Equestrian Patriots

The news that the Changelings who had replaced Celestia and Luna in Canterlot were still on the loose had caused all of Canterlot to be on high alert. But, Hopper and Thumper were clever in their attempt to disguise themselves from the Canterlot royal guard. No sooner did they return to Canterlot the very next morning, did they disperse themselves from the patrol and retreated to an abandoned warehouse not far from Canterlot castle.

"So now what do we do?" asked Thumper as he and Hopper removed their disguises.

"The first thing we do is to find out where our targets are going to be and where," answered Hopper. "If we are to eliminate our targets for good, we must have them all gathered at the same time. Now, if I were a princess of Equestria, where would I go?"

For the next few moments, the two brothers thought of where the princesses were most likely to be. Then, Hopper got an idea.

"Wait a second, brother," he said. "Our queen would always hold meetings before we went out on conquests, did she not?"

"Yes, she would always hold meetings or briefings," remarked Thumper. "We should attack the princesses when they hold their next conference with their warriors. But, there is something else, what if they are all not together?"

"Don't be stupid, Thumper," chuckled Hopper holding a stick of dynamite in his claw. "They'll all be there, don't you see? Whenever Equestria has something major as seeing their most beloved leaders and equals be captured, they pull out all the stops. Besides, our fellow Changelings will keep the most loyal warriors focused on them, leaving us to finish them off once and for all."

Still holding the stick of dynamite in his claw, Hopper flew over and placed it on the table next to an alarm clock.

"Now, you see, Thumper," explained Hopper, holding the empty alarm clock up for him to see. "This clock will hold the power to eliminate our enemies once and for all. If we can't hold them, then we'll kill them and all the love meant for them will be for our Queen to feed on until her strength returns."

"Indeed, brother," remarked Thumper, again. "Your plan sounds fool proof and capable of setting in motion our plans. But, there is also the matter of what if our plan fails. I mean, do we need to consider the fact that one or all of the princesses could survive the inevitable blast of our weapon?"

"They won't survive, Thumper," reassured Hopper. "Not as long as we have a backup bomb to carry out equal devastation. By the time that the bombs are detonated, we will have been on our way to find our Queen, wherever she can be. Then, once we find her, we gather whatever left of our forces that we have and launch a far bigger, deadlier invasion of Equestria while the ponies of Equestria more their dear, departed leaders."

The two Changelings shared an evil laugh and then proceeded to get to work, putting together the weapons that they hoped would put an end to the lives of Equestria's four princesses. It took about an hour to put the bombs together and once they were done, two sticks of dynamite, a black round bomb and four firecrackers, one for each princess that was being targeted.

"Not bad work if I do say so myself," laughed Hopper as he and Thumper admired their work. "These two bombs have the power to carry out atrocities that will put all of our plans to shame!"

"Now what?" asked Thumper.

"We scout," answered Hopper as he reassumed the form of a Royal Guardspony. "Then, we make our move."

Following suit, Thumper assumed his Royal Guardspony form and followed his brother out of the warehouse.

…

Meanwhile, in a large meeting room in Canterlot castle, the Princesses along with their royal advisors sat at a round table. The disguised Hopper and Thumper entered the castle and took the shift of a pair of retiring guards.

"We thank you all for coming together on such short notice," said Celestia as she sat at the head of the round table with Luna, Cadence and Twilight on her right and left sides. "The news that the two Changelings who replaced me and Princess Luna are still on the loose is indeed very disturbing."

"All of our forces had been out all night," said a well dressed gray pony in black clothing. "However, we had managed to capture about 10 more Changelings east of Rainbow Falls. What do you wish for me to do with them?"

"Question them without the use of violence, Instant Justice," ordered Luna. "We cannot risk having a retribution if any of the Changelings in captivity are harmed. We cannot use violence no matter how hard we try."

"Very well," sighed Instant Justice. "But, I must warn you all that if any of these Changelings get south of the Everfree Forest or up into the Frozen north, they will never be found."

At that moment, another pony raised his hoof, asking for permission to speak.

"I don't think that they would want to escape," said the pony. "We all know that Changelings loyal to Chrysalis are devoted to each other and have no fear in any parts of their body, not even a fear of dying."

"Mr. McColt, we are completely aware of that," replied Twilight. "The goal for us all is to not allow for any Changelings to be harmed in any way unless they are dangerous. But, we must let our subjects know of what is going on."

Hearing this made both the disguised Hopper and Thumper turn to each other and wink an eye to one another. Both of them knew that an inevitable conference was the culmination of their ultimate plan.

"When do you think we should hold the conference?" asked Cadence. "I would like to hold one as soon as possible, for the sake of the safety of the Crystal Empire as well as our family."

"I agree with Princess Cadence," remarked Twilight. "The sooner we let our subjects know, the sooner we can assure their safety."

The entire table nodded in reply and agreement to this suggestion made by Twilight.

"Then, it is my belief," said Celestia. "That we hold the conference later this afternoon at the latest. These Changelings could come back at any time and we must be ready along with our subjects. Is everypony in agreement?"

"Aye," the entire table said.

"Very good," concluded Celestia. "Make an announcement throughout Equestria that we will be holding a conference about the progress with the hunt for any dangerous followers of Chrysalis. This meeting is adjourned."

…

With the banging of a rainbow striped gavel, the meeting came to an end and the group dispersed. However, the princesses were left alone while Hopper and Thumper watched with keen interest.

"I just hope that we can get the message out quickly," sighed Twilight, sitting back in the chair she was sitting in. "But there is something else that is on my mind."

"What is it, Twilight?" asked Celestia.

"Starlight was wondering if evil Changelings like Chrysalis can be reformed," she answered. "I don't know if that would be possible considering what we all saw after we were rescued. You all agree with me that not everypony can be reformed, can you?"

"As much as I hate to agree with you, Twilight," remarked Cadence. "I do. I still can't forget what Chrysalis did to me during my wedding to Shining Armor, throwing me in the Canterlot caves while she tried to carry out her ultimate conquest."

"We all agree on that," said Celestia as she walked out to the window overlooking the streets of Canterlot. "I believe in second chances, but only to those who I feel deserve a second chance. Twilight, I know that Starlight Glimmer wants to give Chrysalis a second chance, but it won't be possible."

From across the room, the disguised Hopper and Thumper scowled at the idea of Chrysalis being reformed. They were not going to allow that to happen to their queen in any sense of the word.

"That's what I said to her," answered Twilight, walking over to join her mentor at the window. "Just because she got a second chance, Discord got a second chance and even Trixie got a second chance doesn't mean that Chrysalis will either."

"You are also forgetting me, Twilight," remarked Luna, feeling slightly hurt. "I, too was given a second chance after I was freed from being Nightmare Moon."

"Sorry about that, Luna," corrected Twilight, realizing her error. "You too, were given a second chance at redemption and in a sense, it began my journey to becoming the Princess of Friendship."

Luna smiled and accepted Twilight's apology. Then, Celestia moved away from the window and headed towards the door.

"Come," she said to the other princesses. "We must prepare for the meeting with our subjects later on today."

Hopper and Thumper watched as the four princesses left the meeting hall and once they were gone, their replacements arrived and they quickly darted back to the warehouse.

"When do we set the timers?" asked Thumper.

"Once we find out which room the meeting will take place," said Hopper, who then proceeded to set the timer. "As for the time, why don't we give it about 6 hours for the bombs to tick down? That will give us plenty of time to find out the location and plant the bombs before they explode."

Chuckling evilly, the two Changelings disappeared from the warehouse and returned to the castle to seek out potential rooms for the meeting, once again disguised as royal guardsponies. Finally, they saw what appeared to be several guards setting up what appeared to be a stage in the room where Cadence and Shining Armor's wedding was eventually held both the fake and real weddings.

"The room where our Queen's greatest conquest almost succeeded," chuckled Hopper as he thought to himself. "How does it feel, princesses? Knowing that you will all die in the same room where our Queen nearly carried out her greatest conquest, only to be ruined by you all, especially you Princess Cadence! Well that all ends today with your lives paying the price of our defeat!"

Moving forward, Hopper and Thumper proceeded to help out in preparing the stage for the meeting and planted their clock bombs underneath the stage, their ticking sounds quieted as much as possible.

"Farewell, princesses," laughed Hopper. "May you rot in Tartarus after today!"

The clock was set and soon, Equestria would be plunged into chaos once again…