I am a Bug.

“Serena, something’s wrong. I’m going in, you need to stay here.” I urgently told my driver as she finished parking. Chrysalis, evidently in agreement, cast some sort of lock spell over Serena’s seat belt just before she could pop it open. With that, I opened my door and shot out of it running as fast as I could. I found, much to my surprise, that I’d taken on not only Sam’s appearance, but his sword and speed as well. So, naturally, I gripped the sheath of the sword where I could pull the trigger if I needed to, and my other hand on the blade’s hilt.

Once I got to the doors, I found out why everyone was crowded at the door trying to get out. People were shouting about a bomb, and some crazy people with guns taking control of the place. I turned to the only one there that looked reasonable under the circumstances.

“I need a way in. I’m going to help.” I told him. I almost hadn’t noticed I was still using Sam’s voice, but that didn’t seem to phase the guy.

“Try the roof. There might be a way in up there, a roof access or something. Just don’t get caught like the rest.” He pleaded. I nodded and kicked Sam’s speed into gear again. I ran around the corner, gripping my sword tightly to keep it from slapping my ass with every step.

Hey, Chrysalis? Can changelings walk on walls? I asked quickly.

[Yes, we can. But I have a little advice. Wouldn’t Bayoneta fit our skill set better?] Chrysalis replied. I blinked, having been in the middle of stepping onto the wall when she made the suggestion.

You mean we can do Bullet Time stuff? I asked in surprise. When I saw the world blur into green around us, and a flying bird slowing down until it nearly stopped, I took that as my answer. I grinned in excitement as I changed my form once again, becoming Bayoneta, as per Chrysalis’s suggestion. I thought about how Chryssie even knew about Bayoneta as I scaled the wall, and Chryssie’s quick-time spell wore off when I reached the top. I ended up shrugging the question off as it being whatever gave her the knowledge of Deus Ex Machina.

True to the Non-panicked dude’s word, there was a roof access. Unfortunately, like the rest of the complex, it was locked down. So I had to fix that with a bullet to the locking mechanism. It broke easily enough, and I had to smile at that. This was gonna be easier than taking a stroll through Ponyville.

...How did I know what that’s like? Chrysalis, I think our memories are bleeding together. I warned.

[Really, now? I’ll have to keep an eye on them, make sure they don’t mix so much we forget who we are.] she replied as I kicked open the door. I nodded in reply as I advanced down the stairs.

Good. I’d definitely prefer to have no more of you than your experience in my personality. I said. I slowed down once I got to the bottom, and took a cautious peek around the corner, guns ready in case I got spotted. I wasn’t, sadly, but I did see a couple of goons taking their jobs very seriously. They were guarding the exit.

“Hey, dumbasses!” I shouted in Lingish. Of course, to them it just sounded like bug noises. They both turned towards me, and I ducked out of sight.

“What was that?” One of them asked.

“I dunno… It could be nothing, but we ought to check it out just in case. I’ll go ahead, you watch my back.” One of them said. I smirked to myself as I hid from them above.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q_hCSCgX8A8

However, I found myself surprised when I dropped down to deliver a stealth takedown, only to be quickly sidestepped. Evidently, these guys weren’t idiots. I reacted quickly to the surprise dodge, and brought up my right hand to try shooting him in the face, but he caught my hand with his own gun wielding one.

“Well, isn’t this interesting? And here I thought you two were just chumps like every typical bad guy.” I said with a taunting, yet sexy smirk.

“You aren’t so bad yourself. If only we were on the same side.” The man I clashed with replied. I heard a gun cocking behind me, and I took that as my cue to Witch Time, using the enhancement of my reflexes to swing my right foot out behind me to kick the second guy’s gun out of his hand. Once Number Two was disarmed, I focused more on the first guy. Immediately, the two of us began a dance of a spar, him mainly using his fists and gun, while I used every gun on me. His friend, though clearly less trained in the martial arts, at least came to contribute, but he never got a hit in.

“Damn, lady. How much ammo you got in those things?” Number One asked at one point, after having tried to back off for the third time, unsuccessfully to try and reload.

“What’s the matter? Can’t stand the idea you’ve got so little to offer?” I asked tauntingly. That got his “friend” to laugh, giving away his position. I merely pointed my left gun at him and fired, finally finishing him off. With that over with, I sauntered over to the fighter.

“Well, as fun as you’ve been, sweetheart, this has gone on for long enough. I think it’s finally time I got serious.” I said before holstering my guns. My hands lit up green with my magic, and a large circle appeared on the floor under the guy, with some fancy runes thrown in for effect. “Good night, honey!” I said, blowing him a kiss before casting the spell.Thanks to Chrysalis managing the spell, it actually did come out looking like a giant fist.

Thank you for the most badass moment of my life, Chrysalis. I thought as I relished the sight of the two beaten terrorists.

[Don’t thank me yet. You still have the other ones to deal with.] She replied. I nodded, heading to the entrance those two were guarding. Just out there was the stage, looking out on a massive crowd of cosplayers and con goers. I carefully looked around, setting eyes on every goon with a gun here. There were a lot, but if I could take out the guys in the balcony without alerting anyone, I might actually stand a chance. I suppose now it was time to go ninja again. Though rather than get into Sam’s disguise, I just let this one drop. I still needed more energy to fuel things like that.

Silently, I slipped out onto the stage, hiding behind a curtain. Carefully, I started fluttering my way up to the upper level, and took a peek. There was a guard right there, and coming face to face with him like I did, I reacted on pure instinct. I immediately kissed him. The kiss was a special one though, at least from what Chrysalis's memories told me. It was a subtle way to rip his emotions from him, effectively filling me up and leaving him as nothing but a shell. In other words, a Widow’s kiss. Leaning back with a smile once I’d recovered from the shock, I giggled as he slumped over.

“Thanks for the meal, big boy… now let’s hide the body.” I whispered. I pulled myself up over the balcony, and hoisted his body over my shoulder. Once I was sure he wouldn’t fall off, I carried him back down and dropped him off in the stair room. Quickly, I made a return trip.

[That was good… Keep it up, we’ll need more for an open brawl.] Chrysalis told me. I smirked as I snuck up on another guard.

Shouldn’t be too much of a problem. Just need to stay out of sight. I replied as I quickly drained the next guy. He was out like a vegetable before I was even done. I think I even tasted a bit of guilt from that one. Must not want to be here. Still, he ended up here anyway, so he’s gotta go. I progressively made my way around like that, draining as many as I could without getting caught. Thankfully, practice at my family’s house had trained me well. Sneaking a 3DS out of a closet without leaving a trace was radically different from what I was doing though, but the silence factor remained the same. Of course it helped that I had switched out Chryssie’s hooves for paws. Paws were far more silent than even bare feet, especially when they lacked claws.

Once there were only three guards left up top, someone finally noticed that the guys were disappearing, making it a full minute before anyone noticed anything. “Hey! What happened to the Lookout team?!” I heard someone shout. I cursed internally, before darting past the last three, punching them with a knockout spell augmented fist. Once that was done, I teleported to the ceiling, now once again wearing my Bayoneta disguise, and chuckled loudly.

“My, it seems you boys keep dropping like flies… What a shame. Though I suppose now it’s your turn.” I taunted. Of course, since my voice echoed, they were all looking in every direction but straight up to find where I was. And they looked more angry than scared. I had to give a genuine giggle. They never look up. Taking advantage of that, I dropped down directly behind the guy with a detonator and knocked him out with a really heavy suplex.

“And there goes another one.” I taunted. One of them was rather quick to react in anger, whipping out his Desert Eagle and firing off several shots at me. I was quick to use Chryssie's time dilation spell to dodge them all. When his clip ran out, he dropped his jaw.

“Too slow!” I quipped, before dashing to him and delivering a swift kick to the chin. I even added my boot gun’s bullet to the impact, effectively knocking him out. Now let’s see how I can deal with the rest…

[Looks like you’ll need to start draining them. You can’t dodge every bullet, and we’re running low again.] Chrysalis warned. I gave her a short acknowledgement before subtly letting my hand hang over the downed guy’s face, draining him as I stood, mexican standoff style against the other people in the room.

“Well now… You boys aren’t turning cowards now, are you? Surely you know better than to keep a lady waiting.” I taunted once again. I caught a bunch of them glancing at the guy with the detonator, coupled with the sense of doubt. “Oh…? Did I take out your leader?” I asked, sauntering over to the guy, before draining him like I did the rest.

“You’re the real one… aren’t you?” One of them asked. I turned to him with a raised eyebrow.

“Real one? Oh, yes… those silly video games you all play nowadays… No, if I was the real one, I wouldn’t be fighting all of you. I’d be more concerned about demons. But as I’m sure you noticed…” I started, before teleporting behind him. “I can use magic.” I said before firing two rounds into his back, rendering him unconscious as well. The remaining five started to nervously back away. “And thankfully for you, these bullets don’t kill.”

Of course that statement brought back some courage from the remaining members of the terrorist cell. One of them charged at me, assault rifle rattling off bullets faster than I could dodge, and I teleported in response. I took a few bullets to my left arm, but thankfully got out of the way with that teleport. Before he could turn around again, I already fired at his head, point blank.

“Goodnight~” I said with a giggle. Then I quickly moved on to the rest. The four remaining put up a good fight, but I played defensively, blocking each blow even from behind as I sensed their emotions peak. Then, finally, I decided to unleash a climax.

“Get ready boys.” I said as before unleashing a pulse of magic that pushed them all away from me. Then I did a pose like Bayonetta, and my clothes did the… thing. Honestly Chryssie did that part. I just focused on making a big show. “AVAVAGO!” I called out. Then the mock weave magic made an imitation of GohMorrah from the game, and I relished in the awe I sensed from the civilians. I even felt some hype from them as the mock demon roared. I heard one of the guys I knock away whimper at the sight of the magically conjured demon.

“W-well… I suppose there’s worse ways to go…” he whimpered, trying to look at the bright side.

“You’re still not going to die.” I informed him. “But you won’t exactly like waking up…” He gulped once again, before facing the demon.

“NOM.” It really chomped on him hard. I almost thought I heard bones crunching, but Chrysalis assured me it was purely for show. The other three got swept up into the bite as well, getting all of them caught in the demon’s maw. Once I was thoroughly sure I’d reached overkill, I dissipated the demon and faced the crowd with now restored clothes.

“That was easy. Next time, give me a bigger challenge.” I said for show, causing the crowd to erupt into cheers. Once the cheering died down, I started picking up on questions. One of the ones near the front approached. It was a little girl, about 12 years old. The sight of her triggered my rage at the assholes that held everyone here.

“You… you said you weren’t the real Bayonetta. But then… who are you, if not her?” she asked, cutting my rage away slightly. I took a small breath, before answering.

“That’s easy enough.” I said. Chrysalis took over as I returned to her new form. “I am Queen Chrysalis.” She finished for me, loud and proud for everyone to hear. And boy did they hear. The whole place went silent after we revealed ourselves. We waited with bated breath for some kind of response other than silence.

“Okay then. New favorite pony right here.” Someone a little further into the crowd shouted.

“Are you kiddin’ me?! It’s HER!” Someone else shouted back in distinctly bostonian accent.

“And so what?” I said with a leering stare at that person immediately silencing any further argument. “I’m not the same Queen you know. The invasion was a mistake... One I hope to correct.”

[Excuse me, I thought we agreed not to act as each other?] Chrysalis said, though the way she said it reminded me of how I would have pointed it out… Shit, another leak…

I know, but this is important. We let that run, and it’d have been chaos. I replied.

[Tch. Whatever.] she said as she proceeded to retake control.

“Wait, invasion? I’m sorry, could someone fill me in here?” someone else off to the side asked. The boston dude made to answer, but not before the first guy spoke up.

“She was one of the major villains in My Little Pony. Took an army of changelings off to take over their capital, for whatever reason and failed in the end. No One knows for sure what happened to them all, and they got pretty famous despite having showed up in only a single episode at the time.” he explained. I felt Chrysalis sift through my memories to find what this guy was talking about for a moment, but I knew as I remembered the Time Travel Battle, the 100th episode, and the Canterlot Wedding, she’d found what she was looking for.

“Yes… that attack was the biggest mistake I’ve ever made. I let my grief and hatred drive me to attack when I didn’t even know…” Chrysalis trailed off, clearly uncomfortable with reliving the past.

Can I take it from here? They’re too curious to just let it go. I asked. My only answer was being shoved into control.

“...I once ruled the Crystal Empire, alongside Sombra. I tried to ask the royal sisters for help… but at the time, I hadn’t known they were busy with Discord. It was already too late by the time they arrived, and I blamed them when it vanished. For so long… I hated them for something that wasn’t even their fault. Never bothering to check the facts, only running on the assumption I was right…” Hey wait, that part sounds a lot like me right there… “But… thanks to the human I now share a body with, I’ve learned just how wrong I was. He’s determined to help me redeem myself.”

“Lotta good that’s gonna do, insect.” Someone spat from nearby. Both of us widened our eyes, and Chrysalis reflexively used the time dilation spell to help deal with the one that reeked of hatred. She was behind us to our left, and was aiming a punch for our head. I quickly dropped down low for a sweep kick, knocking them off their feet. As I got up and Chrysalis dropped the Time spell, I kicked up the Telekinesis, binding the attacker to the ground.

“Well now… it seems my human was right. There are those of you who hate without reason. It’s quite reassuring that I’m not the worst piece of scum in existence.” Chrysalis sneered.

“Lucky you, I know the meaning of mercy. Unfortunately… you won't be getting any from the law.” I finished, using my own voice. As if on cue, I heard the sirens of an emergency response deployment arriving. “Heh… I was wondering why they weren’t already here.”

“I’d say it’s time to get out of here.” Chrysalis said, and I had to agree. They wouldn’t take well to us after what we did. Magic is a dangerous thing after all, and the government would be out to suppress it no matter the cause. At least, I assume so. I pushed Chrysalis into the front seat as I started buzzing our wings.

“Sorry, loves. But this cavalry has got to go.” I said, using Tracer’s voice. Many of them got the reference and laughed, waving goodbye. Some were begging me to stay, though each had their own reason. Chrysalis flew towards the skylight in a flash, blasting a small hole into it with her magic, though she made sure the glass shards didn’t fall into the building.

Just below, we heard the sounds of the SWAT team busting their way into the convention. Just in time to catch sight of Chrysalis flying out. Ignoring pretty much everything else down below, she flew back to the car Serena still sat in. It wasn’t far, but it was far enough that we could safely hop in and make our escape. So I climbed in, dispelling the spell that held Serena locked in… only to find nothing to dispel, and no driver present.

“What the…?” I muttered.

[Looks like magic really does exist in this world… that spell should have stayed until we got back. Let’s look for her, she has some explaining to do.] Chrysalis suggested. I nodded, shifting into the form of a stray golden retriever, using the form’s enhanced sense of smell to try and track her scent. It was easy enough to follow. She didn’t use any kind of masking agent to cover up her scent, so I was free to follow. When I finally got around to where she was, I had to stop. The air felt weird here, almost dark…

[I recognise this… it’s magic, but not any I’ve encountered before. Let’s find out where it’s coming from.] Chrysalis said. I nodded and trotted on, heading towards where I felt the magic coming from. As I got closer, I felt it pulsing with life and rage… that couldn’t have been good.

That doesn’t feel good. Something’s up, isn’t it? I asked.

[This magic user is… incredibly powerful. Clearly they’ve been at this for years.] Chrysalis contemplated. I shivered at the implications, moving on. Strangely, I hadn’t lost Serena’s scent the whole time I was following the magic. I guess she was sensitive to magic, or something… but I knew she wasn’t the source.

Eventually, after a couple nervous breakdowns from how powerful the magic felt, we managed to make it to the magic’s origin. Surprisingly, despite how dark the magic felt, the place of origin was a cheerful looking, daycare center… though it was clear the place had long ago been abandoned and was recently repurposed for something else.

That’s not creepy at all… I sarcastically remarked.

[Best not to get caught. I doubt I would have an easy time fighting this one even if I was hit by another love blast from Cadence and Shining Armor.] Chrysalis advised. I nodded mentally, letting Chrysalis take control for the moment. I kept a watch on our other senses, making sure nothing snuck up on us. As we poked our nose through a window behind the building, we heard a strange chanting… but then I heard someone stumble, and the sermons ended, immediately followed by a massive wave of hateful disdain. We nearly choked on it but we managed together thanks mostly in part to Chrysalis bearing the brunt of it.

“Fool… we must get this right. You bumbling around like an idiot won’t win us any favors from the Great Firespreader by being such a clutz… Get out now. We need to move again, and you won’t be of any use during the move.” we heard a powerful woman’s voice speak. I took a guess that that was the owner of the dark power aura.

“Y-yes Leader…” Serena’s voice replied. I heard someone coming my way, towards the back door, and waited to see who it was. I had to fight the snarl off our face that Chrysalis was so intent on showing when it was Serena we saw.

Stop, we need all the facts. As much as I want to tear her throat out too, we need to know what she’s really doing here. In this world, things are hardly ever as they seem. I told her off as I fought for control. The little scolding actually worked, to my surprise, and she let me back in control.

[Fine, but we’re interrogating my way.] she shot back. Taking the wheel, I took initiative and ran ahead to a point Serena would be passing. I waited there until she came, and then pounced her. She was quick to react, pulling out a talisman of some kind and shoving it in my face, even as she fell.. But she seemed taken aback when I kept up the aggression.

“Nice toy, but I don’t think it works on a Queen.” I growled.

“Wh- Chrysalis?! What are you doing?!” she asked, shocked.

“You were with those cultists. I wanna know why.” I demanded, with help from Chrysalis infusing magic into my words. I felt a bit of resistance as I spoke, meaning she somehow had some way of resisting the mind control, but whatever it was wasn’t strong enough to stop me from getting in.

“I’m a double agent. They’re trying to summon a demon that doesn’t want to be. I’m on the Demon’s side.” Serena replied confidently. A stark contrast from when she was with the cultists. She’s a pretty good actor. I raised an eyebrow.

“A demon? Tell me about it. What do you know?” I demanded. She complied, but I could feel a hint of greater resistance.

“He’s unique in that he only answers to those with good intentions, always angered by those who sacrifice things in Blood to summon him. He’s also powerful enough to ignore more powerful summons, like sacrificing the life of an entire cult to call him.” She replied. Well, I guess that’s satisfactory. “Whoa, what? Why am I…?”

“Audio influenced Mind Control, darling. Had to get straight answers out of you.” I replied as I got off of her. “Sorry for being so blunt about it, but… well, I had to know whose side you were really on. Now, answer me one last question. As soon as we get somewhere safe, wanna fuck~? I want to make up for falsely accusing you. Plus, I wanna build a hive.”

“...Well that was out of nowhere. But yes. I honestly thought neither of you would ask.”

“Let’s get back to your place then.” I said with a smile, though it was probably a bit creepy since I was in a canine form right about then. Whether or not she wasn’t bothered or she ignored it though, I couldn’t tell as she just got up and started walking to the car.

[...Wow, I’m surprised she agreed so quickly.] Chrysalis said in surprise.

Humans have varied interests. This one apparently has a fetish for eggs. And knows we can put ‘em in her. I explained.

[... Humans are strange.] she said, to which I snorted.

Understatement of the century. I replied. When we arrived at the car, I hopped into the passenger seat once again, noting how SWAT was locking the convention down. Guess they really want to keep me secret. Heh… too bad I’m already on the internet. At least… I assume so.

Grabbing my laptop from my bag, I opened it up to Gmail so I could contact my parents. I made sure to send Dad a message to let him know there was no way I could come back home, now that the government was likely hunting me.

Dad of course was pretty pissed… and worried as hell. He practically demanded I tell him what happened, and I obliged… until we rolled out onto the street, where I lost internet connection. Still, I prepared another message on the way that fully explained everything, and then closed my laptop.

Then when we arrived at her place… Things started getting a little heated.