> In Place Of A Princess, You Shall Have A Queen!
>  by Seahorn
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Prologue: A Sliver of Hope
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

1st of the First moon, 1500 A.E. (After Equestria)
A new year. A time of celebration, hope and planning for most ponies of Equestria. Street vendors were selling leftover toys from hearth’s warming eve, nobles were preparing for the upcoming Gala. Yet, for Equestria’s ruler, every dawn of each new year was a sad time of recollections and regrets.
Standing on the balcony where she usually raised the sun, Celestia’s gaze lingered on the mark of her sister’s plight on the moon. It had been 950 years since Luna’s sudden and heartbreaking banishment. The mark reminded her of her greatest failure, her ignorance, and what could have gone differently if she wasn’t so arrogant.
However, Equestria needed her sun, and no matter how long she wanted to contemplate, she had to raise it. The celestial orb rose at her request with the utmost grace, it’s brilliance reflecting off the snow-white meadows and hills of Equestria. A truly beautiful sight, and one Celestia would have enjoyed had this been any other day. After her chore, she stood on her balcony for a while, wondering what to do for this rare day off in the busy routine of Equestria’s princess. She tried to get her sister out of her mind, yet also felt a pang of guilt for doing so.
Above all, she still hadn’t figured out how to reconcile with her sister when she would be released in half a century, if her calculations were correct. What would she do? The elements of kindness and generosity that she once held didn’t budge when she approached them. Worst of all, she knew it was all her fault. Instead of generously sharing their subjects' adoration with her sister, she took guilty pleasure in soaking all of it in. Instead of comforting Luna with kindness when she was falling into jealousy and hate, she only chastised her.
It would be a miracle if the elements would still trust me, mused Celestia. She still wore all three of them around, yet the element of magic was the only one that responded to her. With nothing more, even in 50 years if she managed to defeat Nightmare Moon again, she would only be banishing her sister for a second time. After what she went through during her first thousand years of solitude, Celestia wasn’t sure either Luna or her could survive another without going insane.
Trying to clear her thoughts, she put down her crown and sandals, walking out of the large gates of Canterlot Castle into the city below. The snow was fairly deep, going up to about half her legs. While most ponies were still indoors, a few of her subjects who were awake at this hour greeted her with joy, and she herself returned them with a kind smile. All that, however, couldn’t fill the empty void in her heart that was only growing.  As she turned the corner and went into a narrow alleyway, she tripped over a snow-covered boulder in the middle of the road. 
As she looked down in annoyance, the boulder began to shuffle, rhythmically moving up and down. Curious, Celestia cleared away the snow with her magic, and discovered two ponies. A chestnut brown mare and lime green stallion, both earth ponies, limply lying on the ground. Horrified, she quickly tried to check their pulses. If they even wanted to have a small chance of survival, they had to go to the hospital fast. The results, however, dismayed her even further. There were no life signs. Judging by their cold bodies, it had been at least a few hours. Worse still, their bodies were dotted with small sores and postules. The hoof pox was responsible for the death of one-third of all ponies, especially earth ponies who couldn't use magic to enhance their immune systems. 
Suddenly, their bodies shuffled again. Celestia grimly lifted the front leg of the mare carefully, and there was what she suspected. A six, maybe seven-year old earth pony filly with a yellow coat and a black mane. She was trembling from the cold, tears glistening like small jewels on her cheeks. 
She looked up at Celestia, her emerald eyes filling with even more tears. She looked back at, presumably, her parents, and finally began to wail and cry with all the remaining strength within her. 
"There, there, it's okay, everything will be fine." Celestia calmed with a soothing voice. Truthfully, it wasn't okay. The filly's parents were dead. Even after her immortal reign, and the hundreds of deaths that she saw, it was sad to send away the ponies she cared about. She still had her sister, too, however far away she may be. She didn't know how to comfort a filly who had lost everything in her life so quickly. 
However, the filly didn't seem to care, as she ran into Celestia's hooves, tightly hugging them as she cried and cried. Celestia didn't, or rather couldn't, do much, as she just stood there and shielded the filly from the harsh winter winds bearing down on them. She waited until the filly cried herself dry, her sorrow vented out into the frigid air. "What's your name?"
The filly said through sniffs and hiccups, "I-It's Pillar, ma'am. Cater Pillar."
"Do you know who I am?"
Pillar gave a sorrowful smile through her bloodshot eyes. "Who doesn't know the prin- princess of all Equestrians?"
Celestia sighed. It was at these moments that she hated her job the most. She simply wanted to hug Pillar, guide her through her new, cruel life. Yet, she was a princess, and a hoof pox outbreak could cause serious issues on the population of a large city like Canterlot. "Okay, Pillar, this must be hard for you, but your parents... passed away from a dangerous disease. It can be dangerous to other ponies as well. Can you tell me where your parents went before-"
"Th-they didn't d-die of the p-pox," Even as her hiccups got worse, Pillar cut her off with fire in her eyes. Celestia was intrigued by this sudden change of tone. "What?"
"They didn't die of the pox," Pillar repeated, her voice a bit clearer. "My p-parents oversped a little, had me before they were married. Townsfolk didn't like th-those kinds of things. They were discovered a year ago, when the pox was hitting our town. They kicked us outta town, calling us the r-reason behind god's fury or whatever."
She continued on, "W-we saw a poster looking for servants in a noble house. We never had much money, and had to leave most of our stuff behind when we left. Really had no choice but to work there-" She stopped, apparently recalling a difficult, painful memory.
"-Then they began to show symptoms. P-Postules, high fever, and a bunch of other stuff that made them r-really sick. They decided to hide it once more, in fear of getting kicked out again. I-It didn't work. The noble family freaked out. They terminated our contract, and kicked us out on last night's blizzard-"
Celestia was taken aback to hear such a story, yet even more so watching Pillar's expression change. Even through her hiccups, her teary face didn't only show pain. It betrayed anger, hate, and a desire for revenge. It was a face Celestia had seen all too well, exactly nine hundred and fifty years ago. "I pleaded to them, 'S-some ponies do s-survive the hoof pox. They will never m-make it through this night out in this weather. Please...please... have m-mercy... just one more night...' they didn't even budge."
Even after all those tears, she began to cry once more, an eerie silence encircling the two of them. Then, she uttered those terrible words. "I-I want to see all of them catch the pox. To s-see them wither and die. then they would know how it feels. I would die myself to see them-"
Pillar couldn't finish her sentence as she was held by Celestia's embrace. She was shocked by the princess's regality crumbling as she felt the warmth of Celestia's fur soaking into her body, but she didn't care. It was honestly all she needed right now. An escapade from the disaster that struck her mere hours ago.
Celestia began to speak in her kind voice, "Pillar, No one, no one deserves to die. Not your parents, not even the nobles that were cruel to you, and especially not you."
Celestia's mind screamed at her for her idiocy. She didn't know what she was doing. She should be taking this filly to an orphanage, an administrative building, anyplace official. She should not be attaching herself to this filly who she even barely knew. Yet something inside her was not giving a pile of stinking manure. 
"If you have to blame anypony, than blame me," She went on, "I, through all these years of living, haven't found a way to end pony suffering. I can't bring back your parents, but I'll do anything to help you get through these hard times."
Pillar blinked, stunned by this offer. The higher-class ponies she knew weren't all bad, yet she had never seen a pony so brilliant and regal that understood her pain and cared for her so deeply as well. 
She took a deep breath, and made her heartfelt request. "Can I stay with you?"
Celestia's mind was screaming again. You have a kingdom to rule. You don't even know how to raise a pony. You saw the anger in her eyes, you will be unimaginably hurt if she turns out bad, you idiot... you idiot...
Yet she now realized what that 'something' in her mind was. 
It was the age-old glow of the two elements she didn't connect with for so long, kindness and generosity. They overwhelmed her, saying this was the right thing to do, don't ever let go. She was surging with happiness, and a feeling that hadn't overtook her in such a long time. The Magic Of Friendship.
How could she say no to such a feeling?
She was spiraling down a thousand-year hole that was leading to banishing her sister again, or going insane from loneliness and regret, or something even more dark and sinister. 
She had to take the chance, or die trying. She said to the young filly, "Are you sure?" The filly nodded yes.
"Hop on, then. Let's find a place to pay our respects," said Celestia. The filly nodded again, and solemnly obliged. This morning had taken everything from her, washed her away into a cold and unforgiving river. Yet, with this new life, and the princess's promise, she might be able to get another anchor.
> Chapter 1: Acceptance
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

1st of the First moon, 1500 A.E.(After Equestria)
Later that day, after Celestia escorted Pillar through the castle and asked her some questions about her early life, it was almost time to lower the sun. Pillar was still very silent, only answering Celestia's questions by nodding or shaking her head. Presumably she was still very much traumatized by her parents' untimely demise. Celestia knew that if she were to take care of this sad filly, she had to do something to rescue her from the dark hole of depression that she had created for herself. 
"Pillar, have you seen me move the sun before?" She asked. Pillar shook her head once more. "Do you want to see it for the first time?" Pillar hesitated. Celestia surely thought she had made a terrible mistake when Pillar began to tear up again, yet she gathered herself, wiped her tears, and slowly nodded yes. "My parents told me that when they saved enough money working as servants, they would take me to the next Summer Sun Celebration to have me see. Now... I-it won't do." Unsure of what to say, Celestia simply nodded and led Pillar away to see for herself.
They headed to Celestia's bedroom, and the balcony where she usually did her celestial duties. With the sky tinted a beautiful orange, Pillar eagerly watched from a windowsill as Celestia flared her horn to lower the sun. The red light of the sun gleamed against Canterlot's white buildings and mansions, filling the world with a pinkish, peripheral glow. 
Then, as the sun began to go down, the shadow of night slowly began to climb up the mountain slope. It started slowly at first, only swallowing a few buildings at a time. Yet, as it accelerated, it began to eat up more and more of the city. In an instant, it had come up to the base of the castle, and a moment later they were in darkness. Celestia had done it a million times before, but in young Pillar's eyes, it was beauty, awe and fear that she hadn't felt before in her life. Some ponies thought of Celestia as more of a goddess than a princess; Pillar could see why.
Now that the world was dark, the beautiful tapestry of stars that was obscured by the sun could be clearly visible. It just needed its magnum opus. Celestia began to raise the moon into the sky, and it dutifully followed her commands. Yet, it didn't have the same beauty as the sun, namely because of the mare-shaped dark scar that was on the moon. A constant reminder of the troubled history between the alicorn sisters. 
Celestia was waken from her stupor as a tiny hoof nudged her leg. "Hmm?" asked Celestia. There was no answer, only a quiet sobbing. She turned around to find Pillar crying again, her voice only barely hearable through the sobs. "I-I'm sorry, it-it's not that I don't like your sunset... I-in fact I really do, just... I-I wish my parents w-were here to w-watch it with me... n-no, the only reason I-I could watch is b-because my parents are gone... and.. and.." she was cut off by an embrace from Celestia. 
"Pillar, sorry to interrupt, but this morning, when we first met, what did I say about living? Please, I need you to remember this," said Celestia. This might be painful, but for Pillar, it needed to be done.
"Everypony deserves to live," repeated Pillar.
"That's right, but not just live, but also to be happy. Especially a strong, smart filly who defended their parents in front of a lord, who survived through a blizzard, and who got to witness my sunset."
"What happened was indeed terrible," continued Celestia, "Yet you could have done nothing about it. Trust me, Pillar, I have searched everywhere for a cure, I never found it."
"I never truly met your parents, but I am sure that they would want you to enjoy your life and cherish it, rather than shun it away and feel guilty." Pillar began to waver, her eyes getting moist once again.
"Pillar, They would want you to be happy. Never forget your loss, but don't let it bury you." With those words, Pillar began to cry again in Celestia's comforting embrace, hopefully for the last time in her tragic childhood.





4th of the Nineth moon, 1502 A.E.(After Equestria)
From the day Celestia took Pillar in, it was quite obvious that Pillar had a very inquisitive mind. Having been an earth pony all her life, she didn't hold much regard for texts which were mostly about magic. Yet Pillar had a keen sense for experimenting, and had even made some trinkets that she had found practical use. For the first two years of Pillar's life at Canterlot Castle, this had worked out for her. Celestia had even made space for a small workshop near Pillar's room, where she could exercise and fine-tune her craft.
In this workshop, she spent many of her days crafting, and sketching for new ideas. It was fun, but she was getting fed up with writing with her mouth, as it just didn't work with her quick mind and short temper. So, with a little help from Celestia, she had come up with a small contraption to store a bit of magic. 
She used this to power a tiny prosthetic with three prongs to hold the quill. It was nothing major, as it drained quite quickly and couldn't store a lot of energy. With a certain alicorn as a very, very powerful magical generator, however, it could go on for hours, enabling Pillar to work on her craft while Celestia attended court and various duties during the day. 
After she lowered the sun, Celestia would have dinner with Pillar in the evenings, both chatting about their day and sharing a few affectionate nuzzles. Then, she would tuck Pillar into her own bed, and she would tell her a bedtime story. She would never tell more than one though, as she didn't want Pillar to oversleep in the morning. When they shared their morning meal and waved each other goodbye, they would each go back to their daily vocations. It was a happy routine Pillar thought would never end.
It seemed like Celestia had other ideas, however. One night, as they were having dinner, Celestia brought up the topic of schooling.
Her immediate reaction was to be expected. "I don't wanna go!" whined Pillar. Since most earth ponies who took up most of the population of Equestria had difficulty writing because of their lack of magic or flexible wings, The only schools in Equestria were located at the population centers where unicorns or pegasi were the majority. 
Unfortunately, these included only Canterlot, Manehattan, and Cloudsdale. After her parents' sudden rejection from town, she didn't like hanging around with many ponies in general. Yet she would have to go to school where everypony but her would likely be a unicorn. She dreaded the thought.
Yet Celestia was persistent. "Pillar, you could make friends in school, it could be great fun! Hay, when I was young, there were no schools to go around, but I still found great comfort and strength in having friends."
Pillar still wasn't convinced. "But you are so strong and kind even without friends! You protect Equestria alone and unafraid, and everything is peaceful. Do I really need friends to keep going?"
Celestia chuckled lightly, touching her newly glowing elements of kindness, magic, and generosity. If only Pillar could know that her existence was the only thing keeping Equestria and myself from crashing down, she mused. Maybe it was time to tell her a part of the puzzle, after all...
"Pillar, if I didn't have the Magic of Friendship, I wouldn't even be standing here right now."
"The Magic of Friendship?" echoed Pillar, clearly confused.
"The diadems that I have around my neck, they represent the elements of friendship. There are six of them, Kindness, Laughter, Honesty, Generosity, Loyalty, and finally magic to bind them together. When the elements find their bearers, together they exert a power unrivaled by any magic from an individual being, including myself."
"Whoa... But you only have two necklaces and a tiara, and you need many bearers, so there must be someone else, right? Can you show me to him..or her? Can you make that magic? That would be so awesome!" Pillar seemed to have forgotten her dinner as she excitedly delved into the possibility of seeing such fabled magic.
Celestia wanted to say it so badly. No, you can't. She's my sister, and she's also the fabled Nightmare Moon. In fact, when I last used the elements, I sealed her on the moon, and that's the reason you are here. As per usual, though, she had to swallow her words, put on a smile, and make vague promises. "She isn't available now, and I'm afraid that will be the case for quite some time. But, what you can do, is going to school and making some new friends! That way, you can try to bear the other three elements for yourself!" and help me save my poor sister, she added silently.
Pillar was understandably skeptical. "Do you really think I can learn to do that, when I don't even have magic in the first place?"
Celestia was undeterred. "Why not? anypony can learn the Magic of Friendship, since it is based on your qualities, not your magical capability. You only need to be true to your heart."
At this, she finally relented. "Ughhh, fiiiine. I'll go to school. It's just that...I'm worried, that's all," Pillar said with a slight smile, being more fond of the idea now that Celestia had illustrated that friendship was so magical. Maybe she could wield it without being a unicorn, after all. 
Celestia beamed, "Don't be. Even without the added bonus of friendship, you'll simply love learning at school!"
> Chapter 2: Intoxication
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

2nd of the third moon, 1503. A.E. (After Equestria)
Pillar was standing at the front of a large classroom, silently contemplating her situation in the most visible position right in the middle of the small podium in front of the chalkboard.
"Good to see you, class! How is everyone after winter vacation?" The teacher, High Rise, began with his usual enthusiasm.
"Good to see you again, Mr. Rise!" called the children in unison.
"I'm glad to hear everyone's alive and well, the pox this winter has been particularly bad." He gave an uneasy chuckle.  "However, I have some more good news for everyone! Class, This is our new student, Cater Pillar! Give her a warm welcome!" 
All she received was dead silence. Pillar could read that most of the foals and fillies were wide-eyed in shock, some even displaying a hint of anger within their eyes. Worst of all, she knew why she was such a problem. She was an earth pony in school within scores of unicorns, and they weren't taking it well at all. Pillar silently thanked the school uniform that it concealed her lack of a cutie mark. Contrary to Celestia's reassurance, she had internally accepted the fact that it would be a miracle if the class didn't bully her outright from her position as the new, blank-flanked, earth pony filly in town.
Still, this level of silence was nerve-wracking. So much so that the teacher himself had to break it with another uneasy chuckle. "Class? I think I said a 'warm' welcome..."
Though it was awkward, most of the foals and fillies began to clap, some even putting on a small smile, if nothing just to be polite. Others, however, kept up that icy, cold glare which Pillar couldn't shake off her mind. 
Mr. Rise continued on regardless. "Pillar, let's see.... I think that empty seat in the middle should be fine for you today. If you like it you can stay there, and if you don't you can come to the teachers' office and ask me at the table, and I should change it up."
Pillar simply nodded, her anxiety slowly giving way to grim resignation as she slowly headed towards the seat in the middle aisle. Celestia was completely wrong, she cursed to herself, Screw the magic of friendship, Screw class, Screw Canterlot...
The rest of the morning call was made without much incident, with Mr. Rise explaining to the class what they were learning in third grade, and handing out textbooks accordingly. After it was over and the ten-minute morning recess began, the fillies and foals began to chat and whisper amongst each other, occasionally throwing Pillar dirty looks. Pillar slumped on her new desk, ready to spend her first day of school in a foul mood. 
Yet, a nosy hoof in her side wouldn't let her sulk, and she turned towards the pony sitting next to her. She put on her best I-Dont-Want-Anything-To-Do-With-You face, but she could only drop it when she saw her intruder's disposition. She was a pink unicorn, with a brilliant mane that was mixed lavender, pink and vanilla. Next to pillar's scrawny black mane, she possibly looked as radiant as Celestia herself. Most surprising of all, she had a smile that was equally bright, and it was directed entirely at Pillar. "Drink this, it'll help you feel better,"she offered, holding a white paper cup in her hand. Even her voice sounded kind and gentle. Strange. It seemed like she had heard this voice some time ago...
Pillar said her thanks, and looked at the liquid. It was probably wise to say no. She didn't know this filly, and judging by the reactions of her classmates when she first met them, this could easily be a nasty prank that was designed to ridicule her. Her bright smile could be nothing more than a really good facade, morphing into an evil cackle at the flash of a flame. 
However, there was something about this filly that made put all of these doubts to shame. Something that was comforting to her, washing away all the hatred and neglect she had received mere minutes ago. Whether it was her smile, looks, words, or voice, Pillar didn't know, but she had to try. She picked up the bottle and gulped it down.
It was a sensation unlike any other. At first, it was no more than her body unwinding, feeling a little more peaceful and at ease. Then, her pupils began to dilate, and a little smile began to form on the edge of her muzzle. The smile soon escalated into giggles, and uncontrollable laughter. All the other foals and fillies were staring at her, but she didn't care. She was too happy to care. Was this the 'Magic of Friendship' that Celestia was so eager about? If it was, then Celestia was absolutely right. It was empowering, sensational, and perhaps a little.... intoxicating. 
She finally recognized the empty void that had been inside her, the void that had been growing ever since her parents passed from this world. A void that couldn't be filled, even with all the kindness and grace of Celestia. Now the void was filling up with this 'Magic of Friendship', she couldn't control herself. She wanted more. Needed more. To get more of this, she had to make friends, right? And with this new sense of empowerment, it could be done with greater ease. Of course, she first had to thank the pony who had shown her this wonderful magic. "Thanks a lot! What is this thing? I love it already!" 
"Oh, you said it already. This is made with love!" The pink pony replied, beaming. 
"This is so awesome. Hello everypony! You might have heard the teacher call my name, but let me properly introduce myself. My name's Cater Pillar! I'm here to be your...friend ...so ...that ...I .....can .......be ........dizzy?" 
With those words, she fell down onto the floor, unconscious.





When Pillar woke up, she was lying on a cot with railings, her back head against a soft pillow. The pink pony was sitting on a chair next to her cot, watching on with worried eyes. She sat up, ready to throw some angry words at the pony, who certainly played a nasty prank on her and made her a fool in front of the entire class. If she were to survive at this new, unforgiving school, she would have to learn how to stand her ground....
Yet Pillar's strong resolve to dish out some mean words for this pony began to falter when she saw the pink pony's face. She wasn't sneering or laughing, but she was beginning to tear up.
"Oh I'm so sorry... I didn't think it would work so potently! I...I just saw you with a sad face after my classmates didn't welcome you, and I thought I could help with what I use to help myself when I get scared or depressed. The formula worked for me every time, but I guess it differs for every pony." She began to sniffle, and Pillar struggled to keep herself from telling her that it was okay. If she was playing a prank, she was being a convincing actress.
"I-I know this doesn't help much, but I am really sorry for ruining your first day at school. I g-guess you don't want to see me any more. I'll leave you alone," she turned and began walking towards the infirmary door.
"Wait!" Pillar called out, not knowing what she was doing. "It's fine, really. Sure, tone it down the next time you use it, but the feeling... it wasn't at all bad."
The pony turned around, with a small smile on her face, "I-It wasn't?"
Pillar nodded, "Yeah, one second, I'm all weary and sad, and another, Boom. I can make friends with everyone. Hay, I see why you use it so often, that thing's a lifesaver. What's in that, anyway? Is it the 'Magic of Friendship'?" 
"Um, no. It is made out of love," she replied, matter-of-factly.
"LOVE? How- Well, I guess that does make sense. Friendship is a magic of its own, so love could probably be as well, but how the hay do you make it into liquid?" Her curiosity was brought back, and she now all but forgot the fact that she wanted to chastise the pony in front of her one minute ago. She seemed to pay no mind, however, as her smile became a little wider. 
"Well, my special talent is making love magic, but it's kinda finnicky and unstable at times. But one day I discovered that I could use it to enchant things. So, I made a bottle whenever I had more than enough love magic to spare, and used it when I was feeling kinda down. The amount that you were given is usually perfect for a pony our size." 
Her expression changed to a slight frown, but she carried on. "In you, however, I could barely sense any love. I had never seen a pony so devoid of love before. That's probably why you reacted so strongly to the potion. Pillar, I would hate to bring out some bad memories, but... are you okay?"
Pillar flinched a little. She still couldn't trust the filly completely. She might still make fun of her, torment her if she revealed her greatest secret. Yet if her talent was indeed one of love magic, then she could be the only one that could save her from this prison of torment. After a long pause, she decided to take the plunge. "It all started about five years ago, when my parents had me before they were married..." She told the filly the same tale that she told Celestia, along with its tragic ending. All the while, she was silently praying that this wasn't a horrible mistake.
The pink pony sat in shock for a while, then suddenly pulled Pillar into a tight embrace. "I-I'm sorry Pillar, it must have been painful to recall, Back then, I really, really should have-" She was cut off by Pillar, who put a hoof above her face as she sighed, "That's okay. It didn't take a special talent to find out that I was sad and afraid, but you're the only one who even cared... it's the least I can do to thank you. But... can I ask you one more thing?" The filly slowly nodded yes.
Pillar thought, now or never. "Can you be my friend?"
The filly hesitated, "Are you sure? I mean, sure, I didn't mean it, but I...I kind of did make you look bad in front of the whole class..." 
Pillar snorted. "Of course. Around you, I feel as if I'm being filled up, from a hole I've been in since my parents passed away. But more importantly, you seem like a good pony to be a friend. By the way, what's your name?"
"Oh, right. I should have told you way earlier, I'm sorry." The unicorn winced, "You know, my name is a bit weird, it's called Mi Amore Cadenza. It has something to do with my special talent of love magic. Everypony outside my family just call me Cady, but I don't really like it that much. Everybody has such good names, like Mr. High rise, Ms. Morning rain, and so on. Why do I have to be 'Cady'? I mean, sure, it's a good nickname, but can't I have an actual name like anyone else?"
Pillar giggled slightly at her ranting. "Well, I suppose we can just make a middle version, then. Hmm, Cadensus? No, too masculine. Cadenicia? Doesn't roll off the tongue. Cadance? Hey, how about Cadance?
The unicorn also began to giggle, she liked the name, and was beginning to like this strange earth pony, as well. "I'd like that, thank you."
Pillar smiled, as she began to enjoy the Magic of Friendship surrounding them. It wasn't as intoxicating or as addictive as love, but it was no less filling. "Well then, Cadance, will you be my friend?"
"Sure, why not?"
> Chapter 3: Friendship is Uncertain
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ever since their fateful meeting at the school infirmary six years ago, Pillar and Cadance had been the best of friends. They did all the things that normal pony friends usually do, sharing their secrets and dreams, hanging out during recess and after school, walking each other home, and doing school projects together. For Pillar, who could find few friends and a lot of ponies that had strong things to say about an earth pony going to school in their neighborhood, Cadance was a lifesaver. As good as Celestia was, she was more like a mother to her, and couldn't be the same way.
So for Pillar, this relationship had been wonderful for many years, but there was a big problem. Cadance was becoming immensely popular among the students at Canterlot school. As the years went by, Cadance became more and more beautiful and charming, while still containing her friendly and kind disposition. She made many close friends, and special someponies. She was the ideal of friendship, the pony Celestia (probably) wanted Pillar to be. 
Her time with Pillar became shorter and shorter, and Pillar couldn't tell if she was truly special to Cadance anymore. Whenever Cadance was busy going out with other friends after school, and couldn't have their once-frequent escapades, Pillar put on her awkward smile, and waved her goodbye. But always in there, in the deepest, darkest parts of her scarred mind, billowed a dark, inky cloud that she couldn't drive away. 
She asked Celestia about this dark feeling, but whenever she asked about the subject, Celestia lost her friendly and caring manner. She nervously turned away, muttered something about the moon and this feeling called "jealousy", and only suggested Pillar to make more friends herself and refrain from being alone. 
Although thoroughly disappointed, she tried to follow Celestia's advice. She tried to make more friends, wandering into student gatherings, and once or twice even asking Cadance to introduce her to the other ponies that she was making friends with. However, such attempts were often met with loathing or contempt, and even the ponies (usually introduced to her by Cadance) who didn't betray such emotions alienated her from their circle. 
All this neglect aside, she didn't find other ponies' favorite subjects very interesting. Listening to school gossip was boring, love interests and holiday presents were mundane affairs (not that she got many of those, anyway.), and even schoolwork wasn't interesting for her, purely focusing on academic knowledge. Half of the texts were of magic and of no use to her, anyway. 
So, when all her attempts failed, she finally settled on the inevitable, yet grim reality of resignation. Cadance was loved by all because she was beautiful, kind and good with love magic. Cater Pillar wasn't welcome because she was scrawny, sulking, and couldn't use magic at all. If Celestia hadn't found her shivering beneath her parents' body, she wouldn't even be alive. If Cadance hadn't made friends with her at the infirmary, she wouldn't have gone to school. How could she dare to hope for anything more? That rowdy spirit to change one's fate had cost her parents' life. Why would she go down the same path, anyway?





23rd of the Sixth Moon, 1509 A.E.(After Equestria)
"Yay, it's summer vacation!" exclaimed Cadance, as she almost flew down the hallway with her usual vigor. Pillar trotted slowly behind her, a gentle but sad smile on her face. They were in their light summer clothes, as trotting around without any clothes in canterlot was considered horrifyingly barbaric. They had joked about the ridiculous nature of such codes, yet wisely decided to follow them when many eyes were watching. 
"It is our last one, you know," she remarked dryly. The Graduation Ceremony had taken place yesterday. She understood that Celestia couldn't come sit next to her, as she was the princess and needed to deliver a speech of congratulations. Yet she couldn't help but watch longingly as many of the foals' and fillies' parents showed up to congratulate their children. 
Cadance, with her kind disposition, didn't fall into the gloom as easily. "Aww, don't be like that, you know we can still hang around, be like old times, you know? Hey, by the way, did you get your cutie mark?" 
"No," Pillar replied, solemnly. "You of all ponies know I have been trying for over six years, now. I really appreciate you trying to help me get it every summer, but'm probably the only one in class without a special talent, and at this point I'm starting to doubt that I'll ever get it now." 
Cadance, even with her ever-growing list of new friends and things to do, never stopped trying to get Pillar her long desired cutie mark each summer vacation. She had always been optimistic, trying to get Pillar to discover her special talent and bolster her confidence. Yet truth be told, after sixteen years of life without a special talent, she was ready to accept that this was her fate, and nothing could change that.
However, Cadance seemed to have other ideas. "I think we need to change tactics," she began, "So far we just have been trying out random things to see whether or not they suit you. We have never really thought about what you like doing yourself."
Now Pillar was truly intrigued. She had never thought about it. Although she liked her workshop with all the gadgets and life hacks that came along with it, she had done it for so many years, yet she hadn't gotten a cutie mark from it. If that wasn't going to do, than what did she truly like doing?
After a while, she finally spoke up. "Well... in my spare time I think I like hanging out with you the most, but how could that be a special talent? I mean, you don't see ponies hanging out with friends for a living. Besides, I really don't have any friends besides you, so I don't even think I'm really good at it."
Cadance wasn't deterred, however, as she continued. "You see, that's the problem we've been having. I've done some research, and found out that cutie marks generally appear when ponies are doing what they like best. So far, we've always been together for a reason. Reasons like school projects, walking each other from school, helping with your workshop, controlling the doses on my love potion... of course these mostly ended up just having fun, but we've never really met just to purely have fun. So what do you say?"
"Sure, why not? But what are we going to do?" asked Pillar.
"Well, I've heard that my parents are going out on a business trip for tomorrow, and I am going to be the only one in the house. I realized that we never had a sleepover before, and it's not often that my parents are gone, so why don't we head over to my place and have one?"
"Sure!" Pillar could barely contain herself from jumping with excitement. And here I was thinking Cadance was forgetting about me, she thought. Nope. Best Friends Forever.





Pillar had the day of her life. Even with only two ponies, the possibilities of what they could do to have fun were endless. After meeting up, they had done all the basics. Pin the tail on the pinata, tug-of-war, hide-and seek, and such. Then, she introduced a game that she had invented during one of her volunteering internships she had been taking. It was called the frisbee, where ponies threw a round wooden disk at each other, catching it with whatever they could and throwing it back. When she tried to catch it with her teeth, her reflexes weren't enough to prevent a painful smack to the snout. After apologies and a bit more practice, she could play the game quite comfortably with her prosthetics.
Being in their late teens now, perhaps they were a bit too old for such childish games. At that moment, however, she couldn't care less. For the first time in many, many months, she had no concern for her relationships, grades, futures, and for that matter, her special talent. After playing games and making a mess out of the kitchen making dinner, they told each other stories. Although some were joyful, some were sad, mostly Pillar's stories about her short life with her parents. 
After spending all day in each other's company, it was time to go to bed. They were lying down in peace on the double bed of Cadance's room. "Can we do this again some time?" asked Pillar. "I really enjoyed today, it just felt... liberating. Hay, I didn't get a cutie mark, but I still want to do this, anyway."
"Sure, why not? I mean, I don't have anything better to do until summer is over, after that I'll be getting a part time job, probably as a sitter," said Cadance.
Pillar bit her lip. Of course this was going to be just one summer. After that, she would go back to being loved by all, and she would continue sulking... 
She turned around, directly facing Cadance. "Cady, I want to ask a question. Even in the future, when we have our jobs, families, and other things between us, could we be the same way as friends?"
Before Cadance could answer, she was interrupted by the sound of a key turning and heavy hoofsteps in the hall. 
"Horseapples!" cursed Cadance, as she frantically threw off her covers. "My parents weren't supposed to arrive until the next day!"
"You didn't get their permission?" Pillar asked in disbelief. "No, you don't understand! I couldn't.. I couldn't..." 
Before Cadance could finish her sentence, the door to her room was flung open. There stood her parents that were wearing stern looks on their faces, clearly not happy about Cadance not notifying them of the sleepover. Pillar couldn't focus on that, however, as she recognized them. A golden brown stallion with a cream-colored mane and fancy-looking glasses. A red coated mare with rich, lime-green mane. How could she ever forget.
The very faces of the ponies who doomed her parents to a slow, painful death.
> Chapter 4: Rain on My Parade
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

She wanted to ask a million things. 'Why did you kill my parents that night?' 'Did you know you were killing them?' 'Why didn't you contact authorities?' 'Was it the only way?' She wanted to make sure that at least they knew what they had done, and they apologized for their actions. She wanted to so badly.
But then she saw Cadance next to her, unusually pale from head to hoof. Although Pillar was seething mad at her for keeping this a secret for the whole time, she couldn't plunge her into even more misery by shouting at her parents. She silently hoped for Cadance to never look for her again, and only said these words: "Sorry ma'am. I won't come back again." before going down the stairs and into the dark alley outside. "You'd better!" called a voice behind her as she trotted out the doorway. 
The night sky was shrouded with clouds, and a crackle of lightning was followed by booms of thunder, and by a downpour that completely soaked Pillar's yellow coat. She recalled the time her parents took their last walk down the same path, shielding her from the icy winds and relentless snow piling up to the top of their legs. 
'It's going to be alright,' they lied, 'let's keep going.'
Soon, however, they stumbled, and stopped. 'Are you alright, mommy?' asked a young Pillar. 'I...I'm fine, sweetie, just.. a bit tired. I think your father and I need a rest,' her mother reassured her. 
Young Pillar objected. 'But...but you have the pox! We need to find a place to stay, someplace warm... anywhere...' She was silenced by the large hoof of her father. 'Shh, we're okay. The lord thought that we would die off soon, but we're made of sturdier stuff. Just rest, and we'll get by.' 
'You promise?' young Pillar cautiously asked. As they laid down in the middle of the street, Her mother chuckled sadly in her soft voice. 'Yes, we promise we'll be around you forever... always...'
Present Pillar, now almost an adult, finally understood everything. Her parents probably knew they weren't going to last through the snowstorm. Even if they did, after the postules began to leak, they would end up transmitting the pox to Pillar. So they died on purpose, giving their last warmth to Pillar to shield her from the storm. Positioning themselves on the middle of the street so she would be easily found.
She hated Cadance's parents for kicking her parents out, knowing that they would die.
She hated her parents for leaving her, alone in this harsh, cruel world.
She hated Celestia for finding her, for not letting her join them in the afterlife.
She hated Cadance for continuing their facade of a friendship, while knowing the truth in the first place.
Most of all, however, she hated herself for not being able to do a thing about it.
Pillar couldn't take it any longer. She collapsed onto the street, wailing and crying. Thankfully no one was there to see her because of the thunderstorm. Or so she thought. After a long while, she felt the rain stop, and a shadow loom over her.
She turned her head up, and saw Cadance looking down apon her, shielding her from the rain with some tears coming down her cheeks, as well.
Pillar shot her an angry look, and spoke up. "How long have you known?"
"From the beginning when we met," she replied with trembling lips. "You told me the whole story, remember? Even though I was like, seven when your parents left our house, I did remember them. They were such cheerful and good-natured folk."
"They didn't leave," snapped Pillar. "You guys drove them out. Drove two sick ponies and a helpless filly out into a blizzard that killed them. Don't you dare even speak about them, if you have any conscience left in you."
"We...We didn't know that would happen..." Cadance trailed off.
"LIAR!" Pillar finally lost her temper as she lunged at Cadance, throwing her off balance and crashing her straight into a brick wall. "You didn't KNOW that? You unicorns, with all your fancy magic tricks, with all those talks about harmony and friendship, with all the wisdom and knowledge from Star Swirl the Bearded, didn't KNOW that putting a pox victim out into a blizzard in the dead of night is going to kill them?" 
She stopped for a moment, as Cadance shook the dust off herself and stood back up. "No... what you did was simply stay ignorant. You didn't care about another servant dying. Who cares? For a high, esteemed unicorn house of Equestria, we were just lowly earth ponies among many. Drive them out, forget about it, and get another one. Things return to "Harmony" within a day. Then it goes on again, and again, and again..." Pillar's eyes were constantly steaming tears as she continued on. "But what about you? You were silent when they kicked out my parents, and you kept silent through all these years with me by your side. Why? Why didn't you tell me?"
"I was just scared!" Cadance blurted out. "I knew it was wrong. Knew they would suffer out in the cold, but I admit it, I didn't want to suffer the same fate... so I kept silent. When I first met you, I was scared that you were going to hate me if you knew the truth. I know this doesn't mean much, Pillar, but I'm really sorry. Sorry for not speaking up when I had the chance. Sorry for not telling you about this mess for all these years."
"Well, too bad you weren't sorry for it back then," she let out a bitter sigh. "Then again, you wouldn't have to be sorry if you had the balls to be that way."
With those words, Pillar left her behind, into the dark, raining night of Canterlot. She dutifully followed her way up into the castle, a route she knew by heart. A route she had walked with Cadance for so many years. Entering the gates, she soon reached her bedroom next to her workshop, and cried herself to sleep.





The new morning of Canterlot began with a beautiful sunrise, with the thunderstorm cleared and a red, yellow, and white hue slowly growing brighter from the horizon. However, Pillar wasn't in the mood to enjoy it. With swollen eyes from last night's failed sleepover, she didn't bother to wash or tie her hair as she walked up to the kitchen. 
She wasn't surprised to find someone in there: some staff were vigilant, after all. However, as she turned and met eyes with the pony inside, she was surprised to find Princess Celestia herself. "Why, Pillar! It's good to see you, but shouldn't you be at Cadance's house having a sleepover?"
Pillar forced a smile. She couldn't let Celestia know that she ditched her best friend for what happened long ago. She hated herself for it, but she didn't want Celestia to hate her for it. "Nah, we forgot to notify her parents, and I didn't want to cause any trouble, so we ended the sleepover pretty early," she defended herself. In all honesty though, it's not all a lie, she thought.
"You really shouldn't have done that," scolded Celestia. "There was a thunderstorm outside last night, and no sane pony would ever go out there alone without a cover of some sort... but I am glad that you are here now, Pillar. I have something to talk about you. About us."
"Sure, what is it?" replied Pillar, albeit with mild apprehension. Celestia never used that tone if it wasn't something serious. "It is about what you are going to do after graduation." Pillar's apprehension suddenly became much greater.
"Um... princess," she began. "I know I flunked school. I know my grades are... mediocre at best. Hay, I don't even have my special talent. But I'll try to get a job in Canterlot after summer vacation. When I earn some money, I think I can rent a small house and a plot of land as a tenant. I'm an earth pony, so even if I don't have a special talent, I got to be good at farming, right?"
Celestia let out a small chuckle. "Well, you could do that, but I think you can be so much more. Although, I think this is not the right place to talk about it, don't you think?" she said, pointing at the messy kitchen. Pillar, curious, could only nod and follow her to the private dining room. Once they were seated with fresh oatmeal in their bowls, she finally spoke up.
"First off, I'm going to have to make some apologies. I was getting worried about what your future and special talent was going to be, and I remembered you liked to invent things in your workshop. So... I snuck into your private workshop. But I promise you, I didn't touch anything," she quickly added, looking at Pillar sheepishly.
Pillar shrugged. "Well, it's fine I suppose. It was just a hobby, and there wasn't much going on in there anyway." 
Celestia appeared quite amused by this answer. "Really? I thought it was quite the contrary. Sure, there were some things that wouldn't really work out, but there were many designs that, if realized or enlarged, could be quite revolutionary."
Pillar was intrigued. She never thought her hobby could make a difference. "How so?" she asked.
"For starters, You haven't been charging your prosthetics off of me, anymore, haven't you? Your battery models are quite advanced now, being able to draw emanating magic from other ponies. If this could be enhanced, then we could be powering our entire cities without unicorns having to light them up with magic all day."
She went on, "Not only that, there were large self-moving boxes with wheels running on some tracks, a small trinket you can hold in your hand to talk with people far away... the possibilities of such inventions are endless! If you have proper funding and some proper research done, you could be helping not few, not hundreds, but millions of ponies! Doesn't that sound like a better vocation to you?"
Pillar was dreamy. Her only wish was coming true: to live a happy life while finding something she liked. She hadn't felt this happy since she met Cadance at her first day of school. Thinking about her failed friendship downed her mood a little, but the shining chance ahead of her was enough to silence that little bit of sadness. With a shaking voice, she gave her answer. "It does, and although I doubt those things will make much difference, I will try, princess. I will try."
"Excellent!" she exclaimed. "We have many things to organize, Pillar. Starting today." They ate their remaining meals quickly, and began their happy march up the stairs to Pillar's workshop.
As they crossed the sunlit halls of the castle, however, something on her flank caught her eye. It was a large gash, about three hooves wide and one hoof tall. There was a thin strip of blood-stained gauze on it, not quite enough to cover the whole injury. 
At first, pillar tried to touch the gauze, trying to make it fit onto the wound. However, when she touched it, she could only feel fur and skin. She touched the wound itself, but instead of aggravating pain, she only felt a pleasant stroking sensation. Then, it finally hit her: this was her cutie mark. Her lifetime representation of her character.
The more she looked at it, however, the more confused she became. She wasn't interested in the field of medicine. She wasn't a brawler who was prone to get such a wound. The only violence she had commited was... yesterday. When she kicked her best friend into the wall of a narrow alleyway for her lies. She hadn't seen her cutie mark before then, and she had discovered it this morning, so it had to be the disastrous sleepover from yesterday. 
Unfortunately, this meant she could narrow down her special talent into two things. Hurting others or getting hurt by others. Her mind was furious with angry questions. How can hurting or being hurt count as a special talent? Why do I have to get this talent? Can a cutie mark change? Should I tell this to Celestia and scrap our plans?
Her stupor was cut short by Celestia calling her name, though. "Pillar, are you coming?" 
With some hesitation, she replied yes, and made up her mind. Life had been cruel to her multiple times. Sending her loving parents only to take them away. Sending her a friend who turned out to be their murderer's daughter. Through thick and thin, however, she stood her ground and fought. If this was what fate was pointing to her, she wouldn't just accept it blindly. She would try her best to defy her special talent, and focus on helping ponies as much as she could. 
And with Celestia to help her, it might even work.
> Chapter 5: Double, Double, Toil and Trouble
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

30th of the Seventh moon, 1517 A.E. (After Equestria)
Celestia took a deep breath. "Pillar, for the last time, you're clearly tired. You can do the field testing another time." Swiftly ignoring her mentor's advice, Pillar's face showed a force of will like no other. She cranked up a handle on her contraption: a long line of carts with metallic wheels, and it started moving. Slowly at first, but it continued to pick up speed to the point it was thundering down the test track faster than an earth pony could ever run. 
Betting on Pillar had turned out to be Celestia's greatest gamble so far. Although Celestia couldn't link Pillar's cutie mark to her adeptness at engineering, she was clearly gifted towards this profession. Pillar had improved her models on magic motors and batteries immensely. They were now able to exert a force of up to 100 mechanical ponypower (which was also a measurement invented by Pillar), or, in this case, pulling a 'train' laden with rocks faster than an earth pony could ever run.
Celestia could clearly see the potential of such an invention. With the current specifications, this 'train' was able to carry   the weight of approximately one hundred ponies at the speed of a cruising pegasus for at least six hours straight, and this was just the prototype. This wasn't the first of Pillar's successes, either. She had refined her prosthetics, and years of testing had proved that it could be very helpful in improving the daily lives of earth ponies who couldn't use magic. She also was tenacious, working tirelessly to perfect or improve her creations. 
As the train stopped to a halt near the end of the test track, Celestia greeted her student with a happy smile. Her ever-observant mind, however, was planning for her future. Her own virtues were admirable and so far, Pillar had been the only one to reactivate Celestia's elements of harmony. In time, she might be able to handle the other three, since the elements of harmony, except for one, didn't require adeptness at magic.
Celestia, in her youth, would have been furious about somepony other than the alicorn sisters being called a 'Princess'. Before modern times, when politics were violent and ponies much less civilized, she would crack down on such ideas as high treason. It was often followed by imprisonment, torture, and execution. Yet times changed, and the years without her sister weren't kind to her. 
She hoped that with Pillar, maybe she could share her burden and sorrow. Maybe she could share her loneliness.
And maybe Pillar could save her and her poor sister from the grim fate of hatred and separation.




17th of the fourth moon, 1519 A.E. (After Equestria) 07:20 a.m.
Pillar opened her eyes to the sound of chirping birds outside her room at Canterlot Castle. Her mind and body was frazzled from lack of sleep, her innards were twitching from anxiety, yet a smile crept up to her face. This was it. The day that would reward her. All her lessons, all her sleepless nights of practice, all her sacrifices. It was her day of ascension.
After jumping out of her bed, she washed her face, and began to comb her mane. Despite her trials and tribulations, Pillar was never a pessimist, but she was also not a fool. She knew that if she went into her “test” without at least looking like a princess she would be expelled from the castle grounds before she caught sight of her “judges.”  
The unicorn nobility of Canterlot hadn't looked at Celestia's plan of Pillar's ascension very kindly. There had been many rumors about Celestia intending to choose a new princess to aid her, but it was always assumed that since a thousand unicorns had moved the heavens before the Alicorns, they would be the ones to receive the honor. When it turned out that her candidate had been an earth pony engineer, the resulting uproar was quite massive. The unicorns knew better than to directly insult Celestia, so most of the harsh words from the press were directed at Pillar. 
It was a nightmare for Pillar to go through, yet she endured it through Celestia's unrelenting support and her thorough determination. In the end, the situation was resolved by a compromise. Pillar would go through a test that a committee of 'independent' judges would lay out, and if she was able to pass them, the nobles would acknowledge her as a princess.
As she tried to swallow her contempt towards them, there was a knock on the door.
“Yes?” she answered.
“The princess has asked her personal student for an audience at the dining hall, Ms. Pillar. However, You don’t need to go if you feel too uneasy to do so,” said the voice.
Pillar breathed a sigh of relief. Of course her mentor was there for her. Always there. Watching, helping, guiding, but never forcing. She was the only pony she could truly trust in this world. She envisioned what her parents would think of her now if they hadn’t passed away, yet she quickly dispersed those thoughts. Today wasn’t the day for introspection, but for action.
“I’m going, don’t worry.”



As she entered the dining room, she once again marveled at her mentor’s sheer brilliance. Celestia’s multicolored mane, flowing without any wind; her wings, neatly tucked into her body, carefully groomed; her crown, glistening on top of her tall form, all simply speaking “regality.”
Yet her kind smile, which never seemed to fade, told everyone in the room (in this case, Pillar) that she was meant to be loved, not feared. In Pillar’s eyes, She couldn’t be defined as a creature. More like an idea, an embodiment of Harmony itself. An idea that Pillar, however hard she may try, could never aspire to be.
“Welcome, Pillar. Have a seat,” said the princess. Pillar happily obliged. For a while they ate in silence, until it was finally broken by Celestia.
“Are the tests that they proposed troubling you?” she said, her ever-watchful eyes gazing at Pillar.
“A-a little bit, yes.” she replied, her voice trembling and eyes fixated on the table. Celestia frowned deeply, then sighed.
“Pillar, it is they who do not understand that all ponies have great skill apart from magic. For earth ponies and pegasi, your inventions, most notably the train, have been crucial in moving and widening their aspirations at life. The voices of unicorns that can be heard may not like you right now, but there are ponies in this land that already love and adore you,” she said, comforting Pillar.
“Making sure that ALL ponies in Equestria live happily is why I rule, something I couldn’t have acheived without your help. You deserve princesshood, Pillar. Don’t let yourself ever doubt that,” said Celestia.
“But that won’t help in today’s tests! The judges don’t care! If they did, they wouldn’t have come up with testing me in the first place! They would demand impossible tasks, only available with magic! They would place impossible restrictions on my tools! They would.. They would...” Pillar couldn’t continue, as Celestia’s firm embrace surrounded her, yet still somehow managed to be gentle.
“Don’t worry. Personally, I don’t want them intervening in the first place, but as I said, a princess must make everyone happier. But trust me, they wouldn't want to anger me any further. Just think of this as a visit to the dentist, to check if there’s anything wrong, and last time I checked, you were completely fine.”
Her words were so assuring to Pillar. The princess was right. She hadn’t come to this moment for nothing. She would pass in flying colors, and she would finally become what she had always dreamed. And even if she failed, the princess would never bully or look down on her, like so many others did when her family first moved to Canterlot.
No, this was going to be a perfect day.



17th of the fourth moon, 1519 A.E.(After Equestria) 11:00 a.m.

The two massive doors of the audience hall of Canterlot Castle were opened as a tall, gleaming-white alicorn and a noticably smaller earth pony came trotting in. The seats were already packed to the brim with ponies, most of them being unicorns. Although there were some pegasi and earth ponies, they were mostly in the sidelines, either standing up or crouching down.
The loud murmurs in the halls were instantly silenced by their arrival, and all of the prominent nobles in canterlot instantly bowed in a gesture of courtesy, yet Pillar could all too well see the icy glare of contempt on their faces. She shuddered, as she knew they were directed at her; Her fate would be judged by those who loathed her and wanted to get rid of her.
After a few moments of silence, the leader of the judges stood up. Unfortunately for Pillar, she recognized who he was, instantly. Him and the mare sitting next to her were the two ponies she hated most throughout her entire life. They had ruined her peaceful life by driving her parents out into the blizzard that fateful night. Now that she had built a new one, they simply had to ruin that, as well. She swore to herself never to let that happen again.
Regardless of Pillar's cold expression, the lead judge began. “Your highness, it is a great honor to be a part of this council in determining Equestria’s future. Yet, it grieves me to no end that this is what matters have come to. Perhaps, if the nominee was a magic user, such drastic actions may have not come to pass,” he spoke.
“Oh, Lord Providence, I deeply share your heartfelt grief. Perhaps there wouldn’t have been a need for such drastic actions if this council would have simply accepted my judgement and authority as monarch of Equestria in the matter of choosing my equal?” Celestia replied with a snide grin. Pillar couldn’t agree more. She even wondered why there was a council in the first place. Wasn’t Celestia more powerful, wiser, and more caring than any noble currently sitting in this room?
Oblivious to Pillar's thoughts, Lord Providence went on. “The custom of Equestria dictates that when the ruler and his or her advisory council disagrees, there is a compromise to augment such differences. As such, we have concluded that an examination to showcase whether or not the nominee-”
“student.”
“Beg your pardon?”
“I am Princess Celestia’s personal student, and I wasn’t nominated by the council, I was chosen by her. As such, I want you to address me properly for such an important occasion,” Pillar stated with confidence. Even if she wasn’t a master like Celestia, trolling the nobles was certainly an enjoyable pastime.
The elderly judge seemed to disapprove of this improper behavior, but whatever he was thinking, he didn’t show it.
“As I was saying, it was determined that an examination to showcase whether or not the student is worthy of her crown and ascension is the best course of action. So without further ado, we shall commence said test.”



In front of Pillar stood three unicorns, each armed with nothing but their horns. Yet pillar knew that they were the  elite unicorn members of Royal Guard, trained with precision and discipline. She wore a clear visor which  with wires stretching to her flank, where a black box-shaped object was connected. She also had two mechanical prosthetics with claws, which were sticking out of her front hooves.
“A long time has passed since Equestria has seen any direct threats to the princess’s life, yet one must always be ready for such an occasion. You will have to prove yourself in being capable of defeating any such threats alone, or at least buy time for the true princess to return and resolve matters once and for all,” said Providence.
You mean meatshield, thought Pillar, yet she kept those thoughts to herself.
The judge went on, “Also, as our beloved princess herself have demonstrated many times, such exercises of force must not be lethal. Equestria is built on the solid foundation of harmony, and a single unneeded loss of life will render that useless. Am I making myself clear?”
“Crystal,” she tried to reply with as little emotion as possible.
“Then we shall begin,” called the judge as he gently slipped back into his seat. By his sly grin, Pillar could tell he was quite clearly anticipating her to fail in embarrassment, to learn her place in the hierarchy as nothing more than a lucky student that somehow earned Celestia’s favor.
Yet Pillar would not flag or fail, as today was her day, and she would fight muzzle and hoof until she got what she deserved.
The unicorns took the cue and advanced slowly, arming their horns up to a bright crackle. Although they would be firing no more than stun spells, the moment she was knocked out, so would be her lifelong dream. They glared at each other for a while, ready to act at the drop of a pin.
Suddenly, a wild bolt of energy flew towards her, quickly followed by two successive blasts. She quickly dodged, spotting the split-second alert on her visor before the blast as the unicorns’ magic signature rose to aggresive levels. Before they could recharge, she quickly pounced on one of them, using her claws to grab and slam his horn into the ground. One down, two to go.
As the incomplete blast was fizzed out, she swerved again to avoid two more blasts exploding where she was two seconds ago. Turning around, she used her robustly-built earth pony body to her advantage, using sheer mass to charge the two unicorns. Knocking off their balance, she used her two prosthetics to grab each of them by the throat, effectively beginning to choke them...
Only, she didn’t. She was a princess in training, and they were her soldiers. Turning and smiling to her judges, she said “Is this enough?”
Dead Silence.
After a long pause, One mare smirked, “Less of a princess and more of a raging bull.” As if on cue, the entire room was filled with angry hissing noises, loud thumping of hooves, and many cries of shock and disgust. Pillar was furious. Hadn’t she followed their instructions down to the letter? She didn’t kill anypony, defeated the attackers, all without a hint of magic. What more could they want?
Celestia, however, knew better. She could see that the emotions in the eyes of the judges were not outrage, nor anger, but fear. She could afford to be gentle with a lot of enemies in the past. She was powerful, and could take liberties to both neutralize the threat and comfort her people at the same time. Yet, this had the side effect of making ponies, especially younger ones, to think that was the norm. And Celestia learned from experience that when things deviate from the norm, ponies didn’t take it well.
Of course, Pillar didn’t have this experience, and she had to use every inch of her willpower to stop herself from going berserk and strangling every single one of the judges for real. However, Celestia was again to the rescue, as she addressed the council’s unrest with a stern tone.
“Mares and Gentlecolts of this council,” she started, “Although miss Pillar’s methods may not have been akin to your tastes, her requirement was to subdue her fake assasins without killing or seriously injuring them, and she has demonstrated this ability perfectly. Therefore, she gets to pass on this round. Remember, this is a direct and formal agreement between the council and the crown.
The crowd grew dead silent once again. She implied it rather subtly, but they all knew what it meant. If they continued to veto the original agreements, it would be going against the direct will of Celestia, which would count as treason. Although she hadn't pressed such charges in a long, long time, her hard expression and tone told everyone in the room that her patience was wearing thin.
The silence was broken once again by Providence, who gave all the other judges an ominous look. He then whispered to the next stallion; “Gather all the others at lunch break. We shall discuss this together,” After that, he bowed respectfully to Celestia, “Your will is ours to serve, your highness. Miss Pillar is qualified to continue with the testing.”



17th of the fourth moon, 1519 A.E.(After Equestria) 1:00 p.m.

After a series of tests were conducted, Celestia announced,
“Let us continue after the lunch break, and we can meet here again an hour later. Pillar, would you care to participate in another meal with me?”
Pillar, even with all her weariness from testing, almost squealed yes. Instead, she kept her composre.
“Of course, princess.”
With that, all of the judges began to disperse from the audience hall, eager to take a small break from what had been a tiring ordeal themselves.
Pillar followed Celestia up the winding stairs and hallways into the dining room. When they entered, she could see that the meal had already been prepared for them, more specifically, for her. She could clearly identify her favorite food; cabbage soup with celery and radish, along with some fresh salad. Unlike her fellow young adults, she didn’t possess a craving for sweets.
Once they sat down, for a while they ate in silence, both contemplating the day’s events up until then. It was Celestia who broke it.
“Pillar, I am sincerely sorry for what I thought was a reasonable compromise. Maybe I was too naiive. I thought the nobles were merely worried about an earth pony becoming a princess. No... They are actively trying to disqualify you.”
She shook her head once and said, “I’m truly concerned, Pillar. You are no doubt strong and intelligent. Through our training and your ingenuity, you managed to overcome each obstacle so far. Yet... I fear that you may face ever more difficult challenges, until you wear down from exhaustion.”
She paused, and felt Pillar’s little hoof gently touch her own.
“Don’t worry, princess. I’ve prepared my whole life for this day, and even if they try to, I won’t let them take it away from me. Sure, the timber wolves they suddenly put out onto the arena were... Scary, but I managed to subdue them all with a quick sleeping dart. They can try to make me quit, but I will never, ever, ever let them.”
Celestia was stunned. Unlike the nobles, she knew Pillar had some steel in her, but even she had underestimated her greatly. From the day Pillar first walked into the castle as a crying filly, Celestia was the one usually comforting Pillar’s soft heart. But as the years went by, the constant loneliness and disdain towards her hadn't broken her like any other mare. Rather, it shaped her into a formidable pony, ready to face whatever the world would throw at her.
All of it actually reminded her of Luna. They both appeared weak and malleable, but possessed a steely core inside them that was impossible to break. If only she had noticed that back when....
No, Celestia thought, What’s done is done. I can be here for this one. I can protect her from going down the same path, you remember the plan, she can even help bring back my sister from darkness.....
Crashing her train of thought, she came back to answer Pillar. “I’m sure you can pull through. Which reminds me, what do you plan to do when you become a princess?”
Pillar was taken aback by this question. She had been so focused on her goal of becoming a princess that she hadn't considered what actions and responsibilities she would take on after becoming one. After thinking about it for a while, she realized that she knew the answer already.
“I know that a princess should work for everypony in her kingdom, yet I want to do something... Something for the ponies like me who are unfortunate enough to have neither wings nor horns. All they can do is farming or less complicated tasks with their mouth, and can’t even use healing spells for diseases...” She said that last part in a particularly dark tone.
Celestia understood. After she had found filly Pillar in that cold winter day, Celestia had promised to find someplace safe to pay their respects. However, as the day was getting gradually warmer, she had to burn them right where they lay, as the Hoof Pox was highly contagious, and traffic was starting to build up. Even after growing up and eventuallly becoming the princess’s personal student, losing one's parents that way is not an easy memory to forget.
She simply nodded, then the meal continued on in revered silence. The castle bells ringing three signaled that they had to return to the testing arena, and as they trotted back to the audience hall, Celestia silently wished Pillar the best of luck, both for the present and the future.





The rest of the afternoon tests went by smoothly. Pillar completed each and every one of the judge’s requests, from filing papers without magic, to defeating hydras and cockatrices straight out of the Everfree forest. During the cockatrice test, a few of the judges themselves were turned to stone when a random look was shot towards the stands, not the enemy in front of it. While the judges implored that it was a princesses’ duty to protect Equestria’s citizens from such dangers, Celestia merely scoffed, saying that she couldn't protect insane citizens with a death wish that had let angry cockatrices wander into their resident homes. Although she didn’t show it, Pillar was snickering heavily inside.
Yet the end of all the trials was near. The sun was coming down, the promised end of all of today’s trials and tribulations. Even though she was thoroughly exhausted, Pillar smiled to herself as the lead judge came up to her for a new request.
“Congratulations, Miss Pillar, you have proven yourself successful at proving yourself in every situation that a princess might face during more turbulent times, yet there is only one test that remains to be done.”
She lightened up a bit. While her magical battery charges were still strong - courtesy of Celestia constantly filling them up during breaks - her physical body was beginning to wear out. After this long test was over, she could really look forward for a nice warm bath in the tub, and a good few nights of sleep.
“As the new princess of Equestria, you must help lessen your mentor’s load on her daily jobs, as well as help her deal with numerous threats to the nation.”
“Of course,” replied Pillar, wondering where this was going.
“As such, you are to prove yourself capable of rasing the moon. Since the sun is at the horizon, this will be your final test. As our beloved princess lowers the sun, you must be capable of raising and maintaining the moon.”
Celestia was horrified at this request. Although she hadn't told anyone about it, raising the moon wasn’t just a simple task that you could do if you had enough power at your disposal. Not even the alicorns had the magical capacity to move something that massive by pure force. The celestial bodies were intertwined with the magical field itself. Only alicorns, who had a special affinity the star’s energy, were able to move it. Pillar being an earth pony, it would be impossible to do so. The judge didn’t know this. He only devised it up because he wanted Pillar to fail with a lack of magic after all she had been through.
Celestia stormed up to the lead judge, fire dancing in her eyes.
“Thank you for your concern, my lord,” said Celestia, through clenched teeth. “But I’m sure I won’t need any help in moving the sun, or the moon, as I have continued to do so for the past one thousand years.”
The judge was visibly shaken by his monarch’s hostile attitude, yet he spoke up again, giving a glare of pure loathing towards Pillar.
“Your highness, you also don’t need any help in protecting Equestria, ruling Equestria, or making its citizens happy. For all honesty, a second princess should be an honorary position, reserved for those whom are only regarded with the highest esteem and prestige. Instead, do you intend to make ‘this’ your equal? This lowly, insignificant earth pony?” he exclaimed with great agitation.
Celestia seethed with rage. He knew nothing about what was to come, or rather come back, in thirty years. “Take great care in your next words, my lord,” threatened Celestia, “Are you directly insulting my decision to bestow my personal student of my highest honor?”
Before the judge could say another word, something stepped in between them. “Alright, that’s enough,” she turned to the judge and asked, “If I am able to raise the moon, then am I definitely qualified as a princess?”
With a sly grin, he answered. “Sure, there would be no more doubts, no more accusations, no more harsh words. You will be a full princess of Equestria, and I will grovel on my hands and knees before you.”
“Deal it is then,” Pillar answered coolly, as she prepared to unleash the full remaining power of her batteries onto a single point of her prosthetic, and try to move the moon.
Celestia was once again horrified at this sight. She remembered that it was her magic that was used to charge Pillar’s batteries. Normally, if a magic user tried to move a celestial body, it would simply disregard the magic. Yet, if the body was disturbed by an alicorn’s magic, without the proper affinity to the sun or moon, she didn't know what would happen. More importantly, at this point, her insane sister was banished to the moon. Although she didn't know for certain, such powerful magic might seriously injure her.
Yet it was already too late to stop Pillar. She was reaching out to the heavens with the alicorn magic, and in moments it was going to reach the moon. Without much time to think, Celestia began to block Pillar’s magic with all her might. In an instant the would-be interaction stopped inching closer. To watch Pillar's hopeful and determined expression was agonizing, but she couldn’t let her try this. Truth be told, Celestia was even a little embarrassed that she could so easily block Pillar, not even needing to ignite her horn to do so.
As she thrust Celestia's magic up into the heavens again and again, Pillar was beginning to get frustrated. Sure, moving the moon was no easy task. But why wasn’t she able to even touch the darn thing? Alicorn magic was the most powerful magic in all of Equestria, and she had calculated that on full throttle, her prosthetic was capable of exerting more power than Celestia used during her daily raising and lowering of the moon.
Then suddenly, it hit her. The only thing that can block alicorn magic of this magnitude, only could be narrowed down to one thing: more alicorn magic. She glared at Celestia as tears filled her eyes and streamed down her cheeks. Why? Why after all these years, was Celestia betraying her? Four hours ago, Celestia had wished her the best of luck at the lunch table. Two days ago, she was practicing with her, trying to help her get through the arduous test. Fifteen years ago, she rescued her from the icy cold, beneath her parents’ dead bodies, to give her a second chance at life. Why was she denying her now?
No.
A voice suddenly reared its ugly head inside her, and she was suddenly able to push back her mentor’s unbreakable seal. All her pain, anger and hate seemed to evaporate as she embraced the voice's call. Celestia was shocked as her element of magic suddenly began to glow a bright purple. Alicorn magic, combined with destructive emotions began to form a 'Nightmare' inside Pillar, the corrupted spirit that took her sister away from her. Worse still, she was getting ever closer to the moon.
Left with no choice, she applied even greater pressure towards Pillar, and could only hope that she could stop the spell in its tracks, and prevent the nightmare from taking her student away. She could apologize, plead, reason, or even beg for Pillar's forgiveness, but she could not lose her sister or her student.
Unfortunately, the Nightmare, which wasn't yet powerful enough to withstand Celestia's magic, had other plans. Under the influence of the nightmare, Pillar felt... liberation. Liberation from all the gloom that surrounded her since childhood. She would do anything to please it, anything to keep the pain from coming back again. It whispered in her ear, contorting her very soul, to follow her heart's desire, to vanquish the ones who had given nothing but pain in her life. Pillar, relishing in the relief the nightmare provided, turned and pointed her prosthetic towards the one pony she hated most with a wide, devilish grin.
And then everything exploded.





After the initial blast, everypony in the hall slowly came to, and began shaking themselves off of all the dirt. The explosion was considerably dampened by Celestia's last-second shield spell, but it was still enough to throw everypony off their hooves. Celestia herself got up shaking from all the magic she had drained to contain such a powerful explosion. Her mind was racing, conjuring up a thousand words of reassurance to the judges and a thousand more apologies for Pillar. What she heard next, however, she wasn't prepared for.
"Murderer!" Shrieked a high-pitched female voice, which demanded everypony's attention in that instant. A mare, presumably his wife, was holding a limp body of the head judge. Embedded deep in his head was a steel chair leg, about a pony's hoof in diameter. Everypony was silent for a moment, then the entire crowd began to shout and panic. "Murderer!" "Oh, Celestia have mercy!" "Arrest her!" "Let's get out of here!"
Pillar was dazed. Did she really kill him? No, it wasn't her. She wasn't thinking straight. She was angry at him, sure, but not enough to kill him. No, there must be some other reason. Maybe something had gone wrong when Celestia blocked her. Maybe the chairleg just flew out of nowhere. Maybe-
Celestia's booming Royal Canterlot Voice brought her panic-induced reasoning to a complete halt. "SILENCE!" she bellowed, and the entire hall instantly went quiet. However, for the first time in many centuries, Celestia herself didn't know how to assess the situation. She knew Pillar was influenced by the nightmare, but at the same time, she couldn't determine how much of it was of her own volition. Celestia also knew she couldn't shield Pillar from this mess, either. Everypony saw what she had done. She had to take her into custody, at least, and had to think more clearly, however painful it may be.
She slowly flew towards the pony under scrutiny, the pony that called her by her name for so long. "Princess candidate Cater Pillar, I hereby charge you with ponyslaughter. Disarm yourself, and you will be escorted by the guards to the dungeon."
"No! Princess, I can explain! It wasn't me! It was something else! Please, you, of all ponies have to believe me! please!"
"WE SAW IT ALL!" a voice cried from the stands. "WHAT DO YOU MEAN PONYSLAUGHTER?! THIS IS MURDER!" It was the judge's wife, and the second pony Pillar most hated in the world. 
Ignoring Pillar's plea for now, Celestia painfully replied, "Her motives are unclear, and she was trying to move the entire moon right before then. The evidence that she commited murder is very lacking."
"OH I'LL GIVE YOU A MOTIVE!" Providence's wife retorted in rage. "This little swine's family was on our property with the pox! So we had to let them go in a blizzard, and they died! Tell me, this is why you tried to kill him, isn't it?" Celestia looked shocked to hear the story. "Is this true, Pillar? Is this why you killed this stallion?"
So Cadance had told them everything, and she had the gall to say she was sorry to me, thought Pillar. Tears began to flow down her cheeks, yet her lips began to curl up at the same time. She began to chuckle, and then laugh maniacally. Whatever she did, they didn't care. When she tried to help ponies, they would call her a murderer. Even Celestia, her one saving grace through all her troubles, had turned her back on her. "What's the point?" she said to a confused and angry crowd. "You just want me to be gone."
With those words, using all her remaining strength, Cater Pillar threw herself out of a two story window of Canterlot Castle.
> Chapter 6: Rise, Lady Chrysalis
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

17th of the fourth moon, 1519 A.E.(After Equestria) 06:30 p.m.

Pillar galloped away as fast as equinely possible. She didn't have a destination in mind. Just away from this wretched city of Canterlot, where her every attempt at happiness failed. Now that she was a wanted criminal, her only option was to bolt, anyway.
And so she ran, resting every once in a while to keep her stamina, eating from bushes and drinking from streams. She kept a wary eye on the new town of Ponyville, making sure the guards stationed there wouldn't see her. after a few hours, however, her leg muscles finally gave out. Her training to become a princess had involved a significant amount of physical exercise for strength and endurance, but the disastrous examination had taken a huge toll on her. She collapsed into a pile of leaves, and finally took the time to look around her.
The area around her was heavily forested, and judging that she had passed Ponyville on her way from Canterlot, she was at the heart of the great Everfree forest, home to many dangers, monsters, and dangerous monsters. However, she simply couldn't force herself to take another step, and began looking for shelter.
A loud growl from her back raised all the hairs on her body. She turned around to see a timber wolf inching closer towards her. She tried to point her prosthetics toward the wolf, yet it was out of charge after her disastrous attempt to move the moon. Ah, great, she thought to herself, at least things couldn't get any worse...
Just when the timber wolf was about to pounce, two figures sweeped in from the sky, one shouting, "Oh no, mister, that's OUR prize!" The confused timber wolf was knocked down into the ground before it could react in a cloud of dust. When it cleared, the timber wolf was limping away, and she was face-to-face with her rescuers.
Normally, as a matter of common sense, Pillar would have immediately said thanks, but she could only gape at what she saw. The two figures were equine in nature, but with a jet-black, chitinous body, holes in their hooves, and dead blue eyes without pupils, showing no emotion at all. It was something Pillar would have heard as a bedtime story from Celestia on Nightmare Night. Then again, she didn't have the energy to either run or hide, so she continued to stare, not quite knowing what to say. 
The awkward silence was broken by one of the figures. "No love," he said in a disappointed tone. "No love, only sadness, anger... regret? This is interesting, but still no love. What kind of pony are you?" 
Pillar didn't know what he was saying (assuming the figure was a male), but his talking finally snapped her out of her shocked daze. "Hello, I'm... just an earth pony who just went out of town and just happened to step into the forest. Thank you for helping me out, but I've never seen ponies like you, though. Who are you?"
The other figure spoke up, in a softer tone, "Well, since you have seen us like this, anyway... my name is Thorax, and he is my brother, Pharynx. We call ourselves Changelings, and we were just searching for some food-"
He was quickly cut off by his brother, "And you don't have to thank us, because you are the food he's talking about. Or, at least we thought you were before we discovered you didn't have any love. Now, since my brother had the idiocy to tell a pony confidential information, we'll be the ones apologizing, since we have to get rid of you now." 
Before Pillar could let that sink in, Thorax frantically grabbed his brother. "Wait, wait! Shouldn't we take her to the hive, then?"
"You know the rules, Thorax," Pharynx replied coldly as he lit up his jagged, hole-filled horn. "A pony who has discovered our undisguised form must be purged. Sorry, pony. I'll make it quick."
"Wait, Pharynx... maybe we shouldn't do that." Thorax shrunk a little under his brother's glare, but he pointed at Pillar's prosthetics, which had five mechanical 'fingers' on it. "You see this? When I went to Ponyville disguised this morning, I saw the newspaper about the oncoming examination of would-be princess Cater Pillar, a-and the pony here matches her description perfectly. If we do kill her, princess Celestia would be seething mad, and our hive might have to face a war."
Seeing Pharynx become a little hesitant, Pillar was relieved. Note to self: Never disclose that you're actually a convicted criminal now.
"So what do we do then?" asked Pharynx, in a visibly less hostile manner. "First get our queen's permission, and then send her unharmed, back to Canterlot?"
Scratch that note, she thought to herself. She would rather die at the hands of two strangers than go back to that wretched city. She had to speak up. 
"Well, Thorax, you're half right. I probably was the one mentioned in that article, and I did take the examinations today. To give you a brief version, I failed spectacularly, and killed a stallion in the process, so I ran away. You can either kill me or take me to your hive, if you're worried about your hive's security. Just...just don't send me back to Canterlot." She said that last sentence with particular emphasis.
There was a long silence after that, and Pharynx was the one who broke it. "I suppose... this is beyond our judgement, so I'll agree with you on this one, Thorax. We'll take her to the hive, and see it from there."
Pillar began to panic. "Does that mean I'll get sent back to Canterlot?"
"I give no promises, and that goes for you too, Thorax. Just because of the fact that you had better observation than me in this case, doesn't mean that you're good at sentinel duty."
Pillar could have sworn she heard light snickering behind her.





They went deeper and deeper into the Everfree forest. Pillar had been to its outskirts many times when she was testing out her train, and she had learned from school to know most of its dangers. Apparently, however, she hadn't learned about the most dangerous ones. Timber wolves, parasprites and cockatrices would come close, but upon seeing the changeling brothers, they would scamper away into a hasty retreat. Although her apprehension grew, this made the journey to the hive in the center of the forest, considerably easier.
After about an hour of trotting, they arrived at a forest clearing, with a large hole in the center. Pharynx spoke up, "Now, just to ensure a pony never sees the inner workings of the hive, you will be blindfolded and I'll lead you from the front. Thorax will be behind you, so you won't fall over and injure yourself. We will take you straight to the queen. Do you understand?" Pillar nodded.
As they entered the tunnel, Pillar could feel the air get damper and cooler, much more so than a typical day of the fourth moon. She could hear some chittering and hissing, presumably some changelings getting worked up about a pony being in the hive, but nothing touched her except for Pharynx at the front of her leading her on with his magic. It was strange, without any of the heat that normal pony magic would emanate. 
They went down narrow corridors, large chambers and what felt like thousands of changelings before they stopped. Pharynx said to somepony (probably a guard), "Can I make an appointment to see the queen now?" The guard said yes, and Pillar walked into the room nervously.
When she entered the room, she couldn't hear a thing, and an eerie silence overtook her. She couldn't hear anything except her own hoofsteps. Unlike the tunnels she had went through before, this throne room seemed to have hard floors, carved from stone. Her blindfolds were lifted, and she could finally see... nothing. There was no light, in this pitch-black room underground. She tried to take a step forward, but she lost balance and fell down with a painful thud.
A voice in front of her chuckled. "So, who are you two, state your occupation and why you brought this particular pony to my interest."
Pharynx's voice spoke up from behind her. "Your majesty, I am Pharynx, class sentinel, and this is Thorax, class forager. He is my brother, so I was taking him on the normal patrol route as part of the routine inter-class exchange program, and this pony came across our undisguised form. We tried to feed from her, yet curiously she didn't have any love. Another particular point was that she had these prosthetics, so we strongly suspected that she was the princess-in-training that the local pony population was talking about."
After a moment of silence, the same voice in front of her seemed to take it all in. "Thank you for brining this matter to my attention. Normally not following guidelines is a reason for punishment, but I'll look over those in this particular instance. You are dismissed for tonight." The sound of hooves clopping away and a heavy door shutting signaled the brothers leaving the room.
Once they had left, Pillar saw a horn lighting up in front of her, and she could see the queen herself, her long jagged horn pointing straight at her, her pupilless blue eyes glaring straight into her own emerald ones. "Why did you come here?" she asked. "You are celestia's personal student and princess-in-training, and today you are supposed to be in Canterlot castle, getting congratulated by everyone for becoming a princess. What were you doing in the Everfree?"
Pillar repeated what she had said to Thorax and Pharynx, but the changeling queen only snorted. "I think it's a much more plausible theory that you're actually a spy from Celestia, to investigate the peculiar cases of disappearances around the Everfree forest. Maybe it's a test from her, to prove your worth as a princess, but one certain thing is that spies, in my underground realm, must be purged."
Pillar bit her lip. She was caught in a trap. The queen's distrust of a princess showing up out of nowhere made perfect sense. Pillar stood strong, however. If she was going to die anyway, she would die standing. Even as she was trembling inside, she took a step forward, and locked eyes with the queen. "Your majesty, the story that I told you is fully true, and anyhow, I would rather die than return to Canterlot. So, if you are still suspicious of me, than kill away."
After what felt like an eternity, the queen withdrew her horn, and broke out into loud, haughty laughter. After it died down, she held Pillar's chin up in her hooves. "I have scried you since you entered my room, little princess, and everything you said showed no sign of treachery. However, your display of bravery in standing up to me was truly impressive, so unlike most intruders, I give you a choice."
"I can give you a clean, quick death. As you have demonstrated your bravery, it will be painless, and you can get away from your miserable life. On the other hand... I can turn you into one of us."
Pillar didn't want to say anything, but her inquisitive mind betrayed her. "What? but I'm a pony. How's that even..."
The queen scoffed, "How do you think the first changelings were made? Ponies like you, ponies who were miserable, having very little love or hope, with a little more drain, can be pushed over the 'edge'. After that, they transformed into changelings. They were shunned from pony society because of their predatory appearance, and went underground."
She went on, "So, I can push you over that 'edge' of your misery, or you can simply 'leave' it altogether. I would recommend the second option, but honestly, I cannot tell for you."
Pillar almost agreed with her. Maybe she did come here to die. On the day they first met, Celestia had told her she didn't deserve to, and that is what held her firm during all her hardships. Without that firm anchor holding her on, what was the point of living through this hell, anyway? The world would continue on without her, probably a happier place, too.
She closed her eyes, and thought about Equestria after she was gone. A happy place, ever the same. There would be a new princess, probably one that was much more lovely and caring than her scrawny, angry self. Ponies would soon forget about her, laughing and dancing, as always. Celestia would continue to raise the sun and moon, and keep her warm smile on her face. Everything would, and should, return to normal.
She should be happy about that. Celestia always told her that it was the princess's duty to bring joy to other ponies, whatever the circumstances. It was the right, proper feeling, yet her stomach was revolting at the thought of it.
Perhaps it was her destiny, after all. When she first met Celestia, she wanted to make Cadance's parents suffer. When she discovered Cadance had been hiding the terrible truth, she had slammed her into a wall. On that day, she received her cutie mark of a bloody gauze. Finally, last evening, although she didn't mean it, she killed Cadance's father.
Although Celestia had suppressed it for so long, everything was clear now. From the moment her parents died, she wanted revenge, payback, hardship, and misery for those who hurt her. And to fulfill that destiny, she had to stay breathing.
"No, your majesty. I wish to be part of this hive, and my decision is final."
The queen looked amused at Pillar's statement. "Very well, then. I shall begin," she said as she lit up her horn.
Pillar felt whatever energy she had leave her as an icy chill took its place. She began to shiver from the cold, and it soon began to ache. Her entire body felt like it was on fire and ice at the same time. A sinister green hue surrounded her, as she began to see the physical changes. Starting from her hooves, It was turning black, and a chitinous hardness overtook it. Holes began to form on the legs as the black skin moved upwards.
"Do you pledge allegiance to the changeling hive, and will you work towards its prosperity?"
"I do."
The black, chitinous texture was spreading up her torso and into her back and tail. Her ribs were replaced with a sturdy thorax, and a tattered, holed film began to emerge from the side, which she realized to be wings. Her black-colored mane bleached into a dark turquoise one, and similar holes began to form inside her hair. 
"Do you place faith in your new comrades, and risk your life to protect them?"
"I do."
Her face was saved for last. As the hard black skin reached her cheeks and eyelids, she took in her last sight as a pony, and closed her eyes. When she reopened them, even through the darkness, she could make out the room with perfect clarity. Finally, four of her teeth began to elongate, forming sharp, pointed fangs, ready to cut at a moment's notice.
"Lastly, do you sever all ties with your previous role as a princess, and accept yourself as a changeling?"
This was the last straw on a burning bridge to her previous life, and Pillar burnt it without hesitation. "I do."
Her transformation was complete. She was a changeling.
After the green hue of the magic subsided, both changelings fell to the floor, but it was the queen who came to first. "There is still one more thing left to do. Your pony name will easily gather suspicion among the others."
Cater Pillar was her name. Her parents gave it so that she would be caring and healthy. However, when she lived up to that name, the world only saw a weak caterpillar, and ridiculed, mocked, and squashed it multiple times. Now, she had acquired a coarse, ugly, yet strong second skin, one that would never be complete without her prize of vengeance. 
"Your majesty, there is no pony name, there is only... Chrysalis."
> Chapter 7: Divergent Ways
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

18th of the fourth moon, 1519 A.E.(After Equestria) 10:a.m. - Canterlot Castle

Princess Celestia of Equestria, possibly the greatest pony to ever live, was about to collapse. After Pillar ran away, she had to calm the crowd from forming into a mob. She had to organize a search party in the dead of night, with the few royal guards that were available. She hadn't got any sleep last night, yet that wasn't what caused her to suffer so gravely.
She was a strong mare. Her subjects had called her kind, wise, and most of all, patient. After her sister's disastrous attempted coup and subsequent banishment, she had gradually won back the hearts and minds of her ponies, and had reimbursed some confidence in herself. That was the sturdy foundation she relied apon during her thousand-year-long lonely reign.
The events of last night, however, had shaken that foundation to its core. She had sworn to the stars above that she would raise Pillar right, to soothe her pain and dissipate her anger. Yet last night, she tried to stop Pillar from her dream of princesshood that she had installed on her. She charged Pillar with ponyslaughter knowing that she was influenced by the corruption of the nightmare. A nightmare only brought to life because of her magic. 
Celestia had her reasons for doing both of these actions. For the first one, her sister, Luna might have been hurt. For the second one, she needed to calm down the angry crowd. She would have silently released Pillar once the public upheaval was over, and would have helped her find a new life. Yet, that did nothing to reduce any of Celestia's pain and regret. She had thought she learned from the Nightmare Moon disaster. She had thought she deserved some of the credit her subjects were giving her. But towards the one mare she raised like her own, she was cruel, unwise and impatient. It seemed, that she hadn't truly changed from 950 years ago, and she had to face consequences. Consequences, such as comforting the closest relative of the deceased. 
Mi Amore Cadenza, or Cadance, had asked for a private audience this morning. When Celestia saw her letter, she suspended all her other duties for this mare. She was Pillar's best friend, and had her father taken by the same pony. Although she was dreading it, Celestia was prepared for harsh words and hateful glares. Frankly, Celestia thought she deserved it, since she was responsible for Pillar's actions, perhaps wholly. 
Instead, when Cadance walked through the doors of the small room, what Celestia received was a long silence, than a blunt "Why?". Cadance, with her swollen eyes and tired disposition, had apparently cried herself dry last night. "Why would she do that?" she asked, almost looking dazed. Celestia gulped, then started, "Ms. Cadenza, I know it is hard to deal with this tragedy-" but Cadance cut her off. "Please, it's just Cadance, and forgive me, princess, but I simply can't believe it! Any other pony, I might understand. Sure, I would hate the guts out of them, but I do understand that some ponies are bad, and do bad things. But Pillar would simply never do something like that."
Celestia was intrigued. "Why do you think so?" she asked. "At first, when we met, I recognized her immediately, but I kept quiet, afraid that I might lose her friendship if she discovered my parents had essentially murdered hers. Yet throughout our school days, she was an amazing friend. She found out about it when she had a night's sleepover at our house, and when she saw my parents face to face, I was afraid that she would rage at them, calling them out for their treatment of her parents. However, she simply apologized that she hadn't notified them of the sleepover, then went out onto the raining night," said Cadance.
She went on, "I followed Pillar onto the streets, hoping that she hadn't actually realized the truth, but she had, and was absolutely livid at me and my parents. Yet she didn't do anything because she didn't want me to be in trouble. She has that kind of pony."
"That is why I come to you today, princess. I sincerely can't believe Pillar did such a horrible thing. You've raised Pillar for many years, haven't you? Can you tell me what really happened? I simply could not believe it, princess," she finished, tears forming on her flustered cheeks once more.
Celestia was torn. Celestia knew that Cadance had been really close to Pillar, at least until the big revelation. She certainly deserved to know the truth, and it would lighten her sadness and misery considerably. On the other hand, it would mean telling a barely qualified pony the darkest secret of Equestrian royalty. 
Normal Celestia wouldn't dare to. She would simply tell her that Pillar made a mistake, and make vague promises about how everything would be okay. However, today, not only had Celestia lost her closest pupil, but also she had utterly compromised her plan to bring Luna back from darkness. Pillar was supposed to become a princess, hold the remaining three elements, and help her when Luna eventually returned from the moon. The year was 1519. According to her calculations, she only had 31 years before her sister's return, and she was getting desperate.
Celestia took a deep breath. "Ms. Cadenza- I mean Cadance, have you heard of the legend of Nightmare Moon?"
"Well, it's an old foal's tale, right? I had to tell some children about it during my job as a babysitter. Why do you ask?"
"I ask you because it is no foal's tale. Everything in the tale is real, and Nightmare Moon was once my sister, Luna, that got corrupted by the influence of the nightmare, which is simply put, alicorn magic combined with strong negative emotions. That same nightmare compelled Pillar to attack her most hated person on the spot, which was unfortunately, your father," said Celestia, with a pang of guilt in her voice.
"What... but how? How can she gain access to alicorn magic if she's an earth pony without... oh," Cadance was speechless as realization dawned on her.
"Yes, it was me. I presume you already knew that Pillar used her prosthetics to write things down at school? I charged her prosthetic with alicorn magic, and when your father asked Pillar to move the moon as her final test, I blocked her from doing it, for fear of injuring my sister, Luna. Unfortunately, I had gravely underestimated the grudge she held against your parents, and her desire for a better life. That is what the nightmare feasted apon, finally breaking through her admirable kindness and self-control."
There was a long silence, as both of them contemplated what this meant. It was Cadance who finally broke it.
"I... I still can't believe it, princess. It is a lot to take in. Is it truly real, then? Is Pillar, somewhere out there, still under the influence of this 'nightmare'?"
"No. I mean it is real, but I could sense the nightmare emanating from Pillar, and purged it from her. Unfortunately, that was why the nightmare commited the murder, as a last-ditch effort to amplify Pillar's negative emotions."
"Then... did you cleanse your sister when you banished her to the moon?" asked Cadance.
Celestia chuckled. "If I had been able to do so, I wouldn't have banished her at all. The nightmare has a will of its own, and it takes a tremendous amount of magic to overpower. Pillar's nightmare was just in its infancy, and hadn't took hold of her fully. Luna's, on the other hand..." She shivered at recalling one of her most terrible memories. 
"Let's just say... it wasn't pretty. Such full-scale corruption requires much more magic than one pony could ever provide, and only the magic of friendship, the most powerful magic known to ponykind, would be able to break it, and Luna and I held three keys each to unlock the power of such magic."
"Wait, the tale said that Nightmare Moon would be imprisoned for a thousand years... How long has it been since she was imprisoned?" Cadance asked with worry.
Celestia was impressed. This mare certainly was able to think clearly, even when she was stricken with grief. "Glad you asked. She was corrupted exactly 550 years after the foundation of this country, on the same day as the Summer Sun Celebration."
Cadance counted down the years, and shouted, "That means there is... only 31 years left! Did you need Pillar to hold Luna's keys for you? If so, then why couldn't you give the keys to competent councilors?"
"The magic of friendship only works if multiple ponies possess specific qualities that match the keys, or rather, elements. They are Kindness, Laughter, Loyalty, Honesty, Generosity, and finally, Magic. When I first met Pillar, I felt my elements of kindness and generosity resonate for the first time in 950 years. So I finally had hope. I hoped that Pillar could fill the hole left by my sister. Hoped that she could one day learn to laugh, to be honest and loyal..."
Celestia's eyes began to water, as she could finally see the full scope of her mistake through the help of a pure angel named Cadance. "That... was my biggest mistake. To demand something to Pillar that I failed to achieve, even with all my years, and even with my own sister... No single pony should bear the responsibility of having to possess three admirable qualities at once. After all, we're just ponies, not gods. I was... blinded by my own pride, and that took away two of my best friends and family." She openly began to sob now, for the first time since her sister's banishment.
She flinched as she was interrupted by a small tap of a hoof from behind. It was surprisingly similar to Pillar's delicate touch. "Don't worry, princess. You're right. We're just ponies, and that's why we can pull through. 31 years may be a drop in the bucket for you, but for a normal pony like me, that is plenty of time to start over."
Celestia felt slightly ashamed. She accepted Cadance's offer of a private conversation to get her through her grief, and to apologize to her as Pillar's legal guardian. The mare had lost her father, after all. However, she ended up getting consoled for both her fresh and thousand-year-long wounds. Unbeknownst to them, as they would find out later, this day had also already planted the seeds of her salvation. 
"Oh, my apologies, princess. Now I have to go and prepare for the funeral. My old neighbors, Mr. Night light and Mrs. Twilight Velvet have arranged the services while me and my mother were mourning, and I don't want to waste their time any further...."
> Chapter 8: To Be or Not To Be
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Warning! This chapter contains some depictions of violence. I tried to stay away from describing it graphically, but soft souls may be uncomfortable.


18th of the tenth moon, 1550 A.E. (After Equestria) 7:30 p.m. - East cavern of the Changeling hive

"Scrunch"
The sound of earth being pulled away from the other side echoed through the headphones. Chrysalis had heard the sound multiple times throughout the last thirty years, but each time it sent a shiver down her spine. The diamond dogs had been at war with the changelings ever since they discovered that gems were abundant in the area around the hive, and they were launching a final surprise attack on the hive. 
Due to her new invention of the sound amplifier, however, she could detect their tunneling from a mile away. As a result, the changeling hive was as ready as it could be against this final assault. The queen was at the other end, leading a force of her own to protect the west flank of the hive. That left Chrysalis, her second-in-command, to defend the east. 
A strong voice interrupted her scrying. "Chrysalis, the sentinels have finished their emergency supply of love, and are in top condition. The foragers have been evacuated into the central complex. We are ready for battle." Chrysalis put down her headphones, and stood up to face Pharynx, the newly appointed captain of the sentinels. "Very well, Pharynx. Judging by the sound of excavation, the estimated time of arrival is about ten minutes from now. Let us not forget, if we fall today, the hive falls with us."
"Understood, your maj-" and he quickly stopped when she gave him an annoyed frown. From the day my brother and I rescued her, she always hated the 'princess' title, he mused. 





The sound of tunneling diamond dogs could now be heard by the naked ear. Normally, this would mean alarm bells ringing in the hive, sentinels rushing to the defense, foragers tumbling over each other to escape, total mayhem. However, those days were gone. Today, they were ready. 
A loud beep from the amplifier signaled the final approach. Pharynx began the countdown. "Ten seconds to breach! Horns and wings, at the ready!"
The room buzzed and crackled with the sound of airborne changeling wings. Another loud beep. Five seconds. "Everyling, Brace for impact!"
No sooner than the words were said, came an enormous bursting sound of rock and dirt blowing out into the cavern. "Fire!"
Their charged horns simultaneously released blinding beams of green lightning, and the initial assault of diamond dogs instantly fell to the ground. One of them shouted "It's a trap!", and the whole assault seemed to stall for a moment. However, they gained back traction when they realized no more magic was being thrown at them. 
Chrysalis gnashed her fangs. The last year's pox pandemic hadn't been kind on the concentrated population of the hive. Thorax, the head forager and love administrator, had been demoted to the lowest rank for secretly working under the queen's nose to use as much love magic as possible to heal the affected. Thanks to his efforts, the death toll was reduced (yes, reduced) down to three digits, but it almost completely drained the hive of reserves. The diamond dogs had chosen their time well.
Now the fighting had boiled down into hand-to-hand combat. It was a grotesque sight, jagged horns piercing skin and heavy claws ripping through chitin. Chrysalis jumped straight in, kicking two diamond dogs who were breaking through the line straight in the chin. As the battle raged on, the sentinels of the hive fought valiantly, attacking from the air using their advantage of wings. Yet the diamond dogs were superior to them in size and power, and soon the sentinels slowly began to lose ground and numbers. This was to be expected, however. If they could keep up this pace, and delay for a little while longer...
A triumphant horn sounded the break she had been looking for. Judging by the sounds of the amplifier, the diamond dogs were expected to attack the east and the west sections of the hive simultaneously. Prior to the battle, Pharynx had proposed that the queen with most of the hive's magic reserves, along with the most experienced sentinels be stationed in the west, while Chrysalis and himself be stationed in the east to act as a delaying force. That way, the forces in the west could pacify the area quickly before flanking the enemy in the east. 
The queen's main army flew into the cavern and struck the flanks of the surprised diamond dogs without mercy. It took only a few minutes, with the horrifying howls, shrieks and screams of death, the leader of the diamond dogs was slain. After a few more minutes, all the surviving diamond dogs were captured and flung into cocoons, another one of Chrysalis's inventions. Had it not been for them, there would have been no prisoners at all. Such were the rules of underground warfare.





After the battle, the victorious sentinels washed in the underground river, and fed from the cocoons that held the prisoners in unconscious captivity. It was getting late, and the queen disbanded all sentinels to their respective sleeping quarters. However, she summoned Chrysalis to come to the throne room for a "private conversation". Chrysalis didn't like the sound of that, as it usually entailed bad news. Once they entered the room, the queen put a soundproofing spell on the doors, and spoke up.
"Our war with the diamond dogs are finally over. Today's operation went as smoothly as possible, thanks to your prior warning. Now, I suppose tomorrow, I can confirm you as my heir..."
So this was it. Since her capture and transformation, she had worked almost thirty years for the hive, and used her inventive mind to help its inhabitants. Finally, her reward was coming, and she wouldn't let it slip so easily this time.
"-but there is a little hitch. You see, the loyalty of your pod is somewhat questionable."
Chrysalis bit her lip. She knew exactly what the queen was talking about. Her podmate and sworn brother, Thorax was kind, perhaps too kind for the harsh realities of changeling society. After he was discovered disobeying the hive's policy of containing the pox victims without curing them, Chrysalis had begged the queen on her knees and crying to stop his execution, but she also had sternly warned him to stop bending the rules of the hive. What had he been up to now?
The queen gave her a spring-bound file. "This is the file that your brother used to detail his records for the acquisition and storage of love magic for the hive. In it, he hid a plan to help gain 'unlimited amounts of love' for the hive. It is ludicrous, yet also deeply threatening and treasonous." Curious, Chrysalis opened the file with her magic and began to read. 
"Take the remaining supply of love magic and relocate the entire population to the surface world... majority of the foragers think ponies seemed to be quite hospitable towards strangers... reduced risk of disease and starvation..." She closed her eyes as she thought of the pony world she knew too well. A world that she had deserted for its cruelty. Oh, thorax, if only you knew... she thought to herself.
The queens voice put an abrupt end to her train of thought. "I know you are very fond of him. You defended him when I initially tried to execute him for not obeying orders. You said that on the grand scheme of things, he is working for the hive." She threw down the file at her desk.
"Look at this paper, and tell me with a straight face that his intentions are pure. He is working to sell the hive out to Celestia and the pony world above. You were either greatly mistaken about his intentions, or..." she paused, "You were actually wanting to join his cause."
Chrysalis was honestly conflicted, but she instantly recognized the scrying spell. If her emotions betrayed her, Thorax wouldn't be the only one hanging from the gallows. She wasn't powerful enough to stop the spell, but she could trick it. She agreed with thorax that the hive needed to go into the overworld to survive, but she focused her mind onto the specifics. "No, I do not agree that ponies are kind and accomodating, and I certainly do not agree that Celestia would just accept by asking. This plan will bring ruin to the hive," she spoke only truth on her part, and silently hoped for the best.
Fortunately, these differing sentiments seemed to be able to fool the queen's scrying radar. Unfortunately, the same couldn't be said about the fate of her sworn brother. "Good, then you know what you need to do. As proof of your loyalty, I need you to silence him.... permanently. Do you understand?" 
Chrysalis's heart sank as her suspicions finally came true. However, the scrying spell was still active, and she definitely understood what the queen was saying. "Yes, your majesty. I understand your command perfectly." The queen seemed satisfied by her reply. "Very well, you are dismissed. Carry out my orders whenever you may, but don't stall for too long, as I will be watching." 
As she prepared to leave the throne room, the queen rose from her throne, and slowly came over to her. "As I've said before, I know this is hard for you. You've known and lived with him since you came into this hive. However, a queen's word is law, and there shouldn't be any exceptions to the entitled punishment. Consider this an important lesson in your long road to rulership." 





Chrysalis was in a dimly lit room facing Thorax, who was strongly bound into an iron chair with a black hood over his head. What am I doing? she asked herself. I have to free him.
Her mouth and body seemed to have a mind of its own, however, as it lifted up an iron rod from the floor and removed her brother's hood. She was shocked to see him bludgeoned, and green blood spilling out from every cut on his chitinous body. Worst of all, the same color was clearly visible on the rod, making it crystal clear what, or rather who, caused his injuries. Her body spoke in a menacing dual tone. "This time, you have gone too far, brother. You conspired against the queen, and tried to betray the hive. Therefore, I carry out the sentence of execution given by the queen. Do you have any objections?" No! she thought. I don't want this! Argh! Why can't I speak...
"I...I didn't betray the hive," he replied meekly. "I only wanted for the hive to prosper alongside ponies, with infinite love, we can finally become free from starvation! I was going to tell the queen about it, too! Can't I at least see the queen before I die?"
"You dirty traitor," her body snarled. "Even in death, you don't feel remorse. You don't feel guilt. You only care about yourself and noling else." Using her magic, it raised the rod up high, and struck down at her brother's head in full force. No! Why is this happening! Someling help!  She screamed, begged, tried to move her body, but it just kept striking her brother down. It did not stop until he was limp on the chair, lifeless.
After struggling for what seemed like an eternity, she finally regained control over her body. She rushed over to Thorax, but his pulse was nonexistent. She had killed her brother in cold blood. She simply clutched his lifeless body and wept. She didn't know what to do, neither did she care. She wanted to be queen because she wanted revenge. To get back at ponies for the suffering they caused. But tonight, noling but herself had caused the second greatest suffering of her life.
Suddenly, a fluorescent mist began to seep from the cracks in the walls. It was light at first, but gradually grew more potent, to a point where it was suffocating. It began to whisper as it twisted and contorted into Thorax's face. "Did you want power that badly?" he demanded. "Was I nothing but an obstacle to you?"
A second face popped up beside him. It was Pharynx's, and he began to choke her, as well. "You are pathetic." He clicked his tongue. "If you continue to stomp on everyling and everypony in your path, will you finally be happy? Will you be satiated only when the entire world is beneath your hooves?" She shook her head no. This was not what she wanted. She would have rather died than kill her kin, but at this point, she seemed to have done both. The smoke was suffocating her, and she was rapidly losing consciousness. The last words she heard before passing out rung in her ears. "Then wake up, you fool... wake up...."





"Wake up, Chryssie! Wake up!" She awoke to a familiar voice. As Chrysalis opened her eyes, she could see the ceiling of the sleeping chambers and Thorax's face, eyes wide and an expression of worry plastered on it. It was a sight she had seen a million times before, but in this moment, she wanted to see nothing else. She jumped up from her sleeping spot, almost impaling him with her horn, and hugged him tightly. Thorax was understandably confused, but he just returned the hug, anyway.
Now that she knew he was safe, she could hear light snickering behind her back. It was Pharynx, and he was rolling on the floor while putting a hoof in his mouth to stifle his laughter. "I'm-I'm sorry. It's just too funny. You were going all 'no, nooooo' , and begin thrashing your hooves in thin air. Thorax was really worried about you, and when he wakes you up, what do you do? You don't say anything, just hugging him. Look, he's already gone bright red." 
Chrysalis turned to look at him. Sure, even with his hard, black chitin, she could somehow see a red tinge forming. "I-I'm not!" Thorax retorted. "Listen, Chryssie, it's been thirty years since we... discovered you in the forest and you changed into one of us. We've been in the same pod for that long, and in all those years, we've advanced our careers. Well, mine ended just three weeks ago, but that's besides the point," he added with a halfhearted smirk.
"When you became the queen's apprentice, I was so happy and proud for you. But after the battle with the diamond dogs ended, you always look worried and anxious. I have a bad feeling that these nightmares are just the tip of the iceberg. Podmates don't hide things from each other, you know? Please, if there's something wrong, just tell us," said Thorax.
She was stunned. Sometimes, a podmate's gut instinct could catch things that even the scrying of the queen failed to detect. He was right. It had been a few days since the queen's execution order, and she still hadn't decided on what to do. On one end of the road lay the nightmare she just experienced. On the other, there was the nightmare from yesterday, where she, Thorax, and Pharynx all hung from the gallows for their disobedience. She had met a dead end. If she could only save her brother, her hive, and herself at the same time....
A thought suddenly struck her head. Why couldn't she? If she endorsed and followed Thorax's plan of resettling the hive, and proved that it would work, then she would prove her leadership, Pharynx would get absolved, and the hive would flourish even more than before. Of course, the ideas that ponies would simply accept the changelings was simply ludicrous, so she would have to force them to.
The more she thought about this idea, the more appealing it became. There was, of course, a final obstacle to this plan, and at this point, she was desperate enough to try anything to make it work. She took a deep breath, and finally cast her die. "Thorax, I have news. The queen has ordered me to execute you."
> Chapter 9: For Crown and Family
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

21st of the tenth moon, 1550 A.E. (After Equestria) 1:40 a.m. - Sleeping quarters of pod #27
"So let me get this straight. My clumsy brother here, after barely avoiding execution by your pleas, has detailed his extremely treasonous plan to resettle the hive on a piece of paper, then lost the darn thing, then it went into the hands of the queen, and now we're all very likely to die?" asked Pharynx. They were all huddled around the center of their sleeping quarter, with Chrysalis's soundproofing spell around it to prevent any eavesdropping. 
"Unfortunately yes," replied Chrysalis. "I have already expended many days thinking about my options, and that means our time is rapidly running out. I didn't want to lose all three of us, so I even considered..." she couldn't dare say what she considered doing to her brother. 
A gentle hoof was laid on her back, however, as Thorax said quietly, "Thats okay. Now at least I know what troubled you for the last couple of days. It's my fault that I was so clumsy and put my entire pod in danger. I'll go talk to the queen myself."
"No!" Both Chrysalis and Pharynx shouted. "Don't you get it? The whole purpose that I directly disobeyed the queen's orders was to avoid you getting killed!" she fumed. "Besides, after you go there and confront her on your own, she would still kill all three of us anyway," added Pharynx.
They all sat in silence after that. Chrysalis' mind was spinning at a manic pace. Through her harrowing dream, she finally acknowledged sacrificing Thorax was out of the question. Also, sending a direct proposal to the queen was a bad idea, so the only remaining option was... "to coup her?"
She didn't mean to say that out loud.
Pharynx wasn't impressed. "Seriously? That's the best you can think of? I mean, sure, you have the largest pool of magic among the rest of us, so if anyone in the hive was to attempt it, it would be you. But the queen..." he trailed off. "You know she's strong enough to crush all three of us flat. Even if you do succeed, what are you going to do about the rest of the hive? They are going to hunt us down as traitors."
Chrysalis bit her lip. She knew Pharynx was right. She couldn't possibly hope to take out the queen by force. But... "Then we don't coup her by force. In three days, the queen intends to make an official ceremony celebrating the war's end, and since we managed to hold back the diamond dog assault, she promised to make me her official heir. If I can deliver a speech to convince them of the need to relocate the hive to the surface...."
Her brother was still skeptical, however. "The address will probably be broadcasted via crystal to the whole hive, so it certainly would be potent... but are you sure you can convince the public of Thorax's plan? The queen is feared by all, so even if the plan sounds good, many changelings will hesitate to join you."
Chrysalis, truthfully couldn't give any guarantees. However, she knew her brothers would stand by her on that fateful day, so she had only one answer to his skepticism. "There is only one way to find out."





24th of the tenth moon, 1550 A.E. (After Equestria) 10:00 a.m.
The main hall of the changeling hive literally buzzed with excitement as fifteen thousand changelings fixated their eyes on the podium. This was only a small fraction of the hive, and plenty more were watching from their sleeping quarters by crystal television. It was a special holiday, when even the most hard-working sentinels or foragers could take a time off from their duties and watch the queen's speech. 
A great round of applause went to the tall figure who limped onto the stage. The queen seemed to have sustained some injuries from the diamond dog invasion. However, she was looking as calm and regal as per usual, and full of confidence. Looking at her from the sidelines, Chrysalis shook her head in a sense of dread. This was a terrible mistake, she thought. I'll never be able to sway them to our cause. All three of us are going to end up dead... 
Just then, she saw Pharynx looking at her from the opposite direction with a heavy frown. He was silent, but it wasn't hard to guess what he was trying to get across. You promised to save my brother. It's either coup or death.
The queen began to speak, amplifying her calm voice through her magic. "Greetings, fellow changelings. It has been three years since I stood here and vowed that the diamond dogs would never lay their claws on our realm. Today, I am immensely proud to announce that the promise has been kept. Their leader is no more, our hive is intact, and we have emerged victorious!" 
After a round of applause, beads of sweat formed on her head as she continued. "However, I could not have done this monumental feat alone. So many changelings have lost their lives in the war. The sentinels bled for the hive in the battlefield. The foragers starved for the hive to feed them. Let us have a moment of silence for those who have fallen."
At that moment, even the three that were conspiring against the queen lowered their heads in revered silence. She was right. The war had taken a huge toll on the hive. After every battle, there were always corpses strewn about the floor. Thorax was demoted to janitor duty after his disobedience, and he had to clean up those bodies and blood after the battles. Chrysalis knew he came up with the plan to go to the surface for that reason.
They mourned for about a minute, but it felt like hours to Chrysalis. After it was over, the queen returned to her confident voice. "Yet, today, I intend to honor one changeling that has served me and the hive to the greatest extent. She gave us the means to predict the oncoming final assault and helped minimize casualties greatly. She demonstrated her bravery by fighting on the front lines when she could have stayed at the rear. As a reward, I intend to grant her the status of heir to the crown. Please come, Chrysalis, and say what you may to the whole hive." 
In her mind, she made her apologies to the queen before going up to the podium. She had chosen this path because she wanted to save both her brother and the hive. Unfortunately, that would mean she would be betraying her mentor for the second time in her life.
On the podium, after a bit of thinking, she finally spoke up. "Thank you, your majesty, and thank you all for making this victory possible. Without it, our hive and our futures would have been decimated." She took a deep breath, and continued. "Yet we deserved better. We all deserved so much better. To be honest, I can't help but feel anger at the fact that we fought so bravely, yet lost so many." The crowd was perplexed, wondering where this was going.
"A few months ago, in the midst of our fight for survival, the hoof pox broke out among the foragers who went out to the overworld in disguise. The disease quickly spread through the hive, threatening our survival from within. During that harsh period, my brother Thorax was demoted for stealing the hive's dwindling love reserves, trying -successfully- to save those in quarantine. His decision saved hundreds of lives," She saw the queen baring her fangs in the sidelines. She shuddered at the thought of them piercing her veins, but there was no going back now.
"However, because of that, in the final battle we ended up losing more of our sentinels in the process. In the ugly choice between faraway casualties and up-close sickness, her majesty chose sickness, and my brother chose casualties. Yet there is one question left unanswered: Why do we have to choose at all?
A string of murmurs rippled through the crowd. "Why do we have to suffer when there is a whole world filled with love in the realm above? We could treat our ill, and have enough love magic to feed and arm ourselves at the same time! Also, by staying down here, we're simply wasting our greatest ability! By shapeshifting, we can simply blend into equestrian society without causing a massive upheaval, and..."
She was cut short by a sharp rock flying from the ceiling and brushing up against her neck. It floated there in the bright crimson magical hue of the queen. One swipe and she was dead. The queen has finally lost her patience, she mused. Well, so much for the plan.
The queen emerged out of the shadows as the crowd gasped in shock. "I should have expected this," she hissed through clenched teeth. "I should have expected you to fall into your brother's enticing trap. You are spreading his infectious words throughout the hive, without even considering the consequences of your actions. I thought you were wiser, stronger, more loyal than this!"
"She is!" cried out a voice from the sidelines. Thorax had galloped onto the podium as well, and was shouting at the top of his lungs. "My words are infectious because they are the truth! She has the wisdom to see it, the strength to challenge you on this spot, the loyalty to risk her own life and the life of our pod only for good of the hive!"
He went on, "As head of the foraging department, I discovered that ponies in general were becoming less hostile to outsiders in general. Many foragers reported that ponies showed hospitality and abundant love towards them when they were in disguise. My calculations estimate that if we moved the entire population to the surface and disguise ourselves, we could solve all our energy issues without having to harm the ponies!"
The queen only snorted, simply dismissing his claim with a hoof. However, her breathing seemed to getting raspy. "Since when was denying my authority the definition of loyalty? Believe me, I've lived several times longer than the two of you combined. Us changelings belong in the underworld! Ponies are cruel, vile creatures not to be trusted, and we can't go to the surface. That decision is final!" Although Chrysalis was up against her, she had to agree with the queen's sentiment about ponykind. 
"Say that to all of our dead!" called out another voice. Pharynx had joined the struggle, trying to peel off the dagger from Chrysalis' throat to no avail. "Say that to the sentinels who died without ammunition during the final assault! Say that to the hundreds of disease victims that you refused to treat! Even when we have a way to end our suffering, you refuse to listen because of your stupid pride!"
The crowd was visibly shaken throughout this exchange. The changeling society was small, less then a tenth of Equestria's total population. Noling had survived through this turbulent era without losing a friend or a pod member. The promise of salvation, along with the promise of life was indeed enticing, and infectious.
Chrysalis, with her keen eye, didn't miss this. Using all her remaining love magic, she broke free from the queen's dagger, and dashed right in front of the crowd. She smirked to her former captor, "Well, maybe its for all of us to decide, whether or not my brother's plan is folly." Before the queen could intervene, she shouted, 
"Everyling who wants change, shout aye!" 





At first, there was silence. Then there was two ayes, from her two brothers. A moment later, one of the sentinels in the first row shouted aye. Then the forager in the rear, another forager from the front... 
Soon the entire hall was chanting "Aye". There were other chants, as well. "Down with the queen!" "Long live the hive!" "For the surface!" Some changelings were sobbing, having to remember their fallen once more. What had originally began as a holiday to celebrate the victory had become the uncontrolled chaos of anger, pain, and hope.
Among this chaos and revolutionary zeal, the queen sat in a quiet frown, seemingly lost in thought. Then she began to quietly laugh, which quickly stole Chrysalis' attention away from the commotion. "Funny, I have protected this kingdom from all kinds of monstrosities, yet your babble about hope is how the kingdom falls. False hope has poisoned you all, from you, my heir to the smallest nymphs... everyling will suffer, because of you," she said, staring straight at Chrysalis.
"Quite the contrary," she retorted. "We will somehow get to the surface, and I swear to the ground below us, you will watch from the sidelines as we-"
The queen cut her off. "Also, I bet you aren't going to stop at queen. You're next goal is princess of Equestria, I presume?"
Chrysalis was horrified. Was she going to use her heritage to turn the tide? Seemingly reading her mind, the queen laughed once more. 
"Oh don't you worry, I am not the one who's going to destroy you. As you have said, it would be wonderful to watch from the sidelines as you dig your own grave, but sadly I think I won't be able to."
Before Chrysalis could inquire further, the queen dropped down to the ground with a painful grunt, and a wave of crimson red magic washed over her. As the flames touched her body, Chrysalis could only watch in shock as her body revealed its numerous postules, scars, and the flustered cheeks of high fever.
> Chapter 10: Moving on
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

24th of the tenth moon, 1550 A.E. (After Equestria) 06:00 p.m. - Quarantine Area of the changeling hive

"How is she doing?" asked Chrysalis. She and her brothers were waiting outside the Queen's quarantine room. "Not good," replied the sentinel medic. "The queen has hidden the symptoms and blocked transmission through her magic, yet the hoof pox has continued to spread within her body. I am afraid she has got just a few hours at best."
Chrysalis sighed. "Okay, just tell us when she regains consciousness, and use whatever means necessary to not get infected yourself. All needed magic will be provided." The medic gave a slight nod, then went back into the chamber.
After the crowd had calmed down, many were in shock to see the queen lying limp on the stage, clearly suffering from the hoof pox. Some were angry that the queen denied them the surface world while she herself was afflicted. Others were sympathetic towards her, as they knew she led the war effort even in great pain. 
Before the situation could escalate any further however, Pharynx managed to organize the sentinels in the crowd to form some sort of authority. With that authority, Chrysalis dispersed the crowd with the promise of an impending migration to the surface, and brought the queen to quarantine.
It had been a few hours since their arrival, but the queen was showing no sign of consciousness. Chrysalis was debating whether or not she should just give up when the medic came rushing out of the room. "Her majesty has awoken from her coma, yet she's still very ill. When I asked her for any needs, she urgently asked for you three."
Chrysalis gulped. This was the moment she was dreading. "Ready your shields, boys." The queen at this stage would be incredibly weak, but the disease would be VERY contagious. The magic shield would act both as a defense from the queen's last-ditch attack and as an air pocket to keep out the vile disease.
As they entered the dimly lit room, they could see their monarch sitting on what would presumably be her deathbed. However, her fearsome glare and imposing presense wasn't lost to the disease yet. Even though they had ousted her mere hours ago, they still bowed to her out of instinct. The standoff continued for a few seconds, before the queen relented, and made a beckoning motion with a hoof. They gathered around her with cautious steps, still wary of her lashing out in a last-ditch attempt to regain her crown.
However, the queen did no such thing, and instead put up her hoof to stroke Thorax's shield. She spoke in a raspy, tired voice. "Congratulations on the success of your coup, your majesties," she hissed. "I presume you will try to assimilate into Equestria?"
"Yes," replied Chrysalis. "We will go to the surface where there is nearly infinite love. We'll make sure our hive prospers,  more than you ever managed to."
The queen only snorted, "Oh, please. Miss Cater Pillar, we all know you only want Equestria to fall."
Chrysalis froze. She hadn't heard that name in three decades. The queen laughed, "When I asked you whether or not you wanted to be a changeling, you were but a broken pony, devoid of love, hope, and a purpose in life. At that moment, however, your emotions suddenly changed. Suddenly it was filled with anger, hate, and a burning desire for revenge. Thirty years later, I still can feel it emanating strongly from you. Honestly, isn't it what you are striving for?"
Chrysalis bit her lip. The queen wasn't wrong. Even after all these years, whenever she thought about her time at the surface, she still felt that familiar bubbling in her stomach that wanted to hurt the ponies who had destroyed what she had built up there. It was so great that she almost killed...
"You're right," she concluded. "I still want revenge. I still hate ponykind for what they did to me, and I have never regretted my choice to join the hive. Ever."
"But the in the last few days, after you gave me that execution order, I have realized that I care for more than that now." 
She calmly continued, "I want our pod to live without persecution. I want to contribute to the hive's prosperity, repaying it for their acceptance. For these, my queen, come before my selfish desires."
The queen stared at her for a long time, possibly scanning her emotions. Then she broke a small smile. "My, oh my, our hive's future is going to be... interesting."
"Well, I suppose in the end, this all went well. As you can clearly see, I have been infected with the pox when the infection was hitting our hive. I knew I wasn't going to make it, so I tried to make you my successor today. Needless to say, things didn't go exactly as I had hoped," she chuckled.
Thorax gave her a sorry look. "Then why didn't you approve of my plan to treat the disease? You could have lived longer, healthier, happier..."
He was cut off as the queen suddenly shot up and slammed her hoof into his shield with unexpected vigor. Thankfully for him, the shield still held. "Because the hive is not my own!"
The queen lay back, and took a deep breath. "The queen works for the survival of all changelings. At that time, for us to survive, we needed to win the war. All else was secondary. Let that be my final lesson to all three of you."
She began coughing, and the liquid that spat out of her mouth was bloody green in color. It was the final stage, and time was running out fast. "One... last... thing. Chrysalis... do not... take... Equestria's... throne," she said with blood curdling from her neck. "For it... will.... only... bring you.... ruin..."
As she finished those words, she suddenly burst into golden flames, as the last of the queen's magic came to all three of them with a blinding light, followed by a cool gush of wind. After all of that was over, all they found left of the old queen was her age-old crown with three spikes lying gently on the bed.
After what seemed like an eternity, Chrysalis said her farewell. "May the earth below welcome your tortured soul."





31st of the tenth moon, 1550 A.E. (After Equestria) 08:00 a.m. - Throne room of the changeling hive

Many were noticeably shaken when they entered the large gates that lead to the room. They had visited this room hundreds of times in their service to the hive, yet they hadn't seen anyling other than the queen herself sitting on that particular chair. Within the room, there was a round table with seats encircling it. One of the seats were noticably larger than the others, and Chrysalis was sitting on it, greeting the arrivals with an uneasy expression herself. 
A trusty hoof from both her sides made her smile, however. Wherever she was, she could count on her brothers. In truth, when the former queen passed away, she didn't want to bear the crown alone. Hadn't the queen specified that her last lesson went to the three of them? Yet the other two insisted that the hive needed a single leader, and since she was the unofficial successor of the queen, she was the one who had to sit in that cursed chair.
All the summoned changelings filed in, filling the table one by one. After all the counselors were seated, Chrysalis spoke up. "Greetings, everyling. I welcome you with an open hoof and a heavy heart, as we have to go through one of the most fundamental changes to our hive in its thousands of years of history - all without the guidance and knowledge of our late queen."
Murmurs echoed through the ranks. Many changelings simply weren't used to the idea of regular council meetings. The queen was a dictatorial ruler, and preferred to give commands rather than listen to council. She didn't need to - much like Equestria's princesses, changeling queens were immortal, and her experience usually dealt with most affairs quite effectively. However, now that experience was gone, and the entirety of the hive would need to get used to this new system of governance.
She continued, "After the queen's death, myself, Thorax, and Pharynx have worked day and night to stabilize our love magic reserves and resume collection. I am pleased to say that by this point, we finally reached an equilibrium of income and expenditure. However, the amount of progress made on our true goal of immigration has been minimal. As you have been informed, today's meeting was convened to discuss what issues we have to consider in our plan, and how to avoid them."
There was a long silence before the record-keeper of the forager class, Essex, spoke up. "I think we need to first consider our method of going to the surface. The total population of this hive rounds up to about 700,000 changelings. According to reports from our foragers stationed throughout Equestria, the most conservative estimate of the Equestrian population is over 6 million. Now, I have no experience in sentinel duty, but I think taking down a nation 10 times our size is logistically impossible. Maybe we should take a diplomatic approach."
However, some sentinels didn't agree. They had fought too many foes, and every time, secrecy was their greatest weapon. One of such believers, 1st sentinel corp leader Ezekiel, spoke up. "That may be true, but ponies aren't very trusting of strangers, either. Even if Celestia allows us to simply harvest love without deterrence, which I highly doubt, the general pony population may be hostile towards us. Recently, a zebra who was living in the Everfree moved into Ponyville for the first time. I only was able to check while I was leaving, yet she had been completely shunned by the town's residents. If some stripes had made that much of a difference, what will our frills and holed hooves look like to the ponies?"
"Then how about we extend our current operations?" asked Thorax. "Our foragers currently only collect love from at a distance, and minimize prolonged contact with ponies in fear of discovery. What if we use our pod relationships to connect with pony familial customs, and maintain our disguise constantly? That way, we don't have to battle the royal guard, nor do we have to fear alienation for our species," he suggested. Many counselors nodded their heads, including Ezekiel and Essex.
"That sounds like the best option so far," said Chrysalis. "However, there is a hitch. If the population of Equestria increases by nearly ten percent all of a sudden, it is incredibly likely that the royal guard will be alerted, who will in turn inform Celestia. We need to make sure to bring the head of the royal guard onto our side, in order to keep such information from reaching her."
"Unfortunately, your majesty, that is highly unlikely," said chief intelligence officer Nerys as he shuffled through his files. "The current captain of the royal guard, prince Shining Armor, has a completely spotless record. No accounts of corruption, high scores in both military studies and for good conduct, and according to a recent survey, implicitly trusted by the populace of Equestria."
Chrysalis held the urge to facehoof. She couldn't have been less lucky with the draw. Why did Equestria had to have its finest captain in decades, when she was planning her big move? "Is there any weaknesses that we could find? Within his service record, tests, whatever?" She inquired desperately.
Nerys shuffled once again. "Let's see, military strategy, no... defensive spells, no... leadership, no.... I'm sorry, your majesty, it seems as if this lad is spotle- wait, there is one. Unlike most powerful unicorns, tests confirmed that he can be subject to powerful mind control magic, but only if it is exerted with a force of over 4.5... ponypower?" Nerys was clearly confused with this scale, but Chrysalis knew it from the back of her head.
So they kept using that metric long after the inventor ran away, she mused. "You don't have to worry, Nerys. That amount is within my capability. The only problem is, how can I go mind-control him without getting detected? Does he have any close relatives that I can replace with ease?"
Nerys checked her files. "His close relatives include Night Light, the Canterlot lantern-keeper, Twilight Velvet, a novelist, and Twilight Sparkle who is Celestia's personal student! However, he is a royal guard, and is most likely to remain in his post for long periods of time. I'm afraid any of these personas won't help in interacting with him very much."
Chrysalis was undaunted. "You called him a prince, you don't get to be a prince if you're not married to a princess. Does he have any royal connections?" 
Thorax chuckled, "The foragers who report back all talk about this wedding that's about to happen in three months. It looks as if he is getting married to princess Caden-Ow!"
He glared at Pharynx who had kicked him under the table, but quickly froze as he realized his mistake. He and his brother were the only ones who knew what that name meant to the birth of their queen.
Chrysalis slowly turned to looked at him, fire dancing in her eyes. "What you're saying," she stood up in excitement, "is that if I manage to replace Cadance, I can gain unlimited access to this captain?"
"Y-yes," said Thorax, clearly shaken.
"Well noted," she said as a smile quietly crept up her lips. The late queen was wrong. She could get her revenge and help the hive at the same time. She silently vowed to herself, in the next few months, to let the world know of this fact.
> Chapter 11: Operation Alicorn Sunset Part 1 - Reunions
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

5th of the third moon, 1551 A.E. 08:00 p.m. - Canterlot bound train from Manehatten
For every Changeling, a pony was either a source of food for the foragers, or a threat for the sentinels. For Chrysalis watching her old-time friend from afar, Cadance fit both categories perfectly. Simply standing near her was a feast, her delicious love for her would-be husband emanating off her in spades. Yet she was also a huge obstacle for her to conquer if she was to steal her groom, and eventually her nation, from her.
The screeching sound of the train steaming into a station broke her from her stupor, and she quickly scrambled to the window to see what station this was. Ponyville East, which meant that there was only a few stops left before Canterlot. The queen's words echoed in her ear. The hive is not my own, she reminded herself. If she was to win this gamble for the hive's future, she couldn't just sit there enjoying the feast that her enemy was providing.
As the train began to pull away from the station, she checked her disguise as a conductor, and approached Cadance's seat. "Excuse me, May I check your tickets, please?" she asked in a polite manner. 
Cadance turned around, her fair complexion clearly visible now that she was closer. Chrysalis already knew that alicorns didn't age, but she couldn't help but feel a tinge of jealousy by the fact that Cadance looked exactly the same while she had 55 years of age behind her. "Yes, here you are," she replied with her soft voice. 
Chrysalis didn't want to remember. She tried to drive the foolish thought from her mind. Yet her voice, her demeanor, her radiance, everything about this fully grown alicorn reminded her of the time they first met. The time when Cadance gave her a bottle of liquid love, accidentally intoxicating her. The time when she had kept her secret. The time when she could call her a 'friend'. 
She pretended to check the ticket, as her disguise of a conductor should. She knew those days with the mare in front of her were long gone. Why was she thinking of this, at this crucial moment? After some time, she finally was able to carry on. "Princess Cadance, I am sorry to say this, but your ticket seems to have some anomalies. I will have to escort you to the locomotive for further inquiries," she said in a serious tone.
"If this isn't an urgent issue, may I ask of you to solve this issue on the spot?" inquired Cadance. Chrysalis sensed a little irritation being mixed in with her agitated love, presumably because she would be inevitably delayed when she was already so close to her reunion with her groom. However, for the operation to succeed, she had to drag her out of her seat.
"All trains have been ordered to search for anypony with princess Cadance's appearance and/or identity. Reports have come in saying that a wanted criminal is heading to Canterlot disguised as her. We'll run a magical scan at the locomotive, and if you are who you claim to be, you will be released in a jiffy," she said without relenting. It was a bit risky telling her the general outline of her plans, but if Cadance was scrying her with her magic (she was an alicorn, after all), telling the abject truth was the only way to avoid detection.
"Alright then," said Cadance, as she rose from her seat and began to follow the 'conductor'. As they walked through the corridors of the passanger cabins, she asked, "By the way, do you have any information about this 'Chrysalis'? As princess of Equestria, after I am absolved of my suspicions, I think I ought to know about this pony that is trying to impersonate me."
Chrysalis gulped, "We don't have much information," she replied. "All we know is that she is a master of disguise and trickery, and can somehow copy your appearance," she added. Cadance seemed to be shaken a little by this statement, but Chrysalis couldn't tell, as she only sighed and said, "Well noted."
When they entered the locomotive, Cadance entered first, and Chrysalis closed the door behind her. It was time to bring the first part of her plan into action. However, before she could even cast her spell, Cadance turned around, facing directly towards her. "Why did you bring me here?" she asked.
Trying not to panic, Chrysalis repeated what she had said earlier. "To check if you, by any chance, are the criminal that we were looking for."
Cadance's expression solidified into a frown. "No, not your facade. Your true motive. For what I am about to do now, I need you to tell the truth. You have lured me out here to harm me, haven't you?"
There was a long silence at the doorway. Chrysalis' brain was already hyperventilating, but her curiosity prevented the rest of her body from following suit. "How did you find out?" she asked in disbelief. "More importantly, If you knew already, then why did you 'fall' for my trap? If you had used your authority as princess to call for help, I would already be good as dead."
Cadance sighed, "Well, your facade as a conductor was impeccable, and it would have worked if I wasn't so intimate with love magic."
Chrysalis mentally cursed herself. Cadance had detected her the exact same way Pharynx did when he first met her at the heart of the everfree forest. The queen had said that changelings were ponies who were pushed over the 'edge' of loneliness, after all. "Let me guess. You could sense that I have no love unlike most ponies, so in your vision, I was like a very visible black hole completely surrounded by a shower of light. Am I correct?"
Cadance was taken aback by her aggressive attitude, but she had experience in this kind of behavior. "Well, quite the contrary. Ponies on this train have taken an overnight trip from Manehattan. They are exhausted, and their love doesn't emanate off very much. However, your love was very visible, yet it wasn't so comfortable... No. It was very ferocious, the kind of love that makes a pony do almost anything, even terrible things to keep their loved ones happy."
Ignoring Chrysalis' stunned expression, She went on, "Listen, I don't know your name, and I don't know your motive, but I do want to help you. I may be a princess, but I have worked as a sitter for a long time. I've seen families resort to thievery, robbery, and even murder to save their loved ones. I don't want another poor soul to follow the same path. Take my hoof, and let's go to Canterlot together." With those words, she extended her hoof, reaching out towards Chrysalis. 
Chrysalis was simply astounded. She never could expect such mercy from her former queen. In every single way, Cadance didn't change at all, yet I'm unrecognizable.... she thought to herself. Unbeknownst to Cadance, however, she had a far greater mission that couldn't be done if she took her hoof. She had to avenge those who wronged her, and had to bring the hive a better future. In order to fulfill her mission, Cadance had to go, no matter how innocent or kind she was.
"I thank you for your kindness, your majesty. Maybe in a better world, we could have been friends," she lamented. 
She fired up her horn, and green fire washed all over her. "But right now, I have much more than my family hanging on my shoulders."
Cadance was visibly shocked by the monstrosity that replaced the conductor, but her years of princess training kicked in. "Now, I suppose I know your name. If this is what you wish, 'Chrysalis', than I will not back down," she said in a stern tone as she lit up her horn, as well.





The duel ended fairly quickly. Chrysalis had to admit, Cadance had been trained well as a princess. Unfortunately for her, however, Chrysalis could predict all her moves and magical attacks (Celestia had taught her practically the exact same things, albeit with her magic-charged prosthetics). That and she didn't have the wartime hand-to-hand combat experience that Chrysalis accumulated over three decades of her military career. 
Now that she was safe from getting caught, she began studying her prisoner from muzzle to tail, memorizing every detail. After a flash of a green flame, she was indistinguishable from the princess she just subdued. It was time for the next step. 
Looking at the unconscious form of her old friend, however, she realized that some adjustments had to be made for the original plan. She had planned to lure her out, silently assassinate her, and burn the body to conceal any evidence. That way, even if other ponies were suspicious of her 'memory elapses' and 'personality changes', they couldn't find any clue. It was the perfect crime, and a safe way to extend her influence over the Equestrian royal court, promising a bright future for her species.
She knew it was an especially bad idea to let Cadance live, since she had discovered her secret identity from the get-go. Whenever she tried to kill her, however, she couldn't erase the taste of Cadance's love from her mind. It came with a soft, succulent flavor without being too rich. 
Most importantly, with the pleasant sensation came even more memories. Memories from her disastrous first day of school, Cadance reaching out with her hoof to grab her, all their fun adventures, and their hurtful last goodbye. Such memories were indeed tasty for a changeling's appetite, but there was something more to them. They were filling, and they brought genuine happiness, a feeling that she only shared with her brothers in short moments. She wanted more. Needed more.
And so she merely cocooned her up, and hid her in a large suitcase. She would survive, since the changeling goo inside the cocoon would provide necessary oxygen and nutrients. This would only be a minor alteration. Chrysalis still remembered that she had seven hundred thousand changelings to save. She walked up to the 'train driver', and whispered. 
"Alert the hive. Phase two of operation Alicorn Sunset begins."





5th of the third moon, 1551 A.E. 09:30 p.m. - Canterlot Central station
The train made a horrible screeching sound of metal hitting brakes as it pulled into Canterlot Central. Chrysalis was appalled by the fact that they made so little progress after her prototype that they never even bothered to dampen the sound. She made herself a mental note to improve that as the first thing to do after the changelings all got settled in.
Once the train had fully stopped, she scanned the platform for any ponies that might have been waiting for her. After cocooning Cadance, she returned to Cadance's seat and ran through her belongings to find any information about her relationships. Although she had memorized quite a few by now, she still didn't know the faces of those who might come out to greet her.
Fortunately for Chrysalis, she didn't have to worry, because the face that came to greet her was one that she would never forget in a million years. Unfortunately, however, it was the face of the one pony she absolutely knew would crush her flat if she was ever discovered.
Princess Celestia was in a more casual uniform than usual, as her golden crown and sandals weren't there. Yet she could still be identified from a mile away by her sheer size and majesty. She was the living embodiment of Equestria's ideal of peace and harmony, as well as the heart of its power and willingness to protect it. As a little filly, such power was the source of great comfort, as a strong shield to protect her from this cruel world. As queen of the changeling race, it felt like she was pushing up against a mountain.
But as Chrysalis stepped out of the train and onto the platform, pressure gave way to surprise by Celestia's welcoming smile and warm embrace. During her training as a princess, whenever Pillar was hurt by public outrage and harsh words, Celestia would soothe her with a hug before talking her out of her bad mood. Even as Chrysalis, a 50-year old changeling queen of iron, it felt like something was tightening in her heart. The fact that this hug was for someone else that she had replaced didn't help matters.
Celestia's enthusiastic high-tone tore her from her brooding. "Cadance, it's so good to see you again! It's a real shame you couldn't come sooner. I didn't tell Shining that you're coming today, so he'll be surprised when you get to your house!"
Wanting to get through this as quickly as possible, Chrysalis replied, "Of course, princess Celestia. Now I'm really tired after the overnight trip, though. Can we speak as we get there?"
Celestia gave her a funny look, and she began to laugh. "Of course, princess Cadance. Seriously, not even you! Twilight calls me by that name every day even when I tell her to just go by my name. You must be really tired when you're sounding like her. Come, let's get out of the station."
Chrysalis was shaking internally as she followed Celestia out into her carriage. If I keep doing this, I just might be able to get myself killed before I even brainwash the captain.
Once they were firmly seated in the carriage, it began to move, leaving both mares in the carriage to talk freely. Celestia offered some small talk, such as the wonderfulness of such a marriage happening right near her, or the reasons why age difference doesn't matter. Chrysalis simply nodded and laughed during the conversation. In truth, she was scared to death that she would get caught by getting details wrong. Also, she had something very important to ask of her.
As they were nearing the house, Chrysalis spoke up. "Celestia, while I was coming here, some ponies from the countryside petitioned me to let this wedding be an event for all of Equestria, and to not only invite selective members of society. I thought it was a great idea, but I'm afraid that it will be a much more crowded event than usual."
Celestia was ecstatic. "Of course! That means we'll have to prepare a big party with food for everyone, and I think the bearers of the elements would be the best bet."
"Who are these 'bearers of the elements'?" asked Chrysalis, realizing her mistake a moment too late.
"Twilight sparkle and her friends, you silly. Don't you remember? They brought back Luna from Nightmare moon a while ago, at the Summer Sun Celebration."
"Oh, they were the ones that brought her back?" Now she remembered reading the pony newspaper brought by one of the foragers, being shocked by the fact that Celestia had a sister, and slightly offended that Celestia hadn't told her that fact when she was still Cater Pillar. She didn't recall who exactly brought them back, however.
But realization gave way to worry as she thought about what that meant. These 'bearers', one of whom included the princess's personal student, had stood their ground against an alicorn, and won. Her likelihood of dying when she got discovered just increased by at least twenty percent.
Just what had she gotten herself into?
> Chapter 12: Operation Alicorn Sunset Part 2 - Foiled Plans
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

5th of the third moon, 1551 A.E. 09:50 p.m. - Honeymoon house
The art of changeling mind-control was a dangerous dance, especially if the recipient was a powerful one. The recipient could easily identify that the thoughts they were having weren't theirs if the controller tried to insert his/her own thoughts into the recipient directly. Therefore, the controller must monitor the emotions of the recipient quite keenly, and take care to not go against the flow of the recipient's consciousness. One wrong step could easily lead to detection, and for Chrysalis, that would be the end of her in more ways than one. 
Shining Armor was captain of the Royal Guard, and for good reason. In a few day's time, he was to set up a shield spell around the entirety of Canterlot, which would be an impressive feat in and of itself, even in the eyes a changeling queen. Also, he was at his ripe age of 30, and was physically much superior to her 50-year-old self. In a confined space like the dining table of the honeymoon house, that would be a big issue if they were to come to blows. Even if she managed to somehow win, Her cover as Cadance would be completely blown, and Celestia's immense power would do the rest.
"Are you okay, Cady? You're not looking so great today. You didn't even take a bite out of your dinner," Shining Armor asked worriedly. He wasn't oblivious to her concerned attitude, it seemed. 
"Oh, it's nothing, Shiny. It's just... I have to tell you something. I meant to say this to you earlier, but I only got to hear about this a few days ago myself. I think our wedding is maybe going to be somewhat... different than what we anticipated," With those words, she began pouring her love magic into him, trying to gauge his reaction. 
His own consciousness would agree to it if it was reasonable, since he would want to make her happy. However, such sudden changes to a big event would be a source of concern for him, and that part would have to go. Please, trust me, and just calm down. Nothing to worry about... she mused.
She felt the feeling of her magic latching onto his mind, subtly smoothing out the spikes of worry in his psyche, trapping him in marital bliss. The heartfelt smile on his face confirmed her success. "Sure, Cady. How is it going to change?"
"You know that normally, only the ones with special tickets can participate in royal ceremonies, right? Like the Gala that happened last year." Watching his reaction, she continued. "But the earth pony families that I had become acquainted with during my job as a sitter really wanted to participate in the wedding, so I thought about making it more of a collaborative event, where everypony could come and enjoy regardless of their wealth, gender, or race."
No sooner than she finished her sentence, she could sense Shining slipping from her grasp. "I-I don't know about this, Cady. I mean sure, it is a good cause, trying to encourage everypony to participate, but wouldn't it be a tad dangerous? We wouldn't be able to control a massive crowd if something goes wrong."
His love and worry towards Cadance was working against her now, and Chrysalis had to turn this tide of emotions around if she were to keep what little hold of him she had left. She jumped down from her chair, slowly walking towards shining. "Thank you Shiny, for caring so much about me. It really means a lot," she cooed, "But this isn't just about us, darling. A royal wedding doesn't come often, and this could be a symbolic step in fostering real harmony in our nation. You know what they say, friendship is magic, after all."
Chrysalis could feel those words hitting home. She knew from her research that Shining Armor was highly patriotic, and upheld the values of the nation before his own concern. However, it still wasn't enough to override his concern. 
She walked up to him, so close that she could feel his hot breath on her skin, and whispered into his ears. "Besides, why would I fear for my safety when I have the best guard captain ever as my groom?"
She finally felt Shining Armor's last mental resistance break up. He was madly in love with 'Cadance', and would do everything he could in order to make her happy. Even though she didn't explicitly tried to, she fed from him in spades. She hardly ever got to taste such love in the hive. It was more than just nourishing, as it empowered her magic to quite some degree, as well. Perhaps enough to make her final move.
Leaning in even closer, she whispered again, pouring even more magic into her mind-control. "Perhaps, with you by my side, we may not even need a very strong shield spell to protect ourselves," Shining Armor's rational mind would normally treat it as folly, but her spell clouded it with his love for Cadance. With those words, she finally hammered the last nail in the coffin by a passionate kiss on his pure white muzzle.





8th of the third moon, 1551 A.E. 2:00 p.m. - Canterlot Castle
Chrysalis winced from a window in the castle tower as six mares trotted into the gates that separated the castle from the city. These were the famed heroes who defeated Nightmare Moon, and yet another huge threat for her already very risky operation. She did more research on the other element bearers in the Canterlot library after Celestia had suggested their involvement, and the results weren't promising. Despite their bubbly exteriors, their strong friendship meant that the elements of harmony in their possession could release magic that could defeat anypony (or anycreature, in her case).
Fortunately for her, however, they mostly weren't showing any sign of worry just yet, and were chittering about the wedding preparations to no end. Mostly. One lavender unicorn, presumably the princess's personal student Twilight Sparkle, was frowning, mumbling about her brother for not informing her of the sudden wedding. Considering what I'm doing to him, it would have been better for you to have stayed oblivious... she mused.
Beside her, Shining Armor gave her an affectionate nuzzle. "I'll have to go and comfort Twi. I was too busy to tell her about my wedding, and it looks like she's a bit upset about it. I bet she'll love you when she learns you were her babysitter though." 
She simply nodded and returned the nuzzle, only to bit her lip the moment he left the room. That's exactly the problem. I'm not...





"Sunshine, sunshine, ladybug's awake. Clap your hooves and do a little shake!"
Crap. She thought to herself, as all the greetings she thought of in her mind instantly vaporized. Two seconds in with her conversation with Twilight and she already met something she didn't know. There were the following three options that she could think of when came to dealing with this situation.
1. What?
2. A...ha.
3. *Awkward silence*
Despairing at her lack of choices, Chrysalis chose the first one. "What are you doing here?" she replied. For now, the more information she had, the better. 
"Cadance! It's me! Twilight!" the mare replied enthusiastically. Unfortunately, it didn't help her broaden her options any further. 
Her brainpower now almost gone from anxiety, she could only choose the second best. "A...ha," she said as she silently hoped that would be a good enough reaction. Twilight's face scrunching up was a telltale sign that this wasn't the case, and the very unfortunate third option quickly followed suit.
With all of her mediocre responses exhausted, she used this break to quickly move towards Shining Armor, who very thankfully wasn't suspicious of her not recognizing Twilight's signature move due to her firmly placed mind-control spell. In fact, he came to her rescue. "Now, I have to go back to my stations, but Cadance will be checking in with all of you to see how things are going. I speak for both of us when I say we're so happy to have you here. Right, dear?"
"Absolutely," she said with her eyes narrowed. She was scanning for Twilight's emotions, and the results were clear. Absolute shock and horror, with a touch of bitterness added to it. 
Her plan was already going down south.




11th of the third moon, 1551 A.E. 11:00 a.m. - Canterlot Castle 
The more she thought about it, the more certain her hunch became. Twilight was onto something. She was one of the smartest, most magically gifted unicorns in the history of Equestria. Although Cadance's talent of love magic was a unique one, Chrysalis couldn't rule out the possibility that Twilight had some affinity with it. 
After her initial shock during their first meeting, she had never welcomed her wherever, whenever they met. She always watched her from a distance with those suspicious lavender eyes, seemingly staring straight into her very soul. Chrysalis had also overheard her talking with her friends about her in angry voices, although she couldn't exactly make out what they were saying. All of this was dire news for her, especially considering the roles Twilight and her friends would be playing during the wedding.
Of course, Twilight would never attack her directly under the watchful eyes of Celestia without solid proof, but she and her five friends, along with her pet dragon, were completely in charge of the wedding preparations. Assuming Twilight had knowledge with the potions department as well, one conveniently misplaced drop of poison in her food or clothing would be 'a very unfortunate accident' for everyone indeed.
Almost confirming her thoughts, as soon as she stepped into the steaming kitchens of the castle, one of Twilight's friends, Applejack, was it? Caught up to her. "Hi, princess Mi Amore Cadenza! Have you come here to check out your menu for the big day?" she hollered as she offered her a tray of apple fritters. Chrysalis sighed to herself, thankful that these young mares didn't know the full art of assassination. They were being so obvious with their attempts.
"Delicious! I love, love, love them!" she squealed, pretending to be in complete bliss. Judging by her experience, the poison would be on the apple itself. Mixing any poison with the batter would reduce effectiveness by at least eighty percent, so it wouldn't be fatal. She bit into the batter part, and it was surprisingly good. No surprises though, such poisonous food were always supposed to be tasty to lure in the victims. It was so good, in fact, that she felt a small amount of regret whilst quietly throwing away the packet while nopony was watching.
Unfortunately for her, a pair of lavender eyes were.





"I've been working on it ever since I was given the assignment, and I think you'll be pleased with the results!" called Rarity, as she showcased the dress to her. Fortunately for Chrysalis, she knew better than accept the offer directly.
The dress severely lacked any beads, a great deflector of magic if properly enchanted. The short trim also meant she would be vulnerable in the sides and rear to any traps that would spring if she treaded on them. The pristine white dress was a stark contrast from the rather dull uniforms of her 'bridesmaids', a shining beacon for anypony who 'accidentally' would target her with a magic spell among the large crowd. It was the perfect clothing for foul play.
She made a mental note for herself to switch out the bridesmaids from her own changeling sentinels to the six mares themselves, to keep them from fabricating another plan out of her sight. One thing she did learn from her queen, was to keep her enemies close. She called out for adjustments, and unknown to her, the lavender eyes were scowling at her, again. 





These childish games. These music that would have fit in the 1400's. What was this pink, bouncy mare thinking? So far, everything that she saw had somehow been a plot, so this one must be, as well. Try as she might, however, she couldn't find anything that could lead to her potential demise and/or assassination. 
This was worrying. Earlier, she thought that Pinkie Pie was the least threatening among Twilight's friends, simply because of her cute smiles and bubbly attitude. However, this pony had so far been the only one to get her scheme past all her experience as an heir to the throne of the unforgiving hive. What ghastly secret was she hiding behind that pink mane of hers?
She couldn't back down here, however. With confidence, she smirked, "Perfect, if we were celebrating a six-year-old's birthday party."
"Thank you!" Pinkie's reply was a short one, but it sent chills running down Chrysalis' spine. Even when facing a direct insult, she managed to conceal it behind that ever-smiling mask, and just shrug it off. And this mare was still only around twenty years old. Perhaps she had found her most formidable adversary so far.
And yet even while she was thinking about Pinkie's devilish schemes, a pair of lavender eyes were still watching her from behind a pillar.
> Chapter 13: Operation Alicorn Sunset Part 3 - Showdown
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

12th of the third moon, 1551 A.E. 01:00 p.m. - Throne room of Canterlot castle
Chrysalis felt her back go stiff, time seemed to slow down, and her senses became numb as Twilight shouted those words. "She is evil!" 
How Twilight got clues to that, Chrysalis didn't have the faintest of ideas. Twilight teleported up to her, lining up her supposed 'crimes'. Being horrible to her friends, doing "something" to her bridesmaids, and putting a spell on Shining that made him become all googly-eyed. 
She considered her response. she didn't harm any victims of these supposed crimes. She was worried about her would-be assassins, so she took the necessary precautions (although by the shocked looks on their faces, that probably wasn't the case). Her bridesmaids were absolutely fine, in fact having the time of their lives feeding off of the princess of love. Shining's shield spell needed love magic to recharge, so she would give back some of the magic she absorbed to keep him going. 
Of course, all these were very important clues as to what her actual crime was, so saying that out loud wouldn't be the most prudent of choices. She quickly checked the groom beside her to sense his emotions, and she wasn't surprised to see anger billowing inside of him. What was suprising, however, was where that anger was directed at. Maybe she could escape Twilight Sparkle's doubts, after all.
For ponies, emotion and gut feelings mostly triumph over reason. As she burst into tears and ran off into the hallways, everypony including her groom followed her. They showered her with words and feelings, such as 'I really apologize on her behalf', 'I'm sure she didn't mean it'. She ravenously ate it up, her magic reserves being the highest ever since her transformation. 
And the best part? Twilight got none of it. Shining Armor stepped out in front of her to dish out his own set of verbal slashes. Her friends neglected her in favor of a pony they never met. Even Celestia, her mentor had abandoned her in favor of, unknowingly, her long-lost first student. She was paying for taking the spot that should have rightfully been hers all along.
When she returned to the throne room after all the fiasco, Twilight was still crying on the steps. Her eyes had gone red, she was hyperventilating, and her pink and lavender mane was all tangled together. She looked up at her, eyes still sparkling from her tears, begging for forgiveness. 
The abandoned gem mines of Canterlot would be a great place to repent, indeed.





13th of the third moon, 1551 A.E. 11:00 a.m. - Entrance of Former Canterlot Mining Complex
1st Field Army General Ezekiel watched the clock tick for the thirteenth time, with a ridiculous flower wreath over his head and an even more ridiculous green dress on his body. It was exactly one hour before the bells of Canterlot would sound noon, and his queen would be 'married' to the captain of the royal guard. With that power, she would silently work to secure the livelihoods of everyling up above the hive. 
Leaving the younglings, the sickly and the old behind with minimal resources was not an easy decision, but the hive would need every last ounce of this strength to mobilize. If Chrysalis could succeed, they could all be healed and cared for unscathed. If she failed... he didn't want to think about what would happen to them. He could only focus on the task at hand, and guard the two prisoners he had been assigned to with his lieutenants. If any of them escaped, it would be the end of the operation, and the changeling race as a whole.
His thoughts were broken by a loud shout from lieutenant Hales. "Commander, I'm getting sound signatures from the cavern right next to us! It seems as if the prisoners have joined together and activated the mineshaft!"
Ezekiel gnashed his fangs. "Prepare for close-quarters combat! Lieutenant Nexus, you flank around from the side while me, Felix and Hales distract them!" Nexus nodded, going off in a different direction towards the room's pillars.
This was an unexpected turn of events, yet he was confident the three elite sentinels (himself included) could win against them. Princess Cadance hadn't eaten since first coming in here a week ago, and Twilight sparkle had been unconscious and without food or water for at least 18 hours. They had also activated the mineshaft, which meant they have already gone through their assigned guardslings, draining their magic reserves even further. If he could survive the initial shootouts, time was on his side.
The clock kept ticking, and after what seemed like an eternity, he could finally see glimpses of the tired expressions of both ponies through his night vision. He smiled, seeing that the princess was limping and near exhaustion, just as he had hoped. 
"Now we advance. Be careful, although they are currently in a weakened state due to exhaustion, they are still capable of doing some serious damage," he ordered, receiving nods from his two remaining lieutenants. 
As the party of three reached their position, they braced themselves, ready for combat. They walked straight and true towards the two surprised and exhausted prisoners. "You're not going anywhere," said Ezekiel, with grim determination.
The following series of events, Ezekiel couldn't really comprehend. The two mares began to retreat, with their backs against the wall. Then, suddenly, the princess threw a bouquet at their faces. Perhaps it was an act of desperation? Yet as soon as he thought that, he found out that he couldn't move his body on his own volition. 
His eyes began darting towards the flowers. He felt a rush of energy and happiness flowing through him like no other. It was the unmistakable taste of love, but he had never seen anything so potent or powerful before. His sight became blurry and his leg muscles tensed up as the toxic levels of love magic began to seize his consciousness. 
He tried and tried again to focus on his goal of detaining, re-imprisoning, and if necessary, killing the threats to the salvation of the hive. His body didn't listen to him. The love infused in the bouquet was too strong, too pure to simply ignore. He was being played against his will, like a puppet on a string. As the princess threw the flowers over his head and into the ravine below, he and his lieutenant followed suit, not even bothering to spread his wings. 
Watching from the sidelines, Nexus was horrified as he watched the mighty Ezekiel being controlled by mere flowers. He too could sense the potent love magic in the air, but his relative distance from its place of origin and his experience serving as a sentinel made it possible for him to hold onto his sanity, if only barely. Judging by the lack of precision in her magic, the princess probably didn't realize what her powers could do to a changeling, and just threw the bouquet in self-defense.	
If she learned to utilize her mind-controlling love magic effectively, however, he was certain she would be the greatest threat the hive has ever faced.
His eyes darted over to the opening they were escaping to. Waiting around until they were out of sight, he spread his wings and began accelerating. He needed to alert the queen now. She was in mortal danger.





13th of the third moon, 1551 A.E. 11:30 a.m. - Throne room of Canterlot Castle
"We're here to pronounce the union of-" "Stoooooooop!!" Mere seconds away from earning the fruits of her labor, Chrysalis could never mistake that shrill voice. She turned around, and to her horror, Twilight had not only escaped, but she had brought Cadance with her. The operation was doomed. The former queen was right. Coming to Equestria had only brought her ruin.
Realization dawned on her. She had let Cadance live because of her own soft heart, causing this mess in the first place. She had imprisoned Twilight because of her selfish desires, her personal goal of revenge. There was no one to blame but herself. She had failed her people, failed her hive, only because she acted as how Pillar would have.
She shagged her shoulders, about to surrender herself, when she saw the furious glare of Pharynx looking over from the guests aisle. His message was simple. We have nowhere to run. Do something.
He was right. The only way she could repay the hive for its acceptance of her, for putting its faith in her during the coup, for following her on this perilous journey, was to finish what she started.
Despite knowing that she would get blasted by heavenly flames, She discarded her magic-hindering disguise. Twilight's angry words faded into an inaudible mix as green fires surrounded her, revealing holed hooves, a jagged horn, and clear, insect-like wings. 
She now gazed up with hateful eyes at the mountain she was up against, her all-powerful, never-dying former mentor.





Celestia's attack was simple. A ray of pure kinetic magic from her horn. It was something used by unicorns on a daily basis to move things around, but honestly, who needed more when your opponent was as easily crushed as squashing a bug? 
For the receiving bug, however, the heavenly force was too much to bear. Even as she gave her all, the love magic of Shining Armor, the ambient magic she absorbed during her trip, she was slowly losing ground against Celestia's sun. 
Then, all of a sudden, Celestia's relentless march stopped. The power that was stopping Celestia's advance wasn't her own, but the magic of... friendship? She had deliberately hidden the diadems away so that the magic of friendship couldn't be used against her in this precise situation. How was it acting in favor of her now?
Pharynx was definitely loyal to the hive, and helped to defend it in times of great need. He wasn't one to ever lie, telling her straight to the face if what she said was wrong. Thorax was ever kind to his fellow changelings, and could humor their pod of three in times of hardship. But herself... magic could be understandable in her current state as the queen, perhaps, but generosity?
For Celestia, she was absolutely dumbstruck. She knew the only thing that could subdue an alicorn's power would be the magic of friendship. Her personal experience with Luna's banishment made that quite clear, but to see it being practiced by this invading bug-queen thing was quite unnerving. The enemies that invaded Equestria were definitely powerful, but all they had was greed, lust for power, or searing hate towards everypony living in it. How was this one wielding the power that had been the pillar of Equestria for so long?
Even with questions simmering in both of their minds, Celestia's rays were pushed further and further back, much to the guests - well, the actual pony guests' - horror. Finally, Celestia was pushed back until the magic reached her very horntip, and she fell from the air, horn charred and blackened.
For the first time in one thousand and five hundred years, the unquestioned mighty sovereign of Equestria had fallen.
> Chapter 14: Operation Alicorn Sunset part 4 - Compromise
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

13th of the third moon, 1551 A.E. ???. p.m. - ???

Celestia was surrounded by total blackness. She tried to move, to call out to Luna, to do anything in order to escape her prison. She half-heartedly knew she wasn't in her consciousness and what she was doing was to no avail, yet she tried anyway. Her mind was burning with concerns. Did the element bearers escape? Did Luna escape? How much time had passed? 
Frustrated, she flared her wings, ramming the inky blackness with all her might. Contrary to her expectations, she felt a slight ripping sensation, and for a moment was blinded by bright light from all sides. She had no strength left in her muscles, her horntip was aching, but at least she was free... right?
Unfortunately for Celestia, the first thing she saw right after she came to was that buggy monstrosity sitting on her tea table, staring at her with a cynical grin.
Celestia furrowed her brow and tried to ignite her horn, yet the famed sun's power was nowhere to be seen, replaced by mere sparks that fizzed out quite pathetically. With all her remaining strength, she tried to charge the creature, yet it effortlessly locked the alicorn in place with its green magical hue. The creature rose from the chair and slowly walked over to her, its fanged mouth projecting a wide grin.
"Now, now. Where are your manners? Be a good princess, and come have a seat," it whispered, pointing to a chair on the opposite side . Celestia reluctantly complied, since there wasn't much else she could do. To be honest, she was wondering why she was even alive still. The creature had already won. Equestria was presumably suffering under the chains of slavery. What more could she possibly hope to gain by keeping her alive?
"The name's Chrysalis, by the way. I understand that you are quite confused. Let's just say that things... didn't exactly go according to plan for me, either." she trailed off.
Did this villain keep her alive, just so she could torment her with the demise of her loved ones? Celestia was hoping and praying that wasn't the case, but she had to know.
"Where are Luna, Twilight and her friends?" Celestia held her breath as she waited for an answer. She prepared for the worst when her question was answered by haughty laughter.
"You really haven't changed, your highness. In short, nopony was permanently harmed. Luna was captured in her sleep, and is being contained in the same type of cocoon that you were in. The element bearers aren't much of a threat without their elements, so they were escorted back to ponyville under guard. Twilight sparkle, though..."
"I feel she is going to be a huge problem of mine even without the elements, and I debated whether or not to remove her completely from the equation... Yet at the end, I decided not to. She currently resides in a comfy room within this castle with a magic suppressor around her horn. Consider it my small gesture of goodwill."
She let out a small sigh of relief that her loved ones were safe, but her confusion only became worse. What in her name was this bug queen planning?
"What about the real Cadance, Shining Armor, and all the other 'guests' that you invited for the wedding? What did you do to them?"
"As for Cadance, she was not of much use to me after my cover was blown, neither was Shining Armor. They are under house arrest, on opposite sides of this city. The ponies who were fleeing out of the city, though..." The creature flashed a devilish grin. "Let's just say that those refugees had some company with them."
With those words, the creature walked over to one of the crystals lining the room. Celestia could very much recognize what she was seeing, but all the images were drastically different from her memory. Manehattan square, with more of the bug-things locking eyes with the wary populace. Vanhoover harbor, with the bugs checking the shipments from understandably confused foreign merchants. And last but not least, Ponyville, with many crystals showing what each of the element bearers were doing. None seemed to be very happy with their predicament.
There was a moment of silence as Celestia came to realize her nation's situation. If it weren't for her thousand-year-long experience as sole ruler of Equestria, she probably would have slipped into the blackness once more. Instead, she recognized that she was now facing one of the greatest threats to her nation since its foundation. Discord, Nightmare Moon and King Sombra were all formidable opponents, yet they were all solitary predators. When they were gone, their empire would go, as well. 
This bug-queen, this Chrysalis was not only cunning and powerful on her own. She knew how organize, inspire, and lead. Yet she was using this ability for conquest and destruction. To make matters even worse, she passionately believed in everything she was doing, to the degree that she even managed to use the elements of harmony. The more time she spent on Equestrian soil, the tighter her grip on it would become. Yet, she hadn't taken the largest step in cementing her power.
"So why didn't you just kill me and take the crown already?"
She said that word with a smudge of hatred in her voice.
Yet curiously, the seemingly triumphant, smug-looking Chrysalis seemed to be shaken by this word considerably. Celestia hadn't the faintest idea why.
"W-well, you see, there's... a few problems with that. For instance, do you know what time it is, now?"
Celestia squinted at the window. Since the sun looked about ready to be lowered.. "6'o clock. Why does it matter," she replied coldly. Chrysalis only gave a small whistle in response.
"Your timing is impeccable, your highness. Yet the sun has actually been up for 36 hours straight since yesterday. Our sentinels are reporting abnormal tides, growing panic... To put it simply, we need you to lower the sun."
Celestia furrowed her brow at her enemy. "I will not do so until you withdraw all your forces from Equestria. If you do not, The power of the sun shall all wither you to death." She hadn't used that phrase since she-knows-when, but she couldn't afford to hold back at the moment.
However, Chrysalis merely scoffed at the proposal. "Us changelings have lived underground for centuries. If the heat becomes too unbearable, we will do so once more, and only when all ponies are dead from either the heat or starvation, only then will we die. I can, however, give you a much better deal."
So that's what they are called, mused Celestia.
"In exchange for peace and the continued rising of the sun, I will give you back your power, your crown, and your sister. I will fully release all of the current hostages except for Cadance, Twilight sparkle, and the elements of harmony, just so you don't try to kill me once you get your powers back. In turn, you will name me to the position of chancellor, and I will nominate the members of cabinet."
The monarch of the sun quietly considered her options. On one hand, she was afraid she would be falling into this creature's trap, whatever it was going to be. On the other, the very same creature could still kill her closest friends if she didn't comply. After a long silence, she gave her answer through clenched teeth.
"Deal it is, then, however much I abhor it."
Chrysalis solemnly nodded, and laid down her own three-pointed crown on top of the table. "Lastly, since I technically outrank you, you will have to -at least formally- take my title of 'queen of the Changelings'. Please, take care of your subjects well, your majesty." She said that last part with particular emphasis.
Instead of saying anything, Celestia quietly picked up the crown and put it on top of her head as a double crown. It felt surprisingly light and soft to the touch. She resolved in her mind to not get used to it, to abandon it when Equestria was finally liberated from this horrid villain.
Twirling the crown with her left hoof, she realized that she didn't know about Chrysalis or the changelings, as much as they knew about ponies and herself. In order to have any chance at liberation, that would have to change.
"Before we conclude this truce, Answer me. What was your original plan? When that failed, how did you manage to use the elements of harmony?"
Chrysalis let out a deep sigh. She suddenly looked much older and tired than her confident self. "Truth be told, I thought we were finished when one of the most powerful magical creatures in world was bearing down on me. I was supposed to be Cadance, be married to Shining Armor, and with my influence, you shouldn't have suspected anything of the sudden "population increase" in Equestria.... As for the elements of harmony, I myself have no idea."
Celestia didn't know what to say. She shuddered at the prospect of her close friend and pupil being replaced by a cold, ruthless, shape-shifting demon. She hated her for trying successfully to brainwash the groom. However, she couldn't help but notice an important detail in it.
"Even if it worked, you'd be in an unwanted marriage. You would have to maintain your facade for the rest of your life."
However, Chrysalis only gave a small chuckle. "Not a problem if you have been doing it for the past 30 years."
Both parties quietly sipped their tea for a brief while. It was an odd blend of green and black, reserved only for the most intimate visits from friends and her sister. Celestia wondered how this 'queen' figured out such a thing. 
She decided to pay no mind to it. She probably just interrogated the kitchen staff, right?
> Chapter 15: Darkest night before dawn
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

13th of the third moon, 1551 A.E. (After Equestria) - 08:00 p.m., Ponyville Square

She could only watch on from her house window as the sun refused to fall, as the proud Equestrian flag fell and the strange flag with a black crown went up, as the ponies hurried to their homes away from the strict curfew that was enforced by the changelings.

So it was naturally a surprise the next evening when there was no sentinel guarding her house door, and again when the sun actually began to go down. She raced down to the town square, eager to find out that by some miracle, the princesses had returned and she could meet her friends again.

Rarity arrived just in time to hear a voice being broadcasted via the only loudspeaker that was in the town. The ponies gathered around were looking devastated, some even crying their eyes out.

"...In my long reign over this nation, never have I thought that this solemn and awful duty would one day fall to Luna and myself."

She felt an ice hammer slam onto her muzzle. She knew that voice. It was a voice nopony in Equestria would ever forget. Yet it didn't have the vigor and clarity that she remembered. Only a deep, profound sorrow that seemed to echo within everypony's minds.

"What is Princess Celestia talking about?" She asked the elderly pegasus next to her, but he just turned away and began to weep.

"Yet, in the current occupied situation of Equestria, Both of us have come to the conclusion that it is neither desirable nor possible to keep the current conflict ongoing. The head of the invading changelings, named Chrysalis, has proposed a peace treaty where she promised safety and property protection for all of my little ponies. A treaty that will be supervised and enforced by both me and Luna."

Now Rarity finally understood what was happening. At the same time, she still didn't want to believe a single word.

"In return, from this point onwards, Changelings are legally allowed to live alongside all pony settlements, and their sustenance is to be provided by the pony populace. It is apparent that these creatures are dependent on love magic for survival, and from firsthand experience, the process of extraction is not permanently harmful to the body in any way that I currently know of."

"Also, We had to nominate the invader to the position of chancellor as part of the treaty, so We issue a word of caution for  those coming to the morning court of tomorrow, to not act provoked in any way, shape, or form. Although safety for all ponies and changelings is clearly specified in the treaty, we want to avoid potential casualties at all cost."

As Rarity could only watch on with dismay, Princess Luna's voice came onto the speaker.

"And lastly... Celestia and us accept all blame and responsibility for this catastrophe, and profoundly apologize for failing to adhere to our holy duties as the prime protectors of this realm. We have failed you, my little ponies... and we have no right to ask anything more of you."

"Yet, with a heavy heart we have to urge all of our little ponies to keep calm, and carry on with your lives and duties. Our lands might be occupied, yet with our unbreakable spirit, we sincerely believe that ponykind will once more be able to stand strong, and weather these difficult times."

"For the last time, We are truly sorry, everypony."

No more sounds exited from the speaker. A dark, heavy shroud of mourning silence washed over the crowd gathered at the square. Rarity was no exception. With that message, her brain finally began to fully process the depth and severity of the current situation.

The princesses, who saved the realm multiple times from disaster, couldn't win. The elements of harmony, the only things that managed to overpower and rehabilitate one of said princesses, betrayed Equestria. There was no chance in Tartarus that an average pony such as herself could defeat such a force greater or equal to that of the princesses, especially without the elements. 

Yet she had to try. Through clenched teeth, she began to write a note for all of her friends to receive, an activity which was usually designated to the now-absent Twilight Sparkle. Since Spike was imprisoned with her, she could only hope to drop the notes off in front of each mare's house.

Midnight, barnyard of Sweet Apple Acres. We have to talk.





13th of the third moon, 1551 A.E. (After Equestria) - 12:00 p.m., Sweet Apple Acres

"Apologies and thanks, Applejack, for letting us in this late. We needed a secluded spot away from the town center."

She only smirked and waved a hoof in response to Rarity's remark.

"Nuff said, sugarcube. On a normal day I don't like guests at such a late hour, but I suppose today's anythin' but normal..."

With Applejack's sorrowful remark, a blanket of silence covered them all as they sat in front of the fire. The crackling sound of burning wood was the only thing giving them shelter from a cold, rainy night.

"Well what are we waiting for! Since there are no sentinels watching over us, I say we storm Canterlot and pull that invader off her throne!"

Rarity sadly shook her head.

"The changelings released us because they know it's already too late for that. Their armies are now in every single city and town in Equestria. Even if we manage to defeat Chrysalis, it will only cause more war and bloodshed for ponies and changelings alike."

After a few seconds of an intense glare, Rainbow sighed and folded her wings, leaning back against the barn wall.

"I suppose you're right about that... Come on, everypony. isn't there another way?"

"I just wish we had listened to Twilight.... She was the first and only one to realize something was truly wrong, and now she's the only one suffering in prison." 

Nopony said a word to Fluttershy's gentle yet painful revelation, as all five of them only looked into the crackling firewood below. After some time, Applejack was the first to yield.

"You're... right, sugarcube. At the time, I only thought that she was back at it again with her... antics. But truthfully, I think I was just afraid. I wanted the wedding to be perfect, to prove my worth to all the ponies of the realm, and I was afraid that Twi would ruin the whole damn thing."

Applejack turned away from the fire, but her raspy voice gave her feelings away.

"No... even that doesn't do it justice. I was ASHAMED at her. Ashamed because Twilight would make us look bad in front of the would-be bride. Ashamed because she would ruin the chance for our apples to finally shine in the spotlight. Ashamed... of my own... damn... friend, and I can't even make it up to her anymore!"

She finally collapsed into an orange heap in front of the fire, no longer able to hold back her tears. Fluttershy, Rarity, Pinkie and Rainbow all joined her, the supposedly-quiet midnight meeting becoming a wailing huddle of pent-up emotions.

"You're completely right, Applejack, except for only one thing," said Rainbow, as she wiped her eyes and stood up defiantly from the mess. 

"We can still make it up to her, but only if we fight. As Rarity said, we might not be able to storm the castle this second, but we'll have to fight on. For Twi's sake, if not our own!"

Rarity stood up beside her.

"That's the spirit, darling! Everypony, let's think about it. What would have Twi done in this situation?" 

Pinkie shot up her left front hoof, her mane somehow poofing back up in an instant.

"I know! I know! She would have dived into her books trying to learn about the changelings! IF that didn't work, she would follow their trail like a super adventure pony and find out about them herself!"

"Oh, so no direct fighting yet?" said Fluttershy, perking up just a bit.

"Precisely!" squealed Pinkie, an evil smile flashing across her face. "I could even throw a party for the changelings, and when I am done making 'friends' with them, their secrets will all be mine!"

The rest of the crew wisely decided not to question what her methods were going to be, but only vigorously nodded their heads in acceptance. Even Rainbow dash relented, sighing at the ground.

"I guess that is the smart call... but I kind of wanted to kick their flanks soon instead of snooping around."

A deep, booming female voice came from the darkness, seemingly heeding Rainbow's call. "To snoop around means to keep your voice down, with your volume right now you are waking up the whole town."

The five mares all jumped to their hooves, Rainbow dash taking to the air.

"Relax, for I am only here, to lend you an ear.... and a hoof," said the voice as it scrambled out of the hay bales, revealing clear black and white stripes on her body.

Realizing who the figure was, everypony went in for a massive tackle-hug combination. 

"Zecora!"
> Chapter 16: Too late of a victory
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

13th of the third moon, 1551 A.E. (After Equestria) - 10:00 p.m., Canterlot Castle


"Is this... the only one left?"

Chrysalis looked in shock at her prize collected beneath her. In front of her lay a mare in her 80's, all tied up and blindfolded. Her wrinkles and tired disposition were nothing akin to the arrogant yet beautiful disposition she remembered of the Canterlot nobles.

"I am pretty sure she is, your majesty. I've searched all the records, and among the ponies that were present at the 'test' for princess Pillar, only one was still alive at this point. I had a hard time carrying her over here, since she couldn't even walk on her own," Her spymaster Nerys said that last part with a frown for particular emphasis, rubbing her neck with a forehoof. 

Chrysalis chuckled slightly. Even under the former queen, Nerys was known for her stealthiness and quick wit, perfect for secret missions like this. However, physical prowess was definitely not her forte.

"My apologies for making you labor for this... personal objective of mine. You are dismissed, and may have some rest. The hive needs you tomorrow."

Nerys bowed and took a few steps back, yet she blushed, and didn't immediately walk away.

"My queen, I am sorry to speak about this, but there's a full-blown party going on the upstairs dining hall. Thorax is said to be making love-infused cocktails free of charge... S-so I was thinking about joining it, instead of immediately going to my sleeping quarters, under your permission, of course."

Chrysalis gently massaged her temples with her forehoof. It was apparent that the changeling bureaucracy was still accustomed to the harsh restrictions imposed by the former queen. During situations of constant crisis, the system was terrifyingly efficient, yet that situation was the very thing she wanted to change.

"What you do whilst you are dismissed is none of my business. Don't indulge yourself too much though. Remember, we are still in enemy territory."

"Of course, your majesty."

As Nerys' dimming hoofsteps echoed through the dungeon corridor, Chrysalis turned back, took a deep breath, and began to hack away at the blindfolds on the eyes of her captive with the knife in her teeth. She could use her magic to get the job done effortlessly, but she desperately needed somewhere to vent her frustration. 

How dare they. 

How dare they secretly age and die in their comfy beds and cushions while she couldn't get to them. She had pictured it all. All hundreds who had wronged and tortured her would have been chained up in front of her, some pleading for mercy and forgiveness, others thrashing about and shouting curses. She would have nevertheless burnt them all, and as their flesh melted away and their bones ground to dust, she would have relished in the pleasure and grandeur of revenge. 

Yet as the blindfolds gave way and she came face-to-face with her captive, Chrysalis' grin reached ear to ear as she felt the burning rage, and the sweet taste of gleeful vengeance billow inside of her once more. Even after the relentless onslaught of time, she could never forget that prideful, cold expression of Cadance's mother. The single pony left in this world that she hated the most.

"Pleased to meet you again, Odio la Cadenza."

The mare looked confused for a moment, but her horn lit up in fury as she saw the face of her captor.

"I know nothing of a fiend like you, and you will pay for imprisoning my child!"

With those words, she cast a stun spell at Chrysalis, which was immediately caught then thrown right back at her with some incendiaries mixed in.

She began to cough and scream in pain, as the stream of flaming hot air started to burn up her lungs. Just when she was about to faint from shock, the searing magic stopped. Chrysalis stepped closer to her victim, lowering her muzzle to lock eyes with the terrified mare.

"Hmm, how unfortunate, I sincerely hoped this would be a more... civilized discussion." 

With those words, Chrysalis slammed Cadance's mother muzzle-first onto the stone floor, putting her holed hoof on her victim's horn. She began to press down, slowly increasing the pressure as a deafening screech of pain filled the cell. 

"Scream all you want. No one can hear you," she said coldly. She did not want this mare to die painlessly like the others. No, she wanted this mare to suffer.

After a few moments of agony, the horn finally snapped in two with a sickening crack. The elder mare began to sob as crimson-red blood began to leak from her broken horntip.

Leaving the mare behind in pain, Chrysalis sat down on her stool, taking out a bunch of newspaper articles found in the Canterlot library.

"Publish date: 4th of the tenth moon, 1529. 'There has been much controversy over the outrageous nomination of a non-unicorn engineer to the position of princess (...) Extensive investigation by our best reporters have shown that she was born out of wedlock and raised without parents, a ridiculous farce of a candidate to hold any responsibility, let alone this one...'"

She chuckled. "My, it was fun back then, how nothing but a single voice could create an unstoppable torrent of hatred and lies... It seems that you, the editor of the <Canterlot Daily>, were the first thrower of a mound of stones that buried a pony alive."

"Wh-what are you talking about?" said a frightened Odio.

Chrysalis grabbed her head with both her hooves, and thrust her sharp and jagged horn into the still-bleeding wound on her forehead. Another scream of pain quickly followed suite. "Cater Pillar, the earth pony you so viciously slandered! The one you accused of murder without solid proof! The one who ran away because of it! Why? Why did you do that to her?"

"Because she was an idiot who didn't know her place!"

She froze. She pulled her horntip out of Odio's forehead.

"When she didn't get to be princess, she threw a hissy-fit and murdered my dear husband! Because of her, my daughter and I are the only ones left in our family! What does that little sniveling demon have to do with anything?"

Chrysalis' pupils shrank to a pinpoint. Her breathing became heavy. Her teeth clenched until it began to grind against itself. Without any other method to show her anger, she began to laugh. First a chuckle, then a wheeze, and finally releasing pent-up, maniacal laughter, with bitter tears streaming down her cheeks. 

"You know what, maybe you were right all along. Maybe she was a demon, an evil one, too. and now... she has come back to finish you for good."

Ignoring the plea of her last remaining strand of reason, Chrysalis engulfed herself in green flames, and forged a shape she hadn't taken in so many years. An 'insane' earth pony mare with a yellow coat and a scrawny black mane. This time, however, Cater Pillar's emerald eyes were filled not with fear, but with all-consuming rage.

"As a master, you took away the parents of a lone child. As a journalist, you took away the honor of a prized student. As a judge, you took away the freedom of an innocent mare. Each step of my life, you took away EVERYTHING. I. HAD!"

Pillar was still shedding tears as she transformed back into her form of a changeling queen, in front of an utterly shocked Odio. 

Confident once more within her menacing chrysalis, she regained some composure, and then passed the verdict with her chilling dual tone.

"Everything you took and every wound you've cut, I returned it all with my own hooves. Now watch from the deepest depths of Tartarus as I consume this kingdom from the inside."

With those words, she finally rammed her sharp, jagged horn into the heart of the mother of her once-best friend.