Author's Note

Time for that dosage of Mind-fuck! *Flicks a needle.*

Secrets are Revealed

Dante's vision blurred as he clutched his chest where he'd been shot. It was only a few inches from his heart, but that didn't mean shit if an artery had been hit. The Templar got ready to shoot again, but as Dante fell on his knees, a stallion appeared from the brush and stood tall in front of Dante. Dante then realized it was the same stallion he saw from the raid on Ponyville. He watched as the stallion raised his arm up and extended his blade upon another round being fired. When the hidden blade reached full height, it split the bullet in two. He then charged the Templar and stabbed him in the gut. Then, he broke the Templar's knee and stabbed the top of the Templar's head. He snapped the Templar's neck backward and kicked the body to the floor. He then ran to Dante, who had now slumped to the floor, and he said only one word before Dante blacked out;

"Son..."

Dante was stirring, and he eventually opened his eyes to see that a Changeling mare was right above him, looking down with a smile. Dante jolted and sat upright. He backed up a bit as he stared back at the mare. The mare just looked at him, and smiled as she said, "I've wanted to see how you've grown for so long." She then gave him a hug, which confused him at first, but he didn't care, and returned the hug. He then let go and asked, "What do you mean by that?"

The Changeling smiled and said, "You're my son, dearest Dante...I am the Changeling Ace, Fire-heart."

Dante just stared, mouth agape, as he replayed the response she gave over and over in his mind. Finally, it clicked;

That mare was his mother. His mother was a Changeling.

He couldn't contain his excitement. After all these years, he finally met his mother! And now, he can yell at her for the pain he's gone through.

"You left me to ROT IN AN ORPHANAGE!!!" He shouted at the top of his lungs. "NOW, YOU HUG ME AND SAY I'M YOUR SON, AS IF YOU'VE BEEN THERE FOR ME!?!" Dante waited for a response. Anything that would show his mother's true colors. She raised her hand and Dante braced unmovingly for her to yell at him. But instead, her hand faltered and fell to her side as she plopped down on the bed, tears falling like a waterfall and meshing her velvet smooth green hair to her face. Dante watched, and the mare finally spoke up with a cracked voice.

"I wanted to be there, but you would've been in danger. Me keeping you near would be selfish. I would've had put you at risk by doing that...please, forgive me..." Dante watched her cry, and he slowly inched forward before giving her a hug. "I forgave our a long time ago...I was just angry, because I never who who my parents were and suddenly, I see you...right here, in front of me." The mare smiled, hugging Dante close to her as she cried in his shoulder. Dante patted her back and he hummed a soft melody to calm her down. Suddenly, the stallion from before came into the beige room that had only the bed. He pulled his hood down, and it revealed...

Dante was seeing himself.

Dante realized that this was definitely his Father, but he looked exactly like him. Down to the eye shape. The only difference was the eye color and the lip and eye scar. The Father laughed and said in a think Istallion accent, "There it a reason you and I look alike, my son. You know that chain around your neck?"

Dante nodded and pulled it from beneath his shirt, a symbol dangling and twirling from the chain. The Father smiled and said, "Go to the mirror outside the room and take it off." Dante did this, and a green flame surrounded him before turning him into a Changeling form. But instead of holes, there were grey spots. Dante saw his eyes were not turquoise or blue, but golden. So was all the other parts not black. He has wings similar to a regular changeling. The membrane of the wings, though, were red.

Dante just stared at his reflection. This was him the entire time? But...how? It couldn't be...right?

"This is the real you, Dante." Said the Father. "This...is what you have really looked like the entire time..."

Dante just looked to the mirror, his eyes fixed on the reflection that showed from the glass. He then turned, looking right at his Father. He opened his mouth and asked in a cracked voice, "D-does this mean I can never...never feel love?"

The Father just said, "You can, actually. In fact, you are a half-breed. Half-breed Changelings can't feed of love like other pure-breed Changelings. They can only feed the same way as normal ponies. That's why you haven't died, yet."

Dante looked down, deep in thought. Finally, he looked back up and asked;

"W-what is your name?"

"My name," the Father replied. "Is Jonathan Lorenzo Quicksilver...and you...are my son."

He then pulled Dante in a hug and whispered in his ear, "And I am proud that it is you who is my son..."