Author's Note

Sorry about the one day-delay, this one had to be a bit longer. Hope you like it!

Chapter Nineteen: The Last Stand

“This is it”

Rarity pointed towards the dim light at the end of the tunnel, though it wasn’t sunlight that greeted them. The doors were left open, luckily, allowing the red glow of torchlight to creep its way inside. The ponies looked on in awe at the full view of the splendorous lair inside.

“Looks like she’s been busy…” Fluttershy muttered, careful not to be too loud. Conveniently, it wasn’t that difficult for her.

“Rarity, where are we?” Applejack whispered.

“Why, at the doors, of course. Just like I told you,” Rarity replied.

“I mean, where in the lair? Are we close to where Twilight and Starlight are?”

“Twilight, no...Starlight...I’m not sure. We never did find out exactly where Chrysalis keeps her.”

“Fantastic,” Hickory said.

“Is there a place we can go from here that can get us a better view? All I can see from here is a rock wall and some doors. We need to see the whole layout before we do anything,” Applejack said.

“Good thinking,” said Rainbow, clutching her wounded chest. It was her iron resolve that brought them into this, so she felt as though she had to stick with them to the end, despite her inhibition.

“There are some tunnels up there...All over the ceiling. But, I believe you have to be able to fly to get up there.”

“Not a problem,” Rainbow said, spreading her wings. She tried to hide the pain in doing so, though the others could tell.

“Rainbow, you’re in no shape to do much,” Rarity pointed out.

“I know...I’m still doing it.”

“Just don’t do anything stupid,” Applejack warned.

Applejack glanced at Fluttershy, communicating that she had to look out for Rainbow.

“Don’t worry, I’ll be with her too,” Fluttershy said.

“Just get up there and get a good look around...Rarity, you lead me and Hickory towards where Twilight is…We’ll all meet back here in twenty minutes, regardless of whether we find anything,” Applejack said.

Rainbow nodded as Fluttershy led her out of the doorway into the lair. Checking to make sure it was clear, Fluttershy peeked her head out, and then jumped back in surprise.

“There are ponies! Up on the ceiling!”

“I told you about them...We’ll be able to get them once we get Twilight...She’s probably already come up with a plan by now,” Rarity said.

“You better hope so,” Applejack said, “Okay...Fluttershy, Rainbow, get up there.”

“Aye-aye, captain,” Rainbow replied sarcastically

Rainbow stepped past Fluttershy, first to enter the lair, Fluttershy stumbling nervously behind. In an instant, they took flight, speeding up to the ceiling to locate an entrance to one of the tunnels Rarity spoke of. Meanwhile, Applejack turned to Hickory and Rarity.

“Alright, make sure to stay quiet, and stay together. Rarity, lead the way to Twilight.”

Rarity turned to exit the doorway, but then then stopped dead in her tracks, slowly backing up.

“Rarity? What is it?”

“Hide!”

Rarity shoved past Applejack to hide in the darkness of the tunnel, Hickory crouching down near her. Applejack followed, suspicious.

“Rarity-”

Rarity shushed her with a hoof to the mouth, just as the ominous, slender black form of Chrysalis stepped past the doorway. Hickory’s eyes widened, as they all stayed perfectly still. Chrysalis was walking past the doorway, until she stopped. She smelled something….unusual coming from the doorway. She gazed inside but saw nothing but blackness, and heard not a sound. She shrugged it off as an animal, a rodent perhaps, and then moved to close the doors, just in case. Fear swept over the trio of ponies as the light from the lair grew smaller, the doors nearly fully closed. Until, a distant noise from somewhere else in the lair made Chrysalis stop, buzzing away in a hurry to investigate. The doors were still open, just barely.

“Let’s go, now! Before she comes back and locks it!” Applejack whispered as loud as she could.

The ponies scooted through the crevice in the door, and, after checking to make sure Chrysalis wasn’t near, they scurried into a room on the other end of the hall, catching their breath.

“That was close,” Hickory said.

“What brought her away?” Applejack asked.

“I don’t see how it matters.. I suppose we’re just lucky…”

“Sure...Where are we now?” Applejack asked.

“I’m not quite sure...Twilight should be in...that direction…” she said, pointing in the direction of another door. The room they were in was mostly empty, save for a few boxes of equipment and stolen furniture that didn’t match.

“You sure about that?” Applejack questioned.

“Hardly, but the only way I know for sure requires us to walk out in the open, and I’d much rather take our chances any other way.”

“Alright, as long as we don’t get lost…” Applejack relented.

The ponies opened the door and proceeded, entering a network of interconnecting rooms, though where they would end up remained unknown.

“Nice throw,” said Fluttershy.

“Looks like it worked, she’s checking it out,” said Rainbow, pointing at the spot where she threw the rock, hoping to distract Chrysalis. It worked, and Rainbow began to doubt whether Chrysalis was so smart after all.

“Are you sure we’re safe here? We’re so far up…” said Fluttershy, peeking down over the ledge of the tunnel timidly. The pegasi had successfully flown up to one of the ceiling tunnels, looking down on the Main Hall, where they saw Applejack and the others make it inside.

“We’re fine...It’s those ponies I’m worried about…” she said, nudging towards the collection of cocooned ponies.

“We should wait, right? Take it slow…” Fluttershy said, noticing Rainbow’s eagerness.

“Yeah. Sure. Right. You stay here, I’ll go down this tunnel and see what I can find.”

She stood up to leave, before running into Fluttershy’s outstretched arm.

“Why don’t you stay here. I’ll go.” Fluttershy said, standing up and trotting off, leaving a pouting Rainbow behind.

“I never get to do the fun stuff.”

Twilight gave one last struggle in her magical bindings before getting tired, taking a deep breath in frustration. Chrysalis had left the room for something, leaving her bound and surrounded by a variety of sinister faces. The most off-putting one, the dark grey, grinning pony, approached her, with a look of curiosity on his face.

“Princess Twilight...It’s a pleasure to finally speak with you...I must say...maybe it’s your condition, but you look far less lively then I expected.”

Twilight glared at him, unsure of his role in Chrysalis’ plot. Whatever it was, it was worth a chance to try persuading him.

“Chrysalis is just using you, you know.”

Black Frost, who had turned away for a moment, turned back, smiling once again.

“Quite the contrary, Princess. I am the one using her...Once she’s wiped your pupil’s mind, I’ll be able to control her fully, without the need for Chrysalis...And she’ll be left with nothing...She had her chance at dominating the world, and now, she’ll supply the means for my turn.”

“And what after? What will you do with Starlight?” Twilight asked, fear in her voice.

Black Frost chuckled.

“I’m not sure... maybe use her to kill Chrysalis, maybe just eradicate her...You should be more concerned about yourself. At this point my dear, you may share a similar fate.”

Twilight’s eyes darted across the floor, thinking of a plan.

“You want power? Status? Is that all you care about?”

“At the moment...Yes. I’ve lived my whole life helping others rise to power, it’s only fair I get some...compensation.”

“Understandable. But your vision is narrow minded,” Twilight said dryly.

“What do you mean by that?” Frost asked, his smile slowly dying.

“Starlight is powerful, sure...But she’ll never reach the capabilities you expect her to. I’ve spoken with her. She’s mentally unstable and physically weak...Not to mention deprived of her magic. She’s probably rusty.”

“She didn’t seem very rusty when she killed your friend.”

“Maybe not, but she did hesitate. You noticed it too.”

The other villains in the room were now all listening in on this conversation, intrigued. Twilight went on, seeing she had gotten their attention.

“Chrysalis is a liability. She cares first and foremost about keeping Starlight as her prisoner. You think she’s just going to voluntarily give her up? She’s going to betray you.”

“Not if I betray her first.”

Twilight stared at him, unimpressed. This was the Twilight he was afraid of: competent and intense. He went on, trying to defend his position.

“I have all the leverage here. I have the armies that she needs.”

“You’ll need those armies and Starlight and Chrysalis to take over Equestria...And that still might not be enough. I know what I’m talking about.”

“I trust you do, which is why I find it strange you’re talking to me like this.”

“I’m trying to help you. You haven’t proven to me that you deserve what Chrysalis does. Maybe you’re power hungry, but that’s far worse than being a sadist.”

“I’ll have you know I share in Chrysalis’ amusement in seeing ponies like your pupil suffer.”

“I’m sure you’re very proud of that. Back to what I was saying-if you want to take over Equestria...Starlight and Chrysalis aren’t what you need. That is,” Twilight said, nodding her head towards the table where Chrysalis’ amulet was resting.

“What of it?”

“Chrysalis isn’t as strong as you think. She was only able to defeat me because of that thing, it gives her power...But here’s the thing: Starlight is just as strong as you saw she was. Chrysalis, not so much. If you’re going to betray Chrysalis, then you should destroy it. Only then will she be weak enough for you to defeat her.”

“Curious indeed, Twilight Sparkle...She mentioned this device to me, though I didn’t know to what extent its power compelled our dear Chrysalis...But you never answered my question...why are you telling me this? Are you trying to make a deal?”

Twilight inhaled, trying to appear as confident and serious as possible.
“I would rather see you take over Equestria using Starlight than Chrysalis...But you must promise me, to not kill her when you’re finished…”

Black Frost gazed at her.

“Why would I bend to your will now, Princess? Why couldn’t I just destroy the amulet, kill Chrysalis, and kill Starlight anyway?”

“I thought you may have the decency to do me the one favor…”

Frost considered this.

“Perhaps...The situation may change...And, remember...I don’t intend on wiping just Starlight’s mind...Since you’re here...I don’t see why your fate should be any different.”

“Do with me what you will, but you must promise to not kill Starlight…”

Frost stared at the deep longing expressed in Twilight’s eyes.

“You are a strange pony, Twilight, but I’ll agree to your wish. Your warning may have just saved my life after all.”

Twilight smiled. Of course, this was all a scheme. Twilight knew if the amulet was destroyed then she would likely be free to use her magic as she pleased, though Frost seemed unaware of that. She congratulated herself in her head. If this works, they’re free.

Starlight wiped away the last of her tears as quickly as she could upon hearing the door behind her open, light flowing into the dark narrow room, showing new, unpleasant details of Fritz’s mangled corpse. Starlight shuddered and turned away from the body, horrified at herself.

“Outstanding, Starlight. I see that test in particular was...challenging. But, you did it. Do you feel proud of yourself?”

“I….no, no I don’t feel pr-”

“I didn’t really care, Starlight. Now, go to my throne room and stay there, I need to have a few more words with our guests before we proceed.”

“Yes, my queen.”

Chrysalis watched as Starlight scrambled to her feet and scampered off, her head hung low. Once the two were enough distance apart, Starlight burst into tears again, her knees becoming weak, dropping to the floor.

“I’m sorry…” she whispered to herself, though it only made her feel worse. She wasn’t just horrible...now she was a murderer. For all intensive purposes, she was just as bad as Chrysalis! She took a deep breath as she tried to regain her focus. It was difficult before, but now it was almost impossible.

‘I had to...I had to...The plan..’

She remembered the plan, and quickly sprang to her feet.

‘I had to…’ she kept telling herself. She started walking, but not towards the throne room as instructed, rather, to the kitchen. She made sure the coast was clear before entering, opening a drawer with her hoof and pulling out one of the large knives she used to cut vegetables for meals.

“This will do.”

Still holding the knife, she limped back to the throne room, each step on her wounded legs sending heavy pulses of pain through her body. She was sweating, both out of nervousness and of physical exertion. Pushing the large doors open, she stumbled inside and approached one of the stone tables off to the side. Crouching down, she grunted as her wounded leg bent, and then reached to place the knife underneath, hidden discreetly amongst some rocks and dirt.

‘For later…’

She turned around to search for her next item, and found it sooner than expected. She returned to the table with a large rock, not too heavy that she couldn’t drag it with two hooves. She peered towards the camouflaged prison glass, wondering if anypony was staring back at her.

They were, in fact. Shining Armor was confused by what she was doing, while Pinkie was able to connect the dots.

“I think she’s going to try and break us out!” she said excitedly.

“Oh great. I’m sure this time it’ll go perfectly.”

“It can’t get worse than this!” Pinkie said. She was already so bored with the bland rocky prison, and missed the colorfulness of outside.

“Look, it’s Twilight!” Shining Armor exclaimed, pointing at the doors as they opened once more.

Starlight jumped back from the table and stood at attention, trying her best to act inconspicuous. Twilight entered the throne room first, held in the air by Chrysalis’ magical fist.

“I’m afraid your presence is no longer needed, Princess. Do excuse yourself.”

Twilight gave no response before being teleported back behind the glass prison. Starlight looked up at Chrysalis, who stomped towards her, followed by the entourage of villains.

“Here she is, Frost.”

Frost walked around Chrysalis, right towards Starlight. He was shorter than her, but still somehow intimidated her. There was something menacing about the way he conducted himself, though she couldn’t pinpoint what. Frost grabbed her by the chin, raising her lowered head to make eye contact.

“You are an...impressive specimen, my dear. A worthy investment indeed.”

He examined her deformed eye, crusted with blood and half-closed. He seemed almost amazed.

“You’re a devilish fiend, Chrysalis, and I love it,” he said, chuckling. Chrysalis smirked with pride. Starlight tried to contain her disgust.

“You were quite entertaining back there, Starlight Glimmer...I hope you’re as proud of yourself as we all are,” he said, before turning around to speak to Chrysalis.

“Chrysalis, and, why not all of you as well, why don’t we meet in another room...there are some things we must discuss.”

Chrysalis raised an eyebrow, annoyed with this constant moving around. The villains began shuffling out of the throne room behind Frost, but Chrysalis wasn’t going anywhere. She was glaring at Starlight, who she had caught glancing over at the camouflaged prison several times. Does she know?

“Starlight.”

Starlight squeaked in fright as she refocused on Chrysalis, who seemed less than in a good mood.

“I want you to go to the dungeon and stay in there until I retrieve you, okay? The door will lock when you close it, and that’s how I intend to find you.”

Starlight was breathing deeply, nervous. Her plan was about to fall apart. No, no it wouldn’t, as long as she played along.

“Of course, my queen. Right away,” she said, before limping away. Chrysalis gazed from her pet to the prison. She felt as though something was...off.

Inside the prison, Twilight waited until Chrysalis had also left before turning to Shining Armor and Pinkie.

“I saw it! The device I was talking about! It exists!” she exclaimed.

“Are you sure? That seems a little-” Shining Armor questioned.

“Would you just believe me? It’s...like an amulet, or a necklace...She’s using it to give her extra strength!”

“I believe you, Twilight. What do we do?” Pinkie asked.

“One of those ponies that’s helping her...I talked to him...he may destroy it for us. If not, then we’ll have to try and talk to Starlight.”

“Oh! You should know, Starlight, she came in here alone, and she hid a knife and a rock under that table, right there!” Pinkie said excitedly.

“You think she’s trying to help us?” Twilight asked.

“That, or murder Chrysalis,” Shining Armor said.

“Okay, two good possibilities,” Twilight replied.

“I guess all we can do is...wait…” Pinkie said, sitting back down, bored once again.

“Be patient….Things are looking up for once,” Twilight said. She was starting to feel hopeful again, especially if Starlight was truly trying to help them. She neglected to tell her friends what Starlight had done to Fritz. In her mind, that would only make things worse.

Rainbow crouched down as the echoes of voices in the cave grew louder. She saw her, Chrysalis, followed by a group of strange-looking ponies, turning a corridor and disappearing once more.

“Who are they?” Rainbow whispered to herself.

“No idea.”

Rainbow jumped in fright, hitting her head on the ceiling of the tunnel. She turned around to see Fluttershy, giggling at her.

“Fluttershy! You scared me!”

“Sorry...I was just joking...Have you seen anything?”

“Not really...Except for that just now. What about you?”

“I checked every tunnel, and one of them leads to something..”

“What’s something?”

“There’s a door at the end of one of these, I don’t know where it goes, but it has to go somewhere.”

“Better than nothing...So, should we start now?”

“Start what?”

“Start rescuing those ponies,” Rainbow said, gesturing towards the collage of cocoons.

“I don’t think that’s a good idea. We should wait until we have Twilight, or Starlight…”

“There isn’t time for that, Fluttershy. We might as well start now.”

“Applejack just wanted us to take a look around, and then meet back with them in twenty minutes. We’ve got half of that left. Just hold on, okay?”

“Fine. But if we get captured, I’ll be telling you I told you so.”

Frost re-entered the room they began in, as the other villains all shuffled in, Chrysalis coming in last. Chrysalis noticed Frost seemed a bit more...on edge.

“Chrysalis...On behalf of our little...coalition, I applaud your immense achievement. You should be very proud…”

Chrysalis smiled. She loved to be complimented.

“In fact, you’ve gotten me quite excited about our plans. To see through with the overthrow of Celestia and the conquest of Equestria...I think it’s time we begin the next step…”

“Get to the point, Frost.”

“It would be wisest if we use our most powerful asset as a sort of distraction, to stir up enough chaos far away from the capital-enough to get the attention of Celestia and Luna. Then the rest of us can move in without as much resistance”

“I agree.”

“Good...My issue is that I’m not sure who our most powerful asset is...You, or Starlight.”

Chrysalis stared at him, almost dumbstruck. He was trying to trap her into giving into her pride. But why? What was he playing at?

“You’re trying to inspire competition in our ranks? Frost, we haven’t even begun the war and you’ve already proven a foolish leader.”

“I asked a question, Chrysalis. You have more experience with Starlight’s capabilities. Tell me then, who is our strongest asset?”

“I don’t see why it matters. Why don’t I come up with the plan, since you’re clearly incapable.”

Frost bit his lip with frustration. This was going nowhere.

“I’ll be the one to cause the distraction. My existence alone is enough to get Celestia’s attention. She’s not very fond of me, you know.”

Frost smiled, as that was precisely the result he was looking for anyway.

“Excellent, then the rest of us will overtake the capital, using Starlight.”

“That would be the better choice...the ponies would hesitate having to fight their friend.”

“Indeed, I believe we should get on then and wipe the unicorn’s mind. While she’s still corruptible.”

Chrysalis stared at him. Clearly, he had ulterior motives. Towards what, she had no clue.

Chrysalis glanced around the room at the other villains, who also seemed rather suspicious. Frost pressed on.

“Chrysalis, we agreed on this to begin with, remember? Don’t tell me you’ve grown fond of her...Her power is the only reason she’s valuable to us. Her conscious hesitations limit her potential. If we are to defeat Celestia, we’ll need her to be undeterred. You saw how she struggled to kill that pegasus! She can’t do that against an entire army!”

Frost was getting frustrated now. Chrysalis knew one thing, that Frost was attempting to trick her into doing something that would probably bite her in the flank later on.

“No.”

“Chrysalis…” Frost said, chuckling, “Ponies don’t say no to me.”

“Well I am. First and foremost, Starlight Glimmer is my property, not yours. I decide what will be done with her. She was brought here to suffer, and to accomplish that goal, I require her to remain as she is. Trust me, she will comply.”

“She will comply with your commands, but ours?”

“Why would you need her without me?” Chrysalis asked, her eyes narrowing. Frost turned pale, realizing she was catching on.

“Nevermind it then, Chrysalis. You’re clearly unable to be convinced...I only hope this decision doesn’t ruin us in the end.”

“If anything ruins us, it won’t be on my part,” she said, her eyes burning a hole in Frost’s forehead. He was just as annoyed, as now Chrysalis once again had all the power. Arevoure, the buff red dragon, noticed the tension, and decided now would be a good time to change the subject.

“We should begin preparing our assault on the capital…” the dragon said.

“Yes, we should,” Frost uttered, his eyes still locked with Chrysalis’. Both of them knew this alliance would be short lived.

Starlight stumbled towards the dungeon door as she was ordered, but stopped while her hoof was grasping the handle. She felt like now was the time.

‘So soon?’

‘I’ll only get one shot…Shouldn’t I wait?’

She shook her head, trying to push her doubts and fears to the side. She had to do this.

It was now or never.

Turning around, she jogged back the way she came to the Throne Room, frantically checking each room she passed to make sure Chrysalis hadn’t seen her. Panting ferociously, she pushed the heavy doors open, sauntering towards the table where she hid the rock and the knife. Brushing some strands of her mane away from her eye, she reached down and picked up both, before gazing at the camouflaged prison. If it was what she thought it was, then Twilight was on the other side. She was about to find out.

Inside the prison, the ponies stared at Starlight as she dragged the rock towards them.

“I think she’s gonna-” Shining Armor began.

“Get out of the way!” Twilight yelled, jumping to the side as Starlight lifted the rock with her frail arms, and then heaving it back into the glass, creating some substantial cracks. Starlight backed away, examining the cracks. She knew it! It was glass! Invigorated, she shut her eyes and gritted her teeth as she lifted the rock again, and smashed into the glass once more, then again, and again, until at last, the rock broke straight through it. The sound of shattering glass filled the throne room. It was loud. Really loud. Starlight turned her head back to see if Chrysalis was right behind her, or about to storm in through the doors, but alas, she was nowhere to be seen. Turning back towards the hole in the glass, her eyes widened as Twilight Sparkle stumbled out, stepping right in front of her.

“Starlight!” Twilight said, beaming.

Twilight went in for a hug, only for Starlight to jump back. Despite Twilight’s animosity, Starlight showed only fear and concern. Shining Armor and Pinkie followed Twilight, stepping past the glass into the throne room. Starlight tried to regain focus after the shock of seeing Twilight again, as well as there being two other ponies she would have to save. Twilight’s smile faded as she saw how terrified and anxious Starlight was. Shining Armor and Pinkie were wordless. Starlight gulped, checked the door again, and approached them.

“There isn’t much time...You came from the north, right?”

Twilight stared at her, aloof. Not even a ‘Hello?’

“Twilight!”

“Y-yes. We came that way.”

“Okay. I’ll-I’ll take you back there, then you need to take that tunnel all the way b-back out of here. A-and take this, just in case.”

She handed Twilight the knife. Twilight accepted it, cautiously. Knives weren’t exactly her expertise.

“Come on, she’ll b-be after us soon.”

Starlight turned and limped towards the door. Shining Armor held it open for her, as all four of the ponies exited the throne room. Shining Armor shot a look of concern towards Twilight, weary of Starlight’s somber demeanor. Twilight ignored it. She was with them. She was safe. That’s all that matters.

Darting around corners in the labyrinth-like hallways, Starlight led the ponies to what appeared to be a dead end.

“Um…” Shining Armor began.

“Y-you see that opening right up there? You’ll have to climb up this wall, go through it, then g-go right...that should be the way you came. This is as far as I can t-take you...”

“What are you talking about? You’re coming with us.”

“No, I’m not. I’m sorry, Twilight…”

“Starlight! Ponies have died to save you! Now’s our chance! Come with us, please!”

“I’m not doing this because we’re friends, Twilight. You never should’ve come here. Now go!”

Starlight was getting emotional, and Twilight could see that, but knew there was no point in arguing. Starlight gave one last look of hope for Twilight, before turning and jogging back through the dark hallways.

Twilight turned to her companions, who had already begun to climb the steep hill that led upwards to the opening.

“Wait! Stop…”

Shining Armor turned his head, while struggling to maintain balance on the steep incline.

“Without our magic, we won’t be able to break through the door! It’s bolted shut, there’s no way we’ll get it open…”

Shining Armor’s eyes dropped to the floor, struggling to find a solution.

“If that amulet really does exist, then we have to destroy it,” he said.

“I’ll go find it and destroy it, you two head up there and wait for me,” Twilight said, already turning around to get started.

“Twilight, I don’t think splitting up is a good move right now!” Pinkie yelled.

“Do we have a choice?”

With that, Twilight too disappeared into the darkness, uncertain of where she was going.

Rarity peeked her head out from the door, nervously. They had been wandering around the lair for some time now, almost aimlessly. But now, she thought they had made it.

“This way! That’s it! I remember…”

Rarity pulled Applejack and Hickory into the open hallway, and walked straight down towards the end, to the imposing wooden throne room doors.

“They’re in here…”

Hickory took a deep breath, unsure what to expect.

Rarity pushed on the doors, needing Applejack ‘s help to open them completely. Applejack and Hickory’s eyes widened at the splendor of the throne room, while Rarity walked straight towards the glass prison.

“Why, would you look at that.”

The other two trotted up behind her, all of them looking at the broken hole in the glass where the ponies had escaped.

“They’re….they’re gone...Now what?” Hickory asked.

“We need to get out of here...Hide somewhere else and see if they’ve really escaped or not,” Applejack said.

“As long as we’re not hanging around out in the open, count me in,” Hickory said.

The ponies exited the throne room and re-entered the room they came from, curious as to what Twilight’s plan was.

Chrysalis’ ears perked up at the sound of glass breaking. She eyed the other villains to see if they noticed as well, but it seemed like it was just her. Was she just paranoid? Was it worth it to ignore the risks? She decided it couldn’t hurt to check.

“Would you all excuse me for a moment?” she said, ominously. Frost glared at her.

“Of course, Chrysalis, this is your home after all.”

Chrysalis nodded with a fake smile and left, buzzing at full speed towards the throne room. There, she found a large hole in the glass prison, crudely made with a rock. Chrysalis stared in shock, which transformed into untameable rage. She exited the throne room, a fire brewing in her heart.

‘How did they escape?’

‘Where could they have gone?’

‘The cocoons. Check the cocoons.’

Chrysalis regained control over her thoughts and buzzed down the hallway to the Main Hall. Her eyes raised to view her glorious assortment of imprisoned ponies, and, to her relief, none seemed to be missing. Then she heard hoofsteps-fast hoofsteps. Turning to the exit door Rarity had escaped through, Chrysalis’s jaw dropped as she saw Starlight making a break for it, running as fast as she could towards the door, though her limp didn’t help.

Fuming, Chrysalis slammed the door shut with her magic and stomped towards Starlight, who was frozen in disbelief, staring at the closed doors.

‘I was...so close…’

While Chrysalis approached her, Starlight quickly came up with a Plan B-delay Chrysalis as long as possible.

“Starlight Glimmer. What have you done?”

Starlight turned to face Chrysalis, acting as innocent and vulnerable as possible to lower Chrysalis’ hostility.

“My queen, Twilight, and the other ponies, they broke out and tried to escape! I was trying to catch them, my queen, to please you! I think they went down there!” Starlight said, desperately.

“Really? Is what you’re telling me true?”

“Yes, my queen, I would never lie to y-” Starlight was cut off by a sudden, immense pressure around her neck, squeezing her throat and cutting off air to her lungs. She gasped and hacked as the pressure got tighter. Chrysalis had a ring of green magic around her neck, and was raising her into the air slowly, effectively hanging her.

“My….queen….p-please…” she sputtered, though Chrysalis was feeling anything but merciful.

“You’re a great actress, Starlight. Need I remind you I never told you there were two other ponies with Twilight?”

Starlight cursed herself in her head for being so daft.

‘I was so nervous,’ she thought, trying to excuse herself. She looked into Chrysalis eyes, consumed with hatred.

Just keep her distracted so they can escape…

She knew her plan was already working, though she wasn’t sure how much she would have to lose to make sure of it.

Up above in the ceiling tunnels, Rainbow and Fluttershy were gazing down at the scene.

“That’s not good…” Rainbow said as Starlight’s face turned a brighter and brighter red.

“Look at what she’s done to her…”

“I think now would be a good time to intervene?”

“No, Rainbow, we need to talk with Applejack first. You’ve got to be patient.”

“Well tell her that,” Rainbow spat, motioning towards Starlight below.

“Wait, Rainbow look! That’s Twilight!” Fluttershy said, nodding to the other side of the Main Hall.

Below, Twilight had escaped the maze of hallways and found herself back in the Main Hall, which she was beginning to get familiar with. She was looking for the room where she watched Starlight murder Fritz-the last place she saw the amulet. She had stopped and hid upon seeing Chrysalis breeze past her, and was struggling to hold herself back from helping Starlight as Chrysalis choked her.

‘First things first,’ she told herself, locating the correct room and slipping inside, while Chrysalis was distracted reprimanding Starlight.

“I had really thought I had fixed you, Starlight. Made you into something useful. Now I see you’re incapable of change...you’re pathetic. In every facet! You can’t even make me happy. To think, I was really protecting you. You know what those ponies were going to do to you! They were going to erase your mind, and make you a thoughtless machine. And I stopped them!”

Chrysalis dropped Starlight to the ground, where she gasped relentlessly for air.

“Maybe there is no point. I’ve failed to fix you, after all. I thought, here’s a pony that everyone hates, maybe I can try to make her into something purposeful. But you just can’t...When you have the chance to be good, you’re bad, and when you have the chance to be bad, you’re good? You’re ridiculous!”

“No...my queen, please...I wasn’t going to leave you...I wasn’t…”

“What was it then? You were running away why?”

“The ponies did escape….I saw the broken glass...and I thought, I could help them escape...I deserve to live here, in captivity, in your service, my queen...but I don’t think they do…” Starlight was half-crying, knowing she was digging her hole even deeper.

“I don’t care what you think, Starlight. You are an object to me. A plaything. It’s not your place to make any sort of decision on anything.”

“I’m loyal to you, my queen...I killed another pony to prove it! Don’t you believe me!”

“I did...Now I don’t know anymore...Perhaps Frost was right...Your consciousness is a liability...Maybe I should have your mind wiped.”

“My queen….I beg you, please don’t...If I’m not me, how will I suffer? Isn’t that what you want?”

“There are ways to have it fit both preferences. For you to be fully under my control….and live in pain. I’m not sure what has happened here today, but I know that you will be punished for it...And since your mind will soon be mine completely, why don’t we make it extra-fun...A last hurrah, let’s call it.”

Starlight stared at Chrysalis, who was smirking psychotically. If this was what it takes to buy Twilight some time to escape, then so be it.

‘She better be gone by now.’

Twilight was panicking. She had been searching in this room for the amulet for five minutes, but found nothing. She knew it was still here! Unless Chrysalis came back for it...Without destroying the amulet, they wouldn’t be able to escape...Not in one piece at least. She reverted back to her old plan: find Starlight, get her to help. Starlight would know about the amulet, right? She’ll know. Nodding to herself to calm herself down, Twilight turned around to exit, then froze.

“I see she’s not as smart as you presumed she was, Starlight.”

Chrysalis was blocking the doorway, holding Starlight in a bubble of green magic to the side. Twilight’s eyes widened, and she remembered the knife. In an instant of decisiveness, she drew back and threw the knife right towards Chrysalis, and expected a quick victory. Instead, she heard Starlight scream in pain, after Chrysalis threw Starlight in front of the blade like a pony-shield. Twilight’s mouth hung agape in shock, as she stepped backwards. Starlight groaned and peered down at the knife stuck between her upper thigh and her groin, blood pouring down to the ground like a waterfall. Chrysalis chuckled and threw Starlight to the side, discarding her like a foal would with a toy. Starlight hit the ground hard, unmoving. It took a few moments of deep inhales and tears to convince herself to pull the knife out, strands of muscle and flakes of bones spilling out onto the floor. She held her wound and let her head fall back to the ground, waning on consciousness.

Chrysalis approached Twilight, slowly.

“Given the chance to escape, you come back here...Why? Not to save your friend….You could’ve done that already. No, you came here. Looking for something, perhaps? For this?”

Chrysalis pulled out the amulet and waved it in front of Twilight.

“You’re not as clever as you think you are.”

Chrysalis held Twilight in the air and brought her out into the Main Hall, forcing her to stare down at Starlight as she bled out.

Rainbow was getting anxious, as the situation down below got worse and worse.

“Great, now she’s got both of them...Come on, Fluttershy, now?”

“No...Just...Wait, where’s Pinkie and Shining Armor? Rarity said they’d be with Twilight.”

Right on cue, they heard a distant yelp from much farther down the tunnel. Rainbow turned to Fluttershy, her eyes pleading.

“Go on...See if it’s them.”

Rainbow smiled and flew off, while Fluttershy continued watching, her stress levels increasing by the second.

Black Frost and the entire gang of villains made their way down the hallway to see what exactly all the commotion was about. Upon seeing Starlight Glimmer, the key to his victory, bleeding and moaning on the ground, Frost was immediately enraged.

“Chrysalis! What have you done?”

Chrysalis continued holding Twilight in the air, as she turned to face Frost, who looked utterly betrayed.

“You should be happy, Frost. I’ve decided you were indeed correct about wiping the wench unicorn’s mind.”

Frost was taken aback.

“Well...I’m very glad to see we’re on the same page then...Why don’t we do it now, before you accidentally kill her.”

Chrysalis sent a deranged smile his way, as she trotted towards Starlight, who was struggling to stay awake as she lost so much blood.

“Oh Frost, you would be so kind as to let me have a final send off for her…”

Frost stared at her.

“Whatever suits you, Chrysalis…” he said hesitantly. Though he was all for violence, he had a feeling she was about to overdo it.

Shining Armor’s hoof almost slipped, as the slope they were climbing became more and more vertical, making it more and more difficult to hold on. Above him, Pinkie seemed to be having less trouble.

“Hurry up, slowpoke!”

Shining Armor grumbled and continued climbing. Pinkie snorted with laughter as she looked forward to their escape, until she too misplaced a hoof. Yelping as she lost her balance completely, she felt herself falling midair all the way to the ground, until she something grabbed a hold of her tail. Holding her upside down, Rainbow Dash smiled at a dizzy Pinkie Pie. Getting her vision straight and peering upwards, she could barely contain her surprise.

“Rainbow Dash! Am I glad to see you!” Pinkie was practically bouncing as Rainbow set her on the level ground of the tunnel opening up above, and then went back down for Shining Armor. Once they were all together, Rainbow caught her breath and let Pinkie give her a momentous bear hug.

“I’m SO happy to see you!”

“I’m happy to see you too, Pinkie...Fluttershy is down this way, come on! Just stay quiet…”

Rarity, Applejack, and Hickory at last made it back to where they started, but this time approached the door more cautiously, picking up voices coming from the Main Hall. Hickory’s eyes narrowed as he approached the door and peeked through the crack, getting a full view of Chrysalis and the ponies.

“What do you see?” asked Applejack.

“That’s her alright...Chrysalis...There’s a pony on the ground...She’s got teal streaks. Is that the one? Starlight?”

Hickory got out of the way to let Applejack take a look.

“That’s her. And Twilight! She’s got both of ‘em...”

“Should we still meet back with Rainbow and Fluttershy?” Rarity asked.

“I don’t see how we could with Chrysalis right there…Hickory, check to find any other entrance to the hall there...Let’s spread out and try and get the jump on her...Rainbow will follow our lead once we start.”

“Start what again? Rarity’s the only one with any magic…”

“That’s why Rarity will be the one using her magic on Chrysalis...while we get Twilight and Starlight out of there.”

“I don’t think I like being the one to get Chrysalis,” pouted Rarity.

“You’ll be fine…” she said, as Hickory disappeared into another room, “We’ll all be fine…”

Twilight, helplessly hovering in the air in a green bubble of magic, glanced down as Chrysalis picked up the knife Starlight had just removed from her thigh. Starlight’s eyes weakly rose to look at Chrysalis, but showed no signs of regret, nor did she give any attempt at defiance. She just seemed...absolutely defeated.

“You’ve been a good pet, Starlight. Given you’ll never have any original thoughts of your own for the rest of your life, I figure it’s only fitting I give you some things to feel….strongly about.”

Unexpectedly, Chrysalis took the knife and slashed right across Starlight’s face. Starlight barely made a sound, though she was flinching unforgivingly. The blade cut right across her nose and under her good eye, which scared her. She had already lost one eye, two would be even worse. Twilight had more of a reaction than Starlight, thrashing with all her might against the bindings of the magical bindings, desperate to help her friend.

Above, Fluttershy embraced Pinkie and Shining Armor after Rainbow brought them.

“Twilight...didn’t have as much luck I take it,” Shining Armor said.
Nopony answered him as they continued staring down, forlorn.

Starlight extended a hoof across the stone floor, grunting. She wiped away some blood and laid there. The knowledge that her mind was about to be wiped gave her a strange feeling. Like every thought she had from now on had to be remarkable for some reason. Like it was her last words.

While she fell into a sea of retrospect, the blade returned, sticking itself right through her left shoulder. This time, she did scream, as the blade kept cutting down, and down, until it almost cut through her heart. Chrysalis pulled back, letting blood seep out endlessly. Starlight gasped for breath. If she was to die here, at least she died trying to save somepony.

Trying.

Starlight found that word significant. After this entire dreadful experience, Starlight understood that she wasn’t inherently good, but also wasn’t inherently bad. She supposed nopony was either, though Twilight and Chrysalis were good examples of what she meant. All her life, Starlight hadn’t decided to be good or evil to please herself, she did it to please others. Even now, as Chrysalis cleaned the knife of her crimson red blood, Starlight had just been trying to be a good pet. And failed. Trying, and failing. Maybe she hadn’t accomplished much good, but she had tried to. Doesn’t that count for something?

Chrysalis raised Starlight into the air, smiling.

“I don’t think you’ll be needing that tongue either...Isn’t that what you wanted, Starlight? Isn’t this what you wanted?”

Starlight was barely listening, she was so consumed by existential dread. What was going to become of her?

Rainbow took a nervous breath as she watched Chrysalis raise the knife in the air, about to cut off Starlight’s tongue.

“Fluttershy?”

“Now might be the time.”

“I thought so.” Rainbow shoved herself to the front of the group, waiting for the right moment.

Hickory had found an exit that led to the spot where the ponies were, and prepared himself for a fight. Meanwhile, by the other door, Applejack glanced over at Rarity, giving her a look of reassurance. Rarity was nervous as ever , as anypony having to fight Chrysalis would be.

Twilight felt the hope drain out of her once more, as Chrysalis grabbed a hold of Starlight’s tongue with her magic and pulled it taught, straight towards her. Raising the knife even higher, Chrysalis caught a glimpse of Starlight’s eyes, lifeless and cold. Chrysalis almost felt sympathy, and considered holding off.

She wasn’t given much choice when she felt the hoof of a cyan-colored pegasus slam straight into her skull from above, knocking Chrysalis to the floor, dropping Starlight and the knife.

Twilight’s eyes darted up to see Rainbow Dash standing in front of her, her eyes shooting daggers in Chrysalis’ directions. Across the room, Black Frost felt his heart sink.

“Chrysalis!”

Chrysalis got up slowly, cracking her jaw back into place.

“You ponies just don’t stop, do you?”

Rainbow smirked.

“No, in fact we haven’t started yet.”

Applejack and Rarity jumped out from the door, Rarity blasting Chrysalis straight in the chest, throwing Chrysalis into a wall, the entire cave shaking at the impact.

“Rarity!” Twilight exclaimed. Her confidence surged at the sight of the amulet, lying on the ground a few meters away. Chrysalis had dropped it, and now was Twilight’s chance. Picking herself up from the floor, Twilight ran past Rainbow to grab it, until she saw it slip away. Black Frost was standing before her, holding it in the air.

“You know, I had a feeling.”

He kicked her square in the face, knocking her backwards into Rainbow’s arm. Frost smirked as he stepped backwards, the crowd of villains walking past him, approaching the ponies. Applejack and Rarity joined them, along with Fluttershy struggling to carry Shining Armor and Pinkie all the way to the ground. Eventually, they were all together. Starlight was off to the side, half-unconscious from blood loss. The ponies stayed together, as the mob of villains slowly surrounded them.

“You all picked a fine time to show up,” Twilight said.

“That’s one way to say thank you,” Rainbow replied, smiling.

“We need to get that amulet, it’s blocking our magic.”

“I’ll get it with you,” Shining Armor said.

“The rest of you, deal with these guys,” Twilight said.

One of the villains bolted towards them, the others all following suit, tackling Rainbow to the ground, causing damage to her wounded chest. She groaned in pain, but continued fighting.

Shining Armor, filled with rage, slammed his head straight into two villains, clearing a path for Twilight to go for Black Frost. She stopped a few meters in front of him, noticing his fear.

“It’s not too late to do the right thing…”

“I think I’ve had enough of your advice.”

Rarity continued zapping villains left and right, until she felt the hot impact of Chrysalis’ green magic burn right through her, tossing her into the hard rock walls of the lair, unconscious. Chrysalis was seething with rage, searching for Twilight through the crowd of ponies fighting. Twilight, about to go for the amulet, noticed Chrysalis was awake and about to blast her, jumping out of the way just in time. Now, she was stuck in the crowd of ponies, beating each other into submission. She saw Fluttershy kicking and punching in every direction, terrified. Sticking her head out, she saw Shining Armor a few meters ahead.

“Shining Armor! The amulet!” she yelled, motioning towards Frost, who was still holding it in his hooves.

Shining Armor got the message and dashed towards Frost, who held his ground. Shining Armor felt the feeling of triumph before he even had it, though his expectations weren’t met. Another blast from Chrysalis nailed him straight in the chest, throwing him into a wall, banging his head on a rock, and knocking him out.

Chrysalis smirked as she approached Frost.

“Well done, Frost. You may have just won us the day. Now, give it to me.”

Frost stared at her.

“I will. But you must wipe Starlight’s mind first.”

“Why ever would I-”

“Nevermind why! Do it now or I’ll destroy your precious amulet!”

Chrysalis stuttered in fear. If the amulet was destroyed, her powers would weaken and Twilight would be free. Coerced, she bitterly nodded and approached Starlight on the ground, to the sounds of ponies tackling and attacking each other.

“Goodbye, Starlight. What we had was pleasant while it lasted...for me at least.”

Chrysalis closed her eyes and began casting her spell to permanently erase Starlight’s mind, while Frost eagerly watched from behind.
Twilight managed to climb her way out of the crowd to see Frost still holding the amulet. Chrysalis had begun the spell, as Starlight’s eyes rolled back, drool spilling out her mouth. Her limbs began to shake involuntarily, all the while Frost smiled with glee.

That was, until Hickory’s knee found its mark underneath Frost’s chin, forcing him to drop the amulet. Hickory brought his arms down on top of Frost’s head, knocking him to the floor. The amulet landed a few feet between Chrysalis, Frost, and Twilight, who seized the opportunity. Hickory, who was only interested in the fight, left the scene to go help Applejack, who was struggling to fend off Aluminon and Gargarov simultaneously. Twilight dashed for the amulet, but Chrysalis noticed it too, ignoring Starlight and extending her arm out. The two collided into each other, the amulet slipping out of their hooves into the air, landing in the midst of the fighting.

“You ignorant pest!” Chrysalis hollered, grabbing Twilight by the neck with her magic and lifting her into the air, choking her just as she did to Starlight.

Until, Chrysalis felt her magic flicker on and off. Chrysalis dropped Twilight in confusion, while Twilight felt her strange headache slowly disappear.

Chrysalis turned, confused, and then turned a ghostly white, horrified to see that Pinkie Pie had accidentally stepped on the amulet, crushing it to pieces.

“No!”

Twilight stood up, slowly, angry. She felt her magic return to her, though it wasn’t as strong as normal-she guessed the spell was still wearing off. Still, better than nothing at all.

Chrysalis could feel herself grow weaker, though some of her extra strength was still around-again due to the spell still wearing off.

Without any exchange of words, Twilight shot her purple beam of magic straight at Chrysalis, who defended herself with her own magic, green and purple sparks spraying across the room.

Starlight, still awake, grabbed her head, dizzy. She had felt her mind begin to deteriorate, though now she didn’t feel any different. She coughed a few times and again gripped her bloody wounds. Both Twilight and Chrysalis, who were engaged in a fierce standoff, noticed this. Both ponies were putting everything they had into this, intending on killing the other. Yet, neither could hold off forever.

“Starlight!” Chrysalis exclaimed, struggling to keep fighting, “This is your chance to prove yourself to me...Help me defeat her, and you can make amends for your mistakes!”

“No, Starlight! Don’t listen to her! She’s using you!” Twilight yelled, also struggling to keep up her attack.

“She is the one using you, Starlight!”

Starlight lifted her head, slowly. She felt her magic return, sparks twinkling off of her horn. She felt the power return to her.

And it felt good.

She rose to her feet, staring at the two ponies-her mistresses, her superiors, her queens. Fighting over her. Now that Starlight could finally see things plainly, she realized she’s had enough of this

Twilight noticed Starlight’s conflict, and feared how much longer she would be able to do this, as her feet began to slip during the duel.

“Starlight!”

Twilight’s commanding tone ignited the fire Starlight had been brewing. A flash of anger fell across her, as she shot two beams of magic, one hitting Twilight, and one hitting Chrysalis, sending them both tumbling across the ground.

“I’m not a toy for you to play with. You’re not telling me what to do anymore!” she yelled, this time without tears. Just anger.

Behind her, some of the villains noticed Starlight’s activity, and made the quick decision to try and intervene.

Gargarov went first, grabbing Starlight by the neck, trying to subdue her. Starlight screamed and blasted upwards, burning a large hole up through the bottom of Gargarov’s jaw. Blood, teeth, and brain matter splattered across her face. Two more ponies approached, who Starlight dispatched quickly with one beam of magic, slicing through both of them, cutting them each in half.

Just like dogs.

Aluminon, after getting his face pounded in by Hickory, regrouped with Cellestrous, who was having even less luck.

“It looks as though all is lost.”

“Should we run?”

“Unless you’d like to stay…”

The two scurried off down a corridor to escape the lair, while the other ponies continued fighting.
There weren’t many left, giving Applejack enough time to find Rainbow, Pinkie, and Fluttershy.

“We’ve got to start taking those ponies in those cocoons down!”

“Fluttershy and I are on it.”

The pegasi took flight, while Applejack turned around to resume fighting. She was less than ecstatic to find a dragon’s fist slamming into her face, knocking her into the ground. Arevoure, the dragon, grimaced at her as he took one more step, trying to stomp her face into a bloody pulp. Until, Hickory jumped at the dragon’s legs, tripping him up. The dragon fell to the floor and roared, breathing a large cloud of fire towards the stallion, who somersaulted away to dodge it. Lifting his sweat-covered head, Hickory ran towards the dragon, and, drawing his lucky knife, stabbed him right in the gut, drawing it sideways, the dragons’ guts spilling out onto the floor. The dragon groaned and fell back down, dead. Hickory took in his success and helped Applejack up. All the other villains were by now dead or unconscious. Applejack turned to Pinkie, who was nearby.

“Pinkie, go bring Shining Armor and Rarity over there, we’ll help Rainbow and Fluttershy with the other ponies,” said Applejack, tiredly.

“Hold it, shouldn’t we help your princess friend?” Hickory asked.

“She’ll be fine. Come on…”

Starlight turned back to face Twilight and Chrysalis, who were slowly picking themselves up. Caught in a three-way standoff, Starlight made the first move, picking up Twilight and Chrysalis with her magic, choking both of them. She was extra hard on Chrysalis, as a sort of payback for earlier.

“I hate you!!”

She squeezed as tight as she could, nearly breaking both ponies’ necks. Until, she felt a hoof pound into the back of her head. She fell, dropping Twilight and Chrysalis. It was Black Frost who had saved them, though he wasn’t looking too good. Chrysalis zapped a confused Twilight across the room, smashing her head into a wall and rendering her unconscious. Chrysalis then turned her attention to Frost. He was shaking with fright as she approached him, no remorse in his eyes.

“Now Chrysalis, don’t be so hasty with your judgements, we both know I-”

Before he could finish his sentence, Chrysalis blasted a hole through his head, his sinister smile still there as his body fell to the ground in a smoking heap.

Starlight stood up, reeling from the pain in her head. Chrysalis circled around her, not at all pleased.

“Starlight, you have failed me.”

“Yes, my queen, it looks as though I have,” Starlight said spitefully, “Go on then. Prove your superiority.”

Chrysalis was uneasy about Starlight’s confidence, but persisted. Their magical energy fused as they fired at each other, blue and green meshing into a colorful spectacle. Chrysalis was putting everything she had into it, though she knew, as time went on, the spell would only grow fainter, meaning she would get weaker and Starlight would get stronger. This was a fight she couldn’t win, but she couldn’t admit defeat.

Not again.

Starlight gritted her teeth as she stared down Chrysalis, her hooves planted squarely on the floor, putting everything she had into her spell. Chrysalis was starting to give, Starlight could feel it.

Chrysalis felt her strength break, and, as fast as possible, tried to divert the impact of Starlight’s blast away from her. She barely succeeded, an explosion burning her right side and sending her crashing into another part of the cave. Starlight took a deep breath and shuddered, exhausted. She considered finishing Chrysalis off, but restrained herself upon hearing the quiet groans of Twilight Sparkle. Trotting towards her, she felt pity and regret for being so harsh towards her. She picked Twilight up and carried her towards the center of the Main Hall.

Starlight was shocked to find that those eerie cocoons were all removed, and a new crowd of familiar faces was standing before her.

“Starlight!”

Trixie ran ahead of the crowd to embrace her friend, almost completely ignoring how mangled and unrecognizable she was. Starlight stood still, unsure what to do. It felt odd, to feel that kind of warmth she had been deprived of for so long. Starlight dropped Twilight near the unconscious Rarity and Shining Armor, and gazed at the ponies, all weary from a long battle. Starlight thought about how she was about to kill Twilight a second ago, and regretted it. Maybe she didn’t fit in with these ponies, but they weren’t bad at all, and none of them deserved to die. That moment of calm was interrupted by the slow, maniacal laugh of Chrysalis, still alive, sauntering towards them from her crash site.

Starlight turned around, stepping in front of the other ponies, who all took a step back out of fear. Starlight showed no hesitation, only fury. Chrysalis, on the other hand, had already lost her sanity.

“Is that it then, Starlight? You really think you can go back? To them? Is that really what you want?”

Starlight’s scowl slowly fell as she considered what Chrysalis was saying. She remembered her plan: ‘No matter the costs, these ponies had to be saved.’
Starlight’s eyes met back with Chrysalis, as the other ponies stared on.

“Nothing to say for yourself, as usual.”

“It doesn’t matter what I want.”

The other ponies perked up at her voice, which was more somber and focused than they were used to.

“These ponies are getting out of here. You, me, maybe not. But they are.”

“Are you prepared to prove that?”

“That’s entirely up to you.”

Chrysalis frowned. She knew she couldn’t beat Starlight, she had barely survived just now. She stumbled backwards as Starlight took another step closer, unafraid.

“If you’re so powerful, why are you so afraid?”

Twilight’s eyes started to open, slowly, and was pleasantly surprised to see she was surrounded by her friends.

Chrysalis watched as Twilight woke up, and got an idea. A selfish, delightful idea. Aiming her horn towards the walls of the cave, she fired a beam of magic, cutting across the cave, creating huge, splintering cracks that stretched across the entire lair.
Starlight realized Chrysalis was trying to bring the whole cave down on them, and, seeing no other option, aimed her horn towards the ceiling. After a deep inhale, she fired a beam of magic straight up, blasting a hole through the ceiling, wide enough for ten ponies to fit through. She slowly carved up through the rock, vaporizing it as she went. Chrysalis saw this, and, after cracking a grin, blasted Starlight straight in the chest, burning her flesh off and causing some internal bleeding. She held on though, and continued firing her magic upwards, as the ponies behind her crowded together in fear, while the cave around them began to crumble. Chrysalis was disgusted with Starlight’s resilience, blasting her again and again, each time bringing her a few seconds closer to death. Still, Starlight pressed on, until at last, she saw sunlight, about 300 meters up. All the ponies turned away, the sunlight burning their eyes after being in the darkness for so long. Chrysalis shot one last blast at Starlight, straight through the stomach. Starlight mumbled something unintelligible, grabbed at her wounds and then collapsed to the floor, in one smoking, bloody mess. Twilight sauntered towards her, confirming that she was still alive, before eyeing down Chrysalis.

“Perhaps I was wrong about you, Twilight…” she said the debris from the collapsing cave became denser. “Perhaps you do have strength.”

Chrysalis sent one last devilish grin Twilight’s way before escaping down the tunnel where Rainbow’s group came from, escaping the falling rubble.

Twilight turned her attention back to her friends, who were all compressed tightly, trying to avoid being crushed by falling rocks.

“Everypony! You have to stay close together...I’m going to teleport you all out of here…”

“Twilight, I thought you could only teleport ponies one at a time!” Pinkie said, worried.

“Today I’ll have to try a bit harder.”

Closing her eyes and focusing, Twilight’s horn began to glow bright purple, as she thought about how many lives were at stake, and how close they were to victory. And most of all, how Starlight nearly gave her life to help them escape. She felt the passion, the hope, the friendship, and it gave her power. Groaning while concentrating, she put all her strength into this one spell. In a bright flash of light, everypony disappeared from the floor of the Main Hall, as the rest of the cave gave in on itself and fully collapsed.

On solid, grassy ground under the bright sun, hidden behind a few puffy white clouds, the ponies reappeared, covered in dust, blood, sweat, or a combination of all three. The ponies glanced down through the hole they had risen out of, as the cave crumbled apart. The ponies all cheered and congratulated each other, Hickory embracing Applejack, Shining Armor and Pinkie hugging an absolutely exhausted Twilight. But her mind wasn’t focused on celebrating. She was focusing on Starlight Glimmer, who had risen from the ground, blood staining the green grass they were resting on. Starlight gazed at Twilight, her eyes emoting a sense of acceptance. Twilight could only stare as Starlight’s horn began to glow, until she disappeared in a moment, teleporting somewhere, anywhere but here. Twilight had too many feelings to process, and could only sit in silence, with the wind blowing her dust-covered mane, while her friends celebrated their long-toiled victory around her.