She was still breathing.

Time crawled to a standstill as Rusk looked at Flitter. Her chest was slowly rising and falling with slow, consistent breaths.

Rusk pulled her into his arms, holding her close as tears brimmed at the corners of his eyes, ready to break forth and spill down his cheeks.

He saw a large crack running across her chest, from her right shoulder diagonally downwards to her left. He gently traced a hoof along it.

“Are you done playing with her?” He jumped, and angled his head up to face Chrysalis.

He stood, gently levitating Flitter against a wall behind him, glaring at the changeling queen, his lips curling downwards. “Why her?” he growled.

Chrysalis met his scowl with a calm smile. “I needed you to react; to have a reason to come with me. I can't simply have you dead. You're important to me, as much as I want to simply squash you for your betrayal of the hive. You're a Prodigy, the first one since I was born. I was the last Prodigy, Rusk.”

“I, what?” Rusk’s scowl faltered.

“Indeed, what I'm saying is that you're destined to lead the hive,” Chrysalis stated, “And that I need you to come with me instead of trying to resist like an idiot.”

“There's a reason I resist, Chrysalis. But you won't listen.” Rusk lit his horn, his hooves spreading out a little under him, his eyes narrowing. “I have one other option.”

Rusk flung the first bolt of magic, the beam flying towards Chrysalis, who barely got a shield up just in time to deflect it. She stumbled back, her smile fading into a growl.

“It is on.” She lit her own horn and cast her own bolt of green magic. Rusk darted to the side, holding up a shield and casting another of his own in return, the same effect happening.

Rusk teleported behind Chrysalis and hit her in the back of a head with a bolt while she was still looking around with a look of bewilderment. She screamed as she stumbled forward, a nasty crack blooming as a result of his attack. She whirled around.

“You fucking little…” She leaped at him, her right foreleg pinning Rusk to the wall at his throat. Rusk’s eyes dilated and he struggled for breath as he grabbed her foreleg, attempting to pull her off. “I don't have the time to deal with you, at least not yet.”

Her leg kept strong, however, and he gave up trying to stop that and instead focused on lighting his horn to cast a bolt.

That didn't work. He felt himself growing light, blackness creeping around his vision. He glanced past Chrysalis, at Flitter, looking at her unconscious body, sprawled out across the cobblestone path against the wall.

Something broke inside him, a realisation that…

That he had failed, way too easily.

Everything went black.

Rusk was sore. He blinked his eyes open, his eyes glowing that soft shade of blue.

He sat up, his back clicking multiple times as he got onto all fours, looking around. It was a blank cave, with walls that were made out of reflective crystal. It was pitch black, the only light source being his softly glowing eyes.

“Hello?!” His voice bounced off the crystalline walls, reverberating multiple times before fading into nothingness.

The weight of his situation suddenly crashed around him and he groaned. “Oh fuuuuck… Flitter…” He walked around the small cave, finding no easily visible exit. He tried firing a beam of magic to destroy the walls in hopes of finding another room, but that failed, the bolt reflecting off the crystal walls and flying about the room energetically before burning out.

He flopped onto his haunches and buried his face into his hooves, sighing.

It was truly hopeless, wasn't it?

He was about to reach that conclusion, until he heard a voice.

A voice he knew too well.

I can see clearly now the rain is gone…

I can see all obstacles in my way…

Gone are the dark clouds that had me blind…

It's gonna be a bright…

Bright…

Bright…

Sun-shiny day…

Rusk felt his lips curl up with the tune, feeling his heart flutter. It was really her.

“FLITTER!” he yelled, hearing his voice echo down whatever tunnel was there. The singing stopped a second after.

“Rusk?!” Flitter softly called, “Is that you?”

“Yes! Where are you?”

“I-I’m in a cave, I don't know… I'm scared, Rusk… please come help…”

Rusk took flight, realising he hadn't searched above him. He searched each corner and eventually finally found a gap in between two of the crystalline plates. He lit his horn and with a poof, he was on the other side, his horn still alight for a bit of extra light.

He galloped down the hall, following Flitter’s occasional calls which he returned, and after a small amount of running he found the source.

Flitter was calling out down the tunnel, a small cry that was amplified by the caves walls. She was sitting in the middle of the cave, her mouth open mid-cry. Her eyes locked onto his as he rounded the bend.

“R-Rusk?” she asked, standing up and peering cautiously.

“It's me, Flitter.” He ran up to her and tackled her, wrapping his forelegs around her tightly.

“Oh my gosh… Rusk…” Flitter sounded hard for words as she choked out those few words, and Rusk held her tight as Flitter cried in joy, squeezing him to her like it was her last contact with him she'd get.

“It's okay, Flitter, I'm here…” He gently nuzzled her, kissing her cheek. He felt the hot tears splash onto his chitin-fur, wetting his shoulder.

It took a while for Flitter to calm down. She broke the hug, looking into his eyes. “I… we need to get moving.”

Rusk nodded and stood along with her. “We need to get out of here and face Chrysalis again. I need to be more careful.” He set off down the tunnel.

“I'm going to help you,” said Flitter, starting to move alongside Rusk.

“You aren't.” Rusk looked at her, his mouth curled downwards. “I'm not risking you getting hurt or dying.”

“I won't,” she insisted, “I can help you.”

“Flitter, please… I'm the only changeling who has the actual power to combat her.”

“At least let me stay by your side.” She leaned on him. “Please.”

He sighed. “Alright… I trust you enough to stay out of the way.”

“Thank you… Rusk, I love you, okay?”

Rusk couldn't help but a blush to touch his face. “I love you too, Flitter.”

Flitter stopped suddenly and gasped, pointing down a tunnel. “Hey, look! I can see light that way!” She sprinted off, Rusk in close tow.

It was getting brighter, and eventually they emerged into the bright day, the sun still bearing down on the city.

The sounds of battle reached their ears. How long had it been? A few hours, or days? They worked their way up a dirt slope, which lead to a door. Rusk pushed it open and they found themselves inside the royal palace.

“Oh, well.” Rusk looked around. They were in some small cobblestone room with shelves, many of them filled with crystal related items.

“This way.” Flitter pushed through a door, Rusk following. They were now in a hallway, a long one. It had many doors, but there was a branching hallway that veered to the left.

Down that was more doors. Rusk groaned. “Where the hell are we?”

“I don't know, looking at this place it must be some sort of quarters. Let's just find a way out of here.” She took the left hallway, sprinting down it.

It seemed to go for ages! They took a few more turns before turning up somewhere similar - the throne room, taking a side entrance probably used for staff. It was empty, save for one pony.

Shit.

“Well, you two certainly escaped fast!” Chrysalis loomed above them, stepping close. “Did you enjoy your little reunion?”

Rusk growled. “Yes, we did. Why do you play with us? What's your purpose?”

“To get you to give up, essentially. I need to break you, to force you to do my will, Rusk. You aren't fit to be a leader, especially of my hive, but you have to do, because of how you were born.”

“I will never listen to you,” spat Rusk.

“Oh will you?” Chrysalis grinned and lit her horn. “How about we have a little wake-up call?” She shot a beam at Rusk, hitting him square in the chest. He flew back into the wall he was facing away from, slamming into it hard enough to crack. He flopped onto the floor and tried to get up.

It wasn't like his body responded to his movements, save for his mouth and eyes. He groaned. “Wh-what…”

Flitter was already upon him, hugging him. “Holy crap, Rusk… you okay?!”

Rusk felt himself stretch and stand up, but it was like he had no control over his movements. He noticed that Chrysalis had her horn lit and a devious smile written on her face.

He looked back at Flitter. “I… can't feel myself,” he said, “I am not in control of my own body.”

He felt his body shift into motion. His right forehoof lifted up and struck Flitter right in the cheekbone. Flitter yelped and fell over.

Rusk pounced on her and he could only watch as she began to be pummelled, hooves attacking her relentlessly. Flitter screamed his name, begged him to stop, but Rusk couldn't do anything, feeling each strike against her carapace harm her even further.

“RUSK, PLEASE STOP!” Flitter was crying, tears spilling over her cheeks and onto the floor. “I DON'T UNDERSTAND!”

Rusk felt his eyes brim with tears. “I-I… I can't control myself…” he mentally thrashed and attempted to break free but it was like he was completely locked behind a barrier, unable to control himself.

He lit his horn and he saw Flitter get lifted up and thrown into a wall, the marble cracking around her impact. She let out a pained whine as her shell around her back cracked, and she fell to the ground, looking up at Rusk as he approached.

His hoof raised, his horn alight, and it swung down, ready to give a blow that would have killed her.

But it stopped. The impact wasn’t hard at all, and there was a small flare of magic as Rusk stumbled back, sliding along the ground a little.

He stood, his horn flickering out. He was breathing heavily. His eyes glinting as he turned to face Chrysalis.

“What did you do?” he asked, “What did you just do to me?”

Chrysalis looked surprised. “W-what?” she stuttered, taking a step back, “T-that’s impossible!”

Rusk took a step forward, a shield forming in front of him. “You do realize that you nearly made me kill Flitter right?” He was visibly shaking, taking slow steps forward. “You know what she is to me, and you tried to take advantage of this. You tried to break me.”

Rusk cast a beam of magic into the air, the solid magic easily penetrating the roof and shooting off into the sky. He cut it a second later, taking another step forward. “Ponies will be here soon, and from then, I can’t do anything. But now, I want to show you what you just did to Flitter.”

He growled and launched forward, using the shield as a blunt force, bowling Chrysalis over. The shield dropped as he lit his horn and cast a electric bolt, the result being a loud bang accompanied with a large flash of light.

Chrysalis pushed, smoke rolling off her chitin as she scrambled back and stood, barely deflecting a bolt with a weak magical shield that shattered.

Rusk glared at her, his blood boiling as he growled loudly, a shield still up. He lit his horn and shot again at her.

He could feel his shots weakening. His magic was becoming depleted. He looked down at his side, realizing he forgot replenishment potions.

Chrysalis felt this weakening too, taking the chance to approach, charging a spell that wrapped around Rusk and squeezed his horn, his magic shield shattering. He cried out in pain.

The spell wasn’t telekenesis, he was sure of it. It felt internal, like something was happening. His horn lit up, a spell charging from within himself, outside of his will.

His entire reserves drained slowly, a layer of overglow appearing on his horn. It was becoming agonizingly painful. He didn’t know what spell was being charged.

It all exploded in one burst, a loud crack reverberating across the room. Rusk was forced back, sliding on the slippery marble floor.

The pain hit him and he screamed. It blacked out everything else, his entire body focusing on how painful it was. It originated in his forehead and crashed down in waves, washing over his entire body.

Flames randomly washed over his body, appearing as all pony races of varying colours, before it all stopped, reducing to a bad headache, changing back to a changeling.

He groaned, attempting to move. He could hear the sound of metallic hooves clanging across the floor, the sound of ponies talking around him. It was too quiet to hear, too muddled, too distorted.

He was pretty sure he could see shapes and forms, but before those images could be made out, he fainted, his vision going black.

Every part of him either hurt, was sore, or was stiff.

Rusk opened his eyes. He was in the infirmary. White walls, clean air.

He took a deep breath, opening his jaw in a quiet yawn, the yawn cut off by a groan of pain from himself as he shut his jaw. He tried moving, but found himself a tad too stiff to move anything other than his forelegs and head.

Looking left, he saw a glass of water. He realized he was surprisingly thirsty, for emotion. He could use water as a temporary solution, though. He reached out with his magic to pick up the glass.

Instead he felt a dull pain in his forehead and sparks flew out, dancing out above his head before he stopped trying to cast, the sparks stopping.

He reached up with his hoof, feeling around on his forehead before it came to rest on what felt like jagged rock, right where his horn should be.

No…

His breath was starting to become short. He couldn’t have lost his horn, could he?

He opened his mouth and let out a strangled cry, sounding more like a groan than anything. It hurt his throat to do so, but it managed to get the attention of somepony.

A nurse poked her head in, a frown on her face. “Is everything alright?”

Rusk could only get out, “Mirror.”

The nurse nodded and exited the room, to return with a mirror, which Rusk grabbed and angled at his own face.

On his forehead was no horn, the curved and smooth appendage simply reduced to a jagged shape jutting from his head. He tried casting a spell and watched as sparks flew out of the broken horn, dissipating before they touched anything.

Something inside him seemed to snap. His right eye twitched, and his hooves trembled as he dropped the mirror, the glass shattering on the floor.

He tried one more thing. Putting an image of a pony into his mind, his disguise, he gave an attempt at changing.

Flames washed over him, and he looked down at his hooves. They were still black. They still had holes. The reality of what it meant hit him, and he just sat there. He didn’t even notice the nurse cleaning up the mess and leaving.

He had no horn, his magic was useless. He couldn’t disguise as a pony.

He was useless.

He groaned in frustration, letting his head flop back onto the pillow. He didn’t know what was happening…

He was just going to sleep again.

“Rusk?”

Rusk had a sense of deja vu as he woke. It felt similar. He opened his eyes.

Flitter was just in the side of his vision, her eyes glowing softly. He groaned and turned his head to face her.

She wore a sad smile on her face. Her chitin was cracked, and she wore a set of bandages around her barrel. She was in a wheelchair.

“What happened?” asked Rusk, wincing as she gave him a small hug.

“Chrysalis is… apprehended,” she said, “Looks like Celestia may execute her, or simply exile her again.”

Rusk grimaced. “I don't like the idea of Chrysalis running free. She would come after me, after us again.”

“Yeah, me neither.” She chuckled. “She was swarmed by a whole platoon of guards, and Celestia and Luna herself. It looked like she was a young changeling caught feeding off of their nannies.”

Rusk couldn't help but smile. “That's funny.”

Flitter sighed. “Rusk, you… don't have your horn anymore.”

“I don't.” He sighed and put magic through it, letting it spark. “I… Chrysalis overloaded it or something… I still don't know what happened.”

He was feeling better than yesterday. He knew they were drawing emotion from each other, and he was fine with it.

“Look, right now we have other priorities, like making sure you're OK in general.” Flitter nuzzled him, pushing back on her wheelchair. “I need to go talk to some ponies now. I'll see you later.” She made her way to the exit.

“Flitter?”

“Hm?”

“I love you.”

Flitter blushed. “I love you too.”

Flitter pushed open the door and shut it behind her, leaving Rusk alone in his room.

Author's Note

Hey guys! I am sorry for this story dying. Genuinely am. Let's finish this, shall we?

No, this isn't the final chapter. It's close to the end, but the threat is finally defeated.

I won't argue against that... this isn't the best quality.

I guess my story writing is a bit on and off. I do have other stories written a bit better.

Thanks for everyone who has been a part of this journey so far. We are nearly at the end.

Feel free to moan about mistakes in the comments.

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