Alitheia

What is a Changeling? They're insect-like in appearance, but they also bear the resemblance of an Alicorn at the same time. A lost or abandoned sub species perhaps? Or maybe something more sinister?

After the fall of Tartaras, the death of Hekon, and the loss of Eris and Iris, the Tribunal tried to reestablish order in the Kingdom. But the damage had been done, Tartaras had greatly weakened the Alicorns' kingdom, forcing them to withdraw from most of the continent. Eventually, it got to the point where the Tribunal brought their full power to the primary Citadel and within several more centuries, the ponies who were unable to move closer to the Alicorns were left in a state where they became more feral and monstrous, broken teeth soon evolved into fangs over short lived generations. These new wild ponies soon formed a tribe-like society and saw the Alicorn kingdom as more of a threat. In addition to this, a strange frozen wind soon blew in from the north. The Citadel soon found it was being attacked from both the north and south.

Through the now focused mind of Eros, an artifact was crafted to combat these assaults. The Crystal Heart, an crystallized vessel that held within it the love of all those who dwell in the kingdom. This heart served a small number of purposed. The first of which was to use the positive emotions and joy of the pony mortals to emit a barrier that reflected the cold and the feral ponies seemed terrified of the pale pink colored dome. The second effect of this artifact was an unseen side effect. The magical radiation that the heart created slowly metamorphed the pony mortals into a new sub race now called the Crystal Ponies.

But with this new change, came something that the mortal ponies never had before, longer lives. Nothing similar to the near immortality of the Alicorns, but their lives now spanned short centuries, rather than mere decades. But even with all of this, Eros was not satisfied. With the loss of her sisters, an emptiness tore at Eros. She could not do her duty as the Alicorn of Love, but rather focused on maintaining that Crystal Heart.

Eros was experiencing something she had never felt...a broken heart. As a being who lived to spread love and compassion, being so hurt was a foreign feeling. Something that soon drove her to seek out something to fill the void.

As Eros continued to maintain the Crystal Heart, she soon found how unbearable her heart ache was to her. On more than one occasion, she had considered looking for her sisters, and if she found nothing, to just end her agony. But it was Thysia would convinced her to stay and work on the Heart. Among the numerous conversations, the only common thing Thysia told Eros, was "to no let your own heart become a husk." Whatever that meant, the meaning never impacted on Eros' mind. It was by sheer accident, that Eros learned of a way to ease her pain, but it would lead to her own downfall.

Often, Eros would venture out of the protective barrier to look upon the feral ponies. She saw an odd familiarity to these new ponies. How they carved out their way into the world, their brute savagery reflected how cruel life had been to them. To her, they were like kin, maybe even children. But despite their ferocity and primal nature, they seemed to still feel affection. Not simply animals fighting over mates and food, but these creatures seemed to mate for life. These ponies would stay with their partners and if the mate were to die before the other, the remaining would not be able to live on and willingly starve to death. Eros found comfort knowing others could suffer the same pain she could. Especially the Unicorns of these primal ponies.

These Unicorns have long lost the refinement of magic as their ancestors, but still retain enough knowledge to keep the tribes in line. Many tribes led by Unicorns. Feral Pegasus were all but non-existent out in this wilderness. As the more wild and brutal Griffons would prey upon them, the taste of pony meat only fueled their savagery. But Eros noticed something, as the Griffons fed upon their former kin, they seemed to gain more strength. Curious, Eros wanted to see the extent of this.

Over the span of a few more centuries, in secret, Eros experimented on the feral ponies, pitting tribe against tribe, destroying any attempts to grow food, which forced the ponies to feed on each other. And as they fed, their might only grew. Eros was fascinated by all of this, learning that it was not the meat of blood that gave the rise in power, but life force. The same life force that dwelled within all ponies, and their forebears would increase the strength of whoever fed on it. This new knowledge could help Eros better protect the Citadel should the Crystal Heart's barrier ever fail. But so far, the only way to achieve this increase was to feed on the pony's body, tasting their anguish. Eros was determined to find a better way to siphon this power.

What started as an observation, then experimentation, and finally a rogue accident would lead to the fall of one Alicorn, but the birth of a new species. But is a species, but a living plague?

It came to her on in the midst of a dreamless night. Since the loss of her sisters, Eros stopped dreaming and often had insomnia. But it was the shimmering light of the Crystal Heart that rejuvenated the Citadel's barrier, then something struck her mind. The Crystal Heart was the key! The Crystal Heart itself could not be fully used for her experiment, but when the she first crafted the Heart, a tiny sliver cracked off. Taking the sliver in hoof, Eros drove it through her chest and embedded it in the center of her heart. The effect was intimidate and the pain was intense, Eros' chest tightened as her heart raced from the intrusion. The sliver fed off of Eros' anguish and pain, fully crystallizing her heart.

When it was over, Eros felt something new, hunger; a hunger for the life force of all around her. Just being within the Citadel made Eros' mouth water and her body shivered from the energies she was once blind to. In a state of desperation, Eros fled the protection of the barrier and towards the villages of the feral ponies. From there, Eros' hunger weakened but was still gnawing at her mind. When she came upon the first village she saw, the sight of the feral ponies drove her mind to a primal blanket; Eros fed. When her senses returned, Eros was alone among the small village; every feral pony was in a comatose state, the color gone from their bodies, and large bite marks were visible on their heads and necks. Eros' mind could night recall what had happened, but the hunger was gone.

"What have I done?" Eros asked herself, looking upon the carnage she had committed.

"You were only enjoying yourself." A voice echoed in her mind. Within a few scared moments, Eros felt her mouth was moving with the words. The movement was her own mouth, but the sound was her own mental voice. "We finally found something to feed the void in our hearts." Eros wanted to reply, but this strange afterglow feeling only confirmed the voice was right. "Seek more, feed on their life, find the perfect food for our power."

"You're right." Eros commented, her body slowly turning a charcoal black, a black to reflected the endless void she now sought to fill. "With this new discovery, not only will I be able to strengthen the kingdom, but even gain more power for myself." At that moment, both the voice in her mind and Eros' own words merged together. "I...must...feed..."

Eros' return to the Citadel had not gone unnoticed, however, as she descended back to her private chambers, Thysia was there waiting. Eros was started by Thysia's presence, but not afraid. In fact, it was the opposite, she felt a joy in her accomplishments and wanted to tell her former teacher. But before her mouth could open to tell, Thysia raised her hoof in silence.

"Eros." Thysia's words were like a knife through Eros' mind and body. "I know what you have done, you have made your choice and I cannot stop you. I only offer you a choice..." Thysia then extended her hoof in a gentle manner. "I can remove the sliver from you and put an end to your hunger, or you allow it to fester and twist your purpose and form. The choice is yours." Eros said nothing, but her face was expressed in shock and near disgust, it was obvious now that Thysia would not approve of her achievement. Thysia saw this delay and rose to her hooves. "I cannot force you to make any choice, nor can I take anything from you, it must be willing. Whatever choice you make, I shall not stop you. For it will all be your choice." Thysia then left before Eros could reply.

Eros was beyond angered, she was furious and disgusted with Thysia's words. How could such a good feeling be so vile to her? How could such an expression "twist her form"? Eros only went to bed to forget all that and relax. Hours later, however, Eros was awoken by the familiar emptiness. She had to feed again, but where? As she pondered what to do to satiate this hunger, there was a knock at the door. Within moments, a Unicorn servant mare opened the door, stating something; whatever she had to say fell on deaf ears as Eros stared at her with hungry eyes.

There was something about her expression, her joy, her love of whatever was in her life that Eros' body moved on its own, ripping the mare from where she stood with her magic and slamming the door. There was no screaming or even the sound of a struggle, but after several minutes, the mare exited the room, but unlike before, she bore Eros' eye color; it was Eros in disguise. Somehow, Eros' instinct and need to feed off the positive emotions and love of other ponies allowed her to use magic to disguise herself as them. This then allowed her to venture around the kingdom, luring unknowing ponies to be her next meal.

Eros only was able to go about this feeding frenzy for a short time before she was discovered. Unlike Tartaras, the Alicorn Tribunal did not see this as a betrayal, but rather a falling from grace. Within the halls of the Tribunal, the remaining members looked at their now disgraced sister. After her feeding, Eros' body had warped even more. Her coat was now hardened like an insect exoskeleton, her mane was more a swamp green and hung like a wet silky moss. But the worst was her horn, which was now like a gnarled branch, her hooves now with physical holes through them, and her wings which fluttered like a massive insect.

"Eros." Thysia stated, looking down from her Tribunal seat at the twisted Alicorn. "You have delved into a magic that should never have been, corrupted not only yourself, but your hunger has taken the lives of numerous ponies. For your crimes, you are hereby banished to the southern most barrens of the continent."

"Banished? Me?" Eros only laughed, her voice echoed with a deeper pitch. "I have found a way to not only become stronger, but now I have transcended into something even more."

"You are nothing but a husk!" Celestia snapped at Eros. Many of Eros' victims were ponies that Celestia had well known.

"A husk?" Eros was not even a little offended by the remark, in fact, it only made her chuckle more. "I am a Chrysalis a something great. Even if you narrow minded Alicorns cannot see it." Thysia would hear no more from anyone as she ignited her horn and vanished the mocking and laughing Eros from the room, sending her to dwell in the most remote barrens of the south.

Alicorns are not perfect beings, nor truly without flaws. Tartaras fell because he felt cheated and wrongfully feared and hated. Eris lost all hope in her role and sight of her purpose in life. And Eros fell into a deep depression only to create an addiction, but one that would wipe out the feral pony tribes; which were latter reported by Citadel scouts and records to have mysteriously migrate to the southern barrens where Eros, now named Chrysalis was said to have been sent.