A shaggy brown pegasus lay sprawled on the red carpet before Princess Celestia’s throne, too exhausted to stand and bow after his long flight. She didn’t begrudge him the impropriety; the fact that Chocolate Chunk was there at all was nothing short of a miracle. He had flown in all the way from the Badlands without rest in order to deliver his warning in time.
The changelings were coming.
Princess Celestia bowed her head to the quivering pegasus and gently said, “I thank you from the bottom of my heart, Chocolate. You have done more than anypony could have asked, and your warning arrived in time. Now please, get some rest. I will have one of the maids prepare a guestroom for you.”
Chocolate Chunk shakily pulled himself to his hooves and gave her a wan smile. “Thank you, your highness. But with all due respect, I can’t rest now. I have family here in Canterlot, and you’re going to need every able-bodied pony you can get.”
The impulse to order him into bed was a tiny one, and easily checked. Celestia had learned millennia ago that those sorts of orders never went unbroken. After all these years, she still couldn’t decide whether that trait was admirable or aggravating. Fortunately for both her peace of mind and his soundness of body, there was a much more effective way of dealing with well-meaning ponies.
“I would not dream of rejecting the help of a brave and loyal pony such as yourself,” she said with full sincerity. “However, there is nothing for you to do right now, and I will need you at your very best if there truly are as many changelings as you say. Please, for my sake, allow yourself some time to recuperate.”
Chocolate hesitated for a second. Celestia cut him off before he could voice his next objection, though.
“If you would be so kind as to provide my secretary with an address, she will arrange for somepony to tell your family where you are and escort them here to the palace if they wish to come.”
The cloud of indecision lifted at last from Chocolate Chunk’s eyes. He bowed his head low. “Thank you so much, princess.” He swallowed. “I won’t let you down.”
Celestia smiled at him. “I know. You have already proven that.”
The smile that Chocolate Chunk returned was a sight that she wouldn’t trade for all the world. There was a little bit of hesitation at first, like a foal standing on the edge of a diving board, but then he leapt right in and gave everyone around him a great big splash of happiness. Smiles like that were what made her duties worth doing.
A murmur of consternation crawled its way through the crowd as Chocolate finally let one of the guards lead him away. His dramatic entry had thoroughly disrupted her afternoon court, and while the assembly of petitioners and nobleponies were taking it all a good deal better than they might have, it was still perhaps not as well as she would have liked.
Almost everypony was trading hushed whispers with their neighbors, and their attitudes ran the gamut from nervous stoicism to emerging panic. A few ponies even took the momentary break in action as their chance to slip out and find their families.
If Chocolate's news was true, it wouldn’t be long before Canterlot was inundated with more changelings than anypony had ever dreamed existed.
“Aegis!” Celestia called out after the doors had closed behind the exiting ponies.
A white unicorn stallion with steel grey mane and eyes, wearing the golden armor of the palace guard, stepped forward and saluted. “Yes, your Highness?”
“Begin preparations to defend the city. I want every able-bodied pony you can get, off duty, reserve, or volunteer, ready for battle in two hours. Also, please send somepony to wake my sister and bring her here.”
“At once, Princess.” Aegis saluted and left the room at a gallop.
Celestia let her gaze swing out over the assembled ponies. She took in the expressions on their faces one by one. There was plenty of fear and confusion to be seen, but also confidence, love, and trust.
“I am afraid that I must adjourn court early today so that I may I consult with my sister and advisors.” Then she gave them all the warmest smile she had. “Do not fear, my little ponies. Everything will be alright.”
***
Civic Duty, Equestria’s Minister of the Interior, stomped her hoof. “We need Shining Armor! There isn’t anypony else with enough skill in shielding magic to cover the whole city!”
“I understand that, Civic,” Celestia said, struggling to maintain her expression of calm serenity. Civic Duty was a brilliant bureaucrat, but was prone to minor breakdowns when out of her depth. They did not have the time to waste discussing impossible solutions though, and Celestia was quickly running out of patience with her. “But Shining Armor is—”
Luna’s voice suddenly cut her off, ringing throughout the throne room with firm authority. “Shining Armor is in the Crystal Empire, and if what Aegis tells me is true, we do not have nearly enough time to send for him. I thank you for sending somepony to wake me this time, sister.”
The small assembly of advisors gathered at the foot of the thrones all bowed as one while Luna strode towards them, her head high and her expression dour.
“This news is most distressing. We do not even have enough time to summon Twilight Sparkle from Ponyville, though I hope you have already sent her a message at least. How could it be that we have been caught so badly off guard?”
Celestia rose and stepped down from the throne to meet her sister, giving her an affectionate nuzzle. “I have informed Twilight, and yes, it is distressing, but I’m sure that we will overcome this challenge like we have every one that came before it.”
Celestia’s smile slipped as she tried to answer the second question while they ascended to their thrones. “Chocolate Chunk, the messenger who brought the warning, says that the changeling swarm is flying high and fast. They have ignored every city, town, and pony along the way in their dash for Canterlot. They take no stops for food or rest, and are moving at an inequine pace. Chocolate was only able to get ahead of them because he was well rested and has had extensive long-distance flight training. Aegis sent out a wing of his fastest pegasi to confirm, and...”
Celestia sighed. She had become known for a great many things over time. Her kindness as a ruler, her savviness as a politician, and her steadfastness as a leader were almost legend throughout Equestria. In truth, she owed a great deal of that reputation to a mask of serenity she habitually wore. Still waters are not always quite so peaceful beneath the surface.
Celestia lowered her eyes to the floor and, for once, allowed a little of her uncertainty to show through.
“It’s bad, Luna. The changelings are less than two hours away from Canterlot, and the scouts weren’t even able to estimate how many there are; thousands for sure, and probably several times as many as they had during their assault at the wedding.
“All those new changeling detection spells and policies in place, and every single one is useless because I never imagined that they would forego deception altogether. I know we can overcome this, but I have to admit that I’m coming up short on how.”
Luna leaned over and placed her hoof on Celestia’s shoulder. “I have some thoughts, if you would care to hear them.”
Celestia gave her sister a relieved smile while their advisors all pricked their ears up with visible eagerness. “Of course, Luna.”
“The old crystal mines beneath Canterlot would be an ideal place to gather the civilians. They have many narrow entrances and passageways that can be easily defended. The changelings would be hard pressed if they tried to take the fight into the caverns, and that strategy would also free up most of our soldiers to defend key points throughout the city.
“Should the absolute worst-case scenario comes to pass, the civilians could then use the entrances at the base of the mountain to escape under the cover of night. If all goes well, we could remove tens of thousands from harm’s way.”
Celestia considered for a moment. “That idea may be sound, Luna, but why haven’t you mentioned this before?”
Luna turned her head away as an expression of embarrassment made its way onto her face.
“After my abysmal showing the last time—or rather, my utter lack of one—I spent quite a few nights trying to figure out what could be done if something like it were to happen again. However, there are many grave issues that I have not been able to resolve yet.
“There are a great many ponies who simply cannot get to the mines, the ill and infirm, as well as those who are too slow or too far away to make it to an entrance before the swarm arrives.
“The press of ponies will be dangerous in itself, both inside the mines and as they are trying to enter. I fear that many would be injured or even killed. Children especially would be in great danger of being trampled underfoot.
“Another thing to consider is that we will also not be able to house the population there for long because of problems with the air circulation. I have not been able to determine what the time limit is, but I can’t imagine it would be more than half a day at most, even with magical aid.
“I wanted to address as many of those issues as I could before presenting the idea to you since I did not think that time was a pressing issue - a grievous mistake in hindsight. Now we have to fix in a few minutes what I could not resolve in months. Two hours is not enough time.”
Celestia nodded, as much to herself as to Luna and said. “No, it’s not, but none of us have a better plan to offer, and time is short. It will have to do.”
She cleared her throat and turned to the advisors, who returned her gaze with carefully neutral, expectant ones of their own. “Civic!”
Civic Duty bowed deeply “Yes, Your Majesty?”
“I want you and your staff to work with Luna to make that plan workable and begin the evacuation. The two of you will also be in charge of organizing the defenses for the mines, while Aegis and I will work out how to best protect the city and anypony we can’t get out in time.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“Two hours is not enough, Civic,” Celestia said softly. “I’m choosing you because efficiency and organization are what we need more than anything else. You are the mare I go to for those. Do not let yourself get sidetracked or caught up in fear again. Every second wasted will be measured in lives.”
Civic Duty gulped audibly, then bowed again. “Y-yes, your majesty.”
***
Celestia and Aegis were finalizing the plans for Canterlot’s defense when the swarm was spotted. She quietly excused herself and retired to a balcony in order to see them with her own eyes. In spite of everything, she let out a small sigh of relief when she spotted the small blot on the horizon. A known enemy, no matter how dangerous, was far less frightening than an enigma.
Her good feeling was short-lived though. The changelings might be visible, but the enigma was still there. After a few minutes of quiet contemplation, she softly voiced her uncertainties to the air. “I don’t understand. Why would they make a frontal assault when their advantage lies in stealth and trickery?”
It was Luna, rather than the air, that answered her question as she stepped out to join Celestia on the balcony. “If I were leading the changelings, this is certainly not how I would go about an attack.”
Celestia jumped a little at the unexpected answer. She let out an embarrassed smile as Luna came up beside her, but her attention was quickly caught again by the expanding spot on the horizon. It was growing much faster than she liked.
"This seems… wasteful,” Luna continued. “However, I can’t say it runs counter to their previous behavior, either. Chrysalis’s army wasn’t exactly subtle during the last invasion.”
“No.” The word surprised Celestia. She hadn’t meant to say it. However, now that she had, she was determined to tease out whatever her mind had already realized. She chewed on her next few words, trying to organize her thoughts as she spoke them aloud.
“This is different. Last time, they still had their drones assume pony form until they closed on the city, and Queen Chrysalis herself replaced Cadance so she could undermine our defenses. Perhaps the changelings did not use their abilities to their full potential, but they did use them.”
She snorted and stamped her hoof in frustration. “We’re missing something. Something both obvious and important. Did they get through our defenses again? Has somepony been compromised?”
Luna frowned at that. “I don’t see how. Twilight and Shining Armor personally oversaw the emplacement of our new security measures, and they were very thorough. I suppose it would be imprudent to disregard the possibility, though.”
A small, creeping suspicion brushed up against the back of Celestia’s mind like the touch of spider legs against her neck. She couldn’t help but cast a sideways glance at Luna.
Would she know if her sister had been replaced? She wanted to say that of course she would, but a bitter, cynical pony deep in the back of her mind pointed out that she hadn’t noticed last time one of Equestria’s princesses had been kidnapped by changelings, neither had she noticed Luna’s odd behavior a thousand years ago until it was too late. Much as she would have liked to believe the myth of infallible wisdom that her ponies had built up around her, the naked truth was that she had a bad history where these things were concerned.
Luna noticed her unease. The reaction was small, but unmistakable. Celestia saw it in the way her ears drooped a fraction and the corners of her mouth followed, how the muscles along her shoulders tightened and her wings twitched as if they wanted to extend and take her away from this place. If any changeling knew enough about Luna to imitate her that perfectly, then an army was redundant. Then Equestria was already conquered.
No, Luna was still Luna, and she felt it keenly when somepony didn’t trust her.
Celestia scrambled for something to say. Whatever she came up with wouldn’t undo the damage already done, but she had to try. “If a changeling has somehow penetrated our defenses, there is no way for us to know until it is too late,” she said. Her voice was a little weak at first, but gathered strength as she realized she believed what she was saying. “Paranoia at this stage would only weaken and divide us. I think we should put faith in Twilight’s abilities. After all, she has never failed us before, not when it came to something important.”
She frowned as another thought struck her. “It could be that they are counting on us to tear ourselves apart out of paranoia. It is easy to jump at shadows when there might be changelings hiding in them, and the longer we go without finding them, the more likely we are to see changelings where they don’t exist.”
To her great relief, Luna smiled. It was small and tenuous, but it was there.
“Yes, I think we can trust in Twilight.” Soon enough though, Luna’s smile melted away into another frown, not one of sadness, but of confusion. “Counting on disharmony in our ranks is a shaky foundation to launch an invasion from. Would any leader really risk so much on such a gamble?”
Celestia sighed and looked back to the approaching swarm. “I don’t know. Who really understands how changelings think? Did you know that Twilight believes they have a form of shared telepathy?
“If they are relying on us to undermine ourselves, it speaks of an alien mind, one which either doesn’t understand ponies at all, or understands us so well we can’t do anything.”
“It is the first,” Luna said resolutely. “If it were the second, we would have lost the last time.”
The two princesses turned their gazes back to the horizon. Celestia had never been one to doubt the word of her ponies, but she was beginning to wonder if she still hadn’t taken Chocolate Chunk seriously enough. What had started out as nothing more than a tiny blot in the distance slowly grew into a smudge and then a blemish.
Minute after minute, the swarm grew in size until it took on the appearance of a seething, glinting black cloud of smoke in the distance.
A rare sense of dread stole over Celestia as one single question muffled all her other thoughts. How many ponies would Luna and Civic Duty be able to evacuate before the swarm arrived?
Celestia was roused from her own worries by soft, shaking words from Luna. “How is this possible? Even Equestria on a full war footing could not field such a force. How have they have done this without us learning of it until now? How can they support an army of this size?”
“I… don’t know.”
Another minute ticked by while Celestia pondered the alien scene in front of her. Slowly, almost timidly, a fragment of an idea crawled into her head. She wasn’t entirely sure what it was or where it would lead, but she instinctively knew it would be key to understanding all of this.
“We’re making the wrong assumptions.”
Luna glanced quizzically at her. “About what, pray tell?”
“About… about why. About… how the changelings think.”
Luna’s confused expression only grew stronger. “How so? If anything, we are being overly cautious about not making assumptions. They are like nothing we have ever seen before.”
Inspiration struck.
“That’s where we’re going wrong!” Celestia whirled around and caught Luna in an embrace. “They’re ponies, Luna! We can negotiate with them!”
A sound escaped Luna’s lips, something between a gasp of shock and a bark of laughter. She jabbed her hoof at the darkening sky. “Negotiate? With that?!”
“No, think about it! The last invasion didn’t make any sense. Changelings are made for lying and intrigue. They can replace whomever they want with no one the wiser. Why would they forgo all that when an invasion is the worst possible way to get what they want anyway?”
Celestia waved her hoof at the oncoming swarm.
“They could have won, Luna, if only they had played to their strengths. Easily. Queen Chrysalis had Cadance. She could have taken us and the rest of the government at her leisure and fed off of the love of our citizens forever. Equestria would have been conquered with no one the wiser.
“All this time, we thought that it had to be some changeling thing that pushed them to do it, some twist of psychology, or biology, or something else, because it just doesn’t make any sense!”
Celestia grinned. “But what if we leave the “bug” out of “shape-changing, love-eating, bug-ponies” for just one moment? What if we look at them as just another enemy of the state, and Chrysalis as just another queen? What does that tell us about her?”
Luna scrunched up her face. “That she is a blithering idiot with delusions of grandeur?”
Celestia’s first giggle caught her off guard, the second left her feeling horribly inappropriate, and it was only by the time the third one hit that she noticed Luna’s smirk.
“I think you are on to something, though. Idiots do love their negotiations.”
Celestia couldn't help herself. Maybe she needed a break from the stress of the moment, or perhaps it really was just that funny, but she found herself laughing so hard that she actually had to lean on Luna just to stay upright.
Yes, she was the real Luna. There was only one pony who knew Celestia well enough to make her laugh so freely, and that was her sister.
Celestia’s good humor was only temporary of course, but it did wonders for dispelling her fear. She wiped a tear from her eye and stood up straight, stifling the last of the giggles as best she could.
“I’ll give you ‘delusions of grandeur,’ but I’m not so sure about ‘blithering idiot.’ I still have to keep my pride after all.”
The moment over, Celestia sobered up once again as she went on. “Chrysalis’s plan was flawed, but it worked perfectly. She was barely even trying and still knew all the right buttons to push. Even when Twilight almost revealed her plan, she manipulated us—no, me—with frightening ease. Shining Armor may have been under her control, but I don’t have that excuse. Even after the reveal, she had everything in place. Her changelings were ready to storm the city the instant that the shield came down, and she even had what amounted to a small army positioned solely to prevent Twilight and her friends from reaching the Elements of Harmony.
“I don’t think that she expected me to fight her directly, but she still beat me easily. The only reason she was foiled in the end was because of a moment of carelessness on her part and a stroke of luck on ours.” Celestia frowned. “No, she’s not dumb.”
“But she is proud,” Luna finished.
Celestia nodded silently.
Luna stepped away from Celestia and began to pace.
“Or perhaps vainglorious would be a better description. She could have come up with a better plan, but she wanted one that showed off her accomplishments. She wanted to be seen.”
Luna paused and looked down at her hooves with a bitter expression on her face. “Yes, I can believe that motivation. It reminds me very much of another pony I know.”
Celestia stepped forward and draped a wing over Luna’s back, drawing her into a hug. Luna leaned back into it with a tiny smile on her lips. The pain from that time hadn’t faded for either of them yet, but they didn’t need to exchange any more words about the subject, only love.
All too soon, though, she pulled away and got back to business. “I remember ‘Cadance’ in the days leading up to the wedding. In hindsight, the act was not very convincing. We know she understands ponies well enough to do better than that, though. I think, even then, part of her wanted to be seen. Perhaps she is tired of hiding in the shadows.”
“Yes.” Celestia nodded. “Her greatest weakness is that she needs to satisfy her pride as much as she needs to win.”
A moment went by, then Luna pointed at the approaching swarm and said, “If this is pride, then I pray we never see humility.”
A deep chill passed through Celestia, the kind that seemed to cut straight through her fur and skin, like a damp winter wind blowing in off the ocean. She rubbed one foreleg over the other to try and relieve the cold that had settled in her bones.
A grave silence fell over the two of them. It was the sort of quietness that befalls two ponies who are nearing the end of a conversation, neither of whom wants to say the words that actually bring it to a close.
Nevertheless, Celestia smiled and broke it anyway. “It will be all right, Luna. Now that we understand her at least a little bit, we might still be able to end this without bloodshed.”
Luna frowned as she thought that over and watched the blight on the sky grow ever darker. “I am not so optimistic. Ponies like the mare you describe can rarely be swayed from their course. We should still continue with the original plan.”
Celestia didn’t have to do more than nod. Their roles in the defense of Canterlot had already been decided. Luna might not have Shining Armor’s skill with shielding magic, but in the narrow confines of the mines, she had more than enough power to render the tunnels impregnable and free up the bulk of their soldiers for the defense of the city and the ponies who couldn’t make it to shelter in time.
Luna’s expression turned sour. “I understand that my part in this plan is vital, but I do not at all like that I am to hide away in the tunnels whilst you and the soldiers fight. I expect you to keep me abreast of events as they unfold, especially if you manage to open up negotiations with Chrysalis. I may not be able to lend you my sword, but I can still lend counsel.”
Celestia nodded once more. “I will. I already have a spell ready to record transcripts of everything spoken in the throne room and I will send copies to you at regular intervals, as well as to Twilight and Cadance.”
Luna nodded firmly at that. “That is good. I shall take my leave. There is more for me to do before the changelings arrive.”
She turned to leave, then hesitated and looked back over her shoulder.
“Be careful, sister.”
Celestia smiled and said, “I will. Thank you.”
***
Celestia had never seen anything like the scene that lay before her eyes. Much to the dismay of her guards, she had chosen to conduct the rest of her strategy meeting on the balcony after Luna left so that she could watch the swarm as it approached. Now she wished she hadn’t.
The entire southern half of the sky was filled with thousands upon thousands of changelings, a swirling mass of black chitin and glinting wings. They didn’t just outnumber the soldiers—there were more changelings in the sky than there were ponies in Canterlot, and more pouring over the horizon every minute.
The changelings drew overhead and night fell. It was two hours from sunset, but still night fell as the creatures above blotted out the sun. A drone filled the air, resonating deep in Celestia’s chest and skull until she felt like she couldn’t breathe. The only thought that managed to pierce through the horrible thrumming was that Canterlot was already lost. It would be a slaughter if they fought.
A flight of pegasi ascended from the city streets and made for the opposite horizon as fast as their wings could carry them—probably some of the civilians who hadn’t made it to the crystal caverns. It was hard to tell from this distance, but one of them looked brown; Celestia wondered if it might be Chocolate Chunk trying to get his family out of the city. The last thing she saw before the guards ushered her inside was the changelings falling upon her city like rain. The pegasi weren’t going to make it out in time.
“Aegis.”
It took a supreme effort of will, but Celestia managed to keep her voice steady through that one word and the ones that followed.
“How many civilians were we able to evacuate?”
To his credit, Aegis’s answer was as steady as her question. “Almost half, Your Majesty.”
Celestia closed her eyes and took in a long breath. There was only one responsible course of action left to her. All she could do was pray that it wouldn’t be as disastrous a decision as she feared.
“Fly a white banner from the top tower.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.” Aegis bowed and ran off.
Celestia held her head high as she strode into the throne room and began dictating a letter for the transcription spell.
“Dear Luna, Cadance, and Twilight. The changelings are here in even greater numbers than we thought and it has become clear that we cannot hold the city. I will have my troops protect the mine entrances so that we can continue the evacuation as long as possible, and, in the meantime, I will try to open up negotiations with their Queen.”
Everypony in the room, the advisors and some of the soldiers who had stayed behind to hold the palace, stopped what they were doing and stared as she uttered her next words.
“Luna, I am also sending you the rest of my staff and all the soldiers I can spare through the palace’s entrance to the crystal mines. When they have made it through, please seal it off so that the changelings will have no avenue of attack if negotiations fail. Please protect our ponies, Luna. I love you all and wish you good speed. Celestia.”
***
Celestia had never seen her throne room as empty as it was now. Even during that hushed phase after construction had finished but before it was officially put into use, it had still been filled with flurries of life. There were decorators running back and forth making last minute adjustments, cleaning staff doing what they did best, and VIPs who wanted to see the new palace before anyone else. Today, there was only herself, four guards who had refused to leave, and the unending drone of changeling wings.
Then, even that passed, and the whole city seemed to hold its breath. The longest ten minutes of her life passed in utter silence.
Celestia’s heart leapt into her throat when the silence was broken by a creak from the opposite end of the room. Slowly, ever so slowly, the huge set of double doors swung open to reveal Queen Chrysalis.
For one long moment, she stood there in the open doorway, her head held high and a haughty expression on her face. On her head, she wore the black and twisted crown that signified her rank. A pendant hung from her neck, a bright blue stone set in gold and dangling on a thin silver chain.
A horde of changelings swarmed past her, streaming into the room like a glittering black sea. However, in spite of their numbers, the changelings stopped well short of her throne and her four wary bodyguards, leaving a half-circle of clear floor and an aisle leading back to the doors.
Queen Chrysalis entered and the whole room fell into silence. Even the sound of rustling wings and moving bodiesceased, leaving only the tapping of her hooves on the marble floor as she approached the throne.
Finally, Chrysalis stepped into the half-circle and came to a halt at the foot of the throne. She bent her front legs and dipped her head into a low bow.
“I surrender.”
