The Crystal Empire, seat of the Princess of Love's power. Nestled as it was in the northern reaches of Equestira, it was as far from Canterlot as it could be without being outside of the nation's boundaries. This meant it was also far from Celestia's watchful gaze and while Princess Cadence did her best to ensure the safety of the empire with the help of Shining Armor, there were chinks in the defense. Her gaze was cast inward, protecting the inside of her walls, which meant that a small force could slip in unseen if their goal was somewhere amid the snow...
A few hundred miles from the throne of the Crystal Empire, four cloaked ponies marched unrelenting through the snow. They allowed the cloaks to flutter in the freezing wind as if the cold meant nothing to them. Beneath the cloaks, the ponies were clad in full suits of blackened leather, shards of frost clinging to the strengthened material that covered them entirely. It was the type of thing a pony ready for a fight on the run would wear.
They were positioned in a diamond pattern with militaristic precision and when the leader lifted his hoof, they stopped as one. Up ahead of them, barely visible through the unwavering snowstorm that billowed around them, the light of a torch could be seen. The leader of the four cloaked ponies made a few rapid gestures with his hooves and the ponies to either side of him quickly dashed to the left and right, vanishing into the storm to await their next move.
The remaining pony fell in line behind their leader, lowering their heads against the storm as the plodded forward through the barren landscape toward the torchlight. It was placed at the entrance to a cave opening, sheltered under a shielding spell to protect it from the wind. Milling about, four crystal pony stallions, their shining fur hidden beneath suits of full plate mail, stood watch. Each one had a bored look upon their face, as if their post was a chore beneath them. Two of them sported horns from under their helmets, marking them as unicorns as opposed to their fellows: an earth pony with a halberd placed in the saddle-mount at his side and a pegasus with a gilded rapier sheathed within easy reach at his side.
A low conversation was being held between the four that quickly died away as their visitors appeared like ghosts from the storm. The earth pony moved forward to meet the strangers, “Halt! Identify yourselves!” He called out at them, causing them to pause in their stride. They did not answer him, making him frown and furrow his brow. Motioning to the pegasus, he moved toward the shrouded ponies, the pegasus following the earth pony, loosening his rapier in its sheath. Behind them, the unicorns stood at the ready, horns alight with a prepared spell.
The strangers made no move at all as they were approached, “Identify yourselves,” the earth pony demanded again, “you are in a restricted area, orders from both her highness, Princess Cadence, and the ruling sisters!” His furious gaze never left the cloaked ponies and still they did not answer him. Finally, he closed the last bit of distance and hooked his halberd under the front pony's hood, flicking it up to reveal the pony, “I said, Identi-”
He froze mid-sentence as the wind picked up, aiding in removing the hood. Beneath the hood was a head lacking fur. Instead, it was covered in a smooth, black-gray carapace, like an insect. The ears on either side of the pony's head looked like he had been attacked by monsters from the Everfree Forest. A single, hooked horn grew out of his forehead, matching the smoothness of his skin. A pair of unyielding, reflection-less blue orbs met the horrified look on the earth pony's face and the insect-like pony allowed himself an evil grin, revealing his sharp, monstrous teeth as the earth pony all but whispered:
“Changelings...”
He spun on his hooves, intending to retreat back to the protection spell and have the unicorns seal the cave entrance before sending a message to Princess Cadence. What he saw behind him was a scene of horror. The two unicorns lay on either side of the cave entrance where their lifeless bodies had been tossed, staining the white snow red. He drew up short, his eyes moving up to where the other two changelings were holding the pegasus between them, a single, slim saber sunk between his ribs. With grins that mirrored that of their leader, they dropped the pegasus to the ground after one of them retrieved their saber.
“What a waste,” a hissing voice sounded from behind the lone guard, “all that love we could have harvested at their funerals... alas, there is more pressing business.” The guard trembled, but he stood firm, quickly arching his neck to grip his halberd in his powerful jaws and pull it free of his saddle-mount. He was brave, but he was alone and doomed to failure. Outnumbered, he soon joined his friends in the snow as the changelings entered the cave, the leader picking the torch out of the snow, holding it before him with his eerie green magic, a gift from his queen.
The interior of the cave was unnaturally smooth, as if it had been blasted into the ground by an extreme heat, an image made all the more real as it lead straight down at a rough angle to travel up and down. Nopony was meant to enter or leave this cave, with more emphasis on the latter. Still, the changelings moved with a strange grace, as if they were used to such angles and prisons. As they moved down the tunnel, the air within began to change.
It started with small clusters of black crystals that caught the torchlight and all but absorbed the light, swallowing it as a ravenous beast might do to meat. They became more and more frequent, growing larger and larger as the tunnel began to level out into a flat, circular floor. The ceiling of the chamber was high above them, but here in the epicenter, the blackened crystals towered over them like monoliths, set in a pattern from the center as if from there, the crystals had exploded outward.
The changelings wound through the forest of crystalline formations toward the center. It took them several minutes to navigate the maze created by the structures around them, but they finally manages to find a small gap into the center. This spot was free of the black crystals, leaving the smooth, rock floor exposed, but a spooky red light drew their attention upward. Floating in the air of the cavern was a single red crystal, whose light pulsated like a beating heart.
This was their objective. Hooking the torch into a small gap in one of the crystals beside him, the changeling leader stepped forward, eyes locked upon the suspended crystal. As he looked upon it, his blue eyes were suddenly invaded by a dot of green. Starting from the center, the green expanded outwards until his eyes were a brilliant emerald color. His horn came alight with a sickly purples color, his magic forming around the floating crystal.
The pulsating light began to increase in frequency, as if it were struggling against the grip around it. The changeling gritted his sharp teeth, visibly straining as he pulled the crystal down with the magic coursing through him. Finally, with a sharp crack!, the crystal was pulled free of the unseen force that had left it suspended in the air. As soon as it came free, black smoke began to billow out from the crystal, and the changeling was quick to move it to the enchanted pouch tucked under his cloak.
Sealing it within the pouch, the black smoke was cut off and the changelings quickly retreated from the cave. It wouldn't be long before more of the Crystal Empire's guards arrived, most likely with Shining Armor leading them, and the changelings weren't keen to face off against the Captain of the Guard anytime soon. Abandoning their cloaks in favor of speed, they revealed their translucent, insect wings, vibrating them rapidly to keep them from freezing as they leaped into the air, turning with the wind to guide them south...
_________________________________
A similar, albeit more subtle event was taking place closer to the center of the Equestrian continent. The proximity to not only Canterlot and the royal sisters, but also to Ponyville and the wielders of the Elements of Harmony, had called for a changeling who wielded more than military prowess. She had forgone all pretenses of armor in favor of as much speed as possible, leaving her hole-ridden body exposed to the warm climate of the Everfree Forest.
It hadn't taken much to find a map of the area surrounding the forest, but to find one of the forest itself had brought her close to blowing her cover. Infiltrating Twilight's castle had been a breeze, but with the empty interior producing echoes of the slightest step, she had more than once been forced to take refuge in empty rooms within the fortress. The library hadn't been hard to find either, being one of the only rooms with furnishings and she had made quick work of memorizing the map of the forest before bailing.
Now she was deep in the forest, weaving through the trees on her buzzing wings. She didn't dare fly over the trees, which would have made it easier, but Queen Chrysalis had been adamant about avoiding any unnecessary exposure. Still, it only took a few hours to reach her destination: the decrepit ruins of the Castle of the Two Sisters. Few ponies traveled this far into the forest, but those few included Twilight Sparkle and her friends. The changeling had spent a number of days to memorize the schedule of these six ponies until she was sure that they wouldn't be nearby when she made her move.
Rushing through the decaying oval entrance, she hurried toward the throne room, ignoring the many passages that lead toward various treasures from a time forgotten. The throne room was, without a doubt, in the worst condition of the castle as a whole. Tall pillars that had once supported the great ceiling above stood on the verge of collapse if they hadn't already. Sunlight streamed down into the throne room from the enormous opening in the ceiling and warmed the ruined carpet that lead to the destroyed throne, resembling a rock more than it did a seat of power.
Lifting her head, the changeling focused, magic coursing through her body. It was a simple spell, a locator spell that pulsed violently, forming a tendril of green light that darted free of her horn, diving behind the throne with a will of its own. The changeling was quick to follow, shifting rubble out of her way with brief surges of magic. She didn't want to draw the attention of the Princess of Friendship.
She chuckled triumphantly as she found the item she had been sent to retrieve: an ornate helmet, battered by the rocks that had lain on top of it, but still in one piece. It was elegant, designed to fit snugly over the head of the mare that had worn it at the height of her power, and just being so close to it, the changeling could feel the residual power coming from it. How it had not been found with the rest of the sky-blue armor, even her queen hadn't known, but such a hiccup had become an opportunity. She tilted the helmet back and forth, eying the soft curve of the helmet, half considering trying it on, a thought which she quickly suppressed. Her queen would be... displeased if any of the magic in the helmet was tampered with...
Clutching the helmet close to her body with her front legs, the changeling jumped into the air, abandoning any pretenses of stealth in order to vacate the area as quickly as possible, her wings an audible hum in the air as she streaked through the air. Her biggest fear was of the one pegasus who might have been able to keep pace with her, but with a few sharp glances, she verified that if the rainbow maned pony were in the air, she was out of sight range.
She tilted her body, angling hard to the southeast....
____________________________________
Queen Chrysalis was a patient pony. Extremely patient. Enough so that she could wait several long years studying her enemy and seeking untapped sources of power in order to exact her revenge against not only the ponies of the Crystal Empire, but against all of Equestria and their princesses. These were thoughts the changeling queen mulled over as she flicked her fibrous mane out of her eyes, her deathly green eyes fixed with slit pupils. It was a strong magic that kept her decrepit body strong, but it had its limits.
Strong magic needed a strong source, and she had to admit that in all of its forms, love was a strong force. Strong enough to banish an entire Changeling army beyond the Badlands in the south. Now, as before, the changelings took refuge in darkness, building a kingdom of nightmares far below the surface above. Years. It had taken years for Chrysalis and her changelings to carve out the tunnels they now lived in, waiting for the day they could take over Equestria and harvest its love from every single pony.
Yet, even now, Chrysalis could feel her power, the power that kept the changelings thriving without a constant source of love, growing weak. Desperation was accelerating her plans as she was forced to place more and more of her changelings into hibernation to keep them from dying. Even now, as their queen, Chrysalis could feel the subconscious thoughts flowing from them. If nothing else, she was a commander to be feared, capable of communicating telepathically with her warriors, even from a continent away.
This was how she knew that her desperate plan was growing close to fruition. Three days ago, she had felt the teams she'd sent out after the last two things she needed contacting her, reporting that their mission was accomplished and they were coming back. Queen Chrysalis was an extremely patient pony, but right now, she could only grit her sharp teeth and paw the rock below her hooves impatiently.
They would have met up at the border of the Badlands yesterday and be returning today; she had sent them with enough of her power to make sure they could fly nonstop as soon as they retrieved the items. This plan would be their last chance for Equestria. If it failed, the changelings would be forced to move on and attempt to find a continent with enough love to sustain their race... or face extinction.
Chrysalis moved through the dark tunnels, lit only by a series of glowing stones set into the wall, making her way to a special chamber she had been preparing for a long time now. Even now, a few of her changelings were making a few finishing touches as they filled in ancient runes with a softly glowing blue paint made from the phosphorescent fungi that grew deeper in the caves.
It was mostly dominated by a large circle, the inner side of its line bearing arcane runes. At the crown of the circle, as well as along the lower left and right in a triangle, curving lines had been drawn, leading toward a much smaller circle at the center. Moving outside the circle, the lines traces to three more small circles that were encircled by more runes. Chrysalis smiled. The spell would be ready by the time her scouts returned. Her eyes moved toward the center of the spell circle, where her last hope for Equestria lay.
It was the last egg she would have the power to lay without taking Equestria and careful tending had prepared the young changeling within for his destiny. Chrysalis slowly ran her hoof over the egg with a mockery of motherly love. This changeling would be unlike any other. None of the preemptive spells that Cadence or Celestia could conjure up would catch wind of his true nature and he would be powerful. She had molded him to be able to wield power even beyond her own. Before desperation had turned her toward a crazy plan, Chrysalis would have said that such a changeling would die upon hatching... but with a crazy plan comes a crazy chance.
And it came on the buzzing of wings as her scouts returned. The leader of the group sent to the Crystal Empire and the female she had sent into the Everfree Forest. The two approached her, bowing their heads respectfully as they produced their prizes with a florish of magic. Chrysalis' eyes filled with a dark glee as she took the pouch containing the red crystal and the ornate helmet in her magic, “You have done well, my children,” she purred at them as she turned, striding toward the circle, “with these... your new brother will be our salvation.”
The changelings who had been making the finishing touches to the circle quickly darted away to be out of their queen's way. She approached the circle at the lower right, moving the helmet around to face her, talking to it as if its previous owner were in front of her, “Dearest Nightmare Moon, you had all the power it took to defeat Celestia, and yet, in your foalishness, you forgot to take preemptive measures. To get the Elements out of the way,” she chuckled, setting the helmet within the circle, which lit up and surrounded the helmet in an ethereal dome of blue light, “you lacked... vision.”
“And that's where you come in, Sweet Sombra.” she purred as she turned, heading toward the lower left circle. Using her magic, she opened the pouch and drew out the crystal, discarding the container. Within her grasp, the gem lit up violently, spewing dark smoke, but Chrysalis had been prepared, forming a containment barrier around the gem, “still so feisty, even without your full power or consciousness. You had the vision to take over Equestria and overthrow the princesses, but then, just like now, you lacked patience.” She moved the angry crystal into the circle, watching with a sly smirk as it was trapped within by the ghostly dome of magic.
“The greatest threats to their power... all assembled in one room.” Chrysalis mused as she walked to the final circle, standing within it as she smiled, surrounded in her own ghostly dome, “And soon... into one pony... one changeling.” She reared back her head to let out a manical laughter as she lit up her horn, tapping into the ancient runes around her. Yes, the three greatest threats together. Each one had lacked a necessary virtue they needed to conquoer Equestria, but with their traits together, no pony would stand a chance. Not Celestia, not Luna, not Cadence, and not even Twilight Sparkle!
Chrysalis concentrated, knowing that this would be the last spell she would be able to cast until she could harvest more love energy. It would have to be enough. The glowing blue of the circle was overshadowed by the lights that began to arrise from the three circles around the main focus. Sombra's red gem warped and strained agianst its confines as the line before it hissed and turned an angry red. Across the circle from it, even Nightmare Moon's helmet seemed to fight against the pull of the arcane circle, but it could not withhold its power as the line before it blazed a dangerous new blue. Chrysalis alone was the one that did not fight it as she allowed the spell to tug at the power inside of her and tear off a piece of her very soul, filling the line before her with a sickly green color as it was carried toward the egg at the center.
The noise that arose from the center as the three lines of power met was a horrifying sound: the pained and terrified crys of thousands of victims that had fed the power of the three donating ponies, topped with the insane, evil laughters of them all. Red, blue, and green, the lines of power began to fade as the powers drawn in toward the center focused into three orbs floating around the egg. Looking to her left and right, Chrysalis made a note of what was happening to the artifacts. Sombra's red crystal shook and then exploded into shards within its confines while Nightmare Moon's helmet shivered and lost its sheen, turning first a metallic cover, then a dead brown as it rusted rapidly without the magic within.
She herself felt considerably weaker, having to plant her feet to keep from falling to the floor. The changeling was taking far more power than she would have ever considered. Even as she watched, she could feel the subconscious thoughts of the changeling as he began to mature within his egg due to the magic exposure. At first, she was concerned by the feeling of emptiness, but then, his thoughts rose up. He was starving. It came up with such a force that if she had not been trapped within her own spell, Chrysalis would have taken a step back. One by one, the floating orbs of power were drawn into the egg.
The hunger died down slightly as Nightmare Moon's power was consumed, becoming all but nonexistent as Sombra's power vanished within. The next feeling was something Chrysalis would never have thought possible of a changeling, but as her own fragment was gorged upon, her child was... sated. It brought a triumphant cry from her throat. It was better than she could have ever hoped. The plan had been for the child to only need to be refilled with her power every few months, but this changeling would be self-sufficient!
The spell dome vanished after another moment, allowing Chrysalis to approach the egg, which had begun to vibrate violently. Before she could even close the distance, the egg cracked loudly, a single line appearing in its smooth surface and black smoke billowed out angrily, consuming the egg in its shadow. Coming to all a halt, Chrysalis could only wait as she was rebuffed by a magic unlike any she had faced before. Pieces of the egg began to fly in every direction, almost striking her on a number of occassions.
The air was filled with a loud hiss as the smoke began to gather and condense, retreating toward its source at the center. When it was gone, Chrysalis almost overlooked the figure at the center, only seeing it by a soft movement as it began to rise. She called to one of the changelings near the entrance to the chamber, demanding light and it was mere moments before a torch was produced and brought to her side. Finally, she could look upon her newest creation.
He, and it was very much a “he” to look upon, was a mass of jet black carapace, explaining why she was having difficulty seeing him. As he rose however, she could see more. Billowing wildly against his neck and head, as well as from his backside, shifting shadows formed his mane and tail. He stood as tall... no, taller, than Sombra had been said to be, but not quite as large as the alicorns he would face in his future. He was a strong looking creature, but... something was off about him.
It took her a moment to make the connection, but she gaped when she saw it. This new child of hers lacked the holes in his body customary to her kind. He was an unbroken mass of powerful pony and when he opened his eyes, the wonders continued. In sharp contrast to the reflection-less orbs of his brothers and sisters, he possessed deep pools of vibrant blue, dotted with small dots that resembled stars. Above his head, a solitary horn stood prominently from his brow, alight with a pale light that flickered between red, blue, and green. He wasn't using any spells, as he wouldn't know any until Chrysalis filled his mind, but the sheer amount of potential magic made his horn glow at the ready.
It was then that she felt his mind reaching out. This was perplexing. Changelings were supposed to be blank slates until she filled their minds with their history and goals. Only then did each changeling begin to develop a personality and grow unique. This child, however, was not only developing rapidly, he was searching for something. His eyes lit upon one of his brothers around the edge of the spell. Unseen by the eye, but felt with her mind, Chrysalis could only watch in fascinated horror as her new son dug into his brother's mind harshly.
The changeling in question cried out in agony as his thoughts, memories, and feelings were analyzed roughly by an uncaring force, hellbent on absorbing all the knowledge he could find. After what seemed like an eternity, but was in reality only a few moments, he withdrew from his brother's mind, leaving the changeling to collapse to the floor. A quick observation told Chrysalis that the changeling would be fine, but he would be unconscious for a while yet as his mind mended itself.
The hatchling turned slowly, his vibrant eyes falling upon her with a hint of recognition from the memories he had looked through. His mind reached out toward her and she had to fight the urge not to recoil. She was going to have to make him understand his position and it started with letting him learn. She quickly pushed back against his advances, locking onto his core as she began to fill in the empty parts of his memory.
At first he was surprised, his mind lashing at hers slightly, forcing her to cringe, but soon, his empty mind calmed, a shining curiosity paying attention to her thoughts that carried images, explanations, and plans. As quickly as she could force the knowledge upon him, he snapped it up and demanded more. Soon, she had nothing more to teach him, but still he desired more and she was forced to snap at him, “There is nothing more that you need to know!” she stated flatly.
While his face showed no emotion, she felt his mind recoil from her words. Good. He knew not to press her for more than she was willing to give. He gazed at her unblinking, and she tilted her head to the side in thought, “Well... I do suppose you will need a name, yes...” she slowly stalked around him in a circle, mulling over the many choices. With a devilish grin, Chrysalis chose one; a name befitting what he was to become. Taken from three powerful ponies of evil, he was a darkness without equal, whom would infect the continent with his power....
“Happy Birthday, Tenebrae Pox...”