Queen... Or Mother?
Celestia walked through the dark and damp tunnel that functioned as a hallway in the hive, silently marvelling at how the green crystal in the otherwise sleek, obsidian black walls seemed to glow with that eerie green light that had come to be known as changeling signature. She didn't show any outward signs of being impressed, but in the privacy of her own thoughts she found it intriguing and couldn't help but wonder exactly what it was made of. They were obviously crystalline in nature but was unlike any other gemstones that she knew of; they seemed almost biological in nature, not unlike the goo-like prisons that she and her ponies had been held in during the invasion, but far more solid than they were.
She huffed slightly, bringing herself back to the matter at hoof; she wasn't here to admire the architecture. She continued to trot through the hallway, watching the occasional changeling shy away and hiss at her out the corner of her eye. She couldn't blame them for their hostile, if cautious, reactions to her presence; she had, after all, been their greatest enemy for who knew how long. It was because of this that her face fell and she sighed when one of those changelings lunged at her, baring its easily two-inch long fangs in an attempt to bite her. It never even got the chance as Celestia's horn lit up like a beacon in the dank halls, blinding everyone save Celestia herself. When the light died down the changeling that had attacked her was no longer there, gone without a trace. It was almost as if it had burned away into nothing.
The apparent death of one of their comrades only seemed to anger the other drones; the volume of their hissing increasing, and with it did the number of changelings lunging at her only for each and every one of them to disappear in the same bright flash that had consumed first one.
She should know I'm here by now. Even weakened as she's bound to be, there's no way the Queen of the Hive would not notice my presence. She took a turned and could see a brighter light at the end of the tunnel. She couldn't quite help the smile that made its way onto her lips, unbidden as it was. Here she was, hoping to end a conflict that had been going on for far too long, and the end of that conflict may very well take place just past that opening; one could even say that this was the conflict dying; it saw the light at the end of the tunnel.
She stepped out of the tunnel and found herself in a large dome-like room. Where the walls in the tunnels had been somewhat uneven with the black resin that seemed to cover everything, the black resin this room was covered in was completely smooth which, as opposed to the tunnels, was not lit up by small green crystals, but by a large hole in the ceiling. The light from the ceiling hit two massive, green crystals twice the size of Celestia placed on either side of a sort of walk-way in the middle, bathing the room in the same light as the tunnels, but mixed with sunlight. It was strange, really, to see the changelings use the sun as a way of lighting their hive seeing as its representative was their enemy. Or perhaps I'm just so anxious that I think they see the sun itself as their enemy, and not just me.
She glanced around, noticing the numerous drones looking out from various holes in the walls with their strange, insectoid eyes focused on her. The hissing and general sounds of displeasure and outright hatred had not diminished in the slightest. Aside from the changelings and the tunnels they were looking out from, as well as the two crystalline light sources, there was only really one thing of interest in the room: Queen Chrysalis. She was currently lying on a raised dais with a pillow underneath her, probably stolen on a raid, and glaring at Celestia with the most baleful and hateful eyes the alicorn had ever seen.
"Come to gloat at your victory, have you, Celestia?" Chrysalis asked mockingly when Celestia came close enough to her 'throne' to be heard.
"I have not," was the simple answer. Celestia looked upon the Queen, noting how thin and frail she seemed. I had expected her to be weakened, but not to this degree, she thought as her gaze quickly took in the state of Chrysalis. Both her wings were bent and almost broken, clearly unfit for flight. Several of her fangs were broken as well, a few shattered completely - they would grow back, however - and lastly even her once strong eyes had lost much of their confidence and strength, instead Celestia swore that she had seen fear flash through them before disappearing as she stepped even closer, up on the dais itself.
"I have come not to gloat or to taunt, only to talk, and to teach if I get the chance."
Chrysalis snorted and looked away, resting her head on her front legs. "Talk? Why would the mighty Celestia want to talk?" She snorted again. "And what would you even be able to teach us? If it is about your precious harmony and how everypony should work together and be friends then spare me. I've had enough of that from that Captain of yours."
Celestia shook her head and sat down, magenta eyes resting on the pitiful form of the previously powerful Queen. "No, not that either. I have no intentions of preaching my morals to you, nor do I think it would work. You were always too proud to let others simply tell you things, Aine."
Chrysalis whipped around, lips drawn back in a snarl, revealing broken and whole teeth alike. "Don't call me that!"
Celestia just smiled, a small one with just the tiniest bit of mirth mixed into it. "As you wish." She looked around, catching the eyes of one changeling in particular. He quickly retreated back in the hallway from which he was peeking, only to reappear when Celestia's gaze moved on. "They're hostile," she murmured.
"Are you surprised?" The Changeling Queen lifted her head slightly, trying to lock eyes with Celestia. "You incinerated their brothers and sisters when you came here. Did you really expect them to ignore that?"
That piqued Celestia's curiosity. She looked back down at Chrysalis with an eyebrow raised in confusion. "I did not. You should be able to feel them with the Hivemind. I only teleported them outside of the Hive. I meant no harm when I came, and have not inflicted any deliberately."
Even as she spoke, Chrysalis had dived into the hivemind and searched for any changelings outside of the hive. True enough, there were a dozen or so drones making their way towards one of the entrances, feeling confused for one reason or another. She could only suspect that that was because of the sudden teleportation. She nodded reluctantly, admitting that they were alive and well. "...True. You have done them no harm. Why?" At once, her eyes were sharp again, demanding even.
"Because," Celestia started, "contrary to popular belief among changelings - I suppose it is popular belief, I'm not entirely certain - I am not a monster nor a killer. I will not deny that blood is on my hooves, but I do not take lives for no reason. They may have attacked me, but what good would retaliating do me? I come here for a reason, and doing any harm to you or yours will harm my own cause in turn."
Chrysalis sighed. "I suppose I have no choice but to listen, have I? It's not like I can force you out, and don't come and tell me that I actually beat you back then. I knew you were holding back."
Celestia just gave her a sad smile, neither confirming nor denying the accusation. Instead, she simply continued on. "You do have a choice, Chrysalis, but I would advise that you do listen. I believe it would be in your best interest, and mine as well."
Her words were met with an explosive sigh from the changeling queen. "Alright, I'll listen. Just get it over with so I can get rid of you."
Celestia smiled and stood up, motioning for Chrysalis to do the same and waiting patiently as she did so, though on slightly wobbly legs.
"Are you ready?"
"As ready as I'll ever be for one of your lectures."
The alicorn chuckled and motioned around them with a hoof. "First, then, tell me what you see."
Chrysalis didn't even need to look around for more than a split second before she knew the answer. "Drones, changelings. An army and workers at the same time."
"And what are they to you?"
Chrysalis frowned at this. "I told you. They are drones; workers and soldiers alike. Why?"
That's all the answers I need. Her horn sparked to life, glowing with a soft golden light. Chrysalis instantly took half a step back. "Don't worry, I'm only going to show you something." She lowered her head and adopted a pleading expression. "Please trust me."
With some reluctance, she resumed her former position, trying to look as strong and prideful as she could when, in truth, she felt defeated at having to listen to do as Celestia asked her to. Still, she watched warily as the alicorn's horn shined ever brighter until, finally, it seemed to explode and bathe the entire room in a blinding light. When it receded and she could see again, she found herself in a room which was obviously pony made. It was white and smelled of something unpleasant, like it was too clean. Sterile, is the word, I think.
Behind the two were an open window through which blew a calm afternoon breeze, in front of them were a cupboard with flowers, a jug of water and a glass, and beside that was a bed upon which a light pink mare lay with a tiny foal nestled against her breast.
Chrysalis looked away from the ponies and let her eyes bore holes in Celestia's skull. "Who are they?" She demanded and, after a short while, asked again. "And why don't they react to our presence?"
"Two ponies. Who they are does not matter, and they can neither see nor hear us. I cast an astral projections. We're here only in spirit, not in body." She stepped closer to the bed and motioned for Chrysalis to do the same. "Tell me, Chrysalis, what do you see?"
As she stepped closer, her eyes widened immediately. Even if she wasn't there in body, she still had all her senses, and that included her ability to sense love. "Two ponies, and enough love in both to feed five drones for a year."
A sigh escaped Celestia's lips. This wasn't going to be easy, not that she had expected it to be. "They are two ponies, true, but what are they? You say that you can feel a lot of love, but why can you feel that?"
Chrysalis brows creased into a pensive frown, her eyes turning skywards in contemplation. Now that Celestia had asked, it actually got her thinking. Why exactly did she feel the love for them? It wasn't that she didn't know how changelings felt love, but more that she wasn't entirely sure why there was so much between those two.
Finally, she shook her head and thought back to her hive. This one pony was small, and all her drones were small to begin with. "Because the small one is her drone and she loves the idea of all the work it will do and what that work will end up giving her?" She asked cautiously.
Celestia shook her head. "No. That is not why." She pointed with a hoof to the foal, then to the mare. "I'm not changeling, but I can feel the love between them as easily as you would be able to. Look at how she looks at the foal, and how it is quiet and calm while held against her breast, listening to the rhythm of her heart." A smile made its way to her lips when Chrysalis looked at her in confusion. "She does not love the work that this foal, not drone, will do. The love you sense is the love there is between a mother and their child. While there are many kinds of love, as you may well know," Chrysalis nodded, "this is the most powerful of them all. There is a saying that love conquers all, and when ponies speak of that they usually think of the love between two sweethearts, but have you seen what some mares will do for their child?" She turned her head to look at Chrysalis.
Slowly, she nodded, seeming lost in thought for a moment. "I remember. During the invasion I saw some mares throw themselves in front of my drones to save the small ones, even going so far as to attack them with a ferocity I have only ever seen in wild beasts."
"That," Celestia began, turning back to look at the ponies with a fond smile, "is what we ponies call a mother's instincts. No matter what, we will protect our own. That foal is her child, not unlike what your changelings are to you, and she will forever love it to the point where she will throw away her own life to save it." She turned again, this time to face Chrysalis fully. "Do you understand what I'm saying? What I'm showing you?"
"That love can make even a pony strong enough to beat down several of my drones alone?"
"Yes, and no. What you're talking about can be triggered if someone you love dearly is in danger, but that is not what I meant. What I mean is that love is not just a source of food and sustenance like how you changelings see it, it is an emotion and a force of good. It makes us do both stupid and wondrous things for no other reason than that we love somepony else. Tell me Chrysalis, what are your drones to you?"
Her brows creased again, hadn't she already answered that question before? "Workers and soldiers. They expand the hive to accommodate more of their brethren and gather food."
Celestia, unperturbed by the repeated answer from earlier, pressed on. "And where do they come from?"
Chrysalis, not quite knowing where they were going with it, but finding herself in no position to refuse to answer, said. "From me, of course. I am their Queen, I lay the eggs from which they hatch."
Celestia nodded. "And do you know where this foal comes from?"
Chrysalis glanced at the tiny foal, feeling her chest tighten slightly at the sight, then looked back to Celestia and shook her head. "No. An egg, probably?" She wasn't going to admit it, but it had been centuries since she had been among ponies, and she had forgotten much about them since then; including how they bred.
"No, not quite. That foal has been in that mare's womb for eleven months until it was born just yesterday. It is, essentially, a part of her and the stallion whom impregnated her." She shot a look at Chrysalis out the corner of her eye. "Is it not the same with your drones? You give birth to them, so are they not a part of you?"
A low growl rumbled in her throat as her hateful glare returned. It was aimed directly at Celestia. "I have had it with your confusing questions and dancing around the subject, Celestia. Tell me, what is your purpose? Why have you brought me here and what is it you think that you can teach me?!"
Celestia's horn flared bright and the scene in front of them dissolved, replaced by the large, domed room that functioned as Chrysalis throne room. "What I want is peace, and I think it can be achieved by changing your view on things. What exactly are you to your changelings?"
"I am their Queen!"
"But did you not just admit to them being the same as that foal was to that mare?"
"I did not!"
Celestia lowered her head and looked Chrysalis in the eye with determination. "Your reaction tells me you did." She straightened herself up again and adopted a milder expression. "You are loathe to admit it, but changelings and ponies are not so different, isn't that right?"
Chrysalis grumbled something incoherently, still seething.
"What I desire, Chrysalis, is peace. Peace that can be achieved if changelings change their view on ponies from a source of food to equals. We are not so different, neither our ponies nor you and I. I, like any other, crave love. If I am not loved than I am nothing; you know what happened to my sister. Perhaps all your kind need is a little love for your own. Ask yourself this, Chrysalis, what exactly are you to your changelings? Are you their Queen, or their Mother?"
Chrysalis watched as Celestia gave her a small smile, turned around and walked away, towards the tunnel that would lead to the outside. As much as she hated to admit it, some of the things she had said made sense. Perhaps... Perhaps we aren't so different after all.
She closed her eyes and reached out into the hivemind, giving it a cursory glance to see how it was. Tight. Strict. Obedient. With a sigh, she 'plucked' at the string that connected her will to the rest of the changelings, loosening it. Having done so, she stood up and called to her a changeling making its way from one tunnel to another.
"Y-Yes, my queen?" It asked in a raspy voice. clearly afraid and confused.
Must be because of its new... freedom. She righted herself and stood up, looking down her nose at the changeling. "I will give you a name," she stated.
The changeling looked up, surprise evident in its eyes as it shakily stood there. "N-name? But I'm only a drone. I live to serve and to do as our Queen commands."
Chrysalis shook her head. "I am not only your queen. I am also your mother, Zenith."
The changeling tilted its head, confused. "Zenith?"
"Your new name."