• Published 1st Mar 2013
  • 4,758 Views, 110 Comments

Love Lost - Eeveexpert



Everypony knows that a Changeling Queen is fiercely protective of every member of her brood, but what happens when that brood refuses her their loyalty?

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6 - Queen's Gambit

"I must say, Chrysalis, I have never been happier to see that repugnant face of yours. But then, there are first times for everything, aren't there?"

Miasma's condescending pleasantries fell pathetically short of Chrysalis' good graces. "Remove your filth from my throne, otherwise I shall see that the next breath you take gurgles from your headless carcass!"

"This is what you call a throne? A pathetic hole carved into a even worse excuse for a tree? I shouldn't be surprised by these standards; this was your hive, after all..."

"Conceited whore!" Chrysalis' wings threw her from the ground like an arrow from a bow. "I'll break your horn off and force it into your insolent throat!"

The rival changeling queen remained largely disinterested. The only movement she made was to sharply raise a single hoof in command. At this, a small group of twelve changelings inserted themselves between the two queens. Twelve of Chrysalis' changelings; the only thing in Equestria that could have possibly halted her charge. A wave of shock immediately quelled the green flame of rage burning in the queen's eyes. "M-my children! Miasma! Release them at once!"

Miasma shook her head, clicking disapprovingly. "Chrysalis, Chrysalis, Chrysalis... So deluded. Do you really think that I would expend any sort of energy to usurp your hive? You do flatter yourself! No, what you see before you is none of my own doing. It is nothing but the choice of your own children. The only blame present here is that which is upon your own shoulders." Miasma's wings buzzed to life, lifting the changeling from her perch to carry her gracefully to the hive floor.

Chrysalis made to fly for the intruder once more, only to have the dozen changelings move to intercept her. Arnyx had said it, Miasma had said it and still her mind refused to believe their words. Yet, as her very own children hovered before her, nothing but malicious intent within their eyes, she could finally see it for herself. "My children... Y-you would so willingly turn your backs to me and follow Miasma's orders?" Nothing that the changeling queen could have done could have stopped her voice from cracking.

"The recent years of your rule have brought no end of hardships upon us. You had our support for the Canterlot assault because you and Sylph promised an effortless victory and for no other reason. What we instead received was a death sentence. Too many from our already thin ranks were lost that day. You no longer hold any right to ask for our respect or loyalty."

To hear these same words from the mouths of her own children plunged a white-hot horn into the heart of the changeling queen. Defeated, she sank to the stony hive floor.

Miasma's face stretched itself into a smug, tooth revealing smile. Her tongue twitched with barely contained glee. To say that she was reveling in the sight of Chrysalis broken and in silent tears would have been an insult to every individual use of the word. "Both you and I know that the truth is best kept hidden. Tell me. To hear the truth from your children. Tell me how it hurts. Your own children have lost all respect for you. What does it feel like?"

Chrysalis turned a furious, tear-filled glare to the second queen. Rage dripped from her bared fangs as she spoke. "My children may have abandoned all respect for me, but I have not lost so much dignity that I would ever admit weakness to a coward who would willingly send a lone, innocent changeling to his death at the fangs of wild beasts."

"Innocent changeling?" Miasma stared off into space, pondering her adversary's words. "Oh! You must be referring to that miserable sapsucker, Vetan."

Chrysalis knew exactly what Miasma's words were intended for and she was well aware that they were working. Her iridescent green elytra twitched angrily, clicking out a increasingly agitated rasp. "Do not...speak of my children in such a manner."

"Come now, Chrysalis. Do you really take me for that much of a monster? Vetan was no more innocent than it was my decision to turn him from the hive. No, he chose loyalty to you. I merely gave him a choice. He could either leave to seek the failure he remained loyal to or he could choose to remain here and face death by my horn like the others. There was one other that chose to leave...but I'm sure the timberwolves enjoyed that meal too!" Miasma cackled.

The wrath coursing through the veins of the green-eyed changeling queen had reached the point where it could no longer be properly vented by her wings alone. Her fangs ground against one another, a constant enraged hiss slipping through wherever possible. "Continue to speak ill of my children and I swear by Tartarus that it shall be my horn to take the next life."

"Enough!" Miasma barked. "I've no desire to listen to your lies. You wouldn't dare to strike me down."

"What makes you so sure?" she snarled.

"I saw you shielding your centurion as you entered. The last of your hopeless children to respect you. You wouldn't dare to risk defeat by my hoof and throw away the only loyalty you have left. Not when you know you have no reinforcements. No chance. Your hooves are tied, Chrysalis! Helpless in your own hive!"

Chrysalis may have been as angry as an Ursa Major, but not even that had served to blind her from Miasma's lack of awareness. As she spoke, she had been slowly circling around the other queen, making sure to hold her attention. "You would be right in saying my hooves are tied... If I had indeed been talking about you."

It took a moment for the words to penetrate the veil of mirth that had draped itself over Miasma's perception. "What?" She was well aware of the unspoken rule that a queen will not harm her own children. If she was not the target, then process of elimination left one other option. "No!"

The very instant Miasma so much as flinched, Chrysalis spun away from her, horn burning with magic. "Halt! Take so much as one step and I shall spill Arnyx’s blood upon the stones before you!" She turned to face Miasma again, the rival queen's centurion suspended mere inches from the lethal tip of her horn. She held the hapless changeling by his neck, letting his limbs flail wildly, if only to show his mother the edge his life balanced upon. Chrysalis gave a dark smile as she saw any amusement Miasma had been enjoying immediately fall away. A delightful mix of worry and pure fear replaced the laughter in her magenta eyes. This delight was destined to be short-lived; it is well known among changelings that Miasma's mood swings are remarkably violent and often without reason. What happens when one gives her a reason is significantly less well known and only because most know better than to do such a thing.

"Release him, hag!" Spittle flew from each of the three holes that were Miasma's mouth. "Arnyx has no place in this dispute!" The entirety of the changeling queen's body was shaking from her lividity. With one swift maneuver, Chrysalis had successfully reversed her role in this standoff.

"Touching." Chrysalis spat. "Is that what my children said to you before you callously slew them in cold blood?"

"Arrogant bitch! Let him go!"

"And should I refuse?"

"I shall behead every last one of your worthless children as you are forced to watch!"

The eyes of the hive's actual queen narrowed to mere slits. "Do so and you only expidite your future demise. You would lose the only protection you have against me tearing a new hole into your throat. And after you would force me to observe each of their deaths, I cannot say that I would stop at one new hole. For every one of my children you take from me, I shall tear another hole into your writhing body. Murder my children before me and not even the deadliest beasts of Tartarus shall stop me from keeping this promise. Those with nothing left to lose fight with everything they have. It does not matter what position of power you may hold over me. One thing is certain; you are a coward, Miasma. Nothing more. Even now, as I stand before you, with none other than my centurion for support, you fear me."

"Lies! I do not fear you! You are nothing more than a pathetic worm!" Any move for Miasma to break this standoff would have to be taken in surprise. Like a lunging timberwolf, the furious queen leapt for her adversary.

Chrysalis knew the exact method to halt the charge and only because it would have worked on her had she been on the other end. She sharply pulled Arnyx's body back so that her horn broke through his carapace right between the base of his wings. She only made the wound deep enough to elicit a single cry of pain from the centurion's mouth.

"Aaggghhh!"

The shout of pain froze Miasma in her tracks. Fear flashed through her eyes once more, taking just a little bit longer in its departure.

"Try that again and his life shall be forfeit!" she hissed.

"Nothing but a bluff!"

"That is an assumption you can only afford to make once, Miasma. Do you want to pay that price?"

It took a greal deal of effort to speak against the magical aura clutching his windpipe, but Arnyx managed to choke out a desperate plea. "Do not...fear for me...my queen. Slay her...where she stands."

"What was that, Arnyx? I must not be holding you tight enough. Let's fix that." Chrysalis smirked, exposing gleaming fangs.

"Nggghnk!" The centurion kicked feebly, pawing at the green magic surrounding his throat. His eyes grew heavier the closer he edged to unconsciousness.

"Uh, uh, uh..." Chrysalis turned the half-conscious centurion to face her. Instinct forced a miserable excuse for a snarl from his constricted throat. "Stay with me, Arnyx." The queen's magic shook him with force enough to dislodge his helmet. "I don't want you passing out on me. This is something you should see." Arnyx was spun back to see his mother. Angry tears welled in her eyes, glinting from the murderous intent shining from behind. "Look at this. Your whore of a mother, broken and helpless like the coward she is."

"Damn you, Chrysalis! DAMN YOU! What do you hope to accomplish with this!? Tormenting an innocent changeling!?"

"You are right in one thing, Miasma. It would be foolish for me to stand against you as I am now. Arnyx is merely an insurance policy to ensure my safety within my own hive. As long as I am within the capacity to end his life, no matter what you might say, I know you will not dare to challenge me."

Chrysalis’ words were spot on and that knowledge infuriated Miasma to the point where she could only issue a furious hiss in response.

"Here is my ultimatum, Miasma. Sylph and I shall walk from the hive, undisturbed by both you and my children. Only then will Arnyx be released. Do you agree to these terms?"

The words seared Miasma's tongue as they fell from her mouth. "I do..."

"Very well. But know this, Miasma. My retreat today is not a sign of weakness nor should you take it as a sign of your victory. The instant you decided to place your filthy hooves within my hive, you marked the day of your death and it shall be by my horn that you breathe your last." Chrysalis nodded curtly to her centurion. "Sylph, to me. We are taking our leave."

"Your Majesty, what of the hiv-"

"Sylph. One does not win battles while harboring ignorance to the odds before them. To me." The queen waited until the armored changeling stood at her hooves once more. "Give the command." she hissed to the other queen.

Given the circumstances before her, Miasma had no choice but to comply. "Let them pass..." she growled.

To see her children obey an order given to them from a queen that was not herself sent another wave of rage throbbing through Chrysalis' body. Even so, she recognized when she was on the losing end of a one-sided situation. A tactical retreat such as this, while uncharacteristic, was necessary. She walked backwards, to keep an eye on both Sylph and her livid adversary. Miasma was naturally unpredictable; her current mental state would do little to help. Chrysalis would be taking no chances. "Stay where you are, Miasma!" she called out upon seeing the other queen begin to follow her. “You are not to move from where you stand until Sylph and I have removed ourselves from the hive!"

"Those are not the terms I agreed to! If I wish to follow you, I shall! There is little you can do to stop-"

The ring of magic tightened around Arnyx's neck and he let out a gravelly cough that instantly silenced his mother. "You are in no position to question me, Miasma. You will remain where you are." The queen's eyes darted backward for a split-second. The entrance tunnel was no more than a few tail lengths away. "Continue up the tunnel, Sylph." she whispered. "Once you exit the hive, assume the guise of a timberwolf and seek shelter."

"Your Majesty, what do you plan to do?"

"I plan on keeping my word."

Sylph sensed there was meaning to that beyond what he first inferred, yet he did not give it pause. With one swift glance back toward his soldiers, he turned and sprinted up the slope.

The ear of the barely conscious Arnyx hovered right next to the mouth of the green-eyed queen. "I think there's something that your mother would like to see, don't you?" she whispered.

"Bitch..." A weak snarl passed his fangs, doubling as his last words.

"For once, I agree with you. She certainly is." The steadily burning aura that had surrounded Chrysalis' horn for the past few minutes burst in one brilliant flash. Like a branch snapped from its home, Arnyx's head found itself spun one hundred eighty degrees and relieved of his body. A pair of soft thuds! were the last sounds the centurion's body would ever make. Even as droplets of his green blood had spattered her face, the emerald eyes of the changeling queen remained hard and unblinking, issuing a silent challenge to the horrified Miasma.

"CHRYSALIS! I SHALL WATCH YOU CHOKE ON YOUR OWN BLOOD!"

She took the time to give the oncoming queen one final stare, then turned and followed her centurion. As she ran, a bright green flame burnt its way across the changeling queen's body, veiling her under the illusion of a fully grown timberwolf. The transformation lengthened her stride and disguised her pheromone trail. None too soon either. The furious wingbeats of Miasma were fast coming up the tunnel. The vitriolic pheromones pressing themselves against Chrysalis' nostrils suggested Miasma had nothing but revenge upon her mind.

The instant Chrysalis broke free from the hive tunnel, she veered hard to the left and dove into the thick undergrowth. She had not spent much time within the Everfree Forest, but it was still more time than Miasma had. The advantage, though small, was hers. Her winding path through the forest looked no different than the tracks of a genuine timberwolf. Even so, Chrysalis was not taking any chances. Her path ran circuitous, doubling back on itself multiple times. More than once, she actually crossed behind Miasma, if only to infuriate her even more.

"Damn it, Chrysalis! Show yourself, murderer!" she howled in desperation. "None behead a child of my hive before my eyes and live to walk free!" Miasma's horn flashed several times, hurling angry blasts of magic into the trees opposite where the disguised Chrysalis sat and watched. "Reveal yourself!"

Before too long, Chrysalis grew tired of playing witness to Miasma's tantrum. With all the silence of the beast she was assuming, the queen turned and slid away into the forest, letting the maddened wails fade into the distance behind her. Sylph had been smart enough to disguise his pheromone trail to evade any tracking parties, yet at the same time, had also been smart enough to leave a subtle trail of claw marks in every few trees. The trail ended upon a long-dead tree collapsed upon a small hill. As Chrysalis skirted the knoll, she found it eroded away into a dark alcove. Curled against the back wall of this shelter was a timberwolf pup. His glowing green eyes blinked once at the arrival of the female.

The two immediately came to an unspoken agreement. The small timberwolf stood and followed the larger into the dense trees. Silence kept their trip uneventful; at the moment, it was more important to put as much distance between them and the hive. Chrysalis was the first to break the silence, along with her illusion. "I suspect that you are still rather weak, Sylph. You may dispel your transformation if you wish to conserve your strength. We are far enough from the hive."

Sylph did as he was allowed, but that was all. He stopped and stared at his queen.

"Sylph, keep up. You may rest when night has fallen. We have much distance to cover."

"No. Not until you answer some questions."

"At a later time, Sylph."

"Then I shall remain here until such a time." he replied adamantly.

"Very well." Chrysalis faced her child resignedly. "What is it?"

"Why call for a retreat, your Majesty? You have never done so before. There were none of Miasma’s soldiers within the hive."

"That was something I noticed as well. Their pheromones were there, though rather stale. I should think that Miasma has sent them to other hives.”

“Would Miasma really be so careless to send her soldiers into battle against another queen without a proper leader?”

“A daft method to be sure, but no doubt the easy taking of my hive has Miasma thinking herself overly powerful and falsely full of herself. I called for the retreat because, unlike that fool, I can see that when such an action is the most beneficial option. Pride in such a situation is foolhardy."

"You... You turned your back on the hive so easily."

"Such an action was not taken without pain in my heart, Sylph. I have but one task before me. Miasma shall die and the hive shall be mine again."

"Then why desert those still within the hive?"

A dark light lit itself within Chrysalis' emerald eyes. "I have deserted nothing. We will march west until we come across the hive of the half-witted Ambrosia. She will serve to help me dethrone and behead Miasma. Have you any further questions?"

"No..."

"Then let us proceed once more."

There was a slight hesitation that slowed Sylph's hooves. Calling for retreats, enlisting help? His queen seemed different. He wasn't sure if he was entirely okay with that.

Author's Note:

I know that quite a few of you really wanted this chapter. That said, some might be a wee bit disappointed in who walks away from this encounter, but I can assure you that we WILL get there.

In the meantime, enjoy and stay classy, readers.

*Pre-readings served up by Carnifex and Spiritofthwwolf.