles.
“Queen Chrysalis. It doesn’t have to end here. You can rise above and lead your subjects to a new tomorrow.”
“What? But how?”
“By being the leader that your subjects deserve.”
She extends a hoof to Chrysalis and smiles. Slowly reaching toward Twilight, Chrysalis roughly slaps her hoof away with a sneer before standing and crying out angrily.
“There is no revenge you could ever CONCEIVE of that will come close to what I will exact upon YOU one day... Princess Twilight Sparkle!”
Looking upward, she blasts a hole in the ceiling and flies away. Twilight turns to Celestia whom nods soberly as she motions to Thorax. Walking over to him, they kneel down as he struggles to speak. Twilight looks to Celestia.
“What’s wrong with him?”
Celestia sighs. “If it is true that the source of the changeling’s power came from the throne Thorax destroyed, then their fate may be connected to it as well. Without its influence, they appear unable to survive.”
Thorax nods weakly. “That is... fine.”
Turning to Arc, he continues.
“Equestria... is safe... from... changelings.”
Arc nods soberly. “So it would seem.”
Celestia looks down at him. “Thorax, I must know. Why did you do that? Why sacrifice your entire race to help us?”
“Chrysalis... she needed... to be... stopped. Nothing... important to her... other than... control... and winning.”
He looks to Arc again.
“But you... didn’t.”
Hammer appears to be confused. “Arc didn’t what?”
“Rise up to... fight... Chrysalis.”
Arc sighs. “I... suppose I could have used my Changeling Magic to attempt to dispel her barrier.”
Celestia gasps. “What?! You mean, you could have...!”
Hammer steps between them. “Let’s put a pin in this, shall we?”
Thorax groans. “My insides feel... strange. Like... I’m filling up... with something.”
Twilight looks him over frantically. “What can we do?!”
“Nothing... now.”
“But there must be SOMETHING we can do! We have to save you!”
Thorax smiles weakly. “You... already have... princess. Thanks to you... the changelings are now... and forever more... free.”
He closes his eyes and exhales. Twilight puts a hoof on his shoulder and bows her head sadly. However, she quickly draws back as a thick outer shell suddenly forms over Thorax’s entire body. She steps forward cautiously and moves to touch it. But as she does so a bright light emanates from the shell, forcing everyone present to instinctively turn away. As it dims they look upon the fallen changeling. Hammer is the first to speak.
“What the...?!”
Celestia’s eyes grow wide at the sight before her. “This... this defies all reasoning!”
Arc calls out. “Thorax? Can you hear me?”
Slowly opening his eyes, Thorax sits up and looks around.
“I... feel different.”
Hammer nods. “Look different too!”
Thorax looks down at the polished floor beneath him. His eyes wide, he gasps.
“What the heck happened to me?!”
Twilight shrugs. “Some sort of metamorphosis.”
Celestia puts a hoof to her chin thoughtfully. “Perhaps due to the energies released during the destruction of the throne.”
The sound of hooffalls ring out as the doors to the Throne Room burst open. A cadre of changelings, whom now look very similar the Thorax in terms of color schemes and form, all rush inside and over to him.
“Wing Thorax! What has happened to us?!”
Thorax groans as he slowly gets to his hooves. “I... don’t really understand it myself.”
Twilight turns to them. “He freed you all from Chrysalis’ control!”
She gestures to the ruined throne before continuing.
“Thorax defeated Queen Chrysalis by destroying that which she was trying to protect!”
One of the changelings gasps at this. “But... but the queen nurtures and watches over all of us!”
Celestia shakes her head. “No, she doesn’t.”
Hammer nods to the ruins. “If anything, she was holding all of you back.”
Arc steps forward and removes his cowl. “And me as well it would seem.”
Twilight appears relieved. “You’re not green anymore, Arc!”
Arc nods as touches his face. “That and I don’t feel Chrysalis’ influence clawing at my mind either.
Thorax turns to Twilight and bows respectfully before speaking.
“Princess Twilight... on behalf of the changelings, I hereby announce our unconditional surrender.”
Twilight nods. “And I accept it.”
Hammer looks to Celestia. “So... do you think we should take them into custody, or something?”
“I don’t believe that will be necessary.”
Arc nods. “They don’t appear to be a threat to anyone at this point, after all.”
Twilight grins. “Right. With Chrysalis gone, they now have a chance to spread their wings and choose their own destiny.”
Hammer shrugs. “As long as Equestria’s safe, I guess that’s a ‘mission accomplished’.”
Twilight looks to Arc. “What now though?”
“They need a new leader, for starters.”
Thorax nods to Arc. “And that should probably be you.”
“Oh?”
“After all, you are the strongest amongst us.”
“Maybe. But you showed everyone that you were willing to do whatever it took to do what’s right for the nation as a whole. So I believe that the new ruler of the changelings should be you, Thorax.”
He chuckles before continuing.
“Or should I perhaps call you... Sandstorm Mirage.”
Thorax gasps. “You... you mean...?!”
Arc nods. “Yes. I knew.”
Celestia glares at Arc. “WHAT?!”
Thorax raises an eyebrow. “When did you...?”
Arc taps his head. “As you know, my current helmet has a Truesight Enchantment on it, as did the original one I brought with me from Tartarus. If you recall, I was wearing it the day Flash Sentry brought you to my office to be promoted to sergeant.”
Thorax gasps. “That long?!”
“I did think you looked rather strange at the time. So I made a few inquiries and requested a book chronicling the land’s inhabitants. There was a picture of something resembling you within it.”
Hammer scoffs. “Then why not bust him, Arc?!”
“Because, after reviewing his record, I found that Sandstorm Mirage had always been an exemplary soldier. Honest, trustworthy, and loyal to Equestria.”
“So you just... let me go?”
Arc shrugs. “I saw it more along the lines of giving you the respect you had earned.”
Twilight steps forward. “Sir?”
“Yes, Princess Twilight?”
“If Arc is willing to vouch for your character, then I’ll accept it.”
Clearing her throat, she continues.
“Thorax, as the new leader of the changelings, I look forward to discussing how we can improve our relationship in the future.”
Celestia nods soberly as she motions to the doors. “As do I. However, for the moment, perhaps it is best that we leave the Changeling Kingdom... to the changelings.”
Arc chuckles. “Agreed. We need to get back to our troops and you have much to do, Sandstorm Mirage.”
Thorax grins. “Please, sir. I’m really just ‘Thorax’.”
“Very well. We shall take our leave.”
“I’ll escort you to the main entrance personally. This place can be kinda complicated if you’re new to it.”
Leading the group to the entrance, he motions to a drone to open the gates. As they do so, Arc steps forward with Twilight to the worried faces of those waiting for them outside. Mio and Ember run up to them as they step outside. Ember is the first to speak.
“Arc! Princess Twilight! Are you alright?!”
Arc nods. “We’re okay, yes.”
Mio smiles widely. “Hammer!”
Hammer gives her sister a ‘thumbs up’. “Right as rain, Mio!”
The squad approaches Arc and salutes as Max speaks.
“The battle was soundly won out here, sir.”
Xenos grins. “Yeah! It was quite the spectacle!”
Hugh looks past them at the hive’s interior. “Hopefully things went just as well inside.”
Viktor smirks. “I’m sure it did.”
Sereb turns to the changelings behind them. “And it would appear that you made some new friends along the way.”
Celestia nods soberly. “The changelings have... evolved.”
Twilight gestures to Thorax. “For the better it seems.”
Thorax smiles nervously. “Indeed.”
Hammer folds her arms over her chest as she jerks a thumb toward the soldiers nearby. “All well and good. But we need to see to our forces. Everyone here looks pretty tired and thirsty.”
Arc looks to Thorax. “Think we could trouble you for some supplies?”
Thorax appears confused at this. “I could give you some water, yes. But wouldn’t it be easier to just open a portal, sir?”
Twilight raises an eyebrow. “But our various schools of magic don’t work out here.”
Hammer groans. “Right! Watch!”
Holding out her hand, Hammer aims it at a nearby rock. It suddenly begins floating under a Telekinesis Spell. Everyone gasps as she steps back, clearly surprised.
“What the heck?! That didn’t work last night!”
Thorax gestures to the hive’s upper tower overhead. “The anti-magic field was generated by the queen’s throne. My apologies for not saying something about it earlier, as I thought you already knew that.”
Arc shrugs. “Guess I kinda did.”
Celestia turns to him and frowns. “How?!”
“Just a bit of latent changeling intuition, I guess.”
Celestia narrows her eyes. “More of your... intuition?!”
“Something like that.”
Twilight looks to Celestia nervously. “You see, he’s pretty good at...!”
Celestia interrupts her. “Just a moment, Twilight. I have a few more things I want to say to him.”
Turning back to Arc, Celestia continues.
“What happened back there to Twilight, myself and Lieutenant Hammer... you’re saying that you could have stopped it at any time, correct?”
“Theoretically, yes. You see, I was trying to...”
Celestia cuts him off. “And you also could have taken down Chrysalis’ barrier in the Throne Room, yes?!”
“Maybe. That one isn’t...”
“That and you knew all along that Thorax here was a changeling?!”
Arc folds his arms over his chest. “You already know the answer to that. What exactly are you getting at?”
Celestia seethes as she storms over to him and pokes his chestplate with an accusatory hoof. “Everything you do and every decision that you make seems to be heavily steeped in intuition!”
“I call it trusting my gut.”
“That’s not how a leader should make decisions though!”
Twilight steps forward to intervene, but Ember puts a claw on her shoulder.
“Let them be, Twilight.”
“But...!”
Sereb growls softly. “This has been coming for a long time now, princess.”
Hammer smirks as she leans against Sereb. “Yeah. Time to get everything out in the open where it belongs.”
Arc frowns. “Are you saying ALWAYS have all the information before making a decision?!”
Celestia shakes her head. “No! But...!”
Arc interrupts her. “Look around you! Everything worked out, didn’t it?!”
Celestia scoffs. “Barely!”
“Then why are you...?!”
“Because Twilight and everypony else here seem to think that you’re some kind of tactical genius! When in reality, you’ve been winging it this entire time!”
“I do my best to...!”
Celestia taps her hoof on Arc’s chestplate harder as he talks. “Your BEST?! I question whether or not you’re even TRYING sometimes! Especially when you let my student be forcefully captured by the enemy, restrained, and almost... well, you know!”
Arc frowns. “But she didn’t get hurt! I was right there the whole time to make sure things didn’t go that far as well!”
“And the emotional strain to all of us?! Was that part of you ‘plan’ as well?!”
“Look! Twilight’s fine! Hammer’s fine! And you’re fine! I didn’t let any of you be harmed in any way and we were able to stop the changeling threat facing Equestria! How is this not a win?!”
“Because you just made things up as you went! Either learn to be a proper leader or get out of the way of true leadership!”
She pushes Arc back roughly. Regaining his balance, Arc steps forward quickly and retaliates with a shove of his own to the mare before him. The pair stare at one another silently for a long moment angrily as Thorax turns to Twilight.
“Um... should we...?”
Twilight bows her head and sighs. “Let them do this.”
Celestia wordlessly puts a hoof on her armor’s clasps. Releasing them, she allows her breastplate to fall to the ground as Arc does the same with his own armor. Wide-eyed, Mio turns and calls out to the soldiers.
“Everyone fall back! BACK!”
The soldiers quickly turn and retreat to a sizable distance as Mio and Sereb stay by Twilight’s side along with Arc’s squad. Celestia motions to his gauntlets as Arc removes them.
“Those can stay.”
Nodding, Arc puts them back on. Taking a deep breath, Arc clenches his fists and takes up a battle-ready stance. Celestia does the same. The pair size each other up for a few very tense moments before Celestia lunges forward and swings a hoof at her opponent angrily.
“Always the hero! Never the thinker!”
Arc dodges her attack and lets her pas. “You’re one to talk! Letting Twilight walk right into the enemy stronghold without a single guard! What the heck were you THINKING?!”
Countering her attack with a blow of his own, Arc catches Celestia in the sternum. She retaliates with a knee to his chest as she talks.
“I warned her about that though! Strongly I might add! But as a princess, she can do whatever she wants!”
Arc straightens up and smacks Celestia across the face with the back of his gauntlet. “And you expect me to believe that you were powerless to stop her?!”
Celestia grunts as she stumbles back regains her balance. “Yes! What was I supposed to do?!”
Arc steps forward. “Stop her! Forcefully if necessary!”
Celestia hoofs Arc in the gut. “Like you did when she personally marched into Canterlot in front of the troops!?”
Arc kneels down and sweeps Celestia’s front hooves out from under her as he slams her face into the ground. “Equestria needed a proper leader to sit on the throne! Besides, YOU weren’t doing your job back then and were just letting Decimus roam the land completely unchecked!”
Celestia sits up quickly and headbutts Arc in the chin. “I never thought he of all stallions were capable of such things! But maybe if you had done YOUR job better Twilight wouldn’t have had to take such a stance in the first place!
Arc stumbles back into a large rock. Putting a foot on it, he braces himself as Celestia charges him. Using the rock as an anchor Arc jumps and kicks her in the face.
“Me do MY job better?! HA! Since coming here I’ve saved Equestria more times than I can count!”
Celestia wipes blood from her snout. “I was doing that before you were BORN you arrogant little COLT!”
Running towards him again, Celestia jumps over the boulder and bucks it over Arc. Doing a backflip, she lands on top of it to look down smugly.
“See what happens when you don’t plan ahead?”
Grunting, Arc summons all of his strength and begins lifting. Standing up, with the boulder still on his back no less, he looks up angrily.
“That’s the problem... with being on top... princess...!”
Shifting his weight, Arc throws the boulder backwards. Being off balance from the event, and due to inertia to a degree, Celestia falls face first toward him. Putting his elbow back, Arc allows her face to slam into it on the way down. Celestia falls to the ground, breathing heavily, and does not rise as Arc finishes his sentence.
“...there’s just so far to fall.”
Turning to walk away, Arc suddenly finds himself falling backwards from a powerful kick to both of his feet. Landing on top of Celestia, she grabs him and rolls over to look down on her opponent. With a smirk, she speaks.
“That may be. But as a last resort...”
She hoofs him in the head hard. Arc goes limp as Celestia finishes her sentence.
“...you can always take your opponent down with you.”
Moving to stand, Celestia suddenly feels pressure on her mane as she turns away. Before she can act, Arc pulls her back down. She hits her head hard on a rock next to him and passes out. Arc chuckles weakly as he too loses consciousness.
“Couldn’t... agree... more...”
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I honestly don't know what Celestia expects of him even she can't do everything and blaming him because twilight was at ground zero for the battle is dumb. And Considering she let someone very dangerous into a high position of power refused to listen to those she should be able to trust and tried to get applejack rape and just because she planned to save her before he could complete the deed doesn't mean applejack wouldn't have hurt by it. If anything arc is a good leader and she is a bad one. Her stupid grudge is growing out of control. I think until she is cleared by a mental health doctor she needs to be locked up for everyone safety. She can try and pretend all she wants but arc is a good person not perfect but who is.
Real pity about Pharynx, he was a good match and brother to Thorax and the magic surge was far too little far too late?
Not 100%, but I think this is the shortest volume so far.
Also, were you going for a They Live kinda vibe with that Arc-Celestia fight?
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Shortest by chapter count, yes.
It was originally part of the previous volume. But I decided that this deserved to be separate.
The fight scene was from an anime my wife and I watched years ago called 'Rune Soldier'. In it, the warrior has been giving the main character crap pretty much the whole series. And then he had enough.
https://youtu.be/8EaIK96mipg?list=PLRy6VuChOVBkDTBKm3a0QGGofkWZY5yms&t=893
ok i did not expected that ending
that WAS a long time coming
hey discord fork over the popcorn
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Sesame Street, Mister Rogers, Captain Kangaroo, and Saturday morning cartoons. No longer around, but they will live on in our hearts.
With as much bickering Arc and Celestia have been doing, you'd think they were married or something...
Celestia would be an excellent addition to the herd
Twilight:
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Glad you liked it.
The idea for the fight scene came from here...
https://youtu.be/8EaIK96mipg?list=PLRy6VuChOVBkDTBKm3a0QGGofkWZY5yms&t=893
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Let's just say that Tempest owed Arc a few favors. He brought her along as a trump card in case things got out of hand. Which they did. And considering just how important this mission was to Arc, his plans had to have backup plans on top of backup plans.
Not a bad start for a Marathon reading lol 14 down and lot to go this well tack some time to read
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Glad you're enjoying the ride.
I'm 400+ pages into writing the next volume, so the goalpost is going to be moving here soon.
If this was a O&O character the person must have rolled natural 20s for everything or close to it OP much and handed a lot of op gear for free authority over most everything and all he wants is a quiet life my tipe of story's
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I'm not familiar with O&O, and google isn't turning up anything that makes sense. Could you tell me what that stands for?
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O&O Ogres & Oubliettes is Mlp D&D Dungeons & Dragons
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Ah! Now I get it!
Forgot about that episode.
11715350 Then tell Celestia to stop eating so much cake!
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11715354
But that's 90% of her food pyramid 5% fruits and vegetables 5% tea
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Do panCAKES count?
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Yes pancake cupcakes cookies muffins cake well anything with 200% more sugar in it
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Read it.
Record it.
Listen to it
That might help
What no Wonderbolts in this story????
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They are mentioned briefly a couple times in various chapters. But there wasn't much reason for me to bring them into the story until Arc took a fateful business/pleasure trip to Cloudsdale.
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So Rainbow Dash is not head over hoofs braving about joining theam 1 day
I'll how about Scootaloo that speed daemon on wheels
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She does want to join them, but isn't obsessed over it like she is in the show.
I wasn't a huge fan of the Wonderbolt's in the show as they didn't really seem to do a whole lot to add to the lore of My Little Pony. In my opinion they could have done more with the group than just stunt flying.
As far as Scootaloo goes, unlike in the show, she does not live in Ponyville at this time. She always seemed to be playing third fiddle to Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle in their episodes. So I decided to give her a 'better' role when introduced in my story.
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Yeah it is a shame that her father took her mother death out on her and denied her almost every aspect of social development growing up. It's amazing that she managed to survive as long as she did.
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Easier said than done. They wouldn't be alive if it was that easy to kill them.
Dose equestia bits turn to U.S. Money??? If so what is 1 bit worth in exchange
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Negative on the exchange rate. Arc does well for himself in Equestria financially speaking. But as far as money on Earth he receives a portion of his father's pay every month to live on. And since he was pretty frugal with it in the past, and the fact that he was gone for over a year in Equestria, has allowed it to accrue nicely.
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I can see it Phineas and Ferb open a portal and go through it Candice with theam and walk around thay walk past every as candice is complaining about every thing arc stop stare at them and say what how thay get here thean a how have a Half Baked plan asking theam 4 help
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The law celeastea made about dating of the same social groops
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Cadance was justifiably worried, as she was unsure what the law dictated regarding such things. Fortunately for her, it's just a tradition.
Story's that jump between earth and Equestria open portal's path are not my fave I like wean thay are stuck, transformed, and or reincarnated (keeping thear memories) gender swamped 9freaking out or accepting the chain)
shall I understand y u have it this way it is a good story so fare I'm hoping celeastea is found soon I'm only on (Unusual Fill-up) with a lot more to go
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Originally I intended for Arc to be stuck in Equestria. However, that was back when the story was meant to be limited to the first two volumes. Before I started posting translated chapters to fimfiction I already had plans for Arc to find ways to come and go from Equestria to Earth and back again. Different worlds, different problems though.
I think you'll enjoy the volumes that lead up to Celestia's return. But that matter did not end the way anyone intended. Myself included.
I Love your work. When will the sequel be released ? 🙂
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Glad you're enjoying the ride.
The sequel (if I can find time to write it when this is done) will be much, MUCH shorter and be an extended epilogue of sorts.
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I can't wait for the next volume. When will it be done ? :)
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It's going to be an extra long one to make up for the especially short previous one. At the moment it's about 650 pages long and I still have a chapter or two to write. Then the wife and I have to read it all together before I can start translating it and posting chapters. So it's probably going to be a couple of weeks. Less if the wife wants to read multiple chapters at a time, which is kinda tough to do seeing as they're especially long and have to be read aloud.
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FINALLY. Ive been waiting for someone to do that. Thank you.
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You are welcome.
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That's about how it goes, yes.
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While that may be true, the personality she's based off of for me is from the main universe, so not creepy for me.
And thank you?
How long until the next chapter ?
Nice timing ! 👍
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I just finished translating the first chapter of the next volume as you posted your comment.
Buckle up, because here we go again!
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No chance of that happening. At best, they'll have to learn to live with the fact that they're both very important to Twilight and be civil to one another.