Winds of Change

Chapters

Chapter 2: The First Night
Chapter 3: Mind Games
Chapter 4: Succession and Subterfuge
Chapter 5: Paranoia
Chapter 6: Consequences
Chapter 7: The Price of Deception
Chapter 8: Connection
Chapter 9: For A Greater Good
Chapter 10: Escalation
Chapter 11: Queen's Gambit
Chapter 1: An Auspicious Offer
Epilogue: For the Future

Chapter 2: The First Night

The only light in the caves came from the soft green glow of the cocoons, but a changeling would have been home even in complete and utter darkness. It was the most heavily fortified location within their hive, guarded constantly by no fewer than a dozen changelings indoctrinated from birth into defending this place with their lives. The only others allowed inside were those who tended to the young, a select few that practically lived within this cave. The only ones able to come and go freely were Chrysalis herself and her mother.

Queen Chrysalide lay in the midst of the cocoons. Her eyes were closed and her jagged horn glowed with a vibrant green. Warmth and love radiated outwards to the cocoons, which seemed to glow brighter in response. At her side, the young changeling princess waited patiently and watched as her mother worked.

Minutes passed.

The green light slowly faded and then went out completely. The changeling queen opened her eyes and let out a breath, soon spotting her daughter sitting close by. “Aren't you supposed to be in lessons right now?”

“You know I wouldn't be here if it wasn't important, mother,” came her reply. “Several messages from our soldiers recently came in, but they know better than to disturb you during feeding.”

The queen smiled and relaxed in her sitting position. “And considering they have used you as their messenger, I take it the news is not good, either,” she observed. “It's good to see their self-preservation instincts are working, but you really shouldn't let them shirk their duties onto you.”

“If it helps, I made them grovel and beg for a full minute before I accepted their request,” said the queen's daughter with a mischievous smile.

“Adequate,” responded the queen with a carefully serious look on her face that soon dissolved into a chuckle. “Well then, what news do you bring me?”

“Mara has gone missing.”

The queen's face remained carefully blank. “How long ago?”

“Unsure. She alone was aware of the meetings between herself and the changelings in the field. We only got the report when she didn't show up for an exchange, so probably around an hour or two.”

“There's more,” said the queen as a statement of fact, her voice calm.

“The scouts who have been watching Queen Terranim's changelings have reported them missing as well, for at least a day now.”

“Interesting.” There was a long, thoughtful moment of silence before the queen spoke again. “What do you make of this, Chrysalis?”

Figuring that this was a test, Chrysalis put her mind to work. “It can't be the ponies themselves, otherwise there would be panic. Do you think it's...another queen?”

“That is a possibility, though the far more likely explanation is that Terranim is simply playing games with us. Testing the limits of our truce and so forth.”

“But I thought Mara was one of your best! She's been with the hive since I was hatched!”

“A rather potent psychological blow, wouldn't you say? In one move, you remove a threat and make your enemy fearful of what else you might know.”

“Should we retaliate?” asked Chrysalis uncertainly.

“Perhaps. There are a few options available to us. Do me a favor and tell Yensil to take care of his mark on your way out. He'll know what I mean.”

“Wait, you mean to tell me that there were two changeling hives near Ponyville?” I asked incredulously.

Chrysalis nodded calmly, taking a sip of her tea. “My mother's hive, and the one belonging to Terranim. Both of us had changelings in Ponyville and Canterlot. With Celestia so close, ponies were far more warm and welcoming to others. Dignitaries were visiting all the time from all over the world, so it was easier to slip in changelings under the pretense that they were simply foreign visitors. Even the ambient love Celestia has for her subjects is ample enough to subsist on.”

“So...this is like a prime feeding ground for you, then?”

The queen nodded. “As well as hotly contested. My mother, Chrysalide, and the queen of the other hive Terranim had an uneasy truce for about a decade, and while I'm sure that either queen would have been happy to seize power from the other, both were content to keep to themselves so long as they could keep their hives fed.”

“So what happened next?”

Chrysalis sighed and gave me a humorless smile. “It turns out I had been right all along.”

“There was a third queen? How could three hives of changelings possibly exist near Canterlot without somepony knowing?”

“Simple, really. They couldn't.”

It had taken over a month to arrange a meeting. Changelings lived and thrived on deception and subtlety, so any sort of gathering was an opportune time for backstabs, assassination attempts, and reconnaissance. The location had been changed four times before Terranim and Chrysalide were both satisfied, but it was justifiable paranoia all the same. Losing a queen wasn't the absolute end of a colony, but it did leave things disorganized and vulnerable to enemies.

At the center of the dimly lit cave stood Chrysalide, flanked by six changelings, as she waited for the other queen. Off to the side was Chrysalis, surrounded by four drones herself, while a pair of bound prisoners were the focus of the remaining two. Twelve soldiers in all, though several dozen more were on the perimeter, ready to engage at the queen's command.

Terranim was late.

“Is she not going to show?” asked the changeling princess after several long minutes of silence.

“She will show. She is merely searching for ambushes or potential traps at the moment.”

“How can you tell?”

“Because it is what I would do.”

Seconds ticked by, and Chrysalis tried to stay interested, but her eyes were soon wandering and her thoughts began to drift. Her mother had described these games of intrigue as dangerous and exciting and her many stories reflected that. Right now, though, it just seemed to involve a lot of mistrust and waiting.

“They're here,” said the queen rather suddenly. A faint buzzing sound quickly filled the cave as the changelings from Terranim’s hive made their appearance. The soldiers came first, looking around the cavern, though none moved beyond the unseen boundary that divided their territories.

At long last, the other changeling queen entered, walking calmly into the cavern while twelve soldiers moved into formation around her. “Queen Chrysalide,” greeted Terranim, as her own prisoners were brought forward. Mara was among them. “And Princess Chrysalis as well.”

“Queen Terranim,” responded Chrysalide.

Because the forms of changelings were naturally malleable, how they presented themselves was often a matter of personal taste. Terranim's colony was distinguished by their silver markings and the queen reflected that in the patterns on her translucent wings and the highlights of her mane and tail. Terranim thought it make her look ageless; Chrysalis just thought it made her look old.

“I sincerely hope that you are not trying to pass off your own drones as my kin,” said Chrysalide after a long moment of silence. “We both know full well the futility of such a gambit.”

“And I could say much the same about yours,” responded Terranim, pointing one of her legs at the captives Chrysalide had bound. “Those drones are not of my colony.”

“Interesting. Did your interrogation reveal from where they originated?” asked the green-tailed queen, quickly shifting gears.

Terranim shook her head. “Not a word from either of them no matter what techniques I tried. They are either fiercely loyal or simply not intelligent enough to betray their secrets.” A discreet nod passed between the silver queen and a guard, and one of the changeling drones approached the bound captives. In one swift motion, a leg was brought down upon Mara's neck, filling the cave with a sickening crunch. Chrysalide and Terranim never broke eye contact.

“Report what markings you see,” ordered the silver-maned queen.

“Red markings around the feet and wings,” came the raspy voice of the changeling in charge of the prisoners. “And a red mark in a lightning bolt pattern across the back.”

“So, there is a third,” said Chrysalide finally, stating what everyone was thinking. “A rather vain and young one if her markings are any indication.”

“Or one who simply wishes to send a message,” retorted Terranim. “She did manage to catch two of my hive, after all.”

“But in doing so she has tipped her hand somewhat.”

“It either speaks of excessive confidence or arrogance. Regardless, this changes little between us.” It was a lie and both queens knew it. Plans were already forming on both sides now that a somewhat-certainty had become an absolute certainty.

“Of course,” said Chrysalide amicably with a small smile.

The conversation shifted to more mundane topics; hints at possible plans, allusions to prisoners, and thinly veiled warnings. The soldiers on each side continued to glare daggers at one another, while Chrysalis tried to not look bored. The interesting part of the night had passed and the tension had dwindled into little more than a cordial, if somewhat tense, business meeting.

“It was a pleasure meeting with you again, Queen Terranim,” said the emerald queen, drawing Chrysalis out of her thoughts. “I shall send word if there are any developments.”

“And I shall do the same,” said the silver queen with a nod of her head. Chrysalide was the first to leave, her soldiers and prisoners in tow, not looking back.

“So what happens now?” asked the changeling princess once she was sure they were out of earshot.

“Now? We send a message to the red queen and find out what game she is playing,” she said, gesturing towards the two captives. “I have little doubt that Terranim will be doing the same.”

“More waiting, then?” said the princess with a sigh.

“Patience, my dear daughter. Games of intrigue take time to unfold.”

My quill paused as Queen Chrysalis stopped talking. I had to admit, she was a good storyteller. Maybe she had inherited her mother's talent for making these games seem interesting even if the reality involved long periods of waiting between brief moments of excitement.

“So what happened next?” I asked, once the moment of silence had been drawn out to the point of awkwardness.

"Patience, Twilight," she said, her eyes mischievous. I knew right then and there that I wasn't going to get another word out of her. Maybe it was her way of ensuring that she'd get another night together by promising more of the story.

I bit back my disappointment and tried not to let it show. It had taken a while for the implications of our arrangement to really sink in, but now the possibilities were growing by the second. Chrysalis presented an opportunity to perform extraordinary new research about a species that had long been shrouded in mystery. History, social structure, magical abilities...it was all here, calmly drinking my prepared tea.

“I can taste your excitement, Twilight,” she murmured. “It's quite invigorating. Having the chance to study a new species must be quite an opportunity for you. Are you still looking to get your own book published?”

“First, that's really creepy. Feel free to keep that information to yourself. Second, how did you know about that?” I asked, my eyes narrowing once again.

“Well, it's an ability Changelings have that allow us to sense the emotional state-”

“I meant about the book!” I snapped.

“Really, Twilight, it wasn't terribly hard to find out about you. You're a rather popular pony, even outside of Ponyville. The white mare, Rarity, is a treasure trove of gossip and was quite eager to sing your praises when she was fitting one of my minions for a dress.”

I resisted the urge to rub my head with a hoof. I cared for Rarity dearly, but she could be a bit loose with her tongue if approached in a friendly manner. Still, it's not like I told her to keep it a secret or anything. My attention was drawn back to my guest as her insect-like wings fluttered a bit, the queen taking a new position on the cushion and looking somewhat restless. A quick glance at the clock on the wall showed me that we'd been at this for some time now, though fatigue was the very last thing I was feeling.

“Tell me, Twilight, would you like a practical demonstration of my abilities?” asked the changeling rather suddenly, standing up and stretching out her wings. “I'm quite happy to regale you with tales until your ink runs dry, but you'll never really learn about me from word of mouth alone.”

“Could you possibly say that in a way that sounds less ominous?” Despite my reservations, I had to seriously consider what she was offering. Since her magic and her shapeshifting powers were sealed, there was little mystery as to what she had in mind and at least a dozen reasons to refuse. And yet, I owed it to Celestia and Luna to find out as much as I possibly could.

“You know better than anyone all of the contingencies that have been put in place for my visit. Just how much of a risk is it to you?” asked the queen calmly.

Letting out a sigh, I dropped the quill and let it rest on the paper. She wasn't going to try anything tonight. Luna's guards were no doubt outside right now, keeping an eye on the place and Celestia herself was planning to look me over tomorrow and make sure I wasn't under any sort of influence. “So...do you just bite someone and inject venom into them?”

Chrysalis chuckled lightly, obviously finding humor in my timidness. “Not unless I'm in a hurry. There is a far more gentle way to do it.”

“And that is?” I asked, deeply suspicious.

Raising one of her legs, the black-bodied queen beckoned me forward. Cautiously, I scooted towards her while instinctively drawing upon my magic, still nervous about being so close to her. The next part happened so fast that it took me completely off guard. With a surprising amount of tenderness her leg slid beneath my neck and pushed up, drawing me level with her face. I had a moment to see her almost gleeful look before she descended, pressing her mouth to mine, tongue slipping past my half-open mouth and darting inside and leaving a lingering taste and a tingling sensation behind.

A second passed, and then two. The magical energy I had been collecting reacted to my panic and a violet burst launched the changeling back. The queen crashed into the bookshelf opposite myself, sending several large volumes tumbling to the ground. I recovered from my surprise, levitating several books off of her, as I glared at the heap Chrysalis had landed in. “What was...what was that?”

“The more pleasant method,” said the queen with amusement as she shifted the books off of her. “What are you feeling right now?”

The magical rush from earlier slowly faded, and new sensations started to spread throughout my body. “I feel...warm...hard to think...” I said aloud, my magic once again lifting the quill as I quickly jotted down the sensations as fast as the words came to mind.

“What else?” pressed the changeling queen, moving past her seat to stand directly in front of me.

“It's...like a feeling of safety...” I said, struggling to find the words. “Like I'm in the presence of someone I can trust completely.”

This was the changeling's poison at work. I knew it even as I was writing these feelings down. It was hard to keep my mind straight as I was both simultaneously trying to explore the sensations while also resist them. The queen had a knowing look on her face as she stalked closer, nearly brushing against me.

“Do you prefer stallions or mares, Twilight?”

“Mares,” I said automatically before my mind could catch up with the words. Horrified, I slapped a hoof to my muzzle, eyes wide, as I looked up at her fanged grin.

“Put your hoof down and relax, Twilight,” she said, her voice firm but gentle. My foreleg shook just a bit but slowly pulled away from my mouth and rested on the ground in front of her.

“How many ponies know?” she asked after a moment, her voice still calm and gentle. Perhaps it was the poison but her voice sounded quite a bit like Celestia's right now. Warm and comforting, but firm as well.

“N-nopony...” I clenched my teeth as I tried to fight the answer this time, but it still came out anyways. “Just you.” Part of me wanted to scream at her to stop asking questions but another part of me was desperate to fight this and see if I could overcome this with my own power.

“Do you find any of your mare-friends attractive?” asked the queen, her voice still light and gentle. Again the compulsion to answer rose but I managed to fight it back this time...for about a full second.

“Y-yes,” I gasped out, sweating slightly. I closed my eyes tightly so I wouldn't have to see Chrysalis' growing smile.

“Which-” Before she could finish the sentence my horn flashed with a brilliant violet color. The sounds in the library were suddenly cut off; I could read the motions of her mouth but no words came through for me to hear. A spell of deafness. I couldn't answer any questions or obey any orders I couldn't hear, and with her magic sealed there was no way for her to communicate with me mentally, either.

Letting out a breath that I couldn't hear, I looked up to Chrysalis and gave her a somewhat smug look, though the brief sense of victory faded as I saw that her warm smile had turned into a full-fanged grin. Slowly, she moved back towards a sitting position, relaxing back down on one of the cushions. I took this as a peace offering and lowered my spell as well, though I was prepared to snap it back into place at a moment's notice.

“Very clever, Twilight Sparkle,” she practically purred in approval.

“Your poison...it's strong...” I conceded, after making certain that she wasn't about to sneak in a question on me while my guard was down.

“You shouldn't have expected anything less from a queen.” There was a bit of pride in her voice now.

“Right...but about these questions-”

“Nothing you tell me will leave this library without your permission,” she cut in, waving away my protests. “You still wish to continue your research, yes?”

Compelled to answer, I let out a 'yes' even as I was nodding my head. Was there any way of resisting these effects without magic? I suppose it was my job to find out.

“Then I will continue to ask you questions and give you the opportunity to study this as much as you'd like,” said the queen in the tone of one who was bestowing a great honor or gift upon a subject. “Feel free to deafen yourself again if you don't think you can handle it.”

I didn't really consider myself as competitive as Rainbow Dash, but I got an inkling that this is what Applejack must have felt like every time the pegasus baited her into a contest. If I didn't want her to hear the answer to something then all I had to do was surround her in a bubble of silence. Swallowing my embarrassment, I nodded for her to continue. How bad could her questions possibly get?

“Who was the first mare you had a crush on?”

Damn! “...C-Celestia,” I said after a full second and a half of resistance.

“You certainly have lofty goals,” said the changeling queen, clearly having fun at my expense. “What about her do you like most of all?”

“It's just...how easy she makes things look. She's always graceful and poised and she makes everypony feel special just by talking to them.” My words were a bit halted and broken as I tried to resist the compulsion to speak, but eventually the answer came just like the others before it.

Even as she got one embarrassing admission after the next, my mind was still working on the sensations I was feeling and the quill continued to write down my thoughts. Every time she asked a question I felt like something was grabbing onto my mane and pulling, the feeling growing stronger and stronger until I gave her the answer she was looking for.

Not every question she asked me was about my secret desires; some were completely innocuous. Questions about my past, how I had met Spike, and my favorite things to eat, but every now and again she'd slip in a personal question. I quickly found out that it was possible to get away with half-truths in some cases, and resisting the compulsion did get easier over time, but Chrysalis knew of this weakness and would often ask me to clarify or elaborate on my answers.

Finally, it got to the point where my mind was almost clear again. Chrysalis' eyes glanced towards the clock and her smile faded just a bit. “You should be feeling the end of it about now, but just to be sure...which one of your friends do you find most attractive?” she asked, repeating the question that had panicked me into protecting myself with magic before.

“R...ra...” I stopped suddenly, my body trembling, and then I let out a breath. The effects were gone. I checked the time. Even the small dose she had given me had lasted almost an hour. Suddenly the fatigue of the mental battle I had been waging caught up with me and even remaining in a sitting position became difficult. “Side effects?” I asked groggily.

“Only when you try and fight it,” said Chrysalis, walking over to my prone form, one of her legs gently brushing along my mane. I didn't have the strength to protest. “It will fade soon enough, but perhaps this is a good place to stop tonight.”

I let out a yelp as Chrysalis' fore-hooves grabbed me around the middle and easily lifted me up, draping me across her back, with my stomach resting upon the green rings circling her middle. The smooth, slick, and slightly soft feeling of her barrel contrasted sharply with the rest of her body. Effortlessly handling my weight, she made her way up the stairs towards my bed.

“One more question before I leave,” said Chrysalis, gently sliding me from her back to the bed. Somehow this almost affectionate treatment from her was even more embarrassing than answering all of those things she had asked me earlier. “Did I steal your first real kiss?”

“Just...just go! I'm tired!” I snapped, pulling the covers over my head. Chrysalis' delicate laughter seemed to echo around my room as she opened the window and flew off into the night, soon joined by a contingent of Lunar Stallions ready to escort her back to Canterlot.

It was probably Luna's influence that gave me a relatively dreamless sleep that night, and I was thankful for it. Chrysalis had given me a lot to think about, and one of the things I learned early in life was that sleeping on a problem was a great way to help your mind sort things out. Yawning lightly, I stretched out my legs, only to yelp as I was treated to a sight more blinding than the sun filtering in through the window.

“Princess Celestia!” I made a fool of myself attempting to kick the covers away and give her a proper bow, but a hoof resting against my side quickly stopped me.

“Lay still, my student,” she murmured, her magic glowing in a way that was almost painful to look at. She lowered her horn and swept it over my body, filling me with the warm, welcoming feeling of her magic. “I sensed only a trace of residual poison in your body and no mind-altering magic to speak of.”

Resting back against the pillow, I let out a sigh of relief. I hadn't expected Chrysalis to do anything rash, but it was nice to get a clean bill of health from the sun princess all the same.

“How did your meeting go?”

“It was...very civil,” I said after giving it some thought. “Almost surprisingly so. I have my notes and findings written up, so feel free to take a copy.” Fighting back another yawn, I got up from my bed and stretched out my legs properly this time, running through a quick mental exercise to get my magic warmed up as well.

“Were the safety measures powerful enough?”

I nodded. “Very. Perhaps a bit too powerful.”

Celestia turned to face me directly, her mane flowing behind her in an intangible breeze to reveal both of her eyes. It was a sign that this conversation was about to take a very serious turn. “I know what you're about to ask of me, Twilight.”

“Then you should already know the logical reasons as to why it needs to happen.” I probably should have waited until at least later in the day before springing this on her, but there was no stopping it now. In my mind I was already piecing together a mental checklist of the points I could bring up-

“Very well. I will give you control over how much power Chrysalis can access.”

My mental checklist was promptly crumpled up and tossed into the wastebasket of my mind. “Really? Just like that?”

“Twilight, you have saved Equestria three times now. Though I hold little trust in Queen Chrysalis, I do trust my most capable student.”

“Thank you, Princess,” I said with relief, touched by her faith in me. “One more feat of heroism and I get a free Pinkie Party complete with a musical number,” I joked, trying to lighten the mood as I ran my magic through a few levitation exercises.

“I appreciate your enthusiasm, Twilight, but you might find yourself giving the changeling queen a lot more than a few of your clandestine crushes if you're not careful.”

The book I had been levitating hit the ground with a thud. “W-wait, how did you-”

“I had surveillance spells in place.”

“B-but I checked!”

“You are a gifted student, Twilight, but I still have a few secrets I've yet to reveal to you.”

“And you heard...”

“Everything.”

“Even the um...”

“Yes, even that. It was quite flattering praise.”

I would have gladly taken on Discord and Nightmare Moon with a hoof tied behind my back right then if I could have escaped from Celestia's knowing smile.

“It has been a while since I've taken a mare into my bed, but if you still have that crush on me from all those years ago-”

“Sorry got lots of things to do today and notes to prepare I'll talk with you tomorrow and we'll continue this conversation never. Goodbye!”

A pack of bloodthirsty timber-wolves couldn't have gotten me out of there faster.

Author's Note

5/20/2015: Major Edits to damn near everything about this chapter.

Chapter 3: Mind Games

I didn't stop running until I was out of breath. I'd told Celestia I had plans, but the truth was that she'd startled me out of the library before I could even make a checklist. Right now everything was half-formed and-

“Got you!”

It was the only warning I had before a rainbow blur crashed into me, sending me into the grass nearby as I rolled head over hooves, ending up on my back with the cyan pegasus above me, pinning me to the ground.

“Dash, what the heck a-”

“Tell me something only Twilight Sparkle would know!”

I squirmed beneath her a bit. While not the sheer powerhouse that Applejack was, Rainbow was still far stronger than myself and wasn't about to let me budge an inch. “Dash, Celestia was visiting this morning-”

“Tell me the secret I told you that I haven't told anypony else!” she insisted.

Oh yeah...that. The words triggered a spell I had set up earlier and the memory came back fresh into my mind. Fighting to keep the color off of my muzzle, I looked around and quickly determined who was within earshot. Rainbow Dash's crash landing had drawn only a few stares and most everypony else was minding their own business. Even so, I decided to lean up and whisper into her ear instead.

“This one time at flight camp Gilda managed to sneak in a case of Colt Forty-five...” My voice went lower as I recounted the tale, making sure to hit all of the details she had mentioned to me the night before. Despite her own growing embarrassment, she refused to let me up until I'd recalled every single bit. By the time I was done, Rainbow Dash refused to meet my eyes.

“Okay, so you're not a changeling,” she murmured. “Sorry, when I saw you bolt out of the library this morning I might have sorta panicked just a little bit.”

Letting out a sigh, I reigned in my annoyance and gave her a smile. “Thanks for looking out for me, Dash,” I said kindly. “Now can you please get off?”

“Oh, right.” With an embarrassed chuckle the pegasus helped me to my feet and brushed off the clumps of grass and dirt that had gotten into my mane. “Why were you running, anyways?”

“Um...exercise?” I tried, grinning sheepishly.

“Man, I think even Applejack could have come up with something better than that,” responded the pegasus with a roll of her eyes. “So what-”

“Twilight! There you are, thank goodness!” Approaching at a canter was Rarity. On her back was my assistant, looking as though he'd gorged himself on gemstones.

“Spike? What's wrong?” I asked, grateful for the excuse to dodge away from Rainbow's probing gaze.

“Unnhh...someone gave your brother my address...” he groaned, burping up a small bit of green flame that contained a shred of paper.

“He's been coughing up letters all morning,” said Rarity, concern etched on her face. Her horn lit up as she withdrew a dozen scrolls from her saddlebag, each one bearing the seal of Cadance's empire. “What on Equestria is she so anxious about?”

Opening one of the letters at random, I read the first few lines and winced. “I...might not have told them about the agreement Celestia made with Chrysalis and I...might have asked Celestia to keep them in the dark.” I flicked through the other scrolls. They varied from Cadance's well-meaning and earnest worry to Shining Armor's barely restrained rage and brotherly concern.

“Hey um...Spike, do you think you could take a letter?”

“Nnnhhh...”

It had taken a backrub, some stomach pills, and a promise of getting a small taste of one of Rarity's astral diamonds, but eventually the young dragon was convinced to send a message. I was meticulous in my response, outlining all of the potential benefits in my attempt to do damage control while at the same time wondering who had told them in the first place.

Seconds after the letter was sent, Spike burped up a reply before going upstairs to the bed Rarity had prepared for him.

“Well, what does it say?”

Groaning, I passed the letter up to Rainbow Dash and placed my head on my hooves. “Cadance said that she was sorry, but she couldn't stop Shiny from taking the first chariot out. He'll be here before noon. I really do not need this right now...”

“Really, Twilight, can you blame him for being worried for you? If anypony knows what horrendous things that bug is capable of, it would be him,” said the designer, her horn glowing as she moved mannequins and fabrics aside to clear a space.

“The whole point of me doing this is to make sure it doesn't happen to other ponies!” I protested, already making a mental checklist of the things I was going to have to say to my brother to calm him down.

“Hey, no need to convince us,” said Rainbow, putting up a placating hoof. “You know we've got your back.”

“You really do not need to go through your fifty-three-point checklist again,” added Rarity with a nervous laugh.

I winced as I remembered that. My plan at the time had been to get my friends on board with the idea. Unfortunately, it had turned into a heated argument that only ended once I brought up the unpleasant memory of all of them siding against me when I was suspicious of Cadance. Dear Princess Celestia, guilt can be a powerful weapon when wielding it against your friends, and when used with malicious intent, it can get them to go along with the stupidest of ideas.

“So...are you gonna tell us what happened?” asked Rainbow Dash finally, breaking the awkward silence. “I mean, if it's not part of the secret agreement or anything.”

“I'd rather wait until everypony is here so I only have to go over it once.”

“Um...I've been here the whole time.”

I nearly jumped from my seat at the sound of the quiet voice from behind the couch. “Gah! Fluttershy? Why didn't you say anything?”

“Oh um...I didn't want to disturb anypony,” she murmured, endeavoring to look as small as possible. Post script; as an addendum to my previous letter I would also like to congratulate Fluttershy on being able to weaponize guilt without even trying.

“Fluttershy, you know I'm not upset about the wedding. I just...lost my temper.”

All I got in response was a meek nod. “Well, I guess that just leaves Applejack.”

“Hey, what about me?” Pushing up one of the couch cushions next to me, Pinkie appeared.

“There was a seventy-five percent chance you were here already and just waiting to make a dramatic entrance,” I said, not even blinking.

“Hmph. Spoilsport.” From the corner of my eye, I saw her discretely bury a ball of confetti in her tail, where it disappeared. Pinkie may not have a horn, but she had her own brand of magic all the same.

“Ah'm here too!” came Applejack's voice as the door slammed open. Not breaking her stride for a moment, Rarity was already taking her saddlebags and wiping away the dirt she had tracked in before she'd even caught her breath.

It hadn't exactly been the plan to host this get-together at Rarity's shop, but she was a gracious host nonetheless, quickly setting out snacks and refreshments for everyone as I began an abbreviated version of last night's events.

“So what sort of questions did she ask? Were they embarrassing?” asked Pinkie partway through, making me stumble in mid-word.

“Er...yes...” No one around the table said anything but I could sense everypony's curiosity. “She asked me some personal questions to keep me off-balance, but everything else was completely mundane.”

“Ah still can't believe you let her poison ya. Yer playin' with fire doing somethin' like that.”

“You know I can't just let this opportunity slide. Chrysalis isn't the only changeling queen around and just because she failed doesn't mean that another queen won't try something similar in the future.”

“Hey, um...can we back up for a second?” My head turned upwards to Rainbow Dash, who had a thoughtful look on her face. Wait, no, scratch that. It was thoughtful, but also uncomfortable.

“What is it?”

Her tone was almost pleading now. “That...sensation you felt when Chrysalis bit you and gave you her venom, could you describe it again?”

Blinking in confusion I nodded and repeated my description of the sensations I had felt when Chrysalis had 'bit' me, carefully avoiding any allusions as to how she'd actually given me the poison in the first place. Warm, inviting, and safe was the best way to summarize it. “Why do you ask?” I pressed after I'd finished the explanation a second time.

“Look, um...Twilight, I don't wanna sound like I'm making excuses or anything...a-and you were right to be upset with us over the whole Canterlot wedding but...”

“But what, Dash?” My annoyance was coming through now.

Mulling over the idea, Rainbow Dash finally turned to the other ponies. “Did anypony else feel like that around Cadance when she was...you know...Chrysalis?”

My first reaction was to snap at them. I really was in no mood to deal with her excuses, but one look at Rainbow's earnest face stopped me. Maybe she had been taking it the hardest considering her affiliation with loyalty. I held my tongue and looked around at my friends, waiting for their replies.

“Ya know...when Cadance...I mean Chrysalis threw away mah food, Ah don't remember even being a little bit annoyed.”

Rainbow Dash blinked and fluttered closer. “What do you mean?”

“I mean...ah knew...or thought she had a lot on her mind and was trying to spare mah feelings, but ah wasn't even hurt or annoyed that she'd done it. Ah wasn't even disappointed.”

“I'm hardly a stranger to clients making outlandish suggestions or requesting bizarre changes to my designs, but usually I can talk them around to my way of thinking. When Cadance...I mean Chrysalis...wanted all of those sudden changes to the entire line of dresses, I didn't even think about debating it with her.” Rarity was looking at the table, fiddling with her cup as she thought back to the incident.

I really wanted to give them the benefit of the doubt, but I'd been a witness to all of those incidents and she hadn't used her magic once. Unless I was completely missing something...

Fluttershy coughed quietly. It would have gone completely unnoticed if we hadn't been attuned to her quiet signals through two years of friendship. “Um...well, she did shout at one of my birds, but he was singing off-key and...and...”

“But was that really a good reason to shout at an animal?” pressed Rainbow Dash.

“No...it wasn't,” she murmured, her voice now somewhat dark. Fluttershy seemed upset at the memory and I knew from personal experience that she would have stood up to Celestia herself if she ever thought an animal was being mistreated.

I realized that we were still missing one account though. “What about you, Pinkie?”

“What? You reacted the same way for the first party I threw for you!” she accused. Okay, I'll give her that point.

“Well, looking back on it I can say with certainty that she wasn't an 'absolute gem' in any sense of the word,” said Rarity with a huff. “She didn't present herself any differently from the regular nobility that I deal with.”

I sighed inwardly. I really wanted to believe my friends but there was simply no way to be certain that they weren't caught up in hindsight bias. Even so, I chalked up the small mystery as something to discuss with the changeling queen during our next meeting.

“I'll look into it,” I said finally, “but I think you're grasping at straws. The only one she was magically influencing at the time was my brother. There's no way she could have done it to all of you without somepony noticing, and I'm pretty sure she didn't bite anypony, either.”

“Well, even if it's not true, it might be important to check all the same, yes? What if she's using it to influence you?”

That brought me up short. Sure, everything I'd done that night had a logical reason, but had I given in to those practical tests a bit too quickly? Before I could answer, a sudden tingling sensation ran through my body, making all of my fur briefly stand on end. Across from me, Rarity dropped the teacup she was holding, her eyes going wide as it clattered loudly on the plate.

“Oh...dear me, what on Equestria was that?” Her hooves were shaking a little bit and there were spots in my eyes. I didn't need to glance out the window or see the pink barrier to know what had just happened, though.

“That was Shiny. He just put up a barrier around half of Ponyville.” Briefly my horn glowed and then fizzled. “And he's making sure I can't teleport away either.”

Flash Sentry stifled a yawn but kept his eyes straight ahead, mentally cursing the stallion who had called in sick this evening. While he didn't hate the night shift, it was remarkably less interesting than the day shifts simply due to the lack of people. During the day, the court was a vibrant mishmash of ponies and creatures from all over. During the night, there was perhaps a brief hour of excitement once the bars closed and little else.

Still, at least it allowed him time to think of his one true love, the beautiful unicorn-

“Flash!”

“Whuzzat?” He shook his mane, drawn out of his reverie by the other guard next to him.

“Were you sleeping again?”

“What? No! Of course not!”

“At least try to look awake! There's somepony approaching! How do you think Luna would-” The other stallion's eyes widened suddenly as the distant figure slowly came into view, color draining from his face. From a distance, and especially in the dark, one might have mistaken her for a pony, but now she was in the courtyard and illuminated by the moon. With no disguise and no changelings at her side, Chrysalis was calmly walking into the courtyard, a smile on her face.

There was a tap on his armor. The other guard was giving him a look of sympathy. “Flash, I've really enjoyed our three nights together, but someone has to warn Princess Luna. Don't worry, I'm sure you can deal with Chrysalis on your own.”

Minutes later...

CRASH!

“Oh Celestia mercy!”

WHAM!

“I surrender!”

SLAM!

“Uncle!”

With another violent crash, Flash Sentry was thrown through the heavy double doors, the wood splintering as the stallion tumbled several times over the floor before landing in a heap. His armor was dented and several burn marks scarred the metal plates. While he appeared to be breathing, his eyes were rolling in their sockets and much of his mane and tail were burnt away. Several bruises were visible along his flank, as if a pony had kicked him repeatedly.

With the demeanor of somepony on a nighttime stroll, Chrysalis walked through the new stallion-shaped opening, the green glow of her horn fading slightly as she made sure to step on Flash's stomach on her way in. Her eyes scanned the area and came upon the stallion with the captain's insignia.

“I do apologize for my rough treatment of your door guard. There was just something about him that made me want to kick him. Repeatedly.”

“Queen Chrysalis,” said the captain levelly, ignoring her comment and the stallion groaning in pain beneath her. “A shield has gone up behind you and you face a squad of a dozen unicorns and twice that many earth ponies in front of you. Princess Luna is also on her way, and Princess Celestia will not be far behind. You have this one and only chance to surrender.”

Weapons tensed and a dozen unique magic signatures came to life, every stallion and mare ready to react no matter what move she made.

For a single tense moment her jagged horn seemed to glow just a bit brighter before it suddenly winked out. “Very well, I surrender.”

Her declaration was met with silence, broken only by the chirping of crickets.

“If it's not too much trouble, I'd like for the binding ring to match the shackles. You do have shackles, yes? Well come on now, I am a busy queen,” she said impatiently.

Her casual comments finally spurred the stallions into action, magic auras appearing around her body as several guards closed in with their spears raised, bringing forward physical restraints to fasten around her legs. The entire time Chrysalis didn't even so much as flinch, even when one of the spears accidentally poked her.

“Halt, foul shifter!” The subsequent crash and the booming voice of princess Luna caused several stallions to panic and a few magical spells to discharge, punching a few holes in the walls and windows. “We demand thy surrender or thou shalt be-”

“Princess Luna, Queen Chrysalis has already surrendered,” said the guard captain, interrupting with a polite cough.

Luna paused. “Oh.” Drawing in a breath she turned back towards the captive changeling. “Thou art wise to accept defeat. Where art thine armies?”

“There are none. I have come alone.”

Another pause. “Why?”

“Because I've come to offer a deal,” said the queen, shifting in her bonds slightly.

“And what do you have to offer?”

“Well, for starters, I could reveal the changeling in this room that managed to infiltrate your guard,” said the queen casually.

A distracted murmur rose among the stallions, many of them glancing to one another. “Silence!” The talking stopped abruptly. “Thou maketh a bold claim. We hath developed detection methods since thy failed invasion.”

“And the changelings have long since adapted to your detection spells,” responded the queen easily. “But I don't expect you to believe me without a practical demonstration.”

“Do you think me such a fool that I would allow you the use of magic on our subjects?” snapped the lunar mare. “If you insist on such a farce, then simply explain the magic to us and we shall perform this ourselves!”

“Of course, Princess Luna, though it will be useless within the week.” A brief exchange of arcane words followed, most of it lost on the earth ponies but eventually Luna nodded with understanding.

“Which of us do you accuse, then?” she asked, her eyes narrowed on the captive queen.

“The third stallion on your left who is trying to shy away,” said the queen with a fanged grin. To the credit of the royal guards, this did not prompt an immediate turning of heads, merely a few glances of suspicion. It was the captain who spoke first.

“Crimson Mail, step forward,” he barked out, the nervous-looking pony approaching his side. “Princess Luna, I ask that you perform the spell on myself first.” Receiving a nod from Luna, the stallion stepped forward, bowing his head as Luna's horn glowed and the magic washed over him. Aside from a tingling sensation, nothing more occurred.

“Harmless,” said the captain with a nod. “Crimson?”

The question was left dangling in the air. Luna's eyes glowed as she began the spell once more. He hadn't hesitated when his name was called and he didn't show any signs of being frightened of the test, but there were subtle signs that Luna could see. Short breaths, the slightest tremor of a hoof, a conscious effort to continue blinking normally...she knew even before she cast the spell what was going to happen.

Luna's horn glowed. Crimson lunged. There was a flash of azure and the pony went spiraling backwards, crashing into the floor, letting out a very un-pony like hiss as he writhed on the ground, his shape twisting and contorting into a black insectoid until finally it lay still, the hole Luna's attack had made in his carapace catching up with him.

“Captain.” The surrounding ponies had been shocked at the sight but a single word from Luna brought them all back to attention. “You will take Queen Chrysalis to our most heavily fortified cell and bind her magic with the most powerful inhibitor you have at your disposal.”

The captain snapped off a salute and quickly formed the squad around her. “Chrysalis, are there any more changelings you wish to reveal to us?” asked Luna.

The changeling queen merely shook her head. “Not at present.” She was displaying nothing but amusement at the situation.

Trying not to let the double-speak bother her, Luna turned back towards the captain. “See to it that no one else comes near Chrysalis' cell save for myself and Celestia. Food will be brought to you, but until we can confirm who is and isn't a changeling, we will take no chances with a change of guard.”

Looking around at the rest of the ponies who had stayed behind, Luna gestured to the deceased changeling. “You and you, clean this up.”

“Nnnhhh...ugghhh...”

“And somepony should take Flash Sentry to the infirmary.”

“Do we have to?” came a whine from the remaining guard.

Luna looked at the fallen stallion. For some inexplicable reason, the urge to strike him was coming over her but she quickly pushed the feeling down. “Yes, I'm afraid I must insist.”

I shifted uneasily inside the barrier my brother had set up around me. He hadn't talked once as I related the story I'd heard second-hand from Luna, and every few minutes he'd pour more power into the shield to make sure I couldn't escape. My brother didn't have the talent or instinctive skill as I did for magic, but it still ran strong in our family. Even Celestia herself had taken almost fifteen seconds to break through one of his barriers.

“Look, will you drop the shield already? I promise I'm not going to run away,” I grumbled.

Shining Armor looked impassively at me for a few moments before shaking his head. “Not until you tell me how you got caught up in all of this.”

“I already told you, Chrysalis asked for me specifically. That changeling within the guard wasn't just a one-time thing either, she can always find them just by looking. Celestia and Luna keep trying to come up with detection spells, but they just adapt to them within days.”

“I get that, but why does this agreement include you specifically and not someone like the court unicorn?” he demanded sullenly.

I was running the potential answers through my head and mentally gauging which one would cause the least amount of headache, but short of just throwing the problem at Celestia's hooves I had nothing. Maybe feigning ignorance was best. “I'm not sure. Maybe she just doesn't trust Celestia or Luna.”

“Ooh ooh! Maybe it's because she's secretly trying to win you over to the dark side like she did last time when she kidnapped the Cutie Mark Crusaders and wanted to make you into her student!”

“Pinkie!”

“What? It seems like a good idea to me,” said the party pony innocently.

“Something you want to tell me, sis?” came Shining's pleasant voice, the barrier around me glowing with renewed strength.

“Wait, you never told him?” Applejack looked between me and my brother and winced. “Now that's just all kinds ah awkward...”

“I thought Celestia told you!” I lied, knowing perfectly well that Shining Armor would have dropped all of his duties with the Crystal Empire immediately if there was even a hint of changelings about Canterlot.

“No, she didn't! And apparently you didn't think it was even worth mentioning in your weekly letters!” he accused.

“I didn't want to worry you! Cadance told me about the problems you were dealing with just trying to bring the crystal empire back into modern times!”

From the corner of my eye, I saw Rarity gently ushering my friends out of the room. Mentally I thanked my friend for her quick thinking and her ability to pick up on social cues. “None of that is as important as you, Twilight!” he insisted. “Chrysalis is dangerous. I know that more than anypony! Celestia has no right to ask this of you.”

“She didn't ask me to do it, I volunteered!”

“And you don't think she might have manipulated you towards that decision?” My retort caught in my throat as I processed that statement. “Twilight...sis...” he continued, his voice a bit more sedate now, “Celestia is a great and powerful ruler...but the safety of the realm and all the ponies therein is always going to be her top priority. It has to be.”

His horn glowed with a pink color and the shield winked out. “I'm sorry, Twilight, but I'm not going to have my family get caught up in this again. I'm going to talk with Celestia and Luna.”

He was nearly at the door when I finally found my words. “You still have nightmares, don't you?”

My brother paused. “What?”

“Cadance told me in her letters...you still dream about her sometimes. What it was like to be under her control...how obeying every one of her orders gave you this sense of euphoria...Luna even told me that she's had to destroy several nightmares that were feeding off of you.”

This was wrong. I was tearing open an old wound that was probably still haunting him even now. He was right to be worried about Chrysalis...but he was also wrong about this. “Celestia isn't the only one who cares about Equestria, you know, and even if she is manipulating me...” I paused, disliking the taste of that word on my tongue, but I managed to continue, “...it doesn't change the facts of the matter. Chrysalis nearly took over Canterlot in her single attempt and she's not the only changeling queen out there. If we don't find a way to counter their threat once and for all, there's nothing stopping the changelings from trying again ten...or even a hundred years in the future.”

His head bowed slightly. I knew I had him beat. Turning around he walked back over to the table and flopped down next to me. “Show me your checklist.”

“Huh?”

“I know you, Twilight. I want to see the contingency checklist you made just in case Chrysalis goes out of control.”

A smile crept its way onto my face as my horn glowed, summoning a scroll from Rarity’s shelf and unrolling it out in front of him. “This is volume one. All my friends have a copy and Pinkie has an emergency checklist hidden Celestia-knows-where just in case I become compromised. And yes, I did account for the possibility that she might find out about these contingency plans through me, and I can guarantee that there's no possible way for her to plan around them.”

Shining Armor chuckled, scooting next to me. “I'd hate to be on the receiving end of one of your checklists.”

“Even Celestia fears my checklists,” I boasted, giggling as I playfully pushed his hoof away. “So then, are you heading back?”

“Not just yet. While I'm here, I may as well deliver my status reports on the Crystal Empire to Celestia in person and you...” His horn glowed and suddenly the shield reformed around us, “...still have to tell me about Chrysalis' second attempted takeover.”

“Come on, Shiny, I just managed to talk you out of storming Canterlot,” I said with exasperation. Glancing at his face I realized that I wasn't going to get anywhere with him on this point. “I could probably break out of this shield if I really put my magic to it.”

“And just how much magic can you summon while your big brother is exploiting all of those hidden ticklish spots of yours?” he responded smoothly.

“You wouldn't dare...”

“Oh, I'd dare. Now start talking.”

Grumbling a few muttered death threats, I relaxed against his side and began recounting the tale of Queen Chrysalis' return.

Author's Note

Chapter Update (6/12/2015): Millions of small revisions to grammar and sentence structure.

Chapter 4: Succession and Subterfuge

Telling my brother about Chrysalis took far longer than I had expected. I'd planned to go over the main points just to give him a general idea of what happened, but he'd known me long enough to realize when I was skimping on details, and his shield stayed up until I told him the whole story.

Predictably, once he'd learned that Chrysalis had launched another invasion into Ponyville in order to lure me away from Celestia, he was even less inclined to drop the shield than before. Things had almost escalated to the point where I was ready to blast the shield down myself until thankfully he relented, though I had a feeling that Celestia was going to be hearing from him soon. That shield on his flank wasn't just for decoration, after all.

With only a few hours until Chrysalis' arrival, I made some preparations. First was an enchanted quill that would write out whatever was said so that I wouldn't have to constantly focus my magic on the task of writing. It wasn't a tool I used very often due to the way it mangled homonyms and grammar, but it would be helpful if I had to use my magic for other things.

With that task complete, I set about searching the library for surveillance magic. Shining's spells turned up first, unsurprisingly; there was nothing subtle about my brother's magic. Celestia's spells were next, and they were a lot easier to find now that I knew what I was looking for. Hidden even more artfully than hers were...

“Luna? You too?” I asked with disbelief. Annoyed now, I finished my sweep of the house before unraveling them. I wondered again if Chrysalis knew about these spells and if she'd asked all of those embarrassing questions last time to make sure I'd do these sweeps. Had she anticipated this?

Maybe, but then again it didn't really matter. Chrysalis had specifically stated that she'd only talk with me, and no amount of bargaining had changed her mind on that point. Celestia had bent the terms of the agreement to make sure Chrysalis wouldn't overstep her bounds, but it seemed as if Chrysalis had made her own play to ensure that Celestia remained in line.

Both sides had reasons for why they did what they did; I just wish I wasn't caught in the middle.

I grabbed a few more books out of the stack I'd pulled from my personal shelves and began to pore over them. Mind-affecting magic was a very tricky subject and a closely guarded secret. Messing with anypony's mind had been the subject of hundreds of ethical debates, and any sort of magical research in that direction had been slowed to a crawl if not banned outright. There were certainly several compelling arguments for the ban, but it didn't change the fact that we had been caught flathooved when it came to Chrysalis.

Quite simply, there was no scholastic basis for understanding her abilities, and only theories existed as to what sort of things she could do to a pony's mind. Blocking thoughts, subliminal commands, mind reading...it was all just speculation. Even so, there were a few things I could do to prepare for her next visit.

I had just finished putting my precautions in place when I heard a knock on the door. Opening it, I quickly bowed in the presence of Princess Luna, flanked by two of her lunar guards.

“Princess Luna,” I greeted.

“Rise, Twilight, and be at ease,” she said, nodding to her two guards who closed the door and took up station outside. Her horn glowed and she swept her eyes across the library, a smile appearing on her face after a few moments. “I see you have found my spells as well as Celestia's.”

I prepared myself for a debate. “I really think it's for the best if-”

“My sister informed you of them so that you could decide for yourself how much of a safety net you required,” interrupted Luna, catching me off guard. “She trusts your judgment, as do I.”

“I think she'll be more open with me if she doesn't have two princesses breathing down her neck.”

Luna chuckled at the thought. “My sister and I have theorized that aside from your...personal history together, Chrysalis simply might find you easier to speak with.”

“Or she could just be targeting me because I'm not as experienced as you two, and therefore more vulnerable to manipulation,” I replied. “It's already occurred to me, so I'm sure you've both considered it.”

Luna was silent for a moment. “I won't deny it,” she said finally, “but when one is over a millennium old, everypony is inexperienced by comparison.”

I couldn't help but giggle at the thought. “I do sometimes forget how old you are. I suppose the gray hair in your mane should have clued me in, though.”

The lunar alicorn’s eyes narrowed and she lowered her head until she was at eye level with me while I tried to fight back my giggles. “‘Tis a lie.”

“Don't worry, I think Rarity might have some mane-dye in your color lying around ,” I teased, only to yelp as Luna suddenly lunged forward, tackling me to the ground.

“Take thy slanderous comments back!”

Dammit, how did she know my ticklish areas? Unable to stop myself, I laughed uncontrollably as I rolled around on the floor with her. “Okay! Okay! I give up!” I squealed, relenting under the assault.

The attack paused as Luna waited for my apology.

“It's more silver than gray...ahhh! I'm kidding! Stoooop!”

Eventually, things settled into a more somber mood, but I was grateful for the distraction and the release of tension. It had taken some time for Luna to really integrate into the modern world and there had been a few stumbling points along the way, but Celestia had told me she was proud of how far her sister had come.

Our conversation turned to more mundane topics. Talk about spells and enchantments being put in place, the guard detail that would be watching the library through the night, and a few theories about Chrysalis' abilities and possible questions I could ask. Time passed quickly and soon Luna bid me farewell, giving me a quick hug before taking to the sky with her guards flanking her. Off in the distance I could see another squadron of lunar guards approaching, escorting Chrysalis and her own changeling minions on a course heading for my library.

Quiet as the night that hid his black shell, the changeling watched over his target as he went about his tasks. He was a janitor who worked a night shift at some clinic, and while he was a pleasant pony to be around, his odd hours meant that nopony ever saw much of him.

The changeling's wings extended and he flew soundlessly through the air, keeping to the roofs of the houses where the lights were out. The pony took the same route he always did, ending with a quick shortcut behind a few houses just out of sight of the main road. The changeling's body tensed and he bared his fangs, his wings spreading wide before he lunged through the air, silent as a shadow.

Two green-streaked forms slammed into him mid-flight, sending him crashing to the ground. Hooves pounded at his carapace and fangs sought out the vulnerable parts of his body as the fight degenerated into a mass of wings and legs. There was a sickening crack and the pile stopped moving before the two larger changelings withdrew from the stricken one, their curved horns glowing momentarily before green flames reduced the body to ash.

Behind them, the earth pony continued on his way, oblivious to what had just happened.

Miles away from Ponyville and a good distance beneath the earth, Queen Chrysalide let the glow of her horn fade, the mental images vanishing along with it. Similar scenes had been playing out all over Ponyville for the past month and the Red Queen had been relentless in her intrusions on both territories.

“The seventh incursion this month,” said Chrysalide solemnly. “What do you make of this, daughter?”

“She either has the resources and the changelings to spare, or she's playing hard and fast and hoping to establish a territory,” came the princess' response. “Her changelings have never been able to get the upper hand unless they've outnumbered our own two to one, which implies a lot of newborns and inexperienced soldiers. Did she ever respond to your message?”

“In a way. I've made my position quite clear that any push into my territory is going to be met with violence, and she has been evasive about picking a neutral ground to meet face-to-face.”

Another changeling arrived and briefly interrupted the conversation, bowing to the queen and presenting his report. It was an eerily similar scene but with the silver queen's changelings leading an ambush instead.

“It feels like she's pushing on both sides to see which one will give first,” observed Chrysalis.

Chrysalide shook her head. “No. Regardless of what rules she's broken, there is no possible way she has the resources to continue harassing both of us,” she murmured. Her face was calm but Chrysalis could sense her worry.

“Dusk,” said the queen suddenly, addressing one of the changelings in armor. “Call everyone back from the field and tell all of our agents to go into hiding. Organize every able-bodied scout you can muster and repeat this command to each captain,” she ordered, rising to her feet. “We only have a small window before Terranim realizes what we are doing.”

“Mom?” came Chrysalis' voice, lacking its usual playful tone. “What's going on?”

“Chrysalis, I need you to listen to me carefully. Terranim is about to make her play. I need you to organize the workers and move our colony. Don't tell me where, just use your best judgment.”

Questions exploded in her mind like fireworks but she kept them to herself for the moment, already thinking through the task. “I have a place in mind.”

“Good. Go there as soon as the changelings are ready to fly. Keep beneath the cover of the trees if you can.”

Chrysalis' mind was already caught up in the logistics of travel. It was going to be slow with changelings carrying their eggs and the young that hadn't yet mastered flight, but the colony was nothing if not efficient and it didn't take much to push them into gear. Soon, the once-quiet hive was buzzing with activity.

Preparations were halfway complete when three more scouts burst into the throne room. Their carapaces and armor showed signs of battle, and their eyes were wide and filled with relief and terror. Wordlessly they presented themselves to the queen and the princess, broadcasting their thoughts so both could see.

The first image was of a burning building, a house that had contained one of the changeling families the colony had moved into Ponyville. Ponies were already moving in to assist with the flames, but there was little doubt as to the fate of the changelings inside. More images came at the queen's insistence. Ponyville was a battleground, though even now it remained secret. Changelings of the silver queen were everywhere and most of the images were blurred due to the scouts keeping their distance. Some made it out. Many more did not.

More orders flew through the connection, many of which Chrysalis didn't hear due to the frantic preparations she was making herself. Queen Chrysalide was the first to leave, her soldiers splitting into two groups with the smaller one heading for Ponyville.

“Princess Chrysalis, the keepers are ready to move,” reported the lone captain that had stayed behind. He and his scouting party were all that remained of the soldiers. “Do you have a destination in mind?”

Chrysalis nodded. “I do.” Imparting the directions to the captain, she let him take the lead. The princess flew in the center of the hive while keeping them above the treetops, trading cover for speed. A changeling wouldn't have had a problem seeing them in the dark, but even now they had to keep the pegasi in mind.

It was half an hour of tense flying. The nervousness in the air was thick enough to taste and the scouts strained themselves to check everything and keep their eyes everywhere. Even a small force of enemy soldiers could cause crippling losses to them right now.

Chrysalis fought to prevent her own worry from spilling over into the hive mind, carefully guarding her emotions. All of them were looking to her for leadership; she couldn’t allow even a sliver of doubt to slip through.

Finally, their destination came into view, the sense of relief from the hive almost flooding the connection.

The princess rapidly issued orders once they landed. The eggs and the young had to be secured and defenses needed to be put in place. Although the cave granted them a small measure of security, they weren’t entirely safe. There wasn't a lot for her to do, but preparations ran more smoothly when she was overseeing them, and Chrysalis did her best to bolster them with what little confidence she could muster.

An hour passed and the work slowed down, but a sense of anxiety still hung in the air. Chrysalis had done all she could at this point. Now, it was time to wait.

“Chrysalis, are you sure this is a good place to stay?” asked the captain once he was out of earshot of the other changelings.

“No, but Chrysalide's orders were clear. All of our backup hives may be compromised and if my mo- Queen Chrysalide's gambit does not work, they will definitely be so.”

“But Queen Terranim almost certainly knows of this place,” said the captain anxiously.

“And that is why it is ideal, at least for now. There is little chance she will suspect us to be hiding in the very caves where our last meeting was held. I don't intend for us to stay here long, but it will do for now.”

Another hour passed and there was no sign of the soldiers or Chrysalide.

“Dusk,” said the princess, addressing the captain by name. “We've waited long enough. Take your scouts and begin a search of the surrounding areas.”

“But princess, if the hive is attacked-”

“Then ten soldiers is not going to make a difference,” said Chrysalis firmly. “And you would do well to remember that so long as the queen is away, I am ruling in her stead. Do not question my orders again.”

The captain looked down at the ground with shame. “Of course, Princess Chrysalis. I shall begin immediately.” Quickly gathering the scouts, the changelings flew off into the night sky and the waiting game began once again. It was a very uncomfortable feeling to suddenly be left with nothing; no information or plans for the future. Their foothold in Ponyville was all but gone now, and while there wasn't an immediate risk of food being short, the specter of starvation loomed on the horizon.

The rest of the night passed and the sun was well into the sky when news finally came back. Black dots were appearing on the horizon; more than the ten she had sent out, but far fewer than the number Chrysalide had taken.

Six of them were carrying something. The sight of it made Chrysalis' breath catch in her throat, knowing that they only would have burdened themselves with one thing. Even with her resolve steeled, looking upon her mother's body was a sobering sight.

Spying Dusk, she beckoned him over. “Please...report what has happened,” she said haltingly. “You may be brief...for now.”

Dusk spoke and Chrysalis listened. He gave his report as best he could, but he was clearly shaken by the events.

Chrysalide had started her brutal campaign in Ponyville, destroying Terranim’s hold on the town and taking down any changeling careless enough to stay. After that, It had been foal’s play to lure the enraged queen’s larger force into an ambush, but while her plan had worked, she had underestimated Terranim herself.

“She...annihilated herself to kill my mother?” asked the changeling princess in disbelief.

Dusk nodded. “Terranim put every ounce of energy she could into attacking. Her body was burning up but she kept going anyways, drawing on everything and anything she could.”

Chrysalis approached the scarred, fallen form of her mother. Even in death, she managed to look dignified. Questions flew through her mind. Had Chrysalide known Terranim would do this? Had she sacrificed herself intentionally?

“Princess...no, Queen Chrysalis, what would you have us do?”

Privately, she was thankful for Dusk's support, but she didn't let it show. “Gather your remaining soldiers for a meeting. The Red Queen is likely to assimilate the remainders of Terranim's hive, and Ponyville will be under heavy watch. Take your scouts abroad and find us a potential nesting ground. We can't use any of the old sites or even the backup sites that my...mother had planned on.”

The changelings raced to accompany their tasks while a few of the handlers gently wrapped up Chrysalide's body. There would be time to deal with that later. Right now, her hive needed her.

Chrysalis paused and I fought back a groan. She was going to do it again. “So what happened?” I asked cautiously.

“Well, I'm sitting here before you right now, surely you can guess how things turned out.”

“Just because I know Daring Do is going to be fine at the end of the book doesn't mean I don't want to hear the story,” I said with a glare, sitting back on my flank. “You're really going to do this, aren't you?”

The queen smiled and nodded. I was just starting to think about conjuring up a giant flyswatter when my common sense kicked in and calmed me down. This was another one of her games and I was playing right into it.

Instead of saying anything further, I leveled my horn at her before letting loose with a burst of violet magic. I enjoyed the brief expression of shock on Chrysalis' face before she realized that I hadn't targeted her, but rather the ring that had been put around her horn.

“You weakened it,” said Chrysalis after a moment.

“I can only do it once this evening, and I only gave you sufficient power to transform yourself, nothing more. The limiter should give you access to enough magic at a time with a few seconds delay in-between.”

“And you know exactly how much I need just from seeing a few transformations?” Despite her relaxed tone, I got the feeling that she was rather impressed.

“Yes, but most of those times I was fighting for my life. I was hoping to examine this in a more stable environment.”

“Very well, I shall avoid attacking you while you study, then,” teased the queen. “Any requests?”

“What form do you take when you don't have a pony template to go on?” I asked.

Chrysalis seemed to consider the question for a moment before green fire enveloped her body. Her figure condensed as she took on the form of a gray unicorn with a sea-green mane, essentially a lighter color palette from the black-on-green look that she had in her natural form.

“What happens when you try to use magic in a non-unicorn shape?”

“Then my horn appears. It is impossible to hide it while performing magic.”

I rubbed a hoof under my chin as I examined the queen's body. On the surface it was flawless and even the magical signature she gave off had changed accordingly. “Can you change the color of your magic, as well?” I asked, remembering the telltale green glow of her horn during the Canterlot wedding fiasco.

“Yes, but it takes additional energy to mask the color,” she replied, letting her horn glow a soft blue before switching it to a light red. “Almost twice the energy, in fact.”

For the next hour I grilled her about her abilities, asking for details and particulars about everything I could think of. There was a limit to the size they could take, as their mass couldn't change no matter what form they took. Taking a new form in and of itself didn't actually drain magic or energy, and provided they kept themselves sustained, they could hold a transformation indefinitely. As an experiment, I showed her a picture of Daring Do and asked her to transform. Again, it was perfect on the surface, but something was amiss this time and it took me a minute to figure out what.

“Your magical signature didn't change,” I said finally, eyes widening with realization.

Chrysalis nodded with a small smile that looked a tad creepy on the face of Daring Do. “Yes, that's correct. Fabricating a magical signature is exceedingly difficult without a living base to work from, and while it is possible to create a signature without one, any close friend or family member will notice something is off right away. That is why we use others as templates.”

“Can't you just pull those templates from memory, though?”

“Yes, but copying from the original leaves less room for error. Even the smallest deviation will make other ponies suspicious, and most of my changelings do not have the talent for magic that I do. But I think we've talked about my shape-changing enough for now,” she said, mischief in her eyes.

My eyes narrowed. She was getting bored. That was not a good sign. “I think I've studied the effects of your poison enough.”

“But you're still eager to see if it's possible to resist the effects, aren't you? I'm sure you've already devised other methods.” The form of Daring Do slipped away and Chrysalis stood in front of me once again, leaning down slightly to get eye level with me.

“Maybe,” I said, unconsciously taking a step back.

“And you can't be certain that magic won't enhance the effects either, right?” she added, taking another step forward. My flank hit the bookshelf behind me.

“...maybe. But I think I'll take the bite this time,” I said, glaring at her.

“Was my kissing really that bad?”

“Shut it!” I snapped, a bit of crimson appearing on my nose. “I need to study both methods!”

She grinned, baring her fangs at me. Somehow they seemed just a bit sharper than before. “It's not a pleasant experience, Twilight. Poison is for manipulation. Venom is used to...incapacitate.”

Spending an evening paralyzed from Chrysalis' venom didn't sound very fun, but the alternative...with a sigh, I swept the area with my magic, making absolutely sure there weren't any surveillance spells this time. Even as I slowly made up my mind, I could hear Rainbow Dash's voice reminding me about her passive influencing abilities, and I expanded my scan to her as well. There was nothing; no magic, changeling or otherwise, coming from anywhere, and if I couldn't detect it, then it didn't exist.

“Fine...do it,” I said finally.

“Do what?” came the innocent reply as she leaned just a bit closer.

“Do...your thing.”

“What thing?”

My head snapped up and I fixed her with my best death glare. “Chrysalis, I swear to Celestia if you're going to make me-mmphh!”

I fought down the urge to blast her with my magic as her mouth pressed against mine for the second time. Since I wasn't trying to violently throw her away this time, my mind was flooded with details. Her tongue, long and flexible, was sliding against my muzzle, gently teasing my mouth as one of her legs wrapped around my neck, pulling me closer. I could feel the effects of the poison as well, tinged with what little magic she was able to draw upon for the occasion. The results were telling, though. Last night had felt like being under a gentle calming spell. Tonight felt like I was riding high on Pinkie's Tutti-Frutti Sherbet Sugar Punch.

Seconds ticked by and the queen only seemed to deepen the kiss, her tongue sliding into my mouth, caressing my tongue with hers. I wasn't even aware she was drawing me into an embrace until I was pressing up against her body. Finally, the need to breathe brought me back to reality, the queen not resisting as I pushed her away, taking several gasping breaths as I began to try and fight the familiar sensations of the poison.

“Did you enjoy that?” asked Chrysalis softly.

“Y-yes.” Dammit!

“Why, thank you,” she said with mock cheerfulness. “And since you were so honest, I'll teach you a little something more about the poison in you right now.” Looking straight into my eyes, I could see a green fire in them as she opened her mouth to give me an order.

“I want you to kill Princess Celestia.”

My mind reeled in horror. I trembled, expecting the euphoric sensation to come over me at any minute...but nothing happened. There wasn't even a tingle. It was though the poison didn't even exist. The second my panic died down though, the rage swelled. “Y-you! How could you even...”

“Relax, Twilight,” came her calm voice. This time I felt the full force of the poison, my body becoming still and my rage draining away. “Tell me what your favorite magical spell is.”

“Teleportation,” I answered, the rush immediately coming back.

“Would you kindly go and kill Princess Luna?”

Again, nothing. My mouth opened and the words slowly came out. “N-no...never!”

“As you can see, I can't just ask you anything, although maybe after ten years of constant exposure you might be more open to the idea.”

“You couldn't get my brother to drop the shield around Canterlot either, could you?” I theorized.

“Correct, but I could easily get a mare to tell me where she's keeping her more risqué books,” she replied, her horn flashing as she spoke.

“Loose floorboard beneath the bed upstairs,” came my reply as the magical twinge compelled me to answer. “Why are you so interested in this stuff?” I snapped at her in embarrassment.

Chrysalis simply smiled. I tried to summon up any sort of anger or rage, but the poison was already calming those emotions as quickly as they built up. At the same time, I noticed her horn glowing. She was using her own magic to influence the poison in certain subtle ways, showing me her abilities even now.

“Now why don't I give you a small taste of what your brother went through?”

I could only really recall my experience of what happened next after the fact. Her body changed once again, her green mane turning a deep purple color and her carapace shifting from a hard shell to soft white fur. Her horn glowed again and suddenly all of the minutiae I might have noticed to distinguish her from the original began to get...’smoothed over’ was the best way I could describe it. Looking back, I could tell several small details were off, but the poison was muddling my senses, convincing me that they didn't really matter.

My mind seemed to turn on itself, arguing that this wasn't Chrysalis, even though she'd been standing before me moments ago.

“My, this is such a chilly night. Would you mind if I put a kettle on?” asked the white mare kindly. “I would adore some tea right now. Where do you keep it?”

Rarity knew where my tea was kept. She was, after all, the one who kept my kitchen stocked with it, but my mind didn't focus on the thought before my mouth was moving. “Yeah, go ahead, it's in the cupboard on the far left.”

Was this how my brother had felt? No, he probably had it even worse. Cadance hadn't talked much about her imprisonment, but news had gotten to me in a roundabout way, estimating her imprisonment at a week or so.

Rarity's horn glowed a soft green color, but again, my mind didn't pick up on that detail, not consciously anyways. A pair of cups and saucers along with a sugar bowl arranged themselves neatly on the table, soon followed by napkins and mats, the unicorn taking care to set them perfectly while waiting for the kettle to boil.

“Now then, why don't we talk about what's on your mind? That is why you called me here, after all.”

“I...did?” I said uncertainly.

“Of course. It seemed rather urgent, too. Does this have to do with the crush you have on Rainbow Dash?”

I squeaked, my hooves bumping the table in surprise. “H-how did you know about that?”

Rarity gave me a warm smile and a wink. “I may not be in Canterlot anymore, dear, but I do keep my hoof in gossip circles and an eye on developing relationships. Especially among my close friends.”

“W-well, I don't...I don't even know if she's into mares,” I said shakily, slowly gaining confidence now that my friend had broached the subject.

“Well, her tastes might have changed, but she's had dates with both in the past. Why not simply ask her out and see where things go?”

“Because I don't want it to affect our friendship,” came my immediate reply. The kettle whistled and there was a brief pause as Rarity brought the tea in and poured a cup for me. “I don't even know if it's a real attraction or just infatuation.”

“Well, that is the entire purpose of a date, Twilight. And if things don't work out, do you really think Rainbow would distance herself from you?”

“No...she is Loyalty, after all,” I said with a weak smile.

“Good. Now, I'm sure you've already read a few books, but there are more subtle methods you can use to gauge her interest,” said Rarity, taking a sip of her tea as she prepared to indulge in one of her favorite hobbies.

I talked with her for a long while. Despite being at the opposite end of the cultural bell curve from Rainbow Dash, she still had remarkable insight into her character, suggesting a few places where the two of us could hang out that might be fun for both of us. I tried suggesting a few places that I imagined Rainbow might find entertaining even if they weren't my usual fare, but Rarity quickly put a stop to those thoughts, gently informing me that a couple should be able to have fun together without simply catering to each other’s desires.

I hadn't even noticed how much time had passed until I began yawning.

“This has been a delightful evening, Twilight, but I really must get back to my shop and rest.” I walked her to the door and gave her a hug.

“Thanks for all your help, Rarity.”

“Think nothing of it, Twilight,” she said, giving me a friendly nuzzle before turning and trotting off.

I stood there for several seconds afterwards, my thoughts slowly filtering back into my mind, the haze gradually disappearing. I began to notice details once again, like how Rarity wasn't walking in the direction of her shop. The sight of the lunar guards flying from their hiding places to take position on either side of her finally broke the spell.

Hooves trembling, I ran back into the library, pulling out books with my magic and throwing them on the ground as I accessed the hidden compartment where I’d set up the self-writing notes. It was a giant block of text, lacking even the most basic punctuation and grammar, but the spell was robust enough to start a new line whenever someone else started speaking.

Feeling a cold chill work its way through my body, I re-read the conversation between me and Ra...no...Chrysalis. When had I lost sight of who she was? I couldn’t really tell just by reading over the transcription, and even now I was having to mentally correct their names. Was this what she could do with only a fraction of her power unlocked?

My hooves trembled as the scroll fell from my magical hold, the long piece of paper unrolling several feet as I tried to come to grips with my own mind. The deeply personal conversation I'd had about Rainbow Dash with Rar- Chrysalis seemed like a minor problem when confronted with the reality that I couldn't trust my own thoughts.

“Sweet Celestia, what have I gotten myself into?”

Chapter 5: Paranoia

Celestia let out a small sigh as she looked out at the newly risen sun. The previous night had been Chrysalis' second visit, and while she would have rather been at her student's bedside, Equestria needed its princess and there were other qualified unicorns that could give Twilight the examination to make sure that Chrysalis hadn't tried to unduly influence her.

“Announcing Captain Stalwart Stallion,” said a voice behind her. Turning from the balcony, she watched as the white-coated unicorn stepped forward, snapping off a salute with his foreleg in place of a bow.

“Your majesty, Queen Chrysalis has been secured in her quarters for the day. She has made no further requests of our guards and has said that the hive will be able to sustain itself with the resources we have given her.”

Celestia nodded. “And what of our efforts to unmask possible changelings?”

“The entire magical division is working non-stop on the project, but none of their spells work for long. The unicorns say that it has to do with their changing magical signatures. They will be sending you the full report shortly, but there is little progress.”

“And what of the queen herself?”

“Flawlessly accurate. Every pony she's accused was revealed in short order. Currently she claims that the spies we've uncovered are from other queens who are seeking to gain a foothold in Canterlot and the surrounding villages, but we haven't ruled out the fact that they might be her own changelings planted in advance.”

“You haven't managed to take any alive?” asked the princess tiredly, already knowing the answer.

Stalwart briefly looked ashamed. “We...have tried numerous times, but they always seem to have some way to...end their lives before we can get anything out of them. Right now we're assuming it involves magic that the queen of a hive might lay upon her subjects before they go on such missions, just in case they're caught.”

“What do you think, Captain? Do you think Chrysalis is playing this game with us using her own people?”

The stallion looked conflicted. “I...don't have enough information to go on at present. We've been monitoring her hive day and night and nopony gets in or out without us knowing, and those that cross the border get a personal escort as well. Most, if not all of the changelings were taken care of after Shining Armor's wedding when Cadance used her power against them, but-”

“Stalwart, I asked for your opinion,” said Celestia gently. “Do you think Chrysalis would throw away her subjects’ lives in such a way so that she may bargain from a position of power?”

“Well, I wouldn't put it past her, but...” He hesitated before shaking his head. “No...I don't think she would. Not right now.”

“And she remains tight-lipped about how she herself reveals them?”

“She claims that it's not something she does consciously or can teach, but even if she could, that information is her best bargaining chip. She wouldn't relinquish it so easily.”

“Then our situation remains unchanged for the moment. Who was the latest to be exposed?”

“One of the nurses in the Canterlot Medical Wing. Apparently, it had been feeding off of the weakened ponies who came in with injuries. Speaking of which, it's going to take Flash Sentry a further two weeks to return to active duty.”

The conversation turned to more mundane subjects now that the issue of Chrysalis was behind them. There were discussions about improving security, funding for equipment and training, and concerns about the possible unrest of the pony population should news about the changelings get out. Thankfully, it seemed as though the remaining changelings were content to keep a low profile and go unnoticed. The last thing Stalwart needed was ponies accusing one another of being changelings.

The captain was just finishing his report when the guard at the door announced the arrival of Princess Luna. She appeared calm, but Celestia easily saw through her facade. “You continue to be a credit to your position, Stalwart. Shining Armor chose his replacement well.” The stallion didn't let it show but Celestia could feel his pride as he gave her another salute and walked out of the throne room, leaving the two sisters together.

“I assumed you would be in bed right now, sister,” said Celestia, letting herself relax in her sibling's presence.

“And leave you to rule all day, worried and anxious over your favorite student?” she teased.

Celestia only smiled. “I am guilty as charged. How is she doing, if you do not mind my asking?”

Luna paused for a moment as she looked for the proper words. “She is...unwell. Her sleep tonight was plagued by rather potent nightmares. I managed to subdue the worst of them, but whatever Chrysalis did last night left a very distinct impression.”

Celestia was curious, but she knew better than to ask. Dreams were often deeply personal matters, and Luna was always careful to avoid abusing that knowledge except in the most extreme circumstances. “I feared something was amiss when her report didn't show up on time.”

The lunar princess gave her sister a small smile. “That would be my fault again. After I soothed her nightmares, I made sure she would get a proper night’s rest.”

“I'll have to be sure to send her a letter insisting that she delay her report until tomorrow,” said Celestia with some amusement. “If I tell her not to worry about it, she'll feel guilty and push herself into finishing. It saves quite a bit of paper and ink if I simply give her a royal order to turn something in later than intended.”

The two sisters shared a small laugh over the thought. “Twilight is a very special pony,” came Luna's voice, a bit quieter than before. For a moment both were quiet, but the look they shared said enough.

“How would you recommend we proceed from here?”

Luna gave the question some thought. “I do not think we need do anything just yet. Twilight is shaken, but her friends will be there for her. Of this I am certain.”

My eyes snapped open suddenly as the sun came in through the window. It was late in the day. Too late. Focusing my magic, I searched the area and smiled as I felt Luna's magic signature around my room. She hadn't been able to keep the nightmares away entirely, but she had been able to give me a restful night all the same. Rolling out of bed, I shivered as I felt cold sweat on my body. Flashes of my bad dreams came back to me, about my friends turning into changelings, morphing right before my eyes into the black, blue-eyed insects while still casually talking in their normal voices.

“Shower...really need a shower...” I mumbled to myself, hoping that a torrent of warm water would help put my mind straight.

Logically, I knew exactly why I was acting this way, but that didn't make coping with it any easier. With a casual and frightening ease, Chrysalis had imitated my friend, talked with me in much the same way Rarity would have done, and had accomplished this even after blatantly showing me her powers and telling me what they did.

How was I supposed to rationalize it away when I couldn't even trust my own thoughts?

I felt a little better after the shower. Even though it was the last thing I wanted to do today, there was work to be done. My notes needed organizing, my reports were due, and several other small things just needed doing for the sake of unraveling the enigma that Chrysalis had presented us.

The conversation was painful to read. It seemed to highlight my oversight as I transcribed the dialogue properly with the correct spelling and grammar. Thankfully the work was soothing and I slowly began to relax, letting the questions spinning around in my mind simmer on the back burner. Part of me wanted to curse the shortsighted idiots who had curbed this field of magical research, but at the same time it was probably born from an earnest effort to stop ponies from abusing the type of magic that Chrysalis so easily wielded.

I had just finished the initial draft and was double-checking it when a dainty knock jarred me out of my thoughts. Placing my work aside, I answered the door, stumbling over the greeting once I saw who it was.

“Good afternoon, Twilight, I was afraid you weren't going to wake up at all today,” came the calm, cultured voice of Rarity.

My body trembled and my eyes widened. Her mane was curled perfectly, her coat shone in the sunlight, and her cutie mark stood out nicely against her white fur. This was Rarity, or at the very least my mind was telling me this was Rarity.

“Is something wrong?” came Rarity’s voice once again, this time with a hint of concern.

Snapping myself out of my daze, I reminded myself that Chrysalis was in Canterlot under guard. “N-no...sorry, come on in, Rarity, I was just finishing up some things for Celestia.”

“Really? So late in the day?” said Rarity with mock surprise. “Whatever are we going to do about that spa visit? It's far too late to reschedule.”

I winced. I'd forgotten about the appointment with all of the chaos that had been happening over the past couple of days, and right now the idea of spending time with Rarity just...

“I, um...well, I'm sorry, I kinda overslept,” I stammered. “A-and I really need to get these reports to Celestia-”

Rarity smiled and activated her magic. I stared intently at her horn, noticing the soft blue color as if for the first time, daring it to change. It took a gentle prod from the unicorn to bring my attention back to the scroll she was trying to give me.

My Dear Student Twilight,

Due to some unforeseen circumstances regarding the day court and certain diplomats, I will not be at the castle to receive your reports today. Please have them ready for me first thing tomorrow.

Sincerely,

Celestia

I breathed a sigh of relief and let the scroll rest on the table. “Well, I guess I have a little more free time now,” I said weakly, giving Rarity a smile. I hated leaving projects unfinished, but Rarity had planned for this outing far in advance in an effort to relieve the stress Chrysalis was likely to bring. It wasn't her fault that merely being around her right now was stressful for me.

“Good,” said Rarity firmly. “This whole business with that changeling queen has you all wound up. This will be a perfect opportunity to relieve all that tension.”

“Right...yeah,” I said hesitantly as I locked up the library behind me, trailing behind the other unicorn. Unfortunately, Rarity quickly noticed my reluctance.

“Twilight, is something wrong?” she asked, worry evident in her voice. It was quite clear that she wanted to ask about Chrysalis but was carefully avoiding the topic until I was comfortable bringing it up.

“I...can't do this right now,” I said, my voice wavering slightly.

Rarity looked a bit crestfallen and searched for something to say. “Should I...come back later?”

“Yes...no! I don't...I'm sorry!” I said, panic welling up in my mind. My horn glowed, my magic flared, and in the next second I was wrenched out of my spot and zipping through the magical ether, appearing near-instantly on the border of the Everfree Forest.

“Nice one, Twilight,” I grumbled to myself, already picturing what was happening. Rarity was probably panicking. She'd be looking for my friends soon. Considering how high-strung the guards were, it was very likely they might get involved as well. It was a toss-up whether or not everypony would think I was a changeling or under Chrysalis' control.

I wasn't sure how long I rested beneath the tree while lost in my thoughts, but my solitude was finally interrupted by the sight of a bright rainbow trail streaking across the sky. Rainbow Dash had great vision even among pegasi, and could probably put a gryphon to shame, so I was certain she'd already seen me. I'd half-expected another tackle and an interrogation, but instead the pegasus gently glided down next to me and lay on the ground.

“Chrysalis?” came the question after a moment's pause.

Glumly, I nodded. “Chrysalis.”

“She mess with your head again?”

I nodded again.

“What a bitch.”

My eyes widened and my breath was caught somewhere between a laugh and a cough. “Rainbow!”

The cyan pony grinned at me. Unable to help myself I let out a small giggle. “Okay, maybe a little bit,” I agreed. That got a chuckle out of her as well.

“Rarity is a kinda panicking right now,” said Rainbow. “She's good at hiding it, but I think she's wondering if she did something wrong.”

Guilt welled up inside of me. “I...I didn't-”

I was cut off suddenly by a hoof wrapping around my barrel and giving me a squeeze. “Well duh, of course you didn't! It was Chrysalis, remember?”

“Right...” My body had tensed at the contact, the other part of Chrysalis' conversation replaying in my mind. Chrysalis disguised as Rarity had given me advice. Was it any less true despite the form she had taken? Or was this just another mind game designed to coerce me into seeing my friend that way? Sucking in another breath, I pushed all of that down. I didn't want to deal with these thoughts, or theorize where they came from, or think about...how nice her fur felt right now-

“Rainbow, can you do me a favor?” I asked, slamming the door on my thoughts. “Could you tell Rarity that I'm sorry and let the others know I'm alright?”

“Really? You don't seem alright to me. I can feel you shaking.”

“Hnnh!” I tried to squirm away but Rainbow's leg was suddenly tight around me. “Rainbow!” I protested, trying to dislodge the stronger pony. The panic and paranoia I had been experiencing earlier had given way to embarrassment and maybe something more that I didn't even want to acknowledge.

“Alright, Twilight, here's how it's going to go,” said the pegasus, sticking her muzzle close to mine. “Either you tell me what's got you so scared, or I'm gonna hold you here until everypony else arrives to help me guilt it out of you.”

“I've got teleportation magic, you know,” I threatened.

“We've got a Pinkie.”

I gulped. No amount of teleportation could trump Pinkie's hide and seek skills unless I wanted to cross the Equestrian border. Letting out a long sigh, I loosened my tongue. “She...took Rarity's form. She did it right in front of me, and even though I saw it happen, with her magic I couldn't...tell the difference.” Honestly, it had felt like my mind had been violated.

Rainbow's grip slackened and her wing moved to cover my back in a comforting embrace, no longer pinning me to her side. “And when I saw Rarity this morning, I just...panicked a little.”

Rainbow was silent for a long moment. I wasn't sure what she was going to say or even if she could find the right words. Heck, before today I hadn't really considered her the comforting type.

“Wow...that sucks.”

I let out a strangled laugh. “Yeah...it does.”

“Look, Twi, I know I'm not really good at this sort of thing, but what about your brother?”

“Shiny? What about him?”

“I mean, he went through the same thing you did, right? Maybe he could tell you how he got through it,” she suggested.

That was a surprisingly good idea. Shining had been under Chrysalis' control far longer than I had. How had he reacted to the real Cadance once he was free from her? Did he have trouble looking at her, or was this just me? Actually, come to think of it...

“Didn't he take the train back already?”

Rainbow snorted. “You thought he wasn't going to check up on you after Chrysalis' visit? I heard the lunar guards had to stop him from trying to spy on you in the library.”

“House arrest?” I asked incredulously.

“Luna's orders, Ms. Sparkle,” said the lunar guard with some discomfort. “He kept refusing to stand down and stay away during Chrysalis' diplomatic meeting.”

I sympathized with his unease. It couldn't have been easy restraining his old captain, and by extension, his old boss. “Can I go and see him?”

With a nod I was let through. Inside the room and lounging on the bed was my brother with his muzzle in a book titled 'A Millennium of Kingdom Management' written by Princess Celestia. With his new duties over the Crystal Empire, he'd been forced to play a lot of catch up on the nuances of being a prince. Fortunately, Cadance and Celestia were kind and patient teachers and he was always eager to learn, if only to help ease Cadance's burdens.

“Hey there, B.B.B.F.F.,” I greeted.

“Twily!” Grabbing his bookmark, he pushed the thick text aside and trotted over to give me a hug.

“I heard you got arrested,” I teased. “I didn’t even know you could do that to a prince.”

“Well, I'm not technically in trouble so long as I don't try to leave until my train comes,” he said bashfully. “You're not angry, are you?”

“Not really...” But it's a damn good thing he didn't see anything, otherwise I might have teleported into an active volcano. “Listen, can I talk to you about Chrysalis?”

A guarded look came over his face. “What about?”

I knew then and there that I was probably tearing open an old wound but I'd come this far already. “What was it like being under her control?”

There was a brief flash in his eyes and a haunted look that passed in an instant. “Twily, what did she do to you?”

“Just answer the question...please,” I insisted.

Shining gave me a long look that told me this conversation was going to continue later, but for the moment he relented. “It was...relaxing. Horrifically so. It started out simple. Looking back, there were several things that should have clued me in, but they didn't seem important at the time.”

I nodded, familiar with the sensations he was describing.

“As time passed, it got worse. She began to assert herself more and more into my mind. Following her commands and being around her was like...an addiction. When she...” He hesitated but eventually pressed on. “When she took complete control, it was like being trapped inside my own mind, only able to look out and watch as-”

“That's enough,” I said quickly. “How did you get over it?”

“Over what, exactly?”

“Being with Cadance again...the real one.”

He flinched, visibly. Another old wound. “It was thanks to Cadance, actually.” He let out a hollow-sounding chuckle. “Probably the worst honeymoon she could have imagined. I kept making excuses and practically avoided her the whole time, until she finally put her hoof down.”

I winced at the thought. Cadance was the best foalsitter in the world, and you'd be hard-pressed to find a kinder mare, but there had been times when 'Princess’ Cadance took over, and she had a rather impressive Royal Canterlot Voice. The first time she unleashed it on me, I didn't touch ice cream for a week.

“And after that?”

“She used her own magic. Made me remember my love and reawakened my trust. She showed her love for me as well...pretty much drowned me in it. She spent her entire honeymoon caring for me, and the very second we got back to Canterlot...”

“Sombra?”

“Sombra,” he agreed with a sigh.

Perhaps it was depressing to him, but the fact that Cadance was willing to go so far for him reassured me that those two were meant to be together. “When you were with Chrysalis...as Cadance I mean, did she ever give you any love in return?” I asked curiously, a theory starting to form in my mind.

“I can't actually remember,” said Shining, slightly puzzled. “I can't imagine it would be anything close to what Cadance shows me every day, though.”

I smiled at the thought, but my mind was already racing. Could changelings give emotion as well as take it? Would they do so even if they could? My head spun with the possibilities and I was already compiling a list of things to ask Chrysalis next time...next time? I guess I already knew there was going to be a next time.

“Thanks, Shiny,” I said sincerely. “I'm sorry to be dredging up old memories like this.”

“All in the name of protecting ourselves from the changelings, right?”

“That's right. Hopefully we'll never have another near-disaster like Canterlot happen again.”

We said our goodbyes and I left my brother to his guards, telling him to give my best to Cadance. My old foalsitter was like the antithesis of a changeling, and her abilities might just be the key I needed.

For Cadance, using magic to inspire love and friendship in others came as easily as breathing. For me it was a grueling task, filled with trial and error, as I drew on my memories of seeing her magic at work. In a way, Cadance's magic was very much mental manipulation, albeit of a more benevolent kind. She wasn't forcing emotions into somepony, but rather helping them focus on positive emotions and reminding them of feelings they already had.

I couldn't replicate it exactly, but I was close enough. The next part of the spell involved something rather dangerous, hence the protective shield I had already put in place around me. Focusing my thoughts, I drew upon my memories of Chrysalis and her own magic, slowly working it into the spell, holding my breath and hoping it worked.

There was a blinding flash of light and a squeak that I think came from me and the shield vanished, leaving me wobbling unsteadily. That had been intensely draining.

“Twilight, did your magic explode again?” came a voice from the stairs. I looked up and saw Spike, but at the same time I saw more than just Spike. I could see his worry hidden beneath the sarcasm, and the familial bond I shared with him. His emotions shone as a brightly lit aura with a vast array of swirling colors that was hard to look at directly.

“Hehe...no, Spike...everything is great,” I said cheerfully, nearly running into the door on my way out of the library.

“Right, I'll send a letter to Celestia all the same,” he replied, but I was already outside.

Walking around Ponyville was an almost-blinding experience. Chrysalis hadn't been kidding when she'd mentioned how open other ponies were around here. Happiness and contentment were abundant, though mixed with a dash of melancholy here and there. Concern was clear in some of the ponies, as more than a few witnessed my staggered steps and near-misses. I wondered if this how Chrysalis saw the world all the time.

When I finally got to Rarity's shop, the effect had faded from vibrant hues into more subdued colors. Even without looking inside, I could sense at least three of my friends in there, including Rarity. Hesitantly, I knocked on the door and heard the muffled conversation stop.

“Twilight?” came Rarity's puzzled voice as the door opened. She was conflicted. Fear tinged the edge of her aura that was a mixture of worry and doubt. A bit of discomfort crept in as I continued to stare at her, watching the layers unfold to reveal the underlying generosity that was a core part of her values, and beneath that...the bond of friendship I shared with her. It was reaching out to me like a welcoming hoof. There was no doubt in my mind now that this was the real Rarity, inside and out.

“Rainbow Dash has been telling me what ha-”

“I'm sorry,” I said suddenly, throwing my forelegs around her. The fear and anxiety she had been feeling was replaced instantly with relief and warmth, and she returned my embrace in short order.

“Well...thank you, Twilight, but it really isn't-”

“Yes, it is,” I mumbled before releasing her. “But Chrysalis isn't going to beat me. Not when I have friends like you.”

A pink pony entered my vision before Rarity could respond. “Yay! I'm going to throw a Twilight Shows Up the Meanie Changeling Queen Pa-”

“Ahhhhh!” I fell backwards, hooves over my eyes.

“Twilight? What is it? What'd I do?”

“So bright...so many colors,” I moaned out, my head spinning as the afterimage danced behind my eyelids. “Too much emotion...”

“How long do you think we have?”

Chrysalis looked up from the book she had been reading into the concerned eyes of Dusk. “Oh, they mobilized quite a while ago,” she said nonchalantly. “Just days after I surrendered.”

“Do you think the risk to us is worth going against the others?” he pressed, worry prominent in his voice.

“If there had been a risk-free option, I would have taken it. Celestia was aware of us, and our people were near starvation. That left us with the very risky prospect of finding a new feeding ground, or reconciliation with the ponies.”

The changeling still looked uncomfortable. “But the others of the hive...when they learn that you went against the elders-”

“They won't have a choice,” said the queen dismissively. “I've already revealed their agents to Celestia and shared some of my secrets with Twilight. My punishment is death and the hive will share in my fate.”

Chrysalis stood up from her crudely fashioned throne of crystal and walked to the edge of the platform upon which it was raised. Below, hundreds of changelings were at work using magic and claws alike to mold the crystals and shape them properly, slowly and steadily building themselves a new home. Watching them were a contingent of thirty stallions, alert and attentive, as they sat behind the shield that covered Chrysalis' new home beneath Canterlot. Once, it had been a prison for Cadance and Twilight. Now it was a home for her people.

“My mother, Chrysalide, impressed upon me the code of the changelings; the need to keep our abilities and our very existence secret. However, there was one thing that overruled even the elders. Can you guess what that is?”

Dusk shook his head.

“‘The hive...our family...should always come first.’ I will ally myself with Celestia. I will give Twilight every last secret I have. I will go against our laws and the elders. I will do everything I can to preserve my people, because that's what's important to me. We may be prisoners, but we are fed. We are enemies of all changelings not of our hive, but now there is an army between us and them.” Slowly, she walked back from the edge and retook her seat on the throne. “And frankly, Twilight and Celestia have a great track record when it comes to overthrowing monarchs.”

Chapter 6: Consequences

Aura Sight, as I'd started calling it, was useful, but it was not a foolproof changeling detection spell. Keeping the Sight up for even a short amount of time was draining and had practically necessitated a nap right after I'd returned from the spa. The average unicorn guard might be able to cast it once and sustain it for a minute or two at most before tiring. It was also a delicate and tricky piece of magic, at that. It could certainly be taught, but the guards under the employ of Celestia tended to wield their magic with the finesse of a hammer. Lastly, while the spell could detect emotions to a certain extent, there was nothing to prevent changelings from projecting false emotions and foiling the Sight.

Still, despite its shortcomings, it was a step in the right direction. For the time being, I'd written up more things to try and more theories to test.

I'd gone back and forth in my mind about whether or not I was taking too many risks, or if Chrysalis was lulling me into a false sense of security and waiting for an opening. With her hive held hostage and guards on constant lookout around my library every night, it seemed incredibly unlikely that she'd try anything direct, which really only left me as a vulnerability.

Both nights, I'd had unicorns purge me of the residual changeling magic that Chrysalis had left in her wake, along with purifying my body of her poisons, but those were only defenses against the things we already knew about. It was anypony's guess as to what she might still be hiding.

Checking the time, I began to tidy up the library, reshelving books and organizing notes while preparing my hidden note-taking materials.

“Hey, Twilight?” came a voice from behind me. Turning, I saw Spike with his bag packed for an overnight stay at Rarity's. “Are you going to be alright?”

Taken aback by his sudden concern, I asked for clarification. “I think so...what do you mean, Spike?”

“I dunno...you've been looking tired lately. Like, 'studying for a big test from Celestia' tired.”

I was about to respond dismissively but stopped before speaking up. Concentrating, I cast my Aura Sight, keeping the glow of my horn to a minimum. I saw Spike’s anxiety and felt his concern wash over me, lifting my spirits.

“I know you're worried, Spike, but this will be the last night for a while. After tonight I'll have a nice, long, stress-free break away from her. Promise.”

“Good, I can't stand the smell of her,” he grumbled.

“Smell?” I asked, somewhat confused. Curious, I sniffed the air. “I don't smell anything.”

“Really? The whole library reeks of her.”

“Maybe you’re just more sensitive to…” I paused, a memory suddenly pushing its way to the front of my thoughts. “Spike, could you get me that book on sense enhancement?” Even from that vague description, he knew exactly what I was looking for. Some ponies had joked that if Spike were a pony, he'd have a purple unicorn cutie mark, but I always thought he'd make an excellent librarian.

“Here it is,” came the reply seconds later. Gently lifting it from his claws, I flipped to the section on olfactory enhancement and looked over the theory once more just to be sure I had it right. Drawing energy for the spell, I expanded it to my surroundings, and the scents in the air coalesced into softly-colored mists.

I wasn't quite sure what I was expecting, but 'pink' hadn't even been on my list. Like Spike said, the 'scent' was everywhere, though the color was weak and faint. It was probably only due to Spike's keen senses that he'd picked up on it at all. “Now what did pink mean, again?” I wondered aloud, sliding a hoof down the color index.

My hoof stopped and my eyes narrowed. “Oh, you've got to be kidding me...”

“Pheromones.”

“Fero-what?” Chrysalis' tilted her head slightly, a puzzled look on her face.

“Pheromones,” I accused. “You've been spreading them around my library since your first visit, haven't you? Was it to get me to let my guard down and go along with these crazy experiments?”

Chrysalis took a sip of her tea, staying silent for several seconds. “Twilight Sparkle, I have no idea what you're talking about.”

I opened my mouth to deliver a scathing reply, but stopped short. “You're serious? You don't even realize what you've been doing?”

The changeling queen frowned as she looked at me with narrowed eyes and furrowed brow. “Perhaps you can enlighten me, Twilight. What are pheromones?”

This had to be a joke. Maybe she was just playing innocent. Then again, she hadn't actually lied to me yet, had she? Another question began to form in my mind right behind that one. Just how much did Chrysalis know about her own abilities?

“It's a chemical substance released that serves to alter the physiology or behavior of another creature, although its effects are usually limited to members of the same species. Since you're a changeling, that likely means you can alter it, or perhaps it just affects every species to some degree.” The puzzle pieces were starting to fall into place. It wasn't magical in nature, it was biological. Chrysalis had spent at least a week around Canterlot before her wedding, saturating the palace with it, and my friends...well, maybe Rainbow Dash had been on to something after all.

“Do forgive me, Twilight, but are you implying that I smell?” She seemed almost amused by my rambling.

“Yes...kind of...” I muttered, slightly distracted. “Can you actually change the scent you emit?”

The changeling queen blinked. “I suppose I could. I don't think I've ever tried.”

“Not consciously, anyways,” I corrected automatically. “Could you lift this book for me?” I asked, a theory rapidly forming as I watched the changeling intently.

My intense stare seemed to put her off somewhat, but she did as I requested, wrapping the tome in her green magical aura and lifting it up off the table a few feet. “Is there a point to this, Twilight?” Chrysalis asked patiently.

“Yes, you can put that down now,” I said, furiously scribbling notes on a piece of parchment. “One last question. Who taught you magic?”

“That would be my mother, Chrysalide.”

“Incredible...absolutely incredible...I wouldn't have even guessed...”

“Twilight...” The queen's voice was heavy with annoyance now.

“Sorry,” I said quickly. “It's just...I never would have imagined you were so terrible at magic.”

The temperature in the room seemed to drop precipitously as Chrysalis glared at me. “Excuse me?”

“Um...sorry, I didn't mean it like that,” I said quickly. “It's hard to explain, but...well, for instance, you used almost three times the amount of power necessary to lift that book. You've got power to spare, so you likely never had a need for efficiency.”

Mollified, the queen relaxed, a thoughtful look on her face now. “Can you show me how to do it properly?”

I ran a few calculations in my head as I looked at the ring sealing her magic. A burst of violet light left my horn, striking the ring and sealing her power even further. “That should be enough. Try to levitate it again.”

It was surreal, watching and teaching the changeling queen the most basic theories of magic. She struggled with the book, but also learned quickly, never making the same mistake twice and remaining patient despite those mistakes. After a quarter-hour, she was levitating the book with relative ease, even flipping through the pages.

“This is useful to know,” admitted Chrysalis, as she let the book hover around her head, “Although perhaps a bit too simplistic to apply towards more advanced magic.”

I shook my head, slipping into 'lecture' mode. “Yes, levitation is one of the most basic magics, but if you're flawed in your understanding of the basics, you develop bad habits going forward with more advanced magic.”

“Perhaps that is true with unicorn magic, but the magic I use is changeling in nature,” she replied.

“The type of magic is irrelevant,” I said confidently. “Different species can be more adept at certain varieties of magic and individuals can be more talented in certain areas, but there are fundamental rules for all magic no matter regardless of type. It isn't something unique or exclusive to ponies.”

“Oh? So what's stopping you from using changeling magic, then?” she challenged.

My eyes narrowed and my horn glowed again. This time I made the seal weaker, giving her access to more of her power. “Change shape,” I ordered.

“Any requests?” came her amused reply.

“Just do it.” She complied, and now Applejack was standing in front of me, perfectly mirroring her confused look. With no poison and no pheromones to affect me this time, my mind stayed sharp, observing every fluctuation of the magic in the air and calculating exactly how much power she used.

“Again.” I watched as Chrysalis took on Rarity's form. Changelings had a body type naturally suited for this and an aptitude for the magic as well, but magic was my specialty. There had to be ways to improve upon it; to make it more manageable for me.

“One more time,” I said, my concentration faltering only slightly as I was suddenly looking at Rainbow Dash. Chrysalis had these powers but didn't understand them. I, on the other hoof, had all the information I needed.

“If this goes wrong, grab the royal guards,” I said, not waiting for her response before my horn began to glow. I closed my eyes and braced myself against the ground, trying not to get too excited as a ring of green fire began to form around me.

It wasn't until much later that I learned the significance of what I accomplished. In the thrill of the moment, I simply enjoyed the shocked look on Chrysalis' face as the magic flowed through me and my form began to change. Seconds later, the stunned queen was looking at a perfect copy of a changeling.

“Still think I can't teach you anything?”

The situation wasn’t yet desperate, but there was a definite unease in the air. Scouts had reported back and informed her that all of her late mother's backup hives had indeed been compromised and were constantly being watched. The Red Queen was hunting her, and it was only a matter of time until she was found.

That was merely an inevitable event looming on the horizon, though. At the moment, food was was her biggest concern. Everything else was just a series of overlapping disasters. As expected, Ponyville was almost completely closed off to her. Not only had the Red Queen absorbed the Silver Queen's hive, she'd taken over her network as well.

The signs were all pointing towards migration being the best option and her generals were advising her as such. Deep down Chrysalis agreed, but running meant giving up any hope of striking back against the Red Queen. It was this sense of desperation that had led her to Canterlot.

The Red Queen – well, all of the queens, really – had left this place untouched, and for good reason. Even setting aside the looming threat of Celestia and Luna, the sheer amount of self-interest and arrogance exuded by the local population was almost nauseating. There were small cracks here and there that a changeling agent could slip into, sure, but Canterlot lacked the warmth of Ponyville. Today was the third day of her observations and likely to be her last. She was already going over plans for the migration when something gave her pause.

To a pony, it might have been akin to a sweet scent that slowly drifted in on the wind. To Chrysalis, it was something much more. It was a drop of water on the tongue of the parched. Fighting the urge to run, Chrysalis followed the feeling of warmth, noticing the crowds getting denser as she approached the source. Finally, the disguised queen was forced to stop. For a moment, all she could see was a procession of royal guards, but soon the stallions parted, revealing the beacon of love that was overpowering her senses.

A pink alicorn, walking among her guards, smiling at several of the ponies who had lined up to watch her pass. From the crowd, she heard the name 'Cadenza' and she fixed it in her mind. Simply being in her presence felt like a breath of fresh air in this stifling city, and the constant edge of hunger she'd had for the past several days was fading quickly as she tasted her emotions. Better yet, she didn't even seem to notice the slight drain as she continued smiling and waving at the crowds, having plenty of energy to spare.

Cadenza was a gold mine.

If she could tap even a fraction of that energy, her hive could survive. Dangerous? Most definitely. Putting her hive close to a princess was practically inviting disaster, but if it worked, her hive could be pulled back from the brink of starvation. It wasn’t a perfect solution and there were plenty of details to work out, but setting up in Canterlot might not be so impossible after all.

For the first time since her mother's death, she had hope.

Within days of that first meeting, pieces began to fall into place. Researching Cadance was surprisingly easy. Getting someone into the castle was impossible, but several ponies were happy to sing her praises at length, and the princess often left the castle to do things around the city. Chrysalis made sure that changelings were shadowing her every move, blending in with the crowds she drew wherever she went.

As a princess with royal duties, she also kept to a rather strict schedule even when it came to visiting her favorite shops and restaurants, and after a week of observation, Chrysalis made her move and half a dozen ponies disappeared. If there had been time, she would have moved more slowly, replacing one pony at a time. However, investing a week was already quite risky, and the Red Queen was getting closer to her hive by the day.

And then the biggest break of all had come through.

Dusk, under the guise of a scholar, had found a map of Canterlot in a history text covered in dust and tucked away in a corner of the public library. Through it, he had learned that the castle city had once been a mining town. On a hunch, he had taken some of his scouts to the outskirts, and while the tunnels had long since collapsed, there was indeed a way into them.

Before the day was through, Chrysalis had assigned several dozen changelings to clear the rocks and dig out the collapsed tunnels. By the time the Red Queen discovered their old cave, there wasn’t a hoofprint to be found.

The situation wasn't ideal, and Cadance was barely keeping them sustained, but now they had a hiding place right beneath Celestia's nose. They had breathing room.

“Excuse me, is this seat taken?”

Chrysalis' head jerked up and her body stiffened as she looked into the eyes of none other than Cadance herself, flanked by a pair of royal guards. Fighting back her initial surge of panic, the changeling queen flipped through several different emotional states before settling on nervous admiration. “Princess! No, of course not, please have a seat.”

Carefully, the changeling checked over her disguise once more. Soft, cream-colored fur, striking blue eyes, and a red-and-gold styled mane with an ice cream cone cutie mark. A subtle disguise it was not, but it worked quite well for starting conversations with bored stallions on guard duty.

Cadance nodded to her guards who backed away as she daintily took a seat opposite the disguised Chrysalis. “You have a very eye-catching mane. Who is your stylist?”

“One of my friends, actually. She's looking to make a name for herself, and I’m her test pony,” she replied smoothly.

“Well if she can make everypony as lovely as you, I think her work will pay off.” Within a minute of her sitting down, one of the shop’s employees had rushed outside with a pad and pencil, ready to take an order. Normally, ponies had to order over the counter and could use the tables outside to eat, but royalty wasn’t subject to the same rules.

Chrysalis took the chance to appraise her emotions. Was she suspicious? Curious? Could she sense something because of her abilities? Was she feeling the subtle drain? All Chrysalis could sense was the aura of affection being radiated constantly, mixed in with appreciation for the store owner going to the trouble of serving her personally.

“So what is your name?”

“Sweet Cream,” said Chrysalis, extending a hoof. Cadance took it, and the disguised queen had to fight back a shiver as the contact sent a tingle through her body.

“And what brings you to Canterlot, Cream? You look the part of a tourist, but I must have seen you outside this shop several times now.”

The arrival of the food gave Chrysalis time to mull over her answer. This felt like an interrogation, but there was nothing in the alicorn’s demeanor or emotions that suggested as such. “It's sort of an extended vacation. The place where I work is being remodeled, so I have some free time to travel around.”

“Well, I certainly hope you take the chance to visit more restaurants than this one,” said the princess with a small laugh. “There must be almost two dozen near the castle grounds alone.”

“Most of them would charge me a hoof and a horn just to see the greens menu, and I do have to keep a roof over my head.” The sarcastic comment drew another laugh from the princess.

“Well, if you ever feel like indulging, I know a place you might like. Have you visited The Blue Rose?”

Chrysalis knew the place. One of her agents was already working there, in fact, but she asked for the show of it. The conversation was so banal and uninteresting that Chrysalis couldn't help but be paranoid, often casting glances towards the two stallions standing just out of earshot.

She was almost disappointed when Cadance finished off her meal and excused herself. “It has been a pleasure speaking with you, Sweet Cream. How much longer will you be staying?”

Another innocent and perfectly reasonable question with disastrous consequences if answered carelessly. “A few weeks, perhaps a month. Plenty to see and do here, after all.”

With a nod and a smile, Cadance paid for their meals and left with her guards, leaving a thoughtful Chrysalis behind. The conversation had been inane, boring, and full of lies on her part, but something still seemed off. It wasn't until much later that the answer finally came to her. Cadance actually cared. She hadn't been suspicious, she wasn't trying to interrogate her, and she was genuinely interested about Sweet Cream and her ‘eye-catching’ mane. The fact that royalty was acting in such a manner seemed preposterous, but it went a long way towards explaining why Cadance was so well-liked.

Plans were already forming in her mind. Maybe there was some way to use 'Sweet Cream' to her advantage. Beyond that was an even grander thought...what if she could take Cadance’s place? A mere fraction of the adoration she received from the ponies here could sustain her hive, and maybe even give them enough power to start fighting back.

Such machinations could wait, though. She had the time and the resources to play things safely, and the Red Queen wasn't going anywhere.

It was creepy, hearing this tale from the other side, especially when I knew how it was going to end. For the fifth time since her story began, I stretched and shifted a bit, trying to get used to the feeling of the delicate insect wings.

“It's wearing off,” I said finally, noting the time. An hour wasn’t too bad for my first try. Slowly, the green fire washed over me once more and my body shifted back into the shape of a unicorn.

“And?” asked Chrysalis once the fire had faded.

“And I was right. Your base form and natural affinity makes you sloppy when it comes to employing your own magic because they give you a shortcut,” I lectured. “You picture an end result and throw power at it until you get what you want instead of guiding the magic properly.” I knew I sounded a bit smug, but magic was my element and something I had a lot of personal pride in.

Chrysalis was giving me a carefully blank look. It was one I had recognized from Celestia on occasion. A 'blank' expression that they wore when thinking about or contemplating something.

“I can't say for certain without more experimentation, but you'd probably have better results if you focused on one aspect of shapeshifting at a time, and only spent the magic needed for each stage.”

I stopped before I said anything more, finally realizing that I was just a couple steps away from going into a full-fledged magic lesson. Was I really going to teach an enemy how to better use and control her powers? Wasn't that the exact opposite of what I was supposed to be doing? Falling silent, I tried to change the subject.

“What I don't understand was that if you were shadowing Cadance all that time, why did you give such a terrible impression of her personality?”

Chrysalis sighed. “It hadn't been a good week, and imitating Cadance wasn't as easy as I thought it would be. She had quite a few responsibilities and many...admirers, despite being engaged to Shining Armor.”

“Too many emotions?” I asked curiously.

“Too much attention. It tends to make one paranoid when you live as I do. And then, two days before the wedding was to take place, the shield came up and I was forced to evacuate my people and deal with the increased security. It was…frustrating, being so close to my goals and having all these last-minute obstacles thrown in the way. Including you and your friends.”

Interesting. I'd always thought Chrysalis had sent that warning herself to keep Celestia's attention focused on potential external threats rather than internal ones.

“Everyone around me simply assumed that my foul mood was because of the a security threat arriving right in the middle of my wedding.”

And the constant exposure to her magic and pheromones likely filled in the rest of the gaps. “I guess in the end, you did almost win,” I conceded. “Of course, your real mistake was invading in the first place.”

The changeling queen looked at me curiously. “Oh?”

“I mean...why invade at all? Food, right? Did you even think of negotiating or opening a dialogue with Celestia?”

“Celestia is a shrewd ruler. She may have great love for her subjects, but she is a nightmare to her enemies. Perhaps you see a wise and benevolent princess, but I see a powerful alicorn who banished her own sister to the moon, imprisons her enemies in stone, and is solely responsible for half of the prisoners locked up in Tartarus.”

The last part came out as a snap; there was genuine anger in her voice. Normally I might have recoiled, but this verbal condemnation of Celestia felt personal. “And you used those rumors as justification for an invasion? What happened to all that careful planning and reconnaissance that you claim to value so much?”

“What if I'd been refused, Twilight? I would have revealed us for nothing and dashed any hope of keeping my hive fed! She might have even started hunting us down! Between throwing myself at Celestia's mercy and using the advantage I had, there was only one choice!”

“And where did that get you, exactly?” I was standing now, and I raised my voice to match hers. “You attacked Canterlot, you've attacked Ponyville, you attacked Celestia herself, and she still gave you a chance when she had every reason not to!”

“Only because of the information I can provide for her!”

“How would that have been any different if you simply offered her this the first time? Maybe you could have spared your people those losses! You were wrong about Celestia and you paid for it! All of your people paid for it!”

The ring on Chrysalis' horn began to glow brightly. My own horn was glowing too, and at this point I might have even welcomed a fight. Then, just as suddenly, her magic winked out.

“You're right,” she said, slumping down.

Her sudden admission made my own magic falter. “...What?”

“Maybe if I'd taken the chance, things could have been different. Maybe more than half of my changelings would be alive right now. Maybe if my mother had just given up her territory, she'd still be alive right now, and everypony could have continued to live in blissful ignorance of our existence.”

I sucked in a breath and checked over my reserve of magic. The transformation had taken a lot out of me but I had enough to cast Aura Sight one more time. I'd almost been expecting a void of emotion, but when I looked at her, the only thing my Sight could pick up was tight control over the feelings she was projecting...control that was faltering before my eyes. I could pick out small traces of fatigue and bitterness, and above all else, a sense of defeat.

I quickly let go of the spell, feeling my legs go weak from the magical strain I'd been putting myself through today. Blinking away the colors, I looked at Chrysalis again. Right now she looked like Celestia on one of her bad days, and I'd seen more than a few of those as her student.

“Well, maybe you can take this chance to get to know Celestia properly, then,” I finished with a sigh, the anger draining out of me. “Celestia believes everypony deserves a second chance.”

“And what about you, Twilight? Do you think I deserve this chance?”

I only hesitated for a moment. “No...but I think you can earn a second chance.”

An uncomfortable silence settled over the library. Something intangible had changed between us, something that not even my Aura Sight could pick up. “Next week...may I visit your new home?” I asked finally. “I'd like to see firsthoof how you live.”

The changeling queen seemed mildly surprised at my request. “Even if you trust me enough to set hoof in my home-”

“-which would be foolish of me, I know,” I added before she could.

“-do you believe that Celestia would?”

“I believe that you care a lot for your people and wouldn't do anything to jeopardize them,” I said carefully.

My horn flared with magic and the front door opened, giving her the signal that the meeting was over. The guards were already waiting at the door, but the Silence spell blanketing the tree-house made it impossible for them to hear anything.

“Just one more question...how did you know it was Rainbow Dash?”

Chrysalis smirked. “An educated guess. Introverted types like yourself tend to be drawn towards those overflowing with confidence. Did you try asking her out?”

“Not yet,” I replied, looking at the ground with sudden embarrassment. “It's not the best time right now.”

“You'll be waiting forever if you wait for the best time.”

Chrysalis left and the guards followed. After one of the unicorns had checked me over and departed, the library was finally at peace. I wasn't sure what I was hoping to accomplish by visiting her home beneath Canterlot, but if this alliance had any chance of working, then one side needed to show at least a little trust, and Chrysalis' very nature made that almost impossible for her to do.

If nothing else, being within her own territory might make her more relaxed, and I would have plenty to study there, too. Slowly, I began to catalogue my progress this evening. I'd made a breakthrough in changeling magic, but it was silly to think I could start deconstructing it after performing a single spell. The pheromones were another facet that could potentially be exploited, but there was no reason to assume that a changeling couldn't change that aspect of themselves either. Ultimately, the key was going to be in the magic itself.

I was just about to head inside when I saw a familiar shape heading towards me, flying lazily through the air and holding an unladen mailbag. “Derpy?” I called out, slightly perplexed.

“Heya, Twilight!” came her enthusiastic greeting. “Got a letter for you here, but the guards wouldn't let me near your place for some reason.”

“Sorry about that, they're a bit on edge right now. You could have just waited until tomorrow.”

“Nope! Couldn't do that! The customer paid the super-fast before-overnight delivery fee!” she said proudly, taking the bag and rummaging around inside of it. After a minute of fruitless searching, she turned it upside down and a single letter drifted out towards the ground.

The mailmare made a clumsy grab for it, but my magic had already plucked it from the air before it could touch the ground. “Thanks, Derpy,” I said, levitating a few bits from inside the library towards her. “Make sure you're getting overtime for this.”

She smiled and gratefully accepted the tip before flying off. My smile faded along with the pegasus as I looked over the envelope. No return address, very plain handwriting, and I was willing to bet a thousand bits that if I were to ask Derpy who had sent it, I'd get the description of some average-looking pony with no remarkable features.

Opening the letter, my expression turned into a frown as my suspicions were confirmed. Letting my horn glow, I sent up a bright violet flare into the air, catching the attention of the guards who had been flying away towards Canterlot.

The contents of the letter were basically what I had expected. The only truly important part was the signature and seal at the bottom, confirming its authenticity.

The changeling elders were making their move.

Chapter 7: The Price of Deception

“I really have to wonder why Twilight is not the head of Magical Research and Development, dear sister. She is clearly outpacing them in spite of limited resources and even more limited time. Why not bring her to Canterlot?”

The usual breakfast table that the sisters shared was covered with detailed notes and reports from Twilight containing her discoveries, her theories, and even a great deal of speculation about yet-untested magic and changeling culture as a whole. Despite the disorganized nature of the notes, a decent editor could have easily turned them into a small book.

“Because I do not wish to push another towards the path that Starswirl took long ago,” came Celestia's reply. “It is also quite important that Twilight gains a good deal of life experience as well. Magic is not simply drawn from books alone, after all.”

Luna let out a murmur of agreement as she looked over one of the papers. “Still, it is intriguing to think what she might do if given access to one of the Canterlot labs.”

The two siblings entertained that idea for a minute. “Perhaps a few years down the road?” suggested Celestia.

“...Agreed,” said Luna with a nod, taking a sip of her coffee. “So how does Chrysalis fare?”

“Melancholic as of late. I don't think her last meeting with Twilight went well. I can only imagine what Chrysalis thinks about a pony being able to deconstruct and recreate their magic.”

“And what of the so-called ‘changeling elders’? How do we respond to them?”

Celestia shook her head. “In truth, there is little we can do overtly. Were I to spread the word about the changelings, there would be accusations, hunts, and paranoia. It would ultimately do more harm than good.”

The irritation was plain on her sister's face. “Sitting around and doing nothing seems even worse.”

“I have instructed the guards to keep a close eye on new arrivals to the city. I have stressed the need for vigilance and I've taken care to explain the delicacy of the situation to the guard captains. I have every faith they will conduct their troops accordingly. Until we have a truly infallible method of detection, we must rely on Chrysalis being interested in helping herself, and by extension, us.”

“Why not simply utilize Cadance and Shining like before?”

Celestia gave her sister a sad smile. “Even if it were practical to utilize such power on a consistent basis, I could never ask Cadance to willfully end lives. Although she didn't show it, she was very shaken when she learned of the casualties she inflicted upon the changelings despite them being the aggressors.”

Luna sighed and slumped in her seat, once again looking over the copy of the threatening letter Twilight had received. “Is there truly nothing to be done?”

“We can place our faith in Twilight, dear sister. Even putting aside the advances she has made in the field of changeling culture, I can think of no better pony than her to make inroads to Chrysalis.”

Having been Celestia's student for most of my life, my schedule had often been one with hers, rising with the dawn and going to bed when the sun set, even when I'd stayed up reading. Even after staying up late to compile the last of the notes and papers, I was still up early.

My recent conversation with Chrysalis still consumed my thoughts. Had I been too harsh with my words? I stood by what I had said, but I had to wonder, given that there were other changeling hives besides Chrysalis' own, why hadn't any of them tried to ally with Celestia? Was Chrysalis really the only changeling to ever defy the elders?

My thoughts turned back to the note that had been delivered right to my door. It had been simple and straightforward. ‘Release Queen Chrysalis or there will be consequences.’

The letter had conveyed a lot despite its brevity. It implied that however great the elders’ power may be, Chrysalis was beyond their reach. It also suggested that they were watching. Chrysalis had been outing changeling agents left and right, but she could only be in so many places at once and there always seemed to be more.

Come to think of it, how did Chrysalis sense enemy changelings, anyways?

The thought intrigued me and I filed it under the growing list of questions to ask Chrysalis later, my mind already flicking down the next item on the checklist to think about. What sort of 'consequences' could the changeling elders mean? Outright assault seemed incredibly unlikely, but taking hostages wasn't out of the question. Chrysalis had done as much herself to lure me away from Celestia.

So who would the most likely targets be? The list I composed was quite long and rather grim, assessing vulnerability, emotional impact to Celestia, and bargaining value. Doubtless, Celestia had already considered all of this. Would she give up Chrysalis for a single pony? Probably not. A dozen, maybe? If the elders did stoop to that sort of foul play, wouldn't it be all the more important to keep Chrysalis safe so we could learn to fight back against them?

I didn't have an answer to that. All I could do was hope that Celestia had a plan, and in the meantime, work on puzzling through the enigma that was Changeling Magic.

Luckily, my schedule was open today (I’d already finished next month's schedule), and since I had nothing planned, there was plenty of time to run tests!

Ideally, I would have had another pony around to observe and assist me with these experiments, but if things did go wrong, there wasn't another pony in Ponyville who had the magical talent to help me out. Besides, I knew exactly what I wanted to try, and according to my research, there was no chance of getting stuck. Unlike the changelings, who could take a shape and hold it with no additional effort, my own changes required constant energy to maintain.

Recalling what Chrysalis had said about copying from a template, I considered a few options before settling on Lemony Gems. She had been in attendance at Cadance’s wedding, so Pinkie had definitely met her, hopefully avoiding any 'new pony in Ponyville' alarms.

Keeping her image in my mind’s eye, I let the change flow over me. It was easier this time, and less taxing, perhaps because I was trying to change into another unicorn instead of a changeling.

It was hard to gauge the accuracy of my disguise, drawing from memory, but a quick glance in my mirror showed a pretty convincing yellow-furred and blue-maned unicorn looking back at me. It was definitely a good start, though the real test could only take place out in Ponyville.

While not quite the perfectionist that Rarity was, I'd remembered Lemony being proud of her appearance and took the time to run a brush through my mane. I dug through my closet and found a pair of saddlebags I hadn't worn since Rarity had performed a hostile takeover of my wardrobe. With the addition of a sunhat, I now looked more like a tourist. I would draw some attention, but there was no risk of the real Lemony Gems showing up and causing a panic.

Besides, I was trying to hide in plain sight, not blend into the background.

Grabbing my telescope, I sighted in on the train station. Blind teleportation was possible, but risky. The version I used wouldn't put me inside a wall or anything, but the fail-safe to keep that from happening felt like running muzzle-first into a wall.

In a flash I was gone. A second later I was stumbling around, disoriented, behind the station.

“Nnhh...note to self, transformation and teleportation don't mix,” I groaned. Steadying myself and thankful I'd skipped breakfast, I trotted into Ponyville to begin my field test.

“Aw, ponyfeathers...” The familiar voice made my ears perk up and I soon spotted Applejack and her cart, overloaded with produce and one wheel stuck in the mud.

Fighting back my initial urge to run over and help, I took a moment to assess the situation. Then I reminded myself that experiment or not, ignoring Applejack when she needed help was incredibly callous. Putting on the face of a good-natured stranger, I approached with a smile.

“Hello there, miss, would you like some help?”

Mildly surprised, she looked up, trying and failing to put a name to my face. “Mighty kind of ya, miss. Ah appreciate the offer, but it's a mite heavy with some fragile produce.”

She must have thought I was going to try and lift the precariously balanced cart with magic. “Oh, I'm not nearly that strong,” I said modestly. “Don't worry, I won't even touch the cart.” Dipping my head towards the wheel so I could hide my horn and the color of my magic, I cast a series of spells in swift succession. The first separated the water from the dirt. The second packed the dirt tightly beneath the wheel. Finally, the last one raised the earth beneath the wheel to make it less of a valley and more of a gentle slope. I was finished in seconds. Visually, there was nothing more than a flash of light.

“That should do it,” I said with a smile. “Go ahead and pull.”

Still skeptical, Applejack tugged carefully, and the wheel popped free. Her guarded expression broke into a warm smile. “Well shucks, sorry I doubted ya. That'll save me some time.” A hoof was offered to me. “Name's Applejack.”

Taking it, I braced myself for the enthusiastic shake and wasn't disappointed. “Lemony Gems,” I replied, wincing slightly as I tried to shake some feeling back into my leg.

“Can I offer you an apple? Least I could do.”

Having expected as much, I offered up a bit. “Three, if you don't mind. I was hoping to visit your stall at the market anyways.” Placing two in my bags I took a bite out of the third. “Mmm...just as good as I remembered.”

“Have we met before?” asked Applejack with a hint of confusion.

“Oh, very briefly at Canterlot,” I replied. “Your catering service was quite wonderful, and I've been looking to get another taste.”

Even without my Aura Sight, I could sense the pride coming from her. “Ain't no better place to get it than the source.”

“It would almost be worth moving from Canterlot,” I said playfully, finishing off the apple in a few bites. “Well, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to tour the rest of the market before the next train leaves.”

“Y’all have a good day, then,” said the earth pony before hitching herself up once more and walking off.

It wasn't until she was gone that I let out the breath I was holding. “I just lied my flank off to the Element of Honesty,” I mumbled before shaking my head and following the path to the market. Applejack was not going to take this well if she found out. Unsurprisingly, it had been she who had protested most against the arrangement with Chrysalis.

As casually as I could manage, I moved around the marketplace, visiting various stalls and striking up conversations. The morning crowd was sizable, but I still spied Fluttershy doing the rounds for her animals and it didn't take much to spot the perfectly groomed mane of Rarity in the window of the spa for her morning pick-me-up.

Thankfully, Pinkie Pie was nowhere to be seen, although that was only a small comfort.

Nopony gave me more than a second glance. The spell was perfect. No suspicious looks, no tricky questions, and even the shopkeepers were more than happy to gab away to a pony they didn't know. No wonder Chrysalis had taken this place; the town was full of gossips and well-mannered ponies with very little in the way of advanced magic training.

The sight of a multi-colored tail hanging over the edge of a cloud briefly made my breath catch, bringing to mind Chrysalis’ last words. Logically, I knew what I needed...no, wanted to do, but coming right out and doing it felt more challenging than facing down Discord.

Maybe I didn't have to do this directly, though. Maybe there was another pony who Dash could talk to and-PINK!

“Ahh!” I stumbled backwards as my vision was suddenly filled with pink. The worst case scenario was staring right at me and instead of her usual smile, her visage held a certain intensity to it.

“Um...hi?” I said weakly, trying not to balk under her gaze.

Pinkie didn't respond. Her tail twitched and her eyes narrowed before she leaned in close and sniffed. When her ears twitched, I got the distinct impression that I was being scanned in some way.

“Pinkie Sense fully operational. Conflicting data received. Running defragmentation.” Still as a statue, Pinkie continued to stare at me, my sense of discomfort growing, until she finally blinked. “Oh hey, Lemony! Welcome to Ponyville! I’m Pinkie Pie!”

The vast mysteries of the changeling culture and their magic were a puddle compared to the unfathomable depths of Pinkie Sense. “I’m...sorry, I don’t remember meeting you.”

“I saw you at Cadence’s wedding, twelfth row, third pony from the right. Did you cut your mane? I remember it longer...”

“You...remember that?”

“Of course I do, silly!”

I had no idea if Pinkie was suspicious or not, but I had to end the conversation quickly. “I'm sorry if this sounds like an odd question, but would you happen to have a spare yellow ball with a red star on it?”

“Ooh, you bet I do!” The pink mare zipped away, quickly finding one of her emergency stashes and pulling out the ball. “I always keep a stash of balls just in case- hey! Where'd she go?”

Back in my original form and panting slightly, I kicked off my saddlebags and let them drop into a bush along with my hat. Maybe I'd overdone it with the series of five teleports. Pinkie's tone had been quite casual, but it was hard to shake the feeling that she’d seen right through me.

I withdrew an apple from my saddlebags, quickly consuming the treat to help recover my energy. I was willing to call this a tentative success despite the random Pinkie variable, though the fact that my mediocre acting skills were enough to accomplish this deception was not an encouraging sign.

Figuring that Pinkie was probably going to turn the town upside-down searching for Lemony, I turned my thoughts to other potential experiments, my eyes drifting skyward towards the cloud that Dash was still sleeping on. Subconsciously, I drew up her schedule in my head. I’d made a habit of keeping track of my friends’ weekly routines so I could plan get-togethers, and right now, my mental checklist was telling me that Tank was due for a checkup later today. Slowly, a plan began to form in my mind. Part of me knew this was unscrupulous, maybe even downright unethical, but I could test my magic and definitively see if I had a chance with Rainbow Dash.

And this way, nopony was in danger of being hurt.

“Oh, hello Twilight,” came the soft greeting as Fluttershy opened her door. The bag she was holding in her mouth indicated that I'd arrived in the middle of feeding. Perfect.

“Fluttershy, I really need your help with something!” I said, putting a slightly desperate edge to my voice.

“Oh no...it's not another dragon attack, is it?”

“No, that's next Tuesday. It's Owlowicious, there's something wrong with him! I would have brought him here but he protested every time I tried to move him and I didn't dare try teleporting.”

“That's even worse!” Disappearing inside, she returned a few seconds later with a small veterinary kit strapped to her back. “What are his symptoms?”

Very carefully I described a set of vague conditions that could have pointed to any number of things, knowing that Fluttershy would automatically assume the worst and work backwards from there.

“Let's get going...then...” she said hesitantly, suddenly remembering the incomplete task she was leaving behind. This was the chance I had been waiting for.

“I'll take care of feeding them,” I offered quickly. “I remember exactly how to do it, and I won't be much help with Owlowicious, either.”

“Oh thank you so much, but just remember-”

“I remember,” I insisted, giving her a nudge towards the path. Letting out a sigh of relief as she finally turned and galloped away, I quickly got to work, levitating several feed bags at once to quickly finish the task. Angel Bunny was last, a carefully prepared bowl of greens being his afternoon meal along with my own personal addition that would make the little demon feel like taking a nap afterwards.

With a scant minute to spare, I found Fluttershy's full-length mirror. Making sure I wasn't in view of any animals, I unleashed my magic and felt the green fire envelop me.

Rainbow Dash took a look at the window and sighed before turning away to knock on the door instead. While she could get away with surprising Twilight via a window entry, the last time she'd done it to Fluttershy the pegasus had bolted into her panic room and it'd taken a good ten minutes before she could be coaxed out.

Gently, the door opened. “Oh, hello Dash, you're right on time. Go ahead and bring him inside.”

Picking up Tank, Rainbow brought him to the makeshift checkup room where several of Fluttershy's instruments lay, many of which seemed closer to weapons. “So how is he?” asked Rainbow, noticing the intense way in which Fluttershy seemed to be staring at him.

“Oh, um...he's quite content. You two go very well together. How has he been eating?”

Rainbow shrugged. “Same as always, I guess? I've just been following the instructions you gave me, and he eats everything I give him.”

“Good...” she said, continuing with her checkup as Rainbow watched. “Has he been in any bad crashes?”

“Not against anything more solid than my head,” grumbled Rainbow, rubbing a hoof over a spot that was still tender. “He's got an amazing tendency to crash into ponies.”

Fluttershy nodded. “And I see you've been keeping him nice and clean, too.”

“I make sure to toss him through a few rain clouds every day,” joked the Pegasus. To her surprise, this barely seemed to get a reaction from her when other jokes in the same vein had elicited horrified looks and stern lectures.

“Just so long as you catch him,” came the reply as she checked Tank's mouth.

Rainbow's mouth opened in shock. Fluttershy never joked when it came to caring for animals. The only reasonable explanation was that something was seriously distracting her. “Something wrong, Fluttershy?” asked the pegasus carefully.

“Hmm? Oh, it's nothing, really.” Her reply had been quick. Too quick.

Rainbow rolled her eyes. “Fluttershy, the only pony worse than you at lying is Applejack. C'mon, you know I won't tell anypony if you don't want me to.”

The demure pegasus was quiet for several moments. “W-well, it's actually about you.”

Rainbow blinked. “Me? Did I do something wrong?”

“Oh no, nothing like that. It was one of your fans who had a pet I checked up on a while back. They wanted to ask you something but they were too nervous to do it themselves. I...might have agreed to help them, since...”

“Since you know what it's like being too nervous to talk to somepony?” finished Rainbow. “No worries, who was it?”

“Th-they asked me not to say,” came the apologetic response.

“Alright...so what did they want to know?”

“They wanted to know if you were dating anyone.” Her voice was almost a whisper now.

Silence followed as Fluttershy busied herself with Tank's examination, though Rainbow couldn't help but notice her friend's ears perking up slightly and turning in her direction.

“Well...no, not right now,” answered Rainbow Dash finally. “I've been really focused on my flying and training. Honestly? I'm not really looking for a serious relationship, you know me.”

Rainbow couldn't quite put her hoof on it, but something had just changed in Fluttershy's posture. “Of course, I'll be sure to...to let her down easy, then.”

“Thanks, Fluttershy. Besides, they've already lost awesomeness points for trying to get you to do the hard part,” she teased.

Fluttershy flinched slightly at the reply, but it passed before Rainbow could comment on it. The pink-maned pegasus gave the turtle's head a gentle rub before smiling at Rainbow. “He's doing wonderfully. Thank you for taking such good care of him, Dash.”

“Nah, it's nothing,” said Rainbow modestly. “It's only because you taught me so well.”

It wasn't until I was sure that Rainbow had disappeared behind the clouds that I let my disguise drop, my mane darkening along with my fur as the green fire rushed across my form and removed the wings. It had taken a good deal of self control not to fidget or ruffle the uncomfortable appendages, and I couldn't help but be thankful I didn't have to deal with them on a consistent basis. Give me a horn and a good set of legs any day.

I wasn't depressed from the indirect rejection I'd received; it was more of a wistful feeling than anything else. Rainbow Dash was racing towards her dreams. She didn't have time to slow down or stop for someone like me, and I couldn't really blame her. Most of the Wonderbolts had the same outlook.

My mind continued to wander as I made a few minor changes to complete my deception, namely dealing with a few small adjustments to Fluttershy's books, striking Dash's name and scheduling Tank's next checkup a month down the road. The last of the changes were well in place before I spotted Fluttershy coming up the road at a sedate pace. Clearly her panic over my owl had made her forget Tank's appointment and now there was nothing left to remind her.

When she entered the house, I made sure she was seeing me putting a sleeping Angel Bunny into his bed for an after-meal nap. “How'd it go?” I asked quietly.

“I gave him a full checkup. There didn't seem to be anything wrong with him, but be sure to tell me if things get worse or if anything changes,” she said, gently urging me aside so she could take over the care of Angel Bunny. “Did anything happen while I was away?”

“Nope. Everything was peaceful. Thanks for helping out, I'm glad it turned out to be nothing.”

Ten minutes later as I was walking back towards the library, I was still trying to convince myself that this was for the best. Things wouldn't get awkward now, and my friendship with Rainbow would remain stable even if it'd never be more than that. I'd be able to get over this in time and at my own pace. Besides, it's not as though she'd rejected me specifically, she'd just said she wasn't interested in a relationship...or anypony who couldn't work up the confidence to ask her face to face.

Lost in my thoughts, I almost ran muzzle-first into the library door, having barely paid attention to the trip back. Inside, I was greeted by a rather irate owl.

“Whoo!”

That was definitely an angry hoot. “I'm sorry, Fluttershy wasn't too intrusive, was she?”

In response, Owlowicious turned his head away from me and gave me another, more indignant-sounding hoot. Resolving to get some of the good treats for him next time, I looked around for my number one assistant. “Spike, you here?” Only silence answered. Oh well, I could put off reorganizing the returns until he got back.

Right now, though, I needed something to take my mind off of Rainbow Dash. I looked around the library for a book to read, but nothing seemed appealing. It didn't take long for my thoughts to return to changeling magic. Maintaining the forms of Fluttershy and Lemony Gems had been taxing, but I still had enough reserves for perhaps a few minor experiments.

Making sure that the door was locked and the blinds were drawn across the windows, I brought my mirror into the center of the library, letting my magic warm up. Green fire surrounded me in a circle, despite my attempts to give it a different color. This time though, I only let it spread out over my mane, changing a single part rather than my whole body. It was much easier than a full-body transformation, especially since I wasn’t changing my magical signature. I was starting to become more efficient with the magic too, discovering new pathways for it to take and toning down the blazing green flames to much smaller embers.

Maybe throwing myself into this was my way of coping, but it was easy to avoid thinking about today's events when I was hovering on the edge of a magical breakthrough and wrestling with magical exhaustion.

“I wonder if the mass remains consistent...” The thought was a bit intriguing. So far, I'd only tried transforming into ponies and a changeling, all around my size. Letting my magic free, I focused on the form of Cadance, figuring it would be a decent step up.

Almost immediately, I felt like my body was being stretched . It was more uncomfortable than painful, sort of like one of Rarity's tight-fitting corsets. It was much harder to maintain, as well; the urge to 'snap back' had increased from a gentle tug to an irritating pull, and the damned wings felt remarkably uncomfortable. Everything felt shaky, but I was holding it for now.

Taking a breath, I tried to see if I could take it one step further, picturing the form of my mentor and long-time teacher. My mane shifted colors and my fur began to lighten, but before I could stretch any further, the magic snapped.

Being forced back into my own form felt like someone had taken my tail and yanked with Applejack-level strength. I felt dazed and sore, and the backlash had caused a small shockwave that sent several books tumbling to the floor.

“Stupid...big flanked...Celestia,” I groaned, trying to clear my head.

Once my magic had stopped fluctuating, I thought up one last form I could try. Granted, I had no idea how her biology worked, but the last time I'd turned into a changeling, all I’d really had to do was recall the unique magic signature and let my magic follow along the path.

Standing in front of the mirror, I let my magic pour out. If I hadn't pulled the blinds, there was no doubt that all of Ponyville would have seen the green flash.

A second later, and panting slightly from the effort, I stood in the middle of the library as Queen Chrysalis, complete with her jagged horn. Intriguingly, it had been a far easier shift than with Cadance. Her body felt...sleek, and almost stretchy. Despite being rather tall, her mass was quite a bit less than a pony of her size, and although the holes in my legs felt incredibly odd, they weren't hard to walk on. Even the diaphanous wings weren't as uncomfortable as I thought they'd be.

I was about to drop the transformation when something buzzed at the edge of my consciousness. Faint, but steadily growing stronger.

Curious, I allowed my magic to touch the feeling. My vision blurred and darkness seemed to wash over me. There were crystals. Another wave of darkness and I was looking out towards a squad of grim-faced stallions watching me with barely restrained hostility. Another flash and there was Chrysalis, sitting on a throne of crystal. Her eyes went wide and her head shot up, and for a moment it seemed like she was looking right at me. Her mouth opened and words began to form-

“Twilight?”

My concentration shattered and my mind came back. What the buck was that? Turning my head, I saw Spike standing in the doorway, wide-eyed and frozen in terror.

“Spike? How-” I stopped abruptly as the sound of Chrysalis' dulcet tones reached my ears. Oh buck me. “Wait, hold on!” I got out, hurriedly dropping the transformation, but the sight of the green fire only seemed to panic the young dragon further.

He bolted. Desperately, I tried to reach out with my magic and grab him, but I was feeling fatigued after so many transformations, and he slipped from my magic hold.

“Rarity! Rainbow! We've got changelings! They got Twilight!”

Buck me sideways.

“Now I know what you're thinking, Chrissy...did I load the standard party streamers, or is this packed with the one-of-a-kind Pinkie Pie Party Favors? To tell you the truth, in all the excitement, I kinda lost track. But being this is a Mark II Ponyacci-approved high-velocity Party Cannon that can decorate a room meant for five hundred ponies, you have to ask yourself one question: ‘Do you want to party?’ Well, do ya, punk?”

“No, Pinkie, I really don't.” Internally, I added this to the very lengthy checklist of very good reasons not to have Pinkie Pie as an enemy.

“Hmph. Party pooper,” she grumped, tapping the cannon with a hoof and making me flinch.

Rainbow had been the first to respond to Spike's frantic cries, hurtling through my window with a look of rage on her face and tackling me to the ground before I'd even gotten a word out. She'd barely finished her demand to know where 'Twilight' was before the door had burst open via one of Applejack’s kicks. Rarity was right behind her, and with an impressive amount of magical power that I didn't often see from the purple-maned unicorn, I had been caught by her magic and forced into the perfect position for Applejack to use some more solid bindings in the form of her trusty rope.

And then Pinkie had shown up with her cannon on a hair trigger.

“Alright, Chrysalis, spill it! When did you replace her, huh? And what did you do with her?” Even though I was bound and helpless, Rainbow still looked like she was a centimeter away from physical violence. Maybe it was because, at least from her perspective, this was the third time the changelings had pulled one over on her.

“I haven't done anything with-”

“And drop that disguise already! Spike caught you red-hooved!”

“This isn't a disguise, it's really me. I was practicing changeling magic.” And I'd forgotten that Spike had a key. Not one of my finer moments.

“Tell us something only Twilight would know, then,” demanded the pegasus.

“Ah don't think that'll work this time,” cut in Applejack. “Queen Chrissy here could've gotten everything from her already.”

There was a moment of silence as my friends contemplated this. “What if we blasted her with the Elements of Harmony?” suggested Dash.

“I don't think we could do that without Magic,” mused Rarity. “Perhaps we could see if the Element of Magic worked with her?”

“Ah don't really feel comfortable letting her near that thing,” said Applejack cautiously. “Or giving her a chance to use magic at all.”

There was another moment of silence as my friends contemplated what to do. “May I make a suggestion?”

“No!” The shout had come from everyone but Fluttershy, who so far hadn't said a word.

“Please?” I tried again, this time turning towards Fluttershy, who looked to be the most doubtful.

“We could at least hear her out,” came the quiet response a moment later.

Rainbow looked torn, but thankfully caved to Fluttershy's calm words. “Fine, but if she makes one wrong move, partify her.”

“Not gonna move a muscle!” I said hastily, sweating a bit. Clearing my throat, I turned to my number one assistant. “Spike, could you take a letter, please?”

Ten embarrassing minutes later, I was free from my bindings and trying not to look at an amused Celestia. “You seem to have progressed further than your notes indicated, Twilight.”

“I hadn’t been intending to go quite this far,” I replied sheepishly.

“Well, I'm sure your friends have already taught you a valuable lesson on how ignorance can incite panic, so I will spare you the lecture this time.”

“Sorry, princess,” I said glumly, my eyes downcast. “I will make sure to take sufficient safety measures in the future.”

“I'm certain you will, but I'm afraid I cannot let this incident go without some form of consequence. The rest of you are dismissed.”

Rainbow was the first to speak. “Now hold on a sec! We were the ones who panicked! Twilight didn't do anything except practice magic in her own house!”

“Ah agree!” came Applejack a breath behind. “We oughta share the blame too!” This came with a murmur of agreement from the rest of my friends. I really was lucky to have them.

“Very well,” said Celestia in a manner that made me wonder if she'd been expecting this. “Then I charge the five of you with keeping Ponyville calm. Explain to them that there was a magical accident that has been resolved safely. Keep the details of Twilight's magic to yourselves.”

One by one, they filed out to spread the information through their respective channels, though Rainbow took a moment to give me a reassuring pat on my back. “Sorry for, um...tackling you like that...again,” she said with a small giggle at the end.

I giggled too. “No worries, I'm getting used to it.”

The door closed behind her, leaving me alone with Spike and Celestia. I shifted nervously, trying not to let my timidness show.

“Twilight, I would urge you to make Spike aware of your activities in the future. It is not common knowledge that there is a changeling hive beneath Canterlot, and I'd prefer not to let speculation ruin this chance at peace.”

“Of course, princess,” I said, fighting the urge to bow my head in shame.

“That said, I am very happy with the progress you have made, both with the magic and with Chrysalis herself. I can only guess the reasons why she singled you out for these talks, but I'm satisfied with the results so far.”

The praise gave me a shot of confidence that I sorely needed, and looking at Celestia's warm smile made my heart swell with pride. “I think I almost have something. I'm on the verge of a breakthrough, I can feel it.”

To my surprise, the alicorn stepped forward and gently brushed her muzzle against mine. It was the first time she’d done so in a long while. “I am thankful, Twilight, and very proud...and I wish I didn't have to ask this of you, but...”

“You want to know if I can work faster?” I filled in once I noticed her hesitance. “You're worried about the other changelings.”

Celestia sighed. “Yes, to both,” she said finally. “The very last thing I wish is to put undue pressure on you, but until there is an infallible way of detecting changelings, we are at constant risk.”

Slowly, I leaned back and sat down on the floor, wishing I had more to give her. And there was still one question nagging at me. “Princess...if you don't mind my asking, if you do find a spell or some magical way to detect changelings, what are your plans for Chrysalis?”

Celestia’s answer came faster than I thought it would, giving me an encouraging sign that she had been thinking this through. “I intend to keep that knowledge known to those whose fields of work would require it. Should Chrysalis accept a formal alliance, I fully intend to use her agents in other nations.”

That revelation momentarily floored me. “You mean like...espionage?”

Celestia nodded. “Yes, they would be wonderful, especially among the griffons.”

“But...we're allies with the griffons!” I blurted out.

“And we remain allies precisely because we have spies in each other’s company,” came Celestia's calm response. “The minotaurs, griffons, and diamond dogs all have agents in Canterlot, and we continue to enjoy peace because of it.”

I took a breath and thought that through. Celestia would never spontaneously attack another nation, but if I ruled a nation next door to a being powerful enough to command the sun, would I trust her word alone? Could I even look at that sort of situation without bias?

Still, despite my conflicted feelings, I could at least be sure she wouldn't abandon Chrysalis once she'd acquired the information she desired. I’d always assumed as much, but it was nice to be...certain.

“I think there might be a way to get results sooner,” I said hesitantly, trying to come to grips with my revelation, “But you're probably not going to like it.”

“If you need any resources, I will do everything in my power to provide them,” said Celestia immediately.

“Then...I need to see Chrysalis. Inside her hive.”

“So that's what twitchy tail, flank shake, ear twitch, and mane curl means!” The first words spoken by Pinkie minutes after the group had left caused the party to halt.

“Er...what does that mean, dear?” asked a puzzled Rarity.

“Well, I thought my ‘New Pony in Ponyville’ sense went off but when I found the new pony she didn't feel new but she looked different so I examined her reeeeally close and she got super nervous but I couldn't tell if she was new or not new and then she distracted me and went POOF before-”

“Maybe skip to the point, Pinkie?” suggested Rarity kindly.

“Oh! Well, obviously Lemony Gems was actually Twilight in disguise, duh! She must have been seeing if she could fool other ponies!”

There was another collective silence. “Wait, ya don't mean that yellow unicorn with the blue mane, do ya?” At Pinkie's nod, Applejack groaned. “Well she pulled one over on me, then. Anyone else get fooled?”

The silence stretched on for another minute as each of the ponies contemplated their day, all wondering the same thing. The rainbow mare in particular had her brow furrowed and lagged behind the group as she replayed the morning’s events, her eyes drifting towards the pink-maned pegasus...

Chapter 8: Connection

I had been right when I'd told Celestia she wasn't going to like my request, though the exact reasons why were a bit different than what I'd considered. Chrysalis wasn't so much a prisoner as she was a diplomat under house arrest. The caverns beneath Canterlot were (to an extent) her embassy. That meant she had full autonomy over who she let in.

The other discovery was that the changelings had resumed mining operations. I'd done my research after the near-disastrous Canterlot wedding and found they had been closed due to hazardous working conditions and unstable magical currents. There were ways to mitigate such dangers, but eventually the cost of operations had simply trumped any profit the mine could have turned. Changelings, on the other hoof, with their natural low-light vision, little need for food or rest, and all capable of rudimentary magic, were ideal workers. It was all part of Celestia's plan of integration, showing that the changelings were capable workers and could provide resources for trade.

All of this had been revealed to me on the condition that nopony else would hear of it. When I'd asked about my friends, Celestia had not-so-subtly inquired about Pinkie Pie, making the point clear. The only thing my friends would know was that I'd be going to Canterlot for a couple of days to help Celestia with something...which was technically true. Pinkie insisted on throwing a party anyway, small compared to her normal fare, but Pinkie was an expert at her craft no matter the scale.

Pushing away my notes, I made my way downstairs, smiling as I heard a knock on the door. It took me less than a second after opening the door to see the barrel of the cannon before I hit the deck.

“Pinkie! Put that away!”

“Aww, but I wanted to try this new party mix!”

“Absolutely not!”

“Oh come on, Twilight, I promise the books will be fine...this time.”

Rainbow Dash was frustrated. There was a problem here, and unlike most of her problems, it wasn't one well-suited to her talents. Worse yet, she was having a hard time putting her hoof on what the problem even was.

Twilight was avoiding her. It was subtle, but she could tell by the way she acted during Pinkie's farewell party. Every time Pinkie brought out a game to play, Twilight was always sitting opposite from her and avoiding eye contact. The few times she managed to corner her into a conversation, her responses had been stiff and excessively polite.

It was almost like they'd had a fight she'd forgotten about, but aside from a couple of rough tackles, she couldn't recall anything she'd done that might have upset her. Even after Twilight had taken the train to Canterlot, the doubt still gnawed at her, until finally she decided to go seek advice from her friends:

“Well, she has been dealing with that Changeling Queen, dear. It seems like after every time she visits, Twilight is on edge for a day or two afterward.”

“Can't rightly say, sugarcube. I had a few words with her over the shapeshiftin' thing, but I ain't noticed anything wrong.”

“Ooh, ooh, did you see it when she changed into me? She was really good! The bouncing looked kinda silly, though.”

“Maybe she's just worried. Owlowicious was rather sick recently. She was very concerned,” remarked Fluttershy in the midst of her morning feeding.

“Really? He seemed fine yesterday...”

“Oh, he was. Twilight was just being careful.” She paused, setting the feeding bag aside. “That reminds me, Tank is due for his checkup, isn’t he?”

“It’s been two days, Fluttershy, I don’t think I need to be that cautious,” teased Rainbow, wings poised and ready for takeoff.

“Two days? But I didn’t have any appointments scheduled that day.”

Rainbow’s wings seized up and her hooves landed on the ground, her eyes wide. “What?!”

There was a palpable air of tension around Canterlot when I arrived, similar to how things had been during my brother's wedding. Normally the Canterlot guards were passive in their duties, but now they were on full alert. I had no doubt it involved the ‘guests’ that were even now mining below my hooves.

Celestia had said she'd sent a missive explaining my desires ahead of me to the changeling queen, but had yet to receive a reply. Despite that, I had little doubt that things would move quickly once I showed up.

One thing that had changed since the last time I'd been involuntarily forced down there was a set of stairs in place of the tunnel that Cadance and I had crawled out of previously. Guards were everywhere, but with Celestia at my side they were quick to stand aside.

“How do you know they won't just dig out?” I asked as we passed another checkpoint.

“Once every few days we have a team sweep the caves, so we know where every tunnel leads. A few specially selected surveyors are allowed in as well.” Anticipating what I was about to ask next, Celestia continued, “Yes, I'm well aware they could be replaced. Any worker who goes down there has to spend a week in isolation. We may not have quick methods for detecting changelings, but if they go for a week without food, they'll instinctively react to a dose of love. Not the most elegant solution, but it's the best we have at the moment.”

Honestly, the whole operation still sounded dicey, but I had to concede that it was a better alternative than to simply let the hive sit and wait for judgment to be handed down from on high.

Darkness quickly closed in around us, only held at bay by the occasional magic light. The rough and craggy tunnels that I'd escaped through were now smoothed over and widened so that even Celestia had no problems walking about.

Finally the tunnel opened up and I had to fight back a double-take as the eyes of almost twenty guards were immediately upon us. Stern, no-nonsense types who took their jobs seriously, performing only small bows when Celestia entered but never taking their eyes off of her. These were not the types to talk or slack during a shift and I instinctively felt myself moving very carefully under their watch.

I felt the power of the barrier before I saw it. At least four unicorns were maintaining the pink shield that separated the royal guards from the changelings in azure armor behind it, though the strength of the shield implied there were many more ponies contributing to its strength.

“That is our agreed-upon border, so to speak,” said Celestia. “For the moment, their embassy consists of the network of caves below.”

“This seems like a temporary solution at best,” I pointed out.

Celestia nodded her agreement. “Someday I hope they'll be able to establish a proper colony, but ultimately that will only happen if we can find a way to check the threat they pose.”

“And if you can't?” I asked, somewhat worried.

My mentor looked me over for a long moment. “Then I will consider more unpleasant alternatives. Chrysalis might be willing to turn over a new leaf, but that does not wholly excuse her past actions. Please believe me when I say that I will only exercise these methods as a last resort.”

It was the answer I had anticipated, but it didn't make me feel any better having it confirmed. Still, that only made me more determined. “I won't let you down, princess.”

Celestia gave me a warm smile. “I'm sure you won't. Do be careful down there, although I doubt Chrysalis will try anything, knowing that I'd bring down this mountain on their heads if they so much as harmed a hair on your mane.”

I was fairly certain she was exaggerating, but the thought of a furious sun goddess swooping in to rescue me was a fantasy I was happy to entertain. Returning her smile with one of my own, I stepped from her side and approached the barrier, making eye contact with the guards. Giving me a nod, the unicorn opened up a hole in the shield while a scribe made a note on my passing. Two more steps and I was face to face with the changeling sentries.

“Ssparkle.” The voice caught me off guard and the formal request I had been preparing to make died on my tongue. “You are expected.” The voice came out as a harsh whisper with a small, almost unnoticeable emphasis on the sibilance.

“Bagss...” said the other changeling, gesturing towards the packs I had on. Realizing quickly what he desired I relinquished them. There was nothing in there that I couldn’t replace, just a healthy supply of paper, quills, and ink.

“Proceed,” came his voice a moment later. The other guard turned and walked into the gloom, causing me to hesitate.

“May I use light?” I asked cautiously. When I received a nod in response, I lit my horn with a brilliant violet glow. When Celestia and I had been walking down the tunnel, it had been difficult to get a sense of how deeply we had traveled. Seeing the wide-open cavern in front of me finally brought it into perspective. My light reflected off the crystals, illuminating the massive sprawl and the numerous changelings flying here and there, some working to carefully chip away at the stone surrounding the delicate minerals.

For a long moment, all I could do to marvel at my surroundings. It wasn't until I noticed the stare of the expectant changeling escort that I began to move again. “Sorry, just really impressed at the work you've done here,” I said sheepishly, falling into step behind him once more, though I took every opportunity to look around me. In a few places I saw the forestallions Celestia had alluded to, watching over the work with enchanted headlamps to illuminate the darkness. Tunnels branched off the main path into the gloom, but my escort continued to lead me along the widest one that stretched deeper into the cave.

Finally, we reached the throne room. The place was lit by enchanted crystals, all glowing with a faint green color that gave the place an ominous look. On a throne of the same glowing crystal, crudely fashioned after the one Celestia used, was Chrysalis.

Even without my Aura Sight, I could tell something was off. She looked similar to how I often did when I was panicking over a test, only worse. A distant, haunted look was in her eyes. Upon seeing the light from my horn, the guards who had been stationed beside her turned and left, leaving a faint residue of magic behind. Odd...was that how they normally communicated?

I decided to break the silence. “Queen Chrysalis, thank you for-”

“How did you do it?” she snapped, cutting me off.

“...I'm sorry?”

“There's no way. It's not possible. Not even the other changelings can do it. What did you do?” She was practically snarling now.

My patience rapidly wore thin. “I have no idea what you're talking about!” I insisted.

Chrysalis continued as though she hadn't heard me. “I already knew you could make a mockery of our race, but this...from a pony, no less. Unless...you've always been a changeling, and I've just been blind.”

It was hard not to appreciate the irony of a changeling claiming that I was wearing a disguise, not even a day after my friends had thought the exact same thing. Frustrated, I turned on my Aura Sight, then nearly stumbled backward at the almost tangible combination of fear and paranoia tainting the air with sickly colors.

“Chrysalis!” I shouted, hoping to divert her thoughts. “Tell me what's going on! Nothing has changed about me, I'm the same as I've always been!”

To my growing dread, this was met with a derisive laugh. “You claim as much even with the ability to change your form and peer into the consciousness of my hive? No, Twilight, you know something more and I will have answers!”

The queen leapt from her throne, her horn glowing a bright green. Without any sort of seal on her magic, the sheer power made my fur stand on end. I didn't recognize the spell, but my own horn flared to life with the strongest shield I could muster to meet the green streak hurtling toward me.

When everything was going perfectly, that was the best time to be worried. It was a lesson my mother had often stressed when teaching me about the queendom I would one day inherit.

Wait...me? I? What is this?

Cadance was sitting there, enjoying a meal like she had a dozen times before, making conversation with the staff while her guards sat a table away to keep a casual eye on things. They were not slackers by any means, but guarded Cadance under the assumption that nopony would try something in such a posh restaurant that turned most ponies away at the door if they had a single hair on their mane out of place.

I can't move...why can't I move?

The servers were moving now and I was moving as well. Cadance had been indulging in the drugged appetizers and already looked to be nodding off a bit. As one, the servers for the guards and Cadance arrived, blocking their view briefly as the emerald green color of my horn flashed brightly.

A sickly green bubble surrounded the princess, her eyes suddenly wide with surprise and her own horn glowing weakly as she tried in vain to fight the spell, her form sinking into the ground to the basement below where several more changelings were waiting. Then, with another flash, I was in her form, taking the vacated seat. It was over in mere seconds.

Cadance! No! Why can't you hear me? Cadance!

Of course, replacing her was the easy part. The hard part was going to be living up to the kind of princess she presented herself as. For the moment, though, I simply smiled and nodded at my guards before daintily eating my meal. There were plans to be hatched, countless other details to work out, and no doubt a few surprises along the way, but now was the point of no return.

Either the Red Queen would fall, or I would.

Gray fog entered my vision, my mind lurching as my thoughts became my own once more. What was this? What had I witnessed? I desperately tried to move, but there was nothing to move. The fog was clearing again. This time I was looking out over the caves below Canterlot, soundlessly gasping as I saw several hundred green pods, the life within gradually starting to awaken and forge their connections to both their queen and the hive.

Gradually, the glow from my jagged horn faded and I looked down at Cadance's body...no...it was Chrysalis in Cadance's form.

“Rest well, my young ones.” It felt like my mouth but it was Chrysalis' voice. “We will need every one of you before the end.” She'd been feeding them, I realized. Taking the love bestowed upon Cadance and distributing it to the new hatchlings. Hundreds of them, all packed away beneath the castle. How long had they been here before they finally attacked? How many did Chrysalis have now?

“My queen.” The voice came from behind me...her. The name ‘Dusk’ came to mind. So this was how he looked? He seemed different from the other changelings despite the similar muscle structure. “The young are learning quickly. I have reformed all of my scouting parties and we're developing a clearer picture of the Red Queen's activities. I've already composed a list of potential targets-”

“No, leave them. We have more than enough energy right now and I will not make a move until we know where the queen herself is.”

Chrysalis' head turned and if I'd been controlling her mouth, I would have had to choke back bile. Suspended in the midst of the pods was Cadance, fur matted with whatever substance they used in those cocoons, body held suspended in the air, and eyes closed in deep sleep.

Memories filtered into my consciousness. She was under deep hypnosis, living through memories of warmth and joy to coax out her love naturally to be absorbed by the pods. Supplemented by the love I...no, Chrysalis had been receiving from Cadance's subjects, an army of changelings the likes of which had never been seen before was being born.

“When we find her, we will strike everywhere at once. All of her agents, every changeling in her hive, and the queen herself. In one month's time, Cadance will announce her marriage. All eyes will be on Canterlot and away from Ponyville. Until then, take as many scouts as you need and mark every target you can find.”

Bowing and leaving Chrysalis to herself amidst the pods and the changelings who tended them, my eyes were forced to look at Cadance's suspended body once more. The wedding had come as a surprise to her since Shining Armor had done well to keep things as discreet as possible, but his arrival had brought a love even stronger than the numerous ponies Cadance was friends with. It was tempting to push and see how far things could go if Shining could truly be-

Mentally, I tried to scrub myself of Chrysalis' thoughts. I really did NOT need to see her thinking about my brother that way. The torrent of thoughts and emotions threatened to overwhelm me no matter what defense I tried, though, pushing past my mental barriers as though they weren't even there. There were small tidbits of everything, but all of it was tinged with fear. Fear for her hive, fear of the elders, and fear of the legends of entire hives disappearing when they went against the changeling laws.

“See to it that she remains in good health,” came Chrysalis' voice as she stood and walked purposefully from the cavern, the workers pausing to listen to their queen. “Watch her constantly, and if there's any sign of deterioration, wake her up and have her cared for.”

After all, the princess was a valuable hostage, and if the situation went sideways she would be a useful bargaining chip against Celestia. Checking to make sure that her disguise was perfect down to the last detail, the changeling queen walked from the room as thick fog engulfed my vision once more.

It was dark now, and I was flying. Had the body been under my control, panic would likely have sent me spiraling to the ground. As it was, Chrysalis navigated the pitch-black skies with ease. I could feel the tension coming from the hive, but there was no fear, only grim determination.

Tonight was the culmination of months of running, hiding, and planning. Between Shining Armor's love, Celestia's tender affection, the crowds bestowing their love onto the false princess, and the captive Princess of Love herself...the results were staggering.

Never before had I commanded so many nor seen a battle so one-sided. Every agent in Ponyville had three separate changelings to deal with, and while some from the Red Queen put up a spirited fight, success after success was being reported back. Directing so many was tiring, though, and I found myself quickly delegating portions of the hive to the generals in control. It was the first time I'd ever had to limit my connections. The young changelings had yet to really master communication and tended to broadcast freely to the hive, including the pain I felt at each passing.

No, ‘hive’ wasn't appropriate, not anymore. This was an army. One that the Red Queen was ill-prepared to fight. That arrogant changeling had even taken up residence in my mother's old cave as if to mock my defeat. Now it was going to be her grave.

Not everything was running smoothly, though. Here and there a pony caught sight of the battle, or heard the noise, and gave in to curiosity. A few came too close and had to be dealt with, though thankfully there were no fatalities, and the Bearers of Harmony remained asleep with several changelings watching each just in case.

It was going to be over soon. The Red Queen's seat of power was a deathtrap now, with the escape tunnels collapsed far in advance and the perimeter surrounded. I had never met or even seen the Red Queen, but as I touched down at the entrance to the place I once called home, I silently vowed that the first time would also be the last.

Messages entered my mind as I strode toward the cavern entrance.

“Inside...barricaded. To what end?” I mused aloud. “Do you hope for rescue, or are you delaying the inevitable?”

The numerous fights were winding down, but the Red Queen's personal guard were still holding strong, fighting with the feverish loyalty that only a changeling queen could instill. Many of my kin fell, each sending a sharp pain through my mind and hastening my steps.

Having a clear picture of the battlefield even before I entered the inner cave, my first spell incinerated one of the guards, not even leaving his armor behind. There would be no prisoners taken, and both sides understood that.

Green and red magic flashed around the cave as the two sides clashed. There hadn't been much time to teach the hatchlings more than basic magics, but even the elite couldn't stand against five-to-one odds, though several of my number were cut down in the last stand.

With a snarl, I pushed my way to the head of the defensive formation and brought the power of Cadance to bare. There was no finesse, nor strategy, merely a queen wielding unassailable power. When the green light finally faded, only ashes remained of those foolish enough to stand in her way.

And there, finally, was the Red Queen. She was bigger than myself by a fair margin, and while the queens of each hive were essentially ageless, the one before me had an air of experience about her. She was sitting on her throne looking almost bored, but I could see her flinch ever so slightly as the last of her guards were dispatched.

“Queen Chrysalis, we meet at last. I commend you on the speedy recovery of your hive,” she said in greeting, her tone almost amicable. Whatever she was feeling right now I couldn't even begin to sense. “You must realize a hive of your size goes against the elders.”

My eyes narrowed. “Citing our laws will not change my course. I've come to finish Chrysalide's work, and then I shall deal with the elders.” Although how, I did not know. Entire colonies had been rumored to disappear in a single night, leaving behind only their seal as a condemnation of their homes and lives.

“Then you've simply damned your kin to destroy mine. It will be better for them to suffer death than be under your self-destructive rule.”

My expression didn't change and my emotions didn't slip, but the Red Queen didn't seem to be looking for my reaction. She knew she was on borrowed time and determined to get her say in before the end. Fortunate for her that I saw no need to draw out her impending demise.

“Let them come,” I said arrogantly, and I knew it was arrogance even as the words left me. My jagged horn was glowing a bright green, my hooves clacking loudly against the stones as I approached her throne. “My kin will die fighting, we will not shrivel away in fear or starve quietly!”

“Staying silent is how we survive! You jeopardize everything we've worked to build!” Her face was a mask of rage and her horn glowed a sickly crimson color the shade of blood.

“That won’t be your concern for much longer!” Magic surged and twisted through the air, clashing between us and sending stray bursts throughout the cave. The changelings that had been flanking me retreated at my unspoken command, none wishing to be caught in the clash of queens.

It was not a valiant struggle or even a desperate last stand. Cadance's love was overwhelming and I poured every bit of it into the raw magical power I flung her way. The last thing I saw before her own magic fizzled was a wide-eyed look of horror.

And then she was dust.

Light faded, sound faded, and the last remnants of the Red Queen's magic vanished. The back of my mind buzzed with scattered reports of victories and disorientation from the remaining members of the enemy hive, but I remained quiet.

Part of me wanted to sigh in relief and celebrate that things were finally over, but I knew that for the lie it was. For all her posturing, the Red Queen had been right. There was no practical way to feed this hive or keep them hidden. Feeding them would require nearly seven hundred in the field.

With a casual burst of magic, I scattered the ashes of the late queen and sat on her throne, deep in thought, even as I sent out orders to begin the cleanup. Maybe I didn't need to hide anymore. Maybe I had to stop thinking with the mindset of a changeling and see my army for what it was.

Almost unconsciously, my body shifted into Cadance's form as my thoughts turned to Canterlot and the mere three hundred guards stationed there.

“Twilight. My name is Twilight...”

The vision was gone, replaced once again by the gray fog. That last memory had been the most vivid yet, assaulting my sense of self from every angle. I knew exactly what had happened now, even if I didn't know how it'd happened; much in the same way Chrysalis connected with her hive, I had connected with her.

For the tenth time and counting, I cursed my inexperience with mental magic. I was striking out blind into unfamiliar territory and grasping at straws. Taking my memories and my sense of self, I tried wrapping them around me like a shield, hoping to deflect the barrage of visions.

I wasn't even sure if I had a physical projection here, wherever here was, but I felt like I was reeling from the onslaught and catching bits and pieces of memory as they flew by.

“I know it's probably an extreme measure, but the shield really is for the best. This threat seems serious.”

Chrysalis tried to hold back her frustration. How had her plans gotten out? Who was watching her? Outwardly, she gave Shining a tired smile. “I'll be fine, Shiny, it's just frustrating for this to happen now of all times.”

The stallion gave her an affectionate nuzzle, not noticing the fangs growing inside his wife's mouth...

Chrysalis hadn't been the one to send the threat? Who had? The elders? I barely had time to think before I was forced to brace myself against the next flash.

The guards had been doubled and everypony was pulling double shifts. She'd barely been able to evacuate her hive from the caves before the shield had been expanded to fit all of Canterlot. Cadance had been left behind, but without workers to maintain her pod, more primitive methods had been required for her continued imprisonment.

Her facade was slipping further each time Celestia increased her security, and despite her best efforts, no amount of mental influence could get Shining Armor to drop, or even weaken the shield.

Much of the wedding preparations required her presence and guards were with her constantly, severely limiting the time she could slip away to check on Cadance, though Shining was a competent substitute for nourishment.

Then, not even an hour ago, she learned that the Elements of Harmony were arriving. Fighting the urge to growl in frustration, Chrysalis gave the white unicorn another dose of magic and venom, smiling as she saw his eyes taking on a green hue.

Even though I knew it had happened, seeing it play out was intensely discomforting. I pulled the shield of thought around me tighter. I didn't want to see this. I didn't need to see this. More flashes surrounded me but this time my shield held against all of them...save one.

The purple unicorn stood in front of her, shaking with fear and defiance alike while the Secretariat Comet blazed overhead, causing the surrounding magic to go haywire. This was the focal point. Having her would mean anything she desired from Celestia and Cadance both.

“No, I won't...say...goodbye!”

Green and violet clashed as their horns met, the sudden spike of power making the castle foundations tremble as the queen found herself pushed back.

“You can't take away my friends and you'll never have Equestria! You...can't...win!”

The emotions were unlike anything she'd ever felt. Part of her wanted to taste them, to immerse herself in the energy even as she pushed back against the torrent of power.

“You don't know what it's like to have friends. You feed on love, but you can't tell what it's like to truly love and be loved!”

Twilight was glowing now, her eyes almost a pure white color. “We have things that you can't hope to have! You envy us! I can stand up to you...and I will win!” The magic spiked, her resistance crumbled, and the cave turned white.

This was it...this was going to be her final defeat. It was that same power that had defeated her at Canterlot, and now Twilight was wielding it here against her. Even the words she spoke were similar to those of Cadance.

As her magic faded, the last thought that passed through her mind was that perhaps…

...perhaps they had been right.

Was this my body? No, wasn't I supposed to be bigger? My horn lit up, preparing to change myself, but the spell slipped away before I could grasp it.

“Stop, don't move.” The soft voice halted me in mid-thought. Wasn't that my voice? “Collect your thoughts, Twilight.”

Twilight...yes, that was my name...and that was Chrysalis. With that lifeline, I rapidly began to separate my thoughts from hers until finally I could get my mouth working.

“What the buck did you do?” I shouted, though when I saw the changeling queen splayed out on the ground looking just as shaken as myself, I immediately regretted my tone.

Chrysalis trembled as she spoke.. “I...I don't know. It was supposed to be nothing more than a brief examination of your thoughts, but...this...you were in the hive...that shouldn't be possible...”

“Wait, your hive?” I said in disbelief, falling back onto my rear as I tried to get up. “Is that what all those thoughts were? You...my brother...ugh!”

The changeling queen almost looked embarrassed. “I had to keep up the illusion,” she muttered. “Cadance was not one to let social pressure interfere with love.”

Maybe if I learned more in the field of mental magic I could scrub that particular memory from my mind later. “B-but that other time when-”

“He was sweet, okay?” Dear Celestia, she actually was embarrassed now. “What about you? Did you really take the form of that yellow pegasus to trick the rainbow one?”

My eyes widened as she brought up that memory. Did she see-

“And what was that spell called...'Want It Need It'?”

“I panicked!” I shouted hurriedly, blushing furiously. The air around us stilled as we both seemed too flustered to speak. Chrysalis was the one who finally broke it.

“You were right,” she murmured softly. “I...I wish I'd known Celestia as well as you did before...before I-” She was trembling again.

I knew what memory she was thinking about immediately. The pain she'd felt when Cadance and Shining rekindled their love. Still shaky on my legs, I walked over to her. To her surprise, and mine, I found myself wrapping my forelegs around her neck in a gentle embrace. “You...felt every one of their deaths, didn't you?”

Mutely, the changeling queen nodded.

“How...how did you keep your sanity?”

“Anger...hatred...simply not thinking about it,” she murmured, shifting in my grasp. “Your life...I envy it. You are given freely what my kind can only steal. We consume it...but we do not understand it.”

She shifted her position and I could feel her returning my gesture. “But you're trying to change that,” I said encouragingly.

“I never trusted her,” she admitted. “I never thought I could. After what I’d done, I didn’t think Celestia would be willing to give me a chance.”

I didn't respond. The answers were obvious to me, but from the perspective of one who spent their whole life constantly hidden, mistrustful of everyone outside her hive...no, her family, and in constant fear of the mysterious 'elders' who destroyed entire colonies...

“I never tried to see things from your perspective either,” I admitted, my muzzle rubbing against her neck. “I'm sorry.”

The queen didn't respond verbally, but the burst of emotion I felt from her let me know she’d accepted my apology. It was an efficient form of communication. No wonder most changelings didn't bother with words.

Wait...how did I feel that? As if in response to my unease, Chrysalis squeezed me a bit tighter. “Relax. It's just echoes of the connection. It'll pass.”

I'm not sure how, but I knew I could take her at her word. Sure enough, the connection was fading, though I couldn't help but explore it a bit before the sensation left completely.

“Please stop that, Twilight, your mind is a bit difficult for my kin to take,” said Chrysalis suddenly.

Blushing, I reeled in my thoughts, mulling over the sensations I had experienced while I slowly shifted from Chrysalis' embrace to lay at her side.

Wait, something was wrong. Eyes wide, I rose to my feet, startling the queen. “Twilight?”

“Chrysalis...please don't ask me how I know this. I...I don't know how I know this...”

The queen's look was skeptical but she let me continue rambling. “I felt your hive and it felt a certain way. Like...a certain color,” I began hesitantly.

“Yes, that is how we tell our kin apart despite our malleable forms.”

“No! I mean, yes, but there's more!”

“More what?” she asked patiently.

“More colors! Chrysalis, there are other changelings spying on your hive! The Silver Queen, the Red Queen, the warning sent to Celestia...it's the elders, it has to be!”

And they had plans. Plans that were already being executed, and even as I ran on wobbling legs towards the entrance to the mine, I knew it was too late to stop them.

Chapter 9: For A Greater Good

My legs shook and my body protested the movement, but my mind continued to push me forward. I'd glimpsed their plans, and seen changelings everywhere. Intentionally or not, the mind link with Chrysalis had given me the last piece to a puzzle she hadn't even known about, but all of that was going to be meaningless if- gah!

My hooves flailed in the air as a green aura shimmered into existence around me, lifting me from the floor and pulling me back to the Changeling Queen's side. “Chrysalis, what are you doing?”

“Are you intending to limp back to Celestia's side?” she asked with a roll of her eyes. “You can barely walk. My changelings will arrive shortly to-”

“No! Call them off! And stop communicating with them!”

“Who?” asked Chrysalis with some annoyance.

“All of them!”

The Changeling Queen gave me a very pointed stare as she lowered me back to the ground. “It is done,” she said finally. “Now explain yourself.”

“There's no time!” I insisted, trying to keep my balance. “We-mmph!”

Strong legs suddenly wrapped around my neck, pulling me down. In the next moment Chrysalis' mouth was on my own, kissing me deeply as her poison began to tease my tongue. My panic began to drain away from me despite my desire to hold onto it.

“Chrysalis!” I gasped, pulling myself away, only to be caught again as the Changeling Queen pursued, this time using her long and flexible tongue to curl and twist around my own, delivering another dose of the potent poison.

“Now, Twilight,” said the queen, licking her lips as she pulled away. “Inform me of what happened in a calm and rational manner.”

I didn't want to admit it, but the poison was doing a good job of calming me down and helping me work through the problem. I began to trace a few shapes on the ground below, collecting my thoughts before I began.

"When we...connected, I felt your hive. They all have this...signature similar to your own. Like...they're all connected to you through this magic." Chrysalis gestured for me to continue. She clearly knew this much already, but talking it out helped me as well. "But there was more than that. I mean...there were other signatures. Different from every other changeling in the hive."

“You're claiming there are infiltrators?” It was impossible to miss the skepticism in her voice. I couldn't blame her. The hive...her family was perhaps the one solid thing she had been able to depend on since her mother died.

“Yes...maybe,” I said, the poison forcing me to be rational. “I felt more than just your signature when we connected. Like, they had your mark but were bearing a second that they were trying to conceal.”

“And how could you sense this when I could not?”

“Because I'm the Element of Magic!” I snapped, a bit of frustration managing to get through. To my surprise, the Changeling Queen placed a comforting leg around my neck. It was a silent request for patience. Taking a calming breath, I continued. “I can sense and see magic everywhere. Your...connection just helped me figure out what to look for.”

Chrysalis was silent for a long moment. When she spoke again, I could feel the hesitance in her voice. “Who are they?”

I hesitated. All I'd been able to really see during the connection were minds, not specific locations, though if I saw them again I could probably point them out. Right now, though, I only had one data point to go on. “One of them was at the border. Whenever the shield is lowered to let someone through, they send messages to their queen.”

Chrysalis' expression was blank and it took a moment before I remembered that Dusk was among the door guards, her highest ranking lieutenant and her mother's scoutmaster before that. I cringed slightly, almost expecting her to get upset, but she remained uncomfortably passive.

“If you see them, can you identify them?” she asked quietly.

“Now that I know what I'm looking for? Almost certainly. Visual confirmation should be enough.”

Chrysalis nodded. “I will call in a group of six, then, to avoid making the potential agents suspicious. Do you have a way to prevent them from taking their own lives?”

I thought for a moment before settling on a Stasis spell. If I was quick enough, I could snap it onto a changeling and then neutralize any magical means of committing suicide. The existing shield spell should prevent the enemy queen from doing anything mentally.

“I'm ready,” I said firmly, taking a spot beside her throne while Chrysalis reestablished her connection to the hive. A minute passed in silence once the queen relayed her orders, and finally the changelings appeared. All of them stared, probably unsure of what to make of us standing together, side by side.

The Changeling Queen turned to me once the six were assembled. “Well?”

My horn glowed softly as I looked for the particular resonance I had felt. Seconds later, I sighed. “Chrysalis, I know you want to be certain of my abilities, and I understand your caution, but we're wasting valuable time.”

“You're asking me to take a lot on faith, Twilight,” she responded, dismissing the control group she had summoned. I said nothing. I understood, but the poison was probably the only thing keeping my anger from boiling over.

Within the next group I spotted Dusk almost immediately. He was a prominent figure in Chrysalis' memories and his unique signature stood out even if nothing else about him did. The only tell in Chrysalis' facade was an almost imperceptible twitch of her elytra, and even then I'd only known what to look for because of the mind link.

My eyes narrowed and my horn glowed. There was a flash of panic from the changelings but the spell was already completed, and the changeling next to Dusk who had been watching the door beside him was now encased in my purple aura.

“Remain calm, all of you,” said Chrysalis sharply. “Dusk, resume your post at the border and be ready to take a message to Celestia on my command. Under no circumstances are you to let anyone through the shield before then. The rest of you, return to your duties and keep what happened here to yourselves.”

Slowly, the changelings filed out of the throne room, leaving the frozen one behind. “How long will the stasis hold?” she asked once the room was clear.

“At least a day,” I answered confidently, walking to the frozen changeling and focusing on his magical signature, prodding at it with my own magic, slowly coaxing it out until his coloring began to shift, deep azure streaks appearing across his black body. “The Azure Queen?” I murmured to myself. “How many changeling elders are there?”

“No one knows,” said Chrysalis glumly. “My best guess puts the group at no more than five.”

I filed that tidbit away for later. “We need to find the other two. They can't get through the shield but they could possibly be communicating with each other.”

“There are two hundred changelings in this hive. Calling them in groups would take time and undoubtedly draw suspicion from them. Walking among them is also a slow and uncertain method.”

I tried to think up a solution, but the one that kept coming to mind was the one I actively wanted to avoid.

“Tell me, Twilight, what is the safest and most expedient solution in this case?”

Celestia damn this lip-loosening poison! “C-connecting like before. If...if I can match the spell and energy you used, then I should be able to do what we did before, except...better.”

“I will try not to be intrusive,” she promised as her horn began to glow. My own horn glowed in response as I braced myself. “Just try not to think of anything embarrassing,” she added with a grin.

Dammit!

Rainbow Dash was angry, though she wasn't sure with who. It had taken time and had strained the pegasus' patience to its limit, but she'd finally gotten the full story, or rather Fluttershy had given her the last few pieces of the full story.

She was definitely mad at Twilight. Mad at her deception, angry at her lack of confidence, and upset at the conclusions she had clearly jumped to. But at the same time, she was also unreasonably upset with herself.

She'd fed those lines to ‘Fluttershy’ in the hope of passing along an easy letdown to someone she'd dismissed as a fanmare. She didn't want to get anypony's hopes up when she had her eye on one mare in particular, one she'd been ready to approach before all this crap with Chrysalis.

The Element of Loyalty put on another burst of speed, hovering on the threshold of her Sonic Rainboom. She wasn't sure why she was rushing, but she pushed hard anyway. She needed to talk with Twilight and clear the air before the egghead did something stupid. Unconsciously, her flight path adjusted ever so slightly, the innate powers of her Element pushing her towards the bearer of Magic. Seeing the cave entrance ahead barely even deterred her as she tucked in her wings and dived.

Panicked and surprised shouts followed her descent, the royal guards stationed throughout the mine barely having time to react as the rainbow blur navigated the narrow tunnels with remarkable ease, dodging every magical grapple out of instinct as she wound her way down.

Finally, she burst into the main chamber, pulling up just in time to avoid crashing into the pink barrier. Barely noticing the panicked soldiers, Rainbow Dash rounded on the nearest unicorn, her angry red eyes causing the guard to back up a pace. “Let me through!” she demanded.

Part of her rational mind was pointing out that there were almost twenty guards in here, and a quarter of them were unicorns. The only thing stopping them from acting immediately was Rainbow's pseudo-nobility status as an Element Bearer.

“Miss Dash, I really don't have the authority to-”

“Yeah right, you control the shield, just make a hole in it or something!”

Rainbow’s eyes narrowed and her form blurred suddenly. There was a sound of a hoof-strike and one of the guards collapsed, groaning as he rubbed the spot she’d struck, right above his horn. “Keep your magic to yourself, jerk,” she spat, glaring at the other unicorns as if daring them to try something.

Twilight may have been able to catch her in mid-supersonic-flight by her tail, but none of these guards were even close to that level (although Twilight had admitted that it had more to do with predicting her flight path and trajectory and had given her an explanation that quickly flew over her head).

“Please forgive him, Miss Dash, but the situation is incredibly sensitive right now-”

“You're saying a lot of words, but I don't see that shield going down,” she interrupted with growing irritation.

“We can't!” shouted the unicorn desperately. “Both Chrysalis and Celestia need to approve, and the changeling delegate isn't available!” He pointed a hoof towards the door leading to the mines, where the changeling guards were absent.

If anything, though, this only seemed to increase her anger. Her voice was low and dangerous. “So you have no idea what's happened to Twilight down there?” The guards tensed.

“My dear Rainbow Dash, please calm yourself.” The warm voice of Princess Celestia washed through the cave, freezing Rainbow in place while the guards turned and bowed. The pegasus opened her mouth but Celestia spoke first. “Twilight is fine, I promise you. Before she passed into Chrysalis' home, I made sure to tag her with my magic so I could monitor her well-being. She is anxious at the moment, but not fearful or in any kind of pain.”

Rainbow Dash slumped to the ground, suddenly feeling mentally taxed. “I'm sorry, princess, I might have gotten a little carried away.”

Celestia gave her a forgiving smile. “Was there a reason for your haste?”

The pegasus who, five minutes ago, was ready to take on twenty royal guards suddenly looked like a stiff breeze would knock her over. “She, um...she didn't tell us she was doing this and I...um...we were worried!”

Celestia said nothing but she seemed to buy that answer for the moment. “Perhaps it is fortunate you are here, regardless of your reasons. How familiar are you with the Badlands?”

Rainbow Dash thought on that a bit. “Pretty familiar. I flew around the place back when we had to rescue the CMC...er, Cutie Mark Crusaders,” she added for Celestia's benefit. “Why?”

The princess had a grim look on her face. “I expect that is where Cherilee's class has been taken. I would like someone who has seen the area to help with patrols there.”

“What? Again? Those three really are going to get cutie marks in being foalnapped at this rate!” I staggered slightly as my thoughts became my own again and coherency returned.

“It seems as though they replaced the one called Cherilee some time ago,” mused Chrysalis. “It would have been a relatively simple matter to have her lead them into a changeling ambush under the guise of a class trip.”

Chrysalis' poison was definitely the only thing keeping me calm right now, forcing me to recall the last time I'd run off on a rescue mission and had been easily lured into a trap. No, rushing wasn't going to help. Right now it was best to think like Chrysalis.

“How long do they have?” I asked finally.

“They will send demands, likely asking for my head,” she replied almost casually. “I’d say a week at most, but from my own experience, I'd give the CMC half that time.”

I gave the queen an unamused look. “I know where the other two are. They're working under the same foremare, Hard Rock, in the far west tunnel. We could call the whole group up for a report.”

Chrysalis nodded and briefly closed her eyes. “They should be along shortly once they've secured their work.”

The minutes passed and I tried not to pace. Logically, I knew that dealing with these spies was important, but waiting around during a crisis wasn't usually how my friends and I operated. A sidelong glance from Chrysalis made it clear she could sense my anxiety.

“I've seen quite a few of your memories, now, but I have to ask for myself...do you really find my kind attractive?”

My eyes went wide and I nearly choked. “Wha...how?” The protest died away as I saw her knowing smirk that replaced my nervousness with fury.

“You'll learn how to block certain thoughts with practice,” she said calmly. “I'm flattered, though I should inform you that the holes in my legs are not erogenous zones.”

It took several open-mouthed seconds for me to work out a reply. “W-well, what about you? Do you actually-”

“Of course I find ponies appealing. I've spent quite a bit of time as one, after all. If you're curious about your brother, he was definitely a nine.”

It was only later that I realized Chrysalis' intention with this conversation. As the changeling task force entered the throne room, they saw my emotions as a conflicted swirl of embarrassment, neatly hiding my true intentions.

There were ten changelings alongside the foremare, but it took only seconds to identify the spies. While Chrysalis asked Hard Rock about the mining operations, I was preparing my spell, barely listening. Narrowing my eyes on my target, my magic lashed out and the changeling to the foremare's left froze. There was a moment of wide-eyed panic, but my follow-up struck true as well, freezing the final changeling spy.

There was a startled yelp from the foremare who was cut off mid-word, but a burst of thought from Chrysalis kept the other changelings calm.

“Thank you for your time, Hard Rock, but that will be all for now,” came Chrysalis' smooth voice. “I will assign another two of my kin to you by tomorrow.”

And just like that it was over. Three agents captured and frozen by my Stasis spell in a plan that had gone off without a hitch. It was almost anti-climactic how easy it had been.

Chrysalis seemed quite satisfied as well when the blue markings were revealed on the two prisoners. “You're sure the spells will hold?”

I checked once more just to be certain. I'd put quite a bit of power into them just to be on the safe side. “Absolutely.”

“Good, now we must-” A wince suddenly passed across Chrysalis' face. “It seems Princess Celestia has tired of waiting. Would you be so kind as to put a shield around these three before the shield around the hive is lowered? I'd rather not have the enemy queen looking in.”

The first thing Celestia did when she arrived was to envelop me in the golden glow of her magic and purge the poison that remained within my body. Part of me missed the soothing feeling it brought, but even as the panic crept back in, I was grateful for the return of control.

Bending powerful magic to her will, Celestia warped the stone and crystals around the throne room to fashion cages for the three changelings, following it with a systematic and thorough removal of every magical way they could inflict harm upon themselves, and finishing with a golden binding around their horns.

“What can you tell me about them?” asked Celestia once her examination was finished.

Chrysalis thought for a moment, perhaps deciding how much she wanted to reveal. “It's...puzzling,” she said finally. “Their minds are open to me like books and they show no sign of holding anything back. Were it not for Twilight's certainty of their allegiance, I wouldn't have pushed any deeper. When I do now, though, it's as if I'm sliding against a smooth glass surface.”

“Mind partition,” I said immediately, suddenly feeling meek as both the queen and the princess turned their attention towards me. “I mean, that's what it sounds like,” I corrected quickly.

I was met with two uncomprehending stares. “It's, um...a technique that was used back when things were...really bad.” It had also been one of the only things I could find about Mind Magic in my frantic and mostly futile research. “Anypony with enough mental discipline and training can do it. Seal any thoughts you don't want known behind an invisible wall, and not even a unicorn's magic would be enough to get at them. You'd never talk under any form of interrogation because the memories and thoughts couldn't even be accessed by you.”

I would have had to re-enter the hive mind to be sure, but Celestia's presence here made that seem like an incredibly bad idea. “It's probably not exactly the same with them. They might only be able to access those memories when their queen contacts them, and until those times, they might not even realize that they're spies...or at least, they don’t remember.”

Celestia looked to Chrysalis to verify the merits of my claim. “It's...possible,” she said finally, looking a bit out of her depth. “Twilight has already proven that they're able to hide their true forms and magical signatures,” she said, gesturing to the azure markings on each of them, “So it stands to reason that they would have a way to hide their thoughts as well.”

The princess sighed. “I do not fault you for your ignorance in this matter, but we have been put into a difficult situation nonetheless.”

“Have they made any demands yet?” I asked.

The Sun Princess shook her head. “Not yet, though I imagine it's only a matter of time.”

Walking over to the first changeling in the line, Celestia's horn began to glow, forming another spell that I'd only recently studied. Noticing Chrysalis' frown, I quickly tried to reassure her. “It's okay, it's just a calming spell. It'll stop him from trying to inflict physical harm on himself.” It was another of the pitifully few mental spells that Equestria had deemed acceptable, this particular one being employed by unicorns working in mental hospitals.

“Twilight, please wake him up,” said Celestia firmly. A second later and the changeling was pacing in its cage, looking somewhat fearfully at the princess and the queen.

“What are your queen's demands?” asked Celestia directly.

“I know nothing!” hissed the changeling. “I serve Queen Chrysalis. My queen, please-”

“He's lying,” I cut off almost immediately, causing the changeling to flinch. “He got orders when the shield opened last time. That's how I sensed her influence.”

The changeling stared at me. I stared back, my face carefully blank. From the corner of my eye, I saw Celestia look at me curiously and fought the urge to curse, realizing I'd accidentally revealed a bit more than I'd intended. That was going to make for an awkward conversation later.

It was not nearly as uncomfortable as the changeling's situation, though, standing between the princess of the sun and the queen he had spied on. “They want her,” he said shakily, pointing towards Chrysalis as he addressed Celestia. “And her.”

My blood ran cold as I saw his trembling leg point at me. “Why?” The question had slipped out before I could stop it and I couldn't help the slight quiver that entered my voice.

“You know too much. Learned too much. You are a threat. Queen's words, not mine,” he added at the end, cowering under the combined glares of the two rulers.

“When and where?” asked Chrysalis.

“No time...no place...would have learned soon. Only task to deliver message, no more.”

Chrysalis gave a look to Celestia, who nodded. There was a golden flash and the changeling froze once again. “Unacceptable,” declared the Sun Princess immediately.

“Agreed,” said Chrysalis. Maybe they were in agreement for different reasons, but the brief (and admittedly silly) fear I'd felt was very much gone.

“Without much more to go on, we might be forced to wait for their demands anyway,” stated Celestia calmly. “Is there anything to be gained by using one of these changelings as an intermediary?”

Chrysalis shook her head. “If the queens learned of Twilight's new abilities, then it would only make negotiations more difficult and the queens even more determined to acquire Twilight.”

“And you have no idea where the foals could have been taken?”

The Changeling Queen's tone was bitter. “I could point you toward hiding spots within the Badlands, but any information I know could have already been reported by the spies.”

Celestia nodded. “I will take the information anyway and pass it along to Rainbow Dash and the Wonderbolts.”

I blinked, my thoughts briefly taking a detour. “Rainbow Dash? What is she doing here?”

“She was quite eager to talk with you, and seemed ready to fight her way through the guards above to do so. I asked her to lead the patrols in the Badlands to divert her attention.”

My heart sank. She'd found me out. I knew it was only going to be a matter of time, but I'd been holding on to some vain hope that my deception would remain unnoticed.

“Did something happen between the two of you?” asked Celestia, her voice heavy with concern.

“Yes...kind of...it's complicated,” I mumbled, catching a small smirk from Chrysalis with the corner of my eye.

My mentor's probing stare continued for another moment, but eventually she turned away without further comment. Part of me wanted to worry about the coming fallout, but I quashed that worry under the much bigger problem that was in front of me, however daunting it seemed.

“I do appreciate your cooperation in this, Chrysalis,” said Celestia finally. “Twilight, could you please keep an eye on the prisoners? I must discuss our next course of action.”

It was a clear sign that Celestia wanted to speak privately with the Changeling Queen, but I nodded anyways, turning my eyes back to the captives as they left the throne room.

Things were out of my hooves now. Even with the information I'd discovered, there was nothing to be done other than hope that Rainbow could find that needle in the haystack that was the Badlands. Right now, the lives of almost twenty fillies and colts were being decided and weighed against my own life, and all I could do was sit there and wait while watching the three motionless changelings. I'd thought once that I was glad I didn't have to make these decisions...now I wasn't so sure.

I knew Celestia wouldn't sacrifice me or Chrysalis. She wouldn't give me the choice, even though I'd been ready to do so when Chrysalis had done something similar. Unlike with Chrysalis, though, there was no personal grudge to settle, and there was nothing to say it would stop at this one incident, even if an agreement could be reached.

No...I couldn't just sit here and do nothing. I had options. I had three prisoners in front of me who had information, even if they couldn't consciously access it. I swallowed hard, but I'd already made my decision. If I didn't try every possible option available to me, I'd never be able to face Applejack, Rarity, or Rainbow Dash again. Especially Dash...

Slowly, I approached the pair who were still trapped in my stasis spell, knowing Celestia would instantly be able to tell if I disrupted her own. A shield came next to make sure that neither Chrysalis or the hive could interfere mentally. Green fire danced around my hooves and slowly enveloped me, morphing my body into the form of a changeling once more, while I carefully imitated their unique magical imprint as well.

I could only guess, but perhaps if I connected to one of them and fooled the partition into thinking that it was the changeling himself trying to get at those thoughts, then perhaps I could get something.

Even though the first time had been an accident, and the second time had been with Chrysalis' help, I knew what I needed to do. Closing my eyes, I concentrated and touched my horn to the changeling and pushed my way into his mind.

It was different without the queen’s guidance. Her hive mind had felt like a sea of calm filled with soothing voices. This was just me and the small voice of the changeling whose thoughts flowed around me. I ignored those, plunging deeper into the link, searching for that barrier Chrysalis had found. It was hard, if not impossible to tell time, but it didn't feel like long before I found it.

It was exactly like Chrysalis had described, like a glass surface resisting every effort to push against it, even though my disguise was as flawless as I could manage. Clearly, he couldn't consciously access the thoughts...but maybe his queen could.

Mentally, I drew up an image of Chrysalis' magic compared to that of her underlings and began to experiment. It was almost like trying to magically pick a lock, except I had no idea if I was even using the right tools.

Patiently, I began to work, adjusting the matrix little by little, trying to fool the partition. Something was starting to fight back though. It began as a tugging sensation, as though my tail had been grabbed and was being pulled.

It was the changeling. He was panicking, forcing me away. Did he realize what I was doing? Was he aware of his own sealed thoughts or just instinctively fighting the intrusion? Either way, I couldn't afford the distraction. Collecting my own thoughts and wrapping them in my magic, I pushed back and the tugging sensation stopped.

I was getting somewhere now. The wall was reacting, shifting and changing with each small tweak I made. The tugging sensation came back, a bit weaker now but still distracting. This time I kicked back hard, mentally growling in frustration, barely noticing the stillness that followed as I threw myself at the barrier once again. Outside I could feel my form changing, but inside I could only feel the partition as it slowly began to open at the command of his 'queen'.

A crack appeared and I forced my magic inside.

The glass shattered.

“So what conversation am I in for?” asked Chrysalis, her tone slightly mocking as she kept pace with the princess. “Is it the 'stay out of my student's mind', an accusation that I'm hiding something, or some reiteration of how I'm only a guest so long as I can be useful?”

“You may dispense with your snide remarks, Chrysalis, I am not here to threaten you, nor dictate how you and Twilight should treat one another. It was her idea to come here, after all.”

Chrysalis paused as Celestia suddenly encased them in a golden bubble. A sound barrier. “So what did you not want Twilight overhearing, then?”

“I did not want her to be witness to my plans for the aftermath of this situation, lest she thinks I intend to intentionally give up on the foals. Rainbow Dash is very skilled, but the Badlands are large, treacherous, and filled with a thousand different hiding spots. I'd like to believe that a deal could be worked out, but I'd sooner torch the Badlands with the sun than give Twilight up, and even if I were inclined to turn you over, which I am not, it would do nothing to prevent future incidents. Additionally, it would reflect poorly on me as a ruler, giving me the appearance of one who is willing to throw away her allies.”

Chrysalis hid her surprise and gave the diarch a carefully guarded expression. “What are you proposing?”

“An alliance, not just asylum,” came the quick and firm reply. This time Chrysalis couldn’t quite manage to hide her surprise. “We have a common enemy now. I'd like some of your kin to join my forces and take up residence in villages and towns. They have the ability to sense other changelings and Twilight can find any spies within your midst. I could help integrate your kind into society and you in turn could help protect that society.”

The offer seemed almost too good to be true. This was the best she could have hoped for when approaching Celestia all those weeks ago. Earlier today she might have thought Celestia would have given her up in a heartbeat, but now with Twilight's memories of the Sun Princess in her mind, she knew without a doubt how sincere her offer was. Still, even now she had to ask...

“And you would trust me with this?”

To her surprise, Celestia chuckled. “Eventually, perhaps. I'd hoped we'd have more time to build trust with one another, but the elders have forced my hoof. This was my intended goal when you approached me, after all.”

Chrysalis gave the princess a very small smile. “I...regret the circumstances just as much as you, but I'm grateful something good can come from it nonetheless.”

The smile was returned before her expression suddenly became serious. “Speaking outside of my position as a ruler, though...if you invade my student's mind without her permission again, I will banish you to the sun.”

There was a small ‘pop’ as the sound bubble burst, the queen silent as she followed Celestia back to the throne room. Walking behind the alicorn, Chrysalis nearly stumbled as Celestia stopped, a flash of panic slipping past her closely guarded emotions before she ran forward.

Laying behind a translucent violet shield was Twilight, her horn glowing softly as the changeling in the field twisted and thrashed about, unable to pull free from the connection as Twilight's magic overwhelmed him, her own body somewhat mismatched with various features of both a changeling and a pony. Tears were streaking down her face and her mouth was open in a silent cry as she struggled to maintain the connection.

There was another surge of magic and the changeling's body fell still, even as Celestia stepped forward and dispelled the shield, a choked sob coming from the unicorn as she was gently pulled away from the prisoner.

Wide, pained eyes opened, still blinking back tears as Twilight looked into the worried face of her mentor. “I...I know where they are,” she gasped out. “I...I found them...” Her body trembled and Celestia quickly pulled her into a warm embrace while the changeling queen eyed the motionless prisoner.

He was breathing, but unmoving, his eyes wide and unfocused, staring straight ahead and unblinking, his body unresponsive to Chrysalis' touches. A gentle probe of his mind confirmed what she already knew.

“His mind has been shattered,” came her voice, quiet and devoid of emotion.

Twilight's sobs only grew louder as she pushed herself harder against Celestia's coat.

Chapter 10: Escalation

The dull sound of my quill scratching across paper filled the throne room and my horn gave off a soft glow as I carefully filled in the map with the information I had gained, trying hard to avoid Celestia's concerned look. Even Chrysalis seemed to have found some pity to spare for me, though she was better at hiding it.

It made me want to scream in frustration. Not ten meters away was the changeling, dead in every reasonable sense of the word, and these two monarchs were concerned for my sake?

Even an hour later the event was still replaying vividly in my mind. How small his mind and his magic had seemed compared to mine, how scared he had felt as his final sanctuary was being violated...how fragile he'd turned out to be...

My magic jerked slightly as my quill met resistance. Blinking a bit of moisture from my eyes, I found that the tip of my quill had pierced straight through the map. Taking a deep breath, I tried to focus solely on the menial task in front of me.

“The Azure Queen had her hive in the Badlands all along,” I said finally, finishing my sketch. “She was the elder in charge of keeping an eye on Canterlot and Ponyville. She was also there to make sure none of the ‘lesser’ queens got too ambitious or too greedy.”

Concentrate on the problem in front of me. Deal with this and think about everything else later. Celestia needed me and the information I'd obtained. “She was most likely behind the Red Queen's rise, and she was probably the one who tipped off Princess Celestia about your invasion.”

Chrysalis said nothing and her expression gave away nothing as well, though I could make an educated guess as to what she was feeling right now. It wasn’t as though she needed even more reason to dislike the elders.

“It's a wonder they allowed you to operate for so long,” mused Celestia.

“I was gambling on their fear of you,” said Chrysalis, shifting with a bit of discomfort. “They were gambling on you defeating me. In a sense, I suppose they won.”

My quill continued to add more details to the map. None of them were strictly necessary, but it kept my thoughts occupied. “From...from what I learned, this hive is a permanent residence...or at least as permanent as they get.”

“Which means patrols a mile or two out and more escape tunnels than actual entrances,” sighed Chrysalis. “There's a good chance they've already seen the pegasi scouts in the area.”

My mind was racing ahead of the conversation, but my mouth wasn't far behind. “Six hours by pegasus flight. Four if winds are good. Seven if they're carting unicorns or other soldiers. Teleportation over that distance would leave the average unicorn unconscious for an entire day, and even trained mages wouldn't be ready to fight immediately afterward.”

The queen and the princess fell silent as I continued thinking aloud, my voice almost a flat monotone. “Average size of a hive is around two hundred. An elder would probably have twice that. Even if we could bring a sizable force there and have them ready to fight, they'd likely use an escape tunnel to steal away the hostages and put us back at square one.”

There was a snap as my quill suddenly broke under the pressure of my magical grasp. Fragile...just like him.

A frown passed over Celestia's face and the princess shared a glance with the queen. Still staring at the map in front of me, I didn't notice the silent nod that passed between them.

“I shall go and direct my kin in wrapping up today's mining operations. I imagine they'll be needed for other things shortly,” said the queen, excusing herself from the throne room and leaving me alone with my teacher.

Celestia...I'd always looked up to her...I still did, even today. She always had good advice, an attentive ear, and a calm grace that I envied. Part of me was still hopeful that she'd have some counsel, something she could say to make things better, but the rational side of me knew there was nothing that even she could say to fix this.

“It was all for nothing,” I said finally as Celestia approached. “I...I killed him, and all I learned was how hopeless it is.”

To my surprise, Celestia didn't reply. Instead, she extended her wing and wrapped it around me, a comforting gesture I hadn't felt since I was a filly. Part of me was embarrassed, but a much larger part cherished the warmth as I instinctively pressed closer to her.

A minute passed in silence. “How much do you know about the history of my rule?”

The question briefly caught me off guard. “Um...quite a bit,” I admitted. Even before I'd been her student, I'd taken time to learn about her.

Celestia chuckled, the tips of her feathers gently brushing my coat. “What do you recall...say, five hundred years after Luna's banishment?”

I frowned slightly as I tried to remember the contents of a few large and dusty tomes I'd read many years ago. “That was...the last time the Gryphon Empire tried to invade,” I said finally. Actually, to be more accurate, that was the last time any foreign power had tried to invade Equestria.

“You are correct. Do you know why that invasion was the last?”

“No. All I remember is something about an overwhelming show of force, followed by immediate capitulation.”

She closed her eyes and nodded. “Yes, I suppose you could call it that. It was the first...and thankfully only time that I ever used the sun as a weapon.”

My jaw dropped as I looked up at her. “Y-you...when? I never-”

“The knowledge isn't hidden or censored in any way,” added Celestia quickly. “Just difficult to find. Five hundred years of peace and prosperity make my little ponies eager to look beyond the price of that peace.”

Celestia looked at one of the crystals in front of her, seemingly lost in thought. “Near the border of the griffon empire is a place called the Windswept Wasteland, do you know of it?”

“Barren land,” I replied automatically. “Stretches for miles in every direction.”

“And the unmarked grave of nearly a thousand griffons,” finished Celestia. “There used to be an expansive forest there, one which the griffons would often use in order to conceal raiding parties that would strike at the towns and villages along the border.”

I blinked in surprise. “They attacked us? I never read about any battles.”

Celestia chuckled, but it was slightly forced. “It's only ever called a war when flags are flying and both sides have agreed to it. It was never officially sanctioned by the emperor. There was a long list of intermediary measures I had tried first, but it only emboldened them and the situation steadily declined. In the end...I used the sun. The forest was reduced to ashes, the bodies were incinerated, the land was scorched black, and even five hundred years later, nothing will grow there.”

I felt sick to my stomach. Somewhere in my mind, I'd always known Celestia would have secrets like these, but it was another thing entirely to have her outright admit one. “W-what happened after that?” I asked shakily.

“The raids along the border ceased, and the griffons pulled so far back that they were practically in the heart of their kingdom. It was only later that I learned of the coincidental timing of my attack. I'd thought the casualties would be no more than one or two hundred, but on that very day, a proper army had moved into those woods and was preparing for an invasion.”

And thus the casualties had gone from a few hundred to a thousand.

“After that, it was decades of distrust, fear, conspiracies, and assassination attempts,” she continued, “The griffons closed their borders to us for a decade, even though we had been their primary supplier of food. I can only imagine how many suffered because of shortages.”

“Was it worth it in the end?” I asked once Celestia paused.

“For both nations, yes. In the long run, it saved more lives than it cost, and today we enjoy a somewhat stable peace with them. For myself? All I can do is remember the weight of my decisions, and make sure that none of them are made lightly.”

My eyes turned toward the last two changelings, asleep in their makeshift prisons. “I just...I don't know what to do. I keep looking at the problem, but I can't see a solution...” And the thought that I'd done it for nothing continued to loom over my thoughts.

There was a shuffling sound that made me look up from the ground. In front of me now was a quill and a blank sheet of paper. “Begin with a list. Spike has often told me how much better you think when you have one.”

I began to write. Admittedly, it did do quite a bit to calm my nerves. We needed two things: a way to prevent the changelings from fleeing, and a way to transport enough ponies to make that happen. My quill wrote out the word 'shield' on the paper, recalling that Shining Armor had easily kept Chrysalis' army at bay with one, even under the influence of Chrysalis' poisons. Could we get his help? No, the Crystal Empire was too far to teleport. Could Celestia get him and bring him back?

Hopeful, I looked towards her, but she closed her eyes and shook her head. Frowning, I made a line through that. Could I teleport and make the shield myself? Possibly, but it wouldn't hold for long if it was attacked by the changelings inside.

Things would be simpler if Celestia could teleport more than a few others with her, or if there was some way to tap into her power. I'd only ever heard rumors about magic transference, but I put it on the list anyway, with a question mark by it.

“Far too dangerous, especially with alicorn magic,” said Celestia with another shake of her head. Frowning, I crossed that one off as well, but the idea stuck with me. Celestia was the single most powerful piece we had on the board. With her power, she could easily teleport there and make the shield herself...but could she hold it against a counterattack for six hours while waiting for reinforcements? There were too many variables in that particular scenario.

Wait...what about the changelings? Couldn't they draw power from Celestia? Hadn't Chrysalis done that very thing with my brother and Cadance?

My eyes lit up and I began to write furiously. Reading over my shoulder, Celestia's eyes widened slightly, but her look wasn't disapproving. This was really risky, and based on an untested hypothesis...but it could work.

“My dear student, I believe you're onto something.”

I felt a bit of warmth from the praise and my mood lifted slightly as I began to flesh out the list with more details. Peace with the griffons had come at the cost of a thousand lives. Maybe it was a necessary sacrifice, or perhaps there had been another way, but peace had eventually come because Celestia had turned the results of that terrible act to her advantage.

Nothing could change what I'd done, but maybe...just maybe, peace with the changeling race would only cost this one life.

There was a nervous tension in the air as I stood next to Chrysalis in the midst of her hive. Whether or not it originated from Chrysalis and spread to the hive or vice versa was anyone's guess.

“This plan is insane,” muttered the Changeling Queen as she watched the Sun Princess step onto a plateau at the center of attention, her white fur glowing faintly as if with sunlight. “It makes my own convoluted plan to invade Canterlot seem simple by comparison.”

“But I'm better at planning than you, so you still have pretty good odds,” I countered. “We already tested this with Dusk; what more do you want?”

“Some assurance that I won't end up in a mountain somewhere.” Before I could retort, Celestia began to speak.

“It has been over fifteen hundred years since I became the sovereign of Equestria,” she started, her voice echoing through the caves. “In that time, I have seen kingdoms rise and fall, cultures evolve and change, and helped shape Equestria into the prosperous land that it is today...but that prosperity did not come from myself alone.”

Beside me, Chrysalis huffed lightly. “Is she about to give a friendship speech to my hive?”

I didn't say anything, but the corner of my mouth twitched upwards.

“More than any other race, all of you understand what great things can be accomplished when every individual is working towards a single goal. One month ago, your queen came to me seeking peace, and now we stand together, side by side, even as those outside seek to tear us apart.”

“She could have just told me to pass along the message,” grumbled Chrysalis.

“Not much of a public speaker?” I teased with some amusement.

“What's the point when you can just mentally broadcast anything you need to say?”

“Try to contain your jealousy, Chrysalis,” I said, somewhat smugly.

“Your culture has been led astray and fragmented by those who wish to cling to survival rather than grow, but we have the power to change that now. Queen Chrysalis has shown herself to be a worthy ruler in my eyes, one who can lead all of changeling-kind into a new era alongside Equestria.”

Chrysalis was actually starting to look uncomfortable. “Laying it on rather thick...”

My only response was a quick jab of my hoof to silence her.

“It will not be easy. Even now we face a difficult obstacle, the first and certainly not the last of many trying tests, but I believe that we can overcome them by working together. And so, I wish to extend my hoof to all of you...in friendship.”

The radiant aura that had been steadily emanating from Celestia during her speech now filled the cavern. Feelings of compassion, love, and friendship spread outwards, and the surprised changelings almost leapt at the feast in front of them, absorbing the Sun Princess' freely offered emotions until all of them were brimming with her magic.

Even though the princess had assured me she could pull this off, seeing it happen in front of me was a sight I'd never forget. Golden light danced among the changelings, reflecting off of the crystals while the alicorn stood in the center of the light like a miniature sun.

“Cadance still tasted better,” grumbled Chrysalis, completely ruining the moment. Fighting the urge to roll my eyes, I turned towards the Changeling Queen to begin the next stage of the plan, my horn glowing. However, as I saw Chrysalis' jagged green horn approaching mine, ready to draw me into the link, I froze, my magic suddenly faltering and winking out.

“Twilight?” came Chrysalis' voice, but It was barely audible over the ringing in my ears. I had been too much for him. His mind had shattered like glass. It was my fault. I hadn't known enough to do it properly. My inexperience had killed him.

“Twilight!” Chrysalis sharp voice cut through my panic, snapping me out of the downward spiral my thoughts had been taking. Judging from her look, she knew the source of my hesitance. “Would you like another dose of my poison?”

I was sorely tempted. The thought of that peaceful, lethargic feeling carrying me away from my fears...but no. I needed my mind clear for this. Summoning the strength to push away my doubt, I lit my horn and touched it to the Changeling Queen's own, letting her draw me once more into her link.

Conscious of my power, I tried to make myself small, but it felt like every member of the hive was watching me here, as though Chrysalis and I were at the center of a sphere of eyes. Before I could get lost in the feeling, though, Chrysalis reached out to me, bringing with her a soothing feeling of tranquility.

As precisely as I could, I formed the Teleportation spell in my mind, feeding it and the location of the Azure Queen to her while she in turn distributed the information to the hive, dictating where each individual changeling would go.

Then, with a series of pops, changelings began to vanish in groups, following the pattern of magic I had given them to teleport several dozen miles in the space of seconds. The popping sounds grew closer and closer together as more of the changelings teleported until the cave was silent.

A white flash signaled Celestia's departure and a green one sent Chrysalis off to the Badlands to join her. I felt briefly disoriented as the connection weakened, but I quickly focused my magic and teleported as well, leaving the caves in complete darkness.

After so long in the gloom, the mercilessly bright sunlight shining down onto the Badlands was painful and dizzying, but I was quickly steadied on both sides by the princess and the queen.

“You start the spell, princess,” I said, blinking rapidly and rubbing a hoof across my eyes. “I'll follow your lead and draw Chrysalis in behind me.”

I had a moment to see the ring of changelings stretched out in a circle around the Azure Queen's hive before Chrysalis drew me back into the link. Feeling the magic of Celestia's spell, I copied it with my own magic and passed along the pattern to the hive. In the air in front of me, a shimmering gold shield flickered to life.

Half a mile in diameter and reinforced on every side by Chrysalis’ changelings, the shield encompassed the Azure Queen’s hive and blocked off the tunnels below. Then, at a mental signal, the changelings began to move inwards.

Moving perfectly in step with one another and rigidly following the magical outline I'd given them, the shield slowly compressed inwards, shrinking toward the hive in the center. Perhaps the most coordinated unicorn mages could have pulled off such a feat half this size with years of practice and training, but with the finely-coordinated and mentally linked changelings, we accomplished it with ease.

Screeching sounds reached my ears as the changelings continued their steady march forward. Small animals were not being spared the shield's push, and to my surprise, a few even twisted and shifted quite suddenly, dropping their disguises and turning into blue-streaked changelings that quickly flew away. I could only imagine a similar thing happening below ground among the numerous escape tunnels that normally would have taken ages to find.

To my grim satisfaction, it wasn't long before changelings began to spill out from the central crag we were heading toward, focusing attacks on the shield in several areas and hissing loudly as the golden wall not only absorbed their attacks but gave them a nasty shock as well.

The shield was now a third of its initial diameter, encompassing the Azure Queen's hive, and hopefully the large starting size had allowed us to catch most of her scouts within the net as well. Satisfied, I sent the order to stop.

Now it was Celestia's turn to act, her horn glowing fiercely as she yanked one of the blue changelings trapped inside the shield against the golden screen. “I will speak with your queen and no other,” she said, her voice rumbling dangerously. “You have ten minutes to show yourself or you will face the full fury of the sun.”

The changeling opened its mouth but a golden thread of magic sealed it. “Do not speak to me; tell your queen what I have told you. I will speak with her and her alone.”

Her magic faded and the changeling quickly buzzed away. Presumably, the queen already heard the message, but the drone was probably looking for any excuse to get away.

“How long can your subjects last?” asked Celestia.

Chrysalis paused as she communicated with the others. “Twelve hours, assuming they don't try to coordinate attacks.”

Celestia looked thoughtful. “My fastest pegasi are transporting unicorn backup into the area. They should be here within six hours. Those traveling by hoof will arrive within the day.”

Carefully, I began to extract myself from the hive mind, confident that the changelings could manage on their own at this point, and I breathed a sigh of relief when my thoughts became my own again.

“And what about yourself?” asked Chrysalis.

“I could manage it for a few days, perhaps, but there is a queen of unknown strength involved here, and I must ration my power with that potential conflict in mind. Princess Luna will be here once she's made certain that Canterlot will not panic in my absence, although it will still be better for her power to be available in case the other changeling elders decide to show themselves.”

I hadn't even thought of that possibility, but it certainly made sense. There had been a lot of extenuating circumstances when Chrysalis had defeated Celestia, but she had done so nevertheless, and I knew from personal experience just how powerful a changeling queen could be.

“How long do you think we have before Azure does something with the hostages?” asked Celestia, turning to Chrysalis and seeking her insight.

“Three hours at most,” said the queen. “Changelings do not react well to being trapped. Even less so when their hive is in danger.”

The Sun Princess nodded. “I see. When the queen arrives, I will give her two hours to agree to my demands.”

And in those scant hours, I had to think of another plan. However, I was suddenly and violently thrown from my thoughts as I felt a surge of anger from the Changeling Queen beside me.

Surprised, I followed her gaze towards a black figure with blue streaks highlighting her carapace slowly getting closer. I could tell immediately that this was no fake; there was simply too much power. And she was not alone.

With a fanged grin that sent a few chills down my spine was another queen I'd seen earlier that day. One who, by Chrysalis' account, should have been dead. She was standing at the shield now, red markings around her eyes, looking with amusement at the seething Chrysalis.

The shield wavered slightly. Panicked, I gently nudged Chrysalis, breaking her gaze before I touched my horn to hers, sending feelings of tranquility and calm through the link. Once the shield stabilized again, I let go of the breath I had been holding.

“Queen Azure, Queen Crimson,” greeted Celestia calmly, not taking her eyes off either of them. “It is lovely to see you come out of the shadows at long last to meet properly.”

The Azure Queen gave her a mocking bow. “Charmed as well, Princess Celestia, though it was a bit sooner than expected. Clearly I have overestimated Chrysalis' pride if she has so willingly become your lapdog.” Much like Chrysalis, she spoke with a deep dulcet tone that made it seem like there were two voices in one, but her inflection was more level and far softer in volume.

Mentally, I pleaded with Chrysalis not to react, but I wasn't sure if she was even listening to me. Her thoughts were like a solid wall, and sparing any power to try and get through was out of the question.

“When you've stifled and suffocated your culture to the point of stagnation, it is only natural that someone would rebel,” Celestia countered easily. “I find it sadly amusing that you encourage so much conflict among your kin, and yet react with surprise when one seeks a beneficial alliance. Really, you have no one but yourself and your enigmatic Elders for that.”

The other queens didn't react to the sharp rebuttal and it was anypony's guess as to what they were thinking.

“Our ways have preserved us for centuries,” said the Azure Queen neutrally. “It is easy to hold up your precious ideals when the world does not fear you for your nature, but I doubt you've come here to lecture me about our culture.”

Celestia never lost her calm smile. “Very well, if you wish to dispense with pleasantries then I will make my point.” Her eyes closed and I could feel a subtle trace of her magic in the air. When her eyes opened again, her smile was gone and the air began to grow heavy around her.

“First, you will give me one of the prisoners. You may choose which. If I do not approve of what I hear from them, there will be no more negotiating and the continued existence your hive will be in jeopardy.”

It was with some satisfaction that I saw both queens visibly recoil from her tone and manner. Even Chrysalis looked to be in a bit of shock.

“Second, you will send one of your kin outside of the shield as a prisoner. They will be given the chance to communicate with the rest of your agents in Canterlot, Ponyville, and the scouts remaining outside of your prison before I am forced to hunt them down.”

The Azure Queen's eyes narrowed. “And what makes you believe you could even find them?”

“The same way I found your home here,” said Celestia nonchalantly. “I knew you had agents within Chrysalis' hive all along. It was simply a matter of finding your location within their memories. Did you really think some paltry mind tricks would protect them from the Princess of the Sun?”

I tried hard not to show any emotion as Celestia blatantly lied to the changeling queens without so much as a second of hesitation. Not only was she striking uncertainty into their minds, she was taking the blame upon herself, likely to divert their attention from me.

“You have one hour to comply with my demands. Then, and only then, will I hear your terms.”

The Azure Queen glared at Celestia, clearly not happy. “Do not think you can so easily trample over our hive. There are far more agents than you could possibly-”

“Do you see me as so soft-hearted that I would sacrifice Equestria for the pittance of lives you hold?” Celestia's mane blazed with the fury of the sun and her voice boomed, making the ground tremble. This close to her, I had to fight to keep my legs from shaking. “Crawl back to your hive and do as I've commanded!”

It was the first time I'd ever heard Celestia's Royal Canterlot Voice, and I could only hope it would be the last.

The Azure Queen trembled, her face a mask of rage as she tried to use it to conceal her fear. Just standing in close proximity to the Voice had been taxing. Being its target was probably much worse.

“You play recklessly, Princess of the Sun. You have in your midst a traitor who turned on her kind and will turn against you when the winds change.” She turned, followed closely by the red-marked changeling. Celestia stood motionless until they had retreated into the tunnels below.

Chrysalis was the first to speak. “Was it really her?”

Mutely, I nodded, working to find my voice again. “She probably disguised one of her agents as herself the same way Azure put changelings into your colony. They probably knew that your attack was coming all along and only gave you the illusion of victory,” I murmured.

Chrysalis was silent for a long moment. “If I get the chance, I will end her properly this time.” Turning her back to the shield, she walked away. I wasn't sure where she was going, but I didn't try to stop her.

“I am sorry you had to witness that, Twilight,” came Celestia's soft voice once the queen had disappeared from sight. “Please know that I value the lives of those fillies and colts greatly, and I will do everything in my power to save them.”

“What if the price is too high?” I asked bitterly, immediately regretting it once the words had left my mouth. “No, don't answer, I already know what you're going to say. And...and I agree...I just don't like it.”

She gave me a small, humorless smile. “There is still time. How goes the second phase of your plan?”

Tiredly, I rubbed my muzzle with a hoof. “It's all theory and no data. Have the Wonderbolts found anything yet?”

Celestia looked towards the sky and sent up a golden flare. “We shall know shortly. I'll have a tent set up on the border of the shield where we can discuss our course of action. You should probably find our errant queen.”

Finding Chrysalis didn't take long thanks to the numerous rocks she had reduced to rubble, ending in a similarly destroyed clearing. Silently, I stood on the edge of the crater I'd found her in, waiting for her to speak first.

“How did I ever beat her?”

I blinked, somewhat confused. “The Crimson Queen?”

“No, Princess Celestia,” she corrected. “I felt quite proud of myself at the time, emerging victorious over the so-called ‘Sun Tyrant’. Even at the time, I thought it was a bit too easy.”

I couldn't help but chuckle at that. I'd wondered the same thing back then. “Well, my brother could just be that amazing.”

Chrysalis gave me an unamused look.

“It was because of the potential collateral damage,” I said finally. “Maybe she could have defeated you, but Canterlot would have been left a crater. The Elements of Harmony, on the other hoof, would have only harmed you and your hive. Even if we failed, the damage done would have been less than a drawn-out battle between the two of you, and she could have exploited other opportunities once your guard was down.”

Chrysalis nodded, seemingly having reached the same conclusion. “Are you going to tell me that I should let the Crimson Queen live?” Her eyes narrowed, as if ready for a challenge.

“I would appreciate it,” I said cautiously. “Celestia is trying to make inroads to the entire changeling race, and it would be easier with fewer casualties...but I won't try to stop you,” I finished, feeling slightly ill, but with Chrysalis as the cornerstone in this plan, neither Celestia nor I could afford to impose our will on her.

To my surprise, she chuckled. “A carefully thought out and diplomatic answer. Perhaps I'll only kill her a little bit.”

I sighed, knowing that was probably the best I'd get from her. “Celestia's setting up a tent at the edge of the shield,” I said, changing the subject.

“I will meet you there, then,” said Chrysalis, rising up from her prone position, walking past me as I blinked in confusion.

“Er...I'm coming too, you know.”

“Eventually, but first I imagine you'll need to deal with that.” Her leg pointed skywards and my gaze followed, my heart leaping up into my throat as I saw a familiar rainbow streak in the sky, cutting through the air on a course heading straight for me.

Chapter 11: Queen's Gambit

For several seconds, I was giving serious thought to teleporting. Dash was brazen and bold in almost every situation (even when she really shouldn't be), but if I hid behind Princess Celestia, I doubt even she would have tried to confront me there. Of course, that was at odds with my title as a Student of Friendship, and provided I came through this with my friendship intact, I could already see the rough draft of my next letter to Celestia forming.

Unfortunately, those few seconds of thought cost me as Rainbow Dash was now in front of me, and I had yet to think of anything to say.

Dash looked tired. It wasn't a state I saw her in very often, but flying to the Badlands at near-supersonic speeds and then flying search patterns over the area looking for the changeling hive had clearly taken a heavy toll on her, although she did a good job of hiding it. Her mood was hard to gauge. At one point, she might have been angry, but overexerting herself had worn her down to mere annoyance with an accusatory look to match.

I spoke first. “You were right,” I blurted out.

Rainbow blinked in confusion. “What?”

“About Chrysalis. She uses pheromones.” I stopped briefly, wondering if she even knew what that meant. “That's, um...a scent thing that can make you more suggestible,” I finished lamely.

“Oh...well, that's good.” Her tone was distinctly neutral. There was a long, awkward pause before she spoke again. “You know, you made a pretty convincing Fluttershy.” I winced, avoiding eye contact. “You even had me convinced that you knew what you were doing with Tank.”

“Hey! I gave Tank a proper checkup!” I protested. “I'm not as good as Fluttershy, but I knew enough!” Well, if she'd had any doubts before, I'd pretty much confirmed everything with that.

Rainbow continued to give me an accusatory look. Was she enjoying watching me squirm, or was she just trying to find the right words? “So...why'd you do it?”

I still didn't have a good excuse. “Field testing,” I mumbled, “I just wanted to try and have a conversation-”

“Cut the crap, Twilight! Why were you asking me all that stuff about who I liked? Were you trying to get something on me?”

“I was embarrassed, alright?” I shouted finally. Rainbow actually seemed taken aback, but I couldn't stop myself now. “I didn't know if there was somepony you liked, I didn't know if you were into mares, and I especially didn't want to make things awkward by asking you directly! How could I even start a conversation like that?”

“Well, maybe you could have just asked Fluttershy instead of impersonating her, did you think of that?”

“How would that have helped? You said you couldn't respect anypony who used another to do their work for them!”

“I was exaggerating! Do I look like Applejack to you? You think I tell Fluttershy all of my secrets? I'm the Element of Loyalty! Did you really think so little of me that you thought I'd avoid you because of an awkward conversation?”

My breath caught in my throat before the next set of words could leave. Rainbow was right, and she had every reason to be upset with me for impersonating her friend and trying to dig up personal information. Hesitantly, I took a step back, staring at the ground.

“I...I'm sorry,” I managed to choke out. “I wanted to try out some new magic and I let my excitement get in the way of my better judgment.” I definitely owed Fluttershy as well...and maybe Angel Bunny. I was starting to make a checklist in my head when Rainbow spoke again.

“Look, Twi...I'm mad at you, but I'm still your friend. You know that, right?” Avoiding her eyes, I nodded weakly. It was clear to me that any chance I might have had with her was hovering at a fraction of a percent, but at least I'd keep her as a friend.

“And I accept your apology, but on two conditions.” Again, I nodded, missing the frustrated look that passed across her face. “First, ya gotta say sorry to Fluttershy. Second, you owe me a meal. Somewhere nice.”

My thoughts screeched to a halt and my head shot up, eyes wide. “Wh...what?”

Now it was Rainbow who was avoiding eye contact as she drew a few circles on the ground with a hoof. “You know, like a restaurant?”

“But I thought you said-”

“-that I didn't tell Fluttershy all my secrets,” she interrupted. “Not Honesty, remember?”

The sound of hooves on stone reached my ears before I could think of a reply. “Miss Sparkle?”

Dash and I turned toward the voice. It was one of the Wonderbolts, though I couldn't place his name. “Yes?”

“Princess Celestia would like you at the command tent. The changelings just sent out their envoy and the hostage.”

Diamond Tiara. Well, I suppose it was something, although a cynical part of me couldn't help but wonder if the changelings knew exactly who would be the most panicked and least helpful in this high-pressure situation.

Opposite her was the Azure Queen's envoy. He was trussed up with bindings and magic, though his own magic was uninhibited and he looked to be deep in thought, no doubt communicating with those outside the shield. He was the first to speak. “It is done. You have our word that the other changelings will not approach or interfere.”

Celestia nodded curtly before her horn flashed and put him under stasis. A pair of pegasi quickly took him away.

“Do you believe him?” I asked immediately.

Celestia gave me a thin smile. “I believe I've impressed upon him how badly things will turn out should the isolated changelings try something daring.”

“But didn't you just give him the chance to communicate with potential allies outside the shield?” asked Chrysalis sarcastically.

“That is a possibility, but consider this: without any warning or explanation, you are cut off quite suddenly from your queen. How long before you gather with those similarly cut off to attempt something desperate?”

“It still seems risky,” I said, but I let the matter drop. Maybe this was Celestia's way of giving those outside a chance to be reasonable. Besides, I doubted that any significant force of changelings would be able to mobilize fast enough to stop the plan I had in mind.

My gaze turned to Diamond and I immediately began to regret my earlier thoughts. She was shaking, her eyes were downcast, and even Celestia's presence seemed to do little to calm her. In fact, she seemed to be shying away from all of us toward a corner of the tent. Considering how well the Cutie Mark Crusaders had bounced back from their previous foalnapping, I guess I'd expected her to be the same.

Glancing at Celestia, I waited for her nod before I began to question the filly. “Diamond? Are you alright?” She hesitated for a brief moment before nodding.

Taking a breath, I gradually turned on my Aura Sight, focusing on Diamond. It didn't take long to see the problem. “Er...Chrysalis, could you and Dusk-”

“Of course.” The Changeling Queen nodded to Dusk before the two of them disappeared outside. Immediately, Diamond’s nervousness and fear diminished.

“Diamond,” I began again, “Are your classmates alright? Were any of them hurt?”

Slowly, Diamond shook her head, a scowl appearing on her face. “They didn't hurt anypony...even when those s-stupid blank flanks fought back.”

Shame clouded her aura and it was easy to guess why, even if freezing in panic would have been a normal response. “Do you know where the others are being held?” I asked.

“It was a long way underground. I-it was completely dark, I couldn't see anything,” she mumbled. “I just remember walking a lot.”

“Was Cheerilee there? The real one, I mean,” I clarified.

Diamond nodded. “She was arguing with the others a lot and looked really tired.”

Probably due to the changelings feeding on her love for her students. I had no doubt she was being fiercely protective of them. “Can you remember anything else?”

“Um...well, that green stuff was really strong. Nopony could break it.” She hesitated once more before finally blurting out what was on her mind. “You're going to rescue them, right? Silver Spoon is going to be okay, isn't she?”

Celestia responded first, leaning down to gently nuzzle the scared filly. “Of course she will. Thank you for all you've done, Diamond Tiara.” There was a flash of golden light from Celestia's horn and Diamond let out a small yawn, her eyes drooping before she curled up on the ground and drifted off to sleep.

When I was certain of her unconsciousness, I let out a sigh. “That doesn't give me a lot to work with, but it's something.”

“And we know that they're alive,” encouraged Celestia as she levitated Diamond over to a corner of the tent. “Are you prepared to go ahead with the second phase of the plan?”

“As soon as Luna arrives,” I said confidently. “I'm as ready as I can possibly be at this point.”

“What of our prisoner?” asked Celestia. I flinched. She must have noticed my reaction too, as she was quick to follow with, “I will not pressure you-”

“I'm positive,” I lied. “I know what to do. Nothing on the list has changed, and nothing he could possibly tell me could change it either.”

“Of course,” said Celestia, brushing off my terse dismissal and thankfully not pressing any further. “Now, let's get you something to eat. I noticed a distinct lack of boxes on that list dedicated to maintaining your energy.”

I opened my mouth to protest, but the summoning of several fruits and leafy greens silenced me as my body made it clear that Celestia knew what it wanted better than I did.

“I don't like it,” said Luna, carefully putting aside the checklist I had drawn up. “Are you certain that Celestia or I couldn't take your place?”

Wearily, I shook my head. “It has to be us. No changeling could fake Celestia's level of power and she'll be expected at the negotiations, and if Crimson and Azure team up, it'll be better if you're there to support Celestia...if she needs it.”

Celestia gave me a small smile that seemed to say 'We shall see' before turning to her sister. “I will be counting on you to lead our forces while I'm distracted by Queen Azure.”

“I see. Then I shall leave this in your hooves.”

Turning, I spoke to the third member of royalty in the tent. “Any word from Dusk and Dash yet?”

Chrysalis lay on the ground with her forehooves crossed and her eyes closed. “They have found three potential targets. All of them are guarded by changeling pairs.”

“As expected,” I murmured. “We'll make our strike against the most distant target. How long until the queen surfaces?”

“Any minute now,” responded Celestia.

“Doubles in place?”

“Indeed.”

“And you're finished with the Sun Stone?”

A glittering pebble was placed on the makeshift table that Celestia had cleaved from the surrounding rock. “Check,” she said with a hint of a smile.

Levitating the stone with my magic, I placed it carefully in my mouth where it stuck to one of my upper molars. “We're about as ready as we can be, then,” I said with a nod. Slowly, Chrysalis got up, briefly stretching her wings. Her horn glowed along with mine and a perfect image of what Dusk had scouted appeared in my mind.

“One last thing, Twilight,” said Celestia before I could fire up my spell. “If you run into trouble, you are more valuable than the hostages. It will not do anypony good if you are captured.”

With that grim thought to see me off, Chrysalis and I vanished in separate flashes of light.

“So, how did things go with Dash?”

The abrupt question nearly made me bite my tongue. “Really? You're asking this now?” I snapped, my embarrassment clear.

“Why not? All we're doing is waiting.”

“For a very particular split-second chance, and missing it means the whole plan goes up in smoke,” I hissed.

There was a moment of blissful silence, and then, “Not so well, then.”

“It's not any of your business! Drop it!”

Chrysalis mulled that over for a moment. “It might help to get it off your chest.”

“And I'm sure that you learning about my emotional levers is just a happy coincidence.”

“I prefer to think of it as a bonus,” replied Chrysalis smugly. “Well?”

I looked up at the sky, hoping that Celestia's signal would save me, but the skies remained clear. “I don't know how things are,” I admitted. “She seemed okay, but she didn't completely forgive me.”

“Ah, so she's going to use your guilt to her benefit,” said Chrysalis.

“What?”

“She gets to hold this over your head for a while and compel you to grant anything she might ask,” she explained.

“Dash would never do something like that!” I said defensively. Of course, my traitorous thoughts immediately pointed out my irrational fear of the Element of Loyalty abandoning our friendship over my deception.

“Oh, I doubt she'd do it intentionally. She doesn't seem that bright.”

“Hey!”

“Did she ask you for anything?”

I stopped short. She had asked for something, hadn't she?

Before I could respond, the sky was suddenly ablaze with a pillar of sunlight that was almost too painful to look at. “Now!” From our position just behind a large rock, Chrysalis and I teleported, briefly feeling the sensation of Celestia's magic as we passed through the shield, popping in behind two very surprised changelings.

Gripping one with my telekinesis, I slammed him hard into the rock tunnel, dazing him, before following up with a purple beam of magic that rendered him unconscious. Beside me, Chrysalis had easily dispatched her own target with a sharp blast of energy. It was over in a moment.

“Remind me again why we can go through this shield, but we had to make a hole in the shield around my hive?”

“This is a one-way shield,” I explained, concentrating as my pony features disappeared and were replaced by those of the changeling guard I had knocked unconscious. “Certain types of non-destructive magic can go in, but not out. Yours was two-way because they didn't want you sending messages back to your hive while you were meeting with me.”

In a flash of green fire, Chrysalis transformed as well, the two of us looking like the changeling guards. “I think I liked magic more when it was just telekinesis and laser beams,” she grumbled.

“Well it's about to get more complicated. Get ready to shield me,” I said, kneeling down beside the guard and touching my horn to his. It was the work of moments to find the frequency of his connection and attune myself to the Azure Queen's link. A quick surface scan of his thoughts gave me just enough to attune my own mind while Chrysalis shielded my real thoughts through the link I shared with her.

“We're clear.” I breathed a sigh of relief as I listened to the buzz over the link. “Celestia's distraction worked. All the queen is thinking about right now is the display of power.”

“Are you sure these disguises are going to hold up?”

“Just as long as no one focuses too closely on the link, we should be able to pass as them,” I explained, conjuring a simple two-way shield around the unconscious scouts.

Chrysalis watched me work in silence, her eyes looking toward the carved out tunnel. “I'll definitely have to be more careful about making my escape tunnels in the future,” she mused.

“Mental communication only, now,” I cautioned. “And don't touch the Azure Queen's link, we don't want to draw any attention to ourselves.”

The two of us began to concentrate. None of the spells we were using were individually complicated, but maintaining two links, a disguise, and a mental shield was like trying to balance an uneven load. “As you say.”

Taking a breath to calm my nerves, I cast my final spell, the Scent Spectrum that I'd researched just a few days prior. Colors exploded into my vision before I gradually began to filter them out. “Nothing yet. Let's move further into the hive.”

It wasn't hard to notice the nervous tension in the air. It was quite a bit more difficult to prevent that same nervous feeling from bleeding over into my already taxed mind as I scanned the air, trying to pick up a trail and fighting back my own nervous feelings.

“So did you figure out whether or not Dash shared your sexual orientation?”

My growing sense of anxiety was suddenly overshadowed by annoyance as I glared at Chrysalis, barely noticing as we walked past another checkpoint. “I really don't see how that's relevant.”

“Truly? I thought the whole point of your deception was to find such things out. Or did you forget to ask the most relevant questions?”

“It doesn't matter now because I've already ruined my chances.” Part of me wanted to tell her to shut up, but I couldn't help but feel the tension ease a bit as I mentally argued with her.

“Well now that you're part changeling, it doesn't really matter. You could easily become the stallion of Rainbow's dreams. Or mare. Or anything, really. You'd be amazed at just how depraved some ponies can be. There was this one mare who always wanted to be dominated by another mare with a gryphon-”

“I’ve got it!” I interrupted hastily. It was Diamond Tiara's scent trail, still fresh from when they'd brought her up. “Take the tunnel on the right, it should lead further down.”

Another pair of changelings gave us a cursory glance and a brief scan, but pulled back when they noticed our ongoing conversation and our steady gait which implied a task we needed to accomplish that should not be interrupted.

“Don't tell me you haven’t thought about it,” prodded Chrysalis as the tunnel curved downward.

“I'm only interested in the practical uses, not the pleasurable ones,” I lied.

“Finding the ideal form to entice a pony is about as practical as you get for changelings,” came her quick rebuttal. “And just because you don't feed on love doesn't mean you don't desire it.”

That...was actually pretty difficult to counter, so I tried instead to turn the question around on her. “What about you? Do you have any desire for love other than to feed on it?” There was another fork, but the scent trail was clearly leading the way.

For a moment, the Changeling Queen seemed to be caught off guard. “I don't know,” she said thoughtfully. “A week ago I would have said no, but I'll admit that I've grown to enjoy your interest in me.”

I didn't have a response for that, and I was hesitant to look deeper into it. Thankfully there was no need as we came upon the final checkpoint and the makeshift holding cell. A quick peek around the corner told me everything.

The children were behind a thick wall of changeling slime, the figures of Cheerilee and her students huddled together. Thankfully, they weren't restrained, merely sequestered. Burying our conversation in the back of my mind, I quickly communicated the information to Chrysalis.

“Twenty guards? I'd say Azure was expecting us. Can you handle your half, or should I take fifteen?”

“Just try not to destroy the cave,” I snapped, spitting out the Sun Stone into my hoof. Carefully, I infused it with just enough energy to destabilize the delicate construct before grabbing it with my magic and flinging it into the prison room.

There was a blinding flash and a chorus of screeches as the stone detonated, filling the darkened cave with the intense flare of the sun. Hot on the heels of the flash, Chrysalis and I charged into the chaos with our horns ablaze.

Celestia paused in mid-sentence as she felt the magic of her Sun Stone shatter and dissipate. “Ah, there's the signal,” she said, smiling as she stepped through the shield toward the shocked changeling queens. “This is my final offer, Queen Azure. Surrender, and return every one of my ponies, or we will take both by force.”

The Azure Queen's expression changed from surprise to fury instantly. “Your actions have already condemned them to death!” she shouted, blue fire dancing around her form. “I expected no less from the sun tyrant!”

Celestia sighed, her own aura looking subdued by comparison even as it hummed with power. “So be it, then.”

“Sister, do you require my aid?” asked Luna, stepping through the shield beside her, glowing with a deep blue aura of her own.

Celestia gave her sister a warm smile. “Nay, I say it's high time I redeemed myself for throwing that fight with Chrysalis. Besides...” Like lightning, a golden beam arced out from her horn, slamming into the Red Queen and sending her back several dozen feet in a tumble of legs and wings, “Twilight might need your help with the real Crimson Queen.”

I could only imagine the blinding pain that would have resulted from being a creature accustomed to dim light and having been enveloped in near darkness for the past twenty-four hours, only to suddenly have a miniature sun in your face. A second after that, I didn't have to imagine anymore as the cries of pain over the mental link gave me a very clear impression.

More pain was soon coming. The three changelings nearest to me fell to a powerful sleep spell while Chrysalis' energy blasts took out several more. Despite being outnumbered ten-to-one, the advantage was clearly ours. Several changelings were quickly caught in my telekinetic grasp next, a few slamming into each other while the rest were simply thrown in the path of Chrysalis' destruction. A few of my own violet beams joined the maelstrom, picking off a few changelings that had the good sense to hit the deck after being blinded.

At the edge of my hearing, I could hear Cheerilee ordering her students to lay flat on the ground and I admired her quick thinking.

Three quarters of their number were down before the remainder managed to regroup, but thanks to having both Chrysalis' viewpoint and mine, my shield was up even before their energy had been unleashed.

It was hard not to feel sorry for the remaining guards, their terror over the link clear as they faced down an enemy queen who was practically laughing while she chased the last few around the cave with blasts strong enough to shatter the rock each time she missed. Warily, I warned her of a possible collapse and thankfully she reduced her power, though her blasts were still plenty strong enough to take a changeling out of the fight.

And then it was quiet again. No more than a minute could have passed in that fight, but it felt far longer. Quickly, I gathered the downed changelings and piled them against a wall, letting Chrysalis handle the barrier for them while I cast a larger shield to surround the cavern. Just in time, too, as the reinforcements were already at the mouth of the tunnel.

Finally, with a moment to breathe, I turned toward Cheerilee. “Everything alright?”

Cheerilee slowly picked herself up off the ground, giving me a weak smile, but before she could respond a familiar set of voices interrupted.

“That was awesome!”

“I told you Twilight was gonna come rescue us!”

“Wait, isn't that Chrysalis?”

“She's rescuing us too?”

“Does that make her a good mare now?”

I couldn't help but chuckle at the antics of the Cutie Mark Crusaders. Twice foalnapped, and they didn't let it dampen their spirits in the slightest. “Um...Miss Sparkle, I'm very grateful for the rescue, but how do you intend to get us out of here?” asked Cheerilee as the class began to argue over whether or not Chrysalis was a hero, or an anti-hero.

From the corner of my eye, I saw one of the changelings outside attack my shield and get a nasty shock for his trouble, his hiss of pain making me smile. “Oh, we're not actually here to rescue you...we're here to protect you.”

Her confused look told me that more explanation was needed. “Walking out of here with twenty foals would be impractical, so we're going to stay here and shield you until Celestia finishes dealing with the queens.” Almost as though Celestia had a sense of dramatic timing, the cave around us shook and a few loose rocks from the ceiling bounced off my shield. “We just had to make sure they couldn’t harm you before then.”

Beside me, Chrysalis grinned evilly at the growing group of changelings outside the shield. “Do you think you could let a few of them through? I promise I won't hurt them too much.”

Rolling my eyes, I did my best to assuage the obvious concern Cheerilee was feeling. “Don't worry, she's on our side. I'm going to leave this barrier up for now; you'll be safer behind it if something happens.”

Unfortunately, I couldn't tap into the Azure link anymore with the shield up, but the increasing tremors told me that the fighting above was intensifying. Even outnumbered, I was confident that Luna's team could take care of themselves, and if Celestia dealt with Queen Azure, the hive was likely to scatter, or at least be demoralized even if they had a second-in-command to take charge.

“Twilight! Incoming!”

I reacted on instinct, strengthening the shield just before a torrent of red energy struck my violet barrier. Through the shimmering wall, I could see her, standing in front of the changelings that were feeding her power, her curved horn dancing with scarlet colors that visibly distorted the air around it. I couldn't sense her power through my shield, but I knew it was immense.

Concentrating, I focused the shield at the point of impact, diluting the edges to reinforce it. I was ready when the second salvo started, but the red energy visibly strained my shield and scorched the walls around it. Ultimately, I held, but only barely.

“Twilight...let it drop.”

“But-”

“You’re in pain. Drop the shield. I'll deal with her.”

With a start, I realized that Chrysalis had heard my mental cries through our link, even as I'd tried to keep quiet. “There are children here! You can't fight her like this!”

“Shield them. Her attention is going to be on me, and I've got a score to settle.”

Chrysalis was looking at me expectantly, even as the Red Queen began charging another attack. Several of the changelings near her had already passed out as she ruthlessly consumed their energy for another strike, and this one looked even stronger than the previous two.

My thoughts raced. Could Luna make it in time? Could I protect the foals? Could Chrysalis really take her? The only thing I was certain of was that my shield couldn't hold. Coming to a quick decision, I sent my thoughts to Chrysalis and let the shield fall. Moments before the Red Queen was about to release her blast, Chrysalis shot a beam of concentrated energy out first, hitting center of mass, knocking her back, and sending her shot wide.

A few of the changelings that hadn't already collapsed came through the tunnel, charging ahead of the queen, only to be grabbed and thrown back into a heap on top of her. Chrysalis was trying to keep them in the choke point, shooting another green blast of energy down the tunnel, powerful enough to make my fur stand on end.

Before her beam could connect, though, a red shield shimmered into existence, holding off the powerful attack almost effortlessly. Worried, I turned on my Aura Sight and gasped.

“She's absorbing power from the entire hive!”

Chrysalis didn't respond, but when the return blast came, she dodged rather than block it, taking to the air to get a bit of distance, though the ceiling was far too low for proper flight. Behind her, rocks from the cave wall shifted ominously where the blast had struck.

Up in the air now, Chrysalis began to charge another blast to fire down on the Red Queen, who already had another attack prepared. My Aura Sight could already see who the winner was going to be.

“Chrysalis, dodge! She's got over a hundred changelings powering her!”

Chrysalis struck first, forcing the Red Queen to meet her attack. Scarlet energy overpowered green, but Chrysalis was gone before the blast connected. There was a bright flash of light and the grinning queen suddenly appeared next to Crimson, not bothering with a magical attack this time and instead landing a very hard and satisfying kick to her barrel, sending her crashing into the wall.

“Wow, I can see why you like teleporting so much. It's fun!”

“Focus! She's not down yet!”

Raw telekinetic energy seeped into the air and loose stone was pulled upwards, the Red Queen furious now as she sent the projectiles hurtling toward Chrysalis. This time, Chrysalis stood her ground, glaring at her foe as green mixed with crimson, the floating rocks starting to spin haphazardly around the chamber as they battled for control. It would have been the perfect time for me to strike, but the last thing I wanted to do was draw attention to me and the fillies and colts I was protecting. Even now, my shield was extending to the cave walls around us to make sure they wouldn't collapse.

“Your mother should have moved when we'd told her to. We might not have had to destroy her, then. I suppose it's no surprise that her daughter is just as reckless.”

As the magic intensified, boulders began flying through the air, circling the two combatants. Some of them were crushed into dust from the force of Crimson’s hold, but while Chrysalis had better control thanks to the telekinesis basics I'd shown her, all she could do was stalemate the other queen.

“My mother had the right idea. The only thing I'd fault her for was not defying you further. For all the power the elders wield, two of you will fall today. Face it, you've already lost. Your actions now are nothing more than a temper tantrum thrown by a petulant gnat.”

I had to admire Chrysalis' ability to so easily press Queen Crimson’s berserk button. Less admirable was the sudden crushing power that filled the cave, making my legs shake while the children behind me cried out in panic. Desperately, I tried to pull up a shield around us, but it was already too late.

Her black chitinous body glowed a fiery red color, her eyes burning with rage. Her power was enormous and I could only imagine how many changelings had just given their lives for her. Rocks crumbled into dust around her as her power continued to grow. Trying to grip her with my telekinesis sent painful feedback through my horn, and Chrysalis’ green blasts didn't even make her flinch.

And her magic was still building.

“We need to block it!”

“What? Are you insane? We can't-”

“She'll take out the entire cave!”

I could feel a momentary flash of frustration in Chrysalis' mind before she let out a curse and planted her hooves firmly on the ground. Beside her, I did the same.

“Go Chryssy!”

“You can do it!”

“Kick her flank, Twilight!”

“Chryssy is the best foalnapper!”

In the moment of buildup, I heard the Crusaders cheering us on, oblivious to the danger as we stood between them and the Red Queen, their feelings sincere enough to give Chrysalis a quick pick-me-up.

“Now!”

The rocky cave lit up in a brilliant display of magic, red clashing with green and violet as we fought to hold her back. My outer shield had been abandoned, but that mattered little now that the changelings trying to help their queen had all fallen.

Fury and lifeforce powered the queen's attack as Chrysalis and I stood our ground, but I felt like I was trying to stand against a tsunami. Chrysalis was already struggling and I wasn't doing much better, tapping deep into my reserves to merely withstand the onslaught that was getting more powerful by the moment.

Celestia's words came back to me. Chrysalis and I could easily escape from this. We were losing, badly, and Chrysalis knew it too...but she was still standing, drawing on everything she had to fight. Running hadn't even crossed her mind.

No...we weren't beaten yet. There was one last card I had left to play.

“Chrysalis...I never did thank you for doing this...for risking everything to help us.”

“Little busy, Twilight!”

Despite the noise of the energy and the rocks grinding down around us, my thoughts were perfectly clear across the link.

“I was suspicious from the start...even after we linked, I was hesitant to trust anything you said...but you're showing me how much you're really trying to change now.”

“Twilight, if we get out of this alive, I swear I'm going to-”

“And I want to help you change. I want to show you that power I said you couldn't understand. I want to help you find it.”

My reserves were starting to fade as I began to focus on a different kind of magic. Beside me, Chrysalis trembled as she was suddenly forced to take the brunt of the Crimson Queen's attack. “I want to give this to you...please accept it.”

Very gently, I pressed myself against her side and opened my mind. I focused on all the ponies special to me, my love for Celestia as a mentor and parent figure, my love for my friends, my love for Shining and the rest of my family, and my admiration for her as someone who would stand by me in the face of almost certain death to help a group of ponies she had no reason to care about. I gave her everything I could muster...and she took it all.

My eyes had closed but I could feel Chrysalis' energy spike dramatically, in tandem with her feelings of surprise. That surprise turned to glee as she began to tap into the sudden rush of power, pushing back hard against the Red Queen while I slumped to the ground in exhaustion, my eyes opening wearily just in time to see Chrysalis' magic overwhelm her foe.

Queen Crimson staggered, her horn sparking as she tried to rally her magic, reeling under the effects of Chrysalis' sudden surge of power. Chrysalis herself...was laughing, though unlike her evil laughter in the past, this sounded almost mirthful, even if her dulcet tone still made it slightly creepy.

Chrysalis' tongue flicked out as if tasting the air as she briefly closed her eyes, and when she opened them again they were focused on the Red Queen. “Ten. Definitely a ten.”

Chrysalis summoned her full power, now a roaring inferno next to the mere torch of the Crimson Queen. The next few seconds proved to be both disturbing yet somewhat satisfying to watch as the enemy queen was overwhelmed time and again, her power effortlessly pushed back as emerald blasts knocked her about and slammed her into walls. I'd almost thought Chrysalis was toying with her, if it weren't for the brutally efficient way she applied the energy, pounding the Red Queen relentlessly until her bruised and beaten body was left in a crater.

I blinked several times, trying to fight off fatigue and focus my Aura Sight. Faint wisps of energy were just barely visible from the fallen queen. She was still alive.

“And so here we are again, your hive overwhelmed and you at my mercy,” said Chrysalis, her tone almost playful as she walked toward her downed rival, jagged horn still glowing with energy. “Only this time, I know without a doubt that it's really you.”

Wide eyed, the Red Queen tried to struggle to her feet, but a wave of telekinetic energy slammed her back down. “C-Chrysalis...” I said weakly, but she didn't even turn her head.

“How fortunate you are...that you aren't dealing with the same me as before.” Her horn winked out and she chuckled darkly while I let out a sigh of relief.

Feebly, the Red Queen let out a pained chuckle, glaring defiantly at her better. “Heh...knew it...damn ponies made you-”

CRACK!

Before she could even finish her taunt, Chrysalis' hoof lashed out, smacking her hard and knocking her back against the ground.

“Well, almost the same me,” she corrected, nudging the queen’s unconscious form a few times before turning back to where I was laying. I squirmed slightly as her magic grasped me, gently guiding me through the air to land on her back, where I lay limp.

“You thought I was going to kill her?”

“It crossed my mind,” I mumbled.

“I thought I would too, really,” said the queen with a chuckle.

“Why didn't you?”

“Too much love and friendship. Probably couldn't even stomp on a parasprite after everything you gave me.”

I chuckled tiredly, fighting the urge to fall asleep, although it was unlikely that there was any more danger to be wary of. “Was I really a ten?”

“Oh yes, you managed to edge out Cadance. The secret admiration you had for my changeling body certainly helped.”

I let out a small groan. There was no point in denying it now. “I saw some of those fantasies you had, too. Particularly the ones you had about changelings. It’s not filling as love, but lust makes for a decent snack.”

“Chrysalis, there are fillies here,” I said tiredly, although with the tension draining away I was glad to return to our casual banter. Chrysalis glanced behind her and grinned, seeing those faces pressed against the wall of their prison, trying to listen in.

“Good thing I can tease you like this, then.”

“Gah! Get out of here!” All I heard in response was a chuckle.

“And thanks to that wonderful energy of yours, I have an entire checklist of things I can torment you with now!”

Outwardly I groaned, but with no magic and barely any ability to move, all I could hope for at this point was divine intervention.

“Fear not, Twilight! The cavalry hath arrived!”

Well, the 'divine' part was debatable, but I'd take it. In a swirl of deep blue colors, Luna burst into the prison, followed closely by Rainbow Dash and a small contingent of Wonderbolts. Magic burns and bruises across the squad made it clear they'd been fighting.

“Now where is thy nemesis, the Crimson Queen? I shall show her the full fury of the Lunar...” Luna's words stalled and her expression went flat as she saw the Red Queen lying unconscious in her crater. “Oh, she's defeated. Curses, late once more.”

“Your timing couldn't have been better,” I said with a faint smile before my vision was suddenly filled by two magenta eyes.

“I'm okay,” I said quickly before Dash could start worrying. “Just tired.” A yawn left my mouth as I idly observed Luna binding and sealing the Red Queen while another pair of pegasi worked on tearing down the prison wall. “They're fine too.”

To my surprise, Dash suddenly hugged me, a squeak leaving my mouth.

“Thanks, Twi, I knew you wouldn't let them down.”

“Dash!” An orange blur suddenly tackled her from the side, but Scootaloo's petite frame barely even budged her.

“Heya, squirt, you really need to stop getting caught like this.”

“Eh, I knew you'd come and get me again.”

“Yeah, I'm getting pretty good at this whole rescue thing. Could have been worth an awesome cutie mark if I didn't already have the best one.”

“Hey, I helped too,” I protested, smiling at the sight. “Also, shouldn't we be getting out of here?”

Rainbow shook her head, untangling herself from the smaller pegasus. “The whole hive is down. We were fighting our way here when the changelings just started passing out.”

“The Azure Queen has also fallen to my sister's hoof,” said Luna proudly. “Those few still awake are quickly offering their surrender.”

Chrysalis chuckled at the news, clearly amused. “So Celestia has taken yet another hive prisoner, then? Where will she put this one, I wonder?”

Thankfully, that wasn't something I had to worry about. The final box on my list had just been checked and I was ready to fall asleep right on Chrysalis' back.

Dash immediately noticed my fatigue. “I'll take her topside to Celestia,” she offered, but before she could grab hold of me, Chrysalis moved out of the way.

“No need, I'll take her.” I winced slightly as I felt an emotional spark from both of them.

“I can get her out of here faster.”

“She doesn't need fast, she needs delicate,” countered Chrysalis.

“Hey, I can be delicate!”

Inwardly, I groaned and cursed my inability to teleport away.

Chapter 1: An Auspicious Offer

The night seemed to reflect the mood of everypony who had gathered at such a late hour. It was a warm summer night but the breeze added a chill to the air. My friends were all gathered around me, each pony looking towards the sky, faces grim...well, except Pinkie of course. Seemingly oblivious to the world around her, she was lightly hopping up and down, eager for the night's events to commence.

Beside me, her mane sparkling with starlight and waving gently, was Princess Luna, also looking towards the moon. Perhaps on any other night she might have been reflecting on her imprisonment, but tonight she was waiting with the rest of us, her face set in grim determination. Just standing close to her I could feel the magic rolling off of her in waves. Even though her horn was dim, her power was brimming just beneath the surface, ready to be unleashed at a moment's notice.

Then the sound began. It was a faint buzzing sound on the air, like a swarm of distant insects getting closer. Just as Luna had predicted, a shape suddenly obscured the moon, vaguely pony-like in definition and silhouetted against the glow. Behind the largest shape were four smaller dots, all of them getting closer and closer until finally the lights of Ponyville were enough to illuminate the new arrivals.

Chrysalis glided in for a landing, touching down softly on the grass with hooves each bearing several holes. Her green, stringy hair swayed gently in the cool breeze as her translucent wings came to rest behind her. The Changeling Queen was of slimmer build than Luna, but matched her in height, and the two met each other’s gaze at an even keel. Several smaller drones landed behind their queen, but she was the center of everypony’s attention. Death glares were present on all of my friend's faces, except once again for Pinkie, who was running a hoof lovingly over her party cannon with an evil grin, waiting for one of them to make a provocative movement.

It was the queen who broke the silence first. “Princess Luna, Twilight Sparkle, I'm honored to receive such a regal welcoming,” she said, inclining her head to us. The changelings behind her bowed their heads as well. Her tone was light and almost friendly, a far cry from the last two times I had encountered her, once at my brother's wedding and another time at her own castle.

“You may dispense with pleasantries, Queen Chrysalis. I am not here to welcome you, only to remind you of our terms. Place one hoof out of line or bring a single pony to harm and the consequences visited on you shall leave you begging for exile.” Her voice carried with it the weight of countless years of leadership and intimidation, but if Chrysalis felt any of it, she didn't show it.

“As I've said repeatedly, I've sworn to be on my best behavior,” returned the queen easily, saying the words as one who was repeatedly forced to recite them until it had become second nature. “I have accepted the seal on my magic as a show of good faith, have I not?” Her jagged horn bore a bright golden ring around it, radiating the sheer power of Celestia's magic.

“I will be watching you, even so,” said the princess of the night, her eyes casting around to the drones who were still standing behind her. “Your escort?”

“My personal guards. You can hardly expect royalty to travel without a few.”

“Then they are under the same agreements as you, and you will answer for any wrongdoings they commit.”

“There will be no wrongdoings, Princess Luna,” said Chrysalis agreeably in a tone of voice that seemed to make her words all the more suspicious. “So long as both parties stick to their end of the deal,” she added. For the first time that night her gaze fell upon me. Trying my best to look undisturbed, I looked right back, my face carefully blank.

“A pleasure to make your acquaintance once again, Twilight Sparkle.”

“Happy to have your approval,” I responded, surprised at just how much malice had crept into my voice. It was hard to keep it back; she had threatened my family, after all. Compared to that, the threat she had posed to Equestria seemed like a distant second offense. I'll admit it flat out, Chrysalis was intimidating. She wore the title of Queen like a cloak and spoke as one who was used to everypony listening to her words. She was reminiscent of Nightmare Moon in that regard, but with an added edge of cruelty that seemed to simmer just beneath the surface.

I'd read plenty of books on the subject of changelings since her second coming, but it was frightening just how little we knew about them even now. Scattered reports of what their venom could do, their feeding habits, their corrupting influence...even with my brother's first-hoof account of being under her control, the collective information we had on them was vastly outweighed by our ignorance about their species as a whole.

“Such hatred,” said the queen with a dark chuckle. “Really now, my magic and abilities have been sealed off by the sun princess herself. What threat could I possibly pose to any of you right now?”

“Ah'd sooner just kick you outta Ponyville and not find out,” said Applejack. Her statement was followed by a chorus of agreements from my friends, which admittedly lifted my spirits somewhat. Everypony was going to be on their guard. If Chrysalis was going to try something, it certainly wasn't going to be on the first night of this official agreement. It probably wasn't even going to be in the first week. If she had a plot, the smart idea would be to do it somewhere far down the line, maybe even several months later, once people had grown comfortable of her presence, or at least used to seeing her around.

“Determination...warmth...admiration...and even a hint of love.” Her tongue flicked out as if she were tasting those very emotions on the air. The thought that she was feeding on those things sent a small chill down my spine.

“Watch it, changeling!” A blue blur zipped past me, the ever-loyal Rainbow Dash stopping face-to-face just inches away from Chrysalis, who barely even flinched. “I even so much think that you're feeding on my friends and I ain't waiting for Luna to give me permission before I-”

“Thank you, Dash,” I cut in. “Look, I'm counting on all of you to keep an eye on things, make sure no one in Ponyville is panicking or starting trouble with them. We need people to remain level-headed about this and keep calm for the duration of her...diplomatic visit.”

“Don't worry about us, Twilight,” said Rarity with a quiet, enviable calm. “Everypony knows what to expect over the next week. We made sure of that.”

Nodding my thanks I looked towards Luna once again, wondering if she had anything more to say. As it turned out, she did. “Twilight, one last thing before I depart,” she said, beckoning me with one of her wings.

Once out of earshot of the others, the regal demeanor of the nighttime princess seemed to fade for a moment. “I really do apologize for putting you through this,” she said finally.

“It's okay Princess Luna, I agreed to this as well,” I responded quickly, “And we both know how much of an opportunity this is. It's better to have her on the inside where we can keep a close eye on her rather than on the borders plotting and waiting for the next opportunity to invade, right?”

Even with this reasoning, it was clear to see that Luna held the same reservations about the situation that I did. It was a sore point with her that she had practically slept through the last changeling invasion, leaving Celestia to fend for herself.

“Look, at the very least she'd be stupid to try anything tonight, when she knows everypony is going to be watching her, and if she breaks that band, Celestia is going to know immediately that something is wrong,” I added, though at this point I wasn't sure if I was trying to convince her or myself.

Princess Luna looked at me for a long moment before sighing and extending a wing. To my surprise, she gently pulled me into an embrace, rubbing my head against her chest briefly. “Just be careful, Twilight. Even without her magic, she is not somepony to be taken lightly.”

Extending her wings to their full span this time, Luna took off into the sky at an impressive clip, leaving the changeling queen alone with my friends and me.

“Another admirer, it seems. She cares for you a great deal,” remarked the queen upon my return to the group. “Though it's hard to tell what form her love for you takes.”

I could only hope that the night disguised my blush. “Shut it,” I snapped, my annoyance getting the better of me. “You just stick to your side of the deal, and I'll stick to mine.” Taking a breath I turned towards my friends, trying to give them a confident smile. “You can go now.”

Applejack looked between me and the small changeling contingent that remained. “Ya sure about this, Twilight?”

“Me and me alone,” I emphasized. “She won't talk to anypony else.”

“We'll come by tomorrow…early tomorrow,” promised Rarity.

“Should I leave the cannon just in case?”

“No Pinkie...I'll be fine. What about your changelings?” I asked, turning back towards Chrysalis.

“The four of them will stand guard outside in shifts,” she said casually. “They will remain outside your library, as promised.”

With that, there didn't seem to be anything else left to say. One by one my friends departed, some giving Chrysalis their best death glare while Fluttershy gave me a look of support, having remained silent throughout the entire conversation. Considering her timid nature though, I found it admirable that she had come out to face Chrysalis in the first place. Two of the changelings took flight, landing in the branches of the tree, while the other two stationed themselves on either side of my door. Opening it with a quick application of magic, I led the changeling queen inside, making a conscious effort not to slam the door behind me. Per the agreement, Spike wasn't here right now. He had been worried about me, certainly, but between spending a night with the changeling queen and spending a night with Rarity, it hadn't taken much to coerce him.

Spinning around, I faced the changeling queen. “Alright, now that you've gotten what you want, tell me why.”

“Pardon?” Her green eyes looked surprisingly innocent and playful.

“Why were you willing to give up so much just for...this?” I asked, gesturing with a hoof to my surroundings. “You said you were going to be honest with me, so tell me why.”

“Because doing so is in the best interest for my hive and for myself as queen.” Her innocent look was practically driving me up the wall by this point.

“That's not an answer and you know it!”

“Twilight, I promised you honesty. This deal I have made with your rulers is of just as much benefit to me as it is to you.”

“But how? What could you possibly be getting out of this by going through me?” The obvious motive of revenge seemed almost impossible for her to capitalize on given the restraints and restrictions being put on her thanks to Celestia's magic, but it wasn't something I was going to rule out just yet.

Her green eyes closed for a bit and again her tongue flicked out, tasting the air. “Celestia is quite protective of you, though I'm sure you've realized that, yes?”

“What does that have to do with anything?”

“Patience, Twilight,” she murmured, her eyes still closed. “Princess Luna is fiercely protective of you as well, though she's much more subtle about it. I'm sure she's noticed all those times you've gazed at her work through your telescope.”

“How did-”

“I said patience,” repeated the changeling, cutting me off once again. There was a long moment of silence before she spoke this time. “Your friends each carry their own admiration for you as well. Loyalty, concern, kindness, and of course that ever-present underlying taste of love.”

“You're not...feeding off of them, are you?” I asked, slightly horrified, my horn glowing somewhat as I instinctively reached for my magic.

“Hardly. Allow me to educate you,” she said, finding one of my cushions and sitting back on it. Almost reflexively, my magic drew a quill and paper to my side, prepared to take notes. “If a changeling so desires it, they can drain a pony dry of their emotions and their magic, leaving them nothing more than a near-lifeless husk, no better than a drone, unable to feel anything. It was the fate I once had planned for your dear brother.”

My quill stopped cold, my hoof trembling just a bit as I fought to regain a sense of calm. Everything had turned out fine in the end, but hearing Chrysalis say something like that so casually was a bit unnerving. “But?” I asked pointedly.

“But it is very possible for a changeling to sustain themselves on the emotions given off naturally from other ponies without having to brainwash them. How do you believe changeling agents are able to continue to survive and remain undetected for so long? The mere ambient love alone that the ponies have for your dear Celestia in Canterlot keeps them well-fed.”

My quill scratched at the paper, automatically writing down everything I was told. This was part of the deal, after all, and this was information that Celestia and Luna were looking for to better deal with changelings in the future.

“But you? You have the attention of every powerful pony in Equestria, it seems. Celestia's admiration, Luna's respect, Cadance's love, and the friendship of the element bearers,” she said, her eyes focused intently on my own. “All centered around you in a swirling mass of delectable emotions. Simply sitting near you is invigorating in and of itself. If I could siphon a fraction of what you possess, we'd never go hungry again.”

I fought the urge to shift away, but only barely. The fact that she was feeding on all of those ambient emotions given to me by my friends was disturbing, to say the least. At the same time, though, I couldn't help but feel somewhat touched. Chrysalis may not have been the best medium for praise to be delivered, but there was little reason to doubt what she was saying. Her kind consumed emotions, so it only made sense that they'd be attuned to such feelings, especially their queen.

“Yes, well, feel free to keep those siphoning abilities to yourself,” I grumbled testily, unable to shake the impression that I was being sized up like an exquisite piece of meat. “You haven't really answered my question, though, unless you actually expect me to believe that you went to all this trouble for a convenient food source.”

“Far from it. You see, Twilight, I still haven't given up on you.”

My quill stopped cold. “Excuse me?”

“You asked for honesty, Twilight, and this is it. I see that same potential within you that I saw those few months ago when you stood there defiantly, facing down a queen that you knew was more powerful than yourself.”

“It was the power of my friends that helped see me through.”

“Precisely. You channel those emotions and feelings into raw, untamed power. Power that saw to the defeat of Nightmare Moon; that sealed Discord away. If I could tap into that power, then it would ease the burdens of my hive considerably.”

“I really hope you're not expecting to get your hooves on the Elements of Harmony...” I stated cautiously. There was little point in asking exactly how she knew about all of this. She could have picked it up from my brother, or any one of her agents she'd spent the last decade planting in our cities and towns.

“Mere trinkets with the power to amplify their users’ emotions. I thought I already said that I was only interested in you.”
Her tone was one of leading a child to an obvious conclusion, and truth be told I'd already arrived there too, but it still felt ridiculous actually saying it out loud. “Wait...let me get this straight. You seriously think that after everything that's happened, after you threatened Canterlot, brainwashed my brother, invaded Ponyville, and foal-napped three fillies...you're still under the delusion that I'd ever agree to being your student?”

Her evil laugh wasn't as good as that of Nightmare Moon’s, but she earned more points in subtlety. “In time, yes, I think you will. Besides, I'm already teaching you, am I not?” Despite myself, my eyes glanced back at the paper where I had been taking notes.

“You...you're crazy. This...is crazy.” My magic flared and the scroll rolled shut as I got to my hooves. “There's no way I'm going along with this. Just...take your changelings and-”

“Sit. Down.” I couldn't help myself. It was a perfect imitation of the Teacher Voice that I'd been trained to follow for years. My hind legs folded and my flank hit the cushion once again while Chrysalis composed herself. “I have given your kingdom resources in their ongoing fight against the changeling hives. I have revealed to your princesses several agents in their midst. I have hobbled and crippled myself to assuage the fears of the common ponies, and I have been completely honest with you about my intentions.”

It was hard to remember she was a queen, sometimes, when the only emotions I'd ever seen her project were rage and arrogance. This time, though, there was a calm and authoritative tone in her voice; a tone that I had heard Celestia use during the times I'd sat in on her royal court. It was commanding without shouting, admonishing without anger, and impossible to ignore.

“The only things I have asked for in return have been for your princesses' help in sustaining my race and a few nights out of the month spent alone with you. Perhaps you may consider my terms ‘crazy’, but I don't think I'm being unreasonable.”

No, she wasn't. With a sigh, I opened the scroll again and brought out my quill, reminding myself that this was going to be the greatest opportunity for anyone to learn about the reclusive and mysterious race beyond the broad generalizations already known. “Do you...want something to eat?” I said finally, resigning myself to a long night. “Or are you fine with just leeching off of my emotions?”

“Some tea would be wonderful, although I'll have to ask you to use the enchanted cups since I can't levitate anything right now,” she replied, brushing off my snide comment and motioning to the golden ring still shining brightly around her horn.

Preparing the tea gave me some time to think, and to get away from the oppressive and tense atmosphere that had wound its way throughout my library. Chrysalis had to have some sort of plan, some hidden agenda. Their very nature revolved around subterfuge, obfuscation, and mental games. There was always the distinct possibility that she was being straightforward with me and that stating the truth just made me not want to believe it, but going down that rabbit hole was a bit more than I could take at the moment.

All too soon it seemed like the tea was ready. Levitating the tray, I walked back into the sitting room and saw that Chrysalis had moved from her sitting position and was now looking over my texts. “Changeling culture does not have many artists,” she commented without looking in my direction. “No restaurants, no writers, no musicians...only a small percentage of my hive is even capable of speaking and higher-level thinking.”

Carefully setting the tray down I picked up the quill once again. “Do you even have need of normal food?” I asked carefully, my curiosity piqued.

“Certain foods can be temporary sustenance, but ultimately emotions are what fuel us. We can only go so long without,” she explained, drawing out a book with her hoof and looking at the back. I couldn't see the title from where I was sitting, but I recognized the section she was browsing. “Many view us as parasites, and rightfully so.”

The insight came to me in an almost blinding flash of inspiration. “You...can't survive without us, can you?”

“Sharp as always, Twilight. You are correct. Tell me, what else have you figured out?” she asked calmly, returning to the table with her book and gently taking a cup in her hoof, the enchantment letting it stick to her as she drank from it.

“We're a food source to you, and you wouldn't want it to run out, so...killing wouldn't be in your best interest. Is that why...” I hesitated, taking another drink of my tea. “Is that why you let Cadance live?”

“Partially,” admitted the changeling queen, doing nothing to set my mind at ease. “It may have been safer and easier to dispose of her more thoroughly, but in that period of time I was questioning her as well, learning about her, and feeding off of her strong emotions for your brother.”

There was a long pause as I digested that particular bit of information. “And what about me?”

“Insurance. Had Celestia been too much for me, I could have used you and Cadance as valuable hostages. Celestia is a shrewd ruler and has been so for over a millennium. If need be, I've little doubt she'd have sacrificed Cadance to preserve the people of Canterlot. She has a blind spot when it comes to you, though. One that I'm quite eager to learn more about.”

“You know, I'm starting to think this absolute honesty approach-”

“-wasn't one of your better ideas?” finished the changeling queen before I could. “The truth can be rather harrowing at times. But, as I've promised, what I've told you is the truth, though whether or not you believe it is up to you.”

“No, I believe you,” I said with a sigh. It made logical sense after all, though the thought that my use as a bargaining chip against Celestia was the only thing that had stopped her from transporting me over a bottomless pit instead of into a cave was chilling. “But since you're being honest and open with me right now, do you plan on invading Canterlot or Ponyville again?”

She smiled. “Not currently.”

“Right, should have seen that one coming,” I grumbled. “Also, if you're not planning on using magic, subterfuge, or your changeling powers-”

“Don't forget my natural venom.”

“-and your venom, how exactly did you expect to convince me to become your student?”

“I'm not sure,” said the queen with a smile that just made me want to teleport her somewhere far far away. “My only plan right now is to learn about you and see what opportunities arise.”

“I find that almost impossible to believe.”

“Don't worry, my dear Twilight. If I do plan on hatching an evil scheme, you'll be the first to know. I'll even draw up a chart for you. You like charts, yes?”

“Was that a joke?” I asked, deeply suspicious.

“Mostly. I don't have much talent for charts.”

Perhaps it was the sheer absurdity of the situation catching up to me, but I couldn't help but laugh lightly. It was one I badly needed as well, and to my surprise the queen's own tones of mirth joined mine shortly after.

“Seriously, though,” I said, my laughter stopping abruptly. “I see so much as a flicker of green from that horn and I'll have Pinkie come up with an even more annoying song for your next imprisonment.”

“Will this be before or after Celestia banishes me to the moon and Luna sends me to Tartarus?” she responded smoothly, clearly not put off by my threats.

Falling back onto my flank, I picked up the pen once more. “Alright then...tell me about your race. Let's start with how you became queen,” I suggested.

Taking another sip of her tea, the changeling queen began to speak. The hours of the night ticked away as my quill scratched along the paper, dutifully recording everything she told me.

Author's Note

5/9/2015: Millions of small edits and sentence restructurings.

Epilogue: For the Future

Staying awake was proving to be difficult. I felt more drained than I ever had before, and while I knew I wasn’t in mortal danger, the weakness was startling and I didn't really feel comfortable falling asleep until I was examined. As a filly, I'd once fallen into a magical coma for two days from overuse of magic, and it wasn't something I wanted to go through again.

“I said hoof her over!”

“And I told you that Twilight entrusted her well-being to me. I will deliver her to Celestia and no other.”

Fortunately, the constant bickering between my pegasus friend and the queen was doing a good job of staving off unconsciousness as we made our way back up through the changeling tunnels.

Entering the main cavern, I had to blink several times at the bright light that now illuminated the place. Clearly more of Celestia's work; the light seemed more natural than artificial. Commands were being shouted from one end of the cavern to the other, but it didn’t appear that anypony was fighting. What few changelings I could see appeared lost and confused as they were rounded up and restrained.

Rainbow paused amidst her bickering with Chrysalis to look around the cavern. “Jeez, how are we gonna deal with all of ‘em? There's at least twice the number you have. We gonna take them prisoner too?”

“And then some,” agreed Chrysalis, continuing her soft, steady pace. I appreciated how careful she was being to make sure I wasn't jostled too much. “Azure was likely assisting Crimson in rebuilding her hive after the losses she suffered.”

“Where are we gonna put 'em all?”

No one seemed to have an answer for her, and I was glad this was yet another decision I was going to be leaving in Celestia's hooves, although I couldn't help but wonder what happened to changelings deprived of a queen.

Stepping into the sunlight, Celestia's command tent soon came into focus. Just outside, Azure was under heavy binding and in stasis, surrounded by guards, while the all-encompassing shield had around a hundred fewer changelings around it. As Luna and our party of fillies, colts, and Wonderbolts approached, the powerful one-way barrier slowly began to dissipate.

Working my head up off of Chrysalis' back, I mumbled into her ear. “How was the fight between Celestia and Azure?”

“The most apt description I could give you would be 'hilariously one-sided,'” said Chrysalis with a small smile. “Although it's unclear which of the queens was drawing more power from the shared hive near the end.”

At least the whole thing was over and done with. There were already a host of new problems to look forward to once word of this got out. Even though Chrysalis had played an essential part in this operation, the actions of Crimson and Azure were likely to counter her earned goodwill, and Chrysalis didn't have the greatest reputation to begin with.

One of the pegasi pushed aside the tent flap as we approached, and even before I could see my teacher and mentor, I could feel the warm embrace of her magic lifting me from Chrysalis' back and checking over my vitals.

“It's nothing serious,” I mumbled, but Celestia simply continued her observations, her magic taking the edge off of my fatigue.

“Food, water, and rest,” she said finally. Her horn glowed and the water vapor in the air coalesced into a cloud. A quick Cloudwalking spell later, and I was being set upon it. Tempting as it was to drift off then and there, my desire to know how things had turned out kept me awake.

“Captain Spitfire, any casualty reports?”

“None on our side, ma'am. A few dozen deceased changelings so far, most of them from magical exhaustion.”

“And those remaining?”

“Preliminary reports number them around five hundred.”

Celestia closed her eyes and thought for a minute before turning to Chrysalis. “Will they act without the direction of their queen?”

Chrysalis scoffed. “Not with the control freak approach they took to commanding their hives.”

The princess considered things for a moment longer. “The magic division en route will take over the shields and relieve your changelings. I'll have Luna oversee things here and ensure that none of them starve while I negotiate with their leaders,” she said finally. “Do you have anything to add, Chrysalis?”

“Just be sure to have a backup plan in mind if they don't want to negotiate.”

“Princess, there was one other thing we found,” cut in Spitfire, presenting a rectangular object wrapped in cloth. Celestia took it and carefully unwrapped it with her magic.

“A book?” It certainly looked like one, albeit one that was crudely bound and weathered from the passage of time. Carefully opening the cover, she peered at the text. “I'm not familiar with this script. Twilight?”

Blinking sleep from my eyes, I took a look at the page. It was an incomprehensible mess of characters and symbols that I...wait, hold on. “There are Equestrian symbols here. Really old ones,” I said, gesturing with my hoof toward a few I recognized. “And this is Zebrecian if I'm not mistaken...Gryphonic characters too...there must be over a dozen languages in here, but they're not really put together in any sort of coherency, at least none that I can see.”

The silence that followed was finally broken by Rainbow. “So what, is it like, changeling writing?”

I blinked, somewhat dumbfounded at the idea. “Chrysalis?” I asked curiously.

For once, the Changeling Queen looked just as lost as I was. “I...I don't know,” she said finally. “As far as I’ve known, we've always just adapted to the language and culture of those we feed from.”

Except that wasn't completely true, as I quickly realized. Changelings did have their own culture. Why wouldn't they have their own written language? But then why was Chrysalis so surprised to see it?

Celestia apparently had a similar line of thought. Gently grabbing it with her golden aura, the book was carefully re-wrapped. “Captain Spitfire, please take your squad and perform a thorough investigation of the hive once the unicorn squad is here to assist. Rest assured, Chrysalis, I'll be asking Azure about this in detail.”

Chrysalis simply nodded, lost in thought, and my own muddled musings weren't doing much better. How did changelings feel about art? If their minds were linked, did an entire hive contribute to its creation? And who would it be for? The entire scope of the question was already further adding to my fatigue.

Unsurprisingly, it was Celestia who noticed first, a familiar spell starting to form as she looked in my direction. “Wait! I can last a bit longer!” I fibbed.

“Twilight, I promise I will keep you informed, but you are exhausted, both physically and magically. Do I need to remind you of what can happen to your body in the most extreme cases?”

I flinched, slightly. She was using her teacher voice on me. I managed to mumble out a quiet ‘No’ as I rested back down on the cloud.

“Good. Now rest, Twilight. There will be time to talk later.” There was a flash of gold and then the soft embrace of sleep.

Celestia's warm smile faded into a small frown as she examined her sleeping student. “Rainbow Dash.” The pegasus in question snapped to attention. “Please take two others from your squad and airlift Twilight back to Canterlot Hospital.”

Rainbow looked horrified. “What? Princess, don't tell me-”

“No, Rainbow Dash, but I do not want to take any chances. Make haste, but be as gentle as you can.”

With a nod, the pegasus saluted. Less than a minute later, she and two other Wonderbolts had constructed a harness and had taken off, leaving Celestia and Chrysalis behind.

“You were very close to-”

“I know!” snapped the Changeling Queen, her voice cracking slightly. “I know. I wasn't even trying, she just...gave it to me! I was the one who had to cut her off!”

A tense silence followed the outburst. Celestia's expression didn't change. “How do you feel right now?”

“Like I could take on Crimson ten times over,” admitted Chrysalis a bit sourly, as if daring Celestia to say something about the true power of love and friendship. It was even more infuriating when she implied all that needed to be said with a small, knowing smile, replacing her previous frown.

Once she was sure the moment had passed, Chrysalis sighed. “So what happens now? If I know anything about these foals, all of Ponyville is going to know what happened here before the week is out, and once Ponyville knows, the rest of Equestria will follow.”

“That will be entirely up to you,” said Celestia firmly, “Nothing has changed since I last spoke with you about this, and that includes my desire for mutual cooperation.”

Chrysalis hesitated slightly before speaking again. “But...so soon after this has been resolved?”

“You can choose to either look at these events as an opportunity to ride the wave of goodwill that will surely come from this, or you can wait for a more opportune time and simply hope any negative feelings fade from memory.”

The Changeling Queen couldn't help but smirk. “When you put things in those terms, it doesn't seem like much of a choice at all. I suppose you already have an ideal time and place?”

“Naturally.”

“Anypony ever say you'd make a good changeling queen?”

“Oh, I much prefer Princess. You should try out the title yourself sometime.”

Chrysalis' smile slowly faded with another sigh. “This is going to be a pain in the flank, isn’t it?”

“There will certainly be fear and mistrust, at first. Perhaps even more than usual considering your nature and abilities. Progress will come slowly, but ultimately it will be in your favor. I have seen this scenario played out countless times across many generations.”

The Changeling Queen reflected on her words, allowing a small chuckle as she felt Celestia's sincerity. “Alright, but I have one condition.”

My head was pounding. Painfully. For several dozen seconds it felt like a miniature Applejack was doing her best to buck my skull in. Thankfully, the intense pain eventually faded. Unfortunately, the greater aches were quickly being replaced by several smaller ones. All four of my legs were sore, my eyes hurt from the light coming through the window, and my magical reserves were still recovering.

What little I could sense told me that my return to consciousness had just activated an alert spell, and I closed my eyes just in time to avoid the blinding gold light of Celestia's teleport. Blinking the spots from my eyes, I smiled at the princess as she began to run a diagnostic over me. “Eighteen hours?” I guessed.

“Nineteen. Just a bit longer and you might have slipped into a coma.” Her tone wasn't accusing or judgmental, but I could sense her disappointment mixed with concern.

“I'm sorry,” I murmured softly. “It was the best choice from a list of really bad options.” And that included the option of saving myself and leaving the fillies and colts to their fate.

Celestia sighed but her smile didn't waver. “I suppose it was foolish of me to think you'd give anything less for them. You'll be happy to know that they're all doing quite well, so just this once I'll spare you the lecture. I'm sure you have this one memorized already, yes?”

I winced slightly. While not quite to this extreme, I had magically exhausted myself as a filly in an effort to impress Celestia, and again when I had first been learning how to teleport. “Yes princess, I do,” I mumbled.

“Then I shall not dwell on it,” said Celestia, the glow from her horn fading as she finished her examination. “However, there is one thing that can't be put off. The changeling prisoner you interrogated.”

I shuddered softly, feeling like a windigo had just passed over my bed. Everything beyond the interrogation had happened so quickly that it'd been easy to push it to the back of my mind, avoiding it by focusing on the problems directly in front of me. Now, however, the crisis had passed, and since I was going to be in this bed for at least the next day, there was plenty of time to think.

Celestia couldn't ignore this either. Sure, there were plenty of excuses I could make. Some were even convincing; it had been a desperate situation, it had technically been Chrysalis' prisoner, it had been an accident. However, when Celestia finally asked, “Do you have anything to say?” I remained silent and shook my head.

“Well then, I hereby sentence you to repeat Magic Kindergarten.”

My head jerked up. “What?!” I was met with Celestia's playful smile. “That wasn't funny, princess,” I grumbled.

“Twilight,” I shifted slightly as I felt the alicorn's wing gently wrap around me, “There isn't a thing I could possibly do to you that would be worse than what you're doing to yourself right now. I will not punish you, but there is a penance that I believe you could serve.”

“Name it,” I said almost immediately.

Celestia paused for a moment, almost as if she were making sure, but my determined expression didn't waver. “I wish to place you in charge of a new branch of magical research and development focusing on mental magics.”

My mind screeched to a halt. “What?”

“If nothing else, these incidents have shown me that this is an area of magic that we can no longer afford to neglect. It is a dangerous field, rife with the potential for abuse. You've experienced its power and are well aware of the dangers. I can think of nopony else I could trust with this.”

Even as my mind tried to conjure up counter-arguments, I knew she was right. I was all too aware of the extent to which magic like this could be abused, but there was a lot of good that could come from it too. After all, if I could break somepony's mind, why shouldn't I be able to fix it? What if there were magical means of helping ponies overcome mental disabilities and trauma? Could the benefits outweigh the potential danger?

“I'm obviously not going to demand that you decide immediately,” assured Celestia, bringing me out of my thoughts. “I feel guilty enough as is springing this on you right after you've woken up. I'd simply like you to think about it.”

I hesitated for a moment before letting out a sigh. “It's okay, Princess, I understand. I'll consider it.”

Her wing tightened briefly around me before she got off the bed. “In the meantime, I hope you enjoy your hero's welcome.”

There was a slam as the door to my room suddenly burst open.

“Twilight!”

Several distinct voices reached my ears and suddenly the princess-sized bed was filled with my friends and the Cutie Mark Crusaders.

Just past the pile of colorful ponies (and one dragon) stood Chrysalis, clearly too dignified to participate in the pony pileup (and having managed to avoid getting dragged in, unlike Rarity), but I was able to share a nod with her before my vision was filled with a very excited and very huggy Pinkie Pie. Just out of the corner of my eye I could see Celestia making a graceful exit from the room, also giving the Changeling Queen a nod on her way out.

Things were far from over. There were at least three other elders left to deal with, but for now I was happy to enjoy this small victory.

Canterlot was a very big castle with more secret passages and hidden rooms than even the most dedicated cleaning staff could hope to remember. Some of them had been created by Starswirl. Others had been added on as the castle staff expanded based on the changing times and the needs for governance over a growing population.

This particular room hadn't seen use in well over a hundred years, and while Celestia would have liked to keep it that way, there simply had been no other alternative. Nodding to the guard on duty, she descended the stairs into the Royal Canterlot Dungeon.

For the moment, it housed only two prisoners, both under a myriad of powerful barriers and restraints, many of which Celestia had a hoof in making. While she might not have known the specifics of the changeling’s magic and abilities, there was little that could get around the brute force bindings of an alicorn.

Sliding the metal gate aside and stepping through the shields, the princess began to slowly release the numerous restraints from Azure, even as the changeling continued to glare at her. The last binding to be removed was the golden thread around her muzzle.

“You have my apologies for the accommodations. We've never had a prisoner quite like yourself, so we had to take every precaution we could.” Even with the addition of the rug and the bed, the cell was a pretty dismal one.

The prisoner moved slowly at first, shifting her holed legs and gently rubbing her muzzle. “What did you do with my hive?” she asked finally.

“They're still within their homes in the Badlands, currently under the guard of my soldiers.”

“How can I believe that?”

“Please do not play games with me, Azure. Between the two of us, you are the least qualified to doubt the other’s word.”

The Elder gave a soft snort but ceded the point. “What do you want?”

“A good question. Perhaps I could have your actual name rather than your title,” said Celestia with a small smile.

Azure gave her a slightly surprised look but quickly turned her head away. “I gave up my name when I joined the Elders.”

“In an effort to preserve your race, as I understand it. Do you feel that their efforts have been fruitful?”

The changeling let out a scoff. “Sentence me and be done with it. Unlike that flea Chrysalis I know where my loyalties lie, and I'd sooner go to Tartarus than turn my back on my own kind!”

Celestia sighed and shook her head. “Your dedication is admirable but your acting could use some work. You do not wish to die for your cause any more than I wish to kill you for it.”

Azure said nothing but Celestia didn't need spoken confirmation. Her body language already said enough. “Things are changing for your race, Azure. Chrysalis has started something that cannot be stopped, and your only choice is to either embrace the coming changes or be swept aside in their wake.”

Azure remained silent but Celestia wasn't expecting a reply. “That said, as much as I would like your cooperation, you have neither earned nor sought my trust. Thus, I will give you the same choice I gave to Elder Crimson. Remain imprisoned until a time when it is safe to release you, or take the Mark of the Sun.”

Azure turned her gaze toward the alicorn princess. “And that is?”

“A rather unpleasant option, to say the least. It is a brand of sorts, one that must be taken willingly. You will be marked by my sun, and while you bear it, I will always know where you are. Additionally, with a quick application of my magic, I may choose to incinerate you.”

The former Changeling Queen let her ultimatum sink in. “And you wonder why the changelings fear you.”

“Part of the price of the brand is knowing exactly what freedoms you are sacrificing,” said Celestia.

“It's not an appealing choice either way.”

“You gave up your right to the more appealing choices when you kidnapped my ponies.”

Shakily, Azure got to her hooves to look Celestia directly in the eye. “What of my changelings? What happens to them?”

“If you choose to stay imprisoned, I will speak with Chrysalis about assimilating them into her hive.”

“What? You would give control of my hive to that-”

“You are stalling, Azure,” interrupted Celestia. “There is no third option to negotiate for, just a single choice in front of you.”

The Elder glared at the alicorn, briefly baring her fangs, but Celestia was unmoved. Trembling slightly with anxiety, Azure opened her suddenly dry mouth and made her choice.

Three days later...

It was as Derpy was delivering yet another stack of portfolios that I realized I was going to need an actual lab that wasn't just some haphazard workstation set up in the basement of the library. The first thing I'd done as the leader of this project was to send a request to Celestia for possible helpers, and she had come through with dozens of candidates.

Unicorns only made up a small percentage. Many were teachers and professors. Others were skilled secretaries and note-takers. Still others were adepts in the fields of Earth and Pegasus magic. None of them were from the magical R&D branch. It was clear that Celestia wanted to carefully limit how much exposure this magic received.

Pushing aside one stack that had been sorted into rejections and maybes, my eyes turned to a second stack. This one was from Chrysalis, detailing the changelings who had volunteered to be a part of this endeavor. Dusk’s name was among them, though Chrysalis seemed irritated by that fact

Letting out a sigh, I pushed the paperwork away and glanced out the window to where a construction project was taking place: the very first changeling embassy. Celestia had originally pushed for it to be in Canterlot, but Chrysalis had insisted on Ponyville, and with the goodwill she had earned from her part in saving the schoolchildren, the town had quickly come around to the idea.

While I was grateful for the smooth transition, part of me had to wonder just how relaxed Ponyville was that they could so easily write off a changeling invasion.

“Moron, idiot, colossal idiot, fool, sadist, and idiot.” The dulcet voice drew me out of my thoughts and my eyes turned toward Chrysalis, who was rifling through the files I had sorted and throwing several into the rejection pile.

“Should I even ask how you came to these conclusions?” I grumbled, resisting the urge to put them back into order with my magic.

The Changeling Queen smirked. “Your princess gave me leave to perform background checks on all of the applicants. I must say, Celestia's internal information network could use some updating. Or perhaps a complete overhaul.”

I sighed, but knew better than to argue the point with her. “We're running out of ponies, Chrysalis. Have any of them met your approval?”

The queen stared directly into my eyes. “Only one so far.”

The double entendre wasn't lost on me and I couldn't help but feel a bit flustered. “I can't do this job on my own, Chrysalis.”

Slightly irritated, the queen pulled out a folder from the stack and put it down in front of me. Glancing at the name I looked back at her in surprise. “You know this is Celestia's personal secretary, right?”

“If Celestia considers her competent, she should at least meet my lowest expectations.”

Flicking the folder into the previously empty 'accepted' tray, I gave Chrysalis a flat look. “Great, that's one whole pony. Now what about researchers, lab assistants, magic users, and security?”

Chrysalis returned my look with an equally blank one, ignoring my sarcasm. “Well, as for that last bit, take this one and anypony she recommends.”

I caught the folder with my magic as Chrysalis tossed it to me, my eyes widening as I read the name at the top. “Rainbow Dash?”

“I didn't even know you were interested,” I said an hour later to the rainbow-maned pegasus, her records spread out in front of me, though I hardly needed to look at them. For some reason that I couldn't put my hoof on, Dash seemed edgy, almost nervous, as she sat on the other side of my desk. “I mean, this is probably going to cut into your work as a weather-”

“They'll get on fine without me.”

I blinked, uncertain what to make of her short, sharp tone. “Well, obviously there isn't anypony I'd trust more than you with security, but are you really sure you want me eating up so much of your free time?”

“Twi, do you want me on or not?” Her tone was clearly irritated now.

“Well of course-”

“Then hire me!”

I hesitated for a moment before nodding. “Alright, I'll send a message to Celestia and you can help pick out the rest of the security detail.”

Rainbow let out a sigh of relief. “Thanks, Twi, you're not going to regret it.”

I nodded, certain she was right. “Now that you're on for sure, will you tell me why?”

The pegasus' face bore a look of discomfort once again. “Not here. Can you use that Cloud-Walking spell?”

I sighed, but quickly applied the spell and gave Rainbow a nod. In the next second I was suddenly out of the library and soaring through the sky, Rainbow's legs wrapped securely around me. Powerful wing beats took us high above Ponyville, and within seconds I was being set down on a large, fluffy cloud.

Outside in the clear sky, Rainbow seemed a lot less uncomfortable, but there was still a hint of nervousness surrounding her. “Look, Twi...do I really need to spell this out for you?”

I blinked, my train of thought slightly derailed. “Rainbow, I don't know-”

“Ugh, just be quiet for a minute, egghead!” My mouth snapped shut in surprise. “This is hard enough as it is.” Taking a breath, the pegasus finally spoke what was on her mind. “I like you, alright? Like...a lot.”

Part of me, a desperately hopeful part, had hoped this was coming. As if a wave were washing over my mind, the signs were adding up, one by one. Small hints, larger hints, friendly contact that seemed almost too friendly looking back...and yet my mind seemed desperate to find ways to excuse my blatant oversight and obliviousness.

“R...really? But when I was Fluttershy-”

“I lied, okay? I don't tell her all my secrets and the one I had my eye on was you!”

I could feel my cheeks reddening slightly in embarrassment. I wasn't sure what to say, but fortunately Rainbow Dash had plenty to let out. “Look, I'm sorry I'm springing this on you all at once. I thought I'd have more time, see if you were interested, test things out a bit, but now...”

She tried to find the words to finish her sentence, but I knew what she was implying even as she fumbled. My colossal screw up had happened, the changelings had happened, and above all else, Chrysalis had happened, and while I had completely misread Rainbow’s actions, the Changeling Queen's intent was impossible to misinterpret. Did Rainbow feel threatened by her? Should she be? I didn't have an answer to that.

The pegasus sighed, looking both relieved at getting the confession off her chest and nervous at what my response would be. “Rainbow Dash, I...” I hesitated, realizing I'd spoken before my thoughts had formed in an effort to fill the silence.

“You need time to think, right?” I nodded, mutely. “Need to make a checklist of my pros and cons?”

The small joke made me giggle unexpectedly. “Rainbow, I don't make lists for everything.”

“Liar, you're making a mental checklist right now.”

“Am not!”

“Twi, I can see your eyes moving from side to side like you're reading.”

“What? Really?”

“Oh yeah, it's a dead giveaway every time.”

I groaned in embarrassment, but at the same time I was glad the tension had been relieved somewhat. “Rainbow...I'm not completely certain...I mean...I really do like you, but...”

“You need more data?” said Rainbow with a grin. Blushing, I gave a short nod. “Lemme at least give you some help with that.” My mind caught up with her doublespeak a moment too late. She was in front of me now, inches away, her mouth slowly moving towards mine...and then our lips met.

Minutes later, I was still walking around in a slight daze. Normally I would have teleported, but right now I couldn't trust my concentration. Rainbow had been good. Very good. Gentle, but firm. Quick, yet sensual. While Chrysalis had been controlling and fierce, Rainbow had sought to draw me into the kiss before playfully taking control.

Automatically, I pushed open the door to the library, barely even acknowledging the Changeling Queen as I slumped down on one of the chairs.

“Finally worked up the nerve, did she?”

My mouth opened, the question almost escaping me before I realized who I was talking to. “Was it that obvious to you as well?”

Chrysalis scoffed. “Even if I couldn't sense her obvious emotions, any half-observant pony could have picked up on the signs. Why else do you think I picked her for your security detail? Her affection for you was already a point in her favor, even putting aside her status as the Bearer of Loyalty.”

Well, when she put it that way, I was a bit ashamed I hadn't considered her sooner. Perhaps I had subconsciously passed over her because she never really advertised the skills she’d learned from the Wonderbolts.

“It's going to make things a bit difficult for me but I'm willing to make the sacrifice,” said Chrysalis with an over-dramatic sigh. “Still, I'm not afraid of competition.”

I blinked twice and realized that my mind had stumbled again before glaring at Chrysalis. “You're doing this on purpose, aren't you?” I accused.

“I did say your embarrassment was a rather tasty snack, didn't I?”

Growling, I jumped to my hooves and stormed up the stairs, intent on taking a nap and sorting out this mess later. I didn't notice Chrysalis' teleport until she was suddenly in front of me, forcing me to stop short to avoid running into her.

“I hope you aren't dismissing my playful and flirtatious tone as insincere,” said Chrysalis, suddenly serious.

“What? No! I just-”

“Just thought I was trying to keep you off guard? Maybe. But that's not all. Not anymore.”

Dozens of contingencies flew through my mind. Teleportation, telekinesis, personal shield...but my mind froze as Chrysalis approached. There was no poison this time, just the soft smooth feeling of her body against mine, a holed hoof around my neck, and her playful tongue inviting me into a warm kiss. It was sweet, pleasant, and the opposite of everything I had expected from her. A soft moan bubbled up from my mouth and Chrysalis swallowed it eagerly.

After what seemed like a small age, Chrysalis finally pulled away, giving my muzzle one final lick with her long tongue. “I believe I've made myself clear, yes?”

With a start, I realized she hadn’t even siphoned off any of my emotions. She had kissed me for the simple pleasure of the act, and I could only sit there as my self-consciousness reached critical levels. I needed room and time to think, and my mind finally seized upon a plan.

Celestia smiled as she read over the letter and looked at the small package that had been sent along with it, feeling as though she could breathe easy again. “She has come through, as expected,” said the white alicorn, pushing the box toward her sister. Luna withdrew a curiously shaped amulet with a crystal-clear gem set in the center.

“Odd, I don't sense much magic from it,” said Luna curiously. “What is it supposed to do?”

Celestia chuckled and gave Luna the note as well. “Level the playing field, at least a little bit. Tell me, which of our captives do you find more agreeable?”

Luna looked thoughtful as she finished the letter. “I'd prefer to cut the crimson one loose if there's something to be gained from it. She seems intent on starving herself no matter what we offer her.”

“My thoughts exactly, dear sister. Let's pay her a visit, shall we? I believe we have sufficient motivation for her now.”

Far below the dining room of the two sisters, the Crimson Elder’s head perked up slightly as she heard the bars slide back, shifting uncomfortably in her bindings, many of which had been acquired from her previous escape attempt when she'd found there was much more protecting the cells than just mere walls. Her expression barely changed when she saw who it was. “More questions? I thought I made my position clear.”

Celestia simply smiled and looked toward her sister. “Well?”

“Ten meters, just like she said.” The changeling’s eyes followed their gaze to an amulet being worn around the Lunar Princess' neck, set with a crystal-clear gem that was glowing faintly. “I can even feel a slight tug on my magic pointing me toward her.”

“A remarkably simple and elegant solution,” said Celestia with a nod. “We appreciate your assistance, Crimson.”

“What sort of game are you playing, princess?” she snapped, practically snarling out the last word.

“No games, Crimson.” With a bright flash of a golden light, she suddenly found her bindings removed and her body unrestrained. “You are welcome to leave whenever you wish, and you're free to take this as a souvenir.”

Grasped gently in Luna's magic, the softly glowing amulet floated toward the Elder and rested beside her. “And this is?”

“An efficient, non-intrusive, easy to use, and inexpensive method of detecting changelings,” explained Celestia calmly. “We've already produced several dozen of them, so giving one away won't be an issue. I wouldn't recommend trying to tamper with it, though, they can be a bit fragile.”

The changeling stared at the amulet, a small tremor of fear starting to spread through her body. There was no doubt in her mind that Celestia was telling the truth, even before she checked her emotions and found only sincerity. “What do you want from me?”

“Nothing unreasonable, I assure you,” said Celestia kindly. “I simply wish for a chance to speak with Queen Aurum.”

Her eyes widened in surprise. “How...?”

“Not every changeling is willing to starve themselves for the cause.”

The Elder swallowed and shook her head. “She'll never meet with you.”

“Really? That is a shame. Then can you pass along a message for me?”

Celestia waited for a response, but Crimson was unresponsive. Letting out a sigh of resignation, she began to speak. “If Queen Aurum does not want to meet with me and refuses any and all diplomatic solutions, then I shall be forced to take drastic measures to ensure no further harm comes to my ponies. I'm very sure that Equestria's allies will be keen on detecting changelings within their midst, and I'll be more than happy to supply them with all of the amulets they need to do so.”

The Elder was momentarily speechless. She wanted to feel angry, but all she could muster was a sort of grim resignation. “You intend to starve us out?”

“No, Crimson, I intend to negotiate. I shall have a guard detail along shortly to escort you out. Do take care.”

The slam of the bars closing behind the two sisters made her flinch, her eyes fixated on the glowing amulet. Finally she cursed, snatching it with her magic and placing it around her neck.

Rainbow whistled softly as she flew a slow circle around the bright purple shield that had completely encased the library. “Man, and I thought the monster shield Shiny put around Canterlot was powerful.”

It didn't take long for Rainbow's keen eyes to spot the black and green figure of Chrysalis just outside the perimeter, and even less time for her to put two and two together. Landing next to Chrysalis, the pegasus opened with a glare and an accusatory tone. “What did you do?”

Chrysalis gave her a cheeky smile. “The same thing you did, but with a lot more elegance.”

Rainbow took to the sky, flying right up close to the Changeling Queen's face, though unlike most ponies she'd done this to, Chrysalis didn't budge an inch. “What's your game, huh? Why are you suddenly so interested in her?”

“Because she's the first pony who’s ever given a damn about my race. Yesterday, when she finally devised her detection method, do you know the first thing she did?”

Surprised, Rainbow drew back slightly and shook her head. “She came to me first and told me everything. Showed me how her method worked and asked if it was okay to send to Princess Celestia. She was worried about how it would impact me and my kin, even over the need for security.”

Rainbow Dash slumped to the ground, her wings folding at her sides. “You're serious about this, aren't you?”

Chrysalis nodded, her gaze turning back toward the shield. “Very.”

Dash let out a sigh, but her eyes quickly hardened. “There's no way I'm going to lose her to you,” she said finally before storming off...or at least she attempted to, before a sudden magical force pulled her back by the tail.

“Rainbow, wait a moment...please.”

The pegasus bit back her retort and instead gave the Changeling Queen a look that asked 'Well?'

“If you don't mind my asking, why do you like her?”

Rainbow hesitated before looking around almost conspiratorially to see if anypony else was listening. “It's...because she pushes me. Other ponies are always intimidated by my abilities or try to push me down to push themselves up, but you know what Twi did? She was so excited about my Sonic Rainboom that she worked with me for days on end just to see how far I could push myself. She studied Pegasus magic for my sake even though she'll never be able to use it herself.”

There was a long moment of silence as the two of them simply stared at the vibrant shield in front of them. Unlike most shields, this was solidly opaque. “Rainbow, have you ever been part of a love triangle before?” asked Chrysalis finally.

The pegasus slowly shook her head. “Never.”

“Neither have I, but through the memories of my hive, I've seen it played out dozens upon dozens of times. Very few end well for anypony involved.”

“So you're saying that one of us should give up?”

“Would you?”

“As if!”

“Then no. I am proposing the opposite, rather.”

Rainbow stared at the changeling, mouth agape. “Wait...you're not seriously saying-”

“I am,” said Chrysalis, completely serious.

“But...Twilight-”

“Might be more open to the idea than you think, especially considering the alternatives.”

It was still hard for Rainbow to believe that she was being serious about this, even as she continued to speak in a level tone, not even a hint of playfulness in her voice. “You know, we're not exactly friends. What makes you think this has a snowball’s chance in Tartarus of working?”

To her surprise, Chrysalis smiled at her. “Well, I think that's one thing we could try and change. I have it on good authority that this ‘friendship’ thing is worth trying out, and changelings are quite adept at handling group dynamics.”

Rainbow opened her mouth and closed it again. Was there any harm in refusing? Even putting aside all the triangle stuff, getting to know the changeling she was going to be guarding was probably a good idea, right?

“Can you even eat normal pony food, or would you prefer to just suck the waitress dry?”

Chrysalis chuckled lightly. “Why yes, Rainbow, I'd love to go somewhere and eat. Did you have a place in mind?”

“Yeah, I guess...but just so we're clear, I'm only doing this for Twilight's sake!”

“Of course. I'll try not to enjoy myself too much.”

“I'm already starting to regret this. I don't suppose you’ll be paying anything, will you?”

Chrysalis’ chuckle was her only response.

I desperately wanted to cast a Clairaudience spell. The shield I'd put around the library was probably one of the best I'd ever made, but while I could see out and look at my head of security and future research partner talking, I couldn't listen through the shield without breaking it.

“Those two are up to something,” I grumbled, but I could only speculate at this point as I watched the two of them fly off together. Well, at least things hadn't come to blows.

“Spike, do you ever get one of those feelings that something significant just occurred but you're not really sure what it is?” I asked as my assistant entered the study.

“No, and unless you want to do your own shopping, you should lower the shield,” he grumbled with obvious irritation.

“Oh...sorry, Spike,” I said sheepishly, slowly letting the magic filter away until the shield was gone.

Things were moving quickly now, almost too quickly for me to keep up. Two months ago, Chrysalis' presence would have caused a panic in Ponyville, but now she could openly fly through the place with an Element of Harmony at her side. Two weeks ago, we would have likely attacked any changelings on sight, but now at least one faction were our allies.

Now all I had to worry about was whatever Rainbow and Chrysalis were planning, and for some reason, it felt like it was going to be a lot more effective than any of Azure or Crimson's plans.

Author's Note

Blog post. Things are explained there. http://www.fimfiction.net/blog/478498/finished-at-last-sort-of