Hope Anew, and Love Eternal
Cadance struggled to free herself from the slimy confines that bound her to the rotten earth from where she stood. But try as she may, her bonds could not be broken. As the princess hung her head in defeat, a voice like melted honey and a cat's cruel hiss cut through the silence. "Struggling is futile," it spoke.
She looked on pitifully as her captor exited from the shadows and came into view. She was a lean and haggard creature, almost close to starving it seemed. Yet, she carried herself with a regal grace and beauty that another one of her kind could never hope to achieve. Her appearance was almost insectoid like, but still retaining an inkling of a ponies resemblance also.
She had a quadrupedal frame, with two large flat ears just like one, her mane and tail were equally long and ragged, filled with numerous holes and was the color of a darkened cerulean sky. She smiled at the pink alicorn and It was not a friendly one, but most frightening. Cadance shrank back as far as she could manage, fearing a bite from the starved looking creature. Those two sharp fangs in her mouth weren't helping to improve her image either. But instead of biting her, she merely only began speaking.
"I am Chrysalis, Queen of the Changelings!" Her voice thundered with pride and was quite surprising for her delicate looking frame. Cadance boldly walked a few steps from where she had cowered, and eyed her with uncertainty. The Queen's harlequin green eyes were very hard to read, making her completely unpredictable.
"Why are you keeping me here?" she boldly asked the Queen. Her tone was a bit too sharp, and it clearly annoyed the Changeling. She neared closer, looking like a walking famine and somehow still retaining that same shred of grace. Her gauzy wings hummed bitterly for a brief moment, and the sound echoed off of the cavern walls.
"You think that I would explain myself to a lowly pony such as you?" she sneered. Her fangs gleamed in the dim of the green crystals that studded the the cavern walls, each one resonating a faint glow.
"Fine, keep your secrets! But whatever it is you're planning, he'll stop you!"
"You are foolish to think of such things!" There was now contempt in the Hive Queen's sickly green eyes. Acting in pure malice, she was now upon her hostage like a cat conflicted on whether or not to perform the killing blow. Cadance was sprawled out helplessly on the ground, petrified. She closed her eyes tight and waited for the end, but it never came. The Queen's self control took hold, and an iota of her anger subsided. Instead of killing the girl, Chrysalis just placed a hole riddled hoof to the alicorn's face and whispered venomously, "You are my prisoner forever, no one can save you!" The toxic words seeped right into her ears, tainting her sanity. Cadence jerked violently at her disgusting shackles, still to no avail. She flashed a look at the Queen.
"Shining Armor will know I'm missing!" Her eyes were glowing at the changeling in triumph. "And he will find me!" Chrysalis looked on, clearly undeterred.
"Think of such fallacies if you wish! But your precious Shining Armor isn't coming!" Her tone, not so long ago enraged, was now filled with mockery. She regally turned away from her prisoner and began to stalk away.
Cadance shook her head fervently and said, "No, you're wrong!" Chrysalis' flattened ears perked, and she turned round. The girl was practically begging to egg her on.
"Oh," she hissed, with pure relish in her sultry tone. "Is that so?" Her tattered tail whipped violently about like a scythe cuts through wheat. She felt pure amusement. Cadance looked absolutely sure of herself.
"I know so," she said.
Chrysalis remained where she stood and settled on her fleshless haunches. "How do you know for sure?" she asked. "Indulge me."
Cadance's reasons were almost immediate, and she began to tell the Queen each and every one with certainty. It was the final one that fueled the fire for Chrysalis.
"Because he loves you?" she repeated with disdain, then her voice dropped to a monotone. "You can't be serious?"
"What do you mean?" Chrysalis rolled her eyes.
"All that garbage you were just spewing a moment ago. Do you honestly think for a fleeting moment that he really loves you? With your absence and everything, he's probably already found someone else by now."
"Stop it! You're lying!" Candance cried in disbelief. Chrysalis just continued her assault, as it seemed to be working.
"What I'm saying is probably true. There are far more beautiful mares out there than yourself. You're barely average in my eyes." She looked on as Cadance began to break down inside and out. Tears began to form in her eyes, and her stare was almost sightless. But even that wasn't enough for Chrysalis, so she continued to run that venomous tongue of hers. "And aren't most royal marriages just arranged and completely devoid of any true love?" she asked the sobbing wreck Princess Cadance, not expecting any answer of course. "I can sense your strong love for him, but I sensed confliction with his." She wasn't outright lying, but she wasn't completely honest either. She now decided it was time to wrap things up, as she was beginning to feel a little shred of benevolence. However it was not a genuine act of pure kindness, but more like a whim.
"He does not love you enough to come and find you." She rose up on her legs and proceeded to take her leave. She turned her head to the pitiful sight of Cadance and whispered, "You are my prisoner, as you shall remain for all eternity!" before melting into the shadows. She was gone, for now. Cadance was still in an hypnotic state, and if someone had glanced her as they passed by, one would almost mistake her for one of the undead. Chrysalis' venomous words tainted her heart and mind, and she was alone. Inner demons arose from an unknown precipice from within her, and she was at their mercy. There was no one to confide in.
If only Twilight were here.
But alas, she was not. Cadance continued to toil in her prison alone. Possibly being forgotten forever...
Chrysalis had returned to her hive, and was now lounging about in her chambers. She felt pure and honest pleasure. Unaware to Cadance, Chrysalis had feasted upon her emotions. They were so strong, so filling. It was a feeling she had not felt in quite some time. Now it was time to feed the rest of the colony. She began to muse and think the matter over. It was hard being Queen, and having responsibilities that pertained to caring for an entire colony alone was taxing. But she was a strong willed creature, and could handle such hardships. But recently, her colony had become most depressing. Morale was fading, and her people were starving. Herself included. If she didn't find a reliable source soon, death for the entire changeling colony would become eminent. A very troubling matter indeed.
She began to lay on her side and remember back to the prosperous days. Love was practically bursting back then. That is until a being known as Discord came to power and muddled everything up. He was defeated of course, but the damage he had dealt was everlasting, leaving the lands scarred and bruised even to this very day. She had decided to name this new decrepit kingdom the Badlands and it has been the home of the changelings ever since.
But as much as she loved it here, there was no longer any source of food to obtain. Living creatures capable of love had long since vanished, most likely seeking someplace else to live. Changelings could eat regular foods, but no matter how much of it they consumed, their bellies could never be sated. Sucking rainwater and eating termites was all they had to survive on, and Chrysalis was getting sick of it. They needed true nourishment. It was time to take drastic actions and leave the Badlands. The thought made her cringe with nervousness. But you know what they say, "no risk, no reward." After all, she did get lucky and find a princess haplessly plodding down a forest path completely alone didn't she?
With that thought in mind, she wondered where she had originally come from. Her centuries as Queen granted her many skills such as a certain level of omniscience and whatnot, but she couldn't possibly know every single little thing. She stood abruptly and sashayed back to her cavernous dungeons. "I must know where that girl's kingdom lies," she said urgently to herself and exited her lair with great haste.
To be continued...