A New Beginning

Two years after the attack on Canterlot…
At the Changeling Castle- Queen’s Chambers…

“I think it is close to time Discord,” I sighed, leaning back on my pillow. “I just don’t have the strength anymore.”

“Well, you have led your changelings well through these last two years, even with it being harder to feast on ponies' love. Your time in this reign has been longer than many before you. Five hundred years, I believe?” Discord dipped a washcloth in a bowl of cool water, wrung it out, and placed it back over my aching head.

“Would have been five hundred ten next Tuesday actually. At least I can help the next one as the previous one has for me. We’ll be whole again, with a renewal.” I spread out what was left of my wings. They had always been holey, but when I had landed after being thrown from Canterlot with the power of Cadence and Shining Armor, the landing had shredded them badly, beyond what repair feeding gave me. Two years, since I had been able to soar into the sky.

Discord nodded, ears flickering back and forth as if listening for something. “There is one ready to take your place, just need to find the dimension she is in. I’m going to miss you Chrys, it has been a delightful last five hundred years.”

I laughed, “and I, you. How could anyone not miss such chaos?” A little ding sounded somewhere off in the distance. I opened my eyes, looking up expectantly at Discord.

“Ah, found it,” Discord snapped his fingers, and a portal opened on the other side of my bed. Blue and black smoke circled it, showing a world far different from our own, and yet similar. Instead of ponies and other four-legged creatures walking around, a bipedal, almost naked ape-like creatures, humans? I think I heard they were called in a time long gone, filled the window as they walked by. They were surrounded by a city, skyscrapers and other similar buildings all around. Hardly any of the transportation was pulled by horse or pony, but by some other magical feat. “She is from Earth this time,” Discord said as we watched, buses and taxis passing our little window into the world, along with a strong smell of some type of meat cooking.

“What’s her name? Does she know of us?”

“That is one of the qualifications. I know not her name yet though. Anytime now she’ll be appearing on this road. Then I can reel her in.” He chuckles, and I close my eyes, biting my lip at the pain coursing through me. “We’ll find her in time, I’ve done this for every Queen before you, and I won’t fail you now.”

“I’m not worried about that Discord. I’m just worried if she will be able to rule my changelings well. To… keep our secret. There are so few who are allowed to know, safer that way.”

“Oh don’t worry, she will be perfect,” Discord said and grinned.

A busy road in Salt Lake City, Utah

I really hated this time of year. I sighed as I adjusted the strap of my knapsack, and continued on my walk home from the mall. The sky was filled with soot-colored clouds, and the smell of rain strong in the air. A chill wind blew down the collar of my coat and I shivered, pulling it tighter. Cars and trucks roared past beside me, throwing up soiled fast-food wrappers and old, yellowed newspapers from the gutters.

As I turned a corner, a flash of lightning lit up the sky, followed by a loud crack of thunder. It was then the rain came in a deluge. I pulled my hoodie up and began to run, the rain soaking me in mere minutes, and falling so fast as to make it almost impossible to see more than a few feet at a time. I slipped into an icy puddle of water and shivered as I stood, wincing as I put weight back on my right ankle. I'd have a slight sprain most likely.

I continued, now limping, with water dripping from the brim of my hood. A passing blue Sedan splashed through a puddle, pelting me with more water on my already soaked form. Seeing the crosswalk ahead of me, I sighed in relief and limped up to the light, pressing the button and waiting for the light to change. As soon as it turned red, I stepped over a puddle near the curb and started across the street.

A loud honk and screech made me look up, startled to see a school bus swerving out of control heading right toward me. My eyes widened and I froze in place, the bright headlights all I could see as I raised my arms to await impact. I let out a surprised gasp as something grabbed me from behind and pulled me backward.

All around me was a bright blue-and-black smoke, looking ahead of me, I could see the rainy day pulling away, the bus prominent, but slowly fading away until all I could see was the blue-and-black smoke. What was happening? Did I die? Never thought the ‘pathway to Heaven’ would be lined with such dark smoke. Wasn’t it supposed to be all pinks and whites? For that matter shouldn’t I be facing forward? I tried to turn around, but the thing that had pulled me away from the bus still had a firm grip on me and I couldn’t. Another light appeared behind me, and I heard a whispered “goodbye Chrys, treat this one well” before everything went dark.

Changeling Castle- Queen’s Chambers

Hunger, but it was unlike any other hunger I had felt before. I groaned and opened my eyes. The lighting was dim around me, torches lit on the walls with some type of green fire. Stone walls, dark grey - a crack running through the one to my left. A dark wood dresser with a mirror on the wall was ahead of me. I closed my eyes and put a hand to my head, but… something was missing… I opened my eyes and gasped. I didn’t have a hand, but a hoof, a holey one at that. I lifted my other arm, to find it was the same. What had happened to me? I tossed the blankets off my body, with a little difficulty, not having fingers, to find not only my arms and hands had changed. My body was covered in some type of shiny black exoskeleton, my body thin and tapered, leading to holey hooves for legs. A teal-colored tail was spread out on the bedspread, connected to my lower spine. What had happened to me?

“You must be a strong one, the others took at least a day to awaken after the transformation.”

I looked up and gasped in shock at whom I saw before me. It was Discord! “But… how can this be? You… you’re just a character in a show,” I stammered, sitting up only to have a strand of teal-colored hair fall in my face.

Discord chuckled. “Well then, so are you now.”

“And I am here too dearie.”

“Wha?” I scooted backward in shock. Where had that other voice come from? Discord and I were the only ones in the room, and it had sounded close.

“I’m in your head, but don’t fret, it is normal for us.” The voice chuckled.

“Am… am I going insane?” I ask, looking over at Discord. “Or is this some crazy coma dream? First I wake to find I have hooves, then I find you here, then I have another voice in my head!”

“Why don’t you look in the mirror and see for yourself?” Discord holds out his right-pawed hand. I place my hoof in it, and he helps me up. I try to stand on two hooves before I fall back to all fours. This is so weird. I walk over to the mirror, my eyes widening as I take in my reflection. My eyes widen as I take in my appearance. I look just like Queen Chrysalis!

“Now I know I must be dreaming. I can’t be Queen Chrysalis. How is that possible?” I run a hoof through my teal hair, reach up and touch my pony ears, my horn. I shake my head in disbelief and sit down at a chair beside the dresser. “I knew it, I’ve gone crazy.”

“Oh, it is possible, all through a little spell.” Discord grinned, showing off his one fang.

“A spell?”

“Obviously we need to explain a little history to you,” the voice said and chuckled.

“And who is this voice in my head!”

“Aw, you don’t recognize me? I would just say I’m your conscience, but then we don’t have one. It is I, Queen Chrysalis! Or at least, the previous one.”

“Okay, now you guys have me seriously confused.”

“Then let me explain,” Discord said, and chuckled. He pulled a chart down out of thin air, covered in drawings of little Chrysalis’s. “Around a thousand years ago, the original Queen Chrysalis could feel she was getting old, even for a changeling queen. She didn’t want her changelings to be without a queen, so she contacted me with a plan. She concocted a spell, which would pretty much let her live forever, in a sense. When she was about to die, I would search the dimensions for the perfect girl to take her place. But she had to be in mortal danger, else I couldn’t whisk her soul and spirit out of harm’s way and to our world.”

“So in other words, I would have died if you hadn’t brought me here?”

“But of course, you did freeze in front of that bus. Everyone in your world will think you are dead, as it will still have hit your body.”

“Great,” I sighed. “Go on.”

“Well, a few years went by, and Queen Chrysalis, the first, was on death’s door. So we cast the spell and brought in Chrysalis the 2nd. When we pull the new girl into the body of the Queen, the body is renewed fully, fixing things even a good feeding can’t fix and bringing back a little of her youth. And, as we found out later, the previous queen’s… essence if you will, lingers in the mind of the new queen.”

“How else are we to make sure the new queen can pull off fooling others into believing she is the same one they know and love? If we are not there to guide them into becoming us?”

“Yeah, I guess that is true. But, why me? I’m not evil, I’m just your… average college student. A little obsessed with well,” I pause and grin a little sheepishly. “A little obsessed with My Little Pony, but I’m a generally good person.”

Discord shrugs. “I know not why you were the right one. I’m sure we will learn in time though.” He laughs. “I am always a call away if you need me, though I really must be going now that you have awoken.”

“Wait, so you’re just going to leave me alone with well… myself?”

“You’ll get used to me dearie. Just… try not to talk out loud to me in public. We’re already seen as crazy enough as it is.”

Discord magicked himself into a suit coat and hat and tipped the hat to me… us. “Have a good day ladies,” he said and disappeared with a pop.

“Well, that… this… is certainly interesting. So… if I’m the new Queen Chrysalis, what does that make you?”

“Just call my Chrys dearie, makes things easier. Now, I believe it is time for you to feed. Our minion Apatelodes will deliver your first meal any time now.”

“Yeah, I guess I am hungry.” There came a knock at the door, and I stood, walking over to it. I reached a hoof to the handle before I remembered, no hands. “So, how exactly do you guys’ open doors?” I whisper, not wanting those on the other side to hear.

“Magic of course. We are already well versed in it, so just will it to happen and it will be so, concentrate.”

Closing one eye and sticking out my tongue, I concentrated hard on the doorknob and was surprised when with little effort the green glow of my magic surrounded it and I pulled it open.

“See, easy for someone as strong as us,” she chuckles. Before us is a handsome young changeling, a quivering yellow unicorn mare with a light blue mane and three hearts for her cutie mark tied up in front of him. “Thank him for the meal and take her inside with us.”

“Right, thank you for the meal, Apatelodes.”

“Of course my Queen,” he said, and bowed. “I’m just glad to see you doing better. Will you be joining us later for dinner, or shall I bring your meal to your room?”

“Will we… I…”

“Not tonight, you have much to learn still before going out in public.”

“Not tonight, perhaps tomorrow for breakfast?”

“Very well my Queen. Enjoy your meal then.” He bows again and leaves.

“He seems like a nice guy, er… changeling,” I say as I concentrate and with a little effort, levitate the pony up, bringing her into the bedroom and closing the door behind us.

”Yes, and he can keep a secret. That is why he is the one I trust the most. Besides Discord, he and just a hoofful of others know. Now, as for how we feed…” I went to put my fangs in the pony’s neck. ”No no not like that, that’s only for emergencies, when we need love fast. Lay your horn against her neck, and I’ll tell you the spell.”

I did as she said, and whispered the spell. My horn grew with a green pulsing light, which flowed down to the pony’s neck. She gasped, and I did as well feeling her love pour from her into my horn. She had a coltfriend somewhere, whom she dearly loved, I could taste all that as it wavered over my body and filled my empty stomach. A nice sweet but bitter taste, like dark chocolate. Chrys stopped me after just around a minute, and I let the pony fall to the floor, in a deep sleep. My tongue rolled over my lips, licking them. So, this is what love tasted like. “No wonder you feed on love, it is delicious!”

“Yes dearie it is, and with a new stronger Queen, you can eventually lead the changelings to get revenge on those Princesses, and have all the love you could ever want.”

“Well then, I guess you better start preparing me. We’ll come up with an even better plan this time, and won’t fail,” I grinned. “Not that your plan wasn’t good, after all, you did come very close to winning. This time though, they won’t get away.” Whoa, did those thoughts come from me?

Chrys chuckled. “I think I’m already rubbing off on you. Little good girl you? Ha! Not for much longer. I think this is the start of a perfect friendship.”

“I couldn’t agree more.” I looked down at the sleeping mare. “So… what do we do with her? Not kill her, I imagine?”

“No, we very rarely kill. After all, there are far worse things than death to deal with our enemies.” Chrys said and chuckled. “Apatelodes will come to get her later. Until then, let’s start your training with a little flight.”

“But I’ve never flown before, not even in an airplane. Does it just come naturally like the rest?”

Chrys sighed. “You sure are full of questions aren’t you? But I shouldn’t blame you, I was the same when I was brought here. Yes, it should come naturally.”

I walked over to a balcony on the far side of the room and stepped out. The sky above was grey and thickly covered by rain clouds. An iron gate and fence, with dark-grey stone pillars, ran around the castle, and a forest covered much of the area surrounding the castle, dark pine trees, and quaking aspens. Peering over the railing, my eyes widened. “Oh my,” we were quite high up. I backed away from the railing, breathing heavily. “Maybe we should start this... lower to the ground.”

“Don’t tell me you are scared of heights!”

“From this high up when I’m still learning? Yeah.” I turned to look at my wings, they seemed so fragile.

“You will do just fine, just close your eyes and flap hard. It’s really quite easy.”

“That’s what you think, you’ve done it before.”

“Have I been wrong yet for you? Just do it, I’ll instruct you as we go.”

“Okay,” I said and stepped back toward the railing. I lifted my front hooves to it, resting them on it as I looked down. “I can do this,” I said taking a few deep breaths, flapping my wings gently. A cool breeze picked up, blowing my bangs into my face.

“The wind can help you fly better, when it is gentle like this, jump now!” I took a deep breath, nodded, and bunching the muscles in my back legs together, jumped into the air and off the balcony. The wind rushed by me as I began to plummet toward the ground. “Use your wings!” I nodded and flapped my wings furiously, slowing my fall as I began to hover, wings creating a buzzing sound.

“I’m doing it! Well, at least hovering,” I said and laughed, adrenaline pumping through me. As I gained confidence I grinned. “Let’s try actually flying now.” I turned to face the iron gate, eyeing one of the pillars. The top of them was flat. I leaned forward and found myself flying toward the pillar. Lifting as I reached it, I hovered above it for a moment, then let myself land, finding just enough room for my hooves.

“Not bad for a first try. It feels so good to fly again,” Chrys sighs.

“What do you mean? Don’t you fly all the time?”

“Not since the attack on Canterlot. My wings were ruined beyond repair. With your arrival, they were finally healed. I’d say we should fly farther, but you need time to strengthen your wings. Think you can make it back up to the room?”

I grinned, more confident now. “I think I can manage that,” I chuckle and bending down, jump back into the air, wings spread as I lift up to the balcony and settle gently onto its floor. “You know, I think I’m going to like this flying thing.” The unicorn mare is still asleep on the floor when I walk back inside and look into the mirror once more. “It sure will take some getting used to though, my new reflection.” We looked much the same as what I remembered from the show, only a little younger now. A healthy flush of green covered our cheeks from the flight, our eyes shone a bright green, and fangs almost glistened in a smile, lit from the green torches.

“Yes, flying is a wonderful way to relieve stress, and helps us look beautiful. But there is much more that we must cover, especially if you plan on breakfast with our changelings. So, time to stop admiring our reflection and get to work.”

I chuckled. “Did I mention that you were always my favorite character from the show? Sure the other ponies might be the main characters, but… I’ve always been fond of the villains.”

“And you call yourself a ‘good girl’? Normal ‘good girls’ are not fond of villain’s dearie. You must have always had a dark side. I like it. Will make it easier for you to adjust. Plus, our essence if you will, will turn your heart black as mine soon.”

“We all have our weird obsessions, doesn’t mean we let them take us over.”

Chrys chuckled. “Well I think that doesn’t apply to you, at least, not anymore. Your ‘obsession’ was probably part of the reason you were perfect for the part. And now you ARE me, at least in the flesh.”

“Yeah, I guess you are correct about that.” I turned away from the mirror, looking around the room. Over by the bookcase, I noticed a dark wooden closed door. “What’s in there?” I asked and stepped over to it. A miss-step of my front hooves and I stumbled, bowling over into a tangled heap against the door. My crown fell off and twirled in a pirouette before coming to a stop in front of my nose.

“Looks like someone needs more practice even walking,” Chrys laughed. “How can you find walking on four hooves harder than two? I watched the other humans passing by while Discord and I waited for you to appear, and it seemed like they were going to fall with every step. No tail to help with balance, I’m surprised you all are not black and blue with bruises.”

“Practice pretty much,” I groaned, stretching out my long legs and rolling onto my belly, legs beneath me, pulled myself back up, and levitated my crown back to my head. “Guess I will need that here now.”

“Well, to help you stay alert and awake tonight, we’ll have you pace around the room while I drill you then. Can’t have you tripping in front of our changelings after all.”

“Yeah, that wouldn’t be good. We need to appear strong,” I took a deep breath and blew a strand of hair out of my face. “Let us begin, I am ready.”

Learning of the Past

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I let out a huge yawn as I continued to pace back and forth. We had been up for hours talking about the past, and though it was all interesting, my hooves were getting sore from all the pacing. “Okay, now it is your turn dearie. Are there any questions you have for me?”

“Hmm well yes, I think so. Mostly about that spell.”

“We’re Discord and I not clear enough about it? Not that complicated really.”

“Well, I get the gist of it, but, the other parts of it not so much. Like, can you only grab girls from my world? Or any world? Does the world of Equestria even exist in other worlds? Be it tv show or whatever.”

“Ah yes, I can see why you would be confused there. I’m not sure about the previous Queens, but for me, I didn’t come from your world. It has been so long I remember little of my original world, not even the name. But then the same will happen to you. Memories of our… previous lives before being the queen fade over time, as they must for you to fully become the Queen Chrysalis. Friends, family, lovers, they each slowly fade away.” Chrys sighed, and I paused in my pacing to take in what she had said.

“I guess that would be a good thing, then we wouldn’t have to wonder what they are all doing without us. If they miss us, wish we could be back with them, or…” I paused, sitting down in the chair by the dresser. The excitement of adventure had filled me until now, and I hadn’t even thought of home. “I kind of miss them,” I said softly. “I don’t regret being brought here, after all, this is better than truly dying right? But to never see them again…”

“This is even more reason to forget. There is no way back, especially with your old body technically being dead. Nothing can change that. But cheer up dearie! You are a queen now, and hopefully will be for many years to come if I train you right. Now as for the rest of your question. For as long as Equestria has been around, there have been places in other worlds that have heard of it. Might go by different names, or exist in different forms, but it is the same.”

“Well then, I will do my best to be the best I can be!” I said standing up and looking into the dresser mirror. “I might not be so evil now, and I don’t think you are either-”

“Then what do you think I am?”

“Misunderstood. A little conceited maybe, and perhaps a little crazy, but I can understand that. I feel like I’m going a little crazy, talking to a voice in my head.” I grinned, hearing her chuckle.

“Yes, after all, they do say talking to one’s self is a sign of insanity, especially if you answer yourself as well. So I’d say we are indeed crazy. As for the others, that kind of comes with the package of being different from the others of this world.”

“Giving more reason to take it over, so they can understand us?”

“Precisely! I’ve tried talking to Celestia before, back when I was a new queen. I wanted to set up trade between us, so that my changelings could receive love. But she refused me, and banished us to the badlands. Said we would scare her ponies too much. I vowed then to take it from her, if she wouldn’t give of it freely.”

“These are the badlands?” I asked, and walked over to the balcony, looking back out at the forest. “But it is so lush, so many trees.”

“The land has changed since then. Many of my changelings and I have poured our magic into making what we had work. Ponies have even moved here, making settlements around us. Not sure if Celestia knows of these settlements, but if she doesn’t, then it is better she not,” she sighed. “So, is that all for now? Any other questions before we sleep? And are you willing to do whatever it takes to keep our changelings strong?”

“Yes, even if it means we go up against Celestia or one of the other princesses. Everypony deserves a chance at a good life after all. And yes, one more question, or well kind of one. What about Discord? I thought Twilight and her friends reformed him, so why does he still help us? And how in the world did he help five hundred years ago for you? Wouldn’t he have still been in stone from when Luna and Celestia beat him in battle?”

“Good, it seems the choice was indeed right in choosing you. I am sure you can bring us back to greatness.” I smiled at that, then let out another huge yawn. “But I think the story on Discord can wait for another night. It is already quite late. Let’s get to sleep.”

I nodded and stepped over to the bed, drawing back the covers with my magic. “Levitation is so easy,” I said beaming and rolled into bed. This sure was going to be a strange new experience, but I was ready for it. “Look out Equestria, there is a new queen,” I said, then rolled over and closed my eyes.

First Test

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I awoke the next morning to a knock on the door. “Just five more minutes,” I mumbled, turning over in bed. A pain shot through my head as I hit something against the wall and I opened my eyes, reaching a hand to my head. Upon seeing a hoof in front of my eyes instead of a hand, yesterday came back to me in a flash and I rolled out of bed, rubbing my forehead around my horn which I had bumped. Chrys and I had been up late into the night, her drilling me in all things changeling. I levitated my crown over and placed it on my head, looking into the mirror as I let out a yawn.

“Ready for your first test dearie?”

“As ready as I can be. At least I have you in there to correct me if needed,” I grinned. My stomach growled, and the knock on the door came again. “Just a minute,” I said. Levitating a comb, I ran it through my mane and tail to get out the worst of the tangles, put it back down on the dresser, and took a deep breath. “Well, here we go,” I said and walked up to the door.

“There you are my Queen,” Apatelodes said as I opened it, and he bowed. “Breakfast is ready, do you still plan on joining us?”

“Yes, thank you for letting me know, and I will join you,” I said. Apatelodes grinned and moved to the side of the doorway.

“Then if you will follow me, I shall lead you to the dining room,” Apatelodes said. I nod and step out of the room, closing the door behind me. He started to walk down a long hallway, dimly lit with green fire torches. “How are you adjusting?” He whispered.

“Okay I think, but there is still much to learn. Who knew pretending to be someone else was so hard?”

He laughed, and I blushed green, realizing who and what I was talking to. “Right, of course, you guys would know.”

“That’s right, but you do have it more difficult than the rest. At least you will have practice for your first transformation into another pony.”

I stopped in my hoofsteps at that. I had forgotten that part. Chrys was right though, until I really ‘became’ Queen Chrysalis, it would be.

“Don’t worry, from what Discord tells me, you will do well, and the sooner you learn, the sooner we can get our revenge. I still don’t feel the way I used to since that day when the blast landed me hard into a tree. My carapace never fully recovered,” he said and sighed. “Here we are.” Before us was a thick wooden door. Voices could be heard from the other side, someling laughing loudly at something. “Ready to meet the others?”

I nodded, I was as ready as I was going to be. Chrys had drilled into me the names of her… our most important changelings, and I just hoped I could remember everyone. Apatelodes opened the door and stepped inside. The sound in the room hushed, and Apatelodes cleared his throat. “Announcing, our lovely Queen, Queen Chrysalis!”

“Go on then, hold yourself proud and walk to your rightful place at the head of the table. There you shall start breakfast, and the others will follow.”

“Got it,” I whispered and walked through the door. I glanced at the table and changelings gathered around it. A few ponies were tied up every few feet, fear prominent on their faces. Covering the rest of the table were ‘normal’ breakfast foods: pancakes, waffles, bowls of fruit, but no meats. But then, most changelings became vegetarians, to make it easier when masquerading as ponies. Wouldn’t do to be disguised as a pony and caught eating chicken or some other meat!

Everyling stared at me as I walked toward the front of the table. I did as Chrys had told me, with a slow, even pace. A changeling sitting near the empty seat waiting for me stood and pulled the chair out as I arrived. I nodded my thanks and sat down, and the changeling went back to his seat. Before me was an orange earth pony mare with a bright red mane and a lasso cutie mark. To her left, a bowl of sliced cantaloupe. The changelings watched me expectantly, and so placing my horn against the mare’s neck, I began to feed.

Everything seemed to relax at that point, talking resumed and everyling started on their own meals, some feeding off the offered ponies and others the more traditional foods offered them. “Well done, they seem to sense nothing amiss. Be prepared to give a little speech once breakfast is over though. Most of them haven’t seen us in at least two weeks.” I choked on a piece of cantaloupe, having finished with the pony earlier, at the words. A speech? What would I say? “Don’t worry, I’ll help you with it. As we go along though, I’ll leave you more in charge for these types of things.”

I still couldn’t help but worry. I’d had enough trouble getting in front of the class, the pressure of giving a good speech here? Much worse than I’d previously experienced! As things began to wind down, and the ponies were taken away along with the bowls and plates, the changelings looked to me again. I took a deep breath and smiled at them. With a mental nudge from Chrys, I began.

“Good morning, my changelings. I am glad to see you all doing so well. These past few weeks have been difficult, but I am back with you now, and with the help of Discord, in better condition than before.” I spread out my wings, and they all clapped at seeing them whole. I grinned and continued. “Things have been hard since the attack on Canterlot, for all of us, but not for much longer. I have a plan in the works for our revenge and they will not win this time,” I chuckled, and a few of them followed suit. “Soon, we will have enough love to go around, and every belly will be round. Noling will go to bed hungry!”

Apatelodes cheered, and the others followed his example. I grinned, watching as a few even toasted me with their drinks. Maybe this would be easier than I thought. “Okay, you have them all in a better mood now. Time for us to head off for some flying practice.” I stood, and everyling cheered as I walked toward the door. Apatelodes stood and opened the door for me, then followed behind as we left.

“Great job, your speech has inspired many. I believe you will be a great leader for us all. The display with your wings was a nice touch. Knowing their queen is back to full strength, will build their confidence in you,” Apatelodes said. He walked close beside me, and I smiled down at him. His ruffled, finned mane swung back and forth as he walked, much fuller than many of the other changelings I had seen so far.

“He’s one of the best fed of our changelings, that is why he looks so different. After all, he is not only one of our closest confidantes but our royal guard as well, he must be kept well fed. How else is he to protect us?” I nod in agreement to that, especially now when I still feel so lost.

“And a loop-de-loop right before touching down!” I laugh, landing on a cliff face about a mile out from the castle. We had been out flying for about an hour, and I still couldn’t get over the exhilaration of it.

“You have learned well, I knew you’d be a natural flier.” Chrys said. “Didn’t take long to get your wings strengthened either. How are they feeling?”

“They feel wonderful, nice and limber and so much stronger than they look. Oh, I just love being able to fly,” I sighed and collapsed down on the cliff, looking out over the valley below. A small pony village was nestled inside, only a few homes, maybe a fourth the size of Ponyville. A large plot of land to the side of it is covered in crops, cared for and tended by the village as a whole. It is from this tiny village I see a unicorn pony lugging a cart trotting our way. The sun catches on the items in the cart, making them shine.

“Hmm that pony doesn’t look familiar. He’s not from the village. I wonder what he is doing here.”

“Shall we go check it out? I’m curious as well.”

“But of course, we could always use more ponies for our feedings after all,” Chrys said and chuckled.

I take to the air, circling down to the pony as he leaves the village and heads into the woods. He arrives at a crossroads, one path leading back to the castle, the other on to other villages and eventually to Dodge Junction. Both Chrys and I gasp in shock as he turns down the one to the castle. “Do we have a volunteer?” I ask and let out a little chuckle.

“Only one way to find out, let’s go greet him, shall we?” I nod and circle down lower, dropping in front of him and giving him a huge grin.

“Why hello there, little pony. What brings you so far out here?”

“Looking for you actually,” he said. “Obviously wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be.”

“What in Equestria would he want us for?”

“Good question, why where you looking for me?”

He paused, looking at me curiously for a moment. A lock of his lavender colored mane fell over one eye and he blew it out of the way, revealing his dark purple eyes. “To sell you my wares. Even an evil queen could use some music in her life,” he said, and moved aside so I could see into his cart. Inside, nestled safely in slim green boxes and straw, were a plethora of penny whistles.

“And you come with a foal’s toy of an instrument?”

“There are plenty of famous mares and stallions that play it too!” He said and stomped a hoof. “Caramel Sunning, Spider Stache, Mare Bergin? But then this is just the beginning, I’d like to negotiate trades between other ponies too.”

“Did Celestia put you up to this?”

“No, I’m doing it all on my own. I’d like to get to know your people more. You… might have made a bad first impression, but I don’t think you are all that bad. You just wanted to feed your subjects.”

“This is one strange pony, but, I think I like him. He certainly seems to understand our position better than most ponies. I wonder what his love would taste like.”

I chuckle a little, having been wondering the same. “Well my changelings might be interested in them, but I’m more interested in your love. How about a taste?”

He grinned slyly at me. “For three bits you can have a taste.”

I laughed. “My you sure are a sly one. What is your name?”

“Shiny Whistle,” he said, and ran a hoof through his mane, grinning.

“Well Shiny Whistle, you’ve intrigued me. Let’s see if my changelings would be interested in your whistles.”

“Thank you, Queen Chrysalis,” he said and bowed. “Maybe if this all works out, our nations can become allies. Then you wouldn’t need to try to take over Equestria. You could still get all the love you need.”

“He makes a valid point. Hmm… I hadn’t even thought of that. But then, it has been rare finding a willing pony to feed on,” Chrys chuckled. “But then, it’s not like I have usually ‘asked’.”

I nodded. “We shall have to see, until then let’s head toward the castle. It is almost lunchtime and I’m sure you are hungry.”

“As long as I’m not the lunch!” he laughed and magicked the straps of his cart back to his back.

“Deal, for today at least,” I said, and grinned when he laughed again. We walked down the path, the wind blowing through our manes keeping us cool.

“I’m surprised to have found you so quickly. I figured I’d run into one of your changelings first, and have to get an audience with you,” he said.

“Well, I’m glad we ran into you then.” As we drew near the castle, a small group of changelings was waiting for us near the gates. “And it looks like here are your first customers.”

“Look what our Queen has brought us, fresh love!” One changeling, Laothoe, a burly stallion with a huge appetite, said as we drew nearer.

“Sorry dearie, but he’s not up for feeding off of just yet,” I said, stopping Shiny Whistle with a hoof as we came within a few feet.

Nemoria, a petite changeling mare, still fairly young, lifted up on her wings and grabbed a box from Shiny Whistle’s cart, opening it. “Wow, these are beautiful,” she said, looking the whistle over carefully.

“For five bits it’s yours,” Shiny Whistle said, and Nemoria nodded, reaching into a saddlebag around her back and pulling out the bits. She tossed the box into the bag, then raised the whistle to her lips. I cringed as a shrill sound came from it. Shiny chuckled. “You’re blowing too hard,” he said. “Let me show you.” He grabbed another whistle from his cart, and using his magic to levitate it, brought it to his lips and played a haunting little melody.

“You are very good!” Nemoria said, taking her own again and blowing a little softer. The sound was better but still sharp.

“That’s why it is my special talent,” Shiny Whistle said, showing off his cutie mark, a blue penny whistle with two half notes dancing around it. “If you’d like to learn I’d be happy to teach you.”

Nemoria looked at me, hope in her eyes. “Let him teach her, will give us reason to keep him from being fed on.”

“I think that would be okay,” I tell her, and she jumps with glee. “Anyling else want to join her?” I ask, and a few others waiting by the gate toss over some bits and grab their own whistles. As they try them out, some having more success than others, I turn to Shiny Whistle. “Looks like you will have a little class of students.”

“Yes, and I have you to thank for that. I knew you were not as bad as they all say.”

“Well it looks like we have a new pony servant. He’ll certainly help take their minds off being hungry, for a little while at least.”

Shiny Whistle turned back to me, and held out a box, a Penny Whistle inside. “Would you like to learn as well? This is one of my finest whistles, yours if you want it for your help.”

I looked at him, surprised, but shook my head. “My day is too filled, I’d never have time to practice. Thank you for the offer though.”

“My Queen,” Apatelodes said, coming to stand before me he bowed. “Lunch awaits, and noling may eat until you arrive. I’ll… take care of this pony and show him to the classrooms if you plan on employing him?”

“That I do. Yes, show him to the classrooms, then make sure he gets something to eat.” I turned back to Shiny Whistle. “Would tomorrow morning be too early to start lessons? The young ones at least have time in-between their other classes around 10am in which they could come to you. The adults would have to schedule times for lessons between their other duties.”

Shiny Whistle nodded. “That should be plenty of time for me to get ready. I already have a few books with some simple songs they could start learning, though I will need more before long.”

“I’ll send someling out to get them for you, if you will make a list of what you need.”

“Certainly, I will have that for you in the morning.” He strapped his cart back to his back. “Fare thee well, Queen Chrysalis.” He turned to the waiting Apatelodes and together they trotted off.

“Well then, what say we grab some lunch?” Chrys said. I nodded, lunch did sound good.

“Remind me to change that rule though, that no changeling can eat until I arrive,” I whispered, so noling near us could hear. “It’s not fair to them that they must wait for me.”

“But you are their Queen, they wouldn’t have it any other way unless we had no plans to join them that night. Do you want to insult them by doing that?”

I sighed, “no, I wouldn’t want that. We’ll just have to try to plan for these things I guess.” I turned to watch as Apatelodes and Shiny Whistle turned toward the left wing, both their horns glowing, violet for Shiny Whistle, green for Apatelodes, as they lifted the cart full of whistles up the stairs. Apatelodes had seemed in a hurry to get me away from Shiny Whistle, did he suspect plans of foul play? Or was he just worried about the hungry changelings? I shrugged and walked into the dining room to cheers. I grinned a fang-filled smile, it sure felt good to be wanted.

Getting Settled In

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Changeling Castle- Left Wing- Apatelodes

Shiny what’s his name and I stopped as we reached the top of the stairs, lowering the cart to the polished floor. I leaned against the wall, stomach grumbling, hooves and horn tired from the exertion of the heavy wagon. “Next time,” I panted, “the cart stays downstairs.”

“That would be fine, next time it won’t have so many whistles to carry,” he said and chuckled. I rolled my eyes. This pony was worse than many of them, he shouldn’t be this happy being here. But then, being employed as a music teacher for the pupas and others in the hive he was protected from being fed upon. I longed to sink my fangs into that too proud neck of his and bring a little fear to him, but Chrysalis would surely be angry if I did.

“Great,” I said and rubbed my forehead near my horn. I could feel a headache coming on. “Classroom 116 contains what musical instruments we already have, so let’s put you in there. Know how to play any other instrument?”

“Oh yes, I know many. The Penny Whistle is my specialty though. I guess your Queen would want me to teach more than one.”

“She’s your Queen now too,” I hissed. “As long as she has you employed. The last music teacher didn’t last long, guess we will see how you do.”

“No need to get angry. My mistake, our Queen would want her people to learn more than one instrument.” He said and strapped his infernal cart back to his back. “Now, Apatelodes wasn’t it? Please show me to the music room.”

I widened my eyes in surprise. He had remembered my name? “Right, that’s me. I am the royal guard to the Queen.” I said, proudly putting a hoof to my chest and raising my chin. “So I’ll be the one to evaluate your performance with the hives young.” I sent a penetrating glare his way. “So don’t be teaching them anything our Queen would not approve of.”

“I’ll make sure to study up on what that would be, thank you for the warning.”

“Right, well, let’s get you settled so we both can get some grub,” I said, as my stomach began growling again. I led the way down the hall, lighting torches along the way with green fire. I stopped in front of two double wooden doors, a dusty iron 116 nailed to the right door. “Here we are,” I said and pushed the doors open, cringing as they creaked from disuse. “Will have to get that oiled,” I murmured as I led the pony inside. Thick curtains covered the windows. I magicked them open, and light filtered through to the dusty room.

Chalkboards lined the wall on the right, a little set of chairs facing them, one having fallen over with a broken leg. Dust covered everything, except for the hoof and wheel prints I and the Shiny Wheel? had made walking in. A pile of instruments sat in one corner: triangles, horns, tubas, and other such stuff. A bookcase in the back held a few ragged books, a pile of yellowed music sheets on the bottom shelf, some torn as if a mouse had made its home there.

“Well, looks like it needs a lot of work. After a good meal though I’ll be up for the job. Might only be able to work with my whistles for the first few weeks, but I think I can make this work,” Shiny Fork said and undid the straps of his cart, letting it rest by the chalkboards.

Ugh, his optimism was annoying. “You better, otherwise our Queen will surely not be happy,” I chuckled darkly. I stretched, getting the kinks out of my back. “Come on, hopefully, there is still some food left for us. Then you can come back up and get to work. Will you require a guide to get back here?”

“For the first few days perhaps, and to a bedroom?”

“Of course, we’ll find an empty one for you after lunch,” I sighed and led the way back to the door. “Oh, and stay away from Queen Chrysalis. A Queen shouldn’t fraternize with lowly employees. That’s for me to take care of.” I couldn’t let him get too close to her. At least one of them seemed to like him, else he would be heading to the dinner table tonight as food rather than a guest.

“Oh, okay Apatelodes,” Shiny Willow said, and I chuckled a little at the sad tone in his voice. These stupid ponies and their ‘need’ to be friends with everyone!

We reached the stairs and began to walk back down. Thankfully without those annoying whistles! I kept quiet, tired of making small talk, as my stomach growled again. Cursed pony! If it hadn’t been for him, I’d be having some delicious love right now.

“Sorry to keep you so long from lunch,” Shiny Water said as we reached the end of the stairs.

I scowled at him. “You’re just lucky not to be on the menu yourself.” I pushed open the door to the kitchens. Pony and changeling hurried back and forth from the dining room, bringing empty plates and bowls, along with ponies sleeping off their latest feeding job. Shiny Winter stopped in his tracks at seeing them, pupils dilating and short of breath. “Scared of that happening to you?” I said with a grin.

“Maybe… a little, but you said teachers are exempt from that right? Heh, need to be healthy to teach,” he grinned, trying to appear fine, but the fear was still in his eyes.

“Our feeder ponies are healthy. They get three square meals a day and are only fed upon once a week. Besides that, they usually work in other areas of the castle as cooks, gardeners, janitors, and other such positions. The ponies we feed upon need to be healthy. If they are sickly, that flows through their love to us and makes the changeling feeding on them sick. We might be called monsters by some ponies, but we value the health of the food we consume.”

As the last of the ponies are returned to the kitchen, I sigh. “Looks like we missed lunch. I hope there are leftovers of fruit and such at least.”

Shiny Watch lowered his ears, “I’m sorry, I’m probably making a bad first impression on you, aren’t I?”

I snorted and nodded, and turned from the doors leading to the dining room back to the preparation tables. An orange pony was cutting up some apples near the kitchen fire, putting them in a large bowl. “You there!” She dropped her knife at my yell, startled, backing away from me.

“Yes… yes sir?” she said and gulped.

“Prepare enough apples to feed me and… our new music teacher here.” I pointed to Shiny Writer.

“Yes sir, just give me a few moments and I shall have it ready.” She grabbed up the knife and washed it off in the sink behind her, then was back at slicing up the apples.

I sat down in a chair against the wall, closing my eyes and rubbing my aching head. Apples would fill me for now, but I for sure would need some love for dinner. Been too long since I had any.

“Don’t let him get to you, I’m grateful for your help,” Shiny Whims said. I opened my eyes to see him smiling at the mare and putting a comforting hoof to her shoulder.

“Don’t distract the help Shiny Whips, else we’ll never eat,” I said and closed my eyes again.

“It’s Shiny Whistle, Apatelodes,” he said and I grinned, he actually sounded irritated! “And I can help if you like?” He asked her. I rolled my eyes as she nodded and blushed.

“Sure, sir Shiny Whistle. Knives in the second drawer to the left.” I watched as he went and grabbed one, and picked up an apple from the pile to be sliced. I folded one leg over the other and leaned back. If he wanted to do such a menial job, I wasn’t going to stop him.

“So, what’s your name?” Shiny Whiskers… no it was Whistle, right? Whichever, he asked the orange mare.

“Oh, I’m Star Bright,” she said and blushed. “Thank you for your help.” She finished slicing an apple and tossed the pieces into the bowl.

“Of course, my mother did teach me well after all,” he chuckled and placed his own apple slices into the bowl. I zoned out as they continued, not caring to listen to their idle chatter. “Here you go Apatelodes.” I looked up to see Shiny Whistle holding out a bowl to me in one hoof, his own in his other, full of apple slices.

“Thanks,” I said and took the bowl, tossing an apple slice into my mouth. He sat down on another chair and began to eat his as well. The orange mare was gone from the room, probably scared I would give her another job to do. We ate in silence, both of us hungry enough to want to eat without interruption. I licked my lips as I finished my bowl, putting it to the side. Looking over to him, I noticed he was done as well. He stood, and put his bowl in the sink.

“May we find that empty room now?” he asked.

I stood and stretched, “sure why not,” I sighed. “Follow me.”

Woods-Changeling Kingdom-Queen Chrysalis

“This has certainly been an interesting day already. Not every day we get a pony ‘wanting’ to work for us right?” I chuckled.

“No, they are usually too scared of us. Though the ones in the villages near us seem at least a little more willing.”

“And he’s not even from one of them is he?”

“I don’t know, I’ve never met him before today. I thought I knew everyone around here. Seems like a Ponyville type pony though. We’ll have to ask him later. Until then, let us enjoy our afternoon off.” Chrys sighed.

I nodded and plopped down on the cliff we had been on earlier. Resting my head on my hooves, I watched a colony of ants crawl by, carrying bits of leaves on their backs. My life had changed so much in the last twenty-four hours, or well more than that. How long had I been asleep after Discord dragged me from my own world? It didn’t matter, there was no going back to my old life, and I wasn’t sure how I felt about that, but this new life had such promise. I could help the changelings get back on their hooves.

From what I had seen thus far, they didn’t deserve the way the ponies had treated them. Like anyone, they needed to eat. Of course, they could have gone a better route to get it, but who was to say anypony would have let them? The ponies employed with us helped, but it wasn’t enough. The hive grew larger all the time. Even now, at least two dozen eggs incubated, little pupas getting ready to hatch. They would need lots of love, especially their first few years, and we just didn’t have the supply. I needed to come up with a plan, and soon. Otherwise, I would need to put much of the hive into hibernation so we could survive.
“Being a leader can sure be stressful dearie. But I and Discord believe in you. You won’t let anyling starve.”

“I sure hope I live up to your expectations. I’ve never been much of a leader, I was always the follower, back… in my old life.”

“Well not anymore! Remember, you are Queen Chrysalis now, and we don’t give up! Perhaps… this Shiny Whistle can even be of use to us in that,” Chrys said.

“So, there is an ulterior motive for you wanting me to hire him?” I grin, chuckling. “But then we always have that. He certainly seems the type to be… persuaded… perhaps. Maybe we will have to make time to learn how to play one of his instruments. And here I thought you liked him.”

“Dearie, I like anypony or changeling that can be useful to me. He serves more than one purpose. Really, I can’t love, it is part of who we are. We can take love and imitate it, but never experience it for real ourselves. Or at least, I never have been able to.”

“That is just… sad. So we’ll just be alone forever? Never truly finding that one to love?”

“Oh we’re never truly alone, we have each other after all,” Chrys said, snickering. "And we can have lovers, we have had some… interesting ones in the past. Shining Armor for one, ah now he was something in bed.” I blushed green, and Chrys laughed. “Embarrassed about that sort of thing are you? Then you don’t want to hear about all the others.”

“Just tell me there are no current ones? Apatelodes maybe?”

“Oh my no! He’s simply our guard, not my type. Never has been my lover, and I don’t plan on it now. But if you want to let him into our bed dearie I won’t blame you. He is very handsome.”

“Oh well, I… don’t feel I know him well enough for something like that,” I said and blushed even more.

“Well dearie, there are very few I would object you taking in when you decide to. Just know it is usually frowned upon for us to bring a pony to bed unless it is just to consume his or her love,” she said. “But a child between pony and a changeling queen is very taboo. We are… usually not very compatible in that way. The eggs rarely survive, and when they do, the pupa is deformed and doesn’t survive for more than a few hours.”

“So then what do you do if an egg is laid? Just cull it?”
Chrys sighs. "It is the only choice we have."
A breeze blew by, blowing our mane behind us. I shifted against the rock, getting a little more comfortable. How could I ever do such a thing? I guess I would have to, if no, when, it happened in the future. I stood and stretched, extending my wings out. “Let’s get back to some more flying practice,” I said jumping into the air and flapping my wings, closing my eyes as the cool air brushed against my face. Better to save such thoughts for later.

I dropped gently down onto the balcony of my room. The sun had just finished setting, colors of violet and pink all that was left of it. My mood was still a little somber, but, at least my real duties would begin the next morning. Classes would resume for the hatchlings, and I needed to visit with each teacher to do my own reviews of them. Apatelodes would review them as well, but I wanted to make sure they would teach them well. After all, they were our future.

I shook my body, dislodging some of the dust that had gotten caught in my carapace. Looking in the mirror, I scowled at my reflection. I looked horrible, covered in dust and little pine tree branches stuck in my mane. “So, do I have a private bathing room somewhere?”

“But of course. That door you noticed earlier, is our bathing room.” I looked and grinned trotting over to it. Opening it, I looked in at an in-the-floor bathtub. Torches of green fire lined the stone walls, and a stone vase sat in one corner, blue tulips on long stems inside. “Simple, but useful. We don’t have a ton of time, so let’s start the water and get cleaned up before dinner.” I nodded and trotted over, twisting the knobs and watching as steam curled up and over the lip of the tub. After a few minutes, I eased myself down into the bath and sighed as I felt the dirt and sweat slip off me.

I grabbed a scrub brush with my magic and scrubbed at my exoskeleton, eyes closed and wings spread into a more comfortable position. “Yes, this is nice,” I sighed, closing my eyes and sinking down deeper until just my face was showing. I would have to soak in here for longer next time, for I knew dinner would be ready soon. I stepped out much sooner than I wanted, levitated a towel over to me, and rubbed dry, shaking out my mane.

“Shall we head to dinner, and see how Shiny Whistle is getting on? I know Apatelodes can be hard to get along with, for a pony. He has a low opinion of most of them.”

“Well, we’ll just have to change that. Shiny Whistle seems like the stallion to do so,” I said and stopped in front of the mirror once I left the bathing room. “Think I am getting used to this new body, we are very beautiful.” I grin when Chrys chuckles.

“Don’t become vain now,” she teased.

“Aren’t we already?” I laugh and head for the door.

Cleaning, Changes and Surprises

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Third Floor- Left Wing- Apatelodes

“This will be perfect,” Shiny Whistle said and turned back to me, a grin on his face. A little room in the corner of the third floor, nothing special, just a four-poster bed, desk, and chest of drawers. Yet he made it sound like it was a luxury suite! He walked over to the window and looked outside. “What a view of the forest! You sure this room isn’t taken?” He laughed.

“Yes, I’m sure,” I sighed. “It’s all yours, for what free time you will have to enjoy it.” Why did ponies always have to be so happy? Well, he wouldn’t stay that way for long. Even the other ponies who were teachers had lost their utter positivity once they learned they could never go home for a visit. After all, if we let them go home, they would likely never return.

“Well, I should probably go clean the classroom if I am to start teaching tomorrow. Would you like to help?” He asked, and I laughed.

“Sorry, but I don’t do menial jobs like that. Think you can find your way there without getting lost?”

“Well, it is just down below us, I think I can manage one floor if you don’t want to stick around. I’m sure you have more important things to do than basically babysit me all day.”

“Right you are. Your arrival has put me behind schedule. I’ve done what my Queen requested for you, so I’ll let you get on alone.” I open the door and look back at him. “Expect me in the early afternoon tomorrow. That should give you time to teach your students and get things looking cleaner in the classroom.” I trot off, closing the door behind me. “Finally free,” I said and sighed. Dinner was just hours away, and I did NOT intend to miss the main meal again.

Changeling Castle- Third Floor-Left Wing- Shiny Whistle

I left the room a few minutes after Apatelodes and trotted toward the stairs. The day was still young, I would have plenty of time to get a good start on cleaning the classroom. A good scrubbing of the windows would be a great place to start. They had been so dirty that even with the curtains open the light inside had been dim.

When I reached the bottom of the stairs, I paused in my hoofsteps. Star Bright was waiting for me by the classroom doors. I smiled at her and trotted over. “Hello Star Bright, what brings you up here?”

“Well, I finished my chores in the kitchens for today, so I figured I’d come to help you with your cleaning,” she said and levitated up some cleaning supplies with her magic. “Even found you these.”

I was touched, I smiled warmly at her and opened the door. “Well, I’ll appreciate the help, I’m going to need it!”

She looked around as we entered. A mouse skittered away into the corner. Star dropped the cleaning supplies near the door and looked over at me. “You weren’t kidding. How long has it been since they last had a music teacher?”

“I didn’t think to ask,” I said and stepped towards the windows, “Why don’t we start with these? A little extra light in here will make things look so much better.”

“Sounds good to me,” Star Bright said, levitating over some washcloths and a bucket of soapy water.

“So how long have you worked here?” I asked, dipping the washcloth in the soapy water and bringing it up to the first window.

“About five years,” she said as she brought her own washcloth to a window. “I miss my family so much. They probably think I am dead.”

“Dead? But don’t you ever get the chance to visit them?”

“Those who are from the village closest to us sometimes can go home, but once you are employed here, you never leave.”

“What?” I dropped my washcloth on the ground, coughing as a plume of dust came up from the floor. “Why? Do they want everypony to think their loved ones are dead?”

“Well no, I don’t think that is the idea. I think they don’t allow it because they know most ponies if given the chance would never return. They insist they treat us well, and for the most part that is true, but the feedings are… not usually pleasant.” She paused, washcloth held to the window she had been cleaning.

“Does it… hurt?” I asked, picking my own cloth up off the floor and rinsing it off in the bucket.

“It… can. Depends on the changeling. The Queen, even in her brusqueness, often makes it quick and painless, but others…” she shuddered. “I’d rather not talk about it,” she said and went back to washing her window.

“That’s understandable,” it was starting to look like this wouldn’t be the perfect job I thought it would be. I guess I would see how things went tomorrow. I sighed, what had I gotten myself into?

“Don’t think it is all bad though. Most of us do miss our families, but as strange as it may be, there are a few that have bonded with certain changelings and well, have a love for each other,” she said and dunked her washcloth into the water, then started on the next window.

“So… they can truly love then? All I’ve read goes toward the opposite opinion.”

“All you’ve read was probably written by ponies. With the changelings being seen as evil or monsters, of course, they will not want other ponies as seeing them as sympathetic. For example, the main reason Queen Chrysalis attacked was to feed her changelings. She did get greedy when the opportunity came to impersonate Cadence, but her intentions were based on love,” she said and blushed. “Sorry, I guess I get a little defensive of them sometimes.”

“Even with how Apatelodes treated you?”

“He’s one of the exceptions. He thinks of us just as food. The only time he is actually nice to ponies is when the Queen is around. He doesn’t want to lose his position.”

“I have so much to learn,” I sigh, “thanks for telling me though. That should help me make a better teacher for them tomorrow.” I wiped a drop of sweat from my forehead and dropped my washcloth in the bucket. The windows sparkled, and cast their light much more brightly on the dusty room.

“I’m sure you will do great,” she said and picked up a broom. “I’ll start sweeping if you want to pick up the loose papers and clean and straighten the bookshelf?”

I nodded, “sounds like a plan.” I levitated the wash bucket and took it over to the bookshelf with me. Picking up a few sheets of music, I paused at one, reading through the lyrics. “Well, this is certainly interesting.”

“What is it?” she asked and walked over, looking over my shoulder at it. “Oh, I’ve heard a few of the older pupas singing this. It is kind of a fight song they were taught. They sure believe in starting them young,” she said and chuckled. “Maybe you could teach it to your new students? It looks simple enough.”

I nodded, grabbing one of my whistles from the cart, and played through the notes. As I played, Star Bright sang next to me.

Canterlot will soon be ours,
Soon be ours,
Soon be ours
Canterlot will soon be ours, my dear changelings.

Light your horns and take them down,
Take them down,
Take them down
Light your horns and take them down, my dear changelings.

We’ll have all the love we need,
Love we need,
Love we need
We’ll have all the love we need, my dear changelings.

They will never stand a chance,
Stand a chance,
Stand a chance
They will never stand a chance, my dear changelings.

So transform and we’ll begin,
We’ll begin,
We’ll begin
So transform and we’ll begin, my dear changelings.

I lowered my whistle as I finished, and looked back at Star. “You have a beautiful singing voice.”

“Aw, it’s nothing special,” she said and blushed. “I don’t get a chance to practice enough. You though, your whistle playing is amazing!”

“I’ve been playing since my father gave me my first Penny Whistle for Hearth’s Warming Eve back when I was a colt,” I said and shrugged.

She chuckled and grabbed the broom again. “Well… I guess we better get back to work.”

“Might be a good idea,” I said and grinned, piling the sheet music that was still useable on one of the chairs, added the books to the pile, and grabbed a new washcloth.

Changeling Castle- Dining Room-Queen Chrysalis

“I’m so excited for music classes tomorrow! We haven’t had a music teacher since I was an egg,” Nemoria said, wings buzzing in excitement.

“This one is so much more handsome than the last one too,” Acronicta, a little older than Nemoria, with a bright blue streak in her frilly mane, said. “He was so old!” The two changeling fillies giggled.

“Think he would go for a changeling?”

“Well he did come here voluntarily, so it’s a possibility.”

I chuckled across the table from them, glad Shiny Whistle had made such a good impression on the young ones already. Hopefully, they would still feel the same after his classes. I wasn’t worried though, with his little performance, I had no doubt he knew his stuff.

Apatelodes sat next to me tonight, frowning at the two gossiping changelings as he finished feeding off his pony, a blue stallion with two horseshoes for his cutie mark.

“Not much of one for gossip?” I asked, smiling down at him,

“Of course not my Queen, It is impolite at the dinner table, bad for digestion,” he said, absentmindedly nibbling on a slice of pear.

“Well give them a break, they are still young.” I smiled, remembering what Chrys had told me of his past. “I’m sure I remember you being much the same at their age.”

He gave a wry smile, snorting. “Forgive me my Queen, but sometimes I curse your almost perfect memory of the past.”

“Of course he would, I’ve worked closely with him since he was a hatchling. I know all about him.” Chrys said and chuckled. “I pride myself in knowing all my changelings by name and face, and if nothing else at least a few of the things that make them unique.”

“How could anyone forget you? Always first in your class, strong, brave, rising in rank faster than anyling in two hundred years.”

This time he showed a real smile, even blushed green a little. “Well, I do have you to thank for that. You’ve taken such a strong interest in me my whole life.” He tossed another pear slice into his mouth, a little drip of juice sliding down his chin.

“And you have served well all these years in repayment,” I said. “How is our new music teacher settling in any way?”

His ears lowered just slightly before he perked them back up again. “As happy as anypony could be. Though he did get a little scared upon seeing the ponies sleeping off their feedings,” he said and grinned. “Loved the room we found for him, spartan though it was. I thought ponies liked having… lots of things?”

“Guess he is different from the norm with that, else he knows he will have time to make it his own with things.”

Apatelodes shrugged, “I just wonder if he will have what it takes. Seems delicate.”

“We will find out tomorrow,” I said and brought a napkin to my mouth, dabbing off the fruit juices from my chin. Many changelings had already left the dinner table, those working in the kitchens having cleared most of it. Nemoria and Acronicta had left still giggling about Shiny Whistle.

“Ready to retire, my Queen?” Apatelodes said, popping one last pear slice into his mouth before standing.

I nodded and stood. “Tomorrow is to be a long day.”

Apatelodes chuckled and nodded. “Especially for that Shiny Whistle? He’s sure to get a culture shock. Shall I lead the way back to your quarters?”

“Yes, but he’ll adjust fast,” I said as we left the dining room.

“My Queen!” A young changeling, Danaus, yelled out, barging out from a door leading downstairs and coming to bow before me. “Sorry to interrupt you my Queen, but it is happening!”

“What’s happening?”

“Why, the hatching! She’s getting ready to hatch! Phengaris sent me up to get you, knowing you would want to be there for her birth.”

“Wait, does he mean my daughter?” Chrys gasped.

“Your DAUGHTER?” I yelled. She hadn’t mentioned anything like this!

“No my Queen, your daughter,” Danaus said.

“No time to explain right now dearie, get down there!”

I nodded to Danaus. “Lead the way. Apatelodes, you come too. I haven’t been down there since I…”

“Became our Queen?” Aptelodes whispered, head following Danaus as he nodded and turned around, leading us back down the door and stairs he had just left.

“Yeah, that.”

“Now this is an experience you don’t want to miss,” Chrys sighed. “Nothing like the birth of a new life.”

“Then I hope we don’t miss it,” I said, following Danaus down a staircase across from the dining room. How could Chrys have forgotten to tell me she had an egg? How does one forget that?

“We keep them near the center of the castle,” Apatelodes said, as Danaus opened a door to our left and led us down a long hallway lined with green fire-lit torches. “In the hardest place for enemies to get to. They are our future after all. The hibernation room is right next to it. Thankfully we haven’t had to use it in some time. The blast that tossed us from Canterlot was filled with love and all changelings who had been there having an ample supply to share with those who had stayed. Not for much longer though…” we turned left, and a hallway with only two doors was revealed. By one door, two burly changeling guards, Attacus, who had a narrow scar running across his right cheek, and Astraptes, with a faint blue sheen to his black muzzle.

“We are here!” Danaus said, stopping in front of the guards and breathing hard from our rush.

Attacus nodded, and stepped aside for us. “You’re in luck my Queen, your egg hasn’t hatched yet.”

“Oh my, that is good news!” Chrys said.

“What?” I said mouth gaping open.

“Yep, she sure has taken her time. A little under a year. I bet you’re excited to meet her, my Queen?” Attacus said chuckling.

A year? Then did that mean?

“No, you forget that eggs between ponies and changelings are usually culled, she’s not Shining Armor’s. Her father is well, it was kind of a one-night stand… after our defeat at Canterlot, and losing the use of my wings, I was quite depressed… You haven’t met him yet as he has been scouting for a good place to capture some ponies. His name is Leptostales, a little older than most changelings, in fact, I think he might be almost as old as me, well the previous Queen me? He’s always been such a great friend.” Chrys sighed. “He’ll be sad he missed her birth.”

“Yes, I… I am excited,” I said. Here I was never having been pregnant myself, and I was to have a little girl. What was I going to do?

“Well you better take good care of her! That’s the first thing you should do,” Chrys said sternly. “Now, let’s get in there, I don’t want to miss her hatching!” I grinned and nodded, the rest could wait.

“Then we shall proceed inside,” I said. Attacus nodded, bowed, and opened the door. I turned back to Danaus, who was still breathing hard. “Thank you, Danaus for coming so quickly.”

“No problem, my Queen,” he said and plopped down on the ground, resting against the wall. “I’ll just… wait out here if that is okay?”

“Of course,” I said and smiled at him.

“After you, my Queen,” Apatelodes said. I took a deep breath and trotted inside, Apatelodes following behind me.

The room was dimly lit, just a single green fire lit torch on each wall. Lined against the walls to either side of me, twenty-four incubators, twelve of them to each side. Each one faintly glowing with a green light coming from the eggs. A single female changeling, Phengaris, her mane almost white, watched over one near the middle. She looked up as we entered and waved us over.

“Any moment now my Queen,” she said and grinned. “She’s quite excited to finally enter the world.”

I looked down into the incubator. The egg glowed a translucent green. Underneath the egg, a dark grey blanket. It rocked back and forth, a little chirping sound coming from it. A tiny black body showed against the green mucus inside, and I sighed, already caring for the little one.

With a loud crack, a hairline fracture spread across the egg, and the liquid leaked out. The egg continued to rock, a chip falling from near the top. It rocked faster, and with one last loud crack, split open and deposited the little black bundle on the blanket. She adjusted herself, and with a deep breath, lifted her head and opened her eyes. Big bright blue orbs staring into my own green ones.
“Oh, she is perfect,” Chrys sighed. “She is so beautiful.”

“Do you have a name picked out for her, my Queen?” Phengaris asked.

“Let’s name her Citheronia.”

I nodded. “Citheronia, I’d like to name her Citheronia.”

“What a beautiful name, I’ll note it down,” Phengaris picked up my tiny daughter and wiped off the slime and mucus from her carapace, then wrapped her in a clean blanket. “Would you like to hold her?”

“Of course!” I said and Phengaris handed her over to me. I held her tiny body close to mine, looking into her beautiful eyes, feeling her strong heartbeat against my own. She lifted a hoof to her mouth and sucked on it, a grin on her face. I smiled back.

“She’s probably hungry, would you like to feed her, or shall I, my Queen?” Phengaris said.

“Let’s do it, we just had a good feeding so we have love to give,” Chrys said. “I’ll instruct you.”

“I’ll do it,” I said and following Chrys’s instructions, held one of my own hooves to my daughter’s mouth. She let go of her own and gave an open mouth grin, revealing tiny fangs, and let out a little chirp of delight. She bit into my hoof. It hurt for a moment, but the pain passed as she drank the love from me. After about a minute she withdrew her fangs and let out a little burp, snuggling deeper into her blanket and closing her eyes.

I looked over at Apatelodes who watched Citheronia in silence. “A beauty, isn’t she?” I said turning back to look down at her.

“Yes, she is,” he said and smiled at me.

“Her incubator is ready for her,” Phengaris said. I looked up to see she had cleaned out the incubator, putting in a fresh blanket at the bottom. “I’ll take good care of her my Queen, you go get some beauty sleep.”

“You better,” I said, a low growl in my throat. I reluctantly handed her over to Phengaris and she placed her gently back into the incubator. It would keep her warm and help her grow, but I already missed the feeling of her little body next to mine. I smiled down at her as she rested. “Sleep well, my little one,” I said and kissed her forehead.

Changeling Castle- Queen’s Chambers-Queen Chrysalis

“Why didn’t you tell me we had an egg?” I yelled. I paced in our room, mind reeling at what had happened below.

“Would you believe I forgot?” Chrys said. “It has been a long last few weeks, I didn’t even know if I would make it. My memory might be good, but it is not perfect.”

I sat down on the foot of the bed, scratching one ear with my hoof. “Even still, how does one forget their own kid? I mean I understand she has been taking longer than usual to hatch but…” I sighed. “Does that happen often?”

“I haven’t been my usual self lately, but your right. I don’t know how I could have forgotten about her, especially her being my first daughter. I feel upset enough as it is with myself,” she sighed and continued. “No, not this long at least. After the egg is laid, it usually takes around six to seven months to mature before it hatches. One of the secrets of our long lives is we grow slowly,” she chuckled. “She took… well I laid her egg on my last… transformation day. Would have been a year this Tuesday.”

“Does that mean… something might be wrong with her then? Taking months longer than usual?” I asked gently.

“No, she is perfect, you saw so yourself!” Chrys said and growled. “Some changelings just take longer to mature than others. She will one day grow into a beautiful young changeling mare. Just give her time.”

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to imply she wasn’t,” I said. “I’m… excited to be able to help raise her.” I lie down on the bed, gazing up at the ceiling. “She’s your first daughter? I would have imagined you would have had many by now, having been the queen so long.”

“Yes,” Chrys said simply. “In recent centuries, for reasons not even our doctors can explain, females being born has become quite uncommon. Maybe one for every five hundred males, if we are lucky? So she has to be perfect, the hive needs her to produce healthy changelings when she is old enough.”

I smile. “Well then, we’ll just have to hope she will be and do everything in our power to protect her. I’ve never raised a kid before, but I will do my best.”

“And I will help you. I have had my fair share of sons in the last few centuries. Though many have passed in wars or from sickness,” Chrys sighed.

“I’m sorry,” I said. “So, what will happen when she grows up? Will she take our place on the throne? Or will we continue our little spell forever?”

“That will be greatly up to you dearie. The Chrysalis before me had a young daughter but decided to continue using the spell rather than give her the throne. When the time comes you could pick that route too. Or, maybe it will then be time for not only all the spirits of those who have come before, but our body as well, to rest.”

I pondered on the thought for a moment, then pushed it aside for now. After all, she had only just been born, there were still many years before she would be old enough to consider for the throne. I yawned, covering my mouth with one hoof.

“We should get to bed. A long day tomorrow after all,” Chrys said, and I nodded in agreement. Sleep did sound nice. I pulled back the blankets and curled up beneath them.

Changeling Castle- Third Floor- Left Wing- Shiny Whistle

“That should do it for tonight,” I said, wiping sweat off my forehead. Star Bright and I had gotten pretty far after supper. The bookcase was clean and lined with books, sheet music, and boxes of my penny whistles. The floor pristine, instruments stacked neatly in the back after having been polished, and I had fixed the chair with a broken leg. “Thank you so much for your help, I really appreciate you giving up your free time to do so Star.”

“Of course, I’m happy to help,” she said, wiping sweat from her forehead too.

“May I walk you back to your room?” I asked, and she blushed.

“Sure, you will still be able to find your way back though right?”

“I think I’ll manage,” I said and laughed. I closed the doors behind us as we left, and Star turned towards the stairs.

“I’m on the floor below, near the storage area,” she said and stepped down the stairs. I followed and as we arrived at the next floor, an orange earth pony mare with a red mane and a lasso cutie mark ran up to us.

“Have you guys heard? The Queen’s egg hatched tonight! A little changeling filly.”

“She finally hatched? That’s wonderful news,” Star said, a smile on her face. “Is she healthy? Doing okay?”

The mare nodded. “Yep, beautiful healthy little one.”

“That is good to hear. The Queen was so worried a few months ago when her egg didn’t hatch in the normal time period. Until she got sick,” Star sighed.

“I didn’t even know she had an egg,” I said.

“Well, of course, you just arrived,” Star said and chuckled. “Too bad we won’t be able to meet her for some time. Hatchlings are mostly kept in the nursery for their first few months. Even being the new princess, she probably will as well.”

Star thanked the mare, Rope Burn, and we continued on to her room. She stopped by a door near the end of the hall. “Well, this is it. Thank you for walking me down.” She gave me a little peck on the cheek, then with a grin magicked open her door, trotted in, and closed it behind her. I stood there for a full minute, bringing a hoof to the cheek she had kissed. My mouth dropped open slightly, I didn’t know what to do. I had not seen that coming, was she just teasing me? Or...? I sighed, mares were so confusing! I shook my head and glared at my bangs as they fell in front of my eyes. I really needed to get them cut.
I turned and headed back to the stairs. I still had much to do to prepare for my first class of students tomorrow. That list of materials for Queen Chrysalis for one. After walking up the stairs, I paused before my bedroom door. Tomorrow marked a new chapter in my life. If things worked out well, if I could help the young changelings out for the better, who knew what the future could hold?

Classes Begin

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Third Floor-Music Room-Shiny Whistle

I yawned walking into the music room. The bed had been comfortable enough, but I had still slept rather poorly. The little changelings were not due for another twenty minutes or so, and I still needed to write down that list for Queen Chrysalis. I grabbed a blank scroll and a quill and looked through my supplies. We’d need more sheet music for sure, quills, ink, some music stands, and more copies of The Beginners Guide to Playing the Penny Whistle by Golden Tone, that would probably be enough for now.

I sat the list aside, pinching up a bit of sand with my magic and spreading it over the scroll so the ink wouldn’t run or smear. A knock sounded at the door, and I set the list aside, trotting over to answer it. “Why hello there, Nemoria wasn’t it?” I said, seeing the petite changeling filly, a blue daisy tucked behind one of her ears.

“Yes sir,” she said and grinned. “Am I too early?”

“Not at all, I was just finishing setting up. Come on in and have a seat. Did you bring your whistle?”

She nodded, and opening her bag, levitated it out in front of her. “Right here!”

“Excellent, we shall begin when the others arrive,” I said. She nodded and trotted over to the little circle of chairs, turned to face the largest of the chalkboards.

“You might need more chairs than this,” she said. “A lot of my friends are planning on coming too.”

I nodded at that, levitating up a piece of chalk and starting to draw a picture of a penny whistle on the board. “I’ll add that to my list for Queen Chrysalis,” I said.

Nemoria sat down near the middle of the circle and placed her saddlebag down on the floor beneath her chair. Some giggles sounded from out in the hall and I looked up to see three more changelings walk in. Two males, one with an earring in his left ear, the other with a dark blue muzzle, and a female with a blue streak in her frilly mane. The female sat by Nemoria and the males on the far left.

“Welcome, young ones,” I said and grinned when Nemoria and her friend giggled. It was only a few minutes later when the rest had trickled in, filling the chairs with five other changelings standing in the back. Nemoria had been right, we would need more chairs. In total there were twenty young changelings, Nemoria and her friend being the only females surprisingly.

“I’m glad to see so many of you interested in learning to play,” I said, and the chatter between them stopped. They all looked my way, most looking excited, only one or two with bored looks. “Now, why don’t we start with introductions?”

“I’m Acronicta,” Nemoria’s friend said, and giggled.

“Euchaetes.”

“Pyrrharctia.”

“Horama.”

“Ephyriades.”

“Polingii.”

“Inachis.”

“Sthenopis.”

They began to introduce themselves, raising a hoof with each of their names. I grabbed a fresh scroll and wrote down all of their names as they listed them off, nodding to each in turn. As the last one spoke up, I wrote his name down and pinched up some sand, dusting the scroll with it, then rolled it up. “Excellent. It might take me a few weeks but I will learn each of your names. Please help me out for a bit with that.”

“Of course,” Nemoria said. “What shall we call you sir? Professor Whistle?”

“Oh… well sure that will work Nemoria. Now, shall we begin? Have you all received whistles?”

“I still need one Professor Whistle,” Sthenopis said quietly, raising his hoof. “My father gave me the bits for it this morning.” He levitated them over to me.

“Thank you,” I said, looking down at my list, “Sthenopis right?” He nodded. “Go ahead and go pick out a whistle from the bookshelf then Sthenopis.” Sthenopis stood and trotted over to the bookshelf, looking through them. “Anyone else?” A few others nodded and levitated their bits to me, also trotting over to pick out a whistle.

When everypony was settled back down, I turned to the board. “Now that we all have our whistles, we can start class. Let’s start with introducing you to the parts of the whistle and names of each note.”

“Thanks for coming everypony, make sure to practice your scales and arpeggios for the next class! I have a real treat of a song to start teaching you next time,” I said as they all stood, levitating their saddlebags back onto their backs. Acronicta and Nemoria giggled as they left last, their gazes flicking back to me every few seconds as they whispered close together.

As they reached the door I stood up straighter. Queen Chrysalis stood by the door, greeting the two changeling fillies and waving a hoof at them as they walked down the hall.

“Looks like you are making out well,” she said stepping slowly inside the room and looking around. “And the room looks amazing! How did you get it cleaned up so fast?”

“Well… I had a little help. Star Bright helped me when she was done with her chores,” I said and twirled one hoof around a dent in the floor.

“Star Bright?” She asked and got a faraway look in her eyes for a moment then nodded. “Right, the unicorn mare who works in the kitchens. Well, that was nice of her. I’m glad you are making friends already. How did your first class go?”

“It went great! A few of my students seem like they are just here because their parents want them to, but most of them are excited and willing to learn.” I looked over at the chalkboard, now covered in notes and pictures of the hoofings used to play the penny whistle. It was good they all had magic, which made it much easier to play. “We started learning scales and arpeggios.”

Queen Chrysalis nodded. “Yes, we all want our little ones well rounded, whether they want to be or not,” she said and chuckled. “Do you have that list for me?”

“Oh! Yes right here,” I said, and grabbed up the rolled-up scroll, levitating it over to her. “We also need more chairs. Five students had to sit on the floor today, so maybe ten more chairs for now just in case more students want to join. I haven’t heard from any of your adult changelings yet though.”

“That can be arranged, and they’ll probably get to you later this evening. Been a busy morning already for many. There is to be a feast tonight to celebrate the birth of my daughter.”

“Congratulations, by the way. I’m sure she will grow into a beautiful young changeling mare. Have you picked a name for her?”

She nodded, “Citheronia, and thank you. I sure hope she does,” she said, an almost sad tone to her voice. She looked back up at me and smiled. “Would you be willing to play some music for the feast?”

I started, gasping up at her in shock. “Oh um sure I can do that. Nopony is going to try to feed on me afterward will they?”

She closed her eyes and chuckled. “No, as a teacher you are exempt from that, remember?”

“Just checking,” I said and laughed hesitatingly. “Anything else I can do for you, my Queen?”

Her eyebrows rose in surprise for a moment, but then shook her head. “No, that is all. I will send a changeling off to get these for you right away. You have a good day, Shiny Whistle, and I will see you tonight.”

“You have a good day as well,” I said and bowed to her. “Let me know if there is anything else I can do for you.”

“Of course,” she said and turned around walking out of the room and closing the door behind her.

I took a deep breath and collapsed into one of the student’s chairs. What was I going to play for all her changelings? I had to make sure it was appropriate. How many were in her hive anyway? A few hundred, a few thousand? I hadn’t seen the inside of the dining room yet. Last night at dinner I had sat with Star and the other pony servants, in a small room just off the kitchens set aside for those ponies not being feeders.

I didn’t want to disappoint anypony, or well I guess anyling? Should I start saying that instead? I shook my head and blew a fringe of my mane out of my face when it fell in front of my eyes. “I think the first matter of business, will be to trim this,” I said and stood. I levitated over one of the books of changeling music and stuffed it in my saddlebag, along with my personal penny whistle. I would figure out a song a little later.

Levitating my saddlebag onto my back, I looked out the window at the castle grounds below. It was a beautiful day, the sun shining bright with only a few fluffy clouds in the sky. A few changelings ran around in the grass below, kicking a ball between them. Another sat atop one of the stone pillars of the wall surrounding the castle, a book levitated in front of them. Perhaps after a haircut, I would practice a song outside. I turned away and walked to the door of the classroom, and closed it behind me as I left.

Changeling Castle Grounds- Apatelodes

“There you are,” I growled. I had spent the last half hour trying to find Shiny Whistle, only to hear he had been outside the whole time. He looked up from his whistle playing, startled.

“Apatelodes! I’m sorry, the day was just so beautiful I figured I’d come out here to practice a few songs for tonight,” he said and stood up from his place against a tree, stretching.

“What do you mean for tonight?”

“Queen Chrysalis has asked me to play for the feast.”

“What?” He growled. Why would she want him playing at it?

He nodded. “I guess she likes my playing.” He placed his whistle in his bag and looked back at me. “So, time for that review then?”

I nodded, “follow me.” I led him back inside. “Did your first class go well?” I asked.

He nodded. “Had a lot of students, more of them than I had chairs for. I’m glad to see so many interested.”

“Well, we’ll just see how many stay that way,” I snorted. “What were you planning on playing for tonight?”

“Well I’m not sure yet, was thinking of "Beautiful Changeling" or "Love Me Pony", but then I haven’t had a chance to go through all this book of changeling songs yet. Unless you have another song to recommend?”

I shook my head. “I’ve never been much of one for music, I leave that mostly to you ponies. You’re the ones that burst out into song at the weirdest times. I mean who does that?”

He chuckled. “Yeah a lot of us are like that.”

“Well, I guess you are fine. For now,” I said and stared back at him. “I talked to a few of your students, and they do seem to have learned something. Just don’t give me a reason to revoke my decision.”

“Wouldn’t dream of it, thank you Apatelodes.”

Changeling Castle Grounds- Queen Chrysalis

After visiting with Shiny Whistle, I hoofed off the list to Danaus, and transforming into a blue pegasus with a flowing white mane, he flew off towards Ponyville. He should easily be back in time for the feast that night, as long as he found everything on the list easily enough.

Tables and chairs levitated in the air as preparations began. The dining room was too small for the whole hive to sit in for the celebratory feast, and Chrys and I wanted everyling to be able to attend that was possible. Nemoria and Acronicta practiced their whistles over to the side of the area set aside for preparations and I smiled over at them. Just one day of practice and they were already sounding better, a lot less shrill notes.

Two unicorn ponies worked on a little wooden stage in the left corner. Shiny Whistle would not be the only performer tonight. Some changelings were to do a dance, an earth pony juggling, and even one unicorn pony who was to do magic tricks.

“This is going to be perfect! We haven’t had a celebration like this in years! I’m glad you suggested it.”

“Well of course, every kid deserves to have a special celebration once in a while. And the birth of a princess? A great reason to celebrate,” I said and grinned.

“Having a party and you didn’t invite me?”

“Discord!” Chrys and I said together, turning around to greet the draconequus.

“I’m sorry, in all the chaos it slipped my mind,” I said.

“Well no wonder I sensed something happening, if there is that much chaos,” Discord said and grinned, eyebrows wiggling. “A little bird told me it was for your daughter,” he said, snapping his fingers and making a robin appear, chirping, and then flying in a circle around his head before flying away.

“Well your little bird was right, she hatched last night.”

He smiled warmly at me and mussed a hand through my mane. “Well at least I am glad you are here for her,” he said then whispered, “Chrys.”

“At least in mind if not exactly body,” Chrys agreed, and I repeated to Discord her thoughts.

“True that,” he said. “So where is the little pupa?”

“Still in the nursery. She’s going to have a long night, so figured getting in a nap now would be best for her.”

He nodded at that thoughtfully, rubbing his goatee. “And you, my dear? How are you adjusting to being a quadruped, magic, flying?”

“Not too bad for it having been only a few days. At least I haven’t tripped in front of anyling yet.”

“No, but it does seem you have the lingo down,” he chuckled.

A wave of magic pulsed behind us, and I turned around to see a unicorn stallion lighting lanterns hanging above us. Upon meeting my gaze he jumped. “I… I’m sorry I didn’t mean to disturb you,” he mumbled and backed up.

Is everypony scared of us that much? I wondered and shook my head at him. “No need to apologize, you’re just doing your job.” I grinned at him and then turned back to Discord.

“Sorry about that dearie, I do admit I have had my bad years, and they all remember that too well. But it is almost time for the feast. The sun well set soon, and then shall the fun begin! Let’s take Discord and go down to get Citheronia.”

I nodded and turned to Discord. “Almost time to begin. Care to come with me to the nursery and bring up my daughter?”

“Certainly!” he said and magicked himself into an expensive-looking black suitcoat, a teal-colored rose in his buttonhole. “Let us go.”

“Show off,” Chrys muttered and I smiled. We stepped inside and walked toward the nursery.

Attacus nodded to me and bowed as we came to the door. “My Queen, Lord Discord. Come to collect the young princess?”

I nodded, and he stepped aside, opening the door for us. “My has it been a LONG time since I was last in here,” Discord said, looking around. “Over one hundred years I believe?”

Phengaris trotted up to us, meeting at Citheronia’s incubator. “Citheronia is doing well my Queen,” she said. Discord and I looked down at Citheronia. She must have felt her mother was near, as even though she was sleeping she stirred and opened her eyes, looking up at us. She let out a chirpy giggle and smiled.

“Thank you, Phengaris,” I said and levitated Citheronia up into my hooves. Discord looked down at her and a sly grin filled his face. “And what is that sly grin for?” I asked.

“This little one will be quite a hoofful for you when she gets older,” he chuckled.

“Oh, so you can tell the future now?”

“Perhaps,” he said and tickled Citheronia under her chin. She wiggled in my hooves, trying to get away from his clawed paw, but with a smile on her face.

“I guess we shall see what happens then,” I said and shifting her to a more comfortable position so I could hold her in one hoof, took a deep breath, and headed for the door slowly. I chose my steps carefully. Tripping on my own was one thing, but tripping with little Citheronia in my hooves was out of the question.

“Indeed we shall,” Discord said and followed me back to the door.

The halls were nearly empty as we came back to the main floor, a changeling running back and forth here and there finishing up some last-minute task before the feast. I felt a tug on my mane and looked down to see Citheronia had grabbed a strand of it and placed it in her mouth. A grin came to my face and I kissed her on her forehead.

Apatelodes stepped inside from a door to the outside and bowed to me. “Everything is ready, my Queen,” he said and seeing Discord nodded to him. “Good to see you Discord.”

“Then let us head on out,” I said.

“Always good to see you Apatelodes. This will be quite the party,” Discord said, needling his fingers together.

I narrowed my eyes at him, a slight grin on my face. “You know you are sounding like that Pinkie Pie right?”

“Me?” he said, paw and claw to his chest in mock surprise. “Is there a problem with liking parties?”

“No,” I said, and turned to the door, following Apatelodes. Discord snickered and followed us.

I leaned back in my chair, stomach distended, licking my lips. The feast so far had been a success. Everyling was laughing and joking, the young ones running around, chasing each other. The entertainment was about to begin. Discord sat to my right, Apatelodes next to him, a frown on his face. Our table was situated in front of the stage.

The first act was to be three changelings doing a dance. While I waited for them to be ready I ran a hoof through my daughter's little frill. The excitement had tired her out, and she was resting peacefully in my hooves. She stirred, and turned on her side, smacking her lips and licking them. I had given her more love earlier, and her little stomach was as distended with it as my own. Under the light of the lamps, her carapace almost looked a midnight blue.

“She might end up having traces of blue after she has molted a few times.” Chrys said. “It does happen sometimes.” We looked up as the changelings around us clapped, seeing the others step on stage. Two other changelings levitated a piano beside the stage, and one a chair. Hitting his hooves together, the one who had brought the chair sat down and began to play.

Slow music played as he tapped the keys, and the three dancers pirouetted around the stage, forehooves spread wide, bending down into a plie and jumping into the air, twirling once and landing back in a plie. I continued to watch, eyes half-closed, absentmindedly rubbing Citheronia’s belly. She yawned and wiggled deeper into her blanket.

When the performance was done, I clapped along with everyling else as the changelings bowed and left the stage, helping the others take the piano back inside. A little green unicorn mare, her mane yellow with a cutie mark with three gold stars and a seven of clubs between them stepped onto the stage to take her turn. A midnight blue magician’s hat with a gold satin ribbon tied around the brim sat upon her head, and to her side was a small table, a midnight blue blanket over the top of it. A stack of cards, three silver rings, and a fat white rabbit in a wire cage was placed on top of it.

She smiled nervously at us all, then took a deep breath and began. Levitating up the three rings, she showed us they were all connected, then with a sweep of her hooves, the middle ring fell to the ground, the others one in each hoof. I clapped along with the rest as she bowed, putting the rings back on the table and grabbing the deck of cards. “Now,” she said, and looked at me. “My queen, would you be willing to help with this next trick?” I grinned and nodded, stood up, and gently placed the sleeping Citheronia in Discord’s paws

“Be careful with her,” I said, giving him a stern look, and walked up to the stage. Discord just grinned and nodded, hugging her close. I looked back to the green unicorn. “What can I do for you?”

She held out the deck of cards and spread them out. “Pick a card, any card, and show it to the audience, but don’t let me see it!” I pulled out a card, the queen of spades, and held it out to show the audience. I grinned seeing Apatelodes looking away.

“Ah that stubborn changeling,” Chrys said, and snickered.

“Okay, now put it back in the deck,” the green unicorn said, and I did so, making sure she still couldn’t see it. Pulling the cards back she pulled them back into a pile. “Now,” she said and tapped the deck twice. “Is this your card?” She pulled from the top of the pile the Queen of Spades.

“Yes, indeed it is,” I said, and she grinned, the changelings clapping around us. She bowed and I returned to my seat.

“Now, I believe our guest Discord will enjoy this next trick the most,” she said and levitated the rabbit out of his cage. Discord handed Citheronia back to me and rubbed his paw and claw together in anticipation. The green unicorn shot a bolt of magic at the rabbit, one eye closed, and the rabbit started croaking like a toad, his chest rising and falling in a big bubble with each croak. She shot another bolt of magic at it, and its legs grew long and stick thin, rubbery skin replacing the fur. The rabbit croaked in shock and began to run in circles around the stage, before tripping over its new feet.

Discord howled with laughter, tears trickling from his eyes as he grinned mischievously at the unicorn. “Now this mare is hilarious!” He said, still laughing, and I had to hush him so he wouldn’t wake my daughter. The unicorn zapped the rabbit once more, and it returned to its natural form. She put it back into its cage and bowed to us. She levitated her things off the stage as she left for the next entertainer.

I grinned upon seeing Shiny Whistle nervously step onto the stage, he gulped and his eyes went wide upon seeing the large audience. He had a new hairdo, his bangs now stopping just above his eyes, the rest running down his back and withers with a slight curl. Some changelings cheered for him a few tables down from mine, and I turned to see Nemoria and Acronicta, their own whistles waving in the air. They wiggled in their seats as they cheered again.

“Well he has certainly won over the little changeling fillies,” Chrys said. I nodded and watched as he turned to look at them and relaxed. He looked over at me and smiled, then lifted his penny whistle to his mouth and began to play. “Oh, I know this song, it is one of ours. He must have looked through a changeling songbook.” Chrys began to hum along in my head, and I smiled. She then began to sing along.
“Beautiful changeling, gaze up at me,
Love juice and ponies are there to feed thee.
Noise of the princesses heard by the bay,
Stopped by your dear queen have all gone away.
Beautiful changeling, queen of my song,
List while I woo thee with soft melody.
Fled have the woes of life’s ev’ry wrong,
Beautiful changeling, do gaze up at me.
Beautiful changeling, do gaze up at me!

Beautiful changeling, out on a hunt,
Ponies will never catch onto our front.
By Canterlot deception is borne,
Naught to diminish feeding with horn.
Beautiful changeling, keep up the part,
Then the love we’re craving all will be free.
Those ponies world will all tear apart,
Beautiful changeling, do gaze up at me,
Beautiful changeling, do gaze up at me!”

As Shiny Whistle lifted his head after playing, cheers and hoof clapping came from near every changeling. Nemoria and Acronicta did loop de loops above their chairs, and Discord stood, applauding. Citheronia stirred in my hooves and turned her head to look over at the stage, her big bright eyes glistening as she watched Shiny Whistle, and she gave a toothy grin at him.

Shiny Whistle blushed and put his whistle in his bag, taking a bow. He stepped off the stage and a dark blue earth pony stepped up, bowling pins stuffed in his saddle bag. He took them out of his bag and standing up on his back hooves, began to juggle them. But my attention wasn’t on him. I couldn’t get Shiny Whistle’s song out of my head. He could have played any old song, but he went through the trouble of learning one of ours.

“And for having such little time to learn it, he sure did well,” Chrys said. “What are we going to do with our new music teacher?”

“Not kill him, I would hope?” I said quietly, and Chrys chuckled. I shook my head, turning back to the juggling pony and trying to pay attention to him. We couldn’t possibly think about it, no. We might be able to feel affection, but love? No, he just played enchanting music that was all. Our heart was black and cold, if anything we were just lusting after him.

“Yes, it is just like it was with Shining Armor. It is only the idea of conquering him that stirs in us,” Chrys said in agreement. I looked down at Citheronia, who had snuggled back down in her blanket when Shiny Whistle had left. Discord chuckled beside me and I looked up, the earth pony had dropped one of the bowling pins on his head and was rubbing the spot it had hit.

“This has been quite entertaining Chrys, but I must get back. Fluttershy and I have a tea party planned for tomorrow morning, and I really must get some rest for that,” Discord said and stood.

“I still can’t believe you are friends with her, how can you be friends with both of us?” Wow, Chrys was rubbing off on me, I was starting to be annoyed by even Fluttershy!

“That just makes life more chaotic, the way I like it,” he said and chuckled. “She really is a sweet pony. If you weren’t so keen on draining their love, you might get to like them.”

I snorted. “Only way that would happen is if I was to reform, and sorry Discord, but I don’t plan on doing so. Being good is boring.”

“Ah, only a few days and you are getting so much closer to your ‘old’ self,” he chuckled. “Don’t forget to invite me if something… chaotic happens.”

“I won’t forget next time,” I promised him, and with a wink and a pop, he was gone.

Apatelodes sighed and stood. “My Queen, it grows late. Shall we head back to the nursery and get your little Citheronia to bed?”

“Yes, it is starting to get cold out here anyway, wouldn’t want her to catch a chill.” As the other changelings finished the last of their meals, laughing and joking with each other, Apatelodes and I turned toward the castle and headed inside.

Panic

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Changeling Castle-Main Floor-Shiny Whistle

I sat down in the ponies' little dining room, taking deep breaths. That had been terrifying! If it hadn’t been for Nemoria and Acronicta’s cheering, I don’t think I could have done it. I snorted, just look at me, I was a performer, and yet being in front of so many changelings had utterly left me limp. I hadn’t been able to count all of them, but it sure looked like there were a few thousand at least. I wiped a drop of sweat from my head and looked up as there was a knock on the open door. Star Bright stood there, a big grin on her face.

“You were brilliant!” she said, coming to sit down next to me.

“How were you able to watch me? I didn’t see anypony but the ones performing out there.”

“I listened from my bedroom window. Has a good view from there. I was one of the few lucky ones not to be a feeder pony tonight so I went to where I knew I’d be able to listen.”

“Well, I’m glad you enjoyed it, seems the changelings did as well. I’m just glad it is all over,” I sighed and leaned back in my chair.

“At least you helped make Princess Citheronia’s first-party a success. Queen Chrysalis seemed especially happy with how things went, and that is what is important.”

“Yes, keeping her happy keeps everypony happy.” I let out a yawn and Star Bright smiled.

“Looks like you need some rest. I can imagine why, today being so stressful. Need some help to your room?” she asked.

“Might be a good idea,” I said and stood. My heartbeat was finally slowing down. I readjusted the saddlebags on my back.

“Then I will,” she said and stood as well. She led the way through the hall and toward the stairs. “By the way, I like your manecut. Now everypony can see your eyes.” Grinning, she trotted forward.

I blushed but continued to follow her. Turning the corner, Star Bright yelped and I hurried to catch up to see she had run into Queen Chrysalis and Apatelodes! She bowed low to the Queen. “I am so sorry, I should have been watching where I was going. Is your daughter okay?”

Queen Chrysalis nodded, smiling when she spotted me trot up behind Star Bright. “Yes, she is well. What are you two doing out here?”

“I’m just leading Shiny Whistle back to his room,” Star Bright said, and smiled back at me.

“Right, don’t be mad at her please, I asked for her help,” I said and lowered my ears to my skull. Apatelodes snorted at us, then turned back to Queen Chrysalis.

“My Queen, we should get going, the princess needs her sleep after all. I’ll take care of these two later,” he stared hard at us.

“I’m not mad Shiny Whistle, just watch where you two are going next time?” she said and held her daughter closer. “I enjoyed your song, by the way. Excellent performance, and song choice. It has always been one of my favorites.”

My ears perked back up at that, and I grinned. “Thank you, my Queen, and I’m glad I picked one you like.”

A little chirp came from the bundle in her hooves, and I raised my head in surprise as her daughter, Citheronia? turned to look at me, her eyes such a bright blue, and she smiled. “Hello there,” I said to her and stepped closer. “You are quite beautiful, little one." She grinned at me and I grinned back. She sure was adorable, for a changeling. I reached a hoof forward and tickled her under the chin.

“That might not be a good idea…” Queen Chrysalis started to say, as her daughter looked down at my hoof and sank her fangs into it. I cringed, biting my tongue so as not to cry out. A strange feeling flowed through me, almost like ice in my veins, and I realized she must be feeding on me. It lasted only a moment before Queen Chrysalis was able to get my hoof away from her daughter and looked at me apologetically. “Now I’m sorry. I should have warned you, she’s a biter.”

“Oh… it’s okay, no harm done,” I said and looked down at my hoof. Tiny fang marks pocked it.

“That will teach you to try to touch the princess,” Apatelodes hissed, stepping between me and Queen Chrysalis and her daughter.

Star Bright trotted over to me and took my hoof in hers, looking at the bite. “At least the bite is clean, it should heal well.” She bowed to the Queen and Apatelodes. “I’ll get Shiny Whistle to his room, you have a lovely evening, my Queen.” With that, she practically pulled me past them and started up the stairs.

“What was up with that? Don’t you know better to keep your hooves away from changeling hatchlings?” Star asked, and I was surprised by the venom in her voice.

“Of course not, until yesterday I haven’t been around any changelings, let alone one that young.” I paused. “I’m not sure what made me do it though, one moment I was just admiring how cute she was, then she gazed at me with those big blue eyes and I had the urge to tickle her.”

Star stopped in her hoofsteps and gazed over at me. “Less than twenty-four hours old, and already so powerful. She is certainly her mother’s daughter.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“She must have hypnotized you Shiny. Thought you looked appetizing and wanted a taste.”

I stopped one hoof in the air. “That’s… kind of a scary idea. Then if Queen Chrysalis is unable to defeat the princesses, her daughter likely will, when she grows up.” I didn’t know what to think about her being able to hypnotize me. Was I that weak? Or she just that strong?

“Hopefully by that time, she won’t need to,” Star sighed. “Come on, let’s get you to bed.” Yawning I nodded. Even having only been fed off of for only a few seconds, I now felt about ready to pass out. I leaned against Star for support up the stairs, and she put a hoof around my back to steady me. “If you’re this bad from such a quick feeding, you’d be out like a light with a real one,” she teased, and I gave her a tired smile.

“Well, then I guess it is good this won’t be a regular thing. Ugh, my head hurts.”

“I’ll help with that when we get to your room. After being here so long, many of us unicorns have come up with a spell to help with what we call a ‘feeding hangover’,” she chuckled.

It seemed like forever before we reached my door, and she stopped us in front of it. “Think you can get into bed by yourself?” she asked, grinning.

I nodded. “I think so, after that spell?”

“Of course,” she said and laid her horn against mine, mumbling a spell. Her horn glowed amber, flowing over to my own. The pain diminished greatly, leaving behind only a dull ache.

“Oh, that is much better,” I sighed, “thank you.”

“Glad to help, now you go get some sleep. You still have your class to teach tomorrow after all.”

“Yes… class. Need to be awake for that.” I yawned and she magicked open my door for me. I smiled and stepped inside, turning around to face her again. “Goodnight Star Bright, heh that rhymes,” I laughed and she just giggled at me.

“Get some sleep you silly pony,” she said and closed the door. I grinned and walked toward my bed, stumbling along the way but not falling over. I climbed up, collapsing on the covers, too tired to pull them down, and closed my eyes.

Changeling Castle-Nursery-Apatelodes

I couldn’t believe the nerve of that pony. Tickling the princess, who did he think he was? And yet Queen Chrysalis hadn’t even punished him. Though, I suppose getting bitten by her was a good enough punishment. Now he knew how it felt. I chuckled and looked over to where my Queen was smiling down at the princess, watching as she slept in her incubator. I yawned and looked around at the other eggs. A few were close, little chirps coming from them occasionally, but even they would still be a few weeks until they hatched. Until then Citheronia would be the only hatchling in Phengaris’s care.

“Well, we better get to sleep,” Queen Chrysalis said with a sigh. “I really need to teach Citheronia not to bite, but then there is time for that, she is still very young.” She turned to Phengaris. “Take good care of her tonight.”

“Of course my Queen, always will,” she said and smiled when Queen Chrysalis bent down to kiss Citheronia on the forehead.

“Come, Apatelodes,” Queen Chrysalis said, and nodding, I followed her to the door, opening it for her. “Thank you,” she said and trotted out.

“You’re welcome, my Queen,” I said. We walked in silence, both of us pretty tired, judging by the bags under her eyes and how every once in a while she stumbled, not falling but enough of a misstep to startle her awake each time it happened. I fell into step a little closer to her, ready to catch her should she really fall. Queen Chrysalis fumbled with opening her door when we arrived but finally magicked it open after a few tries.

“Sleep well Apatelodes,” she said and put a hoof to my chitinous back. “Thanks for all the help you have been giving me since I… arrived. I don’t know what I would have done without you and Chrys.”

I blushed green and bowed my head slightly. “But of course my Queen, I wouldn’t have it any other way. Sleep well,” I said and looked back up at her. She nodded and put her hoof back down, turning around and walked inside, the door closing behind her.

I walked back down the hall, tired but my mind too occupied to sleep. Stopping by a window, I put my forehooves on the windowsill and looked out. The moon was full tonight, a few clouds floating past it, stars bright in such a clear sky. A large shadow flew across the moon, possibly that of a manticore? It was too far away to tell for sure. A chill ran down my spine as if something was watching me. I looked down into the woods, and spotted a faint reddish light, like that from a unicorn’s horn.

A cloud moved away from the moon and I saw a cloaked figure, about the size of a pony, looking in my direction. It gave a low chuckle and the reddish light dissipated. Turning around, it walked back into the forest and was soon out of sight. I was wide awake now, my curiosity piqued. I had to know who or what had been watching me. Was it just a unicorn? Or something more sinister?

I stepped up onto the window sill and stretching out my wings, jumped and buzzed down toward the forest. If there was some danger to the hive, to my Queen, then I would take care of it now. I dropped down to the forest floor, my eyes quickly adjusting to what little light trickled through the trees. My ears perked, listening for where it had gone, I trotted forward, stepping carefully around some blackberry bushes and hopping over a boulder half-buried in the ground.

“I thought you might follow me, little changeling.” I jumped upon hearing the voice and saw the cloaked figure walking toward me from my left. It laughed, obviously amused at having startled me.

“What do you want, and why were you watching me?” I hissed at it, pulling my ears back against my skull.

“Oh, temper, temper. Do you think that wise not knowing who you are up against?” Its eyes, obscured by its hood, glowed red, along with some type of necklace around its neck. I couldn’t make out the shape well enough in the darkness to know what it was. Its voice was... weird, not high like a mare nor lower like most stallions, making it nigh impossible to make out its gender.

“And who are you?” I asked, baring my fangs.

“Who I am is not important at the moment, just let your queen know I am watching. Things are going to heat up in Equestria soon, and she’ll need to decide which side she wants to be on. The choice could determine if her new daughter and the rest of you survive.”

“Are you threatening us?” I growled. “You are just a single pony, not even a princess,” I snort. “You don’t scare us.”

“Oh, but by the time I return, you will be scared. Go to bed, little changeling, I shall see you again soon. The Umbrum will be excited.” It let out a dark chuckle, and its horn and necklace glowed again, and with a flash of light and puff of smoke, was gone.

I scratched my frill, puzzled by this pony who thought we’d be scared of it. But then, it did seem to have some amazing power. Was it all from that necklace? Some ancient magical relic? I rose into the air, buzzing back toward the castle. I didn’t want to bother Queen Chrysalis tonight about it, she was probably already asleep, but I knew I couldn’t sleep now. I landed back on the window sill I had left and stepped down to the ground. I would just have to puzzle this out and talk with her in the morning.

Queen’s Chambers-Queen Chrysalis

I stretched as the sun’s rays fell on me and yawned, opening my eyes. I rolled over onto my stomach and stretched out my wings. Really had to remember to stop sleeping on my back, or at least to spread out my wings first. Had a kink in my back from sleeping on them weirdly.

A loud knock sounded at my door, and I stood, walking over and opening it. Before me stood a frantic looking Apatelodes, frilly mane disheveled and sticking out as if he had stuck his hoof in a light socket. Large bags were under his eyes, which looked more of a grey-blue today instead of their normal bright blue. He must not have slept last night.

“I wonder what happened.” Chrys said. “He… looks like he saw a ghost or a wendigo.”

“Is everything okay?” I asked. “You don’t look so good. I thought you were off to bed when we parted.”

“I couldn’t sleep,” he said shifting his weight from hoof to hoof. “Would it be appropriate for me to come in, my Queen? There is something I must tell you before breakfast, and I don’t want to scare anyling that might pass by.”

“He wouldn’t do anything to us, let him in. If he is this upset, something bad must have happened.” I nod and step to the side, and he rushes in, pacing across the floor back and forth.

“We… had a visitor last night,” he said, and ran a hoof through his frill again, making part of it frizz.

“What were they doing here so late? Who were they?”

“I… I’m sorry my Queen but I don’t know who they were. They were covered in a cloak. They were a unicorn, but that is about as much as I know on that.”

“Now I know something must be wrong. Apatelodes has never been scared of a pony before. Nor does he even usually get scared in general.” Chrys said.

“So, what happened? Did they try to hurt you?”

He shook his head. “No, just startle me a bit. They came to give a… warning.”

“A pony warning us? What did they want to warn us about, a cold winter this year?”

“This is serious my Queen, not a joke!” Apatelodes yelled. “They said Equestria was going to heat up soon, and you’d have to choose a side,” he gulped. “Then they threatened not only the hive but your daughter specifically.”

“But Apatelodes, it was just a pony, a unicorn maybe but I think the hive would be a bit too much for them to handle alone. Though how they knew of my daughter, now that could be a matter of concern. The only one who doesn’t live here who knows of her is Discord, and he wouldn’t be talking to everypony about her.”

“I haven’t mentioned the part that worries me the most yet, my Queen,” he said and went back to pacing.

“What worries you most?”

“Their necklace. When they used their magic, their eyes, horn, and necklace all glowed red. And they used powers I thought only alicorns could use. They teleported, and not just a few feet, but far away enough that they were nowhere in sight.”

A glowing red necklace… that sounded familiar. But I thought the princesses had it now? How could some other unicorn have gotten ahold of it? Or was it a different one? Was there more than one? Now I could see why Apatelodes was so frazzled. “Did they say anything else?”

Apatelodes nodded. “That they would be watching, and would return soon. Also, their parting remark was… confusing.”

“What did they say?”

“The Umbrum will be excited. What in the hay is an Umbrum?”

“No, nonononono, they are locked away, they have been for over one thousand years! There is no way they can return. If they are coming, all is doomed. They will ruin everything we and the Chrysalis’s before us have worked for.” Chrys said, panicking.

“I don’t know what they are, but Chrys sure does, and they are not good. We must gather everyling scattered across Equestria. As quickly as possible. We need everyone here, where they can be protected.”

“Shall I send some changelings out to look for the others?”

“Yes, but make sure they are in a pair at least, if not more. I want no changeling by themselves out there.” I took a deep breath, Chrys panicking was starting to make me panic, and we couldn’t have that. I needed to keep a cool head. “But don’t tell them what you have just told me. The fewer who know right now the better. Can you do that?”

“Of course my Queen, you know I can keep a secret. I shall send out the forces right away,” he said and took a deep breath. As he turned, he caught his reflection in the mirror and grinned at me. “Well, right after I get cleaned up. Looking like this will certainly draw suspicion. Stay safe my Queen, I will be back.” With that he hurried out the door, closing it behind him.

“Oh what are we getting into?” Chrys moaned, and I couldn’t agree more.

The Journey Begins

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Two weeks later…
Changeling Castle-Music Room-Shiny Whistle

“Great job today everyling, keep practicing and I’ll see you Monday!” I grinned at my growing class. In the last two weeks, I had gained another eight students in the regular class, and three adults who came once a week when they had the time. Nemoria and Acronicta were still the only females. But through it all, there was a foreboding feeling in the castle. I especially sensed it around Queen Chrysalis and Apatelodes. The empty rooms around my own were filling up with changelings as they returned to the castle.

I straightened a pile of sheet music on my desk, and replaced the extra quills in a cup next to them, and wondered. Why were all the changelings returning? Had something gone wrong out in Equestria? Whatever happened, neither Queen Chrysalis nor Apatelodes were speaking. Picking up my pennywhistle, I walked out the door of the music room and closed it behind me. I’d be eating lunch alone today, Star Bright taking her turn as a feeder today. As I came down the stairs to the door leading into the dining room, Queen Chrysalis stepped down from the right-wing stairs.

“Ah Shiny, there you are. How was class today?”

“It went excellent, everyone is improving and doing their best. A few might be ready for a small performance even soon.”

“Excellent, excellent,” she said, looking over my shoulder. I turned, seeing nothing there. What in the hay was up with her? She had seemed distracted ever since the morning after the feast. Almost scared even. I longed to ask her, but if she hadn’t told anypony or changeling else yet, what were the chances she would tell me?

“Are you okay?” I asked, stepping closer to her.

“Once every changeling is home I will be,” she said. “Once he is home.”

“He?”

“Oh, Leptostales, the father of my daughter. He is one of my dearest friends, and it has been months since I last saw or even heard from him. I hope he is okay.”

Was that what had been bothering her? His disappearance? At least he was just a friend, but no, I shouldn’t be thinking that. But, it was hard not to. I had to admit, I had grown to care for the changeling queen. Sure she had her odd times, seeming to stare into space and talk to herself, but something just drew me to her.

“Well, I’ll let you get to eating, I’m sure you’re hungry, with a second mouth to feed.”

She chuckled. “Yes, but I wouldn’t give her up for the world. She will have her first molting soon, they grow up so fast.” She turned toward the dining room and nodded to me. “Enjoy your lunch Shiny,” and put one hoof to the door to push it open.

“My Queen!” We both turned as Apatelodes came running toward us. “We’ve found him!”

Queen Chrysalis’s mood brightened at his words, her ears perked up and wings raised. “Where was he?”

“Is he, actually my Queen,” Apatelodes said and looked down. “He is in the Canterlot dungeons. One of our informants said he was captured about a month ago.”

“What?” Chrysalis growled. “And noling has tried to rescue him?”

“He is well guarded, noling has even been able to get close.”

“I might be able to help,” I said, and they both turned to look at me. I blushed and lowered my ears. “It’s just… maybe Princess Celestia will listen to a pony who wants him released? I did meet her once, maybe she’ll listen to me?”

Apatelodes snorted. “This isn’t some ploy to try to escape is it?”

“No! I enjoy it here,” I said, and grinned at Queen Chrysalis. “My classes are going so well, and I never had such a big group of ponies interested as I do your changelings. No, I just want to be of help.”

Queen Chrysalis nodded, “Then let’s do it. If I must I will fight Celestia to get him back, but if you can convince her to let him go, that will be all the better.”

“Wait, you can’t take such a long trip, my Queen, what about Citheronia? And… the rest?” Apatelodes looked at me. Yes, they were hiding something.

“You will do well in my place while I am gone Apatelodes. You know the turmoil that has been happening, and I trust you to watch over Citheronia.”

“What? You’re leaving me here too? My Queen, I… this is unwise, pardon me saying, but you’re going all the way to Canterlot with just him?” he said, and pointed a hoof at me.

“We can travel faster that way.”

“But he’s a unicorn, he can’t fly! The closest train station isn’t until Dodge Junction, you’d have to walk.”

I glared at him. “Come on Apatelodes, don’t you trust me yet?”

“No!” he growled. “I’m the Queen’s guard, I’m the one who needs to be there to protect her.”

“I’ll be fine Apatelodes, but Citheronia needs someling strong and cunning to protect her. Please do that for me?” She puckered her lips into a frown, giving what I can only call a ‘puppy dog face’ at him.

He groaned, rubbing his head. “Very well my Queen. But you better return!”

Queen Chrysalis chuckled and rubbed a hoof through his frill. “I will always return,” she said and turned to me. “I must join my changelings for lunch first, but shortly after be ready to leave. Get something for yourself to eat, then pack your saddlebags.”

I nodded. “I shall do so, my Queen. See you soon!” I watched as she and Apatelodes walked into the dining room, and the door closed behind them. I turned to face the ponies’ dining room. There wouldn’t be time to say goodbye to Star Bright, but I would return.

Dining Room- Apatelodes

Why did I agree to such a foalish plan? I couldn’t lead the other changelings, even if it was just for a short while. How could I keep them all from panicking, with their queen missing from the hive? With the threat from that pony hanging over our shoulders, when they could return any time… what if they returned when she was gone? I sighed, unable to concentrate at even feeding off the pony in front of me. At least the pony seemed happy about that as she stared at me.

“Feed, Apatelodes. You’ll need the strength,” Queen Chrysalis said, and put a hoof to my shoulder.

“My Queen, I… I can’t do this. Please reconsider, the hive needs you here.”

“I can’t do that Apatelodes. If it was any other changeling maybe, but Leptostales… he’s different,” she sighed and nibbled on some cantaloupe.

“A queen’s not supposed to have favorites,” I said quietly and she turned and glared at me. “I’m… just trying to protect you. What would we do without you?” Oh great, now she had me getting sentimental.

“I appreciate that Apatelodes, I really do,” she said softly.

“Then please, tell me why you must be the one to go, and not someling else? Give me one good reason and I will shut up about it,” I said, and put one hoof to her own.

She sighed, then drew closer, whispering in my ear. “Because Chrys feels guilty about it. He’s always been so good at what he does, that she hasn’t realized he is getting older and is not his youthful self anymore. The princesses might not be the type to kill, but being trapped in the dungeons for too long will just as well kill him from starvation of love.”

“That might be so, but you’re not so young yourself anymore, excuse me saying. You’re… renewal returned some of your youth and healed old wounds, but without the power of Shining Armor’s love, can you best Princess Celestia? With none of us there to help?”

“I don’t know Apatelodes. But I have to try,” I said, then whispered, “for Chrys’s sake.”

“Have you ever practiced your transformations? You can’t go walking into Canterlot looking like yourself.”

She nodded. “A little bit, I have been pretty distracted these last few weeks. But I’m sure I can pass well enough, as long as I don’t pick some pony who everyone knows this time.”

I sighed, ears going down halfway, and looked over at her. “I’m not going to convince you otherwise am I?”

“Nope, I’m going.”

“Then be careful. Don’t take any unnecessary risks. Don’t reveal your true self unless necessary. And lastly,” I said, “return to us. Even if it means you must leave him behind. We can’t survive without you.”

She ruffled my frill with a hoof and smiled. “I will return. I’ve only been ruling for a few weeks, after all, I don’t plan on being the Queen who doesn’t even last a month.” She looked back to her feeder pony for today, that friend of Shiny Whistle, Star Bright. “Now, let’s feed. We’ll both need the energy.” I nodded and watched as she placed her horn against the pony’s neck.

I turned back to my feeder pony, a bright pink earth pony mare. I did need my strength. I wouldn’t fail my Queen. If she needed me to protect the hive, then I would.

Changeling Castle Grounds- Queen Chrysalis

Shiny Whistle and I stood by the iron gates. Apatelodes watching us from the doorway of the castle. His ears drooping and frill in disarray, I almost felt guilty leaving him.

“He’ll be fine. There’s no other changeling I would trust to be left in charge. Leptostales needs us now. I can’t let him die.”

I grinned. “And I thought you said you couldn’t love,” I whispered.

“I can’t.” she sighed. “Not in the way you are thinking of at least.”

“Ready to go?” Shiny Whistle asked. On his back, he carried saddlebags stuffed full of travel rations, his penny whistle strapped to the side in a little satchel. He grinned at me, and I couldn’t help but smile back.

“We should transform first, better to transform now than later. Who knows how soon we might come across somepony?”

“Yes… that is what we need to do. Shiny, do you have any siblings?”

“What?” he asked, startled by the question. “Oh yes, I have a younger sister, Dew Song, and an older brother, Velvet Beat,” he said and pulled a scroll out of his bag. Unrolling it, he levitated it over to me. It was a picture of the three siblings. Shiny stood in the middle, a huge smile on his face as he gazed down at the unicorn filly on his left. She was bright pink, mane, and tail the color of seafoam, with a streak of coral running through it. Her cutie mark a large dewdrop, a treble clef inside it.

The pegasus stallion to his right, a royal purple with a royal blue mane, a streak of gold tipping the edges of his spiky short mane. His cutie mark was a small red drum, two drumsticks poised to hit above it. “You have a lovely family,” I said simply and handed the picture back to him. I took a deep breath and closed my eyes, concentrating. Green fire surrounded me, tickling against my skin as I changed. When the fire had dissipated, I opened my eyes and looked up. Shiny was now a little taller than me. I gazed down into a puddle from a rainstorm the previous day and grinned.

“WHY, why the pink one? Couldn’t you have just changed into his brother?” Chrys groaned. “I hate pink…”

I chuckled and turned back to Shiny Whistle. “How do I look?”

He just stared at me, eyes wide and mouth open. “You… you look just like her,” he said.

“Good! Then let’s get going!” I said and laughed. We might be heading into who knows what kind of trouble, but the idea of finally seeing the rest of Equestria left me giddy. Or was it part of the transformation? Was his sister giddy like this?

“Okay,” he said, still not able to keep his eyes off me. “But this will be… weird. Will take some getting used to,” he grinned, shook his head, and walked forward.

Chuckling I followed, walking next to him. I had to take two steps for every one of his, and my back felt… weird where my wings would be. It would suck not flying, but I wasn’t ready for a gender-changing transformation. All those extra bits just… yeah I wasn’t wanting that.

“You’ll get used to it dearie. After all, the easiest way for us to get love is sexual. Be that male or female well we take what we can get.”

I nodded and continued down the road. The nearest town on our path, Little Pony, was about half a day’s walk away, and I was hoping we’d be able to reach it by nightfall.

“So, um… what is the plan for when we get there?” Shiny asked.

“Well if all goes well, you will get Princess Celestia to release him to us. If not, I’ll have to fight her.”

“Then you’re going to need a lot of… love right?”

I nod. “Yes. The only reason I beat her last time was because of the power of Shining Armor’s love. If I am to beat her again, I will need at least half if not more of what I gained from him.”

“You won’t need to kill anypony for it, will you?”

“No, I rarely kill actually,” I said.

“Well… then I guess along the way I can… help you find somepony to feed on? Or well,” he blushed. “Even offer up myself, if that would help.”

“If I was to feed off you when we stopped, then we could do that. But I won’t force you.”

He smiled. “Well, that is good to know.” He turned back to the path, looking ahead. A rabbit rushed by, stopping to look at us for a moment before continuing. I bit my lip, unsure what to say. Looking down at my hooves, I grinned.

I lifted my head back up to look at him. “So, what is your sister like? Need to know so I can… impersonate her well.”

He snorted and grinned. “She’s a lot like you actually. Headstrong, stubborn, really cares for and loves her family. She also loves to sing. Has a beautiful, clear, soprano voice. An early riser, she will go out and sing amongst the garden while it is still covered in dew,” he looked down at the ground. “I really miss her,” he said and sighed. “She probably thinks I’m dead. I didn’t tell anypony where I was going, knowing they would stop me.”

“Don’t trust me do they?” I grinned, and he chuckled.

“No, nor any changeling. My family and I were all there for the wedding. None of us actually got hurt by anyling, but it sure stuck in all of our heads.”

“And yet you still thought of me as good?”

“Well, you’re certainly not perfect,” he chuckled, “but I knew your heart was in the right place.” He adjusted his saddlebags on his back, then turned back to me. “These past few weeks, getting to know you and your changelings, has been an adventure all in itself. I thought all my research before I came had been thorough, but then I learned that so much of it was wrong.”

He had researched us? Probably all written by ponies, anything written by changelings would have been hard to find in Equestria. “Well maybe you should write the book that tells the truth about us,” I said and grinned.
“That would be interesting, especially seeing how many ponies might actually believe it.”

“Oh, but I’m not a writer,” he said. “I could try though. It would be nice if others saw you in a better light. Or,” he grinned, “do you like them seeing you as tough and scary?”

I laughed, “well being seen as scary has been fun. Keeps anypony that means us to harm away too.”
“For the most part at least. Nothing has happened yet, but that unicorn who came to call the other night is certainly not scared of us.”

Yes, and them mentioning the Umbrum wasn’t good. I just hoped whatever they had planned, I could get all my changelings home before it happened.

“Well maybe I’ll keep you seeming dark and mysterious in the book then?” he said and laughed. “Wouldn’t want to ruin your reputation, right?”

“No, that we wouldn’t,” I said. We came to a clearing and I looked up at the sky. There was not a cloud anywhere I could see, and the sun shone down hot and comforting on me. We were now at the beginning of summer, and I, as well as Chrys, was glad. Spring was just too unpredictable around here. One day we would get rain, and then the next snow, and not having fur, the cold really didn’t work well for us.

“So if I was to write this book, would you be willing to tell me more? So I can make it accurate,” he said, also looking up at the sky.

“Hmm… some things perhaps, but there are some things we shouldn’t tell him. After all, the ponies keep secrets that even we don’t know with all of our careful observation of them I am sure,” Chrys said and I nodded in agreement.

“I would tell you what I could, but some things must be kept a mystery.”

“That is understandable. Maybe that is something we can work on during this long walk then, keep us occupied,” he said and grinned.

“We’ll see,” I said and stepped forward. “Let’s keep going, a long way to go if we are to make it to Little Pony before nightfall.” He nodded and trotted along, I next to him.

Changeling Castle-Main Floor-Apatelodes

“Where is the Queen?”

“Is everything okay?”

“Why are you not with her?”

“Calm down everyling, I have things under control,” I said, rubbing my forehead. All their questions were giving me a headache. “She… had some business to take care of, she’ll be back. I’m here because she left me in charge, and everything will be fine.”

“But-“

“Enough questions for now!” I yelled, and the changeling who had been about to speak glared at me. “Just go about your regular duties, and for those who have just returned today, come with me and I’ll find you an empty room. We might have to double up, but you’ll all have a place to sleep.”

“Apatelodes,” I looked down to see Nemoria and Acronicta standing at the front of the crowd.

I sighed. “Yes, what is it?”

“Do you know what happened to Professor Whistle?” Nemoria asked. “I haven’t seen him since class this morning.”

“The Queen brought him with her for her business. Music classes will be canceled until they return, but I still expect you to use that extra time wisely and practice.” I said and watched their crestfallen faces as they nodded and walked back into the crowd. The others looked at me expectantly, “as for the rest of you, a few of you are still assigned to look for more of our brethren correct?” A few of them nodded. “Good, then do that.” They nodded and headed toward the front doors. This was going to be harder than I thought, but I would make my Queen proud.

Ten changelings had arrived home today, all from around Dodge Junction. I led them up the stairs to the third floor. Most of the rooms had been filled already, but there were a few near the stairs that had no occupants. I picked out four of the ten and sent them into the rooms, and continued. Passing by the room we had given Shiny Whistle, I wondered if I should give his room away for now. He wouldn’t be back for a week at least, and we could situate him elsewhere if needed, even if it meant having him sleep in his classroom.

I turned away and shook my head. No, he could keep his room for now. I had other places I could put these last few changelings. Upstairs a few rooms still stood vacant. I would put them there. How many were still out there, besides the Queen? Would we have rooms for all? Or food even? In the last two weeks, we had already gained an extra one hundred changelings, and if all the others were still alive we might have another fifty or so still out there or more? I had no idea, Queen Chrysalis was the one with the near-perfect memory after all, not me. “Oh, please return soon,” I sighed as I left the last changelings in their new rooms. “I’m not you, I can’t control emotions for long.”

On the Road-Shiny Whistle

It was so weird seeing Queen Chrysalis disguised as my sister. Her transformation was so convincing it was almost scary. I looked up at the sky between the branches of the trees, it was already growing dark in the shade of the trees, the sky a painting of oranges and pinks. We had made good progress though, stopping only once to eat a few apples each, then continued. Little Pony was probably about an hour away; we would get there easily just before or just after dark.
Things had been silent between us for around the last hour, Queen Chrysalis seemingly lost in thought, or at least that was how she looked. Her eyes were unfocused on the road ahead, and she mumbled to herself softly, too low for me to hear any actual words. I was surprised she managed to keep walking in that state, but then I had not yet spent more than a few minutes with her at a time since living in her castle, so maybe this was how she usually was? Maybe the rumors about her being crazy were at least partially true, though she held up well around her changelings.

“Everything okay?” I asked and she started, looking over at me, eyes now back to normal.

“Of course, sorry I’ve been… out of it. Just thinking and planning ahead. Even under disguise, with the way most ponies feel about changelings this is a dangerous mission,” she said, “and I’m just worried we will get there too late.”

“Well,” I said smiling warmly at her, “if we are there is not much we can do about it, so why not think positive on how we will make it, and rescue him?”

She chuckled at me. “Always so optimistic aren’t you? Nothing ever seems to get you down.” She sighed and put a hoof to my shoulder. “Thank you, with all that’s been going on, I could sure use some optimism.”

“What has been going on?” The question had been bugging me for days, but with Apatelodes around her, all the time I hadn’t dared ask it. He hadn’t looked like he would take such a question well.

She looked away for a moment, eyes unfocused again, rubbing a hoof against her chin. Then nodded, turning back to me. “I can’t tell you much, I don’t want to scare you, but… there’s been a threat on our home. That’s why I am gathering everyling home. We’ll be safer together, and more of a threatening force against anything that tries to harm us.”

“Have you told Princess Celestia about the threat? She might be able to help against it.”

“I think it is pretty obvious she doesn’t trust anyling,” she said and frowned. “What reason would she have to help us? She might even be the one who sent the threat,” she growled.

“A threat like that wouldn’t be in her character. No matter how much she might not care for changelings, I don’t believe she would try to kill you all. We are on our way there, and telling her about the threat might even be the best hope of saving your friend, Leptostales was his name, right?”

She nodded, “maybe you’re right,” she sighed, “besides gathering everyling home, I am at a loss of what to do. This threat is stronger than anything we have seen in over a thousand years.”

“Well whatever you do, I’ll help. I wouldn’t want anything to happen to you.” I put an arm around her and hugged her close, then realized what I was doing and blushing pulled away. “Sorry, I… well...” I stammered.

She chuckled and grinned at me. “It’s okay, you see me as your sister, and you love her, hugging her comes naturally to you so…”

I nodded. She was partially right, it had felt like I was comforting my sister, but it was more than that. I was finally seeing the vulnerable side of the queen, and it just hurt my heart seeing her upset. But I couldn’t tell her that, she’d laugh at me.

Ahead of us, the forest began to thin out, the last rays of the sun shining down on us. The last few scraggly trees ended at the top of a hill, and down below nestled in a little bowl of a valley, was Little Pony. A small town, maybe half the size of Ponyville, Little Pony was home to mostly ponies but a few Zebras lived in homes on the outskirts. A few ponies still walked the roads of the town, but most had already retired to their homes, lanterns hanging outside, fireflies fluttering inside, gave the darkening streets a bright glow.

“I believe there is an inn.... over there,” Queen Chrysalis said, pointing a hoof to the right as we walked down the hill. A zebra mare stopped in her hoofsteps as we passed by, big dark blue eyes watching us silently. I turned back around when I heard her golden earrings click-clacking as she galloped off, heading for the outskirts of town. “Hmm odd,” Queen Chrysalis said, noticing her as well it seemed. “Let’s hurry to that inn.”

Turning a corner the inn, The Timberwolf Fang, stood near the end of the street, four bright lanterns of fireflies tied to the roof, two to either side of the front door. I pushed open the door and stepped to the side to let Queen Chrysalis enter first.

“Thank you Shiny,” she said and giggled, trotting inside. I turned my head to the side and raised one eyebrow. What was she doing? “Stop staring at me like that,” she whispered into my ear. “You’re going to make ponies suspicious. And don’t forget to call me by your sister’s name, Dew Song right?”

I nodded. “Oh right, I’m sorry, Dew.” It was a little awkward calling her that, but she was right. We didn’t want anypony suspicious. We walked over to the counter, where a dark grey unicorn pony stallion, a bowl of steaming soup for a cutie mark, stood wiping down a glass jug.

He nodded to us and sat the jug down. “What can I do for ya? A room? A good meal?”

“Both please, and a room with two beds if you have it. Want to keep a close eye on my little sister,” I said, putting an arm around Queen Chrysalis.

The stallion nodded and turned around. “Honey, we got two more!” he yelled and then turned back to us. “I do have a room like that, cost fifty bits a night.”

“Fifty bits!? That’s outrageous!” Queen Chrysalis growled.

“Dew, calm down, it’s okay,” I said, putting a hoof on her shoulder. “What has mother said about being kind to ponies that serve you?”

Her ears went down and she bared her teeth, “but that is plain robbery!” she hissed. I stared down at her, folding my forehooves together. “Fine,” she said and rolled her eyes, turning back to the innkeeper pony. “I’m sorry sir, I’m sure you have a good reason for having such high prices.”

“Indeed I do! The changeling kingdom is less than a day’s walk away, and to protect my customers I have guards that traverse my property each night. The extra cost is for paying them to protect you. Would you rather become a snack for one of those monsters?”

She narrowed her eyes at him, not saying anything.

“Do you have any other rooms?” I asked, trying to get his attention away from her.

“Yes, but it only has a single bed, thirty bits a night,” he said, turning back to me, but his eyes still glanced back Queen Chrysalis’s way.

“We’ll take it,” Queen Chrysalis said and tossed the bits on the counter. “How much for the dinner?”

“Five bits each,” he said and sighing she levitated the bits onto the counter. “Thank you, my wife will have that out to you shortly. Please, have a seat while you wait.” He gestured behind them.
Five tables were placed in the small room, circled around a fireplace, dark and unlit at this time of year. Three of the tables already seated other ponies, one with two muscular buckskin colored earth pony stallions, brown five-gallon hats on their heads, one with a black whip cutie mark, the other a dark purple handled sickle. They looked our way, and Queen Chrysalis stiffened beside me. I nudged her toward an empty table on the other side of the room, farthest away from the two stallions.
She followed me over and sat down in the chair facing them. I sat down beside her, not wanting to show my back to them. “What was with that?” I asked, speaking softly. “Now they are suspicious.”
“Sorry, it’s been a while since I did this,” she said and looked down at the table. “I’ve hardly left the castle these last two years since… well you know.”
“Out of practice then huh?” I said and chuckled. She nodded and looked up as a pale brown pegasus mare, cutie mark a wooden spoon, came toward us with a large platter, two steaming bowls, and a loaf of bread upon it. Placing them down in front of us, I grinned at seeing a hearty vegetable soup. The mare left us with a smile, carrying the tray back into the back.
“Ugh, I hate green beans,” Queen Chrysalis said, levitating one out of her bowl.
“Stop being so picky, they are good for you sis,” I said and winked at her. “It’s a good meal.” I levitated the loaf of bread over and tore it in half. Steam poured out, little bits of crust falling to the table. “See, even the bread is nice and fresh,” I passed one half to her and dipped my own in my bowl, then took a bite, closing my eyes as I enjoyed its rich texture and taste.
She sighed and levitating her spoon, lifted a spoonful of the soup to her lips. Her eyes widened, and she dipped the spoon in the soup again, licking her lips and grinning. “This is really good!”
“See, I told you,” I said and chuckled when she lifted the bowl and drank the soup down, panting then and waving a hoof in front of her mouth. “Don’t eat it so fast, it’s still hot.” She glared over at me, but a smile was on her face.
“You two are new to town,” I looked up to see the two earth pony stallions had stood and walked over to our table. “Did I hear right in that you are siblings?” The one with a black whip cutie mark asked.
“Yes sir,” Queen Chrysalis said, and beamed at him, tongue still hanging out from being scorched by the soup. “We’re on a trip around Equestria, right Shiny?”
“Right!” I said and grinned. So, that was to be our story.
“Oh really, and where are you coming from? These parts are pretty dangerous, wouldn’t want anything to happen to you.”
“Dodge Junction. We heard there were some beautiful places to see around here, so before we head back to Canterlot we wanted to check it out," Queen Chrysalis said, and the stallion raised an eyebrow at her.
“Well then, be careful. Those monstrous changelings haunt these parts. Wouldn’t want you two to be caught by them,” he said. I looked to Queen Chrysalis, to see her close her eyes, struggling to control her temper.
“Right, we will sir..?”
“Buck Shot,” he said.
“Right, we’ll be careful. Now, if you’ll excuse us I should get my sister up to bed. It’s been a long day and she can get quite grumpy when she is tired.”
“Very well, if you need anything we’ll be around the inn grounds. We won’t let them monsters at you!”
“Thank you,” I said and stood, practically dragging Queen Chrysalis back to the desk to get our room key. The two stallions sat back down, eyes still on us. I put an arm around Queen Chrysalis, who was breathing hard, forcing herself to look away from the two. “Can I get our key?” I asked the innkeeper stallion, and looking back up from cleaning another jug he nodded. He reached under the counter and tossed it my way.
I grabbed it with my magic and turned toward the stairs. Queen Chrysalis grabbed her half of the loaf of bread from the table as we passed and followed me up the stairs.

Little Pony-The Timberwolf Fang Inn-Queen Chrysalis

“The nerve of those ponies! Calling us monsters,” I hissed once we were in the room, stamping my hoof on the floor. “They want a monster? Well then maybe I should give them one!”

“How would that help with our quest? If you reveal yourself, that will just bring the Princesses this way, our quest will be over before it’s really begun.” Shiny Whistle put a comforting hoof to my shoulder, but I shook it off. I didn’t want to be comforted.

He was right, but that didn’t make me feel any better about it. It had been hard controlling the anger down there. Chrys was furious, and her anger had transferred to me. I took a chuck out of the loaf of bread and chewed it, sitting down on the bed, ears flicking back and forth in irritation. The soup and bread would do for now, but wouldn’t cover what I really needed. I didn’t want to feed on Shiny, not tonight at least. A little taste of that innkeeper maybe, or even one of the other travelers staying here tonight. That would be much more satisfying.
“Don’t even think about it,” Shiny said. I chuckled, he was starting to catch on. He sat down in front of me on the floor, and turned his head to the side, shaking it to make his mane fall to the other side, leaving his neck bare. “This is how you feed, right? From the neck? Please, leave the other ponies alone, and just feed on me.”
I raised an eyebrow and took another bite of the bread. “We need you strong,” I said and shook my head. “I don’t like this stupid town. I want to leave it as early as we can tomorrow. If I was to feed off you, we wouldn’t be able to leave until mid-morning at least.”
He sighed and put a hoof to his head. “Will you be fine for a while then?”
“Yes, we have been eating well enough lately that we can go a few days without love before it starts affecting us. It’s not recommended, but we can do it.” Chrys said. “Though how I would enjoy showing those ponies who they're messing with. But that would be unwise, with how wary these ponies are. Let’s just get some sleep,” Chrys sighed.
“Yes, I can go a few days without,” I said, and Shiny nodded, moving to where he was leaning against the bed.
“Okay, but remember, I’m here if you need some.”
I chuckled, “I won’t forget. We should get to bed,” I said and popped the last bite of the bread into my mouth.
“Oh right, how we going to go about that?”
I hadn’t thought of that. When I’d picked this room instead of the other, I had just been wanting to save bits. “Let him in bed by us, it’ll be fun seeing him blush.” Chrys said, and I smiled at that.
“The bed is big enough, we can share,” I said and chuckled as pretty much his whole face turned red.
“Uh… that’s fine well I… I can just sleep on the floor,” he stuttered and stood.
“Oh don’t be ridiculous. We’re spending enough on this room that we should both be comfortable in it,” I said and wrapped a hoof around him, drawing him back to the bed. “Don’t tell me you’re scared of resting by me?” I said, putting a hoof under his chin, and making a pouty face.
“No… of course not. It’s just… well… my sister…”
“That can be solved dear Shiny, after all, no one should bother us in here.” I closed my eyes, and the green sparks of fire engulfed me, and I transformed back into my original form. “This better? Not quite so… awkward?”
He gulped and nodded, neck going red now too. “Just look at you, such the seductress,” Chrys said, laughing. “He’s like putty in our hooves. Oh yes, this journey will be entertaining.”
“Come, let’s go to bed,” I said and pulled down the covers. “I promise, I won’t bite you,” I said as he climbed in on the left side. Climbing in on the right, I turned around to face him and whispered in his ear. “At least, not tonight.” I chuckled as a shiver ran down his spine at my words and turned back around, levitating the blankets over us. I never knew how fun teasing a guy like this could be. I liked it. Maybe I’d be able to fall into the changeling practices easier than I thought.
“I’m glad to see you becoming more and more like me each day. Alas, you might not need me for that aspect soon. Though I will still be there for everything else.” Chrys chuckled. “We have lived so long that our history is pretty much impossible to repeat it all, except for when parts of it are needed to know. But let’s not dwell on that, morning will be here before we know it!”
I yawned and snuggled deeper into the covers. Shiny Whistle laid stiff on the other side of the bed, heart thumping loudly. “You’re going to be sore in the morning sleeping like that, relax,” I said and he relaxed a little. I sighed and closed my eyes. Well, he would relax a little once he started to fall asleep, I was sure.
“Goodnight, Queen Chrysalis,” he whispered, and I opened my eyes again and smiled.
“Shiny, I think you know me well enough you can drop my title when in a private company. Call me Chryssy.”
“Very well, good night, Chryssy.”

Discourse and Trials

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Changeling Castle-Throne Room- Apatelodes

The night grew old as I sat around a table with nine other changelings. Besides Queen Chrysalis and me, they were the only other changelings who knew about the threat. She had felt forming a council of some of our older changelings would be a good idea. That they would run ideas off each other and make plans for the future. But so far, all they had done was argue, and it had been going on all evening!

“No, we can’t do that! That would just be inviting them to attack us!” One growled, Morpheus. He had been the one to find Leptostales, having been out of the hive for some time like him. Being pretty much forced to return had him in an awful mood, and he wasn’t afraid to show it. “I’ve been around the Princesses for the last year or so, and there is no way in Tartarus they would help. They HATE us, like a good portion of their ponies. If we were to die out, they would be glad to get rid of such a threat.”

“It wouldn’t hurt to ask,” another said. “The better-laid plan the more likely we are to survive. If this threat ever shows their face again. Maybe seeing all of us return they have grown scared.”

“Oh, believe me, an extra hundred changelings wouldn’t scare them,” I said, and they all looked to me. “You forget I met them. Their confidence was astounding. They will be back, I have no doubt of that. Is there anything else that needs to be covered? It is almost 3 am, and I’d like to get some sleep.”

Morpheus rolled his eyes and sighed. “This is important Apatelodes, if they will return as you say, then we must plan for that. Sleep can wait. Maybe figuring out who the pony was will be a good start. You’ve yet to say if they were a mare or a stallion.”

“That’s because I don’t know. Somehow they disguised their voice to sound well… like it could be either.” Morpheus just gazed at me. “With that necklace of theirs, and the threat of the Umbrum all I can think is it was King Sombra. But that doesn’t sit right for me. For one, last I checked he was still destroyed by the Princesses. For another, from the stories about him, it doesn’t seem like his style.”

“He’s been gone over one thousand years, maybe his style has changed?” Morpheus said, but I shook my head. “Then what do you suggest?”

“That we need to do more research on this necklace, and on other ponies that might benefit from the Umbrum being released. Let us retire, and we can start on this in the morning. We’ll be able to think more clearly then.”

“Fine, but if that pony comes before we are prepared, it is on your hooves,” he stood, and the others followed. “Let’s go.” I watched as they walked out, the door slamming behind them, and sighed. I stood and walked over to a throne room window. “I’m doing the best I can,” I said, looking up at the moon. “Be careful out there my Queen. We still need you, I still need you.” I stepped away from the window, and out of the throne room. I needed to get some rest, couldn’t help my Queen well when asleep!

Little Pony-The Timberwolf Fang Inn- Shiny Whistle

I lifted my head upon hearing hoofsteps outside our door. Somepony coughed, and I heard the voice of Buck Shot say “this is it.” The room was still dark, but looking out the window I could see the faintest traces of light near the horizon. Dawn was near.

“Chryssy! Chryssy wake up!” I whispered, shaking her shoulder. “Turn back into my sister, I think they suspect us.”

She groaned, flicking her ears about as she turned to face me. “What you talking about Shiny?” she asked, yawning. She perked her ears up as the door handle was wiggled back and forth. “That Zebra!” she hissed softly. “She must have suspected me. I have heard tale that some Zebras can see through our disguises.”

“Transform then, before they get in!” I said, two hooves to my cheeks as I heard one pony curse, and the latch stood still.

“It is too late for that, they would see the flash as I transformed. Get up and grab your things, we’ll have to make a run for it when they open the door.” I nodded and slowly rolled over and sat up, cringing when the bed creaked. The latch started wiggling again and I stood, levitating my bags onto my back. I looked back to Chryssy, who had stood up as well. Her horn glowed a faint green with magic.

“You’re not going to hurt them are you?” I asked as the lock clicked, they had finally gotten it undone.

“Nothing serious, just a little knock to the side so we can get by.” She grinned and turned to the door, head down slightly as she aimed her horn. “Be ready to run when I tell you to.”

The handle went down, and the door opened slightly. A hoof kicked the door and it whipped the rest of the way open. With a bright flash of green flying toward them, a handful of ponies were scattered across the hallway floor. “Now!” Chryssy yelled and I bolted by the tumbled ponies, racing down the stairs. With the sound of stomping, I looked to see Chryssy behind me. I grinned up at her and watched surprised as she tripped and tumbled down the stairs, hitting me and sending us both to the floor below, her landing on top of me. “Curse these hooves,” she growled, then looked down, realizing I was under her. She grinned slyly at me. “As much fun as this is, we should run,” she stood up, stepping off of me, and grimaced.

“What’s wrong?” I asked, stumbling to my own feet.

“Twisted ankle,” she said, gritting her teeth. “Go, run. I’ll catch up.” She lifted out her wings and hovered in the air.

“I can’t leave you behind!” I protested, but she pushed me forward with an uninjured hoof. I looked up to see Buck Shot and the others had recovered and were on their way down.

“I can handle these buffoons,” she said with a grin, “They didn’t even bring a unicorn with them.” She flew toward the door, magicking it open, “I’ll catch up quickly with you,” she said. I sighed but nodded, and raced out the door, adjusting my bag as I went. I looked back and she had cleared the door, flying higher into the sky.

Yes, now she would be fine I was sure. I took a deep breath and raced on, passing by startled ponies as I ran through the town. As I reached the edge of the town I stopped to catch my breath. Not a soul was behind me, even the skies were clear. Where was she? I trotted back and forth on the path, eyes peeled for when she would first appear.

Above me a yellow pegasus mare appeared, flying hard toward the edge of town. Her flying was erratic, and as she came closer and she tried to stop, couldn’t and let out a loud ‘head’s up!’ as she rammed into me and we both slid along the road a few feet. Standing up, she offered a hoof to me, “Sorry about that handsome,” she said and chuckled. Her light blue mane lifted in a breeze, her cutie mark a teal-colored butterfly over three green musical notes.

“Thanks and no harm done,” I said and took her proffered hoof, blushing a little.

“It’s no problem,” she giggled. “Shall we head off? I am heading the same way.”

“Oh I would, but I’m waiting… wait… that is you, isn’t it Chryssy?”

“You better believe it, figured until we get a little farther on I should choose a new disguise.” She grinned and circled around me, wings curled up against her body. “What do you think of the new me?”

“Well, it’s not my sister, but that could be a good thing.”
She chuckled at that.

“Shall we continue on then?” I asked.

“Of course, now that all that excitement is over,” she said, licking her lips.

“Do I even want to know?” I asked, raising one eyebrow.

“Nopony is dead if that is what you are wondering, but other than that no probably not.”

“Then yes, let’s go. Next town is about a day’s walk away.” I said.

“Good, we have plenty of time to talk then. Like, about how much fun we had last night,” she giggled.

I blushed. Last night had been very awkward, but… enjoyable. Chryssy might not have had any fur, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t comfortable to sleep next to. Other things though… I shook my head. She was a Queen, why would she ever fall for somepony like me for? Was what I was feeling for her actually love, or just the affection earned between friends? Or maybe she had even put some sort of spell on me? I had no clue, nor on how she felt. She sure had been flirty lately, was that all an act, or was there more to it?

“You know, a conversation starts with two changelings or ponies,” she said and put a wing around me.

“Right, sorry I was… lost in thought.”

She chuckled, closed her eyes, and grinned. “I can imagine why.”

We continued on, the sun warming our backs as it rose. “So, this new form… is it from one of the ponies in town? Or an original? Can you guys do original ones?”

“It is harder, takes more concentration and more power, but we can do a unique looking pony. Usually just easier to take the form of another, especially since we’d be trying to lull their loved ones into caring about us enough that their love will be stronger. This pony is an original one though,” she said.

“Well, you did a great job on her. I just hope we don’t run into any more zebras!” I pondered for a moment, stopping. “Can Zecora see through them?”

“Who? Not sure I ever met a Zebra with that name.”

“Oh, she is from Ponyville, or at least that is where she lives now, in the Everfree forest anyway.”

“Of course, how could I forget her? I’ve heard of her, but have yet to meet her. Not sure if she can see through it,” she said.

“Is it a common trait?”

“Not especially. Maybe…” she paused, eyes going unfocused, then nodded. “More uncommon, perhaps one in every thousand or so? I guess it would make sense to have one living in Little Pony though. After all, they probably get many changelings there being so close to my castle. Better protection from us than those fumbling guards.” She chuckled. “Though, still not seen too often. Didn’t even think about it until she ran off last night.”

“At least she is not one of our bigger problems. Just need to avoid her on our return trip.” All this new information, even about the zebras, was so fascinating! Maybe I would write that book after all. The changelings did seem to deserve a better reputation. Or did they? What had Chryssy done to those guard ponies or the zebra mare? She wasn’t limping anymore, so either changing form fixed that, or she had fed off at least one of them. I daren’t ask though.

“Shouldn’t be too hard,” Chryssy said, following the path. “But let’s be careful anyway.”

I nodded, and we continued on in silence.

Changeling Castle- Nursery- Apatelodes

After breakfast, I trotted downstairs to check on the princess. Five of her fellow hatchlings had hatched in the last two weeks, all colts, leaving eighteen still in their eggs. All six of them looked up from their incubators as I walked in, blue eyes bright and mouths open in grins. Phengaris chuckled, coming over to me from where she had been checking an egg on the far side of the room.

“Looks like they are excited to see you. Might not have any of your own, but you sure are good with them,” she said and grinned, watching as I smoothed out one colts frill who was next to Citheronia.

“Don’t you dare tell anyling,” I said, and looked up at her.

“I know, you want to keep up your tough changeling impression. Wouldn’t do for them to know you have a soft spot for the hatchlings.” Phengaris winked at me.

“Exactly. How are they doing today? Especially our Queen’s little one.”

“Oh, all growing up nice and strong! Might need to get another changeling down here to help soon, don’t know if I could handle so many by myself. And Citheronia is growing well. If you look closely,” she said and led me over to the princess’s incubator, “there are cracks in her chitin. A few pieces have even already fallen off.” She levitated a little folded blanket near the incubator, to reveal a handful of chitin pieces. “Not too many large bits yet, but they will come. Then we can have your first molting ceremony, can’t we Citheronia?” She crooned to the little hatchling, who chirped up at her, then laughed.

I looked down at the bits of exposed fresh chitin beneath the old and stepped closer. “Is it just my imagination, or…?”

“Nope, you are correct. Her color seems to be lightening as she grows.”

“It looks… blue…”

“It’s probably just a trick of the light, these green fire torches give everything a blue-green look to it,” Phengaris ruffled the princesses mane. “She’s a good hatchling, well-bred, a bundle of laughs, and already showing signs of magic.”

“Already? But she is only a few weeks old! I thought magic didn’t start until they were older?”

“Well she is technically a little older, just stayed in her egg longer. Though yes, still quite early to be showing. Usually, at least a year old before they show, most of the time closer to five years old.” She picked Citheronia up and put her hoof to the filly’s mouth. “Time for lunch, little lady,” she said. Citheronia giggled and bit down, sucking softly on the hoof. “But then, from what I hear her mother was the same when she was born. Early to gain the first signs of magic, early to rise to power when her mother died when she was not quite a full-grown mare, and now the Queen to have lived the longest in our hives history!”

I pondered on that as I watched her feed. “She is certainly her mother’s daughter then. She’ll be a great queen herself one day.” If Chrysalis allows her that chance, I thought. I had no idea how many new Chrysalis’s there had been from the start, only she and Discord likely knew that, but with her now having a daughter, would they end the cycle?

“Indeed, I look forward to seeing her bloom and grow,” Phengaris sighed, then removed her hoof from the princess. “That’s enough for now dearie,” she said, smiling down at Citheronia when she held out her hooves as if asking for more. “No, no. We want you healthy, but we don’t want you fat. Plus your fellow hatchlings need to be fed too.” She placed Citheronia back in her incubator and pulled a blanket over her. The little princess yawned and curled up into a ball, closing her eyes.

“Do you need help with that?” I asked. “I’d so rather be down here than back with the planning committee. They just can’t agree on anything.”

“Of course, Citheronia has already been fed, of course,” she chuckled, “but unnamed number four hasn’t yet if you want to start with him?”

I nodded and walked over to the little hatchling. He had been the next to hatch after Citheronia. Yet noling knew where his parents were. They were still missing, even though the vast efforts to find them out in Equestria had been through. “Come here little guy,” I said and picked him up, offering him my hoof. He bit down with a little growl and began to feed. “A little feisty isn’t he?”

“He is indeed. He’ll make a great guard changeling for the princess when they get older.” Phengaris said and grinned. She held onto the next hatchling, who was feeding quietly. “Maybe even a mate.”

I chuckled. “Not even a month old yet, and already setting them up?”

“Well an old changeling has to have some fun in her life don’t I? Too old for much else, can’t even have any more foals of my own,” she sighed. “So I’m glad I can still work with the hatchlings, even if they always belong to others.”

“It is a noble and honored task, to be trusted so with our future,” I said and pulled my hoof away. He growled and tried to grab it back, but I put him back into his incubator and covered him up. “Sleep tight, little one,” I ran a hoof through his frill, as he yawned and stretched out. I grinned at him, then moved on to the last changeling colt.

He had been born just two days ago, and though he kept a smile on his face, he didn’t look too good. His eyes were a cloudy blue, and he was just so tiny. Probably hatched a little early, as happened sometimes. I picked him up, and he just grinned up at me, but when I put my hoof to his mouth he turned away.

“He hasn’t been eating well, poor little one, I don’t know what to do for him,” Phengaris said, coming over beside me. “He has a good fire in him, but that might not be enough for him to survive. I hope we don’t lose him.”

“I hope he lives as well,” I said and offered my hoof to him again. He grunted and turned his face away again. “Come on little guy, you need to eat,” I said, and rocked him in my hooves.

“We can’t force him, if he won’t now, maybe he will later,” Phengaris said and kissed the little changeling on his forehead. “I’ll try again in a little while, you go ahead back to your meetings.” She took the little changeling from my hooves and laid him back down in his incubator. “Thanks for all your help.”

I took a deep breath and nodded. I just hoped he would survive. We needed every changeling we could get if we ever wanted to take over Equestria again, after all. “It was no problem,” I said and nodding to her, groaned softly, and headed off to more of those torturous meetings.

On the road-Queen Chrysalis

None of the ponies from Little Pony chased after us, and I was glad. It had been a few hours now since we had such a wild escape. Chasing after them while Shiny got away had been fun, blasting magic at them, missing purposefully, as I only wanted to scare them. A few of the pegasi had tried to catch me from the air, but even with what little practice I had had so far, they just couldn’t come close to me.

I had snuck around doing my best to lose them before I spotted the zebra from the night before running from the commotion I had caused. I grinned, looking around her to see nopony else, and dropped down, hovering in front of her face so as not to put weight on my sprained hoof. “So, you have the power hmm?” I said and chuckled at her.

“I do indeed have the power,” she said and gulped. “And in front of you, I will not cower! Like other Zebras, I possess much more, yet fighting you will not be a snore.”

“Ugh, enough with the rhyming, I hate poetry,” I groaned. “I’m not going to kill you, this time,” I said and grinned. I put a hoof to her chin, “no, I’m simply going to show you what it means to mess with me.” I bared my fangs at her and hissed.

“What do you plan on doing to me? If it is not in your plan to set me free?”

“Feed off you of course,” I said and chuckled, lighting up my horn and putting it against her neck. She cursed under her breath. “Oh, temper, temper,” I said and laughed. “This is all your own fault. I planned on leaving this town unscathed, but thanks to you, now they are in terror.”

“Stop this right now,” she groaned, “or you will pay for it, I vow.”

“You just keep telling yourself that,” I said and licked my lips, pulling away from her as I felt my leg heal, and she fell to the ground in a deep sleep. “Better think more wisely when you mess with the Changeling Queen,” I hissed.

“Excellent work, now let’s get to transforming. Why not try to come up with a unique pony?” Chrys said.

“Unique huh? Hmm, let me try that.” I pondered what I would look like, pegasus, of course, wanted to be able to fly far away to catch up. No pinks… “Okay got it!” I said and closed my eyes. I felt the fire tickle over me, and when it was done, I looked in a living room window next to me. “Yes, that looks perfect,” I said and held out my pegasus wings, admiring my new yellow coat and blue hair.

“Nice job, for your first unique transformation,” Chrys said. “Now, let’s get back to Shiny Whistle!”

“Of course,” I said and lifted up, flying towards the edge of town.

Yes, that had been fun. I looked over at Shiny. A thin sheen of sweat covered his neck, and he seemed nervous again. I didn’t blame him, that attack could have been close. I needed to be more careful and control both our anger.

“Sorry about that dearie. It is just part of a changeling Queen’s… self if you will? We are VERY protective of our own, and what we consider our own. We will fight hoof and fang for their sake. We might not ‘own’ Shiny or anything, but since he works for us, I consider him in that category. Sending him away when we were threatened… was the only way to keep him safe.”

I nodded, understanding. “Like a big mama bear protecting her cubs,” I said with a whisper, and she laughed.
“Yes, that exactly. No one messes with our changelings!”

I chuckled and looked up ahead. In front of us, a large hill led out of the valley that the town had been in. Stairs had been carved into the rock on one side, and I groaned. “I hate stairs.”

“You and me both. It was always Sombra who loved them, so much so that I just wanted to throw him off one.” Chrys laughed.

“We can do it,” Shiny said, a grin on his face. “You could even fly up if you like? I can take the stairs myself.

“No, no. I’m not leaving your side. I’ll take the stairs.” I sighed and walked toward them with him.

Answers Lead to More Questions

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Changeling Castle- Library- Apatelodes

I met the others in front of the library after coming up from the nursery. Over the centuries, we had collected quite the mass of literature. I’d even bet our library rivaled that of the two sisters, especially since we had books they wouldn’t dare put out on the shelves. Dark magic in dusty tomes, some written by ponies, many written by other changelings. Even a few written by griffons. Of course, there were the normal ones as well. We had the whole series of Daring Doo for the little ones who enjoyed those types of stories.

Most important of all though was our history section. It contained information on every battle a changeling had been in for the last two thousand years at least, plus more. It was here we hoped to find the information we needed. For once, the others were silent, even Morpheus, and just went off searching through the tomes, grabbing one down here or there with their magic and taking it over to a table to study.

I trotted to the middle of the history section, glancing at titles. A few I pulled down and glanced through, then put them back. No, they wouldn’t do. After around an hour of searching, I pulled one book out, to find another hidden behind it, thin and on its side, covered in a thick layer of dust. Pulling it off the shelf, I blew the dust off, coughing as it filled the air, and brushed the remaining dust off the front cover. A faded picture on the front depicted the Crystal Empire. “Interesting,” I said. It must be over a thousand years old. How it had survived this long, and still in decent shape, I had no idea. I trotted over to a table and placed it down, sat, and opened the front cover. A History of the Crystal Empire by HayFeather, was scrawled in faded red ink. Flipping through the rest of the book, I saw it was all written similarly, by hoof. Turning back to the beginning, I began to read through it.

Don’t believe what those other ‘history’ books say about the Crystal Empire. Sure the basics are correct, many crystal ponies love playing the flugelhorn, we have a nice anthem, etc. But they don’t tell the whole story for King Sombra. He wasn’t always this way, he was a great pony at one time. Sombra was different from us, and it wasn’t until after he began to rule that I found out why. But I’ll explain that all later, as I write I hear the word that Princess Luna and Celestia will soon come to the Crystal Empire. They plan on taking King Sombra down. I must be out of here by then, as far from the Crystal Empire as possible. They don’t know what havoc they are about to bring here. Someone comes…

I pause, curious. Of course, I knew all about when the Crystal Empire returned. Had been shortly after our defeat in Canterlot. Maybe a few months? But had heard little about it since then, let alone why or how Sombra had made it vanish with him. Somechangeling coughed across the room, and I glanced up. All ten of us now sat with at least one book, pages crackling when they turned. Glancing back down at my book, I turned a few pages and continued reading.

…It was his sharp intelligence that corrupted him in the end. I remember when he was a colt, found lost in the snow half dead. He was brought to the hospital, where he healed quickly, but for a colt his age he was fairly quiet. In his sleep, he would sometimes speak the word ‘sombra’ and so that is what he was called. Lacking any mother or father, he was sent to the orphanage. I saw him there once, tossing a ball against the orphanage wall. The other colts and fillies played some type of tag game on the other side of the playground, except for one filly. She was an … odd one. She seemed to talk to the flowers. But then they said she had always been like that. She was a beautiful little unicorn filly and surely would have been adopted with the flap of a pegasus’s wing if not for her behavior.

But not to focus on her, I turned back to Sombra. A few of the little fillies and colts, unicorns all, grew bored with the game of tag. They trotted over to Sombra, and one colt grabbed Sombra’s ball with his magic.

“Give it back Windquartz!” Sombra said, reaching for it.

“As if I would listen to some blank flank,” Windquartz said, laughing, and tossed the ball into the air, catching it as it came back down. “Catch Frostswirl,” he said and tossed it toward a unicorn filly.

“Got it!” She said and caught it in her hooves. This continued, the unicorn fillies and colts tossing it back and forth, laughing as Sombra jumped trying to get it back.

“Oh, you!” He growled, teeth bared. A spark of blue magic expanded from his horn, throwing everypony off their feet around him. He looked shocked, for a moment, then grinned as his ball rolled toward him. “I’ll make you all pay one day,” he yelled, then grabbing his ball ran back inside.

I knew how he felt, having been smaller than my fellow hatchlings all those years ago. Some had teased me mercilessly. I looked over to Morpheus and sneered at his back. He had been one of the biggest bullies in our age group. If it hadn’t been for Chrysalis taking a personal interest in me, I don’t know if I’d have made it to adulthood. But that was back then. Eventually, I had hit a growth spurt and was now one of the bigger changelings in the hive. Only a head shorter than most ponies, while many others were lucky if they came to a pony’s chest. I turned through a few more pages and gasped when I paused on a drawing of an amulet. A silver-plated, upside-down triangle, a giant red ruby embedded into it, a red carnelian, round as a bit, in each corner of the triangle. Above, the figure of an alicorn, wings spread out as if in flight, black with the inner feathers a blood red. The alicorn itself was a grey color, a single lowered eye of red. I focused my attention back to the text, excited now.

Pictured above, one of the abominable creations of Sombra. He made two that I know of, but there could be more. Oh, the horror if the evils used to make the two were used to make more! This one he personally used, the other having been a prototype to surmise how to make it perfect. If I wasn’t trying to write out the whole truth, I would never even think to mention all he had to do to make them as powerful as they are. There is a reason, after all, that he is one of the only unicorns left in the Crystal Empire.

Dare I say it? But I must. He calls them ‘the Alicorn Amulets’, and as their names state, they give the wearer the power of an alicorn. They can be used by anypony, but for earth or pegasi ponies, it doesn’t end well. They cannot handle the magical energy flowing from the amulets, and it consumes them from the inside. There are no signs on their bodies at death, the magic leaves no mark. They just keel over, dead. It is different for the unicorn ponies, they are, after all, the most powerful with magic. They enhance a unicorn’s magic, enabling them to surpass their previous limitations in magic and do the impossible, for anypony but an alicorn.

Yet it also slowly corrupts them, the more they use it, the darker they become. I come to the conclusion this is the unicorn's way of dealing punishment to the user, for the evil wrongs it took to make it. Sombra had always been curious about the magic of our world, and after he took over power, began to experiment. All those poor unicorn crystal ponies who died to meet his insatiable curiosity! I know not what gave him the idea, but one day, he decided to examine the properties of the unicorn horn. He cut the horns off half a dozen of them, rendering them weaker than even the youngest earth pony. Even working in the mines would be too much for them, as they were too weak to lift the heavy loads.

Grinding up their horns into a fine powder, he ran tests on it. After some time, and many more… ‘de-horning’s’, he discovered a way to mix the powder with silver, placing the molten metal, ground-up horn mixed in, into a mold, and forming the first of the Alicorn amulets. He used a ruby, for its qualities of being able to store magical energy, and placed it around his neck with a thick cord of steel. It was clear to all of us later, how much his magic improved from that day.

“I think this is it,” I said, and lifted my head, ears perked as the others scooted their chairs back and gathered around me. Pointing to the page, I explained to them what I had read.

“Sombra was even eviler than we imagined,” Morpheus said, bright blue eyes wide with fear. “So then, it was Sombra you saw that night?”

I shook my head. “I’m not sure, it sounds like his alicorn amulet, but why would he hide? If he knows he is powerful enough to destroy us, why wait? What does he gain by keeping us alive? And for that matter, how is HE alive? Princess Cadence and Shining Armor, along with that dragon, Spike? Obliterated him. No, I still think it is somepony else.”

“But who? And what are we to do now? Even with the whole hive, can we stand up to that kind of magic?” Chioides, a changeling missing one of his ears said.

“That’s what I still need to figure out.” My stomach growled, and I heard a few others do the same. “Let’s get some dinner first,” I said. “Then I’ll continue to read through this and see if we get our answer.”

They all nodded, and closing the book, I wrapped it in a piece of loose cloth from my saddlebag to protect it, then placed it in the bag. My thoughts whirled about what I had read as we all trotted downstairs to the dining room. I might not care for ponies much, but Sombra doing such experiments on the crystal unicorn ponies? That didn’t sit well even with me. What kind of corrupted soul must he have? What happened to make him that way? I would need to delve further into his past, along with reading more about the amulets.

On the Road- Shiny Whistle

“I think I’m beginning to hate stairs too,” I said as we rested next to an apple tree after our climb. “These are the types of days I wish I were a pegasus.” I rubbed my sore hooves together, and leaned back against the tree.

Chryssy nodded, yawned, and curled up on her belly next to me. “I swear, the pony or changeling who thought them up must have liked torturing others."

I laughed and gazed up into the leaves of the tree. Small, green, oval-shaped leaves covered it, with tiny green apples scattered here and there. Would likely be quite the harvest come fall. I looked back down when Chryssy sighed and closed her eyes. Her wings curled up against her body, her blue mane blowing softly in the wind. This unique pony she had created, was really quite beautiful. Fur healthy, shiny where the sun hit it, dappling through the leaves. Mane and tail were just slightly curly, enough to give it bounce when she walked. Her face full and tapered, cheeks a little plump, a rosy glow to them. Eyelashes longer than I had seen in most mares, curled gently against her face. A smudge of dirt was on the tip of her nose, and I reached a hoof over to rub it out of her fur.

“What are you doing?” she asked as I touched her nose. I pulled away but grinned as I saw the smile on her face.

“Oh, you have a smudge of dirt on your nose. I was just… trying to rub it off.”

“Not surprised, though I am surprised we didn’t get dirtier than we are coming up those stairs.” She grinned slyly at me. “Go ahead and clean it off if you want to.”

I could feel my cheeks go red in a blush, and Chryssy laughed. Her laugh was so musical in this form. Pulling a cloth from my saddlebag, I rubbed it gently against her nose, loosening the dirt and bringing back that lovely yellow. Yes… a nice lemony yellow.

“Finished staring at me Shiny?” I shook my head, breaking out of my trance, and bit my upper lip nodding.

“I’m sorry,” oh colt was I really blushing now! She seemed to like it though, as another grin spread across her face.

“Oh no need to be sorry, you’re just doing what comes naturally when a stallion sees a pretty mare,” she said and giggled.

And she was teasing me again. Or flirting maybe? I really hadn’t had enough practice with either to tell. “If… if you say so,” I said, and looked down at my bags. My whistle stood out in its little carrying bag on the side, and I levitated it out. “Shall I… play something for you?”

“Oh yes! I would be delighted to hear more.” She stretched out, long legs spread out on the grass behind her, and then lifted her head to gaze up at me. “Whenever you are ready.”

I pondered what to play for a moment, some old pony song, or another changeling song? I had a few more memorized now, and it would be nice to see what she thought of them. “Would you… find it inappropriate to play one of your changeling love songs?” I asked, ears going down and my cheeks feeling warm. “It’s just… there seem to be so many of them, from what I have studied so far…”

She nodded. “You seem surprised we have so many. Whom else would, but those that are masters of seduction? Songs, like food, can be a way to a pony’s heart after all.” Grinning at me, she swished her tail over her back hooves and brushed a strand of mane from over her eye. “Whenever you are ready.”

Oh yeah, she must be flirting with me. Hadn’t my brother Velvet Beat mentioned this before? Just more subtle? He did have all the luck with the mares after all… I shook my head and turned to Chryssy. “Okay, you should know this one,” I said, “Love Me Pony”. I put my lips to my whistle, and began to play, singing along in my head as I did.

Love me pony
Love me strong
Always in my hooves.
You have filled my heart with song
And this only proves.

Love me pony
Love me fine
All my dreams combined.
For my beauty you are mine.
And you’ll always shine.

Love me pony
Love me wise
Never let us part.
Love the sparkle in your eyes
Reach deep to my heart.

Love me pony
Love me fine
All my dreams combined.
For my beauty you are mine.
And you’ll always shine.

Love me pony
Love me close
Hold me through all time.
What we have it clearly shows
It will only climb.

Love me pony
Love me fine
All my dreams combined.
For my beauty you are mine.
And you’ll always shine.

I grinned, my cheeks still a little red, when Chryssy clapped her hooves after I had finished. “It is quite amazing how fast you have learned our songs. Tell me, how many do you have memorized so far?”

“Around seven, working on three others,” I said. “It just… comes naturally to me you could say? And they are all such wonderful songs.” My saddlebag in hoof, I replaced my penny whistle in its case.

“Well, keep up the good work!” She winked at me, stood, and stretched her legs. “We should keep going.”

“Of course,” I said simply, standing and trotting down the path. We needed to make good time.

Changeling Castle- Library- Apatelodes

After dinner, I made my way back to the library alone, book in my saddlebag. It had grown dark rapidly, and I lit an oil lamp, placing it on the table beside me. The red writing looked like blood in the lamplight, and it made me wonder how this pony Hayfeather knew so much about Sombra’s actions. Had they been part of them? Or just been a curious observer? I itched to know but figured they probably wouldn’t reveal their own part. I flipped another page and settled in to read.

The other amulet is the reason there are also few pegasi in the Crystal Empire. Improving on his prototype, he added a flawless carnelian, about the size of a bit, to each corner of the triangle on a new amulet. Three flawless carnelian stones, if placed in an exact right triangle, will create an energy field between them, creating the possibility of a type of harnesser of magic. It took Sombra a number of tries to find the right stone to harness so much power. Starting with Labradorite for its magical properties and powers of transformation, but it couldn’t contain the energy of the carnelian stones and shattered. A ruby was next, but even though it worked well for the other, the addition of the carnelians, when he tried to use it, cracked the ruby and shot a bolt of magic at a window, shattering the glass.

Stone after stone, gem after gem, failed to get the results he was hoping for. Frustrated, he traveled deep into the northern wastelands, searching for some stone or gem he had yet to try. There, deep in an abandoned mine shaft, he came across a deposit of vanadinite. Blood red in color, with varying shades of red streaking through it. He dug it out and wrapped it protectively in a cloth sack. Upon arriving back to the Crystal Empire, he got to work. Polishing up the vanadinite, cutting it down to size, making sure to keep his hooves and muzzle covered to protect from its toxicity, and placed it upon the necklace.

A spark of magical energy flowed between the stones almost as soon as it settled into place, and the entire amulet glowed red. Sombra magicked the amulet around his neck, and grinned, “yes, yes!” he yelled, and laughed. “It’s perfect.” He galloped out of his laboratory at once and started experiments I was even more ashamed to be a part of.

So they were working for Sombra! Was it possibly this pony that I had met? Was HayFeather even their real name? I scratched at an itch on my neck, this was certainly astonishing! But, which amulet had the pony had, the prototype, or this more powerful one? I had to read more. I turned the page and continued.
* * *
On the Road- Queen Chrysalis

As we came closer to the next town, Hoofville, music and laughter floated toward us on a breeze. The feeling of love in the air was almost stifling, and as we rounded a corner, the town came into view. Little white lights were strung between the trees, pink and dark blue balloons tied to their branches. Ponies were scattered all around in a plaza just inside the town. All were dressed in fine clothing. The mares in colorful dresses, and the stallions in sharp black tuxedos.

“Welcome, ponies!” A young earth pony stallion said an almost mustard yellow color with a short curly brown mane and tail, his cutie mark a pulled apart cheese sandwich. He trotted over to us, a huge grin on his face, as we entered the town. “I’m Cheese Sandwich, and you have stumbled on the party of the year! A wedding reception for my good friends Forest Roll and Golden Showers.” He pointed a hoof behind him, at two earth ponies, a handsome chocolate-colored stallion with a forest green mane and tail, cutie mark a daisy sandwich, and a delicate little coppery colored mare, mane and tail sable, cutie mark a gold shooting star.

“I’m sure they wouldn’t mind you joining the party, after all, everypony was invited!” He stood up on his hind hooves and clapped the front two together. “I even know where to get you some party outfits! Come with me!” I gasped as he put a hoof around both of us and dragged us farther into town. Shiny and I looked at each other in confusion as he pulled us into a small boutique. “Amethyst! I got two more for you!” He yelled out.

“Oh Cheese, where do you keep finding them?” A unicorn mare, a dark purple with a pale pink mane and tail, cutie mark a pale purple crystal rose, said as she came out from behind a curtain. She turned to look at us and smiled. “Not to be rude dears, it’s just with this wedding already having such a large crowd, I am low on outfits at the moment.”

“That’s fine, we can go without,” I said and turned to head back out the door.

“Oh no, I wouldn’t hear of it! I shall find you both something perfect.” She trotted back behind the curtain, and noises of wheels moving and cupboards opening and closing could be heard behind it. Pausing, I stood listening, looking to Shiny as he watched the curtains she had disappeared behind. Shiny dropped off his saddlebags near the door, stretching as we waited, and I added mine next to his.

“She makes the best outfits,” Cheese said, popping up between us. I jumped in shock, and he just grinned.

“I swear, this pony is worse than that Pinkie Pie,” Chrys growled. “But at least he invited us to the wedding reception, I’m sure we can find some love-struck pony to feed on tonight after the party is over.”

I nodded, at least there was that, the kind of love flowing would be sure to feed us well. But did we really need more already? I felt fine. It wouldn’t do to terrorize another town. We were trying to come in peace to Canterlot after all. If we really wanted Princess Celestia to release Chrys’s friend, wouldn’t it do to be on our best behavior?
“Yeah, you’re right about that. No matter how much I might not like it.” Chrys grumbled. “Perhaps tonight would be a good night to feed on our little friend Shiny then? This town seems like they won’t attack us, at least not on a grand night like this.”
I would have to think on that one. Did we dare try? The squeak of a wheel interrupted my thoughts and I looked up. Amethyst had come trotting back out, pushing a rack of covered material on a clothing rack. “Here we are, these should be perfect.” She motioned Shiny forward, and gulping, he walked toward her. She pulled a black tuxedo from the rack with a powder blue undershirt over him and magicked a mirror in front of him.

I had to admit, he did look handsome. The cut of the suit flowed around his cutie mark, leaving a short tail that ran to either side of his rump. She added a short, black, top hat, which nestled behind his horn, and a light blue necktie. He stepped from forehoof to forehoof, checking himself out in the mirror. “I like it,” he said, his face lighting up with a smile.

“Excellent!” She said and turned to me. “Then it is your turn. Oh, I have the perfect thing to go with your mane!”

“Might as well get this over with,” Chrys sighed and we trotted toward Amethyst. Shiny stepped to the side of the mirror, watching me as Amethyst scrutinized me. She turned, shifted through a few dresses she had on the rack, and pulled out a juniper green dress, a lime green ribbon tied around the middle. She magicked it onto me, tugging at the corners to make them even. It flowed gently down my back to lay comfortably around my back legs. A tad tight around the belly, but the bow draped in curlicues in front of my wings gave off a slight shimmer. My mane was already a little curly, so she simply added another lime-colored bow and tied it up into a half ponytail. Looking into the mirror, I smiled. It did look good, and brought out the lemony yellow of my coat, and made my blue mane look brighter. Shiny’s mouth gaped open as he stared at me, and I held back the urge to giggle. “I don’t blame him, we do look beautiful.” Chrys said, chuckling lightly. “I dare say this pony has quite the fashion sense. I like her style.”

I nodded in agreement. I had never been much for dresses, but this one was quite nice. From what I had seen of the other outfits, we would blend right in with the crowd, exactly how Chrys and I would have it. Better none of them remember us. “We’ll take them,” I said, turning once more, smiling at my reflection. “How much do we owe you?”

“They are on the house, I wouldn’t want anypony to not look their best for the reception after all!” I stared over at her in shock. Free? After all the work she had done? I’d almost think she was Rarity’s doppelganger, but then there could be more than one generous dress designer? “All I ask, is you tell your friends and send them my way,” she said.

“Of course, thank you,” I said, and jumped when Cheese bounced up beside me again.

“See I told you, she is the best! Now let’s get you two back to the party!” Cheese put a hoof around Shiny and me and led us back toward the door.

“Wait, what about our bags?” Shiny asked, pausing where he had left them by the door.

“You go enjoy the party,” Amethyst said, “I’ll keep an eye on your bags.”

“You heard her, time to party!” Cheese Sandwich yelled, and with our bags somewhere safe, we stepped outside.

The party was well underway when we returned. There were still ponies in line to meet and greet with the bride and groom, but most had moved to either the dance floor or the refreshment table, covered with so many sweets even Pinkie Pie would get a toothache from eating them. Cheese placed us at the end of the line to meet the newlyweds. “Enjoy the party!” he said and trotted off to the dance floor.

“Well, this will certainly be interesting,” I said to Shiny, as we took a step forward. Only five ponies stood waiting in front of us.

“Just behave now, even if it gets boring,” Shiny said and tapped me with one of his forehooves. “We don’t want to be ran out of this town too,” he whispered.

“I’ll behave,” I said and chuckled at him as we took a step closer.

“By the way, what did you decide on for a name for this umm… version of you?”

I stared at him wide-eyed. How could I have forgotten something so important? “Um well… my cutie mark is a butterfly and music notes right? Soaring Song?”

Shiny chuckled and nodded. “Soaring Song it is then.” Only one more pony stood ahead of us, and as he moved on Shiny and I stepped toward Forest Roll and Golden Showers.

“Well hello there, I don’t believe we have met before. Welcome to our reception.” Forest Roll said, holding out a hoof to us. I shook it and grinned at them. “What brings you two to our little town?”

“Just passing through on our way back to Dodge Junction. I’m Soaring Song, and this is Shiny Whistle.”

“Well, it’s nice to meet some new folk around here. Been forever since someone new arrived.” Golden Showers said, giving out a lilting laugh. “We’re glad to have you, feel free to stay at Griffon’s Talon inn tonight after the party. We’ve reserved the entire inn for our traveling guests.”

“We will be sure to do so, thank you,” Shiny said, “and congratulations!” We moved on, a dark blue unicorn stallion coming up to talk to the pair behind us.

A new song started playing, and Shiny and I both looked to see an orchestra of ponies playing on a stage. A grey mare with a dark grey mane and tail stood near the front playing the cello, an indigo-colored stallion with blue mane and tail playing the harp to her left, a pastel blue mare, tan mane and tail playing the trumpet also on her left, and a taupe colored stallion, blond mane and tail playing the piano on her right.

Shiny looked over at me and kicked a hoof against the dirt. “Um Soaring, would you… would you like to dance?”

“Aww look at him being so shy,” Chrys said and chuckled. “Been a while since I last danced. Shining Armor and I did it a few times, preparing a special dance for the reception.” She paused, and hummed in thought. “You know, let’s do it. Might as well have a little fun tonight.”

I nodded and stepped closer to Shiny. “Sure, let’s dance,” I said and put a wing around him, then led him closer to the stage where other ponies were dancing. We faced each other, and Shiny Whistle reared up, balancing on his rear hooves, front hooves extended out to me. And that was when I realized, I hadn’t practiced walking around on two hooves, let alone dancing on them!

“You’ll be fine,” Chrys reassured me, “after all, it is the stallion’s job to lead in the dance. Let’s just hope he is a good dancer!” I nodded, gulping and reared up as well, taking his hooves in my own. Taking the first step, I gasped as I lost my balance and started to tumble forward.

“Woah,” Shiny said, and caught me in his hooves, both now wrapped around my back. “Been a while since you last danced, I am guessing?” he asked, muzzle inches from my own as he held me in a dip, then helped me back to my hooves.

“Yeah, not much need for dancing back home, protecting everypony being more important,” I said, as he held me close.

“Well then, guess I better lead a little better,” he chuckled, and led me into the dance once again, catching the rhythm of the other dancers. I stumbled a few other times, but Shiny was quick enough to make it look like he was sweeping me into another dip. “You up for a twirl?” he asked, and I nodded.

He let go of my left hoof and raised his left and my right above our heads, holding my hoof gently. I turned to the right, stepping back carefully, and twirled under our hooves, my mane flowed out behind me, and I laughed as I came back in to grasp his right hoof in my own. What an exhilarating rush, and I hadn’t tripped this time! The lights strung in the trees above us shined down on us, catching little droplets of sweat on Shiny Whistle’s forehead and making them glisten. As the song neared its end, Shiny brought me in for one last twirl, dipping me at the end of it and bringing me up fast enough the blood rushed through my head.

I couldn’t help smiling as we stepped apart and back onto four hooves. “My, my, is he an excellent dancer,” Chrys practically purred, and I let out a little chuckle. He sure was, especially having saved me from falling so much.

“What’s so funny?” he asked.

“Oh nothing, I’m just enjoying being out after being cooped up for so long,” I sighed. The grey mare slid her bow across her cello, soft music flowing out as the bride and groom joined everypony on the dance floor, sweeping across it in their dance.

Shiny’s stomach growled, and he blushed. “Excuse me, guess I am a little hungry,” he said. “Shall we get something to eat?”

I nodded, though I would be eating later, and we trotted toward the buffet table.

The Meeting

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Hoofville- Shiny Whistle

Many ponies were still on the dance floor or eating as I finished my plate, patting my full stomach. A few of the older couples and many of the younger couples had retired to the Griffon’s Talon Inn, just a few buildings down from Amethyst’s shop. Chryssy sat next to me, eyes a little unfocused as she gazed up at the stars, the moon nearly full above us. I joined her in looking up, ears flicking slightly as a bat pony flew across the moon.

Dancing with her had been amazing. I was glad for those lessons my mother had forced on me as a young stallion now. She had been right that it would impress the mares. I doubt she thought it would be for a changeling mare though, let alone their Queen! The slight tang of sweat clung to both of our bodies, and a light breeze tickled against my neck.

I just wondered, what was Chryssy going to do? She had said earlier she planned on eating later. Was she finally going to feed on me, or one of the other party goers? Could probably get quite the potent dose from any of the young couples. I was sure most of them hadn’t left for their rooms early because of exhaustion after all.

“You ready to grab our bags and get a room?” Chryssy asked, looking down from the sky. “If we time it right, we might be able to get to Dodge Junction tomorrow night.”

“Sure,” I stood and trotted toward Amethyst’s shop, Chryssy right beside me. It would be nice to get back into the main part of Equestria. The badlands, not nearly as bad as I had always been led to believe, were nice but I missed my family. I hoped there would be time for at least a quick visit with them while we were in Canterlot.

“Ah welcome back,” Amethyst said, smiling as we trotted inside. The shop was only dimly lit now, and Amethyst wore a pale blue robe around her. “Your bags are still by the door. Did you have a good time?” she asked, letting out a yawn.

“Thank you, yes it was a lovely wedding reception,” I said and levitated my bags onto my back while Chryssy did the same.

“We’ll let you get some sleep, you look exhausted,” Chryssy said, and Amethyst let out a tired chuckle.

“You have no idea dearie. Been up since dawn working on outfits for the wedding reception! Many were done before then, but there are always last-minute adjustments to make. I’m glad you had a good time. Feel free to come back anytime.”

“Thank you,” Chryssy said and led the way to the door as Amethyst pulled aside the curtain to the back part of the shop and slipped behind it.

As we entered the inn, an old cherry-red earth pony mare, mane and tail greying but with faint hints of pink still peeking through, cutie mark a quilt with a threaded needle going through it walked over to us. “Hello, youngins. Can I get you a room?”

“Yes please,” I said.

“Well, I hope you are a couple then, as we only have a single room left. This wedding has us nearly booked.”

I blushed, but Chryssy nodded to the old mare with a chuckle. “We are indeed, nothing I love more than my little Shiny,” she crooned and nuzzled my mane, which just made me blush even more.

“Well then, here is your key.” The mare handed over a long brass key with the number 102 emblazoned on its bow. “Main floor, first door to the left. Sleep well dears.” She said and nodding goodbye to us, walked back behind the counter.

“Well lovercolt, shall we go to our room?”

I sighed, and Chryssy just grinned slyly. She sure was enjoying this. We entered our room a few minutes later, dropping our bags by the door as we closed it. The room was nice, small but cozy. The bed was the largest thing in the room, easily able to fit two ponies on it, with a thick red and white patterned quilt spread out on it and two fluffy pillows. I changed out of my tux and placed it carefully in my saddlebag, while Chryssy did the same with her dress.

With a light of green fire, Chryssy transformed back into her own form and locked the bedroom door. Her eyes glowed in the darkness of the room, lit by the moonlight shining through the window. Letting out a deep sigh she relaxed back onto the bed, mane billowing out around her. My Celestia was she looking beautiful! I looked away, ears lowered slightly. Why did this have to feel so awkward?

“Get over here you silly pony,” Chryssy purred, licking her lips. “I think things here are going well enough that we’d be okay with me feeding off you if you are still willing?”

“What?” I gasped and gulped. Oh, so we were doing this then. The fur on my neck prickled and I bit my lip. Was I ready for her to feed off me? What did a pony do while they were being fed on? I shook my head and walked over to the bed. This is what I was here for after all. Well and getting Celestia to let Chryssy’s friend go. “So what do I need to do? Is there a position that is best? Or something I should think about or…” Chryssy put a hoof to my muzzle, grinning slyly.

“You really overthink things sometimes Shiny. Just stretch out here next to me, and it does help if you think of somepony you love, but it is not required.” I nodded, getting up into the bed and stretching out on my back, tail draped over the side of the bed. “There see, now was that so hard?” she asked, rolling over onto her belly and draping one forehoof around my own belly.

My breathing quickened at her touch, and all I could do was smile at her in reply. I could feel my heartbeat increase and raised my eyes to look into her own, lit up with amusement. A lock of her mane fell against me and my skin tingled at its touch.

“Calm down, I’m not going to hurt you, my silly pony.” Chryssy said, lowering her head until we were nearly muzzle to muzzle. “Thinking of that special somepony?”

“Uh huh,” I said nodding my head as I stared into those big green eyes of hers, almost getting lost in their beauty. But I couldn’t take my mind off her. The way she laughed, her small, smooth ears, her delicate muzzle, the way her carapace shone in the light of the moon pooling in from the window. Her horn lit up with green light above me and I closed my eyes as she brought it down to my neck.

It felt warm against my neck, a pleasant warmth like relaxing into a hot bath, steam drifting through the air around you. There was a slight tugging sensation, and then it felt like a thin string was being pulled through and out of my neck, tickling but not enough to make me wiggle. I opened my eyes, to see Chryssy had closed her own, concentrating. One of her ears twitched, and I sighed, taking in her beauty. I couldn’t deny it anymore, no, I had fallen in love with her, the real her. “I love you,” I whispered, and was startled when she pulled away, sitting up and losing her balance, tumbling onto the floor.

I sat up, watching as she disentangled herself from the heap she had fallen in and stared at me wide-eyed, pupil’s dilated, as she stood. Breathing heavily, she looked around the room for a moment then with her magic opened the window and jumped outside. I leaped out of bed and looked out the window, watching as her wings flittered into a buzz as she lifted off and flew towards the trees ahead of us, leading into the small copse of woods. “Did I do something wrong?” I said, ears lowered, hanging down. Why had she run away? She seemed terrified. Did the idea of me loving her repulse her that much? Here I thought we were getting along so well.

I sat back down on the bed, watching the skies where she had disappeared into the trees. There was no way I could catch up to her on hoof. But what could I do? Oh, why didn’t I do what she said and think of somepony I loved? But then I had, I loved her, even if that is not what she had meant. I put both forehooves to my forehead and groaned. Why did love have to be so hard?

I wiggled my nose, something in the air making it itch. I rose my head, curling my upper lip, and took in a slow, deep breath. With a snort, I blew out the acrid stench of smoke whispering in through the open window. “It’s too late in the year for anypony to have a fire going,” I mumbled as I stood up and walked over to the window.

“FIRE!” A pastel green earth pony stallion yelled, galloping past my window, ash caked in his otherwise blue mane. I jumped, startled, watching him until he turned a corner and disappeared. I perked up my ears and looked in the direction he had run from. My eyes widened and my ears fell flat to my head upon seeing flames engulfing the buildings on the far side of town, dark billowing smoke pouring into the air. “That is not good.”

Somewhere in the woods- Queen Chrysalis

I buzzed down onto a dirt path, kicking up dust as I landed and paced back and forth. I bit my lip, ears swiveling back and forth, my nostrils flaring as I breathed in and out. “What just happened back there?” I said, shaking my head and barrel, still pacing.

“Well, it can’t be what it looks like. No, it must be some side effect. Yes, that’s it!” Chrys said, easily as tense as I was feeling. “He’s become too attached to us, or something. He doesn’t really- we don’t really, we can’t!”

“Can’t fall in love?”

“Yes! No , no we can’t! Platonically yes, maybe, but romantically no. Ugh!” Chrys groaned. “What does he think he is doing? Saying things like that? No, no he lusts after us, Yes, yes that is it. He is one of those rare ponies that get turned on by being fed upon.”

“Why can’t he possibly love us?” I said. “He has a good heart. Probably totally crushed by us running off. Did you know you could do that?”

“Do what?”

“Control our body still, to an extent at least. All those emotions flowing in the room, then his declaration, kind of startled both of us, and you took control and sped us out of there.”

“No, I didn’t know I still could. As far as I can remember, the previous Chrysalis never could to me. Curious…” I stopped in the middle of the path, shifting from hoof to hoof. Our heartbeat was still erratic, my ears swiveling back and forth. Chrys’s mind was whirling inside of mine, and at times I couldn’t even connect to her.

“Calm down Chrys, we need to figure out what to do.”

“Go on alone, that is the only answer. We could get to Dodge Junction by morning if we fly, then take the train to Canterlot. If I have to I’ll take control of our body again and…”

“NO! We can’t leave him behind.” I yelled, stomping a hoof down on the hard ground. Bushes moved and I heard pawsteps fleeing from us out of the bushes. Probably some rabbit or something. ‘I’ was the Queen now, and even though I respected her, this was one thing I would not agree on. “Why are you so against thinking you can’t love? You love your changelings, you love your daughter, so why not a pony?”

“Because a changeling Queen does NOT fall in love with a pony. My love for my hive is different, nowhere near the same. You haven’t been one of us long enough to understand.” She practically hissed at me, if she had had control of our mouth. “Nothing good comes from it, and so we never have and never will. Manipulate them yes, make them think we love them sure, but in the end, all they are is food.”

“I can’t believe you really feel that way. After all, I’ve seen, which I admit isn’t much, just, ugh!” I stomped my hoof again, nostrils flaring, shaking my head. Great, now she was making me angry. “Fine, you don’t have to love him. But we are continuing this mission together.”

“Very well,” she growled. “But once the mission is over, he STAYS in Canterlot. He’s not coming back with us. We need to figure out how to beat this threat to us. I don’t see him being much help for that. We’ll get him back to his family and then… back home, where everything will be as it always has.”

I sighed, and looked up to the sky, watching the moon. No one had ever confessed their love to me like that before. My parents and siblings sure I knew they loved me, even my friends had told me such as well, but a guy? Never. And now she wanted us to leave behind the only one who ever had?

I perked my ears up as a scream filled the night air. My hooves trotted over the dirt path as I followed the sound of the scream, coming to a cliff overlooking Hoofville. “Oh my,” Chrys said. The town was burning, a good portion of the far end already covered in flames and smoke.

“We couldn’t have been gone for more than a few minutes! How did this happen?” I said, mouth gaping open as I watched ponies running around in panic. A shiver ran through me as a shadow rippled along beside the ponies, then more and more of them appeared. Screams turned shrill as ponies began to notice the shadows amongst them. My ears dropped flat as I watched one wrap itself around a dark red pegasus’s neck, and the two of them went down, the other ponies and shadows continuing on around them. The pegasus screamed, but only for a moment before it was cut off.

“Look, it’s the changeling queen,” a voice hissed behind me. I jumped, turning around to see three of the shadows slithering closer. They were vaguely in the shape of ponies, two beady eyes shining a bright white, a magical white aura trailing out behind them. The one in the middle grinned, revealing misshapen, uneven teeth.

“Umbrum!” Chrys said, and we took a step back, ears pinned to the side of our head and nostrils flaring. “As if this night wasn’t bad enough! Fly! This is an enemy we can’t beat alone.”

I held my wings down to my side, refusing to go. I took a quick glance down toward the inn, still intact, but the fire was growing closer. “Aw look, she develops feelings for that unicorn,” the middle Umbrum said.

“Too bad he will die,” the one to the left said, floating over to my left side. “As will all the ponies of this town.”

“She has ordered us to leave none alive,” the one on the right said, eyes narrowed as it moved in on my right.

“She?” I asked, gulping. Who was this leader of theirs, and why was she destroying this town?

“You have no need to know her name,” the middle one said, “not yet.” I stiffened as they circled around me, rubbing up against my chitin, the smoky shadow of them cold and itchy. “She still plans on talking to you. We didn’t expect to find you here though.”

“It was quite the pleasant surprise!”

“Heh, we figured you would be with the rest of your changelings.”

“Shut up!” the middle one hissed at the other two and stopped in front of me, floating up to wrap its body around my neck, staring into my eyes. “Now, just what to do with you.”

“Run, fly, do something!” Chrys yelled, but I was frozen in fear. My eyes widened as I stared into the Umbrum’s eyes, feeling its shadowy coils tighten around me.

“Leave her to me Rabia,” I flicked my eyes to the sound of hooves walking towards us from out of the trees. A black cloaked pony appeared as it stepped into the moonlight. As it looked up, all I could make out was a pair of glowing red eyes. Even with the bright moonlight, the rest of the face was in shadow. “Continue thy destruction of the town.”

The Umbrum wrapped around my neck sighed and nodded. “Very well,” it unwrapped itself from around me and it and the other two jumped off the edge, a pair of moth-like wings extending from each of their backs and floating them down. I took a deep breath as they left. A hoof to my neck, still feeling that thing around it, even if it was now gone.

I turned to look back at the pony and could feel Chrys practically growl at her in my head. A horn glowed red under her cloak, some type of amulet around her neck also glowing. “I told your minion I’d be watching,” she said. “Did you really think bringing all your changelings home would scare me? As you can see, I have my own destructive army.” Stepping closer, she beckoned me closer to the cliff edge and pointed a boot-covered hoof out on the town. The bottom half of a blue tail stuck out from under her cloak. “This is only a fraction of the power I possess. I’m sure you remember the power the Umbrum possesses.”

I nodded, after all, I did read the comics for the show before I was brought here, and Chrys had filled me in on all she knew. The Umbrum were basically the opposite of the changelings, feeding on fear instead of love. Their powers focused largely on pyrotechnics. Which would explain how the town had burned so rapidly. They had nearly destroyed the Crystal Kingdom many years ago before the Princesses sealed them away. “What do you want pony? And how is it the Umbrum have come to follow you? How did you set them free?”

“I’m not stupid Chrysalis, you are not going to get me monologuing,” she said and chuckled. “I have my secrets, and there is only one way you will learn them.”

“Let me guess, you want my changelings and me on your side.”

“My, my, and here I thought it would take time to get to that.”

“Likely story,” Chrys snorted.

“And what would make me want to do such a thing? We work alone.”

“You almost won against those Princesses when you attacked Canterlot. Yet you underestimated the true power of pony love.”

I rolled my eyes. “And you feel the need to tell me something I already know because?”

“If we band together, that won’t happen again. With the fear, my Umbrum will instill in them, and your changelings stealing their love, they have no chance!”

“Been there, done that,” I growled. “If everypony is filled with fear, there will be no love for my changelings.”

She turned to look at me, and her eyes glowed red again for a moment. Then she took a deep breath, and let it out. “That can be solved easily enough after we have Equestria. You can have Canterlot, Ponyville and the towns and cities around there. I want the Crystal Empire.”

I snorted. “Wouldn’t want that bone-chilling place anyway. Much too cold.”

“So, we have a deal?”

“I never said that!” I growled.

“Right, we don’t even know who she is! Foolish pony wants us to work with her? We at least deserve to know that.”

“Well then, there is still time,” she said and chuckled. “You better go check on your little lover pony. I’ll be around, but my offer won’t stay forever. I gain more power each day, soon I won’t even need you to beat those Princesses.” She took a deep breath and sighed. “But I thought I’d offer you a chance first. Don’t keep me waiting long for an answer, or you’ll regret it. Enjoy your trip to Canterlot.” With that, her eyes, horn, and amulet glowed a bright red again and with a pop, she vanished.

“Well, that sure was… interesting.” Chrys said, and we looked down at the town. The flames were getting close to the inn, almost to Amethyst’s shop. Chrys sighed. “Come on then, let’s go rescue Shiny.” I nodded and lifted off the cliff, wings buzzing as I flew down.

Attack

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Hoofville- Shiny Whistle

“Back you!” I growled, shooting out a bolt of magic at one of the shadows, hitting it between the eyes and making it hiss. My teeth bared at it, I lowered my head and stamped my hoof. Ears flicking slightly back and forth, the screams around me getting shriller as ponies fell. But I was not going to be one of them, oh no.

Most of those in Hoofville seemed to be earth ponies, and even turning and bucking the shadows didn’t do much. All the shadows did was laugh and grab the ponies' back hooves, pulling them closer. Two other unicorn stallions had joined me by the door to the inn as I raced out to help, three fillies and a colt behind us, cowering in fear.

“Just give us the foals!” one of the shadows said, a big grin on its face, uneven, broken teeth reminding me of a Jack-O-Lantern from Nightmare Night.

“Never!” The stallion to my left growled, an amber-orange with a bright yellow mane, his pale orange magic glowing around his horn. “You’ll have to get by me first.”

The shadow tsked, shaking its head. “Are all of you ponies so cliché? Give us the little ones, and maybe we will let you three go. We need somepony to spread the news after all.”

“Now who’s the one being cliché?” The other stallion to my right sneered, the same dark blue one that had been behind us in line at the reception, a pale blue glow of his magic surrounding his horn.

I nodded, lighting my own horn up with its violet hue. “Now!” I yelled and together we shot three bolts of energy at the shadow, one hitting it in its gruesome teeth, knocking one out, another right in the left eye, and the last square between its eyes again.

It screamed and fell to the ground. Hmm, so it seemed these things were not entirely invincible. Just impervious to physical attacks? It held its eye with one shadowy hoof, moaning as it writhed on the ground. “We should get these foals somewhere safer,” the amber-orange stallion said and levitated two of the fillies onto his broad back. They clung on tightly to his mane, shivering.

I nodded, levitating up the last filly while the dark blue stallion picked up the colt. “But where to?” I asked. The town seemed full of the shadows and panicking ponies.

“This way, I know of a cave just outside the town. It’s well hidden, so they might not have discovered it yet.” The dark blue stallion said and we nodded. Waiting for a break in the crowd, we cantered off, coming around the corner only to hear a shrill scream, followed by some cursing.

“That voice sounds familiar,” I said, and then it hit me. It was Amethyst! “Here,” I said and levitated the filly over to the dark blue unicorn. “I’m going to help her.”

“Are you crazy? It took all three of us to take down that one… monster, how do you expect to save her on your own?” The orange stallion yelled.

“I don’t know, but I need to help. Take care of the foals.” With that, I took a deep breath and cantered off toward her shop. My heart pounded as I reentered the fray. What was I thinking? This was not at all like me, I wasn’t a fighter. Then I thought of those foals, shivering in fear. They needed protection, and so did Amethyst. I might not be much of a fighter, but I was what they had, and I would do my best.

“There he is!”

“Let’s get him before she can.”

“Panic and run! Panic and run!”

I paused in my hoofsteps as three of the shadow pony-like creatures surrounded me, wide grins on their faces. These three were larger than the others, especially the middle one. While the others had been roughly pony size, these were more along the size of timberwolves. I took one step forward, lighting up my horn. “You don’t scare me,” I growled, eyes flicking between the three of them as they circled.

“Stupid pony,” one chided, shaking its head.

“Doesn’t know it should be scared,” another one hissed.

The third just cackled, trying to catch my gaze. I narrowed my eyes and looked away from it, my horn glowing brighter as it held in more energy. “Get lost you monsters,” I said but could feel my courage wavering. How could I defeat three of them at once?

“And to think if only she had stayed with him, perhaps he would have been safe.”

I opened my eyes wide, ears going straight up. Were they talking about Chryssy? “What did you do to her?”

“Let’s just say you will never see her again pony,” the middle one said and smiled floating closer to me, staring into my eyes. “You are ours now.” The light in my horn started to fade as my fear rose, and I bit my lip.

“Not if I can help it!” I shook my head, clearing the fuzziness the creature had been flooding my head with, as it looked away at something hovering above us.

I looked up to see Chryssy hovering there, in her natural form, horn aglow and eyes narrowed to slits, fangs bared in a snarl. She held up her neck then lashed it back down as she shot a powerful blast of green magic at the three surrounding me, making them back up a few hoofsteps. Chryssy landed beside me, legs spread wide as she shot another blast at the three shadow creatures. “Go back to the frozen north where you belong!”

“You’re alive!” I yelled, my heart pounding as she stood there, mane blowing in the soot-filled wind.

“Of course I am, you think these fools could kill me that easily?” she said, staring down at me with one eye. “Now concentrate, I want both of us to make it out of here.”

I nodded and lit up my horn, throwing another shot of magic at the one nearest me. “What are these things?”

Chryssy sighed, “part of the threat I was talking about. The Umbrum.”

Dodging one of them as it pounced at me, I puzzled over this. I’d never heard of them before, but then I was not a scholar. Had barely even made it into Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns. “And they are?”

“Shiny, stop being so inquisitive and fight! We can talk about them later.”

“If you survive,” one of the Umbrum said, laughing.

“Oh we will,” I said, shooting a blast at it, making it take a step back. With Chryssy by my side, I wasn’t too worried. But they kept coming. I could hardly see any other ponies in the crowd now, and could only hope Amethyst had gotten away. “I don’t know how much longer I can hold them off,” I said, a headache forming from using so much magic.

“Me either,” Chryssy said, breathing heavily. “But there is something I might be able to do.”

“What?”

“That little burst of love I got from you earlier, it might be enough for me to do a larger transformation.”

“Like a dragon?” If she could pull that off I had no doubt we’d be fine. Even these things couldn’t deal with a dragon!”

She laughed, and shook her head, “no, it would take a tremendous amount of love energy for that. I don’t even know if I could store enough for such a transformation. But this, I should be able to do.”

“Well whatever it is, you better do it quick. Preferably something with wings?” I said as a fresh wave of the Umbrum turned towards us, their misshapen teeth dripping drool.

“Oh it does,” she said and I saw her smirk before closing her eyes, the green fire surrounding her and driving off the Umbrum for a moment. As the flames dissipated she lifted her head and let out an ear-splitting roar. My eyes bulged in amazement, seeing a manticore in her place, thick red mane around her neck deterring any of the Umbrum from curling around it.

She scooped me up in one of her paws and tossed me on her wide back. I held on tight to her mane as her great wings spread wide, knees bent as she jumped into the night air, rising quickly above the chaos below. The gathered Umbrum below looked up at us, and a few spread wings of their own, rising into the air. “Fly, fly!” I yelled and closed my eyes as we raced through the air. I opened them a minute later when I heard a sound like a firework. Above the town, a single red flare floated in the sky. The Umbrum watched it, and I breathed a sigh of relief seeing them fall behind. “Somepony sent to help, you think?”

Chrysalis shook her head, “no, I imagine that is probably their leader, sending out a signal.”

“Who is their leader?”

“A cloaked unicorn mare.”

“WHAT? You mean one of our own set those things on the town?” I gasped. “Why would they do such a thing?”

Chryssy sighed. “Why does anypony do anything? For power. For revenge. A warning.”

“You think she’ll attack another town then?”

“Most definitely,” she said, flapping her wings briskly. I looked back to see they had mostly disappeared. The town I could still see fine, what was left of it, but few of the Umbrum were still in it, those still there heading towards the woods. Much of the town was still up in flames, thick black smoke swirling into the otherwise cloudless night.

“They are leaving.”

“They’ve accomplished their task for tonight, why stay?” Chryssy groaned and dropped altitude a few feet.

“Are you okay?” I asked, looking down at her. Her big gold feline eyes had a slightly glazed look to them.

“Almost… out of energy. Need a place to land, sleep for the night, safe,” she said and groaned again, closing her eyes.

“Well I heard there was a cave near the town, some ponies I met fled toward it during the battle to protect the town’s foals. With that manticore nose of yours, you can probably smell them,” I said.

She took a deep breath, and it seemed with it she recovered slightly, the cool night air helping. “Yes, unicorn, stallions, two of them, four foals.”

“That’s them,” I said and she veered slightly to the right, losing altitude as we came toward a rocky outcropping behind the town. It was covered in moss, vines, and ivy. A thin path, more of a deer path than the kind a pony would use, swerved between sparse grass and sharp rocks. My heart skipped a beat at the sight of blood alongside it. Not much, a few drops here and there, but it was fresh.

“There,” Chryssy said, pointing ahead. Just a few feet from us, covered by ivy, was a depression in the stone. The blood pooled in front of it, sinking into the dirt by the depression. Chryssy landed just short of the depression, which, this close, I could finally see went deeper than it at first appeared. With a moan she collapsed, her manticore form dissipating in a wash of green flames, leaving her unconscious in her natural form.

“Chryssy!” I yelled, running over to her. I put an ear to her chest and sighed in relief to hear her heart still beating, breathing softly.

“Who’s out there?” A voice growled, and I turned back to the entrance, lighting up my horn as I pushed aside the ivy.

“Turn that down,” the voice said. I lowered the intensity of the light, to find a cave going back maybe twenty feet. The three fillies and colt were curled up together in the back, fast asleep, the dark blue stallion sitting next to them. The amber-orange stallion lied near the entrance, his left rear leg scored with bite marks and bleeding profusely. “Looks like you made it.” The amber-orange stallion said, and coughed. “Did you rescue the mare you went after?”

I shook my head. “No, I got cornered before I could get to her. What happened to you?”

“Lone Timberwolf smelled the destruction and came to investigate, and ran into us. Lucky Shot got it good between the eyes and set it off running, but not before it got a taste of me.”

“You don’t happen to be good at healing spells?” Lucky Shot, the dark blue stallion asked, walking forward. “I can heal small things, but a wound like that is beyond me. Though I have done what I can, it won’t stop bleeding.”

“Sorry but no, my specialty is instruments, not ponies. Real creatures are a lot harder to heal.” I sighed.

“It’s okay, don’t feel bad, I’m Fire Stick by the way,” the amber-orange stallion said, and gave a grimacing smile. “How about your friend outside?”

“She’s unconscious, so even if she could, she wouldn’t have the strength.”

“Want me to help you bring her in?” Lucky Shot asked. “Don’t want that Timberwolf to get a piece of her if it comes back.”

I nodded. “Yes, that would be great. I wish I could help you Fire,” I said. I hardly knew the stallion, but that didn’t mean I wanted him to die on us!

“As long as those foals stay safe, at least I would have given my life for something good,” he sighed.

“Oh my Celestia!” I turned around at the exclamation, to see Lucky Shot had already gone outside.

“Be right back,” I told Fire Stick and hurried outside.

“Your ‘friend’ is a changeling?” Lucky hissed at me, eyes wide in shock.

“Yes, and she saved my life,” I said firmly, stomping a hoof. “You shouldn’t believe all the stories you hear about them. Many of them are actually good.”

“Are you delusional? Do you know what they tried to do to Canterlot?”

“Of course I do, I was there! Now please, we don’t have time to argue. We have wounded to take care of. Are you going to help me bring her in or not?”

Lucky Shot sighed but nodded. “Fine, but she is staying near the entrance. I’m not letting her near the foals.” He lit up his horn and levitated her a few inches off the ground, straining. Following suit, I lit up mine as well and wrapped my magic around her, together pulling her in past the ivy until her long teal tail swished inside. The ivy fell back into place, and Lucky dropped his magic, letting her go, to fall gently against the rock.

Fire Stick’s eyes flew open wide on seeing who we dragged in. “Not only a changeling, but their Queen.” He looked over at me. “How did you come to be friends with their Queen?”

“Long story,” I said and turned when I heard Chryssy moan behind me. “Hey, you okay?” I asked, kneeling down beside her as her eyes fluttered open weakly.

“I’ll live, but who’s bleeding?” She lifted her head weakly, sniffing the air, and looked over at Fire Stick, wincing upon seeing his wound. “Timberwolf?” she asked and he nodded. “Why has nopony took care of it yet?”

“None of us are skilled in healing,” Shiny said quietly.

“Dirt, big leaves, wrap vines around it,” Chryssy said softly. “Not as good as unicorn magic, but will do until we can get him to a doctor.”

“I’m on it,” Lucky Shot said, and left the cave to find what he needed.

“Thank you, your highness.” Fire Stick said bowing his head to Chryssy. “Good to have somepony who knows their healing around when you need it.”

“Don’t thank me yet, you could still die,” she said dryly. “I’m surprised none of you knew, isn’t that one of the first things taught to young unicorns?”

“Well… never thought I would need it,” Fire Stick said, grimacing. “I put all my focus into battle spells.”

“And I was busy with my music,” I said, blushing a little in embarrassment.

“Foalish stallions,” Chryssy sighed.

“Okay, I think I remember how to do this,” Lucky Shot said as he returned, pulling aside the vines of ivy as he entered. Dirt, some long strands of a vine, and some type of large, feathery leaves were grasped in his magic.

As he went to work helping Fire Stick, I turned to Chryssy. “Anything I can do to help you feel better?”

“Well, my energy reserves are very low, so feeding would help. But with all that has happened, the amount I would need to get by would knock you out until at least midday tomorrow.”

“Then I guess I’ll get some good rest,” I said and lied down beside her, surprised when she flinched away.

“No,” she said simply, looking away.

“Look, if this is about what I said earlier tonight,” I said, ears twitching, “I understand if you don’t feel the same. After all, this Leptostales must be very important to you, besides just being your daughter’s father, if you are going after him yourself. You probably love him.” I might not have liked it, but it did make sense. Besides, she was a queen. How often did queens date outside of their class?

She stared over at me, the expression in her eyes unreadable. “Something like that, it’s complicated.”

“Maybe so, but I do know that the stronger the emotions, the more energy it gives you. That is what Star Bright said at least. Even if they are not shared, my emotions for you are strong. Take them, you need them,” I said and leaned against her again.

Chryssy chuckled. “When did you become so bold and smart about my people?”

“When it was needed,” I said, grinning. There was a cough behind us, and I blushed, turning to see Fire Stick and Lucky Shot watching us. Fire looked a little better, his wound wrapped up and the bleeding finally stopped. Neither of them though looked happy about what they saw.

“Are you trying to convince her to feed off you?” Lucky asked, brows raised and nose scrunched in a confused look.

“Yes,” I said. “She needs the energy to be able to heal.”

He shook his head and walked away, toward the back of the cave and the foals. “Well, I don’t want to see or hear it, so make it quick.”

Chryssy settled in beside me, adjusting to get more comfortable, “very well. Come here.” I moved my mane away from my neck, looking over at Fire, who had turned his head away, resting it on his hooves.

For the second time that night, I felt the warmth of Chryssy’s horn against my neck, the feeling of a string being pulled through it as she fed on me. I didn’t blurt out any declarations of love this time, but it was quite a pleasant feeling, making me sigh, relaxed, as I rested my head on my hooves. Star Bright had been right about another thing too, the Queen was very good at what she did. Quick and painless, but colt did it feel good as well. I could sure get used to this.

Cave near Hoofville-Queen Chrysalis

I smiled down at Shiny curled up next to me, fast asleep now with a smile on his face. Licking my lips, I sat up, weariness gone. How strong his feelings for me were already made me stop a little earlier than usual. Even if they tasted better than any other love I had had so far. Comparing it to some regular food didn’t even come close, more like a fond memory than food. Or like, eating dark chocolate while being kissed and well, being much more intimate than anything I had experienced. I could still use some more, and I could see the taste becoming highly addicting, but we still had to be careful.

I didn’t fully understand yet how far we might be able to go, without putting the pony’s safety in peril, and didn’t want to risk it. Turning into a manticore had really taken its toll on me, but I didn’t want to take more than I needed to from him. “Maybe, MAYBE, he would be useful to us after all. Until the magic of this lust he holds for us fades at least.” Chrys said, and I smiled slyly. “We’ll see how he is feeling when we reach Canterlot.” Still, with the other two stallions beside us, being in my weakened state I didn’t want to do anything to make them angry.

“So you’re the queen huh?” I looked up as the one called Lucky Shot walked over to me, emerald green eyes staring.

“Yes, young stallion, I am.”

“What you doing out here, away from the others? Or was it you who burned down our homes?”

“How dare the little whelp accuse us,” Chrys growled. “What would be the point in killing off all those ponies?”

I sighed, trying to keep calm through Chrys’s anger. “We are on a rescue mission, and no I am not the one who ordered those monsters to destroy your homes. A dead pony is useless to me, so why would I kill off an entire town?”

Lucky sat down, staring at the ground, ears twitching as if it thought. “What about Canterlot then hmm?” he asked, looking back up at me.

“Did I kill anypony then? No. Not even that Princess Cadence. If I had killed her, my takeover would have been flawless, as Twilight never would have escaped the mines, and nopony would have known of my disguise.” I narrowed my eyes at him. “But I didn’t, and it is thanks to them that things didn’t go to plan. But we survived to one day seek our revenge, which is what matters.”

“Well spoken, like a true queen,” Chrys said. “Now let him know who is in charge. This pony is just too full of questions.”

“But no more questions,” I said, smiling at Chrys’s praise. “We all need our sleep, but need a guard to protect against that lone timberwolf. With all this blood spilled, it is sure to come back to finish the job. You are the fittest of those of us here. Take the watch for the rest of the night, then we can head out.”

“You are not my queen, I do not need to follow your orders,” Lucky sneered.

“That doesn’t matter, I might not be your queen, but I can still take charge of our little group, for tonight at least. Believe me, I want to protect those foals just as much as you. Young life is precious.” Seeing the little foals reminded me of Citheronia back home. Even if she wasn’t technically my daughter, she was this body’s daughter and the daughter of Chrys. It would hurt me just as much as her if something was to happen to the little hatchling.

“Yes, and to whoever caused something to happen to her, that pony or changeling or whatever creature it is, would pay dearly! We might rarely take lives, but in that case, there would be NO exceptions.” Chrys growled, and I couldn’t agree more. No matter if I had never hurt someone before, let alone kill them.

Lucky looked ready to continue arguing, but then looked over as the colt rolled over in his sleep, letting out a deep sigh. Lucky’s ears lowered as he turned to face me again, utter hate in his gaze. “Fine. But I am not doing this for you, but for them.” He pointed a hoof at the foals and then went to stand near the cave’s entrance. “And if I see you move to lay one hoof on them, you will be sorry!” he said, then turned his attention to the area outside of the cave.

I just shook my head and nestled back down onto the ground, head on my hooves. “Ugh, the arrogance of some ponies,” Chrys said, “I can hardly wait to part from them. Now, about what we should tell Shiny…” we looked over at him, head leaning against a rock as he slept. Even after that manecut that he gave himself, strands still hung in front of his right eye, moving back and forth as he breathed. “Let him believe the conclusions he has come to for now. It will make him easier to tolerate if he doesn’t think he can try to win our love.”

I nodded, too tired to argue with her. Looking over at the foals I smiled, watching them as they slept. One of the fillies was a unicorn, a baby blue color with a turquoise mane. Another was a pegasus, a dark purple with minty green mane and tail. The last filly, and the colt, were both earth ponies, probably twins, with peach-colored coats and blonde manes and tails. Turning back toward the entrance, I looked up at what scattered stars I could see through the trailing ivy vines. Still a few hours until dawn. “Wake me if there is any trouble,” I called to Lucky Shot, who said nothing.

* * *

I awoke to a tiny hoof poking my nose. Opening one eye, there was a gasp and a scramble of hooves as the four foals backed away, eyes big and bright as they watched me. Glancing over to the entrance I saw Lucky had fallen asleep and was snoring.

“What are you?” The little unicorn filly asked as I turned back around, and the pegasus filly swatted her with a hoof.

“It’s not polite to ask things like that Lilac Bloom!” she said, then turned back to me. “Though, we have never seen a pony quite like you before.”

“Are you part Swiss cheese?” the little earth colt asked, stepping closer and looking through one of the holes in my legs.

I chuckled. “No, not part Swiss cheese. I am a changeling.”

“A changewing?” the earth pony filly asked, a slight lisp in her tone. “So you change other pony’s wings? Can you give me wings?”

“No, no a changeling,” I corrected her, “it means I can change my form at will.”

“Woah, that is so cool!” The little unicorn Lilac Bloom said, big bright purple eyes wide.

“I think I like these foals already,” Chrys said. “Even being so close to our kingdom, they know not of us, and thus have no prejudices in place. Unlike those ‘cutie mark crusaders’, ugh talk about annoying little fillies.”

“Thanks,” I said and smiled at them. “What are your names? I know you are Lilac Bloom,” I said pointing a hoof at the little unicorn filly, “but not the rest of you.”

“I’m Peach Tart, and this is my sister Peach Pie,” the earth pony colt said. Peach Pie blushed next to him, hiding her face behind her brother.

“And I’m Midnight Orchid,” the little pegasus filly said, puffing out her chest and extending her wings.

“So then, can you turn into a dragon?” Lilac Bloom asked. “I’ve always wanted to see a dragon.”

I shook my head, “sorry Lilac, but that is a little out of my range right now. How about a pony?” I grinned and stood, watching as the foals took a few steps back. Closing my eyes, the green flames spread over my body and when they dissipated, I was standing in front of them as Shiny’s sister, Dew Song.

“Wow,” they all said in awe, and circled around me.

“No holes now too,” Peach Pie said softly, reaching a hoof to touch my pink fur. “And so soft.”

“What do you foals think you are doing?” I turned to see Lucky rolling to his hooves, awake now, and he gestured them away from me. “Stay away from her.” The four of them obeyed, heading back to the far wall of the cave with heads down and tails tucked close to their sides.. Lucky turned his gaze to me. “Showing off now hmm? Lull them into a false sense of security?”

“I told you,” I hissed softly, “I’m not going to hurt them. They were just curious, is that so bad?”

“With your reputation? Yes.” He growled.

“Well excuse me if you heard things wrong.”

“Oh no, they are correct. You are nothing but a monster.”

“A monster am I?” I growled, baring my teeth. Which probably looked ridiculous, hard to look threatening when you look like a bright pink little pony.

“Ugh, will you two stop fighting?” Fire Stick groaned, opening his eyes and turning to look at us. “Huh? Who’re you? Thought I heard…” he said staring at me.

“It’s still me Fire, I transformed,” I said, turning away from Lucky with a snort. “How is your leg feeling?”

“Better,” he said, “but stiff. Think I might live to fight another day.”

“Good. Once Shiny wakes we can head off and get you to a doctor. Hopefully, the hospital will be intact in town. If not, you’ll travel with us to Dodge Junction and we’ll get you to help there.”

“Way to take charge! See, I knew you would make a great replacement,” Chrys said. “Now if only we could get that stubborn mule of a stallion to do so.”

Fire Stick nodded, adjusting until he was in a sitting position. “I’ll do my best.”

“Oh no, we are not going anywhere with you,” Lucky said, stomping his hoof.

“Do you really have any choice? If the town is destroyed, and well-” I looked over to the foals, who were watching us. I didn’t want to scare them, but it had to be said. “If their parents are gone,” I whispered, “they’ll need a place to stay, and somepony to protect them.”

I heard a little gasp and turned around. Peach Pie’s lime green eyes were wide, her ears down and eyes sparkling with tears. “Where- where would mama and papa have gone? Are they looking for us?”

I facehoofed and shook my head. Me and my big mouth. “Well I don’t know, they could be.”

“Smooth,” Lucky said. I glared over at him.

“Whatever happens, we’ll make sure you are safe,” Fire Stick said, and smiled over at the little filly.

I nodded, turning from Lucky to smile at the foals. “Now, who’s hungry?” I turned to grab my saddlebags, only to remember, I left them in the inn. “Horsefeathers!” I grumbled and looked around. Seemed none of us had brought anything with us, even Shiny’s saddlebag was missing. “And I guess food will have to wait, Shiny should wake soon though.” Looking out through the ivy, the sun has risen, sitting about a quarter of the way up in the sky. “Looks like it is maybe around ten.”

Behind me, I heard sighs and rumbling bellies. Maybe it would be a good idea to look now. But then, either I or Lucky would need to stay behind to watch over the foals. Fire was in no condition to protect them if the timberwolf returned while still recovering himself.

“Maybe, Lucky or you could find us something?” Midnight Orchid said, looking to both of us. “I can help! I’m eight now, and I help my mother make food all the time.”

“No, it’s too dangerous. You will stay here,” Lucky said to her, then turned to me. “And I don’t trust you to leave you alone with them.”

“Very well then, I’ll look around town for anything we can eat. And to see if the hospital is operational,” I said. I hated seeing those poor, sad, hungry faces on the foals, and it would probably be better they did not see the condition of the town. “I’ll be back soon.” I took one last glance down at Shiny. He had rolled over onto his back and was sleeping with his legs in the air, one back hoof slowly moving up and down. Turning, I trotted outside and down the path to the town.

Loss and Anger

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Changeling Castle- Library- Apatelodes

I startled awake to a hoof on my shoulder. “Sorry, didn’t mean to scare you,” a soft voice said, and I turned to see that unicorn mare friend of Shiny’s, Star Bright. She lowered her ears and blushed, nervously tapping her front hooves together. “The others were worried about you when you missed the meeting this morning. I was the first pony they saw and asked me to look for you.”

“Wait, what?” I asked, brain still feeling a little fuzzy. I blinked slowly a few times, then looked up to the windows on the far side of the library. The sky was a vivid cerulean, a few puffy clouds floating by. My lamp beside me was cold and long burnt out. “What time is it?”

“Nearly time for the midday meal, sir.”

I groaned, how had I let this happen? A History of the Crystal Empire lay open in front of me, thankfully drool-free. How late had I been up reading it, before falling asleep? Either way, I needed to get out there, who knew what they might have decided while I slept? I levitated the book up, wrapped it back in its cloth, and put it in my saddlebag.

Star Bright watched me for a moment before I turned to her. “Well? You found me, I’m awake now. So get back to work.”

“Of course sir just, have you heard anything from the Queen? Are they doing okay?”

I sighed and rubbed a hoof against my forehead. “No, she hasn’t contacted me. It’s only been two and a half days. Probably not even to Dodge Junction yet. I’m sure they are fine.”

“I hope so,” Star Bright said and sighed.

“Not falling for that purple headache are you?” I said and scowled.

“What? No, of course not! He’s just my friend,” she stammered, and I just narrowed my eyes at her. After years of practice and political meetings by my queen’s side, I could tell she was lying. Interesting, I wonder if he knew how she felt. Probably not, stallions were quite stupid when it came to noticing a mare’s feelings. Especially when he seemed crazy for Chrysalis already. How he thought that would work out, I had no idea.

“Well then, stop worrying and get back to work. Being so close to the midday meal they must need your help in the kitchens.”

“Yes sir,” she said and trotted away.

I rubbed the back of my neck with one hoof, wincing at the pain from having slept in an upright position. I needed to get through this book though if we were to know exactly what we were up against.

A few minutes later I walked into the throne room, where the others were already babbling away. Half-full bowls of fruit were scattered across the table. Morpheus narrowed his eyes at me as I took my place at the table. “Ah Apatelodes, nice of you to join us.”

I ignored him, drawing a bowl of pear slices closer to me and picking one out, popped it into my mouth. “So did you find anything else in that book?” Chioides asked, leaning forward.

Grabbing another slice of pear I nodded. “Of the two, the second is far more powerful.” I wiped my hooves off on a cloth napkin, and then levitated the book out of my saddlebag, turning to a page I had marked. “And with its secondary power, is what we must fear the most.”

“Well, spit it out then, what is this other power it contains?” Morpheus growled.

“It is as follows,” I said and began to read:

“It took him hardly any time at all to realize what it could do. By now he murdered a pony nearly every day in his ‘research’. I could barely stand watching, but I being his scribe, had no choice. One day when he had one of the last unicorns of the crystal empire on his examination table, as its lifeblood spilled a smoky colored plume of magic drifted from its body. The amulet glowed as the magic tried to float away, and with a hissing sound, was sucked into the amulet.

When Sombra noticed this, he tested his powers out, to find they had grown stronger by a margin. Oh, how I shuddered at the evil grin that graced his face at that realization! He repeated the experiment, with unicorn, pegasi, and even earth ponies, crystallized or not. Each time, the plume of magic was sucked into the amulet and increased his strength. He tried it with other creatures as well, griffons, buffalo, and even the rare changeling he was able to capture. The others didn’t give as much power as ponies, but their magical essences were still useful to him. I fear with this newfound power, he could become all-powerful.”

I paused in the reading, looking up to see the faces of the others around me. All had gone pale grey, a few even looked ready to faint.

“So you are saying, when this amulet is present at a death, that creature's essence enters it and makes the amulet even stronger?” Chioides said, biting his bottom lip.

“That is what it sounds like,” I said.

“Then we are in big trouble,” Morpheus said, for once with fear showing on his face. “Our informants alerted us that last night, the town of Hoofville was pretty much burned to the ground.”

“What?” I yelled, my own eyes growing wide now. If they had kept up an even pace, my Queen and Shiny were probably around there, or not far from it.

“If you had been here for the morning meeting, you would have known already,” Morpheus growled. “The only ponies that got away were the town’s pegasi and some of the unicorns. Maybe a small handful of earth ponies. Our informants told us the arsons were some strange shadows with pony forms.”

“That sounds like-“

“Yes, what the old tales call the Umbrum,” Morpheus confirmed.

“Then the chaos has begun. That pony is making true to their word.” I shut the book and placed it on the table. “And with it, getting stronger every time they or their minions kill.” I reached into my saddlebag and drew out a large green emerald. “Changelings, continue. I’ll be right back. The queen must hear of this.”

Racing out into the hall, I slammed the door behind me, taking deep breaths as I leaned against it for support. I touched the emerald to my horn, and it started to glow. “Contact, Queen Chrysalis,” I said into the emerald. Oh, how I thanked the changeling or pony that had come up with this spell, made it so much easier to contact others out in the field. Though it was only given to the higher ranking scouts and royals usually. I tapped my hoof as I waited for it to connect to the emerald in Chrysalis’s saddlebag.

“Ugh, it shouldn’t be taking this long,” I said as the minutes passed. I jumped as a sound like a dozen buzzing bees came from the emerald. “Oh colt,” I groaned. That was not good. Something must have happened to her emerald. Was she okay? Was she even still alive? “Things just got a whole lot worse,” I said, and collapsed to the cool floor. What was I to do now?

Hoofville-Queen Chrysalis

Crows scattered into the air as I entered the village. Cats scampered into the ruins of buildings around me, eyes shining as they stared at me from their hideouts. Smoke still crept upward from many of the buildings, but the fires had all burned out from what I could see. It was a good thing I hadn’t brought any of the foals with me, they would be scarred for life.

Pony bodies lay scattered among the debris, many half-buried in collapsed buildings. Bodies covered in soot and dirt, their bright colors were faded, and I had to step carefully to avoid placing a hoof on one. Some had their necks at unnatural angles, likely broken from when the Umbrum wrapped themselves around them. Others burned, a few even almost beyond recognition. Yet others were only partially there, scavengers having already arrived and started their work.

The few buildings that still stood looked about ready to collapse at any moment, their remaining walls creaking in the wind. I trotted forward when I spotted a familiar-looking pink mane and tail. Pushing aside some rubble with my magic, my heart sank at the sight before me. Her colors were muted with the soot and dirt, but her pale purple crystal rose cutie mark still stood out. “Oh Amethyst,” I sighed, lowering my head and closing my eyes. Along with the soot and dust were deep bite marks across her face and body. “At least you went out fighting,” I whispered, and moved the rubble back over her. I wanted to protect it from the scavengers for as long as possible.

“I kind of liked her,” Chrys said then snorted. “What am I saying? Me, liking ponies? Maybe you are rubbing off on me too,” she groaned, making me grin for a moment.

“Well if I am, then it is for the better.”

“That could be argued.”

“At least the foals seem to like us?”

“True, and that’s new.”

We soon came to the inn, its upper floors had collapsed backward into the buildings behind it, leaving the first floor mostly standing, the front door kicked in and broken. I stepped inside and immediately began coughing over the strong acrid stench of smoke. The door to our room was cracked open, and stepping inside I saw our bags against the wall. Or what was left of them. The strong material used to make them had held up somewhat well, but a single touch of my hoof poofed the upper layer into soot. The straps were completely gone, leaving just melted hunks of metal where they had held them against our barrels.

I sorted through the bags, trying to see if there was anything that could be salvaged, but it was all damaged. I pulled out my casting emerald, which was used to contact others while out in the field, only to find a large crack down its center. Looking through Shiny’s bag I pulled out his penny whistle, now just a melted hunk of tin. “We should move on, nothing of ours survived,” Chrys said. I could feel her mind swirling within, shocked as I was by the damage.

We stepped back outside. I still held my emerald and Shiny’s whistle and wrapped them in a tablecloth that had mostly escaped damage, with just a few scorch marks here and there. I stopped in front of a burned-down building with a large sign, broken in half, saying “Grocer-”. “Well, so much for finding food,” I sighed and turned to look for the hospital.

I did my best to ignore the dead scattered on the ground around me, not wanting to spot somepony I might have met last night. But when I stumbled over one as I came to the far side of town, opposite where the fire had started, I couldn’t help looking at them. It was a dusty peach-colored earth pony mare, cutie mark a peach cut in half, exposing the pit inside. I closed my eyes and hurried past, not wanting to see any more.

Beside a shattered store mirror, I heard little squeaks, and rats paused to look at me, beady eyes gleaming and mouths already red with blood. They raced off as I paused to look in the mirror, to see even in this short time of walking through, my pink coat had turned almost grey, my eyes were bloodshot and tired looking, and my mane was sticking up in clumps of soot.

Across the way, near the end of the block, I finally found the hospital. Much of it had fallen inward, but the front of it was still intact. I stepped inside, jumping back as I nearly stepped on a unicorn stallion in a doctor’s coat. Dead as all the others but with a key in his hoof, pointing at a strong metal case, a small keyhole in the center. I grabbed the key and inserted it into the keyhole, surprised when it clicked open easily.

I breathed a sigh of relief at what I found inside: thick bandage wraps, medical scissors, bandages, and a sharp scalpel. Fire Stick could sure use a lot of this, and it would be that much better than the dirt and vines for keeping his wounds from getting infected. I grabbed as many wraps and bandages as I could fit in the tablecloth, adding the scissors and scalpel as well.

“Well, we didn’t find food, but we found some useful things,” I said as I walked toward the door, “now to get back to the others.”

Cave near Hoofville- Shiny Whistle

When I opened my eyes, I looked around me. Light filtered through into the cave, with Fire Stick resting near the entrance. Lucky Shot sat near the middle, one eye on the entrance and one eye on the foals gathered in the back of the cave. I sat up quickly, regretting it as I became dizzy. Where was Chryssy?

“Where is she?” I asked, letting out a yawn as I lifted myself to my hooves.

“Went to the village to find food,” Lucky said, “been gone a while, so I imagine she’ll be back soon.”

“You sent her off alone?”

“Someone had to watch over the foals, and neither you nor Fire were in any condition to do so.” Lucky shrugged. “How are you feeling?”

“A little groggy, and hungry, but otherwise okay.” I looked up upon hearing a tired sigh, a dusty pink mare pulled aside the ivy vines and entered the cave, dragging a scorched white-and-red checkered tablecloth with them. Its edges were tied together and stuffed full.

“Finally back,” she sighed and plopped the tablecloth on the ground to one side of the entrance. “We’ll want to go around the town when we leave.”

“Chryssy?” I said, trotting closer. Yes, it had to be her, there was no way my sister would be all the way out here on her own.

“Of course,” she said and gave me a half-hearted grin. Her coat was filthy, covered in soot and dirt. Mane clumped up with the stuff too, and eyes red around the edges. “The town is in ruins. Nopony that I could see was still alive.” She turned to Fire Stick, who had awoken upon her arrival. “I did find some medical supplies. When we find a clean stream we can wash out your wounds and redress them.”

Fire nodded. “Thanks for thinking of me.”

“How about food?” Lucky asked, trotting over to the tablecloth and untying it with his magic.

“No, and even if I had I doubt it would have been edible. The entire market district was destroyed.” Chryssy levitated something out of the tablecloth and hovered it over to me. “Thought you might want this, even if it was destroyed.”

My ears went down slightly at the sight of what was left of my penny whistle. I could still make out where one or two of the holes had been, but other than that it was indistinguishable. “Thanks,” I said and took it from her, lying down on the ground and looking at it in front of me. “You know, this is the same whistle my father gave me, over twenty years ago now. It was for Hearth’s Warming Eve the year I turned ten. It’s had repairs done since then, like when my brother Velvet Beat accidentally sat on it and broke it in half. That I was able to fix, but this,” I sighed and closed my eyes. “This time repairing it is beyond even my ability.”

“That’s too bad Shiny,” Fire said, his ears going down as well.

“Can you get another one?” One of the foals, the dark purple pegasus asked.

“Yes, I even make them so it wouldn’t be hard to get a new one,” I said and smiled down at her. “But it won’t be the same.” I looked back up at Chryssy. “But thank you still. Having it in this condition is better than not having it at all.”

“You are welcome,” she said and walked back over to the tablecloth.

“We should get going,” Lucky said, watching as she did so. “We are all hungry, and if we have to go around the town, it will take that much longer to find any food. Thank Celestia there is a peach orchard a few miles down the road.”

“And you couldn’t have mentioned that before?” Chryssy growled softly at him. “It could have saved us time!”

“I didn’t think of it,” he said, “plus we needed to check if the hospital was in working order anyway.” Chryssy just glared at him, tying up the tablecloth again and pitching it his way.

“Fine, for not thinking of it, you will carry the medical supplies to this orchard.” She stomped out of the cave, ears pulled back against her head.

“You might want to try being nicer Lucky,” Fire said, grimacing as he stood up. “You don’t want to give her an excuse to kill you in your sleep.”

Lucky just grinned, levitating the bag onto his back. “She wouldn’t dare.” He followed Chryssy out of the cave, followed by Fire who limped along behind him.

“Come on kids,” I said, nudging the four foals along with my muzzle. “The quicker we get out of here, the quicker we can eat.”

“I wonder if our mother is waiting for us in the orchard.” The little earth pony mare said. I stayed silent, not wanting to give them false hope. Who knows what Chryssy had seen in the town? All I knew is it was bad enough she wanted to avoid going through it again.

As we trotted along, the town, or what was left of it, was visible on the horizon. I ushered the foals to my far side, not wanting them to see the destruction. From what I could tell, very little survived. A shell of the peaceful town it had been less than a day before. I did my best to ignore the smell the wind blew our way, and Chryssy made it slightly easier by setting a fast pace. Fire Stick grunted beside me, doing his best to keep up even with his injured flank. He wouldn’t be able to keep up this pace for long, and neither would the foals most likely.

Lucky Shot trotted behind Chryssy, even with the weight of the supplies around him he was taking it well. He kept his gaze on her, only making a slight grunt and pointing when we reached the end of the town down a pathway lined with oak trees. She adjusted her pace to head into the trees. Just as we entered the cover and shade of them she put a hoof out to stop Lucky. “Halt! Keep the foals here for a few minutes, I’ll be right back.”

I didn’t need to ask why. The smell of fresh blood assaulted my nostrils, the foals shivering as they moved behind me. Peach Pie grabbing onto one of my back legs with both her front hooves. “You’ll be okay, Shiny and I won’t let anything happen to you,” Fire said, collapsing down in a grassy spot near the side of the path, breathing heavily. The swift pace had opened the scabs that had started to form on his flank, and he was starting to bleed again. Just a small trickle, but even that was enough.

“How… how can you protect us when you are hurt?” Peach Pie said, biting her bottom lip and holding on all the tighter. The others nodded, staring over at me with big, wide eyes.

“We’ll do our best,” I said and nuzzled them each on their heads.

“I’ll protect you too of course,” Lucky said, setting the makeshift bag down and grinned. “Nothing will get past the three of us, even with Fire injured.”

“It’s clear, let’s continue,” Chryssy said, returning.

“Can we rest just a bit longer?” Fire said, grimacing as he tried to stand. “I’ve started bleeding again.”

“Very well,” she sighed, “but we must not wait too long. Those things might return with the cover of darkness.”

“We have plenty of time,” Lucky said waving a forehoof at her. “The sun won’t set for hours still, plenty of time to make it to the orchard.”

“But is it enough time to find clean water and a safe place to rest as well?” Chryssy growled, glaring at him.

“Of course! We don’t need to get all the way to Dodge Junction tonight. Doubt we could anyway with the condition Fire is in. We’ll stay in the home of the Peaches,” Lucky said, snorting and blinking his eyes slowly.

“If it’s still standing,” Chrysalis said and rolled her eyes.

“Well if you are so worried oh great queen,” Lucky said, rolling his eyes, “why don’t you fly ahead while we rest and check?”

“I’ll come with you!” Midnight yelled, jumping to her hooves and spreading her wings.

“Oh no, you will not!” Lucky said stomping a hoof and narrowing his eyes at the little filly. “None of you foals are to be alone with her.” He scrunched his muzzle and looked back at Chryssy, whose ears had lowered, and was baring her teeth at him. I grinned slightly at the sight, wondering how she would feel if I told her my sister looked exactly the same when she was growing angry. It was quite cute.

“HOW many times must I tell you?” Chryssy yelled, stomping a hoof into the ground, nostrils flaring as she breathed heavily. “I. Will. Not. Harm. Them!”

“You have not proved that to me yet,” Lucky said, frowning. “Nor have you proved you are not really in cohorts with those monsters.”

“Lucky,” Fire Stick said, his ears going down, “what are you doing?”

“Stay out of this!” Lucky growled, and Fire lowered his head, looking over at me. What did he want me to do?

“How dare you compare me to those Umbrum? They kill, they mutilate, they burn cities to the ground.” Chryssy hissed, her eyes flaring green for a moment.

“Oh, and your changelings don’t?” Lucky said, glaring at her. “I seem to remember hearing about some of your other exploitations before Canterlot. Remember Timbucktu? Or Trot?”

“Both of those were over a thousand years ago, we’ve changed.”

“Heh likely story. What about that village of those poor wittle fluffy critters you landed in after being blasted away from Canterlot?” Lucky snorted.

I looked at him in surprise. Where had he gotten all this information? He sure didn’t seem like the reading type, nor did I think he had been in the changeling kingdom recently. After all, even I hadn’t heard about the village of those critters until I had been in the castle for about a week.

“That’s it, that is it!” Chryssy yelled and lit up her horn to its regular lime green hue. “I’ve had enough of your insolence!”

“You do anything to me and you’ll just be proving my point,” Lucky said with a grin. Even Midnight Orchid hid behind me now, all four foals shivering once again. I had to do something, but what? How could I calm her down? Along with her horn, her eyes now glowed lime green as well. She might be disguised in my sister’s form, but certainly wasn’t acting like her.

That’s when an idea came to me, a crazy idea. Deadly? Maybe. But it would have to do. As she lit up her horn even brighter, the smile faltered on Lucky’s face and he lowered his ears. Of course now would be the time he realized he went too far, as he backed up a few steps from her. “Hurry over by Fire,” I whispered to the foals and they nodded, sprinting over to stand behind him and hunkered down. I took a deep breath, closed my eyes, then opened them again as I looked over at Chryssy and Lucky, then cantered forward toward her, and pressed my muzzle against hers in a kiss.

Edge of Woods-Queen Chrysalis

If I could have, I swear steam would have blasted out of my ears at Lucky’s words. I might not have been there to experience the things he blamed me for, nor Chrys for the older ones, but oh how our blood boiled at the accusations.

“That’s it! He dies, I don’t care if it makes us look bad!” Chrys growled, and I couldn’t blame her thoughts. We all would have died after all, if not for what happened in the village of those critters. Of course, that didn’t excuse what had happened. We didn’t have to drain all of them like eventually happened, at least according to the stories Chrys had told me, but that didn’t give him the right to berate us!

The anger flowing from Chrys filled my veins, and I could feel my eyes begin to glow. I breathed heavily through my nostrils, ears splayed flat against my skull. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t control the anger this time though.

“That’s it, that is it,” I yelled, pouring more power into my horn. I couldn’t ignore Chrys’s ire at him anymore. Just as I was about to shoot a bolt of magic at him, I felt another muzzle placed against mine and gave a little jolt, the anger flowing from me as I blinked and looked down to find Shiny kissing me! That one stray hair hanging over his closed right eye like usual.

When he pulled away I just stood there frozen, mouth parted slightly and eyes open wide. Even Chrys was silent.

“I think you broke her Shiny,” Fire Stick said and chuckled. “At least we know what to do if she gets angry again.”

“Until she gets used to it,” Lucky grumbled but stayed far back from me now.

I shook my head, blinking, and closed my mouth. “What… what?”

“I’m sorry, it was the first thing I could think of to stop you from attacking Lucky,” Shiny said and blushed.

“Hmm well at least we know he is a good kisser now,” Chrys said, chuckling. “And I guess I did overreact a little. He was right after all. Though my… predecessor was crueler than I. Trot was the last major town she tried to take over before Princess Celestia imprisoned her in a volcano for I think it was two hundred years? It wasn’t long after that before I came into the picture, and I had settled for small towns until the opportunity to take Canterlot came around.” She sighed, and I turned to look at Shiny.

“Have no fear Shiny, it was needed. Thank you.” I lifted my ears and grinned at him. I looked over at the foals cowering behind Fire Stick and lowered my ears again. Getting angry like that wasn’t doing my reputation good in their eyes. “You ready to move on Fire?”

Fire nodded, standing up and grimacing a little. “The bleeding stopped again, I should be fine for a little while at least. But may we go a little slower, please?”

I sighed but nodded. “Very well. If we do end up needing to rest outdoors, hopefully, there will be enough of us to deter any predators.”

“Thank you,” he said.

“I’m sure we’ll be fine,” Shiny said. “After all, I doubt any of them could be scared of you, especially if they just saw what happened.” He punched my side lightly with his hoof, and I just widened my eyes in surprise. Was he already joking about me trying to kill his friend?

“Ponies, I’ll never fully understand them,” Chrys sighed. “One minute they are totally serious, the next moment joking. Perhaps it is just their way of coping? Either way, perhaps his making light of it is just his way of trying to keep us in a good mood.” And we sure did need that.

I turned to look at Lucky Shot, who lowered his ears slightly, backing up a step. Well, at least it seemed like he wouldn’t be making any more problems for us. At least not for today. I sighed. This was going to be a much longer trip than I had planned.

Author's Notes:

Wooo and another chapter! And our duo's first kiss. *grins* And with this chapter, I am going to have to add the gore tag now. Hopefully that doesn't deter any of you from continuing! Though it shouldn't end up being bad enough to gain a Mature tag as well. I'm judging this by my friend on here Meep the Changeling. The mods have said theirs barely sneaks under the teen rating, so my 'rule' for myself is as long as mine is not as bloody as theirs, I can get away with a Teen tag still. ;P
Anyway like usual, this little changeling would love comments/critiques and to just hear what you think in general.
And one more thing, with this chapter, I have finally broken the 50k words mark! Sure it is like almost 6 months late to count for NaNoWriMo, where this story began for, but I finally hit it so *cheers*. Thanks to those who have stuck with me with all my insane ideas. It is thanks to all you out there, ponies and 'lings, that I keep writing.
Small Edits done 7/6/21

Night at the Peach Family Farm

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End of Forest- Shiny Whistle

About an hour later, the oak trees around us gave way to peach trees arranged in neat rows. Thick green grass grew around them, and the fresh scent of peaches filled the air. The path continued between two of the rows, and just a little way into the distance I could see a large home, a bright red barn next to it, thankfully untouched from the flames of last night.

Other ponies were scattered in the fields, with a few pegasi napping on clouds above us. A few unicorns had baskets around their backs and levitated the ripe fruit into them as they checked each tree. Everypony turned our way as we walked up, and upon spotting an earth pony stallion with a dark red-orange body and a golden mane, Peach Pie and Peach Tart let out a yell of glee and ran out from behind me towards him.

“Peach Pie, Peach Tart, you two little rascals are safe,” the pony said, picking them up in his front hooves and squeezing them in a tight hug. “I was so worried.”

“Sorry to make you worry Gold Dust,” Fire Stick said as we all came to a stop. “We hid out in the cave near town to protect them from those monsters.”

“Then I have you four to thank for protecting my little ones?” He said, putting them down and watching as they raced off to play with Midnight Orchid and Lilac Bloom.

“Yes sir,” Lucky Shot said and stepped forward. “We would have been here sooner, but a Timberwolf took a bite out of Fire before I could scare him away.”

“Well I am just thankful you were able to save them. So many were lost,” he sighed, lowering his ears. “You didn’t happen to see my wife on your way here, did you? The kids look so much like her, more so than they do me.”

“Well, yes Mr. Dust,” Chryssy said, lowering her ears. “I’m afraid she didn’t make it. I saw a dusty peach-colored mare, a cutie mark of a peach cut in half, exposing the pit, dead in the street when I searched the town for food.” So that is why she hadn't wanted us to travel through town, or at least, one of the reasons. She hadn't wanted the poor foals to see their dead mother.

Mr. Dust sat down on the ground and wiped a hoof over one eye. “When she didn’t return last night or come with the others, I hoped, I prayed to Celestia. But I guess it was in vain.”

“I’m sorry, I wish there was something we could have done for her,” I said.

“You did, you brought me back my foals. That is enough.” He stood back up and swallowed. “Is there anything I can do for you folks? I’m sure your friend Fire Stick and your friend….?”

“Dew Song,” Chryssy said, still being disguised as my sister.

“Right, Dew Song, would love a bath and some medical attention?”

“Yes please,” Fire said.

“A bath would be wonderful,” Chryssy sighed.

“Some food would be great too,” Lucky said and Mr. Dust let out a halfhearted chuckle.

“You are always worrying about that stomach of yours aren’t you Lucky? Very well, follow me inside and we can take care of all that. Then you are welcome to spend the night in my barn if you like, or you can sleep under the stars and my peach trees.”

“Thank you, Mr. Dust, that would be wonderful,” I said and with the others behind me, followed him inside.

Peach’s Farm- Queen Chrysalis

As we rested in the cool grasses, nestled in the shade of the peach trees, a cool breeze wafted the scent of ripe peaches against our nostrils. The Peach twins and other foals played a game of tag a few rows down from us, their father, Mr. Dust, watched over them. The few other adults that had escaped from the town were dispersed around the orchard. Some had already made their way to the barn to sleep in the hayloft, while others levitated cool glasses of peach smoothies or peach lemonade. Many of the pegasi had pulled together clumps of clouds, and relaxed up above us, tails sometimes hanging over the edge and blowing in the breeze. I closed my eyes and listened in to the stallions talking a few trees down from mine, where Shiny, Fire, and Lucky had settled in.

“So what is with this relationship you seem to have with the Queen?” Fire asked, adjusting his position slightly. “I mean, it’s not every day you see a pony who well, actually likes changelings,” he whispered.

Lucky snorted, “I don’t see what the big deal is. So they can change into whatever you or they want. That just seems more of a turn off than a turn on really.”

Shiny chuckled. “Well, actually I don’t really know. Back during Princess Cadence and Shining Armor’s wedding, I was of course excited to see them get married. My sister was practically bouncing even more than Pinkie around my brother, parents, and me in her enthusiasm when Princess Cadence came into the room and began her walk down the aisle. Then, just as they were about to begin the wedding vows, the real Princess Cadence and Twilight rushed in and revealed what had happened.”

“And that is when Chrysalis changed into her changeling form?” Fire asked.

“Yep, with a big pillar of green flames firing up into the sky. Her chitin practically glowing, wings spread wide, sharp-toothed grin, and then that laugh,” Shiny sighed. “As she revealed her plan, my heart pumped wildly, mostly in fear at the time as I didn’t know what in the hay was going to happen to us. Would we all become dinner for her and her changelings? Would the element bearers save us? Could Princess Celestia beat her? I watched with the rest in pure shock when Celestia was defeated, the tip of her horn blackened and smoking.”

“And then the bearers of Harmony ran to save the day, failed, and eventually the power of love between Shining Armor and Princess Cadence sent them flying off, saving us all,” Lucky said in a grumbling voice.

“Hey, who’s telling this story?” Shiny teased, punching a hoof into his side lightly. “Yeah, that is pretty much what happened. But before Twilight and her friends were captured, Chrysalis and her changelings escorted the rest of us, wedding guests, to a vacant room a few doors down. A few of the more prominent guests like Prince Blueblood and Fancy Pants were put into those slimy green pods right away, while the rest of us were just watched over by her changelings. One stood close to my family, and just the structure of their form was fascinating.”

“Was it Chrysalis who watched over your family?” Fire asked.

“No, but she was in the room for some time. There were a few moments when she stood by the window, hooves up on the ledge looking down at the chaos outside. The sun was just in the right position outside to make her mane practically glow. Her chitin even had a brilliant teal-black hue to it from the sun. But it was the look on her face that intrigued me the most. Sure there was a smile of triumph, but in her eyes, I saw a look of tremendous relief. Her shoulders lowered as if a tremendous weight had been lifted from her.”

“Yes that is exactly how I was feeling,” Chrys said with a sigh, our ears twitching. “I was thinking ‘everything will be good now. My changelings will have plenty to eat, we can grow to be stronger and have more eggs at a time to make our kind stronger than we ever have been. Through the love these ponies possess, we’ll never have to worry about starving again.”

I sighed, I could imagine how that would be. To finally have your dreams come true, see the bright future ahead and the harshness of the past drifting away like sand in the wind. “I hadn’t even realized anypony was watching me, thought they would be too scared too,” Chrys said and chuckled. “Oh if only my plan could have worked!”

“That was when one of her changelings flew into the room and told her the element bearers had been captured before they could reach their elements,” Shiny went on, and I opened my eyes slightly, watching and listening as he continued. “She left the room then, brushing by my family and me as she left. Her tail hitting me in the face as she passed, I breathed in the scent of her and found I kind of liked it.”

“You liked how she smelled?” Lucky sneered, wrinkling his nose and raising one eyebrow.

“Yes, yes I did. Kind of a mix of cantaloupe and dark chocolate, with a hint of rose.”

“Well that is an interesting mixture of scents,” Fire said. “What happened next?”

“Not much more than everypony already knows. Thinking she had won, she started to gloat, of course, we didn’t see this, being in the other room, but when the power of Shining Armor and Princess Cadences love passed through the walls and hit the changelings watching over us, we watched as the lucky ones were pushed through the window and out away from Canterlot. A good number of them though, maybe twenty, hit the walls instead. A few of them died instantly from the crushing weight of the barrier. The others well, they were injured badly enough they couldn’t escape what some of the angry guests did to them.” He shuddered.

“Ponies did something that horrible?” Fire asked, and Lucky snorted at him.

“Why so surprised Fire? They wanted to suck us dry of our love and take our land for their own. I’m sure they would have done the same in our horseshoes,” Lucky said, crossing his front hooves.

“That doesn’t mean they deserved what happened to them,” Shiny said, glaring at Lucky. “All that blood, I doubt the castle servants were able to get it all out of the tile floor later. And watching those bright blue eyes go dark, their screams of agony… I’ve never seen other ponies be so barbaric.” Shiny sighed, lowering his ears and digging at the grass with one hoof. “I left the room, not wanting to see anymore, and stepped quietly into the other. A few changelings had not made it through the windows in there as well, though I breathed a sigh of relief on seeing their Queen had not been one of those unlucky ones. At least the ponies in here, being mostly Twilight and her friends, along with Shining Armor, Cadence, and Princess Celestia, were not as cruel. Guards were brought in to grab the changelings that had only minor injuries and take them to the dungeons.”

“My poor little changelings,” Chrys sighed. “It was all my fault they had such disastrous ends. Very few of those put in the dungeons did I ever see again. A large part of that because those of us that did make it out were recovering and had not the strength to send a rescue team.” She mentally shuddered. “I don’t even want to know how those ponies killed the ones that didn’t make it out.”

I nodded, and here I thought the ponies were supposed to be the good guys. But then in war, who can really be a good guy? War takes the good and corrupts them, to where they are never quite the same again.

“After the wedding,” Shiny said, and I flicked my ears back his way to listen, “my family and I returned to our home, but I couldn’t get the changelings out of my head. Not in the way of most other ponies though. My father wouldn’t let us leave the house for a week, and would have kept us even longer if the milk hadn’t gone bad and we had the need for other groceries as well. Even still, he would ask us questions when we returned that only we would know to make sure a changeling hadn’t captured us while we were out for months later.”

“That was how your father reacted, but how did you react?” Fire said.

Shiny grinned, “By taking a leaf out of Twilight Sparkle’s book and studying up on the changelings. Of course, there was not much known about them at first. It had been a long time since they had been seen in Equestria after all. But the ones Princess Celestia captured were studied and papers were published about their findings. Every little thing I learned intrigued me more and more. At night, I would dream about the wedding, always seeing their Queen in them and smelling her scent. Seeing the look in her eyes I had seen as she gazed out the window. I knew I had to do something.”

Lucky yawned and rested his head against his forelegs. “Shiny, you are one crazy unicorn. But all of that still doesn’t explain why you are so… infatuated with her.”

“I guess… part of it was her scent,” Shiny said twitching his ears, “and that I really didn’t see in her what everypony was making her out to be. Nopony had died from the invasion, but many of her changelings did. I had to know what everypony seemed to ignore, and I found that when I finally found their home.”

“And what’s that?” Fire said.

“That they are more like us than most ponies want to admit. They care for their families, their foals, their friends, just as much as we do. All many of them want is to be able to live, grow, and feel love.”

“Them? Feel love?” Lucky snorted. “Only the love they steal from us. How can creatures that feed off the love of others feel any true love of their own? It’s preposterous.”

“He’s right, unfortunately. At least when it comes to true love. We don’t have the capacity for it,” Chrys sighed. I closed my eyes and shook my head.

“How can you really believe that?” I whispered. “Did you feel nothing, when Shiny kissed us?”

“I felt surprised!” She snorted. “But besides that? No of course not. And neither did you. Don’t fool yourself into thinking you did, as it is impossible.”

“Impossible things happen every day,” I pointed out. “Why not us being able to love?”

“Because if we could love, it would have happened already!”

“Not necessarily. Perhaps you just never met the right pony or changeling?”

“Would you just give up on the thought? I’m tired of arguing about it.”

I grinned. “That’s because you know I am right.”

“Believe that all you want, not going to change things.”

“So you would rather let Lucky be right about us.”

“In this instance, yes. As much as I’d love to snap that smug little neck of his, we are not capable of love. It is our curse.”

I sighed and shook my head. There was no point in arguing with her on it. “So we smell like cantaloupe, dark chocolate, and a hint of rose,” I said and grinned.

“Better than what some of those ponies smell like, bleh,” Chrys said.

“You are wrong Lucky,” Shiny said, and I returned my attention back to the stallions. “It might be buried deep in them, but I can see it.”

“Keep dreaming lovercolt,” Lucky said and sighed. “Besides, why would she want you when she can have anypony else she wants?”

“Lucky! That’s not very nice to say!” Fire chided him, but Lucky just shrugged.

“Sorry to be harsh but it’s true. She’s a Queen. She’d probably rather be with a prince or a princess’s consort. I hear she and Shining Armor got pretty close when she was disguised as Cadence,” he grinned.

“Well, maybe she just likes Shiny things?” Fire said and Lucky laughed.

“You know, that would make sense. Might explain why she chose you to come with her on this quest,” Lucky laughed pointing a hoof at Shiny. “Yes, she likes Shiny things, like a ridiculous crow or raven.”

I glared at him. Really, comparing us to some bird? I snorted. Just because the last two stallions we had outside the hive contact with had similar names didn’t mean anything, did it?

“Well being a Queen, royalty, we do like our shiny baubles,” Chrys said chuckling. “I hadn’t even made that connection between the two stallions. Interesting idea. Wonder what other stallions might have similar names?”

I sighed and shook my head. “What, you plan on gathering them all up and putting them in a giant jewelry box?”

“Not a bad idea, let’s do it!”

“It was a joke Chrys,” I said and sighed, listening as she giggled. What was with us today? Our emotions seemed all over the place.

“Well, it’s getting late, let’s turn in Fire,” Lucky yawned, and turned toward the barn, Fire trotting slowly behind him. “You coming too Shiny?”

“Er well no. I don’t want to leave Chry- I mean Dew all alone. Unless you want to come into the barn?” He asked me, turning to look at me. I looked up at the sky behind him, the twilit sky almost haloing him in pinks and oranges. It really brought out the dark purple of his eyes. “Chryssy?” He whispered, and I shook my head turning back to face him.

“No, I’d rather stay out under the stars. Plus it would be… awkward, being surrounded by so many ponies.” I was used to a tide of black and greys, with little hints of bright blues. Being in that sea of color well…. I’d rather just stay out here.

Shiny plopped down beside me under the tree and waved Fire and Lucky on. “Go ahead you two. We’ll be okay.”

“Okay then,” Lucky said, and glared at me for a moment, then the two of them trotted inside, closing the barn doors behind them. After they had left, Shiny turned back to me.

“So are you… hungry? I mean yes you did eat dinner with us and the other ponies, but I mean the- other, kind of hungry.”

“That hunger never really leaves,” I sighed. “We can satisfy it for a time, but it lingers on.”

“Well, it’s still fairly early,” he said, looking up at the sky, “not even fully dark yet. You need the strength to take on Celestia right? And tonight might be the last time you get a chance before we reach Canterlot. If you were to feed from me now, I should be awake again by sometime early to mid-morning right?”

I shook my head. “I’ll be fine. I fed on you less than twenty-four hours ago, it is not safe for you to be fed on so much.”

“Well it’s not like it will be a regular thing,” he said, and moved aside his mane. “I’ll have time to recover while we travel on the train. Please, take what you need.”

“This crazy pony seems to have a… fetish or something for being fed on,” Chrys sighed. “But he is right, we need the strength, and unless we want to snatch some other pony to feed on, unwillingly, he’s what we have. After this though, we better not feed on him for at least a week.”

I looked down at Shiny and nodded. “Very well then, but please, don’t think you have to be the sole one to feed me."

“Oh of course not! Just trying to do part of what I am here for.” He grinned and scooched a little closer. “At least everypony has gone to bed, so we should be safe. Or well… should we head a little farther away to be safer?”

I looked around us, the barn door had been closed behind Lucky and Fire, and even the hayloft doors were closed. Inside the Peach family’s home, all the lights were off, only one window faced our way, and it was covered by blinds. The pegasi that had been resting above us on clouds had flown their clouds into the barn to sleep on, leaving the sky clear as the first scattered stars began to appear.

“Well, it looks safe enough here, I think we can risk it.” I closed my eyes and transformed, sitting next to him in my natural form. His ears perked up and he grinned at me. Reaching down, I nuzzled his neck, taking in his scent, a banana with a hint of mint. Lowering my horn, I lit it up and placed it against his neck, watching as my magic slowly flowed through it to him, then pulsed back my way as I fed.

Shiny closed his eyes and hummed, a smile upon his face. He did jerk a little, but not in pain, more as if I were tickling him. Well, I guess our feeding made him ticklish? That was interesting. As he let out a yawn and his head fell to his forehooves, I lifted my horn and transformed back into his sister. He breathed softly next to me as he slept, that stubborn bang falling into his eyes again. With a little bit of magic, I moved it behind his ear and rolled onto my back, looking up at the sky.

Shiny had become at least a friend to us if nothing more yet. That’s more than could be said for most ponies I had met so far. But with how Chrys felt on these things, could he ever be more? The moon was just beginning to rise, still full for one more night before it would start to wane.

As I thought about my life before now, before coming here, I found Chrys had been right. Things were already beginning to fade. I couldn’t remember my cat’s name if he could even still be called my cat with my body on Earth being dead. Who had taken him in with me gone? My parents? My best friend? Was he okay? He was an older cat, I’d had him since he was a kitten, and now he was around ten years old. Such a big change would be hard on a cat his age.

Shiny nuzzled my neck in his sleep, kissing it softly, making me turn my gaze to him. He sure was one lovesick pony. At least it made his love taste that much more delicious, and give us that much more strength.

Yes, Chrys had been right and things were slipping away, but I couldn’t let that bother me. It was going to happen no matter what I did. Better that I focus on the now. We would arrive at Dodge Junction tomorrow, and then take the train to Canterlot. If the track conditions were good, we would be there likely in less than twenty-four hours.

I didn’t have much of a plan yet on how to save Leptostales. Just asking Celestia to let him go would likely not cut it. If he was even still alive. Was my whole quest to be in vain? No, I still could tell her about the mysterious unicorn mare, and the destruction of Hoofville. If she hadn’t already heard about it.

“Chryssy?” Shiny mumbled, and I turned to look at him, surprised to find him awake. His eyes looked blearily at me, and he smiled. Yes, he was awake, if just barely.

“Yes?”

“I’m glad I didn’t head into the barn with Lucky and Fire,” he grinned, and I couldn’t help but laugh.

“Me too Shiny, me too.”

Author's Notes:

Here it is, the new edited version. Shorter, but still gets the job done. Hope you all like it still and will continue to come back! School starts in two weeks, and after that I don't know how much time I will have for 'fun' writing until Christmas break. (Going to be pretty much waking up at 7am, go to class at 8am, finish at noon, come home and eat/change, head to work, come home and shower/do homework, and probably have to go to bed after that. So new chapters will probably be very sporadic during this semester for when I find time to work on them. (which is something this changeling is VERY sad about. I'd rather write more pony words than go to classes. Alas, I am in my last year, so HOPEFULLY things will look up after that!)
I hope I am keeping their relationship growth at a believable pace. That has been a problem in the past so doing my best to work on such! Also, I FINALLY GOT TO USE THE LINE I HAVE BEEN WAITING TO USE FOR SO LONG! I just had to find the right place to use it. Let's see who can catch my favorite line, and if you enjoy it as much as I did thinking of it. :P
Anyway read/comment/critique/etc.
Little edits done 7/7/21

What to do?

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Changeling Castle- Throne Room- Apatelodes

I gulped as I reentered the throne room, all eyes on me. “So, what did she say?” Morpheus asked.

My ears twitched and I bit my lip, wondering what all I should tell them. I wasn’t positive something bad had happened to her, but being it seemed her emerald was damaged, the likelihood was great. “At the pace, our Queen and Shiny Whistle were going, they should have arrived somewhere around Hoofville last night.”

“Are you saying they were caught in the flames there?” Chioides asked, biting his lip and putting his hooves to his mouth. “Is she… gone?”

“Of course not you fool,” Morpheus growled. “We would know if she was dead. The hive mind might not be what it once was, but we still have enough of a connection to know that much.”

“Then what happened? Is she okay?” Chioides asked, lowering his hooves but also twitching his remaining ear.

I sighed, no use hiding what little I did know. “All I know is something has happened to her casting emerald. When I tried to connect to it, something went wrong on her side. If that is because it was destroyed in the fire or something else, I have no clue.”

“Well then, it is obvious what we must do,” Morpheus said and stood. “We must send a search party after them.” He scowled, hitting an empty dish off the table. “I knew that pony wasn’t enough to protect her. If she’s been captured it is all his fault!”

I blinked, not saying a word. As much as I disliked Morpheus, I couldn’t help but agree with him. Why had she insisted on traveling with just him? If I had been there, nothing like this would have happened! We’d possibly already be at Canterlot by now if she hadn’t had to walk with that pesky unicorn. But whom to send?

“I’ll-I’ll go,” Chioides said, raising a hoof with a slight tremble.

“You?” Morpheus sneered. “Ever since you lost your ear, you have been nothing but a coward. We should only send out our best changelings. Ones that don’t cower at their own shadow.” Chioides lowered his hoof, cheeks flaming green.

“Then who would you suggest sending?” I asked, folding my hooves and raising one eyebrow at Morpheus.

“Why, me of course,” he grinned, placing a hoof to his chest. “And I’ll pick a few choice changelings to go with me.”

The door to the throne room slammed open, and Nemoria and Acronicta ran in. “Oh pick me, pick me!” they yelled, coming to a stop between me and Morpheus.

“We’ve never been out of the castle,” Nemoria said, pouting her lips and lowering her ears.

“And we’ve been training very hard,” Acronicta added, a beaming smile on her face.

“Please can we go? We want to make sure Professor Whistle is okay too.” Nemoria looked between me and Morpheus, eyes widening as she gave us her best puppy dog stare.

Morpheus put a hoof to his forehead and groaned, shaking his head. “You two are still too young.”

“No, we’re not,” Acronicta grumbled. “All the males our age have been out already.”

“Yeah, we’re strong. And I do a great transformation,” Nemoria said. She closed her eyes and braced her hooves, sticking out her tongue in concentration before the green flames engulfed her, leaving behind a pale blue pegasus mare with a fiery orange mane. “See?”

“Hey, I can do that too!” Acronicta said and closed her eyes, let the flames engulf her, leaving behind a dark purple earth pony mare, mane the color of golden wheat.

“Not bad you two,” I said, walking over to them. “But are you sure you want to go on such a dangerous mission? We don’t know what to expect this time.”

“Of course,” Nemoria said and held up a hoof to Acronicta, who tapped it with her own. “We want to prove we are just as good as the stallions.”

“Are you seriously thinking of letting them come?” Morpheus groaned, glaring at me. “They are still just nymphs, fillies.”

“What, do you not think you could handle them?” I asked, grinning slightly at him. “And of course, we would have others go as well. A small group, maybe one or two more besides you three.”

“Of course I could handle them, but I’d rather not be a foal-sitter,” Morpheus said, glaring at the two beaming mares.

“Then they shall come with you. They need experience out in the field anyway. Take Danaus with you. He can pretend to be your wife or something.”

“And who are you to decide who goes?” Morpheus said, baring his fangs.

“Our Queen’s royal guard of course. She put me in charge while she was gone, have you already forgotten?” I grinned slyly, enjoying seeing the angry look on Morpheus’s face. “And stop stalling, the quicker you leave, the quicker we can be sure our queen is safe.”

Scrunching up his nose, Morpheus stepped closer to me, staring me in the eyes. “Fine.” He turned towards the door and gestured to Nemoria and Acronicta. “Come along you two, let’s find Danaus and get out of here.”

“Yes! We finally get our own mission,” Nemoria squealed, hugging Acronicta to her.

“This is going to be− fun,” Acronicta squeaked, pulling herself out of Nemoria’s tight embrace and following after Morpheus.

“The best fun!” Nemoria said, then gasped. “We better go get our penny whistles, I’m sure Professor Whistle will want to see how much we have been practicing.” Acronicta nodded and the two raced off, the door slamming behind them.

“Are-are you sure it is wise sending them?” Chioides whispered, gazing at the others who just grumbled.

“I think they are ready to prove themselves,” I said and trotted back over to the table.

“But there must be a reason our Queen hasn’t sent them out yet. Could she be trying to protect the few females we have?”

I sighed, putting a hoof to my forehead. He did have a good point. Sure any of us males could just transform into a female for the sake of producing more eggs, but the hatchlings from those couplings were not as strong as those from natural females. If that were to become the norm, in a few generations we would be weaker than the ponies. But I wasn’t going to go back on my decision now. Changing my mind would make me appear weak. Plus I’d seen Nemoria and Acronicta training before and was sure all they needed to become better was an experience out in the field. “I will repeat myself only once, they will be fine.”

In the time I had been out of the room, the majority of what fruit had been left had been gobbled down, leaving only a few scraps of pear and mango. The History of the Crystal Empire still sat in front of my place, open to where I had left off. There wasn’t too much left of the book, maybe about a fourth of its contents. I just hoped somewhere in those last pages, was the answer to beating this mysterious unicorn.

Peach’s Farm-Shiny Whistle

The morning dawned bright and clear, and I awoke as I felt the sun touch my face. I stirred, opening my eyes and sitting up. Everything was still quiet, even the birds were far enough away from me I could only hear their twittering when the breeze brushed against my face. Chryssy stirred beside me, turning over, but she did not awaken.

I looked down at Chryssy, her back pressed against me as she slept, hooves curled against her chest as if she were hugging somepony. I enjoyed having her close like this, just like we had the previous few nights, but this felt different. After all, we had shared a kiss now. Sure it might have been just to stop her from killing Lucky, but my heart still fluttered in my chest with her warmth being near. Maybe, just maybe, she would one day feel the same. That would depend on what we found in Canterlot though. Would her old love still be alive? I almost hoped he wouldn’t, as it would make things easier if anything did happen between us.

Chryssy stirred again, and opened her eyes, letting out a yawn as she stretched out her legs. “Sleep well?” I asked, to which her body shivered a little before she turned to look at me.

“I think so,” she sighed and lowered her ears. “I hope I didn’t feed too much from you? It won’t happen again for some time. We’ll get Leptostales back, somehow, return home and all will be as it was again.”

I cringed at her words, but then took a deep breath and shook it off. No use worrying about what I couldn’t change. “No need to worry. I’m here to help you after all, right?”

She gave a harsh chuckle at that but nodded her head. “True, I did bring you for that.” Rolling over and standing, she looked down at me, her mane and tail blowing in the breeze. “It’s getting late, we should get ready to head out.”

“You’re leaving already?” I jumped at the voice behind us, to see Gold Dust had trotted over. “Heh, sorry Shiny Whistle,” he said, “didn’t mean to scare you. I just came over to let you know breakfast is ready. We weren’t really planning on feeding so many, but we have enough in our supplies to feed this many for a few days. I’ll have to send somepony to Dodge Junction to gather more supplies.

I turned to look at Chryssy and felt my stomach rumble. “Do we have time for a quick bite to eat?”

“I suppose we can eat,” she said.

“Then follow me,” Gold Dust said and started walking toward the barn. “I’ve set up a picnic table behind the barn and oh!” he paused, turning back to us. “I noticed you didn’t have any saddlebags. Did you lose them in the fire?”

“Yes, the fire destroyed all our supplies,” Chryssy confirmed.

“You plan on traveling to Canterlot, right?” Chryssy nodded. “Well, I have some old saddlebags you may have. They are nothing fancy, but they are sturdy and should last you a while. I can even give you some bits for the train ride and supplies for the trip.”

“Oh Gold, you don’t need to do that, we can get by,” I said. He’d already lost so much, I didn’t want him to lose more because of us.

“I insist,” he said with a little snort. “You saved my foals, it’s the least I could do to repay you.”

“Then we will take them,” Chryssy said, trotting past us and behind the barn.

“Thank you, for your help Gold, my… sister and I really appreciate it.”

“Oh, it’s not a problem Shiny. Now come on, let’s eat.” He beamed and led the way around the barn.

Chryssy and I took one last look at the Peach farm as we started up the road that would lead us to Dodge Junction. Around my barrel were our new saddlebags, with my melted whistle and Chryssy’s broken emerald in one bag, and a little sack of bits in the other. Alongside the bits were some peaches and leftover buttermilk pancakes from breakfast. It wasn’t much, but it wasn’t like it was going to take us long to get to Canterlot once we got on the train.

We hadn’t seen Fire or Lucky at breakfast. Somepony had said they left super early, but he didn’t know which way they went. That was okay though, I liked traveling alone with Chryssy. It was a lot less drama for one, and we were able to make much better time along the road. The Peach’s farm fell behind us as we headed northwest, the rising sun at our backs.

Chryssy stayed quiet as we walked, that unfocused look in her eyes again, and so I just focused on the road, letting her be lost in her thoughts. So much had happened in the last few days, and we hadn’t really had time to stop and think about it, or about when we arrived in Canterlot.

How was I going to convince Celestia to let Chryssy’s changeling go? Her daughter needed him, for even a changeling needed comfort once in a while, and who better than a father? We hadn’t really discussed it since leaving her castle, and I had a feeling she didn’t know what to do either. We had to make a plan though, this wasn’t something we could just wing it at.

“Chyssy?”

She started, shaking her head and turning to look at me. “Yes Shiny, what is it?”

“Do you have a plan for when we reach Canterlot? For what we will tell Princess Celestia? You know I just figure now might be the best time to figure out what we are going to do. Won’t be able to talk about it on the train, and after the train, we will be there so….” I rubbed a hoof through my mane and watched as she lowered her ears and her cheeks were tinged green as she blushed.

“Well,” she began, then closed her eyes and sighed, “no,” she admitted. “I know how much Celestia hates my guts, probably more so than I even realize. I was kind of just going to wing it?”

“Then we are doomed. You know Celestia’s not going to just hand him over if you ask nicely.”

“No, she’s not. We’ll… need to explain things to her. The mysterious unicorn mare, my gathering all my changelings home, the fire.”

“That might not be enough,” I said and put a hoof to her shoulder.

“Well do you have a better idea!?” She growled, glaring at me.

I backed off a step and shook my head. “No, but we need to think of something, otherwise… we might just end up being locked up too.”

Chryssy shook her head. “She wouldn’t lock you up. You haven’t done anything to deserve it.”

“I’ve associated with you and your subjects, willingly.”

Chryssy snorted. “That’s not enough, she would just think I had you under mind control.”

I groaned and facehoofed, she was being so stubborn, I was just trying to help!

“There you two are, we’ve been waiting for over an hour for you.”

I turned to look ahead of us, where atop a low hill Fire and Lucky sat, resting under a tree. “Lucky, Fire? What you two doing here?” I gasped, looking to Chryssy to see a surprised look on her face.

“We are coming with you of course!” Lucky yelled, running down the hill.

“We wanted to get a head start so you wouldn’t be waiting on me,” Fire said softly, standing up but staying under the tree.

“So you plan on coming all the way to Canterlot with us?” Chryssy asked, staring at Lucky. She couldn’t still be mad at him, could she?

“Yes, after all, Princess Celestia should hear about what happened from a pony who lives in Hoofville,” he said smirking at her.

“And Dodge Junction is just over this hill,” Fire called down. "Why don’t we get trotting in and see when the next train arrives?”

“Fire’s right,” I said, stepping between Chryssy and Lucky, “come on you two. Calm down and let’s head into town.” Chryssy glanced at me, took a deep breath, and nodded.

“The sooner we get there the sooner we can be rid of him!” she hissed, flicking her tail in Lucky’s face and starting up the hill.

“Could you please be nicer Lucky? She already almost killed you once, and I might not be there next time she tries if you keep acting this way.” I whispered, pleading with him.

“I’ll try,” he sighed, rolling his eyes, and started up the hill.

I followed after him, half expecting Dodge Junction to be burned down as well, but saw to my relief it was just how I had left it all those weeks ago when I passed through on my way to changeling castle. No train was at the station at the moment, nor could I see one on as much of the track that I could see. The cherry trees had come back into full bloom though, their pink leaves waving in a cool breeze, red and yellow cherries scattered over their branches.

The stallion stagecoach rested by the local tavern, the four stallions that pulled it leaning against the wall outside, sipping from tall glasses. I could barely make out Cherry Jubilee, who had let me stay the night when I passed through in exchange for a day of work in her cherry orchard, working with other ponies among the trees.

Chryssy trotted down the hill, and I followed behind her, Lucky then Fire bringing up the rear. Not too many ponies were out and about. One little brown earth pony mare with a cream-colored mane pushed aside the doors to the bank and walked inside. A tall, buff, jet-black unicorn stallion with a fiery red mane and tail sat next to the post office talking with a dirt brown earth pony with a curly brown mane and tail, dressed in a poststallion’s outfit. But besides that, it seemed everypony must still be asleep or elsewhere.

“Well now, welcome to town everypony!” We all turned as a mango orange earth pony stallion with a red-orange mane and tail came trotting toward us. He was wearing a dark brown vest, a dark red scarf tied around his neck and a five-gallon hat matching his vest sat on his head. “The name’s Flintdust. I’m the deputy of this fine town. Anything I can do for ya?”

“When does the next train get to town?” Chryssy asked, jumping straight to the point.

“Well now, you’re in luck! The train hasn’t come yet today, and it only stops here once a day.”

“But when will it arrive?” Chryssy asked again. What was up with her? She sure was acting grumpy today. Nerves maybe?

“Right sorry miss, it should arrive around two o’clock, so you got time to rest, get a cool drink, and a warm meal in your bellies. I recommend the Spotted Blossom tavern, named for the spotted red desert rose that grows nearby. Course that is the only tavern in town so not much choice but they got good grub.”

“Thank you,” Chryssy said and walked off toward the pub.

“Thanks for your help,” I said to Flintdust, then stepped closer to him. “Don’t mind my sister, she’s just… anxious to get home.”

“Where you all from?”

“Canterlot.”

Flintdust chuckled. “Of course, all the best unicorns come from there.”

“Plenty of good ones from Hoofville too,” Lucky snorted.

“Yes, it is a good town, or well, was. Have had a few pegasi already fly in from there and tell us the news. I’m so sorry.”

“Well, not much we can do about it now. But that is why Fire and I are heading to Canterlot. Going to let the princesses know.”

“Oh, they know.”

“What?” I gasped. No, they couldn’t have found out already, that was part of our… leverage.

“Yep, even sent Princess Cadence and Shining Armor down there to check things out. They were already close by anyway, visiting somepony in Appleloosa.” I looked to see if Chryssy had heard what he said, to find her almost to the tavern already, looking back at us.

“Can you stallions keep a secret?” Flintdust asked, drawing the three of us in.

“Oh of course!” Fire Stick assured, and Lucky and I nodded.

“Well, the main reason the princesses sent those two? Other than them being closest, of course, was the one ponies are saying started the fire.”

My eyes widened, and breathing heavily I let out a gulp. “Er… it was those shadow things right?” I said, grinning at him.

“Well they were part of the problem, but their leader was not like them.”

“Who was it then?” Lucky asked, a small, almost gleeful smile rising on his face.

Flintdust raised his forehooves above his head, spreading them out as he exclaimed “it was none other than the changeling queen herself, Queen Chrysalis!”

“What?” I yelled. Oh nonononono, this was not good. They thought Chryssy had done it! This was all my fault, if I hadn’t gone back to try to save Amethyst, she never would have returned to the town in her changeling form. She wouldn’t have had to fight to save me, making enough commotion to get noticed by those few ponies still around. How were we going to convince Celestia to give us an audience now? I leaned back against Lucky, feeling faint, only to have him push me back up with a smirk on his face.

“Are you sure it was her?” Fire whispered, his ears going down as he glanced over to me.

“Oh yes! The ones who spotted her heard her yelling in the midst of them, and shooting magic at nearby ponies.”

“You sure it wasn’t the shadow creatures she was shooting at?” Shiny asked. He hadn’t seen any other ponies near them. But could there have been a few hidden in the mass of Umbrum?

“Oh, they were sure. She even changed into a manticore and coltnapped one of them, dragging it off kicking and screaming away from town.”

Well, whoever had been watching them had certainly embellished the tale. He had been on her back, not in her clawed paws, and he most certainly was not kicking. Screaming a little sure, but only out of fear of the Umbrum below him.

“So-so where are the Princess and Prince?” I asked, trembling a little.

“They flew to Hoofville, Shining in her hooves, to check things out pretty much as soon as they arrived yesterday late afternoon. Not sure when they will be back though, probably depends on if they find the queen.” He turned to look at me and put a hoof to my shoulder. “You okay? You’re not looking very good. Probably shouldn’t have told you all that.”

“Oh no, it was some good information to know,” Lucky said, flicking his tail back and forth. Well, he seemed to be enjoying this!

“Yes, thank you.” Fire Stick said, then grinned when his stomach rumbled.

“Well, I should let you three join your sister and get something to eat. And you,” he said pointing at me, “take it easy okay? They’ll find her, bring her back to Canterlot and make her pay for her crimes! She’s gotten away with too much from what I have heard. She’ll be lucky if she escapes the ax!” With that, he chuckled and walked off.

“The- the ax?” I gulped, bringing my forehooves to my head as my mind swirled. But… but she hadn’t killed anypony! I mean sure she had Shining Armor under her mind control and almost took over Equestria but… no, no! They couldn’t kill her! I had to do something, but what? She would continue to Canterlot to save her friend, old lover, I was sure of that. But then… maybe they had let the information that he was there leak on purpose? Were we heading into a trap? And all she had was me with her, an injured Fire who wouldn’t be much help, and Lucky Shot, who I was sure would be just fine with her perishing. What good could I do her, against the whole Canterlot royal guard?

“Come on, I’m hungry! Let’s go eat,” Lucky said, prodding me along.

“Eat, EAT, how can you think of eating at a time like this?” I yelled.

“Easy, my stomach rumbles, I give it a little pat,” he patted his stomach, “then I find it some food to calm the little beast.”

“You-you,” I stuttered then threw my hooves into the air, was useless talking to him. “Look, Lucky, Fire just… don’t tell Chryssy about this okay? I’ll find a way to tell her myself.”

“Okay Shiny, I hope you can find a way to save her,” Fire said softly.

Lucky snorted, “I wasn’t planning on telling her anyway! Would serve her right for trying to kill me.”

“Lucky!” Fire glared at him.

“What? Just telling the truth. But come ooon you two. Let’s get some of that food!”

I sighed but nodded, hearing my own stomach rumble. But was it hunger, or fear for Chryssy? We trotted toward the tavern, where ‘Dew’ rolled her eyes and entered just before us. It was only a few hours until the train was scheduled to arrive, and I had no idea what I was going to do.

Of Rituals and Pink Princesses

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Dodge Junction- Spotted Blossom tavern- Queen Chrysalis

Shiny and the other stallions seemed… different somehow as they trotted over to the tavern. Lucky looked smugger than he had since I well, tried to kill him. Walking into the tavern with his tail flicking back and forth, a gleam in his eye and a smirk on his lips. Fire’s ears flicked back and forth, head lowered, and when he turned to look at me, there was concern in his eyes. His usual relaxed expression was replaced with a small frown.

Yet Shiny had changed the most, though I think he tried hard to hide it. His ears kept twitching up and down, eyes darting around taking in the tavern, his pace quicker than usual. He bit his lower lip, which was quivering a little, and couldn’t seem to make eye contact with me. What had that stallion been talking to them about? Whatever it was, it seemed to make Shiny even more nervous than I was, which didn’t help me at all.

Ever since we arrived in Dodge Junction, no, before we arrived, I couldn’t get the idea out of my head that we were almost there, still with no plan. And what would we do on the train? Everypony so far had seen me disguised as Dew Song, but we hadn’t run into anypony who actually knew her yet. When we reached Canterlot, maybe even before, the likelihood would come up that somepony we saw would recognize her. I had yet to be really tested on such things, and only knew Dew through what Shiny had told me. Could I fool other ponies into thinking I was her, who knew the real her? When I hardly knew the real her myself?

“Just… calm down….we can do this!” Chrys said.

“You don’t sound so sure,” I whispered, glancing over as the others took seats at a table. “I’ve yet to do something like this.”

“Hello, new Chrysalis, and noling has been the wiser?”

“Well, I had you there to teach me! Not like Dew Song is here to teach me how to be her, and what Shiny can tell us can only bring us so far.”

“Well if we do anything, not like her, we can excuse it as a result of the fire. Usually works on those silly ponies!”

“If you say so,” I sighed. A unicorn stallion waiter, coated in a dull color for a race of brightly colored ponies, the color of dirt that has seen no rain in moons, with a mane that looked like he had just taken a scoop of whipped cream, placed it on his head and called it a mane-do, trotted up to the table Shiny and the others had sat at.

Trotting over to join them, I sat down in an empty chair next to Shiny, whose ears twitched and breathing quickened. The waiter coughed, and I turned my attention to him, to see him staring at me. “Miss Song, what will you be having?” he asked, holding up a little notebook and pencil in his magic.

“Whatever the others are having,” I said, not really hungry. With that, he nodded and trotted away to the kitchen. Turning to Shiny, he grinned at me, but something was off about it. Could he just be as nervous as I? “Everything okay, Shiny? What did that deputy have to say to you three?”

“Oh… er… nothing important, just making sure we were all okay.” His cheeks reddened just slightly.

“He’s lying. They must have learned something bad. I don’t think he has ever lied to us before,” Chrys mused and I had to agree. Why did he feel he had to lie to us? Looking to Lucky and Fire, they both stayed silent, though Lucky had a slight smirk on his face.

“Well, it was good of him to think of us.” I smiled at Shiny, hoping whatever it was, he’d feel comfortable sharing.

“Right, good,” he said and bit his lip, looking down at the table and running a hoof around an indentation in its surface. We were silent for a few minutes after that, until the unicorn stallion came back out with four plates, some strange-smelling sandwiches on all of them.

“What is this?” I asked, poking at mine as he set it in front of me.

“Well… it’s what you ordered Miss Song, our specialty, desert delight. A sandwich made with only the finest petals of the spotted desert rose. It is quite a delicacy around here.”

I nodded, lifting the top piece of bread to reveal dark red rose petals, covered in tiny pink spots. Hmm well, it looked strange, but when I looked up and everypony else had already started to eat I shrugged and took a bite. “Hmm not bad,” I said and the waiter gave a little bow.

“Then I shall leave you to your meal.” He trotted off. I continued munching on the sandwich, watching the three stallions out of the corner of my eye. Fire was looking at Shiny, nodding his head to him and pointing it toward me. But Shiny just gave him a tiny shake of his head. So there was something. Had Shiny asked the others not to mention it? Had there been news from Canterlot? I tossed the last bite of the sandwich into my mouth and leaned back. Well, whatever it was, I was sure Shiny would tell me when the time was right.

The train arrived a few minutes after two, pulling into the station with a cloud of steam and dust. The heat of the day entered the tavern as ponies started to push open the doors to either come inside off of the train or hurry outside to catch it. Shiny, Fire, Lucky, and I sat at the back of the tavern, nursing bottles of cold apple cider. I was eager to get on the train, but not so much to get back out into the heat just yet.

As one last unicorn stepped off the train, a white mare with a blonde mane and tail, I drained the last of my bottle of cider and stood up, setting it on the table. “Well, better get to buying our tickets and onto the train.” The others nodded, doing the same and following me toward the doors. Shiny still had yet to tell me what had gone on earlier, and it seemed to just be driving him crazy. His ears twitching back and forth, walking slowly, eyes looking anywhere but at me.

“You two go ahead and get our tickets,” I said to Lucky and Fire, taking out the bit purse and hoofing it to Fire as we stepped outside. “We’ll be along shortly.”

“Better not wait too long,” Lucky smirked. “The train waits for nopony.” With that, he and Fire trotted off.

I turned to look at Shiny, whose ears were down almost flat against his head, tips twitching. He grinned sheepishly over at me.

“Okay, enough of this game,” I said, stomping a hoof down. “You wouldn’t be acting this way if something wasn’t up. Is there something I need to worry about?”

He let out a sigh and nodded. “I should have told you earlier, I’m sorry.”

“Just let me know now.”

“Well, okay. News has already reached Canterlot of the fire.”

I nodded, “I kind of assumed it would.”

“And,” he gulped, nostrils flaring slightly as he breathed in heavily, closing his eyes, “they think Queen Chrysalis is responsible.”

“WHAT? Those fools! Whoever told them what happened obviously has bees for brains.” Chrys growled at the news. I took a deep breath, trying to keep calm, if only on the outside. On the inside, I was as livid as Chrys. Here we had helped keep those foals safe, sure Fire, Lucky, and Shiny had done most of the work but that didn’t mean we wouldn’t have helped if we had been there.

I closed my eyes, then opened them again and tried to smile at Shiny, but it probably came off as more of a grimace. “Thank you for telling me. Come, we better catch up to the others.” I trotted toward the train, Shiny close behind me, a slight grin on my face. This time, I had been able to control our anger. Things were certainly looking better.

The train whistle blew as we neared. Shiny and I dashed toward it, where Lucky and Fire were waiting for us, four tickets hovering in the air in Fire’s pale orange magic. Lucky had a kind of creepy smirk on his face, but we didn’t have time to ask questions. Following the two stallions, Shiny behind me, we jumped onto the platform. Fire and Lucky entered and moved down the car. Poking my head inside, I stepped on as well and froze in front of the door. My eyes widened and my heart started pounding, ears going flat against the back of my head. “Okay, we are walking to Canterlot,” I mumbled, bolting around to run into Shiny.

“Ow, what’s wrong?” he asked, rubbing his head. It was then he looked around me to see who else was in our car, and he frowned, understanding. The conductor pony came around and slammed all the doors closed, blocking our exit. At least now I understood why Lucky was smirking. I turned around at the sound of a giggle. Shiny walked up next to me. Ahead of us were the last ponies I had expected to see, Shining Armor and Princess Cadence.

Changeling Castle- Apatelodes

I rubbed my eyes with one hoof later that night as I trotted down to the nursery. After all, I needed to keep an eye on our princess. If something had happened to Chrysalis, Citheronia would be in great danger. At least she had Phengaris to protect her and the others.

Nodding to the guards outside the door, I pushed it open and trotted inside. Phengaris looked over at me, her ears lowered and eyes bloodshot with green. My heart skipped into my throat and I dashed over to Citheronia’s incubator, to find she was fine. Curled up into a little ball, a bubble of drool covering her lips. If it wasn’t her, then why had Phengaris been crying?

“What’s wrong?” I asked, stepping up and putting a hoof around her.

“Oh Apatelodes, I couldn’t save him. He just wouldn’t eat. I tried everything!” She pointed a hoof over to the far incubator, where a pale blue blanket was pulled over a tiny still form, too still.

“Oh Phen,” I sighed, turning to look back at her. Fresh tears were in her eyes. With a sob she collapsed against me, wrapping her hooves around my neck. “Hey, hey, calm down Phen,” I hushed, patting her on the back. “You’ve been the hatch mother for a long time, you know we lose some from time to time.”

“But we really needed him! So few have laid eggs lately. We need more hatchlings if we are to survive!” Her shoulders quivered against me, ears pinning down to the back of her head. “What if we lose the others? What if we lose the princess? Oh, I just know this is a bad omen!” she wailed.

The hatchlings stirred around us, a few of them sitting up and glancing at us curiously, big eyes blinking slowly as they took everything in. “Shhh, you’re waking the others,” I whispered. “You are a good hatch mother Phen. The others are strong. They’ll make it.” I put a hoof under her chin and lifted her face to look at me. “Would you like me to help you with the cremation ceremony?” She nodded and stood, wiping tears from her eyes.

“Just help me get the others back to sleep first?”

“Of course.” I smiled warmly at her and trotted to the first little hatchling.

It hadn’t taken long to get the others back to sleep, with them still having full bellies a little tummy rub and soothing words had been all it took. With the little colt nestled in his blanket on my back, we had instructed one of the guards to watch over the hatchlings while we were gone.

Stepping out behind the castle, I led the way to a small one-story stone building. If we were ponies, one might have called it a church, but we didn’t worship the princesses as they did. No, it was a sacred place to us though. A few benches aligned on either side of the single room as we entered, facing a stone slab near the middle. Sticks and logs were gathered to one side wrapped in twine. Above, a skylight opened up to the sky, revealing the bright moon above us, casting its light on the tiny form on my back.

I levitated a bundle of the sticks onto the stone slab. One bundle would be more than enough. Spreading it out, I then gently placed the little foal’s body on the pile, still wrapped in his blanket. Phengaris sobbed quietly beside me and I bit my lip, doing my best not to join her. I needed a calm head to do this. Usually, it was our queen’s job to officiate these kinds of things, but with her gone and leaving me in charge, the duty had fallen to me. Noling had come to name or accept the colt as their own, so he would leave us nameless.

I led Phengaris to a seat on the bench, where her eyes just stared at the little cloth-wrapped bundle. Sighing, I stepped up next to the funeral pyre, took a deep breath, and began. “Thy end was too soon, little changeling-”

“Pachlio,” Phengaris said, and I paused looking down at her. “I’ve been calling him Pachlio. Noling deserves to die without a name.”

I nodded. “Very well then.” I looked over at the bundle again and continued. “Thy end was too soon, little Pachlio. Thou hadst a whole life ahead of thee, and now thine thread has been cut.” I paused, talking in this archaic tone was harder than I had given my queen credit for. Yet, little ‘Pachlio’ deserved a proper ceremony. “Mayhap now thou shall be at peace in the arms of our puissant mother changeling. May she protect thee, provide thee with love, and verily the life thou wilt never have upon these lands. Be thou at peace, give unto those of us still living strength to carry on in these troubled times. With this final wish, I bid thee farewell, and offer thy now-empty vessel to the flames.”

I gestured Phengaris over to the pyre. She sniffed, tears dribbling down her muzzle, but nodded and stood next to me. Each of us lit up our horns to a bright green glow and set them against the wood. It lit up with bold green fire, crackling and eating at the wood. The flames were much hotter than your normal campfire, meant to burn through bone and chitin. As the flames rippled onto the blanket, the smell of burning chitin and cloth filled the air. Before either of us could gag on the stench though, little flaps of skin hidden away in our muzzles, closed over our nostrils so we could mourn peacefully. How often I had been thankful for such a simple little mechanism, I didn’t even want to think about it.

Phengaris and I took seats back in the front row again, watching as the funeral pyre burned and the smoke floated out the skylight, blocking what moonlight had been entering and casting the room in the green glow of the flames. I truly hoped we wouldn’t be needing to come here again anytime soon.

On the Friendship Express- Shiny Whistle

Oh, colt was this bad! I could hear Chryssy’s heart beating furiously beside me as she stared over at Princess Cadence and Shining Armor. She took a step back and then was pushed against me as the train lurched forward. “Horsefeathers,” she muttered.

“Shiny Whistle? Dew Song?” Shining Armor gasped, and I smiled over at him.

“Hello, Shining,” I said, hoping my voice didn’t sound as nervous as I felt.

“Where have you two been?” Shining asked, getting up from his seat by Cadence and trotting over to us. “Your parents have been worried sick!”

“Wait, Dew is missing too?” I asked, ears standing up straight. What had happened to her? My heart rate quickened now as well.

“Not anymore,” Cadence beamed and joined Shining in front of us. “She’s right beside you after all. You two are so much alike. Your mother said Dew disappeared a few days after you. Where did you two go?”

I bit my lip and smiled sheepishly up at them. What should I tell them? Glancing at Chryssy, I could tell she wasn’t going to be much help. She was having a hard enough time not going into a panic attack. I thought for a moment, then turned to Cadence. Might as well stick with the story we have been telling everypony else. “Right, heh how could I forget?” I rubbed the back of my neck and grinned. “Well, I decided I wanted to go on a tour of Equestria, sell some of my whistles, and get some world experience. Dew happened to catch up to me and by then we were too far out for me to feel safe in sending her home alone. So she came with me.”

Chryssy shook her head, seeming to come out of some fog, and nodded. “Ri-right, I didn’t want my p-poor brother traveling all alone. He-he needed somepony to br-brighten his day!”

Shining looked down at Chryssy, a small frown on his face. “You okay Dew? You don’t seem yourself at all.”

“Indeed, what happened to the little filly who idolizes the element of laughter?” Cadence asked, and ran a hoof through Chryssy’s mane, making her flinch.

“Er well…” Chryssy began, ears going down. “It-it was the fire! Yes, that’s it.”

“Some of those smoky creatures came close to killing her,” I said, nodding slightly at Chryssy. It was a good enough cover story as any. With Chryssy disguised as my sister, I would have to treat her as such, and doing so meant explaining things when she couldn’t, or at least embellishing on her ideas. “If it hadn’t been for Lucky and Fire, none of us likely would have made it.”

“Aw, I didn’t do much,” Fire whispered, receiving an elbow in the side from Lucky. Lucky just nodded, not saying anything. At least he wasn’t trying to blow Chryssy’s cover, for that I was grateful.

“Oh my,” Cadence gasped, and brought Chryssy in for a hug, wrapping one hoof around her back and pulling her close. Chryssy just stiffened, her ears pulled back, and tried to pull away. “It’s okay, it’s okay Dew. You’re safe now.” Cadence released the hoof held around her, and Chryssy pulled back.

Chryssy shook her head and stepped back toward me. Okay, time to be the big brother here. “If you don’t mind, Shining, Princess-”

“Please Shiny, just call me Cadence.”

“Right,” I said and put a hoof around Chryssy’s back. “If you two don’t mind, I just want to get Dew to our seats so she can get some rest. Our journey has been a little more than we bargained for.”

“Of course,” Cadence said and moved aside, pulling Shining with her. “Come on Shinikins, we can ask them more after she rests.”

“Coming Cady,” he said, nuzzling her mane. “Take good care of her Shiny, we’ll be over there if you need anything.” Shining lifted a hoof and mussed it through my mane and then pointed it to their seats.

“Thanks, Shining,” I said and my heart pounding, turned to Chryssy and with my hoof already around her hugged her close. “I got this, don’t worry,” I whispered to her, feeling my heart flutter when she smiled softly up at me, nodding. Our seats were almost diagonal from Shining’s and Cadence’s. As I helped Chryssy up onto her seat, she promptly curled up and laid her head on her forehooves. I breathed a sigh of relief. So far so good. Now we just needed to get through the long train ride without them finding out the truth.

I jumped up beside Chryssy and nestled against her, running a hoof up and down her back, doing what I could as a ‘big brother’ to comfort her. She lifted her head, looking at me with one ear partially down. “Shiny, what are you doing?”

“I’m trying to comfort my sister,” I said, stressing out each word as I smiled at her. “Just get some sleep Dew. I’ll be right here if you need me.” Her sleeping would probably make the ride go that much smoother. After all, it wasn’t hard impersonating a sleeping pony right? Sleeping ponies need not know dates, or names, or events.

“Yes Shiny,” she sighed and leaned against me, moving her head to rest her chin on my leg and closing her eyes.

“You two sure are close, aren’t you?” Shining whispered from across the aisle, and I saw Chryssy’s ears twitch his way.

“Well she is my sister,” I whispered back, smiling down at her. “I’d do anything for her, as I’m sure you would for Twilight.”

“Not sure how much she needs her BBBFF anymore, now that she has become a princess,” he sighed. “Not that I’m not proud of her, I am, but what can I do for her now?”

“Be there for her of course,” I snorted, and Cadence nodded in agreement.

“I still need you, don’t I?” Cadence purred and kissed Shining on his muzzle. “Just because we are alicorns, doesn’t mean we don’t need help once in a while.” She turned to look at me, a soft smile on her face. “I think it is wonderful how much you care for her. Never stop that. I sometimes wish I had had a big brother to protect me. Don’t take your relationship for granted.”

I nodded but cringed inside. The real Dew Song was missing and it was all my fault. Had she really tried to follow me? If so, where was she now? Was she even still alive? I’m sure my face paled at the thought. If I had been the cause of my sister’s death, I’d never be able to forgive myself! Once we rescued Chryssy’s friend from the dungeons, I would have to go searching for her. I had to know what had happened to her, bring her home. Though the thought of leaving Chryssy sent a jolt of pain through my barrel.

As we continued on, I let out a huge yawn. The last few days had been exhausting! Maybe it would be good if I grabbed some sleep too. Looking down at Chryssy, I watched her barrel rising and falling with each breath, she seemed to sleep peacefully. Her right ear twitched occasionally, and she nuzzled against me in her sleep. Now I could get used to this. I lowered my head to rest against her neck and closed my eyes. Yes, sleep was a good idea. Maybe we’d even sleep until we reached our stop.

Friendship Express- Queen Chrysalis

I slowly opened my eyes, feeling pressure on my neck. Glancing up, a small smile formed on my face at seeing Shiny resting against me. The warmth of his body against mine keeping away a chill in the air. Light in the train car had darkened, casting most of it in shadow. How many hours had I been asleep? I looked over to Shining Armor and Cadence, who had spread out on their seats. Cadence's hooves hung over the edge as she cuddled with her husband, both of them breathing softly as they slept.

On the other end of the train car, Lucky and Fire slept as well. The two were snuggled close together, Fire with a hoof around Lucky’s neck, his injured flank spread out behind him and hanging partially over the side of the seat. For once, Lucky had a genuine smile on his face. He and Fire’s muzzles rested side by side on the seat.

I sighed as I watched them. They reminded me of how close my best friend and I had been back on Earth. I don’t think we ever actually slept in the same bed or anything, but there were plenty of times we would lie down together in a heap while watching movies or giggling about some cute new guy in one of our classes. My ears wilted down against the side of my head. I could remember all that, but not her name anymore!

“Don’t fret, you’ll never see her again anyway so just enjoy the memories while they last. Besides, those two are far more interesting at the moment. You don’t suppose…” Chrys laughed, and I couldn’t help but smile as well. “Well I haven’t seen it as often in stallions, being there are far fewer of them than mares. How ironic that we have the exact opposite problem,” she sighed. “Of course, I could be wrong. There are more than one set of friends that are as close as they seem. Some of our changelings have reported in the past that Twilight and her friends when they have little sleepovers, would often form a big pile of blankets, pillows, and mares.”

It certainly seemed possible, but we had bigger things to worry about. Like how we would convince Celestia to let Leptostales go. If she even would. If he was even still alive.

I turned to look to the train car doors as a little pegasus mare, fur the color of creamed corn with a golden mane and tail, pushed the door open with one wing, and pushed a loaded trolley cart inside. She glanced around and seeing I was the only one awake, pasted on a smile. “Anything from the trolley Miss?”

I was about to say no when I spotted a little fruit salad in a clear plastic container, large chunks of cantaloupe sticking out of some grapes and watermelon. “Could I get that?” I whispered, pointing a hoof at the salad.

“Of course,” the mare said, and grabbing it up in her wing placed it on the seat beside me. “Anything else?” I shook my head and tossed her a few bits, which she tucked into a bag tied to the cart. She headed back toward the door. “Enjoy then,” she chirped and pushing the cart out the door closed it behind her.

My mouth watered just looking at the salad beside me and I went to open the little container with my magic when I paused. Looking back over at Shining and Cadence, I saw they had moved hardly at all since I last looked at them, both with their eyes closed as they dozed. Dare I use my magic around them? If they were to wake while I was eating, my cover would be blown. Curse the fact we couldn’t change the color of our magic!

A soft, purple glow surrounded the little container and pulled off the lid. “There you go,” Shiny whispered. He sat up next to me, stretching his legs out as he yawned.

“Thanks,” I said and pulling the salad closer to me with one hoof, dipped my muzzle inside to eat. Sure it might not be the most ‘queenly’ way to eat but at least it was safe. Shiny chuckled beside me. I looked up to see him smiling down at me as I ate. What was that look in his eye?

“Did you sleep well?” he asked.

I shrugged. “Well enough,” I said, lifting my muzzle and licking sticky juices from it. “When I have two ponies who want me dead across the aisle,” I hissed softly.

“I’m not going to let anything happen to you,” he sighed, a concerned look in his eyes. “We’ll get to Canterlot in one piece.”

“It’s after we get there I’m worried about,” I grumbled and turned back to my fruit salad.

“Still no plan huh?”

I shook my head. “No, and something… doesn’t feel right. I just hope we are not heading into a trap.”

“Well if we are, I’ll protect my little sister,” he winked at me. “I’ll do everything I can to help you get him back.”

“Foolish pony, doesn’t know what he is promising,” Chrys sighed. “I doubt he’d betray his princesses if it came down to it. Even for us.”

“Ah you both are awake,” Shining said, adjusting in his seat and turning to face us, Cadence still asleep, leaning against him.

I jolted, when had he awoken? How much of our conversation had he heard?

“So who is this pony you need to get back Dew? Aren’t you a little young still for a special somepony?”

“What? No of course not!” I harrumphed.

“Heh sorry, I always forget how fast foals grow up. You have become a beautiful young mare Dew.”

“Thank you,” I said.

“You didn’t answer my question though.”

Horseapples, I was hoping he’d forget. Now, what was the name of Leptostales disguise again? Right, that was it. “Ironhoof. He got framed for something he didn’t do and is in the dungeons now.”

Shining rubbed a hoof against his chin, “Don’t think I know of any Ironhoof. You sure he is still in the dungeons? When Cadence and I were there a few weeks ago, the only prisoner was a changeling. When did he get arrested?”

“So he is still alive! Or at least, was a few weeks ago,” Chrys sighed. “I just hope he is okay. If they’ve killed him they shall pay!”

“Not too long, I think. I only got word of it less than a week ago.”

“Well, you better hope they put him far away from that changeling. Even after all this time, he is somehow going strong. Twilight has been itching to get down there and figure out why but hasn’t had the chance.” Shining sighed, lowering his ears slightly. “I’ve been trying to convince Princess Celestia just to get rid of it, but she refuses.”

“Auntie has a good heart Shining,” Cadence mumbled, shifting against him. “Perhaps she sees some good in him?”

Shining snorted, “there’s no such thing as a good changeling.”

Shiny ran a hoof down my back at Shining’s words, and I tried my best not to growl out a retort. Taking a deep breath, I turned to face Shining. “Anything is possible.”

“Not when it comes to those monsters. Don’t you remember what their queen did to me? To Cadence? And now she is burning down towns with a new army of creatures. No, she is evil. Her changelings are evil. And whatever these new things she has on her side are evil too.” Shining stomped a hoof on the seat as he finished.

“Can we talk about something else?” Shiny asked, hugging me close as I seethed. “You’re upsetting Dew.”

“Of course dear Shiny,” Cadence said, a calm grin on her face as she looked back at her husband. “Things will be okay Shinikins. You’ll see.” She kissed him on the muzzle and nuzzled his cheek.

“How can she be so calm? Does she not still fear what we tried to do to them” Chrys asked as we watched the two. “And how DARE he call us monsters! They are the ones who killed my changelings! We killed none of their little ponies. I even gave direct orders that nopony was to be killed. Would a monster do that?”

No, she was right on that one. I sighed, leaning against Shiny. At least we had one pony on our side. Looking back down at my salad, I found only a few pieces left. Might as well finish. I brought it back over to me and lifted a slice of cantaloupe. This was going to be a long train ride.

Author's Notes:

Aaaand here we have a new chapter, YAY! Sorry this one took so long, had a lot of things I have been waiting to write in it and wanted them to be the best they could. More fun times hehe. And then some more of my changeling fanon. Hope you all enjoy! Your Queenie suffered through the cold finishing this up for you so she could make sure it was done like promised. And just lookie here, I was able to get all three things I planned on out for my anniversary 'week'! I think that was a pretty great way to celebrate it, am I right?
As usual, comment, critique, and let me know what you think! Setting up a few more things in this chapter that will come along later on in the story. But YAY! Now, on to Canterlot *cough* after the rest of the train ride of course. *cough*
Preread by muckyhusky
Little edits done 7/7/21

All That Glitters...

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Friendship Express- Queen Chrysalis

As Shiny talked with the others, I turned around in my seat and faced the window, rested my chin on the window ledge, and watched the trees and hills pass by. I knew I was being rude but was better to be rude than to say something that might make them suspicious. The train jolted a little as we passed over the bridge connecting either side of Ghastly Gorge, but then returned to its smooth click-clacking up the tracks as it turned toward the Everfree Forest. We would have a quick stop in Ponyville in a few hours, and then it would be straight ahead up Canterlot Mountain and into the heart of Canterlot.

All this sitting was making my legs ache, and I almost longed to be back out there walking. Well, at least I could still walk. I stood and wiggled out from behind Shiny, dropping down to the floor. Shining paused in the middle of his sentence as all three looked at me. Surprisingly, Lucky and Fire were still asleep in their corner seat, though no longer as nestled together. "I’m going to make a trip to the little mare’s room,” I said softly and trotted toward the door.

“Do you want me to come with you?” Cadence asked. She folded her wings against her sides and smoothly rose to her hooves. “The train is pretty full, so would be safer to go together. I need to stretch my legs anyway.”

I narrowed my eyes slightly at her, was she being sincere, or did she suspect something? That smile she always seemed to have on her face didn’t waver as she waited for my answer.

“Let her come if she wants I suppose,” Chrys sighed. ”If she does suspect anything, better to find out now than later.”

“I can take her,” Shiny said when I hesitated.

“No, it’s okay Shiny,” I said and smiled at him. “It would just be weird if my brother came with me.” I turned back to Cadence. “If you really want to, sure let’s go.”

Cadence nodded, opened the door for us with her magic, and waited for me to step out. I trotted down the short path between cars, Cadence on my tail, where she opened the adjacent cars' doors and led the way inside.

The next car over was filled with ponies, every seat was taken. I spotted a few I recognized from the show, but couldn’t recall their fan-made names. One of those spa pony mares from Ponyville, the pink one with blue mane; a tall, pale blue stallion with short-cropped darker blue mane and tail; a darker yellow mare with a green mane and tail – wasn’t she one of Applejacks many cousins?- and others besides.

Cadence walked behind me in silence. I bit my lip, why wasn’t she saying anything? My nervousness grew as we continued to the next car, another passenger one, but with not nearly as many ponies as the previous one.

“Are you sure you are okay Dew?” I jumped at the sudden sound of Cadence’s voice but nodded. “You know you can tell me anything right? I’m your friend.”

“Of-of course Princess,” I stammered, “and yes, I’m fine. Just ready to return home. Ironhoof needs me.”

Princess Cadence smiled. “Please, Dew dear, just call me Cadence.” She smiled down at me warmly. “So our little Dew has grown up and found herself a special somepony hmm? Maybe he’ll be able to help you then.”

“Help me?”

“Why yes, I’m sure your experience with those nasty things was traumatic. I saw the damage they had done, the horrible way those poor ponies were killed. If you need to talk to somepony about it, let me know.” She paused, put a hoof around me, and nuzzled my mane.

“Ugh, I forgot how… affectionate she could be,” Chrys grumbled. “Too bad that it wouldn’t be a good idea to feed off of her. She’d probably be able to feed us just as well as Shiny.”

“Of course Prin- Cadence.”

“That’s my filly,” Cadence chuckled and continued walking. “Now, do your parents approve of this Ironhoof? Is he a gentlestallion?”

“Of course he is! He is one of the nicest, sweetest ch- er stallions I know!” I smiled widely at her, right ear twitching slightly. Had to be more careful, I’d almost said he was a changeling!

“Well then if he is still in the dungeons, I’ll talk to Auntie Celestia and see if we can get him out.”

She had heard that too? But- I thought she had been sleeping? Was there anything she seemed to miss? I nodded my head, “thank you, you don’t know how much I would appreciate that.”

“What are friends for?” Cadence said and winked at me, pausing as we came to a set of doors at the end of the car. “Ah here we are, go on in and call me if you need anything.”

“Right,” I said and pushed open the one to the left, which had a picture of a mare painted on it. As it shut behind me I let out a sigh of relief, leaning against the cool wooden wall. With a glance up at the bathroom mirror, I blinked at my reflection. The dust of the road clung to my coat, my mane was mussy, sticking out to the right in an unsightly lump of dirt and sweat. Colt did I look horrible!

I stepped up to the sink and turned it on, closing my eyes for a moment just to listen to the running water. We could do this. Cadence seemed to be none the wiser about us. I might not be playing this role perfectly, but she was believing our story of why not.

“Told you it would work,” Chrys said. “But we must be very careful. She or Shining, of all ponies, would have a higher chance of figuring us out.”

“I’m doing my best,” I mumbled, running my hooves under the water and splashing it onto my face. Using my magic, I pulled some water up and into my mane, doing what I could without a comb to make it look decent at least. “Do you think she’d really help us rescue him?”

“She does seem less hesitant than Shining about us all being bad,” Chrys said, but then snorted. “But once she finds out he is a changeling? No, probably not. Unless…”

“What? Do you have a plan? An idea?” I could almost feel her smirk.

“Who says we have to reveal ourselves to Princess Celestia? Shiny’s sister is plenty old enough for her own special somepony. Leptostales could have been… courting her as his Ironhoof self.”

“Yes, yes that could work. And then she doesn’t know what he really is! Or should she know, and not care?” I rubbed a hoof against my chin. We finally had the semblance of a plan, but would it work?

“We can go with the flow on that, and it will depend on what he did to get caught. With this, I think we have a way to finagle his release!” She let out a cackle, and I couldn’t help but chuckle as well.

“Everything okay in there Dew?” Cadence yelled, knocking on the door.

“Er, yeah I’m fine, just freshening up a bit,” I called back. We were looking better now. At least our face was clean and our mane mostly free of dust, though it still stuck out awkwardly in a few places. Now we just needed to hammer out the rest of the details, and we might actually stand a chance.

I turned off the water and trotted over to the door. Yes, things were looking up. We finally had a plan. Could we fool even Princess Celestia, and get him back? Relations between our two different species were negative sure, but if we had Cadence on our side, she could sway the tide. Who wouldn’t listen to the Princess of Love? Especially if we could convince Cadence how much in love we were with him? I didn’t see her as one who would deny ‘true love’, no matter what the coupling was like.

“There you are,” Cadence said as I pushed the door open and stepped back out. “Ready to head back to the others?”

I nodded. “Oh yes, I am doing much better now,” I said, beaming up at her. “Let’s return.”

Friendship Express- Shiny Whistle

I watched as Chryssy and Cadence stepped out the door, a soft click echoing as it closed behind them. Silence filled the train car for a moment before the soft click of hooves came from across the aisle.

“How are you doing Shiny?” Shining Armor asked, and sat down in the seat opposite mine.

I sat up and turned to look at him. He had a look of genuine concern on his face, to which I tried just smiling, but my ears had other ideas, sliding halfway down. “Well, I’ve been better, but Dew and I are heading home after a long trip and things will look up from there.”

“You don’t sound so sure,” he said. “Is it this Ironhoof? Do you not approve of him? Do your parents even know Dew is seeing somepony?”

I shook my head. “No, they don’t know. As for if I approve of him? Can’t say for sure as I’ve never met him.”

“Wait,” Shining said and held up a hoof. “You two are racing home to help him, and you don’t even know the pony?”

“No, but I do know my sister. She’d never get with a pony who would harm her. She’s smarter than that.”

“Love can do many things to a pony Shiny, sometimes good, other times stupid.” Shining sighed, shifting in his seat.

“I’m aware of that sir.” Colt was I aware. Most ponies would probably think it stupid supporting the changelings, let alone their queen. Yet, here I was traveling with her to rescue a friend, her old lover. Was I just asking for her to break my heart? Didn’t even seem like she even cared a whit about me in that way. Would I be satisfied with just being friends, if it came to that?

“Good,” Shining said, “then let’s move on to hopefully happier matters. Did you know your brother decided to join the guard?”

“What?” My ears perked up in surprise. Why would he do that? He’d never been interested in such things before. All he’d wanted to do was play drums in that band of his. “What happened to his band? Did they separate?”

“I’m not sure, he won’t talk about it. But he sent me a letter asking for my recommendation. Of course, he’ll have to go through training and school like everypony else.”

I just stared at Shining in shock. Velvet Beat, a future guard? I just couldn’t see it. Things must have gone very bad for him recently. “So what did you do?”

“I told him he’d have to go through training first, but if he got through it all and still wanted to join, I’d be glad to help him with a recommendation.”

“Is he still in Canterlot?”

Shining nodded. “I would imagine so. The next round of training classes begin soon, but as far as I know, he should be living with your parents at the moment.”

Yes, that would make sense. When I go to visit, I will have to ask him about that. Sweet Celestia, I’m gone for what, less than three months? And so much has changed. Dew Song missing, my brother wants to join the guard, what else had I missed? “My parents are okay, right?”

Shining nodded. “Last time I saw them they were, just missing their foals. Why did you leave without even telling them?”

I grimaced and closed my eyes. Should have known that question was coming. “I didn’t want them to stop me. Dad is still… hesitant about any of us even leaving the house at times. If he’d known I wanted to travel Equestria, he’d have locked me in my room and thrown away the key.”

Shining nodded, understanding. “Sadly there are many still that way, even after two years. Of course, it doesn’t help that we keep having other monsters or creatures attack.” He held up a forehoof and tapped it with his other as he counted down. “King Sombra, the giant cockatrices, Discord’s plunder vines-”

“Wait, what? Plunder vines?” I had heard about the giant cockatrice attack, though Velvet and I had been out of Canterlot that day, but what in the hay?

Shining waved a hoof at it. “Don’t worry, long story short it was just Discord playing his usual games. The point is there have been plenty of problems sent both to Canterlot and Ponyville. So I don’t blame your father for wanting to protect you. I’ll do the same someday, once Cady and I have our own foals.”

“Well you’ll make a great father,” I said. Shining blushed, running a hoof over his neck.

“Thanks, Shiny,” he said and sat his hoof back down on the seat. “Now, speaking of problems, besides the trouble in Hoofville, have you two ran into anything else on your journey?”

Colt was that a loaded question! Had I? He surely would count running into Chryssy as a problem, even if I wouldn’t. Any mention of changelings though and he might get suspicious. Besides that though my journey had been rather uneventful. Selling a few whistles here and there, saving bits where I could by staying with the locals in town, repaying them with some chore they needed to be done. I opened my mouth to speak when a blue glow surrounded the train car door and it opened.

Chryssy trotted in, face now dust free and mane looking a little better, with Princess Cadence behind her. “Welcome back,” I said, smiling at Chryssy as she plopped down next to me. She leaned over to me and put her muzzle against my ear.

“I finally thought up a plan,” she whispered. “Whatever happens, do your best to play along okay?”

I nodded and she giggled, ruffling my mane with a hoof. “Oh Shiny, you’re so funny!” She beamed and looked across the way to where Princess Cadence had settled beside Shining. “So, did you stallions have a good talk?”

“That we did,” Shining grinned over at her. “Seems you and Cadence must have had a good one too. You seem in a much better mood than before.”

She nodded, flicking her tail back and forth. “Yep! She’s going to help me get Ironhoof back!”

Shining’s eyes widened and turned to Cadence. “Really?”

“Mmmhmm,” Cadence nodded. “As long as what he did is redeemable enough. Though with what Dew says about him, I think he should be fine.”

“But what would Princess Celestia say about that?”

“She trusts me Shiny,” Cadence frowned slightly. “She knows I wouldn’t ask for his release if I didn’t feel he deserved it.”

Shining sighed and held a hoof to his head. “Well okay, I guess I’ll help too then.” He looked over to Chryssy, who gave a big Pinkie Pie wide grin at him. “Especially if it keeps Dew happy.”

“It will indeed Shining, it will indeed,” Chryssy said, letting out a small giggle. It must be a good plan indeed for her mood to have changed like this. Too bad she wouldn’t get a chance to explain it to me with the others here.

A pale red unicorn opened the door and poked his head inside. “We are almost to Ponyville, about thirty more minutes. Prepare yourselves. We will be stopping there for about an hour to give you all a chance to stretch and get something to eat if you feel like it.”

Cadence nodded to him. “Thank you for letting us know.”

“No problem Princess,” he smiled softly and left, closing the door behind him.

Cadence turned back to me and Chryssy. “You should probably wake your friends. I imagine they could use a good stretch after their long nap.” Yes, they probably could. I was surprised they had slept so long, but then they had awoken much earlier than us.
It had been a long time since I was last in Ponyville. It was before Twilight Sparkle gained her wings for sure. I wondered how much had changed since then. Shaking my head, I trotted over to wake the two sleepyheads up.

Ponyville Train Station- Queen Chrysalis

As we drew nearer to the train station, I heard gasps and screams of alarm from the cars ahead of us. What in the hay was going on? I cringed as the train came to an abrupt halt, its brakes squealing in protest. Minutes passed, somepony coughed, and then an amplified voice filled the car.

“We are sorry for the delay everypony. It seems…. the train tracks have been changed into gold.”

“Gold? What the hay?” I said, turning to look at the others. Everypony else seemed to have just as surprised a look on their faces as I did. Though the look on Cadence and Shining’s faces quickly turned… suspicious.

“Do you think?” Cadence asked, turning to Shining.

“That Chrysalis is still messing with us? Probably,” he snorted. “Though no idea how she could change the rail line to gold.”

“Why am I always the first suspect?” Chrys growled. “Turning iron into gold? Nopony can do that, nor Ling! Not without some very dark magic. Surely nothing we possess.”

“So, what are we going to do?” Fire asked, ears going flat against his head.

“Just to let everypony know,” the voice continued, and we all flipped our ears toward it, “we are about a mile outside of Ponyville. We are unsure how long this delay might last. If anypony desires to do so, they can head into Ponyville until we can move on. We will send a pegasus out to find those who wish to continue to Canterlot one hour before we leave. Until then, everypony else just sit tight.”

“You four should stay here, who knows what terrors are being wrought over Ponyville,” Cadence said and stomped a hoof to the ground. “If it is Chrysalis, Shining and I will capture her. If not, well, I’m sure a problem of this magnitude Twilight will need my help with anyway.”

“Oh sure, just the two of you capture me?” Chrys laughed. “Do you really think us that easy?” I couldn’t help but agree. We were more powerful than that!

I watched as Cadence nudged a nervous-looking Shining toward the door, his ears twitching ever so slightly, and together they cantered off toward Ponyville. I started toward the door when Shiny put a hoof to my shoulder.

“Where do you think you are going? They told us to stay here.”

I glared at him, “you can stop pretending to be my brother for now Shiny. They are not here right now.” He fell back, ears lowered, and nodded. Horseapples, I didn’t mean to hurt his feelings! “Look, I’m just… I just want to know what the hay is going on, okay?”

He nodded. “Fine, but I’m coming with you.”

“Not leaving us out of the fun either,” Lucky grinned, putting a hoof to his chest.

“Well, there is safety in numbers,” Chrys groaned. ”Let’s just get out there.”

“Fine, but I’m not going slow for you this time Fire,” I snorted.

“I understand,” Fire said softly, “Lucky and I will catch up to you two then.”

I grinned slyly over at Shiny. “If Shiny can even keep up with me.”

Shiny grinned, ears perking up. “With you disguised as my sister? I don’t think that will be a problem. I accept your challenge.”

Chrys cackled. “Well well well, this should be interesting. Don’t let us down!”

Oh, I wouldn’t. I kicked open the door, revealing grassy terrain with scattered trees and bushes, a thin hoofpath curved along the track of the train. A small grey bunny nibbling at some grass a few feet away jumped a full foot in the air when the door clattered against the wall.

When it touched the ground again it hared away into the bushes. I took a few steps outside and onto the hoofpath. Shiny joined me, the path barely wide enough for two ponies to walk side by side. I turned to look back at the tracks, and my eyes widened. As far ahead of us that I could see, the tracks were indeed sparkling like gold. What normally would have been wooden slats had changed to yellow diamond –to match the rest of it perhaps?

I turned to look back at the others. Shiny smiled at me, though the smile twitched, revealing his nervousness. Lucky and Fire stepped up to the path behind us, Lucky supporting Fire. I guess his leg wasn’t as healed as he would have hoped.

“You ready?” Shiny asked and I turned my attention back to him. Sure this little race seemed spur of the moment, but I was in a good mood with energy to burn.

“You know it!” I laughed and with a nod between us we were off. Lucky and Fire were left in our dust as we dashed along the path. Oh did it feel good to really stretch my legs after so long on the train. For a while we were neck in neck, our hooves thundering over the ground, then Shiny started to pull away. Ugh, his longer legs were giving him the advantage!

“Don’t let him win, you can do this!” Chrys yelled. I nodded and took a deep breath, stretched my legs a little farther, and caught up with him until my head was even with his flank. Mmm, and what a fine sweaty flank it was. “Pay attention to the race!” Chrys growled and I shook my head, narrowing my eyes, and raced on.

As Ponyville came into view, we both slid to a halt. One of my hooves hit a rock and I sprawled forward, knocking into Shiny. We rolled a few feet forward, a tangled mess of hooves until we came to a stop right before the dirt path turned into paved gold. “More gold?” I asked, squinting my eyes. With the sun shining down on it, it sent out blinding rays of light. “How is anypony supposed to see with this?”

“Good question,” Shiny grunted. I looked down to see once again, I had ended up on top when we came to a stop.

“Oh, sorry,” I said and leaning back, disentangled my legs from his own and rolled to the side.

“S’okay didn’t break anything, I think.” He rolled over onto his stomach and looked around, squinting his own eyes. “Ponyville sure has changed since I was last here. When did they crystalize all the trees? Some new Crystal Empire trend?”

I looked above the golden paved road to see he was right. Some of the trees that were past our current point had been crystallized, most in shades of pink-purple. “And they think I did all this? I HATE pink!” Chrys grumbled. “This looks more like something Discord would do, but a little… tame for him.”

“Let’s check it out,” I said and standing up, took a step forward. The glare from the gold paved roads was quite harsh though. “But first,” I concentrated my magic for a moment and with a little pop, two pairs of sunglasses appeared over our noses. “There, now we can go.”

“Shouldn’t we wait for Lucky and Fire?” Shiny asked standing up and looking around.

I put a hoof to my forehead and sighed. “Fine, we’ll wait for them. But they better hurry!”

Thankfully, it was just a few minutes later that they appeared around a bend in the road. Fire smiled at us, but his ears drooped in exhaustion. “Thanks for waiting for- what the hay?” he gasped, looking ahead of us.

“We don’t know yet,” I said and magicked up a pair of sunglasses for each of them as well. “Come on.” With that, I led the way into town. There were very few ponies about, which wasn’t surprising with how everything looked. The windmill had been changed into a dark purple and pink crystal mess, houses were either changed into a blue or green crystal, with a few turned to gold. The gazebo itself was a brilliant blue crystal. I could sure see why Shiny might think this a Crystal Empire trend, Ponyville almost looked like it could be a part of it.

As we walked further into town, we spotted a group of crying foals in a grassy field. Each had a little party hat on their head in multiple colors. Two foals, one a white with flaming orange and yellow mane and tail, and the other a gray one with purple mane and tail looked up from stools at a crystal swan, a tiny spoon stuck in its crystal base. The others for the most part looked down at a table laden with fancy little hoof foods.

“What’s wrong?” Shiny asked, trotting over to one of the little foals at the table, a pale blue colt with a golden yellow mane.

The little foal sniffed, looking up at Shiny with tears in his eyes. “It-it’s my birthday sir. Everything was going great, Pinkie Pie was even throwing my party. The-then in a flash of green light all our cakes and candy turned to this!” He pointed a hoof at the table. “And-and my Jello into that-that bird statue thing.”

I cringed, green light? That sure did sound like changeling magic. “No changeling I know has that powerful of magic though. I still think it is Discord pulling his usual pranks.” Chrys huffed.

“Did you see what caused it?” Shiny asked, but all the foals shook their heads.

“No sir, it just…. came out of nowhere,” the little colt said.

“It changed our clown into a waiter too!” A little sandy yellow filly with dark purple mane and tail said.

“And this awful music!” A dusty purple filly with pale purple mane and tail groaned, covering her ears.

I turned to look to the side and saw three of the ponies that had been playing at the wedding a few nights ago, including that grey mare with the pink and white bowtie. “Well, looks like some earth ponies did escape. But how the hay did they get here before us?”

“Well you all just sit tight, we’ll figure out what went wrong and try to fix it,” Shiny said and ruffled the birthday colt’s mane.

“Oh, Pinkie Pie is already on that. She ran to tell her friend Twilight.” The grey and purple foal from by the swan said, trotting over to Shiny. He grinned up at us. “Why you all wearing sunglasses?”

“To protect from the-” Shiny looked around and realized their little party was far enough from the road it couldn’t be seen well over the bushes.

“Protect from what sir?” The little colt asked.

“Oh, just the road. Don’t go near it right now okay? It might hurt your eyes.”

They all nodded and Shiny turned to the three musicians and ‘butler’. “You ponies think you can handle these foals until things are figured out?”

The grey mare –come to think of it, fans called her Octavia right?- sat her cello against the fence and dropped to all four hooves, walking over to us. “Of course we can, I’ve had to handle other musicians far worse than these little ones.” She hugged the dusty purple filly to her side and grinned. “Go ahead and see if you can help Twilight and the others. Though Princess Cadence passed by not too long ago, so I think they got it handled pretty well.”

“Don’t worry, we got this,” Lucky said with a smirk.

I rolled my eyes. Was he ever anything but confident? “Not when we are angry at him,” Chrys chuckled. “But then, that is a situation hard for any- pony or ling- to keep their confidence in.”

“Take care,” Shiny said and trotted back over to us. The foals watched him go, their frowns looking maybe a little bit smaller. He sure was good with them.

I turned to lead us onward when out of the corner of my eye I caught sight of a pony cloaked in black. Seeing the tip of a blue tail poking out from under the cloak, my eyes widened. “It’s her!” I yelled. The pony turned our way at my shout, then raced down an alleyway.
“Oh no, she’s not getting away!” Chrys growled, and I couldn’t help but agree. “Not after everypony is blaming US for what she did! Get her!” I nodded and bolted after her, Shiny and the others gasping behind me. Sure we should stay together, but I couldn’t lose her! We had to talk.

Author's Notes:

Here we are again everypony and ling. We have finally arrived in the realm of episodes or comic issues getting references! (More so than just a passing word as has mostly been so far.) We have arrived in Ponyville smack dab in the middle of quite the crisis! Can anypony remember what episode is being referenced here?
AAaaand we get a cliff hanger. I'm sorry that I seem to like doing that... but anyway. Will we finally find out who our villain is next chapter? Will she let dear Chryssy catch her? What is going ON in town? Find out next week on..... Long Live the Queen! (Heh well hopefully by next week. It is fall break this weekend so if I can get my homework done, I'll have time to finish the next chapter, maybe even more.
SO now is the time to lay down your cards ponies(or changelings). Who do you think the villain is? Have I given enough clues for you to guess? When the cloak falls and she is revealed, whom will it be? Place your guesses in the hat and we shall see who is correct! *cackles*

Little edits done 7/7/21

...Might Be Dangerous

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Changeling Castle- Royal Guard’s Quarters- Apatelodes

It had been almost morning before I made it back up to my quarters, tossing my saddlebags on the floor at the foot of my bed. Phengaris had cried herself to sleep against me as the body of little Pachlio had burned. The poor mare, perhaps I should find her someling to help her out in the hatchery. One of our other older females might do well. Perhaps Acraea? Usually, she helped out in training the young anyway after their third molting. There was maybe one or two she was training at the moment, so helping in the hatchery wouldn’t be a problem.

Or Zeuxidia, she was still young but had had a few hatchlings of her own. All were growing into strong young changelings. She mostly made little trinkets, imbued with spells to help with one thing or another. I myself owned one that strengthened my chitin when worn. After all, being a royal guard could be dangerous. A powerful buck from an earth pony could easily shatter a breastplate.

I let out a yawn and opened the door to my bed chambers. It was too late to find anyling tonight anyway, I could talk to the two mares tomorrow. After I slept until noon. I levitated my armor over to its stand next to my bed. Would have to polish it up tomorrow, soot from the fire was streaked across it. I pulled down the covers of my bed and crawled inside, snuggling into my pillow. A bird chirped outside, then with the rustling of feathers flew away. Good riddance, the less noise the better I could sleep.

Just as I closed my eyes a buzzing came from my nightstand. “What now?” I moaned and opened my eyes to see it was my casting emerald. I levitated it over and tapped it with a hoof. “Whatever it is, this better be important for calling so early,” I grumbled.

“Of course it is,” I heard Morpheus’s voice from the other end. “The four of us have arrived in Dodge Junction.”

“So you’re making good time,” I grunted, rolling onto my side. “Any problems? Any news?”

“No problems. The fillies are doing fine for their first time out, though getting annoying with all their whistle practicing.” He let out a groan. “But we do have news,” Morpheus said. “A pony matching the description of Shiny Whistle bought a ticket to the train yesterday afternoon. He had three other unicorns with him, two stallions, one with a flank injury, and a young mare said to be his sister.”

“And what of our Queen?”

“No word, but we assume one of the three was likely her in disguise. They were headed on a one-way trip to Canterlot.”

“Well, either catch the next train or continue on to Canterlot, whichever would be quicker.” I let out a yawn and leaned back against my pillow. “They are likely already there or almost there. If I remember right, the train from Dodge Junction to Canterlot takes about fifteen hours not accounting for any stops. Find them, and give the Queen her new casting crystal.”

“Will do,” Morpheus said. “Any news for us? Did you find out anything else from that book?”

“Haven’t had a chance to read any more of it yet.”

“Well, I’ll call upon you again when we reach Ponyville in case you have more news for us.” He was silent for a moment as if listening to something. “Fine, I’ll ask!” He let out a frustrated sigh. “Any new orders for us?”

I shook my head, then realized how silly that was when he couldn’t see me. “No, just keep doing what you are doing.”

“Very well. Goodbye.” With that my casting emerald dulled and grew still.

I rubbed my aching head as I looked down to where my saddlebags rested. No matter how tired I was, I should try to read a little more of the book. My magic encased the saddlebags as I searched for it, pulling it out and levitating it over to me. Readjusting my pillows, I leaned back against the headrest and opened it to my bookmark.

---

A few months have passed, and I’m surprised nopony has told the two sisters of Sombra’s doings. Or have they, and they just don’t care? No, Princess Celestia is kind and a just ruler. If she knew of all the deaths, she would come.

Sombra managed to capture a dragon today. It was still kind of young and small compared to most dragons I had seen, maybe around fifty years old and a little bigger than Princess Celestia. How he captured it I have no idea, but when I came back from lunch it was sitting in his study with him. Its-excuse me, his- scales were of a gala apple red, golden-yellow running down his belly with fiery orange-yellow eyes.

The two of them were having tea, though the dragon could hardly hold onto his own cup, actually, a soup bowl rather than the tiny porcelain one Sombra held. The dragon eyed me as I trotted in, sending shivers down my spine. If the princesses had stares that could get anypony to confess their wrongdoings, this dragon had it just as strong if not worse.

“What’s she doing here?”

“Hayfeather is my scribe,” Sombra explained, taking a sip from his cup. “She’ll write down about our little experiments.”

The dragon snorted, “I already told you it would be foolish to try to kill me. Your pony magic rarely works well on my kind. When we are young, mere hatchlings, before we grow our wings, we are not impervious to your magic. But the moment adolescence arrives and our wings start to sprout, none but the most powerful would stand a chance.” He spread out his own wings behind him, a good eight feet wingspan if not larger, knocking down a vase on its stand beside him. “And I am no hatchling.”

He turned his gaze back over to me, “well then, Hayfeather, it is a pleasure. I am Razeth. Sombra believes he has captured me.” He smirked.

“You wouldn’t be here now if you hadn’t fallen in my trap would you?” Sombra muttered, taking a sip from his own cup.

Razeth chuckled. “Fair enough. But if you will excuse us, we have strategy to discuss.”

“Of course,” I said and bowed to them both. “Call for me if you need anything,” I told Sombra and trotted up to my rooms. Things were getting serious, it seemed Sombra had a dragon on his side now. If he didn’t betray Razeth like he had so many others, and figure out how to capture his power.

As I took my notes from their hiding place to continue my scribing, there was a knock on my door. “Enter,” I said, pushing them back into place and closing the drawer.

“Oh good, you’re home.” Radiant Hope stepped lightly into my room and closed the door behind her. While I had been gone for a few weeks, she had returned from Canterlot. I guess things hadn’t been going well with the Princesses for her, but she wouldn’t speak of it. But then I could have seen that from long ago. She and Sombra had always been close, whenever I had seen them while they grew, they would always be by each other’s side, even more so once Radiant had gained her cutie mark.

It might not have been obvious to her then, but I had seen it in Sombra’s eyes. He loved her. Even with all the horrors he had committed, it was no surprise to anypony when he asked for her to be his special somepony. She had been reluctant, even angry at him, but eventually gave in and moved in with him. I suspected it was mind control but had never been able to prove it. I’d thought we’d seen the last of her when she got the letter from the princesses, but Sombra’s power was stronger than I gave it credit for.

“Yes, was there something you needed?” I asked, standing and trotting over to her.

“Well, yes,” she bit her lip, ears trembling. “May I see your notes you have been taking for Sombra? About his amulets?”

“What? Why would you want to see those? They are filled with blood and death.” A sweet young mare like her shouldn’t see such things. Even I regret writing them, helping Sombra.

“Please!” She begged, grasping my forehooves in her own. “I… have a plan. One last try to save him from all this. Before the princesses get involved. I know the pony I remember from long ago is still in there, somewhere. If this plan works, perhaps I can heal him. Make the Crystal Empire what it once was again.” She gazed up at me, and I could feel the determination in her eyes. “You don’t want to continue writing of all this death do you?”

She had me there. If there was a way to bring him back, it would be her. It had been healing him in the first place that brought out her cutie mark, but it was still dangerous. “You don’t know what you are asking.”

“Perhaps not, but I must know. Please Hayfeather, please.” She gazed up at me, eyes sparkling with tears.

Looking back now, I wish I had turned her away. It hadn’t helped anyway. The sisters still came, they still defeated him, and in his usual sneaky ways, he took the Crystal Empire down with him. I know not if it will reappear. If it does, I will surely be long gone by that time. Did anypony else escape before the empire disappeared? I know not. Radiant tried to, I know that much.

---

I paused in my reading, weariness escaping me as I held onto each word. There was just a paltry amount of pages left, three, and this Hayfeather still hadn’t explained how to defeat the amulet! By the sound of it even she didn’t know. I ran a hoof down my frilled mane, ugh this was frustrating! What was I supposed to tell the others? That we were all doomed? And what had that plan of Radiant’s been? “That would have been the important thing to write down, Miss Hayfeather!” I growled. “Then maybe we would have some idea of what to do!”

But then, there were still three more pages. These ones looked different from the rest, newer if only slightly. Long time in between writing maybe? Well, either way, I was almost done. The same bird chirped irritably right outside my window. I looked to see the sun had fully risen now, still morning but lunch would be soon. Perhaps I could finish before I had to be back down there. Perhaps, I would have some good news. I picked the book back up and continued.

---

I didn’t think I would write in here again after last time. So much has happened, so much has changed. A changeling hive took me in on my escape from the Crystal Empire, mostly to use as food, I think, but then their Queen saw more potential in me. Once again I have become a scribe, and at least this time it is for a more benevolent ruler. The changelings, of course, have their battles among the other hives, but for the most part, ours stays out of them.

---

I dropped the book again. Hives? No, Hayfeather must be mistaken, there was only our hive. We’d have known if there were other hives, right? Our queen wouldn’t hide such a significant detail from us. Or well, maybe she had forgotten too? What with the spell she and Discord did- I shook my head. If they had been, they were surely long gone now. I took a deep breath, and let it out slowly. The solution first, questions about the past later. Let’s finish this.

Ponyville- Queen Chrysalis

We raced down the alleyways of Ponyville, the cloaked mare staying just far enough ahead of us that we’d spy her turning the corners. Ugh, curse these smaller legs! I didn’t even know where we were anymore. She’d taken so many turns randomly that we could be anywhere in Ponyville. As we turned one last corner, we came to a dead-end alley. “Ha, now I got you,” I grunted, breathing heavily as she came to a stop near the wall blocking off the alley. With a great leap, I closed my eyes, landed on her back, and wrapped my hooves around her, and leaned to the side.

But nothing happened. “Wha?” I opened my eyes to see her just standing still below me.

She let out a sigh. “Ah, Chrysalis. Did you forget your little disguise?” She turned around to look at me, her muzzle poking out beneath the hood a pale purple. “Your little Shiny’s sister? Still such a young filly, I doubt you even weight half of my own weight right now.” She smirked, chuckling. “Did you really think to take me down with a tackle?” With a spark of magic, she teleported out from under me and a few feet away.

I let out an oomph as I fell to the ground. Shaking my head, I opened my eyes and looked down below me. Her black cloak had not teleported with her, the soft fabric lay against my barrel. Looking up, I gasped upon seeing who this mare really was. She looked different from how she had looked in the comics, older certainly, but nowhere near as old as one would think for her age. She was nearly the same shade of purple as Shiny, with pale pink scars running along her barrel and legs, one scar nearly cutting her caduceus cutie mark in half. A thick ragged scar ran over her neck, looking almost as if somepony had tried to slice her throat. Her grayish-blue mane had been cut shorter, almost a very coltish fashion with spiky bangs. The eyes that had looked so optimistic and friendly in picture, were now as cold as the arctic blue color they possessed. “Radiant Hope?” I couldn’t believe it, she was the mysterious mare?

“You were expecting somepony else?” She grinned, looking down at me. The amulet around her neck caught the sun, making the jewels embedded in it shine like fresh blood.

I nodded, trying to form words but unable to. “How?” Chrys yelled. “She was on the road to being a princess. I myself might not have been there but a previous Chrysalis was. What in the hay happened?”

“Why… how?” I stammered.

“You are really determined to get me monologuing aren’t you?” She let out a sigh and trotted over to me, holding out a hoof. “Get up.” I stared at the hoof for a moment but then nodded, taking it. She pulled me to my hooves and then backed up a step. “That’s better. Now, I think your little friends need some attention,” she grinned, lighting up her horn and shooting out a spark of red light.

A cold shiver ran down my spine as laughter filled the alleyway, and from the roofs of the buildings around us came the three Umbrum I had met before. They folded their moth-like wings against their shimmering black coats, glowing white eyes staring at me as they took up places beside Radiant.

“What would you have us do?” One hissed, turning its gaze to Radiant.

“Take care of this little pink filly for you?” Another chuckled, grinning and showing off its mismatched teeth.

“No, Rabia,” Radiant said, grinning slyly at the second one to speak. “I want you to keep her little friends occupied while we talk. But no killing them, at least not until they get closer.”

The middle one, Rabia, nodded. “Of course, we can do that right girls?” The other two nodded and spreading their wings, they launched into the sky and back down the alleyways we had come down.

“You think killing my companions is going to make me want to join you?” I snarled.

“Oh, so is that all you feel for that little purple stallion? He’s just a companion, nothing more?”

“What he is to us doesn’t matter. We need him to get Leptostales back.” Chrys growled, but I just couldn’t agree with her this time. Yes, we did need him, but how we felt mattered, didn’t it? Would it make any difference in Radiant’s plans though?

“Just don’t let your goons kill him, any of them. Haven’t you done enough killing? What good does killing civilians do for you?”

“Who are you to lecture about killing?” She snorted, slamming a hoof to the ground. “Your little minions have done so plenty of times.”

“Not under my orders. What use is a dead pony to us?”

She stared at me wide-eyed for a moment, then lowered her ears slightly as she smirked. “You really don’t know, do you? Either that or you are a better actress than I took you for.”

“Know what?” I asked.

Chrys sighed. “Okay yes, they have killed a few, I can admit that. But a whole village? Wait…. There was that village of those little critters whose castle we stole. Fine, we have killed, but not nearly as many as she!”

“You mean the critter village?” I asked, to which she just laughed.

“No, you don’t know!” She let out a cackle. “Well, you are in for a surprise when you reach Canterlot. Until then, let’s get down to business.”

Turning my head to the side, I just stared at her for a moment. What in the hay was she going on about? Well, it didn’t matter for now. “I’m guessing you still want my changelings and me to join your side?”

“Very perceptive, that’s why I like you. For now.” Her horn lit up with her red magic and grabbed her cloak, tossing it across her back in a heap. “Yes, I still want you to join me. A battle is coming and you need to decide if you want to be on the winning side.”

“And how can you be so sure that is with you?”

“Why?” She looked at me, mouth open in mock shock. She trotted right over to me until we were nearly muzzle to muzzle. “I shall win because my army will be the larger one, and the one more willing to kill.” She turned away, slapping me in the face with her tail. “As we speak, my army grows. I have sent my Umbrum out to negotiate with my future allies.”

“Oh really? And who do you think would join you against the might of Equestria? Against those Elements of Harmony? The might and strength of four alicorns!” I snorted.

“You tell her! Not just anypony would tangle with all of that. She might have those Umbrum, and it would seem Sombra’s Alicorn Amulet, but that doesn’t mean she will win.” I looked over at the amulet, pondering for a moment. How did she come across it anyway? Last I remembered Trixie had had it until Twilight tricked her into giving it up. Hadn’t Princess Celestia taken it and hidden it?

“Oh, I’ll be a match for even those elements soon, I imagine,” she chuckled, stroking the amulet. “I see you seem to recognize my little… trinket here.”

“Yes, Sombra’s Alicorn amulet,” I said. “But how did you come across it? I thought it was in Celestia’s possession.”

Radiant smiled, letting out a little chuckle. “One of his amulets is in her possession.”

“Wait, wait, wait- he made MORE THAN ONE?” Chrys yelled, and our mouth gaped open in shock.

“M-more than one?” I gasped. How??

“Oblivious as ever I see.” She grinned, stepped closer, and closed our mouth with one hoof. “He made more than one, obviously. The one Celestia has was just a prototype.” She sighed. “This one though, has the real power,” she crooned, her eyes glowing red for a moment as she turned back to stroking it.

“Well I think we now know what made her go crazy,” Chrys sighed and I nodded. Partly at least. If the ‘prototype’ had turned Trixie into such an evil version of herself –sure she was proud and boastful without it, but not evil- then I could just imagine what it would do to such a sweet, innocent young mare like Radiant.

“But why do you have it?” I questioned, stepping forward. “You should have known what it would do to you, right?”

“And what is that supposed to mean?” she growled, narrowing her eyes at me. “I am fine! This is the only way to get what I really want. Nothing will stop me. Not the two sisters, not the elements of harmony, not even the crystal heart!” She yelled. Her eyes, horn, and amulet glowed red, as she breathed heavily.

“Tread carefully,” Chrys said, “we don’t know what kind of power gained with that amulet.” Our heart was beating quickly against our chest, staring at the angry unicorn.

“Well- just that you- have changed?” I gave her a weak grin, to which she returned closing her eyes. I breathed a sigh of relief as the red glow faded.

“Of course I have Chrysalis. How many years has it been since we last met? Too many to count really. Just a few years after those princesses stole away my whole life and the stallion I cared for!”

What was she talking about? I didn’t remember any visit around then. At least nothing in the comics said anything, right? “Hmm that would have been before my time, maybe even before the time of the Chrysalis before me.” Chrys hummed in thought. “So it would be no wonder she has changed from what we recall. Perhaps her visit was not as significant to the previous Chrysalis as she thought, or I might just not remember her telling me of it. Five hundred years is a long time to remember everything after all.”

She was right about that. Wait, had Radiant said ‘care for’? “You mean you and Sombra, were lovers?”

“Of course we were,” she snorted, “everypony knows that!”

“Not in this day and age,” I said softly. “They think you were just friends if even that in the end.”

“Whatever,” she grunted, lifting her ears as the sounds of screams and fighting floated toward us on the wind. “Seems Rabia has found your little friends,” she grinned. “Now, I suppose I could spare them. If you will but join me? I can give you so much more than those silly princesses ever could. You want your little lingfriend back? I can get him out of those dungeons with a flick of my hoof! You want to rule Equestria? Battle with me and my other allies and we can rule it together.” She leaned in closer to me, eyes glowing softly.

“But if you will not join me, I can make that decision a costly one. I won’t tell you what I’ll do, but know this- you’ll never recover from it. Physically maybe, but mentally? Never.” She grinned, leaning in closer.

I bit my lip, backing away from her. What should I do? “Don’t give in!” Chrys said, letting out a growl. “We know she has great power, what with that…. thing. But I don’t believe her threats.” My ears twitched slightly, I was not sure if I believed them either, but could we really take that chance?

“Can we get an extension on that ‘we’ll think about it'?” I said softly, to which she just narrowed her eyes and frowned at me.

“Oh, so you can get to the princesses and spill all you know?” She paused, a smile slowly forming on her face as she chuckled. “You know, fine. Three more days, that is all I am giving you. I want to see the look on the face of the princesses when you tell them I’M the one doing all this!” She cackled.

“So you ARE the one who turned Ponyville into this… this,” I said, gesturing a hoof around us.

“Oh no, that wasn’t me. Not Discord either.” She chuckled.

“Then who?”

“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you,” she huffed, closing her eyes and looking away.

I rolled my eyes. Had this happened in the show? If so that episode I could not recall. “Just tell me,” I grunted.

“Rarity and Spike,” she said softly.

“Twilight Sparkles friend and little dragon?” Chrys said, and I could swear she would have grinned. “So not one, but two of her little friends have gone bad? Oh, this is delicious!”

“So the element of generosity has gone bad?”

Radiant let out a cackle but shook her head. “She is kind of under a spell, not my doing! Well not entirely, I did suggest to her little dragon friend that he might be able to help the poor crying pony with a book from the two sisters' old castle. But he is the one who brought home the spell that caused all this… gaudiness. Really, I thought Rarity had better taste.”

“Cadence and the others are still blaming me for what you did though.”

“And that is all part of the plan, dear Chrysalis!” She reared and clapped her forehooves together. “You see, if everypony blames you, they’ll never believe your story about me. Those pegasi that flew to tell the princesses about Hoofville? Under my control.” She turned around, lighting up her horn, and secured her cloak around her once more, covering her face. “You are the only one who has seen who I really am.”

“Not for long, we’ll figure out a way to expose her!” Chrys growled. “We don’t play by the rules of some pony! If we are to take over Equestria, we’ll do it by our own hooves.”

Radiant lifted her head again, shooting out another spark of red. Silence fell around us, and about a minute later the three Umbrum returned. Two were supporting the other, who looked like one of its moth-like wings was nearly burned off. The others looked a little banged up, but not much worse.

“What happened Rabia?” Radiant asked, looking to the one on the right of the injured Umbrum.

“They were… stronger than they looked master Radiant. But don’t worry, they won’t be interrupting you.” Rabia chuckled. “Nopony hurts my daughter and gets away with it.”

“Oooooh if they killed them, they will pay!” Chrys growled. I scrunched up my nose, baring my fangs- well okay teeth in this form- and couldn’t help but agree.

“Excellent my dears,” Radiant said and patted them each on the head. “Come, let’s get out of here.” Closing her eyes, Radiant’s horn glowed red again. She paused, opening one eye to look at me. "Three days Chrysalis, that is it." A moment later all four disappeared with the faint pop of a teleportation spell.

“We better go check on them,” Chrys said and I nodded.

“I thought you didn’t care about them?”

“I don’t,” Chrys snorted, “but you do, and I don’t want to live in our mind if you are pouting about your friends getting hurt or killed.”

“Aw, you do care,” I said grinning. “But yes, no time to waste. I just hope we can find them in all this… maze.”

Revelations

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Ponyville- Shiny Whistle

“It’s her!” Chryssy yelled and was off galloping away before any of us could do more than gasp. I caught sight of a black cloak disappearing behind a nearby building, Chryssy following after.

“Who’s she running after?” Fire asked, ears perked.

“I’m guessing that is the mysterious mare she mentioned,” I said softly. “Come on, we should stick together, we need to catch up with her.” If this mare really had set Hoofville to flame, and those- Umbrum? - were under her control, who knew what she might do to Chryssy!

“We’ll never catch up to them, not with Fire’s injury,” Lucky said looking over to Fire. Fire Stick’s cheeks turned rosy as he blushed.

“I’m sorry you guys,” he said and started forward. “We might not be able to catch up very quickly, but let’s still try to help, okay Lucky?” He turned toward the blue stallion who groaned and shook his head.

“Fine, you two win. Let’s do what we can,” Lucky sighed and followed.

“That’s the spirit!” I said and looked back to the foals still gathered near the table, watching the others and me. “We’ll be back as soon as we can, if not us then surely Cadence or Pinkie. Stay here!” With that, I trotted to catch up with the others.

Fire was giving it his best effort to move quickly, but by the time we reached the first turn into the back alleys, the echo of Chryssy and the other mare’s hooves were long gone. How were we supposed to find them now? I remembered these alleys well, in that I had gotten lost in them for hours years ago when my family had visited Ponyville. The town might be small, but that didn’t make it any easier to not get lost in, especially for a young colt. Sure I was older now, but I doubted anything would have changed much.

I turned back to see how Lucky and Fire were doing and let out a grunt when I ran into something, somepony that is. We collapsed to the ground, legs tangling as we both tried to get up. A small grin appeared on my face at the thought Chryssy wasn’t the only one having this sort of problem.

“Oh, here!” The other pony huffed and wrapped me in her magic, a neon green, picking me up and setting me to the side. She then stood and turned to glare at me. Her mane and tail were a bright pink and her body an ivory color. Her icy blue eyes stared at me as she released me from her magic hold. “Do you always run around not looking where you are going?” she said, poking me in the chest with her hoof.

I shook my head. “No, sorry, my sister ran after a madmare. We were just trying to catch up.”

“A madmare?” she asked and turned to look down the alley. “Figures. Probably the one that started this whole mess,” she pointed a hoof out around her, squinting against the glare of the golden pavement.

“Maybe, we’re not sure yet.” I turned as Fire and Lucky caught up to me, Fire breathing heavily and holding his left rear leg up.

“Who’s your friend Shiny?” Lucky asked, pulling Fire close to him. Fire placed one of his forehooves around Lucky’s back and leaned into him for support.

“Er well… I don’t know,” I said, smiling a little sheepishly. “We sort of… ran into each other.”

“You mean you ran into me,” she snorted, then turned to look at the others. “I’m Twinkleshine. What happened to your friend?”

“Timberwolf attack,” Fire said softly.

“I’m sorry,” Twinkleshine winced, then turned back to me. “Your sister is going to be hard to find unless you are a local. We often find ponies wandering these alleys who are here visiting. They are quite the maze.”

“Will you help us then?” I asked. “I don’t want her to get hurt.”

She let out a sigh and nodded. “Yeah, I could do that. For your friend’s sake though, let’s take it slow.” She looked over at Fire, who gave her a grateful-looking smile. “Follow me!” She turned and walked up the alley. Not much farther along, the gold paving subsided and was replaced with regular dirt and stone.

We walked in silence, my ears twitching as I listened for any sound of Chryssy up ahead. How far ahead of us had she gotten? Twinkleshine led the way in front of us, pausing at each corner and lifting her muzzle into the air. “What are you doing?” I asked as we reached a corner that led down two other paths.

“Sniffing for them, let’s just say I have a good sense of smell?” she grinned and turned down the right path. “They came this way.”

“How do you know?” Lucky asked squinting his eyes at her.

“Nopony else has been down here recently, and the strongest scents lead this way,” she said softly, shrugged, and continued on.

A few turns later I heard laughter above us. Looking up my eyes grew wide, seeing three of those Umbrum slowly flying down toward us, pale moth-like wings folded to their sides as they landed.

“What in the hay are those?” Twinkleshine yelped, jumping away from them.

“You mean you didn’t smell them?” Lucky huffed, stepping in front of Fire and lighting up his horn. “What are you three doing here?” he growled.

“Well, they were in the air, not the ground,” Twinkleshine snorted back at him, turning to face them.

I lit up my horn as well, ears going down as the middle one smiled at us. If these things were here, then that mare Chryssy was chasing must have been the same madmare as before.

“Why we just want to have a little fun,” the middle one crooned, stepping out from her fellows and walking up to me. “I see you all managed to escape from Hoofville, mostly intact,” she chuckled, glancing at Fire.

“With no thanks to you,” I snorted. She gasped, opening her moon-white eyes in mock shock.

“Yes, we didn’t do our jobs well,” she smirked. “Nopony was supposed to escape alive, or well, except for a few pegasi. We had to have somepony to come to tell the Princesses what happened.”

“So you are the ones in charge of the Hoofville fire?” Twinkleshine asked. “Do you know how many injured pegasi we have in our hospital thanks to you?”

“Why did they come here?” Fire asked.

“One of the best hospitals this side of Equestria, other than Canterlot of course,” Twinkleshine said to him before turning back to the Umbrum.

“Yes, little filly,” the Umbrum said, chuckling. “Don’t worry, those others will be taken care of in time. For now though,” she said, spread her wings, and bared her mismatched teeth. “We shall take care of the four of you. You really should take better care of those you choose to fraternize with pony.” She hissed at Twinkleshine. She nodded her head to the two behind her, and they trotted around to circle us.

“So you want to fight?” Lucky growled and shot a bolt of magic at the one in front of us, grazing off her shoulder. “Then let’s fight!” He took up a protective stance in front of Fire, ears lowered and watching the two as they circled.

I moved closer to Twinkleshine, standing between her and the circling Umbrum. “Don’t worry,” I said shooting off a bolt of magic of my own, which hit the smaller of the two other Umbrum, scorching its ear as it tried to sneak up behind us. “We’ve fought these fiends before, I’ll protect you.”

“Protect me?” Twinkleshine snorted. “Do you think me a damsel in distress? Just tell me their weak points and I’ll protect myself.” She shot a bolt of green magic at their leader, which hit her shoulder and made her grimace in pain for a split second.

“Okay,” I said shooting more bolts as any of them came near. “First, physical attacks do not harm them, only magical ones. So don’t try to buck any of them.”

“Point taken, I’ll leave the bucking to Applejack,” she said and came to stand next to me.

“Is that all you got?” Lucky yelled, driving off one of the other Umbrum with a sharp blast to the chest. It growled at him, turning to look at their leader.

“Can I just kill him already Rabia?”

Their leader, Rabia I guess? Looked around for a moment, brow furrowed in concentration, but then turned around and nodded. “Go ahead Kriya.”

Lucky dodged as Kriya pounced at him, shooting a spark of magic at her belly. “You will pay for that,” she hissed, landing awkwardly to the side.

“Watch out!” Twinkleshine yelled just before I felt a hoof punch against my cheek, slicing it open. I gritted my teeth in pain, turning back to Rabia. The Umbrum grinned maliciously at me.

“Oh, did I catch you unawares? Good!” She charged at me again, leaping up and spreading her forehooves wide across my barrel, squeezing tightly before I could throw up a shield. I yelped in pain as her strong hooves crushed the air from my lungs.

Rabia let out a snarl of surprise as another bolt of magic shot at us, from whom I have no idea but it loosened her grip enough I was able to wiggle free to face her again. I breathed heavily, wincing. I don’t think she had broken anything, bruised most definitely though.

“You try my patience ponies!” Rabia growled. “Why don’t you just give up and die? Your deaths will be of good use to my master.”

“As if we would do anything of the sort!” Twinkleshine huffed, stopping beside me. She had a long cut along her flank- thankfully it looked shallow- and was favoring her left rear leg.

“Where is the one you were fight-” I started to ask when I heard a yelp to our side and a loud thump. I turned to look to see Lucky collapsed against the rear wall, eyes closed.

Fire Stick stepped forward, glaring at the two Umbrum that stood cackling in front of him, giving each other a hoof bump. “How DARE you harm my coltfriend!” he yelled, breathing heavily, steam even coming from his nostrils. The alley we were in was quickly heating up, and I could feel sweat dripping down my forehead. The two Umbrum took a step back from Fire as he advanced on them.

Fire Stick’s horn glowed brighter and brighter, until with a crackling sound like a bolt of lightning, flames erupted from it and swirled around between his ears. The air filled with the putrid stench of smoke as with a yell he let the flames go and they whizzed toward the two Umbrum, hitting the smaller Umbrum on its right wing. The flames quickly took to the dry, moth-like wing, crackling along it as the Umbrum just watched in horror, until the pain must have hit it and it screamed.

Kriva jumped away from its smaller companion, while Rabia turned away from Twinkleshine and me and ran toward it. “Ira! What has he done to you?” She moaned, pushing the smaller one down to the ground and kicking dirt onto the flames. She sighed as the last of the flames burned out and turned back to look at Fire Stick, whose horn still glowed, ready to throw more bolts of flame. “You! Nopony hurts my daughter and gets away with it!” She stepped toward him, white eyes glowing before pausing and looking up.

Following her gaze, I saw a red spark of magic explode in the sky above us. Rabia snorted, glaring at Fire. “It seems you shall be spared for now pony,” she spat. “But mark my words, next time we meet, it will be you consumed in flames!” She turned back to look at Kriva.

“Come, help me get Ira back to our master.”

“Yes Rabia,” Kriva said, and the two of them gathered to either side of Ira, putting one of her hooves along each of their necks, and together the three of them flew off.

I took a deep breath and let it out, wincing at the pain in my ribs, and plopped down on the ground. “I really hate those things!” I grumbled. At least none of us had been seriously hurt, or- wait, Lucky! Standing back up quickly, I turned to see Fire had trotted over to Lucky, nuzzling his cheek. Gone were the flames from his horn, his yellow mane scorched near it but otherwise he seemed unharmed, just covered in soot.

“Is he..?” Twinkleshine started but paused as Lucky coughed, groaned, and opened his eyes. “Oh thank Celestia.” Twinkleshine sighed and joined Fire by Lucky’s side, I followed close behind her.

“How are you doing Lucky?” I asked as he turned to look at us.

“Been better,” he muttered, looking over at Fire. “You’ve started bleeding again.”

“That doesn’t matter, as long as you are safe,” Fire sighed, wrapping a hoof around Lucky.

“Remind me never to get on your bad side,” I chuckled turning to Fire. “Why didn’t you use that fire magic in Hoofville?”

“Well the town was already burning, I didn’t want to help it along. That and…” he blushed, rubbing a hoof along his muzzle. “Well, I can’t really control when I use it. I have to be very angry or all that comes out is little sparks.”

“We should all get to the hospital,” Twinkleshine said, turning to go back the way we had come. “Do you need help walking Fire and Lucky?”

“We can’t go yet,” I protested. “We need to find my sister!”

“I don’t think any of us can walk that far,” she said and looked to Fire’s wounds. “And your friend here is bleeding badly. That wound needs to be taken care of.”

I pinned my ears down, stepping in place as I looked farther down the alleys. “But- but what if she is scared or hurt, or worse lying dying in a dirty alley somewhere?”

Twinkleshine sighed, looking to Fire and Lucky. “Do you think you two could make it back the way we came yourselves?”

“Maybe,” Fire said, biting his lip nervously. “Lucky?”

Lucky took in a deep breath and struggled to stand, leaning against Fire as he got his hooves back under him. Letting go a moment later, he tried to put his weight on all his hooves only to gasp as his right foreleg gave out and he almost fell face first back to the ground, if it had not been for Fire wrapping his magic around him. “Nope,” he hissed, “think my leg is broken. Curse those things to Tartarus!”

“Then I’m afraid we have no choice,” Twinkleshine said, frowning at me.

“Just-just give me a minute will you please?” I said, looking around, trying to think of something I could do to keep us moving. There was nothing in the alley though, not even any old boxes or bags of garbage. I put a hoof to my head, trying to think, and turned to Twinkleshine. “You know any spells to heal Fire’s wound?”

“Possibly, but it looks bad enough a professional should be the one to look at it. I wouldn’t want to damage it further.”

“Can you at least staunch it long enough to buy us some more time?”

“I don’t think that will be necessary.” My ears perked up at the sound of that voice. I turned to see Chryssy slowly walking toward us, still in Dew’s form.

“Chry-Dew!” I yelled, running over to her and wrapping my hooves around her neck. “You’re safe!”

“Of course,” she said bluntly. Something was wrong. Her voice sounded… off. What had happened? Did she confront that madmare? “It seems you are not though,” she said, bringing a hoof up to my slashed cheek. “I’m just glad you are all still alive.”

“Even me?” Lucky huffed, leaning against Fire.

Chryssy grinned slightly and nodded. “Yes, even you.” Her nostrils sniffed the air, but quickly scrunched up, probably as she smelt the strong scent of smoke still in the air. She looked to Twinkleshine. “Who is your new friend?”

“This is Twinkleshine,” I said, pointing a hoof her way. “She helped us battle those Umbrum. Probably even saved my life a few times.”

“Well Twinkleshine, I guess that means you have my thanks. I don’t know what I would do without my big brother.” She wrapped a hoof around me and enfolded me in a tight hug.

“Careful,” I yelped, to which she promptly let go. “One of them tried to squeeze the life out of me.”

Twinkleshine grinned and nodded to Chryssy. “You are welcome…?”

“Dew Song,” Chryssy said.

“Right, you are welcome Dew Song. Now that we have found you, we should really get to the hospital.”

“Of course, lead the way,” I said, trotting over to help Lucky and Fire.

Ponyville Hospital- Queen Chrysalis

“They should both be fine, though at least a few days of bed rest is a must.” Helping Heart, a young cyan blue pegasus mare, with chocolate mane and tail, who was helping out at the hospital, said. “As for you,” she said and pointed a hoof at Shiny, “you came very close to breaking some ribs. Bed rest for you would be a good idea as well.”

“I can’t,” he said and sighed. “My sister and I have important business in Canterlot that cannot wait.”

“Canterlot ponies are always in such a rush,” Heart sighed, shaking her head. “But I guess I should be used to that. Well, at least take it easy, and don’t forget to put this salve on your cheek three times a day when you change the bandage. It will keep it from scarring.” She handed him a little bottle, which he placed in his saddlebag.

“If you want to visit your other friend, Twinkleshine was her name right?” Heart asked, and Shiny nodded. “Well, she is in the next room over. Though with her remarkable healing capabilities, she won’t be here for that long, lucky mare.”

“Thanks, we shall pop in before we leave,” Shiny grinned at her.

“As for you Miss Song,” Heart continued, “are you sure you are okay?” I turned to look at her and nodded my head.

“Yes, I’m fine. Just worried about my brother and… friends.” Of course, I couldn’t tell her my real worries. Three days was not a long time. After how Hope’s minions had hurt the others I wasn’t too keen on wanting to join up with her, but what would she do if I didn’t? I felt we had only seen a marginal amount of her power so far. Did we really want to see what she could really do?

“Good,” Heart said and headed toward the door. “At least try to relax for a few hours, please? The Princesses are already hard at work at repairing all that black magic. If you promise to take it easy, I’ll be sure to tell you when the train is ready to leave.”

“Of course,” Shiny said, and sat down in a chair between the two beds Lucky and Fire were in.

“Thank you,” she said and looked at me.

“Yes, we’ll relax,” I sighed and she smiled back at me.

“Good,” she started toward the door again, but then paused. “Oh, and when you get to Canterlot, be wary of changelings. I heard about that mess their Queen got into in Hoofville. As if she hadn’t already killed enough ponies two years ago.”

“Wait what?” Chrys yelped. “Nonono, nopony died at the wedding! Only my changelings!”

“You sure about that?” I asked slowly, turning to look at the others. Even through their weakened states, both Lucky and Fire gazed over at me with wide eyes. Shiny just looked ahead, a shocked look on his face. His mouth pulled into an ‘O’, pupils mere pinpricks, and breathing labored.

“Oh yes, I am sure. I was even there during the wedding, though not actually at the wedding, just at a coffee house nearby. I don’t think any of the royals or guests themselves were killed, but many guards and civilians were drained of their love. You’d have to ask Princess Celestia for a… headcount, but I treated at least twenty as they lay dying. Only was able to save one.”

“No, NO! That is impossible! I gave a direct order, a DIRECT order, not to kill anypony. No changeling can break through a direct order from their queen. She must be lying, or exaggerating or-or something!”

“Well er tha-thank you for letting us know.” I stuttered out.

“Of course, I’m surprised not more ponies know of it. But then the princesses were probably just trying to protect the general public.” She let out a sigh and turned back to the door. “I’ll be back when the train is ready for you!” She pulled open the door with one wing and left, the door staying partially ajar.

“I thought you said nopony died!” Lucky yelled, sitting up in his bed and pointing his right forehoof at me, only to gasp in pain. It might be wrapped and in a cast, but I wasn’t surprised it still hurt. “According to her, at least twenty died because of you.”

“Well, she must be lying,” I snorted. “Like I said before. I gave them all a direct order. What use is a dead pony to us?” I hissed.

“Has any of them ever disobeyed a direct order before?” Fire asked, ears down against his head, “Perhaps they have figured out a way to break through your power?”

“Not that I am aware of,” Chrys said. “Sure we haven’t been as strong of a force since we lost most of the hive mind, but that was almost a century ago. NO! It is not possible.”

“No, that isn’t it,” I sighed and turned to look at Shiny. He was still frozen in his chair. “Shiny, are you okay?” I asked, walking up to him. “You were there, you know she must be lying.”

Shiny shook his head and blinked, looking up at me. He held neither a smile nor a frown on his face, more of just a confused look. “Right, you didn’t kill anypony,” he said softly, then smiled softly up at me. “What you did do was wrong, but you didn’t kill anypony.”

“Well, I guess we shall see then won’t we?” Lucky huffed. “Once Fire and I are healed enough to continue we can ask Princess Celestia ourselves.”

“No!” I yelled, turning to look at him. “I-I can’t afford to wait that long. I’m afraid you and Fire will have to sit out this last leg of the adventure.”

“Oh? And why can’t you wait?”

“You know why Lucky,” Shiny said, stepping over by me. “We need to rescue her friend. He’s survived this long, but he probably won’t survive much longer. A dungeon filled with no love is not a good place for a-” he stopped, then whispered the rest “-a changeling.”

I nodded, even if Shiny was only partially right now. At least we had Cadence on our side.

“So, Fire,” Shiny grinned, and I watched as Fire’s cheeks turned red. “Coltfriends huh? Didn’t see that coming.”

“Good, he’s changing the subject,” Chrys sighed, “talking about who we really are is not safe in a public setting.” She paused, and then both she and I gasped. “Wait, coltfriends? Ha! So I was right! They are more than just friends,” she chuckled. Fire blushed even harder upon hearing our gasp.

“Well… yeah,” Fire said, turning to look at Lucky.

“Fire still hasn’t come out to his parents, so we try to keep it quiet,” Lucky smiled softly over at Fire. “But once we both heal up a bit, we really should tell them. Until then,” he closed his eyes, lit up his horn, and with a little pop teleported over to Fire’s bed. “Do we really need different beds?” he asked and nuzzled Fire’s mane.

“Well as long as you two are happy,” Shiny shrugged, glancing over at me and then back to the two stallions.

“No,” Chrys said and I frowned slightly. “I’ve said it before, we can’t love. No matter how much Shiny seems to care for us. He’ll get over it eventually, you’ll see.”

“I think I’m going to go visit Twinkleshine,” I said, lowering my ears and walking toward the door.

Shiny nodded. “I’ll be over there soon.”

I pushed the door open enough I could step outside, turning to the right only to run right into Princess Cadence. She put a hoof over my mouth before I could say anything, lit up her horn, and before I knew it we appeared in some dark room. I held a hoof to my stomach, feeling a little queasy. So that was teleportation? Ugh, don’t think I wanted to do that again anytime soon.

“Chrysalis,” Cadence hissed. My ears drooped as I turned to look at her. Of course, she had overheard our conversation. A small overhead light came on, and I saw she had teleported us into what looked like an empty closet. What kind of hospital had an empty closet? “What do you think you are doing here?” Cadence growled, and I turned my attention back to her.

“I’m just doing what we already told you, trying to rescue a friend,” I huffed, biting my lip as her glare met me.

“Lies!” Cadence snorted, leaning down until she was nearly muzzle to muzzle with me, staring into my eyes. “You’re trying to take over from Auntie Celestia again aren’t you? Only this time killing as you go along. Do you know how many ponies died in that Hoofville fire? Over three hundred!”

“That wasn’t me!” I protested. “What use is a dead pony to us hmm? We can’t take their love that way.”

“Then who was it? Explain yourself.”

“It was- wait, you're letting me explain?” I lifted a hoof, surprised. Usually, these ponies seemed all about the takedown and ask questions later.

“Would you rather I just take you straight to the Canterlot dungeons?” she snorted.

“No, no, let’s not get too hasty,” I grinned nervously.

“Well, I guess we have no choice,” Chrys said. “Maybe if she knows the truth, she might still help us? Oh who am I kidding,” Chrys snorted. “She’ll likely not believe us. Though, maybe if we get that one pony in here with her…. Applecrack or something? If I recall correctly she is the element of honesty.”

“And where is the real Dew Song?” Cadence asked.

“Well I guess we’ll start with that, as it is an easy one,” I said. “I don’t know. I’ve never met the real Dew Song. I only know her through what Shiny has told me.”

“So Shiny knows who you really are?” I nodded. “And he didn’t turn you in?”

I rubbed a hoof against the back of my head, “well now, that is a long story. Basically, he kind of developed a crush on me back when he first saw me at the wedding, and it seems it has only grown since then.”

Cadence’s ears shot up in surprise, then back down again as she glared at me. “You didn’t put him under the same spell you put my Shining did you?”

“What? NO! I don’t really know why he seems to feel the way he does.”

Cadence pursed her lips for a moment, lost in thought. “And do you love him?” she asked, ears twitching. “Or is this changeling in the dungeons your true lover?”

“Ironhoof-er Leptostales is an old lover, we even had a little filly together. As for Shiny? I-” I bit my lip and closed my eyes, listening to the beating of my heart for a moment. Chrys insisted we couldn’t love, so then what was Shiny to me? “I-I’m not sure just yet. If anything we are at least friends.”

Cadence nodded, rubbing her chin with one hoof as she just stared at me. She took a deep breath, putting one hoof to her chest and then holding it out in front of her, bringing it back in and repeating a few times before she set the hoof back down. “I believe you.”

”Wait, what? Just like that?” Chrys yelped in shock.

“You-you do?” I stuttered, blinking slowly at her.

“Yes,” she said, leaving it at that. “So if it wasn’t you, then who was it?”

“You probably haven’t heard of her, you’re not old enough.”

“Try me,” she said and put a hoof to my shoulder.

“Radiant Hope.”

Cadence sighed and looked down at the ground. “I know of Radiant Hope. Twilight and I found Sombra’s journal a while ago. He was quite fond of her, in love with her even.”

Oh, right. I had forgotten about that comic issue. Now I was even forgetting things I had read about this world? What next?
“Well, she is somehow still alive, and bent on revenge.”

“It must be a different pony by the same name,” Cadence said, “she was a good pony, she wouldn’t harm others.”

“Maybe not of her own free will,” I muttered. “She has Sombra’s Alicorn amulet.”

Cadence’s ears shot upward in shock. “What? That’s impossible! Auntie Celestia entrusted its protection to Shining and me. Only an Alicorn could retrieve it from its hiding place.”

“Well then one of the four of them must be working with Hope then.” Chrys snorted. “My bet is on Luna. She did give over to her darker side for a time after all.”

“I don’t know how she could have retrieved it then, but she does have it.”

“Auntie must know of this, that amulet is dangerous in normal unicorn hooves. In the hooves of a unicorn as powerful as Hope was said to be? It could spell disaster for us all. If she even is who she proclaims.”

“Well, the princesses are not the only ones who have managed to survive a long time. Perhaps she found a way as well? You sure she wasn’t one of the ponies brought back when the empire returned?”

Cadence shook her head. “No, she wouldn’t have been. Sombra even stated in his journal that one of the reasons he made the empire disappear was to punish Hope for going to Auntie Celestia and Luna for help.”

“Then I have no idea,” I sighed, rubbing my forehead.

She removed her hoof from my shoulder. “I’m sure there is more to your story?”

“Of course, but I’d rather not have to repeat it twice. Time is of the essence.”

“You’re right,” Cadence nodded. “I’ll send Shining back to the Crystal Empire to check on the amulet. I don’t want him anywhere near you.”

“Understandable.”

“Ah but I’ll miss seeing that hot flank,” Chrys chuckled. “I really should tell you about the fun we had when I was disguised as Cadence, at least, in more detail than I already have.” I blushed, listening to her cackle.

Cadence glared at me for a moment. “Thinking of what you did to him?”

“What? Oh no uh… well maybe?” I smiled sheepishly.

“Well stop. He’s mine, understand?” She flared her wings out, growling at me. “Our little… truce if you want to call it that, will only last as long as you behave. So no trying to bewitch anypony, or feed off them, or steal them for your own.”

“Right, right,” I said and held up my hooves, taking a step back. “I’ll behave, I promise.”

“Oh really, will we?” Chrys snorted, then let out a sigh. “Guess we have no choice if we don’t want to join Leptostales locked in the dungeons.”

“Are you going to tell Shining who we really are?”

Cadence brought her wings back to her sides and shook her head. “Not if you behave. He’ll know eventually, but if I tell him now he’ll just try to kill you.”

“Yeah and I’d rather continue living thank you very much.” I huffed.

Cadence laughed, surprising me. Had she forgiven me that easily? “Just don’t make me regret deciding to trust you. It seems you have changed since last we met, maybe for the better.”

Chrys snorted. “Seems like she likes the you us, better than the me us. Let that work to our advantage.”

“Yes, I have,” I said carefully. “Two years might be a blink of an eye to those of us who live long lives, but a lot can happen in two years.”

“Shall we return to the others then?” Cadence asked.

I nodded. “Yes, Shiny is probably wondering where I ran off to.” Cadence opened the closet door and led the way out into the hallway.

“See, she didn’t even mention all the deaths that supposedly went on at her wedding,” Chrys said. “That Helping Heart must have been lying. Why she would lie to us I have no idea, but I doubt Cadence would have trusted us if it were the truth.”

I nodded, Chrys was right. She had to be right. I just hoped Princess Celestia would see things her way.

Author's Notes:

And yay another new chapter! Last one before the anniversary of when this story was first published, November 11th 2015. We got to over 80k words! Wow is that a lot of pony words. (Not counting the others I have also written.)
Hopefully we can also get up to 1000 views in the next day or so. (Would LOVE to reach 1000 views on or before the day of LLtQ's anniversary. So tell all your friends, family, random people on the street to come read so we can get those last 25ish views!
We have two guest stars in this chapter, Twinkleshine *cough* Meep, but Shiny and the gang don't know that yet! *Cough* owned by Meep the Changeling and Helping Heart, owned by muckyhusky. Both of these awesome users are my pre-readers and I wanted to include some of their OC's in my story(with their permission of course.)
Lastly, a LOT is going on in this chapter(of course) and at least this one isn't a cliffhanger. So I want to hear what you all have to say about the happenings going on here. What did you think of the new developments? Let me know in the comments, and as always, comment/critique so I can continue to improve and make this story the best it can be!
Little edits done 7/7/21

Chaos Tells a Story

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Ponyville Hospital- ‘Twinkleshine’s' room- Shiny Whistle

I watched as Chryssy trotted out into the hallway, the door closing behind her. Maybe I should just join her in Twinkleshine’s room now, let Fire and Lucky have their privacy? Looking back to the two of them, now that the word was out they seemed comfortable enough to be going at it. Both held the other in one hoof, eyes closed as they kissed. Lucky tucked himself against Fire’s uninjured side, running his kisses down Fire’s neck. Ooookay that is my sign to get out of here, I gulped, cheeks burning red as I trotted toward the door. Hearing a moan behind me as I opened the door, I hurried out, closing the door behind me.

The hallway was mostly empty. A bluish-grey pegasus mare with bubbles for her cutie mark walked by, bandages covering most of her grey-green mane and forehead. Turning to the right, I knocked on the door to Twinkleshine’s room only to hear a ‘meep’ like sound come from somepony inside. “It’s okay it is just me,” I called out, opening the door. “Oh.” I paused just inside the door, blinking at what I saw.

Discord was standing next to the bed, his long tail wrapped around one of the bed's legs, sipping on some drink in a half a pineapple grasped in his lion’s paw as he smirked at Twinkleshine. She was as far from him as she could get, having somehow jumped up to the ceiling, her hooves clasped tightly around a ceiling fan’s base. “Shiny!” she yelped, looking down as I walked in. “Please tell this… this… ugh… tell him to leave my room!”

“Aw, but Twinkleshine, I just wanted to make sure you were okay.” Discord grinned, taking another sip from his drink. “You sure you don’t want some?” He asked, holding the drink out. “I know you just delight in a fresh dose of-”

“Shut up!” she yelled, which just made him chuckle more.

“What are you really up to Discord?” I asked, stepping forward. “Can’t you see she’s terrified?”

“I-I am not!” Twinkleshine huffed, grabbing all the tighter to the fan.

“What, can’t I check on my favorite ponies? Besides Fluttershy of course,” he chuckled. “I hear you finally had your first little fight Shiny,” he grinned, tossing the drink from his paw where it popped away with a snap of his fingers. “And neither of you even thought of inviting me!”

“Actually it is the second, I fought those fiends in Hoofville too,” I said.

“Well then, it is obvious I must accompany you through the rest of your journey then.” Discord grinned, I jumped as he snapped his fingers and appeared around my neck as a scarf. “Maybe as a scarf to keep you warm hmm? No, it’s summer you don’t need a scarf.” He snapped his fingers again and I felt a weight on my head. Looking up I saw he had appeared as a hat, a fancy fedora with an antler on one side and a horn on the other, his little goatee hanging over in front of my nose. “Or perhaps a hat? No, too fancy for the road.” He snapped his fingers once more, and I jumped as I felt something moving around in my saddlebag. It poked its head out, a fluffy kitten with a dark brown body and grey head, two huge fluffy eyebrows outlining big yellow eyes with a red pupil. “How about as a pet? I can be travel size for your convenience! Or,” his kitten self gave a big fangy grin and snapped the fingers of one paw.

He disappeared to reappear between Twinkleshine and me, in the shape of a changeling drone, only the color of chocolate milk with a white frill and backplate instead of black and blue. “How about I go as a changeling?” He crowed and clapped his hooves together.

“NO!” Twinkleshine and I said together. Discord just frowned and changed back to his normal self.

“Well! It would seem someponies have no sense of humor.” He huffed, folding his front paw and claw together.

I looked up at her for a moment. Why was she so against his disguise? Did changelings scare her even more than Discord seemed to? Well then, if she came with us she was in for quite the surprise!

“If he goes, then I’m not!” Twinkleshine snorted, glaring at Discord.

“Oh, but where would the fun in that be? You must join us!” Discord chuckled. “After all, don’t they deserve to know-“

“Shut up about that!” Twinkleshine snapped, grasping tighter to the fan base.

The door creaked open behind us. I looked away from Discord and Twinkleshine to see Chryssy and Cadence walk into the room. They looked up at Twinkleshine clinging to the fan base, and both narrowed their eyes. “Are you teasing that poor mare Discord?” Cadence scolded. “You let her down from there at once!”

“I’m not the one who put her up there,” he chuckled.

“Well it sure wasn’t my brother,” Chryssy said. She tried to sound firm, but I swear I saw a flicker of a smile cross her face.

“Not him at all my dear,” Discord crooned, leaving Twinkleshine to come over to Chryssy. “Hmmm, I like what you have done with your mane and coat. Thought you hated pink though?”

“Discord,” she growled softly, glaring at him. “Why are you here?”

“Why, as I just told little Shiny here,” he said, ruffling my mane, “I want to join you for the rest of your journey. Been so long since I last visited with KayKay,” he sighed, rubbing his paw down his goatee. “And I MUST meet this little Ironhoof of yours!” He picked Chryssy up and hugged her to him. “When did you get so grown up?”

“Hng, Discord,” she groaned, struggling in his grip. “Let go!”

“Fine, spoilsport,” he huffed and sat her back down.

“I’m not sure if Auntie is… prepared right now for a visit from you, Discord,” Cadence said. “Perhaps another time?”

“Well if I can’t go, then I still must relay some information to little… Dew… here. We’ll be right baaaack!” He grabbed Chryssy up in his arms again and teleported out of the room.

“Finally!” Twinkleshine yelled, teleporting back down to the ground by Cadence and me. She shook herself, then looked to the two of us. “Don’t let him come, we’ve had enough chaos for one day.”

I couldn’t help agreeing with her, especially as I felt the pain in my ribs. “We’ll just see what he wants with my sister.”

Cadence just sighed, lowering her ears with a slight scowl on her face. “Maybe I should find Fluttershy to talk to him.”

Ponyville Hospital- Empty Bedroom- Queen Chrysalis

I let out a gasp as Discord and I appeared in an empty bedroom. “Ugh, I think I’m going to be sick.” I moaned, holding a hoof to my mouth. Teleporting twice in such a short time? Not easy on the stomach.

“Don’t worry dearie, you’ll be fine. We actually can’t puke. Kind of an equine thing. We’ll just feel sick for a while.” Chrys chuckled.

“Great that makes me feel SO much better!” I grumbled, trotting over to a chair and sitting down. “So what is it you wanted to tell me?” Blinking, I turned to Discord who was just chuckling at me.

“I see you haven’t found your teleportation legs yet,” he said. “But very well if you want to get to the important news first.” He shook a paw at me at the idea, rolling his eyes. “Some of your changelings are on their way here. After hearing about Hoofville they are so worried about their little Queenie.” He sat down on the armrest, pinching one of my cheeks and shaking it.

“I figured they would, when our casting emerald broke,” Chrys sighed. “Probably bringing us a new one.”

“And they sent you to tell me?”

“Do I need a reason to visit my favorite Queen?”

“As far as I know I’m the only Queen,” I grumbled, flicking his paw away from my cheek. “Since those princesses refuse to take such a title.”

“Any better reason for you to be my favorite?” He mussed up my mane again. “But I am glad to see you adjusting well. Not all the Queens have done so as well as you.”

“Hey, that reminds me,” I said, turning to look at him. “It was around five hundred years ago that you brought Chrys to this world right?”

“Five hundred and ten, but yes?”

“How did you do so? If I remember the show correctly, and they have the times right, didn’t Princess Luna and Celestia trap you in stone one thousand years ago? And then you weren’t released until just a few years ago?” I glared at him as he started laughing. “What’s so funny?”

“That even you believe that prank!” he howled, falling off the armrest and rolling on the ground in laughter.

“Prank?”

Discord nodded, taking a deep breath and smiling at me. “My best prank yet! Even better than those silly ones that Rainbow Dash tries to pull.”

“Well, will you please explain?” I sighed, holding a hoof to my head.

“Of course, of course, I assume Chrys didn’t tell you because I tell the story better?”

“He is correct,” Chrys said softly.

I nodded, and he snorted. “She’s probably just too embarrassed about it, even if it was previous Chrysalis’s bet.” He took a deep breath, still chuckling, and stood. “A little over one thousand years ago, might have been four or five Chrysalis’s ago? I forget which one but anyway… a little over a thousand years ago, the two of us were dining together. What we ate is not important, but we both drank way too much cherry cordial – it was the drink to have back then before the Apple family made their cider famous,” he said rolling his eyes.

“We liked to give each other dares of things to do. With these long lives of ours, things can get boring without a little chaos,” he winked. “After she accomplished a dare I set for her, impersonating a solar guard and stealing away one of Princess Celestia’s extra crowns, it was her turn to dare me and she sure picked a humdinger!”

“She dared him that he couldn’t pretend to be a statue for one thousand years, exempting the need to help us if and when the time came,” Chrys grumbled.

“That she did old girl that she did!” Discord beamed, hugging us to him. Right, forgot he could hear Chrys too.

“Of course, if I was to take a dare like that I had to make it believable to everypony. To ‘go out with a bang’ if you will. So I let Lulu and KayKay use those little elements on me, then disguised myself to look like they turned me to stone. It was torturous at first, standing in one position night and day!” He moaned, holding a claw to his head. “But I persevered! I watched from my spot in the gardens as KayKay fought Nightmare Moon, and suffered through the cold of winter and heat of summer! My nose didn’t even twitch when those stupid pigeons made a nest on my head, year after year.”

“But then, what about when Twilight and her friends-”

“Became the bearers of the elements and turned me back to stone after a little chaos? More pretending! Aren’t I just the best at playing statues?” he chuckled. “I only ever moved when my little queenie needed me. Which wasn’t often.”

“Could have been more often, he left our entire hive trapped in a volcano for almost two hundred years! We barely survived off of the love the little creatures that lived in the volcano provided.”

“You didn’t really need me then Chrys, or well, the Chrysalis before you didn’t. I was only allowed to move if you were close to dying and needed to use the spell.” He frowned.

“Well we did come close right after we escaped the dragon!” Chrys yelled. “That’s actually when I came into the picture dearie. The hive might have survived that horrid volcano for two hundred years, but the previous Chrysalis couldn’t take anymore.”

I leaned back in the chair, thinking. “Does that mean the elements don’t affect you?”

“To an extent. I think they are part of what made me fall for my dear Fluttershy. But that is one thing I do not regret!” He stood stretching out his upper body to reach the ceiling. “Ahhh feels good to stretch. Come on, let’s go see if your little Shiny was able to convince Meep to come with us!”

“Meep? You mean Twinkleshine?”

“Of course!” He grinned, winking. “Meep is what I call her because she always ‘Meeps’ when she sees me,” he chuckles, and grabbing me again teleports us out of the room.

To Our Fates

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Changeling Castle- Apatelodes

Hooves pounded the ground all around me, throwing up dust and clumps of dead grass. I heard a pony scream somewhere behind me, cut short. I stood among a sea of black and blue, with the occasional pastel running past in bright gold armor. A bolt of bright red magic lanced toward me, but before I could even dodge something pushed me out of the way. I turned to see a young changeling drone, his backplate violet, and eyes a piercing light purple. “You need to be more careful Hayfeather,” he said shooting a bolt of pale purple magic back in the direction the red had come from. Then he was off, running into the dust and sound of the pounding hooves.

Calm was around me, though it wasn’t the kind that brought peace. Bodies lay all over the battlefield, both of colorful ponies and the dark bodies of changelings. Most of the dead changelings had backplates of red or orange, but there were plenty of blue and purple among them. I recognized the changeling that had saved me before among them, his eyes open, now a grey-purple in death.

A cry of anguish came from behind me and turning around I gasped at what I saw. Queen Chrysalis of the Emerald hive stood next to Queen Julodinae, who had collapsed on the ground. Tears fell from their queen’s eyes as she laid a hoof gently upon her friend's royal purple mane. I hurried toward them, only to slide to a stop at the sound of cackling laughter.

The battlefield around me melted away, shadows surrounded me, and the flutter of wings filled my ears as eyes appeared from the shadows, most of them white with trails of smoke leaking out around them, but then from right in front of me a pair of bright red eyes appeared. They stared deep into my soul coming closer and closer. The laughter filled my ears, and I covered them trying to block it out. Blood covered fangs appeared below the red eyes, and it opened its mouth wide, blood dripping down onto me as it reared up to strike-

A hoof pounded on my door. I groaned, holding a hoof to my head. Opening my eyes, I looked around to see the light in my room had shifted. I must have fallen asleep again. History of the Crystal Empire lay open beneath me, its last page bent from where I must have fallen asleep on it. The only words near the bottom –continued in part two. The knock sounded again. Shaking my head, a pounding headache radiating from somewhere behind my horn, I stood and groggily made my way toward the door.

“What is it?” I growled out, baring my fangs as I opened the door. Upon seeing a young changeling colt standing there, ears flat against his head and trembling, I sighed and smiled at him. “Sorry, you woke me up. Is there a problem?”

“N-No sir, I was just sent to get you for lunch,” he stammered, looking towards the stairs to the right of my room. It was then I recognized the young colt. The entire right side of his face and muzzle were taken up by a blue spot, only a ring of black standing out thinly around his eye. His parents had thusly named him Spot. Why they had decided to go against the traditional naming style, I have no idea, but it sure hadn’t helped the poor foal make friends. Even more so when they both died at the invasion of Canterlot.

I sighed and patted him on the head. “Thanks, Spot, I’ll be down shortly.”

“Okay Appy!” he beamed, grabbing a book about half as tall as he was from his saddlebag and plopping down on the floor next to my door. “I’ll be waiting for you.”

“Spot, what have I told you about calling me Appy?” I sighed, shaking my head.

He shrugged, opening the book and starting to read. “That I should only say it in a private setting?”

“No Spot, no. Just… please don’t call me that okay?” If anyling else heard him call me such, they’d never take me seriously again.

He sighed. “Okay Appy,” he beamed and turned back to his book.

I facehoofed, but simply sighed and trotted back into my room, closing the door. I grabbed out a cloth and a jar of polish, walking over to my armor. Wouldn’t have time now to make it look perfect, but getting most of the dust and ashes off of it shouldn’t take too long. After all, couldn’t go down looking dirty!

That dream from before swirled around in my brain. After having read the last few pages of Hayfeathers book, which denoted when the hive that had taken her in finally joined the fight among the other changelings, I didn’t know what to think. Was it for real? Had there been other changeling hives? I scrubbed the armor hard, the caked ash and dust falling away.

Hayfeather didn’t seem like the type to lie or to make up stories. But those last three pages hadn’t made any sense! Not only did they say nothing more about the Alicorn amulet, but they had mentioned at least three other hives beside our own.

Then there was that ending, those eyes, those fangs… I shuddered. What did it all mean? Why did I remember this dream so vividly? All I knew was I had to know more. I couldn’t tell the others about more hives, not until I knew for sure. Was this ‘part two’ in our library, or was it part of the collection of whatever hive Hayfeather had joined? Wherever it was, I would tear our entire library apart searching for it. I sighed, levitating over my cleaner breastplate and wiggling it on; if I ever found the time to search for it.

About ten minutes later I opened my door. I had done what I could with my armor, and it at least looked passable. Though my mane was still a mess. Spot hopped up upon seeing me, stuffing the book back in his bag. “Come on, I’m starving Appy,” he giggled, skipping down the hallway toward the stairs. I followed at a more leisurely pace, not all that hungry for once.

Ponyville Hospital- Twinkleshine’s Room- Shiny Whistle

Cadence and I had finally calmed Twinkleshine down when Shining Armor and Helping Heart arrived at the door together, stepping inside. “The train will be ready to leave in about an hour,” Heart said, ears twitching as she noticed the three of us sitting on the bed, Twinkleshine breathing heavily between us. “You okay dear? Injuries healing well?” Heart trotted over, and I moved out of her way as she knelt to check on Twinkleshine’s injured flank. “Hmm yes, seems it has healed up well.”

“Y-yeah I am fine, Discord was just here and-”

Heart lifted a hoof, nodding in understanding. “Say no more, you’re not the only pony he… intimidates. Well then if that is all, I think we can safely release you. Please sign the release forms as you leave.”

Twinkleshine nodded, standing and trotting toward the door, though she paused, looking back at us. “S-so do you still plan on taking th-that creature with you to Canterlot?”

I shrugged, “depends on what my sister wants to do.”

“And if you can go at all,” Heart snorted, turning her attention back to me. “I think it would be safe for me to do one last check on you. I just wouldn’t feel right sending you off in the condition you are in, not with those changelings running amok.”

“It’s okay Heart, he’ll be safe with me,” Cadence said, grinning at her. “I can protect him and his… sister.”

“Shiny is a tough stallion, he’ll survive,” Shining chuckled, punching a hoof against my shoulder. I winced slightly but nodded.

“With these two all will be well.”

Heart sighed, ears drooping slightly, but nodded. “I’ll trust your judgment then, Princess Cadence, Prince Shining Armor.” She bowed to each of them. “But if he needs it, don’t be afraid to stop in at the Canterlot North hospital, they know me there and can continue any treatment he may need.”

“Of course Heart, we’ll take care of him,” Cadence assured her. “But feel free to do one more check.”

“Come here then Shiny,” Heart said, putting a wing around me. I followed her over to the corner of the room, where she pulled down a little screen and tapped it. It buzzed to life, a mana battery inside of it allowing even a pegasus like Heart to be able to use it. She pressed one button on it, and a beam of red light ran over my body a few times before the device beeped. “Hmm…” she said, eyes gazing at the screen as words appeared on it. “Heavy bruising around the barrel and back, shallow cut on the cheek-easily taken care of-, and a hairline fracture in the third rib on the left.” She lifted the screen again, looking over at me.

“Well,” I said. “I can still go, right?”

“Against my better judgment, yes you can go. We can give you medicine that should have that fractured rib fully healed in a few days, but until then avoid using a saddlebag as that will only make the healing process take longer. As for the bruises, they should heal fine on their own but avoid laughing too hard, and apply a cold compress when you settle down for the night.” She took out a notepad and holding it in her wing, grabbed up a pencil in her mouth and jotted something down on it. “Give this to the mare at the front and she’ll give you the things you need.”

“Thank you,” I said, taking the piece of paper up in my magic as she handed it over to me.

“I’m here to serve,” she beamed, nodding goodbye to each of them and leaving the room.

I turned to Shining and Cadence, “thank you for your help. If it wasn’t for you two, she’d probably have made me stay here.”

“Of course Shiny,” Cadence said. “Your sister needs you after all.” She turned to look at her husband, trotting over to him and nuzzling against his neck. “Though honey, I’m afraid you won’t be joining us for the rest of the trip.”

“W-what?” Shining gasped, pulling away from her. “I must go! That devil of a Queen might be heading to Canterlot. I couldn’t bear to lose you to her again.” He put a hoof to her cheek, gazing into her eyes. “I don’t want a repeat of what happened before.”

I trotted over to stand next to Twinkleshine, watching the two of them converse. “Wonder why she doesn’t want him to come?” Twinkleshine whispered to me, leaning back against the doorframe.

“Who knows,” I whispered back.

“Shinikins, neither do I,” Cadence sighed. “But there is something I need you to check on back in the Crystal Empire. It can’t wait until this is all over.” She leaned over and whispered into his ear. Shining jolted, ears going flat against his head as his eyes grew wide. “You understand dear?”

“You’re right,” Shining nodded, snorting. “That can’t wait. Very well, Cady, I’ll catch the next train to the Empire.” He planted a kiss on her lips, and I felt Twinkleshine tremble beside me. Looking over at her, she had a slightly goofy look on her face, eyes unfocused and the tip of her tongue sticking out.

“You okay?” I asked her.

Twinkleshine shook her head, blinking and sticking her tongue back in. “Yeah, yeah I’m fine. Don’t they make a cute couple?”

“Sure, I guess?” I said, turning to see Cadence wrap her hooves around Shining in a quick hug, then he left.

Cadence sighed, watching him go. Then, taking a deep breath and putting a hoof to her chest, she let the breath out, holding the hoof out in front of her. She did this a few times before she dropped the hoof to the ground and turned back to us. “So, you’ll be joining us on the trip to Canterlot, Twinkleshine?”

Twinkleshine groaned, rubbing her head with a hoof. “Very well Princess, I will join you.”

Ponyville Train Station- Queen Chrysalis

Discord wiggled in delight beside me as the Friendship Express slowly pulled into the station. Princess Cadence stood in front of us all, ears twitching slightly. Shiny stood next to Discord’s other side and Twinkleshine on my right as far from Discord as she could get. “How did I let you talk me into this?” She groaned, glaring at Discord when he wiggled his ears at her.

“Oh come now, you know we’ll have a great time!” Discord grinned, snapping his fingers and producing little cameras around each of our necks. “We’ll have the best vacation ever and maybe get a photo op with the princesses…”

“Stop fooling around Discord, this is a serious visit,” I snorted, removing the camera and tossing it back at him, which he made disappear with another snap.

“Doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy it. I for one would love to get a picture of the two lovers reuniting,” he crooned, putting an arm around me and hugging me close.

“If we do,” Chrys sighed. Cadence stepped forward as the train hissed to a stop. Nodding to the conductor, he opened the door to the car we had been in before and ushered us inside. Shiny grabbed up Lucky and Fire’s bags they had left on the train and hoofed them outside.

“These belong to the two stallions that were with us, they are at the Ponyville hospital now,” he said.

“I’ll make sure they get them,” the conductor said shutting the door behind Twinkleshine, who was the last one inside.

Discord curled up on the top of a seat near the center, paw and claw under his muzzle as he watched the rest of us settle down. I sat back down near Shiny, while Cadence took her seat across from us again. Twinkleshine went to the far side of the car, levitating a book out of her saddlebag and nestling down to read, yet her ears were turned toward Discord.

The train lurched beneath us a few minutes later and we were off. A yellow-orange sign passed by us. Canterlot: 14 Miles. That would take hardly any time at all. I hadn’t reckoned on having Discord with us when we met with Celestia. Would he help us with our plea, or just make things worse?

“I sent a letter ahead of us, to tell Auntie we were coming,” Cadence said.

“W-what?” My eyes widened in fear as I stood up on my seat. What had she told Celestia? Did she tell her everything? Oh, colt oh colt oh colt, we really were riding into a trap, weren’t we?

“Calm down Dew,” Shiny said, standing and wrapping his hooves around me. “I’m sure Cadence just wanted to make it easier on Princess Celestia. That and don’t most need a notice sent anyway to have an audience with her?”

“That’s right.” Cadence nodded. “Don’t worry Dew, everything will be okay.”

“Hmph, that’s what she thinks! And here I thought she wanted to help us? Colt were we being foals.” Chrys snorted.

The door to our train car opened, and a tall pegasus stallion, blue-furred with a pale green mane stuck his head inside. “We were told one Shiny Whistle could be found in this car.” He said, looking around and spotting Shiny next to me. “Ah yes, there he is.”

“Shiny!”

“There he is!” Two young pegasus fillies burst the door open around the stallion, running into the car. One was a dark purple with a cornflower mane and tail, the other was a dark blue with a bright pink mane and tail. The purple one jumped up beside us and tackled Shiny in a hug, wrapping her little hooves around his neck.

“What in the hay?” Twinkleshine said, putting her book down as I jumped down from the bench and out of the way as the dark blue filly grabbed onto Shiny’s left forehoof and hugged him.

“Er… do-do I know you?” Shiny mumbled, adjusting his back legs so he didn’t fall over. He winced slightly, adjusting the fillies hold on him. Probably those wounds of his?

“Aw, Shiny has the fillies all over him, hmmm?” Discord chuckled, taking in the sight.

“Girls, what did I tell you?” Another pegasus stallion, this one red with a silver mane and tail pushed past the blue one and stomped into the room. “Get off him now!”

“Sorry,” they mumbled, ears drooping as they hopped to the floor and walked over to the red stallion.

“It’s okay sir, they weren’t causing any trouble.” Shiny grinned at him.

The red stallion snorted. “Perhaps, but they know better.” He looked around the room while the blue stallion slowly stepped inside, closing the door behind him. His eyes fell on me, and he smiled. “We met one stormy night,” he said.

“Ah, been a long time since I heard that,” Chrys sighed. “It’s our hives code phrase for finding each other amongst ponies. These four must be the ones who came to find us. Tell him “in a dark, dusty barn.”

I nodded, turning to look at him. “In a dark, dusty barn.”

“I knew it,” he said and turned to the others. “We are right where we need to be, find your seats.”

“Excuse me, but who are you?” Cadence asked, looking between the red stallion, the fillies, and me.

“Just…. a friend coming to help,” he said simply, groaning as the two fillies plopped themselves down beside Shiny.

Cadence raised one eyebrow and turned to look at me. I nodded, and she took a deep breath, sighing. “Very well, you may all stay.”

“Thank you,” the red stallion said, then turned back to me. “May I talk to you privately for a moment?”

I looked to Shiny, who was occupied with the two fillies as they pulled out a pair of penny whistles and began to play for him. Discord simply watched it all with glee, chuckling to himself from his perch on the back of the bench. Twinkleshine had gone back to her book, but one eye still watched the newcomers, especially the blue stallion, who had taken the seat next to her.

“Sure, but make it quick,” I said and we walked from our car into the next. It was surprisingly empty. The red pegasus quickly trotted over to the opposite door, throwing the blinds over the window and locking the door, then doing the same to the door we had entered from.

With a flash of green fire, I looked to see Morpheus standing in front of me. I followed suit, dropping my own disguise. I stretched out my wings, glad to have them back again, sighed, and looked down at him. “So, you came to check on me, I assume?”

“Yes my Queen,” he said, bowing. “When we couldn’t contact you through your emerald, we feared the worst.”

“Yes, the fire destroyed it.”

“We figured as much.” He pulled a bag from the compartment above down with his magic, opened it, and placed a new emerald before me. “This is for you. It already has both mine and Apatelodes casting emeralds coded into it.” I took it and placed it in my bag. “Has everything gone well, my Queen? That pony hasn’t tried anything? Their little princess in there didn’t capture you?”

“No, everything is okay Morpheus.” At least I hoped it still was. “Who are the others that came with you?”

“Danaus, Acronicta, and Nemoria,” he sighed, rolling his eyes.

“What? Why did he bring those two? It’s not safe out here for a changeling, let alone some of our only females!” Chrys growled.

“Why did you bring Nemoria and Acronicta?” I asked, ears twitching.

“See, I knew you wouldn’t want them coming along!” He huffed, swatting a hoof in the air. “It was all Apatelodes idea, he wanted to ‘give them a chance' but no, I knew you would rather them stay home. Why did I listen to that fool-” I placed a hoof to his mouth.

“Calm down Morpheus. True we would have preferred them to stay home where it is safe, but they are here now. Have they done well while out in the field?” I removed the hoof, placing it back on the floor.

He rolled his eyes but nodded. “Better than many of their hatchmates did on their first time out of the hive actually. Just those blasted flutes!” He groaned, pulling his ears down.

“Well then, perhaps everything will be okay.” A train horn blew, and the light coming from the windows around us grew dark as we passed under the mountain. The only thing I could see in the dark train car was Morpheus’s bright blue eyes. “Now, we are almost to Canterlot. All Tartarus could break loose if we are not careful. Celestia already knows we are coming. I don’t know in what way she knows, be it my disguise or as myself, but be careful. Guard those little fillies well. If something is to happen to me, they as well as my daughter are our future.”

“Of course my Queen,” Morpheus said. “I’ll guard them with my life if need be.”

“Good,” I took a deep breath, closing my eyes.

“All we have prepared for is at our hooves. You CAN do this, no matter what may be ahead of us” Chrys said. “If anything, at least Celestia can be warned of this threat of Radiant Hope.”

I blinked as sunlight pierced through the windows around us again, and I got my first look at Canterlot. It looked a lot bigger than I had imagined, and I felt my heartbeat quicken. I quickly changed back into Dew Song’s form, feeling Morpheus change back into his red pegasus form beside me. The time had finally come, we would be pulling up to the train station in a few minutes, and our fate would be decided.

Author's Notes:

After about 2 months, we have a new chapter, wooo! Sorry about the long wait everypony, this has been a much harder semester than I thought it would be. That and having a full time job as well has just killed me recently. Most nights it is either 1) Work, homework, sleep or 2) Class, homework, sleep with little time for anything fun in-between. Spring Break is FINALLY here, which means between the days I work I finally have some time to relax. With the start of that time, I was able to finish this next chapter.
And so now we are almost to Canterlot, next chapter we will have arrived at our destination that took over a year to reach (in non-story life at least ). The next few chapters are some I have been waiting a LONG time to work on because so much happens. So I hope you will enjoy them as much as I do writing them.
For those who read the comics or like anime you might spot a few references in here to such things. At least two should be fairly obvious and if anyone can spot them, you win a virtual cookie! *note* for the comic one you need to pay attention to more than just what is being said and notice things in the background (of the comic). Just a little clue for you.
We have several guest appearances in this chapter (heh or I guess one could be called a new side character, since I plan on them sticking around for awhile.) First we have Spot, a young changeling stallion bookworm owned by MuckyHusky. Next is Helping Heart, also owned by MuckyHusky, who we have seen before and comes at us again to give our heroes one last checkup before they head out into the insanity of the world again! Lastly is 'Twinkleshine', or Meep the Changeling, owned by Meep the Changeling. She shall be with our heroes for some time still.
And with that, I will state the usual in that I would love to hear your comments, critiques and ideas of what you think will happen when they arrive at Canterlot.
P.S if you would like to see an OC of your own appear in the story, feel free to send me a PM or comment below about them and I can see if any of them will work for what I have planned. I could especially use some Canterlot ponies for the next few chapters (so we don't just have the usual ones we see all the time.) Note: Sending me info about them either in comments or in PM doesn't guarantee they will show up, but can give them a chance.
Pre-Read By Meep the Changeling
Little Edits Done 7/7/21

Truth Concealed be Set Free.

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Friendship Express- Outside Canterlot- Shiny Whistle

The train car fell silent as Canterlot came into our sights. Even Nemoria and Acronicta were quiet as they gazed out the window with wide eyes, wings fluttering behind them a few beats every few minutes. Of course, I had recognized them the moment they took out their penny whistles and started to play. As nervous as I was about returning after all this time, I was quite glad to have them here with us.

“We will be reaching Canterlot in ten minutes' time. Please make ready for departure.” A voice said over the intercom.

“Oh goodie, time for the fun to begin!” Discord chortled, hovering into the air, and with a snap, brought forth a glass of chocolate milk. He sipped on the glass as everypony in our car grabbed their bags and we watched as Canterlot drew closer with every passing moment. Chryssy and her red pegasus friend, -likely a changeling as well if he was with the fillies- returned as we curved around the last bend, Canterlot straight in front of us now.

Chryssy grabbed our saddlebags, stuffing an emerald into them, and placed them on her own back. As I walked up to her, I noticed her eyes were unfocused again, her ears drooped halfway, and she was muttering to herself. I laid a hoof on her shoulder, which made her jump. “Hey, it’s okay,” I grinned. “I’m here, as well as everypony else.” I gestured a hoof at those around us. “We won’t let anything bad happen to you.”

She looked over at me, pupils small and nostrils flaring as she breathed heavily. “Thanks, Shiny,” she mumbled, giving me an awkward grin. “Hopefully that will be enough. I haven’t been back to Canterlot since...”

“Yeah, I know.” I wrapped both forehooves around her and hugged her close. She jumped, letting out a startled squeak. I chuckled. “Just trying to comfort you,” I said, taking a step away. It was then I noticed the silence in the train car had grown even more if possible. Everypony was staring at us. I felt my cheeks grow warm as I blushed, making Cadence chuckle.

The tension in the room seemed to fade at her chuckle, or at least lessen. Twinkleshine had returned to placing her book in her bag, but something seemed different about her. I couldn’t put my hoof on it, but she seemed to look at us differently. The red and blue stallions- whom Nemoria had whispered to me were Morpheus and Danaus- gathered Acronicta and Nemoria together, though they kept running back to the window. The train whistle blew again, and I felt the train start to slow down below us. We were here. I was home.

I looked out the window, to see nothing had really changed much. For all the trouble that happened here, we were usually good at rebuilding within a few days. The castle looked as pristine as ever, its gold spires shining brightly in the sunlight. A pony could just barely make out the stained glass windows depicting great moments in Equestria’s history, shining like rainbows, but other than that you couldn’t tell one from another from this distance.

The view changed as the train came to a stop at the train station. A few domes of the castle could still be seen, but as I stepped out onto the platform even they disappeared behind the building. The clock above the front doors read 6:02. How in the hay, with all that had happened, had we still arrived here early evening?

Nemoria and Acronicta jumped out of the car, their saddlebags across their backs, and took a place to either side of me. The rest of our party slowly emerged, Cadence and Discord taking the lead, the former looking up at the sky as a crème colored pegasus stallion flew by, and the latter hovering in the air as he awaited the others. Chryssy stepped behind them, ears down and biting her lip as she looked around. Danaus put a comforting hoof to her shoulder on her left, while Morpheus stood to her right, nose in the air and chest puffed out. Twinkleshine trotted out last, coming to stand on the other side of Nemoria.

“Well, we better get going, Auntie will be expecting us,” Cadence said, leading the way from the train station. We all followed at a silent trot, except for Nemoria and Acronicta. They bounced along beside us, wings unfurled behind them, giggling as they took in the sights.

“It’s so much bigger than I imagined,” Nemoria said in awe, eyes sparkling in excitement. “Shiny! Tell us all about it!”

“All about it?” I asked. Twinkleshine chuckled beside me.

“Well, you are from here, correct?”

I nodded, “yes, born and raised.”

“Then tell us your favorite places,” Acronicta said softly, “place to eat, where you live, you know,” she shrugged, gasping when Nemoria tackled her in a hug.

“Yeah, that is a great idea,” Nemoria beamed.

“Out of the way!” A gruff voice shouted as the cream-colored pegasus stallion from a moment ago swooped past, nearly knocking Twinkleshine off her hooves.

“Hey, watch where you’re flying!” she yelled, shaking a hoof at him as he soared back into the sky.

“Catch him!” A dark blue unicorn stallion with a dark brown mane yelled, running past us. The sun glinted off of his golden armor, horn lit as he shot a bolt of magic at the pegasus, missing him but hitting a potted plant hanging from a house.

“Careful, Shielded,” another stallion called, this one a pegasus, his fur an azure blue and mane a frosty white. His form was also covered in golden armor. He bolted into the air after the fleeing stallion, only to be hit by the falling flower pot the unicorn guard had hit right between the ears. Groaning, he rubbed his head and shook away the dirt and a little red flower, continuing on.

“Sorry!” The unicorn yelled up at him, turning a corner and he was gone. The pegasus disappeared around a corner a moment later, hot in pursuit of the first.

“What do you think he did?” Nemoria asked, looking up at me.

“Who knows?” I shrugged, turning to look ahead of us. Danaus and Morpheus had spread their wings around Chryssy, who I could see was staring at where the two guards had disappeared to. “You okay Dew?” I asked, trotting up to her.

“Yeah, they just surprised me, is all,” she snorted.

“What an exciting turn of events this could be,” Discord grinned, tapping his fingers together, his eyes scrunched in glee. “I smell chaos in the air, think I will follow them.” He winked, and before anypony could say a word he snapped his fingers and was gone.

Cadence paused, looking at the spot he had been floating, then back at the rest of us. Something in her eyes held a sad look as they fell on Chryssy. “The Royal guards will get their job done, whatever that pony has done. Let’s continue.”

The crowd around us had already continued on their way. One bakery we passed had an angry-looking earth pony stallion, red-orange mane tied up with a togue placed between his ears. His olive green fur had a white apron tied around it. “Merry, the baguettes, hurry up!” he yelled.

Nemoria nudged me with one of her wings, and I looked back down at her. “Well?”

“Oh, right,” I looked around us, trying to think of what to point out to her. “A few blocks down that road is Restaurant Row,” I said, pointing a hoof to the left. “Most of its restaurants don’t have much difference between them, but there are the rare few that are delicious.”

“Oooooh we should try some when we return,” Nemoria beamed. “I bet you could show us the best tasting ones!”

“Er, yeah, right,” I mumbled, continuing on. I paused a few streets later, looking down it. Bluish-purple bricks lined the sidewalks, leading to nice two and three-story homes. Sure they weren’t those fancy mansions ponies closer to the castle had, but they were cozy.

“Everything okay Shiny?” Acronicta asked, looking up at me.

“Yes, it’s just-” I paused, sighing. “This is my street, Amethyst Avenue.”

“Well, there is no time to visit home just yet,” Morpheus snorted. “The whole reason you are on this journey is to help with returning the one our queen loves.” He wrinkled his nose at me, wings twitching beside him.

“Careful with your words,” Danaus warned, looking around them as a few ponies stopped to watch.

“Wait, queen?” Twinkleshine said, looking over at him.

“Oookay, think it is time we carried on,” I said, giving a hesitant laugh, and pushed Nemoria and Acronicta gently onward.

“Indeed, all will be answered soon,” Cadence said and continued forward.

“What did he mean, queen?” Twinkleshine hissed to me as the castle loomed before us.

Before I could reply, there were gasps heard from behind us. A foal cried and his mother hurried to pick him up. Everypony around us was murmuring about something until one – a pale brown unicorn with a mint green mane- let out a shrill scream and fainted.

“How dare they,” I heard Morpheus snarl behind me as from the crowds came the two stallions from before. Hooked to a short-chain pulled by the unicorn stallion, a magic suppressor ring clamped around his horn, was a changeling. A thick chain was tied around his barrel, holding his wings to his sides. This particular one I had not met, or at least he didn’t look familiar. The tip of his muzzle was stained blue, as if he had been eating blueberries, but was otherwise the usual changeling colors. Though the chitin around one eye was green and puffy, probably from a punch to the face.

“Good riddance, they finally caught it,” sneered one unicorn stallion, pastel blue with a white mane and golden eyes, spitting at the ground in front of him.

Twinkleshine stepped closer to me, her eyes wide with fear. Yet, they strangely seemed focused on the guards, not the changeling. For once Nemoria and Acronicta were still beside me, watching the guards push their way through the crowd as it slowly parted for them.

“Calm down Dew,” I heard Cadence whisper behind me. Turning to look, I saw a flicker of green pass over Chryssy’s eyes. She breathed heavily through her nostrils, crouched down with her teeth bared in a silent snarl. Cadence stood beside her, one wing wrapped around her and running soothingly down her back.

The unicorn guard paused, looking over at our little group. He raised one eyebrow, glancing between each of us, especially concentrating on Chryssy. Did he somehow know? He hadn’t seen her eyes flash green, had he? Danaus and Morpheus jumped in front of her, glaring at the guard and blocking Chryssy from his view.

“Come on Shielded, we need to get back,” the pegasus guard said, bringing up the rear. At his words, the unicorn turned to face him.

“I know that Midnight,” he sighed and turned to continue.

“Wait!” Nemoria yelled. I turned to look for her to find she had grabbed Acronicta and together they had come to a stop in front of the unicorn. He stared down at them, frowning.

“What?” he growled.

“Why did you capture him? What did he do?” Nemoria lowered her ears, looking up at him with sad eyes. I facehoofed, what did she think she was doing?

“What did he do?” Shielded repeated her words, ears going flat against his head. “He was stealing love from somepony! If I hadn’t spotted him he might have killed her! Just like he and his kind did at Princess Cadence’s wedding!”

The pegasus stallion swatted a hoof at him, knocking off his helmet. “That is not the kind of thing you tell a foal Shielded!” It was too late now though.

My eyes twitched at his proclamation, my mind whirling, the noise around me fading as I breathed in and out heavily. Yet another pony who claimed the changelings had killed ponies during the wedding. He was a guard too, so-so he probably saw it all happen as they fought. No, NO he must be lying. He had to be! I held a hoof to my head, feeling dizzy. I distantly heard the guard apologizing for his words, then I heard a pop and silence.

I took a deep breath and opened my eyes, feeling a little queasy, to find our party was in the castle gardens. The tall wall of hedges around us blocked us from sight, while the smell of roses filled the air. “W-what happened?” I asked, looking around.

Cadence looked over at me, her own eyes nearly as wide as mine. “I teleported us away.” Her ears drooped as she looked around at all of us. Nemoria and Acronicta were hugging Twinkleshine, who looked as panicked as I was. Danaus was pacing back and forth, watching Morpheus, who had his shoulders scrunched, biting his lip.

Chryssy stood to the side of our group, slowly shaking her head in disbelief. Her mouth hung open, tail twitching. “How could you,” she growled.

“Pardon me?” Cadence asked, stepping closer.

“How could you just teleport us away like that?” she snapped whipping around. “We could have helped him!” Her eyes seemed unfocused again, her mane sticking up erratically.

Cadence shook her head. “Not without giving everything away,” she said calmly. “I’d rather my aunties little ponies not be even more afraid.”

Twinkleshine took a step backward, yelping and jumping forward a moment later. I looked back to her to see she had backed into the prickly hedges behind her. “I knew you smelled familiar,” she gulped, ears going flat against her head. She glared over at Chryssy, “is what they say true, Chrysalis?”

Chryssy jumped upon her name being uttered, turning to stare at the mare. She sniffed the air, blinking her eyes, her mouth falling open. “How did I not sense it before… you were one of Cadence’s original bridesmaids,” she sighed, looking around us. Besides those of us in our little group, the gardens around us were silent. She lifted her head, staring off into the distance for a moment, then a smile appeared on her face. “If I remember correctly though, I am not the only one hiding such a large secret.”

“S-secret? Nope, I have n-nothing to hide,” Twinkleshine said, backing a few steps away. She turned to look at Cadence. “Did you know about these deaths he mentioned?”

For a moment, Cadence just stared at Twinkleshine, but then sighed and drooped her ears. “No, I really never heard anything about them.”

“I knew it!” Chryssy crowed. “Those ponies will make anything up to try to make things worse than they are,” she snorted, still glaring daggers at Twinkleshine.

“Just because I don’t know of it, doesn’t mean it didn’t happen,” Cadence said, looking back over at Chryssy. “There are- many- things I don’t remember about that day. For the longest time, I had nightmares about coming so close to losing my Shining.” She glared over at Chryssy, her wingtips twitching. “Eventually, I had Princess Luna cast a spell to help me forget the worst of it, otherwise I never would have had a good night’s sleep again.”

Chryssy groaned, putting a hoof to her forehead. “Well, then I guess we’ll just have to ask Celestia then. She at least wouldn’t lie to you, would she? Or…” She looked over toward Danaus and Morpheus, to find both had disappeared while we had been talking. “Very suspicious,” she growled. At least she had let off on poor Twinkleshine, who looked like she was about to faint.

“D-Danaus wouldn’t do that, would he?” Nemoria asked, eyes tearing up.

“Let’s find out once and for all,” Twinkleshine said, shaking her head and taking a deep breath. She trotted toward the entrance of the garden. “I was in those crystal mines most of the attack, so if somepony died…”

“Right, to auntie it is then,” Cadence nodded, catching up with Twinkleshine and leading the way out of the garden.

Nemoria and Acronicta walked close to me, their little wings fluttering against their backs. Chryssy trotted in front of me, her steps pounding against the grass. Was it true? If so, did Chryssy deny it to get on my good side, or by some crazy chance did she really not know? My heart pounded at the thought she had lied to me. Nemoria and Acronicta both put a comforting wing around me best they could, their eyes full of worry as they looked up at me. Whatever had happened, we would find out.

Canterlot Castle- Entrance- Queen Chrysalis

“How could they just vanish like that?” Chrys growled. “Either one or both of them must know something, otherwise, they wouldn’t have run off. If I find out they went and found a way to break through a direct order I’ll-I’ll…” She paused in her tirade as a spear was held before us.

We had made it to the entrance of the castle, two pegasus guards clad in their golden armor had lowered their spears to block the door. Cadence stepped forward, looking down at them. Smiling up at her and nodding, they lifted their spears and we stepped inside.

My mouth widened in wonder as I took in the beautiful entrance hall. A red carpet was spread before us, displaying an eight-pointed golden star at a cross-section that led to other areas of the castle. Blue banners with gold tassels hung upon the wall, a grand staircase led up and forward in front of us.

“Yes, it’s nice but need we focus on the décor?” Chrys sighed. “What about that Twinkleshine? I know there was something about her that seemed familiar, I just can’t put my hoof on it. But she is hiding something. Or what exactly are we going to tell Celestia? Those are the things we should be focusing on.”

I groaned, shaking my head. She was right, there would be time later –hopefully- to check out the décor. Right now we had to concentrate. It had been surprising that Cadence had Luna meddle with her memory. Had we been that horrible at the wedding? Well, other than trying to steal her fiancé and take over Equestria… okay yeah from the ponies’ view of things, even just that would be bad.

Cadence put out a hoof to pause us as we came close to a door. A single guard, fur green and mane a muddy red, stood still beside it. “Now, as a special favor to me, Auntie Celestia canceled court today so we wouldn’t have to wait when we arrived. But, it would probably be best if just- Dew and I- were to go in and talk with her.”

“No,” Shiny said firmly behind me. He stepped forward, wrapping a hoof around me. “I didn’t travel all this way with Dew just to abandon her now. Twinkleshine can take care of the fillies for a bit. I, however, am coming along too.” He stomped his hoof on the ground in emphasis.

“Well, looks like the ‘rumors’ going around haven’t hurt his affections for us,” Chrys chuckled.

Cadence smiled softly, pondering on the two of us. “Very well, Shooting Spear?” she said, turning to the guard. He nodded and opened the door for us.

“Be careful Shiny!” Nemoria called, trying to follow before Twinkleshine stopped her with a hoof.

“We’ll be waiting for you here,” Twinkleshine said, scooping up the two fillies and taking them over to a bench.

“Right, we will,” Shiny said. As the door closed behind us, I looked up to see we were in one last hallway, two plain, purple doors in front of us.

“Now that we are alone, I need to tell you something,” Cadence said, adjusting her wings against her body.

“Well, what is it?” I asked.

“I told Auntie who you really were.”

“WHAT?” I yelled, ears going down flat against my head.

“I knew it, I just knew it!” Chrys yelled. “Why would she have had reason to trust us? Celestia probably has a good portion of her guard waiting beyond those doors to grab us and wrap us in chains, or worse!”

“Why would you do that?” Shiny yelled, ears going flat against his head. “I-I thought we were friends Cadence.”

“Do not misunderstand me Shiny, Chrysalis. I didn’t tell her so she could capture you, but because I wanted to be honest with her. Celestia trusts my judgment, and is willing to hear you out about what has happened.”

“Ugh, ignorant foal. Celestia give us a second chance? Ha!” Chrys huffed. “That is laughable. Cadence is still young. Celestia probably just told her that so she would bring us straight into her hooves”

“Well, I guess we have no choice, do we?” Shiny sighed. He turned to look at me. “I’ll do my best to protect you if need be.” He gave me a soft smile.

“So let me guess,” I said, narrowing my eyes at Cadence. “She wants me to come before her in my natural form, is that it?”

Cadence nodded. “I know you don’t trust her, but if you can show her she has reason to trust your words, that will help your cause.”

I rolled my eyes, but nodded, dropping my disguise. “Happy now?” I huffed.

“Yes,” Cadence said, raising one eyebrow as she looked at me. “You look… different from what I remember you. Almost younger-” she shook her head, turning to the door. “Shall we?”

“To our end, we go,” Chrys sighed.

“We finally made it here, so let’s do what we came here for.”

“That’s the spirit Chryssy,” Shiny said, smiling over at me. Well, at least I had one pony here I was sure I could trust.

Cadence opened the door and led the way inside, Shiny and I following right behind her. I tucked my wings in tight against my barrel, took a deep breath, and looked up. The throne room was quiet, gently lit in colorful hues by the stained glass windows around us. There was not a single guard in sight.

“Chrysalis.”

I looked to the throne at the far end of the room, to see Princess Celestia sitting tall and firm on it. Her mane swirled out behind her as she stared daggers at me. A shiver ran down my spine as I felt her powerful magic flowing in the air. Her lips were expressionless, ears standing tall. Her sheer presence emitted feelings of fear in all who may oppose her.

She turned her gaze to Shiny, and he immediately bowed on one hoof, then stood up tall. I could hear his heartbeat quicken, but he stood firm, keeping close to me.

“Shiny Whistle,” Princess Celestia said softly. “You come to support her?”

Shiny nodded. “She has become a good friend to me Princess. I ask you to listen carefully and try to trust her.”

“I will do what I can,” she said, then turned to look at Cadence. “I have done as you asked Cadence. Please, proceed.”

“Yes, Celestia,” she nodded to her. “Chrysalis has some surprising things to tell you, but I’ll let her get to that.”

I gulped as Celestia turned her gaze back on me. “Now is not the time to be afraid! We didn’t come all this way for you to chicken out!” Chrys yelled. “We might not be able to go with our original plan, but if we do this right, we can still get Leptostales released. Possibly even some help against Radiant Hope as well.”

She was right, I could do this! I took a deep breath, held my head up high, and looked to Celestia. “Originally I journeyed here to rescue a good friend from your dungeons.”

“The changeling, I presume?” Celestia asked, to which I nodded. “We shall see about that, continue.”

“I’ve been gathering my changeling’s home, for we have recently encountered a great threat. One of your unicorns has obtained an object of great power, the alicorn amulet.”

Celestia narrowed her eyes in disbelief. “That is impossible, Cadence should even be able to tell you so,” she paused, glancing her way. “The alicorn amulet is in safe hooves, with spells cast over it only an alicorn could break.”

I lowered my ears, afraid she would say that. “Yes, that is what Cadence has told me. If it is still there under protection, then what she said was true, and Sombra made more than one.”

“What who said?” Celestia asked, bending down closer to me, eyes sparkled with curiosity.

“She’s not going to like this,” Chrys groaned.

No, no she wouldn’t. “The unicorn who started this whole mess I’m being blamed for, Radiant Hope.”

Celestia lowered her head, frowning. “Radiant Hope has been gone for many years. After the fall of the Crystal Empire, nopony saw her again. Not even when it returned could we find her. Why do you lie to me?” She asked softly. I couldn't believe it, she actually looked sad! Of course, if I remembered the comics right Radiant was her student for a time. Still, she had no reason to accuse me of lying.

“I’m not lying!” I yelled, stomping a hoof. “I saw her with my own eyes down in Ponyville just a few short hours ago. Why would I come to you if I was just going to lie?”

“She is telling the truth,” Shiny said. “I saw her as well, though didn’t know who she was.” He looked over at me, smiling.

“It is impossible for her to still be alive, she was but a unicorn,” Celestia sighed, ears lowered. "I had even thought her princess material at one point. She would have become one for sure, if not for Sombra's influences on her."

“Perhaps she found a way to continue living,” I shrugged. “She didn’t look very old, just heavily scarred. And if you want to blame anypony for the destruction of Hoofville, blame her and her Umbrum.”

“Umbrum?” Celestia’s eyes widened. “What do you know of the Umbrum?”

“Only that Radiant has full control over them, and that the last time they were here, things really did not go well for my kind,” I frowned. “I know not how many she has under her control, but she plans on using them and whatever other species she can find to help to take over Equestria.”

“Strange,” Celestia said, rubbing her chin. “Luna and I locked them away many years ago, and they would have escaped again if we had not defeated Sombra. Why would Radiant have control over them? Why would she want to harm us?”

“I would guess the amulet, being Sombra created it,” I huffed. “Though I have no idea how she might have released them. Nor entirely why she wants to harm you.”

Celestia looked to Cadence. “Has there been any odd things going on in the Empire since Sombra was defeated?”

“Well, now that you mention it,” Cadence said, ears twitching. “Ponies have seen mysterious shadows in the winds.”

“What kind of shadows?” Shiny asked.

“Ones that send a chill down the spine,” Cadence said. “Some have even started panicking thinking it is the windigos, back to take their revenge. But then, two ponies have gone missing as well, both unicorns, and we still haven’t found them.”

“Sounds like last time,” Celestia said, barely above a whisper. “But you must be mistaken on who is leading them. Radiant Hope was a good pony,” she huffed. “As for a second amulet, I can see that being possible. Sombra was an evil pony, he would do anything to get what he wanted.”

“Most ponies would do anything for love,” Chrys grunted. “She claimed she still loves him, perhaps this is her way of paying back those who hurt him.”

That was a good point. “From what she said, she still loves Sombra.”

“She did seem that way before, mind control I always thought,” she sighed. She looked down at me again. “Why come to me with this? After what you did at the wedding, I would have figured you would be one to join the side of whomever this unicorn is.”

“Can’t a changeling change?” I growled. “Besides, she is murdering ponies. A dead pony is of no use to us.”

“Then why, may I ask, did you tell your changelings to kill so many of my little ponies?” Celestia frowned.

“I did no such thing!” I yelled, breathing heavily through my nostrils. “I gave a direct order for no ponies to be killed. Their love collected sure but not to the extent of killing anypony.”

"Exactly,” Chrys snorted, though her voice sounded worried. “There was no reason to kill them.”

“Di-did they really die, auntie?” Cadence asked, her voice hoarse and eyes widened.

“Yes, dear Cadence. I’m sorry I have kept that from you these past two years. After you had Luna erase the worst of the memories, you recovered so well,” Celestia smiled softly at her. “I couldn’t bear for you to relive the pain.”

“Bu-but how? How has nopony else heard of this?” Shiny yelped. “I was at the wedding, I read every single article that came out about it afterward. How do you hide the death of so many ponies?” Tears fell from his eyes, and he shook his head, taking a small step backward.

“H-how many died anyway?” I asked.

Celestia calmly looked at Shiny, then back at me as she frowned. “Forty-two ponies died that day, and many more suffered lasting injuries, both physical and mental. You caused a lot of harm that day Chrysalis, even if you didn't mean to.”

“B-but how? How did they break through a direct order?” Chrys hissed. “When I get my hooves on Danaus and Morpheus….”

“As for why hardly anypony knows, Luna and I are to blame for that,” she gazed at each of us, then lowered her head, taking in and letting out a deep breath. “We didn’t want anypony getting hurt going to look for your kind in revenge,” she said, eyes narrowed but sad looking. “So the only ones told, and allowed to keep their memories of such, were the families of those that were lost, or the doctors who worked to try to save them. They were sworn to secrecy, and to not go out to find you.”

“No, no, NO!” Shiny yelled, stamping a hoof on the ground. Tears fell freely down his face now. He bit his lip, eyes closed as he shook his head. Twisting around, he galloped away from us, slamming the doors open as he left the throne room.

“Shiny!” I yelled but he was already gone. “Shiny,” I whispered, lifting a hoof after him and lowering my ears.

“I knew he couldn’t handle all of this for long,” Chrys sighed. “Though I didn’t expect him to just run away like that. Guess he couldn’t handle the truth. Ugh, how stupid was I to think we made a flawless attack? We will fix this though, to the best of our abilities.”

What were we to do now? I turned back around, to see both Cadence and Celestia staring at me. I scowled, “hiding such a thing from your own ponies,” I snorted. “See what that kind of thing does?”

“For Shiny, yes, but not all would react as he did,” Celestia said quietly, rising and walking over to come and stand beside Cadence and me. “As for your friend, I don’t believe it would be a good idea to release him. He caused too much harm.”

“So you would rather slowly starve him to death?” I hissed. “I thought you ponies were above killing, especially you Celestia!” I pointed a hoof at her, shaking my head, trying to stop thinking of Shiny’s fleeing form. “Isn’t it always you proclaiming there are better ways to deal with your enemies than kill them? Even look at the recent enemies you have fought. Nightmare Moon, Discord, hay even me! Did you kill us? No!”

Celestia sighed. “I understand where you are coming from Chrysalis, and you are right, I hate killing. Such a waste of life and potential.”

“Then let him go,” I pleaded. “Surely he hasn’t done anything bad enough to warrant such a horrid death?”

“He almost killed a pony, Chrysalis,” Celestia said, putting a hoof to my shoulder. “The mare he drained is still in Canterlot Hospital in a coma. Our doctors are doing everything they can for her but after nearly two months they are losing hope, as are her family.”

“Buck, I was afraid it would be something like that,” Chrys groaned. “He’s always been one of my most loyal changelings, he must have been starving or it was an accident.”

“He’s a good changeling Celestia,” I said softly. “What happened was likely an accident, and I’m positive he was not among my changelings that killed anypony at the wedding, for he was near my side the entire time. I had him in charge of the patrol that entered the throne room.” Or so Chrys informed me.

“That doesn’t change what he did,” she said, shaking her head. “If I was to let him go, and the mare dies, her family will not be happy with me for releasing her murderer. Please try to understand.”

“No, you need to understand,” I huffed, shoving away her hoof from my shoulder. “He has a child who needs him, our child.”

“So he is your mate, is that what this is about?” Celestia asked.

“Kind of,” I said, rubbing my forehead. “I do care deeply for him, he has been by my side for many years. I then… had a bad night and he comforted me through it. Now, we have a little filly who needs her father.”

“Please let him go auntie,” Cadence said. “If the mare dies, I’ll take the blame for his release.”

Celestia took a deep breath, then let it out slowly. “Very well, we shall see about it, but if I release him he will not be allowed back in Canterlot in any form, understand?” She looked at me.

“Oh thank Celestia, literally,” Chrys chuckled. “We have a chance, let’s not break it.”

“Yes, I understand. Thank you, Celestia.”

“But his fate can wait a little longer,” Celestia said. “I want to hear more about what you have discovered.”

“So she seems to believe us,” Chrys sighed. “At least enough to let us continue.”

“Of course,” I said. What was I going to do about Shiny though? I had to go find him, explain things. Of course, finding Danaus and Morpheus should come first.

“They were both on the front lines, so to speak, during the attack,” Chrys said. “If anyling knows what happened, they likely will.”

“Cadence, will you escort Chrysalis’s friends to their own rooms in the east wing, and then meet us in the conference room?” Celestia asked, giving Cadence a small smile. “We’ll grab Luna on the way and I’ll send Twilight a message.”

“Of course,” Cadence grinned and trotted out of the room.

I looked back to Celestia. Would she believe everything that had happened? What Radiant had told me? Or even worse, what would Twilight think! I shook my head, smiling at her. Things were just starting to get interesting.

Canterlot- Shiny Whistle

I just couldn’t take it anymore, I had to run. Tears falling down my cheeks I burst through the second door, nearly bowling the guard there over as I raced past. “Shiny, what’s wrong?” I heard Nemoria ask but was past them moments later without saying a word.

Thrusting open the main doors with my magic, I continued running, shouts of shock and complaint following me as I reached the castle gates and plowed through the crowd. It just couldn’t be true, it couldn’t! Yet as much as I tried to deny it, nothing would change the truth. Three times, three ponies, had confirmed it. Princess Celestia wouldn’t lie about something that hurt her little ponies. She might hide it from those who didn’t need to know, but- I groaned, closing my eyes.

“So where are we going in such a rush?”

I slid to a halt, barely avoiding tumbling into a fountain. Looking above me, I saw Discord grinning down at me, a small beaver in his taloned paw as he used its tail to file his nails. He snapped the beaver away and floated down to me, wrapping his tail around me.

“What do you want Discord?” I sniffed, wiping away the tears from my cheek. “I’m not in the mood for your shenanigans.”

“Aw, did I miss something important?” he frowned, patting me on the head. “I am dearly sorry. After I followed the guards chasing that changeling for a bit, I grew bored. So I went for a little snack at Twilight’s.” He snapped his fingers, producing a bowl full of shredded paper. From the looks of it, the paper had come from some book.

“Twilight won’t be happy about you ruining one of her books.”

“Nonsense!” he chuckled, spearing some pieces on a fork and popping them into his mouth. “Mmmm I love a good mystery!”

“Can we do this later Discord?” I groaned, turning away from him. It was then I realized where we were. In my blind run, I had come just a few blocks away from home. To my right were the bluish-purple cobblestones that marked Amethyst Avenue. “If you want to know what happened, go ask the others,” I snorted, trotting down the avenue.

“And miss whatever chaos you might be heading into?”

“I’m not heading into any, just going home.” Mother was probably worried sick about me, Dew as well. I guess now I could go look for her.

“Well, I shall accompany you then,” with a poof of magic he appeared in a formal black suit and red tie, holding onto a golden cane that strangely looked like Princess Twilight’s head. “Do I look fine for meeting your family?” He asked, stepping down the lane, tapping the cane against the ground.

“You’re not meeting them. This day has already gone bad enough.” I pushed past him, my breath labored from my hard run. My cracked rib had started hurting again, but I trotted on.

“Did Chryssy break up with you?” He asked, giving me a pouty face. “You should know changeling and pony relationships rarely work out. Something about sucking the love out of them and all,” he chuckled.

I sighed, putting a hoof to my forehead. “Are you just here to torment me? You know we were never a couple.” No matter how much I might have wanted it. “If you must know, I just learned the truth about the wedding.”

“What, you mean that some ponies died? Come on, everypony knows that.” He rolled his eyes. “Even me, and I was trapped in the gardens playing statue at the time.”

“Wait, playing- never mind,” I shook my head and continued walking. “And no, not everypony knew. I didn’t.”

Discord gasped, dropping his bowl on my head where it twirled around on my horn, the bits of paper inside scattering along the road. I tossed the bowl off, glaring at him. “Sorry dear Shiny,” Discord frowned, pinching the bowl between two fingers and bringing it up to his mouth, biting a piece out of it.

I just rolled my eyes at him and turned a corner. Just a few houses down I could see my home. It hadn’t changed much since I was last here. A cozy two-story building, walls painted a creamy yellow, shutters a light brown. The door, cherry red, still had the sign my mother had made for it years ago hanging upon it. Painted in the colors of Celestia’s mane, it read Celestia Bless This Home. So much for that, I snorted, what kind of blessing had we had lately?

“So this is your home?” Discord grinned behind me. “Nice, but I think it could use a little more-”

“Don’t you dare!” I yelled, stomping my hoof and glaring at him. “It is perfect as it is.”

“Fine, fine, if you don’t want my special touch,” he looked away, folding his forearms together. “You going to go in?”

“Give me a minute,” I said, pausing by the door. How would they react? After all, I was coming home alone, without Dew. Would they blame me for her disappearance? She was my father’s ‘baby filly’ after all, the one he had always wanted. Sure he loved Velvet and me, but Dew was special to him.

I looked up in surprise as Discord knocked on the door. Glaring at him, he just gave me a confused look. “What?” he said, giggling as he stepped down the stairs as the door began to open.

Taking in a deep breath, I stepped forward, prepared for the worst. Standing at the open door, one of her yellow-orange wings still holding the doorknob, red-orange mane tied in a bun at the top of her head, stood my mother. I gave a hesitant smile, “Hello, mother.”

“Shiny, oh my colt!” She glided down the stairs, wrapping her forehooves and wings around me in a tight hug. “Oh Shiny, you’re home!” She gushed, nuzzling against my neck as she hugged me. “I’ve missed you so much.” Pulling away, she tucked her wings against her barrel, her eyes glittering with tears.

“Yeah, I am,” I whispered, ears lowered. I hated making my mother cry.

“What happened to you? Why did you leave us honey?” she sniffed.

“I’d rather not talk about it right now mom.”

“Oh, of course, of course. You’re probably exhausted.” She reached a wing over and brushed it against my side. “And look at you, covered in dirt and dust. Why don’t you come in and get cleaned up while I finish supper?”

“Okay mom,” I sighed and followed her inside.

Mother let out a scream, and I jolted forward, to see Discord sprawled on our couch in the living room, flipping through a Mare’s Day magazine. “Hello there, Mrs. Shiny’s mom,” Discord said, winking, then returned to the magazine. “Ooooh, ten sassy scarves for summer, I must read that article!”

Mother turned back to me, eyes crossed in confusion. “Is-is he here with you?”

“Kind of,” I sighed, facehoofing. “Mom, meet Discord, Discord, this is my mom, Dancing Mystery.”

“A pleasure to meet you, dear Madame Mystery,” Discord crooned, taking my mother’s hoof in his clawed paw and kissing it.

“Oh, right,” mother laughed hesitantly, pulling her hoof back against her cheek. “Nice to meet you too, Mr. Discord. Very nice ensemble you have there.”

“Why thank you!” he beamed, twirling the cane in the air. “See Shiny, at least somepony appreciates my taste in clothing.” He winked down at me.

I just shook my head at him. “I’m going to go take a shower,” I said, leaving the living room and heading out into the hallway. Poking my head back around the door-frame, I pointing a hoof at Discord. “And none of your funny business while I am gone!”

“ME?” Discord gasped, putting his lion’s paw to his chest. “Oh, I wouldn’t dream of it,” he chuckled.

“Hurry back Shiny,” mother said, looking over at Discord as she took a step back.

“Will do,” I said and trotted out into the hall. Right ahead of me were the stairs to the second floor and my bathroom. I climbed up, turned to the right passing our music room and Dew’s room, and trotted inside the bathroom. Both Dew’s and my towels were hanging on the rack, Velvet’s tossed into a corner on the floor as I walked inside. The blue floor tile sparkled, the mirror was smudged a little though.

Stepping into the shower, I smiled to see my shampoo was exactly where I had left it, though I had to pick up Velvet’s nearly empty bottle from the bottom of the tub. Turning the taps with my magic, I sighed as the warm water cascaded down on me. It felt like it had been forever since I had a proper shower, even if it had only been a few days. Closing my eyes, I let it fall over me as I thought back to the events of the day.

So much had happened in such a short time. My heart pounded with each thought of Chryssy. Why didn’t she tell me what really happened at the wedding? Why had she played dumb to what her changelings had done? Sure she might not have been involved with the killings, as far as I knew anyway, but she had kept insisting they hadn’t killed anypony.

I levitated my shampoo bottle over and lathered some of it into my hooves, working over my face fur first and then moving to my chest. How could I have been so blind? Everything other ponies had said about the changelings, them being killers, seemed to be true. Except for the foals, Nemoria and Acronicta were innocent, I was sure. Would that last for long though? With their training, they could become killers like the rest of them.

Levitating over a scrub brush, I lathered it up with shampoo and began to work on my back and flanks, wincing as it scraped over my bruises and cracked rib. A tear fell as I thought of Chryssy, her beautiful eyes, hilarious laugh, how she saved me from the Umbrum back in Hoofville. Could she really be this killer everypony thought of her as? Maybe she didn’t know about her changelings that killed other ponies. After all, she had been inside the entire time, right? Would they have hidden such a horrible truth from her this long?

Finishing on my back, I poured a great dollop of shampoo on my tail and worked it into the roots. I couldn’t leave things this way, without saying goodbye. Apatelodes had been right, I wasn’t suited for this task after all. But, what was I to do? She probably hated me even more now, running away from her, when I had been there to help. I cringed, my chest hurting at the thought of never seeing her again. Colt was I such a foal. Running at the first sign of trouble.

I stood up carefully on my hind legs, using my forelegs to pour shampoo into my mane and lather it in. That was it, I had to go back. Chryssy had been good to me thus far, only feeding on me when I practically begged her to, keeping me safe while I kept her company. I had to let her explain. If I wasn’t already too late. “Please Princess Celestia, please don’t lock her up,” I sighed. Turning off the water and stepping out of the tub, I wrapped my towel around me.

That’s when the idea struck me. Discord! He for sure could help me out against Celestia if she had locked Chryssy up! I quickly dried off and hung my towel back up in its place. Looking into the mirror, I grabbed a comb and began to run it through my mane.

A few minutes later I turned to the door, opening it and stepping out into the hall. I would finish this mission. Now was not the time to abandon the one I loved. As weird as it may seem, I still cared for her. Even if she never shared my feelings, even if she ended up hooking up with Leptostales again, I would return to her side. With that thought, I started for the stairs.

Author's Notes:

FINALLY! The chapter I have been waiting to write for MONTHS, hay maybe even a year! *forgets when she first got this far in planning...* Longest chapter to date as well. Go me! :D And a few references just because I could. One deals with an old version of a very popular movie that came out recently. *coughcough* As usual, have characters featured from MuckyHusky's OC's- Midnight and Shielded are his characters this time. And of course, the wonderful Meep the Changeling has her 'Twinkleshine' as well. I love you guys! My stories wouldn't be as awesome as they are without you. *hugs them both tight.*
Anyway, comment, critique, like, and tell me what you all thought of that surprise in the second to last episode of Grimm! *cough* If any of you are also fans of the show, heh *cough*

Small edits made 7/12/21

Family Meeting

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Changeling Castle- Apatelodes

The sun was just beginning to set as I made my way back to my rooms. Spot had gone off to the library to do some more reading, leaving me to walk alone. The others had not been happy with my lack of information from the book, which I couldn’t blame them. What had Hope done to stop Sombra? What did she do that gave the princesses the chance to take him down? Perhaps the only way to find out would be to ask her, and I doubt she’d tell. For one, she hadn’t been in the Crystal Empire when it disappeared and as such, must be dead and gone.

Just as I was passing the window I had first spotted that mysterious unicorn from, my emerald buzzed. I quickly pulled it out, hoping it was Chrysalis with some news that would calm the others down. “Hello?”

“Oh good, you finally answer,” I heard Morpheus snort.

“Is everything okay?” I asked. “Did you find our Queen and give her the emerald?”

“Oh yes, all that and more,” he groaned.

“Tell him,” Danaus grunted.

“What happened?” I glared at my emerald, even though I knew they couldn’t see.

“She knows! She knows,” Morpheus groaned.

“Knows? What the hay you talking about? What does she know?” I said. Was there something I was missing? “Please be more specific.”

“W-what happened at the wedding,” Danaus stuttered, yelping a moment later.

I rubbed my forehead with a hoof. “Lots of things happened at the wedding Danaus,” I huffed.

“Ponyfeathers Apatelodes, you know what we mean!” Morpheus snarled. “She knows about the deaths!”

“Deaths? The only ones who died were our hivemates.”

“Are you that dense?” Morpheus yelled, Danaus shushing him.

“Calm down Morpheus, they’ll hear us,” Danaus whispered. “Apatelodes was inside for the attack, right?”

I nodded, “yes, I was near our Queen’s side nearly the entire time.”

“I don’t think he was in on the plan,” Danaus said softly.

“Oh buck,” Morpheus cursed.

“What plan?” I growled. “What did you do Morpheus?”

“It was all his idea!” Danaus yelped. “I told him she would find out eventually.”

“Morpheus?”

Morpheus let out a low growl. “Okay, yes it was my fault. But it kept us fed better than if I hadn’t done it!” I stood silent, waiting for him to continue. “I found a loophole in our Queen’s orders. ‘Gather love but don’t kill anypony’ she ordered us right?”

“Right.”

“Well, I took my patrol, and talked Danaus into taking his patrol into taking this as far as we could. Technically, none of us killed anypony.”

“And yet you say ponies died,” I said bluntly.

“Yes, but only after we were finished with them.” I swear I could almost hear him smile. “They were still alive when we left them on the streets or on the floors of the palace.”

“Bu-but I waited after my patrol drained some of the royal guards,” Danaus said. “A-and only a minute or two after we stopped feeding, they stopped breathing,” he sniffed. “I-I never wanted to kill them, I just wanted to help the hive!”

I let out a deep sigh, shaking my head. “And you have told our Queen all of this?”

“N-no we kind of ran away,” Danaus whispered. “Our Queen was already angry that Princess Cadence teleported us all away before she could help Aglais when the guards caught him. W-we didn’t want to anger her more.”

“You know she will just be even angrier with you for running away right?” I sighed.

“By the time she finds us, her anger will hopefully have abated some,” Morpheus snorted. “We do have other news for you though.”

“Oh?” What else could have happened since I last talked with them?

“That unicorn you saw outside the castle, our queen has found her identity. It is Radiant Hope.”

“Sombra’s Radiant Hope?”

“The very same. She ran into her in Ponyville.”

“Oh colt,” I groaned. “How the hay is she still alive?”

“No idea, but we’ll keep you posted. Our Queen is in the castle, supposedly talking to Princess Celestia now,” Morpheus said.

“Well hopefully she will let Leptostales go and we can figure all of this out. Anything else?”

“I think that is all,” Danaus said.

“Yes, nothing else to report,” Morpheus said. “Keep the hive safe Apatelodes.”

“You know I will, and Morpheus?”

“Yes?”

“Tell her sooner, rather than later,” I snorted.

“Will do. Over and out,” he said, and my emerald went dull.

No wonder the ponies hated us so much, if some had actually been killed. I sighed, put my emerald away and continued on towards my rooms. What else could go wrong?

“Apatelodes! Apatelodes!” A shrill yell came from behind me. I groaned, turning around to see Chioides and Crambus rushing toward me. They paused before me, faces a pale grey and ears flat against the back of their heads, nostrils flaring.

“What is it now Chioides?” I sighed.

“Apatelodes, U-Umbrum have been spotted circling the castle!” He yelled, making me cringe.

“Take it down a notch, I’m right in front of you!” I hissed. “Now, what is this about Umbrum?”

“D-dark cloudy ponylike figures have been sp-spotted circling the castle,” Chioides stuttered.

“They are huge!” Crambus said, shuddering.

“Where were they seen? How many have seen them?” I said, shaking out my wings behind me.

“This way,” Crambus said, and with Chioides on his tail, they hurried off back down the hallway I had just walked.

Taking a deep breath, I followed them back down to the second floor. Both had their wings and tails flat against them, breathing heavily. Near the last window before the music room a crowd of changelings had gathered, maybe thirty in total, with one or another looking out the window every few seconds only to jump back, wings quivering in fright.

“Okay, back up and let me through!” I growled, to which they quickly complied. I trotted over to the window, one hoof placed on the window frame as I looked out. Hovering above the trees maybe a hundred yards from the gate, was a shadowy creature. Like Chioides had said, it was vaguely shaped like a pony. Similar to Sombra in his dark clouded form we had heard about when he returned, its form wavering in the wind, wisps almost floating away here and there. Some strange moth-like wings kept it afloat.

It turned its head our way and let out a laugh, strangely loud for how far away it was. I whipped my head back and forth as other similar shadows flew past behind it, not staying in one place for long but circling us. There weren’t very many, half a dozen at most if they all passed by this window, but that was enough. I couldn’t suppress a slight shiver of my own, wings curling against my sides before I took a deep breath and turned away.

“What should we do?” Chioides asked, lowering his one ear, and bit his lip.

“Make sure the foals stay inside,” I said after a moment. “Any lessons that usually take place outside, if they can’t be held inside, are to be put on hold.” I looked out at those gathered around. Even with the weakened hive mind, I could taste their fear in the air. “Everyling do your best to stay calm. Our Queen is in talking to Princess Celestia, maybe even the other princesses as well, as we speak. We will figure out what to do about this threat.” I turned to look at Harran, one of our main gatherers of love. “Harran, how are we on stocked up love? How long can we survive on it and the ponies employed at the castle?”

Harran levitated some scrolls out of his bag, along with a quill, doing some quick figuring while those gathered watched nervously. Finally, he looked up at me. “With just the storage of love we could last maybe two weeks, with the ponies, if they stay on the regular schedule, around two months? But our supply of fresh food for both us and the ponies is low. I was just talking with Peazan earlier today and he was planning a trip to purchase more in a few days.”

I took in a deep breath, and let it out slowly. “Tell Peazan to take a dozen soldiers with him and leave first thing in the morning. I want them back as soon as possible, and to avoid those things as much as possible.” I pointed out the window at the one still watching us. Harran nodded and stuffing the scrolls back into his bag, was off. “As for everyling else, stay inside. We don’t entirely know what those things are capable of, and I will not have anyling getting hurt on my watch if I can help it!”

I looked to all those gathered, many still trembling in fear, and closed my eyes. “Just be smart everyling. We have always survived before, and we can continue to do so.” Looking back up at them I gave them a reassuring grin. “We’ve gotten through much worse than this. Now, return to your duties.” I shooed them away from the window, watching as they slowly walked away.

As the last of them disappeared behind the corner, I turned to look once more at the Umbrum staring into the castle. “You don’t scare me,” I hissed softly, then whipped around. Maybe I could do this. The others were getting used to me being in charge, and so far I had been able to help with their problems. We would solve this Umbrum problem. Sure they might be circling us, but that is all they had done. I stood up straight and trotted back up the stairs. Perhaps Chrysalis had been right in trusting putting me in charge after all. All I knew, was I would not let her down.

Shiny’s Home- Shiny Whistle

As I reached the stairs I took a deep breath, the smell of my mother’s cooking in the air: homemade tomato soup, grilled cheese sandwiches, and strawberry muffins, all my favorites. Her muffins were a secret recipe handed down for three generations and were the best muffins I had had, even in my travels. Quiet voices drifted from the kitchen, and as I reached the doorway I heard the laughter of Discord and my brother, Velvet Beat.

“Ah and here he is now,” Discord grinned, looking up as I walked through the door.

“Shiny!” Velvet yelled, jumping up from his seat and diving over the table at me, tackling me to the floor. He wrapped his wings around me, giving me one of his infamous bear hugs. “I’ve missed you, little bro.”

“A-and I you,” I gasped, wiggling under him. “But could you please let me up?”

“Oh, right, of course,” he chuckled, flapping his wings to lift him into the air, combing his long Mohawk back with one hoof.

I stood, grimacing at the pain in my broken rib, but stepped over to my chair and sat down. Discord sat in Dew’s regular seat, having changed out of his suit into a torn black t-shirt with a pony skull and crossbones on it, a spiked dog collar around his neck and his little floof of mane spiked up. “Trying to get in good with my brother?” I asked, frowning slightly at him.

“And it’s working too!” Velvet laughed, holding up a hoof to Discord, who brohoofed it with his lion’s paw. “Why didn’t you tell me you were friends with Discord? He’s awesome!”

“It’s kind of complicated,” I sighed, looking over at the stove, where mother was stirring the soup with one wing.

She set down the spoon, turned around, and trotted over to me, hugging me with one wing. “Feeling better Shiny dear?”

“A little yes, thank you mom. Dinner almost done?”

She nodded, “just waiting for your father to get home. Upper Crust hired him as the entertainment for an event she was holding. Should be done anytime now.”

“You going to tell us what you been up to, little bro?” Velvet asked, settling in his seat next to Discord.

I nodded. “As long as you tell me what this is about you wanting to join the guard? What about your band?”

“Oh, that,” Velvet’s ears fell, wings folding tight against him as he looked down at the tabletop. “Well, we kind of had a falling out,” he sighed, blinking in surprise when Discord snapped his fingers and produced a glass of chocolate milk in front of him. “Er, thanks Discord,” he said, lifting the glass with a wing and taking a sip.

“Anything for a member of my favorite band,” he chuckled. “Upgraded Frostbite, what a catchy name!”

“So what happened?” I asked. Mother just frowned and went back to the stove as Velvet took another sip.

“Well, it was kind of all my fault, or at least a large part of it,” he sighed, closing his eyes. “You know Soarin’ of course, right?”

“Who doesn’t?” I said. “He is a member of the Wonderbolts after all. Why?”

“During the winter when they are on break, Soarin’ has been playing with the band. He was one of our guitarists.”

“What?” I gasp, gaping at him. “H-how have I not known this? I go to most of your gigs.”

“Just the ones in Canterlot,” he said. “Soarin’ usually plays with us when we go to Manehatten. He lives there when not doing his Wonderbolts stuff.”

“Oh, okay but still what does that have to do with the band breaking up?”

“Don’t you read Canterlot Songwriter Shiny?” Discord tsked. “It was the main story a few months ago that Velvet was dating some mysterious guitarist.”

“Wait, so you and Soarin’…?”

“Yeah,” Velvet shrugged. “Soarin’ kept his identity secret while playing with us, but as we got to know each other well… things happened.”

I blinked in surprise. Of course, I had known Velvet liked stallions for a while, even if he often had mares all over him, he still preferred the former, but Soarin’? “Didn’t Soarin’ have a thing with Rainbow Dash?”

Velvet shook his head. “Soarin’ does swing both ways, but he and Rainbow were always just friends,” he sighed, lowering his ears. “Though part of that is why we broke up.” He raised the glass of chocolate milk, draining it, and slamming it down on the table. “One night a few weeks ago, I was coming back to Soarin’s house after a gig. I opened the door to his room, and bam there she was.”

“Rainbow Dash?”

“No, still a blue mare, but not Rainbow. Never did catch her name, but she was some tiny little thing. Could almost swear she was a filly, if it wasn’t for the rest of her being far more matured than any filly. They were going at it, and I well…. I just ran.” He sighed, lowering his ears and looking at the table.

The front door clicked open at that moment, and I looked into the entryway to see my father step through the door. He a dark purple unicorn, mane and tail a dark chocolate brown with eyes like milk chocolate, cutie mark a microphone with a star behind it. Father paused in the doorway of the kitchen, a bouquet of tulips held in his magic falling to the ground as he stared at me. “Shiny? Is that really you?”

“Yes father,” I grinned at him, standing, for him to race forward and wrap me in a hug. He let go a moment later, looking around the room, pausing on Discord in confusion. “Where is Dew?”

“Well father s-she’s not with me,” I bit my lower lip, ears lowering as he looked back over at me.

“Dinner’s ready!” Mother trilled, trotting over with a plate full of grilled cheese sandwiches on one wing and a plate full of strawberry muffins on the other. She placed them on the table, then leaned in to kiss father on the cheek.

“But what about−” father said as mother put a hoof to his muzzle.

“After dinner dear,” she smiled. “We have a guest after all.” Father sighed, but nodded, plopping down into his chair as mother brought us all steaming bowls of tomato soup and placed one in front of each of us. “Eat up! I hope you like soup Discord?”

Discord nodded, taking a spoonful and placing it into his mouth. “Delicious, dear Mystery.” He licked his lips and continued. Across from me Velvet swirled his spoon around in the soup, eventually starting in as well. Looking down at my own, I began to eat, not looking forward to our after dinner discussion.

As soon as the dishes were cleared away, everyone turned to me, including Discord. “You already know what happened, why are you looking at me like that?” I snorted at him, to which he just chuckled.

“Oh, I don’t know everything though,” he frowned. “Please, do tell me what I missed while you decided not to invite me for the fun.”

I sighed, shaking my head. “Fine, but please, no interruptions?” They all nodded. Just where to start? So much had happened.

“We won’t judge you Shiny dear,” mother said softly.

I took a deep breath, and let it out, closing my eyes, then nodded. Might as well start at the beginning. “It all started with the wedding,” I began, and told of them of all I had been up to. Mother gasped at the mention of going to look for the changelings, ears going down when I found them, their queen no less. Discord grinned at the mention of Princess Citheronia being born, eyes wide and nudging Velvet with the elbow of his lion’s arm, who just shook his head, turning back to listen.

The only one to make little reaction as I told of my time as a music teacher, heading out to search for the Queen’s friend, and our journey to Canterlot to request his release was my father. He just sat back in his chair, forelegs folded and staring at me expressionlessly. An ear would twitch every now and then, but even at the mention of finding out the truth from Princess Celestia and my running away, he didn’t react more than letting out a deep sigh.

The only part I left out of my tale, is my strong feelings for Chryssy. I knew father wouldn’t take it well, what with everything that had happened. Discord frowned at me when I skipped over my true feelings, but thankfully didn’t say anything. “… and well, that is how Discord and I came to be standing at our door this evening,” I finished, taking a sip from a cup of apple juice mother had grabbed for me around halfway through my story.

I glanced outside the kitchen window, to see it had gone dark long ago. Was Chryssy okay? It had been hours now since I left. At the sound of a cough, I looked back to my father to see he had finally unfolded his forelegs and set them hoof down on the table.

“So let me get this straight,” he said, a small frown appearing on his face. “After all the damage the changelings had done, both mental and physical, you risked your life to go find them. In the process, you caused your sister to worry about you and go off searching for you and now she is missing.” I cringed at his words. Truly I had not meant for Dew to follow me! “Not only that,” he continued, “but then you somehow befriended their queen and came on a crazy journey, leading her back to Canterlot disguised as Dew, let her feed off you, almost got KILLED by these strange shadowy ponylike creatures, and then ran home when you learned what that demon was really like?”

“She’s not a demon dad!” I yelled, pounding a hoof on the table.

“Sure sounds like it,” he yelled right back. “Her and her whole hive. I mean, does Princess Celestia even know she has ponies held captive there?” he yelled, holding up a hoof. “Or does she know HE,” he pointed the hoof at Discord, “is friends with her even after reforming?”

“Well they do say, friendship is magic,” Discord said, rolling his eyes to where they fell into his own cup of chocolate milk in front of him. He fished them out and popped them into his mouth, closing his eyelids, then opening them again winked over at my father, his eyes back in their sockets.

Father let out a groan, holding his left hoof to his head and shook it. “Missing the point,” he took a deep breath and sighed. “At least you got away from her Shiny, one less of my foals to worry about.”

“Maybe we should all get some rest,” mother said, wrapping a wing around father. “You had a long day working dear, and finding Shiny had come home is a big shock.” She nuzzled his cheek, getting an almost instant small grin from him.

“Sleep would be good,” he said, head lowering. “But,” he said, looking back up at me. “This is not over Shiny. You are in big trouble. Might be too old for me to ground you, but I−” he paused as mother kissed his cheek.

“Let him get some sleep before you yell at him, Smooth Solo,” she smiled. “He knows what he has done, but he has had a very trying day.”

“Yeah dad, he’s been gone for two months and the first thing you do is yell at him?” Velvet chimed in. “Can’t Shiny and I get some brotherly time before you chase him away again?”

Father shook his head, the hoof returning to his forehead. “Fine, let’s get to bed. Discord−” he looked over at the draconequus. “You can share rooms with Shiny for tonight.”

I gaped at my father. “What? Why with me?”

“Well he is your ‘friend’ is he not?” he said flatly.

“Well, yes but−”

“Come on Shiny, we’ll have lots of fun!” Discord chortled, snapping his fingers. A pair of yellow pajamas appeared on his form, while upon his hoof and clawed foot were two bunny slippers.

“Let’s make it a sleepover,” Velvet said. “I want to get to know my biggest fan,” he winked at Discord. “And of course, catch up with you Shiny.”

“Fine, let’s go,” I sighed.

“Tomorrow morning though Shiny, we will talk more about this obsession of yours,” father said, frowning as mother grabbed his foreleg and pulled him up.

I trotted over to my mother, wrapping her in a hug. “Thanks mom,” I whispered as I leaned in to kiss her cheek goodnight.

“Anytime dear,” she whispered, winking at me as she hugged me back. “Now you three have fun, but get some sleep as well!”

“Of course, Madame Mystery, I wouldn’t dream of keeping your sons up too late,” Discord crooned, kissing my mother’s free hoof and making her blush.

“Don’t make me regret letting you stay,” father growled, glaring at Discord.

“You won’t dad!” Velvet said, hugging both him and mother, also giving mother a kiss on the cheek, then led the way back upstairs. This was going to be a long night.

Author's Notes:

And hello again my wonderful readers! Sorry about the long wait on this chapter. Between finals, moving, and work it has just been hard finding time to write. But now we have some wonderful little fun, finally meeting Shiny's family (well, all except the real Dew.) Things are falling into place for the climax of the current act, which is where the story will truly earn the dark tag I have on it. (If it doesn't already feel like it deserves it...)
Lastly, with this chapter I have finally reached 100k+ in words! (counting the AN, as I think it does...) Wow I am just so excited to reach that milestone. As usual, comment, critique, make predictions, and I hope you enjoy and will continue on with me through the rest of the story.
Proofread by:
Meep the Changeling
muckyhusky
Yurick45

Royal Conversation

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Canterlot Castle-Queen Chrysalis

Celestia grabbed up two scrolls, a quill and some ink from beside her throne and began to write, her golden magic flowing across the page as she did so. With a wink, the scrolls disappeared a few moments later and she replaced the quill and ink near her throne. “There, Luna and Twilight have been notified. Come along, please.”

I followed beside Celestia as she calmly walked toward the back of the throne room. Pushing aside some curtains with her magic, she revealed another hallway. Stepping slowly inside, I turned around to see her follow me, dropping the curtain behind her and lighting up her horn, illuminating the dark hallway. “Why we going this way?” I asked, glancing over at her.

“Less ponies to see you, as well as quicker,” she said, glancing over at me before continuing on.

“Yeah, and the less to panic her precious little ponies,” Chrys sighed. “Really, be glad you became one of us and not one of them. Creatures that are prey scare so easily.”

That was a good point, throughout most of the show it seemed so many of them would just faint at the littlest problem or race away from the silliest dangers. I shook my head and followed the light from Celestia’s horn. We walked quietly through the dark passageway, the only sound the clip-clop of our hooves against the ground. She paused near another dark curtain, and turned to look at me.

“It would be wise for you to temporarily transform before we leave this hall. But,” she held up a hoof, a small frown on her face. “Not into Shiny Whistle’s little sister again, nor any other real pony. If you are able to use a unique form?”

“I am,” I said with a small snort, transforming into the yellow with blue mane Soaring Song I had constructed. “Will this do?” I asked, tucking my feathered wings against my barrel.

Princess Celestia nodded, “it will do. Come now, the other Princesses, except perhaps Twilight Sparkle, should be ready for us.” She pulled aside the curtain, waited as I stepped out of the passageway, and then dropped the curtain along with the light spell.

We had exited into a large, boxy hallway, a large potted plant stood next to us, with simple gold and midnight blue banners hanging on the walls between each room. Only four doors adorned the walls from our vantage point, each a simple pale blue.

I turned my head as the one to my right opened, and a tall, slim zebra mare stepped out. Dressed in a simple black and white maid’s outfit, she turned her bright blue eyes to us and gasped, dropping the feather duster she had been carrying in her mouth. “P-P-Princess Celestia! S-She is−” she paused with a hoof in the air, pointing at me.

“Seriously? Another one?” Chrys growled. “Maybe that stupid talent is more common than I thought.”

“Yes Zenovia, I know who my guest is,” Princess Celestia grinned at her, stepping forward and wrapping a wing around the zebra.

“G-guest?” she gasped, ears going flat against her head.

“Yes, my guest,” Celestia confirmed. “But I do thank you for watching out for me. Why don’t you head down to the kitchens and ask the chef for a slice of my Cloud Cake to calm you down?” she rubbed Zenovia’s mane gently, smiling as the zebra nodded.

“O-okay,” she said, then looked back over at me. “I’ll be keeping my eye on you, and for any of your minions!” she snorted, stomping a hoof before she trotted off.

“When did you find a zebra that could see through our disguises?” I asked, narrowing my eyes at Princess Celestia. “Especially one that doesn’t speak in rhyme?”

“Shortly after the wedding,” Celestia said, watching as the zebra made her way down the hall and around the corner. “Zenovia heard about what happened, and came to the castle to offer her services. She’s been a lot of help in sifting out your changelings that were employed at the castle. As for not speaking in rhyme, she has hated them since she was a foal, so speaks like you and I.”

I nodded. “I would hope you didn’t kill them all just for being what they are?” I growled.

Celestia shook her head, trotting in the opposite direction of the zebra. “No, against the wishes of many of my nobles,” she lowered her ears slightly, wingtips twitching. “Many of your changelings had been working in the castle for years, and I had rarely if ever gotten any complaints about them. I’m not a monster Chrysalis.”

“Then what did you do with them? Send them to the moon?” I snorted.

She chuckled, lifting a single hoof to cover her mouth. “You would be surprised how many think I do that. But no, it takes much power to send a pony to the moon. When they had done nothing wrong, there is no need to expend that kind of power.” She sighed, gazing over at me softly. “I sent them all home, back to your castle in the badlands. Though there were a few I allowed to stay.”

“What? Why the hay would she do that?” Chrys gasped.

“Why?”

“Because they had found love,” she said. “They had been here so long some of them had married. Of those, most had already told their spouse what they really were. As long as they behave, and were not part of the attack, it would be cruel to pull them from the ones they love.”

“Love? With ponies?” Chrys groaned. “Well, I guess if they have a good food source. Who would want to leave a tasty treat behind? But still, that’s not possible! Perhaps they are better infiltrators than Celestia thought,” Chrys chuckled.

I took a deep breath and shook my head. “I’m afraid that is not possible Celestia.” What was I saying? Though, with what had happened with Shiny, perhaps Chrys was right? Was I upset because we lost a good food source, or because of… something else? His love was very tasty, probably more so since it was directed at us and not some other pony. But did that mean I loved him back? Ugh, why was love always so complicated?

“Oh?” Celestia said, pausing in her hoofsteps. “You don’t believe your kind is capable of love?” She gazed over at me, a concerned, sad look on her face.

“In all my years, I have never experienced it,” I said softly, closing my eyes. “We are only able to lust after ponies or other creatures, and the nourishment they provide for us.”

Celestia stepped forward and put a wing around me, pulling me in close. I let out a little whinny of surprise, looking up at her. “I don’t believe a word of it,” she shook her head, giving me a small smile. “Cadence herself judged their feelings for the ponies they claimed to love, and came to feel the truth of their words.” She continued on down the hall, pulling me gently with her.

“Why is she being so nice to us all of a sudden?” Chrys growled. “Are we not her enemy? She can’t forgive us so easily. I can somewhat understand Mrs. ‘Princess of Love’ giving us a second chance so quickly, but Celestia? After what we did? Be careful, I smell foul play,” she snorted.

“Why are you being so nice to u− me?” I asked, lifting my own wings and pulling out of her embrace. Though it had been… nice.

“You came to me for help,” she said, tucking her wings back against her sides. “I might not trust you, nor your intentions, but I am trying to extend a hoof of friendship. Is that so wrong?” She paused by the far door in the hallway. “We are here, you ready?”

“Ready? Of course we are!” Chrys huffed. “We’ll set these ponies straight and get something done about that Radiant Hope. As for a hoof of friendship? Ponyfeathers!” She hissed. “We might be on their side for the battle, but that doesn’t mean we need to be friends. One does not become friends with their food, it just complicates things too much.”

“As ready as I can be,” I said, wings twitching.

Celestia opened the door, her golden magic pushing it wide for us. She stepped inside. Taking a deep breath, I followed.

The room was rather large, a mahogany table took up most of the space, chairs scattered around it. Enough for probably a hundred ponies. The walls were adorned with a giant map of the known world. Little pins placed here and there on it. My mouth dropped open in shock as I saw a few pins placed deep in the badlands, a little picture of a castle underneath them, with small villages surrounding it.

“They KNOW, HOW?” Chrys gasped. “Our castle, the villages we get much of our feeder ponies from, they know about it! Yet, haven’t done anything?”

“I see you are surprised by our knowledge of the changelings.”

I shook my head, turning to the sound of the voice as the door closed behind me, to see Princess Luna and Princess Cadence sitting at the far end of the table. Celestia joined them, gesturing me forward and to a seat between her and Luna.

“You may change to your own form now, Chrysalis,” Celestia said as I walked over silently, flabbergasted.

I took a deep breath, changed, and sat down, ears lowering at the glare Luna sent me. “Er, yes I am surprised,” I said to her. “If you have known all this, the villages near us, and our exact location−” I paused, glancing back up at the map. “Then why have you not acted on such information?” I looked back over at Celestia. “From all I know of you, you hate to see any of your little ponies in pain or suffering, but we have never seen or heard of a visit from you to protect them from us.”

“It is true we have not acted,” Luna said, turning to look at Celestia, who gave her a quick nod of her head. “Chrysalis, the reason we have let you be since we discovered your castle, is we have not had the forces to take you on, without resulting in the loss of many lives.”

“That and you have been rather quiet since your defeat,” Cadence said. “Even through what you did at my wedding, the lives that were lost,” she sighed, closing her eyes. “Once we received a count of how many changelings were in your hive, or a rough estimate, we knew neither Canterlot nor the Crystal Empire together had enough ponies to fight.”

“Why not enlist ponies then?” I asked.

“Are you trying to help them destroy us?” Chrys snorted. “Stop giving them ideas!”

“Like I said before,” Celestia said, “we wanted to keep the full truth of what happened away from the common pony. If we were to enlist them, then all would know the horrors.” She let out a deep sigh, “even those who had no fighting experience would have signed up, and many would have fallen. With greater numbers we might have been able to overwhelm you, but at too high of a cost.”

“So basically she was just being a coward, scared for her little ponies,” Chrys growled. “Well, so much the better. I bet she didn’t want to risk losing her precious Twilight either,” she chuckled. “We’ve taken on Twilight and her friends twice before, the wedding and during the Secretariat Comet. We could do it again if need be.”

The door to the room slammed open, an enraged Twilight Sparkle bursting through with her horn lit up, breathing heavily and her mouth in an angry scowl. “Chrysalis!” she yelled, glaring over at me. I gulped, heart pumping as she extended her wings.

“Twilight, calm down,” Cadence said sternly, getting up out of her chair to wrap a wing around the younger princess. “Chrysalis is here as our guest, not to attack.”

“Ponyfeathers!” Twilight growled. “Does she have you all under her spell again?” She stomped a hoof against the ground.

“I come in peace, Twilight,” I said softly. “I am not the enemy here today.”

“You will always be the enemy, after what you did to my brother!” She growled. “You expect me to just forget about all that happened? How you tried to steal my magic too?” Her cheeks were bright red in her anger.

Cadence wrapped her in a hug, nuzzling against her mane. “Please Twilight, give her a chance? Trust me, I’m not letting her anywhere near Shining.”

“Indeed, dear Twilight,” Luna nodded in agreement. “Thou forgavest me for my misdeeds as Nightmare Moon, did you not? As did my sister and our little ponies.”

“That’s different,” Twilight snorted, but I could tell she was calming down a little at least.

“Let her say what she has come to say, my little pony,” Celestia said softly, standing to trot over to Twilight and wrap her in a hug as well. “Then decide how you feel.”

Twilight took in a deep breath, putting a hoof to her chest and holding it out as she let the breath out, again and again until the red in her cheeks had faded. “Very well, I will let her explain herself,” she glared over at me, but trotted to the table, taking a seat next to the chair Cadence had been in.

“Thank you Twilight, I appreciate your willingness to give me a chance,” I said, smiling at her. She just turned away, watching as Cadence and Celestia returned to their seats.

“Now that we are all here, we may begin,” Celestia said, folding her forehooves on the table. “Chrysalis−” she was interrupted by the door once more slamming open, an out of breath unicorn stallion standing at the door.

“Auntie, I came as soon as I heard,” he said, breathing heavily. It took me a moment, but then I remembered him, Prince Blueblood. The tall white stallion’s usually perfect blond mane had a few strands hanging loose. A light sheen of sweat covered his fur, likely from running to get here. He took a few steps forward into the room, then stopped abruptly upon seeing me. His ears fell flat against his head and eyes wide, mouth open as he gasped in horror. “No, NO NOT YOU!” he yelled, looking around the room frantically. “I don’t want to be put in a pod again!” He flipped around to smack right into the door frame, his muzzle hitting it with a crack as he tumbled backwards, sprawled out on the ground, unconscious.

“Seems he remembers us well.” Chrys cackled, “Oh how fun it was to tease that bumbling fool. Too bad he turned out to not be as important as I thought. Royal by blood alone, and because of such, a spoiled colt!” I couldn’t help letting out a little chuckle of my own, only to receive a glare from Twilight.

“It’s not funny!” she snorted, watching as Celestia went over to check on him.

“He will have a bad bruise, but I think he will be fine besides that,” she said, looking out into the hallway. A young pegasus stallion guard, orange with a blue mane, poked his head inside.

“Ouch! What did he get scared of this time?” he smirked.

“Me,” I said, winking at him.

“Wha−?” he yelped, jumping back and staring at me wide eyed. “Q-Queen Chrysalis? What the hay are you doing here?”

“Aww he remembers us!” Chrys crooned. “He was with Shining Armor a few times when we were disguised as Cadence. Caught us in the act once, but a little bite and mind manipulation made him forget to mention it to anypony. I hear he has a crush on dear Twilight now, the fool will never win that bookpony’s heart.”

So we knew Flash Sentry? Well that certainly wasn’t in the show, but I could roll with it. “Hey handsome, glad to see you remember me,” I giggled, which made him blush. “Don’t worry, I’m not here to steal your captain this time.”

“Oh, well er− that’s good!” he laughed hesitantly. “Um… so you wanted me to help him, right?” he asked, turning to Celestia to see her staring at him. “What?”

“You already know Chrysalis?” she asked. Flash nodded his head. They paused for a moment, looking at each other, before Celestia nodded. “Yes Flash, please see he gets taken care of.”

“Of course, Princess,” he said, bowing. He tossed one last glance at me before picking up Blueblood’s forehooves and wrapping them around his neck, adjusting the unicorn to be partially on his back. With that, he dragged the unconscious prince out the door.

Celestia closed it behind him and looked to me, the other princesses following her gaze. “It seems you have more to tell us than you planned.”

“Oh come on, that was all two years ago!” Chrys huffed. “Does it really matter anymore as long as they all came back in one piece?”

“Perhaps,” I sighed, nodding. What other things would I learn Chrys did that didn’t make it on the show, now that we had made it to Canterlot? “You were saying? Before we were humorously interrupted.”

“Tell me everything you did to my brother!” Twilight snapped, stomping a hoof against the table.

“Shining already told you what happened Twilight,” Cadence said. “Anything he might have skimmed over was probably for your protection.”

“Or hers,” Twilight snorted.

“Either way, there are more pressing matters to address, than the goings on of years gone,” Luna said calmly.

“Well, well, somepony seems to understand,” Chrys said. “And to think I doubted her. Too bad she missed all the fun at the wedding. Pressing matters in Yakyakistan if I recall? Didn’t let her return until that evening.”

“Thank you Luna,” I smiled at her. “You are right, while what happened at the wedding is… concerning for someponies,” I turned to look at Twilight. “Dealing with that can wait until present matters are dealt with.”

“Go on,” Celestia nodded, returning to her seat.

“How do we know we can trust her?” Twilight asked, pointing a hoof at me.

“I came here of my own free will, did I not?” I snorted. Colt, Twilight was making it hard for me to like her, even though I was a lot like her when human. Not that I could blame her, but still! “I don’t have to give you the information I know.”

“Or you will just give us false information. How do we know you are not working with this pony Princess Celestia mentioned in her letter?”

I groaned, putting a hoof to my forehead. “Look, Twilight, I don’t want to join her,” I held out the hoof and stomped it against the table. “Just, let me say what I have to say, then judge me how you will. Colt, I try to do something good for once…”

Twilight opened her mouth to go on, but Cadence lifted a hoof in front of it. Twilight stared at her for a moment, but then nodded, wing feathers rustling.

“Now, from what Cadence tells me, both you and she know of the Umbrum?” I said, turning to Twilight, who nodded. “And I know you know of them,” I glanced between Celestia and Luna, who also nodded. “Then you know why I can’t join her.” I paused, thinking of all Chrys had told me of those dark times one thousand years ago. “They are the opposite of us changelings, feeding off of fear. That is what gives them their power. If the world is filled with fear, then we changelings starve.

“Now, let me start from when Radiant Hope’s threat first appeared a few weeks ago, to my royal guard…”

All three nodded. “Continue then, Chrysalis,” Celestia said. “Then we can see what action we must take.”

Velvet’s Bedroom- Shiny Whistle

With Velvet’s room being the bigger, we decided to have the ‘sleepover’ there. Though I wasn’t much in the mood for such things. Grabbing some pillows and blankets from my own room, we entered Velvet’s.

His walls were painted an icy blue, pictures of bands he liked scattered across it: The Beach Colts, Arctic Timberwolves, Metallicolt and others, even one of his own band on the back of his door, Upgraded Frostbite.

His drum set rested in the corner by the window, a white sheet draped over it. One small bookshelf was against the wall at the foot of his bed, filled mostly with back issues of rock magazines, sheet music and records. Besides that, a simple bed with dark green blankets, a small nightstand, and a record player were really all that was in it.

With a snap of his fingers, Discord brought forth a hammock, swinging from the ceiling with a pillow and blanket in it. He flew up to it and stretched out, his pony hoof dangling out the side.

“Just make yourselves comfortable,” Velvet said, trotting over to flip through his records. “What you want to listen to?”

“Oooh how about Canterlotian Mares?” Discord chuckled, rolling over in his hammock to look down at Velvet. “It has been such a long time since I heard that one! You know,” he whispered, a big gleaming smile on his face. “It was Princess Celestia’s favorite when she was younger!” he chortled, almost falling out of his hammock as he rolled over.

I sighed as I put my blanket and pillow by the window, setting things up, and plopped down. My ears twitched toward Velvet and Discord as Velvet grabbed out the right record and placed it in the player, adjusting the needle, and letting it go. The soft beat filled the silence of the room, as Discord snapped his fingers along with it.

Manehattan mares are chic
Their fashion none compare
Appaloosan mares, and that friendly talk
Sends me swoonin’ when I’m out there.

While Discord and Velvet listened to the music, I curled up on my pillow looking outside. The moon was waning now, but still mostly full, brightening up the small garden my mother kept behind the house. The leaves on the small apple tree a silver-blue. I opened the window a crack and set my muzzle on the window frame, a cool breeze blowing through my mane.

In Tall Tale farmer’s daughters take you for a moonlit flight
And the Crystalians in the cold and ice
Can keep their coltfriends pleased all night.

I wish they all could be Canterlotian
I wish they all could be Canterlotian
I wish they all could be Canterlotian mares.

Luna had really made this night a beautiful one, the stars almost seemed brighter than usual. Was that a bad sign? Did she do so because they locked up Chryysy and wanted to celebrate? Would she really get the axe? Hearing Discord and Velvet laughing, I turned away from the window to see Discord snapping his fingers and changing Velvet’s mane into a rainbow afro, another snap turned it into a tangle of snakes, yet another replaced his mane with a slice of pumpkin pie.

Las Pegasus has bright sunlight
And the mares fly through the air
I love a Prench bikini on Hoofwaii Island
Dolls by a cloud bank resting there.

I shook my head as Discord took the slice of pie and swallowed it in one gulp. Wasn’t he worried about Chryssy? Or the others? Colt, I had left Nemoria and Acronicta all alone with Twinkleshine! Were they okay? Had the princesses tossed them into the dungeon too? What about Morpheus and Danaus? Wherever they had run off to.

I’ve flown all around Equestria
And I’ve met so many types of mares
Yeah, but I couldn’t stop far from Canterlot,
To return to the best mares in Equestria.

“Shiny? You okay?” Velvet asked, walking over to me. Looking up at him, I saw in place of his mane Discord had now placed sour gummy candy strings, in streaks of blue and red. “Like my new do?” he smiled softly, then put a hoof to my shoulder when I just looked away.

“I− nothing Velvet, just tired I guess,” I sighed. Not like I could tell him, he would probably tell mother and father.

“Oh come on, don’t you trust your brother Shiny?” Discord chuckled, ruffling my mane with his lions paw. “You’re parents are asleep and the door is closed.” He snapped his fingers, and I watched as a giant soap bubble appeared around the three of us. “There, now tell him what you left out of your story to mommy and daddy.”

“You didn’t tell them everything?” Velvet asked, then let out a laugh, patting Shiny on the back. “Did you do something bad while you were gone?” he gasped, ears going partway down. “No, you know where Dew is and don’t want to tell dad because she did something bad and is now hiding out so Dad will always think of her as his baby filly?”

I glared over at Velvet. Where did he get such crazy ideas? “No Velvet, I really don’t know where she is. The truth is− well… I’m in love with her.”

“With Dew? Our sister?”

“NO!” I groaned, putting a hoof to my forehead. “With the changeling queen, Chrysalis.”

Velvet dropped his hoof from my back, jaw dropping as he stared at me in shock. “Well… I… guess we all have things others might think crazy?” he said, giving me a sheepish smile. “Why?”

“Why?”

“Yes, why are you in love with her?” he asked, plopping down on the carpet beside me. Discord brought his hammock into the bubble, attaching it near the top and relaxing above us.

“I would like to know that as well,” he said. “I’ve heard you love her scent –by the way, great choice on that, she does smell divine doesn’t she?” he chuckled. “But there must be something more to it than that?”

“O-of course there is!” I snorted. Velvet and Discord watched me, waiting for my reply. What else did I like about her? She was beautiful, cared about her subjects, had saved my life! But there was something else… “I− there is something about her I can’t quite put my hoof on,” I said softly. “She is still very much the mare I first met at the wedding, the one I wanted to find out more about, but−”.

“Yes? Do continue,” Discord grinned, ears wiggling as he gazed curiously at me. “Well, I feel there is something much more behind the mare she lets everypony see. It intrigues me. Of course beyond that, she seems to be developing feelings for me too. Or- or maybe I am just crazy,” I laughed, shaking my head.

“So she loves you too?” Velvet asked. “I thought changelings couldn’t love?”

“I’m not sure of that anymore Velvet, either way. All I know is I came home to Canterlot to help her, and when she needed me most, I ran away,” I sighed, looking at the ground.

“Seems running away from our problems runs in the family?” Velvet chuckled darkly. “It might be too late for me with Soarin’, I haven’t even heard from him in a while.” He looked up, wrapped his hooves around me, and hugged me close. “But I think with Discord’s help, we can make things right for you.”

“You mean you are not against it?” I gasped, looking between the two of them. I hugged Velvet back, pulling away a few moments later.

“Chryssy is my friend too Shiny,” Discord chuckled. “And as Fluttershy is always telling me, it is a good thing to help your friends to be happy,” he said then booped me on the nose.

“Dad is the one who totally hates changelings, not me,” Velvet smiled. “Even after you told us about what they did at the wedding… well maybe I am just asking for trouble but− if one of us deserves a chance at true love, why not you?”

“So, dear Shiny, what is your plan?” Discord asked, leaping from his hammock to curl up around Velvet and me.

“Well, I need to make sure Chryssy is okay first,” I said. “And if the princesses have locked her in the dungeons, I will do all in my power to free her!” I stomped a hoof on the carpet. “This time, I will not leave her again.”

“Want me to deal with this other changeling that she’s after?” Velvet asked. “Take him somewhere else so he won’t hurt your chances?” he pounded his two forehooves together, wings spreading out behind him.

“No,” I shook my head. “I want things to be fair. After all, he has a foal that needs him.”

Velvet nodded, reaching up to one of the sour gummy strings he had as a mane and pulling it out, chewing on it. “Well then, we’ll just have to make sure you win her heart over him. He might have a child with her, but well−” he let out a yawn, covering his mouth with one hoof. “Somehow we will get you back to Canterlot Castle tomorrow, right Discord?”

Discord nodded, rubbing his chin as he stared at me. “Yes, yes we shall.” He snapped his fingers, the bubble disappeared and his hammock was once again connected to the roof. Another snap and Velvet’s mane was back to its normal Mohawk. He blinked in surprise as I tossed my hooves around him and Velvet, giving them both a hug.

“Thanks for being understanding. I know my feelings are… odd,” I grinned.

Velvet ran a hoof through my mane, mussing it up. “Hey, what else are big brothers for? We better get some sleep, we’ll want to be up before dad, and he is usually up at dawn.”

I nodded, nestling down in my blankets as Velvet turned off the light. The pale moonlight shone through the window, forming a little patch beside me as I watched Velvet crawl into bed. Discord hopped up into his hammock, sighing as it swung back and forth.

It looked like things were about to turn around. My brother was on my side for this, and though it seemed strange, I was glad to have his support. “Stay strong Chryssy,” I whispered, looking out at the moon. “I will return.” With that, I turned over and closed my eyes.

Conference Room- Queen Chrysalis

The princesses all stared at me quietly as I finished. I covered my muzzle as I let out a huge yawn. What time was it? It felt like I had been talking for hours.

Celestia was the first to speak, clearing her throat to get the others attention. “You have been rather busy as of late, Chrysalis. Your tale is astonishing.” She lowered her ears, letting out a sigh. “Poor Radiant, even with Sombra gone, she is still suffering from his choices.”

“Suffering?” Chrys yelled. “I wouldn’t call what she has done ‘suffering’. She has certainly been enjoying it!”

“What if it isn’t Radiant Hope?” Twilight asked. “How could she have survived this long as a unicorn? Sombra’s diary even said his spell would be his greatest revenge on her, that he developed it because of her betrayal.”

“Could that be why she still lives?” Chrys said. “Was Sombra’s spell to make her live forever, filled with guilt?”

“Well if not her, then it is a very close look-alike,” I said softly. “And what are the chances of a second pony getting such a powerful cutie mark? Sure everyday ones like cooking or all those ponies who have hourglass cutie marks. But a mark that signifies one can heal any wound?”

“Thou makest a good point Chrysalis,” Luna nodded. “I see little reason not to believe this pony is who she says she is, even if she is far different from the Hope my dear sister and I recall.”

“S-she could be a changeling in disguise?” Twilight said, grinning sheepishly.

“If so, why would she go after her own queen?” Cadence pointed out.

“I would know if she were from my hive,” I said, shaking my head. “We all have a certain scent, more a magical one than physical, which signifies us to one another. Ponies can’t sense it, though some zebras can.”

“Then we must take this threat seriously,” Celestia said firmly. She turned to look at Cadence. “Has Shining Armor arrived back in the Crystal Empire yet?”

Cadence shook her head. “I haven’t received a message from him yet. But he was to check on the alicorn amulet the moment he returned.”

“Good, let us know what he discovers,” Celestia said.

“Of course Auntie,” Cadence smiled softly.

Celestia turned to Twilight. “Gather your friends together, my dear student. Prepare the elements−”

“We put them back into the Tree of Harmony, Princess Celestia,” Twilight said, blushing brightly. “Er, sorry to interrupt.”

“Wait, they got rid of the elements?” Chrys gasped. “Oh this is delicious, they have nothing to protect themselves from us then! But… then that means they lost their greatest weapon against Hope as well,” she growled.

“Thank you for reminding me Twilight,” Princess Celestia said, patting the blushing Twilight’s hoof. “We’ll think of something else to send after her. Until then, perhaps it is best we all get our rest.”

“Yes, it is very late,” Luna nodded. “I have already raised the moon while we conversed, and most shall already be in their beds.”

“What about her?” Twilight asked, pointing a hoof at me.

“What about me?” I snorted.

“Chrysalis is our guest, Twilight, and will be treated as such,” Celestia said, giving Twilight a firm look. “As long as she remains civil, she will continue to be so.”

“Aw, so we can’t have any fun?” Chrys groaned, letting out a chuckle. “Well, it is worth it if together we can defeat Radiant Hope. We can be good for a few days, shouldn’t take longer than that.”

“I’ll be good,” I promised, smiling at Celestia.

“I am glad to hear so. Zenovia is the only zebra we have in the castle, so I would advise if for now you wear your disguise when out in the halls,” Celestia said. She turned to look at Cadence. “Would you escort her to the quarters set aside for her and her friends? Take along a few guards as well.”

“Still don’t trust me, do you?” I sighed.

“It is more for your protection than trust, Chrysalis,” Celestia said. “I would do the same for any visiting dignitary without guards of their own.”

“Oh we have guards,” Chrys snorted. “But when we find them, they might wish they had stayed back at the castle!”

My ears twitched at Chrys’s words, but other than that I took a deep breath and nodded. “Very well, thank you Princess Celestia.”

“One hoof out of line….” Twilight said, glaring at me, before standing.

“Understood, Twilight,” I said, glaring right back at her. One way or another I would win her over. Eventually.

With that, we all stood and trotted for the door. I took a moment to bring back my Soaring Song disguise before the door opened, then followed the others out.

Cadence led me down the way the zebra had gone earlier, grabbing Flash Sentry and another guard, this one a pale grey unicorn stallion with an electric blue mane and tail. Both currently wore the armor of a solar guard, and followed behind us.

“Sorry about Twilight,” Cadence said as we climbed a set of stairs. “She hasn’t gotten over what happened.”

“I don’t blame her,” I said, shaking my head. “But she could try to be a little kinder, if we are to be allies.”

“She’ll come around, it will just take time,” she grinned. “Until then, things might be difficult.” A few other ponies passed us by, two young mares, though they were even taller than Twilight. I gazed at them curiously for a moment, watching as they trotted by, dressed in flowing, silky, white robes, to enter into a bedroom off to the right.

“The young daughters of the rulers of Saddle Arabia,” Cadence said, noticing my look. “Kamaria and Sahar. They are visiting for a few days.”

“So we will be roomed close to them?”

“Yes, this is the royal dignitary hall, where all royalty stay during their visits.” Cadence trotted up to a set of double doors, a silvery color with gold trim. “This will be for you and your friends.” She opened the doors, and we walked inside. Flash and the other guard paused at the doorway, standing to either side of it as the door closed behind us.

It was quite lavish, from what I could see from the doorway, we had a large sitting room, two plush burgundy couches facing a marble fireplace, empty of wood and closed off this time of year. A bookcase filled with books lined the far wall, and the plush carpets, a few shades lighter than the couches, gently tickled my hooves. Beyond that, three open doors led into bedrooms, too dark to make much detail out this time of night. Behind another closed door I could hear quiet snores.

“Twinkleshine and the fillies must be in there,” Chrys said softly. “Or maybe Morpheus and Danaus. Either way, let’s just check tomorrow.”

The closed door opened slowly, and Twinkleshine stepped out, yawning as she looked at us. “Princess Cadence, and I’m guessing Chrysalis?” she whispered, to which I nodded. “Glad to see you two. The girls are fast asleep. Though I haven’t seen Shiny or your two guards since we arrived.”

“Thanks for keeping an eye on them,” I whispered back, letting out a yawn.

“I’ll let you get settled,” Cadence said, opening the main door again. “Sleep well, we will figure out what to do tomorrow.”

I nodded, letting out another yawn. “Thanks for all your help Cadence, and forgiving what I have done enough to do so.”

“Of course,” she grinned, “you are welcome.” She closed the door softly behind her as she left.

“They have been little angels,” Twinkleshine said, giving me a tired smile. “I figured you would be up here eventually, so waited up for you,” she let out an even bigger yawn, covering it with a hoof.

“You didn’t have to do that,” I said, “but thanks. Let’s both get some sleep now, shall we?”

She nodded. “The room on the far right is the largest, and should have a bed long enough to accommodate you. Sleep well, I’ll keep an eye on the fillies.” She stepped back inside the room she had come from, quietly closing the door.

“I believe it is time we sleep as well,” Chrys sighed. “Tomorrow will likely be a long day.”

I nodded in agreement, trotting toward the room Twinkleshine had pointed out. She was right, the bed was quite long. That is all I really took in though, as I transformed back to my original form and collapsed on top of the covers, drifting off to sleep.

End of Day One

Chaos and Reunion

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Canterlot Castle- Queen Chrysalis

I awoke to a knock on my door. Letting out a groan, I rolled over and covered my head with my forehooves. “Another five minutes Apatelodes,” I said.

“It’s Cadence, actually,” she said from the other side of the door.

Cadence? I shook my head, opening my eyes to see a brightly lit room around me. The walls were a pastel blue with white trim, and a large window on the far end led out to a balcony. While most of the furniture in the room was a warm varnished red color, the bed was made of a creamy orange-brown, the bedspread beneath me a butterscotch yellow. Lifting my head, I looked to the door. “Everything okay?”

“Of course,” Cadence replied. “May I come in? I have a surprise for you.”

“A surprise for us? This early in the morning?” Chrys snorted. “It better be good enough to warrant waking us.”

“Come in,” I said, stretching out on the bed and sitting up as she trotted inside.

“Did you sleep well Chrysalis?” she asked, smiling down at me.

“Well as could be expected, I suppose,” I shrugged.

“Good, then I hope you are ready for your request.”

“Request?” I rubbed a hoof over my tired eyes, letting out a yawn that showed off my fangs.

“Mmmhmm, to see your… mate wasn’t it? The changeling auntie has in the dungeons?” she beamed. I’d almost swear she was trying to charm me with such a smile. “You do want to see him still, right?”

“Of course we do! I have to see for my own eyes if he is safe,” Chrys growled.

“Yes, I do.”

“Then I’ll give you a few minutes to get ready,” Cadence said, taking a step back toward the door. “When you are ready, auntie has given me permission to take you down there. As I’m sure you’ll understand, she couldn’t cancel court two days in a row. She’ll be busy with that this morning, then this evening we will all talk again about what is to come.”

I simply nodded, letting out another yawn as she trotted out and closed the door behind her. A glance inside a bedside drawer revealed a few combs and brushes. I grabbed a comb and ran it through my mane. It was as I was working on a few snarled ends that what Cadence had said hit me, we were finally going to meet Leptostales! “So, what is he like?” I asked, wincing as I pulled out a painful snarl. “You’ve hardly told me anything about him, except for around his age and him being Citheronia’s father.”

“The kind of ling who wouldn’t do what they blame him for,” Chrys huffed. “Certainly not on purpose, this time I am certain! He is a good changeling, far better than I’ve ever been,” she sighed. “Something must have happened for him to come so close to killing a pony.”

“Well, we shall have to ask him when we see him.” I set the comb down and trotted toward the door, tail swishing behind me excitedly. This ling was the father of our daughter! I just hoped he would have a good explanation to what happened. Before opening the door, I quickly transformed back into Soaring Song, ruffling out my wings behind me.

I opened the door to see a smiling Cadence standing nearby, “ready to go?” she asked. I nodded. “Then follow me.”

“What time is it?” I asked as we left my quarters, quiet with the door to the filly’s bedroom closed, and heading back the way we had come the previous night.

“About seven in the morning. Auntie Celestia raised the sun less than an hour ago.”

“And she of course would take us for an early bird,” Chrys groaned. “With so much planning to do for the wedding, I had to be up early to get things ready. Not only for planning the wedding itself, but to make sure my changelings were in place. One thing I hadn’t realized? Cadence preferred to sleep in,” Chrys sighed. “Guess that changed in the last two years.”

“A morning pony now then?” I asked, as Flash Sentry and the grey unicorn guard both let out yawns, joining us on either side.

“Yes,” Cadence nodded. “My Shiny loves the mornings, so I learned to love them for him.”

“How sentimental,” Chrys snorted.

“Well that is… sweet,” I said, taking a glance out a window as we passed by. The quick view I saw was beautiful: the flowing waterfall below us, surrounded by green grass and pure white stone.

It wasn’t long before we turned and came to a set of dark wooden doors. Two unicorn guards, both the traditional white with blue mane, their armor gold, stood to either side of them. “Princess Cadence,” one said, bowing, his voice gruff. “Here to see the prisoner?”

“Yes please,” she nodded. “My friend here would like to see him.”

The guard who had spoken raised an eyebrow as he looked at me. “You sure about this miss? He might scare you.”

“HA! That’s a laugh,” Chrys chortled.

“I’m sure,” I nodded.

“Very well then,” the other guard said, opening the doors. “Princess Celestia did tell us you would be coming.” We nodded our thanks to the guards, and trotted down the stairs, our own guards following behind us.

I was surprised by how well lit the dungeons were as we reached the end of the stairs. A flickering, orange flamed torch was between each cell door, even the empty ones. We passed many of these, each containing a simple bed, a chair, a large bucket, and fresh straw covering the floor. “Hmm, not bad for a dungeon,” Chrys said.

“So, where is he?”

“Chrys?” a soft voice said. I perked my ears, looking around until I spotted a small black form in a cell not far from us.

“Go ahead,” Cadence said, seeing my gaze. “We’ll stay here.” She put a hoof to my shoulder and pushed me gently forward, not that I really needed the push having already taken a few slow steps toward him.

I let my disguise fall as I hurried to the cell, the changeling inside grinning at me, his wings buzzing excitedly behind him. “It is you!” he yelled, grabbing onto the bars with his forehooves as I paused in front of the cell. “What are you doing here? Were you captured?”

“No, not captured,” I said softly, shaking my head. He did indeed look well for having been imprisoned for who knew how long. Upon his upper lip was a thick mustache – that reminded me of my grandfather’s − grey like his frilled mane. His eyes were a slightly different shade of blue than other changelings I had seen so far and his tail was more the length of your average pony, rather than that of a changeling. Upon his horn, like the changeling we had seen before, was a suppression ring, though his wings were left unbound. “W-what happened?”

He sighed, shaking his head, “I don’t really know. One moment I’m out hunting for love, the next a mare is in my hooves, nearly drained.” He winced, ears going flat against his head. “Chrys, you know I wouldn’t do something like this on purpose! I-I₋” he paused, eyes wide and shivering. “I don’t know what went wrong, why I can’t remember.”

I lifted a hoof through the bars, rubbing a hoof up and down his back. “Of course, we’ll figure things out.” He grinned up at me, a single fang poking out from beneath his lips. How could they keep someling so sweet locked up?

“Tell him about our daughter!” Chrys said. “He doesn’t know yet.”

“Oh! There is a surprise for you at home Leptostales,” I grinned.

“What?” he asked, ears perking up. “It’s been so long since I was last home,” he sighed. “I’ve probably missed so much.”

“Our egg hatched.”

“Our egg? What egg?” he cocked his head, giving me a confused look.

“You mean you don’t remember?” Chrys whispered. “I know I told him about it, how could he forget?” I could think of a few, after all, she had forgotten as well. Even if Chrys had good reason to have done so.

I nodded, “yes, don’t you recall? I laid the egg about a year ago now.”

He shook his head, holding a hoof to it. “No, I-I don’t Chrys,” he blushed green. “I’m sorry. I’ve been forgetting so much lately, it’s surprising I still remember my own name.” He closed his eyes and let out a deep breath from his nostrils. “But please, do remind me. We had a little nymph together?”

I nodded. “Less than a month old, but she looks like she will be very powerful when she gets older.”

Leptostales gasped, opening his eyes wide. “She? You mean- we have a daughter?”

“Yes,” I said, watching as his eyes practically sparkled.

“Your first daughter since I’ve been alive, and it is me who gave her to you. I- this is cause for celebration!” He pranced from hoof to hoof, laughing. A moment later he winced, holding up a hoof. “Gah! These old hooves don’t like that kind of exercise anymore.”

“He needs to be more careful!” Chrys snorted. “It’s good to be happy, but he is quite old for a changeling.”

“Please be careful, we want her to meet you after all,” I huffed lightly. “Oh, we did,” I said, smiling down at him. “And when you get out of here, we’ll throw her an even bigger one, for her first molting ceremony, perhaps?”

“We must, we must!” he nodded. “I can’t wait to meet her, and I’ll try to be more careful.”

“Good,” I said, reaching in to nuzzle his mane. It was hard not to like the stallion. “Now, you are doing well down here, right? You look well but…”

He nodded, “oh yes, I’m doing fine. Might not be any other prisoners, which makes it… lonely,” he lowered the tips of his ears, sighing. “But I am used to the quiet now.”

“Is somepony coming down to feed you often?” I asked, remembering what Shining Armor had said. How was he staying in such good shape?

“Nope, usually just me and the guards at the dungeon doors,” he said, looking to where Cadence and our guards stood a few cells away. “They do bring me a bowl of mixed fruit once a day, I think, but without access to my magic, I have no way to even try to feed off anypony.”

“Then I guess we should just be grateful he is still alive,” Chrys huffed.

“You have no idea how glad I am to see you still alive,” I said, sitting down next to his cell. “When Morpheus found out where you were, I was… worried.”

“Thanks for worrying Chrys, you didn’t have to do so.”

“Of course I did!” I snorted. “I care about all my changelings.” Though yes, he was special to Chrys compared to the others. Even if she claimed we couldn’t love, she could certainly care at least.

A loud bang sounded as the main doors to the dungeons flew open and slammed against the wall. A pegasus guard galloped down the stairs. I quickly resumed my disguise, hoping he hadn’t noticed, as he came to a stop beside Cadence and our guards.

“Everything okay?” Cadence asked, putting a wing to his shoulder as he took a moment to catch his breath.

“Yes Princess,” he nodded. “For the most part. Discord and two stallions were in the ballroom causing a commotion. They wanted to see your… guest here,” he pointed a hoof at me. “When we told them she was currently in the dungeons, the younger stallion dived at us, insisting she was innocent.”

“Could it be?” Chrys whispered. “Did he return?”

“Who were the stallions with Discord?” Cadence asked. “And how did you handle the situation?”

“I’m sorry princess, but I don’t know their names,” he shook his head, ears falling slightly. “But the elder was a darker purple, the younger a lighter purple. We had them held in the ballroom, but with Discord who knows if they are still there.”

“Yes, it must be him! But why? Why did he return?”

I beamed, wings fluttering behind me. Chrys was right on it being weird he had returned, but no matter. “Would you take me to them then, please?” I said, stepping forward and giving the guard a big smile.

“Oh, well sure miss,” he nodded to me and Cadence.

“Very well then, lead the way,” Cadence said.

“Chrys?” Leptostales said softly. “Everything okay?”

“Yes everything will be fine,” I said, turning back to him. “I will be back, we will get you out of here.” I pulled him into the best hug I could through the bars, then hurried to join the others as we left the dungeons.

Shiny’s Home- Shiny Whistle

“Shiny! Wake up!” Velvet hissed as he shook me awake.

I groaned, rubbing a hoof over my eyes and letting out a yawn. My eyes slowly opened, to see the pale light of dawn already seeping into Velvet’s room. Colt! We had slept in! I tossed my covers to the side and ran a hoof through my mane. Velvet had moved aside when I awoke, and was now standing next to me. His mane was sticking out, as if he had flown through a thundercloud.

“What time is it?” I asked, standing up beside him.

“Almost seven,” Discord chuckled, grinned down at us from his hammock. With a snap of his fingers, the hammock disappeared and he floated down gently above us. “Heard both your parents’ downstairs starting breakfast.”

Then we didn’t have much time. Father would be up here to grab us before they were done. Velvet pulled his window open the rest of the way, a cool breeze tossing the curtains behind him. “Okay, now just to tie the sheets together and−”

He was interrupted as Discord snapped his fingers and in a flash of light, we found ourselves in the garden behind the house.

“Discord!” Velvet huffed. “Way to ruin the fun of sneaking out.”

I just let out a sigh as Discord chuckled. Leading the way to the side gate, I pulled it open and trotted outside, pausing to look at our home. It felt like it had been ages since I had last seen it, and now after just one night I was leaving again. Yet Chryssy and I were in Canterlot now, so I was sure I would be back. Make sure she was safe, fix anything my running off might have caused, then I would return.

“Come on Shiny,” Velvet whispered, putting a hoof around me and pulling me forward. “Let’s go get you your mare.”

“Now this is going to be delightful!” Discord grinned, rubbing his paw and claw together. I swear his eyes even gleamed for a moment. “May I help with getting us noticed dear Shiny? I have the most chaotic plan!”

I narrowed my eyes at him for a moment as we trotted along, passing the fountain from the day before. “You won’t hurt anypony, will you?”

“Of course not!” he huffed. “Do you think I want to break poor Chryssy’s heart?” He opened a hinge in his chest and pulled out a beating red heart. With a single flick of his claw against it, it shattered into a pile of candied glass in his lion’s paw, which he popped into his mouth and gulped down.

“Well, no,” I mumbled, rolling my eyes at his antics. “You are a good friend to her after all.”

“Excellent!” he said, rubbing his paw and claw together. “Then let’s do this!” He snapped his fingers once more and with a pop we disappeared from the street. A moment later, we appeared in a darkened room. Thick curtains covered the windows, making it hard to see much of anything. I heard a soft groan, then somepony rolled over in front of us and a cobalt blue magic lit up around a horn. It was then as she sat up in bed I realized where we were: Princess Luna’s room!

“Discord?” she yawned, blinking slowly and looking at each of us. “Why art thou in our bedroom?”

“S-sorry Princess Luna!” I gulped, lifting a hoof and giving her a quick bow, Velvet doing the same.

“Oh Shiny, nothing to be sorry over,” Discord said, winking down at us. He turned back to Luna. “Why, I came to give you some tea to help you sleep,” he crooned. With a snap of his fingers, he produced a cup of steaming tea and held it out to her.

“Tea?” Princess Luna asked, taking the offered cup and levitating it over in her magic. She cocked her head in confusion. “Why are thou bringing us tea? For sleep, yes, but−” she let out a yawn, covering her mouth with one hoof. “We think it shall not be needed, for we are quite weary from the long night.” Luna took in a deep breath of the tea, and sighed. “Though it smells delightful. Perhaps it wouldn’t hurt to indulge.” Bringing the cup to her lips, she sipped and then put it on the bedside table.

“Well?” Discord beamed, eyes wide as he stared at her. Oh colt, what did he do?

“It was-was quite,” Luna let out a light chuckle, mouth turning up in a grin. The light chuckle quickly turned into a chortle, then full out laughter.

I took a few steps back, cheeks blushing red as both Discord and Velvet burst into laughter as well. “What did you do Discord?” I asked, ears falling as Princess Luna flipped onto the floor, rolling on the ground in laughter. Velvet and Discord followed her soon afterward.

“I-indeed Discord, what did thou put in our tea?” Luna gasped, scowling at the two laughing at her as she tried to stop laughing by taking a deep breath, but was soon back in hysterics.

“Oh nothing, it was just ginseng tea,” Discord chortled. “What, is it not supposed to make you laugh?”

I groaned, facehoofing as the explanation just made Velvet laugh even harder. “Gin-sing!” he snorted. “Discord that is genius!” He paused in his laughing, rubbing his chin. “Wait, shouldn’t it make her sing then, not laugh?”

“Why thank you,” he said, rubbing his clawed paw against his chest.He gave Velvet a sly look. “Oh, she’ll be singing too, that just happens later.”

“O-out, you fiend!” Luna yelled, glaring at him as she held a hoof to her barrel, still laughing. “All of you!”

“Aw, you’re no fun to tease Lulu,” Discord frowned, but nodded and with a snap of his fingers teleported us out of there.

We appeared in an empty bedroom, Discord and Velvet still laughing, though it was finally subsiding. “Why the hay did you do that to Princess Luna?” I yelled, stomping a hoof. “And did you know about this Velvet?”

Velvet nodded, mussing a hoof through my mane. “Discord and I talked about ways to get noticed at the castle last night once you went to sleep.”

I swatted his hoof away. “Did you ever think of just going to the front gates and asking to speak to Princess Celestia?”

“Oh come on Shiny, where is the fun in that?” Discord said, waving the idea away with his paw. “You want to date a Queen? Then you need to do something to stand out among all the others wanting to win her heart.”

I growled in frustration, rubbing a hoof against my forehead. “So getting us thrown into the dungeons for assaulting one of the princesses will do that you think? Why can’t you just behave?”

“That is so last century,” Discord sighed. He leaned back, falling back onto the bed and bouncing against it. “Besides, Lord of Chaos, remember?”

The door to the bedroom opened behind us, and a zebra mare dressed in a maid’s outfit trotted into the room, pausing when she spotted the three of us. “What are you three doing in here?”

“Zenovia! Long time no see,” Discord yelled, jumping up and wrapping himself around her. “Catch any changelings lately? I’m sure you are SO excited about Kaykay’s special guest. You have met her, haven’t you?”

The zebra rolled her eyes, shaking the feather duster she held between her teeth in Discord’s face. He sneezed, a bouquet of daisies falling from one nostril while a bouquet of foal’s breath flowers fell from the other. At least it made him let her go, and she took a few steps away from him. “Yes, I met her,” she said, shivering. “Excited though? Not so much. Now shoo, all of you! I’m trying to clean!”

“So sorry,” I whispered as I led us toward the still open door. “It’s like he had a bowl of sugar for breakfast or something.”

“Oh, but I did!” Discord said, snapping his fingers and producing a bowl of sugar cubes. “Want some?”

“No thanks,” I shook my head. “Let’s just find Chryssy.”

“It’s okay,” Zenovia said, giving me a small smile. “I’m… used to Discord’s antics by now. If you ask the guards by the ballroom, I think they’ll be able to help you find your friend. Raven was just briefing them on what everypony who is visiting has scheduled to do today.”

“Thank you,” I said, then waved a hoof at Discord and Velvet, who were making faces at each other in a small mirror on the wall. Sweet Celestia was Discord a bad influence on him! “Come on children,” I said, grinning softly when they both glared at me. Thankfully, they did follow after me.

It was only a few minutes later when Discord let out a loud sigh. “I’m bored,” he groaned. Before I could say anything, he had snapped his fingers again and transported us into the ballroom. We were on the stage, dressed in pale blue Upgraded Frostbite fan t-shirts. Before Velvet was his drum set. When he saw them he beamed, grabbing up a drumstick in each wing and tapping them together.

I looked over to Discord, who had added a pair of dark-blue star shaped sunglasses to his ensemble. Before him he strummed an electric blue guitar. He snapped his fingers once more, and floating at the level of my muzzle my penny whistle appeared, restored to its former glory.

“Wha?” I gasped, holding out a hoof as it dropped down into it. “Y-you fixed it?”

“Fixing a melted whistle is far too easy for me Shiny,” he said in a Trotland accent. “That is what friends do, right?”

“R-right,” I said just staring down at it. You couldn’t even tell it had once been a heap of melted tin anymore. “T-thank you, Discord.”

“You’re welcome Shiny,” he grinned, then rapidly twirled his claws over the strings of his guitar. “Yeah!” he yelled. “How about it boys, play a song with me?”

“What?” I gasped, lower jaw dropping as I just stared at him.

“Let’s do it!” Velvet said, tapping out a few quick notes on his drums.

“How is this helping Chryssy?” I groaned. Had the two of them gone crazy? Had I awoken in an alternate reality?

“I have this under control Shiny,” Discord said, giving me a clawed thumb up. “You are just too serious sometimes,” he tsked, shaking his head. He turned to look at Velvet. “Give me a steady beat, then follow my lead?”

Velvet nodded, saluting Discord with one of his drumsticks. He took in a deep breath, then started in at a soft, steady beat. Discord bobbed his head, closing his eyes as he listened. “Yes, that’s it… alright, here we go.”

I just shook my head as he strummed the guitar, following Velvet’s drumbeats, then Discord leaned forward as a microphone appeared before him. “You ready to rock Canterlot?” he yelled, bobbing his head to the beat as he continued to play.

“Causing chaos,
Being free,
No more playing a statue for me.
Those elements?
Can’t touch me
Harmony can’t stop me this time!
Who wants accord?
Who wants sense?
Creatin’ Chaos just what I do.
Headin’ south
Party time
Takin’ Chrysalis with me too.”

I tapped my hoof to the beat, the song was catchy if anything. No matter how annoyed I was feeling at the two of them. “Well, might as well join them,” I said softly and brought my whistle to my lips, playing along as Discord continued to sing, strumming his guitar as he did so.

“We’re goin’ to Tartarus
Goin’ to Tartarus
Yeah to Tartarus!
Goin’ to Tartarus
We’re goin’ to Tartatus!”

“What do you think you are doing?” A pale raspberry colored magic wrapped around the three of us, pulling Velvet away from his drums and making Discord and I drop our own instruments. A light grey unicorn mare with a dark grey-brown mane strode over to us, the doors of the ballroom were thrown wide open and two white pegasus guards stood next to them. The mare’s horn was lit as she levitated us to the ballroom floor and dropped us upon it. “Well?” she asked.

“What does it look like?” Discord said, giving her a big grin. “We were rockin’ out!”

“Don’t you know Princess Celestia is holding court right next door?” the mare huffed, stomping a hoof. Her tightly wound mane, placed in a bun, had a strand fall down over her black rimmed glasses. “How is she supposed to concentrate when you are making noise like that?”

I rubbed a hoof against the floor, cheeks bright red. “Sorry, I-I was just coming here to talk to her about… somepony.”

“Well then you should have scheduled an audience,” she said sternly, pushing the brim of her glasses up. “Instead of causing all this… chaos!” she took a deep breath, then let it out slowly. “Now, for the two of you,” she said, pointing a hoof at Velvet and me. “This is the first time we have had to speak with you, correct?” We both nodded. “Then for this time, we can let you off with just a warning. Discord,” she turned to him and sighed. “Are you ever going to stay out of trouble?”

“Me? Never! Where would the fun be in that?” he said, leaning down and giving her puppy dog eyes. “Please Raven, let me cause a little chaos for my friends?” He grabbed up Velvet and me and clasped us to his chest around our stomachs. “We’re just trying to find dear Shiny’s friend,” he grinned. “Haven’t seen a pretty yellow pegasus mare around, have you?”

“Yellow pegasus?” one of the guards asked, stepping forward. “Yeah, I did see her. Is in the dungeons right now actually.”

“What?” I yelled, wiggling out of Discord’s arms and glaring at the guard. How could they do this to her? She was innocent! She was a good changeling. If they locked her up, how was she supposed to protect her subjects?

“Don’t worry, she’s with that changeling,” the guard continued, then looked to the guard next to him. “What did Midnight do with the changeling they captured yesterday? I don’t think he even brought it into the dungeons−”

I let out a yell and sprang, tackling the guard before I knew what I was doing. “Why? She is innocent I tell you, innocent!” I wailed, shaking his shoulders. “Take her out of there now!”

“Colt, calm down,” the guard below me said softly trying to push me off.

“Not until you release her!”

“What the hay is he talking about?” the other guard asked, flying up above me and trying to pull me off.

“I have no clue!” the first guard gasped as I grabbed on around his neck, trying to resist the guard pulling at me from above.

“Enough!” Raven groaned, pulling the three of us apart with her magic. She lifted me over to her, scowling at me. “Are you wanting to be put in the dungeons? Assaulting a guard is serious young stallion.”

“I’ll go get Princess Cadence,” the guard who had been trying to pull me off the first said, dashing away out the door.

“Wow, Shiny, I didn’t think you had it in you,” Discord grinned. “You can be more chaotic than I thought. I think you and your little mare are an even better match than we thought.”

“Yeah, even I wouldn’t have done that,” Velvet said softly, standing next to Discord.

“Explain yourself,” Raven said, stomping a hoof. “Perhaps then I won’t send you straight to the dungeons, if Princess Celestia agrees of course.”

I sighed, “Well, that yellow pegasus mare is a good friend of mine,” I said. “Why did you guys lock her up?”

“As far as my records go, Princess Celestia has not had anypony new locked up in weeks. The only one locked up should be that changeling stallion.” Raven said, adjusting her glasses as she added a little notebook to her levitation as well. She flipped through it, then paused on a page, going down it. “Mmm yes, yes…” she closed the book and replaced it in a saddle bag upon her back. “Princess Celestia did meet with a yellow pegasus mare by the name of Soaring Song yesterday. They discussed some private matters, and then she was given a wing in the royal visitor’s suites, along with her companions, until the princesses see fit to remove her from them.”

“But,” I grunted as she placed me back on the floor. “But then why is she in the dungeons?”

“Apparently Princess Celestia and Cadence wanted her to visit with the changeling, ‘visit’,” she emphasized with a hoof to my muzzle. “Not join it, now,” she paused, looking between the three of us and the remaining guard. “Do I have to worry about anymore outbursts while you wait for them to arrive?”

Velvet and I shook our heads, while Discord sighed and shook his as well. “We’ll be good, Raven wasn’t it?” I said.

“Yes,” she said, nodding. “Then I shall return to Princess Celestia’s side, where I should already be. Good day sirs.” She stepped around us and back out the open ballroom doors.

“I’ll be watching you,” the guard still with us snorted, pointing a hoof at me.

“I’m sorry,” I said, looking over at him. “Tackling you was… uncalled for. I should have let you explain.”

“Yes, you should have. It’s no wonder with the riffraff you hang out with you acted that way,” he glared over at Discord.

“Excuse me?” Discord hissed. “I am the Lord of Chaos, and you dare call me riffraff?” He leaned toward the pegasus, eyes narrowed.

“Ooookay I think we have had enough excitement for right now,” Velvet chuckled, coming to stand in-between the guard and Discord, a hoof to each of their chests. “Shiny’s mare isn’t imprisoned in the dungeons, and I doubt the rest of us want to be either right?”

“You’re right,” the pegasus guard said, backing off and tucking his wings to his barrel. “Sorry, Discord.”

“I accept your apology,” he said, folding his arms and looking away. “This time. Next time, you might not be so lucky.”

Sweet Celestia, today had already been insane, and it wasn’t even noon yet. What more could happen?

Canterlot Castle-Queen Chrysalis

Everypony was quiet as we trotted toward the ballroom, there were even very few staff ponies walking about. It was still early though, perhaps they were still sleeping. If not for the quiet, I probably wouldn’t have heard the door open behind us, nor spotted them trying to sneak across the hall behind us nervously. “You!” I growled, whipping around and spreading my wings wide.

The two pegasi stallions, one red and the other green, froze in their tracks, ears lowered and mouths opened in sheepish grins. “Er, hello there,” the green one mumbled, taking a step back behind the red.

“Did he dare just ‘hello there’ us?” Chrys growled. “After what they did? Show them who’s in charge, what happens to those who disobey their queen!”

“You are the two who were on the train with us,” Cadence said quietly. She stepped up beside me. They nodded, wings held tightly against their sides. I felt Cadence’s gaze fall on me. “They are your missing ‘guards’ then, correct?”

“Yes, yes they are,” I hissed.

“Um, c-can we explain before you try to squish us?” Danaus gulped, hiding even more behind Morpheus.

“I think it would be best to let them explain,” Cadence said, rubbing a hoof down my back. “But not here.”

I lowered my wings back against my barrel, taking in a few deep breaths. Looking around me, I found even this brief confrontation had brought about undue attention. A somewhat chubby grape purple unicorn mare that had been dusting the hallway’s chandeliers had paused in her dusting, staring at us. She wasn’t the only one either.

“Much as I hate to admit it, she’s right,” Chrys huffed. “We’ll wait until we get them back to our private quarters, then they shall get their punishment!”

“Come with us,” I snapped at them, turning around. “Don’t even think of trying to run off again either,” I whispered, turning to glare at them as we started walking again. “It will just make your punishment in the end that more harsh.”

I grinned softly as I heard their hoofsteps join the rest of us. “Ahh yes, you are learning well my dear,” Chrys chuckled. “They need to know not to mess with their queen. Sure the ponies might call our methods… crude, but it gets the job done.”

Feeling Cadence’s gaze on me, I turned to look at her, seeing a frown on her face. I didn’t even need to feed on her feelings to feel the disapproval coming from her. Who was she to judge us though? Chrys had tried to keep these ponies safe as she could, and yet some of our changelings had disobeyed her. The ponies might go easy on those who had done wrong, but that didn’t mean we had to as well. Especially when it cost others their lives.

I took in a deep breath and let it out my nostrils, these thoughts could wait for another time. A shiver of excitement ran through me as we drew closer to the ballroom. If it really was Shiny, he had come back for us! No man had ever done that for me when I was human. They would start to get to know the real me, and flee. Was it any wonder I had felt most connected with a villain like Chrysalis with such things?

My hoofsteps slowed as we reached the ballroom doors,which were closed in front of us. I bit my lip, suddenly nervous. What if it was some other random pony? What if they wanted me for some other dire reason? Or did Shiny’s sister really have a secret coltfriend and he had shown up? Wait, no the guard had said he was looking for me, in my Soaring Song form, so it couldn’t be anything to do with Shiny’s sister.

“You okay?” Cadence asked, wrapping a wing around me. “You seem nervous.”

“Of course we are fine,” Chrys growled. “Show some backbone girl, no matter what stallion is wanting us in there, or why, we must stand strong!”

She was right. I took a deep breath and raised my head, standing firm as I looked up at Cadence. “Yes, I’m fine.” I looked back to Morpheus and Danaus, who cringed slightly at my gaze. “You two, stay out here with our other guards,” I said, pointing a hoof at Flash and the unicorn guard. “And don’t you dare try to disappear again.”

“Yes ma’am,” they both said, saluting as they paused next to the others.

“Ready to go in then?” Cadence asked. I nodded. She opened the door and trotted inside, where I followed quietly behind her. Any sound that might have been in the room before we entered grew silent except for our hoofsteps. Cadence paused a few pony lengths into the room.

Closing my eyes for a moment, I stepped around her and instantly brightened at what I saw. Shiny stood near the stage with his brother -whom I recognized from his picture- Discord, and a white pegasus guard. It really was him! My mouth dropped open in a huge grin, wings twitching excitedly.

“I can’t believe it, he came back,” Chrys whispered. “The foal must truly like us. Nay, more than just like, that we already knew for sure, but why? After all he now knows, why did he come back?”

“Song!” Shiny yelled, rushing by the guard and over to me, practically bowling me over as he wrapped his forehooves around me in a hug. “You’re okay! They didn’t lock you up!” he beamed, eyes sparkling.

“Er, yeah I’m fine Shiny,” I grunted, putting my own forehooves around him and hugging him back. “G-glad to see you are well too.” We pulled away, Shiny hopping from one forehoof to the other. “Now, what is this I hear about you causing a commotion and tackling a guard?”

Shiny stood still at my words, blushing deeply. “Oh, that, right… well I-I was nervous, a-and afraid they had locked you up. When he told us you were in the dungeons something just came over me and it… happened.”

“He attacked a guard for us? This pony is crazier that I thought!” Chrys laughed. “Ugh, I might even be starting to like him,” she groaned.

“Well that was silly,” I snorted. “But then I guess if we were both in the dungeons, you would get more time with me.” I winked at him, making him blush even more. “Good to have you back,” I grinned. Discord and Shiny’s brother, followed by the guard, trotted over to us. “So, this is your famous brother is it?” I asked.

“Yes indeed,” his brother said, nodding. “I am Velvet Beat, Mrs. Song.” He winked at me. “I’m glad my brother has finally found a ‘pony’ he could care for.”

“Shiny must have told him who we are,” Chrys sighed. “Yet, it seems he is fine with it. Is Shiny’s whole family crazy for changelings? Watch, he’ll invite us home and they’ll all just offer their love to us like it was no big deal.”

“Yes, he is a good pony,” I nodded. “Seems you are a lot like him Velvet.”

“I might be a little crazy, but Shiny here is the most insane of us all eh little bro?” Velvet chuckled, mussing a hoof through Shiny’s mane.

“I’m almost sad you weren’t locked up,” Discord sighed. “I had the perfect jailbreak plans to get you out,” he snapped his fingers, and a black and white striped uniform appeared upon him, complete with an iron cage. A cup in his clawed hand, he ran it against the bars back and forth. “Now I’ll never get to use them.”

“You still might after what you two did to Princess Luna,” Shiny said, stepping away from his brother.

“What did they do to her?” Cadence and I asked simultaneously.

Both Discord and Velvet burst into laughter, patting each other on the back. “W-we gave her some ginseng tea!” Discord howled.

“Ginseng? Oh−” Chrys groaned.

“Must everything be a joke with you Discord?” Cadence sighed. The draconequus just laughed even harder at her words.

“Anyway,” the pegasus guard said, glaring over at Discord and Velvet. “I’m afraid I’ll have to ask you to vacate the ballroom. These two are making too much noise,” he huffed.

“We can move to my quarters,” I said, stepping forward and poking Discord with a hoof. “Come on, might as well be comfortable before you are put in the dungeons?”

He took a deep breath and rolled to his hooves, grabbing Velvet up and placing him back on his hooves as well, then floated a few inches above us. “Very well, lead the way,” he chuckled.

Together, the five of us left the ballroom, the rest of our party joining us as we made our way through the castle. Shiny walked next to me on my right, much to Morpheus’s ire. He pressed his way to my other side, Danaus walking behind him. Princess Cadence led the way, while Discord, Velvet, Flash and the unicorn guard brought up the rear. “While we walk, why not tell us more about these commotions you were causing?” I said, smiling down at Shiny.

He blushed, faltering in his step for a moment. “N- none of it was in my plan! It was all Discord,” he glanced back at Discord, who just winked at him. “But if you want to hear about it, then okay. Shall I start with what happened last night?”

“Sure,” I nodded.

“Okay then,” he said. “It all started as I left the castle at a gallop…”

Changeling Castle Grounds- Apatelodes

I watched quietly as Peazan and a dozen guards gathered outside the castle early the next morning. Many of our other changelings and some of the ponies crowded around them, watching. Videre, a guard that usually watched the gates for intruders, was dragging out two large, wooden carts with his magic. Rope and tarps were folded neatly inside of them to tie down the food for the trip home.

Videre brought them to a halt next to Peazan, an older changeling who even outside the kitchens, still wore his stained white apron tied around his neck and barrel.

“Thank you Videre,” he nodded.

“You’re welcome,” he said, taking in a few deep gulps of breath as he trotted over to my side.

I looked around at the ponies gathered near, grinning as some shrank back, and hid behind others. “You two,” I said gruffly, pointing to that one mare Shiny was friends with, along with another orange pony with a bright red mane.

“Yes, sir?” Shiny’s friend, -what was her name again- said softly.

“It is your turn to go with Peazan. Pull the carts for the trip.”

The red maned one rolled her eyes, sighed, but then nodded. Both mares trotted in front of the carts. Peazan and one of the guards with him strapped the two of them in. Peazan took a few steps closer to me. “Anything special you want us to look for?”

I shook my head. “No, just be careful.” The Umbrum were nowhere in sight at the moment, likely the only reason so many were comfortable being outside, but I wouldn’t put it past them to show up and cause some chaos later.

“Of course,” Peazan grinned, then turned back to the others. “Alright, let’s move out!” he shouted. “That food isn’t going to gather itself.”

As they trotted off, half the guards taking flight, horns lit watching for danger, changeling and pony alike slowly returned to the castle. Videre stood next to me, waiting for the carts to fall out of sight before stretching out his wings, then folding them against him again. “Shall I do a sweep around the castle before returning Apatelodes?” he asked.

I nodded. “Yes, do so.” My ears perked, I looked through the trees around us. “They are near, I can sense it. But Videre,” I said, putting a hoof on his armored shoulder. “Don’t engage them in battle. If you see one, return and tell me immediately.”

Videre nodded, a hoof to his forehead in salute. “Will do sir,” he grinned. Just as he was lifting off, a powerful blast shook the air and he was tossed back to the ground, sliding along the dirt a few feet before he came to a stop.

In the air above us a dozen of those Umbrum had appeared, now close enough I could see their mangled, toothy grins. What few changelings and ponies that were still outside with us screamed and raced inside. The Umbrum ignored them completely, their gaze focused on me.

I took a deep breath and let it out slowly, my ears twitching slightly as I stared back up at them. “Why have you returned?” I growled, stomping a hoof. Videre stood up behind me, his spear floating into the air beside him and ears splayed back against his skull.

“They are with me,” a voice chuckled. I looked down to see the same cloaked pony as before trotting toward us. Somehow I had missed seeing them with all those Umbrum showing up. It tossed its hood back, revealing what had once likely been a pretty, light purple unicorn mare. Now she was covered in scars, the most prominent one I could see being a huge gash along her neck. Her icy blue eyes felt like they could dig into me with their stare alone. Across her neck, lightly wrapped in bright red magic, was the amulet I had seen in the book, the alicorn amulet.

“Radiant Hope?” I said, to which she nodded. “But how? You should be dead and gone long ago.”

She merely chuckled. “Perhaps, but I am not here to discuss my lack of dying.”

“Then why are you here, pony?” Videre growled, pointing his spear at her.

She glared at him, grabbed his spear from his magical grip, and broke it in two, dropping the two pieces to the ground below. “It is not wise to threaten me, changeling,” she sneered. “Now, where were we?” she grinned, turning back to me. “Oh yes, I am here to talk to you,” she said, pointing a hoof at me.

I blinked slowly twice, cocking my head. “Me?”

“Yes, you,” she huffed. “After all, you are in charge while your little queen is gone, are you not?”

“I am, yes,” I said.

She grinned slyly, eyes narrowing slightly with a sinister smile of confidence and fearlessness coming from her. Turning her head to look towards the woods, she whistled. I took a small step back, ears perked up as I heard several big things moving through the trees.

My eyes grew wide as five huge diamond dogs stepped out in front of Videre and me, all of them were a mottled grey, with varying shades of brown beneath. Their yellow eyes were nearly as big around as the end of my hoof. I took a deep breath, digging my hooves into the ground and trying to slow down my racing heart.

“W-what are you trying to prove here?” I asked, voice trembling only slightly. I could feel Videre shiver beside me, but he didn’t run, glaring at the diamond dogs instead and baring his fangs at them.

“Oh, nothing yet,” Hope grinned. “Just thought you would want to meet my newest allies, right boys?” she chuckled, winking at them. The five of them just chuckled, nodding and popping the knuckles of their front paws. “If your queen would like to join us, we have plenty of strength to go up against Canterlot and those princesses,” she spat. “With your hive on our side as well? There will be no stopping us!”

“Well, I will let her know,” I grinned nervously. I jumped as the Umbrum above us all cackled, flying off, and began to circle the castle once again.

Hope raised her eyebrows, smirking. “I shall await thy answer,” she said. Letting out a cackle, she lit up her horn. “Until then, we’ll be watching.” With a small pop, she and the diamond dogs disappeared.

Videre and I both let out a deep breath, our wingtips drooping as we stared at the place they had been. “Is that what you and the others have been dealing with, these past few weeks?” he asked.

I nodded. “Now you know why our queen has been calling everyling back.”

“How are we supposed to face her?” he yelped, pointing a hoof at where they had been, then up at the circling Umbrum. “With all those on her side, and creatures that EAT us if they can catch one of us.”

“I don’t know Videre,” I sighed, shaking my head. “But we will do what is needed. Chrysalis is counting on us.” I put a hoof to his shoulder. “Be brave, my friend. Things change, we change with them. We will always find a way to survive.” With that, I patted him on the back and led the way back inside. I would contact our queen and let her know. Hopefully she wasn’t busy.

Retribution

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Royal Visitor Quarters- Queen Chrysalis

Just stay calm, I had to stay calm. As we arrived at the doors to our quarters I paused, turning to look at Cadence and the royal guards. “Perhaps it would be best if you are not here for this,” I said. “I will tell Princess Celestia what I learn tonight when we talk again, but you might not want to watch.” Not that I knew what would happen, but I could feel how livid Chrys was at Morpheus and Danaus. I might not be able to control that anger if she got much worse.

“Yes, send her away,” Chrys growled. “They are OUR subjects, so we should be able to deal with them as we see fit.”

Princess Cadence sighed, closing her eyes and shaking her head. “Hurting them will not solve anything Chrysalis.”

“Perhaps not, but it might show Celestia how serious we are taking this!” Chrys huffed. “Some of my changelings disobeyed a direct order, justice must be served.”

“I am perfectly aware of that,” I snapped, upper lip curled and my teeth exposed. “But please, let us discuss this in private? Whatever they know, they must still be punished for not telling me, if that is the worst they did.” I glared down at them, lifting one eyebrow as they grinned at me sheepishly.

“I’ll watch over her,” Shiny said, grinning at Cadence. “We all will, right?” he turned to look at Discord and Velvet, who both nodded. “But I trust she won’t need it.” Shiny smiled up at me, ears perked up. “Chryssy would never kill anypony, right?”

I shook my head. “No, I wouldn’t.”

“Another changeling perhaps though, if it was needed,” Chrys hissed. “We do what is necessary. If the two of them can provide a reason to live? Then they shall live.”

Cadence gazed long and hard at us for a few minutes, a hoof to her chin as she pondered, ears twitching. She finally sighed, nodding. “Very well. But as you are on Equestrian lands, and the problem occurred here in our castle, I ask that you hold back on any final punishment.”

“What?” Chrys growled softly. “So they want final say, is that it?”

“So then, you want Princess Celestia to have final say on what happens to them?” I asked.

Cadence nodded. “It would be for the best. Of course, she can talk to you about it at length, and come to a compromise.”

It was probably the best we would get. “Very well, but I can’t promise they will be in the exact same condition they are now.”

“Just don’t be too hard on them until we know all the details, that is all I ask,” Cadence said softly. I nodded. With a wing to each of them, Cadence led Flash and the unicorn guard away with her. The unicorn guard looked back at us, narrowing his eyes, but still followed Cadence, soon turning a corner and out of sight.

“Finally,” Chrys sighed. “Now, let’s find out what happened and get that punishment started.”

Shiny opened the door for us and we all filed in, Morpheus and Danaus so slowly I had to shove them forward with a hoof. “Delaying your punishment won’t make it any easier,” I sneered, the door clicking closed softly as Shiny entered behind me. “Now,” I said, taking a step forward and spreading out my wings. “Let us begin.”

“Let’s give them a show, shall we?” Chrys chuckled. “Takes a little more love energy, but a big burst of flames usually gets their attention better than a quick one any changeling can do.”

I thought back to the wedding from the show, how each little part of Chrys had appeared piece by piece among the pillar of flames, and nodded. She was right, that would be better. When in a hurry, sure it wasn’t the best way, but it sure sent a scary image to those ponies back then. We hadn’t really practiced it, but I was sure I could do it.

My eyes glowing, I glared down at Morpheus and Danaus, then, took a deep breath and let the power burst out of me. A pillar of green flame surrounded me, and I grinned in delight, watching it for a moment before I concentrated on the change. Feathers popped away to reveal insectile wings, my horn grew long upon my head, and the yellow fur fell to reveal my black chitin. As the flames dissipated, I let out a loud cackle and bared my fangs.

“Always one for the dramatics, aren’t you Chryssy?” Discord chuckled, clapping as Shiny and Velvet gazed in awe.

“Good to see they enjoyed our show,” Chrys said. “Now, for the others.”

I turned back to Morpheus and Danaus, ears down and eyes narrowed, to see they had returned to their changeling forms. “Now,” I growled, “explain.” The two of them backed against one of the couches, wings trembling behind them. Colt, I could sure be scary when I wanted to!

“I-it was all Morpheus’s idea,” Danaus stammered. “I assure you, my Queen, I had no ill intentions when I went along with his plan.” He took a deep breath, let it out slowly, and bowed down to me. “I was thinking of the hive, how we could really use every last drop of love possible.”

“That doesn’t really tell me what you did.” I frowned, turning to Morpheus. “So, it was your plan to disobey a direct order?” I hissed.

Morpheus nodded, ears going flat against his head. “B-but it wasn’t exactly against your orders,” he said. “They were still alive when my patrol left them.”

I let out a deep sigh, facehoofing. “So you basically left just enough love so you wouldn’t be killing them directly?” He nodded, forehooves held to his chest as he gave a small smile.

“So it seems my orders were not specific enough for him,” Chrys hissed. “Does he not realize what he has done by being so foolish?”

I stomped a hoof on the ground, making them both jump. “Do you not realize what you have done?” I asked. “It is lucky Celestia seems to have forgiven us. If she finds out the instigator who was directly involved in the death of her ponies is in her castle? She’ll be calling for your head,” I snorted, turning to Danaus. “Perhaps even both of your heads.”

“She wouldn’t do that,” Shiny said, shaking his head and taking a step away from Discord and Velvet. “Princess Celestia is a benevolent ruler, she’s not a killer.”

“That might not be so this time Shiny,” Velvet said softly, putting a hoof to his brothers back. “We might have had harmony in Equestria for many years, but losing that many ponies? I-I just don’t see how she can justify it bro.”

“Well at least when she hears this,” Shiny said. “She’ll know Chryssy was telling the truth.”

“Velvet’s right, no matter how harmonious Celestia might be, this can’t be justified away,” she growled. “It would cause chaos among her ponies. Though I hate to lose good soldiers, if they won’t obey us they are useless.”

“Please, my Queen,” Danaus plead, kneeling down and gazing up at us with tears in the corner of his eyes. “I’ll do whatever thou would have me do. Just don’t let them kill me.” He wiped at his eyes and licked his lips. “I was a foal to follow Morpheus, should have known after the first group my patrol…” he paused, trembling.

Even through all of Danaus’s begging, Morpheus just sat still, ears down and eyes closed. “Morpheus?” I said, turning to him. “Are you not going to beg for your life?”

He shook his head. “No, my queen.” Looking back up at me, he stood boldly. “I did what had to be done at the time. If it wasn’t for Danaus and me, there would have been a lot less love to go around the hive. The love our patrols collected was mostly used up healing those who were injured when we were catapulted away from Canterlot.” Morpheus looked down at the sobbing Danaus and shook his head slightly. “The love we gained from Princess Cadence and her consort Shining Armor’s shield of love helped, but many more would have died if things had been different.”

“I suppose he does make a good point,” Chrys said. “Even when we landed in that town of little cuddly critters who oozed love, we still lost hundreds of changelings. Mmm did those critters have such sweet love,” she purred. “But no matter, if we go easy on them, the others will find us weak,” she snarled. “And as a queen, we must strive never to be seen as weak. No matter the reason why, they must be punished for disobeying us.”

“Enough, both of you!” I stomped a hoof again, glaring at Morpheus and Danaus. “No matter if you did it for good or ill, you still deliberately disobeyed me.”

Danaus stood back up, wiping at his eyes with one hoof. “Yes, my Queen,” he whispered, looking up at me. “Is there anything else you would like to know?”

“Yes,” I said. “Who else was in your patrols that day, and how many of them still survive?

They both blinked up at me in surprise. “Why, our hatchmates of course, my queen.” Morpheus said. “It was a good egg year that year.”

“I-I think some are still alive,” Danaus mumbled. “Most didn’t make it, due to severe injuries. Of those still alive? I haven’t talked to them in months. They were not exactly happy with what I told them to do.” He blushed, letting out a deep sigh.

“Only two or three others still live from my patrol,” Morpheus admitted, closing his eyes.

“Well, we shall have to see what Celestia wants done with them too,” I groaned. At least it seemed most of those who had disobeyed us had already paid the price of doing so.

“S-so you’re not going to punish us yourself?” Danaus asked.

“No matter how much we might want to,” Chrys growled. “If we had known about this sooner, the traditional punishment would have been taken out on them. Danaus would have lost his wings, being only an accomplice, even if willing. As for Morpheus? Squished like a bug,” she hissed. “But no, you had to promise Cadence we would let Celestia deal final punishment.”

Colt, this wasn’t something we had covered earlier. The punishments were quite harsh, as even though a changeling could still become a pegasus if they lost use of their wings, actually flying was harder to accomplish. As if Chrys hadn’t told me that plenty of times as she thrilled in flying again. “Since the crime was committed in Canterlot,” I sighed, shaking my head. “Princess Celestia gets a say in how you are punished.”

They both breathed a sigh of relief, kneeling to me once more. “Thank you my queen,” they said, then stood once more.

“Don’t thank me just yet,” I said. “Celestia might think of an even worse punishment for you.”

“I think you handled that quiet well,” Chrys said. “I probably would have thrown them around by their tails a bit at least, make sure they got the message.”

I chuckled, thinking of it now, that might have been fun, but no it wouldn’t be appropriate. Well, that was one thing taken care of for now. All this yelling was giving me a headache though. Would anypony blame me if I just went back to bed?

“Discord, and… Velvet?” I said, turning to them.

“Yes, my dear Chryssy?” Discord grinned.

“Can I trust you two to watch over them?” I snorted, glaring over at Morpheus and Danaus. “Just until Celestia is done with her court and we can continue our talk.”

“Why of course!” Discord beamed, rubbing his claw and paw together. “Want us to have some fun with them too?” he winked.

“Just keep them out of trouble and in one piece,” I sighed, rubbing my head with a forehoof.

“Can do,” Velvet said, saluting. He led the way toward the room on the far left, next to the room the girls and Twinkleshine were in. Discord picked up Morpheus and Danaus, one in his paw the other his talon, and flew toward the door.

I took a deep breath and let it out as they closed the door behind them, Morpheus and Danaus tossing me a nervous gaze just before the door hid them from view.

“So then what are we going to do now?” Shiny asked, trotting over to me.

“Well, I−” I started, the fillies door opening interrupting me.

“Shiny!”

“You’re back!” Nemoria and Acronicta yelled, running out in their natural forms and tackling him in a hug.

“Oh, hello girls,” Shiny chuckled, wrapping a hoof around each of them and hugging them close. “Missed me did you?”

“Of course,” Nemoria snorted, booping Shiny on the nose. “You are our absolute favorite professor.”

“And the kindest one as well,” Acronicta added, smiling softly. “Why did you run away?”

“Well I…” he paused and looked over at me.

“They are young, but they might as well know,” Chrys sighed. I nodded to Shiny.

“I got scared when I found out so many died when Chryssy was last in Canterlot,” he said.

“You, scared?” Nemoria asked. “But you are such a brave pony!”

“Yeah,” Acronicta nodded. “You’re the only pony that came to the hive willingly.”

Shiny chuckled, sitting up and placing them on the couch beside him. “Well, even brave ponies can get scared sometimes. Nopony is perfect after all.”

“Shiny’s right,” Twinkleshine said, trotting out of the room the three had been in. “We all have our flaws, like sleeping in all morning?”

Nemoria and Acronicta blushed. “Well the bed was just so soft, I could stay in it for days,” Nemoria sighed, leaning back on the couch.

I chuckled, “though it might be soft, that is no excuse to stay in bed so long.”

“I’m sorry,” the fillies chorused, ears wilting.

“It’s okay,” I said, smiling at them. “Why don’t you get some fresh air? You and Twinkleshine have been cooped up in here longer than the rest of us.”

“I could take them for a walk around the castle?” Shiny offered.

“That would be good,” Chrys said. “Would let us catch a nap. Who knows how long we’ll be up talking to the princesses tonight?”

“Sure Shiny, I’m sure they would love that, wouldn’t you?” I looked to Nemoria and Acronicta, who had beaming smiles on their faces.

“Then we could practice our disguises some more,” Nemoria giggled.

“I would like to stretch my legs,” Acronicta nodded.

“Perhaps take Twinkleshine with you as well?” I suggested. “Or if you would rather be away from the fillies for a while I’d understand. After all, you didn’t come with us just to foalsit.”

Twinkleshine shook her head. “I don’t mind helping Shiny out, I love foals.” She trotted up behind the two and booped them each on the muzzle, making them giggle. “Changeling or pony, these two are very well behaved.”

“Then it is decided,” I grinned. “You four take a walk, but be safe. Very few guards or other ponies in the castle know who we really are and for now I would rather keep it that way.”

They all nodded, trotting toward the door. Twinkleshine paused, glancing up at me. “You seem different from when we met at the wedding,” she said softly, rubbing her chin with a hoof. “Change of heart perhaps?”

“Let’s just say I’m trying to turn over a new leaf,” I said and grinned.

“Colt, is everypony noticing such things?” Chrys groaned. “We’ll have to work harder on that. If anypony or ling else finds out the truth…”

“Well I like it,” she said. “Better for pony and changelings to be allies after all than enemies. Better for all of us,” she stood there for a moment longer, looking deep in thought. With a shake of her head, she turned away and followed Shiny and the fillies out of the room.

“She does have a good point,” I said softly, trotting toward our room. “If we can come to a compromise, we wouldn’t have to steal ponies to feed from.”

“It is a lovely sentiment, but unlikely to happen,” Chrys sighed. “Even if Celestia accepts us this time, after what happened at the wedding most of her ponies won’t.”

“Would it hurt to try?” I pulled open the door to our room, stepped inside and closed it behind me. “Maybe… something like is done when introducing a new pet to a home, acclimate them slowly to the pets that already live there.”

Chrys chuckled. “Are you comparing us and the ponies to pets? I think our ill will toward each other is stronger than that. Though, perhaps with time…”

“Time does solve many things,” I nodded. “Might help even more if we formed a relationship with one of their own?”

“How many times must I tell you? We can’t love,” Chrys sighed.

“Then what would you call the feelings you have for Leptostales?”

“He is the father of our daughter, and a longtime friend. As such, he is an important asset to the hive. When we return to the castle, he will be beneficial in helping to raise her to be a proper young changeling. Noling can raise a foal, or nymph if you will, better than their own parents. That is why I was concerned in getting him back home,” she huffed.

“You wouldn’t call that love?” I asked, plopping down on the bed and looking up at the ceiling.

“No,” she said. “Merely the bond of parents with their child.”

“Most would call that bond love Chrys,” I sighed. “Why do you keep refusing to believe we can love, really? Did someling or pony hurt you a long time ago? Have you even tried to love another?”

“Of course I’ve tried!” she hissed. “In my five hundred plus years alive I’ve tried dozens of times. Sure there have been changelings and ponies I have found attractive, even a few griffons, but it never goes beyond that. Never!”

I sighed, leaning back against the pillows and closing my eyes. Could it actually be true? Did I only like Shiny because he was attractive? Would there never be anything else to it? “What about the previous Chrysalis?” I asked. “Even if she was trapped in that volcano most of her time, did she ever have someone she loved?”

Chrys snorted. “Kind of hard to try to find someone to love when you are surrounded by molten lava and ash. She was lucky enough that particular volcano had creatures that lived in the lava to feed from, let alone someling or pony to care for.”

“But she wasn’t in there her whole reign right?”

“No, but after dealing with that fool Emperor Inciatus of Trot, I doubt she ever felt like trying again.” Chrys huffed. “Look, if you want to try a relationship beyond just friends with that Shiny, go ahead. It will never lead to love, no matter how hard you try.”

“I’ll prove you wrong with that,” I snorted. “We were both human once, you and I, if we could feel love back then, then we can now. Shiny loves us, and is willing to do so much for us. If anypony can help us love, it will be him.”

“Just don’t get your hopes up,” she sighed. “I’d rather not see you have to suffer. Especially since it would make me suffer as well.”

“Well gee, thanks,” I chuckled.

“Just wait until after all these negotiations are over to try please? It’s annoying enough dealing with the princesses.”

I nodded. “Very well.” After all, we wouldn’t have time for a relationship anyway. Making sure our hive was protected was the important thing to do right now. They needed us more than Shiny. I wouldn’t let Radiant Hope keep scaring us, not if I could help it. If that meant waiting a little longer to prove Chrys wrong, Shiny would just have to endure.

“Wait, what about Leptostales? You’re not mad I would rather try with Shiny than him?” I asked. “I mean, you might not feel like you love him, but wouldn’t that make things awkward for Citheronia when she gets older?”

“He knows that is just the way of the hive dearie. Sure, some of our drones form relationships with just one other, but when it comes to what the ponies would call cheating? It is just how we obtain our food,” she said. “If by some miracle you form a stronger bond than usual with Shiny, we still need to feed. He could become our main source of doing so, but feeding on him too often isn’t good for his health.”

“So we would still need to feed off other ponies,” I sighed. “I guess I still have a lot to learn, don’t I?”

“Don’t worry dearie, I’m not going anywhere,” Chryssy chuckled. “We’ll have plenty of time to teach you what you need to know.”

“I sure hope so,” I said, chuckling. “Don’t know what I would do without you.” I snuggled against the pillow, closing my eyes. “Hopefully we can get Leptostales out of the dungeons tonight. Until then, let’s enjoy the silence while it lasts.”

Canterlot Castle- Shiny Whistle

As we stepped outside our quarters, the fillies prancing behind us and giggling, Twinkleshine stuck out a hoof in front of them. They looked up at her, heads cocked to the side.

“What’s wrong Twinkle?” Acronicta asked, ears twitching.

“Aren’t you two forgetting something?” she said, lifting one eyebrow.

The two fillies looked at each other, eyes going wide as they realized they were still in their changeling forms. “Oh! Right!” Nemoria said blushing. The two of them nodded to each other and with a little flash of light each transformed into their forms they had had on the train, only switching out their pegasus wings for horns.

“Nice idea you two,” I grinned.

“Of course,” Nemoria giggled, wiggling her ears. “With you two being unicorns−”

“It makes us look like we are your foals!” Acronicta finished, the two bursting into giggles.

“Our foals−” I started, ears going down as I blushed.

“Come on you three,” Twinkleshine smirked, lowering her hoof and leading the way down the hall. I followed a step behind her, the fillies on our heels.

I hadn’t paid much attention to the halls as we walked here from the ballroom, but now as we stepped quietly I looked around. It was no surprise why visiting royalty were housed here, for everything looked much more opulent than other parts of the castle I had seen so far. The hall was painted a light pastel purple, full of light from its wide windows. Purple lilacs lined the upper walls in wall sconces, filling the air with their peaceful scent. We were the only ponies present at the time, though it wasn’t quiet.

With Nemoria and Acronicta fully awake, they darted around, looking into vases as we passed and out at the beautiful view of the river running beside the castle. “Look at this!” Nemoria shouted, pulling Acronicta over to look out the nearest window.

“Is that the statue garden?” Acronicta gasped, wiggling her flanks excitedly. “That is where Discord was imprisoned, isn’t it?”

“Yes indeed,” Twinkleshine nodded, trotting over to the fillies and putting a hoof around each of them. “If you look carefully,” she said, pointing a hoof upwards. “You can also see the astronomy tower. It is an excellent place to gaze at the stars.”

I stepped up behind them and followed her hoof. On the wing of the castle next to ours, on the closer edge, was an astronomy tower. It was set slightly away from the rest of the wing by a railed bridge, its base surrounded by wide windows that almost reached the golden plated roof. Upon the roof the upper half of a telescope could barely be seen from this position.

“There is always so much more to learn about the stars and the galaxy around us,” Twinkleshine continued. “Someday, I want to know everything about them. I’ve learned so much already, even made a few discoveries, but there are things yet to learn.”

“You really love the stars, don’t you?” Nemoria said, looking up at Twinkleshine.

“Is that why your cutie mark is of stars?” Acronicta asked, pointing to it.

Twinkleshine nodded, “Yes, I do, and yes, that would be so .”

The two looked back up at the astronomy tower, silent for the moment, then back over to Twinkleshine. “How did you get your cutie mark?” Nemoria asked.

Twinkleshine smiled. “Doing what I love,” she grinned. “The first time I got the chance to look through a telescope and looked up at the night sky bright with stars,” she sighed. “A comet shot across the sky, and somehow it immediately came to me.”

“What?” Acronicta said, cocking her head to the side. “Your cutie mark?”

“No,” Twinkleshine shook her head. “The understanding of how it moved. I had an inner instinctive grasp on astrophysics.”

“Astrowhatsits?” Nemoria wrinkled her nose, raising her eyebrows.

“I’ll explain it to you later,” Twinkleshine chuckled, running a hoof through the little filly’s mane. “After I realized what I could do, that is when my mark appeared.”

“Wow,” the two fillies gaped. A rumbling gurgle made me look down at the fillies, who blushed as they held their forehooves to their bellies.

“Sounds like somepony is hungry,” I grinned.

“We haven’t eaten since yesterday afternoon,” Acronicta whispered.

“Well, we better get you something to eat then,” Twinkleshine said stepping away from the window. “Let’s go find the dining room, it’s a little after one now anyway.”

Once again we turned to silence as we wandered down the hall, looking out for anypony that might be able to show us the way. I paused and held a hoof to my own stomach as it started to growl, remembering we had skipped breakfast this morning.

“So you’re in love with the changeling queen,” Twinkleshine said softly, turning to look at me.

“I am,” I nodded.

“That’s quite a dangerous thing for a pony, I’m sure you know?”

“Yes, I am aware of that,” I said. “But I trust Chryssy, she wouldn’t hurt me.”

“Yeah,” Nemoria trilled. “Professor Shiny is one of our teachers.”

“Professors are off limits for feeding on,” Acronicta said, holding up a hoof.

I chuckled at that, thinking about the times during our journey Chryssy had already fed upon me. Come to think of it, it hadn’t been that bad. Why, the only time I had even experienced one of those feeding headaches was from her daughter. How come I didn’t get them with her? Especially when she had fed more often than was usual for feeder ponies, according to Apatelodes.

“Doesn’t mean it won’t happen,” Twinkleshine shook her head. “Sometimes it is hard to control, especially when hungry.”

“How do you know so much?’ Nemoria piped, trotting a little faster to be next to Twinkleshine. “Did a changeling feed on you before?”

She gazed down at the filly silently for a moment, then shook her head, looking forward once more. “Something like that. Why don’t we change the subject? Wouldn’t want somepony else hearing us now would we?” Nemoria shook her head.

“Do you think they’ll have pineapple?” Acronicta asked, trotting a little faster to catch up with her friend. “I do love pineapple,” she sighed.

“I’m sure if it’s not on the table, you can ask for it,” I chuckled.

“Halt!”

I looked up to see the guards from yesterday, the dark blue unicorn of the pair holding out a spear at us. The azure blue pegasus put a hoof to the spear, pointing it back at the ground. “Sorry about Shielded, he’s a little stressed today.”

“Is there a problem?” I asked, stepping in front of Nemoria and Acronicta.

“Yes there is, guard tackler!” Shielded snorted. My ears fell slightly at his words.

“Sorry about that,” I mumbled. Had everypony heard about that?

“Don’t worry, that’s not why we are here,” the pegasus guard grinned. “Call me Midnight by the way,” he nodded to us. “Princess Celestia asked us to retrieve your party for lunch. Are the others still in your quarters?”

“Yes, but I don’t think they plan on eating,” I said. With the crazy ideas Discord and my brother were likely to cook up for the two changelings, who knew how long they might be? As for Chryssy, she had seemed stressed, and rightly so. I might not have known Morpheus or Danaus very well, but their betrayal had left her in a bad mood.

“Princess Celestia is done with court already?” Twinkleshine asked.

Midnight shook his head. “No, just the regular break for a meal. Even a Princess has to eat you know,” he said.

“She specifically wanted your friend… Soaring Song...,” Shielded huffed, planting his spear upon the floor.

“She’s busy with her guards at the moment,” I said. “They ran off on her so need some talking to.”

“Can we just go eat please Mr. Shielded?” Nemoria asked, looking up at him between my legs. She dropped her upper lip and gave him the biggest, saddest eyes.

“Yes, please?” Acronicta whispered, lowering her ears and scrunching up her nose, eyes quivering with a tear drop each.

“Come on Shielded, can’t let the fillies go hungry now can we?” Midnight said, almost tearing up himself looking down at them.

Shielded rolled his eyes and gestured behind Midnight and him with his spear, sighing. “Very well, we’ve already kept Princess Celestia waiting long enough as it is.”

“Yay thank you!” Nemoria squealed, jumping up and hugging the unicorn’s leg. He just looked down at her, shook his head and turned around. Nemoria and Acronicta hopped along behind Midnight and Shielded, while Twinkleshine and I brought up the rear.

“They’re good!” Twinkleshine whispered to me.

I nodded, chuckling. “Oh believe me I know! Even after just a few weeks teaching them, they got me wrapped around their little hooves.” They were good fillies, the total opposite of what most ponies thought of their kind. Hopefully I could change that. They deserved to be able to grow up in a world that wasn’t scared of them.

With the guidance of the two guards, it didn’t take long for us to arrive in the royal dining room. A golden chandelier hung from the middle of the burgundy ceiling, the room bathed in the cool light of the stained glass windows to our right. A long table with a simple white tablecloth sat in the middle of the room. Princess Celestia sat at the far end, two unicorn guards posted next to a door by the stained glass windows.

“You’re guests, Princess,” Shielded said, bowing to her and gesturing the four of us inside.

I led the way, Nemoria and Acronicta following slowly behind me. Twinkleshine grinned at Celestia as she trotted inside beside me.

“Thank you Shielded, Midnight,” Celestia said, nodding to them. Midnight closed the door and he and Shielded took up guard to either side of it. She then turned to look at the four of us. “Welcome, I take it our other friends couldn’t make it?”

“No Princess,” I shook my head. “Just us for lunch, if that is okay?”

“Of course it is okay dear Shiny,” she smiled, standing up and walking over to us. Her gaze turned down to Nemoria and Acronicta, who hid behind my legs nervously. “It’s okay girls, I won’t harm you.” She held a hoof out to them. “Are you hungry? My cooks should be bringing in a large fruit platter any moment now.”

“W-will it have pineapple?” Acronicta whispered, eeping as Celestia looked at her.

“Of course, is that your favorite?”

She nodded. “Yes Princess.”

“Well then, why don’t you and your friend sit next to me and I’ll make sure you get plenty of pineapple?” Celestia held her hoof a little closer to the filly.

“O-Okay,” she nodded, taking the hoof and following Celestia back to the far side of the table, Nemoria following behind her.

Twinkleshine and I took seats next to them. “How is court going today?” I asked.

“Very busy as usual,” Celestia said, smiling softly at me. “I hear you were part of that commotion a few hours ago? The guard you tackled even came to me in complaint.”

“I’m very sorry Princess,” I gulped. “Y-you know my reasoning. I’d never do it without cause!”

“Yes Shiny Whistle, I understand,” she nodded. “Yet that doesn’t excuse what you did. Nor what you helped Discord do to my sister.”

I blushed deeply, hiding my face behind my hooves. “I-I promise, that was all my brother and Discord. I had no idea they were going to do that to her. Is she okay? Has she stopped laughing?”

“Oh yes, though the singing has only recently started to fade from what she sang to me.”

I groaned, slipping down in my chair. Colt, what had I been thinking letting Discord help? Now we were all going to get thrown in the dungeons! When I heard Celestia start to laugh I looked up. “Everything okay Princess?”

“Of course Shiny,” she said, the laughter slowly diminishing. “My sister might have not been happy about what you three did, but she found the humor in it. I’d watch your back now if I were you, she’s likely to prank the three of you back.”

I breathed a sigh of relief, slumping back in my chair as Nemoria and Acronicta broke out into giggles. We all glanced over as the door opposite the one we had come in from opened. A pale blue unicorn stallion with a white apron tied around his barrel entered, pulling behind him a loaded cart full of food. Along with the promised tray full of fruit were loaves of bread, sliced cheese, and a two-tiered chocolate cake.

“Take whatever you would like,” Celestia said, lighting her horn and levitating over some sliced pineapple to Acronicta’s plate. “Some pineapple for you too dear?” she asked Nemoria, who nodded her head.

Acronicta levitated a piece to her mouth and nibbled on it, her eyes lighting up as she then popped the rest of it into her mouth. “This is so fresh and juicy!” She grabbed up another piece, tossing them into her mouth as quick as she could swallow them.

Nemoria followed after her, the two finishing what was on their plates within mere minutes. “More, please?” she asked, holding out her plate.

“Of course,” Celestia grinned, and put more on each filly’s plate.

“Aren’t you going to eat?” Twinkleshine said. I turned to see she her plate filled with assorted fruits, along with a little of the bread and cheese.

“Yeah, I should.” I levitated over a few bananas, strawberries and other assorted fruits, along with the bread and cheese, and dug in. Acronicta had been right, all the fruit was fresh, juicy, and some of the best I’d eaten.

I winced, feeling a prickling against my neck. Looking around, nothing seemed out of the ordinary, until I noticed the unicorn guard, Shielded, staring at me. The look on his face was unreadable, but the moment he noticed me looking he turned around and looked away. What was all that about? Was he in the know about who was with us? I turned back to my plate, shaking my head. Whatever was up with him, it could wait until later.

It wasn’t long before I pushed my plate aside, blinking up at the chocolate cake to see it already a third of the way gone. The innards of it were molten chocolate. I licked my lips, my mouth watering just looking at it.

“You must really love cake,” Nemoria piped. I looked to see Celestia with a large slice on her plate, a little chocolate mustache already around her muzzle.

“Where do you put it all?” Acronicta asked. “Do you have a hollow leg?”

“Acronicta!” I scolded. Her ears sunk, but Celestia just chuckled.

“Oh it is quite alright Shiny, she’s not the only foal to wonder such things.” She looked back to Acronicta. “Much of it is put to use in raising and lowering the sun each morning and evening,” she explained softly. “It takes a lot of magical energy, part of which I regain from eating. The only way I can get away with my… habit.” She rubbed a hoof through the filly’s mane. “Would you like a piece?”

“Yes please,” Acronicta nodded, holding out her plate.

“Me too please,” Nemoria said, holding her plate out as well.

Celestia cut them each a piece, watching as they dug in with squeals of delight.

The five of us sat back in our chairs a little later, smiles on each face. Server ponies came to gather the dishes and wish us all well, quickly returning to the kitchens. “I’m afraid I must leave you now, my little ponies,” Celestia said as she stood. “Last few hours of court call. Would you let Soaring Song know we can meet again at dusk, same place as last night?”

“Of course,” I nodded. “Thank you for lunch Princess.”

“Yes, thank you!” the fillies beamed. “It was delicious!”

“You are most welcome Shiny, girls,” Celestia nodded. “It was nice to see to you again Twinkleshine,” she grinned, taking a step toward the door. “Perhaps we can talk more on what you have been up to when all's said and done?”

“Of course,” Twinkleshine nodded.

I stood as Princess Celestia left, the girls getting up to stand beside me. “Ready to return to our rooms?” I asked, glancing down at Nemoria and Acronicta.

The two nodded. “Is it okay if Twinkleshine takes us to see the stars tonight though?” Nemoria asked.

I looked to the unicorn mare, who trotted over to us, nodding. “Sure, we can do that if things go to plan.” She looked to Midnight and Shielded, who were slowly walking toward us.

“Thanks for helping us find the dining room,” Nemoria beamed.

“You’re welcome, little filly,” Midnight said. Shielded just huffed, nodding.

“If you have a problem, please tell us,” I snorted, glaring at him. “I told you I was sorry.”

“I heard you,” he nodded. “But something isn’t right with you. I’ll be watching you closely while you reside in the castle.”

I blinked at him, he thought I was the strange one? Well when one loves a changeling I guess some would call that weird. “Well, I hope you find me to be just your average pony.”

“I’m sure that will be so,” Midnight said. “If you are ready, we can lead the way back to your rooms? This castle can get a little confusing.”

“Sure,” I nodded, looking to the others, who also nodded.

“Very well then. Follow us.” Shielded growled, watching each of us, without blinking, for a moment before turning around and leading the way from the dining room.

Foreboding

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Changeling Castle- Apatelodes

“She’s still not answering,” I growled, slamming my casting emerald onto the table. Ever since Videre and I had come back in after Hope left, I’d been trying to get hold of my Queen repeatedly. The remaining members of the council and we had met once more to discuss the situation with our Queen in Canterlot and the Diamond Dog threat.

“Perhaps her majesty is already talking to the princesses?” Chioides whispered, lowering his one ear slightly. “After all, the quicker they talk; the faster she can return, right?”

“Maybe,” I sighed, folding my hooves on the council table and letting my head fall into them. “She might have left me in command while she was gone, but dealing with Radiant Hope and her army is not a decision I can make on my own.”

“Well, we are here to help,” Videre said, adjusting the helmet on his head and patting my shoulder. “We want everyling protected just as much as you.”

Crambus rubbed the blue stripe along his muzzle. "What would you have us do against these Umbrum? Even worse, what are we going to do about those diamond dogs?"

“Do you think they might have returned to their ancestral home in the gem mines?” Asbolis asked. He was one of my hatchmates who distinguished himself by keeping his frilled mane cut very short. “It would explain them being this close, what with the mines being less than a half day’s flight to the west.”

I nodded, “it’s possible. Hope would need somewhere nearby to keep them, so why not there? Closer they are, the better the Diamond Dogs can keep us in the hive.”

"And the better they can get all of us once they attack," Chioides replied, visibly shuddering.

"We also can't afford to have anyling getting picked off outside either," I grunted, patting the armored changeling beside me on his shoulder. “Which is why I have brought Videre with me today.”

Videre nodded. “While I guard for intruders, I can watch for those trying to leave as well.”

“Not everyling comes and goes by the front door though,” Asbolis pointed out, tapping a hoof against the table. “Many fly through their windows.”

“Why not just fly away?” Crambus asked. “Those dumb dogs can’t fly.”

“No, but the Umbrum can,” Videre said. “Plus, the Diamond Dogs have catapults. I spotted them just in the woods.”

“Now, we can’t stop the others from flying away, but the more we can protect the better.” I leaned back in my chair and closed my eyes. Letting out a long sigh, I continued. "After Radiant Hope's show of force today, I don't think anyling will need any extra convincing to stay inside."

“We should still make an escape plan,” Crambus said, pulling a map of the castle out from a saddlebag draped across his back. He rolled it out onto the table in front of us.

I looked down on it, humming thoughtfully, moving a hoof back and forth along the thick lines. “Yes, we need to be prepared.” I tapped a hoof twice against the hatchery. “We have the exit hidden in the hatchery, leading to the back of the castle. That one would be best for getting the hatchlings and young ones out.”

“And the one here,” Videre said, pointing to the far side of the first floor. “It is hidden by bushes. It would do well for getting many out. Whatever we do, it will have to be done fast.”

“From the reports we received,” I said, looking up. “Hoofville was almost completely in flames in about ten minutes. Now most of their buildings were made of wood, not stone like ours.”

“But that doesn’t mean we should be any less careful,” Crambus huffed. “For as much as we have learned of these Umbrum, there is still much more we don’t know.” He stretched his wings before fluttering them nervously.

“Perhaps for now we should focus on the enemy we do know?” Chioides whispered, rubbing his forehooves together. “Staying away from those fangs and claws…” he shuddered.

“That is a good idea, Chioides,” I nodded. “With those mutts now added to Hope’s forces, we have to worry about their speed and sense of smell. At any time, every able-bodied adult should be paired with another, our highest priority of course being the injured and our young.”

“They do love the younger, tender flesh,” Videre nodded.

“Alright then, let’s figure out a schedule to do so,” I said, stomping a hoof on the table. “They are our future, and we must never forget that.”

Chioides raised a hoof.

“Yes?” I asked.

“Um, can we take a break for lunch first?” he mumbled. “I-I’m sure I’m not the only hungry one?”

The others nodded, murmuring the same.

I sighed, but nodded. After all, I was hungry too. Though if I’d be able to eat, that was another thing altogether. “Very well, we will take a brief break for lunch and then meet back here.”

I sat back in my chair once more as everyling rose and headed toward the door. Rubbing my hooves against my temples, I let out a groan. “How did Chrysalis handle this all the time? Making the big decisions, being in charge, it was all so much!”

“Don’t worry Apatelodes,” Videre said, patting my shoulder. “You are doing a great job! I’m sure Her Majesty would be proud of all you are doing.” He tilted his head sideways and grinned at me with his wings spread out behind him.

"At least someling thinks so," I muttered.

“Stay strong soldier!” he barked, stomping the ground with a hoof, though keeping his goofy grin. “Come on; let’s go eat. I’m sure a nice, juicy meal of love will perk you right up!”

“It has been a few days since I had any,” I sighed. Luckily I could easily survive those days, being well fed, but not everyling could.

“Well see, there you go!” he laughed, wrapping a hoof around me. “I heard two of our ponies recently started a relationship with each other. One of them is on the feeder menu tonight.” He grinned, winking at me as we started toward the door. “I know how much you love that ‘new love’ taste.”

He knew me so well. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised though, with how often we usually chatted. It has been some time though, so I was glad to finally have a chance once more.

“Well, we better get there fast so noling else gets them!” I laughed. Together we hurried our steps to the dining hall. It was good to have Videre by my side again, making my day better. It was just like the old days.

We talked long into the evening after lunch, stopping only to grab a quick dinner. I waved goodbye reluctantly as we all went our separate ways.

There was much to be done still, but at least we had a good idea of how to protect those in the hive. We all had our jobs to do. If being by my queen’s side all these years had taught me anything. Things should go according to plan- usually.

I had received word at dinner from Attacus that Phengaris wanted to see me soon as I could. Coincidentally, I had already planned on checking on the Princess. I bid the guard captain a adieu and made my way to the hatchery.

I passed by Crambus, already leading a patrol to the upper floors.They would take the first shift of fortifying the castle. It had been too long since we applied a new layer of our slime along the walls. As it dried, it became harder than the usual mortar, saving the old castle from crumbling down around us. After all, even stone buildings erode. In the morning, Chioides would take Crambus’s place. I just hoped we would have time to at least fix up the places that needed it most.

I nodded to the guards Attacus and Astraptes as I reached the hatchery doors. “Everything looking good down here?”

“Yes,sir!” Attacus nodded, saluting. “The only lings we have allowed by were parents of the hatchlings.” He scratched at the scar along his cheek, before standing back at attention.

“Good, carry on,” I said and trotted into the hatchery.

Soft snores could be heard around me as the hatchlings slept. Of the twenty-three currently in there, only five remained in their eggs now. Princess Citheronia had one fellow female born in this batch, a tiny thing with a pale blue sock-like marking on her right forehoof. Her parents had been in yesterday for her birth, and named her Zelleria. Pachlio was the only one we had lost so far, and if I had anything to do about it he would be the last.

“You made it,” Phengaris whispered, trotting over to me. She flicks her wavy white mane back and gave me an appreciative grin.

“Yes, what was it you were needing?” I asked. “Is everything okay?”

“Of course, of course,” she laughed hesitantly. “It just… seems our princess is a little different from her hatchmates.” She led me over to Citheronia’s incubator. She lay curled up in her dark grey blanket. Her chest rose and fell slowly as she slept. At first, I didn’t notice anything different from the norm, but with a closer look, my eyes widened.

“So it hasn’t been a trick of the light,” I whispered. The majority of her head and muzzle molted, her first, soft baby chitin leaving only a few scrapings on her ears and horn. Underneath the usual black was a darker midnight blue.

“Isn’t Her Highness beautiful?,” Phengaris smiled down at the hatchling. “You don’t think she is sick do you? I- I mean−” she blushed green, rubbing a hoof against her cheek. “It’s common to have a little bit of blue here or there, sometimes much more like Spot…”

“But this much,” I agreed, “this much is much rarer.” I turned to look at Phengaris, whose ears were twitching back and forth as she swirled her left forehoof in a circle on the floor. “Don’t worry Phen,” I grinned. “She is eating well, growing nicely, and lively correct?”

“Yes,” she nodded. “Probably has the best appetite besides maybe our little handsome over there,” she crooned, heading back to the oldest male of the bunch. His parents had still not returned, and I was starting to think never would, poor colt. As he had grown older, his frilled mane had fallen forward and into his eyes.

“Did you give him a name yet?”

Phengaris nodded, “unless his parents come forward with a different one, I’ve decided to call him Thyris.” The thusly dubbed Thyris yawned, smacking his lips and looking up at us with a soft chirp. “Shhh, it’s okay,” Phengaris cooed, rubbing a hoof through his mane. “Go back to sleep little one.” The young colt snuggled into his blanket and closed his eyes obediently.

“I should probably get going,” I whispered. “Don’t want to wake the rest of them.”

Phengaris nodded. “Sleep well then Apatelodes. Any news I should hear before you go?”

I sighed, “Follow me for a moment, Attacus and Astraptes should hear this too anyway.” She nodded, following me out into the hallway.

“Everything okay?” Astraptes asked, hiding a yawn behind his hoof.

“Could be better,” I said. “Be prepared for anything. Those Umbrum still circle us, and Hope has a pack of Diamond Dogs on her side now too.”

“What?” Phengaris gasped, eyes going wide.

“Don’t worry. We got it covered,” I smiled reassuringly. “If anything happens, I’ll send changelings and ponies here first to help you all evacuate the hatchery.” I looked to the three of them, each giving a firm nod. “They are our future, and must be protected at all costs.”

“The ponies?” Astraptes asked.

“Yes,” I nodded. “They might not be our own, but as our food are important to take care of. Without them we are lost. Their foals even more so.”

“You know I’ll take care of them too,” Phengaris said. “Just because they were born pony, doesn’t mean they are any less an important part of the hive.”

“As will we,” Attacus stomped a hoof firmly on the ground.

“Good,” I nodded. I tiphooved back into the hatchery, over to the princess once more, smiling down at her. The tip of her little tongue was sticking out between her lips, which were puckered up in a smile. “Sleep well princess,” I whispered. “We’ll keep you safe.”

Citheronia stirred in her sleep, letting out a little chirp, scrunched up her nose and let out a loud whimper

The door to the hatchery opened and Phengaris rushed inside, picking up the little hatchling and rocking her back and forth. “There, there,” she whispered, nuzzling against her. “You’re safe. You are okay.” She grinned up at me, tilting her head toward the door.

“Stay safe,” I whispered, and made my way out.

Royal Visitor Quarters- Queen Chrysalis

A piercing cry from outside my window woke me from my nap. I yawned, rolling over and placing my hooves on the carpet. The cry came again, almost reminding me of a high pitched parrot. “What in the world?” I mumbled, walking over to my balcony and looking out.

I had to hold back a gasp at what I saw. Sitting perched on the far end of the balcony, with what looked like a lilac colored dove clasped in one talon, was a beautiful peregrine falcon! Before her, letting out screeching noises of their own, were two other falcons, just a little smaller than the first. Both of them had a line of downy white feathers running down their heads like a Mohawk.

“A mother and her brood, such a rare sight,” Chrys sighed. “Though we did have a pair that used to make their scrape on a rocky slope near the castle.”

“I just wish I had a camera,” I whispered. “Wait, I think I have something better.” I stepped quietly away from the window, turning back into the room. My eyes roved around, looking for a scroll or piece of spare parchment. “There’s got to be some in here somewhere,” I groaned, opening the drawer below where I had found the combs before.

“What are you looking for?” Chrys asked. “I doubt Celestia would leave a camera lying about in a random guest room.”

“Forget the camera,” I said, shaking my head. “Aha!” I beamed, pulling out a few sheets of parchment and a stick of charcoal. “Not too fond of charcoal, but I won't get my fingers dirty with magic at least.,” I chuckled.

“Ah, so you plan to draw her and her chicks,” Chrys said. “Were you an artist before…?”

“A little bit, never professionally or anything,” I said, shaking my head as I crept back up to the balcony window. “But I still have fun doing it. Now no more questions please; we need to make her feel at ease.”

Chrys chuckled. “Very well, do what you will. I’m sure we have plenty of time before Celestia calls for us.”

I crouched down near the window, which I was glad was already open, as that would make getting close enough to draw the falcons easier. While I had gotten my writing utensils, the mother had already given one of her young the dove, and it was tearing into its breast, feathers floating down and blowing away in a light breeze.

The mother falcon turned her head at me, spreading out her wings and screeching at me. “Shh it’s okay momma,” I crooned. “I’m not going to hurt your babies.” I began to hum a soft melody, something from back home though I could no longer remember the words. The mother falcon ruffled out her feathers, shook them out, and then brought her wings into her bosom again, watching her young ones carefully.

I grinned and inched closer and levitating the parchment and charcoal out in front of me. The dove was mostly eaten now, and the two young falcons nestled against each other. I didn’t know where their scrape was, but at least they were sticking around. Continuing to hum, I lifted the charcoal up and began to draw. The mother continued to look at me, her chest rising and falling, tongue clicking in her beak as she opened it, talons digging into the stone below her.

“Yes, good girl,” I whispered, and then went back to humming.

This was exciting! Seeing such beautiful creature’s right before me, close enough I could see the wind ruffling through their wing feathers and rippling over their bellies. I looked down at my drawing, seeing the magnificence of the three birds come to life on the parchment.

Then, as if by some cue, they spread their wings and flew off with a flurry of wingbeats, soaring into the sky. The youngest one faltered,the greyish-blue plumage on its wings lifting in the air as they gained back their momentum and glided on the thermals of air currents given off by the castle roof.

“That was amazing,” Shiny sighed.

I jumped into the air, dropping my drawing and the charcoal, and hovered in the air, wings buzzing behind me. Shiny stood behind me, my bedroom door opened wide behind him.

“Wh-wha?” I said, licking my lips as he took a step back, blushing.

“Sorry! I-I didn’t mean to startle you,” he mumbled. “I knocked, and when you didn’t answer I opened the door to check to see if you were okay.”

“Silly stallion,” Chrys sighed.

I landed back upon the floor, gathering up my drawing and the charcoal. “It’s okay Shiny. I was so preoccupied I didn’t hear you.”

“I figured as much,” he grinned. “May I see the drawing?”

“See it?” I said, looking down at the picture.

Shiny nodded, “If you’re willing. I know Velvet often would hide his music from me until completed,” he grinned. “He didn’t want anypony to see it until it was perfect.”

“Well, if you really want to,” I huffed and levitated it over to him. “What do you think?”

“I like it,” he said, taking the parchment into his own magic. “Sure it’s not… perfect,” he said, blushing again. “Yet you do have talent.”

“Well, at least he is polite with his criticism,” Chrys snorted.

“Thanks,” I grinned, taking the drawing back and placing it on the bed.

“Where is that song you were humming from? It’s beautiful.”

Colt, I wonder what he would think of the truth? I chuckled, closing my eyes and shaking my head. Well, could tell him half of what I remembered of it. “My mother used to sing it to me when I was young, though I’ve long forgotten the words.”

“Hmmm,” he said, rubbing his chin.

“Is everything okay?”

“Oh! Of course!” he nodded. “Princess Celestia just wanted me to tell you to meet her at dusk for the rest of your meetings.”

“So we still have nothing to do for a few hours still,” Chrys groaned. “Why can’t she just cancel that accursed court of hers? We are talking a possible war, and she disputes with her little ponies about how many sprinkles are too many on a doughnut!” she spat.

“Back in the same room I imagine?” I asked, to which he nodded. “Then I better make sure Morpheus and Danaus are ready to go when it is time.”

I sighed, pausing for a moment to look out the window. My thoughts wandered to a princess in another castle.

“Do you think Princess Celestia will want them executed?” Shiny asked, looking up at me.

“It’s what our changeling laws would require, for Morpheus at least,” I said, leading the way out of my room. “Brutal, but when you tend to hide in the shadows, it is what keeps the others safe.” Sure I might not agree with it, but could see the logic in it. “As for Celestia, I don’t know. Sometimes she is too soft when it comes to all the villains she deals with.”

“Like you?” he asked softly.

“Well he’s got us there,” Chrys chuckled. “No idea how she was able to just forgive us like that, but I’m glad she did. We can’t beat Radiant Hope alone, no matter how much I hate to admit it.”

“Yeah,” I said. “I am striving to do better though. Does it show?”

Shiny chuckled, nodding. “Of course,” he wrapped his hooves around me in a tight hug. “I think that is why Celestia has been able to forgive you; she understands and wants to help.”

“Perhaps he is correct,” Chrys sighed.

“I hope you are right Shiny,” I said, briefly returning his hug before he stepped to my side again.

"We beseech Your Majesty!" I heard Morpheus moan as the door to the bedroom they had entered slammed open.

“Save us from those fiends!” He and Danaus ran out of the room- in dresses.

“Oh colt!” Chrys cackled as the two drones ran and hid behind me. “Well, you can never say Discord doesn’t have a sense of humor.”

Velvet and Discord stepped out of the room, back to back with a hoof and claw to their foreheads as they guffawed. I pulled Morpheus and Danaus back in front of me and couldn’t resist a laugh of my own. The two clowns had dressed Morpheus in a bright pink frilly dress, his mane was curled and dyed a light red, and they added a peach colored blush to each cheek and matching eyeliner. To top it all, he had on bright red lipstick. Danaus was in similar attire, except he was in a bright yellow dress, mane curled and dyed a dark brown, with a rosey hued blush and eyeliner, along with dark red lipstick.

“Why the hay did you guys dress them as Colt Disney princesses?” Shiny asked, head cocked to the side.

“T-they wanted to embarrass us,” Danaus sniffed, ducking back behind me. “We are not dolls!” He yelled, glaring at the two cackling like a pair of hyenas.

“I think you two look cute,” I said, chuckling when their ears lowered and cheeks burned green.

“Can we borrow some more of your changelings, Chryssy?” Discord chortled. “I want to create the whole set!”

“Maybe later,Discord,” I said, taking in a deep breath and letting it out. Colt, I really shouldn’t be laughing. Not with what they had done. Did I want their possible last impression of me to be that I didn’t care? I mean sure Chrys and I would have them squashed like bugs if back at the hive, but they were miserable and scared enough already, let alone embarrassed. Ugh,I had to stop this. “The four of us need to get ready to meet with the princesses.”

“Two of them are behind you,” Velvet snorted, which just sent him and Discord back into their fits of laughter.

“I think I created a monster, letting my brother meet Discord,” Shiny chuckled.

“I just wonder which of them had the idea to dress them up,” Chrys sighed happily. “Colt, I needed a laugh like that. It’s the one thing Discord is good at. Though his timing? Not always so good.”

“At least he is having fun,” I said, winking at Shiny. I trotted over to the two and pulled on Discord’s left ear with my magic. “Come on you silly lord of chaos; fix them up so we can get ready.”

“Aw, we still have a few hours Chryssy,” Discord snorted. “Can’t Velvet and I just have a little more fun doing what I am good at?” he winked.

“No!” Morpheus and Danaus shouted, wings buzzing behind them.

“Don’t you think you’ve tortured them enough?” I asked, raising one eyebrow. He was making me feel guilty. No matter if they deserved whatever they got, this morbid humor of his was uncalled for.

“After what they might have done to my dear friend Fluttershy in different circumstances?” he huffed, folding his arms. “Dressing them up is the least I could do to them.”

“That is true,” I nodded. “But the timing is not appropriate.” The two ‘princesses’ groaned behind me. “Anyway, we should discuss what we are going to do at the meeting tonight. You are coming, right?”

“Of course I am,” he grinned, flying over my shoulders. “You need all the support you can get.”

“I’ll come too,” Shiny said.

“Us too!” Nemoria trilled. Walking out of their bedroom, Acronicta and Twinkleshine trotted behind her.

“I thought you wanted to go with Twinkleshine to see the stars?” Shiny said.

“We do,” Acronicta smiled, looking back at the unicorn mare. “But if our Queen needs us−”

“Go ahead,” I chuckled. “You’d get bored anyway. These meetings will likely last long into the night.” I turned to look at Shiny. “Perhaps you and Velvet could join them?”

“But I want to be there to support you,” he frowned. “Perhaps I could even help.”

“I know you do,Shiny,” I sighed. “Right now though, I think the princesses want to keep it to just those that need to be there.” He took a deep breath, sighed, and lowered his head.

“Come on Shiny, it will be fun!” Velvet beamed, hugging Shiny to him.

“Yes, please come,” Nemoria whined, giving the stallion big puppy dog eyes.

Shiny chuckled, smiling down at her. “You know I can’t resist those eyes,” he grinned. Nemoria jumped up, wrapping her forehooves around his neck and hugging him.

“Thank you, thank you, thank you!” she gushed, wings buzzing behind her.

“Those two sure are crazy for Shiny,” Chrys chuckled. “Almost makes me jealous.”

Yes indeed, it was nice seeing him get along with them so well. Though it would be good for him to learn to resist 'the eyes', it was best that he joined them instead of going to court.

“Good, then let’s prepare,” I said. It was going to be a long night.

After convincing Discord to restore the two to their normal selves, we departed towards the court. Shiny and Velvet had already left with the girls for their star-viewing party. The two drones walked between us. Their ears and wings twitched nervously as we approach the court. I resumed my Soaring Song disguise while the two of them resumed their red and green pegasus forms. Though it was all for Celestia’s orders, I couldn’t help but see the wisdom in it. If I was to run into a doppelganger in the castle, it would be chaos.

Flash Sentry stood guard at the door, giving us all a weak grin as we drew near. “Greetings,” he nodded to the four of us. “The princesses all await thee.” He opened the door and watched as we trotted inside.

Morpheus paused in his hoofsteps at the entrance of the room, and he jumped when Flash suddenly closed the door behind us. The room was silent around us. I looked up to see all four princesses watching us. Twilight, in particular, was giving us a stare that could freeze a glass of water all the way across the room.

Cadence cleared her throat, shaking her head at Twilight. Twilight turned to her and frowned, but nodded. Least we had Cadence on our side. Hopefully she could curb Twilight’s anger at us.

“Good evening, princesses,” I said, bowing my head to each of them in turn. “I hope your days went well.”

“Really? Bowing to them? Ugh,” Chrys snorted in disgust. “Just because we our on their terrain doesn’t mean you need to treat them as higher than us. After all, WE are the one with the title of Queen, not they.”

I rolled my eyes before heading to my seat from the night before. As I resumed my natural form- much more comfortable, thank Celestia she didn’t want me to hide in here too- I dragged the accused to the floor next to me.

“Indeed it did, thank you, Chrysalis,” Cadence beamed.

“Court was… worse than usual,” Celestia sighed. “It was nice getting to meet your little fillies at lunch though. They are such sweethearts.”

“For now,” Twilight barked, rubbing a hoof to her temples.

“I plan on keeping them that way long as I can Twilight,” I sighed. “They are good fillies, who may see the atrocities of war far sooner than I would like.”

“Whom is it thou have brought with thee tonight?” Luna asked, looking down at the two shivering pegasi.

“These are two of my own,” I said, giving them a stern glare. They reverted to their drone forms. Their ears laid down flat against their heads as they stared wide-eyed at Celestia.

I glanced over at Discord who had taken the seat next to Twilight, (though he more floated above it than actually sat in it, but whatever.) Taking in a deep breath, I turned back to Celestia. “Morpheus and Danaus here confessed to me this morning that it was their patrols that went against my orders and killed your little ponies.”

Celestia nodde. She looked down at the two as they shivered next to me. “I see,” she said. “What do you two have to say for yourselves?”

“I-I didn’t m-mean to kill anypony, Mrs. Princess Celestia Queen Ma’am,” Danaus gulped. “I just wanted to help the hive.”

Morpheus licked his lips, glancing back and forth between each princess before he finally settled his gaze on Celestia. “Whatever you do to us Princess, please let it be quick.”

“Did you let those that died die quickly?” Twilight glared at him, stomping a hoof on the table. “Why should we offer you such if you didn’t to them?”

“Calm yourself, Twilight,” Celestia said firmly. Twilight fumed, snorting, but nodded and settled back in her chair. “Sister? Cadence?”

“The younger seems sincere,” Luna said. “Through his circumstances, it seems he had his fellow changelings at heart? We sense no ill will.”

“I can’t imagine how hungry they all must have been,” Cadence said softly. “That is still no excuse for killing somepony, but it makes it a harder decision.”

Celestia nodded, turning back to me. “What is the changeling punishment for what they have done?”

I grimaced, looking away. Even if I was a part of it now, didn’t mean I had to like it any better than the ponies. How could I look her in the eyes when telling such a brutal thing? “For Morpheus, he would receive death as it was his plan to go against my orders. As for Danaus, for agreeing to the plan, he would lose his wings.”

Cadence gasped, Luna’s eyebrows shot up and mouth dropped open, and Twilight simply scrunched up her face in thought. Celestia merely looked down at the two hiding behind me. “It is harsh compared to our ways, but then it has been some time since we were last at war.” She let out a deep sigh.

“We need every changeling we can get to keep the hive strong,” Chrys sighed. “If they threaten our way of life though, there is little we can do.”

“I know you believe in reforming as many as possible Celestia,” I said, to which she nodded. “Yet, what would you do if one of your ponies disobeyed you in such a manner?”

“We would do what is best of course!” Twilight yelled. “Princess Celestia does everything in her power to give us the best lives possible. Why would we want to ruin that?”

“Right, what is best,” Chrys snorted. “Some brainwashing reformation? Either way, there must be a reason her dungeons are virtually empty.”

“Not all ponies would agree with thee, dear Twilight,” Luna said, shaking her head. “Even in the short time since our return, we have seen many go against our sister’s values.”

“That is true,” Celestia nodded. “Though I strive to keep our land peaceful, there will always be ponies that strive to cause strife and chaos.”

“Some of my favorite things,” Discord chuckled, winking as Twilight scowled at him. “Though I am trying to be good for dear Fluttershy.” His wings twitched behind him as he stared back at our two drones. “Something these two don’t seem to understand.”

“So shall we come to a compromise on what to do with them?” I asked. “I know you would rather spare their lives, princess,” I said.

“Yes, I would,” she admitted. “Yet after the deaths they caused, I wouldn’t feel safe letting them go free among my little ponies.”

“That is… understandable auntie,” Cadence nodded. “My Shiny lost some good friends that day, nearly all of Shielded Light’s team, including his commander, were killed. They were not the only ones either.”

“The pegasus who helped us in the Ponyville hospital, Helping Heart I think her name was, said about the same,” I said. “Only one of the ponies she took care of ended up living.”

“Five of the ponies in our night guard also perished,” Luna sighed. “Though we would call it a miracle more ponies didn’t lose their lives.”

“No miracle,” Twilight shook her head. “It was the strength of our fellow ponies and the love of my brother and Cadence. Nothing else would have stopped these pests.” She pointed a hoof down at the two beside me. Her wings spread out wide and I could see her taking in deep breaths. What bee got into her tail?

“Perhaps the dear ‘Princess’ didn’t sleep well last night,” Chrys snickered. “Knowing WE were in the castle. Would explain the bookpony’s ire.”

Morpheus and Danaus’s ears lowered further and further with each word, until their heads were hidden underneath my chair. I almost felt guilty, letting them take all the blame. After all, shouldn’t a leader stand up for her subjects? Yet here I was just sitting here listening to all these words against them.

“Survival is what matters,” Chrys snorted. “Our changelings need a strong Queen. Be strong for them.”

“I-I will admit I am much to blame,” I sighed.

“That is not what I meant!” Chrys growled. “How can you be of help if they lock us up?”

“Finally something I can agree with,” Twilight exclaimed, throwing a hoof up into the air. “They learned such devious schemes from somewhere.”

“True, our training classes do cover just how far one can take a feeding before it is too much,” Chrys said. “Each changeling, before they are let out to gather food for the hive, must know the signs. It is part of the reason we keep ponies at the castle, besides feeding of course,” she huffed.

“It takes a good leader to admit that,” Celestia said softly, putting a hoof upon my own. “Many would let their subjects take all the blame.”

“Though the leader may not be at fault in action, with how they have trained their subjects can put much of the blame on them,” Luna said, adding her hoof over her sisters.

“You really have changed,” Cadence grinned.

“Though the subject of punishment for these two be of great worth,” Luna said. “I feel it be a better use of our time to talk of Radiant Hope.”

“But- what about Shiny’s friends, the ponies that died?” Twilight grumbled.

“That is why they will not be released Twilight,” Cadence said softly, wrapping Twilight in a hug. “Everything will be taken care of, I promise.”

Twilight looked up at the pink princess, and put a hoof to her own chest, then took deep breaths in and out, finally ending with one last deep sigh.

“Feeling better?” Cadence asked, cupping Twilight’s cheek.

“Yes, sorry.” Twilight turned to look at me. Her nose twitched, but Cadence brought a hoof around her again and rubbed it up and down her back.

“I know you can never forgive me for what I have done and let happen,” I said. “Believe me though when I say, with an alliance between us I’ll try to do what I can to make up for it.”

“You can’t bring them back from the dead,” she sneered.

“No, and neither can Discord,” I said.

“Sad, but true,” Discord nodded. “I can do practically anything else though.” He snapped his fingers, producing a glass of chocolate milk, and held it out to Twilight. “Thirsty?”

Twilight sighed, but took the cup. “Thanks Discord.” After taking a quick sip, she turned to look at me once more. “Remember, one wrong move-”

“May we continue with the night event’s now?” Luna asked. “I fear what our ponies might be dreaming of, if they’ve heard of the Hoofville fire.”

“I couldn’t agree more sister,” Celestia nodded. She removed her hoof from mine. “What would you say,if for now, we place them in our dungeons with your other changelings?”

“Neither of the others have killed,” I said. “Can’t they at least go free?”

“We went and talked with this Leptostales like you agreed to auntie,” Cadence said. “He seems like a sweet changeling.”

“Oh he is!” Discord chuckled, needling his talon and paw together. “I’ve known him for a long time.”

“How is that possible when you’ve been encased in stone for a thousand years?” Twilight huffed.

Discord lifted his paw to ruffle her mane. “I’ll tell you when you’re older, little princess.”

“I’m sorry, but I can’t relent on this just yet,” Celestia said, shaking her head. “I did get word the mare he fed from has improved, but until she wakes I cannot let him free. Please understand.”

“We will see him free yet,” Chrys huffed. “Yet, to appease her, there is little we can do for now.”

I nodded. “I hope she returns to full health soon then. He would really love to be there for her first molting ceremony.”

“First molting ceremony?” Twilight asked, a small smile forming on her face. “What does that entail? Do you collect all the pieces that fall from the hatchling? How many times does a hatchling molt? Do you still molt at your age?”

She levitated a scroll out in front of her, quill held up to catch every word.

“Once a bookpony always a bookpony,” Chrys chuckled.

Celestia let out a light chuckle of her own. “I think those are questions better left for another day Twilight.”

Twilight sighed, putting the scroll and quill away. “Of course, Princess.”

Celestia turned her gaze to Cadence. “Has Shining Armor contacted you yet?”

Cadence nodded. “He arrived safe in the Crystal Empire, and the amulet is just where I hid it. Each spell put upon it is still there and strong. If this Radiant Hope does have an amulet, then it is different from the one found by Trixie Lulamoon.”

“That is both good and disturbing,” Luna sighed. She turned to look at me. “Thou are sure there are only two? Knowing Sombra we wouldn’t be surprised if he had more.”

“I’ve told you all I know of them,” I said, shaking my head. “From what my council has discovered, there are only the two.”

“Let us hope it stays that way,” Celestia said, shaking her head. “Will Shining continue to guard the amulet?”

Cadence nodded. “Not only does he guard it, but he has a dozen of our best guards on the job as well. Nopony is getting at it.”

“With that out of the way, perhaps we should see if we can find more information of the amulets?” Chrys said.

“You wouldn’t happen to have any books or scrolls about the alicorn amulet, would you?” I asked.

Celestia patted her cheek with a hoof. “Perhaps, I know there was one I sent to Twilight long ago.”

Twilight nodded. “My friends used it when Trixie showed up with the first one,” she said. “It didn’t say anything about another though.” Her eyes lit up and she clapped her hooves together, grinning widely. “This means it’s time to do research!”

“I’ll leave that to you then Twilight,” Celestia said, closing her eyes and smiling.

“Shall I send a letter to my friends to come help?”

Celestia nodded. “Of course, they are always welcome here.”

“Great, now we’ll have to deal with the whole gang,” Chrys groaned. “Though it might be fun to ‘tease’ that Rarity about going evil for a day,” she chuckled.

As we stepped through into our rooms hours later, I looked up at the clock in the main room. “Three a.m.?” I groaned. “No wonder I’m exhausted.”

“Come on, you know you had fun,” Discord chuckled, nudging me playfully in the side. “It was especially fun when I dumped that pudding cake all over Celestia!”

“I think she would have enjoyed your ‘midnight snack’ more if you had put it on a plate,” I sighed. How could be so hyper this late at night? I might have been a night owl as a human, but doing these late night meetings were exhausting!

“Now where would the fun have been in that?” he pouted. “At least, Morpheus and Danaus got one last good meal before Flashy tossed them in the dungeons.”

“Flashy? Is that the best you could come up with?” I huffed, walking toward my door. I still felt bad about tossing them in the dungeons, but it was better than killing them. “Just go to bed, Discord,” I grumbled, opening my door.

"You are not my real mom!" Discord made a melodramatic huff and teleported away. The adjacent rooms were silent, nopony was even snoring tonight.

“I guess the girls must have really worn them all out at the astronomy tower,” Chrys said. I walked into our room, closing the door behind us. Picking up my charcoal drawing from earlier, I placed it onto the top of the dresser where my casting emerald sat glowing faintly.

“Wait,” I looked back at the emerald. Had it been glowing earlier?

“Someling must have been trying to contact us,” Chrys groaned. “Why didn’t I think to have us check it earlier?”

“Well we have been kinda busy,” I said picking it up and walking over to the bed. “So, how do these work again? Can someling leave a message, or does it just glow to show we missed a ‘call’?”

“Both, actually,” she said. “Tap it twice on the flat end and say ‘messages’. If they left a message, we will know.” I nodded, doing so and watching as the glow brightened.

“Chryssy, it is me, Apatelodes,” his voice, a little scratchy said. “I’ve been trying to get hold of you all day,. Please call soon as you get this-no matter how late.” With that, the glow faded again to the intensity it had been before.

“I wonder if he has news on the amulet?” I said, perking up a little. If we could get more info before Twilight, I’d love to see the look on her face. I held the emerald to my lips, whispered ‘Apatelodes’ and waited. It was hardly a minute later when I heard his voice.

“Thank the mother changeling you called,” he sighed. “Where the hay have you been? Er, i-is everything okay, my Queen?”

I chuckled, nodding. “Yes, we just forgot about the emerald. Sorry to worry you.”

“All is forgiven my Queen,” he gritted his teeth. “Do you have any news for us? The others in the council have well… been waiting for your council,” he chuckled.

“Well, the princesses seem willing to help with Radiant Hope and the Umbrum,” I said, sitting down upon the bed. “Though Twilight is understandably reluctant.” I glared into the emerald. “Morpheus and Danaus told me what really happened at the wedding.”

I could hear Apatelodes let out a groan at my words. “They told me not long ago as well, my Queen. I take it they have been punished?”

I rolled my eyes, snorting. “What punishment Celestia would let us give them for now. They, along with Aglais and Leptostales are locked in the dungeons.”

Apatelodes gasped. “They captured Aglais? No wonder he never made it home,” he sighed. “It is good to hear Leptostales is still alive though.”

“Yes, it is all well and good,” Chrys snorted. “I’m sure he has news for us that is more important.”

“Yes, for now,” I said. “What news do you have for us? Did you find out more about the amulet?”

“Much more,” Apatelodes said. “Did Morpheus tell you anything?”

“Somehow he forgot that important news,” I snorted.

Apatelodes chuckled. “You are sounding more like ‘yourself’ every day.”

“Gee, thanks,” I growled softly. “Hope did tell us there were two amulets.”

“Yes, she is correct,” he said. “Hers is far more powerful than the other though.”

“What?” I yelped. If it was more powerful, what all could it do? The one Trixie had had in show wasn’t able to change genders or clone anypony, like Twilight had faked doing with her friends, could Hope’s?

“Yes, my queen,” he whispered. “It gives her all the more reason to have burned the village of Hoofville.” He took a deep breath and let it out. “With every death she is around, the amulet grows stronger with that creature’s magical energy.”

I was sure my eyes were as round as dinner plates at his words. How long had she had this amulet? How many deaths had she seen? No one creature could have infinite power, right? Did we even stand a chance against her with all of Celestia’s power on our side?

“Chryssy?” Apatelodes said. I shook my head, breathing in deep breathes.

“Anything else?” I asked.

“Well, there is more on the amulet, but nothing really that will be of help to stop it,” he sighed. “We do have another problem though.”

“Like we don’t have enough of those,” Chrys groaned.

“What is it?”

“Diamond dogs,” he said. “Hope seems to have added a pack of them to her army. They along with her Umbrum have been terrorizing everyling in the castle.”

“Colt, can anything else go wrong?” I groan, shaking my head. “How are you handling all the terror they are causing?”

“I’ve ordered everyling to stay inside,” he said. “Videre is guarding the doors to keep as many in as possible. Outdoor classes have been canceled, and we are reinforcing the old mortar with our slime.”

“Good, we don’t need any of our young venturing out just to be nabbed by a diamond dog,” Chrys growled.

“Keep up the good work,” I nodded. “I knew I could count on you Apatelodes,” I said softly. “We are both proud of you.”

“Thanks, my Queen,” he said, letting out a yawn. “One last thing, in case we must evacuate, our emergency exits have been prepared.”

“Excellent,” I grinned, closing my eyes and yawning. “I’ll talk to the princess's first thing in the morning and request that they send reinforcements to help guard the hive.”

“You really think they’ll do that?” he asked.

“We can only hope,” I said. “Perhaps, it is a good thing I came to rescue Leptostales,” I sighed. “This is going to be a hard battle.”

“Maybe so, but we will prevail,” he shouted. I heard him stomp a hoof in emphasis. “Life might be forever changing, but, as long as we change with it, the hive will survive.”

“That’s the attitude to have,” I said firmly. “Keep the hive safe Apatelodes. Once we take down Radiant Hope, things can go back to normal.”

“I will do so, my Queen, take care.”

“You too Apatelodes,” I said and ended the call.

“So it seems your little guard learned the truth.”

I whipped around, turning to face my balcony window. Radiant Hope stood there, cloak around her, hood down around her neck. “Yes, yes he did.”

“Then I suppose that just gives you all the more reason to join me?” she grinned, taking a step inside. “Or do you still refuse to decide whose side you will be on?”

I grinned at her, putting the emerald down. “Oh, well…” hadn’t she heard my last words? She seemed to have heard the rest.

“So indecisive,” she sighed, shaking her head. “It sounded like you had decided to side with the ponies,” she sneered. “After they still refuse to let your poor little friend free?”

“Well, yes he is still in the dungeons but−”

“But what? He is safer that way?” she frowned. “Or is it that with him in the dungeons you have no one to stop you from falling in love with a pony?”

“I can’t love,” I said, shaking my head.

“Is that so?” she crooned, walking further into the room and glancing down at my drawing from earlier. “Hmph, cute,” she chuckled.

“What do you want,Hope?”

“Only a definite answer,of course,” she sighed, rubbing the amulet with one hoof. “There are less than twenty-four hours to go now- as you know.”

“We are aware of that!” Chrys growled.

“Exactly,” I said, glaring at her. “Are you not going to let me have the full three days?”

She chuckled, closing her eyes and shaking her head at me. “Oh no, you can have them,” she smirked. “I am a pony of my word after all. If you really feel like you need them.”

“Yes, yes I do,” I nodded. “If you dare lay a hoof on my changelings−”

Hope gasped, putting a hoof to her chest. “Now why would I do a thing like that?”

“Because you are a villain,” Chrys growled.

“You know why,” I snarled, baring my fangs. “Call off your Umbrum and Diamond Dogs.”

“Or what?” she grinned, eyes glowing red.

“Or we’ll tear you apart limb by limb and feed you to your own dumb dogs!” Chrys growled. I just grinned sheepishly down at her.

“Just think of how much stronger you could be on my side,” Hope whispered, putting a hoof around me.

I shifted my wings underneath her hoof, turning to look at her. “What are you doing?”

“Hugging you.” Her horn and eyes glowed red. “Now hug me back or I’ll be forced to kill you now!”

“Uh…” I blinked down at her for a moment, confused. “Okay.” I lifted a hoof and hugged her back.

Before I could remove my hoof, I could swear I felt something from her, perhaps her heart beat a little faster? A… taste of something on the air. Before I could put a name to it she spoke.

“Thank you. Now, I’m trying to show you all that could be gained with me,” she smirked. She held the hug for a moment longer, then pulled away. “Your changelings, my Umbrum and Diamond Dogs, and me of course- we all want revenge, don’t we?”

“I’m not sure we have the same level of revenge in mind,” I snapped.

“That can be fixed,” she crooned. “Neither the Umbrum nor those dogs are smart enough to stand by my side as equals.” She circled around me, completing a full circle before coming to a stop at my head. “You, however, have what it takes. Join me, and I can give you all you’ll ever need.

“Your little changelings trapped down in the dungeons? Released,” she waved a hoof as if the idea was nothing. “That little pony that is crazy for you? Under your power and able to be fed upon whenever you want. As for the princesses that treat you like a second rate villain?” Her eyebrows rose as she brought her muzzle nearly level with my own (if only she had been taller) and grinned. “They won’t be a problem anymore. Without their precious elements, Celestia’s protégé and her friends are useless against us.” She pulled away, strolling back toward the window. “Just think about it a little more. If you decide to join me, be on your balcony at dusk tomorrow.”

“And if not?” I asked.

“Like I said before, I can make that decision a costly one. So, do choose wisely now!” The amulet around her neck glowed a bright red, enveloping her horn as well. “Sleep well, Chrysalis,” she whispered. “Oh, and do perhaps ask Celestia to send troops to aid you. The more the merrier after all” she yelled, then with a flash of red light was gone.

I shivered slightly, collapsing onto the bed and staring at the place she had stood. Things had just got a lot more serious. My changelings needed me. Not in a few weeks, nor days, but soon as possible. I didn’t want to join Hope, not with what we knew of the Umbrum. She could promise us all the food she wanted but that wouldn’t change the fact it would be of poor quality. With the Umbrum filling the ponies full of fear, there would be little room for love. We might survive, but not how I would want.

“She might promise us power,” Chrys said. “Yet she would always have an iron hoof over us. One wrong move and-”

“-and she would use her power to destroy us,” I finished. “You’ve seen more battle than I,” I said. “What would you have us do?”

“The only thing we can do,” she growled. “Follow Hope’s advice and convince Celestia to send help against her.”

“Shiny feels Celestia has forgiven us,” I whispered, looking toward my closed door. “I just hope she has done so enough to listen.”

A flash of color flew past my window, too fast for me to see it in the dark. “What was that?”

“Probably just a bat,” Chrys yawned. “Or many one of those parasprites? Either way, we need sleep. It will likely take a sharp mind to convince that stubborn Sunbutt.”

“Sunbutt?” I giggled. “Here I thought you gave better nicknames than Discord. Flashy, Sunbutt, you two are hilarious.”

“Just go to sleep,” Chrys growled. “We can think up a better nickname for her later.”

“If there is a later,” I sighed. Snuggling down against my pillow, I wondered what terrible things Hope had in mind as I fell into slumber.

End of Day Two

Trouble Brews

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Royal Visitors Quarters - Shiny Whistle

The door slammed open followed by the cheerful giggling of Nemoria and Acronicta. I groaned while rubbing my forehead with my fetlock. As one, the two jumped onto my bed and wrapped me in a hug.

“Good morning, Shiny!”

“Did you sleep well?”

“Yeah, guess so,” I yawned.

Velvet and Discord stirred on the beds next to mine. With a little pop, a glass of chocolate milk appeared beside Discord, who sipped at it as he rolled over. “Ah, what a fun night!” he said, stretching out.

“Fun?” Nemoria piped. “But I thought meetings were supposed to be boring?”

“With Discord around?” Velvet sighed, sitting up in his bed. “Any meeting would be a party.”

Discord nodded. “Though most of it was dull,” he said. “Midnight snack time was fun.”

“How did everything go?” I picked up the girls gently in my magic and set them to the side of the bed as I sat up on the edge of my bed.

"No ling died, which is as well as we could have expected."

“See? I told you Celestia wouldn’t kill Danaus,” Nemoria chirped and poked Acronicta in her side.

“Is Chryssy or Twinkleshine awake yet?” If Chryssy was already awake, I sure was eager to see her. The last few days had to have been hard on her.

Both of them shook their head. “We left Twinkleshine still snoring in her room,” Nemoria said.

“We haven’t seen our Queen yet,” Acronicta whispered. “So I don’t know if she is awake.”

“We wanted to ask you a question Shiny,” Nemoria said. Her ears lowered slightly as she gave me a nervous grin.

“Of course, what can I do for you?” I grinned at them.

“Well… you see,” Nemoria rubbed one forehoof against the other. “E-even with the food eaten yesterday with Princess Celestia…”

“While it was delicious,” Acronicta said. “Well, as changelings we er…” She turned away, blushing.

“We are hungry for love!” Nemoria yelled, her eyes going wide as she lifted both forehooves to her mouth.

I smiled down at them. “No need to be embarrassed. It’s natural for you.” With a hoof around each of them, I hugged them close.

“Yes, I know,” Nemoria mumbled, snuggling closer against my side. “But-but wouldn’t it be bad to do here?”

“Bad?” I asked.

“Yeah,” Acronicta nodded. “C-Celestia seems nice, but - had we fed off sompony - would she lock us up like she did the others?”

“I don’t want to go to the dungeons,” Nemoria said, letting out a whine.

So that was it, poor girls. Their excited attitudes had changed drastically as they clung to me. What to tell them?

“If she tried to do that,” Discord growled softly. “Then I would turn her into a little white mouse to pull my carriage!”

“Doesn’t the story go the opposite way?” Velvet pointed out, to which Discord just shushed him.

“Discord’s right, pretty much,” I said, nuzzling into each of their manes. “I think long as you ask whomever you want to feed on, and are careful, you won’t have anything to worry about.”

“You can feed on me if you want,” Velvet said. He walked over and sat down on the end of my bed. “My brother cares for you two,” he grinned. “If he feels you are worthy of that, then so do I.”

“You won’t tell Celestia?” Acronicta sniffed, looking up at him.

“Tell Celestia what?” Chryssy said.

I turned around to see her step into our room with her mane tangled and bags under her eyes. She let out a yawn, stretching out her wings behind her.

“Chryssy,” I grinned over at her.

“I know, isn’t it nice to see me?,” she snarked, then looked back to Acronicta. “Did you two misbehave last night?”

“No-no!” Acronicta said, shaking her head. “We were good! Right Shiny?” she looked up at me.

“Don’t worry Chryssy, they were great last night,” I chuckled. “Twinkleshine even said it had been a long time since she last saw somepony so interested in the stars.”

“We got to see the moon up close!” Nemoria said. “Did you know it’s not really made of cheese, but rock?”

Chryssy laughed, “oh yes, I knew.”

“Guess that means Princess Luna really didn’t survive on cheese alone all those years,” Acronicta said. The two fillies broke into giggles while rolling into the middle of the bed. It was good to see them cheer up again.

“What did she eat then?” Nemoria asked. The two opened their eyes in wide foalike wonder.

“Rock candy, of course,” Discord said, winking at the two.

“Rock candy?” Chryssy gave Discord a deadpan look and sighed. “Why don’t we figure out the truth to that later,” Chryssy said. “What did you do that you don’t want Celestia to know?”

“Nothing,” the girls chorused.

“We’re just hungry,” Nemoria sniffed. She looked up at Chryssy with her big puppy-dog eyes look.

“Well you can’t feed from Shiny,” Chryssy snorted. “He’s been fed on too often lately.” Her ears twitched, looking at Nemoria, but she gave no other sign of the eyes affecting her.

“You fed on Shiny?” Nemoria gasped.

“But-but he’s a professor!” Acronicta said, blinking in confusion.

“Yes, yes,” Chryssy sighed, waving a hoof their way. “Rules are different when traveling.”

“Would it be fine if I fed them then?” Velvet asked. “I already offered to before you stepped in.”

“I suppose that would be fine,” Chryssy nodded. She held a hoof to her own stomach for a moment, then glanced away. She pawed at the floor with one hoof, ears twitching back and forth. Her eyes seemed unfocused as if she were lost in thought.

“You’re hungry too, aren’t you?” I said softly.

She glanced down at me, blinking slowly, before she sighed and nodded. “Yes, but there isn’t time to eat. I need to find Celestia. Now.”

“Now, now Chryssy,” Discord tsked, wagging a finger at her. “You need to keep up your strength.”

“He’s right,” I nodded. “What if Radiant Hope were to attack?” She winced at my words, closing her eyes and breathing heavily through her nostrils.

“I can’t feed from you right now, Shiny,” she hissed under her breath. “It would not be safe for you.”

“We can ask Twinkleshine?” Acronicta chirped, standing up on the bed.

“Yeah!” Nemoria nodded. “She’s an awesome pony. I’m sure she would help.” Before we could say another word, the two had jumped off the bed and ran out the door.

Chryssy groaned, rubbing a hoof under her eye, pulling down one eyelid, and shaking her head. “We don’t have time for this.”

“What’s wrong?” I trotted over to be beside her. “Did something happen last night?”

“Well I did give Celestia a pudding cake,” Discord grinned wryly. “But besides Flashy putting the others in the dungeons? Not really.”

“No, something did happen,” Chryssy sighed.

“What?” Velvet and I said.

“It’s a long story,” she sighed. “I never told you what Radiant and I talked about back in Ponyville, did I?”

I shook my head. Colt, was it that bad? Why hadn’t she told me?

“Well, we−” Chryssy began, but was interrupted as the girls returned with Twinkleshine.

“Here she is!” Nemoria bounced on her hooves beside the mare.

“W-what’s going on?” Twinkleshine asked between yawns. “Did I miss something?”

“Not yet,” Discord grinned. He curled up like a cat on Velvet’s bed, snapped his fingers, and watched us, with a bag of popcorn in his claw,.

“Would you feed us or our Queen, Twinkleshine?” Nemoria asked.

Twinkleshine blinked, mouth open in an O of surprise. “F-feed you?” She turned her gaze to Discord, whose grin just became wider with every moment. Giving Nemoria a sheepish smile, Twinkleshine took a step backward. “Er… that might not be the best idea, dear.”

“Why not?” Acronicta asked, joining Nemoria.

“Yes, Twinkleshine, why ever not?” Discord snickered. He grabbed a big pawful of popcorn and stuffed it into his mouth.

“You don’t have to, Twinkleshine,” Chryssy said. She laid a hoof on the mare’s back, jolting when Twinkleshine jumped.

“Er- allergies!” Twinkleshine meeped, backing away from all of us toward the door. “Yeah. Heh, allergies. I get hives when fed upon.” She backed up against the wall, ears flat against her head. “I’llgogetCadenceforyou!” With that, she raced from the room. The main door to our quarters slammed shut a moment later.

“What a show, what a show!” Discord cackled, tossing his popcorn into the air. He glanced over at me and winked. What the hay was he on about?

“Are we that scary?” Acronicta whispered, looking to Nemoria.

“Nah,” she laughed, waving a hoof. “We’re too cute to be scary!”

“True that,” Velvet chuckled. Both fillies beamed at his words.

“So what were you trying to say before?” I asked Chryssy.

She frowned, closed her eyes for a moment, and let out a deep sigh. Looking to the girls, she smiled softly at them. “Will you two be okay in here with Velvet for a few minutes?”

“Of course,” they said, sitting down next to Velvet.

“I can trust you to feed responsibly on your own?” She lowered her head to their level, eyeing each of them.

“Of course,” Nemoria giggled.

“We’ve been taught well,” Acronicta nodded.

“Good,” Chryssy nodded. “Stay in here until we call for you then.”

“Yes, my Queen,” they chorused.

“Okay.” Chryssy looked to Discord and me. “Follow me.”

I closed the door behind me as we entered the main room. Chryssy led us to the couch furthest away from the bedroom door and gestured for the two of us to sit down. Something was wrong; I could feel it. From the way she held her wings tight against her barrel to the twitching of her ears, she just seemed nervous, or scared? Chryssy paced back and forth in front of us, mumbling to herself as she gazed down at the ground.

Discord and I sat silently as she got her story together. I figured she’d tell us when she was ready. The question was, if it was this hard to tell, did I really want to know?

After what must have been at least five minutes, she paused in front of us and looked up. “Sorry about the wait, I er…” she sighed. “I should have told you this long ago.”

“What’s wrong, Chryssy?” I asked. “You can tell me anything. I won’t judge you.”

“Neither shall I,” Discord said softly. I looked over at him. For once, he was actually sitting on the couch, not just hovering above it. There was a look in his eye. Something I couldn’t quite place. Chrysalis looked to him, her own gaze matching Discord’s. Was I missing something?

Chrysalis took a deep breath and let it out in a rush. “When Hope and I talked in Ponyville, she offered me to join her side.”

I nodded. “Since we are here, I take it you told her no?”

“I told her I would think about it,” Chryssy whispered.

“Y-you didn’t decide to join her, did you?” I gulped. She wouldn’t, would she? No, no she was reforming –or, wanting to reform- she wouldn’t side with Hope?

She shook her head. “Of course not,” she snorted. “We don’t have time for the whole tale, but let’s just say her offer was full of empty promises.”

“So, then… what’s the problem then?” I asked.

“Isn’t it obvious, Shiny?” Discord huffed, rolling his eyes. “We villains don’t take well to being told no.” He reached into his fur and pulled out a slim book, cover well worn, with the words The Villain’s Guide to Being Evil emblazoned on it. Cracking it open and flipping through a few pages, he paused and pointed a finger at a line. “Never accept ‘no’ for an answer. Anyone can be persuaded to change their minds, if given the right motivation.”

Chryssy grinned at Discord. “We’ve always been bad with that, haven’t we?”

“Indeed, my dear, Chryssy.” Discord smiled back at her. “So you told her no then? Good girl, Chryssy. Twilight would be proud,” he crooned.

“I haven’t told her no yet either,” she sighed. “She’s given me three days to think about it, and tonight they will be up.”

“So you’ll tell her no, right?” I asked.

“I… fear telling her anything,” she admitted. “Yet, if I don’t join her, I-I think she has evil intentions for my hive.”

“Would make sense,” Discord nodded. “What better way to get under a changeling queen’s chitin than to threaten her hive?”

He was right, and I could see the fear of such in Chryssy’s eyes. What were we to do? Aha, that was it! “Why not ask Celestia for help?” I grinned. “I mean I’m sure that is part of what you have been doing already−”

“Yes,” she said, nodding. “Yet things are far more urgent now. We need reinforcements now, not in a few weeks when negotiations can finally be settled.”

“I-I found Cadence!” Twinkleshine called as she opened the door behind us, Princess Cadence following the unicorn mare inside.

“I’m still thinking this is a bad idea.” Behind Cadence, Twilight Sparkle stepped into the room and let out a snort. “How do we know she isn’t trying to hypnotize you like she did my brother?”

“Like Auntie Celestia said Twilight, Chrysalis is our guest.” Cadence grinned over at the three of us. “If we don’t show her some amount of trust, we would be unkind.”

Chryssy walked over to her. “Good morning, Cadence.”

“Good morning, Chrysalis. Twinkleshine explained that you were looking for a… donor? Or do you call it another name?”

“Feeder pony usually,” Chryssy muttered. “But yes, I was. Getting close to running on empty.”

Cadence laughed softly, “With how busy we all have been, I’m not surprised.”

Twilight glared at Chryssy. “If you think you can drain my sister-in-law…”

“Oh please, Twilight,” Chryssy sighed, rolling her eyes. “Do you think me that stupid?”

“Was that a rhetorical question?” Twilight glared at her, letting off a soft snort. “My friends will be here on the first train this morning.”

“Good, I do love reunions,” Chryssy snapped. She turned back to Cadence. “Well, if you are willing, then let’s do this. I want to get down to talk to Celestia as soon as possible.”

“Will all be going down this time?” I asked, to which Cadence nodded.

“Of course, Shiny, you are welcome to come and have your say.” Cadence looked back at Chryssy. “Very well, how do you want to do this?”

“May we head to my room?” she asked. “I’d rather not have anypony, breathing down my throat, watching us,” she let out a soft growl, her gaze going to Twilight.

“No! I’m com−” Twilight frowned as Cadence lifted a hoof to her muzzle.

“I’ll be fine, Twilight. Give us what… five minutes?” she looked to Chryssy, who nodded. “Yes, five minutes. If we are not back by then, you may barge in to make sure things are going well.”

Twilight reached into her saddlebag and pulled out a pocket watch. “Very well, five minutes.”

“Shall we proceed?” Cadence asked, holding out a hoof. Chryssy nodded, leading the way to her room and closing the door behind the two royals.

“Don’t worry,” I said. I looked over at Twilight and grinned. “Chryssy is gentle when it comes to feedings. She’ll make it quick and be right back out.” I blinked in surprise when Discord burst out into laughter beside me. “What’s so funny?”

“Oh Shiny, if you don’t know, then perhaps you are just not old enough.” He continued to laugh.

“I just don’t get you, Shiny,” she sighed. She turned her gaze to the watch as it ticked off the seconds.

“Now you know how most of us guys feel about mares,” Discord chortled, poking Twilight’s horn and making it bounce as if it were rubber. She sent a frosty glare his way.

“I-I think I’ll go check on the girls,” Twinkleshine said, backing away from Discord before she bolted to the bedroom door.

“Sometimes there are things you just can’t explain, Twilight,” I shrugged. “We all deserve to be happy, I believe. If I can give that to Chryssy, then I’ll be happy.”

Twilight bit her lip. She raised a hoof but then reconsidered. “Mixed breed relationships rarely work out, Shiny,” she said. “No matter how much Spike cares for Rarity, it is a longshot if they’ll ever become a couple when he leaves his baby dragon years.”

“I daresay, Twilight, that you are forgetting about one ‘very’ mixed breed pair,” Discord huffed. “I care about my dear Fluttershy very much.”

“But you are just friends,” Twilight said, her voice rising slightly in pitch.

“For now, perhaps,” Discord nodded, leaning back in the couch. “Isn’t that how the ‘bestest couple’s’ start out though?” He gave her a cheesy grin.

“Discord,” she grumbled. “You’re not helping.”

“Aren’t I? Oh, I guess that would be my bad, wouldn’t it?” he frowned, tracing a finger over Twilight’s cheek.

“Discord!” Twilight snapped, flicking the finger away with a hoof.

“I’m not bothering you, am I, Twilight?”

Twilight groaned and facehooved. “Yes, Discord. Yes, you are.” She turned to look at me. “We’ll talk about this later.” The purple princess glanced back at her pocket watch. “They are just about out of time.”

I sighed, dreading that future ‘talk’. Why should she have any say in who I give my love to? I will show her. I will show them all I wasn’t crazy for loving a changeling!

Royal Visitor Quarters - Queen Chrysalis

Cadence and I walked into my room, closing the door behind us. As if I wasn’t already in a hurry to get downstairs, everyone here insisted that I eat first. Sure, I was hungry, but the more time I wasted, the more time Hope had to get ready for any devious plans. I held a hoof to my stomach as it growled again. Would it not give me a moment’s peace?

“This is really good,” Cadence said. She had trotted over to my desk and was levitating my drawing of the falcon as she looked at it. “I didn’t know you were an artist?”

“I dabble a little with it,” I replied nonchalantly. “Shall we get on with this though?”

“Right, you wanted to see Auntie,” she nodded, placing the drawing back on the dresser. She took a in a deep breath and let it out. Her gaze turned to me. “You know I am putting a lot of trust in you, doing this.”

“Of course we know that,” Chrys huffed. “This will be fun. Being the ‘Princess of Love’ she might even give us more power than her little Shining.”

I nodded. “Yes, I understand that, Cadence.” I was still quite surprised she had agreed to it. It really showed just how much she had forgiven us. Would I have been able to if I were in her horseshoes? So many she might have called friends died, her husband was almost stolen from her, and she was trapped underground where nopony could find her. She had gone through so much because of us, and just came out of it stronger.

Cadence stepped toward me and put a hoof to my cheek. “Are you okay, Chrysalis? You seem troubled.”

“Yes, for now,” I looked away from her. Somehow I kept forgetting how perceptive she was. “Hopefully, that will change once I talk to Celestia.” It had to; she had to. We did live in Equestria after all. Even if my changelings and I were not under her rule, and with the bad things we had done, she had to realize this threat was more than just our problem.

“I’m sure it will,” Cadence grinned, putting a hoof around me and hugging me gently. Colt, that felt good. Even without feeding I could feel the love emanating from her. So warm, comforting, full of hope.The total opposite of Radiant Hope’s hug from last night. I couldn’t have us break that, not again. “So, how did you want to do this?” Cadence asked, her head against my own. “My Shiny has told me… some of the ways he remembers you feeding on him.”

“Making love with a princess?” Chrys chortled. “Now that would be fun. Alas, we don’t have time for that kind of feeding. Perhaps one day she would let us though?” I grinned as she let out a cackle.

“Not enough time for most of those ways,” I said. “Though if you want to in the future…” I winked at her. Colt, am I really trying to seduce a Princess?

Cadence laughed, pulling away from the hug. “I guess some things never change about your kind, do they?”

“Well, we take what we can find,” I laughed awkwardly. “I’m surprised you find that funny though. You would almost think you want me to seduce you,” I wiggled my eyebrows at her.

The pretty pink princess shook her head. “No, I’m fine with my Shining Armor. MY Shiny,” she said, pressing a hoof to my muzzle.

“Stop flirting!” Chrys growled. “Though it may be fun, we have more important things to consider right now, remember?”

I coughed, shaking my head. Chrys was right. “Right, he’s yours,” I nodded. “Anyway, I have my own Shiny now. Let’s have you sit down.” I gestured to the bed. Cadence hopped up onto it, tucking her forelegs against her stomach. She smiled down at me. I grinned back, took in a deep breath, and stepped up to her. “Just stay still and think of Shining,” I said as I lowered my horn to her neck. “I’ll make this as quick and painless as I can.”

“Take what you need,” Cadence nodded. She closed her eyes and relaxed, her breaths coming slow but steady. “Don’t take too long, though; it has already been a few minutes.”

“Right,” I said. Swallowing, I closed my own eyes and began to feed. I licked my lips as her love flowed into me. It was sweeter than any love I had had so far, and so full of strength and power. Sure, Shiny’s had its own strengths, flavor, and potency, not to mention power, but within Cadence’s was something I had not felt before.

“It’s her alicorn blood,” Chrys said. “Even if she doesn’t love ‘us’, it exudes such a wonderful power. Mmm such strength flowing through our chitin. Been far too long since I had a taste. Back when we…” she paused and let out a sigh. “Well, don’t worry about that right now. We have little time until that bookpony comes barging in here. Finish up.”

I pulled away, looking down at Cadence. Her ears drooped a little, and I could swear those bags were not under her eyes before, but she still had a smile upon her face. “Such strength,” I admired as I took a set back a step back. “You’ve grown a lot these past two seasons- ah I mean years!” I gulped, giving her a sheepish grin.

She giggled, stretching out her wings and hopping to the floor. “Taking on my destiny has helped with that I suppose,” she said softly. “Thank you for not breaking my trust.” She rubbed a hoof against her forehead. “I have a slight headache. Is that normal?”

“For an Alicorn, maybe,” Chrys snorted. “Too bad we don’t have time for more. If all she has is a headache, she has plenty more she could spare us.”

“Yeah, you’ll be fine,” I nodded. “Headaches are a normal side effect.”

“Yes, Shining did have a lot of headaches back then, didn’t he?”

“At least headaches are the lesser of problems you could have,” I said.

“True, true,” she nodded. “Shall we head back out before my sister-in-law decides to attack?”

I laughed, “Yes, let’s do so.” I’d never expected Cadence to be so nice to me, with whom I had become. Yet, here we were, actually getting along. It gave me hope that things could turn around. That if we tried we could defeat Hope together.

“Perhaps I went about my plans the wrong way,” Chrys murmured. “Can it really be possible to be ‘friends’ with our food?”

I guess we could see. Cadence opened the door to my room just as Twilight stood up. She sat back down again and returned the pocket watch to her saddle bag.

Shiny stood,his ears perked as he smiled. “Everything went well?”

“Yes, Shiny,” I said.

Cadence nodded. “No need to worry.” She trotted toward the door and opened it. “Auntie is in court right now, but if your need to see her is as urgent as I think, she won’t mind us interrupting.”

“I hope you’re right,” I said. It took but a moment to don my disguise of Soaring Song once more before the five of us were on our way.

Twilight circled Cadence as we walked, lifting her wings and brushing aside her fur along her neck and upper body. When she lifted into the air and looked down into the pink alicorn’s ears, she finally spoke up. “Twilight? What are you doing?” Cadence asked.

“Looking for bite marks, of course,” she huffed. “Or any other sign that she harmed you.” Her gaze turned to me.

Cadence pushed her away gently in order to land back on the tiled floor. “I’m fine, Twilight,” she said. “Chrysalis kept her word.”

“Chryssy is trying to be good, Twilight,” Shiny said. “Can’t you give her a chance?”

“Well, from my observations, you don’t look worse for the wear,” Twilight snorted. “Were those bags under your eyes before?” She rubbed a hoof under her chin.

“She said she was fine!” I growled, baring my fangs at her. Colt, what happened to the Twilight from the show? Hadn’t she by this time gotten a little less… possessive? She was driving me insane!

“Come on now, why can’t we all just be… friends?” Discord chuckled. He pulled the four of us into a hug and looked down at Twilight. “That’s what you and your friends are always telling me, isn’t it?”

Twilight groaned and gritted her teeth. “Yes, yes we are.” She pulled out of Discord’s hug, her eyes focused on the path ahead as she walked on.

“I think she’ll get to liking you,” Shiny whispered. “Just give her some time.” He winked at me and followed after Twilight.

“If she can learn to tolerate me,” Discord grinned. “Then there is a chance she might like you too.” He let out a whoop and followed after the others.

Cadence put up a hoof in front of me. “Chrysalis,” she whispered.

“Yes?” I asked and paused.

She put her hoof down, watching the others walk down the hall lit with the morning sun’s light. “I just wanted to say…” she looked back over at me. Her shoulders were slightly slumped, her crown slightly askew. Maybe we had taken more love from her than I realized. “Don’t give up hope on love,” she continued.

“What?” I slowly blinked at her in surprise.

“Don’t give up hope on love,” she repeated. “It might surprise you one day.” With that, she turned around and hurried to catch up with the others.

“Does she see something we don’t?” Chrys asked.

“Perhaps,” I nodded. The show had never gone too deep into what Cadence’s love powers could do, other than helping mend relationships, and, of course, blasting us off with the help of Shining Armor. To be a princess, she had to have so much more than that. Didn’t she? Well, however, her powers worked, we could figure it out later. For now, we need to find us a sun princess.

As we reached the throne room, the first thing I noticed was the guards. My upper lip twitched as I resisted a snarl. They were the same ones that had captured Aglais when we traveled from the train station. The dark blue unicorn glared at me. His azure blue-furred pegasus friend beside him looked away. Surely, Celestia hadn’t told them? No, of course she would have. Why else would they be acting like this? So much for being discrete.

As I stepped up to the doors, they both moved their spears to block me. “Princess Celestia is in a private audience,” the unicorn snorted.

“I hadn’t heard of anypony important coming today.” Cadence rubbed her chin.

“It is just one of our own Princesses,” the pegasus said. “Apparently, something happened last night.”

Colt, Hope didn’t do something, did she? “What happened?” I asked.

“Is everypony okay?” Cadence looked down at the rest of us and then turned her gaze back to the guards. “Midnight, Shielded, please tell me.”

“We know nothing, Cadence,” the pegasus –Midnight?- said. “Princess Celestia never said anything about not letting you in though,” his gaze moved to Twilight. “Or you, Princess Twilight.”

“Well, if they can go in, I dare say you can’t keep the rest of us out,” Discord scoffed.

“Yes, whatever happened we need to talk to her,” Chrys said. “If they won’t let us in, we’ll let ourselves in.”

“Let us in,” I growled. My eyes opened wide I came nose to nose with the unicorn Shielded. “She needs to hear what I have to say. I found out more information for her.”

“More information?” A small smile appeared on Twilight’s lips. “Already? I- I’ve barely made a scratch on the library’s contents yet. How did you find something out?”

“I have my ways,” I grinned.

“Always so curious, that mare,” Chrys chuckled.

“App- er your guard found out more information?” My lilac-colored stallion grinned.

“Yes,” I nodded. My gaze returned to the guards, I grinned. “So, let us in, please?”

“The Princesses are with her Shielded,” Midnight said. “I think it safe to let them in.”

He groaned but nodded. “Fine,” he growled. They lifted their spears for just a moment before I kicked the doors open with my forehooves and raced inside. Shiny and the others followed behind me, albeit slower than I.

Celestia sat on her throne before us and Flash Sentry beside her. The orange pegasus slapped on his helmet at the sight of me - his gaze hard - and held up his own spear.

“Flash, what’s wrong?” I crooned. Here I thought he at least had some affection for me, yet here he is brandishing his spear at us!

“He’s just a little high-strung this morning,” Princess Celestia raised a wing and wrapped it around the guard. “He’ll be okay, right?” Flash grunted, but nodded his head. Celestia turned her gaze back to the rest of us. My wings fluttered behind me when her gaze fell to me. “Is there a reason you are interrupting my court?”

I nodded and looked at each of the ponies and Discord around me. We hadn’t even gotten to what I wanted to tell them earlier. What would they think of me?

“All that matters is if Celestia sends help,” Chrys huffed. “We can think of what they’ll think later.”

I took a deep breath and stepped up to Celestia. “Princess,” I nodded to her. “Last night I received more information about the Alicorn Amulet,” I said. “That is, the one Radiant Hope has.”

“I see,” she took the last few steps from her throne until she stood beside me. “This information couldn’t wait until our meeting this evening?” She lifted a hoof, “or even until Twilight’s friends arrive?”

I shook my head, ears lowered. “No, for there is more to it than just that. I…” I closed my eyes and looked away. “I fear my hive is threatened.”

“What?” Shiny gasped beside me. I looked up, seeing his worried eyes, beside him Cadence held a similar look. Discord lowered himself to the ground and rubbed his goatee. For once since I’d been here, Twilight looked almost… concerned, a small frown on her face.

Flash snorted, eyes narrowed as he took in my words. Celestia simply sighed, lowering her graceful neck. “Why do you think that?” she asked.

“Oh, I don’t know, maybe because a maniac has her army surrounding our castle?” Chrys snarled. “Why else?”

“I got word from my royal guard last night,” I said. “He told me Radiant Hope has my castle surrounded.” I looked back up at her as my chin quivered. “Please, her army is much too large for us to take on alone anymore,” I pled. “I know our relationship is still… rocky, but if you could send some soldiers down to help, I would be most grateful.”

“Nice,” Chrys said. “Playing the pity card. Now, drive it in home to make sure she will help!”

“I know you might not trust us fully yet, but wouldn’t you ask the same if your ponies were in such danger?” That should do it. I jumped as I felt a pair of hooves fold around me, covered in lilac fur.

“Oh, Chryssy,” he said. “Why didn’t you tell us sooner?”

“Because it is all a lie,” Flash growled.

“What?” Chrys and I barked. “H-how dare you say so!” I stuttered, looking at the others around me, and up into the dark purple eyes of the unicorn with his hooves still wrapped around me. “You believe me, don’t you?”

“Of course, I do, Chryssy,” Shiny whispered, nuzzling his head against me.

“Well, I’m afraid you put your trust in the wrong horseshoes, Shiny,” Celestia sighed. “The reason I was alone with Flash Sentry before your arrival is that he stumbled upon the truth last night.”

“Truth? What truth?” I growled. Unless… no… had he been that thing I saw fly past my window? Had he been spying on me? I thought back to everything that had happened last night and let out a frustrated groan. The hug, the looks, just Hope being there, it could easily have been misinterpreted.

“He caught you talking to Radiant Hope in your room last night,” Celestia said firmly. “You even gave her a hug.”

Shiny took a step back and looked to Celestia, shaking his head in disbelief. “N-no, she wouldn’t do that,” he said. “She hates Hope. What she’s been doing!”

“Are you calling me a liar?” Flash narrowed his gaze on the poor stallion. “I would never lie to one of the Princesses.”

“I knew it,” Twilight smirked. She pumped her right forehoof in the air twice and let out a few sparks of magic from her horn. “A changeling can never change.” She walked over and stood next to Celestia. With a look of excitement in her eyes, she lit her horn and it aimed my way. “You’ve been working all this time to set us up for a trap!”

“No!” I yelled, shaking my head. “I really do hate Hope. I’d never work with her.”

“Lies!” Twilight stomped her hoof. “If you are not working with her−”

Celestia lifted a wing before Twilight’s muzzle, her eyes narrowed. “Then why was Radiant Hope in your bedroom last night?”

“The foal has been trying to get me to join her,” I said. “I did tell you that in our first meeting?” I growled.

“Yes, you did say so,” Celestia nodded.

“But with your background, after what happened last night how can we know you were telling the truth?” Twilight huffed.

“S-she does make a good point,” Cadence whispered. I turned to look at the pink mare. Gone was the smile she had just minutes before we entered the throne room. Her shoulders were slumped as if a great weight had been added to them. “Perhaps, I was wrong.”

No, no! All my support is leaving me. I looked to Discord. He just shrugged and shook his head. “You have done similar things in the past, dear Chryssy.”

I let out a frustrated growl and tore at my mane with my forehooves. Was it that hard to believe I could be good?

“I bet she planned this,” Chrys hissed. “Like Discord said before, we villains don’t like taking ‘no’ for an answer. She’s trying to force our hoof.”

“I believe her,” Shiny said. He stomped a hoof. He had his ears halfway lowered, but his eyes glinted with determination. “I’ve seen her change these past few weeks. There were dozens of times she could have killed me, killed other ponies too, but she didn’t.”

“How else to draw your trust?” Twilight growled. “She should be locked up with her changelings below.”

“Colt no, if we are locked up then there will be nothing we can do!” Chrys gulped.

“Please, Princesses,” Shiny pled. “There are good changelings over there: children, mothers, fathers, and other ponies. Would you have the innocent die?”

“My daughter is there, Celestia. Would you have her die?”

“It wouldn’t hurt to send a few now would it Kay-Kay?” Discord asked.

“Of course, it would!” Twilight yelled. “Then they would likely die.”

“What would you have us do, Auntie? Would our cells even be able to hold her?”

“There is no need to lock her up, please!”

“ENOUGH!” Celestia shouted. I could swear the whole room trembled at her ‘Royal Canterlot Voice’. Shiny cringed, his ears lowered. The others looked similarly chastened. “Look,” Celestia said, her voice much softer this time. “If it can be helped, I would rather no creature die.”

“What if we were to send somepony to verify her words?” the Princess of Love asked. “It wouldn’t take but a day.”

“My changelings cannot wait a day.”

“It would have to take at least a day for a pegasus to get there and back.”

“What about that friend of Twilight’s, Applejack?” Chrys said. “She’s supposed to be this super-fast flier?”

I sighed. Did Chrys still not know the names of Twilight’s friends? “What about Rainbow Dash?” I asked. “With how fast she flies, she could be back before dinnertime.”

“We’re NOT putting my friends in such danger!” Twilight snapped. “We are a team.”

“Discord maybe then?” I grimaced. Colt, he could probably solve everything. Or was the amulet stronger than him too?

“No,” Celestia said softly. “Discord is too close to you.”

Discord gasped and put a paw to his chest. “Are you suggesting I would lie, dear Celestia?”

“I just can’t take the chance, Discord. Forgive me.”

“Well,” Discord let out a loud snort. “If that is how you feel.” He folded his arms and turned away from her.

I let out another groan. We were getting nowhere with this. If only Flash hadn’t seen Hope. How did he even know it was her? Now that is the question. Seen the amulet perhaps? Well, whatever way he had figured out it was her. My reactions thus far had confirmed it.

“So then, do you have somepony you’re willing to send?” I grumbled. “Or is everything we’ve been trying for going to be for naught?”

“No, even if I were to send somepony as fast as Rainbow Dash to see if Radiant Hope’s army is in fact near the changeling homeland, there would be no way to tell whether they were there to attack you or us.” She did actually look sorry with the way her eyelids lowered and expression softened. “I’m sorry, Chrysalis, but with last night’s events, I can’t trust you enough to send anypony.”

“Ooooooh when I get hold of that Radiant Hope,” Chrys growled.

I felt a warm hoof wrap around us and looked to see Shiny. “You sure you want to believe us?”

“I abandoned you once, but not again. Of course, I want to believe you. Just too bad I’m not a pegasus,” he sighed. “Or else I would fly there for you.”

“Thanks” I said.

So that was it. Celestia refused to help. What are we going to do now? I itched to fly there myself, but what would they think if I just left like that? Certainly not what I would want them to. No, I would need to stay for now. Perhaps, if I kept trying I could convince her to send somepony. All I knew was that it was going to be a long day.

Tick Tock Goes the Clock

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Chapter 29: Tick Tock Goes the Clock

Changeling Castle - Dining Room - Apatelodes

I had only just settled down in my chair for lunch when Chioides stepped up to me and tapped my shoulder. “Yes, Chioides?” I asked. “Are the repairs complete?”

“About that,” he mumbled. “Y-you have a visitor. She wants to meet with you in the throne room.” He took a few steps back, lowered his one ear and shivered. “She doesn’t sound patient either.”

I groaned and ran a hoof down my muzzle. “Let me guess, Radiant Hope?” He nodded. “WHY did you let her in?” I growled.

“I-I didn’t, Apatelodes, sir,” he gulped. “She kind of just appeared.”

“You mean teleported in?”

“Yes.”

I groaned again. What the hay did she want now? I grabbed one last piece of pear from my plate, popped it into my mouth and stood. “Fine, I’m on my way. Save me some pears for others though, will you?”

Chioides nodded. “Of course, it is the least I can do.”

With a scowl on my face, I pushed the dining room doors open so hard they let out a crack when they hit the walls. The dining room grew silent behind me, but I didn’t care. Soft murmurs filled the air as changelings as well as ponies followed behind me. Well, she hadn’t said she wanted to see me alone, had she? Let them come. Either way I won’t let her harm any of them, ling or pony.

As I reached the throne room doors, I paused, took in a deep breath, and then let it out slowly. I wasn’t going to let her get to me. Wings fluttered on those behind me as they gathered closer. The green flames of the torches to either side of me illuminated our faces. We wouldn’t let our Queen down. Whatever Hope wanted, it wouldn’t come easy.

I reached up and pushed the door open. Only one torch before me was lit in on the wall next to the royal throne. The rest of the room was dim though it was the middle of the day and should have been much lighter. It was at that moment I noticed the Umbrum — two by each of the three windows — on overwatch. Their gaze fell my way, and I could see a smirk on each of their misshapen lips.

A low growl brought my attention back to the throne where two huge black Diamond Dogs lay by the foot of the throne. The one to the left with bright orange eyes licked its lips, drool running down his muzzle to plop onto the floor.

“I see you finally decided to show your face,” Hope said. “Brought the whole castle with you too?”

I let out a low growl, and my gaze rose to see her stretched out on our Queen’s throne. It was far larger than that puny thing Princess Celestia owned. It was made of shiny black obsidian and was wide enough a queen could comfortably stretch out her longer form and take a nap. Of course, this was helped by the Lime green throw pillows scattered across it so her flank didn’t get sore from sitting too long. Hope was spread out on the pillows, her tail tip flicked back and forth as she gazed down at us.

“You don’t belong on that throne,” I hissed and bared my fangs..

“Who’s to say it won’t be mine soon?” she crooned. She sat up and rubbed a hoof over her amulet.

“It will never be yours! It belongs to our Queen,” I growled. “What do you want, Hope?”

She gave me a wide, catlike grin. “To expand my army, of course. Like I have told you before. With you all on my side, we will rule this land for a long time.”

“We take orders from our Queen,” Videre snorted as he stepped up beside me. “YOU are not her.” I smiled over at him, glad for the support.

“Oh, you mean your little Queen?” Hope puckered her lips and gazed down at us. “The one who is living in luxury right now, with more than enough food, a soft bed, and without a single thought to her dear, loyal subjects? You see my army here little changelings? I care for them and as such, have made them far more fearsome than thee.” She took a step down from the throne as her gaze rolled over all in the room.

“That is a lie!” I huffed. “I talked to her just last night; she does care for us. She is doing everything in her power to get us help.” What was she up to?

“Then why does she linger in Canterlot,” Hope crooned, one hoof raised to cup my chin. “While you need her so dearly over here?”

“To get Celestia’s help.” Was she that dense? I swiped her hoof away from my chin.

“Celestia has refused to help her,” Hope laughed. “But does she care? No, not now that she has her purple unicorn of passion!”

The others murmured around me, but I silenced them with a loud stomping of a hoof and a shake of my head. “You have it all wrong, Hope. It is Shiny who is crazy for her. She doesn’t feel that way about him.”

“Can you be so sure?” she asked. “After all, she left the hive with only him. She didn’t even think about taking her most loyal royal guard,” she frowned at me.

I winced. True, she had left me here, but that was because she trusted me to take care of things, right? Though our newest Queen had not been so for long, could her past life be clouding her judgement? Her thoughts? She might have liked us before she became one of us, but that didn’t mean she secretly liked the ponies more. The whispers around me grew louder as I remained silent this time.

“Aw, is that a sore spot for you, little Appy?” Hope hummed. “Left here all alone while your Queen goes gallivanting off on the next adventure to appear?”

“No!” I yelled. My ears pulled back against my skull. “I trust her judgement.” At least, as long as she had Chrys to help her. With all the experience she had, Chrys wouldn’t fail her. She would lead her down the best path. “If she is staying at the castle, then she must have a plan to get Celestia to change her mind.”

Hope let out a deep sigh, and then turned her gaze to the rest of the crowd. “Do you all trust her judgement as well as this fool here?” she asked. “Or are you smart enough to realize she is not coming back. She has abandoned you for the ponies.” I lifted a hoof to speak but she just plopped her hoof against my muzzle. “Choose you this day whom ye shall serve, little changelings.” Her eyes lit up red as she let out a low cackle. “Will ye serve the one who has never been able to keep your bellies full? Whose every scheme to try fails? The one who keeps you trapped in this little castle when you could be free to conquer and rule?”

My eyes widened as those around me whispered among themselves, some even perking up at her words. Were they so easily persuaded? “Don’t listen to her!” I yelled. “We are far better off−”

“Yes, you are far better off,” Hope grinned, her hoof back over my muzzle. “Better off with ME.”

Videre slapped her hoof away. “Let Apatelodes have his turn to speak,” he growled.

“Thank you, Videre,” I said. “But please, don’t antagonize her,” I hissed. With the kind of power she had by now, she could probably vaporize hundreds of us before we could even reach her.

A loud hiss came from the window closest to us, where one of the Umbrum pushed through the crowd around it. Before it got very far however, Hope put up a hoof. It paused and glared at Videre, but listened. Those around it stepped closer to their neighbors.

“Fine, speak,” she snorted.

I turned back to look out at the crowd. Far too many looking almost mesmerized by her words. Could they seriously be so easily persuaded? “My fellow changelings,” I said. They turned their gazes to me. “Are you so easily made blind by the words of a devil?” I growled. “We are changelings! To give into a PONY wanting to rule us? That would be unnatural.” I stomped a hoof on the ground. “We are proud; we are strong. Yes, we may have failed in the past, but I wouldn’t be the first to say we have hardly begun.

“Give our Queen a chance. She does care about us, all of us.” I smiled down at Spot, who stood behind me, and ruffled a hoof through his mane. “From each colt and filly,” I put a hoof around Videre, “to our greatest guards.” I took a deep breath and then continued. “She cares for us all. Yes, she cares for the ponies too,” I nodded and looked out to the ponies who had entered the room. “But that is something essential. Not only are they our food, but some are teachers of our children.” Sure I might not like them, but I couldn’t deny they served a good purpose. I smiled when many of those who had been nodding at Hope earlier now nodded at my words.

“If you believe all that, then you are all just mindless drones,” Hope hissed. Her eyes and horn lit up red with a scowl on her face. “I am the one who truly cares about you. Leave your foolish Queen and join me, and you’ll never go hungry again!”

“You mean we’ll always be hungry,” I hissed. “Our Queen remembers your Umbrum from the last time they were out. Their power is fear. If everypony is afraid, there will be no love for us.” I stood before her with my muzzle practically against hers.

She smirked at me. “Oh, do you believe her memory is that good, little Appy?” she purred.

“I don’t know. You tell me,” I snarled. “You’re nearly as old as she.”

She gasped, shook her head, and slapped a hoof against my cheek. “You spent all this time by your Queen's side, and you never learned it’s not proper to speak of a mare’s age?”

“If the horseshoe fits,” I groaned, rubbing my cheek. Colt, she hits hard for a mare! “Just go and leave us alone.”

She lowered her head as she lit her horn even brighter. “Leave? When the others haven’t had a chance to make their decision yet? Now that would just be rude.”

“Well, she certainly has the temper of our Queen,” Crambus mumbled somewhere behind me. A few in the crowd laughed. “Apatelodes is right! We don’t need you!” he yelled.

“To your offer, I say: Long Live the Queen!” Asbolis roared. He pointed his nose proudly into the air.

I grinned as others in the crowd took up the chant, even a few ponies. “Long Live the Queen! Long Live the Queen! Long Live the Queen!”

“It seems you have your answer, Hope,” I said. “We won’t abandon our Queen.”

She glared at me. Her nostrils flared. She took deep breaths in and out, as the chant continued. Her coltish cut mane stuck out as she rubbed a hoof back and forth through it. After a moment she took in a deep breath, swept both forehooves through her mane and let the light in her horn and eyes die out. “Very well, if that is how you will have it.” Turning around she whistled, and the two beasts left their posts at the throne to join her side.

“I’m glad to see you taking it so easily,” I said with my gaze on the hairy mutts.

“Yes, easy,” she rolled her eyes. “I won’t forget you, Apatelodes.” She stared hard at me for a moment and then walked toward the closest window with her dogs in tow. Her ears lowered as those in the room cheered. “To me!” she yelled. The cheers lowered as the Umbrum by the other windows flew over to her. “Have a good afternoon,” she chirped. With a flash of red light, they were all gone.

“That was too easy,” Videre grunted as he stepped up beside me.

“I agree,” I nodded. “This is certainly not over.”

“We going to be okay, Appy?” Spot whimpered. A tear trickled down his blue cheek. “That pony scares me.”

“Hey, don’t cry,” I soothed, wiping the tear from his cheek. “Be strong for our Queen okay?”

“B-but what if she is right? What if she did leave us for Shiny?”

“Hey, champ,” Videre winked, ruffling the young changeling colt’s mane. “She’d never do that to us. That pony might be handsome, but he’s going to die before most of us. Our Queen will save her feelings for someling who can lead by her side for a long time.”

“Like me?”

My armored friend and I laughed. “Perhaps when you’re a little older,” I said. “Grow big and strong, and who knows? Maybe she will pick you to father her next eggs.” At least he would be better than that purple pony. I was sure Chrys had told her by now how pony and changeling anatomy worked. It would be better to let the stallion down now so she could concentrate on more important things.

“I-I’ll grow big and strong,” he proclaimed, standing up on his hind legs and punching out with the fore. “When I’m grown, you won’t even recognize me.”

I sighed. If he got to grow up. No, I couldn’t think that way. “We’ll see about that, Spot,” I nodded. “Until then, could you go check on the hatchery for me? Make sure Phengaris has plenty of extra blankets and anything else she might need.” At least that was a task that would keep him out of trouble.

“Okay Appy!” he beamed. “I can check on our Princess too! I haven’t seen her since her hatchday.”

“You do that, champ,” my helmeted friend nodded. “Stay out of trouble.”

“Will do, Vidi!” he chirped and hopped away through the crowd.

“Vidi?”

“Appy?”

I chuckled. “You would think he likes us or something.”

“Well we are in some of the highest positions in the hive,” he said, shining an armored hoof against his chitin. “I would say any little ling would aspire to be like us.”

“If only we could live up to those aspirations.”

“You have, I would say,” he grinned and wrapped his hoof around me in a hug. “What do you say we continue preparations?”

“I would call that a good idea,” I nodded. We couldn’t let Hope get under our chitin. No matter what she had planned — and by the looks of it, it wouldn’t be pretty — we must do our best to survive.

Canterlot Castle - Queen Chrysalis

“We have to go back. If we leave now and fly quickly, we just might get there in time to intervene.”

“We can’t,” I whispered as we walked down an empty corridor. “If we keep trying, I am sure we can persuade Celestia. We have to.” I paused as a unicorn solar guard trotted past us. Her blue eyes focused on us. Yet she let us continue on.

After that disastrous meeting that morning, I had left the throne room with an angry glare tossed Celestia’s way. Shiny had tried to follow, but I shook my head at him. After all, I needed time to think. “I must convince her that we are trying to reform,” I continued as the guard reached the end of the hallway and turned the corner. “She likes reformed villains. It is kinda her thing.”

“Just because she likes to reform villains doesn’t mean she will believe we are trying to reform ourselves,” Chrys hissed. “Even if we did convince her, it would likely take longer than we have to do so. Far better to just forget about her help and solve this on our own.”

“You and I both know this is far greater than we can solve alone,” I said. “We have no one else to turn to. If Shiny can convince her−”

“Pah, Shiny? Dearie, he is a lovesick foal, and Celestia knows that,” she snapped. “He’d do anything for us, even lie I imagine. She would be a foal to believe that simpering pony’s words and, much as I dislike her, she is no foal.”

I groaned, rubbing a hoof down my muzzle. I had to admit, though, that she was right on that point. He had a lot of compassion sure, but the ponies would never take him seriously with how he acted around us. “Okay, maybe so, but returning wouldn’t really help either. We might be a Queen. We might have what is left of our excess love, but wouldn’t we burn most of that out on the flight back?”

Chrys was silent for a moment. I continued walking while she thought on my words, not really being sure where to go except away from that horrid throne room. “We’d have enough strength left to fight,” Chrys finally said. “Would you rather us just sit on our flanks and let Hope ruin everything I’ve worked for the past five hundred years?”

“Well, no, we do need to do something. I just don’t know what.” I paused by an open window, looking out on Canterlot below us. Ponies trotted by going about their day: shopping, gossiping, a few snuggling next to the pony next to them. None of them knew what was coming. I doubt any of them would even care if by tomorrow all changelings went extinct. Well, I suppose there would still be those who had married somepony, the ones yet to return to the hive, but how long would they last? “Why is Hope so focused on us?” I sighed.

“I don’t know. Perhaps something one of our previous selves did those many years ago.”

I leaned against the window frame and let my wings fall to my sides. “Equestria is so much different from how the show pictured it.”

Chrys snorted. “Well, it was geared toward little girls, wasn’t it? They probably took out the worst of what we all go through so they would be happy.”

“Yeah, I guess. Nopony ever really died permanently, well maybe those Pinkie clones counted I guess… but there was still something missing. That could have been an indicator they were hiding something.”

“Now you see all I’ve had to put up with. Life is not easy for a changeling in this world.”

“No, but that doesn’t mean we should just give up and go home.” I stood, tucked my wings back against my barrel, and stared out at the ponies below. “I will convince Celestia to help us.”

“Ugh, you are delusional if you think you can change that stubborn pony’s mind.”

“I am NOT delusional!” I growled, stomping a hoof.

“Chryssy?” I turned to see Shiny trot over to us. “Are you okay?”

I facehoofed, shaking my head. “No, Shiny, I am not okay.”

“Well, if you are hungry, I have plenty to spare,” he cupped my butter-yellow cheek in one hoof, a smile on his face.

I pulled away and stormed down the hallway. “Shiny, I have already fed from you too much lately,” I growled.

“I’m just trying to help,” he sighed. I groaned as I heard him trotting after me.

“Well, then find me a dozen busts of Celestia and a hammer.”

“What?”

“Pull the lever, Shiny!”

“What lever?” he tilted his head to the side and raised one eyebrow. His long bangs fell once more in front of his eyes.

“Forget it, forget it,” I sighed and shook my head. “Ugh, what am I to do?”

“Well, tell me what happened,” he said. “You’re beginning to talk crazy.”

“Well, we are under a lot of stress, of course we are going to talk crazy!”

“I want to help,” he said and put his lilac forehoof to my shoulder. “Even if it is only as an ear to talk to.”

“Fine,” I grumbled. “You want to know what Celestia was too stubborn to let me explain?”

“If it would help.”

“Apatelodes contacted me last night, updating me on what was going on along with new information on the amulet.”

“Go on.”

“She has the castle surrounded, has added diamond dogs to her army, and probably plans on marching on us tonight.”

“Wha? T-tonight?” he gasped. His eyes grew wide and breathing heavy as he stared at me with his mouth dropped open. “Right, right. Flash said that earlier I think,” he gulped. “What of the amulet? C-Cadence said it is not the one Trixie used so does that mean there are two? Or-or are there even more?” His ears drooped and a shiver ran down his spine. “From what I heard back when it happened, even the one Trixie had was bad enough, and she only had it on for a few weeks at most. How long has Hope had it?”

“I don’t know how long she has had it, but it is a much overpowered device. For every death she is near, the amulet takes in their essence and just makes her that much stronger.”

“Only a pony as insane as Sombra could come up with such a thing and thought it a good idea.” Chrys growled. “It’s a good thing he’s gone, or who else knows what he would come up with in the modern day.”

The purple unicorn bit his lip, ears flat against his head at my words. “So with every death, she becomes that much more difficult to beat,” he moaned. “W-we can’t let her kill all the ponies and changelings in your castle! With how many live there…” he shivered. “Her power would grow immensely. I might not have been there long, but I don’t want to lose my friends!” He paced the floor behind me as we continued to walk. “I mean sure Nemoria and Acronicta are safe for now here, b-but Star Bright and Rope Burn a-and all my students and your daughter−”

“Don’t you think we know that?” I snapped. “But Celestia won’t listen, and, thanks to Flash, nopony else likely will either.” I grabbed a vase on a pedestal across the hall from us in my magic and slammed it into the ground, shattering it.

“Right, nopony will help us now!” he moaned. “I want to help but Princess Cadance has abandoned us and-and Celestia and Twilight never wanted to help really now did she?” His breathing turned heavy behind me. If he breathed any heavier he would practically be hyperventilating!

“Shiny, calm down,” I groaned. “If you faint — or worse — on me it is not going to be of much help.” Like he was being much help in the first place right now. Why was he even back out here? I had asked him to leave us be. Sure he had given us that for a little while but now here he was again. I mean I understood he was crazy for us but couldn’t he understand the need for space and time to think? “I need time to think of what to do.”

“There is nothing we can do now really, is there?” he moaned. “If you join Hope, your changeling’s and you might survive a little longer, but she’ll come after all of us next, won’t she? That means you will be fighting against the Princesses and the elements and Discord a-and they’ll possibly kill you!” He held a hoof to his head and closed his eyes. “Yet if you don’t join her she’ll not only destroy your hive but with the extra power gained from doing so she’ll still come after the Princesses a-and then she might be so strong even they can’t defeat her and ALL of us will die!” he howled. “N-no CREATURE will be able to stop her evil plans then — not even Discord.”

“Ugh, we do NOT need this kind of negativity right now!” Chrys growled. “If we leave now, we could catch Hope unawares,” Chrys said. “She’s expecting us to be here, but if we are back at the castle, perhaps we can get the upper hoof.”

“We’re NOT going back to the castle yet!” I yelled. I stomped the tile so hard below us it cracked, sparks of green fire bursting from its impact.

“Who said anything about returning?” the panicked stallion sniffed. “We’d never make it in time walking. What would even be the point?”

“If we even had a good reason to bring you back,” Chrys hissed. “All you’ve been is a hindrance we’ve had to save the flank of! Sure you might taste good, but that is all you have ever been and will ever be! Even now, all you are bringing us is a wall of chaotic feelings. We KNOW how bad things are looking. We don’t need you to go rambling on about it all.”

“Not now, Shiny,” I growled. “Go back to the throne room please. Or if you insist on following us, PLEASE calm yourself down.” I placed a hoof on his back and rubbed it back and forth. “PLEASE, for me? I’m stressed enough as it is.”

“I-I’ll try,” he nodded and brushed his bangs away from his eyes. “I’m sorry. I’m just worried.”

I just shook my head and continued on. We wouldn’t be good to get too angry at him out here in the halls. After all, we didn’t want everypony knowing our true self if we lost control. It was little surprise to find we had been trotting back to our quarters this whole time. The only sound I heard from my lilac shadow was the clicking of his hooves against the tile floor. Finally, he was silent — at least for now.

I kicked the main door open, grateful to see the main room empty, and made my way to my bedroom. “Go check on the others, Shiny. I want to be alone,” I sighed.

“Alone? B-but you are distressed! You need somepony to help you feel better.” He took a step forward and opened my bedroom door. “I can be there for you to talk to and bounce ideas off of.”

“No, go,” I grunted, releasing my disguise as I stepped into the room. Sure, I didn’t want to be rude, but couldn’t he understand? HE was part of the reason we were so distressed!

“No, I won’t,” he snorted. The door closed behind him as he stepped inside. “This is a hard time for you. Everypony needs a friend when the going gets tough, and, colt, is it tough for us all right now.” he muttered. “What can we do, what can we do.” He paced in front of the door with his gaze to the floor. “If we catch ourselves a few griffons they are fast flyers they could get some of us there… no, no,” he shook his head and continued pacing.

“Stupid pony, we want to be left ALONE!” Chrys yelled. I could feel her anger boiling up in us, but this time, I didn’t even try to hold it in.

That was it, I just couldn’t stand it anymore. I had tried to get him to calm down but he just wouldn’t shut up. “Just leave us alone, Shiny,” I hissed, ears flat and fangs bared at him. “We don’t need you; we won’t need any of you ponies after tomorrow. If those narrow-minded princesses refuse to help, then what is to come is on their hooves!” I breathed heavily through my nostrils. “Shiny, we relieve thee of thy duty.”

“My duty?” he asked. “You mean as professor of music?”

“No, of being part of the hive.”

“W-what?” he gasped.

“You heard me,” I snarled. “You’re gone, lovercolt. We only want strong subjects in our hive. Who can protect what we have worked for.” Much as he might like us, right now he wasn’t being of any help. He’d probably never really be the help we needed.

“I-I don’t understand,” he shook his head. “Chryssy, I thought you liked me? M-maybe even loved me…” he whispered.

“We are not capable of love, especially not with a pony!” I hissed. That is what Chrys had been telling me this entire time, and I was starting to think she might be right. If all ponies who would even think of wanting to be our mate were like Shiny, then — much as I hated to admit it — perhaps it was better to be alone. “Your kind are all the same: happy, going on and on about how friendship is magic and the want to help others. But deep inside all you really care about are yourselves.”

“T-that’s not true−”

“Oh but it is, I would know,” I snapped. “I have seen deep into the hearts of you ponies and found your kind wanting. Your princesses spout talk of love to all creatures in the land, a second chance to those who seek it, and see the beauty hidden within those seen as monsters. Yet you all still fear diamond dogs, timberwolves, manticores, MY kind, and so many others. What kind of love is that?” Shiny might be willing to give me a chance, but he was obviously the only one. How could we align ourselves with creatures who wouldn’t even give us a chance?

“Well, I−”

“And for another thing, you are entirely too emotional! Just look at you, panicking about all that is going on when we ALREADY KNOW everything you are telling us! I asked you to calm down, and you just panicked more. We don’t need a mate, who runs around in circles when problems arise, causing more problems.” I let out a frustrated sigh. “In fact, even if you were calm, I doubt you would have anything helpful to say at all.”

“Please just− ”

“And then another thing, you come prancing along, not a thought in your head except meeting with the changeling queen and becoming her mate. Do you not have goals of your own? Friends or students or even your family who would care if you did such a thing? Just disappeared into what they would consider the maw of Tartarus? What is to stop you from falling for someone else’s scent and beauty? You fell for mine easily enough, it wouldn’t be hard to set your eyes on the next pretty thing to pass your way and go prancing off to their kingdom without a single word.”

He winced as his ears dropped lower and lower with each word. “Chryssy, I−”

“Don’t Chryssy me,” I growled. “All you are doing is making this situation worse. How do you expect me to make a plan on what to do with you panicking right next to me? Your cries and outbursts are not helping.” I stepped right up next to him and spread my wings out behind me. “How could you think yourself worthy of standing next to a Queen?” I hugged him close to me, the tip of his horn maybe reaching the upper third of my neck. “You are far smaller than I.” I pushed him away from me, watching as he stumbled but didn’t fall. “My strength far surpasses yours as well.

“We are about to enter a war here! If I am to take a mate, I need one who can stand strong beside me. You are weak and foalish, putting aside everything in your own life to try to win my heart. What does your family think about you running away not only once, but twice? Both times dragging one of your siblings with you. Who knows what has happened to your sister because of your foalish actions?”

For a moment I thought I had gone too far with those words. His eyes watered before me and his entire body trembled. As if some string above him had been cut, he collapsed to the ground, forehooves wrapped around his head. The puddle of lilac and lavender curled into a ball as he sobbed. Those stubborn bangs damp as they hung in front of his closed, weeping eyes. Little moans and groans came from him and he curled up even tighter. It was what he had to hear though, right? He shivered on the floor at my hooves, but before I could even think of laying a hoof on him in comfort, I felt a strange yet familiar pull inside my gut.

“Leave the foal alone to his tears,” Chrys growled. “We are leaving.”

What the hay had just happened? I watched as my body turned around without any help from me, and walked toward the window. What was going on? Nothing was making sense right now. I couldn’t think of any explanation for it as our wings buzzed behind us, the balcony falling away.

Royal Visitors Quarters - Shiny Whistle

“We are leaving.”

Her words haunted me as I watched from behind my hooves. The buzzing of her wings faded as she flew away. Tears dripped down my cheeks as I lay there on the cold floor. The room was still, all I could hear was my heartbeat pounding in my ears. I felt nauseated, ill, like I might faint. As my body shivered uncontrollably, the sweat dripped from me. Yet through all this, all I could think was: why?

Why did I ever think my plans were a good idea? Why didn’t I make sure nopony followed me? Why did I let Velvet get messed up in all of this too? Why did I lie to not only my parents, but to so many others about my true feelings? Why didn’t I go after my sister when I first heard she was missing? But most of all: why did I ever think someone as great and powerful as Chrysalis could ever love me back?

What was I compared to her? Nothing, just nothing. All I had was my music, and my love for those I cared for. I wasn’t strong, I wasn’t brave, and I wasn’t even a changeling. Maybe if I had been one of her kind she would have considered a relationship seriously, instead of pulling me along with her teasing and beautiful smile. Oh that beautiful smile, sure it was filled with fangs but that just made her all the more desirable to me. I still didn’t understand why.

Those pure locks of teal mane and tail, like silk against my fur when she had slept next to me our first night out on our adventure. Colt had I been so nervous around her back then! Who wouldn’t be though, with the utter power that flowed from her very being? She had after all beat Celestia at the wedding, even if that were just because of Shining Armor’s love energy.

Her chitin wasn’t anything like I had expected either — or well, as ponies had reported. There was no slime that I had seen, just a smooth, warm, hard outer layer. Like one of Celestia’s guards always wearing their armor, only better.

The best part of all though was her laugh. When she wasn’t trying to take over the world but actually in a happy mood, her laugh was so magical. I could get lost in those mesmerizing eyes of hers, which sparkled with every peal of pure joy that left her lips.

But now that was gone. She had rejected me, ridiculed me, twisted my heart in her grasp until it broke into a million pieces on the floor. Then left, not caring what happened to me. I guess I shouldn't blame her. After all, she was a Queen. Her subjects had to come first. What was a stupid, useless pony compared to the lives of what, thousands? I never had found out how many were in the hive. How many could even fit into that castle? Whatever, it didn’t matter now anyway. I’d probably never see her again.

The door opened behind me, but I paid it no more attention that noticing it had opened before starting on a new wave of tears.

“Shiny, what happened?” Velvet asked. He lied down, wrapped me up in his hooves, and pulled me in for a hug.

“We heard shouting and would have come sooner, but we had to convince the girls to stay in the other room,” Twinkleshine said, sitting down next to us.

“S-she left,” I blubbered, nestling my muzzle into my brother’s neck. “She exposed me to our truth. I am nothing, we are nothing. She doesn’t really have any reason to trust us, t-trust me. Celestia betrayed her. Without a thought to everypony that loved me, whom I loved in return, to follow after her even though I didn’t know the true Queen behind the chitin. Everything she said, it was all true!”

“Shhh, shhh,” Velvet whispered, rubbing a hoof up and down my back. “I doubt what she said was true.”

“No, it is,” I gulped. “I’m weak. I have nothing to give to her but my love and I’m an emotional wreck. I’m not made of kingly material.” I let out a snort. “I’m not even strong enough to fight by her side in battle. Worst of all though? It’s my fault Dew is missing. If I hadn’t gotten into my head the stupid idea of finding the changeling queen and us falling in love, Dew would still be here.”

“Oh come on Shiny, you know Dew loves a good adventure just as much as you,” he grinned, wiping away a tear from my face with his royal purple hoof.

“Velvet, she could be DEAD because of me!” I moaned. “No matter if she likes a good adventure or not. She is still so young, so naïve of the troubles of traveling. I’m her big brother, well one of them,” I laughed halfheartedly. “I’m supposed to protect her, and I couldn’t even do that. How can I expect to protect a whole species if I can’t protect one filly?”

“You’ve taken care of Nemoria and Acronicta fairly well,” Twinkleshine said.

“No, YOU have,” I snorted. “While I’ve been off prancing after Chr... her like a lovesick puppy.”

“She is wrong about you, Shiny,” Velvet shook his head. “You are a strong pony, worthy of her affections, and if she doesn’t see that−”

“No,” I shook my head. “She is right. If I want to be with her, I need to be so much more. By this time tomorrow, her entire SPECIES could be extinct, and what can I do to prevent that? Nothing. I’m a useless, musical foal. Do I know any battle spells? No. Just what I need to work on my instruments. What good will that do in a battle? I can heal instruments, but not those who really matter.”

“Wait, entire species?” Twinkleshine blinked, a look of surprise on her face. “What did I miss?”

“She is convinced Hope is going to destroy her castle tonight,” I said. “Along with all the ponies and changelings in it.”

“T-that’s horrible! We can’t let her do that.” she frowned. “I might not be Chry−” she paused, probably seeing me wince. “I mean her. I’m not her biggest fan, but for Hope to destroy her hive? Poor mare.” She looked toward the window, a single tear trickling down her face before she blinked and turned back to us.

“What can we do to stop it though, Twinkleshine? If Celestia won’t help, we don’t have the power to do anything either.” He looked back to me. “I don’t know what to tell ya, bro. A broken heart is… hard to deal with. If she’s going to act this way though, then maybe she doesn’t deserve you.” He hugged me close. “She might be under a lot of stress, but that is no reason to take it all out on you. I’m sorry about her subjects, her family. I just don’t know what to do. All I can say is Twinkleshine and I are here for you. Let it all out− “

“NO I can’t, I WON’T let it all out,” I growled. “That is what got me in this mess to start with. I panic too much. I ramble on and on... “ I sighed. “Velvet I-I don’t want them to die. I don’t want HER to die. But what I want doesn’t matter.”

Has it ever mattered? Look where my emotions have gotten me. Have they gotten me the mare I have had my eyes on? No, they have just driven her even further away from me. What was the point of loving if all it did was end in heartache? These strong emotions I carry were useless where it really mattered. Maybe it was better to not feel anything at all.

“No, her dying wouldn’t solve anything,” Twinkleshine sighed. “But letting out your frustration would help. It doesn’t work well in the end to keep it all bottled up.”

“She’s right, bro,” he grinned and rubbed his hoof up and down my back. “Please let us help you?”

“If you want to help me, then help me control my emotions,” I said. “Stop this mumbling fool.”

He just shook his head and sighed. “We’ll figure something out, bro. Twinkleshine and I will get your through this. We’ll find her Shiny, we’ll find our sister,” he said and hugged me close. “No matter what has happened to her though, it is NOT your fault. You need to stop blaming yourself.”

“I can feel how much you really care, and I’d hate to see that go to waste.” The pink-haired mare wrapped me in a hug as well.

Well, not for long. I accepted her hug, hugging both she and my brother, but this would be the last hug. No matter what Twinkleshine or Velvet might say, she was right. I was too emotional. Anypony could read me like a book and that wasn’t a good thing. A changeling, I guess, should be able to sense them better than a pony but no one — not even a changeling — should be able to read me as well as the entire nation of Equestria seemed to be able to do.

If I could conceal my emotions, not feel so strongly about everything maybe I could move on from all this. I saw no other way. My heart ached, and the way to heal it wouldn’t be moping about. No more. Just, no, no more. “I… appreciate that Twinkleshine.”

Velvet patted me on the back. “That’s the spirit, Shiny! We’ll get you your happily ever after somehow. I know we can do it!”

Was such a thing even real? Whatever, it didn’t matter anymore. The two of them helped me to my hooves. Twinkleshine grabbed a tissue from a box on the nightstand and levitated it over to me. I blew my nose into the tissue and wiped my eyes with a hoof.

“Thanks,” I sniffed.

“You’re welcome, Shiny,” she smiled softly. “Why don’t we all go get some lunch? I hear Donut Joe is having a sale on Eclairs today.”

“Aren’t those your favorite, bro?” Velvet winked at me.

I nodded. “His custard cream ones.”

“Well then, I’ll buy you a dozen!” he shouted. “That should help with those bad breakup woes.”

We were never ‘technically’ together, but whatever, it was the thought that counts. “Fine.” I nodded.

Twinkleshine paused and watched me for a moment. She led the way out of the room while my brother stayed by my side. We trotted out the door closed it behind us. Of course, doughnuts were not going to help in the long run — not when Chryssy and her subject’s lives were at stake — but I didn’t know what else to do. Perhaps that proved even more I wasn’t the leader type. With my heart heavy but my stomach empty, I followed after my friends.

Above Canterlot Castle- Queen Chrysalis

I just couldn’t believe it. What did Chrys think she was doing? {What did you do?} I yelled. Wait, that hadn’t come out right. In fact, it hadn’t come out at all.

“What do you think, dearie?” she growled. Of course, her voice could now be heard. “You were just going to let Hope ruin all I’ve worked for, so I took over.”

{But how did you do it? I mean, last time I can understand. Shiny surprised us by his declaration of love. This time though?} I shook my head — well, metaphorical head since she had control of our actual head right now.

“I figured out a while ago I could regain control when our emotions were... intense,” she grinned. “Of course, I didn’t act on such until I felt it necessary.” She hovered high above Canterlot castle and looked down on the ponies far below us.

{Are you crazy?} I yelled. {What if somepony sees us out here?}

“It doesn’t matter anymore. Let them see us in our glory!” she cackled. “Either way, we are going home. Forget that foal of a stallion, forget Celestia and her precious elements, and forget this stupid city. My changelings need me, and I am going to protect them.”

{We can’t! We have to stay here. I-I think I was too hard on Shiny. He was just stressing me out so much and I couldn’t think straight.}

“It is what he had to hear, dearie,” she growled. “I know you think you care for him, but it is a lie. Even if we could, he is not fit to be by our side as King.” Chrys flew over the first few pillars of the castle, the canopy of trees from the Everfree forest on the far edge of our view. “Besides, now he can find some sweet little pony mare that will baby the little foal,” she sneered.

{Yeah, I guess that would be better for him,} I mumbled. Shiny was the sweetest pony I had met since arriving in Equestria, but a fighter he was not. With how much he overreacted, he would fit right in with those flower mares in Ponyville that fainted at the ‘littlest horrible thing’. Well except for the fainting part. I let out a growl. {But there is so much more we can do here. I know if we keep trying we can convince Celestia to help. We need to go back.} I searched for the link we had, Chrys and me. Sure, I hadn’t really needed to do much with it before — let alone see it — but I had to figure out how to regain control.

“Are you really so foalish?” she groaned. “She refuses to help us! Nothing you do will convince her otherwise.”

{We can redeem ourselves if we keep trying,} I sighed. {The ponies are overall good creatures. They just need to see our sincerity.} If I kept her talking, maybe I could figure it out… ah! Our connection, interweaved throughout what looked like our whole body, the main threads around our brain, pulsed before me. This was quite interesting, seeing things from inside of us. It reminded me of those shows about the human body I had watched, our connection acting like a second nervous system or something like that — science was never my strong suit — with the magic flowing through us glowing a faint green.

I might not have understood all of it. Colt, even how they explained magic in the show was often left up to the viewer's imagination, but I felt an almost... instinctual grasp on what I was seeing. Whatever it was, I just hoped I could figure out the right place to poke and prod so we could return.

Chrys stopped and landed on the roof of the astronomy tower. “Are you that dense? UGH!” She facehoofed and gritted her teeth. “How the hay did Discord decide you were the right one to take over after me? You’re no better than that whimpering foal we left behind. No wonder you like him so much. You pretty much ARE him!” she yelled.

{Excuse me?} I huffed. {I do NOT panic like he does. There are many things different about us.} Now, how did Chrys flip our... what, souls? Essences? A push here, a shove there while we were emotional?

“Oh please,” she rolled our eyes. “You are both weak, have a delusional hope in Celestia, and think the world is all ‘sunshine and rainbows’. Sure you might not be the panicking type like him, but if Discord had brought you here as a pony you would have been perfect for each other! You would have been brainwashed under Celestia’s rule and brought about children who would all feel the exact same way.”

She took off again, higher and higher into the sky. “You are not worthy of the title Queen of the Changelings; you are not worthy of being a changeling at all!” she growled.

{What?} I gasped and returned my attention to her. {Of course, I am. I am far more changeling than pony. If I have failed at being a Queen, then I would say that is your fault for not training me well enough. That is the point of your being here still, isn’t it?}

“Perhaps the real point of my still being here is to continue to serve my changelings!” she hissed. “My daughter needs me. You have no clue what it is like to lose a child! I−” she grimaced, and then shook our head. “Look, we are both here now. We must do what is right for our subjects.”

{Exactly and going back will not solve anything,} I huffed. {You are right that I don’t know how it feels to lose a child. It is not something I want to know. We need to figure out a better way to stop Hope than just barging past her army though.} I looked back to our connection, prodding at it with my metaphorical hoof. Yes, if I pulled right there quickly enough, it should reverse what Chrys had done. Maybe? I had to try, but first, I had to get her just a little bit angrier.

“There is no other way,” she snarled. “Joining her is NOT an option. It would just bring us destruction later rather than sooner.”

{Then that is why we must continue to try to convince Celestia,} I said. {Perhaps that friend of Twilight’s, Fluttershy, would be of help? If she could befriend Discord and get others to trust her opinion of him, why not us?}

“GRAAAAAHHHH,” she yelled and held our forehooves to her head. “We do NOT have time to befriend that shy butterball!” Our eyes glowed green for a moment as she snarled.

There! I took a deep breath and pulled the cord. It flashed with a bright lime green magic and let out a loud crack. Like the force of a snapped rubber band, I could suddenly feel my hooves again with my wings buzzing behind me.

A jolt of excruciating pain ran down my spine and to my hooves. I let out a yelp as it rushed through every inch of me, even my tail. What went wrong? “C-Chrys?” I whispered. I ground my teeth together, trying to ride out the pain, but it just seemed to get worse. “Chrys?” I said again, surprised she wasn’t yelling at me for taking back control.

Pain coursed through me like fire and was growing every moment. I could feel my eyelids getting heavy. The air rushing past my chitin just making the pain all the worse. I tried to flap my wings, but they weren’t responding. I felt a pair of strong hooves catch me just before the pain consumed me.

Canterlot- Donut Joe’s - Shiny Whistle

As we entered Donut Joe’s, Velvet led us over to a corner table near the back. It had been some time since we were last here together, but Velvet and I had always tried to snag the same booth since we were colts. Luckily, our usual booth was open. Velvet and I slid in on the side facing the door, Twinkleshine in front of us.

“What can I get you today?” One of Donut Joe’s waitresses, a petite chocolate-colored unicorn with a peppermint cutie mark asked, holding up a pad of paper and pencil.

“Let’s see, two glazed donuts and a frozen hot chocolate for me,” Velvet said. “For my brother, here a dozen of Joe’s best custard eclairs and a hot chocolate with marshmallows−”

“Actually, could I make that a coffee?” I asked. “Decaf, black, no cream or sugar.”

“Since when you do drink coffee?” Velvet asked.

“Just want to try something different,” I said.

“But coffee?”

“Just let me drink what I want!” I growled, stomping a hoof on the table. Great, why don’t I just keep proving her right? I groaned and leaned back in the booth and rubbed the frog of each hoof over my eyes. I’d swear I could feel every eye in the shop on me.

“Chill, Shiny,” Velvet sighed and nodded to the mare. “Coffee it is then.” I guess the waitress must be used to ponies reacting crossly as she she didn’t even bat an eye at my outburst. Or was it because I was like this all the time? Was I? Ugh, probably and I just didn’t realize it.

“And for you miss?”

“Just a scone and a White Chocolate Mocha,” Twinkleshine said.

“Alright, I’ll have those out for you all in a few minutes.” She flipped to a new page in her notebook and moved to take the order of two tired looking mares a few tables down.

“Shiny−”

“I don’t want to talk about it, Velvet,” I grumbled. “Just let me be.”

He sighed. “Very well.”

It wasn’t until I had finished off my third éclair and second mug of bitter coffee that I felt my nerves finally settling down. I had cleaned up a bit before we left the castle, washing the tears from my face and combing my mane, but I probably still looked pathetic. I felt pathetic. No, worse, I felt numb to it all.

My brother and Twinkleshine sat with now empty plates in front of both of them. The donut shop had grown crowded around us. The loud voices of ponies as they chattered and laughed with each other filled my ears. They cared nothing for the pony whose heart had been shattered sitting behind them.

I was still in utter shock. This breakup had come out of nowhere and my heart was still with the dear Queen. I didn’t know if I could love another after this grievous wound she had given me. Despite all this, I still cared for her and want her to find the love I couldn’t give her.

Velvet rubbed his royal purple hoof down my back. “What do you say we go home?” he asked. “We can start searching for Dew again. Perhaps with your help, we’ll have better luck?”

“That might be for the best,” I sighed. How could I even face Nemoria and Acronicta now, after what happened? I couldn’t bear to see their devastated faces when they heard what happened. I looked over at Twinkleshine. “Could you take care of the girls? I-I don’t know what is going to happen to them now that she is gone…”

Twinkleshine gently placed her hoof upon my own. “They are good fillies. I’ll make sure they go somewhere safe — no matter what happens tomorrow.” She took a sip from her mocha. “Though, I think you should talk to them — at least once more. They care a lot for you.”

“I-I can’t,” I shook my head. “They remind me too much of her.”

“Well, we are still planning on working on you becoming a better pony, aren’t we?” she grinned. “Part of that would be not showing fear of what others think of you.”

“Yeah, I guess you’re right,” I nodded. I grabbed another éclair from my plate and bit into it, savoring the warm, buttery pastry. “Do you think we should do that first before Velvet and I… go home?”

Twinkleshine nodded. “If things do go as badly as you think tomorrow, they will need comfort. Losing their friends and family would be so-so hard at their age.” She bit her lip and turned away.

“You okay?” I asked.

“Yeah, I’m fine,” she said. “What matters now is protecting those we can protect. Those two fillies’ protection is something we can manage.”

“Speaking of, was there anypony with them when we left?” Velvet asked.

Twinkleshine gasped and then facehoofed. “I-I don’t think so. Discord was busy with the princesses. Their guards are in the dungeons−”

“And we are all here,” I groaned. Everypony had been so wrapped up with my problems we had forgotten all about them!

“I hope they are okay,” Velvet said.

“M-me too,” I nodded. I waved a hoof at the chocolate-colored waitress.

“Yes?” she asked as she trotted over.

“Could we get these to go?” I asked, pointing at my remaining eclairs.

“Of course, let me get you a box.” she grinned and hurried off.

Even if I didn’t want to see them just yet, their safety mattered more. They hadn’t done anything wrong. They were innocent and had only brought us joy. It was the least I could do to keep them safe. No matter how I felt.

The front door of the shop flew open as a frazzled looking dark-grey unicorn stallion burst in. “They’ve returned!” he shouted. “Hide your loved ones; hide yourselves! The changelings have returned!”

Panic filled the room like an angry beehive. Tables were overturned, shrill screams filled the air, and both pastries and drinks were flung into the air and splattered on the floor as ponies ran toward the door. The stallion, who had started the panic, clung to the door as he tried not to get trampled.

With the help of Twinkleshine, I levitated him over to us and out of harm’s way. “What happened?” I asked.

“Like I said, they returned!” he shuddered.

“What do you mean? Are they attacking?” Twinkleshine said.

“Not yet,” he shook his head. “Their Queen was spotted flying over the castle.”

I cringed. Had she been so angry at me she didn’t even think to hide her true form before she left? “A-and her changelings?” I stuttered.

“N-none seen yet, but then it was their Queen to appear first last time.” He looked up at the three of us. “Are none of you scared? Do you not have family to warn?”

“We’ve kind of dealt with them before,” Twinkleshine said.

“I’m not the type to panic and run,” Velvet snorted.

“Where did she go?” I asked.

“Oh, that,” the grey unicorn nodded. “Flash Sentry did –something- to her, not sure what, and she fell from the sky like a dead duck.”

“WHAT?” I yelled as my ears drooped and my mouth gaped open. “He-he KILLED her?”

He shrugged. “No idea. I saw him grab her after she fell from the air, but after that, there were so many pegasi guards in the air I couldn’t see anything else.”

No, no please no she couldn’t be dead! Even if she didn’t love me... if she had died… I couldn’t stand it! We had to get back to the castle. I had to know the full story.

“So you set up a panic when it seemed like everything was in the Princess’s control?” Twinkleshine snorted.

He glared up at her. “One of them is taken care of. Just because they have the Queen, doesn’t mean her army isn’t ready to attack to get her back!”

“Let’s just get ‘home’,” Velvet said and ushered Twinkleshine and me toward the door. “We need to check that everypony is safe.” He turned to look back at the unicorn. “Thanks for letting us know. We’ll stay safe.”

“You’re welcome,” he said proud of the ‘good’ job he did ‘informing’ everypony of the dire situation. .

“Home? You want to go home?” I shouted. We couldn’t go home. We needed to get to the− oh. I shook my head and plowed ahead. “Yes, you’re right let’s go.”

Velvet and Twinkleshine followed behind me as we stepped out of the shop. Besides a few ponies racing down the street away from us, everything had gone strangely still. Shutters snapped as they were closed over windows, and, for some houses, I could even see a faint glow of magical protection.

I turned my gaze to the castle to see it was as busy as our current street was dead. The gleam of gold and silver armored ponies covered it like ants at a picnic. Had we missed so much in our short time away?

The three of us raced toward the castle. My heart pounded as we dodged around spilled carts of mixed fruits and broken pottery. Please be okay, please be okay, oh please be okay, I kept repeating over and over.

“Halt!” a tall, white pegasus stallion clad in golden armor shouted and held his spear out before us.

“We’re meant to be here,” I said. “We have rooms in the castle, sir.”

“Do you? Or is it the ponies you are disguised as that have the rooms?” he growled.

“We’re not changelings!” I shouted.

“We just need to check on my brother’s friend. We heard she got into some sort of trouble?”

“You don’t need to worry about us,” Twinkleshine said softly and stepped in front of us.

“I’m sorry miss, but none of you may enter,” the guard grunted.

“We are welcome here, Sparks,” Twinkleshine continued. “Please let us in.” She stared at the guard, not even an ear twitching. “I promise we mean nopony any harm.” She swirled her forehoof back and forth before his muzzle.

“Ugh… Welcome.. You are welcome here… yes,” he repeated. “I’m sorry for holding you up,” he muttered and held a hoof to his forehead. He let out a groan and stepped to the side. “Very well, you may enter.”

“Thank you,” she chirped and led the way inside.

“Woah, that was pretty awesome!” Velvet said.

“I knew the guard back there,” she said. “Sparks is a good pony and will listen when calmly persuaded.” She grinned sheepishly. “But don’t worry about that right now. We need to find out where she was taken!”

“You’re right,” I said. I had to know if she was okay. If she was dead, I was not certain I could take it.

The three of us raced up the hallway. A few maids screamed as we ran by and one even jumped into another’s hooves and trembled.

“Colt, you see one changeling and everyone panics,” Velvet sighed.

“Where do you think they took her?” I paused from my panicked run. “The dungeons? The throne room? T-the morgue?” I shuddered at that last thought.

“Why don’t we try our quarters first?” Twinkleshine suggested. “Then we can make sure the girls are okay at the same time.”

“Sounds like a valid plan to me,” Velvet nodded.

“Then let’s go.” I turned down the next hallway only to run smack dab into Discord.

“Why, is that really you, dear Shiny?” he said, picking me up in his lion's paw by my tail.

“Of course it’s me!” I huffed and wiggled in his grasp. “Let me go! I need to go check on Chryssy.”

He frowned, but complied and dropped me next to Velvet. “I don’t know if you want to see her, lovercolt.”

Oh no, did that mean something bad had happened? Had Flash KILLED her? “If he killed her, I-I’ll wring his little fluffy neck!” I growled. To Tartarus if she loved me; I still cared if she was dead!

“Shiny!” Velvet scolded. He wrapped his hooves around me and hugged me close. “Don’t be talking like that. That is not like you.”

“He’s right little lilac one,” Discord said as he poked my horn. “Do you really want to kill the one that saved her from being a little splattered bug on the ground?”

“Wait, what?” I blinked slowly once, twice, then shook my head. “He SAVED her?”

“You mean she’s not dead?” Twinkleshine asked.

“Do you think the entire castle guard would be crawling around if she were?” Discord huffed. “No, she is very much alive, but there were a few… complications.”

“Complications?” I growled. “What complications?”

“That is on a need-to-know basis, little Shiny,” he smirked, poking my muzzle with one talon.

“What about the girls?” Twinkleshine asked. “Are they okay?”

Discord nodded. “Oh yes, they are well. The moment I sensed it happening, I snapped them to somewhere safe. Chryssy’s cover may have been blown, but the little fillies’ have not.”

“It? It what?” I groaned. I struggled in Velvet’s grip. “Let go, Velvet!”

“Not until you calm down,” he snorted.

“Like I said Shiny, you don’t need to know,” Discord huffed. “Though I suppose I could take you to see her.”

“Yes! Please do!”

“Well since you asked so nicely,” Discord winked and with a snap of his fingers we appeared in the main room of our quarters.

To my surprise, the room was devoid of guards. Were they all busy searching for Chryssy’s army? As if they would find it. “The guards do know she is the only one actually in Canterlot, don’t they?”

Discord shook his head. “It’s not like I might have mentioned seeing a random one or two…”

“What? Why?”

“Our dear little Ladybug needs her rest,” he shrugged. “She wasn’t going to get it with them watching her every move.”

“Can I see her?” Colt, there I went again. He had just said she needed rest. “O-or not. I mean if she’s sleeping.”

“Perhaps it would be best to wait,” Discord nodded. “But I know you are not the type to want to wait, little Shiny, so be my guest.” He held a paw out to the door and opened it halfway.

Even Discord could see that? Yep, she was so right about me. I took a few steps inside and frowned. The door closed softly behind me but I paid it little heed. Chryssy lied on the bed. She was asleep but kept mumbling something I couldn’t quite make out. From what I could see she looked fine on the outside, but much of her was blocked from my view by Flash Sentry.

Flash had grabbed a chair, pulled it up to the side of her bed, and sat down. He didn’t touch her, but he did watch as she tossed and turned. I watched him for a moment, his wings tucked against his barrel and his golden helmet placed on the nightstand. His blue mane was in disarray, but otherwise he looked well.

I was thankful he had saved her, but now as he stayed next to her still, I couldn’t help but see the vast difference in the two of us. He was a strong stallion and a guard who was able to fight for what he wanted to protect. Sure he was still young, and I didn’t know if he had ever seen a real battle, but what did that matter when compared to me?

“Hello.”

“What?” I shook my thoughts away and looked up to see Flash had turned to me. “Oh, hello.”

“Come to check on her huh?”

“What happened? I mean one stallion down at Donut Joe’s seems to think you did this to her.”

He shook his head. “I’m not really sure. I heard shouting so went to investigate and saw her flying around up above the castle. The next moment she was plummeting down and I raced up to catch her before she reached the ground.”

“Was nopony else around?”

“Not at the time. As I brought her back inside though, it took Discord to keep anypony else from bothering her. Why I protected her well… it was just my training and discipline coming into play.” He turned back around. “She’s been muttering something about a mare called ‘Chrys’ but that’s all I’ve been able to make out.”

I nodded. At least the grey stallion had gotten something right. I just wished I had been around to help her. “Well, thank you for saving her.” I placed a hoof on his shoulder. “Even if you don’t trust her.”

“She’s Princess Celestia’s guest, even with everything she has done. Until Celestia revokes that I will do what I can to see her guests are well taken care of.”

We both looked up and back over to Chryssy as she lets out a gasp and sits up. “Where is she?” she moaned and held a hoof to her forehead. “Chrys? CHRYS!”

“Chryssy, what’s wrong?” I asked. “Who is this Chrys?”

Her eyes popped open wide and looked to somewhere beyond Flash and me. “Chrys! Colt, girl answer me! I’m sorry, I’m sorry…”

I looked over at Flash but he just shrugged and shook his head. “Like I said, I found her alone.”

“No, nonono,” Chryssy moaned. Her muzzle scrunched up and she gritted her teeth together. “Please no, don’t leave me Chrys… NO!” She began to sob with huge tears trickling down her face. “She’s gone, she’s gone. I’ve KILLED HER! No….”

“What?” I gasped. She had killed somepony?

“Chrysalis, calm down and explain−” Flash started before Chryssy let out an anguished howl.

“She’s DEAD! Chrys, no I… you can’t be gone. It’s all my fault!” she howled. She collapsed forward on her belly and cried into her hooves.

“I don’t think she even realizes we’re here,” Flash sighed. “Whatever happened out there before I spotted her must have been terrifying.”

I was speechless. What could we do for her? I had no clue. Great, chalk that up as one more reason I was not fit for her. “Celestia’s refusal was hard for her to take.”

“Well it was my duty to tell her what I saw,” he shrugged. “No matter what the consequences.”

I sighed and turned back to Chryssy who was just mumbling the name ‘Chrys’ over and over again. Who was this Chrys? How had she killed them? Why was she so devastated about it? All I knew is I wasn’t going to get any answers this way. Did I even deserve to know them when she didn’t want anything to do with me anymore?

“What should we do?” I asked. “I-I hate to see her so upset.”

“Just wait until she is ready to talk, I guess,” Flash said and rubbed a hoof through his mane. “Sorry, I’ve just never really been good with mares.”

I snorted. “After today I feel the same way.” I leaned forward and rubbed a hoof up and down one of her forelegs but got no reaction she had even noticed.

“Well, you are not alone,” he nodded. “We’ll figure this out when she calms down enough to talk. Why don’t you get some rest? You look exhausted.”

I looked down at Chryssy. Her sobs seemed to have subsided for the moment. Perhaps she had cried herself back to sleep? “Perhaps a little sleep won’t hurt,” I whispered. Even if I didn’t want to leave her alone I’d be useless with no sleep. Even more than she already thought I was.

“Go, I’ll watch over her,” he urged and pushed me toward the door. “I’ll let you know if anything changes.”

Him watch over her? I cringed at the thought. Yet he was a guard and had even saved her. Would it be better to just let him do so? What if he really could protect her better than I? Sure Celestia hadn’t put her in the dungeons along with her changelings but that had little if anything to do with me, right? Yet, I guessed it didn’t matter anymore if she didn’t want me did it? Flash was a good pony and one of many talents. It took a lot of perseverance to get as far as he had at his age, something that I didn’t have a drop of. Perhaps he would be a better match for the mare I cared for. I bit my lip and nodded. “Please do. Take good care of her.”

Canterlot Castle- Queen Chrysalis

It was the worst feeling I could have ever imagined. Sure before I came to Equestria, I never even thought of sharing my mind with another. Such a close relationship was something only read in those cheesy sci-fi novels at the drugstore. Yet now with her gone I just wished I could have it back again.

I rubbed my sore eyes and lifted my head to find myself back in my room. How had I returned? All I could remember was the excruciating pain after I gained back control and falling, falling… wait, hadn’t somepony caught me? Yes, they had, obviously. I looked to the right side of my room to see an empty chair and the door slightly ajar. Well, whomever it was they hadn’t stuck around too long it seemed.

My head whipped around at the sound of shattering glass. Scattered across the floor was what remained of my balcony window. About a third of the way into the room, a red brick lay amongst the broken glass. “What the−” I whispered. Who would toss a brick through my window? Why? I looked back to the window as a cool breeze found its way inside and my heart dropped.

The reds and purples of dusk were already fading and the darker oranges and greens of sunset swallowed the sky. “We missed the deadline!” I moaned, struggling to rise from the bed. I stifled a yelp as a milder version of the pain from before rippled across my chitin.

I stumbled out of bed, placing each hoofstep carefully as I looked out at the fading sky. What were we to do now? I kicked at the brick with a growl and watched it roll a few times before coming to a stop. Closer to the broken window now, the wind caught hold of something tied to the brick with a piece of string.

“How cliché, Hope,” I mumbled but still wrapped my magic around it and pulled it closer to me, only to have it drop about halfway as my levitation spell failed. What the hay? I was good at levitation, it was the easiest of spells! How could it just fail like that? Was it because of Chrys? I shook my head. Didn’t matter right now. I stepped carefully over to the brick and picked it up in my hoof. I placed it on the bed and used my teeth to pull at the string.

A piece of paper fell to the floor that looked like it had been torn from some book. I picked it up and held it in one hoof. On the top was a picture of a bright red ladybug sitting on a brown mushroom. It had a panicked look on its face. Below the ladybug was what looked like a nursery rhyme with parts of it scribbled out and new words written in the margins. As I read through it my eyes grew wide in horror.

“Ladybug, ladybug fly away home.
Your Castle’s on fire!
Your children shall burn!
Except little Citheronia,
Whom I've foalnapped
Have fun!”

There was no signature, but I knew it must be from Hope. The paper fell from my grasp. H-how dare she! How dare she take the one thing that mattered most to us, to Chrys! The pang of losing her just like that still clung to me. No, no I would NOT lose everything today. Hope would not get away with that.

I looked back to try my wings and breathed a sigh of relief when I rose a foot into the air and hovered. At least those still worked. We− I might not have much strength, but I wasn’t going to waste what little I had left sleeping in the home of those who hated me. I had a hive to save. If there was anything left by the time I arrived. I dived through the broken window, twisted around to face the Everfree forest, and started the journey I should have let Chrys take hours ago.

End of Day Three.

Don't Know What You've Got until it's Gone.

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Changeling Castle- Apatelodes

“Where is she?” I stepped up to the window near the music room on the third floor and watched as more and more diamond dogs and umbrum appeared around the castle. The sky grew darker as the sun set and the umbrum rose in force. Hope hadn’t shown her face again; however, I was sure she lurked in the shadows somewhere close by. Her army of dogs formed below us as they filled the area around the castle gates with their furry bodies. Howls echoed off the walls and sent chills down my spine. Now the only question was if our Queen would arrive on time.

“Come on, Apatelodes. I think it time you put on your armor as well,” Videre said and put a hoof to my shoulder. “Everyling is ready. No matter what the outcome, we will fight. We will protect our own.”

I sighed, but turned away from the window and looked at him. “I don’t know if I can do this, Videre. I’m not our Queen. Is it right for me to lead us into battle? She should by all rights and traditions be leading us in battle this day.”

My armored friend nodded. “She left you in charge, for she knew you could protect us in her stead.” He put a hoof under my chin and gave me a small grin. “You can do this. You must. We need you to be strong for us in her stead.Right now we need a leader, and we all trust you. I believe in you and know you will do us proud. I don’t know where she is, or if she will arrive, but I trust you will not disappoint.”

“Thanks, Videre, I-I believe you.”

“You better,” he said. “For it is true.” He turned away and flicked his ears forward then tapped a hoof on the ground.

“Everything okay?” I asked. I trotted up next to him and cringed when a loud howl filled the air.

“Y-yeah everything's fine!” he nodded. “Come on. Let’s go get your armor.”

“With you fighting by my side, I think we can get through this,” I grinned and led the way up to my room. There were few other lings I would feel as safe around or trust to do what was needed to get us through this. “Do you think she’ll make it?”

“Hopefully,” he nodded. “You did notify her that things were getting worse right?”

“Last night,” I said. “She was going to try to get the help of the princesses.”

“After what happened at the wedding, I doubt they would even consider helping us.”

“We need to have hope.” I cringed at my own words. Such a concept would never feel the same after one named after it had taken such a dark course. Even reading Hayfeather’s book I still had no clue why Hope had changed so drastically. Nor why she seemed to have such a vendetta against us. It couldn’t be all the amulet’s doing, there had to be something else.

“Hope in our Queen, sure,” my armored friend nodded. “But hope in the pony princesses? Pigs will fly before that becomes a reality.”

“Well with Discord− ”

“Not talking about Discord’s powers,” he sighed.

I chuckled ruefully. “Hope might be strong, but we are many. I don’t know nearly as much as I should of these shadow demons the umbrum, but I know those dogs can be pretty dull. With our numbers we can accomplish our Queen’s wishes.”

I paused and pulled on my armor. It was dark blue to match my carapace, and I had had it for long as I could remember. Sure it had seen its dents and scrapes after the failure of the Canterlot Wedding but had kept me alive to see this day. I took a deep breath, levitated my helmet upon my head, and adjusted my ears for the perfect fit. I strapped my sword to my side. It was an old fashioned Koltrean blade, long and thin with its edge razor sharp. I took a deep breath and nodded at Videre.

“You wear your sword well, commander,” he said and put a hoof to my own as we made our way back down to the main floor. He held onto my hoof for a moment longer before pulling away. Was he? No things weren’t like that…

“Thanks,” I said. My wings twitched nervously behind me. Had I remembered everything? Was the castle secure? With the size of Hope’s army it was going to be hard to hold our ground for long, but I was going to make sure we held it long enough for as many to escape as possible. Our children especially — be they ling or pony — had to escape for they were our future.

“Though I feel we must still be cautious,” Videre continued. “Our power is far weaker without our Queen. Even if she was here, even if we beat those dogs, can we stand up against Radiant Hope and the power she has attained?”

We passed armored soldiers posted every window as we walked. Even more held their ground on the lawn by the front gates. As we passed one window, I looked out to see them with their eyes glued to the army ahead of them. Ears twitched and armor was nervously adjusted. I had sent a platoon of fighters both ling and pony down to the nursery not long ago to help them escape and guard them as they did so.

The young, inexperienced, and those too old to fight buzzed around the second floor as they packed bags full of provisions and keepsakes. Much to their annoyance I had also sent the majority of our female changelings to the hatchery. I knew they wanted to fight next to those they cared for, but we couldn’t risk their lives in battle. Keeping our species alive had to be one of my main priorities along with protecting the royal line.

“Hurry to your places,” I growled softly to them. “We need you down in the hatchery or the front escape route yesterday!”

They nodded and grabbed one or two more things and hurried down the stairs. I sighed and rubbed my forehead. Why hadn’t I thought of evacuating sooner? It was too late for regrets now, all I could do was my best in getting them out alive.

“I don’t know my friend, all we can do is ready ourselves for whatever Hope has planned for us,” I said and adjusted Videre’s helmet as it was slightly askew.

“Thanks,” he nodded. “Well give her one Tartarus of a fight,”

Videre and I paused near the entryway as we reached the end of the stairs. Well, he paused while I more so paced back and forth. Colt, I needed to calm down. If I showed how nervous I was, it would make everyone else nervous.

“Apatelodes,” Videre said.

I paused in my pacing and turned to him. “Yes?”

“Before this all goes down, I need to tell you something.” He led us to the far end of the entryway when I nodded. “I’ve been meaning to tell you this for a long time,” he said as his wings buzzed behind him. “Everything kind of got complicated though when our Queen got sick and then was better and the Princess was born…”

“Well, we have some time now,” I said. “What is it you want to tell me?”

“Apatelodes,” he gulped. “We’ve known each other for many years, and you took me under your wing and taught me most of what I know. I wouldn’t be in my position if it were not for you.”

I nodded. “You reminded me of myself as a colt,” I said. “Our Queen honored me in choosing to oversee my training from a young age, and I wanted to pass the good will forward she showed me to the next generation.”

“You’re right, and you have done a commendable job with such. Even more with our well…” he coughed, looked over at those near us,saw they were out of hearing range, and then looked back to me. “Our more private lives,” he blushed.

Ah so that is what this was about. It had been some time since we really had time alone, only once since our Queen was renewed. It hadn’t even been a month since she arrived and already so much had happened. Of course with our positions we were already usually quite busy. “About that,” I said and lifted a hoof. “I’m sorry we haven’t had much time lately. Like you said, things have been… complicated.” So complicated I hadn’t even thought of him much with my mind occupied elsewhere. I knew he was guarding our home and that he was safe, which is all that had really mattered. Our Queen and Princess were my first priorities and the ones it would just kill me to see hurt if I could prevent it. Videre was a good friend and I enjoyed spending time with him, but what were we to do with things busy as they had been?

“Oh! I know, I know and it’s okay,” he grinned sheepishly. “Once we deal with Hope and things calm down again we can focus on us again.”

“Yes, we shall,” I nodded. It was getting late. Were we prepared too early? Would Hope even attack tonight? Was she just trying to agitate us?

“So you're probably wondering where I am going with all of this,” he said, drawing my attention back to him.

“It does seem an odd time to bring this all up,” I nodded.

He took in a deep breath and then let it out slowly. “Apatelodes, I lo−”

It was at that moment a loud boom filled the air and the ground shook. It was closely followed by another. “They are using catapults on the gates!” one young changeling yelled, buzzing down the stairs.

“It is time then,” I nodded to him. “Tell the others upstairs to be ready.”

“Yes sir!” he saluted and flew back up the stairs.

“Sorry Videre, you’ll have to tell me when this is all over, okay?” I sighed and put a hoof to his shoulder.

“Of course, of course,” he nodded as his ears wilted. “The hive comes first. Let’s take Hope down!”

“That’s the spirit!” I yelled and looked to those few stationed in the entryway. “Be ready!” They nodded, withdrawing their swords and holding them in their magic. “You ready?” I asked my armored friend.

“Yes, just… be careful out there okay?”

“I’ll do what I can,” I nodded. Another boulder hit the gates and shook the castle.

I drew my own sword and took a deep breath. We could do this. We can survive. Another boulder hit the front gates. With a loud crack and snap, they fell inward. The diamond dogs howled as they charged forward onto the castle grounds.

“Stand strong,” I yelled and drew my sword. The screams of those outside reached my ears as the enemy advanced. Some were the yelps and howls of the dogs and a few shrieks I assumed were from the umbrum, but most were the keening cries of my fellow changelings.

Chioides ran past toward the main floor escape route. He and other armored changelings behind him guarded the elders who couldn’t fight as they hurried across. “Keep your eyes peeled and watch each other’s flanks,” I yelled to him. He nodded with his one ear flat against his helmet but took a deep breath and charged on. Oh why had I waited until the last moment to evacuate? Whatever happened to them now would be on my hooves.

Turning away, I nodded to Videre behind me. The battle might not have made its way to us yet, but he stood at ready, his own sword drawn and wings tucked against his form. We couldn’t let Hope take our home. No matter how bad the odds looked.

The acrid smell of smoke reached my nostrils as laughter echoed around us. Cries cut short as umbrum blasted their way through the windows and into the entryway. Their bodies seemed to hum with magic as they rubbed up against the walls and sent out sparks. The sparks caught against the walls and began to burn a lime green, the flames spreading rapidly as it ate up the walls.

“I-I..” Videre stuttered. “Our slime is catching fire!”

“Warn the others,” I said and lifted into the air. “How could I forget how flammable it was?” I groaned and facehoofed. I was a horrible leader!

“Don’t blame yourself. Just fight and do what you can,” Videre said and shot a blast of magic at an umbrum flying overhead.

He was right. It was already done. “Instruct everyone inside down here to head for the exit. We have enough problems without worrying about burning to death too.” I huffed.

“On it!” He raced off through the smoke quickly filling the room.

I flew up the stairs and stumbled into a diamond dog that had crawled through a window as I went. With a hiss, I swiped my sword at it, cutting through the meaty flesh of one of its hind legs.

It went down with a howl and rolled down the stairs. I probably hadn’t hurt it enough to kill it, but I needed to check on those upstairs. Already so many cries of pain filled the air. We hadn’t been ready, and now everyling was dying.

Changeling and pony civilians ran around frantic as I reached the next floor. “Calm down everyling!” I yelled. “Make your way to one of the escape routes: downstairs or in the hatchery.” Why were so many still up here? Ugh, everyone was more worried about their precious things than living. Thankfully some listened right away and raced down the stairs while I pushed others down with a hoof.

I coughed as the smoke continued to worsen. Thankfully, it poured out the windows around us as well. Not many diamond dogs had made it this far yet but umbrum filled the air and floors. I blasted one away from a small red pony mare as it tried to wrap itself around her neck. “Go, go,” I urged and nudged her toward the stairs.

“Taking my prey are you, little ling?” the umbrum hissed, showing off its misshapen teeth.

“You will not harm those under my protection,” I snarled. I lunged forward and sliced my sword right through it as if it were a ghost.

The umbrum laughed as I just stared at my sword in shock. “Your little stick isn’t going to hurt me.” It dived and swiped a hoof at me, hitting me hard in the side.

I cringed, jumped back away from it, and shook my head. Okay so physical attacks didn’t work it would seem . “Fine,” I growled and looked back up at it. “Good thing I have more than just this ‘little stick’ then.” I planted my hooves firmly on the ground, moved my sword into guard, gave a battle cry, and shot a blast of magic at it.

The ugly thing dodged, but my attack still grazed its side. It let out a hiss of pain and charged toward me.

I ducked and pivoted around to shoot another burst of magic at it. This time it hit it square between the eyes. Before it could do more than hiss in pain I shot a bolt of fire magic at it. “Let’s see how you like some flames,” I snorted.

It yowled in pain as the fireball hit it smack in the barrel, catching against whatever it had for skin and blistering as the flames ate at it. So, it couldn’t handle the flames produced by others. Good to know. With one last blast of fire to the back of its neck, it fell to the floor and writhed in pain as the flames consumed it.

I hurried forward, directing more changelings and ponies down to the hatchery as I went. One changeling came buzzing over to me covered in soot and blood as I led a group toward the stairs. “Sir! They’ve taken the front escape route!” I paused, looking a little closer to see the ling under all that muck was Chioides.

“What happened?” I yelled.

“W-we got a few out and past the castle gates,” he said and landed beside me. “But they were waiting for us. They knew! Somehow they knew! The diamond dogs charged and sliced through our ranks. Asbolis went down first as he saved his mother, but so many have fallen!”
I groaned and rubbed the frog of my hoof against my forehead. Everything was going to Tartarus. We had to regroup. Would sending them to the hatchery be safe? Had anyling down there gotten out? It was our only other option, so would have to do. “Okay, we still have the hatchery. We need to get all those down there to safety. Lead as many as you can that way instead. Get them to safety.”

“But Apatelodes−”

“I know! Many are going to die tonight Chioides. We can’t do anything about that.” It was just all my fault. Colt, where was Chrysalis? “Just help make sure as many as possible live.” It was hard hearing of my hatchmate’s death, but at least he had gone down saving another. That is what we were here to do.

“I’ll do my best,” my one eared comrade nodded, his said ear lowered. He took a deep breath, jumped back into the air and was soon gone.

Okay, so new plan. Had to get everyone to the hatchery. I cringed as a wall near me crumbled, falling inward as its supports were burned away. We didn’t have long before it would all burn away. How long had we been using our slime to fix things? How much of it was the main reason the castle still stood? I had no idea, but with how things were burning we didn’t have time to wonder.

I heard coughing behind me and turned to find Spot dragging saddlebags far too heavy for the young colt to carry himself. “What the hay do you have in there?” I asked him as he came closer.

“B-books,” he gasped and took another step forward. “I had to save as many as I could. Do you know how rare some of these are?”

“That doesn’t matter. Why aren’t you down in the hatchery with the others?” Yet another changeling more interested in things. What happened to our will to survive?

“Because I had to save them Appy!” he sniffed. He looked up at me with big tear filled eyes. Ugh, okay, okay we could work with this. I just had to get him to safety, if there was such a thing anymore. Had Hope joined the fray? Or was she letting her army do the dirty work for her?

“Fine, we’ll try to save them. Come with me.” I levitated the saddlebags full of books into the air, grunting at their weight. He sure had packed in a lot of them.

Spot beamed and followed behind me as we raced down the stairs. I could feel the little guy tremble behind me as we passed the carnage along the stairs. It couldn’t have been more than a few minutes since the gates fell but already bodies littered the floor, both foe and friend.

“Keep fighting, my friends,” I yelled and held my sword up to block a blow toward Spot. “Stay strong and don’t lose your will to fight!” I heard a few grunts of confirmation as another changeling came to fight the diamond dog before me and Spot and I made our escape.

We dodged around others fighting, slipping around and through the door leading down toward the hatchery. The smoke wasn’t as bad down there as we hurried our pace. I spotted Crambus near the entrance to the hatchery, fighting a slavering dark grey furred dog. Beside him on the floor were the bloodied bodies of Attacus and Astraptes. I dropped the books in a corner and pushed Spot into it as well. “Stay here until we clear the way,” I whispered and drew my sword once more to help my fellow council member.

Crambus let out a yelp as the beast tripped him and he went sprawling, his sword skittered out of hoof. I leapt in front and held my sword out barely blocking the dog’s claws from slashing through Crambus’s exposed barrel. It’s claws were already covered in the blood of the fallen, dripping onto my sword. “Not this time you fiend,” I growled, pushing forward and up.
It howled and took a step back, dark green eyes focused on me as its stubby tail flicked back and forth. “Get OUT of our hive!” I screamed and in a forward dash stabbed at it. It let out a yelp as my sword pierced through its left forepaw. With its right it swung at me and hit me hard in the chest, knocking me backward a few feet.

My sword still stuck in its paw it stepped forward. A rush of wings and a snarl to my right revealed Crambus as he recovered and darted forward, his own sword slashing through the dogs exposed throat. With a gurgling groan, it fell to our hooves and writhed around as its blood pooled. A moment later it grew still.

I stepped forward and pulled my sword out of its paw, wiping the blood off on its messy fur. “Is he the only one to get down here so far?”

Crambus nodded. “I think so. Just got down here myself. Where is everyling? I thought more than-than they were guarding.” He looked over at the still forms of our fellow changelings and shuddered.

I looked to the hatchery door at the end of the hall. It was weird to see noling alive besides Crambus, Spot and I down here. “Did others get away already?”

“Only one way to find out,” Crambus huffed and started toward the door.

“Come on Spot,” I said and grabbed the saddlebags again. We followed after Crambus and opened the door to find chaos inside. There were not yet any of those vile fiends of Hope’s, but all those in there were struggling to get to the exit in the back, the same Phengaris and I had used the night of Pachlio’s death.

Phengaris and most of the younger females in the hive stood near the far corner, the hatchlings and few remaining eggs wrapped in their hooves while the hives young gathered around them. Other lings and ponies had pushed ahead of them and were all in a rush to get out.

“QUIET!” I yelled. Some of them stopped to look at me while others continued their panicked push for the door. “Have you all forgotten the reason I sent you down here? To protect the young! To escape BEFORE the fighting started!” Many of them hung their heads in shame.

“We’re sorry Apatelodes,” one bright green pony said. “When we smelled the smoke, we kind of panicked. Even worse when that dog killed−” she gasped and shuddered. “All that blood…”

I groaned and facehoofed. “Look, just calm down and let those in front go through okay? You’re just lucky Crambus was down here to protect you once they fell.”

They nodded and those near the back gave the others more room to file out the door. Not hearing any screaming I breathed a sigh of relief that we seemed safe on this side — for now. I led Spot over to the waiting females, one of whom took his heavy saddlebag of books and glared at him.

“Stay with the others this time, Spot,” I growled. He nodded and huddled up close to wait his turn to go out. My gaze turned to Crambus. Besides the blood from the diamond dog and a few scratches here and there, he looked well. “Can I trust you to watch over them for me? Get them all to safety?”

“Of course,” he nodded. “Find more to send down here and save. I’ll do what I can here.”

“Make sure the children and females get out as soon as possible, especially the Princess.” I looked to see Phengaris herself had our little Princess in her grip and held close to her bosom.

“Will do!” he saluted.

I took a deep breath and let it out, then hurried toward the door to continue on.

Canterlot Castle- Shiny Whistle

It was a few hours later I awoke. I rubbed a hoof through my mane, yawned, and looked to see Discord and Velvet in their beds next to mine fast asleep. What time is it? What woke me up? I stretched and rolled out of bed. The sky outside our window was nearly all the grey-blue of right before darkness falls. So I hadn’t been sleeping for too long.

Well, I was up now, I might as well go check on Chryssy and Flash. I trotted to the door and opened it quietly so as not to wake the others and trotted over to Chryssy’s room. I paused. The door was slightly ajar and rocking back and forth. “Flash?” I whispered as I stepped closer to the door and pushed it open.

The room was empty. Flash’s chair stood unoccupied by the bed where Chryssy no longer lay. A breeze whisked through the room from the balcony window which had been shattered, shards of glass littered the carpet before it. “Chryssy?” I said a little louder and stepped inside. A sharp gust of wind caught on some paper on the floor and flung it against my muzzle.

I pulled it away and looked down as it floated in my magic. My eyes ran over the nursery rhyme as my stomach fell. “Oh no,” I whispered as my eyes went wide. So Hope was going through with it then. Even worse, she had foalnapped Chryssy’s daughter!

“Shiny? What happened here?”

I turned to see Flash enter the room and look around at the damage. How could he not know? Where had he been? “What happened? You tell me, you were supposed to be watching her!” I yelled and stomped my hoof against the floor. I levitated the torn page to him and he grasped it in one wing as he read.

“So she’s gone back then,” he said softly. “I-I don’t know what to say Shiny. I couldn’t have been gone longer than fifteen minutes. Nothing was like this when I left.”

“”This is all your fault!” I growled. “N-now she is going to die too. All because you wouldn’t let Celestia send troops to help!”

“”Calm down, Shiny,” Flash said and held a hoof out to me. “Losing the Queen is serious, but we have to think about what we need to do next. Panicking won’t help.”

I stepped away from his hoof, careful not to step on the broken glass as I did so. “You had one job!” I groaned. Why wasn’t he upset about this? “I trusted you to watch her.”

“Yes, I know, and I’m sorry, Shiny. There’s nothing we can do now though. With this Citheronia in danger, nothing we do is going to get her to come back even if we could catch up with her.”

I scraped a hoof against the ground in frustration but knew he was right. Chryssy loved her daughter — obviously far more than she loved me. The care she gave to her fellow changeling was part of why I loved her. There was nothing I could do and it just made my heartache even worse. Perhaps I should just move on, return home with Velvet. Well, after Discord brought the girls back so we could say goodbye. He had insisted it was safer for them where he had them hid away.

How could I just return home though, not knowing what had happened? If she lived, or died, what happened to her changelings? What should we do? “Flash?” I said, turning back to the blue maned stallion.

“Yes, Shiny?”

“I-I don’t know what to do.” I sniffed.

“Well, why don’t we alert the Princesses? Celestia should be getting ready for bed now that the sun is down, while Princess Luna should be waking from her sleep. So now is the perfect time to catch all four of them.” He assured me. “I will see if I can get the civilians refugee status, so that we can protect them,” he said and rubbed a hoof through his mane. Well, at least it looked like he felt guilty for what he had done. For whatever small comfort that gave.

I nodded as my ears lowered. It was something at least. Wait, perhaps Discord…? “You alert the Princesses,” I said. “I’ll ask Discord if he can help.”

“That’s a good idea as well,” Flash nodded as he walked toward the door with the note tucked under one wing. “I’m sorry, Shiny. I’ll do what I can to bring her back.” He frowned and seemed lost in thought for a moment, but then turned around and trotted out the door.

I raced back to our bedroom. A shiver running down my spine at the thought she might die. With a pause shortly before the door, I took in a few deep breaths. Flash was right. I needed to calm down. I had to stop panicking at every single thing. Sure my parents had liked the three of us to be open with our feelings, but mine were far more transparent than either of my siblings. Chryssy thought I should learn to control myself. So I would do so. Somehow.

With one hoof I opened the door and stepped inside, my gaze turned to Discord’s bed. Like usual, he more floated above it than actually slept in it, which made it hard to reach him. I stood on my hind legs and poked him in the side.

“Who dares disturb my slumber?” he growled, eyes glowing yellow for a moment as his face seemed to morph into some kind of blue feline. I took a step back only for him to blink and smile down at me, his face returning to normal. “Ah, it is you Shiny,” he grinned and plopped down on his bed. “Let me guess, couldn’t sleep?”

“Something like that,” I nodded and looked behind me as Velvet stirred.

“”Do we need to get you more donuts?” Velvet asked and let out a yawn.

“NO!” I yelled and shook my head. “She’s gone.”

“Gone?” Discord asked. “Whatever do you mean, Shiny?”

“Chryssy, she’s gone,” I repeated. “I found a note in her room from Radiant Hope. She’s burning the hive, and foalnapping Citheronia.”

“What a pity. I do like that little bug,” Discord sighed. “You know it was bound to happen though, her leaving.”

“Yes, I do but- Discord, c-can you do anything for them? Can you stop Hope from doing what she has planned?” I moaned. A few tear drops fell to my cheeks and I wiped them away. Curse my stupid emotions!

Discord shook his head. “I’m sorry, Shiny, but I’m afraid not.”

“What?” I gasped.

“Isn’t she your friend though?” Velvet said and stood to wrap me in a hug. “Friends should help friends where they can.”

“She is my friend, yes,” Discord nodded. “But we made an agreement over a thousand years ago.”

“A-an agreement?”

“Yes, little Shiny,” he nodded. “She is a proud Queen, the majority of the time wanting to solve her own problems. As fellow villains – well ex-villain in my case — we made a vow that we would only come to each other’s aid if called.”

“Wha- but that is ridiculous!” I groaned and wiggled out of Velvet’s hug. “How the hay are you supposed to hear her call from so far away? Or she you?”

The draconequus chuckled. “Part of the agreement involved a little spell. You see, if one of us calls on the other, we will hear it. No matter if I am here or in my own dimension. It is a much higher level spell than most of you unicorns can do,” he snorted. “Only one as powerful as we can do it. Though I do have Kay-Kay on speed dial too.” He folded his arms and shook his head. “But does Celestia use it when in trouble? When I could solve her problems with a snap of my fingers? No! She just relies on her precious elements. ‘They can do anything’,” he huffed.

“Then you won’t help her?”

“No, sorry, Shiny. The moment she calls for me, I’ll be there in a flash, but not until then.”

Great, this was just great. The one creature I knew that could easily solve this refused to help! What were we going to do now? “So what, are we just to sit here doing nothing while she and her changelings die?”

“No, you could do other things,” he shrugged. “Perhaps write a new song? I hear you are good at that.” He snapped his fingers and before me appeared my whistle and some blank sheet music. Another snap and a quill and ink bottle appeared next to them.

“You think I can write music at a time like this?” I growled.

“It might help you calm down, bro?” Velvet said and grabbed the items. He placed them on a desk in the corner of the room.

I sighed, my emotions were getting ahold of me again. It just felt wrong. Even if she didn’t care for me I wanted to help. “Fine,” I huffed and walked over to the desk, sitting down and lifting up the quill as I placed a blank sheet in front of me. I needed something to do to get this jagged feeling in my chest to go away. My gaze turned to the window and I watched as the first star appeared in the night sky. Please, stay safe. The princesses would likely be up here soon with Flash. Until then, I would work on some new song. In my current state of mind though, I had no idea what to write.

Changeling Castle – Apatelodes

The smoke filled the air as I pointed changelings and ponies toward the exit and fought my way through the horde of diamond dogs and umbrum now in the castle. All around me bricks fell from the wall. It was even worse in places fights took place as bodies slammed against the crumbling structure and were quickly buried underneath.

By some miracle, I had received only a few cuts, one or two of which were deep but most were superficial. Though I had plenty of bruises. If it wasn’t for Zeuxidia and the trinkets she made, I’d probably have worse. I’d never regretted wearing the one she had made for me with a spell to strengthen one’s chitin. I just hoped she had made it to safety. She hadn’t been down in the hatchery from what I had seen, but that didn’t mean she was dead.

I coughed against the acrid smoke. Around and above me, I heard the cackling laughter of the umbrum, who seemed dived down on those fighting and were taking them out one by one.. The clang of sword meeting claw filled the air. Howls of pain cut short from both dog and changeling filled my ears.

I watched in horror as the enemy kept coming. There might have been a lot of us, but by now we had been scattered across the castle in our fighting. We were losing, badly. I had to do something! As my wings buzzed behind me I leapt into the air, sword at the ready. “My fellow changelings!” I yelled. A few ears flicked my way as they continued to fight. “We must be strong for our Queen,” I continued.”These dumb dogs can’t beat us down if we stand together. As one we may be weak, but together we are mighty!”

I heard shouts of agreement from below and watched as a few moved closer to a comrade. “Yes, fight together,” I shouted. “We are changelings! We are strong! We’ll fight for the right to live.” I flew backward as an umbrum flew at me and shot a bolt of magic at it. “Back you fiend,” I growled.

“You will stop talking bad about us then,” it hissed. “You changelings won’t do that though will you?”

“Like Tartarus we will. This is our home and we will not give in!” I charged at it and tossed another bolt of magic. It floated upward out of the blast’s range.

“Is that all you have?” it purred. “I’ve seen worse from a pony.”

I snarled and bared my fangs at it. How dare the ugly thing call me worse than a pony! “You want more? Then take it!” I fired another bolt at it quickly followed by three more. Though it dodged, the last two hit it on the left forearm and cheek. As it howled in pain, before it could make a counterattack, I shot a fireball at it which hit directly between its eyes,

The flames crackled up its body as it fell to the ground and writhed in pain. As I hovered there and caught my breath, I looked to see many of those below watching me, even some of the enemy. “Attack!” I yelled and pointed a hoof toward the distracted mutts.

With a roar our army charged forward again with renewed vigor, cutting out diamond dogs left and right as they fought together. That’s better. I grinned and landed back on the ground. I heard few cries of my fellow changeling now, nor that of the few ponies I could see up against the diamond dogs. Three or four changelings, sometime with a unicorn amongst them, were gaining up on the umbrum and blasting them with bolts of magic from all sides. The umbrum let out piercing cries of pain as they fell to the ground.

An ash covered, dirty grey-green diamond dog stepped in front of me. Its fangs and claws were covered in blood. Stuck in one of its fangs was what looked like half of a changeling’s wing. I let out a snarl and charged at it. My sword sliced through one of the clawed fingers on its right paw and cut it off before it could blink.

It howled and sprang at me. It missed my ear by mere centimeters as I jumped back. The mutt charged forward again and sliced its remaining claws in a downward arc.

I ducked and dove under it, bringing my sword up to swipe along its belly. I didn’t get very deep as I slid out from underneath it, but at least the wound bled. “Take that you drooling mutt!” I yelled.

“I eat you, tender morsel,” it snarled, baring its own fangs as it held one paw to its bleeding belly and swiped the other toward my throat.

“Not likely,” I hissed and snapped at the paw. I buried my fangs deep into the pad of its paw and shook my head as I tore into it.

The brute howled and tried to pull its paw away, which only resulted in more damage. As its blood rolled onto my tongue, I released the paw, spitting out fur and the bitter blood. With its attention on its paw, I sliced through its stomach once more. This time I punctured it deeply. The blood spilled freely from the dog, and I jumped over it and looked for my next opponent.

A piercing scream filled the air behind me. I twisted around to see a huge, muddy-grey diamond dog, nearly twice the size of the one I was just fighting, with one of our hatchlings in his arms. The foal scrabbled in his grip, let out another scream, and then started to cry. With all the smoke, I couldn’t make out which one it was from the distance between us, but who it was didn’t matter.

I took a deep breath through my fangs and sprinted toward them, sword raised high. “Get your paws off our foal!” I screamed.

He paused to look at me as I drew near and simply laughed. “Our master wants foal, so we gives it to her.” He took a stronger grip on the foal and held it behind his back as I drew closer.

“Well she can’t have it,” I snapped. Why would Hope want one of our foals, our hatchlings, anyway? It’s not like they were anywhere near old enough to fight anytime soon. It was at that moment who I realized the hatchling must be. I took a step to the side and looked behind his back and my eyes grew wide in confirmation. He had our Princess!

“Give her to me, and I might let you live,” I hissed with my fangs bared.

He just shook his head. “She is our master’s now.”

Ugh, stupid dog! How was I supposed to get to her without harming her? If there was one changeling I knew I must save, it had to be her.

“Apatelodes!” I glanced over my shoulder to see Videre running toward me. His helmet was gone and he had claw marks down the right side of his face, but otherwise looked well. He stopped beside me with his gaze on the princess’s captor. “He has the Princess!”

“Good to see you still alive,” I nodded to him. “Yes he does. Let’s take him down!”

“Two tasty morsels against me?” the dog laughed. “I bring all back to master!”

“Like Tartarus you will!” Videre growled and stepped closer to me. “I’ll bite his forearm, and you grab the Princess when he drops her. If that sounds okay?” he whispered.

“Let’s do it,” I nodded.

Videre dived in at the furred mutt and clamped his jaws around its thick arm. The dog howled. The grip he had on the Princess failed as she slipped through his clawed paws.

Before she could hit the floor I snatched her up in my magic and brought her closer to me. She stared up at me with wide eyes, her entire body shivering as she let out little chirps of fear. “It’s okay. I got you,” I soothed.

At a yelp of pain, I turned back to see the dog had dislodged Videre from his arm and tossed him away. My armored friend stood back up and let out a hiss at the dog. He took a step forward only to wince in pain when he put weight on his right forehoof.

“Here,” I said and hurried over to him. I held out the Princess. “You’re injured Videre. Take Citheronia and get to the hatchery. I’ll take on this brute.”

“Y-you sure?” he asked as he took the little hatchling from me into his own magic. “I-I don’t want you to die.”

“Don’t worry, I can take him,” I grinned. “Just get her to safety.”

“Yes sir!” he nodded and with a slight limp hurried away. He didn’t get very far before a cackle filled the air.

It echoed around us as two umbrum flew into the castle from one of the large holes in the wall with Radiant Hope standing on their backs. “So, you hide inside, Apatelodes, rather than being on the front line?” she crooned with her gaze turned to me.

The fighting stopped completely around us as all eyes turned to the mare. “I’m not hiding,” I growled and took a step forward. “I would say you are the one who's been hiding.” She had traded her cape in for a simple set of armor, just enough to cover her back, chest, and barrel. An empty sheath was strapped to her side, a standard straight crystal imperial sword floating in the air beside her. The Alicorn Amulet glowed faintly against her neck. Not a spot of blood or gore was on her, and the only scars upon her form were long healed.

“Just because I control my army from the sidelines doesn’t mean I hid,” she hissed.

“Sure looks like it,” I snapped.

“I’ve just been preparing a little presentation for you and your fellow lings,” she crooned.

Ears perked up around me at her words, and I heard murmurs of confusion. “Presentation? What the hay do you mean?”

“I imagine you are all wondering where your ‘Queen’ is? Why she is not helping you here?” Many of those around me nodded, to which Hope smirked. “Well I could just tell you she isn’t coming to help, but I think showing you would be more… appropriate.” She lit up her horn, and a screen appeared beside her, surrounded by her red, corrupted magic.

Upon the screen was a luxurious, mostly pale blue bedroom, but the thing that made everyling around me gasp was what was upon the huge bed that took up most of the screen. Our Queen lay upon it, fast asleep, her chitin almost glowed with health. Beside the bed sat a pale orange pegasus pony with a two-toned blue mane. He smiled down at our Queen and with one wing tucked the bed’s blankets around her.

“What is this?” I growled and glared at Hope. “Some sorcery of yours?”

The mare chuckled and shook her head. “More a window into Canterlot Castle. As you all fight and die tonight, she sleeps peacefully with her next meal waiting next to her.” Her gaze trailed over the changelings in the crowd as many of them gasped. “While you all bleed, burn, and are torn apart, she is treated like one of their pathetic, pampered, pretty pony princesses. She went to the ponies to be accepted by them, and now she has been. Why would she come back to die for you? We both know the Queen is willing to let others die so she may live. How is this any different? Perhaps it is time all you changelings learned the truth.”

How dare she! Though, I had to admit it did seem partially true. Was this view she was giving us happening now? With my silence the others around me murmured uncertainly. “S-she does care!” I mumbled.

“If she cares so much then why isn’t she here?” Hope shouted and dispelled the image. “Why does she sleep on with the ponies if she cares about what happens to her subjects?”

Videre stepped back up next to me, his ears lowered. Citheronia nuzzled up against him and hid her face against his neck. His mouth opening and closing with no sound, my armored friend held the hatchling close and shook his head. “How? Why?”

“Isn’t it obvious?” Hope chuckled, “She cares more for the ponies than you! She’s left you all to die so she may live with them and forever have a full belly.”

No, it couldn’t be. I had talked to her just last night! What had happened in the last twenty-four hours? Someling in the crowd started to cry, and with that the mood in the room shifted. It flooded over me as I felt their urge to fight dwindle. Some even tossed down their swords. Another wall fell somewhere in the castle and the sound echoed in the quiet around us.

“D-don’t listen to her everyling. This is all just some ploy. I’m sure of it.” I snorted.

“Awww, is the little ling being so foalishly loyal?” Hope chided. “Face the facts Apatelodes. She is NOT coming, and all of you are going to die.” She waved a hoof and her army charged forward once again, slicing through our battered defenses. “Enjoy burning,” the mare chirped and with a nod to the umbrum below her they flew off.

“Come back here!” I growled as she flew off and raised into the air myself. But it was too late though, she was already gone.

“What we going to do?” Videre asked as he took a step forward with our Princess in hoof.

“Stick with the plan,” I huffed. “Get Citheronia downstairs and to the hatchery. If any are still there, get them out and to safety. No matter what Hope says, I want to keep as many of us alive as possible.”

“What about you?”

“I’ll keep fighting. As long as I stand I will not abandon our Queen, our hive.”

“But she’s not− forget it,” he sighed and shook his head. “Stay safe, please.”

“I’ll do what I can,” I grunted.

Without another word, he limped away. Great, now I was getting my friends mad at me too. I turned as I heard shuffling pawsteps behind me to find the dog whom I had been fighting before. “Now it’s just you and me, you mongrel,” I growled, circling around him. His right forearm bled profusely from the bite Videre had given him, but otherwise he seemed unharmed.

“I eat you for midnight snack!” he laughed and charged.

I dodged, his claws slicing through my mane and cutting off a lock. “Hey, I happen to like my mane and don’t want it shorter,” I huffed and held my sword up in front of me.

“You need no mane in my belly,” he barked and swiped another claw at me.

I grunted as he hit my barrel, which was thankfully protected by my armor, and sent me sliding across the floor. Colt, that hurt! I gathered my hooves below me and lunged at him. My sword swiped back and forth at him as he dodged. “Get out of my hive!” I yelled, advancing with each swipe while he retreated a few steps.

The screams around me had resumed once again from my fellow changeling as the dogs and umbrum took them down. I was not going to be one of them. Even as the blood from the dogs injured arm splattered on my face I continued to fight. My Queen cared for us. Hope was lying about her. I was sure of it. She’d return. I would see her face again.

“That will be enough, Duke.” The dog — Duke I guess — paused in his attack and looked behind him. I breathed heavily in front of him and looked around. Our fight had brought us far from where we started. Somehow, we had made it halfway down the hallway that led to the hatchery. The dog was far less injured than I after our battle. His claws had grazed against my side, finding the crease in my armor. The wound wasn’t very deep, but it sure hurt.

The sound of hoofbeats came from behind the dog, and out stepped Radiant Hope. “Hello there, Apatelodes,” she grinned.

“Hope,” I growled and brought my sword back up into a guard position.

“Oh, think you are a good fighter, do you?” she purred. “I’m not leaving Apatelodes. Not until I get my prize.” She turned back to Duke. “Dukie dear, do go and get my prize back from that naughty changeling will you? Bring the changeling with you too.”

“Yes, master pointy pony,” he bowed and ran off.

Hope groaned and rubbed her forehead. “Silly mutts,” she sighed and then turned her attention back to me. “Now, where were we? Oh yes,” she swung her sword in front of her and entered the same guard position. “Let’s have a little fun while he grabs my prize.”

I let out a growl and attacked. If she thought she could have our Princess she was sorely wrong. With a long swipe under her guard I slashed at her exposed leg, only for her to take a step back and hit my sword away with her own.

With a yell her sword flew toward me as she lunged.

I parried the attack as she came at me again and again in quick succession. Perhaps one or two of my parries got through but with the speed she attacked I wasn’t sure. I let out a cry of pain as one of her swipes slashed across my cheek. The cut didn’t feel deep, but it stung like Tartarus, blood slowly dripping down. I glared at her and bared my fangs, then leapt back at her.

We continued, trading blows as we danced across the floor. She might be good, but I had nearly five hundred years of practice. Not that she didn’t have the same, who knows what she had been doing since the Crystal Empire first disappeared. Sure my skill wasn’t all with an enemy but I wasn’t going to let her beat me that easily. “You won’t… win in the end,” I gasped as I tossed a strong blow her way.

“Do you forget?” she snorted and blocked my blow, her sword shedding across mine before she moved her sword to the front guard position and blocked my next attack. “I grow stronger with every death, and there is plenty of that happening around us.”

I spared a quick glance away to see how right she was. Changeling, diamond dog, and even some umbrum lay scattered across the ground, all with various wounds that had ended their lives and bathed the floor in their blood. Though the umbrum’s blood looked more oily, where ours and that of the dogs were more similar, if different colors. Many of my fellow changelings still fought around me through the thickening smoke, but many more had fallen.

I let out a hiss and bared my fangs as I dodged another blow.

She smirked. “You puny changelings grow weaker because without your Queen you are nothing!”

The vile mare was right about that. My horn throbbed from so much use as I burned through the love energy I had stored It was already lower than I was comfortable with. I just hoped Videre had been able to take care of that diamond dog and was far away with the Princess by now. The longer I was able to fight, the more they had a chance of escaping.

“We won’t stop fighting you!” I dived at her while my sword twirled above me. She retreated a few steps but my sword still grazed her cheek as it passed by.

She paused and lifted a hoof to the cheek, then looked down at the blood on said hoof. “It looks like I have been going too easy on you.” Her eyes glowed red as she turned back to me, the intensity of the red light around her sword grew brighter as she breathed heavily. With a shake of her head she let out a dark chuckle. “Not going to happen again.”

With renewed speed she dived forward, her thrusts and parries whipped in front of me so fast I could hardly keep up, let alone try to get in an attack of my own. My grip on my sword faltered as my energy waned. In an instant she slipped around my guard and sliced her sword at me.

A piercing pain filled my skull as her sword sliced clean through my horn. I howled in pain and collapsed to the floor. My sword slid across the floor as my magic around it dissipated. A light clack to the side echoed in my ears as my severed horn fell to the stone floor beside me. I held a hoof to what was left of my horn and let out another scream of pain as I touched it. What little was left felt like a broken tooth with only tiny, jagged bits remaining. I tried to stand but collapsed once more in the throes of pain.

Spots danced in front of my eyes and the feeling of nausea swept over me. I let out a gasp as Hope wrapped her magic around me and lifted me into the air. The horrid mare brought me muzzle to muzzle with her as she grinned. “Does that hurt?” she sneered. “Good! That will teach you to mess with me. No creature calls me old and gets away with it.”

Her magic grip tossed me back to the ground where I let out a moan. I tried to get up, but the moment I placed my hoof to the floor my head erupted in pain again and I collapsed. “This−this is not over,” I groaned.

“It’s all over!” I lowered my ears as she let out a cackle. “What is a changeling without his horn? Without his magic? Only a husk waiting to die!”

“We have other ways of feeding,” I growled. Sure they were more… unconventional, but a changeling could survive without their horn, though it was harder to do so.

As her sword returned to its sheath the mare let out a snort. “Perhaps, but do you have the strength to use them?”

“Oh no, Apatelodes!”

I looked up wearily and my heart dropped into my stomach at the sound of Videre’s voice. The same dog from before lumbered toward us, our Princess in one paw, Videre in the other. Neither of them looked injured, but from the sagging of my friend’s ears and shoulders he looked as exhausted as myself. His eyes widened as he looked at me and my injuries.

“Ah, you are finally back,” Hope grinned at Duke. She held out a hoof. “Give me my prize!”

He complied and handed over Citheronia to the smirking pastel purple mare. The little princess shivered in Hope’s grip and let out soft fearful chirps.

“Release her Hope, as well as my friend.”

“Not likely, little changeling,” she crooned and held the little filly close to her. With her gaze back on her dog she nodded to him. “Now, what shall I do with this little thief?” She poked her hoof at Videre. “After you tried to steal my prize from me, you must be punished.”

“She is not yours,” he spat. “Unhoof her, you fiend!”

Hope simply cackled at him. “Ah, such spirit! Much like your little friend over there,” her gaze fell back on me where I lay. “How best to punish you now? I want you both alive for at least long enough to give your precious Queen a message.”

“I eat him now, master pointy pony?” Duke asked and licked his drooling lips.

“No, you fool! I just said I want them alive!” She paused and rubbed her chin. “But there is something else you could do.” I shivered as a dark smile fell on her face. “For trying to run away, let’s take one of his wings as punishment.”

“Wings are crunchy,” the dog growled and nodded. With one paw wrapped around Videre’s throat, he used the other to pinch one of my friend’s wings between two claws and pulled.

I winced as Videre let out a howl of his own as the wing ripped free. The mutt tossed him toward me and eyed the wing like it was a piece of candy. He popped the wing into his mouth and shook his tail in delight as he crunched down.

Hope rolled her eyes at him but then stepped back over to us. “Please stay alive until your little Queen arrives, won’t you?” she crooned. “I have a message for her.”

“W-what is your message you devil pony?” Videre hissed and scooted over to me. He wrapped a hoof around me and hugged me close.

“Tell her I have her daughter. If she ever wants to see her alive again, then she is to come to the ancestral home of the diamond dogs. We’ll be waiting for her there.” With that, she turned away and kicked Videre in his side, which made him groan in pain. “If she is brave enough to take back her daughter, that is.”

No! I couldn’t let her take our Princess! I tried to rise but collapsed to the ground once more. Hope may have taken my horn, but injuries I had sustained from earlier fights were finally catching up to me.

Hope shot a bolt of red light into the air, where it burst into a firework like display. All grew still around us as the remaining dogs and umbrum in the area stopped in their fighting and turned to her. “Come, we are done here,” she grinned. As she hopped once more upon the backs of two umbrum when they flew down to her she held the squirming Princess close. “Remember, no dying until your precious Queen gets here!” she trilled then with a cackle they were off, the remaining umbrum and diamond dogs tossed their opponents to the ground and hurried after her.

Videre crawled over and wrapped a hoof around me as Hope flew off, the two of us watching helplessly. “I’m so sorry Apatelodes, I-I failed.”

“What happened?”

“We got down there to find the hatchery empty, so somelings got away. At least, I hope they did,” he sighed. “There were signs of struggle, but no dead bodies. Just as I was heading to the door, that big brute jumped me and bonked me on the head. I’m not sure if he knocked me out or just dazed me, but by the time I realized what had happened, he had us nearly back to you.” He shifted beside me and cringed. “I can’t believe he ate my wing.”

“Those mutts are such horrid creatures,” I nodded. I held a hoof to my head as a fresh wave of pain coursed through me. “You’re not the failure Videre. I am. I let Hope get away with our Princess. If only I was stronger, maybe then I could have saved her. Maybe I could have saved more of the hive. I am nowhere near the ling our Queen thinks of me.”

“You did your best,” he whispered and ran a hoof through my mane. “I am so proud of all you have done for the hive. We’ll survive just like we always have — somehow. Even with what Hope showed us, I-I” he sighed. “We’ll still survive. We can live without a Queen...”

“She’ll come. Don’t let Hope take such knowledge from you. Don’t stop believing in Chrysalis,” I sighed. As I lifted my head to look around us, I took in all the carnage Hope had caused. The dead of all our species, were everywhere. There were even a few ponies here and there. Besides Videre and me, the only life still in the place was a diamond dog or two scrabbling through the rubble and away from what was left of the castle.

Or so I thought. I heard someling as they trotted toward us. With the help of my armored friend I looked up to see maybe half a dozen changelings and a single pegasus pony as they trotted our way. One of the changelings — a young stallion of whom I couldn’t recall the name — burst into tears at seeing our condition.

“Don’t cry,” I soothed and smiled at him. “You survived, for that you have done well.”

“B-but what should we do now?” he sniffed and wiped at his eyes.

I let out a deep sigh and cringed when it shot another bolt of pain through me. “Continue to survive,” I said. “Hope might be gone, but she could return to finish what she started. So, fly and find the others who escaped. Stay together and never give up the fight. If all goes well, our Queen will find you and figure out what to do next.

“What of you two?” another asked, this one with only half of an ear left on his head. Chioides?

“When our Queen returns, she will need to know what happened. We will be here to tell her.”

“He’s right. Plus, we’d only slow you down,” Videre said and looked back at his remaining wing.

“Okay,” Chioides — yes, it had to be him — said. He gathered the others next to him. “Let’s go.”

“We’ll we see you again?” the young stallion asked.

Poor ling, he really shouldn’t have had to fight tonight. He was still so young, only a few years into adulthood. “Perhaps,” I said. “Stay safe and remember: as the world changes around us and tries to get us down, we change with it and survive. We adapt and live on.”

He nodded and trotted back over to the others. Videre and I watched as their heads drooped and tears dripped from each eye, even those of the pegasus. The seven of them spread their wings and took flight into the night sky. The shadows seemed to chase after them as the firelight reflected off of them. Soon, the only one I could still see was the pegasus with his yellow-green coat, then he was gone too.

I looked down at the castle floor and let out a soft moan. What would our Queen think of me now? She had left me in charge to protect the hive, and instead it had been destroyed. The crackle of still burning flames reached my ears as well the crumbling of a distant wall. There was no way we’d be able to return here. It would take a lot more than we had to return it to its former glory.

“Are we old foals, my friend?” I looked up at Videre and winced when a few sparks fell from my stub of a horn. “All these years, has what we done been worth it?”

“Well you might be old,” he laughed halfheartedly, “but are certainly no foal.” He lowered his ears and nuzzled against me. “You’ve made a difference, so yes it has been worth it.”

I smiled, leaning into his nuzzle. It was kind of nice. “Thanks,” I said softly.

We laid there for a time, gathering what strength we had to us. Neither of us was in any condition to move well. Not only were our injuries fierce, but I knew I had used up far too much love energy.

My ears perked up as I felt a familiar pull inside of me. Our Queen was near. “S-she’s coming back,” I groaned. I knew it! I knew Hope had been lying. Even if she was arriving far too late, she had still come.

Videre stirred from a half sleep and perked his ears up as well. “Yes, she’s close. S-she came back after all.” With a groan of pain, he stood up and let out a light hiss of pain. “C-can you stand?”

“Can you h-help me do so?” I asked. He nodded and wrapped his magic around me gently as he set me back on my hooves. With one hoof wrapped around him for balance, I was able to stand.

“Let’s meet her outside,” my armored friend suggested.

“I think I can make it that far,” I gasped as a ripple of pain shot through me again. Cuts from the fight against Hope and others I had been in tonight broke open and bled once more.

“Let’s hurry.” Videre nodded and step by step led the way through the destruction toward the main gates.

Somewhere Over Equestria - Queen Chrysalis

Night had fallen while I flew as high as I could to avoid being seen by those below. With the moon now about half in shadow, it didn’t put out too much light — just enough. I didn’t want to be delayed any longer than necessary.

Why did I have to be so naive? Celestia had already refused to send help and yet I had still held out hope, for what cause? Just to lose my closest companion I had made here. “I’m so sorry, Chrys,” I whispered as I flew over a cloud. “P-please come back. I miss you. I NEED you.” I had been so selfish not letting her return to the hive even if there was little likelihood it would make a difference.

I shook my head and took in a deep breath. Why focus on those dark thoughts? No, I needed to be strong: for Chrys, Apatelodes, Citheronia, and the hive. The strength I had left might not be much but I would make it count!

A bat pony appeared on the horizon; the only thing I could make out about it was that it had a dark grey coat and wings almost the same shade as the sky behind it. I ducked down and hid among the clouds while hoping my own dark chitin wouldn’t give me away.

As it flew past, I breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed it hadn’t spotted me. I laid down on the cloud and caught my breath until it was out of sight, then continued my flight. For once, it seemed a good thing ponies shunned the night − if far less so than they had all those years ago. Could I have even made it out of Canterlot, if the sky had been full of pegasi or bat ponies?

Whatever, all that mattered is luck seemed to be on my side tonight. Only a few ponies were out and about. I’d never made this flight on my own before. Colt, I’d never even flew this fast and long before! Yet somehow I knew I was heading the right way. Was it some inner changeling instinct? It sure wasn’t by landmarks like I usually found my way.

I looked to the far horizon and my eyes widened and heart leapt into my throat. Great, billowing clouds of smoke rose in the cool night air. “NO!” I cried, and with a renewed breath, I pushed my wings to fly harder and faster. It had already begun, and even at this pace, I was still at least a few hours away. The wind whipped at me as I pushed on and dried my tears before they could even trickle down my face. Smoke slowly took up more and more of the sky I could see.

“Please, no,” I moaned and shook my head. I was such a failure. Our — my changelings were in danger, and I hadn’t been there to help them. For all I knew, everyling might already be dead. Would it have been better after all to go along with Hope? No, it might not have cost as many lives, but it still wouldn’t have been better. I thought of the girls back at the castle — if even they were still there. Were the three of us all that was left? Was our species virtually extinct because all of our males were dead? I didn’t know, but I tried to prepare myself for the worst as I continued my flight.

As I drew closer to the castle, my momentum slowed, and I paused above the trees. My eyes took in the damage Hope and her army had caused. Much of the castle had collapsed, especially near the front. Boulders taller than even me sat against the crushed front gates. Lime green flames burned in patches around the castle, while normal red-and-orange flames ate at the trees on the opposite side of the castle from me. Bodies littered the ground everywhere and the stench of burning flesh and chitin filled the air. I hugged my forehooves around me and shook my head. No, everyling was dead.

My ears swiveled forward as I heard hoofsteps. With a look down I saw two changelings limping out of the castle. I raced down to them and gasped in surprise to see one was Apatelodes, the other Videre.

When the two looked up at me as I approached, I couldn’t help letting out another gasp, this one of horror. Both were in bad shape, but my dear guard was the worst. His horn broken clean off, with just a few jagged edges left, let out a few sparks of light. Wounds covered his body, many of them superficial, but there were a few that bled deeply. I doubt if it wasn’t for Videre if he could even have made it outside to greet me.

“My Queen,” he whispered, his eyes closed as he rode out a wave of pain.

Videre let him go as I landed and I wrapped him in my forehooves. “O-Oh Apatelodes,” I sniffed and held him close. “What has she done to you?”

“She killed nearly the whole hive,” Videre grunted as he sat down on the other side of Apatelodes. He tossed a dark glare my way. “Why did you take so long to return to us? Why stay with those pony princesses?” he growled softy. “We could have used you! When Hope showed us what you were up to I−” he shook his head, the clawed marks grazing his face slowly dripped blood.

“I-I’m sorry,” I moaned. “I thought I could accomplish the unthinkable, but alas…”

“No, you t-tried my Queen,” Apatelodes groaned. “You w-wanted to give us a better life.” His ears lowered as he looked away. “It is I who have failed you. You left me in charge. You trusted me to keep us all alive. Now look,” he pointed a trembling hoof back at the castle. “Everything is destroyed. All we have worked on, gone up in flames.”

“Did noling else s-survive?”

Apatelodes shook his head. “No, a few s-small groups got away. Unless Hope went after them once they were out of sight.”

That was something at least. Perhaps if I could find them before Hope… I turned back to my loyal guard. “My daughter? Was she with them?”

He shook his head, and with that shake his face filled with despair, eyes closed as tears trickled down. “Hope took her. I-I did all I could to save her but she was just t-too powerful.”

His words stabbed at my heart and filled me with guilt. The note had been true, I’d not only lost my connection with Chrys, but lost her daughter as well. Our Princess and future were gone. Even if I found the survivors, where would we go? Nopony would take in a bunch of love sucking fiends like us. Without our castle, we were homeless and powerless.

Videre scowled at me. “You’ve failed us again. The wedding, that comet, now our home and loved ones.” he ran a hoof through Apatelodes mane and laid his head against the wounded ling.

Did Videre…? No, I’d never seen Apatelodes do that much with the guard. Had I missed it? Well I hadn’t exactly stayed at the castle too long after arrival, before galloping off on an adventure. Apatelodes let out a cough in my hooves, and I turned my attention back to him.

The poor ling shivered in my hooves as his ears wilted. “Please Videre, don’t fight,” he whispered. “C-continue to help our Queen for me, will you?”

“Don’t talk like that!” he snorted. “You’ll heal! I have your horn right here,” he said, and held up the severed specimen. “A little love and you’ll be good as new.”

Apatelodes shook his head. I felt a fresh wave of tears run down my cheeks as I realized the truth. “Please, don’t leave me,” I sobbed. I couldn’t lose him too!

My brave guard put a hoof up to my cheek. “Stay strong for me, Chrys. H-hope had something she wanted us to te-tell you.”

“Yes?” I asked and brought my own hoof up to his own.

“Your daughter is still alive, my dear Queen,” he said before he turned his head to cough into his hoof. When he pulled away little specks of blood covered it. “Hope awaits you at the ancestral home of the diamond dogs.”

Ancestral home of the diamond dogs? Where the hay was that? Oh I wish Chrys was here now. She would surely know! “W-where is that again?”

“Seriously?” Videre groaned. “What happened to your memory, my Queen? Did the ponies poison it?”

I cringed. Of course, he didn’t know. Not even Apatelodes would know what really happened. Now wasn’t the time to tell him though. I’d have to hold the burden of losing Chrys on my own. After all, it was all my fault.

“Videre,” Apatelodes groaned and patted the stallion’s hoof. “It is about half a day’s flight to the west, my Queen.”

“Thank you, Apatelodes,” I whispered and nuzzled against him. “What am I going to do without you? Who else can I trust to protect us?”

“Trust in yourself,” he said. “Discord helped you for a reason.” Another tremble rippled up his form. The chitin around his face grew paler and his eyes wet with tears. “My Queen, my dear Chrysalis.” He lifted a trembling hoof to my cheek. “I have one s-secret I must share with you be-before−”

“Yes, go on,” I nodded. I glanced over at Videre, who watched his commander with wide eyes.

“I n-never told you because you thought it impossible,” he began. “But I tell you it’s not. I love you. I love you for everything you have done for me, for our fellow changeling. I love you for all you continue to do to make sure we stay strong. If I had a second chance, I would want to be by your side keeping you safe forever. As more than your guard.”

Videre’s ears wilted at Apatelodes’s words and turned away, saying nothing. I just stared at my dying guard in shock. He loved me? Well, Chrys not me. What had I done to earn his love? “T-thank you,” I mumbled. I didn’t know what else to say.

He gave a slow nod. “J-just wanted you to know. I just wish I could have been a better guard.”

“You were the best guard a Queen could ask for,” I sniffed. He closed his eyes with a smile on his face and leaned against my arm. I didn’t want him to die, but he did deserve some parting words. “Go with peace, dear Apatelodes. You will never be forgotten.”

I bit my lip as I felt his heartbeat slow against me, the time between each breath lengthened, and before long he grew still. My teardrops fell to his dusty chitin as I held him close. A sharp cry fell from my lips as I sobbed, hugging his cooling form to me.

So much loss, so much pain! With every hour that passed Hope chipped away at those I cared for and took them from me. I nuzzled against my courageous guard and shuddered at the pain that coursed through me. It was worse than the physical pain that had shot through me when I took back control. No, I felt as if my very soul was breaking.

I don’t know how long I sat there like that, cradling his still form in my hooves and sobbing into his chitin, but I looked up as Videre let out a sigh.

“Foalishly loyal to the end,” he growled.

I looked up at him, still sitting close to us. “Do you have a problem with being loyal to your Queen?”

“With what you did, yes,” he said and glared at me.

“Why you,” I snarled and raised a hoof at him. How dare he question us! We’d done what we could for the hive. We’d brought everyone together for strength in numbers. We made sure as many as possible knew how to fight. We’d gone halfway across Equestria for one changeling stallion! Yet he questioned what we had done?

My eyes lit up with green flames as I felt the same glow wrap around my horn. I bared my fangs and let out a snarl as I started to bring my hoof down to squish the little cretin.

At hearing his sharp intake of breath and a hoof of his own lifted to protect himself, I noticed for the first time his wing. The blood around the hole had long ago dried, but it was easy to tell it had been ripped out of his spine. I took a few deep breathes and lowered my hoof, the fire around my horn and eyes slipped away.

Killing him wouldn’t help anything. So many had already died today, and I really didn’t want to add another to that list. “Find the others,” I hissed. “Make sure they are gathered in a group. Keep out of sight where you can, especially with those too young to transform. NOW!”

He jumped to his hooves and shook in fright. “W-where should we go?” he gulped.

“Head toward Canterlot for now,” I huffed. “Once I get done with Hope, we shall see where to go.”

He nodded, “y-yes, my Queen!” The stallion paused and looked at Apatelodes still grasped in my other hoof. As he slowly closed and opened his eyes, he darted forward and placed a kiss on the royal guard’s forehead and then galloped away from me.

I collapsed back to the ground. As he hurried away, he stumbled a little from what looked like a limp, but soon he was out of sight. “What am I to do now, Chrys?” I asked and held a hoof to my forehead when she didn’t answer. “Right, I’m all alone now,” I whispered. “Nice going, you foal.”

The flames crackled around me and the crumbling of a wall falling reached my ears. With my rapid flight here, I had used up much of my energy. Did I have enough to reach this ancestral home to the west? Would I even be able to find it? It did sound familiar, perhaps mentioned in the comics?

I looked down to Apatelodes still cradled in my hooves. He deserved a proper burial, all of those fallen did. But there was no way I had the strength for the task. “I can’t leave you for the scavengers to get,” I sighed. “Wait, didn’t Chrys say something about changeling… funerals?” I thought back to that first night here when I had paced back and forth as Chrys drilled into me so many rules and traditions and faces.

Somewhere late in the night, we had talked about death, yes. “That’s right,” I nodded. “Chrys said we cremate the dead. Thanks, Chrys,” I sighed. With my hooves tight around Apatelodes, I flew around the patches of flames. The heat was almost unbearable but I had to do this, I just had to. I found a particularly hotter flame than the rest and landed as near I dared to it.

“I’m afraid I suck at old changelish. Chrys never got far in teaching me it,” I said as I stared into the flames. “You’ll forgive me if I do the ritual in modern speech, won’t you?” I looked down at Apatelodes and got no reply. “Right, I know you would rather just have it done than me worry about breaking tradition with that.” I took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

“Apatelodes, my dear friend. Your end was far too soon. I wish you could have stayed to help me a little longer. With you and Chrys gone, the only one who knows the truth is Discord,” I let out a halfhearted chuckle. “But that doesn’t matter. I’ll find others I can trust with the truth, someday, maybe. I regret I wasn’t here to save you, and all your fellow changelings who perished this night. At least now, I suppose you shall return to those others who have passed on before you. Lead them well wherever you go for me?” I wiped a tear from my eye and continued.

“Be at peace, my brave one, and lead thy fellow changelings whom I won’t be able to give a proper sending off to the light. I think that is what Chrys called it?” I rubbed a hoof against my muzzle. I really wasn’t cut out for this kind of thing! There was so much Chrys had not had time to explain to me, and now it would be impossible to learn.

“If you can hear me, wherever you are Apatelodes, give those of us still living the strength to go on. Please don’t let your death have been in vain.” I took a deep breath and wiped the tears from my eyes. “Was there anything else I was supposed to say, Chrys?” I rubbed a hoof against my chin. “Right, right, right, just a little more.”

I lifted into the sky and held Apatelodes body out in my hooves. “I bid you farewell, Apatelodes. With all said and done, I offer your empty vessel to the flames.” I dropped him into the flames and flew a foot back as the flames rose for a moment, then returned to their old height. Through the green and blue flames, I could see the fire catch onto his chitin and engulf him in its embrace.

I hovered there quietly and sat vigil as the flames licked over him and burned his dead body. The heat washed over me as I watched over my friend. As the last bits of flesh and bone broke apart in the flames, I rose back into the sky. My tongue was dry as sandpaper, and my chitin didn’t feel much better. Yet I had done what I could for my ever loyal guard.

I flew away from the castle and paused on the outcropping I had once relaxed upon. From here, I could still see the castle as it continued to crumble. We were homeless now. I had been a queen less than a month and already everything was destroyed. What were we going to do now? Sure I had sent Videre to lead everyling to Canterlot, but that was mostly because I had no idea where else for us to go. Would it be in vain to hope Celestia would pity us and give us a place to stay?

I looked to the west where this ancestral home of the diamond dogs was rumored to be. Radiant Hope would be waiting there for me. Would she really just give me back Citheronia? I doubted it. Did she have some trap planned for me? Most likely. Did it matter in the end? Was I still going to go? Yes, it is what Chrys would have wanted. “I’ll get her back Chrys,” I vowed. “Hope will not keep her dirty hooves on our precious little Princess!” With that, I jumped back into the sky. My entire body ached, I was so thirsty, and my strength ebbed with each moment as well. None of that mattered right now though if I could do this one thing for Chrys.

Into the Heart of the Diamond Dog’s Lair Part 1

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Canterlot Castle- Shiny Whistle

I struggled to come up with a song to write as chaos brewed around me. Discord and Velvet were in and out of our temporary front room Celestia had given us to stay in while at the castle. Flash kept explaining to somepony what had happened, though they talked softly enough that I was unable to determine who. Twinkleshine tried to come check on me, but Velvet led her away with a whisper. The persistent whirling of discussing, worrying, and planning around me drowned out my thoughts.

“Enough!” I tossed my quill onto the desk. I couldn’t write a new song like this. Colt, it wasn’t even just the background noise. Whenever there was a lull, my imagination took hold of all the horrors that might befall Chryssy. Had Hope already killed her and all her changelings? Was she sprawled in a heap somewhere -exhausted and so low on love she was dying? I held a hoof to my forehead and groaned. This panic wasn’t helping anypony. I needed to calm down. Was there anything I could do to prove Chryssy was wrong about me? Was it even worth trying to prove her wrong, if she didn’t care? If work on a new song couldn’t calm me, what could? I sighed and just shook my head between my hooves. No, she was right. I wasn’t the right type of pony for her. She needed somepony strong, sure of themselves, with the ability to lead. Not a whiny foal like myself.

I pushed back in my chair, stood and then trotted toward the door. I mumbled about taking a walk to Velvet as I pushed the bedroom door open. He was the only one currently in sight. Discord and Flash had followed those they had been talking to downstairs not too long ago.

He sat up from his chair just outside of our room. “You sure that is a good idea, bro?”

“I can’t concentrate. I need to do more than just sit here!”

Velvet stood and stepped in front of me. He put a forehoof to each of my shoulders and frowned at me. “Shiny, the Princesses are doing all they can to help,” he said softly. “After seeing the note−“

“NO!” I growled and pushed him away. “What can they do, huh Velvet? How can they stop this?” My breathing grew labored as I tried to control my temper. Be calm Shiny. No emotions, no emotions.

Velvet took a step back and rubbed a hoof against the back of his head. “Well, I don’t know entirely. They sent the Wonderbolts to her known hive location to see what is happening. Other than that though I- I don’t think there is much they can do right now.”

I gazed up at Velvet at the mention of the Wonderbolts. Had he gotten a chance to talk with Soarin’? Probably not. Even in my current state, I was sure my brother would have told me if he had talked with his old coltfriend. Before I could ask, I felt a hoof fall onto my shoulder.

“Thy brother is right, young Shiny,” Princess Luna said. I jolted, looking up as she stepped gracefully over to us. When had she gotten here? “We know it be not much, but our own subject’s safety must come first.”

“How can we be safe if such a killer is on the loose?” I asked. “Isn’t Hope one of your subjects?” Well okay maybe that would more fall under Cadence’s rule, but she was here! “What is to be done?”

“That is what we are trying to figure out.” She lifted a wing and placed it around me. “We know thy feelings for the dark queen are… strong,” she murmured. “Such makes times like these hard.”

“No kidding,” I huffed. “Have you heard anything?” I looked up at her hopefully.

Luna shook her head. “Not yet, though we do have other news for thou and thy brother.”

“Did you find Dew?” Velvet asked as he stepped up beside me.

She shook her head. “No, but thy parents are here to see thee.”

“Buck,” I cursed and shook my head. “Any chance I can just hide away from them?”

“We think it wiser if thou talk to them,” Luna frowned. “Does thou not want to calm their worries?”

I sighed and shook my head. “After running away again, I’m almost afraid of what they’ll say.”

Luna put her wing around me closer and smiled softly. “The consequences of the choices we make may be hard to bare, but bare it we must.”

“You’re right,” I nodded. At least it would be a distraction. Maybe I could think of what to write as we went along? “Er… sorry about earlier, by the way.”

Velvet gave an embarrassed chuckle beside me. “Shiny wasn’t in on that little prank. It was all my and Discord’s idea.”

Luna turned to him and nodded. “We are well aware of that, but as no lasting harm was done, what shall be done about it can wait. There are more pressing matters at hoof.” She turned and trotted toward the door. “Thy parents await thee in the throne room. Follow us.” Velvet and I trotted after her — though with slight reluctance on my part.

The activity in the castle was by far more active than it had been that morning. We passed by multitudes of soldiers decked out in armor as they hurried from place to place. They paid us little heed except to nod to Princess Luna as we passed them by.

“So, who all has been told what… happened?” I asked.

“Very few so far I think,” Velvet whispered. “Most know Chrysalis was seen here, above the castle, thanks to that panic earlier,” he rolled his eyes. “Much is being kept under hoof though.”

“That is perhaps for the best,” I whispered and continued along behind Luna.

I remained lost in my thoughts until a wing curled around me and I jumped. “Sorry, didn’t mean to startle you,” Velvet smiled softly. “Just wanted to let you know I’m here for you bro. Might not have had as long as you to get to know the Queen, but she seems to have… changed from two years ago.”

“What are you trying to say?” I asked as I turned to look at him.

“Well, just… maybe dad was wrong. Sure some changelings are obviously bad, we’ve seen that just in the last few days! Yet, maybe not all of them are.”

“No species is all bad,” Luna nodded and paused in her hoofsteps. “Since we’ve returned, much of that has been seen in our travels. Negotiations with the Yaks have already begun, though an actual visit to Equestria is likely far in the future.”

I bit my lip and turned away from Princess Luna for a moment. “Well, do you think that could ever happen with the changelings?”

Luna pursed her lips in thought. “Perhaps, but it will take far more for ponies to accept them than our neighbors from the frozen north.” She turned back around and continued down the hallway. “Come, it is late and we’ve kept thy parents waiting long enough as it is.”

Velvet and I nodded and followed silently behind her. Colt, what was Dad going to say this time? He probably thought me a horrible son, after all, both my siblings had now followed after me in the times I ran away from home. Maybe even worse.

I jumped as somewhere near us a grandfather clock let out a loud gong and began to count off the hours. My ears twitched at each gong as our pace increased slightly. It was only as the twelfth gong fell that my heart returned to its normal pace. Midnight then. No wonder it was Luna who came to get us. Celestia was probably asleep.

Princess Luna pushed the throne room door open a few minutes later and led the way inside. Velvet followed quickly and I stepped in after him. The throne room was nearly empty. The only guards being Flash Sentry and a younger looking mare, who was almost short enough to be a filly, with azure blue fur and a periwinkle mane. Beside them stood Velvet and my parents. Their expressions were as different as night and day− father watched both Velvet and me carefully, eyes narrowed and his ears twitched slightly, while mother had her infamous grin upon seeing us.

“Velvet! Shiny!” she yelled and raced over to us. She enveloped the two of us within her honey-colored wings and hugged us close. Her cheeks were wet where she rubbed them against us and her eyes looked a little bloodshot. She pulled away a moment later and smiled softly at us. “I’ve been so worried, especially after the panic earlier today. Is it true the changeling queen attacked somepony?”

“What?” I gasped and then immediately shook my head. Curse those stupid rumors that spread like wildfire! “No mom, no. She didn’t try to hurt anypony.” Or had she? Chryssy had been upset about somepony dying when I last saw her. She even seemed to think she’d killed them. No, I can’t be that wrong about her. I can’t! Could I? There was a chance. After all, how well did I really know her? I’d been with her hive less than a month, and in that time interacted with her even less than that. Before our journey, I perhaps saw her a few minutes each day.

Oh colt! She did try to kill Lucky! If I hadn’t been there…. I held a hoof to my forehead and shook it. Was everypony right about her? Was I a foal for falling for her? Did I have some sort of death wish?

“Then what happened dear?” she asked.

“Well I-I don’t know all the details,” I admitted, “but she got a note about her hive burning, and raced off.”

My dad snorted. “So somepony decided to finish off those murderers while their Queen was away, did they?”

“Solo!” my mother snapped and swatted one of his ears. “That is uncalled for.”

Father scrunched up his muzzle at the swat and narrowed his eyes. “Uncalled for? After what they did? Shiny himself told us ponies died from their actions at the wedding!”

“That was only a few of them dad,” Velvet said. “Not the whole hive.”

“Doesn’t change anything,” father huffed, “ponies still died. Those bugs stole the lives away from so many. There are still some ponies missing who were replaced beforehoof, and who knows if they will ever be found?” He looked down at the floor, ears lowered and a scowl on his lips. “Their queen lied, she surely knew and helped plan the whole thing.”

“No, dad,” I sighed. Or was he right? Ugh, why were things getting so complicated? How could I know for sure, when I had ran when Celestia confirmed the deaths? “Dad, I-I just trust her word.She never showed me ill while I was in the hive.” Though for missing ponies, that I couldn’t deny. Star Bright had even said her family knew nothing of where she had gone. Why not others?

He turned to glare at me and took a step forward. “Trust her word, do you? How could anypony trust the word of a creature that hides their true nature?” he took a few steps closer to me. “Unless you are one of them!” He stomped his hoof on the ground.

“What?” I gasped as my mouth dropped open in surprise. “Dad, it’s me! I’m not a changeling.”

Mother looked between the two of us uncertainly. “Well, er, Shiny… y-your father does have a point,” she whispered and took a step closer to him. “T-they are all good at hiding.”

Colt, was mother scared of me? I thought her reaction to Discord had been bad, but now this? I shook my head in disbelief. They really couldn’t tell the difference?

“Of course he’s Shiny, Mom!” Velvet snorted. “I’ve been with him all this time. I think I’d know my own brother.”

“Unless he’s been in disguise this whole time,” Father hissed. “Our poor colt is probably still stuck back in their castle, or even worse, dead now!” he growled. “Thanks to you fiends!” He yelled as he pointed a hoof at me.

“Mr. Solo,” Luna said softly and trotted over beside me. “I understand your fears, but yelling at Shiny isn’t going to solve the problem.”

“No, no, you're right,” he growled, closed his eyes, and took a deep breath. “There is a way though, isn't there?” Father chuckled darkly as he looked up at her. “I’ve heard of spells one can use to check. Or those inhibitor rings, they block all magic, right? So if he is one of them he’ll turn back.”

“Really Father?” I growled softly. He’d really make somepony put an inhibitor ring on me? “All of those are still highly experimental, and even Princess Twilight has admitted them not always effective.” I’d done my research well before I left to find the changelings. Sure, he didn’t know about my research but to want to use a spell on me was ridiculous! This wasn’t like father. He wasn’t usually this quick to jump to conclusions. Was it my fault he had changed?

“As for the inhibitor ring, I’m sure there are less cruel ways.” I just couldn’t believe he would suggest such a thing. Only unicorns that committed a deadly crime were usually given those. It was like someone cutting off one of your limbs, after all. The newspapers had even said the changelings didn’t get one slapped on them until after their true forms were revealed. I guess one couldn’t entirely trust the papers though, now that I had learned what secrets the Princesses had kept from us.

“There is a more reliable way, Mr. Solo,” Luna said and Father whipped his head toward her at her words.

“I’ve not heard of any others,” he turned to look at Mother, “have you?”

Mother shook her head. “No, but if the Princess says there is another way I believe her.”

“What is it?” Velvet asked.

“For those who do not live near a zebra, it is not so well known,” Luna said softly. “Each zebra has their own type of talent, similar to our own, though theirs tend to focus on similar aspects. The reason I mention so, is there are some zebras that can see through illusions, such as those used by a changeling.”

My ears perked up and I nodded, “yes, I remember Chryssy saying as much. We ran into one on our trip to Canterlot.” I looked back to Luna. “She is much too far away to help though.”

“There is another that is part of our staff,” Luna smiled.

“So you want me to rely on the word of some stranger?” Father spat. “How can we know she isn’t one of them too? Or worse, in cahoots with the changelings?”

Ugh, why must my Father be so paranoid? I groaned, facehoofed, and then shook my head.

“She is quite trustworthy, Mr. Solo,” Luna said. “In the past two years, she has helped reveal dozens of changelings.”

“I-I don’t know, Princess,” Mother murmured. “They are always speaking in riddles, and I heard about that one zebra down near Ponyville cursing Twilight Sparkle and her friends.”

You too Mother? “Please Dad, Mother,” I sighed. “Let her come and prove to you I am who I say I am.”

“It is unwise to believe everything you hear, Mrs. Mystery,” Princess Luna said softly. “Twas not Zecora who cursed Twilight and her friends, simply poison joke flowers.”

Mother gazed from Luna to me for a moment, her ears slightly tilted downward, then with a nod turned to face Father. “Please honey,” she sighed and nuzzled against his neck. She whispered something into his ear, and I saw a tremble run through him. What had she said?

“Fine,” he growled and rolled his eyes, but put a hoof around Mother and held her close. Was he trying to protect her from me or something? “This won’t be the same as the wedding, I will get my son back.”

“W-what?” my mouth fell open at his words. At the same moment, his eyes grew wide and he turned away from us. “Dad, what do you mean?” I asked. “Velvet and I are here.”

“Nothing,” he shook his head. “Just… somepony go get that Zebra!”

“I can go get her, if you like, Princess?” the filly sized mare squeaked. Something seemed familiar about her, though I don’t think I’d met her before. One of those faces maybe?

“I’ll come too!” Velvet volunteered, and trotted over to the mare. “If that is okay?” I didn’t blame him for wanting to get away, Father was acting weird.

Princess Luna nodded to the two of them. “Very well, and be sure to apologize for waking her at this late hour.”

“Of course Princess,” the mare nodded.

“Er, may I be excused for a moment as well? I forgot my things in our room.” Maybe I could get away as well. At least until Dad was ready to explain himself.

“The castle staff can send them to you later,” Dad snorted. “How can we be sure you won’t switch out when you leave?” I swear there was something… different about his voice, as if he… had a frog in his throat perhaps. Was he about to cry?

“Come on Solo. Let him get his stuff,” Mother soothed. “He’ll be right back, right honey?”

I nodded. “Of course, Mother.”

“I can go with him, if you like?” Flash offered. “If he tries to run I won’t let him,” he saluted and stood up straight.

“Yes please,” mother nodded. “Is that okay with you, Solo?”

Dad let out a deep sigh, but nodded. “Hurry up then.” I was sure he was still not happy about it, but glad he agreed. Perhaps if I showed him my whistle though, that would help prove who I was?

“See you soon bro!” Velvet grinned, then turned to face the other guard. I waved a hoof his way, and with Flash taking the lead, stepped once again out of the room.

Over Leota Forest - Queen Chrysalis

It was late into the night as I continued flying. I wasn’t sure how late, as clouds had covered the moon and stars, once in awhile they let the light shine through, but for the most part the shadows covered the land. I could feel the weariness in my bones and wings as I continued westward. My chitin felt scorched from the heat of the flames of the fallen changeling castle, but my pain wasn’t important. Forging onward and keeping my promise to Chrys was.

Forests of different biomes and sizes passed below me as I flew. Was I surprised? No, not after everything else I had seen so far in this world. Why not have a jungle right next to your everyday forest? A river cut through all of them. Tributaries shot off in each direction and looked like they eventually would wind around to return to the normal parts of Equestria.

Shrieks, growls, and hisses echoed up from the ground below and made me extra glad I could fly. After all, the ponies didn’t control the land around here, and — much like the Everfree forest — I was sure something down there would love to make a snack of me if I wasn’t careful. I saw the flickering shadows of long, lithe beasts racing past between the trees and wondered what exactly was down there. Sure Twilight and her friends had traveled through them in the comics when they were coming to rescue Applejack and Rarity’s sisters, but as most comics go, there was still much left out.

I hadn’t been flying for long before the strength to keep going left me. My wings cramped from the strain I’d already put them through in the last day and refused to keep buzzing behind me. Spots floated before my eyes as I plummeted toward some forest below. I caught myself, barely, before I fell into the river. Instead, with deep, gasping breaths I landed on the riverbank and plopped onto my belly.

“Not good,” I rasped, my mouth dry and scratchy. If I couldn’t fly, how was I to make it through these woods? I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, then looked back at the river. The water flowed pass me at a rapid pace, probably a waterfall somewhere nearby. As I rose to my hooves I stepped closer to the water and licked my lips. Might not be very ‘queenly’ but I needed water somehow. It wasn’t until I dipped my muzzle into the water and gulped down large mouthfuls that I realized this was the first time since being here I drank water like a ‘normal’ equine. I snorted at the irony.

I swiveled my ears to face behind me as I heard something whispering through the grass. With my muzzle raised just above the water I stood still and listened. My heartbeat quickened when a twig snapped. A low snarl escaped my lips as I twisted around to see a pair of bright green, predatory eyes staring out at me from the long grasses. It surprised me for a moment that I could actually see anything when it was this dark. Of course, we are a predatory species. Makes sense that we’d be able to see in the dark. Nights on the road with Shiny had been well-lit by the moon, so how was I supposed to have known before now?

“Great, as if this day wasn’t bad enough,” I groaned. I hissed at the creature and bared my fangs. “Go away, or I’ll tear you apart!” A soft moan escaped me as I swayed a little. The water had helped a little, but I was still bone-tired.

The creature must have sensed my weariness, as it took a few more steps forward and out onto the bank. Surely it was the strangest creature I had yet seen in Equestria. It seemed to be a meld of two different creatures. The front half seemed feline or maybe canine, blue-black fur covered its face and back, accompanied by a poisonous green nose and fangs. The latter half and all four of its clawed legs were dark lavender colored scales with purple colored spines running down its back that led to a long, thin, snake-like tail. It licked its lips and stepped closer. Those eyes almost glowed as it stared me down.

“Y-you’re not going to scare me that easily, you f-fiend!” I gulped and took a step back. My hoof dipped into the river as I did so. What could I do against this beast? I was low on energy, both physical and the love I feed on. Without Chrys, I was pretty much powerless. “Oh Chrys, why did you have to leave me so soon?” I moaned.

The ground below me trembled for a moment; then again, as if something heavy had fallen to it nearby. Great, now I’m about to meet some other beast who hungers for my flesh like this one. The trembles of the ground grew almost constant and nearly tossed me to the ground as the intensity rose.

Mr. Cat-wolf-lizard took a few steps back and looked around, his ears splayed back. Why is he so scared of this thing? I heard a roar come from some nearby trees and finally fell over onto the damp bank as a huge creature came into view. All I could think of when I saw the grey-green, humanoid creature -lit by a hole in the cloud cover- was of a giant, as it easily towered above all but the tallest trees.

“LEAVE PONAY ALONE!” he yelled and swiped a hand at least twice my size at the furry, scaled beast. It let out a loud hiss at him and raced off with its tail tucked between its legs.

My hooves trembled below me with eyes wide as the giant thing dropped to the ground. The resulting boom sent me, nearby rocks, and even a few trees a few feet into the air before settling back into their respective places. Ooooh colt. There’s no way I can stand up against something that size! My ears splayed backwards as I craned my neck to look up at him.

He wore little clothing — just a brown loincloth and what looked like patches of grass as shoulder pads. A single fang rose out of his severe underbite of a mouth. His head was bald with a ridge going down the middle. Upon his right arm was a heart tattoo with an arrow going through it. A sagging beer belly covered much of his loincloth.

“Er… hello,” I mumbled. Please don’t eat me, please don’t eat me!

He leaned down over his bulging belly and smiled at me. “Jim no eat ponay’s,” he grinned, reading my thoughts. Not that it was particularly difficult. My face said it all.

“Oh, i-is that your name?” I grinned and carefully stood up.

“Yes, I Jim,” he beamed, showing off a few scattered teeth to go along with his fang. “Ponay okay?”

I nodded, not bothering to explain what I really was for now. “Thanks to you. I think that… thing wanted to make me his dinner,” I laughed hesitantly.

He nodded. “Kitay usually eat goats, but if no goats, eats ponay’s.”

Kitty? Goats? Ah! So the beast must have been a Chupacabra! I had forgotten they existed in Equestria. “Well, thanks for saving me Jim. I would have been kitty- er kitay chow without you.”

“Ponay is welcome,” he grinned and lifted a hand to pat me on the head. I grimaced as his pat knocked me from my hooves and back to the sand.

“Why did you rescue me?”

“Jim like ponay’s”, he said, then frowned, “most ponay’s.” He sniffed, and I had to dodge a teardrop the size of my barrel. I slipped back a few steps as more tears followed. “Pointy ponay and puppay’s steel Jim’s home,” he sobbed.

“Where did you live?” I asked. My hooves itched to continue on and find Citheronia, but I couldn’t leave my rescuer sitting there sobbing.

“Vewy biiiiiig caves,” he blubbered. “Jim live there many years, then pointy ponay and puppay’s enter caves and chase me way.”

I frowned, it couldn’t possibly be…? “Was the pony purple with a bluish mane?”

Jim nodded. “Ponay vewy mean. Her eyes glow redded and puppay’s bited me.” He held out his left leg, showing claw and bite marks all up and down the lower half of it. “They kill Jim’s Fwuffy’s and stweal my ponay’s!”

Poor guy, I sighed. Seems Hope wasn’t concentrating on just us changelings, she was hurting so many more creatures as well for her evil deeds. “Did the pony have shadowy creatures with her as well?”

He nodded with a shiver. “They scary. Fly around my hwead like mothies and laugh bad laughs.”

Yep, no doubt it was Hope then. I sat up as an idea came to me. “Hey Jim, could you take me to these caves they chased you from? I’ve actually been looking for them.”

The giant — or was he a troll? Would a giant live in caves? — blinked owlishly at me. “Puppay’s tear ponay apart. So many bad nwauty puppay’s.”

Well in my current condition, he wasn’t wrong about that. Not like I had anyone to feed from though.

If I even could anymore. Without Chrys, would I die of starvation? I couldn’t even cast a simple levitation spell. Surely the spell for draining love would be the same? If I could find a willing host to try it on….

I looked back up at Jim. Would he go for it? No, I couldn’t ask that of him, not after he saved me from the chupacabra. “Well, yes, they probably would,” I nodded.

A yelp escaped my lips as he picked me up between two tree-stump-thick fingers and hugged me to his cheek. “No want ponay to die too. Jim need fwiends.”

“Gah, well, careful then or you might crush me,” I gasped and pushed against his cheek.

“Oh, Sowwry,” he mumbled and placed me in the palm of one hand instead. He brought me up to his face and looked at me closely. “Ponay be Jim’s fwriend?”

“Uh, sure we can be friends,” I nodded. Well, if he wanted to be friends, maybe I could ask him for some love? But with his… childlike mindset explaining what I wanted would be hard.

“YAY!” he yelled pounding his legs against the ground and making everything around us shake like an earthquake.

“Woah, calm down,” I yelped and held onto his hand as well as I could. Didn’t want to fall and get crushed by his legs after all. I couldn’t help letting out a sigh of relief when he stilled his legs. “Hey Jim, I think I might have a way to get your home back.”

“Ponay can help get home?”

I nodded. “Yes, I think so, but I’ll need your help.”

“What Jim need do?”

“Well, Jim I am not… your average pony. I’m… special.” Might as well stick with the pony thing. Who knows what he thought of changelings, if he even knew of us.

“So Jim have spwecial ponay friend?” he grinned and wiggled in delight.

I nodded. “Yeah, right.” Colt, how to explain feeding to a creature with such a puerile brain? “You see Jim… I need a special diet to keep big and strong.”

He turned his head sideways and rubbed his chin with his free hand. “Spwecial?”

“Yes,” I nodded. “While I can eat fruits and veggies like normal ponies, there is a special... vitamin so to say, I can’t get from them.”

“Jim find viteemeen for ponay?”

“Oh no, you don’t need to find it. You kind of already have it,” I grinned sheepishly.

He rose his eyebrows and gasped. “I have already? Where? Where?” he looked around him, his free hand pulled rocks and trees up from around him as he looked for it.

“Not there,” I said and held tighter to his hand again. “It is in you.”

“In Jim? P-Ponay need to EAT Jim?” he gasped.

“No, no, no, no, no, not exactly,” I shook my head and patted his cheek. “I ‘eat’ it with my magic,” I said and lit up my horn to emphasize the point. Huh, so it was working, for now.

“Like shot? Jim’s mummy make Jim get shots when little troll. Shots badbadbad,” he cringed.

“Well, kind of, but it shouldn’t hurt like a shot.” So he was a troll then. “Shall I demonstrate? You trust this ponay right?” I grinned. My lower lip puckered and I gave him the best puppy dog eyes I could muster in my exhausted state.

He scrunched up his face as he thought, but then nodded. “Jim trust ponay.”

“Okay, hold me up to your neck please,” I said and held onto his fat thumb as he raised his hand to his neck. My gaze ran over his neck, or what little neck he had among the rest of his bulk. I stepped off his hand and to his grass covered shoulder, feeling his slow, even breaths as he watched me. Please let me still be able to feed! I thought as I climbed up his shoulder and perched upon him. I guess if this doesn’t work I can just feed by fang. Sure Chrys had explained to me how to do so during one of our late night chats, after Hope first appeared, but I had yet to actually do so. Besides, I told Jim this wouldn’t hurt, and if I bit him, that very much would hurt!

I closed my eyes and lowered my horn to his neck. Here we go. I mumbled the spell beneath my breath and sighed in relief as my horn glowed and the pulsing light fell against his flesh. I blinked in surprise when it came out tasting like rock candy, so sugary sweet one might lose a tooth. Huh, that’s kind of ironic.

Before I could get more than a taste, howls rose through the air, and Jim stumbled to his feet. I rolled off his shoulder and had almost reached the ground before he caught me in his massive hand. “Sworry,” he mumbled. “Puppay’s scare me.”

I held a hoof to my head, nausea making my head swirl. “I-it’s okay,” I groaned and closed my eyes. “H-how about this Jim, take me to your home, and I’ll eat just before we get there. For your help, I will do all I can to get your home back for you, okay?”

“B-but puppay’s…” he shivered.

“You don’t have to go far enough for them to see you,” I said and patted his palm. “We’ll stop just before we get there, and then you can take a nap while I go in.”

“Ponay sure she want to do that? No want ponay to die too,” he sniffed.

“I must, Jim. She has m-my daughter. I have to rescue her.” Colt, was that a lot to think on! What was I saying she was Chry’s daughter, not mine! Sure I might be in the body of her mother, but what had I done for her really? How could I call her my daughter when I never felt her growing inside me. The wait as a mother eagerly watches her egg and waits for it to hatch. Colt, even the act of making her!

The gentle troll turned to me and tears pricked at the corner of his eyes. “S-she not kill ponay’s dawter?”

“I hope not, Jim. I really hope not.” She better not. If Citheronia was dead, then I had failed in all my queenly duties. Our home destroyed, the hive’s population decimated. How many were even still alive? I didn’t know. I wasn’t there when they really needed me. Every death was on my shoulders because I was too stupid to be a good ruler. Why did you think I was the ‘perfect replacement’ Discord? Everything I do is wrong. If I can do this one thing, if I can rescue Citheronia, maybe I won’t be as complete a failure as Chrys said I was. If I could at least protect one little filly, maybe I could start doing better.

She deserved to one day be Queen more than I, right? I was an imposter, a poser. She was supposed to inherit the throne and yet here I was. I’d stolen that chance from her. Her real mother had given me everything, made me the mare I was today, and this was how I repaid her? NO! This little spell would end with me. If I could just save Citheronia, I’d do my best to raise her to be a better Queen than I could ever be.

I took a deep breath and looked back up at Jim. “You ready?”

He stood and nodded. “Okay. Les go. Then Jim have more ponay fwends!” With me in the palm of his right hand, he stepped over the river and into the woods on the other side. The ground trembled beneath us at every step, but for the first time on this long day, I felt safe. Sure Jim might be a gentle giant of a troll, but I doubted the majority of creatures in the forest would mess with him. I had a lot to make up for, all the wrongs I had done, but I wasn’t ready to quit! Even if Citheronia wasn’t technically mine, I still cared for her. I might never be able to replace her real mother, but I would do my best.

As I got used to his lumbering steps, I felt my eyelids flutter closed. Apatelodes had said it was half a day’s flight away. Even with our speed it would probably still take a few hours to reach the caves. Perhaps… a little sleep would be a good idea.

The forest around me had disappeared, replaced by a cool fog that surrounded me. I could feel a dirt path beneath my hooves, but besides that had no idea where I was. ”Hello?” I called and followed the dirt path, the sound of my hooves muted by the thick fog. A flash of green raced by in front of me. I paused in my hoofsteps and glanced around to find where it went. I heard a high pitched giggle and turned to the right, only for the green light to rush out and away before I could make much out.

“Stop hiding, whatever you are,” I muttered and groaned as it giggled again, but didn’t appear. Try as I could to just ignore it, as I continued up the path, it kept appearing out of the corner of my eye, only to disappear when I turned to look. “This isn’t funny,” I growled.

The sound of a river reached my ears as I continued on, somewhere close to a waterfall as it pounded against the rocks. It was then the fog fell to the side of my vision and revealed a bright full moon above me. Upon the path, bathing in the moonlight, was a green fox. It’s coat shimmered as if on fire with green flames, the flow down its back and to its tails — yes, more than one tail — which it wrapped around its small paws.

A wide grin spread on the fox’s muzzle, and she let out a high pitched giggle and hurried down the path in front of me. “So it’s you I’ve been seeing!” I whispered and hurried my pace to keep up. “Where are you leading me?”

She said not a word, just flicked her tails back and forth behind her as she continued on her way. The fog continued to lift as the sound of the waterfall grew closer. The fox sped up her pace, glancing up at the moon every few minutes. I followed her gaze to see the moon darken. It was no longer a bright white and blue, but slowly turning the color of fresh blood.

The fox let out a little bark, and my gaze fell from the moon to see we had arrived at the river. I gasped, my heart pumped faster and my eyes widened as I took in the scene before me. Surrounding the river were the bodies of hundreds of ponies, their blood staining the dirt path and seeping into the river. None of them were ones I recognized, but then the bodies were pretty mangled and it was even hard to tell the unicorns from the earth ponies at times. I looked away to a waterfall just to the left of the path, gurgling as it sent its load down the steep cliff. Yet, it didn’t flow with water, but thick, boiling blood.

With her gaze turned back to me, the fox let out a piercing scream that ran down my spine and raced away.

“We here, ponay.”

I jumped, my eyes snapped open and I shivered in Jim’s palm. What the hay kind of dream was that? An omen? With my hooves wrapped around me I shivered. The sight of all that blood stained my eyes. I took in deep breaths and looked around me to see the woods were almost pitch black.

“W-where is it, Jim?” I asked.

He pointed a finger ahead of us. “Not far, but puppay’s scare Jim, can’t go anymore.”
I took in a deep breath and stood up in his palm, shaking my body to try to rid myself of that horrid dream. “That’s okay Jim, you came as far as you could. Let me eat and then you can get some sleep.”

“Okay,” he nodded and held me to his neck once again.

“Now, I can’t promise you will get your home back right away,” I said as I settled in on his thick shoulder. “But I will get it back as soon as possible. Just stay safe until then, okay?”

“Okay, ponay,” he nodded.

“Just… call me Chryssy okay Jim? After all, friends should call each other by their names, right?” I grinned as I laid my horn against his neck.

“Yes, better than name ponay,” he chuckled. “I call you Cwyssy.”

“Close enough,” I grinned, the nightmare already starting to fade as my horn lit up and I began to feed. It didn’t come as easily as usual, I couldn’t stop to think of anything else or the flow would stop, but at least I wouldn’t die from starvation. Death in other ways though, I wouldn’t count myself out of just yet.

I jumped off of Jim’s shoulder a few minutes later as he fell to the ground, passed out. “Thanks for your help, Jim,” I whispered and patted a hoof against his cheek. “Rest well, for I will soon return.”

The rest, even with that nightmare, had done me well. With Jim’s love I felt almost my old self again, just with a lack of a certain someling. I left my companion to sleep and trotted down the path he had pointed out. It was only a few minutes later that I reached the edge of the trees and saw a dark abyss ahead of me. “I’m coming for you Citheronia,” I whispered. “Mommy won’t let you down.”

Outside of Sage Grove- Spot

We were all going to die. I was sure of it! I stumbled along beside Crambus as we raced away from our home. Everyling that had been in the hatchery with us followed close by. I might not be the fastest with my short legs, but I did my best to keep up with the rest. The smell of smoke filled the air — as well as other things I didn’t even want to think of. Had all my friends made it out? Tears streaked down my cheeks as I continued. Hopefully they all made it out, not just my fellow changeling friends, but all our ponies as well.

A howl echoed from somewhere nearby and I froze in my hoofsteps. No, no where were they? I felt a hoof against my back push me forward. “Don’t stop! We have to get as far away as we can,” Crambus growled. I heard cries of pain and terror behind us and whipped around to see a few Diamond dogs on our tails.

Crambus groaned and drew his sword. “Keep going Spot. Stick close to the others. I’ll take care of these furry mutts.” He shot into the air and sped toward the back of the group.

“Come on Spot,” Polingii, a changeling only a year or two older than me, said as he caught up to me. “We don’t want to be dogfood!”

“C-coming!” I gulped and hurried on. The sound of fighting reached my ears as Crambus and a few others took on the dogs tailing us. Soon that faded as we galloped further and further away. “W-why don’t we just fly?” I asked Polingii as I came up to him again. “The dogs couldn’t hurt us then?”

“Ugh, you’re thinking like a pupa Spot!” he snorted. “Too many are injured to fly. Do you want them to die too? Plus we’d have to leave our supplies behind if we flew.”

I cringed, the tears flowing again. “No! Of course not.” I sniffed. All I wanted was for us to be safe and happy. Was that too much to ask?

A scream pierced through the air from behind us making me jump about a foot in the air. Silence besides the pounding of our hooves filled the air after. What had made that scream?

“It’s okay everyling,” Crambus grunted as he flew over our heads a few minutes later and sheathed his sword. Just before the blade disappeared from sight, I could swear I saw a few bloody tufts of fur stuck to the cross guard. “The diamond dogs are taken care of. I’ve sent a few others out to look for stragglers, but I don’t think Hope is sending anymore after us.”

I let out a deep sigh of relief. We were safe then! As I looked around at the others, they all seemed pretty glad about it too. A few of them even collapsed to the ground and put their hooves to the side to rest them.

“We ran faster than them Polingii!” I grinned and plopped down on the ground myself. Polingii just sighed and sat down next to me.

“Yeah I guess so,” he muttered.

“Do you think our parents made it out okay?” Ceylon, another changeling colt around our age, asked as he stepped up and settled in next to us. I winced at his words. “Oh! Er- sorry Spot! I-I didn’t mean to be rude.”

“It’s okay,” I sighed. Few seemed to remember what had happened to my own parents. Neither had returned from the invasion of Canterlot. At least I had the hive though. We were all close, like family! Appy had been especially good to me since my parent’s deaths. He might not show it to everyling, but he was the best, nicest guard ever! “I just hope Appy made it.”

“Appy?” Polingii asked.

I nodded. “Yeah Appy. Our Queen’s Royal Guard.”

Ceylon smirked. “Does he know you call him that?”

I nodded then gasped as my eyes went big. “B-but don’t tell him I told you! He hates the nickname,” I blushed.

“Your secret is safe with us,” Polingii nodded. He looked around us and out into the night. “Where are we anyway? This is, well… only my second time out of the hive.”

My gaze fell to the trees around us, dark and kind of spooky looking. An owl hooted somewhere nearby and the wind blew the smell of smoke our way. There was little light around us, what with the moon hidden behind some clouds. Yet, I could see a little with our night vision, and it seemed familiar.

“I think I remember reading about this place,” I said. “Just a mile or two ahead of us a whole lot of sage should be growing along the path. Then, a little further after that, should be the pony town Sage Grove!”

“Isn’t that were many of our ponies come from?” Ceylon whispered.

“Yep!” I nodded. “Appy tells me that besides the Crystal Empire, the tastiest love comes from there. Though I don’t think I’ve had a chance to nibble on any of those ponies.”

“Hopefully we will,” Polingii huffed, blowing a lock of his long frill out away from his muzzle. “If all of them died in the fire−”

“Hush you three!” Someling growled from nearby. I turned to look and saw Junon, an older changeling stallion that had more scars than anyling else I knew. He glared back at me. “Did you not hear Crambus say to try to get some sleep?”

Had Crambus said that? Huh, guess we missed that. “Sorry,” I whispered. With a nod to the others we curled up next to each other to try to keep warm. Sure it was summer now, but the nights could still be cool when you didn’t have any fur! Junon snorted and turned away from us.

“Mean old coot,” Polingii whispered.

“I-I’m not t-tired at a-all,” he said as he let out a huge yawn.

“Me either, but he is right,” Ceylon whispered back. “We have a lot to do now. What are we going to do? Where we going to go? I’m not very good at disguises yet, what if a non-hive pony sees me?”

“I’ll protect you,” Polingii said and patted Ceylon’s muzzle sleepily. “We lost a lot: our home, our toys, maybe even our p-parents.”

“Books too,” I sighed. “I was able to save so few of them. Appy helped me, but I wish I could have fit more in my saddlebag.” I jolted up and the other two hissed in annoyance at me as I looked around us.

“What’s wrong, Spot?” Ceylon murmured.

“My saddlebag, where is it? Zeuxidia had it last. She was carrying it for me.”

“We’ll find it later,” Polingii groaned. “It’s with the hive somewhere.”

“Okay,” I sighed and rested my head on my hooves. Was it wrong of me to want my books? Whatever, they were right. My books were safe somewhere. Perhaps a little sleep would be good. “Let’s get some sleep,” I whispered. “By the time we wake, I’m sure Appy will have caught up with us and tell us what we should do.” The two nodded and closed their eyes to either side of me. I looked once more up at the sky to see a small patch of stars and a bit of the moon peeking out from a hole in the clouds. “Stay safe Appy, Vidi,” I whispered and snuggled in closer to my friends.

It was sometime later I awoke to voices whispering nearby. I rubbed a hoof over my eyes and yawned as I wiggled out from between Polingii and Ceylon and trotted toward them.

“I don’t know if either of them are going to make it,” I heard Chioides whisper and hurried closer. I hid behind a boulder nearby and peeked over it. A blood splattered group of adults, Chioides and six other changelings, as well as one yellow-green pegasus stallion, stood before Crambus.

Crambus sighed and lowered his head. “Were their injuries that severe?”

“His horn was cut clean off! I can’t think of much worse than that,” Chioides hissed and stamped a hoof. He cringed downward as Crambus shushed him. “He was bleeding pretty badly too,” he said softly.

“And Videre was missing one of his wings,” the pegasus stallion whispered. “Oh colt it was horrible! Th-those demon dogs killed my whole family!” He sobbed and wrapped his wings around his head.

My eyes widened at his words. If Videre lost a wing, how was he supposed to fly? What about Appy? Was he the one who lost his horn?

“Everyone lost someone tonight er…” Crambus paused.

“Lemon Zest, sir,” the pony mumbled. “I know, so many are gone. H-have you counted yet our numbers?”

Crambus shook his head. “Too dark to do so accurately. There are still some here I doubt will make it through the night. Peazan and the guards that went with him to purchase food a few days ago have not returned yet either.”

“Have you heard anything from them?” Chioides asked.

“Nope, that is why I’ve been leading us toward Sage Grove. It was their turn to provide us our food supply.” He let out a deep sigh and closed his eyes. “I’m hoping to find them still there. We could really use the extra food.”

“So what would you have us do then, sir?” the youngest changeling of the group asked. I wasn’t sure of his name, but I thought he might be Ceylon’s older brother.

“Rest for now. This is as good a place as any to await any other survivors. If noling shows up by morning, we will move on.” Crambus stretched out his wings and yawned.

“Who will take charge if−” Chioides started but was stopped by Crambus’s hoof to his muzzle.

“The loss of a horn is serious, but it can be managed. Don’t count Apatelodes out just yet.”

I gasped and ducked back behind the rock before anyling could see me. No! Appy can’t die! He’s too strong, too brave, the best ling in the hive – other than our Queen of course. What would we do without him?

“Spot?” I jolted at the sound of my name and looked up to face Crambus’s stare. “Spot, what are you doing over here?” he whispered. “Why aren’t you asleep with the others?”

Colt was I in trouble. “I-I sir I heard you all talking and wanted to hear…”

“Spot,” he sighed and held a hoof to his forehead. “Sometimes adult talk is not meant for the young to hear.”

“Is Appy- Apatelodes… is he really dead?” I whimpered as tears fell down my cheeks.

“He was still alive when we left him kid,” Lemon Zest said. He rubbed a hoof through my frilled mane and smiled down at me.

“Y-you don’t get to be a Queen’s guard without being strong,” Chioides said softly. “It looked bad, but things can turn out well.”

“I h-hope so,” I sniffed and rubbed a hoof over my wet eyes.

“We probably won’t know until morning, so why don’t you get some more sleep, okay?” Crambus said. He lit up his horn and wrapped his magic around me, then deposited me on his back. “Shall I take you back to your friends to get a few more hours sleep?”

I nodded and rubbed my eyes. “Okay.” As we walked, I snuggled up against his neck and closed my eyes. Appy would be okay. He had to be! I was sure of it.

Queen Chrysalis- Diamond Dog Ancestral Home

My wings fluttered behind me as I took the first steps from the edge of the woods and into sandy soil. Scraggly plant life was scattered here and there, but most of it was yellowed and dead. It felt… strange how everything living stopped at the trees. Something similar to how the ‘deadlands’ used to be? Whatever it was, a dark abyss lay before me and it took shape with every step I took. It was more than just a natural cave opening, this one was clearly carved as it was a perfect rectangle. A stone frame was carved around it and some runes were written into it, but I couldn’t make out what they might say in the night light.

I took a deep breath and tried to light my horn, only for the magic to set out a single spark then fall away. “Great,” I grumbled. “Going into the dark unknown without a light source, this should be fun.” I really hoped I’d figure out a way to use my magic again reliably after this, otherwise I’d be even more useless. Sure I could still feed, and fly, but could I even transform if I couldn’t even do simple spells like levitation or make light each time? Maybe I’d never be able to hide again, not that hiding had done me any good so far.

At a snap underhoof, I jumped and looked down to see bones sprawled around the entrance. Some of them were snapped and broken while many of them remained whole. As I drew closer, what I supposed to be a border of boulders against the mountain’s base, became a row of skulls. Pony skulls, changeling skulls, and what looked like a griffon or two stared back at me with their pitted, empty eye sockets.

“Gee, you would think they were trying to scare me,” I muttered. Regretfully, I couldn’t repress a shiver as it ran down my spine. Well, it worked. I wasn’t turning back though! No matter my ill thoughts, no matter how much I felt like I wasn’t worthy to be a mother to Citheronia, I was all she had.

“I might just be a stupid human,” I snorted. “No, there is no doubt of that. I have been stupid. Even if Ch- Chrys didn’t stop me from doing so.” I stepped around the bones best I could, though I still heard some of them snap when I misjudged my hoofsteps, as I lowered my head and stepped inside the entrance.

“Oh, that was so you could learn, dearie,” I crooned, put a hoof to my chest, and frowned. “It’s not my fault it all went to Tartarus when someone decided to ruin everything!”

“Oh, but I was only doing what I thought right, and then here I was, a huge fan who thought she knew everything!” I stuck a hoof out and hit it against the stone wall just inside the entrance. “How was I to know Sombra’s marefriend would return and wreak havoc on us? She was never in the show!”

I let out a light chuckle and picked up a pony skull a few feet into the dark tunnel. “Ah, dear Yorick, how could I not know?” I murmured to the skull. Its lower jaw fell off and thumped to the ground. “Oh? You are shocked too? Tsk, tsk, you should know better. Of course, those silly comics were canon as well.”

I shattered the skull against the wall. “Well, it doesn’t matter now does it? Here we are, walking down a dark tunnel possibly to our doom, to rescue a young nymph whom I took over her poor mother’s body from.”

“Perhaps I should stop talking to myself, and just concentrate on that, yes. Just think, WWCD! What would Chrys do? No, that would be sacrilegious. Does it matter though? Heh, not like any of that matters here.” I paused and rubbed a hoof against my forehead. A slight headache was forming. “Did I perhaps take too much love from Jim? Colt, I don’t know! Long as it gets me through this task that is all that matters.”

The sound of claws as they scraped against stone came from before me and made me pause in my hoofsteps. Of course, of course. Diamond Dog home, who knows how many are in here? Those Umbrum too. I shuddered at the thought.

My eyes slowly adjusted to the dark as I drew further and further from the entrance. My night vision was nothing like I had always pictured it in the books I’d read, all green and showing more so patches of body heat; rather, it gave me fair warning of a stray rock before I tripped over it, and a box next to another path with a sign over it. The letters were faded and hard to read in the dark, but I could just make out “RED GEMS ONLY: Red like Jungle Burning Bright.”

Though other tunnels like the red gem box one turned up every so often, I never wavered from the path I was on. Somehow, I knew it had to be the right one. It tilted at a slight angle downward as it took me deeper underground. I heard the sound of claws scraping a few more times, but nothing ever came close enough for me to see it. Probably want to follow me to make sure I go the ‘right’ way.

Right way it seemed to be too, for after I had trotted downward for a while, I heard screams and laughter in the distance. “Well, this is it.” I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. I can do this, I can do this. Maybe, hopefully, I must! I’ve come this far, I’d feel even worse if I don’t at least try. I must do my best not to cower. This is my life now.

“No matter what happens,” I said and stomped a hoof to the ground. “Discord believed in me, Chrys did too –I think. Whatever changelings are left, they need a strong Queen to care for them.” I looked down at my hooves and shook my head. “Apatelodes never should have had to hold that weight on his shoulders. We should have stayed with them and sent someone else after Leptostales. Maybe then he would still be alive, she would still be alive….” I shook my head and looked back down the long tunnel. “I might not ever be that Queen they need, but if Citheronia can be that queen for them one day, then I will go to Tartarus and back if it means bringing her back for them!”

The screams grew louder as I continued. Grunts and growls joined them. I blinked once, twice, as I turned a corner and the glow of light fell over me. How is there so much light this far underground? It grew brighter and brighter. The rough, rocky walls then easy to make out. With one last turn, I spotted a few diamond dogs race pass through a side tunnel. Huh, a lot… furrier than I remember them from the show. Smaller too.

As I followed silently behind them, my eyes widened at the view before me. The tunnel expanded out into an enormous room. No, more than a room, some kind of game arena? I stood in what seemed to be a box seat. The diamond dogs I had been following had taken a ramp up to a stadium of seats surrounding us. “Oh,” I whispered as I took in the other diamond dogs sitting in the stands. They were far larger than the others. I was following their puppies! Colt were the adults huge!

The adults in the stands were laughing and joking with each other. A few tall, lanky ones were walking around with a satchel around their waist, a notepad and pencil in their paws. As they went up to each dog in the stands, they would write something down on their pad and take a pawful of gems or bits from them, then move on.

A group of maybe eighteen sat in the lowest most seats on the side opposite that the pups had gone up. For what I could tell, most of them looked fairly young and feminine, the youngest being maybe two feet tall. None but the youngest looked all that happy and were far quieter than the rest of the crowd. They were also the only dogs I saw wearing clothing, even if it was only simple white robes. Close to them two bulky, pure white males stood and watched the area around them. Some type of Royalty? With guards? Colt I didn’t know. Perhaps I should have paid more attention in ancient history classes, as this place looked like it was right out of some ancient Roman city, just underground. Then I looked up.

My eyes widened to see gems embedded in the ceiling, mostly some type of white gem- perhaps diamonds- with reds and oranges mixed in a symmetrical array. Some creature with magic had infused light into them, and it glittered around the arena like firelight.

“Our next contender against Blackie,” a loud voice reverberated around the arena, “is Fang! Step on up dogs and make your bets, the fight will begin in five minutes!”

Wait, they are fighting each other? I gaped in surprise and watched as the bids rolled in, even some of the pups got in on the bidding, one with a bluish gem as big as his fist. The bid-takers hurried away a few moments later and I heard the screech of metal below.

I turned my gaze to the arena, where two gates were opening to either side. A firmly packed, sandy floor covered the ground, darker spots of sand here and there. On the right stepped out a beast of a diamond dog, charcoal black with shredded ears. He bared his fangs at the crowd and let out a spine-chilling howl. The crowd simply ate it up and cheered for him.

Across from him stepped out a diamond dog that was taller than the first, but less bulky and a dirty grey color. Yet he stood out from the other by his long canines, which looked about half as long as the pictures I remembered seeing of saber-toothed tigers. This dog didn’t even look at the audience but instead crouched forward and whipped his short, stubby tail back and forth, his gaze glued to his opponent.

“Alright bidding is now closed,” the voice continued. Where exactly the announcer was I had no idea, or who. All I knew was it sure didn’t sound like a diamond dog, it talked far too well to be one, at least from the few I had seen on the show. “Be sure to stick around until the end, folks, as after this battle, we have a special surprise for you!”

Why had Hope sent me here? I wondered as I looked around. Across from me was another box seat, this one with a fancy, high-backed chair placed in it with a violet colored cushion on the seat. It was empty, but I growl softly upon seeing what must have been Radiant’s VIP seat. If not her than some Diamond dog royalty? That is, if the ones beside me were not royal, were they?

The entire colosseum had an underlying scent of blood and death, with a floral miasma that tried to mask the odor to little avail. Besides the smell though it was relatively clean for such a place. That for sure couldn’t be the dogs doing as they didn’t seem the tidy type, so I was sure Hope had made them clean things up. That would be such a pony thing to do.

I turned to the side as the warm, buttery scent of popcorn hit my nostrils and looked to see another set of dogs had begun to walk the stands. In place of the ones that took bets, a few chubby dogs with thin, mottled grey fur now walked the stands. Each of them had a strap around their necks and stomachs, a large box in their front paws that each contained treats like popcorn, cotton candy, peanuts and what looked like hot dogs. This is all just a game to these stupid mutts.

The bell rang and my attention snapped back to the two dogs in the arena as they charged each other. Fang reached Blackie first and swiped a paw at the black dog’s shoulder, barely missing as he dodged. As Fang tried to turn back around, Blackie whipped his own paw around and sliced against the taller dog’s upper thigh, making him yelp in pain.

Fang backed a few steps away, growled at Blackie and bared his fangs as he circled. He lunged again and went for the throat. Blackie let out a grunt as the fangs swept against his coat but once again miraculously missed.

The next move came from Blackie as he dove forward at the smaller dog as Fang slipped backwards, but Blackie’s own fangs sank into the grey furred shoulder. A swipe of his paw against Blackie’s nose made the larger dog release and take a step back.

An itch against my skull distracted me away from the fight and I lifted a hoof to scratch at it. Following the itch though, came something… different. It almost felt like the connection I had with Chrys, a presence of sorts perhaps? Couldn’t be Chrys though, she’d be yelling at me for sure if she had returned, or at least make her presence known. “Hello?” I thought to it. Why not? See if that works, maybe?

The presence seemed to grow… excited or agitated, at my words. Hmmm, very interesting. What could it be? I looked around at the crowd around and above me, but none of them seemed to be looking my way, far as I could tell. Of course that would have been silly. Not like the diamond dogs had psychic powers… wait, psychic powers! Could it be? No, Chrys and Apatelodes both had said it was mostly gone. I have to know though, especially if it leads to Citheronia! Or well, could be another changeling the dogs captured? No, I couldn’t think that. The idea they might subject one of my changelings to the kind of horror below me was not something I would even consider. It was too horrible.

The presence pushed harder against me, an urgency in it, now that I had acknowledged it. “I’m coming to find you,” I told it, and the push lessened. Okay, now just to figure out how to find it, whatever it is. The only question was, where to start. If I went back, I might get lost in the tunnels as I searched. Yet, I sure couldn’t follow the path the diamond dog pups had taken. That would just lead me into the crowd, and then I would be caught and perhaps never find what I was sensing.

I turned to look ahead at the other box seat across from mine. If it was Hope’s, she had yet to show up. From what I could see, a dark tunnel led out from behind like my own. If it was Citheronia I was feeling, that was the most likely place to find her. How to get there without being seen though would be the problem. The best way I could see would be to fly across. It would be the least likely option for the dogs to have a chance at grabbing me. Long as I got high enough.

What would you do Chrys? I groaned and rubbed a hoof against my forehead. For sure I couldn’t ignore the one calling for help — at least it felt like it was. I steeled my gaze at the other box seat and stepped up onto the ledge of my own. Whatever it was I had to help. If Hope had hurt her, oh she would regret it!

I lifted off the ledge and curved upward to avoid the still fighting dogs in the arena. The sound around me lessened as I reached the middle of the arena, but I didn’t hear any of them shout or anything about seeing me. Odd, really. With the arena around me quieting, I heard another sound not too far away. I swiveled my ears forward and bared my fangs in a low hiss as I realized it was a baby screaming at the top of its lungs.

My eyes burned with green flames and my blood boiled at the sound. Citheronia! It had to be her! I sped forward toward the box seat and dived down to step into it, only to be stopped. My hooves rested on air maybe five feet above the ground, and as I tapped a hoof against it I noticed it shimmer from the spot my hoof had disturbed it. A shield, of course. I growled and skittered around on it as I tried to find a hole, a way past the shield, but to no avail.

“RADIANT HOPE!” I yelled and stomped on the shield once more. My fangs bared as I continued my barrage at the shield, the sound of the baby’s wail drawing nearer. “I KNOW YOU ARE THERE!” I yelled again. Why did she not come out?

“I see where your daughter gets her lungs from,” Hope snorted as she trotted through the entryway and paused below me. My breathing quickened when I saw Citheronia in a bubble of magic that followed behind Hope. Her little legs flailed against the bubble as she continued to wail. She seemed fine besides being upset, thankfully. “I’ll never get rid of this headache!” she moaned.

“A headache will be the least of your problems when I get ahold of YOU.” I snarled and glared down at her. “GIVE her back to me!”

“Oh? You want this?” she crooned and moved the bubble in front of her. As if she sensed my presence, probably did, Citheronia quieted and gazed up at me with those big, beautiful eyes of hers. She held her forehooves up at me and let out a soft whine.

The presence returned again, this time I could feel the ripples of joy that were coming from her. How? Wasn’t the hive mind gone? Well, didn’t matter right now. I could figure it out later. “Yes, you little thief, you foalnapper!” I snapped as I turned back to Hope. “Now, please return her to me.” Maybe asking nicely would do the trick? Colt who am I kidding, Hope didn’t play ‘nice’, but I still had to try.

Hope puckered her lips at me and gave me a pompous look. “You thought all you would need to do is come to my bidding?” The pompous look turned into a smirk. “What would be the point of that? If you want your daughter back, you’ll have to earn it.”

I jumped as a scream of pain came from behind me and I turned around. While I had been distracted, the battle had raged on. Blackie had Fang pinned to the ground, his own fangs buried in the other dog’s neck as blood pooled around them. Fang struggled against the pin, but each struggle lessened until he finally dropped to the ground and fell still. My eyes widened at the sight. Sure I had seen the dead and dying changelings, I had seen Apatelodes… but this brutal murder right before my eyes well… wasn’t pretty to say the least. Colt, what was I getting myself into?

Blackie removed his fangs and stepped away from the dead Fang to cheers from the crowd around him. A faint, bluish, misty smoke rose from the dead dog, wavered in the air for a moment, then sped toward us. It sank through the barrier and was sucked into the amulet around Hope’s neck.

“Ahh, that feels good,” she sighed. “Fang wasn’t the strongest, but his power will still aid me,” she grinned.

“How can you sic your own army on each other like that?” I snapped. “If they kill each other, you’ll lose your army.” Colt, there I was ‘helping’ the ‘enemy’ again, wasn’t I?

Hope laughed and shook a hoof at me. “Oh my dear Chrysalis, have you forgotten the art of war? It is better to have a warrior strong enough to take on many enemies, rather than a bunch of weaklings who can’t survive a single enemy. Besides,” she huffed, “this is how diamond dogs are. You don’t think I built this for them to fight in? It does help me though, as I grow stronger.”

“You are one mad pony,” I growled. How could she not care about those in her army? Was her only want with all this bloodshed the power gained from casualties? What in the hay did she plan to do with all that power?

“Perhaps, but at least I still have an army behind me.”

I glared down at her, let out a growl, and stomped my hoof on the shield.. “You WILL pay for that, painfully. Rid yourself of this shield and I’ll show you what pain I can cause.” Sure, I may have been bluffing, I hadn’t fought anyone as strong as she yet, but she didn’t know that.

Hope gave a haughty laugh. “Believe me, you pathetic excuse for a queen, you are not strong enough to face me. You come here all alone, when I have an army behind me. Do you really think you can take them on too?”

Well, she was right about that. Sure I had a little help from Jim’s love, but that would not last long enough to face them all. My ears twitched at her words, but I tried hard not to show any other signs of how they got to me. “Then what is your ‘plan’ for me to ‘earn’ my daughter back?” I hissed. How dare she insult me like that! Act brave, girl, maybe we can get through this if we don’t let our fear show.

She pointed a hoof behind me, and I turned to see it faced Blackie. Fang’s corpse was being dragged away by another set of dogs, back into the tunnel he had come from. “Fight my champion in this exciting arena.”

I wrinkled my nose at her and frowned. She wanted me to take on her champion? Fine! I’d fight him and get out of here. If that is what it took to get her back. “Let’s do this then!” Once I get her back though, you are going down for all the Tartarus you’ve put me through. I snarled and looked to Citheronia for a moment. “Mommy will save you dear,” I thought to her. A small smile was on her muzzle, her tears abated. Yet, I could sense her fear still. With the way her little body trembled whenever one in the crowd coughed, or held a hoof to her stomach and looked back up at me with a little tremble in her lower lip. Wouldn’t take much for her to start crying again. Not that I blamed her, our situation was dire. I was even surprised by my own bravado. Sure I could put on a brave face, but inside I quivered like a leaf.

If anything happened, it would be my fault. I had come here alone, should have realized her entire army would be here− speaking of, where were the umbrum? With the fear they lived off, wouldn’t this be the perfect place for them? Though I wouldn’t want to fight one of them now, not when my magic ability was so poor without Chrys.

As I turned to jump down, I heard Hope cough softly. “Oh, but there is one tiny thing.”

“What?” I snapped. My horn and eyes burned with anger. Good to know anger could still bring out some type of magic. An excellent resource for fighting. Hopefully not the only way I’d be able to use it though.

“Well, we want things to be even, don’t we?” she crooned. “So no flying is allowed in Pugg’s Pit.”

“What?” I gaped at her in shock. Flight was what I was best at so far, I’d be able to flit around his head like the bug ponies thought I was and avoid most of his moves. “Without my flight, how do you expect me to fight this bonehead?” I heard the mutt snort behind me at those words. Colt, had I said that out loud? Great, now she would know how much confidence I lacked.

Hope rolled her eyes. “You have your fangs, your hooves, and your horn,” she smirked at me. “You have your ‘Celestia-beating magic’ as well, even if you are so low on it right now. I think those sufficient weapons, don’t you agree?”

Not really, but I guess I need to play by her rules as long as she had Citheronia. “Very well, and then I get my daughter back.” That was all that mattered after all. I had to get her safe. If I couldn’t take Hope down straight away, I’d show her I wasn’t just someling to push around, or try to at least.

“Of course, of course,” she purred and lit up her horn. “Now, a little spell a Sphinx friend of mine taught me long ago.” I felt her magic wrap around my wings and let out a grunt as they were snapped tight against my barrel. I struggled to move them, to spread them out, to the sound of Hope’s laughter. “Go ahead and try, your wings won’t spread again until I say so!”

“Go to Tartarus!” I hissed.

“Why go there when we are having so much fun here?” she cackled.

My confidence of even having a chance in this fight dwindled. My façade of bravery wavered as I realized just what I had gotten myself into. Here I thought Chrys was the hot-headed one. Guess I’m taking after her. Jumping in without thinking has kind of been my thing, hasn’t it?

She then turned to the crowd around us. “Now, who is ready for a REAL fight?” she yelled.

I had to cover my ears as they cheered. Was this crowd that anxious to see me fight? Or was it more to see me fail? Whatever it was, I just prayed instinct, if I even had any, would help me where my knowledge could not. Or would it be better to just hope I was lucky? Whatever the case, this fight was going to happen. For Citheronia’s sake, I had to survive, no matter what.

Shiny Whistle - Canterlot Castle

The walk back to our rooms was quiet as Flash led the way in front of me. My shoulders sagged and head lowered nearly to the floor. Other ponies still raced around us, but I ignored them. I couldn’t believe my father’s stubbornness. How could he not see who I was? All I hoped was when this zebra came she could calm my fathers fears.

Whatever happened though, it was pretty much useless arguing with my father. We might calm his fears for now, but I doubted he would ever truly believe me again. Should I even bother going home with them? Well, at least Donut Joe’s was closer to our home than the castle, so I would be able to get plenty more donuts. Not that they could really fill that empty spot in my heart.

“Um, Shiny?” Flash said softly as we neared the suite. “Look, I know you don’t agree with my actions against the Queen, but you know I was just doing my job, right?”

“Oh?” I mumbled and looked up.”To find a way to make her look even worse?” I snorted.

He shook his head. “No, keeping an eye on her in case she tried to harm anypony. You understand that, right? Protecting the Princesses is my first concern. I’m sorry if this hurts you, but well...” he let out a sigh and turned back to me. “Even if she wasn’t involved in the deaths that occured at the wedding, her army was.”

I nodded. “I understand, Flash. When you saw Hope, you reacted how a guard should.” I paused in my hoofsteps. Even if she had said time and again she wasn’t involved, he was right that as a leader she should have taken more responsibility for her armies actions. “How did you know what she looked like, anyway?”

“Princess Celestia briefed us after her meeting with Chrysalis, of course. One of the reasons I was out flying that night. She wanted to make sure Hope didn’t get too close to the castle.” He rubbed a hoof against his forehead and sighed. “Colt, did that not go as planned.” He stomped a hoof on the ground and let out a snort. “Shiny, I do wish we could have helped, believe me, but we can’t trust her. Even if all Hope did was talk with Chrysalis.”

“Threatened her, not just talked,” I snorted.Them not trusting her I could understand, even if I didn’t like it.

“Yeah, that,” he nodded and twitched his wings closer to his barrel. “I know what it is like Shiny, to lose those you love and care for,” he whispered. “I had friends die at the wedding attack, and even more that were scarred enough from it they retired early. I don’t know if this Hope has really killed off her hive, or what she plans to do with the Queen’s daughter, but I do have an idea of how she feels.”

I looked away from him and watched the tile below us as we continued walking. That was something I had little idea about. Though with Dew missing, I very well could know the feeling if she never turned up. “I’m sorry about your friends Flash,” I whispered. “I know there is nothing I can do to bring them back, but I’m still sorry.”

“It’s not your fault Shiny.” He let out a deep sigh and turned to look at me. “How about this, if the Queen returns to us, I’ll do better next time. By that time we should know the truth of her words.”

“When, she does,” I grumbled. Though, that did give me an idea. “So when she returns, you’ll take care of her?”

Flash nodded. “Of course. From what we have gathered so far, she was telling the truth, but we still need to confirm on that. None of the Wonderbolts have returned just yet, but a fire that big happening when it did? Perhaps we were wrong, but only time will tell. If Hope killed them to punish the Queen for not securing our Princesses though− ”

“You have no idea how glad I am to hear that,” I sighed and hugged Flash.

“Wha?” he squawked at the hug, perked up his ears and cocked his head at me. “What do you mean?”

“She’ll need somepony to help her. I’m glad she’ll have somepony strong and who can find the truth of her words.” The words tasted almost bitter in my mouth, but if she didn’t want me then what did it matter?

“You mean since you’ll be back with your folks?”

I nodded and released him from the hug. “Y-you’ll keep me informed, right? I-I’ll be fine… long as I know she is safe.” I lowered my ears and sighed. I was fooling myself with that, but maybe I could feel different in time. With a father like mine though, who knew? After all I’d done, could he ever forgive me? Trust me again? Could I trust him? After all, he didn’t believe me, thought me a liar. How could he not see the truth!

Flash bit his lip and rubbed a hoof down his right wing nervously. “Well, I can try Shiny, but I can’t promise anything. The Princesses might deem it need-to-know. If they do, I can’t tell you.”

I closed my eyes tight and held a hoof to my chest as it felt like a cold grip tightened around my heart. “I-I understand,” I whispered. “Just, take care of her, please? At least promise me that?” I pleaded.

“I’ll treat her well as I can,” he said and trotted forward. “Come, we should continue. It is already very late and I’m sure your parents need their rest. Plus, your brother and Sergeant Twist will return soon with Zenovia. ”

I nodded, followed him, and stepped inside when we reached our rooms. Twinkleshine lay on the couch with a book in her hooves, but flipped it closed and got up as we entered

“Everything okay?” she asked. “When everypony disappeared, I grew worried.”

“Yep, just peachy,” I grumbled. “Parents are here. Velvet and I are going home. Also my Father thinks I am a changeling.”

“What?” she gasped and blinked twice. “How the hay does he think you a changeling? You are obviously pony,” she snorted and shook her head. “Home?” she asked a moment later and blinked twice again as she stared at me. “What about Chrysalis? She has been gone a long time already. Aren’t you worried? How about the girls?”

“She doesn’t want me anyway, Twinkleshine,” I sighed. “Of course I’m worried, but I am just one pony. How can I help her, if nopony else can?” I just hoped with all hope she was still alive. It had been long enough the Wonderbolts had likely made it to the castle by now. Did they find her? Did they find anyling else?

“As for the girls, well, who knows where Discord has stashed them. They’ll just have to have their goodbyes at another time. But yeah, he thinks that I am a changeling.” I said and stepped past her toward our rooms.

Flash stood silently by the main door as I trotted past Twinkleshine and into the room Velvet and I had shared with Discord. I’d miss it and the time spent with Chryssy, but what could I do? “Thanks, by the way,” I said as I heard the hoofsteps of Twinkleshine follow me inside.

“You’re welcome,” she whispered and stepped up beside me. “Sorry I couldn’t be more help. I think you two would have made a great couple.” She put a hoof to my shoulder and gave me a remorseful look.

“If only,” I said and turned away toward our saddlebags. “Perhaps pony and changeling were just not meant to be together. Maybe we’re just too different.” I wrapped my magic around the ink and scrolls on the desk and stuffed them into the bag.

“Too different my flank!” she snorted and stomped a hoof on the floor. “Somepony or ling on either side is just too stubborn to see how much the same we really are! It can happen, and be a beneficial relationship on both sides. Not just as food for the changeling.”

I paused with my saddlebag in the air above me and turned around to face her. “How would you know? Have you ever loved a changeling?”

“Well, no, but I do know somepony who cares deeply for one. Besides you of course,” she said and poked my shoulder.

“Right,” I huffed and placed the saddlebag on my back, but took care to place it high enough to avoid my bruised ribs. I rummaged through the bag until I came out with the sack of bits we’d been given by Gold Dust, back at the Peach’s farm. Colt that felt like so long ago. I tossed the bag to Twinkleshine, who caught it with her magic. “Not much left, but should be enough for a ticket back to Ponyville.”

She stared at the sack for a moment. “You don’t need to pay me for my help,” she said quietly.

“I have no use of it,” I muttered. “I’m sure you have family or friends who miss you though. I’m sorry I dragged you into this whole mess.” I tightened the straps on the saddlebags and headed toward the door.

“You didn’t drag me into it. I wanted to help. I guess if you want to leave though, there is not much I can do.” She put a hoof to my shoulder and patted it gently.

“Say goodbye to the girls for me, at least?” I asked. “Whenever Discord decides to show his smug face.”

“Someone calling me smug?” Discord said and popped into view before us. “Aw, dear Shiny. Leaving so soon?” he frowned and patted me on the back. “I thought I heard a little bird whistling in my ear,” he poked a claw into his ear and pulled out a grey starling, which flew out of the room.

“Yes Discord, parents are here so I have to go,” I said and rolled my eyes at his antics. “You’re taking good care of the girls, right?”

“Nemoria and Acronicta? Of course I am, dear Shiny,” he chuckled and ruffled my mane with his lion’s paw. “They are having the time of their lives in ‘Discordland,’ he held his paw and claw out and wiggled them in excitement. “Been far too long since I had visitors. Why, I haven’t even invited Fluttershy to my humble abode yet, but that is an idea!”

“Wait, what?” I gasped and my mouth dropped open. “You… why would you take them THERE?”

“Why, because there is no safer place, of course! If anypony wants to get in, they need my permission, and I’m not about to let anypony in who shouldn’t be there.” He folded his arms and scowled down at me. “Chryssy is my friend, do you really think I would cause her pain like that?”

“Well, no I guess not,” I sighed.

“Your chaos might be a bit… much for the fillies though Discord,” Twinkleshine whispered and stepped away from him.

“Oh you ponies are such worrywarts,” he grumbled and rolled his eyes. “I’ve put them in the ‘low chaos zone’. All I have there is a roller-coaster and a barnyard full of baby animals. They’ll love it.”

“Just keep them safe,” I said. “They are good changelings.” With that I continued walking toward the door. “Goodbye Discord, Twinkleshine.”

“Goodbye, Shiny,” the unicorn mare sighed. “Good luck.”

“See you again soon Shiny!” Discord chuckled and popped away once more.

“You better not be on your way to my home!” I yelled and pointed a hoof where he had been. The only response I got from him was laughter.

“You ready?” Flash asked as I stepped out of the room.

“Ready as I’m going to be,” I sighed deeply and followed him out the main door.

We stepped back into the throne room a little while later to see Velvet talking with the small, blue unicorn guard. Princess Luna stood in the middle of the room, the zebra mare from our ‘castle tour’ beside her, and my parents leaned against the far wall as they talked.

Velvet looked up and nodded me over to him. “Everything okay bro?”

I nodded. “For now, you?”

“Better than I’ve been in a while, actually. Shiny, this is Periwinkle Twist,” he said with a gesture to the guard.

“Hello,” she chirped and waved a hoof at me. “So, you are the famous Shiny Whistle.”

Me, famous? “Er, yeah, I guess so?” I mumbled. Even if my Father doesn’t think so. “What’s up Velvet?” I asked. I couldn’t remember the last time he introduced me to some mare. He better not be trying to set us up, I was in no place to be dating.

“Oh, well remember that mare I told you about with Soarin’?” he whispered, a blush crept up his neck as he did so.

“Her?” I asked and pointed a hoof. Yet he was talking with her like nothing was wrong. What the hay? What happened on their walk to find the zebra mare?

“Yeah, me,” she said and lowered her muzzle.

“I thought she looked familiar, so I asked her…” Velvet said, his blush crept up to his cheeks. “In short, it was all a big misunderstanding.”

“What?” I blinked in surprise. “You said they were… well… doing things…” Now it was my turn to blush. “How can that be misunderstood?”

“Ugh, I was drunk, okay?” Periwinkle yelled and covered her face with her forehooves. “I had a very bad day and was drunk as a griffon. Soarin’ was well,” she sighed, “he was just being a good friend. Everything was my fault.” She turned to look toward Velvet. “He really misses you.”

“Velvet misses him too,” I said.

“Shiny!” Velvet yelled as the blush reached the tips of his ears. He shook his head and turned back to the mare. “Well, I guess depending on how things go we could try again. If a war is about to begin though…”

She nodded and placed a hoof to his muzzle. “I understand, believe me I do. When he returns with the other Wonderbolts, I’ll let him know.”

“Thanks,” he grinned. “Was good talking to you.”

“Heh, same!” she chuckled.

Colt, if Velvet got his second chance, did that mean I could too? No Shiny, don’t give yourself false hope! Soarin’ was a pony, not a changeling. The likelihood of them working out their problems was much better than my own. I turned away from the two of them and looked to the zebra. Flash had called her Zenovia, right? “Well, let's get this test over with,” I sighed and trotted over to where mother and father had come to stand near the others.

I looked at Zenovia, who wore a pale blue cotton nightgown with yellow ducks all over it, and smiled at her. “Hello.”

“Hello again,” she yawned and covered her mouth with a hoof.

“Now that all are here, this is Zenovia,” Princess Luna said as she smiled softly at the zebra. “Please, calm Mr. Solo’s fears young one.”

Zenovia nodded and turned to my father. “So you think your son is a changeling, is that it?”

“If he is a changeling, he is no son of mine!” he snorted.

Oh Dad, I facehoofed and let out a sigh.

“Well, you can rest easy sir, nocreature in this room is a changeling. Everyone is pony,” she grinned. “Well, except me being a zebra and all,” she said and let out another yawn.

Father huffed and turned away from the mare as he paced the floor. “How can I know you are correct? Is there a test you do in your country?”

Zenovia sighed. “Well if there are none with my talent around, then yes. It is a difficult mixture to make though. You would need a shaman to make it.”

“So then I’m just supposed to believe in your word, is that it?” Father snapped. “Get us one of these shaman’s then so we can learn the truth for real.”

“Every time... “ Zenovia groaned and put a hoof to her forehead.

“We do have a shaman in our employment,” Princess Luna said as she turned to gaze at father. “Yet, he is out of Canterlot at this time.” She spread out her wings and stared down at my father. “We give thee our word, Mr. Solo, that Zenovia’s talent and gift are valid. Though if you still doubt, Shiny is welcome to stay in the castle until our shaman returns.”

Velvet followed behind me as I nervously stopped in front of our father. “May we go home now, Dad?” he said as he put a wing around me. “All of us.”

Father frowned but looked around the room as everypony waited for his answer. “You have all your things now?” he asked as he turned to look at me. .

“Yes, father. I have everything.”

“Fine, let’s go home, for now.. We have a lot to talk about when we get back. You’re lucky I have no appointments for tomorrow, as we’ll be up quite late.” he huffed and led the way toward the door. “One wrong move though, one forgotten memory my son would remember, and it is to the dungeons with you!” He yelled and poked a hoof into my chest.

“Greaaat,” I grumbled and rolled my eyes. All I wanted to do was sleep, maybe get some more eclairs from Donut Joe’s. Mmmmm yes that did sound good. I’d prove to him who I was. Then he would be sorry for doubting me.

I turned back to look at Princess Luna, who smiled back at me and nodded a goodbye. At least she seemed to handle this well. Would I ever be able to have that kind of control? After all, that was part of why I failed Chryssy. Whatever, if I could get through tonight and my Father’s anger, that was all that mattered right now.

Mother kept mostly silent as she trotted along the paved path outside beside father, while Velvet kept a few paces behind me. It was as we were passing the turn off to Donut Joe’s I paused and licked my lips.

“What’s wrong Shiny?” Mother asked and trotted over to me.

“Can we stop at Joe’s before going home?”

“Are you serious?” Father snorted. “Shiny, it is almost one AM in the morning! Joe’s will be closed until five!”

“I’ll get you a big box of donuts first thing in the morning, sweetheart,” mother soothed and wrapped a wing around me. At least she seemed to believe I was who I said I was now. She leaned in closer and nuzzled my mane. “I think I know a little of what you ‘forgot’ to tell us,” she whispered. “Your Father suspects as much as well.”

Colt, no wonder father was so peeved! Besides thinking me a changeling, he had figured out my feelings for Chryssy! Maybe it wasn’t such a good idea to go home? “Er… yeah?” I mumbled. Was it too late to run?

She squeezed her wing tighter around me. “I know how you feel Shiny, even if I don’t know why you feel that way,” she smiled at me. “I wish you would love some real mare though. Right now, you are the only one I can count on to give me grandfoals. We can talk about that later though.” Mother looked ahead of us at father and sighed. “Your father and I, well, I suppose we babied you all a little more than we should have.”

“Just a little,” I grimaced. Yep far too late to run.

“Oh Shiny,” she chuckled and hugged me close. “I’ve missed you, my son. Please, please stay close for a little while, okay? Don’t go back even if that mon− ” she paused and cleared her throat. “Even if she returns, stay with the family?”

“I’ll do my best mother,” I sighed. So Mother thought Chryssy a monster as much as Father. She might be nicer about it, but I still wished they could accept my feelings for her.

We continued on, the streets mostly silent this time of night, though there were the occasional drunkard tossed out of the nearest bar as we trotted on by.

With our house in view a few minutes later, I looked around to see if Discord really had ‘followed me home’ but saw no sign of him. Hopefully he stayed away. I had enough chaos to deal with tonight.

Into the Heart of the Diamond Dog’s Lair Part 2

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Queen Chrysalis- Diamond Dog Ancestral Home- Colosseum

I tried to keep calm as I stared at the diamond dog before me, but with the little sleep I’d had and the tension in the air, I was anything but calm. How could I have let Hope talk me into fighting? Sure with Chrys I might have been fine, but on my own I had no idea what to do! There was quite a difference between watching a fight and actually participating in one. A truth I was facing head on.

Upon Blackie’s muzzle, the blood of Fang had dried and stained his fur and canines crimson. The diamond dog didn’t even look winded from the fight he had finished just a few minutes ago. Rather his stubby tail wagged behind him and he grinned creepily at me.

Radiant Hope had settled into her chair with Citheronia placed next to her on the floor. I guess she wasn’t worried about her trying to escape now? Whatever, all that mattered was she was safe, as much as she could be in the clutches of that vile unicorn. I couldn’t let her down. I couldn’t let what remained of our hive down! The big question though, was how would I beat Blackie with the little skill I had?

“We bets you don’t even last a minute, changeling.” Blackie smirked and then gave a hyena like laugh.

“We’ll see about that, mutt,” I snorted. He had a good point though. He wasn’t kept from using parts of himself like I was, and without Chrys my magic ability was… poor at the moment. His experience far surpassed my own as well.

“The fight you have all been waiting for shall begin soon!” the announcer shouted over the roar of the crowd. “Make sure to get your bets in before it is too late!”

My ears lowered at his words and I gulped. Would any of them bet on me? Colt, why was I even wondering about that! I should be worrying about the fight. I steadied my stance. My hooves dug into the sand to try to get some firm grounding, and I bared my fangs and tried to muster a menacing snarl, but probably looked more like a poodle trying to scare a shark.

Blackie just chuckled darkly and bared his fangs in another creepy grin. He didn’t seem worried at all, but then if he was Hope’s champion dog, he probably didn’t need to.

I jumped as the bell rang out and Blackie sprang at me. With a swipe of his right forepaw, he gouged a shallow wound along my barrel, just missing my wing, and knocked me to my hooves. A shriek of pain fell from my lips, as he turned to look at the crowd and slowly licked my blood from his claws. “Looks like we’re having changeling queen tonight!” he yelled and the crowd roared in delight.

My eyes fell on the wound and shuddered a little. Was I lucky it had only been shallow, or was he just playing with me? Whatever it was, my blood dripped slowly to the sand. Not red like the blood that stained Blackie’s muzzle but more a greenish-blue. Look at that, a true ‘blueblood’ royal.. I lied there and caught my breath for a moment as the dumb dog waved to the crowd. It was as if he thought I was already done. Well, buck that idea. I am NOT going down that easily!

I stumbled to my hooves, gritting my fangs at the pain of the dripping wound along my side. “Y-you’ll have to try harder than that if you plan on eating me,” I snarled. I could feel the adrenaline pumping through my veins. My eyes narrowed and fangs bared as he turned back to me.

“Then fight me, weakling!” he snapped and dived at me again. This time I was barely able to dodge his blow, but then gasped as he kicked out a back leg and knocked my left hind leg out from under me.

I rolled onto the ground once more, hissing as I felt the sand grind into my open wound. “Stupid mutt!” I growled, to which he just laughed. Must not lose hope. Too much is riding on my return, my survival.

Once again I rolled to my hooves and shook the sand from my body. I lowered my horn and with a battle cry charged at him. He swerved to the side and with a growl leaped onto my back and dug his claws into the back of my neck. I yelped in pain and fell to my side, dislodging him as I partially rolled over onto him.

With a push of his back paws against me, he wiggled out from underneath me, and stood before me with his fangs bared. I rose back to my hooves but cringed as the wounds he had opened across my neck stung and bled down over my chest.

I lashed out at him, but he pulled back just enough that my fangs caught only fur. He whipped forward and head butted me in the chest, knocking me to my hooves once more as I bit my lip to resist crying out in pain.

Once again I was back on the sandy floor with its sharp shards digging into my wounds. This was hopeless! I’m not a fighter. How can I ever hope to beat this brute? I blinked away tears as they pricked my eyes. No, no crying. I couldn’t show him weakness like that. Blackie circled around me, the lithe muscles in each leg rippled and shone when the light hit the blood splashed on them.

He slashed a paw at me and scraped a gouge out of my cheek, then spat at me. “Stupid weakling, other little ones put up better fight than you!” he chided. “Though we still feasted on them,” he grinned. “Just wish we had some ketchup.”

“They were not yours to touch!” I hissed, whipped my neck upwards and snapped at him. I couldn’t give up yet, even if it was useless. My fangs scraped against his paw before he managed to get it away. Hmm maybe I can do this? I rolled to my belly and then stood shakily.

“Too lates, already eaten,” he chortled and shook his paw I had snagged.

My eyes glowed at his words. “They will be the last meal you eat!” I yelled and charged at him, my neck lowered, whipping back and forth like a snake, fangs bared.

He dived between my legs, but not before I got a good bite into one of his hind legs and he yelped. I dug my fangs in deeper only for him to roll beneath me and knock my hooves out from under me again. My fangs slipped out of his leg as he rolled the opposite way of me and rose back to his paws.

I spat fur and blood from my mouth and curled my legs inward as he sprang at my exposed stomach, then pushed them outward and flipped him over and away from me when he got close enough. As I once again rose to my hooves, I watched him slide through the sand. I pawed a hoof through the sand and hissed at him again. It was time to take control of this battle, time to be the mama bear. No longer would these fiends hurt those under my care.

He struggled to his paws, his left hind leg held up away from the ground. He took in a deep breath and charged at me, though his gait was awkward with that injured back paw. Just before he reached me, I whipped around and bucked out my hind legs, a small grin formed on my lips as I felt them connect with flesh.

The mutt yelped and slid across the arena. He finally came to a stop against the far wall and rose shakily to his paws. I could see uncertainty in his eyes now, as he merely struggled to keep on his paws. I reared and let out a piercing neigh, lowered my head and charged. My hooves dug through the sand, the pound of each hoofstep filled my ears. That’s when I heard and felt the squelch, a grunt, and then everything went silent.

I let my breath out in heavy gasps as something struggled before me. I felt claws scrape against my muzzle weakly but held my stance. It wasn’t until the struggle grew still that I felt the blood as it dripped down my horn and muzzle. I looked down to see a dark puddle of it as it slowly grew on the sand below. On shaky hooves I took a few steps backwards and winced as I felt the weight of the dead dog before me slip from my horn and into the growing puddle of blood.

My eyes grew wide and I stared hard at the bloody mess. A hole gaped through the upper half of his back, and I realized I must have speared him through the heart with my horn. My heart raced, my mouth grew dry, and the realization of what I had just done hit me full force. He was dead! I had killed someone! Oh colt, I had just killed someone!

I looked up at the crowd, their silence almost deafening as they all just stared at me, shock written on many of the faces I could see. Their eyes judging me, chastising me, staring into my soul. My eyes flicked from one face to another, my lower lip twitched, and my mouth hung open as I panted.

The sound of hooves clopping slowly together broke me from the dog’s stares, and I turned to see Radiant Hope with a smile on her face. “Excellent, excellent,” she crooned. “I didn’t think you were going to make it there for a while, but you proved me wrong.”

I glared at her and tried to swallow the pain and horror I felt. It was a huge ball of fear, guilt, and terror lodged in my throat. I coughed as I found it hard to even breathe. All of this, this feeling of wrongness that chilled my blood, this was all her fault!

“You,” I hissed and stepped over to her box seat. “I did your dirty work, what you asked,” I snarled. “Now, give me my daughter!” How I wanted to rip her to shreds for what she had done! No, no I couldn’t kill her. No, I was good. I didn’t kill people, ponies, or any creature for that matter! We had to get out of here. There was no way I could stay here any longer. Not with their stares. Not with the body. Not with the stench of blood that covered me like a blanket. My stomach roiled within me, and I was sure I would puke –if I could have, stupid equine anatomy-.

“Sorry, but no can do,” she smirked. “You haven’t beaten my champion yet.”

I blinked, once, twice, then gaped at her. “What the hay do you mean? He’s- he’s- he’s right over there!” I pointed a hoof back at the corpse. A few other dogs had it now, and began to drag it away. I watched as it passed through the dark tunnel, as I tried to keep to my hooves.

Hope let out a cackle and almost rolled out of her chair. “Blackie? My champion? As if!” she continued to laugh, a few of the diamond dogs in the stands joining her. “Oh dear, dear, Chrysalis. He was just today’s champion.”

“What?” I growled. No, please no! Could a changeling faint? As I sure felt like doing so!

“You need to prove yourself to face the Pit Champion, you silly changeling,” she giggled.

“What?” I huffed. “This isn’t a game Hope!” What kind of sick mind did she have? Enjoying vile events like this, it was just… just horrid! I shook my head as a bout of dizziness fell over me. The wound along my barrel still dripped blood into the sand below me, and my other wounds were not feeling much better. Hope’s little champion had done some serious damage to me it seemed.

She frowned down at me, “aw, is our little queen not having fun? Afraid to dirty your pretty mane?” Wrapped in her magic once more, she brought Citheronia up to her face and held her in her hooves. “Does mommy not really want her little filly?” she cooed at her. Citheronia whined and pushed her little hooves at Hope’s muzzle and struggled to get away.

“What do you have against us Hope?” I snapped and stomped a hoof. These mind games were so frustrating! “Is it just because I wouldn’t join you? Are you doing all this because of that?” I bit my cheek as pain shot through my leg. Perhaps stomping was not such a great idea right now. Faint spots danced in my vision and my hooves tingled as if they had fallen asleep.

“You really don’t recall?” she said softly as her eyes glowed red. “It is far more than simply rejecting me.”

What had I done to her? What had we done to her? I growled in frustration as I tried to think of something we had done. I couldn’t recall anything in the show, nor the comics. Must have been bad enough they left it out? I had no idea what it could be, but as the nausea that coursed through me increased with no way to reduce it I just couldn’t concentrate well enough to care.

“Forgive an old queen for being a little forgetful,” I snarled. “We’ve lived even longer than you after all.” Well, this body at least. I held a hoof to my forehead as the spots grew larger and almost blocked my entire vision.

“Well, I think we shall have plenty of time for you to remember,” Hope chuckled. “You are not leaving here anytime soon.”

“W-what?” I moaned and collapsed onto the sandy arena with my hooves sprawled out to the side.

I heard a soft popping sound and then a hoof placed below my muzzle forced me to look up at a smirking Hope. “Let’s just see how long you can last, shall we? Don’t let an old friend down now and die on me.” She dropped her hoof and trotted away from me. “Rover, Charlie, take her to the room I’ve had prepared for her,” Hope said softly.

I felt it as paws wrapped around me and began to drag me away. Panicked emotions coursed through me and I heard Citheronia begin to cry again. NO! I struggled to get out of the dog’s grasps, but to no avail as the spots blackened.

“Make sure she is nice and comfortable,” Hope said, though her voice was quieter than usual. “I’ll be in to see her soon.”

“Yes, Pointy Pony,” one of the dogs grunted and continued to drag me away. The last sound I heard as I fell into darkness was the keening cry of Citheronia.

Shiny’s Home- Shiny Whistle

“Why would you even go to the changeling hive?” Father growled and slammed the front door behind us. Luckily, Discord was nowhere to be found when the four of us arrived home, but that didn’t make things better. Father’s face was bright red as he let out a growl and poked a hoof to my chest. “They are our enemies. They tried to take control of us!”

“They were just hungry, and most of them are not that bad,” I sighed.

Father huffed and turned away. “Just the thing one of them would say. You are not my son.”

“Father, we already went through this,” I groaned and facehoofed. “Zenovia confirmed I am who I say I am.”

Velvet stepped over to me and wrapped a hoof around me. “You should tell him what you told me and Discord,” he whispered. “Maybe that will help?”

Didn’t really see how it would, but I couldn’t think of anything else. “Father, I… I went to find their hive, their… castle, because I fell for their Queen.”

“Fell in love with their QUEEN?” Father growled as he led the way into the living room. “Shiny, have we taught you nothing? Nor Princess Celestia?” he snapped and stomped a hoof. “We paid good bits to send you to her school. You had such good potential to be a great and powerful unicorn, to make something more of yourself, to make me proud, and this is what you do to repay us? Fall for some monster, a murderer? An enemy of Equestria!”

He held a hoof to his forehead and let out a deep sigh. “Look, I know the Princess wants all her ponies to be friends with others, to share that power of friendship, but trying to befriend a villain? That was just asking for trouble. All befriending villains ever causes is chaos and destruction.”

“Not always, Father,” I muttered. “Along with math and magic and everything else I was taught there and by you, you always told me to care for others and be a good pony.” Though there was that time in Celestia’s class… but who could blame me there? All the colts in my class were crazy for our beautiful Princess when we got to the age where we started noticing the mares and fillies around us. She had quickly set us straight on that though. “Neither of you ever said anything about not falling for mares that were different from us, just to love all and be their friend. Well, I’ve done my best to do that. It’s worked out with Twilight and her friends too. They helped Princess Luna return to her senses. They helped Discord see the error of his ways.” Even if they were still working on that with Discord. Nopony was perfect after all. “I just wanted to, well, find them again and try to bring them that friendship.”

“Well you sure found them, didn’t you?” he snapped. “Now look what you started. Did you like the idea of becoming a slave to such creatures? Is that it? For them to suck the love right out of you until you were nothing but a dried up shell of a pony? It might have worked for Princess Luna and to an extent Discord, but they were a far different type of villain to those bugs.”

“I’m not the one who started this chaos,” I groaned. “Nor was I a slave to them. I was teaching them music with my penny whistles.” I pulled out the whistle Father had given me from my saddle bag. Even with the repairs Discord had made, the tin was still worn thin in places, the blue plastic of the mouthpiece scratched and chipped. I had loved that whistle nearly to ruin so many times over the years, but I could never replace it with a new one. Not when it was such a special gift from Father. Not when it had helped me get my cutie mark.

Father snorted and rolled his eyes. He didn’t even look at the whistle as I held it out to him. “Oh, trying to seduce their queen into loving you, was that it? Of course neither of my sons could just be normal,” he spat and tossed a hoof into the air. “Oh no, all your mother and I wanted was some grandfoals and for our foals to find love. What happens instead? One becomes a colt cuddler, the other crazed over a species whose primary goal is to lure ponies away with thoughts of exotic sex! Those bugs are incapable of love, don’t you realize that? They’ll use it, trick ponies into falling for them with a little flattery and fluttering of pretty eyelashes, and then you are never seen again! Any love you thought you saw them return, was nothing but an illusion.” Father paused a moment to catch his breath, one hoof held to his forehead as he breathed deeply through his mouth.

“Shiny, there were countless reports in the papers after the wedding, of ponies who have been betrayed by changelings pretending to love them. Then the moment their Queen gave the word, they left said ponies and didn’t look back. I just don’t want that to happen to you, my son. Either of you.” His gaze turned to Velvet as he sighed.

“I-I thought you liked Soarin’, Dad,” Velvet whispered and gazed down at the floor. Great, now Father was going after my brother too? Can’t he just accept us as we were?

“I like the Wonderbolts,” Father snorted.

“Solo, Honey,” Mother soothed and wrapped a wing around him. “I know we want grandfoals, but at least Velvet loves fellow ponies, right?”

“I suppose so,” he sighed. “Yet they both need to hear this.” Father turned back to me as his ears pinned back against his skull. “This… obsession you have with changelings son, it has got to stop! It’s not healthy.”

“I’m an adult Father,” I sighed. “I think I’m old enough to know how to pick my own friends and those I associate with.”

“Not if those you deem as ‘friends’ wouldn’t think twice about killing you,” he snapped. “Changelings are evil, deadly. If you want an exotic lover at least go for something like a Zebra! I don’t like them, but they are more pony than those bugs!”

“Just because they don’t have fur doesn’t make them wrong to love.” .

“That is not what I mean Shiny,” he growled. “How can you even trust one of them to really love you, hmm? They feed off of our love, right? A creature that needs love to survive I doubt can produce it on their own.”

“Why not?” I growled back.

“If they could produce their own, then why would they hide who they really are? Why pretend to be somepony’s coltfriend, or brother, or wife? All their kind do is lie about who they are. They grow up learning to lie and deceive, to do whatever it takes to feed off us. There is no way to know if their feelings are genuine or if they are just using you.” He turned away from me and sat down on the couch.

I guess he did have me there. Was that why Chryssy had really turned me away? Had she just been using me? Perhaps I had just become more than she wanted to deal with. She was dealing with a lot right now, a pony obsessed with her probably didn’t help with that.

“Do you not want us to love who we want to love, Dad?” Velvet whispered and curled his wings tight against his barrel.

“I want my colts to be safe,” he said. “The best way to do so is to find a good pony mare and settle down with her. Those bugs cannot love you, or anypony! All they love is food.”

“I just− I can’t− “ Velvet shook his head and plopped down on the La-z-colt across the room. “You’ve known I’ve liked colts for years! Why are you only just getting on my case about it now?”

“I always thought one of my sons would give me grandfoals,” Father huffed. “So now, when I find out the son I was counting on for that doesn’t want to continue our family line− “

“Are you really so obsessed with that?” I yelled. “Besides, who knows, perhaps I could give you grandfoals still− “

“Did you see any foals that were part bug while you were in their control?” Father interrupted.

“Well… no.”

“Did your ‘little friends’ have sex with their pony slaves?”

“None of us were slaves Dad!” Why couldn’t he get that through his head? “I’m not sure, probably?” Was it really my business what they did in their spare time?

“Then I would say it is safe to bet ponies and changelings are not compatible enough to produce a foal.” He folded his arms and narrowed his eyes at me. “Why couldn’t I be blessed with normal sons?” he sighed.

“Solo, our sons are great in their own ways,” Mother said, sat down beside him, and wrapped a wing around him. “Both are wonderful musicians, are they not? Velvet has a huge group of fans for his music, and Shiny has his students.” She turned to look at me. “Students who have been missing you since you left. Do you plan to return to teaching them now that you are back? Go back to your studio?”

“Yeah, I suppose so, Mother,” I nodded. It would be something to keep my mind off Chryssy, though my changeling students -especially Nemoria and Acronicta- not so much. They were just as talented if not more so than many of the pony’s I had taught. Had Discord told them what happened yet?

Father just shook his head. “That may be true, but both have abandoned their talents to follow their lustful dreams,” he snorted. “Most stallions Shiny’s age obsess over normal things like sports. It might not be the best obsession, but I’d rather that than this! No though, you just had to be different didn’t you?” he huffed as he glared at me. “Now look what you’ve done.”

“What, father? What have I done?” I yelled and stomped a hoof.

“Is it not obvious? If you really are my son, you’ve been taken in by those demons ability to give you any fantasy you want.”

“What?” I gasped. “Father, I haven’t done anything like you are thinking.”

“You haven’t let those demons feed off of you in return for sex?”

“NO!” I yelled and facehoofed. “Yes I did let Chryssy feed off of me, but we haven’t had sex!” Sure I may have thought of it at times, especially when her scent was strong around me, but that didn’t mean I acted on it.

“You still let her exploit you though,” he huffed. “Keep you prisoner, locked in her castle to be fed upon.”

“Her feeding on me was my choice Father. I care for her enough to want her well fed. I wasn’t locked up either.”

“Could you have left, if you wanted to?” Father countered.

“Well…” I paused, then turned away when he nodded.

“If they wouldn’t have let you leave, then you were a prisoner, a captive, food even. Another point, it is their job to trick ponies into willingly let them feed on them. It’s part of their… schtick ”

“Noling ever fed on me there,” I said. “As a professor, I was protected from that. She only fed on me while we traveled, and even then she was reluctant to”

“Would of just been a matter of time,” he snorted.

“They treat the ponies that live there well too,” I said as I turned back around. “Not as prisoners. They are well fed, given their own rooms, given jobs outside of feeding− “

“Then you were all slaves to them instead? Does that make it any better?” he growled. “Those slanderous bugs probably solicit inappropriate behavior with their slaves as well.”

“What?” I gasped.

“You heard me,” he snapped. “They find ponies like yourself who want excitement in their sexual lives. I doubt you didn’t give into those whims and sleep with one of those whorses. How am I to find you a bride now, hmm?”

My mouth gaped open as I just blinked at him in shock. “Father, I− “

“That is enough Solo,” Mother said firmly and held a hoof to Father’s chest. “Must we continue with this? I want grandfoals as much as you, but well if our son wants to love a monster well that is his choice.”

You too Mother? I sighed and closed my eyes. At least she was a little nicer about it.

She turned to look at me, stood, and smiled softly at me. “Even if you are a pony, Shiny, and I’d love pretty little grandfoals, I just want you to be happy.”

“She’s right father,” Velvet nodded. “Isn’t our happiness what matters most?” he grinned softly at me.

I closed my eyes and looked away from them all. How could I continue to face this attitude of my father? He didn’t even think I was really me. He didn’t understand. Perhaps nopony really did. I was even beginning to wonder if I even understood.

“Yes Honey,” Mom murmured and nuzzled against dad’s cheek. That usually worked to calm him down. She had kept mostly silent through our fight, but from the look she gave father — a small frown and her ears tilted slightly downward — I was sure she was upset with him. “I know you are angry Solo, but taking it out on our sons isn’t going to solve anything. We are all tired, please give them a break? The Shiny before us is our son, and you know that.”

“I still do not agree with his foalish actions,” he grumbled.

“Yes, I know father,” I said. There was no use arguing with him anymore, never had been. Sure I might have studied changelings behind his back, but when he got an idea in his head he wouldn’t let it go. If I wanted to get to sleep anytime soon, it was better to just let him blow off his anger.

“What’s even worse, you got your sister involved and now she is gone!” he snapped and stomped a hoof on the floor. Not this again! “Does anypony know where she is? No! Is she still alive? Who knows? If anything has happened to my baby filly it is on your head!”

“I KNOW father!” I cried, the tears pricked at my eyes at his words. Colt how much I knew that. If we never find her, it will forever be with me. My stupid plans, stupid ideas, stupid choices.… I’d never be able to forgive myself. How could I? She looked up to me, loved me, and all I have done is let her down.

The tears started to flow, I couldn’t help it, as I curled up on the floor in the living room and shivered. Colt just look at me. I’m weak, useless. I can’t even stand up to all this shouting and ridicule from my father. How could I have ever hoped to be with someone as wonderful as her? A leader? Somepony for others to look up to?

“Solo, can’t you see he’s been through enough lately?” Mother said quietly and nuzzled against father.

“So has my little filly,” he huffed and pulled away from her. “Yet whatever has happened to her, I can’t be there to comfort her. I can’t calm her fears or sorrows.” He turned away from both of us and sighed. “Nor stop her from being hurt or worse, killed.”

“We’ll find her dad,” Velvet said, stood, trotted over to Father, and hugged him close with one wing. “We have an extra set of eyes to look now. Perhaps if we followed Shiny’s hoofsteps, we would find her on the way?”

“Maybe,” he huffed. “That still doesn’t excuse running away.”

“I’m a grown stallion father,” I groaned and wiped at my eyes. “Don’t you want me to be happy?”

“Of course I want you to be happy,” he nodded, “and normal grandfoals. What’s wrong with settling down with some normal mare?”

“Ugh, forget it,” I sighed and waved a hoof at him. “Are you done yelling at me? May I just go to my room?”

“Of course Shiny,” Mother said and smiled softly at me. “You and Velvet have both had a very hard day I imagine? Get some sleep, things will be better in the morning.”

Not likely. Velvet and I gave Mother a hug and then trotted up the stairs. I followed him into his room to grab my pillow and blankets, and noticed Discord’s hammock was still attached to the ceiling.

“Sorry about dad, Shiny,” Velvet sighed and sat down on his bed. “He just doesn’t know her. Not like you… seem to at least.”

“I’m sorry too Velvet,” I murmured and rolled my blanket into a ball with my magic. “If it wasn’t for me, Father wouldn’t be getting on your case for liking stallions.”

“I’m used to it Shiny,” he whispered. “Not from Dad, but others. ‘Oh, you like stallions? Why can’t you like mares?’ they say,” he snorts. “‘There are already so few stallions in Equestria, why make it harder for a mare to find one by keeping one for your own?’” he grabbed his pillow up in his hooves and tossed it across the room. “I can’t help who I am!”

Velvet turned back to me, gave a deep sigh, and wrapped me in a hug. “Just like you bro. If you like changelings, well then I say go for it!”

“Thanks bro,” I whispered and returned the hug. At least Velvet was on my side. He understood, and still cared for me. Why couldn’t Father just do the same? Was it that hard to believe a changeling could be good? That I could see the good in them, even their Queen? All the more reason to get away again.

. “He’s right about one thing though, Velvet,” I sniffed and grabbed my own pillow. “If Dew is d-dead−”

“She’s not.”

“How would you know?” I mumbled. “Nopony has seen her. There are no leads to where she might be.” I’d done so much damage with my crazy ideas. I’d hurt Mother and Velvet all because I wanted to go find the changelings. If Dew hadn’t followed me, she’d still be here, safe in her room.

“Call it big brother, sibling intuition or something,” he said and hugged me close again. “She’ll return to us, one way or another. I’m sure of it.”

“I hope you’re right,” I said and nestled my head against his own. I’d sure missed these times, the comfort of my older brother. The older we grew, the less time we had for each other. “Remember that time out in White Tail woods, during that thunderstorm?”

“When that branch broke off and smashed half our tent?” he chuckled.

I nodded. “Think I was even younger than Dew back then.”

“Yeah, you were,” he said. “It scared you so bad I had to share my sleeping bag with you so you could fall asleep.”

“I wish our problems were as silly as a broken tree branch still,” I sighed.

Velvet ruffled my mane with a hoof. “All part of growing up Shiny, everything gets harder.” He put a hoof beneath my muzzle and gently pushed it toward him. “I know life seems like you’ve taken a trip to Tartarus right now, but I do believe you will pull through. You have more strength in you than you know, and you know what?”

“No, what?”

“All you gotta do is tap into it,” he grinned and booped my muzzle. “Let’s get some sleep, shall we? Then we can figure out a new plan to search for Dew.”

“I’ll try,” I said. Colt though, how was I going to sleep when Chryssy was likely in danger? I might not know what she or Dew were going through right now, but with all Hope had done so far, I still feared for the changeling queen. Now, no matter if I wanted to stay or go, I would just have to try to stay. No matter what Father did, no matter what happened to Chryssy. For to hurt Mother and Velvet again, well, I just couldn’t bear the thought. I wouldn’t be another lost foal.

As I turned toward the door, I paused and looked back at Velvet. “Thanks for being here for me bro,” I said. “Back at the palace too. It’s good to know you still got my back.”

He plopped down on the bed, stretched out his wings and then winked at me. “What are big brothers for, if not to help their baby brothers?”

“Goodnight, sleep well,” I said and with a small chuckle made my way to my own room.

Outside of Sage Grove- Spot

Once again a noise close by woke me from my sleep, this time it sounded like someling had stumbled in the bushes around our campsite. Thankfully, I was on top of our cuddle pile this time, so I lifted off of my friends and hovered in the air. I searched the woods nearby as my heart thumped wildly in my chest. Had one of the diamond dogs caught up with us? It was still quite dark in this wooded area, but I could hear a few birds as they rustled in their nests and started their morning songs.

“H-hello?” I whispered as the sound came again. A low growl followed it. My ears dropped and I stayed hovering, if it was one of those dogs, it couldn’t reach me from here… hopefully.

“Who is that?” a voice grunted that sounded awfully familiar.

My eyes opened wide as a grin formed on my face. Videre stepped out of the bushes nearby, only to collapse with a loud groan as he entered the clearing. “Vidi!” I yelled, dove down toward him, and landed by his muzzle. As I took in all the wounds over his body and his blood covered armor, I gasped in horror. He really was missing a wing! Where it used to be, was now nothing but dried blood.

“S-Spot, is that you?” he moaned and opened his eyes.

I nodded. “Yes, yes it’s me,” I said and stepped nervously in place. He really needed some help, now! “Everyling! Everyling!” I shouted and let out short, quick breaths as I looked around me. “Videre made it! He’s here!”

Many a ling and pony groaned and stirred in their sleep, their gaze fell on the two of us and many of them shook the sleep from their eyes. Crambus was over to us the quickest and held a hoof out to Videre to help him up.

“Thanks,” Videre groaned and leaned against Crambus.

“Of course,” he whispered and turned to me. “Spot, go find a pony to feed Videre some of its love. Anypony will do for now.”

I nodded and raced into the crowd of onlookers, most still curled up on the ground. The first pony I came to was a yellow unicorn mare with a pale blue mane. Somehow, she was still asleep. “Hey, hey, wake up!” I yelled as I placed my hooves on her and shook her awake. “Videre needs you!”

“Huh?” she moaned and let out a yawn, then turned her face to look at me. “I’m not on the menu yet, I fed someling just yesterday,” she sighed and let out another yawn as she stretched out her hooves.

“Crambus says it doesn’t matter,” I said and grabbed one of her hooves. “Please, Videre really needs you!” I gave her my best ‘puppy dog eyes’ as I hugged said hoof between my own.

“Fine, let’s go,” she sighed and followed me back toward where I had left Videre.

“He’s gone,” I heard Videre mumble as we drew closer. He looked up as we arrived and gestured the mare closer. I watched her eyes take in his wounds, her ears fell backwards and I could hear her heartbeat quicken. Yet she nodded, gulped and stepped forward.

I paused in my hoofsteps as I took in Videre’s words. No, NO he can’t be gone! Someling else, he must be speaking of someling else. Yes, that was it.

Videre took the mare in his hooves as Crambus supported him in his magic, and dug his fangs into her throat. She let out a yelp, but was then quiet as he began to feed. I wasn’t worried about her, for we all are taught how to feed by fang at an early age. Ponies, especially unicorns –or Alicorns, as our Queen explained to us in a lesson shortly after the wedding- have very strong sources of magic under their jugular veins.

I had yet to feed by fang, but then that was usually the class a year above me that learned how to do it in practice, rather than out of a book. Videre was good at it though, he’d find the ley line before he did much damage.

He took the feeding slow, even though my hooves itched to learn more. Appy had to still be alive, he just had to! Nothing could kill him, he was my hero! Heroes are not supposed to die! I paced back and forth, my gaze turned every few seconds to Videre to see if he was done, only to let out a sigh and look back at the ground when I saw him still feeding.

Finally, finally he let the mare go, and a nearby pony came to get her and wrap bandages around her wounded neck. She looked a little pale, but she would be fine. Now to find out!

“Videre!” I yelled and ran back over to him.

“Thanks kid,” he groaned and wiped a few drops of blood from his lips. Most of his wounds seemed to have healed, but the missing wing remained absent. He rubbed at the hole where it had once been and grimaced.

“Spot, let’s give him some room,” Crambus whispered as he led Videre further into camp.

“But, but−” I sputtered, to which he put a hoof to my muzzle.

“Dawn is almost here,” Crambus said then turned to the rest of the group. “Everyling go back to sleep for a little longer. We’ll start to prepare to leave for Sage Grove in an hour.”

“Please,” I begged and continued after them. “I must know. Where is Appy?”

Videre cringed at my words, his jaw set as he breathed heavily through his nostrils. He turned to look at me, and I could see tears as they pricked his eyes. “Spot, I’m sorry. Apatelodes is dead.”

“No, no he can’t be!” I wailed and shook my head, tears dripped down my cheeks and over my muzzle. Videre just glared at me as I cried, he almost seemed angry at me!

“Spot, it’s been a long night,” he growled. “He’s gone and there is nothing we can do about it, so shut the hay up and go get some sleep!” He hurried away as Crambus called after him. Crambus frowned slightly at me, then trotted after the fled Videre. Many of those who had awoken followed after them and just shook their heads at me. The rest plopped back down in their places and closed their eyes.

I stood there, stunned for a moment that Videre had yelled at me. What had I done wrong? Was it bad to want to know? It hit me that I would never see Appy’s smiling muzzle again, and I fell to the ground, covered my head with my hooves, and sobbed.

Why? Why did he have to die? He was brave, fearless, strong… he should have been able to survive! He had been fine last time I saw him! I needed him, he was like a father to me. He cared for me when my parents never returned from Canterlot. He held me while I cried and thought noling could ever love me again like they had. Without him, I was just another body in the hive.

What was I going to do now? Even with all the books I’d read, all the lessons I’d learned, pain like this… it wasn’t something a pony’s love could fix. Sure it was tasty, but it couldn’t heal my broken heart. “Oh Appy,” I moaned and wiped my muzzle on a hoof. “Why did you leave me?”

I continued to cry, curled up in a ball where I had collapsed, as bird song grew louder around me. It didn’t matter though, and I wished the dawn would stay away. If the new day never came, I could continue to hope I would see him again. Feel his hooves embrace me to comfort me. With the light it would become clear he was gone for good, as well as who knew how many of the rest of our hive.

Shiny’s Home- Shiny Whistle

I tossed my pillow and blankets on my bed and closed the door behind me. Nothing had changed in my room since I was last here, before my adventure began. My walls the rich red-orange of tomato soup, a black wooden bookcase full of not only sheet music from my favorite songs, my own work as well as pieces my parents had performed for their own careers, but adventure stories I would devour when I was younger. Now here I was, in the middle of an adventure of my own.

My horn lit as I arranged my tan colored blankets and tucked them in, then placed my pillow at the head of the bed. Would I even feel like sleeping anymore? Maybe, I was kind of tired. More hungry than tired though, but I had nothing to snack on up here, and didn’t dare sneak down into the kitchen for something. I wouldn’t be surprised if my parents were still down there.

I sat my saddlebags on the floor near the foot of my bed and then plopped onto my desk chair. The night was quiet around me. I couldn’t even hear Velvet snoring, which he often did. All I was left with were my thoughts, and they weren’t making anything better. I was a failure at so many levels. The mare I loved thought me a foal and not worthy of being by her side. My father thought of me as a failure, not only for falling in love with a creature that likely wouldn’t give him grandfoals, but for leading my sister away from home, to where she was now lost to us. With that, I had failed Dew as well.

Dew expected me to care for her, comfort her, be there for her. When we were younger, while Velvet was off making a name for himself with his music, I had been at home foalsitting for Dew when I wasn’t in classes. She would sit on my bed and sing while I worked on homework, or she’d make hoofpainting drawings to hang on the fridge. In every way, she was my little sister best friend forever, and now she was gone.

I shook my head and tried to make such thoughts leave, but if I wasn’t thinking of Dew, I was thinking of Chryssy. At least with Dew, I would hope she was out there still searching for me. Yet, with Chryssy, I knew things would not be going well. If she still lived, she was likely going through even worse heartache than I was. Did any of the hive survive? Had they escaped Hope’s wrath? Was Apatelodes okay? Sure we might not have gotten along, but I knew Chryssy cared for him. She cared so much for all her subjects. How could I ever hope to live up to her standards?

“Still so upset, are you Shiny?” Discord said as he popped into my room.

“Discord, I’m really not in the mood,” I growled softly. I turned to look at him and let out a deep sigh. “Still refuse to go help Chryssy?”

Discord nodded, “like I said before, when she is ready for my help, she knows to call. Just because I’m Lord of Chaos doesn’t mean I break my word,” he huffed.

“What if she’s unable to call? What if she is laying dying somewhere and you could help her but don’t because of your stupid rules? What if−”

Discord put a paw to my muzzle and shook his head. “Enough ‘what if’s’ Shiny. If you love her as much as you claim, you need to trust her.” He removed his paw and folded his arms together. “Of course, learning some diplomacy wouldn’t hurt either,” he muttered. “Be the pony she needs, that her changelings need. You want her to like you? Find somewhere her surviving changelings can live. Get ponies like your father to twist their little brains around and accept them.”

“I do trust her!” I yelled and stomped my hoof. “It’s Hope I don’t trust.” He was right on that though. What did I know of diplomacy? Other than the little we learned in Celestia’s school. As for changing ponies minds, how the hay was I to do that? “Any ideas on how to do that?” I grumbled and shook my head. My stomach let out a loud gurgle, and I held a hoof to it.

“Ooooh, is lovercolt hungry?” Discord beamed. “I can fix that!” He snapped his clawed fingers and upon my desk appeared a plate of eclairs, their scent quickly filled the air and I felt my mouth water. I reached for one, then paused and looked back at him.

“No funny business right? These are normal?”

“Why Shiny, how dare you accuse me of trying to joke when you are feeling blue,” he frowned and snapped his fingers, which turned himself blue.

“When do you ever not joke around?” I grumbled and shook my head.

“Just have an éclair Shiny,” he said and with another snap of his fingers returned to his normal coloration. “As for the rest, I know you can figure it out,” he said as he tapped my muzzle with one claw.

I let out a sigh and rolled my eyes, but nodded and grabbed one up in my magic. With the first bite I was lost in a world of sugary, buttery greatness. “These taste just like Donut Joe’s, maybe better!” I beamed and quickly finished the first one. “You didn’t steal them from him, did you?”

“Of course not,” Discord chuckled. “He actually got the recipe from me, I perfected it a long, long time ago. Then somepony found it and gave it to him,” he huffed.

“Oh, well….” I didn’t know what to say to that.

“Let me show you something, dear Shiny,” he chuckled and grabbed the plate off my desk. He tipped it over and poured the rest of the eclairs into his mouth and swallowed.

“Wha-what? Discord! I thought you said those were for me?” I whined.

He placed the plate back on the desk and just grinned at me. A moment later there was a little popping sound and the plate was once more filled with delicious Eclairs.

My mouth dropped open in shock, and I gaped at them for a moment. “T-the plate… not an infinity plate is it?”

Discord chuckled and nodded. “Of course, dear little Shiny,” he crooned and patted his claw against my back. “A little gift from me, now you’ll never run out of sweets. But,” he said and picked me up in his magic. “Don’t let that get to your stomach,” he chuckled and patted his lion’s paw against my stomach. “After all, we don’t want you getting all chubby from too many sweets, now, do we?”

“Discord!” I pushed his paw away as he sat me back down and scowled at him. “I’m not some doll! Don’t treat me like one!” I groaned, shook my head and let out a loud sigh as I settled back into the chair. “Thanks, though, for the eclairs. Just, paws off, okay?” It might not fill the holes I had inside of me, but was nice to have still.

“Of course,” he said as his paw and claw popped off his wrists and skittered across the floor to the corner, whining a little as they faced it. “Anytime,” he winked. Totally unapologetic.

I levitated over another éclair, took a small bite, and then licked my lips. “So, Discord, did you have a specific reason for coming here? You know, besides well… to give me the plate.”

Discord snapped his fingers from the corner, his paw and claw returning to his wrists, as his hammock popped onto my ceiling. He glided over to it and grabbed a book from the folds, then plopped down inside of it to read. “Oh you know, just some light reading,” he smirked.

It was then that I noticed the book he grasped in his paw: a dark grey cover, thick with little bits of newspaper sticking out here and there, and though it had no title, it didn’t need one. “Where did you get that?” I asked and tried to pull it from his paw. “That’s mine!”

“Oh I know, and so fascinating!” he beamed. “One would think you a little Twilight Sparkle, Shiny, with how well you studied up for your trip.”

I snorted and rolled my eyes. “Yeah, sure. Most of the information ended up wrong though. I knew so little, and even though I didn’t think changelings bad, I’m sure I sound like the opposite. ”

He rolled out of the hammock and dropped back to the floor, a claw placed in the book to mark his place. “True, whoever wrote these articles was very misinformed!” he shook his head and tsked. “I think a few of your interpretations were quite spot on though,” he said and handed the book to me. “Page forty-nine has some excellent remarks!”

As Discord settled back into his hammock, I flipped to page forty-nine. Across from it was an article dated about one year ago, when a dozen changelings had been found and captured in some brothel on the outskirts of Canterlot. I looked up at Discord for a moment, then back to the book and settled down to read.

From all I have read and studied so far: all the articles, press releases, stories other ponies have told me, and everything else I’ve been able to get my hooves on, something doesn’t seem quite right. Sure it makes sense for changelings to hide in a brothel, easy love right? Yet, there is no mention of them killing anypony. Why not let them stay, if they are not doing any real harm? Does them lying about their true selves in a place like that make them bad?

Also, what has become of their Queen? Has she gone into hiding? Did she survive the blast that sent them far away from Canterlot? I haven’t heard a single story, or read any articles, of her being spotted since the wedding. Can her kind even survive without her? There is still so much we don’t know. None of the captured changelings are talking. Not that I blame them, one should be loyal to one's friends and family. I’d probably do the same in their horseshoes.

Perhaps they harbor the chance for friendship with ponies. Perhaps they can even have a true relationship with one. I just feel they can’t all be heartless beasts. If they are shown some kindness, understanding even, we might not need to be enemies. Maybe a little music would heal the hurt between our two species. After all, somepony once said music can soothe the wild beast. Even if they are not ‘wild’ per se, music is good for the soul. The only question is, how to bring music to them?

I closed the book and fell back against the backrest of my chair. “Already tried to bring music to them Discord,” I sighed. “Look what came of that? Ugh I was so naive back then.”

Discord chortled and rolled over in his hammock. “I just thought it might be enlightening,” he smirked as his tail flicked back and forth below him.

“Whatever,” I sighed, opened my desk drawer, and stuck the book inside. I took another look at the delicious pastries on my desk and pushed away. “Well, I’m going to try to get some sleep,” I muttered and crawled into my bed. The eclairs could wait until morning.

“Sleep well then, Shiny,” Discord crooned and rocked back and forth in his hammock.

“Yeah, well,” I huffed and pulled the covers over my head. Like that was going to happen.

Queen Chrysalis- Diamond Dog Ancestral Home- Colosseum

I awoke to a bright light surrounding me, wrapped around me like a warm blanket. With a groan, I opened my eyes and looked into the eyes of pure evil. Hope smirked down at me. Her horn lit up red. “Finally, you’ve awoken,” she snorted. As the magic disappeared around her horn, I felt the warmth and light around me fall away. “Some ‘strong and mighty Queen’,” she said and rolled her eyes.

“Well excuse me if I’m not in top fighting form, after what you have done,” I snapped and tried to rise, only to feel a little woozy as I did so. I held a hoof to my forehead and let out a moan. I had been placed on a pile of itchy straw covered in dried blood beneath me, though the rest of it didn’t look much better.

“I just healed you, don’t go hurting yourself again,” Hope growled, but then grinned back down at me. Colt was that grin creepy!

“Oh? Now why would you do that,” I huffed.

“You would have died otherwise,” she said cooly. “Now, I can’t have that, can I? If you die, you won’t get all that you deserve. Death now would be giving you a treat. No, I have much more planned for you.” Hope lowered her head until we were eye to eye. “The path to remembrance is dark and bloody.”

“Why not just remind me what you think I have forgotten?” I grumbled and glared up at her. A soft whine came from behind Hope, and I leaned sideways to look.

The ‘room’ was small, when I stood, the roof would likely be only inches from the tip of my horn. A single torch was lit by the door, which was more-so just a hole in the wall. Besides that though the place wasn’t much to look at. Below the torch, huddled next to the wall, was Citheronia. Her big, blue eyes flicked between me and Hope and her tiny body shivered. “What have you done to my daughter?” I hissed.

Hope huffed and wrapped Citheronia up in her magic. The poor filly chirped in fright as she was brought over to us and plopped back on the ground, though Hope still held her in her magic. “Well if you want a reminder, you’ll have to continue to fight.” She wrapped a hoof around the poor filly and grinned. “As for your daughter, it would greatly benefit her if you comply,” she cackled softly.

My heart plummeted at her words. She wanted me to kill again. No, I couldn’t! Chrys had even said we rarely killed anyone –wait, my eyes grew even wider at the thought, I guess that meant she had at least once? Colt, Chrys, I could really use you right now! How does one deal with stuff like this? “So, you want me to fight your champion now, is that it?”

Hope shook her head. “Oh no, you are not ready to fight him yet. You want your daughter back? You want to learn more? Well, remember more,” she sneered. “Then you will have to keep fighting.” She rubbed a hoof over Citheronia’s short mane and gripped the little filly close to her.. “One down, many more to go. If you keep winning, then you will face my true champion.”

Oh how dare she touch her like that! I bared my fangs as Citheronia tried to squirm away from Hope’s grip, but she just held the little filly all the tighter. “Let her go,” I snarled. “I won the battle, didn’t I? So remove your filthy hooves from her!”

“Should you really be speaking to me that way, Your Highness?” Hope whispered as her eyes flashed red. “I hold both of your lives in my hooves right now.”

My ears twitched as I felt Citheronia’s presence connect with me again. It felt… reassuring, comforting even. Her beautiful blue eyes stared up at me, bright with the shimmer of tears. She might not understand entirely what was going on, but she knew ‘mommy’ was very upset. Even in Hope’s grip, she still tried to comfort her mommy. Colt, I sure didn’t deserve such understanding. I’d be less surprised if she hated me for what I had done. Yet, all she wanted was to help me “Thanks,” I sent her way and turned to face Hope once more.

“Pardon me,” I said cooly and narrowed my eyes at her. Hope was right. I had been foolish coming here alone and now both Citheronia and I had to pay for it. What strength I had received from Jim was pretty much gone now. That didn’t mean I couldn’t reason with her though.

At least until I gained back my strength. I’d get out of here soon as I could. Two could play at this game, right? “So, you want me to continue to fight, correct?”

Hope nodded, “Correct.” She lowered her ears and scowled at me. “Not thinking of trying to run, are you?”

“I already told you, I’m not leaving without my daughter.”

“Then my keeping her far away from you would be for the best,” she smirked and wrapped Citheronia in her magic again as she levitated her back over by the door. Citheronia’s muzzle wrinkled as she flew away from me, and tears streamed down her cheeks as she began to cry again.

“No, please!” I begged and held a hoof out toward the poor filly. She had already shed so many tears tonight, I just couldn’t stand to see her cry more. I felt tears prick my own eyes and fall down my own cheeks. So much for holding in my tears. “She needs me,” I whined.

“Oh how the mighty fall,” Hope chuckled and put a hoof to my chin. “Tears, Chrysalis? It seems you’re even weaker than I thought. Fine, I can be… charitable.” She removed her hoof and brought Citheronia closer to me again. “If you win, the little brat can stay with you. I don’t need an even worse headache.”

“Thank you,” I whispered and reached my hooves out for the little filly.

Hope slapped my hooves away and levitated Citheronia back over by the door and dropped her to the floor. Before I could make a move she wrapped her magic around my horn and wrenched me back against the wall, one of her forehooves to my chest and the other the hollow of my throat as I cried out in pain.

“I hold the power, don’t forget that,” she hissed. “Without me, your wounds cannot be healed in time, and you will die. I control those mutts out there, and can order them to kill you if I so desire.” Hope put a little more pressure to the hoof against my throat and I let out a cough as I struggled to breathe. “If you don’t behave and fight, I can make sure your ‘little princess’ suffers a slow and painful death!”

She stepped away from me, released her magical hold on my horn, and watched as I collapsed back into the bloody straw. Hope closed her eyes and took in a deep breath, put a hoof to her chest and then held it out as she released the breath. After she repeated the motions a few times her eyes snapped back open. “You will know the pain, the sorrow, and the trials I have been through because of you.”

“What have I done to you?” I moaned as I looked up at her and winced in pain as I rolled to my belly. She might have healed me, but there was still much that could be healed better.

“You will soon learn,” she hissed and her eyes glowed red for a moment again. “Until then, have your little brat.” Once again she grabbed Citheronia up in her magic and placed her before me. “Here’s the deal: you win, she can stay with you and fill your nights with shrieks and howls. You get food, healed, just enough love for the two of you to survive, and a bath every now and then.”

“If I lose?” I asked as I swept Citheronia closer to me and felt her little body shiver against my own.

Hope huffed. “When you lose: I’ll still heal you, at least until you are sufficiently punished. The brat is placed elsewhere, and you get half of what you really need to survive. I’ll decide when you are ready to face tougher opponents and eventually my champion. Agreed?”

I sat up tall as I could with my recovering wounds and glared up at Hope. Seemed too easy. I mean I took out Fang, I could continue that right? No, what was I thinking? That meant continuing to kill! Could I really do that? Yes, I had to, for Citheronia’s sake. I’d continue to win, and get us out of here. What other choice did I have?

“Agreed,” I growled and nodded. “The only way I’m leaving here without my daughter, is if I’m no longer breathing.” Though I truly hoped it wouldn’t come to that. I wrapped my hooves a little tighter around Citheronia and felt her snuggle up with her little hooves wrapped around me as well.

“Then let the games begin,” Hope grinned.

Long Live the Queen

by QueenChrysalisForever

A New Beginning

Learning of the Past

First Test

Getting Settled In

Cleaning, Changes and Surprises

Classes Begin

Panic

The Journey Begins

Discourse and Trials

Answers Lead to More Questions

The Meeting

Attack

Loss and Anger

Night at the Peach Family Farm

What to do?

Of Rituals and Pink Princesses

All That Glitters...

...Might Be Dangerous

Revelations

Chaos Tells a Story

To Our Fates

Truth Concealed be Set Free.

Family Meeting

Royal Conversation

Chaos and Reunion

Retribution

Foreboding

Trouble Brews

Tick Tock Goes the Clock

Don't Know What You've Got until it's Gone.

Into the Heart of the Diamond Dog’s Lair Part 1

Into the Heart of the Diamond Dog’s Lair Part 2

Epilogue