Patriots of Equestria, Part 1

Chapters

Could They Come Back Again?
Questioning Her Own Words
Sunset Shimmer Returns
Changeling Bomb Makers
Moving Ahead with the Marathon
Day of the Marathon
Manehattan General Hospital
Beginning of the Hunt
Thorax Learns What Happened
Thorax Visits His Friends
Only Some Changelings Are Monsters
In Fluttershy's Room
Race to Canterlot
Spilling the Beans
Questionable Interrogation Methods
Proving their Innocence
Crystal Empire Hostage Crisis
Shootout in the Crystal Empire
Let Us Join Forces With You
Hopper, End This Now!
Locking Down Ponyville
Where...Is...Hopper?
Long Road Ahead
Reunited With Fluttershy
Thorax Confronts Hopper
Getting to His Head
It's All Over for You, Hopper
Escape from Ponyville
Demanding Answers
Negotiating with Hopper
Minister of Loose Cannons
Actions Bring Consequences
Conversation with Carnegie Deli
Visit With Thorn Gavel

Could They Come Back Again?

Starlight Glimmer could not sleep. For the past few days, all she could do was think about what could have been had Queen Chrysalis had accepted her offer of friendship. Now, the young pink unicorn couldn't think of what kind of revenge Queen Chrysalis was planning against her. All she could do was think of how to make Queen Chrysalis abandon her evil ways, much to the confusion of her teacher and former enemy, Twilight Sparkle, the Princess of Friendship.

"Starlight, you've been up all night," advised Twilight as she walked onto the balcony of her castle and approached her student. "Come and have something to eat."

"I can't," sighed Starlight. "I can't eat or sleep until I find out a way to make Chrysalis accept friendship for what it is. She needs to understand that its better to share love than to take it for herself. Why can't she see that?"

Twilight sighed as she contemplated and absorbed what Starlight had said. Yes, Twilight was her teacher, but she was also Starlight's equal. They both wanted to make Equestria a better place, but Twilight understood that not everypony could be reformed.

"You can't right all the wrongs in Equestria by yourself," remarked Twilight. "Chrysalis is a creature that cannot be reformed, Starlight. What's more is that you can't force everypony to be a creature who accepts friendship, no matter how hard you try."

Starlight still couldn't accept what Twilight was trying to tell her. Yes, she had spent a good part of her life trying to make everypony equal, but learned over time that there were other ways to convince others to accept friendship.

"Besides, now that Chrysalis is no longer Queen of the Changelings," added Twilight. "She is no longer a threat to Equestria."

"That's what you think, Twilight," countered Starlight, walking back into the castle. "Didn't you hear what she said about coming back to get me? I don't know when she will come back, but I can assure you that when she does come back is when I will try again to make her see the light and accept friendship for what it is."

Twilight raised an eyebrow in suspicion over this as she followed Starlight back into the castle of friendship. Even though after all they had been through, Twilight was convinced that Starlight was still in denial over Chrysalis not going to accept friendship anytime soon. What was more was that Starlight needed a reality check, but Twilight was not sure of how to move forward with such a reality check.

"Listen Starlight," advised Twilight as they sat in the dining room a little later having breakfast consisting of pancakes. "I know that you want to make Chrysalis have a second chance, but it just won't be possible. But, thanks to your methods, Thorax is leading the Changelings and he will be teaching the Changelings how to share love instead of taking it."

"Exactly," replied Starlight, still trying to get her point across. "That's what I want Chrysalis and whatever Changelings that are fiercely loyal to her to understand! If there is one thing that you taught me well, Twilight, is that it is better to give than to receive. I offered my hoof in friendship to Trixie and look what happened as a result."

"But Chrysalis is not Trixie," said Twilight. "Why can't you see that? Not everypony is like Trixie or even Discord for that matter."

Twilight stopped for a moment to correct herself on her own answer. Discord wasn't exactly a creature that was going to accept friendship easily, but over time, he learned to embrace it.

"Well okay, not like even Discord," Twilight corrected, eating a pancake. "But still, you know what I am talking about, Starlight, creatures of pure evil can never be reformed. Thorax is an exception to the rule, Starlight. He regretted his actions while serving under Chrysalis and well, look what happened to him now. Thorax is now leading the Changelings to embrace a new way of life and Princess Celestia wants to improve relations with the Changelings because of it. So, you kind of have to look at it that way."

Starlight still had her opinions on the matter, but she didn't want to waste all her energy on talking back to her teacher and former enemy.

"Besides," suggested Twilight. "You know that we have the Equestrian marathon in Manehattan to look forward to, you know. I, for one, am enjoying seeing ponies from all over Equestria competing in a most sacred tradition. We'll be sitting at the finish line and if you like, you can even invite a few friends as well. I'm going to see if Moon Dancer and my friends from Canterlot would be willing to attend."

Heeding these words from Twilight, Starlight went back to finishing her breakfast before another day of learning all about the magic of friendship from the princess of friendship herself along with thinking of whom to invite along for the marathon. There were quite a few ponies, particularly from her former village that would love to see the marathon. However, there was only one pony other than Sun Burst or Trixie that Starlight had a strong relationship with and she lived in another world far different from Equestria. As she finished her breakfast, however, Starlight was beginning to feel a little tired from being up all night.

"But, I think maybe you need to get a little more sleep first," advised Twilight.

"If you say so," chuckled Starlight and the protégé of the Princess of Friendship returned to her quarters for an extra hour of sleep.

…

Meanwhile, in the Everfree Forest, two pairs of eyes were seen from inside a cave with one of them revealing a Changeling that had not been reformed. The Changeling look around to see if the coast was clear, then he retreated back into the cave, flying towards another Changeling disguised as a rock.

"Okay, Thumper," said the Changeling to his comrade, who ended up dropping his disguise. "They are gone now."

"That's a relief, Hopper," sighed Thumper. "We can't seem to catch a break with those ponies. But, we should continue to be careful. We cannot go back to the Changeling kingdom, not after our beloved queen was thrown from power by that traitor, Thorax. I wish we could say the same for our beloved comrades."

"Exactly, my brother," replied Hopper. "As we speak, they are being sent back to our kingdom and will be forced to share all the love that we had spent years trying to survive on for ourselves!"

Hopper let out a disgusted groan and kicked away a random rock which let out a loud clatter, much to the chagrin of Thumper, who winced for a brief moment.

"What we need to do, my brother," suggested Hopper, suddenly getting a really good idea. "Is to finish what our Queen started. She wanted to have the most important ponies in Equestria replaced with drones, but what if they are replaced…permanently?"

Thumper was starting to get a really good feeling of what his brother was thinking. What Chrysalis was planning to do once the love of Equestria's royal families and Element bearers, at least in their minds, wasn't good enough. Before long, the two changeling brothers were starting to get themselves a really good idea on how to carry out such a plan.

"We need to do what our former commander, General Kuwaga, always told us to do," conceived Hopper, looking down at the stone he had kicked out of frustration. "Is to always carry out our plan with a big bang, even if it would be at the cost of our own lives if necessary."

"But, where will get the materials needed to create a bomb?" wondered Thumper. "And besides, we will need the perfect disguises if we are to put together such a device."

"Just leave everything to me, little brother," reassured Hopper as he flew out towards the opening of the cave. "When we are finished, we will construct the perfect plan to rid Equestria of its leaders and then, only then, will we succeed in finishing what our beloved Queen had started and maybe, just maybe, give her the confidence and determination to regain the throne from that traitorous Thorax!"

Thumper watched with delight as his brother grinned with excitement over this diabolical plan of theirs. However, little did they know that it was a plan that would have major flaws and would soon result in death, injury and one of the biggest criminal hunts in the history of Equestria…

Questioning Her Own Words

While her student returned to her bedroom to catch up on some sleep, Twilight Sparkle went to her throne room and could only question what she had told Starlight about not everypony could truly be reformed. Unlike Starlight, Twilight didn't have to be in the position that she was in. Yes, she and her friends did free Princess Luna from her Nightmare Moon persona, but that was different. All Twilight could do at that moment was think about what she had said and her faithful assistant, Spike the purple and green dragon, was the only one for company.

"You did what you had to do, Twilight," he said as he tried to clean the bad drawing of one of the ponies that the Changelings had made while having the Friendship Castle under their control. "I mean, didn't Celestia teach you that not everypony could be reformed?"

"That was something I had to teach myself, Spike," sighed Twilight. "Not everypony can be reformed and you know that. I sometimes question of whether or not I say the right thing and well, but in the end, it is what it is."

Spike was not totally convinced by Twilight's words and it wasn't because he was her number one assistant. In fact, he could tell that there was something greatly bothering Twilight, almost as if that she was reliving a very troubled experience.

"When did you teach yourself that, Twilight?" The baby dragon wondered as he finally managed to gain the advantage of cleaning off the bad drawing. "Was it when Discord was turned back to stone? When King Sombra was torn to pieces by the Crystal Heart? Tell me."

Twilight sighed as she looked down at the map and gandered at all the lands that made up Equestria.

"Spike, do you remember when me and the other princesses went to Tartarus to offer Tirek a chance to accept friendship?"

"How could I forget?" he remarked.

"I could still remember the rage that Celestia and Cadence showed when Tirek was mocking their words," Twilight sighed, her eyes still locked on the Cutie Map. "How I stood up for myself when I admonished Tirek for destroying the library, but it was when he tore the parchment containing the chance to come out of that cage and be like Scorpan, that I learned where not everypony could be offered a chance at friendship."

At that moment, a bright flash appeared and a creature made up of different creatures came into the throne and sat down next to Twilight, crocheting a sweater of himself and Fluttershy, one of Twilight's friends.

"But, you did offer me a chance at friendship," said the creature. "And it was all for the best, wouldn't you say? I mean, I gave you the last key that got you this castle."

"That's true, Discord," replied Twilight as he snapped his fingers and turned into a toilet brush to try and help Spike get rid of the bad drawing completely from one of the thrones. "You were simply requested by Celestia to learn the magic of friendship. Not everypony gets that chance and I had to take time to accept that. It's just that Chrysalis…"

"…Will never be offered a chance?" interrupted Discord, turning back into his normal self with a snap of his eagle claw, his face completely stoned in disappointment. "I highly doubt that. She kidnapped Fluttershy and that is something that I will never forgive her for. All that matters is she has gone far, far away."

To demonstrate his point, Discord shrunk himself down and transformed into a miniature version of Chrysalis flying across Equestria in a manner similar to when she swore revenge on Starlight Glimmer.

"But, there is going to be some kind of retribution," advised Twilight as Discord once returned to his normal self. "I don't know how nor I don't know when, but we still need to be careful."

"How could we still be careful, Twilight?" remarked Spike, taking a break from cleaning the bad drawing. "I mean, didn't many of the Changelings who captured us return to the Changeling Kingdom for Thorax to deal with?"

"No, Spike," answered Twilight. "I learned that the two Changelings who had replaced Celestia and Luna had evaded captured and are still out there. In fact, some of Celestia and Luna's best guards have been out day and night trying to find them, questioning anypony who might have seen them."

"Then, we must make haste," said Discord, donning a detective's disguise and holding a magnifying glass in his lion paw. "Those two Changelings must be captured for Fluttershy's sake!"

Twilight then looked back at Discord crossly and seeing that she wasn't going to be completely convinced of his suggestion, decided to quickly drop the detective's disguise with the snap of his eagle claw.

"All that matters is that the situation is over, Twilight," remarked Spike. "Wherever those two wanted Changelings are, they are probably not going to last much longer with them not being able to find any love and all. I mean, who will want to be near any changelings still loyal to Chrysalis?"

"Your little dragon friend has a point," interjected Discord, showing off a sign with a pointed finger in Spike's direction. "I certainly wouldn't want to be near a Changeling that still needs to learn that it's better to share and not take."

"Well, we still need to be careful," advised Twilight. "In fact, I and the other princesses are considering additional security measures at the Manehattan Marathon. Remember, the Changelings could be anywhere disguised as any random pony out there, so we are not taking any chances at all."

…

While Twilight considered the severity of a possible retribution, Starlight awoke from her short nap and looked out her bedroom window to see Trixie making her way towards the castle. Rising out of her bed, the refreshed Starlight raced out of her bedroom and darted for the front door of the castle to meet her best friend.

"Hey Starlight," said the magician as the two unicorns hugged each other in a brief embrace before breaking apart. "I was wondering if Princess Twilight would be willing to see me about performing some entertainment at the Manehattan Marathon."

"She probably is preoccupied with the hunt for the remaining Changelings," advised Starlight. "I mean, Twilight thinks that not everypony in Equestria can be reformed."

"But, didn't the great and apologetic Trixie change her mind?" asked Trixie, showboating for a minute before coming back down to normal. "I mean, what else do I need to do to be reformed in her eyes?"

"I'm sure she trusts you fully," reassured Starlight, placing a hoof on Trixie's shoulder. "But, I overheard Twilight saying that there are two Changelings that are still out there and they are fiercely loyal to Chrysalis. And as long as they are out there, well, Twilight and the other princesses aren't taking any chances in approaching the situation at hand."

Trixie took in what Starlight had said and decided to wait until Twilight was given a chance for visitors. Being a princess, Trixie knew that Twilight was probably going to be preoccupied with this time in trying to come up with strategies to find the wanted Changelings.

"Then, could I maybe help?" suggested Trixie. "I mean, I do have some spells that might draw the Changelings out if only for a moment."

"Magic won't work on them, Trixie," replied Starlight, politely turning down her friend's offer to help. "If we did use magic, then we might be mistaken for hurting or even worse, killing an innocent pony that might just end up being the real one. No, we need to leave it to Twilight and the Princesses to come up with a strategy. I just hope that they know what they are doing."

But, Starlight couldn't stay focused on what Twilight was doing for very long as at that very moment, a yellow reddish pony with a flaming mane and tail came through the portal in Twilight's library that led to the human world…

Sunset Shimmer Returns

Stepping through the portal that connected Equestria to the human world, Sunset Shimmer arrived in Equestria having just attended Camp Everfree not too long ago. However, she had a very good reason for returning to Equestria now and it was concerning what had happened while at Camp Everfree that involved Equestrian Magic. Just as she was nearing the throne room, however, she saw Starlight and Trixie making their way into the castle.

"Sunset!" cried Starlight as they walked in and the two unicorns hugged each other. "What are you doing here?"

"I was wondering if Twilight could give me some insight on something that's happening in the human world," answered Sunset. "Something involving magic that was found in a cave at a summer camp I was at."

"Magic?" wondered Trixie. "In another world? What's a human?"

"Somepony who only walks on two legs," said Sunset. "Believe me, you would like, uh…whatever your name is?"

Aghast that this was a pony who didn't who she was, Trixie went into her typical showboat mode.

"Fair pony, you in the prescense of the Great and Powerful Trixie!" exclaimed Trixie, much to Sunset's confusion and the only response she gave was a brief nod and an "uh huh."

Trixie was surprised to be seeing this and was trying to come up with another way to get Sunset to know who she was when the doors to the throne room opened to reveal Spike, Twilight and Discord coming out.

"Oh, I see you are already up, Starlight," remarked Twilight, briefly looking at Starlight and Trixie before turning her attention over to Sunset. "Good to see you, Sunset. Sorry if I wasn't able to return for a visit. I had a minor problem to be exact."

"Since we have company," suggested Discord, donning a butler's disguise and talking in a British accent while holding a tray containing tea and crumpets. "Why don't we all have some tea and crumpets?"

Sunset chuckled at Discord's behavior and instead focused her attention on Twilight.

"Thanks, but I'm not hungry right now," Sunset said politely as they all went back into the throne room. However, Trixie used her magic to take a tea cup and a small plate of crumpets into the throne room.

"Well, at least somepony appreciates my essentials," chuckled Discord, dropping the butler's disguise before turning his attention over to the alicorn princess of friendship, her dragon assistant and her three unicorn friends. "Well, might as well go pay Fluttershy a little visit. Ta Ta!"

…

With a snap of his fingers, Discord disappeared over to Fluttershy's and left them all alone in the throne room.

"Um, I know you are having company," remarked Sunset. "So, I won't be very long, Twilight."

"Please stay, Sunset," offered Twilight as they all sat down on the thrones. "It's not like we have anything major going on except for two changelings that are the loose."

Sunset raised an eyebrow to Twilight upon hearing this for her time in the human world had made her lack some basic information of Equestria's creatures. Starlight was quick to take notice of this.

"Creatures that can change into anypony or anything that they wish," she said. "They kidnapped Twilight, Spike, her friends, brother and the princesses and Trixie and I were among those who had to rescue them."

"Indeed," murmured Sunset, taking in what she had heard. "Which explains why you didn't return to the human world to help us at Camp Everfree."

"Camp Everfree?" wondered Twilight. "Since when did you go camping, Sunset?"

"Not too long ago," answered Sunset. "However, the reason why I am here is because that while we were at the camp, we discovered a cave where magic from Equestria was discovered."

Twilight listened and as much as she wanted to help Sunset with her situation, the matter of finding the two wanted changelings came first. Furthermore, the Equestria marathon was also coming up and Twilight felt that it was perhaps a good idea to ask Sunset if she wanted to go.

"Um, Sunset, not to quickly change the subject," remarked Twilight. "But, would you like to attend the Equestrian marathon in a few days? Princess Celestia and I will be among those sitting at the finish line."

Sunset considered the matter and knowing that her parents would most likely be in attendance along with Celestia, felt that it was a good service to attend.

"Yes, I would love to come," answered Sunset, much to Twilight's delight. "I've always wanted to attend the Equestrian Marathon, but I never got the chance to."

"However, I do need to warn you all that we are increasing security measures for the marathon," advised Twilight. "Remember that we do need to be vigilant for those two wanted changelings."

"Is there anything that we can do to help, princess?" asked Trixie. "I know I wanted to ask you if I could perform magic tricks at the marathon, but Starlight and I have faced Changelings already and know what they are capable of."

"Well, you can perform magic tricks, Trixie," answered Twilight, much to Trixie's delight. "But, you must also be vigilant. And as another thing, if any of you or anypony else sees the Changelings, DO NOT approach them. We will have royal guards along with Manehattan police officers patrolling the streets."

As Twilight spoke, Starlight was beginning to wonder if maybe the Equestrian Marathon should even take place at all, given the heightened security sense. But, knowing how important the marathon was, she said nothing. Besides, all that mattered was in her mind, Starlight wanted nothing more than to reform Chrysalis.

"If you say so, Twilight," replied Sunset.

"If I could make a suggestion," suggested Trixie, raising her hoof into the air in order to gain her attention. "When we went into the Changeling kingdom to rescue you all, we decided to come up with a secret code and whoever said the code was not a changeling and who could not say it was a changeling."

"That is a good idea, Trixie," chirped Spike, who had been quiet up until now. "Don't you think so, Twilight?"

"I do think it is a good idea," remarked Twilight. "It will help us in being protective of the situation and after what we went through with Chrysalis, we are not taking any chances. In fact, my brother has said that he won't even let Flurry Heart attend the marathon out of abundance of caution."

Starlight wasn't surprised to hear this and neither was Spike. For they both knew that Flurry Heart was far too young to even consider attending and that ever since her Crystalling not too long ago, the Alicorn baby was considered a prime target for the Changelings.

"Maybe that is a good move on their part," said Starlight. "Besides, I think Sunburst would agree with me as well. Cadence and Shining Armor didn't make him Flurry Heart's Crystaller for nothing. In fact, if you want me to go and help him look after Flurry Heart…"

"I'm sure that he will be fine," interrupted Twilight. "However, as my student, Princess Celestia and my fellow Princesses would like you to be at the marathon with us, Starlight."

Although it was against her better judgment, Starlight decided to heed her teacher's advice. Besides, Sunburst was a very protective pony and the Crystal Empire was protected by the Crystal Heart, so what could go wrong?

…

Meanwhile, the late night train arrived in Manehattan and two ponies, one dark blue and one dark red stepped off onto the platform and made their way over to a nearby warehouse on the far edge of Manehattan, trying to not catch the attention of wandering ponies. Once they were home free, the ponies transformed revealing themselves to be Hopper and Thumper in disguise.

"Let's get to work installing our weapons of destruction," said Hopper as the two Changeling brothers gathered their ingredients to construct their weapons. "For once the most important ponies of Equestria are eliminated, we shall create the path for our true leader to regain her power."

Little did the brothers know, however, that their plans would backfire in the worst possible way for them…

Changeling Bomb Makers

With the thoughts of restoring Chrysalis to her rightful place still fresh in their minds, Hopper and Thumper worked through the night putting together a pair of bombs that would be disguised like alarm clocks. Rather than keeping all of the interior parts of the alarm clock intact, the two Changeling brothers first put in two sticks of dynamite, a large black regular bomb, two firecrackers and three skyrockets that they managed to find all around the warehouse. The explosives that the Changelings had found were used for fireworks during holidays, implosions of city buildings, etc. However, they knew when put together, these devices would cause instruments of death.

Thus, once they were all placed, the interior parts were placed on top of them and the backs of the alarm clocks were sealed.

"We've done it, Thumper!" proclaimed Hopper, gleefully as he and his brother admired the bombs. "We've completed the weapons that will finish off the leaders of Equestria once and for all, then when they are dead, our queen can overthrow the traitor Thorax and claim her rightful place!"

"Yes, I am delighted to have completed our ultimate weapons, brother," remarked Thumper. "But, now that we have completed our weapons, where do we put them?"

To this end, Hopper trotted over to a map of the marathon's route and scanned over which location the bombs would be placed.

"Hmm, I am not sure, my brother," answered Hopper. "But, since we are changelings, we can assume the form of anypony and we can find out first hand where our targets are going to be. Remember, they must be in the same spot as our bombs for our plan to have any effect."

"Whom shall we transform into?" asked Thumper.

"We shall transform into the ponies who are coordinating the marathon," said Hopper. "Then, we shall seek out our spots in a much easier way. Then, once we find the spots, we place our bombs and set the timers."

Heeding his brothers' advice, Thumper then trotted back to the table where the bombs were and picked them up with his claw, carefully inspecting it. Still, he had his reservations and in the back of his mind, there was that thought of what would happen if their foolproof plan would backfire.

"Do you agree with this plan?" asked Hopper, who didn't get a response from Thumper right away. "There is no other plan for us to come up that would be the same as this."

"I do agree," replied Thumper, putting the bomb down. "But, it wouldn't hurt to at least have a backup plan."

"There is no other backup plan," countered Hopper, briefly scowling his brother. "No other plan will help us in getting rid of our targets faster and restoring our true queen to her rightful place. This is the only way we can rid of our enemies faster."

"But we have to remember," reminded Thumper. "That we could end up harming other ponies as well. Do you want us to be responsible for the deaths of innocent ponies that won't even have anything to do with us?"

But, Hopper ignored his brothers concerns. For it didn't really matter if other ponies were going to be at risk. All that he cared about was getting his true leader back.

"It doesn't matter," he said, flying over to a window looking out among the streets of Manehattan. "It wouldn't hurt to send a message to our queen's future subjects that anypony who stands in our way will suffer the consequences of defiance against us. Besides, we could use a little distraction to give us enough time to escape from the scene and start to seek out our queen."

"That's the other question," remarked Thumper. "We both know that our queen was able to escape from the princesses, but where exactly has she gone and how are we going to be able to find her?"

"How are we going to find her, you say?" chuckled Hopper, playfully flickering with his younger brother's nose. "They've taken the animal out of you, haven't they? Why with all the ponies focusing on the actions of our bombs, we can focus all of our attention on finding our queen whom will be much easier to find."

Thumper was still not totally convinced by his brother's words, but continued to remain loyal. They both had the same desires to restore Chrysalis to her throne, however there was always the thought of their plan falling through and Thumper wanted what was best for both him and his brother.

"Now," he continued, noticing that the sun was beginning to rise. "We must seek out the spots for our bombs while we still have a chance."

Using his magic, Hopper transformed into a light green pony with a pair of running shoes for a cutie mark. Thumper reluctantly followed suit and transformed into a light red pony with a trophy for a cutie mark. Once they were disguised, they left the warehouse and made their way along the route of the marathon, seeking out the location of where their targets would be during the marathon.

"This must be it," said Hopper, looking over towards a large podium that had four thrones with the princesses' respective cutie marks on top of them. "Where the princesses and their allies will be seated."

Hopper then looked back and saw another podium that didn't have any thrones, but had a pair of bleachers on them.

"And this must be where the bearers of the elements will be seated," added Thumper, joining his brother in looking over the location. "Do you think that the Prince of the Crystal Empire will be here as well?"

"If he is, then his lovely wife will have the honor of watching him go before her," chuckled Hopper evilly as he looked over the spots one last time. "If there are a pair of ponies that our queen would love to see eliminated for good, it is that Princess Cadence and her do-gooder husband, Prince Shining Armor, the two ponies who came together to cast us out of Canterlot and putting an end to our plan of conquering Equestria."

Realizing that ponies were going to be arriving soon, Thumper motioned for his brother to leave and return to the warehouse where they would lay low until the day would come when their plan would be carried out.

…

At the same time, little did the Changeling brothers know that they were being watched by a light yellowish gray pony with red, purple and violet highlights streaking through her mane and was dressed in a gray wool sweatshirt sweater. A pair of black glasses with tape in the middle sat on her eyes

"What's is going on?" the pony wondered to herself, inspecting the situation. "And what were those two ponies up to? If they are doing what I think they are trying to do…?"

Realizing the gravity of the situation, the pony darted away from the scene made her way over to the nearest police station to file in a report.

"You have to believe me, officer," pleaded the pony. "I saw two ponies saying that they were going to plant bombs at the finish line."

"Unless we have evidence suggesting an intimate attack, young filly," replied the police officer in a manehattan sounding voice. "Then, we cannot take your claim into consideration. Besides, the marathon is already under heightened security as it is."

"But, these ponies are up to no good," cried the pony. "I saw them plotting to kill the princesses at the finish line."

The officer merely chuckled and motioned for the pony to leave, much to the pony's dismay and annoyance.

"Good day, ma'am," he said, motioning for her to leave and the pony did leave with a loud groan. As she left the police station, the pony realized that there was no one in Manehattan who was going to listen to her. Trotting over to the Manehattan library, she took a quill and a piece of parchment and began to write a message to a pony who would listen using her magic.

"Twilight," the pony dictated to herself as she wrote on the parchment. "I am writing this message to you concerning something that two ponies are planning to carry out something at the Manehattan marathon and they are targeting you and the princesses. Please know that I am not discouraging you from coming, but as a friend, I want you, your friends and the princesses to be on guard. Something tells me that those wanted Changelings are here in Manehattan, but please be careful when you come to the Marathon. Your friend, Moon Dancer."

Once the letter was written, Moon Dancer left the library and dropped the letter into an express mailbox, hoping that the letter would arrive in Ponyville as soon as possible.

Moving Ahead with the Marathon

It was just before late afternoon when Twilight and her fellow ponies heard a knock at the door and the Princess of Friendship went from the throne room to answer it. Opening the door with her magic, Derpy Hooves the mailpony was on the other side.

"Express letter from Manehattan addressed to you, Princess Twilight," she said, handing Twilight the note. "Have a nice day."

Twilight shrugged her shoulders and took the note inside back to the throne room while Starlight, Trixie and Sunset watched with careful intent as she read it. It took a few moments for Twilight to carefully read over what was written to her and when she was through reading, she faced her student and former enemies.

"What is it, Twilight?" asked Sunset, worriedly as Twilight placed the letter on the table.

"It's from Moon Dancer, one of my Canterlot friends who is now in Manehattan," answered Twilight. "She claims to have known something about what is going on in Manehattan. Something about two ponies plotting something against us at the Marathon."

"Twilight, I know its not my place to say," advised Sunset, walking over to her. "But, you and the other princesses as well as your friends really should consider not attending, even with the extra security."

"I think Starlight and I have to agree as well, Princess Twilight," added Trixie, concernedly. "Even with all the extra security, you may not be safe as you claim to be."

But, even though the advice was helpful, Twilight was not going to back down from attending the marathon. Yes, her status as a princess may had made her and friends more of a target, but Twilight had faced danger before and this was nothing out of the ordinary.

"Look girls," sighed Twilight as she sat back down on the throne. "I appreciate your concern, but if we don't go to the marathon, then that is a message that the two changelings, wherever they are have gained the confidence that they needed to come back and pick up where Chrysalis had started."

"They do have a point, Twilight," added Spike, causing Twilight to turn and look over at him. "Remember what happened to us not too long ago."

Twilight could well remember being stuck in the cocoon and the thought of herself, Spike, her friends, her fellow princesses, her brother and her niece being trapped on the ceiling of Chrysalis' throne. The thoughts made her spine tingle with fear.

"I agree with Spike," said Starlight. "I know you want us all to attend the Marathon, but one thing I have learned since becoming your student Twilight, is to always have common sense and to trust our instincts."

"Exactly," remarked Spike. "Didn't Celestia tell you that at the royal wedding?"

"You're right, Spike," said Twilight, thinking back to that moment after her brother and Cadence were married. "She did. But, I don't think that we should back down so easily from the Marathon. Besides, the two wanted Changelings may even be too weak from all the love that they couldn't feed on as a result of Chrysalis being overthrown."

Both Sunset and Starlight gave each other a brief glance at one another. They both knew very well of the dangers that Equestria's enemies had produced and from the way that Twilight was talking, they secretly thought that she was being careless.

"Still, there is more than enough evidence here to consider," advised Starlight. "If these are the two changelings who escaped capture from Celestia and Luna, well, it as you said Twilight, that we need to be on our guard."

…

Meanwhile, back in the newly reformed Changeling hive, Thorax had settled into his new role as leader of the Changelings, determined to make his kind learn to share love and not take love for themselves. Now, he was trying to make Chrysalis' most loyal soldiers abandon their evil ways and embrace the ideologies presented to them.

"Do you think we are going to simply bow to someone like you, traitor?" snapped a captured Changeling. "I would much rather die than to abandon my loyalty to our true leader!"

Thorax's eyes crossed as he used the magic from his horns to throw the defiant Changeling back against the wall of his new throne room. Throwing him against the wall, the defiant Changeling growled as he attempted to recover from the pain inflicting on him.

"You know the deal that has been offered to you," said Thorax sternly, as he bypassed the other captives and flew over towards the Changeling against the wall. "Either you accept the new way of the Changeling life or face banishment from the kingdom. No one is going to be put to death as long as I rule over you."

The captured Changelings sneered at their offer for they would indeed much rather die, but Thorax was determined to not go that route.

"Very well then," he said as he flew back to his throne. "Then, let me say it another way. I can give all of you clemency if you can tell me where the Changelings who replaced Celestia and Luna had gone. Where are they?"

The captured Changelings stayed silent, determined to not let two of their own kind be forced to surrender everything that Queen Chrysalis had taught them.

"Very well," sighed Thorax. "All of you shall be committed to the dungeons until you can reveal where they are."

Thorax then stamped his front left hoof to summon several of his newly formed Changeling guards. After saluting their leader, Thorax watched as they took away the Changeling captives back to the dungeons. Once they were gone, Thorax sat down on his throne and sighed heavily.

"Why can't they all see that what I am bringing is for the best?" he said to himself. "Starlight was right that its best to give love than to take it. Chrysalis was a false leader and always will be. The last thing I want to do is to carry out any killing. That's not what I want to do and that is not what Princess Celestia wants to do or any of the princesses for that matter."

He then looked over to a picture of him and Spike that hung on the far right corner of his throne room. After looking at it briefly, Thorax went back to his solitude and tried whatever he could to get the Changelings in the dungeon to talk, but there was something that he wanted to see happen more.

"Hopper, Thumper, if you are out there," he whispered to himself. "In my name as well as the name of Equestria, please surrender and turn yourselves in instead of running from those who are hunting for you. The last thing that I want is to see any more terror be inflicted on us and our allies. This is a new era in our kingdom and we are adapting to it, with or without you. The choice is yours."

…

However, Thorax's words could not be reached and soon, the day of the marathon had arrived and two of Chrysalis' most loyal soldiers would soon carry out their attempted assassination on Equestria's elite…

Day of the Marathon

As the sun rose on Equestria on the morning of the Manehattan Marathon, nopony attending was fully aware of the dangers that were coming to them. Hopper and Thumper had slept all through the night, dreaming of the ultimate goal that they would soon achieve. It was just after mid-morning that Twilight and the princesses arrived in Manehattan along with her friends, taking their places at the finish line.

"What a gorgeous day for a race!" remarked Rarity, who was wearing a very nice hat and scarf. "Seems to me that nothing is going to ruin this day, darlings."

"Yep, might as well just sit back and enjoy the day," added Applejack, getting herself comfortable in her spot. "No changelings, no kidnappings, no nothing."

The rest of the ponies agreed and settled in for the gorgeous day that was laid out for them. It was a much needed break for everypony involved in Chrysalis' diabolical plot to eliminate them and conquer Equestria for herself and her minions. It would be a while before the runners would start arriving in Manehattan, but it didn't really matter. However, Rainbow Dash could sense that something was wrong.

"You know," suggested the wonderbolt, feeling a sense of unease. "Something tells me that we shouldn't be here."

"What do you mean?" wondered Fluttershy, looking up at the sky. "It's not like the weather is going to change anytime soon. The pegasi know to not cause any rainstorms today."

However, the young wonderbolt knew that something was indeed wrong and she certainly wasn't alone. But eventually, Rainbow Dash got up in the competitive nature and did nothing. Although they were supposed to be in the stands, Starlight Glimmer and Sunset Shimmer were actually in an area far down the end of the street, not far from where Twilight and the others were seated.

"I didn't want us sitting in the stands, Sunset," said Starlight as they stood among the crowds. "If that is okay with you, I mean. But, I can't help but wonder where or who this Moon Dancer is?"

The two ex-villainous unicorns walked among the crowds searching for Moon Dancer not knowing who she is and such. In fact, it was very difficult to get around the extra security that had been placed along the route.

"Was it really necessary to provide all this security?" grunted Starlight. "I mean, I know that we need to be safe, but…"

"If Twilight is confident that extra security is needed, then we have to trust her," replied Sunset. "There isn't a situation yet where I haven't trusted her."

At the same time as Sunset and Starlight continued making their way through the crowds of Royal guards and crowds of ponies, Thumper and Hopper emerged from behind a small building with the homemade bombs in their claws.

"Wait for the opening," whispered Hopper, keeping his younger brother at bay. "Wait for the area to be clear."

"But, Hopper…" replied Thumper, excitedly. "I want to…"

"No, you fool! We wait!" snapped Hopper, firmly. Soon, the opening was given and the two brothers made their move, transforming into the same two ponies as before.

Only this time, they carried on their backs two saddlebags with the respective cutie marks of their disguises. On their heads, they wore two hats: Hopper wearing a white buckball cap and Thumper wore a black buckball cap. Hastily, they set the bombs to go off in one hour and left them under the bleachers where their targets were seated.

"All right," sighed Hopper as they retreated back into their hiding spot. "It's only a matter of time before they are out of our way for good."

"What do we have to do in the meantime?" asked Thumper, while both he and his brother went about dropping their respective disguises. "There is always the possibility of the bombs being discovered."

"We wait until the bomb is nearly close to detonating," said Hopper, who was undeterred by this suggestion. "Then, we make our leave and begin our quest to find our true leader while Equestria mourns their beloved leaders."

…

So, the Changeling brothers waited and soon, the hour drew near as the first of the runners were starting to arrive. Twilight smiled along with the other princesses as they watched the first runner arrive in jubilation that he had completed the marathon. Meanwhile, having failed to find Moon Dancer and now believing that they were probably overreacting, Starlight and Sunset were just making their way back.

"Maybe Twilight is right about there not being any threat," said Starlight. "Maybe we are just acting like this for absolutely nothing?"

"Well, even I still have my suspicions," replied Sunset. "But, whatever threat is against us is probably quashed. Guess we might as well go back and enjoy the rest of the marathon. Besides, I think my family must be here."

As they were making their way back however, Starlight stopped briefly to see two ponies wearing buckball caps walking past them and the ex-cult leader was starting to become suspicious.

"Wait a minute," wondered Starlight, hearing a strange ticking sound coming from underneath the bleachers where the princesses were seated. "Do you hear that?"

But, because there was so much crowd noise, Sunset couldn't hear anything out of the ordinary. However, the concerned look on Starlight's face made it clear to Sunset that her feelings couldn't be ignored.

"Hear what?" asked Sunset, trying to talk above the crowd noise who cheered loudly for the arriving runners.

"That ticking sound," cried Starlight. "I can somehow hear it!"

"Let's go in here and I can hear you better!" shouted Sunset and they retreated into a nearby bar where several other ponies had gathered. At that moment, Trixie also went into the bar having just completed a small magic show for a small group of fillies and colts. When she saw the two unicorns, Trixie wasted no time in joining them.

"They certainly were at it today," gasped Trixie as she took off her wizard's hat. "No wonder the Great and Powerful Trixie was popular today."

But, Trixie could see that she was not the center of attention at that moment. Both her fellow unicorns were concerned about something that was happening right outside from where they were sitting.

"Is something wrong?" she wondered, looking right at both Sunset and Starlight. "You look as if you saw a ghost?"

"I heard a ticking sound from underneath the bleachers out there," explained Starlight. "I know that something is wrong and we need to let somepony know of what is going on. Perhaps we should look for Moon Dancer again."

Sunset wanted to not go back out to find a pony with whom she had never met before, but she saw little choice in the matter. However, little did they know that bombs were nearing down to their detonation point.

"Well, what are we waiting for?" asked Trixie, rising to her feet. "Let's get going!"

But, no sooner did the three unicorns get up that the bombs reached their detonating point and just as the last of the main runners had crossed the finish line that a major explosion was heard…

BOOM!

In an instant, the first bomb detonated underneath the bleachers where Twilight's friends and brother were seated, sending them flying into the streets. Ponies screamed in terror and just before she and the other princesses could react…

BOOM!

The second bomb detonated underneath the area where the princesses were sitting and the only sounds heard above the blasts were the sounds of Celestia letting out a blood curdling scream.

"NO!" screamed Starlight and Sunset at the top of their lungs as the interior of the bar was blasted by the shattering glass caused by the bomb. "TWILIGHT! CELESTIA!"

Attempting to cross through the chaos caused by the bomb, Sunset, Starlight and Trixie stopped and looked out among the carnage seeing ponies mortally injured, ponies that weren't even targeted. Royal Guards assigned to protect the princesses raced over to the injured royals and were screaming for anypony to help. The carnage had even caused Trixie to become sick to her stomach and vomit briefly.

…

At that moment, although they were both injured, Applejack got to her feet along with Rainbow Dash and started tending to injured ponies.

"Are you okay?" cried Applejack in a panicked voice as she pulled an unconscious Fluttershy up. "Fluttershy, wake up!"

"She's knocked out, Applejack!" shouted Rainbow Dash as she came to the side of Pinkie Pie and Rarity, helping them both to their feet. "Go find a doctor and fast!"

But Applejack didn't have to as several paramedics came onto the scene and tended to them. Just then, another sound of screaming was heard and it was coming from Shining Armor who immediately ran over to Cadence's side.

"CADENCE!" Shining Armor cried, clutching his knocked out wife in his forearms. "ARE YOU ALL RIGHT?! PLEASE ANSWER ME!"

Shining Armor sobbed into his unconscious wife's bodied chest while two guards pulled her away from Shining Armor and placed her on a stretcher. Luna was also placed on a stretcher, conscious, but both of her wings were broken and she could feel pain in one of her front legs. Celestia was also found shortly thereafter, completely wounded all over her body as a result of the blast.

"Sister!" Luna cried weakly, her eyes filled with tears looking over towards her knocked out older sister as the princesses were loaded into two separate ambulances. "Sister, please, I beg you! Please, answer me!"

At that moment, Starlight snapped out of her trance and heard a low groan coming from one of the ponies involved in the blast. Removing the debris covering the pony, Starlight looked down in horror to see Twilight barely awake and covered in blood, much like Celestia was.

"Starlight," murmured Twilight, trying to speak to her student as Sunset arrived on the scene. "What…?"

"Shh, shh, don't talk," whispered Starlight as Sunset flagged down some paramedics to come to Twilight's aide. Twilight tried to move, but she let a scream of pain from her legs and one of her wings. "You're hurt all over your body, Twilight. They're taking you to a hospital. We'll meet you there."

They watched as Twilight was carefully placed on a stretcher and placed into an ambulance along with Cadence. As they left, Starlight and Sunset went about searching for more survivors, but not before Starlight made an assumption.

"It's happened," whispered Starlight. "The unthinkable has been carried out against Equestria."

Manehattan General Hospital

The city of Manehattan had never seen anything like this before. Sure, they had seen many cases of petty criminals attempting to be big and mighty creatures that could be unstoppable at what they did, but this was something completely different. Two bombs had gone off on one of the most important days in Manehattan's history, resulting in hundreds of ponies getting hurt by the blasts.

However, at Manehattan's General Hospital, the most concern was in four of the hospital's main operating rooms.

"About 60 milograms!" shouted a doctor as he and several other doctors and nurses looked over the wounded Celestia. "Get me a blood sample!"

A nurse stuck a syringe into Celestia left leg and drew out several pints of blood.

"Give me something to close the wound!" cried another doctor, trying to hold blood coming out of a wound not far from Celestia's cutie mark. A nurse handed the doctor a freshly cleaned cloth to cover the wound.

"Stay with us, your highness," pleaded a nurse, carefully watching Celestia's heart readings. "Please!"

…

For the next few minutes, it was all borderline chaos as they all did everything in their power to try and help their sovereigns. Similar situations were carried out in the other operating rooms of the hospital including the ones where Luna, Cadence and Twilight were being worked on. Down in the waiting room, Starlight, Sunset and Trixie waited for any news along with other ponies worried about their loved ones.

"A bomb," whispered Starlight, grunting in frustration. "It was a bomb! No wonder I could hear a ticking sound! This Moon Dancer was right, Twilight should not have gone."

"She is a princess after all, Starlight," remarked Trixie, sighing despondently. "It is Princess Twilight's duty to attend such an event like this. And, I know she can make me jealous at times, but even I know that she doesn't deserve to suffer any of this."

Just then, the three unicorns looked over to see Moon Dancer walk into the waiting room, clearly panicked.

"Where is Princess Twilight?" she begged to a nurse.

"In surgery," replied the nurse, trying to sound calm. "But we will let you know when you can see her."

Moon Dancer continued to protest, but it was all for nothing and she eventually backed off, not wanting to be more of a burden. Rising from her spot, Sunset Shimmer walked over to console the troubled unicorn.

"I know how you feel, Moon Dancer," sighed Sunset, placing a hoof around Moon Dancer's neck. "I'm Sunset Shimmer and I want to see Twilight as much as you do, but we are just going to have to wait. You were right to warn us about suspicious activity, even though they were too late to be reached."

Moon Dancer turned over to Sunset and let out a surprised gasp, confused at what had just been said to her.

"You know Twilight?" cried Moon Dancer, backing away slightly. "And how did you know I sent her that letter I wrote her?"

"It's a long story," replied Starlight, as she and Trixie joined Sunset. "But, we can talk about it later. I'm Starlight Glimmer, Twilight's pupil and right now, we need to get to the bottom of this and we need to get to the bottom of this now. Are you certain there was any strange behavior before the marathon?"

"Yes," answered Moon Dancer. "I know who is responsible for this and if ponies are saying that it is other ponies involved, it's not. Those two changelings I was watching before the marathon about are responsible for this. I just know it."

"Then why didn't you tell anypony?" asked Starlight.

"I went to the police, but they didn't believe me," answered Moon Dancer, again. "They thought that the Changelings were eradicated completely or something. Well, perhaps maybe now, they will believe that there were Changelings involved."

The rest of the unicorns nodded in agreement for that they needed to go after the two Changelings and bring them to justice.

"So, I guess we are on our own now," sighed Trixie. "We all need to understand the dangers of what we are about to undertake in finding out who is responsible. When should we start?"

…

But before the ponies could make a move, the nurse that Moon Dancer had been trying to talk to came back and approached the ponies.

"Princess Twilight is out of surgery now," said the nurse, much to the relief of the unicorns. "You can see her, but you cannot be inside for very long. She does need her rest after all."

"Where is she?" asked Moon Dancer.

"Room 2204," answered the nurse and the four unicorns were led towards the room where Twilight was being held. Seeing all of the injured ponies from the marathon made them all feel sad and angry. But, they couldn't focus all of their attention for very long as they entered Twilight's room. Walking towards Twilight's bed, they saw the young alicorn princess lying on her back, IV's stuck into her front and back legs to provide fluids and bandages were placed around the wounds that she had sustained. Seeing her teacher like this almost made Starlight cry, but she couldn't let her emotions get the better of her.

"Twilight?" whispered Sunset, placing her front left hoof on Twilight's front left hoof. "I don't know if you could hear me, but this is Sunset Shimmer and your friends. I swear that whoever did this to you will pay dearly."

But, all Twilight could do was open her eyes weakly, unable to speak.

"I don't think she can talk back, Sunset," remarked Trixie. "Look up there."

Sunset looked up to see a container hooked up to one of the many IV's already in Twilight's system. Inside the container was a clear fluid that was being placed into Twilight's body.

"She's probably sedated because of the medication," said Starlight. "But, I am sure she can still hear us."

Twilight weakly nodded before falling back asleep as a result of the sedation. At that moment, Twilight's assistant, Spike, walked into the room with bandages on different parts of his body, including his tail. This was a good sign for the unicorns to see, knowing that someone close to Twilight was not really that hurt.

"Oh, hey guys," said Spike. "I guess you see the battle Twilight is fighting right now. She's not hurt that bad, but they want her to rest comfortably."

"That's good to hear, Spike," replied Starlight walking over to him. "How are the other princesses?"

"Celestia's still in surgery and Cadence just got out," answered Spike. "Luna's got some broken legs and a broken wing, but aside from that she is fine."

Suddenly, a loud scream was heard from all the way down the hall and running out to find the source, Starlight looked out for a brief moment before Spike drew her back inside.

"It's been like this since we got here," sighed Spike. "The doctors are saying that over 200 are hurt and many are probably going to have to lose parts of their bodies."

"What do you mean?" asked Sunset in a worried tone. "What do you mean that they are going to lose parts of their bodies?"

Spike felt his stomach churn when being asked this question. It was very rare of something like this to happen, but he didn't want to keep four unicorn ponies in suspense.

"Well, to answer your question," he answered, clutching his bandaged tail. "Some ponies injuries are so great, then in order for them to save their lives, the doctors are saying that they will need to have their legs amputated."

"Oh, no!" gasped Starlight, her right front hoof covering her mouth. "That's awful!"

"Yeah, it's pretty bad," remarked Spike as he continued to rub on his tail. "Applejack and Rainbow Dash said that they had never seen anything like this and neither do I. Everything that we faced up until now was nothing more than just creatures either wanting magic all for themselves, love all for themselves, wanting to bring eternal night, wanting to cause nothing but eternal chaos, you name it."

Just then, a bright flash appeared and the ponies gasped to see Discord standing before them, looking stone faced and not carefree like he normally was.

"Who did this?" he growled, his face filled with fury and his eyes litterly glowing red in anger. "Who did this to Fluttershy?"

"Changelings," answered Starlight, approaching the infuriated creature of chaos. "Those two Changelings who escaped captured after Chrysalis was overthrown."

"Then we have to find them," said Discord, snapping his fingers and revealing himself to be dressed in highland garb and his face covered with war paint, with one side blue and the other side white. "Then can attack our traditions and our way of life, but they can't hurt my friends, especially Fluttershy!"

And Discord flung a sword into the air, dedicating himself to finding who did this to the only true friend he ever had.

"I agree with Discord," added Trixie. "If we trust the authorities, then these Changelings will continue to cause rampage. Only ponies with advanced magic can find these Changelings and bring them to justice."

"Then, when do we start?" asked Moon Dancer.

"We start now," said Starlight firmly and leaving Spike alone with Twilight, used her magic to make herself, Moon Dancer, Sunset Shimmer, Trixie and Discord disappear from the room and soon, they found themselves back at the finish line, which was now a crime scene and canvased by law enforcement ponies.

The hunt for Hopper and Thumper was now about to begin…

Beginning of the Hunt

The events in Manehattan had sent a ripple effect throughout the sovereignty of Equestria. With all of Equestria's princesses in the hospital, the leadership had come under brief question and nopony was sure at the time if any of them would survive their injuries. All that mattered now was finding the perpetrators and bringing them to justice. Back in Canterlot, an emergency meeting was called as Equestria's minister of justice, a light gray pony dressed in a black suit, walked in and all the ponies in attendance gave him their undivided attention.

"I appreciate all of you coming on such short notice," said the Minister of Justice, cutting right to the chance. "As you know, our homeland was attacked this morning in Manehattan. What is the status of the princesses at this time?"

"According to the latest scroll, Instant Justice," said another well-dressed pony who was reading from the scroll. Her highness, Princess Celestia, has just come out of surgery now. They say she has suffered lacerations in her back and two broken legs in the front and the back. They also say that her highness, Princess Luna, also has broken legs."

"What about Princess Cadence and Princess Twilight?" asked Instant Justice. "Any word on them?"

"Princess Cadence reportedly suffered a high level of blast trauma," replied the pony. "There is a slim possibility that she might have to have one of her legs amputated. Princess Twilight is as of this moment, resting comfortably with a lacerated wing and numerous cuts and bruises."

All the ponies in the room grimaced at the thought of having one of their princesses possibly losing a part of her body. However, Instant Justice knew that there had to be leadership that had to be assumed and with the princesses out of commission, there was only one pony for the job.

"Then, I am afraid that we must use protocol in terms of situations like this," he said. "Until the princesses are safely returned to Canterlot, I will be once again assuming temporary leadership of Equestria. To this end, the first order of business will be to start interviewing witnesses who were in the vicinity of the blast."

"According to another scroll," said another pony. "It says here that the suspects in questions were last seen leaving the Marathon before the bombs exploded, wearing both white and black hats.

"Show them to me," ordered Instant Justice and the pony allowed the substitute leader of Equestria to take a good look at the disguised Hopper and Thumper wearing two buckball caps. "Are you certain these are the suspects, Law Abiding?"

Law Abiding nodded at this in silence and Instant Justice knew just exactly what he needed to do.

"I do, Instant Justice," answered Law Abiding. "However, since we believe that they are likely the two changelings that Thorax warned us to keep an eye out for, I suggest that we seal off all routes in and out of Manehattan and its suburbs. If these would-be assassins get up as far north as the Crystal Empire or even as far south to the Dragon Lands, they will never be found."

"But, isn't Princess Ember ruler of the dragon lands?" wondered another pony. "We should warn her as well?"

"Grand Jury has a point, Instant Justice," suggested Law Abiding, looking over towards his boss. "Spike, the brave and glorious recently announced that Princess Ember was made an ally of ours not too long ago. We know that the Dragon Lands are dangerous to ponies, but what would they be to a Changeling?"

Instant Justice considered the matter and got up to look out among the citizens of Canterlot, who were already gathering in eternal vigil for the well-being of their sovereigns. The minister of justice sighed heavily as he walked back towards the table of ponies and sat down.

"Changeling can easily adapt to any element because that is the advantage that they have," answered Instant Justice. "Furthermore, we have to assume that they won't be going to just the Dragon Lands. We need to send out a message to every city and town in our land of the dangers that these two changelings are."

"Yes," remarked Law Abiding. "Every single bit of Law enforcement and the ponies that they protect must be made aware of these two Changelings. We need to remember that these Changelings will do everything in their power to avoid capture, so we must enforce additional measures."

"I agree," said Instant Justice, taking a quill and a piece of parchment with his magic. "Its time to increase security measures throughout all of Equestria. With a little bit of luck, we should have the Changelings contained and be captured as quickly as possible."

Instant Justice quickly drafted up the order and passed it around for all the ponies to sign. However, even Equestria's minister of justice had his doubts about his own decision.

"But, all we can do now is hope and pray that all of this ends as soon as possible," he thought to himself.

…

Back in Manehattan, Starlight, Sunset, Trixie, Moon Dancer and Discord began to start their own hunt for the Changelings.

"So, they were conversing over here," explained Moon Dancer as she led them to the warehouse where Hopper and Thumper were hiding. "Saying that they hoped to bring back Queen Chrysalis, who is the Changeling Queen."

"You seem to know your Changelings," remarked Sunset.

"All that studying I did at the library seemed to have paid off for the better," replied Moon Dancer. "Might as well go inside and see if there is anything we can find for evidence."

So, they all went inside and began to look for any signs of anything used to make a bomb among the mess that the Changeling brothers had made. For a while, they seemed to be getting nowhere until.

"Hey, look at this!" cried Trixie, pulling out a box of explosives. "The Great and Powerful Trixie found some pretty powerful weapons!"

All of the allies can rushing over and all of them took a good strong look at the opened box of explosives.

"Amazing," gasped Starlight, her eyes widened in shock. "Greater than anything magical could ever comprehend!"

"Still, we need to clean this place up for the police, don't you think?" asked Discord, transforming into a maid, only to be met with a glance from the other ponies. "What? Believe me, how could anypony want to live in a mess like this?"

"Because the police will need to go through this place for any evidence," answered Starlight, who then noticed several ponies dressed in police uniforms coming in the vicinity of the warehouse. "And speaking of which, we need to leave before the police even come in here!"

…

With his suggestions thrown out the window, Discord snapped his fingers and the group disappeared from the warehouse just before the cops could come in and discover them. Soon, they all reappeared back at the finish line.

"Now what?" asked Discord, who was no longer dressed as a maid. "What do we do?"

"We start asking ponies who had seen the Changelings," answered Starlight, sounding like a true leader. "Perhaps it would be best to split up and then come back in say, an hour or so?"

Discord then snapped his fingers again, transforming into a pony version of himself.

"Sounds right to me," said Discord, a hint of determination in his voice as he was determined to get started. "Let's get going and the sooner we can find these Changelings that hurt Fluttershy, the better."

All that Starlight and Trixie could do was lower their heads in disbelief as they all spread out to question anyone who saw the Changeling brothers.

"Will he ever learn that ponies aside from his friend were affected by all of this?" scoffed Trixie, before leaving with Moon Dancer.

"I don't know, Trixie," sighed Starlight before leaving Sunset. "I just don't know."

Thorax Learns What Happened

In the hours since he had prisoners of his own kind sitting before him, Thorax continued to wait and wait for his captives to break their silence. Unlike his former leader, Thorax was not ruthless and did not want to go to extremes to set up a point. He wanted to give his captors mercy, no matter how evil they were. But, just as he continued to wait, a reformed Changeling flew quickly into the throne room with urgent news.

"Your highness," he said, landing and bowing before Thorax while panting heavily. "There has been a terrible attack on our pony allies."

Thorax's eyes widened and knowing that his most loyal allies had been attacked, he rose to his legs and looked down upon the messenger. Remembering what Chrysalis had done to them before, Thorax felt his anger boil.

"What happened?" he asked coldly, causing the messenger to back away nervously. "What happened to Spike and the others?"

"Bombs were set off," replied the messenger, trembling before the furious Changeling leader. "Targeted assassination attempt. Reports say that it was Hopper and Thumper."

Thorax snarled and slammed his left front hoof down hard on the throne, furious that this could happen to the ones that helped him get to his new role. Furthermore, these developments were causing him to feel anger not felt by anything he had ever experienced before. Yes, he did have a brief outburst when Spike turned his back on him, but this was much worse than that…much worse.

"Is any of my friends hurt?" Thorax asked.

"Yes," answered the messenger, nervously. "Fortunately, they are all still alive despite what had happened. As of now, they remain in a pony hospital."

"If I find that Hopper and Thumper did any of this," seethed Thorax, looking away from the angry Changeling king as he was starting to go into a brief soliloquy. "Then, I can assure you that there are two cells in Tartarus just waiting for them. Nopony attempts to carry out an assassination attempt and lives to tell the tale. But I won't go through any trials or anything like that, because I know what will happen. Chrysalis would just say they were guilty, drain their love and then kill whoever was accused!"

The messenger wanted to back away, but he couldn't do so. His leader had not dismissed him, but that was all about to change as Thorax looked back up to them.

"You are dismissed," he said, firmly and the nervous Changeling messenger bowed to his leader, before leaving the throne room.

…

Now, Thorax was deciding what to do with his captives now that the two missing Changelings had been revealed as the main perpetrators behind what had happened. However, there was something far more important that he needed to do first before joining in the hunt.

"I must visit my friends and offer them my support," he thought to himself. "Then, I will deal with the captives later. If I find out if Spike was hurt…"

Just then, before he could leave, another reformed Changeling made his way into the throne room with one of the Changelings still loyal to Chrysalis. Thorax growled as he looked down at the Changeling, wanting to teach him a lesson right then and there.

"Where is Hopper and Thumper?" Thorax asked icily, grabbing the changeling captive in a magic aura that emulated from his horns. "Do you wish for me to teach you what happens to Changelings who don't talk?"

"Somewhere where you will never find them, traitor," snapped the Changeling captive. "You made a big mistake overthrowing our true leader. Soon, you will be the one in my place."

Thorax was not going to put up with this kind of behavior from his prisoners and he roughly put the captive Changeling back onto the ground hard while letting out a small growl.

"Don't underestimate the fury of your new leader," retorted Thorax, pointing his magic glowing horns at the captured Changeling. "Anypony who fails to understand our new way of life will be never heard of again!"

"You will be the one never heard of again, traitor!" snarled the Changeling captive and Thorax was beginning to lose his patience with him. But, for his own sake as well as those of Spike and his pony friends, Thorax kept his dignity despite the growing anger inside of him. "Yes, back down from harming me, traitor. I swear that once our queen is restored to her proper throne, you will see what…"

But, Thorax merely slapped the Changeling across the face angrily to silence him.

"Yes, hit me across the face," laughed the Changeling captive, brushing off Thorax's actions like it was nothing. "That's just a reflection of who you truly are, traitor. A scared little Changeling that wants to be friends with creatures that harbor our food source."

Thorax was having none of this and was left with no other choice for his captives. He then directed his attention towards the reformed Changeling holding the captive Changeling.

"Take him back to the dungeons and do whatever you can to make him and the others talk," ordered Thorax in an ice cold tone of a voice. "He and the others will talk and he and the others will reveal where Hopper and Thumper are hiding. If they still don't talk, then do what you want with them."

"If you destroy us, your blood will be on your hooves, traitor!" cried the captured Changeling as he struggled against his bonds while being taken back to his cell. "I swear that our comrades are probably somewhere planning your demise and if you destroy us when our Queen returns, we will be avenged with your destroyed life!"

But, Thorax was not going to listen and simply focused on visiting his pony friends. With the sounds of the screaming captives still being heard, Thorax turned his attention towards the setting sky.

"Your highness," replied a reformed Changeling who was on guard, looking up to Thorax. "The princesses are at a hospital in the pony city of Manehattan. That was where the bombs were planted by Hopper and Thumper."

"Is Spike there too?" asked Thorax.

"Yes," said the reformed Changeling. "He was one of those who were hurt in the blasts. According to reports, about over 200 were hurt."

The thought of so many ponies hurt because of Hopper and Thumper were simply too much for Thorax to take in. In fact, the more he thought about it, the more he wanted to just be there for his friends. But, a part of him wondered if they were even still alive to begin with

"Are there any dead?" he asked.

"Only about six, your highness," replied the reformed Changeling in a solemn voice. "But, none of your friends were among the dead."

"Then, I have no choice," sighed Thorax. "I must charge Hopper and Thumper with murder upon their capture. That is, if they are captured alive. But, I must go to Manehattan and visit my friends. I will be back in time, though I do not know exactly when I will be back."

Bowing to his superior, the reformed Changeling watched as Thorax took to the air and began making his way towards Manehattan where his friends were recovering from their injuries…

Thorax Visits His Friends

Leaving his captives to be interrogated, Thorax managed to arrive in Manehattan despite the continuing chaos that ensured in the hours after the bombings. It didn't really matter if he was discovered by suspicious ponies, for all that Thorax wanted to do was to be there for the ones who helped him become the leader that he was today. Upon arriving in Manehattan, he decided to temporarily assume the form of "Crystal Hoof," the disguise he used when being introduced to Princess Cadence and Flurry Heart while he was in hiding.

"I am here to see the princesses," said the disguised Thorax to the receptionist, before looking out among the crowds of the injured trickling both in and out of the hospital. "How many ponies are hurt?"

"I'm afraid that it is close to 200," sighed the receptionist. "To be honest, I've never seen anything like this. I've often wondered who would do such a thing to our citizens, our city, our land that we called home."

Thorax sighed in sympathy with the receptionist. Thorax knew that she was right, there wasn't anything quite like this in Manehattan or Equestria for that matter. But, at the same point, he knew that since his reformation, he couldn't keep secrets for very long.

"I'm going to tell you something," said Thorax, realizing that he needed to do this. "But, you can't tell anypony else."

Before the receptionist could say another word, Thorax dropped his disguise and reveal his true self, much to the shock and amazement of all in the waiting room. The receptionist was about to call for help, but she couldn't at the sight of Thorax's reformed body.

"I am not Crystal Hoof," he said. "I am Thorax, the new leader of the reformed Changelings and I mean you no harm."

"What makes you so sure that you want to see the princesses?" she asked suspiciously. "Everypony in Manehattan has heard all about what your kind did at the Royal Wedding a few months back."

The rest of the ponies cowered in fear, but Thorax remained steadfast, determined to not let his past get to him as the receptionist debated on whether to contact the authorities.

"Well, I want to assure you," reassured Thorax. "That I mean none of you any harm. My friends were among those attacked and injured in the blasts. I wish to see them."

The receptionist was just about ready to press the button, when a weak voice was heard from behind her.

"He is welcome to visit us," groaned the voice and Thorax looked sharply towards a purple alicorn pony sitting in a wheelchair covered in bandages being pushed by a baby dragon also covered in bandages. "I thank you for coming during this time, Thorax."

"Princess Twilight?" remarked Thorax, bowing his head slightly towards Twilight out of respect. "Thank Equestria that you are alive after what those two murderous Changelings tried to do to you all."

"It will take more than a few explosives to keep us down, Thorax," said Spike, who hobbled over and hugged his friend tightly in a short embrace. "Boy, it is sure good to see you again."

Thorax nodded as he followed Spike and Twilight into the room where the rest of the princesses were being kept while also being guarded by a pair of Manehattan police officers. Celestia, Luna and Cadence were being held in a room big enough for four ponies in the case, all four alicorn princesses. Shining Armor was also in the room, sitting next to Cadence, who was still in a medically induced coma.

"I came as soon as I found out what had happened," said Thorax as he looked at the injured royals. "How are you all feeling?"

"We are alive, but we are hurt," groaned Luna, feeling the pain of her broken legs and broken left wing as she struggled in the position she was in. "Those loyalists of Chrysalis have gone too far, Thorax."

"Indeed," sighed Celestia. "It pains me to hear that six of our subjects have died in this cowardly act. But, whoever did this to us will suffer the fullest extent of Equestrian law. Our minister of law, Instant Justice, will handle the investigation."

Luna's eyes widened and briefly turned over to her sister since her head was free to move about.

"Instant Justice is a reckless pony, big sister," she said. "There have been times where he has done some questionable judgments without our consent. Must he assume command in our place?"

"Yes, because he has learned from his errors," answered Celestia. "Instant Justice will do whatever it takes to get those two Changelings that attacked us to justice."

"If only if it were that easily," sighed Thorax. "Hopper and Thumper are two of Chrysalis' most loyal and dangerous warriors. Those two brothers will do anything to get what they want, even killing those who stand in their way."

"Then nopony is safe unless they are captured," remarked Spike, worriedly. "Will they come back to finish us off or…"

However, before he could say another word, Thorax raised his leg and silenced his friend, trying to keep him calm along with the princesses. Hearing that the possibility of the Changelings that tried to kill him and his wife made Shining Armor feel very cross and angry.

"The only reason I would want to have those two Changelings come back," he said, furiously as he picked up an empty flower vase. "Is so I could destroy them MYSELF!"

In a fit of rage, Shining Armor threw the vase against the wall and causing everypony to jump in shock and fear, including Thorax.

"Shiny, calm down," said Twilight, weakly but firmly as she was helped into her new hospital bed. "Being angry and throwing flower vases isn't going to do anything."

"I know, I know, Twily," sighed Shining Armor in desperation and fury as he looked at his comatose wife. "But, they can't be allowed to wander free, not after what they did to us and our subjects. I can't let the authorities handle everything, I need to get involved."

"You can't get involved, Prince Armor," ordered Thorax, stopping Shining Armor from leaving and forcing him to sit back down. "Hopper and Thumper are extremely dangerous Changelings that do more than just absorb love. I can assure you that are not afraid to die for Queen Chrysalis and that they will do everything in the power to finish what they started."

"But do they even know we are still alive?" asked Luna, but Thorax wasn't surprised at all as he walked over and looked out the window of the princesses' hospital room. For he knew that Hopper and Thumper's plan had already hit a snag simply because they failed to understand that the princesses were to be dead in order for Chrysalis to easily retake the throne.

…

Meanwhile, Starlight and her fellow unicorns had spent the entire day, canvasing every square inch up and down the route where the bombs were placed. They were exhausted and in need of a rest.

"We should try again tomorrow, Starlight," sighed Sunset. "No one is going to want to talk. Not after the first day."

"Heat mane has a point there," added Discord, much to Sunset's annoyance at being called such a nickname. "Perhaps we should at least call it a night, ladies. I want to make sure that Fluttershy is protected at all costs."

The four unicorns nodded in agreement and were just about to leave when an older male voice was heard from one of the shops along the route, which was a delicatessen.

"Wait!" he called in a thick Manehattan accent, revealing to be a brown earth pony wearing a plaid work shirt and apron and had a sandwich for a cutie mark. "Are you asking about those two supposed "colts" that were quick to leave before them bombs went off?"

"Yes, we are," answered Starlight, walking up to the pony. "Is there anything you want to tell us about them?"

"Come in," he said and Starlight along with her fellow unicorns and Discord, followed the pony into his shop where they would finally start to get answers to all of their questions…

Only Some Changelings Are Monsters

Their chat with a witness to the bombings had a very strong impact on Starlight and her allies. As a matter of fact, all five of them were wondering if what Carnegie Deli said was indeed true or if he was just bluffing. However, one thing was for sure that the two Changelings who committed the atrocities were considered extremely dangerous.

"Perhaps maybe he was really telling the truth," sighed Sunset as they all walked from the deli. "If Carnegie Deli says that these kinds of Changelings are monsters, then we can't take them too lightly."

"We already are not taking them lightly," remarked Starlight. "It's clear to me already that these Changelings are not going to be reformed. Maybe Twilight was right about not everypony in Equestria wanting to listen and change their ways. But, I cannot help but wonder about something."

She then turned her attention over to Discord, who was disguised as a pony taxi to avoid suspicion. Starlight remembered what Twilight had told her about Discord being reformed and learning the magic of friendship. Yes, Trixie was reformed and not just because she was her best friend which was the only reason for doing so. Soon, they walked past the finish line, still being treated like a crime scene.

"Hey, freak show! This area is closed!" cried a police officer when Discord tried to cross into the area. "Go take another route!"

Insulted, Discord turned into a normal pony and blew a raspberry at the police officer before walking on the sidewalk.

"Well, I never!" huffed Discord in a shocked and disgusted tone. "Guess not everypony is willing to be friendly. But, at least I can get back to Fluttershy's side until she gets better."

"We'll all be happy to get some rest," yawned Trixie as they arrived back at the hospital. "The Great and Exhausted Trixie needs her sleep."

…

Arriving back at the hospital, they all went towards the rooms where the Princesses and Fluttershy were being kept. By now, they were all asleep, exhausted and drained after their near death experiences. Soon, Trixie and Sunset were asleep on the floor of the hospital while Discord was sleeping in Fluttershy's room, not wanting to leave her side. There was, however, only one pony who was still awake and that was Starlight. Furthermore, she wasn't alone.

"It's been a long day, Thorax," sighed Starlight in a quiet voice as she and Thorax looked out the window of the hospital room. "Do you think that maybe we will all get over this?"

"To be honest, Starlight," replied Thorax. "I don't know if it is going to be possible. I feel that there is going to be some backlash to improving our relationships with ponies to a degree. But, you have to believe me when I say that all of the Changelings were brainwashed by Chrysalis' warped beliefs. After what happened at the Royal Wedding, I dedicated myself to not listening to what she had to say anymore. Not all of us were born monsters, you know."

The fact that Thorax was one of those not born as monsters, was very striking to Starlight and it came to her mind that while Thorax was born with the body of a monster, his mind wasn't. In fact, Starlight could relate to Thorax in a way.

"I know what you mean," she said, walking over and sitting down on a chair not far from where Trixie was asleep. "I wasn't born a monster, but I became one…voluntarily. Because Sunburst got his cutie mark before me, I became a monster and ran a village where cutie marks were banned. But, thanks to interventions by Twilight and her friends, I gave up my dictatorship ways and was given a second chance."

Thorax walked over and joined Starlight right where she was sitting. Almost immediately, Thorax began to develop a much greater respect for Starlight and her actions that brought her to this point. After all, Starlight was there when he was defended by Spike at a moment when he could have been dealt with right then and there.

"Ever since then," sighed Starlight. "I've always believed that everypony who committed such acts deserves a second chance. When Chrysalis turned my offer down and swore revenge on me, I thought that…"

Starlight had to stop before she finished her sentence, her failure to reform Chrysalis still greatly fresh in her mind.

"Well, you see what I mean, Thorax," finished Starlight, letting out a false chuckle. "I guess that everypony can't be redeemed."

"You did what needed to be done, Starlight," reassured Thorax. "Chrysalis is beyond reasoning at this point and if she ever does decide to come back, then we'll have to deal with her according to Equestrian law. I cannot allow myself to tolerate such an atrocity from being carried out again. My friends were put in danger once and I will not allow them to be put in danger again."

Thorax then turned back to his injured friends fast asleep in their beds, but focused his attention on the still comatose Cadence and the sleeping Shining Armor sitting up, with his hoof in his wife's. Quietly walking over towards them, Thorax sighed as he felt a tear trickle down his eye. These were the ponies who had been convinced to take him in and give him sanctuary. Now, here they were, victims of an attack by creatures that Thorax was once part of.

…

Meanwhile, back in Canterlot, a large group of ponies clad in body armor and armed with spears, guns and everything but the kitchen sink were gathered in the throne room where Instant Justice stood before them.

"These are the Changelings that we are trying to find," he explained, pointing to the pictures of the ponies that Hopper and Thumper were disguised as. "They are considered to be armed and extremely dangerous and should be approached with extreme caution. If you have to use lethal force to end their reign of terror on Equestria, then so be it. Now, our objective to capture or destroy these creatures that attempted to assassinate our most beloved princesses."

Seeing some of the ponies with concerned looks on their faces, Instant Justice decided to make them understand why they were doing what they were doing.

"But, I know we all have families and friends who were at the marathon today," he said. "We've all seen the pictures of the wounded and the dead. And I can assure you all that this will be the greatest challenge of your lives since becoming a defender of our great land. I can assure you that Equestria will not stand for cowardly acts like this and we must not allow our own families to be sucked into the wrath that these Changelings possess. That will be all."

The ponies saluted Equestria's minister of justice and all departed the throne room, splitting up to being their search for Hopper and Thumper. However, one could only wonder where they were at that very moment…

In Fluttershy's Room

Discord had spent the entire night draped over Fluttershy while she remained in her coma like state. The ex-master of chaos knew that any kind of magic he could use would do very little in making Fluttershy better again. As soon as he heard the door opening, Discord quickly disappeared from view as the doctor assigned to Fluttershy's care and two nurses came into the room.

"Hmm, some progress, but it's slow," he sighed. "Her internal injuries seem to be healing."

"Well, the internal bleeding stopped that's for sure," remarked one of the nurses. "She's very lucky to have survived a bombing attempt unlike some ponies."

"Do you think that maybe we should try and wake her up?" asked the other nurse.

"I'd give it another day or two before we can safely break her out of the coma," answered the doctor. "I cannot risk waking her up unless she is fully healed."

Discord waited a few more minutes before the doctor and nurses left the room, but not before injection some morphine into Fluttershy's IV line. Once they were gone, Discord made himself reappear again just as Starlight came into the room.

"How is she, Discord?" sighed Starlight.

"They're going to keep her like this for another day," replied Discord, sadly, clutching her hoof. "But, they say Fluttershy is lucky to be alive and it's unfortunate that I don't have any magic that can make her feel better. I'm the spirit of chaos, Starlight. How was I supposed to know that she was in danger? I could have saved her!"

"There was nothing you could have done, Discord," sympathized Starlight, sitting next to Discord. "Believe me, I may be a powerful unicorn, but I couldn't repair anything as easy as one, two, and three. These kinds of situations take time."

Discord sighed upon hearing this and what Starlight had said did very little to make him feel better. All he ever wanted was to see Fluttershy be okay again and all he could do was hope for the best.

"I know what you are saying, Starlight," said Discord, clutching his fallen friends hoof tightly. "But, it certainly doesn't make anything easier and there were times I could take everything back for Fluttershy's sake. Ever since I betrayed Equestria by siding with Tirek, I've dedicated myself to only using my magic for good instead of evil. But, do you think that maybe I am being punished for all the chaos I brought on Equestria?"

"What do you mean?" wondered Starlight.

"Well," said Discord, briefly looking up at the ceiling. "I had a chance to be a hero, Starlight and I blew it by doing the unimaginable. Shining Armor was right to call me a traitor and I know it. Perhaps I should have been turned to stone for what I did."

Starlight was not going to stand by and listen to Discord badmouth himself like this. Like Discord, she was given a second chance and was making good use of it. But, Discord was far too caught up in his grief to listen, so Starlight had to make him see it, one way or another.

"Discord, hear my voice and listen!" she said in an authorative voice, pulling him to her face with her magic using a spell similar to the one she used on Twilight's friends. "You are not a traitor! We both have a lot in common and if you think I am just going to stand by and watch you be hard on yourself, then you are mistaken! What we did in the past is in the past and that's all there is to it! We are going to do this together and nopony is going to tell us otherwise! Do it for Fluttershy, but most importantly, do it for yourself!"

Hearing this speech made Discord see the truth and he knew that Starlight was right as she released him from her magical grip. Starlight, himself, Trixie and Sunset were all evildoers a long time ago and now here they were, all working together for a common purpose: to find and capture the Changelings responsible for committing this heinous act on Equestria's most cosmopolitan city.

"You're right, Starlight," said Discord, getting up and looking down at Fluttershy's peaceful state. "I can't be badmouthing myself like this. I'm Discord, the spirit of chaos and friend to all ponies who will do anything to help them."

Just then, the door opened to reveal Moon Dancer on the other side, running in and panting heavily.

"Moon Dancer, what's wrong?" cried Starlight.

"I…just… found… out," panted Moon Dancer, trying to talk and catch her breath at the same time. "That the two Changelings were last seen boarding a train out of Manehattan!"

Starlight rose to her feet and Discord rose to the air upon hearing this development from Moon Dancer.

"Where were they going?" asked Starlight.

"I'm not sure," answered Moon Dancer. "But, the minister of justice has already increased security in every town and city in Equestria! What do we do?"

It didn't take long for Starlight to give an answer on what to do

"Then we have to go after them," said Starlight, firmly. "Who knows where they are heading?"

"From what I hear," replied Moon Dancer. "They are heading towards Canterlot."

"Why?" asked Discord, holding up a question mark sign and clad in a judge's robe. "Why would they be going there? Unless they have a very good reason for going, they'll be walking right into the minister of justice."

At that moment, Discord, Starlight and Moon Dancer dashed out of Fluttershy's room with Trixie and Sunset not far behind. There was also no reason for Thorax to stay at the hospital as he needed to get back to the Changeling Kingdom to mobilize his own search for the missing Changelings.

"Come on," called Starlight as they left the hospital. "We have to get to the train station!"

…

Meanwhile, ever since their successful execution of their bombs at the Manehattan Marathon, Hopper and Thumper were already on the search for Queen Chrysalis. Disguising themselves as ponies, the two Changeling brothers boarded the friendship express to Canterlot which was already filled with ponies still trying to get out of Manehattan.

"We need to hide and this is the only way," whispered Hopper, trying to use the crowd of ponies to hide themselves as they went into a small cabin. "Now that Equestria's saviors are dead, all we have to do is to set off our next bomb in Canterlot to finish off whatever of important ponies stand in our way. Then, we can find our Queen and once she is restored, we can carry out the removal of that Thorax!"

Unlike his brother, Thumper was beginning to wonder if or when Chrysalis would ever be found. In his mind, there was always the possibility that Chrysalis was either captured or worse.

"If only we could be so sure," he replied. "Didn't you hear the news? Innocent ponies are dead, Hopper and we are the ones responsible."

"Just collateral damage, brother," scoffed Hopper. "All that matters is that the princesses are dead and the throne to Equestria is ours for the taking. Now, we must journey to Canterlot and seize control of the castle. Then, we can prepare for our queen's return! But, first, we must make another bomb to finish off anypony who will stand in our way!"

Thumper was not going to hear any of this. A part of him knew very well that the princesses were alive and that the wrath of Equestria was going to come down on both of them. Still, Thumper kept his second thoughts to himself for the sake of his brother. But, sooner or later, the gloves were going to come off…

Race to Canterlot

Running as fast as their hooves, or in the case of Discord, wings could carry of them, Starlight and her friends dashed to the train station and without even acknowledging the train's conductor, they boarded the next train heading out of Manehattan.

"Do you think it's impolite to be doing this?" remarked Trixie as they ran into a cabin big enough to hold all five of them. "I mean, the great and repentant Trixie doesn't want to be rude."

"Time is of the instance," gasped Sunset, as the train began to move. "It's hard to be polite when two Changeling monsters are running about. Who knows where they are going or what they are going to do? They could even return to Ponyville or worse…"

Sunset froze at the thought of two Changeling monsters breaking into the Castle of Friendship and going as far as accessing the portal to the human world. However, Starlight noticed Sunset's fears.

"They won't," she said, firmly while clutching her hoof. "Not if we have anything to say about it."

"We just have to find where they are going and then, we can intercept them," added Moon Dancer, looking into some notes that she had taken.

"How do we do that?" wondered Trixie. "I mean, we are just ordinary unicorns who have no business dealing with dangerous creatures. These are Changelings who have nothing to lose and will do more than just capture ponies. We know what that is like."

"That is true," said Discord, who was brandishing a huge flyswatter. "But, don't forget that we aren't in the Changeling Kingdom anymore. That means, I can warp the fabric of reality and we can track those wanted Changelings down."

Even though Discord was determined to carry out his plan, there was no question in the minds of Starlight and Trixie that they needed to be exteremly careful. Being out of the Chrysalis-led Changeling kingdom was one thing, but dealing with Changelings that had carried out an attack on Equestria's royalty was another.

"What we need to do is to at least trap them," thought up Moon Dancer, facing the group. "We cannot approach them lightly and who knows how they will defend themselves. According to my research, they can even fire killing spells in defense."

"Killing spells?" remarked Sunset, who was deep down, in fear of her own life. "They have killing spells?"

"Yes," said Moon Dancer, laying down her notes for them all to look at. "Changelings are fierce fighters and they can kill if it means protecting their own hide."

Moon Dancer then looked up at Discord with a death stare, meaning that even he was not immune to the Changeling's furious nature.

"What?" remarked Discord, shrugging his mismatched body parts. "I can't at least prove that I am capable of defending myself."

"No magic you have can make you immortal to anything," replied Moon Dancer. "None of us have the magic necessary to make us immune to Changeling attacks. We can't confront them directly, but we can help those who are hunting them down."

Everypony nodded in reply, despite Discord's reluctance of the agreement.

...

Soon, the train arrived at the Canterlot station and they all got off, immediately noticing the heavy presence of royal guards searching, protecting and doing everything necessary to counter the threat that loomed above Equestria.

"Where do we start?" asked Sunset.

"I don't know," answered Starlight, looking around for a place that they could go to. "But, we should at least start somewhere where they were last seen."

For a few moments, Starlight looked around and eventually, she noticed a heavy guard around a random house not far from the station.

"Perhaps we could start there," suggested Trixie, already walking over to the guarded house. They all got no farther to the house, when they were suddenly stopped by the guards.

"HALT!" one of the guards barked at the group. "Nopony is allowed inside unless they are a guardspony!"

Although they weren't allowed inside, it didn't hurt for them to ask respective questions about the situation.

"What is going on?" asked Sunset.

"A small family of ponies are being questioned because they are accused of aiding the wanted Changelings," answered the guard. "They are cooperating, but we are not taking any chances at all. Our superior, Instant Justice is overseeing the questioning."

Being allowed to look inside, they saw a mare and stallion unicorn pony couple with two small foals being questioned by Instant Justice and several guardsponies. Almost immediately, they couldn't help but feel sorry for them based on the intense questioning that Instant Justice was given them.

"We found this Changeling talisman on your property," he said to the family. "Have you been harboring Changeling fugitives?"

"Our home is always open to the weary traveler," protested the father. "Have mercy, my lord of justice."

"I am placing you and your family under house arrest until I can get to the bottom of this," said Instant Justice as he turned to leave the house. "If what you say is true, then you are innocent and have nothing to fear."

"But, we are innocent," protested the father, trying to get through to him. "I assure you, we know nothing of these Changeling fugitives."

Stepping outside, Instant Justice was saluted by the guard and turned to face him, taking in a deep sigh of regret.

"I hate having to keep innocent ponies locked up," he said. "But, I can't risk any chances until everything is looked into. Keep them guarded until I say otherwise, understand?"

"Yes, Mr. Minister," replied the guard, saluting him again, much to the shock and surprise of Starlight and her friends. Just as he was beginning to leave, Instant Justice was stopped by Starlight, who teleported in front of him and incased him in a magic sphere.

"Do you mind, young mare?" he asked crossly, banging on the sphere with his hooves. "Let me out of here at once!"

"We don't want to bother you, Mr. Minister," cried Starlight, who was reluctant at her act of keeping Equestria's lawmaker incased in a sphere of her magic. "But, we have to come to aide in the hunt for the wanted Changelings!"

Instant Justice was confused upon hearing this confession, but being that they were providing help in the investigation, he was more than willing to listen to what they had to say.

"How do you know of the Changelings?" asked Instant Justice, still banging to be released from the sphere. "Who are you all and how do you know where they are?"

"I am Starlight Glimmer," answered Starlight. "And these are my friends, Sunset Shimmer, Trixie Lulamoon, Moon Dancer and Discord. We were witnesses to the bombings at the Marathon in Manehattan and we may have information that might help you find the wanted Changelings."

Released from the magic sphere, Instant Justice began to listen intently to what Starlight and her friends had to say.

…

Little did they know at that very moment, Hopper and Thumper were hard at work on preparing to carry out the next part of their ultimate plan…

Spilling the Beans

Upon his return to the Changeling Kingdom, all Thorax could think of was finding Hopper and Thumper. But, in order to do that, he needed the captives that sat in his dungeons to talk, to open up about Hopper and Thumper's plan. It was no sooner that he returned to his throne that one of the changelings questions Chrysalis' loyalists came darting into the throne room.

"One of the prisoners is willing to talk," said a reformed Changeling as Thorax rose to his feet. "He says that he is willing to betray Hopper and Thumper for the sake of Equestria."

"Bring him in," commanded Thorax and the Changeling motioned for several more reformed Changelings to bring the captive inside.

Upon being brought inside, the beaten and bruised Changeling was brought before Thorax and forced to stare up at him. Thorax could tell that he was frightened for his very life as he stepped down from the throne and looked down at him.

"Thorax," whimpered the captured Changeling, shaking so hard that his chains rattled. "I…wish to no longer…suffer the punishments for defending my comrades."

"Go on," said Thorax, quietly. "I'm listening."

"Hopper and Thumper," answered the Changeling, talking through ragged, deep breaths. "They…were…planning to have the Queen reclaim…her place. And, they…were going to plant more bombs…like they did at the marathon."

Thorax's eyes widened and while he was beginning to grow more and more desperate to stop this plot, he kept his emotions in check for the sake of the formerly tough minded Changeling that shook before him like a frightened baby pony.

"How many of these bombs were they going to set off?" asked Thorax. "What are they planning to do?"

"They…want to create a distraction," answered the Changeling. "Hopper and Thumper…want to set off bombs in every major city…in Equestria. So, that…while the attention would…focus on the bombings, they would have…no problem…in finding Chrysalis."

"Did you hear anything said about where Chrysalis is hiding?" asked Thorax.

"No," replied the Changeling. "No one…knows where she is…not even Hopper and Thumper themselves know where she is. But, they said they will not rest…until they find her."

Thorax took in this matter very seriously. He didn't know himself where Chrysalis was hiding, but he knew that time was still of the essence.

"Where are they now?" he asked.

"They are hiding…in Canterlot," answered the Changeling, weakly. "Planning to attack…Canterlot Castle."

With the words, Thorax activated his horns and sent out several flashes of light from them, summoning a majority of the Changelings who had reformed into the throne room. Landing in front of Thorax, they armed themselves with whatever magic that they could muster to prepare themselves for what was to come.

"I am sending you all to aide those in hunting for Hopper and Thumper," Thorax announced in a loud voice. "You will all fly to Canterlot and if you see Hopper and Thumper, do not rest until they are captured alive! They must not find Chrysalis and restore her to power! Now go and spread love to all who are affected by their actions!"

Heeding the calls of their new leader, the reformed Changeling departed the kingdom, heading towards Canterlot as fast as they could. Once they were gone, Thorax turned his attention to the captured Changeling.

"Will you learn to share love instead of taking it for yourself?" he asked and without saying another word, the Changeling nodded and Thorax turned his attention towards the Changelings holding him. "Then, release him at once from his bonds!"

Doing as his captors were told, the Changeling was freed from his bonds and releasing all of the love that had been inside of him, transformed into a reformed Changeling, completely healed of all the wounds he had sustained during the interrogations.

"I pledge my allegiance to you, Thorax," he said, bowing down to him. "I am willing to spread my love throughout all of Equestria!"

"Then, you may arise," said Thorax and the newly reformed Changeling left the throne room a freed creature. However, Thorax knew that this was only one Changeling who had been reformed. "Now, if only the others would do same."

…

Back in Canterlot, Starlight and her comrades stood before Instant Justice while he was keeping a family of ponies under house arrest for supposedly aiding the Changelings.

"Young mare, do you realize what is going on here?" asked Instant Justice in a quiet, irritable tone as he stepped towards Starlight. "Our leaders have been injured and who knows what these monsters will do next? However, I am more than willing to listen what you have to say."

"That's real touching of you, Mr. Minister," remarked Discord, holding out a hand puppet in Instant Justice's likeliness and playing with it. "Do you realize that my first true friend is among those ponies who were targeted for death? So, we aren't leaving from this spot until we say what we need to say to you!"

Instant Justice simply ignored Discord and instead focused all of his attention on Starlight and her friends.

"We witnessed the bombs going off," explained Sunset. "In fact, we both knew that something was very wrong."

"Then, why didn't you alert the nearest security officer?" cried Instant Justice, glaring at both Starlight and Sunset. "The marathon was very well guarded with Equestrian law enforcement!"

"We didn't want to cause a panic, Mr. Minister," protested Starlight. "In fact, the Changelings were disguised as normal ponies, so it would have been impossible to prevent a panic from happening! They even disguised themselves as Twilight and her friends…"

"I know what they did!" interrupted Instant Justice. "And in fact, I know why you are doing this. You want us to try and bargain with monsters that harmed so many ponies and offer them their friendship? I am sorry, young mare, but there will come a time where excessive force will be taken and this is one of those times. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to get back to Canterlot castle to hear a briefing."

Instant Justice walked past Starlight, but Twilight Sparkle's personal protégé was not going to simply stand by.

"All we are saying is that we can help in the investigation," pleaded Starlight, teleporting herself and the others in front of him. "There is much more to these Changelings than even you will ever know, Mr. Minister! Let us help you!"

But, Instant Justice grunted and simply stayed focused on the task at hand.

"He just doesn't understand," cried Moon Dancer. "There really is more to the Changelings than meets the eye. Those poor ponies who are under house arrest didn't know what the Changelings were going to do."

Then, Starlight got herself an idea about how to clear the family's name as well as prove that they could help in the investigation.

"What about that Changeling Talisman?" she wondered. "I've got the feeling that the Changelings were disguised as normal ponies and they didn't know about it."

"What are you saying, Starlight?" asked Trixie and they all followed Starlight back to the house where the family was being held under heavy guard. "You don't mean…?"

"Yes, we need to talk to them directly," said Starlight, firmly as they walked up to the guards at the front door. "These ponies are just as victims in this as we all are."

She then looked to the two guards and then retreated to a back corner of the house that was unguarded, grabbing the others as well in her magical grip. Once the coast was clear, Starlight teleported them all into the house, startling the occupants inside.

"Who are you?!" cried the father.

"We can help clear your name in this matter," said Starlight. "Just tell us exactly what happened that got you in this situation."

The father pony wasn't sure what was going on, but the mother pony was very sure. As far as she was concerned, these were ponies that didn't want to see them in the situation that they were currently in.

"What can you do to help us?" asked the mother much to the father's shock and surprise.

"All we need is the whole truth," said Sunset. "And with your help, we can put an end to this reign of terror that we are all under."

So, the two ponies sighed and they led Starlight and her friends into the living room. They all knew that if Equestria's minister of justice wasn't going to listen or tell them anything, these ponies would and what they would say would hopefully be another step in the hunt for the Changeling monsters that, at that very moment, had completed their next engine of destruction to be carried out in Canterlot itself…

Questionable Interrogation Methods

In the past few hours since he had reformed a fellow Changeling, Thorax had a very clear suspicion that something was amiss. The injuries that had been inflicted on the ex-Changeling captive were a sign too Thorax that something had gone wrong in the questioning.

"What do wish of me, Thorax?" asked the Changeling as he entered the throne room and bowed to Thorax. "The questioning has gone well and we are getting the captives to start opening up and giving us more information."

However, Thorax was not interested in the well-being of the questioning.

"Um, Sergeant Metapod," he said, firmly. "When the Changeling that we reformed was in here earlier, I noticed that he was covered in bruises all over his body. I clearly said that no physical force was to be used on the prisoners. Am I clear?"

"But, I had nothing to do with that," cried Sergeant Metapod, immediately defending his actions. "I assure you, whatever happened in the interrogations were not of my directions. You know me, Thorax."

"Yes, I know you, Sergeant," he countered, stepping off of his throne and looking down crossly at the sergeant. "You oversaw interrogations that Chrysalis ordered and sometimes, those who were interrogated never came out alive. Well, I'm ordering you to stop these torturing acts at once!"

Sergeant Metapod gulped as Thorax eyed him while he circled around like a vulture to a dead animal carcass.

"But, Queen Chrysalis…" Sergeant Metapod started to say, only to be interrupted by his new leader.

"…is no longer leader of this hive," interrupted Thorax, sharply. "I am your new leader now and we are adapting to a new way of how we deal with captives. You and the ones overseeing the interrogations will use your words and not your claws to make them talk. Is that understood?"

"Very well," Sergeant Metapod said, quietly. "But, what if they still refuse to talk? What will we do then?"

"Use your words," Thorax remarked as he flew back up to his throne. "And if they refuse to talk, then you can only go as far as threatening them. Threaten them with methods that are only to be used if necessary. What I saw earlier was a method that I will no longer tolerate as your new leader."

Exhausted from showing his displeasure, Thorax lowered his head and sighed heavily while Sergeant Metapod just stood there, standing still like a statue.

"However," he said in a low voice. "I can understand that this is going to take some getting used to for all of you. Our reputation was built on harming others and stealing love and it will take a while to repair that reputation. If there is any chance of starting to repair our reputation with the ponies of Equestria, then Hopper and Thumper must be stopped and they must be stopped now."

Thorax banged his front leg on the throne sending out a loud reverberating echo that rang throughout the throne room.

"As you command, Lord Thorax," said Sergeant Metapod, backing away slightly from the noise caused by the bang. "We will do as you command."

"See that you do," replied Thorax. "The sooner we get our prisoners to give us information without having to use violence, the sooner we can stop Hopper and Thumper from carrying out their next move."

However, upon saying those words, the doors were flung wide open and a pair of reformed Changelings came darting into the throne room, panting heavily upon stopping before Thorax's throne.

"Thorax," they panted. "We have some urgent news regarding our intelligence that we have received about Hopper and Thumper."

"Then, tell me what it is," ordered Thorax. "What is happening?"

"A pony family in Canterlot is placed under house arrest," said one of the Changelings. "They are accused of hiding Hopper and Thumper from the Canterlot authorities."

"Where did you get this information?" Thorax asked, his face scrunching with impatience. "Tell me now!"

The fury in Thorax's voice once again sent vibrations among the throne room, frightening the Changelings that stood before him.

"One of our spies just placed in Canterlot have given us the intelligence," answered one of the Changelings. "We have reason to believe that Hopper and Thumper were disguised as ordinary ponies."

Upon hearing this, Thorax used his magic to produce a picture from the marathon before the bombs went off and there was the picture of the ponies seen leaving the site where the bombs were planted. He had every reason to believe that the Chrysalis loyalists were disguised as these two ponies seen in the picture.

"Then, we must not take any chances," sighed Thorax, looking at the picture just a little bit more before turning back towards the throne room. "If any of our spies spots them in these disguises, then they must be confronted on the spot. I will not have another bomb go off and kill any more ponies if I have anything to say about it!"

…

Meanwhile, Hopper and Thumper were in the process of finishing off the bombs that they planned to use at Canterlot Castle. However, Thumper had a very strong indication that something was not right.

"Hopper, have you noticed something?" he asked.

"What?" grunted Hopper, turning sharply around to face his brother. "What do you mean have I noticed anything?"

"They must know where we are," remarked Thumper, nervously. "In the day since we came here, security has tightened all around Canterlot."

"Of course, security is tightened, you foolish excuse for a brother," said Hopper, bopping Thumper on the forehead, before going back to the newly constructed bombs. "But, no matter how tight these ponies make their security, we will find the holes that keep their security from being perfect. Besides, with the most important ponies in Equestria dead, all of their attention will be focused on mourning their deeply departed leaders and idols."

However, Thumper was not convinced at all by this. He had a sense that their plan had backfired, but didn't want to anger his brother any further nor divert him from his plans of more murder.

"I wonder if that is really true," thought Thumper. "Something tells me that we will soon be discovered in time."

Soon, the two brothers donned their pony disguises and climbed out of their hiding place, their newly created bombs hidden in a pair of saddlebags. While the increased security paid no attention to them, Hopper and Thumper approached Canterlot Castle, placing the bombs right at the entrance, right under the stairs.

"Now we set the timer for them to go off at sunset," said Hopper. "Once these bombs go off, that will provide us with more time to carry out our next attacks."

"Where do we go next?" asked Thumper, trying to keep his reservations about all of this down to a minimum. "Ponyville? The Crystal Empire?"

"I think we should target the Crystal Empire next and then target Ponyville," answered Hopper. "Anything that is a symbol of our enemies must be destroyed, for the existence of our enemies must be erased from existence."

Now, it was starting to become apparent just what these two brothers were planning. The events of their attacks at the Manehattan marathon was the beginning of a bigger plot, a plot that would eventually never be completed…

Proving their Innocence

"And that's the whole story," said the father pony to Starlight and her friends. "We were simply trying to shelter two ponies who were exhausted and didn't have anywhere else to go. How were we supposed to know that they were Changelings?"

"You both didn't know," replied Sunset. "Believe me, every single one of us in this house have at least been deceived a few times in our lives. However, the Minister of Justice doesn't see that."

All the ponies nodded in agreement on Sunset's remark.

"Well, of course he doesn't," said Discord, knitting a Fluttershy sweater in her likeliness and holding it out for him to look at. "Everypony has been affected by this kind of chaos, especially Fluttershy."

"Who's Fluttershy?" asked the mother pony, holding her foal in her forelegs. "Was she one of the ponies killed in the blast?"

This struck a chord with Discord and he glared at the mother pony sharply, the irises in his eyes glowing a blood red color.

"No, she wasn't," he hissed fiercely. "But, she is fighting for her life, I'll have you know. So, if I were you…"

"Discord!" cried Starlight sharply. "Please! Leave her alone! She was just asking a question!"

Heeding Starlight's cry, Discord snapped his fingers and returned to working on the Fluttershy sweater, much to the annoyance of Starlight and her fellow unicorns.

"I'm very sorry about Discord," sympathized Starlight. "His friends was one of the ponies who were targeted for assassination. And yes, she is fighting for her life right now."

"If we had known that they were Changelings…" the father started to say, but couldn't bring himself to finish the sentence.

"Dear, we didn't know," finished the mother pony. "They were just…normal looking ponies to me and in fact, they were trying to sound friendly."

"Sounding friendly doesn't mean that they were trying to hide their true intentions," said Sunset, rising out of the seat she was in and walking over towards a window, looking out of the heavy security that continued to grow and grow. "All that matters is getting these two changelings off of the streets before it is too late. Who knows what they are planning right now?"

As her fellow unicorn continued to look out the window, Starlight reached down and grabbed the Changeling talisman with her magic that was found and put this innocent family in the situation that they were all in.

"Did they tell you anything?" she asked them. "Anything that involved going anywhere outside of Canterlot?"

"They did say that they had relatives in the Crystal Empire," answered the mother pony. "And then, they were going to visit more relatives in Ponyville."

Hearing this made Starlight and her friends feel a connection, a connection that meant that every city that Hopper and Thumper would visit would be another bomb that was planted and timed to go off at any moment.

"When you say relatives," asked Starlight again. "Did they mention anypony in particular?"

"No," answered the father pony. "They just said that they were going to visit relatives. We aren't very nosy ponies, so we just minded our own business. I still can't believe that these two ponies were the Changelings that bombed the marathon."

Hearing that the Changelings were keeping their plans secret brought back memories of when she was hiding her own feelings and intentions when Twilight visited her in Canterlot not too long ago. After all, it wasn't until that party Twilight and her Canterlot friends threw for her did the emotions come out.

Just then, Sunset noticed that the guardsponies that were guarding the house were dashing away along with several other ponies that were nearby.

"What's going on?" she cried as Starlight and Trixie raced over to the window.

"I don't know, Sunset," said Trixie, before turning back towards the family. "But, we'd better find out and if you get a chance to face the minister of justice, you can both proclaim your innocence."

…

Seizing this chance, all of them ran out of the house except for Discord who teleported out with a snap of his lion paw, following the guards. Soon, they all came towards Canterlot Castle where Instant Justice and several other high ranking ponies were outside and looking towards the bottom of the stairs at the front door.

"Those bastard Changelings," muttered Instant Justice as a pair of guardsponies in heavy armor pulled out the backpack containing the bombs. "They tried to set another bomb off here in Canterlot. Well, they aren't getting away with this. I want those ponies under house arrest brought here at once, so I can question them further."

"You don't need to!" cried Starlight as she and her friends arrived with the mother and father ponies. "Because they are right here!"

"My lord justice, we have come to say that we have nothing to do with all that is going on," said the father pony. "We weren't aware that these Changelings were planning anything like this."

Instant Justice was not convinced at all and felt as if Starlight and her friends were trying to cover up for these ponies. Being the high rank official that he was, Instant Justice motioned for several guards to arrest them all. However, Discord appeared and placed them all in a sphere.

"Sorry to do this to you," he sneered. "But, we have a pair of ponies that are just as innocent as they say they are. So, if you want to get out of your time out sphere, you will listen to what they had to say!"

But Instant Justice was not going to listen. As far as he was concerned, these ponies were aiding fugitives and needed to be kept under lock and key unless he said so. But, he had very little choice in the matter.

"They were just looking like normal ponies!" cried the mother pony. "We were deceived by their appearance, my lord justice! Had we known who they really were, then we would have turned them in to you."

Instant Justice continued to pound hard on the sphere, demanding to be let out of the prison that encased him and his colleagues.

"They are saying that they are visiting relatives in the Crystal Empire and in Ponyville!" cried Starlight. "Which is not true! They must be planning more attacks like the one in Manehattan."

One of Instant Justice's colleagues took notice of this and turned to face his furious boss, having felt sympathy for the two ponies that they were keeping in custody.

"She does have a point, Instant Justice," he remarked. "If these ponies say that they are innocent, then they are innocent. Furthermore, every minute we devote our attention towards them is another precious bit of time wasted in stopping the Changelings."

Realizing that they were right, Instant Justice sighed and allowed for Starlight to free him and his colleagues from the sphere.

"Very well," he sighed in impatience as he walked over to the ponies gathered in front of him. "If you say that you were indeed deceived by these Changelings, then I will drop the charges of being an accomplice to them against you. However, if I find out that you were lying to us, I will not only not drop the charges against you, but I will add charges against you four mares!"

Starlight and her friends stood steadfast on this, for they knew that they were not going to be threatened with charges. Instant Justice was just a pony like them and not a demigod like the four alicorn princesses.

"Then we must focus our attention on the Changelings before they reach the Crystal Empire," cried Starlight. "We must stop them before they get there and if they do, Sunburst and Flurry Heart are going to be in mortal danger!"

Heeding these words, Instant Justice motioned for a group of guardsponies to head towards the Crystal Empire. However, at that moment aboard the Friendship Express, the fears that their plans would backfire were starting to affect both Hopper and Thumper, leaving the both of them to start growing desperate.

"Something tells me that they are catching onto us," whispered Thumper. "What do we do, brother? Do we surrender?"

"No, desperate times call for desperate measures," replied Hopper, turning his attention towards the Crystal Empire's train station and in particular, the horse drawn taxi cabs as he branded a small spear in his claws. "If they want to capture us, Thumper, then they will have to take us dead!"

Crystal Empire Hostage Crisis

Racing to the Crystal Empire, all Starlight Glimmer could do was count her blessings and hope for the best. For she had a very strong hunch that Sunburst, the only foalhood friend she had ever known, was in mortal danger if these Changelings would do anything in the Crystal Empire. No sooner did they all arrive at the train station that chaos was already in place.

"What's going on?" cried Starlight as they ran off the train and were met by a heavy security prescense on the platform. "Are they going to let us off?"

"I don't know," remarked Trixie. "It seems like they aren't going to be taking this very lightly."

Instead of getting off the train, the guardsponies on the platform boarded the train and turned their attention towards the passengers on board. Instant Justice rose to his feet and trotted over towards them.

"Instant Justice," said one of the guardsponies, saluting him. "We have a situation on our hooves. A taxi cab has been taken hostage not far from here."

"As if they aren't desperate enough," muttered Instant Justice, considering what he had just heard and looked back towards Starlight Glimmer and her friends. "So far, you have been telling us the truth, young mares. Let's hope it stays that way."

Assessing the situation, Instant Justice sighed and turned back towards the guardsponies.

"Where is the situation?" asked Instant Justice.

"About a mile east of here," answered the guardspony. "Not far from the castle."

"Lock down the entire empire," he ordered, causing gasps from Starlight and the others. "Tell anypony that you see to take shelter in their home. We cannot let these two Changelings escape nor allow anypony here to become involved as a hostage, no matter what. Is that clear?"

"Yes, my lord justice," answered the guardspony. "We shall do so at once!"

Doing as they were told, the guardsponies hastily ran off the train and back onto the platform while Instant Justice followed. Starlight and her friends all got off the train as well, where several guardsponies handed them several vests.

"These are anti-magic vests," explained Instant Justice. "They will protect you from any dangerous magic that the Changelings will throw at you."

"Well, I have my own kind of anti-magic protection," said Discord, dressed in a brown jumpsuit with a picture of Fluttershy on his chest and armed with a spray gun along with a tank attached onto his back. "I've got a powerful spray that I am not afraid to use."

"Don't be such an idiot, you fool!" remarked Instant Justice as Starlight and her friends put on their anti-magic vests. "No weapons you have will protect you from these monsters for they have powers that are greater than any of your so called chaos magic!"

Discord rolled his eyes, thinking that what Instant Justice was saying was all lies and it was nothing but to instill fear and make him fall back on helping out in the hunt.

"Haven't you forgotten that I am centuries old, my friend?" asked Discord, glaring over at Instant Justice while he put on his own anti-magic vest. "For I have powers that not even you can comprehend and all with a snap of my claws."

Instant Justice didn't reply to this and turned his back on Discord looking towards the heavily armed guardsponies.

"All right, let's move!" cried Instant Justice and they all made their way towards the hostage situation.

…

A few moments later, they arrived at the scene of the hostage crisis and saw the disguised Thumper holding a knife to the back of the cab pony's head while the disguised Hopper held a magic aura at the guardsponies surrounding them.

"One move from any of you and he becomes a martyr!" cried Hopper, seething with anger. "A mere sacrifice for our Queen!"

All the guardsponies could do was to stand their ground and Instant Justice realized that they weren't going to go down easily.

"There is nowhere left for you to run," cried Instant Justice, addressing the two disguised Changelings. "Surrender to us now and we will spare your lives!"

"Over our dead bodies!" cried Hopper, the sickly green magic aura building up inside of him through the unicorn horn. "Your leaders are dead and all you can do is pledge our loyalty to Chrysalis!"

Hopper then took notice of Starlight Glimmer and turned his aim away from the guards and towards her.

"You!" he seethed with fury. "You, Starlight Glimmer, are the cause for all of this! Had you not interfered with the plans of our queen…"

"Keep back," cried Instant Justice, attempting to push Starlight back from Hopper's aim. "There's no telling what he will do."

"You can't hide from what you did to us," shouted Hopper. "Sooner or later, you will pay for what you have done!"

Upon hearing these words, Starlight bravely got in front of the murderous Changeling and stood steadfast.

"End… this… now," she cried, much to the horror and shock of her friends. "Don't you realize of how many ponies are hurt because of you? Queen Chrysalis is not the leader you want to have. She lied to you, she brainwashed you with her ideologies…"

"SHUT UP!" screamed Hopper, almost firing the green magic at Starlight. "JUST SHUT UP! You are the one who ruined our way of life, Starlight Glimmer! We have lost our way of life thanks to your pathetic interference of you and your friends! What good do we have now with a leader like that traitorous Thorax?!"

"That 'traitorous leader' learned to share love instead of taking it," cried Starlight, taking several steps towards Hopper in an attempt to get him to lower his ground. "Why can't you learn both learn the same thing? Can't you see that Chrysalis is gone and is never coming back? End this now before any more ponies get hurt!"

Hopper remained defiant to his ideals and was not going to listen to this any longer. In his mind, Starlight was trying to get him to accept what was happening around him.

"Why should we listen to a mewling grub like you?" snapped Hopper, who was now beginning to lose his patience with Starlight.

"Because everypony needs to accept certain facts of life," answered Starlight in a calm voice, knowing that she was now in a similar situation that she was in with Chrysalis. "I was once like both of you, unwilling to accept any change and wanting to do things my own way. But, I was wrong! Sometimes change is for the good and change is for the best. You don't have to live your lives starving all the time if you just accept change."

As Starlight spoke, Thumper was beginning to realize that maybe she was right. In his mind, both he and Hopper were doing more harm than good.

"Listen to her, brother!" he called, much to Hopper's frustration. "She's telling the truth…"

"SHUT YOUR MOUTH!" interrupted Hopper, furiously facing towards his young brother. "Just keep holding that knife to that pony's head, all right?!"

"But she does have a point," cried Thumper removing the knife from the cab pony's head as Instant Justice motioned for several guardsponies to retrieve the hostage. "Why should we be doing this? It's clear that our Queen is never going to be found! We need to surrender and own up to what we did!"

Hopper then noticed that the hostage was being taken away and was not happy about it.

"YOU IDIOT!" he screamed, pointing his raging green aura at him. "You're letting our hostage get away!"

Unable to control his emotions any further, Hopper let out a loud roar and fired a blast of green magic at Thumper, hitting him square in the chest and throwing him out of the cab as he screamed loudly.

"I don't need you!" he cried, as the guardsponies readied themselves to fight. "I will finish what we set out to do myself!"

With another loud battle cry, Hopper opened fire with his stored green aura and the magic firefight of the Crystal Empire between him and the royal guardsponies was on…

Shootout in the Crystal Empire

Everything seemed to happen so quickly when Starlight tried to negotiate with Hopper and Thumper. Thumper was a Changeling who was intending on switching sides, but Hopper was going to hear none of it. Now the last thing that everypony wanted to have happen was happening.

"YOU'LL NEVER TAKE ME ALIVE!" screamed Hopper as he went back and forth, firing off sickly green magic like a machine gun at the guardsponies who were trying to subdue him with their magic. "LONG LIVE OUR NOBLE AND TRUE CHANGELING QUEEN CHRYSALIS!"

Taking shelter behind a structure, Instant Justice and Starlight gave each other a concerned look to one another and it didn't take long for the hooves to start pointing to each other.

"What did you do, young mare?" he snapped. "You did something to him, didn't you?!"

"No, I didn't do anything wrong!" protested Starlight, powering up her horn with intense magic. "I wasn't trying to start this, Instant Justice, you must believe me!"

"If only I could truly believe you are telling me the truth," he said, bitterly and Starlight got up and fired several blasts of her magic at Hopper, trying to get him subdued but it was no use. Hopper was too fast and too quick as he continued to move around like a machine gun, protecting himself by firing continuous blasts, striking several guards and knocking them down like dominos.

Even Trixie and Sunset tried to fight back, but even they were forced to retreat, joining Starlight and Instant Justice in hiding.

"He's just too powerful!" cried Sunset. "We can't hold him down for long!"

"Yeah, not even my magic tricks can outsmart him," added Trixie, taking quick note of Instant Justice's irritation. "He's just too quick and don't put the blame on Starlight! She tried to end the situation!"

Just then, a blast from Hopper's horn struck the statue that was above them, breaking off several pieces in the process. However, Trixie's words struck a chord with Instant Justice.

"Don't you dare blame me for something that your friend did," he retorted as Sunset got up to try and fire several blasts which were quickly deflected. "I am the Minister of Justice and why should I not put the blame on your friend? This is a matter that you shouldn't have been involved to begin with!"

"Excuse me?!" snapped Starlight, growing angry as she scowled in fury at Instant Justice. "Our friends were targeted for assassination and we are trying to get justice for them. How would you feel if your friends were put in harm's way?"

…

Instant Justice listened with very little interest and instead refocused on the task at hand while another guard screamed after being hit. Nevertheless, they all tried hard to combat the fury that Hopper was throwing at them. Discord was not too far off firing whatever chaos magic he had from the tank that was strapped to his back.

"THIS IS FOR FLUTTERSHY!" he screamed in fury, trying to take down Hopper, but to no avail when Hopper used a shield to protect himself from Discord's blasts. "Oh, you want to hide behind your blasts? Let's see you get through…this!"

And Discord somehow used his magic to fire a strange green gas from his weapon in an effort to suffocate Hopper, but when Hopper saw the smoke, he simply pushed it back with his own magic right towards Discord. Seeing this, Discord attempted to fan the gas away, however he couldn't risk the other guards having their magic negated, so he simply sucked back into his weapon.

Just then, Hopper noticed Discord seemingly falling back by sucking back in the green gas and took advantage by firing several magic blasts at him, hitting Discord several times as he let out a sharp yell and crashed onto the pavement.

"How's that for chaos?" laughed Hopper as Discord struggled to his feet, glaring at the changeling. "Believe me, you are just as pathetic as my poor excuse of a traitorous brother. Some master of chaos you turned out to be!"

Discord got to his mismatched feet and did not take this lightly at all. Producing a small smoke bomb, he threw it at Hopper, only for it to be deflected and send smoke towards several guardsponies, blocking their firing range on Hopper.

"You want to join the element of kindness?" remarked Hopper, aiming his horn right at Discord. "Then do so at once!"

Before Discord could react, Hopper fired a blast of green magic and struck Discord squarely in the chest, causing him to let out a sharp scream in pain as he was thrown back onto the ground.

"DISCORD!" cried Starlight, running over to the wounded creature of chaos. "Somepony help me!"

Sunset and Trixie ran over to aide Starlight in getting the injured Discord to safety and as he was being moved, Discord felt a sharp pain go through his entire body.

"Don't touch me!" he cried. "Don't touch me!"

"Where did he hurt you?" asked Sunset while Discord attempted to clutch his chest. "Did he hurt you in the chest?"

"Yes," whimpered Discord, crying out in pain. "He hit me in the chest, near my chaotic heart where my chaos magic is stored!"

They all placed Discord against their hiding spot as Discord continued to scream out in pain. Seeing Discord in pain caused Instant Justice to realize that perhaps maybe what he about Starlight and her friends said was wrong. Upon seeing what was happening, Moon Dancer, who had been hiding behind a fountain, bravely dodged magic blasts coming from all sides to try and help out the wounded Discord.

"He's hurt, Moon Dancer!" cried Sunset as Moon Dancer examined him.

"It's in my chest, blast you!" moaned Discord, loudly. "He hit me near my chaotic heart!"

Moon Dancer examined Discord and seeing their comrade in pain made Starlight, Trixie and Sunset realize that Hopper had already gone too far and charging up their horns in pure anger, fired rapid blasts at Hopper while Moon Dancer tried to help diagnose Discord's injury. Upon carefully looking at Discord's chest, Moon Dancer was shocked to find a small hole in Discord's chest, not far from his heart. In fact, Moon Dancer was so shocked that she couldn't believe what she was seeing.

"You need help immediately," she said, firmly before calling out to Starlight and her friends. "SOMEPONY GET A DOCTOR NOW!"

Trixie turned to heed Moon Dancer's call, but no sooner did she turn around did she herself feel a sharp blast hit her.

"TRIXIE!" screamed Starlight as the magician fell on her stomach, crying out in pain as her magician's hat flew off her head.

"My neck! Trixie's neck!" she cried and realizing what was going on, Starlight ran over and attempted to get her friend to safety. But, the ricocheting blasts of magic made it almost impossible and put Starlight herself in great danger of being hit by the blasts.

With two of her friends out of commission, Sunset realized that it was almost next to impossible to combat Hopper. Seeing this, Instant Justice reluctantly realized that they couldn't fight any longer and with several of his fighters already hurt in addition to Discord and Trixie, decided to motion for his fighters to fall back.

"They're falling back," thought Hopper. "Guess that they couldn't stand up to the fury that I possess. Now, to find my Queen while I have a chance."

So, Hopper started to make his escape, but Starlight saw him attempt to do so and a fury flowed through her body, almost a killing fury. Everything that Twilight told her about not everypony willing to abandon their evil ways was beginning to make sense. This was a Changeling that harmed her friends and needed to be stopped once and for all.

Letting out a shrilling yell, loud enough for all to hear, Starlight fired a sharp blast at Hopper and managed to strike him in the back, knocking him down next to Thumper who was already dying from being struck in the chest.

"We must…surrender….Hopper," gasped Thumper, clutching his chest, tightly. "There is…no other choice."

Hopper was not going to listen and with one final blast of magic, struck Thumper in the chest again and killing him. Seeing this, Starlight attempted to finish off Hopper several more times before the murderous Changeling managed to get away.

"You hurt my friends," whispered Starlight, furiously as she watched Hopper run away. "And now, you will suffer the consequences of your actions."

Sighing heavily, Starlight returned to her friends' side and watched as Discord and Trixie were placed on stretcher and taken to a nearby hospital not far from where they were, while Thumper's dead body was taken to a nearby morgue.

Hopper had managed to escape, but little did he know that the blasts of magic Starlight had inflicted on him while escaping would come back to affect him and put an end to his quest of restoring Chrysalis to her former glory…

Let Us Join Forces With You

The shootout in the Crystal Empire between Hopper and the Royal Guardsponies had everypony rattled and shaken, both the ponies who fought Hopper and the pony citizens of the Crystal Empire itself. What was more, Starlight, Moon Dancer and Sunset were now left waiting for news about Discord and Trixie, who had been injured during the firefight and were now in emergency surgery. It took a while, but eventually a doctor came out with important news.

"I can tell you this that both of your friends have indeed sustained serious wounds," he said, taking off a surgical mask that he had around his face. "The beams from the Changeling did not hit any vital organs, but their ability to use magic will be extremely limited."

"At least they'll survive," remarked Sunset, taking a deep sigh of relief. "This didn't have to happen, Starlight. Why did we even take part in this to begin with?"

But, Starlight didn't answer Sunset's question right away and instead allowed the doctor to continue finishing what he had to say.

"Personally, I think that both of your friends should be moved to Canterlot hospital for extensive treatments," suggested the doctor. "They will survive their injuries, but it will be a long time before they can use their magic again."

"When do you think that they can be moved?" asked Starlight.

"Probably as soon as possible," sighed the doctor. "If they move to Canterlot hospital, then they can start their therapy and road to recovery quickly. They have the best therapy in Equestria for injuries such as this."

At that moment, the door to the operating room opening and they all saw Discord and Trixie being wheeled out on stretchers towards a large room. In fact, Starlight took and enormous gulp when she saw her best friend knocked out and injured in the neck.

"When can we see them?" asked Sunset.

"In a few hours when the anethestic's worn off," replied the doctor as they saw another stretcher bearing an injured guardspony being rolled into the operating room. "And there goes another one to be operated on. I hope that the scum who did this is captured or even killed if necessary. Excuse me."

And he left to get down to work on the next casualty. Now, Starlight, Sunset and Moon Dancer were left alone to wait for Trixie and Discord to wake up. As they waited however, they noticed Instant Justice sitting right outside the room where Discord and Trixie were in sighing heavily and in deep thought.

"Instant Justice?" wondered Starlight. "Is everything all right?"

"Just thinking that's all," he sighed, not paying attention to them. "About how hard I was on you four."

This to Starlight and her friends was a surprise to hear. For up until that moment, they thought of Instant Justice as a hard and cold protector of the peace. Now, for the first time, he was showing remorse and regret for his behavior.

"Why are you thinking this way?" wondered Sunset as they surrounded him. "You are responsible for maintaining law and order in Equestria."

"But, there are even times when officers of the law make mistakes," answered Instant Justice. "I was so swept up in finding these two Changelings that I failed to stop and think about what contributions you were trying to make to our cause. Furthermore, my son was one of the ponies who were injured in the bombings, so that kind of adds fuel to the fire."

"We're sorry to hear that, Instant Justice," sympathized Starlight. "And we know how dedicated you are to your job. I don't mean to get personal, but do you have any friends?"

Instant Justice was surprised to hear this and felt as if his personal space was being invaded.

"I do have friends," he said. "But, I'm so caught up in my job that I just don't have time for them, I'm afraid. I'm one of those ponies who put my goals ahead of friendship and now, I'm suffering the consequences for it."

"You are not alone," remarked Moon Dancer. "I was once like you, Instant Justice, a pony who would rather study than make friends."

"Us too," added Sunset. "We all have something in common and there are times where we need to fight to protect our friends without getting too literal or caught up. You did that and well, there is a chance for redemption. Let us help you and we can put an end to this together."

Realizing that what they were saying was true, Instant Justice agreed to let himself work with Starlight, Sunset and Moon Dancer. After all, the one who did this to Equestria was still on the loose and who knew exactly where he was heading next.

…

Later that same day, Thorax returned to Manehattan hospital to visit his injured friends and he was pleased to see that they were all recovering well from their injuries, especially Cadence who had now come out of her coma. Upon arrival at the hospital, he had learned of what happened in the Crystal Empire and was now discussing it with his wounded friends.

"One changeling dead and one still at large," sighed Shining Armor, clutching Cadence's hoof like he had been doing for the past several days. "Makes me sick to hear that one of them is still alive."

"They even took a hostage, Shining Armor," remarked Luna. "A pony that didn't even have any contact with them to begin with. It goes to show you just how dangerous that certain Changelings like this one can be."

"I just hate sitting in this room all cooped up," groaned Cadence, who still couldn't move parts of her body, despite coming out of her medically induced coma. "This firefight happened in the Crystal Empire and who knows what could happen next. Thorax, you said that you sent Changelings to help in the hunt. Have they found anything?"

"They haven't reported to me on anything new," he replied, sighing. "But, I can assure you that now his brother is dead, Hopper will do just about anything to avoid being captured. There is a way that I can get through to him. But, how I can get through to him will be the ultimate question."

"I don't know if he will listen, Thorax," sighed Celestia, thinking back to when she and the other princesses went to Tartarus to offer Tirek a chance at friendship following his reimprisonment. "I'm afraid that this is a creature that will be well beyond reasoning. We all know that very well."

"That is very true, Celestia," remarked Twilight. "But, it's like you said, all we can do is pray for the best."

Thorax sighed as he stood in front of his friends and contemplated how he would address Hopper in getting him to give up his goals and surrender without any more violence or ponies getting into harm's way. It would have to be a very strong message to Hopper, a message that would hopefully put a thought in his mind to end the pain and suffering he was causing for a queen that would most likely never regain her rightful place ever again…

Hopper, End This Now!

Starlight and her fellow unicorns carefully approached the beds where Discord and Trixie laid, having been placed out of surgery and glad to be alive. Yes, they were still drugged slightly, but they were awake and aware of their surroundings.

"Ugh, Fluttershy?" moaned Discord, greatly affected by the drugs in his system. "Where's Fluttershy? Is she alive?"

"Discord, you're under the effect of drugs," said Sunset, placing a hoof on his bed. "Fluttershy is still in Manehattan and is still in a coma."

"No, she's waiting for me and I need to be there for her," replied Discord in a droning voice. "Where is she?"

"Discord, you can't move," said Starlight, firmly as she walked over to Trixie's bed. "You've been shot with a dangerous and deadly Changeling magic that almost hit your heart."

But, Discord continued to moan in protest as he struggled to try and snap his lion's paw to use his chaos magic. However, all his efforts were for nothing and he quickly gave up, weak and exhausted.

Just then, the sound of a knocking door was heard and the pony doctor from earlier walked into the room with a few nurses following him as they tended to both Discord and Trixie.

"Doctor, Discord's becoming delirious," cried Sunset, worriedly. "How long do you think the drugs will wear off?"

"It should take no more than a few more hours at best," he said as a nurse injected Discord with a shot of morphine into his lion paw. "The fact that he is delirious is a sign that the drugs are circulating through his body. However, they should both be very lucky considering that the blasts almost hit very vital areas of their bodies. If the blasts went any further…well, they wouldn't even be alive right now."

Just they thought of him saying that made Starlight cringe slightly. In the short time they had known each other, Starlight and Trixie had become very close to one another and just the thought of her dying was seemingly unthinkable.

"Now, I think it would be best that they are moved to Canterlot by the end of the day," continued the doctor. "However, that depends on what you all think."

It took a moment for them to respond, but Starlight, Sunset and Moon Dancer came to complete agreement on the doctor's suggestion.

"Its for the best for both of them," said Starlight, firmly. "If there is going to be a long road ahead of them, then its best to start that road now. Our friends have already begun their road to recovery now."

"Very well, we will start making arrangements right away," answered the doctor. "The sooner we start the process the better."

"What kind of therapy are you planning on having them do?" wondered Sunset, but just before the doctor could answer the question, Starlight noticed Instant Justice talking with another doctor pony right outside the hall and left to find out what is going on. "Starlight? What's going on?"

…

But Starlight ignored Sunset and instead went out to find out what was going on with Instant Justice. No sooner did she approach him however did Equestria's minister of justice say his peace.

"So, he's done it," sighed Instant Justice. "One of my warriors is dead."

"I'm afraid so, my lord justice," said the pony he was talking to as Starlight placed a hoof on her mouth in shock. "His wounds were too great, so he died on the operating table."

"Then, we'd better set about notifying his family," replied Instant Justice. "Thank you for your service, doctor."

Starlight waited until the doctor was gone before she went over to Instant Justice, who was clearly despondent over losing one of his own. Yes, he had expressed desires for the sake of his injured son, but from the way he was acting, Starlight thought that his son was the pony in question who had died from his injuries.

"Damn these Changelings," he muttered as he walked past Starlight. "Damn them all to Tartarus!"

"I'm sorry, Instant Justice," acknowledged Starlight, walking over to him. "I'm sorry at the fact that you lost one of your own."

"Oh sure, you're sorry," he flounced, his anger simmering and boiling. "Try telling that to that murderous bug that is still on the loose. Yeah, I'm sure he'll listen to what somepony will tell him and he'll go quietly."

Starlight didn't know what to say to Instant Justice. Sure, he was very upset, but there was also the sense that Starlight thought that Instant Justice was a hater of all Changelings, whether they were reformed or not.

"Look, we are all troubled by this," pleaded Starlight. "And you promised to us that we would let you help you in hunting for the Changeling who is still alive, remember?"

"Wherever he is," said Instant Justice. "Why do these Changelings have to be so desperate? They should all be exterminated!"

"Not all Changelings are evil, you know!" cried Starlight, shocked at what Instant Justice had said. "Some have learned to share love freely instead of taking it. But, this isn't about taking love."

"Then, they need to show it to me," remarked Instant Justice, firmly. "There needs to be a sign that can make me change my mind about them."

…

Meanwhile, Thorax had finally decided that he needed to reach out to Hopper and thus, he had come up with an idea.

"Do you think it will work?" asked Thorax to his four alicorn princess friends.

"Yes," replied Luna. "The sooner the message goes out, the sooner this reign of terror on Equestria comes to an end. The Changeling who did this to us and our subjects will pay dearly for doing this."

"I completely agree with my sister," added Celestia, firmly. "It's time for the hunt to reach its peak and its end."

Still unsure for a sense, Thorax left the hospital room and walked up to the rooftops of the hospital, taking to the air with his horns glowing. A brief light shone in Thorax's throat and taking in a deep breath, Thorax loudly cried out into the air.

"HOPPER! PLEASE END THIS MADNESS NOW!" he yelled at the top of his lungs, loud enough for all in Manehattan to hear. "THE REIGN OF QUEEN CHRYSALIS IS OVER AND YOU MUST ACCEPT IT! TURN YOURSELF IN NOW!"

Taking a few deep breaths, Thorax landed on the hospital's roof and returned to the princesses' room. It may have only been brief, but he was already exhausted from using a good chunk of his personal energy.

"Now, its only a matter of time before we see if Hopper gets the message or not," sighed Thorax as he walked over to the hospital window.

"Let's all hope for the best," sighed Twilight. "Let's all hope for the best."

…

Meanwhile, the slightly wounded Hopper was making his way towards Ponyville, growing more and more desperate to survive the hunt that was going on for him. Soon, the hunt for him would reach its tense filled climax…

Locking Down Ponyville

Thorax managed to get his message out as loud as he could, but Hopper who was now alone and desperate, ignored it. What's more, ever since he had managed to escape from the Crystal Empire, he could feel a sharp pain in his back from the firefight between he and the ponies set out to capture him and Thumper.

"Curse that, Starlight," he groaned as he felt the pain from the blast of magic Starlight fired at him. "Attacking me while I am trying to restore my queen to her rightful place? She will pay dearly for this when I return with my queen."

Nearing the town of Ponyville, the disguised Hopper got off the train with the throngs of guardsponies watching all of the passengers getting off the train with keen interest. Hopper was already beginning to feel very nervous and what's more, he was beginning to also lose his composure surrounding his disguise.

"No," he thought, as he struggled to maintain his disguise. "My body…it can't hold…my disguise. I cannot be discovered. Not now!"

Running into an empty shed, Hopper continued to try and force his body to maintain the pony body that he needed for this disguise. But, the pain in his back prevented him from doing so and he could no longer hold it in.

"Starlight Glimmer," growled Hopper, feeling himself give away his disguise as he collapsed on the floor. "When I get out of this, my queen will have your head in her throne room."

Hopper continued to moan slightly as he struggled to get back to his feet, his legs buckling. Being the true and dedicated Changeling soldier that he was, Hopper was not going to die here. In his mind, he was not going to be taken alive, much like he said in the confrontation with the ponies in the Crystal Empire. Still, he was a Changeling after all and he needed to feed on love.

"I need love to consume," he cried and no sooner did he say those words did he notice a pair of ponies walking past him. Opening his mouth, he took a deep breath and began to consume the love that the ponies had for his own desire. For several minutes, the love that the two ponies had inside of them entered his body. But, they seemingly took notice of what Hopper was doing and they ran off frightened. "Damn it! They couldn't give me all of it, but I have what I need for now."

Feeling his strength return, Hopper managed to rise to his feet and regain the strength in his legs. Still, he couldn't fly, but that didn't matter to him in the slightest.

…

But, little did he know that the two ponies that he had tried to consume of their love was already on the run.

"Did you feel that, Lyra?" asked a cream colored pony with candy colored hair. "He's here! I just know it!"

"The changeling that attacked the marathon, Bon Bon?" cried Lyra as they ran into a house not far from Ponyville town hall. "How could you be so sure it is him?"

"I sensed its presence," answered Bon Bon, who was also known by her real name, special agent Sweetie Drops. "But, I can't confront it directly, we need help from the proper authorities. This Changeling is dangerous and we can't simply confront it directly."

Looking out the window, Bon Bon noticed a guardspony walking by and motioned for him to come towards them. The guardspony saw the motioning and dashed over to them.

"What is it?" he cried walking in through the front door.

"He's here," Bon Bon whispered quietly. "And this is special agent Sweetie Drops talking, I know what I am talking about."

"Where did you see him?" he asked, acknowledging that this was one of Canterlot's secret agents talking to him.

"We didn't see him," answered Lyra, still frightened by the shadowy experience that she and Bon Bon had endured. "But, we felt our love for one another being drained away."

Heeding these words, the guard led Lyra and Bon Bon out of the house and back out into the open.

"The disturbance came from over here," said Bon Bon as she and Lyra led the guard back towards the house where Hopper was hiding. "Right through this window."

The guard peeked in and arming himself with his spear, raised his right front hoof and kicked open the door.

"CANTERLOT ROYAL GUARD! COME OUT AND SURRENDER NOW!" he shouted, but all that he heard was silence. "COME OUT AND SURRENDER NOW!"

The guard carefully walked around the house, even going up the stairs with the spear clutched tightly in the magical aura while Lyra and Bon Bon watched from downstairs. Going up the stairs, the guard searched every room of the house and he eventually came towards a bed that was unmade.

"He's here," he thought to himself. "Maybe in this room."

Taking his spear again, the guard walked over towards the bedroom closet and carefully opening the door, he looked through and saw nothing but clothes and other Knick knacks. Still, he had his thoughts and suspicions. Hastily leaving the bedroom, he ran downstairs and back towards Lyra and Bon Bon.

"Go back to your homes and stay there," he said to the two mares. "Lock your doors, lock your windows and don't come out until we say it is okay."

"What are you talking about?" asked Lyra confusingly.

"The wanted Changeling who attacked the marathon is definitely here in Ponyville," answered the guard. "We may not have orders to lock down the town yet, but it is highly likely that we will. Now go at once!"

Heeding his order, Lyra and Bon Bon dashed back to their house and the guard sent out a message which soon reached Instant Justice back in Manehattan. No sooner did Instant Justice get the message did he race into the hospital room where the princesses were being kept.

"Your highnesses," he said, bowing to them slightly. "I have received word that the wanted Changeling is in Ponyville."

Twilight's eyes widened at this for she knew her friends were being put in mortal danger as long as Hopper was on the loose in her hometown. But, being the true princess she was, Twilight kept her composure.

"What has he done so far?" asked Luna.

"He tried to absorb the love of two ponies," answered Instant Justice. "I think it is time that we keep him contained within Ponyville's borders. Shall I give the order for Ponyville to be locked down?"

Without any hesitation or thought, the four princesses were all in agreement to intensify the search for the wanted Changeling.

"Yes, Instant Justice," ordered Celestia, firmly. "You have my orders to secure Ponyville. Do so at once."

…

Meanwhile, back in the Crystal Empire, Starlight and her friends watched as Discord and Trixie were being loaded into pony drawn ambulances to be taken to Canterlot when they saw some of the guards mobilizing.

"What's going on?" asked Starlight, worriedly.

"He's been spotted in Ponyville," said one of the guards. "We are heading over there now."

All Starlight and her friends could do was stand wide eyed for a brief moment and then they all realized that the hunt was about to soon reach its climax…

Where...Is...Hopper?

When the word that Hopper had been spotted in Ponyville began to circulate, guardsponies were going from house to house to order the inhabitants to lock their doors and not come out until further notice. For the first time since Tirek's rampage, Ponyville was deserted with only the guardsponies canvasing the streets, searching for any sign of Hopper, who by now, was very much weakened by the pain in his back. For the next few hours, Hopper continued to hide in any available space he could find, knowing that the guards were getting closer. Now, the strength in him was draining and the injury he had sustained from Starlight was starting to greatly hurt him.

"No, no this can't be," he whispered to himself while silently growling like a wounded bear. "Blast that Starlight Glimmer! Well, if this is the end, then I won't be taken alive!"

Once he saw that the coast was clear, Hopper left the hiding spot he was in and proceeded to reach down and grab a medium sized hunting knife that had been left on the ground. He wanted to end it all now and be spared being a prisoner of his kind's mortal enemies. The sun was going down and Hopper felt that the darkness would at least protect his identity for a little bit.

Suddenly, he approached the lake and saw what appeared to be a large boat covered with a blue tarp and felt that if he was going to die, he would do it quietly and without fear. At that moment, the guards felt that their search was coming to an end.

"He most likely have gotten away," grunted one guard, frustrated with how he could not find the wanted Changeling. "What do we do now? We've searched the entire town."

"Did you look at the Castle of Friendship?" asked the other guard. "It's a possibility that he might have gone there."

"Good idea," answered the guard. "Gather a few guards and tell them to meet me at the castle."

A little while later, the guards all ran over to Twilight's castle and pushed the large doors open, gaining them access.

"Search every room but do not touch anything, is that clear?" barked the guard in command and his fellow guards nodded in reply. "Spread out!"

Going through every room of the castle, they all carefully looked through every nook and cranny. Finally, it appeared to be all for nothing until they came to the throne room, which had been unscathed except for some defacing with a bad drawing of one of the ponies on Fluttershy's throne.

"Shh!" hissed one of the guards when a strange noise was heard. "Listen! I can hear something!"

"What do you hear?" asked another guard. "I don't hear anything."

But, the noise continued and at that moment, the noise was heard again, this time from up in the Golden Oak chandelier.

"Up there!" shouted one of the guards, raising his magic aura to increase the light. The rest of the guards then noticed what appeared to be a strange creature hiding in the Chandelier's trunk. It tried to get out, scraping against the side only to fall out and onto the hard ground below.

"STOP! FREEZE!" screamed the guards, trying to subdue the creature as it growled and hissed at them. "YOU WANT TO LIVE? THEN STOP MOVING!"

But, the creature continued to fight and one of the guards flash his horn at the creature and it was revealed to be a Changeling.

"Is this him?" asked the lead guard. "Is this one of the Changelings who carried out the assassination attempt against our leaders?"

"No, you idiots," snarled the Changeling. "I've been hiding here for several days and…."

"Then you can tell us where your ally Hopper is," retorted the lead guard, picking him up and throwing him hard on the throne room's map and clutching his throat. "Or I will choke every single bit of air out of your disgusting, pathetic body. Where…is…Hopper?"

Despite the fact that he was being treated in this manner, this Changeling was just like all the others: defiant and determined to keep their loyalty to Chrysalis strong and their mission to restore her to her rightful place.

"Somewhere where you can't find him," the Changeling laughed, spitting in the lead guards' face. Furious, the lead guard placed his right front hoof on the Changelings' chest and began to press down hard on it. This made the Changeling stop laughing and gasp for air.

"You want me stop?" cried the lead guard, his eyes glowing with fury. "You want me to stop? Then tell me where he is going, you prick!"

The Changeling continued to gasp loudly and for a while, it seemed like he was going to be lawfully executed right there in that room. Then, he finally gave up.

"He...is…going…" he tried to say, gasping for air. "He…is…going…"

"Yes? We're listening," cried the lead guard. "Where is Hopper going?"

"He…is….going…" replied the Changeling, who was clearly running out of air. "To…end…his…life."

"What are you saying? What do you mean?" cried the guard, shaking the Changeling violently. "Tell us now!"

…

While the Changeling continued to struggle to breath as a result of the more than shabby treatment he was receiving, Hopper climbed into the boat and without making any sudden noises, reached out to aim the knife right at his chest.

"Gods of the Changelings," he thought to himself. "Receive my spirit!"

At that moment, the lockdown order had been lifted and the citizens of Ponyville were allowed to leave their homes. Hondo Flanks, the father of Rarity and Sweetie Belle walked out of his home and at that moment, he heard what appeared to be loud moans and growls coming from his boat.

"Cookie Crumbles?" he called to his wife, who was in the kitchen with her young daughter. "Keep Sweetie Belle inside! There is something moving in the boat!"

"Be careful!" cried Cookie Crumbles and the medium sized pony with three footballs for a cutie mark carefully approached the boat and what he saw next was very shocking and surprising.

"What in Equestria?" he thought to himself and saw red blood trickle out from the side of the boat and then something even more shocking appeared, causing him to jump in fear. "Oh no, no, it can't be!"

Using his magic, Hondo pulled back the tarp and let out a loud scream when he saw a horrific sight before his eyes.

"HELP! SOMEPONY HELP US!" screamed Hondo and the screams alerted several guardsponies who were nearby. "HELP!"

Hondo darted outside and the guardsponies were quick to respond to the frightened pony.

"What happened?" they cried. "What is going on?"

"The Changeling you are looking for," replied Hondo Flanks, his stomach turning along with his face. "He is hiding in my boat and he is covered in blood!"

Reacting to this news, the guardsponies followed Hondo into his backyard and there they saw the blood on the side of the boat. Knowing that they couldn't possibly do this alone, they both set off lights that caught the attention of the guards who were interrogating the Changeling who was hiding in the Friendship Castle.

"What's going on?" asked one of the guards while the lead guardspony watched for a brief minute before turning back towards his comrades.

"I think the Changeling that we have been searching for has been found," answered the lead guardspony. "We'd better get over there at once. As for the Changeling in question, we'll arrest him for breaking and entering."

Doing as they were told, the guards placed the captured Changeling in chains and they all carried him out of the castle, heading towards Hondo Flanks' backyard. By this time, several Ponyville citizens were already witnessing the chaos that was taking place. From inside the boat, Hopper watched weakly as guardsponies surrounded him and attempted to carry him out of the boat.

"Get an ambulance!" shouted one of the guardsponies and one did arrive quickly at the behest of several other guardsponies, an ambulance did come. Soon, Hopper was loaded and taken away from the scene, heading towards Ponyville Hospital, while crowds of ponies cheered and sang The Heart Carol loudly along with Equestria's national anthem, Equestria, the Land I Love.

"Well, we appear to have the other bomber," sighed the lead guardspony. "But, I am afraid that this is only the beginning of things to come. Send a note to Instant Justice, soldier."

"What should I tell him?" asked the young guardspony.

"Tell him that from this moment on," answered the lead guardspony while the young guardspony wrote out the note to Instant Justice. "He will decide whether this Changeling dies by his injuries or in accordance to the law of Equestria or he lives out the rest of his days in Tartarus."

…

Yes, the hunt was over, but the whole story was much far from being over. For a new part of it was about to begin and it involved Equestria's four princesses who, like Discord and Trixie, were also being transferred back to Canterlot to recover from their injuries…

Long Road Ahead

It was over. Hopper was captured and Equestria could breathe a sigh of relief knowing that a dangerous fugitive was off the streets and in the custody of Equestrian authorities. But, the damage that Hopper and Thumper had caused was not going to be repaired right away. It was going to be a long road for all who were involved.

"The Changeling known as Hopper is being treated at Ponyville hospital right now," said Instant Justice to the princesses in their new hospital rooms at Canterlot hospital. "Shall I prepare to have him placed on trial yet?"

"Not yet," said Celestia, who was now sitting upright in a hospital bed along with Luna, Cadence and Twilight. "It depends on whether he will survive his injuries or not. Furthermore, I don't know if Thorax would be willing to see him put on trial."

"I agree with Celestia," added Twilight. "Thorax will probably want to avoid a trial all together, given his nature and sensitivity to our well-being."

But, Instant Justice was still adamant on having Hopper go on trial for his crimes. These were his superiors after all, the ones who were targeted for death by a fanatical Changeling and his brother. Still, he kept his true intentions to himself.

"Unless," interjected Luna. "That he lets us deal with the vile creature who tried to kill us. I, for one, would love to oversee the trial of a creature who tried to kill us for the sake of restoring the Changeling Queen to her throne."

As Luna spoke, Instant Justice looked over to see Shining Armor looking furious while still holding his wife's hand. Given his history with Changelings, it would be no surprise to Instant Justice get support for a potential decision.

"In the meantime," suggested Celestia, firmly and orderly. "We must wait until Hopper even recovers from his self-inflicted wounds before we even think about a trial. However, for the moment, all we can do is press charges against him."

"What charges do you want against him?" asked Instant Justice.

"Attempted murder of Equestrian Royalty," remarked Shining Armor, crossly. "For a start and furthermore, why don't you charge him for the crimes that he and his fellow Changelings committed during our wedding?"

Cadence was not going to want to see her husband act like this and realized that he needed to have a cool head.

"Shining Armor, calm down," cried Cadence, firmly giving him one of her signature raised eyebrows. "You need to let Instant Justice here do his job."

"I am letting him do his job, Cadence," he snarled. "Of ridding Equestria of murderous monsters who kidnapped us twice and tried to kill us in front of the ponies we are supposed to protect. Not to mention who knows what he could have done in the Crystal Empire, going as far as to killing Sunburst and do something…"

"Shining Armor, that's enough!" snapped Cadence, sharply cutting her husband off in a slightly raised voice and her eyes wide open. Shining Armor wanted to protest, but did as he was told and allowed Instant Justice to do his job. He did it for the sake of his injured wife and sister, who were witnessing him behave in this manner along with his superiors. "Please, that's enough out of you."

Instant Justice sighed heavily at this, for Shining Armor was angry, just like he himself was. After all, like many ponies in Equestria, he had been affected in some way by the bombings that these Changelings had caused.

"All that matters is if he even survives at all," remarked Luna, looking over towards her sister. "Where is he even at right now?"

"At Ponyville hospital," answered Instant Justice. "He is alive, but only time will tell if he will truly survive his injuries. I'm afraid that no kind of magic can magically repair him so easily."

Shining Armor silently nodded at this remark, knowing that he would love to see a Changeling fiercely loyal to Chrysalis succumb to his wounds. But, he had to keep his composure for his wife, sister and superiors.

"Then all we can do is press charges and wait," sighed Celestia. "With a little luck, he could probably realize that he doesn't have the strength to go through a trial and we can send him to Tartarus. I really don't want to say this, but not even I could have the strength to go through a trial."

"None of us might," added Twilight, groaning slightly as her body was slightly pained. "But, that's up to Hopper if he decides to plead guilty and avoid a trial all together."

"Very well then," said Instant Justice. "I shall leave you to your rest and then, we can worry about whether or not he goes on trial or not later."

…

After saluting his superiors, Instant Justice left the hospital room and as he walked away, he was approached by a doctor pony.

"My lord justice," he said, walking over to Instant Justice. "I have some news in regards to your son."

Knowing that the information he was about to receive was critical, Instant Justice gave the doctor his full and undivided attention.

"What do you know?" asked Instant Justice. "How is he?"

"He's lucky to be alive, that's for sure," answered the doctor. "But, I'm afraid that I have some bad news."

"What is it?" demanded Instant Justice, trying to not let his emotions get the better of him. "Tell me, I've got to know!"

"I'm afraid that he will need to have his left rear leg amputated," sighed the doctor, clearly upset over how he was going to approach this situation. "There is a high risk of him developing gangrene."

Instant Justice was devastated to hear this and simply backed away, not deciding deep down whether to scream out of anger or out of pure sadness for his son. Either way, his son was now going to suffer like all the victims of the Changelings latest attack on Equestria.

"Thank you," he said, on the verge of tears. "Thank you, doctor."

Turning around and walking away, all that Instant Justice could do was simply to return to the waiting room and absorb what had just been said to him. To hear that his son would have to lose part of his body was very much unthinkable to Instant Justice. In fact, he didn't even know what to think anymore. He was sad, he was angry and the only ones to blame were the Changelings that caused this horrible act against Equestria.

…

At that moment, Starlight and her friends were sitting by the bedside of Discord and Trixie, who were now free of the heavy anesthetic that they had been under. However, the visit was interrupted by the sounds of hoof beats running down the hall.

"What's going on?" asked Sunset to a nurse who was also on the move.

"It's Fluttershy," answered the nurse. "She is waking from her coma."

Sunset's eyes widened with Starlight and Moon Dancer not far behind. But, Discord quickly took notice and even though he was unable to use his chaos magic, there was no doubt in his mind that he needed to be there for Fluttershy.

"Take me to her," he ordered, despite the fact that he was still very weak from his injuries he sustained fighting Hopper. "Take me to Fluttershy now!"

Reunited With Fluttershy

Against the advice of the doctors and nurses of Canterlot hospital, Discord gingerly got out of his bed and was led towards Fluttershy's room. He was still in great pain from his injuries, but that didn't matter at all. All that mattered was seeing his friend again.

"Here is her room, Discord," said a nurse pony as she motioned for him to enter the room. "Be advised that she might not recognize you right away."

"That's doesn't matter," replied Discord, given her a cold stare while talking in an intimidating voice. "All I want is to be by her side right now."

The nurse silently nodded and backed away as Discord entered Fluttershy's room. Almost immediately, he felt nothing more than sympathy for his friend, seeing her in this condition that she was now in. Approaching the bed, Discord placed his lion's paw on her right front hoof, stroking it gently.

"Where…where…?" Fluttershy started to whisper as she struggled to open her eyes.

"Hush now," whispered Discord. "You're safe now, Fluttershy. You're in the hospital being taken care of."

Fluttershy didn't know what to make of this and certainly couldn't feel about it, for she was in complete pain all over her body.

"You're…you're hurt, Discord," remarked Fluttershy, weakly noticing the injury on Discord's chest. "What…what happened to you?"

"It's a long story," sighed Discord as he continued stroking her hoof. "But that doesn't matter now. All that matters is we are together again and the Changelings who did this have been dealt with."

Hearing that it was Changelings who did this made Fluttershy cringe deep down inside herself. Yes, she was hurt very badly, but could still have emotions of fear.

"You're lucky to be alive," Discord said quietly as he felt more pain in his chest. "What these monsters did to you was even worse than before, Fluttershy."

Discord moaned slightly as the pain in his chest continued to grow. Nevertheless, he continued to fight it, but it wasn't going to be long before he would give in. His groans were not being heard quietly as a doctor walked into the room along with a nurse.

"Aren't you supposed to be in your bed?" asked the doctor concernedly as he looked at Discord. "You are hurt, you know."

"This is my friend and I am going to be here for her," Discord cried sharply while looking back at the doctor. "Now, tell me if she is going to be okay."

The doctor knew that the weak, but intimidating Discord was going to do everything in his power to be at Fluttershy's side.

"Fluttershy will be fine, but it will be a long road to recovery," answered the doctor as Fluttershy let out a small but shrill cry of pain as she felt pain from inside her body. "We placed her in a coma because she suffered significant internal injuries in the blast. But, that pain you are feeling is the medicine working to repair the damaged organs in your body."

"What organs?" asked Discord, who wanted to snap his fingers and produce an organ, but was too weak to do so.

"Well, it's hard to say at this point," answered the doctor as he motioned for a nurse to prepare a syringe to place into Fluttershy. "We couldn't find any particular organs that were damaged, so we are treating them all with great care. Now, you were placed into a coma Fluttershy out of an abundance of caution."

Fluttershy weakly nodded at this, but Discord couldn't help but feel conflicted on whether to be sad or angry that his only true friend was deliberately put to sleep. Yes, they were trying to help her, but this, in Discord's mind, was nothing but torture for Fluttershy.

"As a matter of fact, sighed the doctor. "You are very lucky to be alive given the circumstances of what we have been dealing with. Several ponies who were injured have to have parts of their bodies amputated."

Discord felt a sudden cringe upon hearing this. Yes, Fluttershy was lucky, but he had every reason for dreading the fact that Fluttershy would have had to had part of her body taken away from her. Then, he felt another cringe, but it was within his own body.

"I think we should get you back to your bed," suggested the doctor in a worried voice as Discord felt a sharp in his chest again.

"No, I need to be here," cried Discord, feeling the pain grow more and more in his chest. "I need to be here for Fluttershy."

The pain in chest was growing so great that he was now falling over onto the floor. As Discord moaned in pain, the doctor darted outside and looked out into the hallways.

"I NEED HELP IN ROOM 2014!" he shouted and his shouts caught the attention of several nurses who darted into the room. "GET A STRETCHER AND MORPHINE! POST HASTE!"

Carefully using whatever parts of their body they could use, the nurses and the doctor pony carefully placed Discord on the stretcher and took him back to his room.

"I'll be with you, Fluttershy," cried Discord weakly. "Just hang in there!"

Fluttershy couldn't speak, but feel tears forming in her eyes upon seeing Discord in this manner. In her mind, she could wish that Discord would just snap his lion paw or eagle claw and make her feel better again, but he couldn't.

Once he had been wheeled out of Fluttershy's room, Discord was brought back to his assigned room and for the next few minutes upon being returned, it was nothing more than living, breathing chaos as they hooked Discord back up.

"What's going on?" cried Starlight as she and her uninjured friends watched what was happening.

"Something must have happened to him," added Sunset. "Do you think it could have been from being out of bed?"

Starlight didn't know what to say, but nevertheless, they all watched as the doctors and nurses worked on Discord for the next 10 minutes. Finally, the chaos came to a stop and Discord was given the space needed again. His entire body was once again covered in IV's and everything else medical wise besides the kitchen sink.

"Fluttershy," whispered Discord, letting out sharp gasps as he stared up at the ceiling of the room. "Fluttershy! FLUTTERSHY!"

The sharp cries Discord was making sent chills down the spines of Starlight and Sunset who felt powerless to help both Discord and Fluttershy recover from their injuries.

"I'm afraid we need to let the doctors and nurses do their job," advised Moon Dancer, who was also feeling the pain that Discord was letting out. "There's nothing we can do but wait."

…

Meanwhile, Thorax had learned of Hopper's capture and was on his way to Ponyville hospital to let him know how he felt of his actions…

Thorax Confronts Hopper

Upon his arrival to Ponyville hospital, Hopper was immediately brought into surgery in order for his life to be saved. Although Hopper was a patient, he was still a criminal in the custody of Equestrian law enforcement. Hopper was weak, but his mind was still active and loyal to finding Chrysalis, wherever she was.

"I have come to give the patient an injection," said a female nurse pony to a royal guardspony. "Please let me in."

The guardspony complied and allowed the nurse pony into the room where Hopper was being held in. The captured Changeling looked up weakly as the nurse pony prepared to administer an injection into Hopper's body. Almost immediately, Hopper noticed that this pony wasn't all she was cracked up to be.

"All right," she said, squirting out some fluid to see if it was working properly. "Now this might sting a little. Turn over onto your side."

Doing as he was told, Hopper complied and the nurse pony placed the sharp needle into the area of his back where Starlight hit him with her magic. At first it seemed like it was nothing unusual, then the needle twisted.

"What are you doing?" he cried out, glaring at the nurse pony. "Are you trying to kill me?"

"Maybe," replied the nurse pony, her eyes suddenly flashing brightly. "But, it would be too easy for what you did to my friends."

Hopper's eyes widened upon hearing this and realized that this pony was not all that she seemed to be. Before Hopper could say another word, the nurse pony transformed from her current state and into Thorax, who was now seething with fury.

"Thorax," hissed Hopper, weakly. "You dare to show yourself to me, traitor? It is because of you that our way of life has come to an end. Had you not interfered…"

"SILENCE!" cried Thorax, holding Hopper in a magical grip caused by his horns. "Do you even realize or understand what you and your brother have done? Six ponies are dead because of you both."

"Do you think that matters to me?" remarked Hopper, sarcastically to his new leader. "Nothing more than collateral damage as long as those friends of yours are dead!"

This made Thorax even more cross and angry, but he tried desperately to keep his emotions in check. As much as he wanted to kill Hopper right here and now, it would be against his character and everything he stood for.

"My friends are still alive, Hopper," Thorax said sternly. "You've failed at your task, Hopper. Both you and your brother and now, you will soon be begging for mercy when you are tried for your crimes."

To show how angry he was, Thorax tightened his magical grip further on Hopper, almost to a point that Hopper could feel his bones cracking. Nevertheless, while his body was being harmed, his mind was not.

"Oh no, I won't be begging for mercy," laughed Hopper, before turning defiant and angry. "I can see that you have fear of killing me right now, because you are a weak and pathetic Changeling that would never hurt another for the glory of our kingdom. We need to survive by trampling on the rights of ponies and thanks to you, that's all for nothing now because of you!"

"I wouldn't have even wanted to be a part of some sick and twisted plot!" snapped Thorax, throwing Hopper back down onto the bed. "And that will never come to fruition for you, Hopper! For your judgment day is coming and I assure you, you will suffer the consequences of your actions just like General Kuwaga!"

"In case you forgot, traitor," retorted Hopper, who suddenly felt pain all throughout his body. "Our supreme General Kuwaga took the easy way out to avoid the humiliation of being executed by these friends of yours! I aim to take the same route if necessary."

Exasperated by this, Thorax turned his back on Kuwaga and started to make his way towards the door.

"You will never be the leader that our devoted Queen was," cried Hopper, his voice in pain but in defiance. "One day, our leader will return and she will drain all the love out of your precious body and then, retake her rightful place!"

But Thorax didn't listen anymore, he was exhausted at Hopper's tirades and knew that there was a justice system in Equestria that would deal with Hopper.

"My friends will decide what happens to you, Hopper," said Thorax in a low voice. "Don't let me stop your great self-destruction. Die if you want to, you misguided martyr. I wash my hooves of your demolition, so die if you want to, you guilty puppet."

Insulted, Hopper snarled as Thorax assumed his disguise of the nurse pony and left the captured Changeling alone his room. As much as he wanted to kill him right then and there deep down, Thorax was a Changeling who didn't believe in violence solving any problems.

"Killing Hopper would be too easy," he thought to himself as he walked away from Hopper's room. "If he's lucky, he'll be executed after the trial. If not, he will watch his pathetic life rot away in the mirror of a prison cell in Tartarus."

…

Back at Canterlot Hospital, Discord had been fully sedated by the doctors with his thoughts still on the well-being of Fluttershy.

"He shouldn't have gotten out of bed," remarked a doctor pony to Starlight and Sunset. "It's going to take even longer for him to be able to start his recovery process."

"Why not just move him into Fluttershy's room?" suggested Sunset, getting herself a bright idea. "It would certainly make it easier for both of them if necessary."

"I agree with Sunset," added Starlight. "You know he's going to keep wanting to be by her side, doctor."

The doctor considered the matter and then turned around to face Starlight and Sunset.

"Although it is against my better judgment," he said. "I can move him in with Fluttershy if it is going to make everypony feel better."

"Plus, it will give Trixie some much needed space to recover," remarked Starlight, who was holding Trixie's hoof.

"Indeed," muttered the doctor as he left to summon several nurses to haul Discord away. "Indeed."

A few moments later, several nurses came into the room and took Discord away to Fluttershy's hospital room. Now, Starlight, Sunset and Moon Dancer were alone with Trixie, who was still in her coma.

"Trixie, if you can hear me," whispered Starlight, clutching Trixie's hoof into her own. "I know you can fight this, just hang in there."

Soon, Sunset and Moon Dancer joined Starlight in clutching Trixie's hoof tightly. For they were not going to leave her side until she was fully awake from her medically induced coma.

…

At that moment, Instant Justice was just about to walk in and see his son when he was stopped by a guardspony.

"Thorax paid a visit to the Changeling that was captured," whispered the guard. "Apparently, intelligence says that Thorax had the one known as Hopper in a magically induced grip. What do we do?"

"Make his upcoming trial as quickly run as possible," answered Instant Justice. "I want his trial to set an example to all enemies of Equestria that actions such as what happened in Manehattan will not be tolerated in any way. Is that clear?"

"Yes sir," answered the guard, saluting Instant Justice before leaving him alone to visit with his son…

Getting to His Head

With his son on the operating table getting his gangrene affected leg chopped off, Instant Justice returned to the princesses' hospital room and faced his superiors. He was determined to tell them that he had gone about and pressed charges against Hopper for his crimes against Equestria.

"So now that you have pressed charges against the Changelings," said Luna, who was trying to take in what was being told to her and the other princesses. "You wish to set a trial for the accused, Instant Justice?"

"Only if you wish to do so," replied Instant Justice. "I believe that it would be appropriate for the accused Changeling to face the ponies he had harmed and have all guilt proven onto him."

"Your desires are high, Instant Justice," said Celestia, who was being cautious about the situation. "But, do keep in mind that he can plead guilty to all charges to avoid being put to death."

Instant Justice had no intention that Hopper was going to plead guilty. A part of him deep down suggested that perhaps, just perhaps that Hopper would rather die than to live out the rest of his natural life in Tartarus.

"I can assure you all that he won't plead guilty," remarked Instant Justice, walking over to take a sip of water from a glass on a side table. "It seems that he wants to die for his crimes and I could give him the opportunity, but as you all know, he will most likely turn it down."

Instant Justice let out a deep sigh as he faced his superiors. He could tell that from the looks on their faces that he was going to be getting the support he deserved to get. However, they all knew, himself included that this was most likely going to be a long and difficult process. But Twilight took notice that there was something else bothering Equestria's minister of justice as he spoke.

"Forgive me if I change the subject, Instant Justice," she said as Spike rubbed down on one of her injured wings. "But, you seem to be troubled about something. Would you like to tell me what is wrong?"

Realizing that these were Equestria's leaders that were talking to him, Instant Justice sighed and got the courage to reveal what was on his authorative mind.

"It's um, my son, Thorn Gavel," he said, walking over and sitting down in a chair. "He is having his right rear leg amputated because there was gangrene forming on his leg that cannot be cured."

"We're very sorry to hear that," sympathized Celestia. "If there is anything we can do to help you…"

"Thank you," interrupted Instant Justice. "I appreciate all of your support greatly. But, right now I want to focus on getting this monster the justice that is coming to him."

"That doesn't matter right now," remarked Twilight, firmly. "Your family is more important right now, Instant Justice, so you must focus on them. The trial can happen at any time, you know."

Instant Justice was not going to bow out this easily. He had a passion and a mission to rid Equestria of this bug, not just for his superiors, but for his family. He had to do this, he had to focus his attention on handing down justice in ways Equestria was not used to seeing.

"I appreciate your concern, Princess Twilight," answered Instant Justice, looking at his superiors very carefully. "But, with all due respect, you must all understand that I cope with tragedies like this by throwing myself into my work. We have our own demons to deal with right now. You have to focus on getting your bodies well again and I have to focus on dealing with the accused."

Without saying another word, Instant Justice bowed to the princesses and left the room, leaving them somewhat bewildered by his sudden departure. However, they all knew he was right, the princesses had to focus on getting healed of their injuries that they had sustained in this assassination plot against them.

…

At that moment, Instant Justice was just walking down the hall when Starlight spotted him, having gone to get something for her friends to eat.

"Instant Justice, what's going on?" she asked, taking note of his determined look. "You look upset about something."

"My son is in surgery right now getting his leg amputated," he replied as Starlight followed him back towards Trixie and Discord's room. "And I have also charged Hopper with crimes against Equestria that includes the attempted murder of your friends."

"I'm sorry to hear that," said Starlight.

"Of course you're sorry, young mare," he remarked, turning around to face Starlight sharply. "You say you are a powerful unicorn, are you not? Then, perhaps you could find a spell that would cure my son of losing his leg and sending the accused to a decent punishment worthy of a criminal of his nature."

Starlight cringed at the behavior that Instant Justice was displaying in front of her. Yes, he had been critical of Starlight and her friends, so this was no surprise to her. However, there was a sense of something that Instant Justice was doing this out of something other than doing his job.

"Look, Instant Justice," cried Starlight. "I know you are upset, but you can't let what happened get to your head."

"What are you talking about, young mare?" he remarked indignantly. "How dare you accuse me of something that is nothing more than doing my job?"

"I'm not telling you how to do your job," protested Starlight as Instant Justice attempted to walk away. "All I am saying is to not let this go to your head and treat this case like a personal revenge vendetta. Remember that we agreed to work together to solve this?"

"That's over and done now, so just leave me alone," he said, look Starlight in the eye sternly. "Go bring the food you have to your friends and I have to decide how to approach this case against the accused."

Starlight watched as Instant Justice stormed off in a huff, leaving her dumbfounded and disillusioned by what had just transpired. She had a very good hunch that Instant Justice was going to let this impending case against Hopper get to his head.

…

Meanwhile, Thorax made his ways down to the dungeons to face the prisoners that had been questioned about Hopper and Thumper's plan to assassinate his friends.

"You are probably wondering why I am facing you all," he said. "Your comrade, Hopper, is captured and your other comrade, Thumper, is dead. The time has come to face facts and you are going to reveal to me every single detail that is known about their plot to assassinate Equestria's most important ponies. There is nowhere to run, nowhere to hide."

It seemed that Thorax was going to have his request honored by these broken Changelings. It seemed that the death of Thumper and the capture of Hopper was now going to make them talk about the plans of their comrades once and for all…

It's All Over for You, Hopper

Thorax towered over the broken Changelings fully determined to end all that had transpired over the past few days. He didn't want a trial, he wanted to have Hopper locked up forever and prevent Chrysalis from returning. Now, even though that he had gotten some truth earlier from a fellow Changeling he had reformed, Thorax was not going to rest until he got the whole truth.

"You are probably wondering why I am facing you all," he said, pacing back and forth between the captured Chrysalis loyalists. "Your comrade, Hopper, is captured and your other comrade, Thumper, is dead. The time has come to face facts and you are going to reveal to me every single detail that is known about their plot to assassinate Equestria's most important ponies. There is nowhere to run, nowhere to hide."

The Changelings looked up to Thorax and realized that he was indeed right. Hearing that Hopper was captured and Thumper was dead was a sign that it was all over for them.

"Who wants to go first?" Thorax asked and a Changeling prisoner on the far left end of the line stepped forward, his body weakened from all the beatings he had taken as a result of his interrogations. "Speak, Yellow Jacket."

Yellow Jacket was trembling all over his body, fearing of the repercussions of what would happen if he didn't speak now.

"It was all Hopper's idea," answered Yellow Jacket. "He brought up the idea of killing the princesses and their allies. He knew that Chrysalis would kill them eventually and he felt that with them out of the way, there would be very little resistance."

"Traitor!" cried a Changeling on the far right end, giving Yellow Jacket a murderous glare only to be silenced by Thorax with a blot around his mouth. Thorax then motioned for several guards to take the Changeling away to a secular part of the dungeons. Once he was gone, Thorax motioned for Yellow Jacket to speak.

"Did any of you agree to initially go with him and Thumper?" asked Thorax.

"No," said another changeling standing next to Yellow Jacket. "I was scared. Some of us were because we feared of the power that those ponies had. Hopper was always the one who had murder in his eyes. We didn't have murder in our eyes, but we needed to survive, Thorax. You know that."

Thorax contemplated this as he walked towards a portrait of Chrysalis on the entryway leaving the dungeons. It was then that he scrunched his eyes and used his magic to take the portrait and slam it down on the hard floor, destroying it.

"I know that Chrysalis was nothing more than a dictator who wanted to do things her way," said Thorax, quietly as he walked away from the portrait. "She didn't have our best intentions at heart and it would have to take something like bombs to get the message across to you all. But, you all have what is in front of you right now. Chrysalis will never get her power back and soon, she will realize it over time."

"There is something else you need to know, Thorax," said Yellow Jacket. "We were all planning to overthrow Chrysalis."

Hearing this bit of news was a major surprise to Thorax, for up until he now, he didn't know that these Changelings were thinking of putting together their own plot to remove Chrysalis.

"How were you going to do this?" he asked. "Tell me, I've got to know!"

"It was just before she ordered the capture of her targets," said Yellow Jacket, fearing for the worst if he didn't tell Thorax this now. "All of us knew that the ponies of Equestria were just far too powerful for us and Chrysalis was in denial about it. You know that Chrysalis says that it is her way or else, Thorax. Hopper was obsessed with following in her footsteps."

"That's another matter," interjected Thorax. "I need to know just how many bombs you were all planning to set off."

"Hopper and Thumper had a list," remarked another captured Changeling. "It was eventually destroyed, but we remember how many cities in Equestria were targeted. All the major cities like Manehattan, Canterlot, Las Pegasus, the Crystal Empire, you name it. Chrysalis wanted to send a message that she was going to rule all of Equestria and that anypony who should stand in her way would suffer the consequences. "

Thorax took in all the information that was presented to him and realized that these Changelings were just like the Changeling he had reformed earlier, wanting to get away from the tyrannical way of life Chrysalis had dictated. Thorax could see that to them, what was happening now was a blessing in disguise.

"Please, Thorax," pleaded Yellow Jacket, who got on his rear knees and clutched Thorax's front legs. "We've suffered enough and are begging for your mercy. In fact, starting now, we pledge our allegiance to you and you alone."

Thorax considered this matter and realized that these Changelings were actually begging for a second chance. Even more so, if there was going to be a trial, these Changelings would testify against their ringleader in exchange for their lives. But, nevertheless, this wasn't going to let them off the hook easily.

"I appreciate the fact that you are seeking to swear your loyalty to me," he said. "But this does not excuse your behavior nor actions in any sense of the word. You will be punished for your actions although I need time to think of what that punishment is going to be."

The Changeling prisoners were discouraged by this development, but were delighted at the fact that Thorax was going to start to forgive them for their misdeeds, despite their severity.

…

With this valued information, Thorax returned to Ponyville hospital to confront Hopper once again and once the room was emptied of any doctors or nurses, Thorax walked into the room and looked down at Hopper with a stern look on his face.

"It's all over for you, Hopper," he said. "Your friends have turned against you and you know it. There is nowhere left to run, nowhere left to hide. So, if I were you, I'd start thinking about what is going to happen to you."

"You lie, Thorax," retorted Hopper. "My allies would never betray me."

"Is that so?" remarked Thorax, who tossed a piece of paper onto Hopper's bed. "Why else that they would do such a thing?"

Thorax was not convinced in any way by Hopper's words. For he knew that Hopper was still in denial and it would take more than a few words to get him to realize what was at stake. At that moment, a pair of reformed Changelings came into the room and stood on one side of Thorax holding what appeared to be chains.

"What are you doing, traitor?" snapped Hopper.

"These reformed Changelings of mine are going to transport you to Tartarus if you plead guilty and accept your responsibility of what you have done. In other words, I am trying to save you from a situation that would result in you being killed under Equestrian law."

"Is that so?" chuckled Hopper. "Well, this is an interesting development. Words coming from someone who wanted to see me put on trial. It seems that a traitorous leader like you can't even decide whether or not I deserve to live or die. That goes to show you how truly pathetic you are, Thorax."

Realizing that this tactic wasn't working, Thorax simply felt that he needed more time for Hopper to decide whether or not to avoid being put on trial.

"Then, I must leave you to decide your own fate, Hopper," he sighed, completely exhausted and walking towards the door. "Let me know when you make your decision."

Hopper let out a small sinister chuckle as Thorax left the room. To him, there was no clearer path to get Hopper to accept his actions. A little while later, Thorax returned to Canterlot hospital and at that moment, Instant Justice came walking down the hallway intending to visit his son when he saw Thorax.

"Thorax," he said, acknowledging the new leader of the Changelings. "I trust you were visiting with the accused bomber, Hopper."

"I was," sighed Thorax. "All I want is to give him a chance to avoid a trial altogether. A chance for him to spare his life from a death sentence. But, he just won't listen."

"Of course he won't listen," remarked Instant Justice, who decided to tell Thorax the whole truth. "He is a fanatic, Thorax and fanatics don't go down so easily. Either way, I think it would be appropriate for those affected by this monster to face him and express their displeasure over what he had done. I'm sorry, Thorax, but this is a creature who killed six ponies, injured our leaders and their allies along with my son to within an inch of their lives, threw our entire land into chaos and you expect him to just plead guilty? He won't go down without a fight and you know it. Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to visit with my son."

Thorax realized that there was nothing else he could do. A trial was about to happen…

Escape from Ponyville

Thorax stood in the hallways of Canterlot hospital feeling like the weight of the world had fallen on his shoulders. He wanted to not have a trial and instead, his request was denied. Now, he was faced with the inevitable and there had been enough death and destruction to last him a lifetime.

"Thorax," cried Starlight as she saw him walk by Trixie and Discord's room. "What's wrong? You look depressed about something."

"Oh, hey Starlight," sighed Thorax as he walked into the room. "I was just wanting to avoid having Hopper go on trial, that's all."

Starlight, Sunset and Moon Dancer were all very surprised to hear this concerning that Hopper was a creature that needed to be tried for his crimes. As far as they were concerned, Thorax needed to have some sort of judgment passed down for the crimes of attempted murder on Equestria's elite.

"Why would you not want to have Hopper go on trial?" wondered Moon Dancer, her eyes widened with surprise. "It will be good for his victims to express their anger towards him."

"That's just it," remarked Thorax, sighing heavily. "When Chrysalis ruled over us, she delighted in trials because regardless of whether her prisoners were innocent or guilty, she would just kill them anyway."

"Equestria's justice system isn't like that at all," said Sunset Shimmer, sitting next to Discord's bed, stroking him gently. "Hopper will get a fair trial, even though he will most likely not win it despite the circumstances against him."

"Sunset has a point," added Starlight, returning to Trixie's side. "But, I can understand where you are coming from, Thorax. When I was a dictator, trying to rule my town with an iron hoof, I never gave the accused a fair trial and the punishments I inflicted were of the extreme variety. You don't have to be like that."

Thorax trusted Starlight's word on this matter, but he was still very questionable about his actions. As the new leader of the Changelings, he needed to set an example to those who were following him.

"I understand these kinds of things take time, Thorax," continued Starlight. "But, we have to sometimes show a little force on those who commit crimes of this nature. Yes, I was a tough leader, but I'm not a monster."

"I was once a monster," added Sunset, sighing heavily as all this talk brought back memories of when Twilight and her Canterlot high friends made her see the light of her ways. "And it is something that I regret every day with every single bone in my body."

Thorax knew that this would be the last thing he wanted to do was to do something that he would regret for the rest of his life. Unlike most Changelings, he was one who didn't want to inflict harm upon others. After all, he was born to be brainwashed by a false leader with ideologies that were sadistic and unforgiving.

"But, I want you to know that we all have your back, Thorax," said Starlight. "These things will take time and one of these days, you will be a good leader who will judge fairly and honestly."

Thorax felt a little better at Starlight saying this and for a moment, it seemed, that he would realize that becoming a true leader was going to take time.

…

Then suddenly, a loud commotion was heard and they all ran out to see Instant Justice talking in a fit of anger and fury to several guardsponies.

"What's going on?" cried Starlight and they all watched as Instant Justice screamed and berated the two guards.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN HE ESCAPED?" thundered Instant Justice, his head throbbing in fury. "HOW COULD HE ESCAPE WITH SEVERE INJURIES?! SOMEPONY BETTER GIVE ME AN ANSWER AND NOW!"

Starlight and her friends couldn't help but gasp at this development.

"He must have had inside help," cried one of the guards, trying to explain what had happened. "To be honest, none of us knew how it happened."

"Find out how and organize a platoon to go after this Changeling," he seethed, pointing at the guards. "And I don't care if he comes back dead or alive! Understand?"

The guards both saluted Instant Justice and immediately darted down the hall. Instant Justice angrily threw a hoof into the hospital wall and let out a frustrated yell that could be heard throughout the entire wing. No sooner did he let out this yell that Shining Armor emerged from the room where the princesses were in.

"He escaped?" he asked angrily to Instant Justice. "How?"

"I don't know how," answered Instant Justice, his voice lowering slightly. "But, he escaped from Ponyville hospital and is out there, somewhere, planning to finish what he started. There is no doubt in my mind that he will be dead soon, but that doesn't matter to me anymore."

Shining Armor realized that there was no doubt in his mind what he needed to do. He needed to go after this Changeling and destroy him.

"Let me go and help find him," pleaded Shining Armor, his horn glowing furiously. "I am not going to let a monster that kidnapped Cadence twice and attempted to kill her along with those I love live or breathe the air he breathes."

Instant Justice admired the courage that Shining Armor was showing and agreed right away that Shining Armor needed to join in the hunt.

"Very well then," he said. "You can go at once."

Saluting Instant Justice, Shining Armor walked back into the princesses' room and hugged Cadence tightly. Hearing that the Changeling that tried to kill them all had managed to escape made them all feel afraid to an extent.

"Don't worry," Shining Armor said. "I will find the escaped monster and bring his head back for all to see."

Without saying anything else, the princesses watched as Shining Armor ran out of the room and joined the guardsponies heading out into the Canterlot streets.

"How could he escape?" cried Sunset. "It just doesn't seem possible."

"Well, it is possible now," remarked Starlight, a stroke of fear deep in her voice. "And they always say that a wounded animal is a dangerous animal. There is no doubt in my mind that he will kill the next pony he encounters."

"That is correct, young mare," said Instant Justice. "But, I cannot help but wonder why Ponyville Hospital didn't do anything to stop him from escaping."

Everypony knew that there had to have been a way for Hopper to escape so easily. But, for now, all they could do was stand there dumbfounded as Hopper ran as fast as his legs could carry him from Ponyville hospital.

"They think I can go down so easily?" he asked himself as he ran into the Everfree Forest. "Well, I'm not going down without a fight and once I get my strength back, they will feel my fury and then, I will finish what I had started and that restoring our Queen to her rightful place!"

Demanding Answers

Hopper's escape from Ponyville Hospital had left everypony dumbfounded and bewildered at how an injured Changeling had managed to escape. Now, there was another hunt taking place for Hopper and soon, Starlight, Sunset, Thorax and Moon Dancer were with Instant Justice at Ponyville Hospital questioning the guards who were supposed to be guarding Hopper.

"We swear on our lives, my lord justice," they protested as Instant Justice grilled them in Hopper's empty room while Starlight and her friends listened from outside. "All that came into the room was a nurse who was going to take a blood sample from the prisoner."

"Well, did you question her identity?" cried Instant Justice, stamping his hoof down in frustration. "Your orders were to simply ask everypony who comes into the prisoners room if they were who they truly were. If I find out that you were lax in your actions…"

"How were we lax in our actions?" cried one of the guards, being cornered against a wall. "What were you expecting us to do? Be intrusive to everypony that walks in here? We have hearts!"

"But you also have orders which you did not follow, you fools!" snapped Instant Justice, turning away from the cornered guard. "And because of your foolish mistakes, the prisoner has escaped and Celestia knows what he is capable of!"

Reaching his exhaustion point, Instant Justice sighed heavily and looked down at the floor briefly, thinking about the well-being of his son who was still coming to terms with being down a leg. After a few moments, he turned back to his disgraced guards.

"You two are to be dismissed from your posts at once," he ordered, not giving them his attention as he walked to the door. "I can assure you that there will be disciplinary actions against you both for this blunder. You two have a lot to think about right now."

Leaving the room, Starlight and her friends watched with disbelief as Instant Justice sighed in frustration.

"They were most likely tricked," said Thorax, as Instant Justice walked by them. "Changelings are known for being sneaky when it comes to fooling ponies. That's how we were taught to act."

"That's right," added Starlight. "You can't really blame these two for what they did. How were they supposed to know that it was a Changeling disguised as a nurse?"

"Of course I can blame them," retorted Instant Justice, sharply turning around to face them. "They had orders and didn't use them to their full advantage. I can let the two ponies who harbored these murderers off lightly, but these two…well, they won't be getting the same treatment."

Instant Justice sighed heavily again as he continued to contemplate what to do with the two guards that had failed him greatly. But, Thorax and his pony friends knew that time was of the essence and felt that rather than pointing hooves or horns at these two guards, they all knew that they needed to get to the bottom of this matter.

Then suddenly, a guardspony came dashing down the hall, running as fast as his hooves could carry him.

"We found him," panted the guardspony, causing everypony to think that Hopper had been captured. "We found a Changeling that we believe helped Hopper escape from here."

"Where is he?" demanded Instant Justice, talking in a low but angry voice. "I want to talk to him."

"He's in a secluded room on the lower level of the hospital," replied the guardspony. "We have him under guard."

Taking this advice, Instant Justice furiously made his way down to the lower level of the hospital and was determined to squeeze out every single bit of information that this Changeling had in his brain.

"I thought Hopper and Thumper were the only Changelings that had evaded capture," remarked Starlight as they saw Instant Justice leave. "Could there be more on the run?"

"From the looks of it, I think there are more on the run," added Sunset. "Something tells me that there is more to this story than meets the eye and we need to find out what it is. I know just from looking at this that there is a piece to this puzzle that is missing. Don't you all think so?"

"It's most likely," said Thorax. "Even I had no idea that another Chrysalis loyalist was on the run either. Still, we can't take any chances and who knows what this Changeling was trying to do in helping Hopper escape."

…

Without saying another word, they all made their way down to the lower level and no sooner did they get to where the Changeling was being questioned was the loud sounds of beating being heard.

"What's going on?" cried Starlight as they heard a loud banging sound against the door.

"YOU DARE MOCK ME?!" screamed a voice that belonged to Instant Justice. "I WILL HAVE YOUR DISGUSTING CORPSE PRESENTED TO THE PRINCESSES FOR THIS! NOW TELL ME WHERE HOPPER IS?!"

Thorax felt that this needed to be stopped and tried to go inside to intervene, but they were all stopped by two guards that blocked the doorway.

"Let us in!" demanded Thorax, trying to get in. "Do you realize whom you are talking to?"

"You'll just have to wait," said the guards, not knowing who was standing in front of them. "We have orders to not let anypony in until Instant Justice says so."

The sounds of beating were heard again and Starlight realized that they were not going to stand by and listen to this abuse taking place. Using her magic, Starlight teleported herself and her friends into the room before the guards could react. Once they came inside, they saw a lone Changeling bleeding and whimpering like a frightened animal. Instant Justice was about to move in for the kill as he wielded a hammer in his magic aura.

"You think killing me is going to get you Hopper?" he cried, weakly. "Our queen will return and there will be nothing you can do about…"

Before he could finish his sentence, the Changeling passed out and collapsed leaving Instant Justice dumbfounded and furious that he had been denied the chance of getting information out of this particular Changeling.

"Damn it!" he snapped, throwing the hammer onto the ground. "Damn it!"

"He would have told you if you hadn't been so hard on him," remarked Starlight angrily as Sunset ran over to the Changeling. "You think that beating on him is going to get you information on Hopper's whereabouts?"

Instant Justice didn't say anything until he noticed Sunset tending to the Changeling who was now near death.

"Get away from him," he ordered, much to Sunset's shock. "He doesn't need your help."

"Of course he does!" cried Sunset, the Changeling's blood running onto her hooves. "Can't you see what you've done, Instant Justice? You've let your rage get the better of you and this is the result of it."

Thorax ran over to the beaten Changeling as well and Instant Justice was about to tell him to back off as well, only to be stopped by Starlight and Moon Dancer.

"You dare question my methods, young mare?" he asked, his voice and temper rising, roughly releasing himself from . "Are you aware that at this very moment, a dangerous monster of a Changeling who tried to kill our leaders and injured dozens more is on the loose and you tell me that I let my rage get THE BETTER OF ME?!"

Instant Justice was about to strike at Sunset with his hoof only to be stopped by Starlight and Moon Dancer again.

"Enough of this!" cried Starlight. "Can't you see that this is getting us nowhere? Sunset is right, you are letting your rage get the better of you, Instant Justice! Is this how you want your son to remember you by?"

"My son will be happy that his father is doing everything in his power to protect him and all of Equestria," countered Instant Justice, his voice lowering. "And I will not eat nor will I sleep until these monsters are off the streets of Equestria, is that clear?"

"Yes, but lets use our brains instead of our brawn," added Thorax as Sunset gave a glass of water to the beaten Changeling. "We just need to find out where Hopper might have gone."

…

Just then, the door opened and the guards that they had managed to get past entered and faced their leader. Starlight and her friends thought for a moment that they were going to be taken in for interfering in stopping Instant Justice's brutal interrogation methods

"We have urgent news about the escaped Changeling," they said.

"Where is he?" asked Instant Justice coldly. "Tell me now!"

"Prince Armor is reporting that the escaped Changeling is cornered in the Everfree Forest. He has a hostage that he is threatening to kill. We believe that the hostage is a zebra by the name of Zecora."

Taking in all this information, Instant Justice darted out of the room without acknowledging the beaten Changeling that laid possibly dying from his wounds. It didn't take long for a nurse to come forward and call for help in removing the Changeling from the room.

"What do we do now?" asked Sunset.

"We go to the Everfree Forest and end this once and for all," answered Starlight.

Soon, the reign of terror that Hopper and his brother had caused would finally be coming to an end…

Negotiating with Hopper

When the word arrived that Hopper had been cornered in the Everfree Forest, everypony involved knew that everything was building up to an intense and final climax of events. Upon arrival, Instant Justice led Starlight and her friends to the scene of the crisis that was unfolding in front of them. Ponies clad in black armor all over their bodies were surrounding Zecora's house with their horns charged in a sickly green color, similar to the Changelings' magic.

"Hostage negotiator coming out!" cried a guardspony and a pony wearing black armor came out of the treehouse and approached Instant Justice and company.

"Did you get through to him?" Instant Justice asked the negotiator as he took off his helmet. "How is the hostage?"

"Fine, for now," sighed the negotiator. "I don't know how we are going to approach this. He seems like he won't be coming out of this alive. All that matters now is getting the hostage out of here and fast."

For a moment, they were all dumbfounded and confused on how to approach the situation. Yes, Hopper was not going to be taken alive in any sense of the word. But, they then all realized that there was one pony who would be willing to try on getting Zecora free.

"Why don't I go in?" suggested Starlight, remembering the confrontation she had with Chrysalis in trying to bargain for the freedom of her friends. "If there is anypony who could get Zecora out of there alive, it's me."

"Absolutely not," retorted Instant Justice. "I forbid you from going in there and getting yourself killed by this monster, young mare! He is far too dangerous to be talked to out of this one!"

But, Starlight simply glared at Instant Justice, silently telling him that he had done enough damage to ponies that would last her a lifetime. Instant Justice wanted to protest, but he couldn't bring himself to do so.

"It's worth a try," remarked Sunset. "If there is anypony who could secure Zecora's freedom, it's Starlight."

Rolling his eyes in disgust, Instant Justice complied to the agreement and a few moments later, Starlight was placed in magic protection armor that cover her chest and given instructions on how to deal with Hopper.

"Be careful, Starlight," warned Moon Dancer as Starlight took a nervous gulp, somehow wanting to regret her decision, but couldn't. "We've already had enough ponies end up in the situation they are in right now."

"Moon Dancer's right," added Sunset, still having some of the Changeling's blood on her hooves. "We aren't going to live with ourselves if you get hurt or worse."

But, Starlight didn't respond to her friends' worries and instead took a deep breath as she focused all of her attention on getting Zecora away from Hopper as quickly and efficiently as possible.

…

Stepping into Zecora's house, Starlight had to make her way across the sacred items that Zecora had that were now all on the floor.

"WHO'S THERE?!" screamed a voice, causing Starlight to jump slightly. "ANSWER OR THE ZEBRA DIES!"

Taking a deep breath, Starlight mustered up all the courage she had to try and get Zecora free from Hopper's clutches. One wrong move could result in something deadly and that was something she was desperate to avoid

"It's Starlight Glimmer," she called out to Hopper. "I've come to talk for Zecora's release!"

"Talk?!" cried Hopper. "Why should we talk? Why should I be talking to a mewling grub like yourself? A grub that caused our kingdom to replace our beloved leader with a traitor!"

Starlight didn't like being called a "mewling grub," and those two words made her flinch slightly. Still, she had to remain brave at the matter.

"I'm not here to speak false truths about Thorax," she called. "All I want is for Zecora to be freed, but in order to do that, I need you to face me now! Will you do that?"

At that moment, Starlight heard the sounds of footfalls creeping towards her from a corner room and soon, Hopper was standing in front of Starlight with Zecora as his hostage with a knife to her throat. Zecora's mouth was gagged and her front hooves were tied behind her back. Starlight could tell that Hopper was getting weak from his injuries and based on his nature, he didn't have long to live at all.

"How should I know that you are telling me the truth?" he asked, suspiciously while clutching the knife to Zecora's throat. "In fact, it was you and you alone who helped that traitor become our leader. We have nothing to live on and it is all your fault!"

"Yes, it is my fault," cried Starlight, trying her best to reason with a creature whose mind was too far gone. "In fact, I know what it's like to lead by fear and intimidation! And I know what it's like to want everypony to do what you say! But I was wrong. A real leader doesn't force her subjects to deny who they are! She celebrates what makes them unique and listens when one of them finds a better way!"

"The same lies that you said to our true Queen are the same lies that you are telling me now," remarked Hopper, angrily. "I will NEVER live by your false propaganda, Starlight Glimmer! Never!"

Starlight was now beginning to lose her patience with Hopper and the clock was ticking on Zecora's life. If she lost her cool now, Starlight could risk seeing Zecora being killed right in front of her. So, she kept her composure.

"All right, its clear you are too far gone," she said, trying to get Zecora freed from this monster. "But, why should Zecora be a sacrifice in your game? This is between you and me, now! So, let her go now!"

"Do you think I am going to fall for that so easily?" snapped Hopper, clutching Zecora tightly. "I know what you are doing, you want me to throw away everything my queen had taught me for the sake of your propaganda. Oh no, this is a declaration of war, Starlight Glimmer! A war that will see us as the victors and the ponies of Equestria as those who will bow before us!"

"It doesn't have to be this way, Hopper," pleaded Starlight. "But, you just can't see that violence doesn't solve anything. If you let Zecora go now, we can work this all out. Now, release her to me!"

Hopper contemplated for a brief moment and was just about to comply with Starlight's request, when he heard a noise.

"Who's there?!" he yelled, holding out his knife away from Zecora. "Come out and fight!"

Free from Hopper's clutches, Zecora ran over to Starlight and she was quickly escorted out of her home. Realizing that his hostage was gone, Hopper was now alone and had nothing to keep him safe.

"NO!" he screamed in fury and realized that there was no turning back now as he now was going to fight to the death. After taking his frustrations out on several of Zecora's items, he advanced towards the front door where the guardsponies were ready to fire their horns at him.

"FREEZE! GET YOUR CLAWS UP!" screamed Shining Armor, motioning for his soldiers to hold their fire. "DROP THE KNIFE AND GET YOUR CLAWS UP!"

But, Hopper wasn't going to comply, throwing the knife down onto the ground and powering his horn with sickly green magic.

"GET YOUR CLAWS UP!" Shining Armor shouted again, but Hopper wasn't listening. "GET YOUR CLAWS UP!"

"NEVER!" screamed Hopper, firing blasts of magic from his horn at the guards. "LONG LIVE QUEEN CHRYSALIS!"

There was no other choice now for the guardsponies and as Hopper attempted to fire at the guards, they responded by firing at Hopper and beams of sickly green magic came flying at Hopper in all directions, hitting him and piercing through Hopper's armored body. All Starlight and her friends could do was watch as the fanatic Changeling continued get hit for several minutes before he fell to the ground…dying.

"Hold your fire," called Shining Armor to his guards and they complied as Instant Justice walked over to Hopper and towered over him with a demonstrative look of disgust deep in his face.

"I'm going to offer you one last chance to save your pathetic life," he whispered, knowing that even though Hopper was mortally wounded, he was still going to be defiant. "Surrender yourself to Equestria and beg the princesses for their mercy."

Before Hopper could say another word, Instant Justice grabbed the knife that Hopper was using and dangled it over him, twisting it around.

"Well?" asked Instant Justice. "Well?"

Hopper coughed up a little bit of blood and rather than wait for an answer, Instant Justice took the knife and struck it into Hopper's heart, fatally wounding him as Starlight and her friends, especially Thorax, watched with disbelief.

"It is finished," he said to the ponies that faced him, blood from the dead Hopper on his hooves. "Come, we must leave at once and don't even bother about taking the body. Let the Timberwolves deal with this dead body of a monster."

Acting on his orders, Shining Armor and the guards dispersed, but Starlight and the others remained in their positions. For there was something about Instant Justice that greatly bothered them. Yes, both Hopper and Thumper were dead, but the damage was already done…

Minister of Loose Cannons

"Do you understand what you have done?" cried Starlight Glimmer as Instant Justice walked past her and the others, not even acknowledging their presence. "You should have let him at least given him a chance to speak, you know! You really didn't have to go and kill him!"

But, Instant Justice didn't listen and instead walked past them without acknowledging their presence or their questions. In fact, everyone was aghast upon seeing what the Minister of Justice had done and as they watched Instant Justice walk away, they all came over to Hopper's dead body. Looking down, the body was riddled with holes and a huge line drew in his chest, signifying the mark where the killing blow was made in Hopper's heart.

"Why? Just why?" sighed Starlight Glimmer. "Why did you have to do what you did, Hopper? If you had only stayed in the hospital like you were supposed to…"

"He was too far gone to listen to any reason, Starlight," remarked Sunset. "You know it and I know it. In fact, we all know he wouldn't have come out of this alive. What worries me is if there is going to be any repercussions from all of this."

"You are right," sighed Thorax. "I didn't want this to happen, but it did. Nothing is going to make Chrysalis furious than hearing that Hopper was murdered. This wasn't justice, this was murder and that's all there is to it."

"It makes you wonder how Twilight and the Princesses are going to react to what he did," added Starlight, sighing heavily. "They are certainly not going to be very happy when they hear what Instant Justice did. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if Hopper's death would bring Chrysalis back for even more revenge than before."

With those words, they set about giving Hopper a proper burial deep in the Everfree Forest. Once he was buried into the earth of Equestria, they placed a large stone marking the spot where he was buried. Yes, Hopper was a killer who caused an attack on Equestrian royalty, but not even he deserved to suffer a fate of this magnitude.

"May the Gods of Equestria have mercy on your soul," whispered Starlight as they all left the newly freshened burial site, containing the body of a killer.

So, the walk from the Everfree Forest back to Ponyville was a long walk for Starlight and her friends. Not even the joyous atmosphere of several ponies celebrating Hopper's defeat could brighten their spirits. But, nothing was compared to what they saw Instant Justice doing as he spoke to a small crowd of journalist ponies that were gathered around him.

"You will tell your peers that they shall all sleep with clearer minds tonight," Instant Justice announced to the pony media. "The bombers who instilled fear and terror throughout this great land of ours are no more. They have been killed by their own hands because they feared for their very lives."

"What?" asked Moon Dancer, feeling very dumbfounded. "They didn't die by their own hands, Hopper killed Thumper and then Instant Justice killed Hopper! He's lying to them in order to gain publicity to himself!"

"This is wrong," cried Thorax, who couldn't help but feel a sense of anger building inside of him. "Even Chrysalis wouldn't do anything like this to anypony, whether they were on her side or not. It makes me want to…"

"Wait," cried Starlight, using her magic to restrain him. "We can't just barge in without evidence to back up our claims. We need to find something that can prove what Instant Justice did to Hopper."

Using her magic, Starlight managed to retrieve the blood stained knife that Instant Justice used to finish off Hopper. She then wrapped the knife in a cloth to hide it from Instant Justice's viewpoint.

"Now what?" asked Sunset.

"We show this to Twilight and the Princesses," answered Starlight. "They will start to see that the pony who is supposed to protect us lawfully broke his own rules for his own gain."

…

With those words, they all boarded the next available train for Canterlot which was still pretty much empty as many ponies had not known about Hopper's death. Soon, they arrived back in Canterlot as they made their way back to the hospital. The princesses were slowly getting their strength back to the point where they could be walking out of their beds, but their progress was interrupted when Starlight and her friends returned.

"Starlight, Sunset, Moon Dancer, Thorax," remarked Twilight as she noticed her student while she struggled to flex her wings. "We were just thinking about you all. What's wrong?"

"There is something all of you need to know," said Sunset, firmly as Starlight produced the cloth covered knife. Unwrapping it, they revealed the blood stained blade to the princesses and they carefully studied it. "This is Hopper's knife, but I can assure you that we saw Hopper killed by this knife."

"We see it," remarked Luna. "But, how can you be certain that Hopper did not take his own life? You all know very well that these were desperate Changelings who would not be willing to be taken alive. Instant Justice told us in a recent scroll."

"That scroll was nothing but a bunch of lies on paper," replied Starlight. "After Hopper was hit multiple times, we saw Instant Justice tower over Hopper and personally slayed him with this very knife."

Almost immediately, Twilight could sense that something was up. The behavior of Starlight and her friends brought back memories of Chrysalis' invasion of Canterlot during the Royal Wedding and how she was coldly turned away when trying to warn her friends about Chrysalis.

"Starlight, we can't be certain unless more evidence comes forward," said Twilight, walking over to take the knife from Starlight's grip.

"But, Twilight," Starlight protested. "I can show you all exactly what we are talking about. Watch."

Starlight then produced a screen that showed a moving picture of when Hopper had been shot multiple times. Carefully watching what was in front of them, the princesses saw Instant Justice walk over to Hopper and picking up the knife with his magic. Almost immediately, they all saw that something was wrong with this picture.

"What's he doing?" whispered Twilight, her eyes widening with shock and disbelief. "He should have said that Hopper was under arrest."

Before Hopper could say another word, Instant Justice grabbed the knife that Hopper was using and dangled it over him, twisting it around.

"Well?" asked Instant Justice. "Well?"

With those words, Starlight turned off the screen, leaving the princesses speechless and disgusted by what they had just witnessed. In fact, Cadence was so shocked to see this that she started to silently cry.

"How could you?" whispered Celestia, her eyes scowling. "How could you do such a thing, Instant Justice? You killed him before he could plead for mercy and worst of all, without my permission."

At that moment, the door opened and Shining Armor entered the room, taking off his helmet and sighing heavily.

"Shining Armor, where is Instant Justice?" she demanded, her voice filled with fury and anger. "I want to talk to him about what happened in the Everfree Forest!"

"He is on his way now," replied the Prince of the Crystal Empire as he sat down next to Cadence and began to comfort her. "I can assure you that what we did was lawfully carried out, Princess Celestia."

"What you did was lawfully done," said Luna. "It was what Instant Justice did was not lawfully done, Prince Armor."

No sooner did Princess Luna say those words did Instant Justice make his way into the room, smiling proudly before saluting his superiors. The cold looks on their faces made him realize that they had caught onto what he did in the Everfree Forest.

"We need to talk, Instant Justice," said Celestia, crossly. "Do you understand what you have done?"

"I ridded Equestria of a monster," replied Instant Justice. "Now, everypony can sleep soundly tonight with the news that he has been eradicated."

"You did," she said. "But, in doing so, you did something much more badly, Instant Justice. By killing the accused Changeling, you have greatly endangered the risk of Equestria being attacked again by Chrysalis and the rest of her loyal Changelings because of what you did!"

Instant Justice realized that he was about to get the chewing out of his life for doing such a thing…

Actions Bring Consequences

"How could I possibly have risked endangering Equestria again if it meant resorting to drastic measures?" cried Instant Justice as he stared at the four angry princesses that were glaring furiously at him. "I think you put them up to this!"

Instant Justice pointed at Starlight Glimmer who simply just stood there, taking the side of her teacher and fellow equals.

"No," said Twilight, vehemently. "She did not. By personally executing Hopper before he had a chance to speak, you committed not just murder, but you sent a message that the ponies of Equestria are nothing more than vicious monsters!"

"That is not true!" shouted Instant Justice, slamming his hoof down hard and growling slightly. "I have done nothing wrong, your highnesses! These monsters need to be exterminated and its ponies like me who keep this land safe! You know what the trouble is with you four? You are too soft when it comes to dealing with hardened criminals!"

Both Celestia and Luna were shocked to hear such an accusation coming from a pony that they trusted with keeping the laws of Equestria pure and just.

"Instant Justice," snapped Luna, angrily glaring at him. "How dare you accuse us of such nonsense? We believe that criminals deserve at least a chance to prove their innocence and what you did was unlawfully kill a criminal without our orders and what's worse, in our names!"

Instant Justice felt shocked at such an accusation. As far as he was concerned, he never said such a crazy statement when confronting Hopper in his final moments.

"I never said such a thing!" he protested. "I can assure that if he lived, he would have escaped and did far worse again! You should be honored that I protected Equestria once again from creatures like that Hopper."

But the princesses didn't agree on this. Yes, Hopper was dead, but the way that his death was carried out was wrong and they knew it. It didn't matter if they were soft or not, there was one thing amongst the four of them and that was that violence never solved anything.

"Regardless of alliance," said Celestia, firmly. "What you did was wrong, Instant Justice and we cannot be honored of something evil being carried out. Nevertheless, we understand what you are going through right now. We know your son was among the ponies that were injured in the bombings at that marathon, so perhaps maybe you should step back and focus on him right now."

"I know you want me to, but I can't let him suffer any more than he already has," cried Instant Justice, pacing back and forth slightly.

"Everypony has been suffering because of what they did," remarked Twilight. "The last thing anypony wanted to hear let alone see was a pony acting as a judge, jury and executioner which is what you did. Equestria does have a judicial system that must be followed."

Part of Instant Justice wanted to go over to Twilight and strangle her for saying such a thing. As far as he was concerned, there were times that a judge and jury would not simply put away a murderer and this was one of them.

"The princesses are right," said Starlight Glimmer. "What you have done is enough and the last thing I want is to see anypony get hurt. Why can't you just accept the fact that Hopper is dead and we must all move on from all this?"

"Because I am a father and a law pony who takes his job seriously," said Instant Justice angrily, storming off to the door. "I would rather die than to stand here and be berated for doing a service to Equestria in its time of dire straits. Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to visit my son who is recovering from an amputation!"

He slammed the door and left Starlight, her friends and the princesses shocked and in disbelief over what was displayed in front of them.

"He just doesn't understand," said Twilight, indignantly as Starlight looked over towards her. "He just doesn't understand."

"Of course he doesn't understand," replied Starlight, sitting in a chair. "He is in denial at the fact that what he did was lawfully done. Has he always been like that, Princess Celestia?"

"No, not as far as we are concerned," said Celestia. "I guess that ever since we were all taken captive by Chrysalis, Instant Justice has been on edge to make sure nothing like this ever happens again."

Still, there was the matter of Chrysalis possibly returning, wanting to avenge the death of a fierce and loyal follower.

"Should we prepare for Chrysalis' potential return?" asked Shining Armor, taking off his helmet. For a few moments, the entire room was in complete silence as everypony contemplated the fact that the evil Changeling threat was not over, not by any means. "Give me the orders and I will begin preparations."

"Yes," ordered Celestia, looking over at Shining Armor before turning over to Thorax. "We must prepare for a likely return from Chrysalis. Just because she is no longer ruler of the Changelings, she is still a legitimate threat to us. It's most likely that she will be even more dangerous than before and we must be ready."

Thorax nodded in agreement at Celestia's suggestion, knowing very well of what was now at stake.

"I will have my forces ready themselves as soon as possible," replied Thorax, nodding his head firmly. "You can be assured that you will have my full support in the potentially upcoming confrontation that is about to take place."

Starlight was the only one in the room who didn't want to have another confrontation, despite the fact that Chrysalis was targeting her and her alone for revenge. There were enough ponies who had gotten hurt already and the last thing she nor anypony else wanted was anymore bloodshed.

…

Meanwhile, in a cave not far from the borders of Equestria, a pair of green eyes glowed in fury while the creature who possessed the eyes was growling slightly like a rabid animal.

"So, my most loyal follower is dead," snarled the creature, as she walked into the light revealing herself to be none other than Chrysalis herself. "Killed by Celestia's stooge of a lawmaker. Well, there is no question in my mind that my thirst for revenge just got a little bigger."

Chrysalis watched as whatever Changelings were loyal to her came towards the cave.

"Soon, I will finish what I had started and nopony, not even that mewling grub, Starlight Glimmer, can stop me!" Chrysalis cried and let out a diabolical laugh loud enough for all to hear. "DO YOU HEAR ME, EQUESTRIA? I WILL BE BACK!"

To Be Continued…

Conversation with Carnegie Deli

Starlight and her entourage followed a witness who saw the bombers into his delicatessen, knowing that they were indeed beginning to get somewhere in terms of finding the Changelings who carried out these atrocities. Like all the businesses in the path of the carnage, Carnegie Deli's business suffered damage consisting of broken windows.

"Watch the broken glass," he warned as they walked around shards of broken window. "The darn blasts destroyed my windows."

"I'll take care of this," said Discord, snapping his fingers and donning a janitor's outfit while holding a broom in his lion paw, getting right to work. "Believe me, you'll be free of any glass by the time I am done."

Carnegie turned to Discord and couldn't help but feel a sense of amusement. But, he focused on the four unicorns and what they were seeking. He led Starlight and the others into his office in the back of the store.

"You know, its fun how nopony in law enforcement came to ask me about any suspicious activity," he said as Starlight and her friends surrounded his desk. "Those two ponies were certainly in a hurry and I knew that they were up to no good."

"Well, when you say that they were up to no good," asked Moon Dancer, who had a small notebook and a small pen in her aura. "What do you mean that they were doing?"

"They were crazy, missy," he explained. "I was planning on going out to watch the runners make it to the finish line, but again, business as usual. I had several customers in here and I couldn't leave. Then, they came in and ordered several pounds of meat for a long journey."

This to Starlight and her friends was downright odd. As far as they were concerned, Changelings always fed on love and not on anything else, including meat.

"Why would Changelings want to have meat?" wondered Starlight. "It doesn't make any sense at all. Wouldn't you agree?"

"I certainly do," remarked Sunset, pondering exactly what was being said at that moment. "Believe me, when the Sirens caused havoc at Canterlot High, they also ate normal food as opposed to feeding on hate. Could these Changelings have a similar diet that we don't know about?"

"If these are Changelings," said Moon Dancer. "Then, it goes to show that they don't just survive on a diet of love alone. Guess all that studying over the years is paying off."

Carnegie Deli then reached into his desk and pulled out what appeared to be a book, a book about Changelings and their diet habits much to the surprise of the four unicorns that sat before him.

"You aren't the only ones doing their studying," he said, sliding the book to the unicorns as they opened the pages and began to read what was inside. "Ever since I found out about the Changeling attack in Canterlot, I've often wondered if they were after something other than love. It turns out that they also feed on meat and not just beef, pork and chicken, etc."

As Carnegie spoke, Starlight and her friends came to a part of the book that made them sick and in fact, Trixie had to turn away and retch in disgust when they came to the part.

"Are you all right?" he asked to the sickened magician. "You're not afraid of a little facts are you?"

"The great…and powerful Trixie," coughed Trixie, turning around and facing Carnegie Deli. "Is a little sickened by what is in this book of propaganda."

"Yeah," remarked Moon Dancer, pushing the book back. "I could definitely do without seeing that."

"However, it is very true," said Carnegie Deli, getting up from his desk and looking towards of picture of himself and a young filly on the wall of his office. "Very few ponies know this, but Changelings are also meat eaters. They will go after any kind of meat that is out there, even pony meat."

All of the unicorns were shocked to hear something like this and it gave both Trixie and Starlight a very sickening feeling at what Chrysalis was planning to do had her plan come to fruition.

"I can't believe Chrysalis would dare to do something like that," gasped Starlight, looking right at Trixie. "Chrysalis…was going to…eat you and my friends?"

Starlight was now beginning to think back to what Twilight had told her that night on the balcony. The creature she was trying to offer friendship to was going to kill everypony that gave her a second chance. She now understood that Twilight was indeed right about Chrysalis not being able to be reformed.

"After absorbing your love," said Carnegie Deli, holding the book with his hoofs. "Oh yeah, there is much more to Changelings then meets the eye. After absorbing love, they kill their victims and eat their meat. Believe me, I didn't want to believe this was true either. But it is. And after what had happened today, well you might as well say that I am not taking any chances."

Carnegie reached into his desk drawer again and pulled out what appeared to be a butcher's knife, laying it down on his desk for all to see.

"But Carnegie," said Starlight as they all examined the butchers' knife that was laid on Carnegie's desk. "What if there is a situation where a pony acting suspiciously who is not a Changeling comes in?"

"I can tell by their behavior," explained Carnegie. "And when those two colts came in before the bombs, I can tell that they were up to no good. If they were to come back, then they will know what is coming to them and I don't care if I go to jail for it. Everypony needs to defend themselves after what happened and thank Equestria that our princesses are still alive after what happened to them."

…

Just then, Discord appeared in a burst of white light, no longer dressed like a janitor.

"Your glass is all swept up," said Discord, also taking note of the knife. "What's this little thing you got here?"

"Something I was showing to your friends here," said Carnegie. "I was telling them about how Changelings fed on meat, not just love and not just the usual meats, but pony meat as well."

Upon hearing this, Discord's face drooped and he quickly snapped his fingers, producing a black bucket and turning around to retch into it. It took several minutes for him to do his business before turning back around.

"Are you telling me that they were going to eat Fluttershy?" asked Discord, who was angry but also feeling sick to his stomach. "Then there is no time to waste! They have to be stopped and fast and I know just what to do with them once they are captured!"

Snapping his fingers again, Discord placed himself in a standing up stretcher, tied down and his face placed in a mask. Because the mask covered his face, he couldn't speak, but was nevertheless trying to get his point across. However, Carnegie Deli had his thoughts about four ordinary unicorns going after such dangerous creatures.

"Youse aren't serious about going after these two, aren't you?" he asked in a worried tone. "The police are saying that they are dangerous and should not be approached."

"That's true," said Starlight, firmly. "But these are creatures that we had faced before and we know what they are capable of. The police have tried everything, but even they are no match for the power these creature possess. We have to find them and convince them to give up their evil ways."

"Hello! Earth to Starlight!" cried Trixie, waving her forelegs in Starlight's face. "These are killer creatures here that eat ponies and their love! Convincing them will do us no good! Perhaps that we should let somepony in the law deal with them!"

However, Starlight was not the only one who decided to ignore Carnegie's warnings.

"I agree with Starlight," said Discord crossly while swinging around a .344 magnum revolver in his eagle claw. "I'm not going to rest until the ones who did this to Fluttershy pay for what they did to her! In fact, you got to ask yourselves one question, 'Do we feel lucky? Well do you, punks?'"

With those words, Discord snapped his fingers and disappeared from view.

"Never heard those words before," remarked Sunset.

"That doesn't matter now," Starlight said, firmly. "We have to leave now and continue finding these Changelings before they harm anypony!"

Before Carnegie could say another word, Starlight and her friends darted out of the office, leaving the Deli store owner wondering if they would indeed be successful in their upcoming quest now that he had told them these important details…

Visit With Thorn Gavel

Instant Justice walked into his son's bedroom unable to comprehend with his son losing a part of his body. In fact, a part of Instant Justice wanted to avoid the trial altogether and just decide on judgment right away. But, that was not how he did his job and if he did do such a thing, his job would be taken away from him.

"Hi dad," said a teenage colt of about 15 years of age as he laid in a hospital bed with Instant Justice sitting next to him.

"Hi son," replied Instant Justice, looking at his injured son. "How are you feeling?"

"Scared," replied his son in a scared voice. "Scared and Frightened that they are taking away one of my legs. Why did this have to happen, dad?"

Instant Justice couldn't help but feel powerless to give his son a decent answer. No matter what he would say would take away the pain of all the horrors that Hopper and Thumper had caused.

"I don't know, son," sighed Instant Justice, despondently. "I just don't know how to approach this. I mean, there are so many ponies affected by this, not just you. All that matters is that these Changelings are off the streets and no longer harming anypony else. But…I know you've seen me act this way before…"

"I've seen worse," chuckled his son. "Like that one time Justice Scales ruined that speech you were going to speak at that justice summit."

Instant Justice couldn't help but chuckle at this, for he knew that this young pony who was lying on this bed was trying to brighten his spirits.

"Boy, was I infuriated, Thorn Gavel," he remarked, feeling somewhat amused by this. "I sure taught your brother a lesson, didn't I? I can still remembering him begging me not to punish him severely. But, I wish this was just that, Thorn Gavel and I could move on with my life."

"I couldn't agree more," whispered Thorn Gavel, once again being scared of his situation. "I'm getting something taken away that I will never get back, dad. How do you think you are going to approach this?"

Instant Justice sat there in silence and in deep thought. After a couple of minutes, he broke the silence.

"Well, I can't just let him off free," he said. "He hurt plenty of ponies in his sick twisted plot and don't think that because he is dead will his brother get off scot free."

"His brother died?" cried Thorn Gavel, who didn't know about this until now.

"Yes, Hopper killed him in the Crystal Empire," replied Instant Justice. "That was how the shootout began when that young mare named Starlight Glimmer tried to reason with these killers. But, as much as I hate to say it, justice has already been served by this act and we do have Hopper to thank for that."

Just then, a knock at the door was heard and after Thorn Gavel called out to come in, a brown doctor pony came into the hospital room and approached the bed. When he saw Instant Justice, the doctor pony nodded silently and focused on the grim and difficult task ahead concerning his son.

"Is there something wrong, doctor?" asked Instant Justice.

"No, but I was thinking that we need to schedule your amputation soon, Thorn Gavel," said the doctor, examining the soon-to-be amputated right rear leg. "The gangrene has already started to engulf a majority of your leg."

"I know you need to do what you need to do," cried Thorn Gavel, nervously looking away. "But, I'm…I'm…"

"Scared?" said the doctor, sympathetically. "I know you are scared, but there is nothing else we can do for your leg. If we leave your leg alone, the gangrene could spread to other parts of your body and result in you getting into a much worse situation."

Realizing that he didn't have any choice, Thorn Gavel nervously looked up at his father and took an enormous gulp filled with fear and anxiety.

"You must be brave, Thorn Gavel," said Instant Justice, who was starting to choke up with tears forming in his eyes. "Remember what I have taught you about staying strong in times of adversity?"

"Yes, dad, I remember," replied Thorn Gavel, nervously but bravely acknowledging his father while also becoming choking up with emotion. "But, I'm…I'm…"

Without saying another word, the father and son embraced each other and finally let out all of their emotions while the doctor watched. In fact, he was just about ready to leave when Thorn Gavel stopped him.

"Wait!" he called, his voice ragged with emotion. "I'm…ready at any time for the amputation."

"Well, you certainly are a very brave young stallion," remarked the doctor who then motioned for a nurse to start preparing Thorn Gavel for the eventual surgery that was about to take place.

Once the nurse administered the anesthetic into his body, Thorn Gavel fell asleep holding his father's hoof and at that moment, his bed was moved and the doctor gave Instant Justice a reassuring glance.

"You certainly taught your son well, my lord justice," remarked the doctor as he placed a surgical mask around his mouth. "He sure is a brave young stallion."

Instant Justice acknowledged at this and gave the doctor one final glance before he left the room to operate on his son.

"I need to make this upcoming quick and painless," he thought to himself. "The sooner that justice is placed on Hopper, the sooner we can put all of this to rest."

A few moments later, Instant Justice left the room and made his way down to the waiting room where he motioned for a guard to approach him.

"Send a message to Ponyville," he ordered. "Tell your comrades there to formally charge the captured Changeling with crimes against Equestria."

"What particular charges are you planning to use against him?" asked the guard.

"Six counts of murder, fourteen counts of attempted murder and use of a deadly weapon," answered Instant Justice. "All carrying either a death sentence or a series of life imprisonments without the possibility of parole."

Heeding his commander's order, the guard set about drafting a note that Instant Justice was charging Hopper with these crimes.

…

Once the message was sent out to Ponyville Hospital, several guards came into Hopper's room and handcuffed him to the side of his bed.

"Hopper the Changeling," said a guard. "You are hereby officially charged with six counts of murder, fourteen counts of attempted murder and unlawful use of a deadly weapon. You have the right to an attorney and if you cannot afford one, one will be provided for you. Do you understand?"

Hopper merely glared at these ponies and in his mind, it didn't matter what they, what Thorax or any other ponies would say about him. If he really was going to be punished for his crimes either by death or imprisonment, then in his sick, warped and twisted mind, somepony would pick up where he and Thumper left off.

Of course, that was not going to be the case in the eyes of Equestria….