The Saviour of Saddle Arabia

by The Marshmallow

5 - Ascent

"You should see clearly how dangerous it is to give away love." The dying queen's deep, coarse voice was now little more than a whisper, but it didn't lose the authority it used to have. "Never do it, until you'll have to crown your own successor". Indeed, she could see it in the once black chitin of her mother, that had turned dark grey after the ritual. And her eyes, once full of passion and rage, were now just so tired.

"Love is every creature's weakness, but it is our strength..." She repeated by heart, a phrase that the creature in front of her had told her so many times when she still was in the peak of her power. It proved to be the right thing to say.

"You learnt well, my daughter." The young Queen felt pride overflowing from her mother. While she knew the taste of it already, it had never felt so clear and distinct. A changeling queen's perception was just on a different level. "And you will become much greater than I've been." The old bug cringed for a moment, certainly thinking of the hive she reigned upon, so much smaller and weaker than it was centuries prior. but then there was a spark of hope. "Even the other nymphs lowered their heads to you without a fight. It had not happened in generations..."

The young queen smirked. "None of them has the guts to talk back to me. Let alone challenge me for the throne." In the years they had grown together, she had made a point of reminding them their place at every chance. it had paid off. "They know they'd stand no chance."

"Indeed." The old changeling nodded, slowly and wisely. "That's why you will bring back greatness to the Hive!" The Hive was weak when years prior she had taken the throne; as she aged, it only became more frail and disunited. She had to be careful about the orders she gave, as she was afraid they'd be disobeyed. But she also knew that her successor was going to be feared by all, that her word was going to be the Hive's law. As it should have been.

"I will, mother." She had ambitions, and projects. Her mind was quicker than her mother's, her strength far greater, and her magic was likened to that of a Queen even as a nymph. She was the perfect changeling specimen, through and through. And she wanted nothing but the chance to prove it. A chance she finally had.

"Now go, my daughter." She could already hear the buzzing in the next room getting fainter. The crowd had mourned the old queen long enough, as it was the tradition, and it was now time to have them cheer for the new one "The hive is waiting."

"Yes, mother." caught as she was in the ritual, she had almost forgotten where she was. Only now she remembered the small room in which the two of them could be alone, as everyling else waited outside. It was almost painful to think that her mother, once a glorious Queen, was going to die there. And she was accepting an early death so that her own daughter could inherit her power. Before she realized, she ended up pronouncing two words coming straight from her heart. "Thank you."

A new spark of life bolted in the otherwise tired eyes, a hint of rage that made her try to rise her head, albeit failing to do so. "I hope I will never hear you say that again with intent", she hissed. She struggled a few more moments, only managing to become even more exhausted. Her followings word came out as mere whispers "You are a Queen now. It is your destiny, your birthright!"

The dark and dirty walls of the temporary hideout her hive had found in the desert vanished in her mind, soon being replaced by the luxuriant marble of the Saddle Arabian palace. But the memory of her mother did not, even if years had passed. the Queen wondered what her mother, what all her ancestors, would have thought, seeing her kneeling in front of a pitiful pony, submitting to all of her whims. "Did you call me, my queen?" her head, now that of a pony, was almost touching the ground. Her very voice was submissive and gentle.

"My dear, I'm glad you are here." Queen Oasis stood proudly, a calm smile on her face making her natural beauty radiate through the empty throne room. there were no guards, no maids but the one in front of her "Can I trust to keep all that I'm going to say to you as a secret?" It was not as if she showed any doubt in her demeanour, but she wanted once more to remind her servant of the importance of the information she was going to hear, of the tasks she was going to be asked to perform.

"As always, my Queen." And she just stood there, listening. She had gotten close enough to the saddle Arabian monarch to be given the most delicate of tasks. Keeping an eye on somepony, delivering messages, sometimes even doing more questionable things. She was her eyes and her ears in the palace, her most trusted confidant, her friend. And it had taken months to get there. Now she could even interrupt her queen, voice her opinion, having her words really listened to. But it wasn't enough.

"Did I make myself clear?" The deep nod of the metamorphosized bug satisfied Blue Oasis, who smiled back at her immediately. She would be the first to leave the room, and the maid was supposed to leave a few minutes afterwards. there would be no guards in the corridor, meaning she could move freely to complete the mission she was given.

She wouldn't, though. Wait she had waited for the longest time had finally happened. The two of them were alone, and the Queen had just walked just beside the changeling offering her her own back. The knife she had stolen from the kitchen and hidden underneath her garments glinted softly at the light of the day, as she quickly lunged with a devilish smile towards the unsuspecting mare. Her ancestors, she was certain, would have been proud.

"I Think my uncle likes likes you!" The pink muzzle of a giggling Cadence was now in her face, at a distance that she found obviously inappropriate, but not enough to scold the little filly. Her words picked her interest, though, as she had always wondered about the abilities of the alicorn of love.

"Can you feel it with your power?" She inquired, trying to seem perfectly neutral, but with her curiosity burning inside her like a fire. Even as a Changeling queen, the feelings of the Draconeequs were completely impenetrable. Looking at him he could only see a sea of chaos in which all feelings were mixed and confused.

The filly shook her head, much to the Queen's displeasure. "I can't." And yet she seemed no less sure of her previous assertion. "But I don't need to." She looked at the Queen, straight in her eyes, with those deep and truthful violet eyes of hers. "I just can see it!"

A monster like Discord, whose only wish was to entertain himself without consideration for anypony else... falling in love? If there was something she could understand, was looking at those beneath her as if they were insects. Some could prove interesting, or useful, but developing feelings for them was unthinkable. And she was certain that he looked down at her in the same way.

Luckily, that time she managed not to laugh in the filly's face. She did so afterwards, in the privacy of her room.

...

And that was the moment Chrisalis woke up, looking groggily around her in the darkness. It had been a while since she had dreamt of her mother, or of the Queen, and Cadence was certainly a new presence in her subconscious. But she was a pragmatic mare, and didn't think much of any of it. She had to ascertain the time, then get ready to perform her daily duties.

Today was going be a day like any other, she though.

---

Pristine pond felt impatient; he used to be terrified and strangely excited when the whole arrangement began, then worried and eager in equal measure a few weeks later. Now he was just impatient, and that was enough to make him wonder when he started feeling so. Maybe he was just so inured to Discord's miraculous abilities that they started seeming normal, or possibly he stopped being so terrified of him. Or, simply, his love for Cadence had grown more and more, to the point of overshadowing everything else.

Whichever it was, as the red door appeared in the middle of his room (where, he knew, just moments earlier it was not) he wasn't even startled; he was just relieved. He leapt towards it, looking at the beautiful decorations for just a few moments, noticing the usual scenes from Discord's reign carved in the red-coloured wood and then painted in a golden hue. There were battles and victories showcasing the Draconeequs might, that he correctly interpreted as a warning from the very beginning, but that no longer had any effect on him. He even grabbed the Discord-shaped knob without shivering, and turned it merrily anticipating the afternoon he was going to spend with his lover.

Inside the doorframe there was a sight diametrically opposed to the small and poor-looking room he was residing. There were pillars of marble, precious tapestries, and soft-looking carpets. There was the throne room of Canterlot's castle. the first time he had to step back in disbelief, possibly in fear. Now we walked head, his head raised high and a smile on his muzzle. In a moment he was on the other side, as if it was the most natural thing in the world.

"G-good evening Lord Discord!" The only thing he was not yet over was the menacing aura surrounding the Lord of Chaos itself, which was looking straight at the colt from the high ground of his throne with his stern gaze. But despite the primal fear, he was now able to keep himself straight, in front of the Draconeequs, looking back at him with a tentative smile.

The Draconeequs couldn't maintain his harsh demeanour but for a few more moments, than he cracked a smile. he liked the guts the colt was developing, and he was progressively getting warmer to him. "You can drop the 'Lord'!" He never was antagonistical, he managed to keep that part of himself in check, but overall he just assumed that cadence would soon get tired of the earth pony. He was wrong, as a few months had passed already, and the kid was almost part of the family. Nopony knew outside the palace staff, obviously, but it was not as if they needed to know. "Mr Discord and Sir should be alright". But might even that could change, one step at a time.

"Thank you, my Lor..." he stopped, correcting himself quickly "Sir." Discord seemed pleased, as he nodded, and so he decided to go on, asking the question that had been on his mind for a while. "Uhm... Where is Cadence?" She was usually was right there beside his uncle, waiting eagerly for the colt. Not today, though.

Discord sighed which was both unusual and worrisome. Did she not want to see him? Did something happen to her? "Mia is in her room. She has been a bit tired lately." it sounded she was, for the most part, fine, so Pristine sighed in relief. He kind of expected what would come next "She really wants to see you, so I'll have a guard accompanying you. make sure she doesn't exert herself too much"

Despite Discord voice turning a little bet harsher in the lest remark, he didn't think about it too much and answered quickly: "I'll be careful, sir!" He certainly didn't want anything bad happening to his fillyfriend, either.

Author's Note:

I'm going abroad in a few hours, so I've been quite busy recently. I'm glad I managed to complete this before going!

I hope I'll be back to writing soon!

With Love,
The Marshmallow