TCE: Queen
Well... at least some things never change.
A bitter mood permeated me. I stared up at the stained glass ceiling, still lying comfortably in the posh bed I'd been provided. I wanted the reality of the situation I was in to just leave me alone, to let me be, but that wasn't going to happen any time soon. Waking up away from home always brought on confusion at first. I was in the Crystal Empire. I was supposed to be with Princess Cadenza and Queen Cantata at this very moment, but apparently, no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't wake up early to save my life.
Darn it, girls! Why didn't you wake me... up...
That's when I remembered what'd happened just a couple of hours prior... Though they had both been more than considerate when they'd gotten up, Twilight had tried to wake me up. She had let me know I'd have to be up in a couple hours to attend to the queen, but I was still half-asleep when she'd done so.
Without intending to, I'd fallen back asleep shortly after the pair had left the room. I vaguely remember Starlight calling back to me as she left, reminding me of my impending duties, but there was no way I was getting up that early. I'd screwed up again because of course I had.
I sat up, rubbing my eyes gently with a hoof. It was still dark in the room, the window above needing to be touched by a source of mana again to let my mentor's sunlight in. With a disappointed huff I ignited my horn. I flung a weak spell upwards, the amount of light suddenly washing over me a lot less than I'd initially thought it would be.
Maybe it's not...
I looked at the clock hanging on the wall. It really wasn't as late as I thought it'd be. I hurriedly tossed the blankets off of myself, rushing to the restroom to wash myself up.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Less than fifteen minutes later I was back atop my bed. My mane was wrapped in a towel to aid in drying when a light knock echoed from the door. I rubbed my mane roughly with the towel as I got to my hooves and trotted over to it.
Reaching the entrance to the room, I tossed the wet towel back onto my bed and floated my mane-brush over to me. I opened the door, coming face to face with Princess Cadenza.
"Good morning, Your Highness," I bowed, still holding my brush with my telekinesis.
"Good morning, Sunset," she touched my shoulder with a hoof. "As I said before, there's no need for such formalities." I lifted my head in surprise, her beautiful smile weakening my knees. "I was being sincere when I said I'd like to be your friend."
"O-of course, Your-uhm, Cadenza," I returned her bright smile.
"Do you uhm... need a little more time?" she asked. She was bordering on laughter, covering her mouth with a hoof as she pointed at my mane with the other.
"OH! Yeah," I blushed, brushing it intensely. "Sorry, I'll be ready in a second." I backed away from the door, moving further into the room. "I've just gotta clean up a little, don't wanna leave my part of the room a mess." I picked up the towel.
Looking around the room I quickly realized there was nowhere to put it.
"You don't have to worry about stuff like that, Sunset," Cadenza drew my attention. "We have retainers to perform those duties."
"Yeah. We do in Canterlot, too, but I'm not lazy... and I'm not disabled," I folded the towel, walking to the bathroom to place it on the sink. I quickly finished styling my mane, looking in the mirror to be sure everything was in place.
"So you're not a pampered little princess then?" She teased from the door.
"I'd like to think I'm not," I laid my brush down on the counter and left the washroom, rejoining the princess in the main room. "Just because I'm Princess Celestia's student doesn't give me the right to be a spoiled brat."
"A wise attitude to have," she smiled at me. "Shall we go?"
I nodded my head, returning her smile.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++
"If you don't mind me asking, where are we going, Your-uhm, Cadenza?" I asked as we turned another corner. I'd expected to return to the dining hall for breakfast, but we weren't headed in that direction.
"I don't mind," she replied. "We're going to have breakfast. You're hungry, right?"
Thank goodness.
"I am." We arrived at a small unassuming door. "But this... isn't the dining hall."
"No. It isn't," she grinned as she opened the door. "This is a bit more... private."
"Good morning, Sunset Shimmer," Queen Cantata stood within the room next to a dining table big enough to seat about four ponies.
The rest of the room was... quaint. No windows or things like paintings along the walls, nothing... hanging at all really. There was a carpet and a second door in the back of the room, but that was about it, at least as far as things worth mentioning.
"Good morning, Your Highness," I wasn't sure if I should bow or just walk in so I decided on the former.
"Come on in, ladies," the queen called out to us. "We've much to discuss." As the two of us entered the room Cadenza closed the door behind us, using a metal bolt to lock the door.
That's... a little weird.
"It's difficult for my mom to have her privacy." Cadenza must've noticed the confusion on my face because she began explaining her action.
"Sometimes I just want to be me, Sunset," the queen drew my attention. She lifted the regalia from her neck, laying it down on the table next to her. "Surely you wouldn't find me lacking for that."
I tried to stay calm. I tried to emulate my mentor, to put on a mask to conceal my genuine reaction. I failed. Spectacularly. I nearly fell onto my haunches, my hooves shooting upwards to cover my open mouth to stifle the gasp that unwittingly escaped me.
"Q-Queen Cantata!" I was trembling. The magic of her transfiguration spell no longer hiding her true visage. The magic must have been coming from the necklace she was wearing. It had to be an absurdly powerful spell if Twilight and Starlight hadn't been able to see past its concealment.
It's... it's gone...
Her disfigurement was severe. The left side of her face... gone, for lack of a better word. Some of it had healed from whatever had initially caused it, but there was no longer any sign of an eye in the left socket. Part of the skin along her cheek was torn away, some of her teeth and gums permanently exposed. Her ear... there wasn't one on the left side either. The scarring and damage continued past her neck and shoulder, all the way down to her withers. All the way down to...
Her wing....
Not only was the old injury easily identifiable, but the rest of her body looked so much more aged without the spell. Wrinkles beneath her eye, her coat far less vibrant and greying, her mane and tail both missing patches of hair.
"I know," she sighed, her head lowering just a fraction. "It's... I am a bit frightful. Please... forgive me for springing this on you without prior warning, Sunset."
"Y-Your Highness..." my own head fell, my heart aching for her. I'd never felt so ashamed as I did in that solitary moment. "I-I..." I had no words.
Not for this.
She didn't even have one of her wings. Whatever had happened to her... my mind couldn't properly process it.
"It's okay," Cadenza wrapped a foreleg around me, laying a hoof on my shoulder in a half-hug. "It's not... it's not easy."
I couldn't lift my head. "I'm sorry... I'm really sorry." I was. For my heartless reaction. That it had happened at all. That there was nothing I could do to fix i-
But...there is something that can be done...
I lifted my head, hope flooding into my heart. "Queen Cantata, I'm certain my mentor can-"
The queen lifted a hoof. "The wounds I carry are my medals, Sunset," the smile that came to her face as she looked down at her upturned hooves was more genuine than I'd ever seen on any creature before. "Her Majesty, in all her grace and mercy, already offered to restore me to my former state," she looked up at me, a stifled giggle coming from her. "I would never rid myself of any of them."
Then...
"Then WHY, Your Highness!?" I shouted desperately. "Why keep it all hidden if..." I choked back the tears. Cadenza rubbed my shoulder softly.
"Because I am a queen, Sunset," she stated, holding her head high. "And a queen must appear strong for her subjects."
"But .. but..."
Is that all it really is? Appearances?
I'd heard the same hogwash from Princess Celestia. It wasn't fair.
It isn't fair.
Frustrated tears dribbled down my cheeks.
"Sunset..." Cadenza said quietly, nuzzling her cheek into my head gently. I wiped my face of the emotions I was openly displaying. Princess Celestia had always instructed me to keep my true feelings concealed whenever I was in the presence of politicians, but this felt... different.
Queen Cantata entrusted me with her secret despite not knowing me very well. I wouldn't betray that trust so easily, and by being honest with her I could show her I was willing to have faith in her as well.
"Sunset Shimmer..." Tears began to form in Queen Cantata's eye. "That you would cry for me..." She wiped away the moisture that had collected with a hoof. "I'm glad circumstances have worked out this way." She waved us over to the table. "Come. As I said, we've much to discuss. But first things first. Are you hungry, dear?"
I weakly nodded my head, still rubbing my eyes.
"Come on," Cadenza drew my gaze, squeezing me with her foreleg as she nudged me forward. "Sunburst makes some of the best food in all of Equestria."
"Okay," I sniffled.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++
"Sunset..." the queen said before putting her fork full of food into her mouth.
"S-SORRY, YOUR HIGHNESS!" I averted my gaze so fast I nearly threw the fork I held in my telekinesis across the room. Like a fool, I'd been staring non-stop for the past couple of minutes.
I was hungry, sure, but my initial disgust had swiftly turned into a deep curiosity. Our plates -- which were all prepared and teleported into the room by Sunburst -- consisted of a dish Cadenza had called "Omurice". Apparently, it was one of the trademark delicacies of the Crystal Empire, which made sense because I'd never even heard of it before.
It consisted of fried rice beneath an egg omelette with a red sauce poured on top. Cadenza had said, traditionally, ketchup was used, but over time the chefs of the Empire began to experiment with more exotic flavors.
It was delicious, I couldn't deny that, but I also couldn't just blot out my inquisitive nature. And so... I'd stared until she'd noticed... or perhaps she had realized it long before saying something.
"Would you like to know how I... how this happened to me, Sunset?" Queen Cantata asked calmly, closing her eye as she lowered her fork.
"I... yes. If it's not too much to ask." That same sense of shame crawled back into my heart. I didn't want to make her relive such a traumatic experience, but I had to know.
Taking a deep breath, she began. "Are you familiar with the... conflict that occured in the Empire twenty years ago?"
Conflict?
That was an interesting way of putting it. I wouldn't have used that particular nomenclature to describe what had happened all those years ago.
"Vaguely," I answered. What little I did know indicated it had been an all out war.
"Then I'm certain you won't hold it against me if I keep my story short." It was easy to recognize just how much she didn't want to speak on the matter. "My husband..." she bit her lip. "My husband, the king, was the primary target of our enemies during that conflict. Each and every battlefield he stepped hoof on he was singled out as the most valuable prize."
That makes sense.
Cut off the head and the body would follow.
But... why even risk it?
"The king... participated in battles?"
"My beloved was no coward, Sunset," a small smile came to her face. "And it is no exaggeration to say he was the greatest warrior the Crystal Empire has ever produced. Had he not stood on our behalf, I'm certain the Empire would have fallen."
"Then... what happened, Your Highness?" I glanced at Cadenza. She was eating quietly, her eyes closed.
"An assassination attempt," she pressed a hoof against her damaged cheek. "Changeling physiology makes them experts at such deceitful actions and their magic can be... quite potent."
Changelings?
I'd heard about those creatures before. They weren't like other Equestrians. They were monsters. They lived underground in a "hive" and fed on the love of other creatures. I'd only ever read about them in books and the one time I'd asked Celestia about them she'd simply told me they were "complex" creatures.
"But how did an attempt on your husband's life cause..." my eyes widened in realization. "You protected him."
"One of his most trusted guards had been... replaced by a changeling," the pain on her face was staggering. "I was able to push him out of the way of its spell, but..." she chuckled ironically. "Well, I'm sure you can surmise what happened," she picked up her fork once again.
"But you saved him," I smiled slightly.
At least something good came of it.
"Thankfully," she nodded in agreeance. "He was able to strike down his would be murderer and all it cost was..." she trailed off. "I would do it all over again... for him." There was no regret in the smile that spread across her lips. "With my husband leading the Empire we were eventually able to put an end to the conflict."
"How so, Your Highness?" As far as I knew changelings still existed in Equestria.
"Marengo sacrificed everything to bring about peace. Even the Queen of the Changelings was moved by my husband's selfless actions." There was both a strong sense of admiration and sadness coming from the queen. "If not for him, the Empire would not be in the state that it is today."
"What did he do, Your Highness?" I was enthralled by her tale, so much so that I thoughtlessly asked a question I quickly realized I shouldn't have. As her head slowly drooped I felt my error bounce around in my skull. "I'm... I'm sorry." An uncomfortable silence settled on us.
...
"Dad gave his life for the Empire," Cadenza drew my gaze. She was still eating, her expression impossible for me to read. "I think that's enough for now." There was a certain flintiness in the princess' voice. One that I hadn't yet encountered, but one that told me that was the end of that discussion. It was understandable. Losing somepony close to you was always hard.
But...
There was still one thing that was bothering me. One more thing I had to have answered.
"Can... can I ask one more thing?" I asked meekly.
"Of course, Sunset," the queen's gentle voice was much more welcome than her daughter's. "What is it?"
"Why didn't Princess Celestia help you all?" It didn't make sense. Even Princess Luna should've been able to put an end to any "conflict" in a matter of seconds.
"Marengo declined the Immortal Sister's offer of aid," she stated simply, as if it were the obvious thing to do.
"W-why!?" my face screwed up in confusion.
If he could've put an end to the war immediately, why wouldn't he just take that opportunity?
"Peace, Sunset," the queen replied confidently. "There's no doubt in my mind Princess Celestia or Princess Luna could have annihilated the Changeling army in seconds, but my husband saw... a better future. For the Empire... and for the Changelings."
"I... see," I lifted my fork with my magic, putting some rice into my mouth. The queen and Cadenza continued eating their meals as well, leaving me to stew in my thoughts.
I wasn't sure if I could ever do such a thing... give my own life for an enemies sake. I wasn't even really sure I agreed with a choice like he'd made, but there was one thing I was confident in: it was admirable. It had to have taken a level of mental fortitude that I just didn't possess. King Marengo had had an indomitable will, and it was plain as day to see his sacrifice had earned the enduring devotion of his subjects for his family all these years.
"He sounds like he was a great stallion," I said between bites.
"He was," the queen nodded, taking a sip of her tea."I only wish that he could've been here for Ca-"
"Mom," Cadenza said firmly, cutting off her parent. She still didn't look up. It was clearly a touchy subject for her. A very touchy subject for her.
"Of course, my little heart," the queen didn't even try to fight. "This wasn't all for nothing, Sunset," she said returning her attention to me. "Showing you my true self and telling you of my husband's fate."
"Your Highness?"
"There's... somepony you must meet," she said cryptically. "Somepony that could reignite the flames of the conflict my husband gave his life to end."
I had an idea of just who that might be. "As you wish, Your Highness," I started to eat a bit faster.
"There's no need to rush, Sunset," the queen chuckled. "She won't be leaving her... cage any time soon. Cadenza will take you to her cell once we're done here."
"Okay," I replied, looking at Cadenza. She was still the poster child for serenity, taking a quiet drink of her tea.
"The first thing a changeling will do to replace its victim is corrupt its mind," the princess said calmly.
"My husband proved to be incorruptible, even when facing their queen," Cantata drew my attention. "Many say Princess Celestia's heart is as pure as her sun." She lowered her fork, staring straight into my eyes. "I wonder, has her righteousness passed on to her student?"
With her question came clarity. I knew why I was here, and while I was still slightly doubtful, my friends' words filled my mind.
"It has, Your Highness," I put my own fork down, placing a hoof over my heart. "You can count on me!"
"That's wonderful to hear," the queen smiled.
"Prepare yourself, Sunset," Cadenza stated, drawing my gaze. "The Changeling Princess is not one to take lightly..."
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Well, that was unexpected.
11806100
I hope that's a good thing...
11806278
It was.
11806287
Good to know. Thanks for clarifying.
The interactions between twilight and shining feel rather anticlimactic for me, considering the build up behind them. Otherwise I looooove this story, keep it up
11806727
Insight into Twilight at this point in the story.
Thank you so very much for reading and commenting! It means more than you know.
Another banger keep it up
11807151
Thanks so much!
11809668
Thank you for taking the time to read! I'm glad you're interested! Thanks especially for commenting. It means so much to me!
11809969
Suspicious
Yaaa... After reading last chapter in not sure who evil or not 🤔
But i don't trust the queen... Cadence as she is "princess of food" for the changelings I might trust her but she is probably mind controlled so don't trust her🤔😂
Maybe sunburst is trust worthy, but then again 🤔🤔...
Oh maybe gonna trust the mane 6 when they show up again 😂
11809974
Lmao!
Wherever changelings are concerned, it's smart to suspect everyone.
I. Love. This. So. Much. Beautiful. This one scene tells me so much…
She’s literally me x2.
Based. So damn based.
Chick-Fil-A sauce usage confirmed?
I’m a person of forgiveness, but at some point it’s not worth it. Speak softly and carry a big stick is one of my favorite quotes I’ve read ever. I try to abide by that quote.
I might disagree with his actions, but I do agree with this: he was one tough son of a mare. Respect to him for sticking to his principles and being an absolute champion of the people.
Anyway, don’t mind me completely ignoring the fact that changelings are pretty good at not changing their ways (ironic), are good at waiting games and really enjoy playing with their pray. This certainly doesn’t mean that they have already infiltrated and influenced the whole Crystal Kingdom and are slowly getting rid of problems one by one!
11853355
Agreed 100%. Stomp them into the ground.
Well, Queen Cantana just did a total 180 in my eyes. She came across as a real snob during her first interaction with Starlight to me, but what was just revealed about her is really admirable. I still don't see how Sunset comes into the picture regarding their Changeling prisoner but I'm looking forward to it.
Reading on...
11861832
Glad she resonated with you. She's had it tough. Sunset is kind of being overestimated here because she's Celestia's primary student. Lots being thrown on her because of that.