The Return

“It’s all over!” bellowed the Chrysalis.

“Your spell, perform your spell!” Twilight cried to Shining Armor.

“What good would that do?” Chrysalis cackled. “My changelings already roam free!"

“No! My power is useless now; I don’t have the strength to repel them!” Shining Armor sighed as his magic failed to produce even a spark.

“My love will give you strength.” Cadance comforted her love.

“What a lovely but absolutely ridiculous sentiment.” The vile queen sneered as she walked towards the window.

Yet, as Chrysalis turned around to drink in the final hopeless expressions on her prisoner’s faces, she was met with a different sight entirely. They began to float in the air, and to emit pulses of magical energy. Chrysalis could not escape the feeling of utter shock and helplessness, and could only watch as all of her well-constructed plans crumbled all around her. Eventually, the power of their love could no longer be contained within the two ponies, and erupted in a violent magical explosion.

In a final act of desperation, she screamed, “NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!”

As she tumbled through the air, struggling to regain control, she watched in horror as her precious changelings were thrown into every possible direction. She prayed that her minions would be able to find her once this whole ordeal settled down. She glanced toward the horizon racing towards her and couldn’t help but smile. “Yes, this should do quite nicely,” she thought to herself, as her diabolic mind was already hatching a new plan.
************************************************************************************************************************************************************

“Love is in bloom! A beautiful bride, a handsome groom!” Twilight sang into the microphone.

“Oh Luna, I had no idea Twilight had such a lovely voice!” Celestia remarked to her sister.

“Yes, I’d say she is even better than that Sapphire Coast that came to sing for us all those months ago.” Luna said gleefully.

“I think you mean Sapphire Shores, dear sister.” Celestia said softly with a smile on her face.

“Oh, yes of course, how silly of me!” Luna blushed.

Celestia’s smile faded off of her face, replaced with a look of solemn worry and concern.

“What is it Tia?”

“Oh,” Celestia exclaimed, returning her delicate smile, “My mind was just wandering, a certain… project that needs our attention. But I will tell you all about it tomorrow, little sister.
Tonight is a night for festivities and fun. I do not want you to worry during this time of celebration.”

“If you say so Tia…” Luna said skeptically, arching one of her eyebrows in a pout.
************************************************************************************************************************************************************

Luna entered the throne room to find her sister staring out the window into the morning sun; once again, lost in thought. As Luna approached, Celestia turned her head and smiled to her.

“So now that the reception is over, would you mind telling me about this little project of yours?”

“Yes, of course. I am sorry to have kept it from you; I just did not want to spoil your evening.” Celestia said in a gentle tone. “But first, what do you know about what happened on the day of the wedding? I know you were busy watching the night on the other side of the world.”

“Ah, yes the wedding. I hope you know that I feel just horrible knowing that you were left all alone, to fight those creatures. Sisters are supposed to help each other in times of need. Not to mention that I am a princess and it is our duty to protect Equestria!”

“Please Luna, do not feel bad, I did not take them seriously and I paid for it. But as you can see, I am unharmed, and nopony was seriously hurt. So please, do not blame yourself for this.” Celestia reassured. “However, if you still feel bad, I can think of something that you can help me with.”

Luna’s face lit up, “What do you need, Tia? I can help you with anything!”

“First, tell me what you know about the wedding.” Celestia just smiled at her.

“Well… A shape shifter disguised herself as Cadance, and took control of Shining Armor’s mind so her army could attack Canterlot. Twilight Sparkle found the real Cadance, and together, they freed Shining Armor, then they banished the changelings from Equestria. Is that about right?”

“Very close, however, there is one thing that you do not know. While Cadance and Shining Armor were able remove our enemies from Canterlot, they were not banished. They were scattered over Equestria by the force of the blast.” Noticing Luna’s expression turn to alarm, Celestia added, “But do not worry, being that far away from their queen seems to have weakened their abilities. Currently, they pose almost no threat to Equestria.”

“And how do you know that they are so powerless at this time?”

“Yesterday, while everypony was preparing for the wedding, I received reports from all over Equestria that strange bug-like ponies were being found. I went and saw a few for myself, and found that they lacked their previous tenacity and power.

“I also was able to find a tome in the restricted section of the library that briefly mentioned changelings. It seems that a queen and her brood share a magical link that allows them to communicate with each other, and to share in each other’s power.” Celestia paused to let this information sink in. “Do you understand what we must do?”

“So… if we find the queen, and capture her, then her army will become powerless?”

“Precisely, we must seal her and her army away in the depths of Tartarus so that she won’t be able to threaten another pony. She must be held accountable for her actions.” Stomping her hoof down for emphasis. “You and I will venture after this queen, and bring her to justice.”

“While I agree that she must be, as you said brought to justice, how can we follow her? You said yourself that the blast threw them all over Equestria. How can we possibly start to look for them?”

“The queen and her changelings used magic don’t they? For as powerful as the queen’s magic was, it should be a simple task to pick out her latent magical energies from the air, and follow her. Once we capture her, our guards should be able to round up the rest of her army, and we won’t have to worry about the changeling menace ever again.” Celestia said smugly.

“Will it really be so easy? You were defeated by the queen once before, do you really think that together we can beat her?”

“I know so, Luna. Together, nothing can stop us.” Celestia finished this sentiment with an embrace with her wings. “We should go as soon as possible, the longer we wait, the fainter the magical latency becomes.”

“Wait, who will watch over Equestria while we are gone? Would it not be reckless for both princesses to leave at the same time?” Luna inquired.

“Oh, I don’t think we have anything to worry about happening here. I’ve asked Twilight and her friends to stay here in Canterlot while we are away. I don’t think they can get into too much trouble. And Spike will be with them, so if anything comes up, they’ll be able to call us back to Canterlot. Besides, this task is too important to delay; we must go as soon as possible.”

“Well, since you are so confident in their abilities, I will trust them too. Let us go then sister!”

And with that, the two royal sisters set off to bring an end to the evil queen, Chrysalis.
************************************************************************************************************************************************************

The sisters began their search the next day, and they encountered problems almost immediately. Celestia found that due to Rainbow Dash’s Sonic Rainboom during the wedding, the air surrounding Canterlot had been filled with magic. As a result, they had to fly far away from Canterlot to be able to find a trail of magical energy that could lead them to Chrysalis.

The trail lead them to the east, within the heart of the dragon wastelands. The sisters flew through the barren wasteland with ease; luckily, the dragons had ended their migration and were now settled in their mountain dens. Despite the ease of their travel, the princesses could no longer rely on their magic to track the queen; the air was too saturated from eons of dragon magic.

Soon the sisters spotted them; a small group of changelings wandering the wasteland. Keeping their distance, they followed them for hours. Deeper and deeper into the wastes. It seemed that they knew where to go, as if they were following an invisible trail. The sisters followed the grunts for hours; until they reached their destination.

The hive. Or at least the beginnings of one.

The royal sisters landed and inspected their destination. The changelings were like bees, buzzing around the exterior of the black stump. The sun had set, and an eerie green glow radiating from the depths of the hive.

Celestia turned to her sister, “Well Luna, are you ready to bring an end to this threat? I am going to need all of your help to stop her.”

“Yes, let us go bring this villain to justice!” Luna proclaimed with a stomp of her hoof and a gallant grin on her muzzle.

The two sisters marched towards the hive with their heads held high. The changelings went to meet them, but kept their distance once they knew who they were dealing with. Baring their teeth, and flaring their magic was the limit of their intimidation. When they entered the main chamber, they also entered the horrendous stench from the depths of the hive. When Celestia could no longer see in the green haze, she lit her horn ablaze with magical light. The two sisters then saw just how badly the changelings had been defeated; dozens of haggard and exhausted changelings kept to the shadows just outside of Celestia’s light; hissing as the intruders encroached into their new home.

“So, you’ve actually found my lair. I didn’t think you’d actually be clever enough to find it.” A voice called out from the darkness, “However, it seems that you have arrived a bit ahead of schedule. I don’t even have it finished yet…” As the voice trailed off, Chrysalis emerged from the shadows, showing similar signs of exhaustion.

“Don’t get too cozy here, for your time in Equestria is at an end!” Cried Luna, as she pointed her hoof at the changeling queen and flared her wings out. “You, you…. Now that I think about it, I don’t think you ever told me her name, Celestia…” Luna said sheepishly, as she turned to face her sister.

Celestia put her hoof up to her chin and started thinking, “Hmmm… I don’t know it either… She never mentioned it during the whole invasion of Canterlot.”

As she began to flutter her insect-like wings, she began to speak, her anger beginning to spill into her words, “My…. My name?!” she stammered, “My name is Chrysalis, queen of the changelings! Now leave my sight Celestia, before I am forced to embarrass you once again!”

Celestia’s eyes narrowed into a smoldering glare, as she gazed upon the changeling, which by the looks of her, could barely keep herself in the air. “Chrysalis, the battle is already ours. You haven’t any energy left to fight us with. Give up now and we promise not to harm you.” Celestia pleaded. “You are too dangerous to be left alone in Equestria. You need to be in a place far from where you can harm anypony ever again. We do not do this out of malice or hatred; we are just protecting those that we love.”

“What about those that I love? Why else would I stay? My minions are all that I have left in this world! And I would rather die than give in to the likes of you!” Chrysalis shouted at Celestia, waves of emerald magic were now shimmering around the queen’s horn. “If you try to lay one hoof on my loves then I will have no choice but to destroy you where you stand!”

Luna glanced nervously at Celestia. All around them, the changelings were becoming more agitated, and more of them seemed to pour out of the hollows of the hive. “Celestia, I think now would be a good time to act.” Luna whispered to her elder sister.

Celestia nodded in agreement, the light from her horn began to shine brighter and brighter. Soon, it was as if there was a small sun in the room. The blinding light filled every crevice of the room. The changelings fled deeper into their hive, trying their hardest to stay out of Celestia’s burning light. Then, without warning, everything stopped.

Pitch black.

Even the green glow radiating from the heart of the hive had been extinguished. Only the harsh breaths of Chrysalis and the pain ridden moans of her army from the depths of the hive could be heard through the darkness.

“Cowards! Hiding in the dark, show yourself!” Chrysalis roared, her horn now radiating emerald light. She heard something move behind her, she turned and let a bolt of magic fly. The light from the bolt showed that it only hit the ground. Movement to her left, she leapt at it, but again found nothing.

As she tried to calm herself, and find the two alicorns, Chrysalis felt the ground shift under her hooves. She looked down into the darkness at where her hooves were and tried to fly away. However, something was holding on to her hooves. Invisible tendrils were now pulling her to the ground. She struggled to escape, but whatever was holding her, was now engulfing the rest of her legs, and crawled up her torso. Chrysalis tried to use what magic she had left, but soon she was completely engulfed in the darkness; with her mind racing, she lost consciousness and passed out.

As Chrysalis opened her eyes, she could actually see again. The light from Celestia’s horn shined like a beacon in the green haze. She looked at her bindings and found that she was engulfed in a black, ethereal mass of tendrils.

Celestia looked down at her and spoke, “Are you ready to surrender yet, Chrysalis? You must know you cannot defeat us.”

Chrysalis clenched her teeth as her rage started to boil over once again; her jagged horn shining brilliant emerald. But before she could release her magic, Celestia lowered her head, and touched her horn to the fallen queen’s horn. The emerald glow faded away, but so did Celestia’s. The chamber returned to the dull green emanating from the walls. Chrysalis’ eyes grew wide with horror, “What is she doing to me!?” she screamed in her mind.

“Making you a bit easier to transport.” Celestia’s voice chimed in.

With that, Chrysalis found her mind going slower, and her body becoming heavier. She felt the mass of tendrils loosening their grip on her, yet she was unable to move her body. She looked around frantically and saw the tendrils dripping off of her, and started to take a different form next to Celestia.

“I hate taking this form, Celestia. It makes me feel like her again...” Luna’s voice came out of the mass that was beginning to look like the night princess.

“I know, Luna; I am sorry.” Celestia said comfortingly, “It was just the only way I could think of to immobilize her long enough to paralyze her. But we need to hurry, I only have enough power to keep her like this for half an hour. We need to get her to Tartarus as fast as possible.”

Luna gave a nod to Celestia, and walked to the far side of Chrysalis and spread her wings. Celestia matched the gesture, and formed a circle with their wings, standing over the defeated queen. As they concentrated on their destination, glowing glyphs took form on the floor. Chrysalis’ eyes darted all over trying her hardest to find a way to stop them. “Where are my minions?” Her voice echoing within her own mind. “What are they all doing?”

The glyphs began to shine like gold in the sun, the sisters bowed their heads together, and when their horns met, a brilliant flash filled the chamber.
************************************************************************************************************************************************************

Chrysalis felt a stone floor beneath her. She stood up quite easily, no longer feeling the burdens of exhaustion or hunger. A single beam of light fell from the ceiling falling on only her. Arching one of her brows, “So you do not even have the guts to kill me, Celestia? You truly are weak! And you have restored my strength! That is a mistake you shall live to regret!” As she finished her taunt, the beam of light widened and filled her room. What Chrysalis saw was... herself. The walls of this chamber were mirrors. “At least they have provided me with an acceptable view” admiring her rejuvenated figure.

It was then that she saw something. It appeared to be a bronze ring with a black stone in the center. Someone had managed to place it on her horn. As Chrysalis tried to touch it with her hoof, it sent out a surge of electricity down her horn straight into her head.

She fell to the floor, convulsing in pain."Right... don’t.... touch... the ring..." she said in between sharp breaths. “Perhaps my magic... will remove this... infernal device!”

She closed her eyes, and concentrated on blowing the ring right off of her horn. But nothing happened. She was unable to gather any of her magic. Nothing, not even a spark. “Wha... what have they done to me?”

Chrysalis looked up at herself again. Looking into her own eyes. Wondering how everything could have gone so wrong. She could feel the ring begin to twitch on her horn. It didn’t matter, not anymore. She had been defeated and humiliated. Twice.

Her army destroyed and captured. All she could do was stare into her own eyes. She could feel the ring drawing in magic. Though, she did not know why it had suddenly activated. She could feel the magic of the ring flow through her mind. “What could the ring be doing?” she thought to herself. Soon Chrysalis felt the magic settle on one portion of her mind, and she could feel the magic start to surge, slowly but steadily. It only took a moment for her to realize what was happening. The ring was using a spell she knew all too well.

“NOOOOO!” She cried out, tears already forming in her eyes. “Please! Anything but this! I want out of this room! Please!” The fallen queen began pounding hysterically on the mirrors trying to stop what she knew would happen. Frantically, she tried to pull the ring off of her horn, but she was met with the same head splitting suffering as the first time.

Then it happened. In a burst of emerald flames, she transformed. An earth pony stallion, larger than average, an ivory white coat with a brown mane. Wearing the royal garb of ages long past. He stood surrounded by his reflections. He opened his eyes and looked into his own brown eyes, and wept. But he never looked away from his eyes.