Images, voices, sounds, smells, all of it attacked Iclyn randomly and yet swiftly, flashing right in front of her and suddenly vanishing soon after, not giving her enough time to understand what was happening around her. At first, she saw something red. It was liquid in form and metallic in smell. Then there was something else, something pleasant and at the same time harsh, making her nostrils itch. Then there were voices: one familiar, others not so much, and all of them mixed together, almost indistinguishable from one another. All of it was followed by a constant thumping. Distant and yet close, loud but quiet, it was there at the edge of her mind.

She remembered seeing gray, then white, then a mix of purple, green, pink, blue, all of it passing like a blur in front of her eyes, a slideshow of colors that she couldn't understand or control. She remembered a strange feeling as if someone was blowing cool air at her, making breathing easier.

Then there was the pain. At first, it was acute, unbearable, as if something was tearing her from the inside. Then it lowered, suppressed by a warm feeling she couldn't quite understand. And yet, the pain was there, somewhere in her chest, pulsating and hot as if there was a fire burning inside her, eating away at her and not even leaving ashes, consuming all there was to devour like a hungry wolf.

Suddenly, a voice spoke to her, a very familiar one. It was soothing, warm, and yet full of sorrow and regret.

"I'm sorry, I didn't want it." it told her. "I couldn't stop it. Please, live. You deserve to live, to see more."

"W-who are you?" Iclyn found herself whispering, her eyes opening slightly. And yet, she couldn't see anything.

"It's best that you don't remember me." the voice replied, and then a sigh was heard.

"No, I need to know! I feel I need to... I know you." the pegasus whispered back. "But... who are you? I feel something... You're familiar."

"Please, just forget me. I've caused you enough pain."

Just as suddenly, the voice disappeared, leaving Iclyn alone. Her vision gradually came back. She was staring at something, blinking slowly as the blur disappeared. The numb pain was washing over her whole body in waves as she breathed.

Suddenly, a familiar face appeared above her, looking at her with worry.

"How is she?" the face asked.

"Princess, you need to stay in bed!" a slightly distant voice said.

"I'm perfectly capable of walking and talking, doctor. Her life is on the line, not mine." Luna replied with some anger in her voice, one of her ears flicking.

"O-of course, princess." the second voice replied defeatedly.

"I apologize." Luna sighed, her voice becoming calmer. "I know you are all doing your best to help all of us, especially me."

"No need to apologize, I know how the stress can influence everything, princess." the doctor said. "As far as Iclyn is concerned, she is healing. However, we found some strange activity in her brain, magical in nature. It is almost a complete match with Sirius' brain activity, even though the structures of the two are vastly different."

"It is a connection between them." Luna explained. "It's strange, though... My magic is no longer supporting it."

"From what I manage to understand, there is more to it." the doctor added. "This connection of theirs is strong. However, Sirius tries to sever it while Iclyn continues to hold onto it. It may bring very bad consequences to both. In fact, the colt is already experiencing them..." the doctor sighed deeply, pausing for a few seconds. "From what I managed to gather, he is in an extreme state of manic-depressive disorder, also known as bipolar disorder."

"I need to visit him. Now." the princess said and began to walk away from Iclyn.

The pegasus filly slowly blinked a few times and fell back into sleeping, exhaustion overtaking her.

Meanwhile, Princess Luna was hurrying to where Sirius was at, a doctor following her, trying to keep up with her. Her chest was bandaged, a part of her neck shaved and a band-aid was applied to it.

"Your Majesty, we had to lock him up in a padded room." the doctor explained. "He was expressing very aggressive behavior, rage. He has been shifting from that state to an extremely depressive state, during which he would cry, howl, and bash his head against the walls. He also tried to bite his forelegs but gave up after a while."

"Judging by your words, you weren't able to immobilize him?" Luna asked.

"I'm afraid not. He was mostly calm when we led him to the room but he immediately resisted us as soon as we tried to put the jacket on him or a nullifying ring on his horn." the doctor explained. "Also, during the recent few hours, the paralysis spell was applied to him more than should be allowed. His body could simply shut down if we tried to immobilize him that way."

"I think there is something else at play as well." Luna added, an analytical part of her mind turning on. "Queen Chrysalis is known for her mind-altering and mind-controlling spells. We've banned their usage a long time ago because the effects can be... terrifying." she looked away for a moment before returning to the doctor. "Such effects may include post-traumatic stress disorder seen in... rape victims."

A heavy silence fell on the two ponies for a few moments. Luna was staring at nothing, remembering things that would better be left a memory. Sometimes, she wished that she hadn't seen what she had.

"I... I'm n-not sure what to say." the doctor stuttered, scrambling for words to use. "I'm afraid I'm, um, not qualified to do anything about it. Princess, I don't think we've encountered any case of PTSD in centuries! I h-have studied a few things and, well, there are simply no violent or accidental crimes that would even warrant the appearance of PTSD anymore."

"My sister and I made sure it would never come to this again. However, something slipped..." Luna said darkly. "I will see to it that Chrysalis meets the highest penalty."

"E-execution?" the doctor asked as the two rounded the corner.

"Indeed. My sister understands it must happen even though it will ruin the statistics." the princess huffed. "Statistics... We can't allow Chrysalis to hurt more than she already had. Not all criminals can be reformed, she is a pure psychopath."

"But what will others say? Nobility, common citizens?"

"What they say is irrelevant. Facts remain facts — Chrysalis can't be allowed to live." Luna replied. "Besides, no one knows of the escape yet. No one would even think about Chrysalis' whereabouts. We have a few changelings cooperating to provide necessary cover if word gets out that she is in fact no longer in the dungeons. I trust you to keep the secret."

"Certainly, Your Majesty." the doctor nodded. "My profession requires confidentiality. Truth be told, I will sleep better knowing that monsters such as Chrysalis are gone."

Soon, the two reached the place where the former human was held. A small window was inside the door to the padded room but Luna didn't even look through it, deciding to wait and see Sirius in person once again. She didn't know how he would react to her but she couldn't stand aside, hoping for a chance that things become better — she had to act by herself.

"Let me in." she ordered, stepping closer towards the door.

"B-but in your current state—"

"That is an order, doctor." Luna demanded. "I can handle myself. I need to talk to Sirius, alone."

"...Very well." the doctor nodded and proceeded to open the door. Luna entered the room and the door was shut behind her.

In the center of the room, Sirius was sitting, silently tilting from one side to the other, blankly staring at the padded wall in front of him. Tear trails were visible under his bloodshot eyes, dark circles around them, and numerous bite marks were present on his forelegs with a bit of blood around them. He didn't acknowledge Luna's presence at all.

"Sirius?" the princess called him. He seemingly ignored her, continuing to mindlessly move in place. "Please, speak to me. I came to help you."

Silently, Sirius tilted from side to side, his eyes unmoving. However, his ears slightly turned towards the alicorn, which she immediately noticed.

"What happened to Iclyn?" she asked, and the former human immediately turned to her, terror in his eyes.

"I hurt her..." he whispered, his wide-open eyes staring directly into Luna's soul through hers. "I didn't want to! I didn't want to!" he raised his voice, his body shaking. "It's all my fault!" he cried out, collapsing on the floor, his body shaking violently as he sobbed in tears, covering his head with his hooves. "My fault, my fault, my fault, my fault!" he stopped, breathing heavily.

Suddenly, he leaped, tackling Luna and pressing her against the floor, a fire of anger in his eyes. The princess gasped, remembering the lake, the eyes, and the same look Sirius had back then. It was anger, hate, cold, and yet there was great fear and even greater pain hidden deep inside.

However, he did nothing but hold her down, breathing on her neck and staring into her eyes. The fire died out in his eyes, replaced with immense grief and sorrow. Hot tears of pain rolled down his cheeks and fell on Luna's chest.

"P-please..." he whispered shakily. "Kill me... I c-can't take it anymore! Iclyn... she doesn't deserve someone like me. I am a m-monster! Kill me, s-save this world from me, save Iclyn from me, I don't deserve to live!" his voice shifted to screaming once again. "Kill me!" he paused, breathing heavily, heart beating extremely fast in his chest. "Butcher my body, make me suffer! I deserve it for what I did!" he collapsed to the side, allowing Luna to stand up. He rolled on his back, exposing his softer, weaker parts. "K-kill me, please!"

"Sirius..." Luna sighed, getting up. "You can be fixed."

"No!" he half-growled half-cried. "No, no, no, no! I must die! Like any monster, I must die! Die, die, die!"

He continued to mutter the word, his eyes rolling to the back of his head as he crawled away into the corner and curling up into a ball, trying to find some warmth but ending up shaking from cold.

"Sirius?" Luna called but he didn't answer, repeating his desire to die over and over as if it could come true just by his will alone. "I will make sure Chrysalis pays for her crimes. You didn't deserve this."

A few hours later, a court was held in the throne room of the Canterlot Castle. The two regal sisters were on their thrones, looking down at the changeling queen before them. Chrysalis was bound in chains, preventing her from escaping. However, there were no guards inside the throne room, leaving it mostly empty.

"Queen Chrysalis, you are charged with attempted murder and torture." Princess Celestia spoke coldly, her eyes filled with ice. "How do you plead?"

"Absolutely guilty, princess." Chrysalis hissed. "He deserved it for what he did to me!"

"He did what he did to protect those he loved and the state." the alicorn of day replied. "You brought nothing but suffering and misery to ponies, especially to him. On behalf of Equestrian best interests, I hereby sentence you to death." she looked dead in the eye of Chrysalis.

"N-no!" the changeling queen yelled in anger. "You wouldn't dare! Ponies would never forgive you!"

"But they will forgive me." Luna spoke, a small ornate box floating around her. "I am the dark. I help and I punish. And I will gladly deliver this punishment." the box opened, revealing the one and only revolver, the same that destroyed Chrysalis' horn. Luna firmly grasped the handle and moved the gun out of the box.

"No..." the queen whispered, her eyes staring at the weapon in horror as memories of her horn loss flashed before her. She found herself unable to move, frozen in place.

"I will carry out the execution." Luna proclaimed, cocking the hammer of the revolver and aiming the gun at Chrysalis. "You have brought too much pain." she paused and sighed. "Pain that those you affected will carry throughout their lives until their very end."

The princess pulled the trigger and the gun fired, the bullet quickly passing through the air and through the skull of the changeling queen, instantly killing her. The sharp sound of the shot echoed throughout the throne room, reverberating off the walls and slowly dying out, leaving just a slight ringing in the ears of both princesses.

The lifeless body of Chrysalis fell to the ground, a blood pool forming under it. Her eyes were wide but life was gone from them, and a bloody hole was present in the middle of her forehead, just below her horn. Her body was twitching slightly as last signs of life left her, and soon it lay still on the marble floor.

Princess Luna stared at the body, smoke escaping the muzzle of the revolver she had just used. She knew it had to be done and yet a strange feeling of wrongness was inside her. However, she knew it would soon disappear. The death of Queen Chrysalis wouldn't bring happiness to anyone but it would prevent the present happiness from being taken away by a power-hungry psychopath that the changeling queen truly was.

"It is done." Luna said mostly to herself, a sigh escaping her as she put the revolver back into the box and closed the lid. "Done... I will take care of the body. Equestria can sleep peacefully now. I've seen a few nightmares that had her in them. Now... she poses danger no more."

"It had to be done." Celestia nodded in agreement as she watched Luna teleported the body and the blood away. "But what of the changelings? What if they try to avenge her?"

"Most of them were fearful of their queen." Luna replied, looking at the spot where Chrysalis was standing just a few minutes ago. "Without her controlling them, they will find a new, better leader."

"But what of Sirius? He had killed some of their kind before." Celestia asked.

"It will definitely be hard to resolve but we will find the way." the lunar alicorn stood up from her throne. "Excuse me, I must visit Sirius and Iclyn. They need my help."

Author's Note

I know that not all people would like my portrayal of Chrysalis, but I decided that she, like in the show, would represent the evil that can't be fixed or reformed. After all, psychopaths can't be cured, unfortunately.

Hopefully, changelings will be better off without their queen. Also, don't expect me to introduce the new changeling design. Those are weird bug bananas, and I'd rather figure out something better in case we see changelings again.