"Hey there, Friends! Welcome to The Family Trio! The funniest, most interesting and wildest amusement park for those who think that two ponies in a family is not enough to live happily ever after!" Proclaimed a tall stallion clown in a puffy wig and wide boots, who stood at the entrance to the park. Rocking back and forth, he cheerfully greeted the passing guests, including Princess Cadence, who was hugging her husband, Shining Armor, and wife Chrysalis.

"What? How did I get here?" The alicorn asked in surprise as she looked at the wide archway ahead, under which they had stopped to buy a ticket from the clown. "Where are we?"

She turned back and saw vast fields of wheat that stretched far into the horizon, merging with the star-spangled night sky.

"What do you mean? We are at the amusement park. Where else?" Shining Armor said with a chuckle, nuzzling her cheek and nodding toward the large pavilions of treats and wild-looking rides. There were huge Roller Coaster that went high above the clouds, a carousel held by a giant octopus and wrapped in its tentacles, cars and houses made of real waffles and huge fruit, and a crazy ride shaped like the torso of Discord, which picked up spherical booths of visitors from the ground and juggled them right in the air without any fasteners.

"Yeah, they've got safety issues," alicorn thought, imagining one of those booths flying down at breakneck speed. "That's understandable, but I don't remember us coming up here."

"Really, Cady? Did you forget that you were the one who suggested we go to this place?" Said a smiling Chrysalis, giving the mare a gentle nudge with her croup.

"Yes, I guess I forgot," the princess said doubtfully. "I'm not even sure what we did this morning," she added, snuggling up to both spouses. "But it doesn't matter. The important thing is that you and I are together, and that's all I need."

"That's good. Come on, darlings, let's go and have some fun!" The unicorn said cheerfully, taking three tickets with his telekinesis and leading both wives to an amusing carousel, the seats of which resembled cartoon caterpillars with big smiling faces.

"Do you think this place is really only for families with three spouses?" The princess asked in a whisper as they walked through the park.

"Of course. Why are you so surprised?" The stallion asked.

"I've always thought families like ours were the exception to the rule, but..." she glanced again at the large park full of laughing visitors. "There's not even room for one more."

"Hee-hee, don't be such a prude, Cady," the queen told her. "You can't control your heart, and ponies are free to decide how many husbands and wives to live with."

"Well, that's true, but..."

They had already approached the carousel, on which mares and stallions familiar to the princess were riding.

"Is that Mrs. Cake? I thought she wasn't with anyone but her husband," Cadence said when she spotted the turquoise pony.

"Well, that's only in public. In reality, she's got another mare she's very close to," said the unidentified stallion.

"Really? Do I know her?" The princess asked.

"It's quite possible; she's very famous. So she has to hide her polygamous relations from others," the stranger answered.

"Okay. Well then where did you... hey!" Cadence turned around and saw the clown standing next to them, the one who had been at the door earlier.

"What are you doing here?" The mare asked in surprise. "I thought you were selling tickets."

"That's right. I sell them, for the ride," he smiled nonchalantly, handing her a colorful bundle of tickets. "You want to ride our caterpillar carousel, right?"

"Yes, but why are you here? And more importantly, why are you eavesdropping on us?" The princess frowned.

"Who are you talking to, Cady?" Chrysalis asked.

"I'm talking to that creepy..." said Cadence, wanting to point at the clown, but as she turned around, he was mysteriously gone. In his place was a large fairground sign that read, in big letters: «Nothing in this park is what it seems».

"What is all this nonsense?" She asked the alicorn, not understanding and looking around. "Where is he?"

"Who?" Shining turned to her.

"The clown who's supposed to be selling tickets to the attraction," Cadence replied.

"What do you mean, dear? You don't need tickets for this carousel," said the unicorn. "Oh, now it's our turn! Let's go for a ride!"

The three of them got into a large decorative caterpillar, which suddenly came to life when it was touched and giggled merrily.

"What does it all mean?" Cadence wondered as she looked at it. She turned to her husband, but he didn't even seem to notice that their seat had come to life. Chrysalis was quiet, too.

"I don't understand why they..." the pony wondered, but her thoughts were interrupted by a loud voice.

"All right, mares and stallions strap in and hold your stuff tight! You're going to spin!" Said a stallion in a lush wig standing by the control desk.

"Hey, that's him! That's the clown!" The princess noticed him, but the caterpillar had already climbed up and, having turned into a beautiful butterfly, began to fly smoothly in circles.

When their trip was over, the clown was no longer at the console. The couple climbed out of the butterfly that had folded its wings and went for a walk in the park.

"This is weird," Cadence said mentally, turning her head and trying to figure out what was going on here. "A huge live caterpillar, a suspicious clown. I don't like it."

While she reasoned, the couple approached the next attraction, the Yak Boats, which were two large wooden rooks that were attached to a thick crossbar and swung rapidly from side to side. As Cadence and her loved ones climbed into one of them, she met the clown again, who sat down with them on the same bench. But as soon as she turned around to tell Chrysalis about it, he immediately disappeared, and in his place the alicorn saw a large ornamental bush in a pot that was trimmed exactly like that clown's wig.

After the boat ride, they headed for the laughing room. Chrysalis and Shining laughed merrily as they stared at their reflections in the crooked mirrors.

"Come on, honey. Don't frown. Look in the mirror. It's so much fun," Shining offered her with a smile.

Cadence nodded silently and peered into one of them, where she once again saw the hated clown nose.

"Again?! Is he stalking me?" She mentally asked herself as she left the room and looked back time and again.

Next they visited the Cave of Love, which had a bunch of nasty-looking clowns hanging on the walls instead of colts-cupids. Following that they went to the cafeteria to buy cotton candy and drinks. But even there Cadence had no peace, and when she held out a couple of bits to the cashier standing with his back to her, she met her gaze again with her stalker, who handed her order with a smirk.

"Creepy stallion. He's obviously up to something. Also, no one seems to see him here. Nopony but me. We need to get out of here," the princess decided as she rode with Shining and Chrysalis on the Ferris wheel and chewed cotton candy.

Once they were on the ground, Cadence pulled both of them toward the exit.

"Come on, I don't like it here. Let's go home," she asked them.

"Home? But why? We haven't tried half the rides yet," said Shining Armor.

"Never mind. Let's just go," the princess pleaded.

"Very well," said Chrysalis. "But only after we've ridden that."

She nodded toward the massive Roller Coaster in the middle of the park.

"But... but..." the alicorn protested.

"You wouldn't say no to me, would you, Cady?" The queen asked, with puppy dog eyes.

"Oh, all right. But we'll leave right after," the mare agreed, heading with them to the back of the queue for the ride.

Fortunately, they didn't have to wait long at all, and within five minutes they were in the carriage.

"At least it's not that type," Cadence thought to herself as she looked at the controls, behind which was an ordinary earth pony. After telling them the safety rules, he pulled the lever and the couple slowly rolled down the rails, which soon began to slope and twist in all sorts of ways. Within seconds their buggy had picked up speed and hurtled forward in crazy loops and zigzags.

"Whoo! That's it! Faster! Faster!" Chrysalis shouted cheerfully as they made a loopty-loop and immediately rolled down the slide.

"Hold on, darlings, the main climb is coming!" Shining said to them.

The carriage slowed briefly, and they began to climb the big slope, one that went beyond the clouds, and then ended in a dizzying descent.

"Oh, how I love spending time with you," Chrysalis said, snuggling up to them.

"So do I, my dears," Shining encouraged her. "What about you, Cadence?"

But the princess did not answer them. She was still a little tense, searching everywhere for her pursuer.

"Though," she reassured herself, "he can hardly climb that high. He's not a pegasus. So I should relax a little."

She pressed herself against Shining's chest and smiled as she waited for the wagon to climb to the top, and they rode down screaming.

"Yes, I'm glad we're together, too," alicorn murmured softly.

They were already beyond the clouds, and they could see the end of the slide in front of them.

"Well, we'll be heading down in no time," she said.

"You bet we are. You seem to like it here, don't you?" A familiar and unpleasant voice asked.

"Huh?" She said, whipping her head around in surprise.

"You?!" She hissed indignantly when she saw the clown hovering beside her without wings or magic.

"Yes, it's me" he nodded affirmatively.

"You know, I've had it up to here with you, so let's get this straight. Who are you, and why are you following me?"

The clown grinned merrily.

"Who am I? I thought you might have guessed it," he said in a sudden change of tone, before lifting his forelegs and pulled off his mask.

"Especially when I started noticing the illogical aspects of things," the dark blue alicorn mare said, growing in size and shedding her disguise.

"Luna? What are you doing here?" The Princess of Love opened her mouth in surprise.

"It's obvious. Fulfilling my duties," replied the Mistress of the Night with a chuckle.

"Duties? Wait, we're in the Kingdom of Dreams?" The pink pony gasped.

"Oh, yes, we are. Though I wouldn't call it my kingdom. Dreams derived from Intoxication are always very unstable and quite..." began Luna, but then a tiny stallion clown appeared on her back and began beating her over the head with an inflatable mallet, "Wild".

"Dreams? That's right, now I remember! I've been sedated, and Twilight is behind it all! Luna, you've got to save us! Send someone to help," Cadence said quickly.

"I'd love to, Cady, but I'm afraid that's impossible. I don't know how to find a pony solely from their dream."

"You don't have to. Chrysalis and I have been captured and are probably in an abandoned warehouse somewhere near the Wildsberry. It's in the desert, near a gas station."

"Yeah, that would narrow my search considerably. All right, well, I'll do my best to help you. You just hang in there."

The wagon with Cadence had already reached the top and, bent over, prepared to pull down.

"Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go. Your dream is about to end. It's not very... um..." said Luna, lowering her head guiltily.

"What?" Cadence asked, suspecting something amiss.

"Well, how should I put it, dreams from anesthesia rarely end well, so get ready..."

"Uh-oh," the Princess of Love felt her cart shake and the rails begin to bend.

"For a nightmarish finale," the dark blue mare finished.

Cadence peered forward and saw the bottom of the ride break apart and a huge Twilight Sparkle crawl out.

"Twilight! No!" The alicorn exclaimed fearfully.

"Calm down, Cadence. I know what I'm doing!" The unicorn murmured in a demonic voice. "I've read enough books to know that the best cure for heartbreak is total devouring!"

"What? What kind of nonsense is that?! Please, Twilight, don't do this!" Cadence said as she saw Twilight open her mouth, revealing a maw of sharp fangs. She stood at the end of the descent, a sadistic smile on her face.

"Don't worry; it'll all be over soon! And you and Shining will be with me again!" Licking her lips, the unicorn said, and the cart sped off toward her wide-open mouth. "Forever!"

"Noooooooo!" Shouted the princess, falling into darkness.

***

"No, no, no," wailed Cadence, opening her eyes and seeing only darkness before her. "Oh mother, she's swallowed me!"

"Ouch! Don't scream! Nopony swallowed you. Ugh, my head hurts," she heard Chrysalis' familiar voice to her right.

Alicorn tried to toot her own horn, but nothing worked. Then she tried to stand up, but her legs were tied tightly together with a thin, faintly glowing rope. On top of that there was some kind of ring on her horn, which apparently blocked her magic. Because of this, all she could do was roll over onto her right side and fumble for her wife's holey leg in the darkness.

"Chrissy, honey. Are you all right?" Said the princess cheerfully.

"Well, you might say so," answered Chrysalis languidly. "Though the nightmare I've been having is far inferior to what's been happening in reality."

"That's right, we're in deep trouble," the pony confirmed, blinking to see what lay ahead of her. When her eyes adjusted to the darkness a little, she could see Chrysalis' pretty face and the wall behind her, with the crates and boxes next to it.

"Where are we?" Said Cadence.

"I don't know, but I'm sure it's in one of the warehouses. We were dragged here by your ward's mercenaries."

"Yes, I remember. Oh, Twilight, I can't believe she'd do something like that. Kidnapped her brother, attacked us."

"Don't forget she also brainwashed him," Chrysalis prompted.

"Yes, that's right. Poor Twilly, she's all messed up."

"And that's putting it mildly," the queen snorted, sounding as if she was scurrying around on the floor. "Though I'm not interested in that now, I'm interested in what she wants to do to us."

"Nor am I. But I don't think she'd do anything terrible," said the alicorn. "Twilight may be overly fanatical at times, but she wouldn't hurt us."

"Are you sure?" Said Chrysalis doubtfully. "After all, she did kidnap us, and she's got an army of meatheads around her."

"Yes, you're right. But why would she need them? Twilight's never used mercenaries before."

"I don't know yet, but we'll find out... as soon as we get out of here," said the queen, grunting.

"I agree. I don't intend to lie here and wait for these fools to show up," the princess encouraged her, also trying to free herself from the restraints. But no matter how hard she tried, the thin bonds were too strong, even for an alicorn.

"Ouch, this isn't working. We can't tear these ropes. They seem to be magic," the queen said after a moment or two, helplessly lowering her head.

"You're right. Twilight thought of everything," Cadence agreed, trying to reach for the ring on her horn. "Even blocked our magic. Eh, hopeless, we won't be able to use our powers."

"Not really," Chrysalis said. "Yes, we have no magic, but changing shape has nothing to do with it; It's a natural ability."

And as she said that, she rolled off to the side and began to grow in size, becoming a huge brown bear. The queen hoped that by getting bigger she would be able to break the ropes, but instead they too began to grow and stretch out.

"Damn, they're getting bigger!" She bellowed in a low bass voice.

"Yes, Twilight doesn't do anything halfway," sighed the princess.

"Oh no, I don't give up that easily!" Chrysalis said, returning to her usual form. "Since I can't grow up, I'm going to be very small."

"And so?" Alicorn asked. "The ropes will shrink, too, won't they?"

"Yes, they will. And you won't have much trouble getting them out of your teeth," said the queen.

"Hey, that's right! That's a good one, Chrissy," praised her wife.

Chrysalis once more changed her appearance and became as small as a mouse. She tumbled on her side and rolled toward Cadence.

"There, a little more," the pony whispered, laying her head on the floor, ready to grab the rope with her teeth.

Chrysalis did a few more turns, and then felt an emptiness form in her path.

"Well? Where are you?" Cadence asked.

"I... I am... Uh-oh!"

"What? What's wrong?"

"Nothing," the queen said carefully. "But I think there's a hole in the floor!" She whimpered softly, before she tilted dangerously, plummeting into the abyss.

"Chrissy!" Cadence was frightened.

"Aah!" The queen screamed, falling into the darkness. She slammed several times against the side of the pipe (and gave herself a lot of bumps), and then she plunged into the torrent, which carried her forward until the pipe sloped downward. Chrysalis jumped out of the water and flew down at high speed.

"That's it. I'm finished, I'm finished, I'm..." she mentally whispered, expecting that she was about to collide with a hard surface that would end her life, but then her fall stopped. She landed on something soft and rolled smoothly onto the cool stone floor.

"Ouch, that was hurt," Chrysalis said with a grin, rolling over onto the side that hurt the least. "It felt good, though. Phew, I'm alive. Alive and... ah... relatively unharmed."

She ignited her horn and saw that she was somewhere in a sewer, near a large muffin bag.

"Ugh, kudos to the Mother of the Hive that somepony here eats Cake Family muffins. If it weren't for that package, I would... hey, wait a minute!"

She looked at her glowing horn.

"Ha-ha, I can use magic again! The ring blocking it must have slipped off during my fall! Lucky me. Now it'll be easier for me to get these restraints off."

She gripped the ropes with her telekinesis and tried to untie them.

"Here we go," said Chrysalis happily, as one of the knots began to loosen. "As soon as I get out of here, I'll fly back to Cadence, and then we'll show that filthy..."

The queen was silent. Somewhere in the darkness there was a stirring, and faint steps were heard.

"Huh? What is it? Who's there?" Chrysalis asked in a whisper, peering nervously into the darkness.

The steps, meanwhile, grew closer, and she heard loud breathing, broken occasionally by a faint squeak.

"Oh no, I guess who it is," Chrysalis said with her ears down, glancing quickly at the knot in her hoof and then around her. There was a lot of trash all around her, from dirty papers and broken bottles to rusty cans. She crawled toward one of them, trying to get as far away from her approaching steps as possible. When she reached the edge of the can, she quickly climbed inside, and barely had time to close the bent part of the lid when a large black rat jumped out at her from the darkness.

With a loud squeak it tried to grab the queen by the tail sticking out of the can, but the changeling crawled even deeper and miraculously escaped its sharp teeth.

"Little bastard," Chrysalis said as she used her telekinesis to keep the rat from climbing into the can. "Look, rodent, I know this is your world, not mine. So the sooner I get out of here, the sooner I can keep dumping garbage that you and your kind will live on."

The rat did not react and instead began to gnaw at the edges of the lid, trying to reach the queen with his front paws.

"You won’t get away from me that easily, will you?" Said Chrysalis, looking how the rodent scraping at the can. "Well, well. What sharp teeth you have. So why don't you use them for good and help me..."

She gingerly stretched her bound feet toward the rat, and it bit through the rope in one mighty bite.

"...get free! Yes! Yes! Yes! I did it!" The queen exclaimed, casting aside the ropes that no longer bound her, and resolutely turning to the rat. "Well? Now let's talk in your language!"

She lunged forward, jerked the edge of the can away from her, and flung it at the rat.

"What?! You thought you could just eat me?! Ha! I wiped out entire civilizations before your kind even existed," she yelled, picking up a few rocks from the floor and hurling them at the rodent.

The rat shrieked in pain and retreated.

"I'm not so weak when I'm not tied up, am I?" Changeling grinned, grabbing the can with her telekinesis and dropping it on the rat's head, closing it inside.

"There, you'll know how to attack royalty," Chrysalis said, shaking off her shell, clamping the edge of the lid so the rat couldn't get out. "Wow that was quite a fight!"

She looked around, and then looked at the pipe above her head.

"So I'd taken care of the ropes, and now I had to get to Cady. I hope nothing bad happened to her. After all, those mercenaries might well have..."

She stumbled backwards, stepping on something and almost tripping over it.

"Whoops, I should be more careful, or might trip over and broke my... wow!" She lowered her head and saw that she was standing amidst a pile of bones and skulls that belonged to rats. They were all terribly mutilated and damaged, and in the middle of this graveyard lay a dried pickle, covered in bites and scratches.

"Wow! Looks like someone here was even less fortunate than me. I wonder what they didn't share with the pickle?" The queen grinned. "Never mind. Right now I must concentrate on saving my beloved, so that I can go with her to get our husband."

She spread her wings and tried to fly, but they were stained with the dried vegetable porridge that was apparently inside the can.

"Oh, the usual," she muttered, trying to clear them with her telekinesis, when suddenly there were several loud steps behind her.

"Damn. I forgot rats live in packs," she said, turning around slowly, seeing the multitude of red eyes behind her. She sprang forward at a gallop toward the nearest pipe.

The rats rushed after her.

"Yeah, that's my luck," she said quickly, skipping over the scattered debris in her path and peering down the narrow walls of the pipe. "I can't fight, and I can't get any bigger. I have to find another way."

The pipe, meanwhile, turned to the left and ended in a grate, behind which was another part of the sewer.

"Oh no! It's a dead end!" Chrysalis said after examining the grate, turning to the rats that had caught up with her. "Well, I guess this is it."

The rodents were close at hand, clawing their sharp teeth and leaping at the queen. But she suddenly, grinning merrily and, shrinking even more in size, climbed easily into the small hole. The rats crashed headlong into the grate, making a pile.

"Ha, what a stupid beasts!" She said, when was as big as the rats again. "You really think you can take me, don't you? Don't hold your breath!"

She showed them her tongue.

"Well, I'll be on my way, and you can go on eating feces, or spreading disease, or whatever else rats like to do, right?"

And, turning away from the rodents helplessly reaching for her, she calmly went on her way.

"Now that that's done with, I should find a way to get back up there," she said as she peeled back her wings and peered up at the brick ceiling, where a series of vertical tubes protruded from the floor.

"I'm sure one of them will probably lead me back to the warehouse," Chrysalis said after examining them carefully, and as she soared above the floor, she crawled into the widest of the pipes, where water was coming from above, stubbornly trying to push her down.

"No, it won't work that way, I'll have to change," she decided, and turning herself into a goldfish, she quickly wiggled her fins as she swam against the stream.

"It's not easy, but I can do it," she thought, slowly making her way up the tube until a light flickered ahead. "Bingo! That's the way out! A little more effort!"

She sped up, continuing to swim toward the light, but then some shadow closed in. Something large and massive was coming down on top of her.

"What's going on?" Thought the queen, doubling her speed.

"Oh my, I finally got to it!" Uttered a loud stallion voice. "Discord's casserole with hot peppers! Why did I have to eat two portions, why?!"

The queen froze frightened, someone's tail and a baton-shaped cutie mark appeared above her head.

"Oh no, that's...I must hurry!" She panicked and rocketed upward. A few centimeters to the surface, she jumped out of the water and, changing her appearance as she went, brought down the stallion that had almost sat on the toilet.

"Yes, I did it! And like a real goldfish I swam up the toilet pipe! Only in the opposite direction!" She said enthusiastically, landing on her hoofs.

She threw back her wet mane and looked at the stallion at her.

"Oh... What hit me?" he groaned painfully, rubbing his bruised croup, turning to see the queen before him.

"Oh, no. You're..." he mumbled.

"Yes, I'm the changeling queen, and the one you and your cronies had the audacity to kidnap!"

She lifted him off the floor with a jerk.

"And you nearly fouled the water I was swimming in, and you'll pay dearly for that now!" She hissed.

The pony swallowed with horror.

"But if you'll be sensible enough to tell me where my wife is, I'll take pity on you and not grind you into powder."

"S-s-sure, she's in warehouse two. Go down the hall and turn left. Fourth door on the right," he said quickly, staring at her glowing horn.

"Is that so? Well, thank you very much," the queen grinned wickedly, baring her sharp fangs.

"B-but you promised me..." the stallion stammered.

"Yes, I did," she nodded, and then she slapped him across the face hard. The stallion fell back against the wall, unconscious.

"And I always keep my word," she finished quietly. "See? It's not as if I killed you. And broken teeth can always be fixed."

She moved her shoulder a couple of times.

"Ouch, I guess I'm out of shape today. My leg still hurts," she said, and then she turned to leave.

"Now to Cadence."

She opened the door carefully, glanced down the dimly lit corridor, slipped out, ran silently all the way to the end, and then turned left.

But just as she rounded the corner, she heard voices approaching.

"Damn it," Chrysalis whispered, quickly standing up against the wall and turning into a trashcan.

"So, what are we going to do with our prisoners?" Said one of the mercenaries walking past her, chewing on a banana as he went.

"What do you think? Guard, of course," snorted his partner.

"I know that, but then what? Can't we do a little, you know," said the first one in a whisper.

"Don't you dare! They're out of our league! You remember what Big Momma said, don't you?"

"Yes, I remember. They're just so juicy. Especially the pink one. They say she's a real Princess of Love. This means she can give us enough for all of us."

"Filthy pervert," Chrysalis squeaked the lid softly.

"Did you hear that?" The first stallion looked wary.

"What?"

"I don't know. It sounded like a squeak."

"Oh, never mind. Must be rats," said the second stallion.

"Yeah, probably," his partner agreed, and walked over to Chrysalis and tossed a banana peel at her.

As soon as they were gone, the queen assumed her usual appearance.

"Ugh! Well, you'll answer for that," she said, spitting garbage out of her mouth. "Hmm, “Big Momma”. That's a very strange nickname for Twilight. Though I haven't known her long enough to judge."

After making sure no one was around, she continued on her way.

Soon Chrysalis arrived at the very door where the mercenary assured her that Cadence was locked up. There was another stallion guarding her.

"Well, I need to get him out of here somehow," the queen thought. "And preferably quietly. So no one would know about it. What to do?"

As she pondered, pressed against the wall, a rat leaped past her and drew the mercenary's attention with its squeak. He flinched and turned at the sound.

"Crap!" The queen thought frightened, quickly turning to the first form that popped into her mind.

"Well, finally, Ridge. How long can we wait for you?" He said as he spotted her.

"I... I..." she mumbled in the voice of the stallion she'd just bumped into in the bathroom.

"What? You said you were only going to be gone for five minutes, but you disappeared for twenty. What were you doing?"

"Well, I... I was in the latrine. You know what happens when you have too much spicy casserole," she said more confidently, trying to make her voice sound carefree.

"Yes, I know. That's why I advised you against it," the mercenary sighed. "Ah, well, go on, get on duty. It's your turn to watch the prisoners."

He stepped back from the door and handed her his rifle.

"I'm going to the cafeteria and get something to eat," he said, heading to the far end of the hallway. "Do you want me to get you a doughnut?"

"Uh, no, thanks," the queen said with a wry smile. "I think I've had enough food for one day."

"That's right," the stallion agreed. "Well, if anything happens, call me and... try to stay awake this time."

"Of course. I won't sleep a wink," Chrysalis promised, grinning mentally: "Wow that was easier than I thought it would be."

As soon as the guard left, she was herself again, shrinking quickly and crawling through the crack between the door and the floor.

"Cadence, darling, I'm here. I'm going to untangle you now," she said, returning to her normal size and seeing the princess lying on the floor.

"Chrissy! I'm so glad you're alive! Oh, how I was frightened when you fell down," smiled the alicorn as she turned her head toward her, and then noticed how horrible the queen's mane and armor were. "Dear Celestia! What happened to you?!"

"You don't want to know."

"But..."

"Seriously, Cady, this is not a story worth telling. But in a nutshell, the way to your cell was a nightmare. Not something the Luna herself would have thought of," she said as she used her telekinesis to untie the knots in Cadence's legs. "But it was nothing."

She reached her hoof out and helped her up.

"After all, I did save you, and now we're together," Chrysalis said with a smile, kissing the princess on the lips.

"That's right, my love. And now let's find Shining," she said, softly stroking her spouse on her slightly soiled cheek.

"And let's stop Twilight. Whatever she's up to, it's time to stop this," the queen added, dropping the magic-blocking ring from her horn.

"Then let's go, there's no time to waste," the princess nodded and kicked the door open, but it didn't even budge.

"Ouch, it didn't work!" She rubbed at the bruise, said Cadence, turning and kicking the door with her hind hooves. But that didn't help either.

"I don't understand. A door like that would never stop me," said Alicorn with surprise. "Unless…"

She glanced at the glowing ropes on the ground.

"Well, of course, that's what it was all about. Not only were they holding us back, they sucked all our strength out," said Cadence, trying to cast a few rudimentary spells, but her horn just glowed and let out a few sparks before it went out.

"Yeah, I felt something like that before, when I stunned the mercenary in the toilet," Chrysalis confirmed as she tried to bend the hook protruding from the wall. "Ugh, it's no use. I'm weak, too. I can still turn, of course, but I can't handle a door anymore."

"And, frustratingly, it will take us hours to regain our strength," said Cadence.

"But we can't wait that long. I'm sure Twilight will be back soon," the queen said, pacing in circles. "And then we'll have a trouble. So what can we do? What should we do?"

She paced a couple of times, seeing the ropes scattered across the floor.

"Yes, Twilight has thought of everything. Trapped us like two helpless little dogs," she said as she looked at the ropes. "If she'd put the collars on us, we'd have looked like... like..."

She paused.

"Wait a minute, collars?"

She thought of the way she and Cadence used to play at being obedient and then it hit her.

"Yes, that's it! There it was!" The queen rejoiced.

"What?" said Cadence.

"We're both weak, but I can easily restore my power. But if you... ahem, ahem... give me a little help, of course."

"I'd love to, but how?"

"Well, you know," said Chrysalis, pointing to her raised tail.

"Wait a minute, you don't want to..." the mare said, blushing.

"Yes! We need to have sex right away!" Chrysalis said enthusiastically.

"What? Right here? In a filthy, damp cell with scoundrels at the door?" Said Cadence in a confused tone.

"I agree it's not the best place," the queen said understandingly. "But we have no choice. Either do it here, or wait patiently for Twilight's goons to come after us."

"Oh," sighed the princess.

"And then it would be interesting," the changeling said voluptuously, approaching her spouse. "You and I have tried many different fantasies: playing pets, nurses, using different vibrating toys, but this are very different."

"Yeah, it's not a game anymore, it's real," said Cadence.

"Exactly! Having sex when your life hangs in the balance is exciting," said the queen languidly.

"And crazy," snorted the princess.

"Also, this is an once-in-a-lifetime chance," said Chrysalis, licking her lips. "And I don't want to miss it."

She walked over to the dirty straw in the corner and lay down on it.

"Well, what do you say, my love? Do you want to play? You are the wicked and lustful jailer, and I'll be your helpless prisoner."

She slapped herself on the croup.

"Who has behaved very badly today and must be punished."

"Well," Cadence said with a smile as she approached her. "In that case, I'll show you what happens to the bad bug who disobeys me."

And wrapping her forelegs around the queen's neck, she pounced on her and kissed her passionately.

***

"And where is Ridge?" After a while, the mercenary returned from the cafeteria, noticing the rifle propped against the wall.

He cocked his head, surveying the corridor.

"Hey, Ridge!" He yelled. "What the hell is wrong with you?! We ain't supposed to leave no prisoners unattended! Ridge!"

Then a suspicious sound came to his ears. There was a grunting and muffled moaning coming from the side of the door.

"Huh? What are they doing in there?" Squinting, he said, coming closer and leaning his ear against it.

The sighs were very loud and distinctly unlike the sounds of sobs and cries. They sounded more like...

"Oh," he said with a surprised grin, smirking slyly. "Are they really fucking in there?"

"Hey, Markle, what are you're doing here?" A unicorn was just passing by, patrolling the corridor.

"Don't make any noise! Shush!" shushed Markle, nodding at the door.

The stallion went to it, too, and put his ear to it.

"Whoa, wow! Are they really..." he had saliva on his lips, "Having sex?"

"Looks like it," Markle confirmed.

The sighing and moaning at the door grew louder.

"But they're tied up," the unicorn whispered softly.

"Exactly."

"And they're still doing it?"

"Yes," Markle licked lustfully. "You can feel the heat coming out of there, can't you?"

"Sure," the stallion swallowed loudly. "That Princess of Love is so yummy."

"Hey, what are you guys doing here?" The patrol leader, accompanied by five other mercenaries, asked them as they moved along the corridor.

"Shh," hissed Markle. "You'd better come up and see for yourself."

The stallion group pressed against the door.

***

"Yes! Yes! Woo-hoo! Yes!" Exclaimed Chrysalis loudly, as the princess brought on another sweet orgasm with her tongue.

At first, they wanted to do it quietly, but after the first five minutes, their passion became so unrestrained that they forgot everything and began to grunt and moan loudly.

"Wow! That was divine!" The queen whispered, closing her eyes and leaning back on the straw mat.

"You were divine," Cadence agreed, breathing heavily. "I didn't know danger could be so arousing."

"Ha-ha, me neither," she smiled, licking her lubricated nose. "I've never seen you so wild. I think we should have some more adventures."

"Agreed," Alicorn chuckled. "But now it's time to call it a day and move on to saving Shiny."

"Yes, I'm afraid so," the queen said sadly (she loved her wife's embrace that much) as she struggled to her hoofs.

"How's it going? Have you got your strength back?" Cadence asked.

Chrysalis lit her horn, which lit up the chamber like a searchlight.

"Oh yes," she said excitedly, lifting Cadence up like a feather. "And it's all thanks to you. Now I can take down an entire army."

"Come on, then. Let's show Twilight what happens to the pony who steal our husband."

And they headed for the door.

"Go on, take it down," said Cadence.

"Wait a minute," said Chrysalis, her ears perked up.

"What?" The alicorn asked, uncertain.

"Do you hear that?" The queen asked in a whisper.

The princess went to the door and listened. There was faint laughter and lustful sighing in the hallway.

"What is that?" She wondered.

"I think I know," she grinned, and tiptoeing over to the door, she stepped closer.

"What are you doing?" Cadence asked.

"Shh!" the queen hissed. "Just a moment. I've been meaning to say that all my life."

And then she cleared her throat and yelled loudly:

"Hey-hey! You there! We're coming out! So step aside or we'll hurt you!"

There was a burst of mocking laughter in reply.

"You have been warned," the queen smiled, turning and kicking the door, which flew off its hinges with a clang.

"Here we are!" Solemnly said Chrysalis, stepping into the corridor where the stunned mercenaries were lying. "So, honey, you ready to slap them around?"

"Ha, you ask!" Said the alicorn warily. "I may not be fully recovered, but I can take down a few bad stallions easily."

"Then let's do it!" Chrysalis said, grabbing one of the already fully recovered stallions by the scruff of the neck. "Let's give them what they want!"

They continued down the corridor, kicking and punching everypony who crossed their path, and there were quite a few. The noise of a broken door attracted the whole place's guards, who could do little to hinder the mighty queen and powerful princess. And though they only hit with a quarter of their strength, the mercenaries had had enough, and the corridor was quickly filled with frightened shouts and screams:

"Oh no! They have escaped!"

"Warn the others!"

"We need reinforcements now!"

"They're coming this way!"

"Mommy!"

"Run for your lives!"

The mercenaries flew in all directions, knocking doors down with their backs and crashing into each other. Some of them saw what was happening and tried to flee, but they were instantly caught by Chrysalis' telekinesis and placed under the hoofs of her betrothed.

So they went down every corridor in the place and ended up at a big door.

"I'm sure that's where we'll meet Twilight," the queen said.

"So then we should..." Cadence began, but then she broke off and looked down at her right side. "Oh, wait!"

"What is it?" Chrysalis asked.

"We forgot our saddlebags," said the alicorn.

"That's right! And my makeup bag and my phone are in there. But where should we look for them?"

"Well, we'll find out," said the pink pony, picking up the barely-living stallion from the floor. "Where did you put our stuff?"

"Y-yes, they're in the guard room, third corridor, second door," he muttered with difficulty, spitting out a chipped tooth.

"Thank you," Cadence said, tossing him behind her back. "Well, now we know. Let's go," she added, and the mares turned and headed back.

Some of the mercenaries, on their hoofs, stared up at them in horror.

"Oh no! They're coming back! We must run! Help! Help! Mommy!" They shouted, getting another round of kicks and slaps and flying in all directions.

Cadence and Chrysalis reached the guard room and retrieved their saddlebags.

"Done, now to Twilight," the alicorn said cheerfully.

"And our sweet Shiny," the queen added, pulling out a comb to tidy her mane.

They moved back toward the big door.

"No! Not again! Help! Get us out! Ouch! It hurts!" The panic-stricken voices of the mercenaries echoed down the hall, interrupted only by the groans of the wounded.

"Well, they've learned their lesson, I think," the princess said, glancing down the corridor at the battered stallions.

"And now they'll think twice before they kidnap somepony else's husband," Chrysalis confirmed, taking a few deep breaths. "Well, here we are. It's time for Twilight. Let's teach her a lesson."

"Yes, but please be gentle with her," said Cadence.

"Of course, my love," the queen promised. "We'll just have a little talk with her. I'm sure she'll be more cooperative without her army."

And they simultaneously kicked open the door, bursting into a large warehouse littered with crates and boxes.

"Here we are, Twilight, and we..." The changeling began, but was immediately surprised. Dozens of rifles and unicorn horns were pointed at her and the princess. Twilight sat on a large container, surrounded by mercenaries, and listened to the radio beside her, which was playing Countess Coloratura's song: The Spectacle. Behind her stood Shining, still wobbly and lurching from being drugged.

"Yeah, I think she's been expecting us," Cadence remarked.

"Exactly, and I've already developed a defensive strategy," Twilight nodded.

"Yeah, well, that's too bad. We really wanted to surprise you," said Chrysalis.

"And you would have, if your escape hadn't been accompanied by such loud screams," the unicorn hummed as she turned off her radio. "Seriously, I could hear them over the music."

"Yeah, that's where we screwed up," Cadence sighed.

"So you have two choices," said Twilight menacingly. "You surrender and let my boys tie you up again."

"Or?" Alicorn stretched out.

"My mercenaries and I will have to put holes in you," the unicorn said firmly.

"Really? You would dare shoot me, Twilight?" Cadence asked in a slightly shaky voice.

"If I have to. I'm sorry, Cadence, but I'm willing to do whatever it takes to save Equestria from that one," said the mare. "You know what I mean, don't you?"

"Twilight, I..." the princess began, but Chrysalis interrupted her:

"Oh, yes, I do, Twilight. You've planned this so carefully, you're not ready to give in to us. Believe me, I know it well. I've been in this situation more than once myself. But, like me, you've missed a few things."

"I did? What did I miss?" The unicorn squinted.

"There is a third way out of this situation."

With that, she ripped the rifles from the mercenaries and smacked them all over the head with her telekinesis.

"We'll beat you all up and save our Shiny," the queen finished, glaring menacingly at the rest of Twilight's aides, who stared at her in horror.

"Oh, come on!" The unicorn was indignant.

"So give up, Twilight, you lose!" Cadence encouraged her.

"No way!" The purple mare jumped to the floor. "My plan is too perfect and I won't let you ruin it!"

And she shot at them with her horn like a mad pony.

"Ouch! Look out!" Shouted the princess, dodging the magic shells that exploded and scattered everything in their path.

"Quick, run for cover!" Chrysalis yanked her toward the warehouse equipment, and they both ducked behind the nearest forklift.

"Well, this isn't going to be very amicable," said the queen.

"Yeah, well, Twilight's really going crazy. We'll have to knock her out," nodded the Cadence, peeking cautiously out of her hiding place.

The unicorn, meanwhile, had finished shooting and turned to her minions:

"Well? What are you standing around for? Get them!"

"But, ma'am..." mumbled one of them, still terrified at how easily the queen had disarmed them.

"Now!" Twilight yelled.

"Yes, ma'am! On our way!" The mercenary said, startled by her angry look.

"You too, Shining!" She turned to her brother. "Help them!"

"Anything you say, Twilight," he said in a slightly lifeless voice and running with the others to the forklift, where Cadence and Chrysalis were sitting.

"We have guests," the princess said. "Five rascals."

"Ha, is that all? We've beaten fifty of them in the hallway alone," the queen grinned.

"Yes, but Shining's with them," said Cadence.

"Well, that complicates things," said Chrysalis. "We mustn't hurt our Shining."

"I agree. Every bruise on his pretty face is an extra day he'll spend in the hospital and not with us. We need a plan now, and a good one at that," said Cadence.

She swung her head quickly around and saw some crates nearby, one of which had "Fishing tackle" written on it.

"Bingo! I've got something! Distract them," alicorn said, giving her wife a shove with her shoulder, and sprinted off toward the crate.

"Distract them? And how would I do that?" Chrysalis called out, but Twilight's mercenaries rushed to her from the corner.

"There she is!" Said one of them.

"Yes, we've got her surrounded!" The other added.

"And where is the other one?" The third asked.

"It doesn't matter, as long as we've caught the queen."

"Yes... we have... and... what shall we do now?" The first one asked in a whisper.

"What do you think we should do now? Seize her, of course," said the tallest of them, the obvious leader.

"And how do we do that? She and that pink one, they've scattered all our guys. What chance have we got?"

"It doesn't matter, we've been ordered to catch her and we have to do it," their leader whispered uncertainly, nervously swallowing his saliva.

"Hmm, and distracting them not so hard," Chrysalis mentally grinned, leaning on the forklift with a smile and listening to their squabble.

"Well, we could all summon our telekinesis together and grab her," one of them suggested in the meantime.

"That's it? Is that enough for you?" The other asked doubtfully. "What if she breaks free?"

"I don't know, but we must decide something urgently, otherwise..." said the leader, looking at the grinning queen, "... we look like idiots."

"Right," the stallion next to him nodded, and he coughed loudly: "So, Queen Chrysalis, we are... ahem... caught you."

"Yeah, I guess so," she said with a chuckle.

"So, surrender nicely, and then... um... no one will get hurt."

"I'm sorry, what did you say?" Chrysalis snorted, stepping away from the forklift and heading in their direction. "Wait, I'll be right with you, I can't hear very well."

The stallions shrank back frightened.

"I say please don't resist us, and we promise we won't hurt you and just escort you back to your cell," he continued, speaking more and more quietly as the queen approached.

"You mean Your Majesty?" She said.

"What?" He said frightened.

"You are speaking to the queen, so you must address me as Your Majesty," Chrysalis explained.

"Y-yes, that's right," he whispered. "Please, follow us into the cell Your Majesty, and..."

"And?" The queen repeat, towering over him.

"So that we... um... can tie you and your consort up again and lock you in there," he said as he and the others pressed against each other.

"I see. Well, it's a tempting offer, but I'm afraid I must decline," she said, tapping her chin thoughtfully.

"But then we... we..." the stallion mumbled.

"We'll have to hang above the floor, trapped in a net," Chrysalis said with a wink.

"Yes. Wait, what?" He asked.

"That," she said, jabbing her hoof somewhere upward.

The mercenaries looked up and saw the net stretched above them, which swooped down over them and draped itself over the floor.

"Well done, Chrissy," said Cadence as she jumped off the forklift whose arrow she had tied the net to, "How cleverly you outsmarted them."

"Thanks, but they did it all by themselves," the queen grinned. "I just watched their merry little talk."

"So much the better. Well, now, let's get our Shiny, so that we can..."

She glanced at the net with the nervously twitching mercenaries.

"Um, honey, where's Shining?"

Chrysalis looked up, too.

"Indeed. I'd been so engrossed I'd forgotten all about him. Where's our hubby?"

"I'm here!" Suddenly a white unicorn leaped out of a dark corner of the room and jumped on top of Chrysalis' back. "I got the queen, Twilight! I got her!"

"Good work, Shiny, now knock her out," said the unicorn slyly, jumping onto the forklift. "She can't hit you, so I'll take care of my old friend."

And she telekinesis ripped the shipping container off the floor and pointed it at Cadence.

"Twilight! Are you insane?!" Alicorn gasped.

The purple mare lifted it up and launched it at her with force.

"Apparently so," the princess said, jumping aside. "Well, I'm afraid I'll have to teach you a lesson."

She ran up to the small box and tried to lift it, but her magic was powerless, and it only flew slightly off the floor before collapsing.

"Ha! Did you forget that I tied you with special ropes?" Twilight grinned. "Alicorn strength doesn't help you, because you don't have any, but..." She plucked another container from her seat, "I'm stronger than ever, and I'll flatten you like a cockroach!"

And with that she threw it at Cadence, causing her to flee to the other side of the room.

"Oh no, you can't get away from me that easily!" Twilight said excitedly, dashing after her.

As they scurried around the warehouse, a small fight broke out between Shining and Chrysalis. The unicorn, being under a spell, became much stronger and, sitting on the queen's back, slapped her on the head and neck, while the queen, not wanting to hurt him, tried to get him off of her as quickly as possible.

"Ouch! Ugh! That's enough, hubby. This has gone too far," she whispered, jumping on the spot. "Stop hitting me!"

"Never! I have to stop you from enslaving all the ponies!" He said in an obsessive voice.

"Oh, come on. You've been brainwashed. You know it in your heart," said Chrysalis, and then she put her telekinesis around his neck to try and take him off, but he was gripping her tightly. "Remember how good we were together. I am not your enemy, Shiny, I am your sweet wife."

"No! You're a villain! You only pretended to be good to deceive me and Cadence! You wicked liar!" He cried out in defiance.

"Yeah, it looks like you've been spelled a lot harder than I thought," she said tensely, and finally pulled the Shining off her neck. "Which means I'll have to bring you to your senses," she added, setting the struggling stallion right in front of her. He immediately spat in her face.

"Ouch! I'm sure it's hard to believe, but I'll be much more hurt than you are now," the queen said sadly and, taking a deep breath, charged him between the legs with her hoof.

"Ugh, my balls," Shining squeaked, his eyes widening painfully.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I know it's unpleasant, but there's no other way to get you out of your trance," said Chrysalis, squinting guiltily. "Forgive me, hubby. As compensation, I promise that for the next week, Cadence and I won't be asking you to have sex."

Shining let out a few unintelligible words, then closed his eyes and fainted.

"Yes, yes, that's it, my love, now get some rest," the queen said carefully, laying him on the floor. "Now, I'm going to spell some ice for you."

While she tended to her injured husband, Cadence struggled to dodge the crates and barrels flying at her. Twilight went on a rampage, smashing everything in her path in an effort to get to her, piling high rubble and debris everywhere.

"Yeah, there's something wrong with Twilight," Alicorn mentally remarked, jumping over a crate as it flew toward her. "If I live through this, I'll take her to a psychiatrist right away."

She turned behind one of the overturned racks and stopped abruptly when she saw a concrete wall in front of her.

"Oh no, it's a dead end!" She said.

"Exactly, and now you have nowhere to run to!" Said the unicorn approaching her.

"Twilight, how can you do this?" Asked the Princess of Love. "I thought we were friends!"

"It's nothing personal, Cadence, but like I said before, I'm willing to make any sacrifice to save our country."

She held up a big container.

"And you could have avoided all this if you'd stayed home and let me take care of the queen," the unicorn said. "But you still have a chance. Reject her, and I'll spare you."

Alicorn looked up at the container hanging in the air, and then a faint smile flashed across her face.

"No, Twilight. I would never betray my beloved," she replied calmly.

"Then I have no choice," the purple filly said stiffly, "but to finish you."

"I'd rather not," Cadence hummed, and then she flicked her horn and jerked it sharply to the side. Twilight followed her gaze and saw a bale suspended above her head on a hook, which Cadence ripped off and pointed straight at her.

The bale made a perfect arc and swept the mare with its weight, pushing her to the nearest post, which she hit her head on.

The unicorn shrieked and tumbled to the floor, the heavy container collapsed beside her.

"That's it, Twilight," the princess sighed loudly. "That's it".

"Cadence, honey, are you ok?" Said Chrysalis, who ran up to her.

"Yes, Chrissy, I'm fine," said Cadence nodding affirmatively.

"And her?" The changeling asked, glancing at the unicorn.

"She's fine. I didn't hurt her much," the pony said, pointing to the bale on the hook, which was full of awnings. "Though she'll have a bump for sure now, she's all right otherwise."

"That's fine. Now let's wait until she's recovered and get some answers out of her," the queen said as she and Cadence approached the mare, sprawled on the floor.

"I still can't believe she would do such a thing. It's unthinkable."

"I know it is. I mean, I knew she don't love me, but not like that," said Chrysalis. "Yeah, it's weird, even for me. I used to do it myself."

They both shuddered. There was a loud crashing noise from inside the container where Twilight had been sitting.

"What was that?" Chrysalis asked.

"I don't know, but it's worth checking," Cadence said, heading in his direction with her.

"Maybe she kidnapped somepony else. Maybe one of her friends?" The queen suggested.

"Perhaps," the alicorn stepped toward the container door. "We'll find out," she added, putting her hoof on the handle and pulling it toward her.

The door was unlocked, and Cadence opened it easily, and then peered inside.

"It's couldn't be!" She staggered back when she saw who it was in the light of the storage lamps. Chrysalis looked in as well, her eyes going wide in shock. Right in front of them, tightly bound and gagged, was Twilight Sparkle.

"Twilight?! But how? If you're here, then who did I..." Cadence turned toward the stricken mare.

"Great Mother of the Hive, I should have known!" Chrysalis spoke in a loud voice, walking toward her captor, who had regained consciousness and was now trying to stand up. "Big Mama, the delicious princess, the fake ghosts who distracted us in the cemetery! It's so obvious!"

"What's obvious?" Alicorn asked, helping Twilight free herself.

"That this liar is not really a pony! She's a changeling!" Replied the queen, lifting False Twilight above the floor. "Come on, impostor; show us your real face. Let me guess; you'll have red eyes or long antennae."

"He-he-he, with pleasure," the fake Twilight grinned wickedly, and pushed herself off of Chrysalis and took a few steps back. Her body began to change: her fur disappeared and became covered in chitin, her torso lengthening and growing. The front part of it remained the same (except for the legs, which had become very elongated and covered with holes), but the back part became large and now looked more like a spider's abdomen, from which six insect legs emerged, while a brown, skull-like pattern appeared upon her abdomen. The last change was to the impostor's head, which was still like a pony's, but it was many times larger and longer. A curved horn protruded from her forehead, and eight blood-red eyes appeared on her face, staring with hatred at the mares in front of her.

"Celestia the merciful!" Cadence gasped.

"Yes, just as I thought," Chrysalis said as she calmly looked at the creepy pony and spider hybrid, which raised itself up, propping up its legs on the scattered debris and meeting Chrysalis's gaze. "Well, hello there, Ashaisha."

"Hello to you, too, dear sister," she hissed. "It's been a long time."

"Sister?" Said the alicorn in surprise.

Ashaisha quickly circled the queen, kicking her spidery legs in a circle.

"Why yes? Didn't she tell you there are other changeling queens? Sister queens who help each other and protect their own kind, keeping their own and other hives from withering and falling apart?"

She paused for a second.

"Oh yes, that was all in the past, now I'm alone," she turned to Chrysalis and began to shout: "Ever since you and the other gentle queens betrayed me and banished me to this vile, sparsely populated wasteland!"

"Yes, we did. But only so you wouldn't harm other species and ruin the reputation of the changelings," Chrysalis replied, staring fearlessly into her eyes.

"Yes, that's right. You've always been the protector of this weak ponies," the spider chuckled. "Always afraid to attack and take love by force. You liked to hide and lurk, pretending to be your victims. Pathetic cowards."

"Oh, Cadence, you're here. How glad I am that you found me," Twilight said meanwhile, hugging her former babysitter and watching warily.

"However, I'm not you and I wasn't going to sit around forever waiting for the other races to like us," growled Ashaisha, who was twice the size of Cadence and Chrysalis. "I've decided to act!"

"And to do that, you kidnapped Twilight, our sweet Shiny, and then lured Chrysalis here?" Alicorn asked. "I don't understand. Why?"

"Really? It's so obvious. To destroy her!" Spiderqueen said.

"And start a war between ponies and changelings," said Chrysalis.

"What?" surprised Cadence.

"If I, the queen who made peace with the ponies, were to be killed by a student of Celestia, the other hives would want to know," said Chrysalis.

"Exactly. They would have wanted revenge, and I wouldn't have had much trouble convincing them to unite against the ponies," Ashaisha said, licking her sharp teeth.

"Except that's impossible now. We've got you figured out," said Chrysalis.

"Right," the spider said ominously. "And you ruined my plans."

She took a few steps back.

"That's not the problem, though. Nothing is lost yet. I can still convince them to support me," she said angrily, turning toward them. "After the four of you are gone."

"Yeah? How do you plan to get rid of us?" Cadence snorted. "We broke you and your helpers. You're on your own."

"Ha-ha, that's where you're wrong. You didn't take care of all my children," she said slyly. "I saved a couple of them in case you should, by some miracle, escape and get here."

She put her legs up.

"Come, my children! Destroy our enemies!"

Immediately six Changeling spiders leapt down from the ceiling. But they weren't ordinary changelings; they were incredibly large and muscular, with long, sharp fangs and claws.

One of them ran up to the net with the mercenaries, who had also had time to change and become themselves (but were vastly inferior in size to their brethren), and, after biting through the ropes, let them free.

"Who the hell are they?" Asked the princess.

"Warriors of the hive," said Chrysalis. "Very strong and hardy."

"And how strong are they?" Cadence asked, pulling back with Twilight.

"Very strong, and easy can beat an alicorn, or..." she gulped, "…the enemy queen".

"I see," she said, watching the changelings advance on them, their muscles twitching menacingly. "So, what do we do now?"

"Same as all heroines when they're outnumbered," the queen said, stealthily lifting the lifeless Shining and laying him behind her. "Let's get out of here before we get our legs blown off!"

And she sprang from her seat and ran for the exit.

"Hey, wait for us!" Shouted the princess as she and Twilight rushed after her.

"No! They're getting away! Stop them! Don't let them escape!" Ashaisha shouted behind them, shooting a couple of magical beams in their direction with such force that they burned through several walls in front of them.

"Whoa! Looks like we really pissed her off," Cadence said, throwing the slow-running Twilight on her back and carrying her through the poorly lit corridors, past the battered changelings crawling away from them. "Do you think we can get away?"

"Well, it's a matter of luck," Chrysalis said. "Ashaisha is very stubborn and won't let us go easily."

"Yeah, well, she sure doesn't like to lose," added the alicorn, glancing back.

The warrior changelings followed close behind, periodically leaping from floor to ceiling and wall to wall. At one turn, one of them suddenly stopped and turned around and began quickly doing something behind him, and a second later a strange white blob flew in their direction.

"Look out!" Cadence yelled, falling to the floor with Chrysalis.

The droplet flew over their heads and, hitting the wall, quickly erupted into a perfectly straight circle of thick rope-like strands that blocked their path.

"What is it? A spider web?" The princess asked.

"Of course it is. They're spiders," said the queen, as she saw the other warriors weave a web.

"Let's go," she helped Cadence to her hoofs, and they dodged more shots and galloped down the right corridor.

"Where's the exit?!" Chrysalis exclaimed a couple of times, almost running into a dead end.

"I don't know, but we won't be able to run from them for long," replied the princess, once again dodging the cobwebs that flew past them.

"I think we should go right," Twilight said.

"Right? Are you sure?" Cadence asked.

"Yes. It's an older layout for a warehouse. The main door is always underneath the observation window," the unicorn nodded at the big window in front. "This means we're not far from the exit."

"Well, that's where we are then!" Chrysalis interrupted, and they turned in the direction suggested by Twilight.

After a little run, they found themselves in front of a large sliding gate. The queen lit her horn and quickly lifted up the gate before she and Cadence jumped out into the street.

"Ah, fresh air at last!" Cadence said, looking up at the clear starry sky above her head. "We're free!"

"Yeah, but we're not out yet," the queen remarked as she heard the approaching clang of spider legs.

"Then let's run to the route," the princess said, shaking her head toward the nearby lights of the highway. "Maybe we can catch a ride there."

"That's a great idea, honey," Chrysalis agreed, and with her and the more or less recovered Twilight (who had already jumped to the ground) galloped toward the lights.

As they raced through the desert at night, Shining Armor, who had been lying on Chrysalis' back the whole time, came to his senses.

"Huh? What's going on?" He moved faintly, before winced painfully: "Ouch! My balls! Why do my balls hurt? What's happening?"

"It's a long story, hubby," said Chrysalis. "And we'll tell it to you as soon as we get out of here."

He shook his head a couple of times and saw the unicorn galloping beside him.

"Wait, Twilight! Is that you?! What are you doing here? You kidnapped me!" He said angrily.

"No, it's more complicated than that, bro," said the purple mare as she shot back.

"Oh, really? You stunned me when I was in the garden on a Nightmare Night and then you dragged me into some filthy cellar."

"It wasn't really her. It was the Spider Queen who pretended to be her," Cadence said.

"A Spider Queen?" Shining repeated.

"I told you it's a long story," Chrysalis interjected. "But in short, you were part of a devious plan by one of my sister queens, and we have to get away from her before she and her sons track us down."

"Oh, why does everyone kidnap me?" Sighed the unicorn.

"Apparently, you're too pretty, Shiny, so they use you as the prince who sat in the castle of the horrible sorceress," the purple mare giggled.

"Not funny, Twilight," the stallion frowned.

They ran out onto the highway.

"So, where do we go now?" The queen asked, glancing around.

"That way!" She nodded when she spotted the bus station nearby. "Well, I guess we're in luck."

They raced to the glowing parking lot, where a half-filled bus was parked just inside the station, waiting to leave. Not far away was the train station with a cashier's window.

"Four tickets, please!" Shouted as Twilight ran up to it.

"Which way?" Asked the slightly surprised mare-cashier at the sight of such an unusual company, consisting of a disheveled princess, a disheveled unicorn, a beaten stallion, and a changeling queen.

"I don't care if it's Yakyakistan, just hurry up!" Said Twilight.

"Hold on. We have to get to the Wildsberry, if that's possible," said Chrysalis.

"Then you're in luck, that's where this bus is going," said the cashier, giving them four tickets. "That'll be twenty bits."

"There you go, and thank you for everything," said Cadence, tossing her four gold coins and heading with the others toward the open doors of the bus.

The driver was a fat, stubble-faced earth pony, who looked at the new arrivals without much interest, and when he made sure they all had their tickets, he turned away from the wheel and continued to chew on the sandwich in his lap.

"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go!" Twilight said as she looked out the window. The highway was quiet so far, but that didn't mean the spiders chasing them were gone.

"It's still early. We'll be gone in ten minutes," the driver said nonchalantly.

"What? Why?" Shining, who was sitting on the seat, asked. "But all the passengers are already here, and we have to go now."

"So? I'm on a schedule, and I'm not moving until it's time," the earth pony brushed him off.

The changelings, meanwhile, had come running out onto the road. There were a great many of them. Ashaisha had set all her children on the Shining family, who were now looking around. One of them noticed the bus station and waved to his brothers. Chrysalis looked through the window, seeing some of the spiders begin to move towards the station, and cursed.

"Damn! Can we go now?"

"Sorry, I can't. Bus drivers have rules, and it's not my place to break them," the stallion replied, taking a big bite of his sandwich.

"But listen, behind us..." Twilight joined the conversation.

"I don't care what's going on. I'm Barry and I'm a captain on this bus. So we're not doing anything until I finish my dinner and ten minutes have passed."

The spiders had already been joined by their queen and, letting out an angry yell, headed toward the bus.

The passengers, hearing this, quickly leaned against the windows and noticed the spiders coming toward them, too. Everyone but Barry.

"You know, maybe they're right. Maybe we should just go." Said an old pegasus, sitting by Shining.

"No, we're not going anywhere," the driver said stubbornly.

"But there..."

"Once again, I'm Barry – charge here, and I decide when we leave," he said.

"Oh, come on, you lazy sod! I'm Princess of Equestria and I order you..." said Cadence, but Chrysalis interrupted her.

"Wait, I have a better idea," she said, lifting the driver telekinesis and pulling him to the side window. "Come here, come here. Barry, right?"

"Y-yes," he gasped.

"So, Barry, that's my sister," she pointed to the big spider walking toward them, who was already nearby and plucked a lamppost from the ground like a spear and launched it in their direction.

"She's very angry and definitely not going to care if you're with us or not," Chrysalis finished as the pole slammed into the asphalt near the front wheel.

The earth pony's ears perked up in fright.

"So, what do you say, Barry?" The queen asked.

"Barry made a decision, and we're going now!" He said quickly, jumped behind the wheel, and started the engine. The bus turned sharply, and with a screech of wheels, headed for the exit of the parking lot.

The spiders noticed this and sprinted toward it.

The ponies on the bus cried out in fright as they started pummeling the sides of the bus.

"Oh no, we're dead!" Barry exclaimed.

"Not yet, press on the gas!" Twilight said, and pushed the pedal herself, steering the bus through the army of changelings who scattered in all directions.

One of them jumped on the windshield and tried to break it, but the unicorn pressed the washer handle and shot a stream of water into the changeling's eye, making it loosen its grip. He hung on one leg, before Twilight telekinesis tossed him aside like a bug.

"Phew, we made it! Nice driving, buddy!" Shining said cheerfully as the bus pulled onto the highway, heading toward the Wildsberry.

"Thanks," said the trembling driver.

"Yes, we did it," Cadence encouraged. "The worst is over."

"I'm afraid not for long, look," Twilight said, nodding toward the back window.

Everypony turned around and saw Ashaisha and all her children running after them.

"Oh, sweet Celestia! There are monsters everywhere!" One of the passengers gasped.

"They're after us. We're lost," the old woman beside Shining added, frightened.

"Don't worry. They are not interested in you and they will leave you alone as soon as we get into town," said Chrysalis.

"But what shall we do after that?" Cadence asked in a whisper. "We can't bring that entire horde into a crowded tourist town."

"We don't have to. Luckily for you," said the queen, "I have a backup plan."

"A plan? What is it?" Twilight asked her.

"You'll find out soon enough, but I need to call someone first," Chrysalis replied, rummaging through her satchel for a phone. "Damn it! The battery is dead."

She looked around at the passengers on the bus.

"Excuse me," the queen said, approaching a young unicorn filly who was sitting quietly in her seat, chatting with someone, despite the chaos. "Could I borrow your phone for a moment?"

"Um, yeah, sure. Here you go," she said, slightly surprised, handing her pink kitten-embellished phone to Chrysalis.

"Thank you," the queen nodded, quickly dialing a number.

"Hello. Yes, it's me. We're already near the city, and you? Oh, that's great. And where do we go? What? Repeat again. Yeah, yeah, I got it, thanks. We'll try to get as close to you as possible."

She stepped off the phone for a second and turned to the driver.

"Hey, Barry! Where's the Moon Horn Plateau?"

"Uh, just a few miles from Wildsberry," he answered. "We'll take the next bend and be right there."

He pointed to the wide plain ahead of her, surrounded by flat mountains.

"Well, then we're almost there," the queen said into the phone. "Yes, that's good. Wait for us. See you soon, darling."

"There you go," she said contentedly, turning off the phone and handing it to the unicorn. "Thank you very much."

"Who were you talking to, dear?" Shining asked her.

"Just one of my kids," she said, and then she pointed Barry to the curb. "Be a friend and drop us off here."

The pony nodded, and, glancing warily in the rearview mirror, hit the brakes.

"Squad out!" Chrysalis commanded, jumping out with her loved ones.

"Bye, Barry! You're a marvel!" She said goodbye to the driver.

"Yes, yes, thank you for choosing the bus of Captain Barry," he said quickly as he locked the door, clutching his heart.

"So, Chrissy," said Cadence, walking with the others into the desert, "why don't you tell us what you're up to before your demon sister catches up with us?"

"Sure. It's very simple, I thought we might have some trouble, so I've prepared for us..."

"Oh no, look!" Twilight interrupted her, pointing back.

Twilight interrupted her when she pointed backward. She turned to see an army of changeling spiders lunging from the side of the road to surround them.

"Come on, let's get to that house!" Chrysalis shouted, heading toward the abandoned mansion that stood not far from the mountains.

The Shining family followed her, but as soon as they reached the porch of the weedy garden, a spider web, thick as a rope, flew into the building and blocked their path. The queen spider crawled swiftly along it, while her children were advancing on all sides. Not more than a couple of minutes later, the fugitives were encircled.

"That's it. We're done," Shining said with his ears down, staring at the many foes who were rubbing their feet in anticipation.

"You're right, pony," said Ashaisha, who had jumped to the ground. "You're trapped and there's nowhere else to run."

The changeling behind her laughed evilly.

"Well, I'll give you credit for giving me a hard time, but it's all over now. You're on your own with no one to protect you," she grinned, licking her sharp teeth. "Wazzie!"

One of the warriors emerged from the crowd of spiders.

"And so I won't hesitate to finish you off," Ashaisha finished and turned to the big changeling: "Honey, would you be so kind as to please your mommy and tear these upstarts to shreds."

"With pleasure, mother," the changeling grinned like a predator and leaped at Cadence.

"No!" Chrysalis yelled, getting in his way and raising her leg to deflect the blow of his sharp jaws. However, the attack never landed. Instead, it was intercepted by a heavily tattooed zebra, who had leapt down from a broken second-floor window.

"Hey, buddy! What do you think you're doing?" He squinted his eyes, put his hoof forward and grabbed the changeling by the throat.

"Oh, my! That's..." said Cadence, astonished.

"Manny Tucson?" Twilight was ecstatic.

"That's right! The one and only five-time Heavyweight Champion of Equestria!" the zebra confirmed and then turned to the changeling. "My brothers tell me some wretched bastards are hurting my mother," he said angrily, pulling the spider towards him and lifting up off the ground. Especially not to a wretch like you," he finished, and then kicked the helpless warrior in the jaw, sending him into the crowd of foes.

"Oh, thank you, dear. You're just in time," said Chrysalis with a smile.

"It's nothing, mother. I was in as much of a hurry as I could. I even had to cancel my fight in Las Pegasus and fly here in a private blimp, but it was worth it," he said with a chuckle.

"What? Manny Tucson's your son, too?" Cadence gasped.

"Exactly, and he's not the only one," the queen nodded, turning to the distracted spiderqueen. "Well, Ashaisha? Surprised? What was it you said about us being alone and having no one to protect us? Well, I have to disappoint you. We're not alone here at all."

"Yes, mamma, we've been expecting you all evening," an armed unicorn, escorted by twenty or so guards, emerging from the broken windows, doors, and cracked walls of the mansion.

"Lieutenant Varris?" Shining snorted in surprise.

"Aye aye, Captain. We have come to back you up and stop the enemy!" The unicorn saluted quickly, and the warriors behind him struck the ground with their spears.

"Wonderful, my dear. Where are the others?" Chrysalis asked.

"Oh, they're here now, waiting for my signal," said Varris, and raised his horn and emitted a green spark that flew into the air and burst into flames like fireworks.

Ashaisha and her children looked around and saw numerous ponies, bison, and griffins appear on the tops of the mountains. Some of them were dressed in simple casual clothes or work outfits like fast food workers, painters, or doctors, while others wore firemen and police uniforms, and some came in downright crazy outfits. For example, there was a mare in tight black latex and a griffin in a clown outfit.

"You see, sister, I suspected something like this might happen, and I've made a beehive of it near the Wildsberry," said Chrysalis. "So we're on an equal hoofing now."

Ashaisha stepped back, surveying the encircling changeling army.

"And if you don't want to fight us, you'd better surrender," Chrysalis finished.

The spiderqueen's eyes narrowed ominously.

"Never! Come, my children! Defend your queen and crush our enemies!" She shouted loudly and lunged forward.

"Careful!" Said Cadence, pushing her consort away from Ashaisha's sharp legs.

Her children followed her into the fray.

"Squad, close ranks and draw your spears!" Varris and his guards rushed to the front, while the other Chrysalis changelings discarded their cloaks and spread their wings to flank them. A fierce battle ensued between the two groups of changelings.

"Watch out!" Manny Tucson exclaimed as one of the enemy warriors tried to hit Twilight, but the zebra repulsed his attack and turned and kicked the spider in the chest, throwing it back a good twenty paces.

"Oh, thank you, Mr. Tucson," the unicorn said with a coquettish shuffle of her hoof. "By the way, I'm a big fan of yours."

"Well, that's very flattering. But this is no time for autographs, young miss," he winked, turning into a large warrior changeling in the green flames. "We must defeat our enemies first."

He glanced at Chrysalis.

"Well, mother, I'm off to have fun!"

"Sure, dear. Just don't bite anyone's ears off," said the queen admonishingly.

"But, mama!"

"No buts," she said sternly. "You are a good boy, aren't you?"

"Well, yes, but without that fighting would be very boring. Eh, you're just like the Committee on Sportsmanship," the big changeling sighed sadly, and threw himself into the crowd of spiders and started vigorously pounding away with his hoofs.

"Yeah, he's always had a problem with that," Chrysalis said in a whisper. "When he was a baby, he loved biting his brothers' ears."

"I see," Twilight smiled.

"So, family? Now that we're not alone, why don't we join in the battle?" Cadence said excitedly.

"Let's show those spiders how Family Armor fights!" Said Shining.

"I thought you'd take my last name," the alicorn said, picking up a board without looking and swinging it at one of the Ashaisha's changelings had attacked her.

"Well, I'd already thought about it and decided that Mi Amore didn't really go with my name, so..." the unicorn tried to justify himself, but another spider came at them from the side.

Shining ducked, tripped him, and drove his forehead into the nearest rock.

"I've decided I'd better keep my last name," he finished, shaking off his fur.

"Oh, there's something to that," the princess nodded understandingly, rubbing her chin and kicking another of the enemy's changelings in the process.

"I suggest we discuss this matter later," said Chrysalis, grabbing another two spiders and throwing them on the roof of the house. "In the meantime, let's deal with my aggressive sister."

"Right," Cadence agreed. "Let the family business wait a while. We have more important things to do right now."

She took up a fighting stance and shouted:

"Kick their croups!"

And with her family, she rushed into the throng of foes who were crowding the detachment of royal guards.

Chrysalis was the first to engage. She leaped forward and diverted a dozen or so spiders, then with Cadence, who had regained her strength, began to deal them blows and slaps that sent them sprawling and crashing to the ground.

Shining, meanwhile, teamed up with a squad of guards, and together they attacked Ashaisha's warriors, who were beating the children of Chrysalis. Under the unicorn's command, the guards pinned them all to the mansion and with the help of telekinesis, a couple of ropes (and the help of Manny Tucson), captured them all with only minor bruises and bruises.

As they fought outside the mansion, the fighting around them began to quiet down. Though it was quite extensive, no one on either side was seriously injured. The changelings of Chrysalis had been warned in advance and were careful not to maim anyone. As for the Ashaisha's spiders, they were too few to do any meaningful damage.

Finally, after twenty minutes, the battle was over. The children of Chrysalis were confidently victorious and disarmed all their enemies.

All except Ashaisha herself, who was so strong that no one could handle her. Running from one side of the mansion to the other, she chased off anyone who dared to attack her.

When she saw that her army was defeated, she shouted loudly: "Enough!" and picked up a huge rock with her telekinesis and launched it at Cadence and Chrysalis, nearly crushing them. "You may have overpowered my children, but you can't have me. I'm the strongest changeling queen ever!"

She lunged at Chrysalis, deftly catching her with her telekinesis before launching herself at the royal guards with force, scattering them like pins. Cadence and Shining tried to attack her from the side, but she turned and swept them away like bugs.

"It's no use! There is not a single worthy opponent among you! You've lost!" She laughed and, grinning predatorily, grabbed Twilight in a leap.

"Let me go!" The unicorn exclaimed.

"And now you'll see what happens to anypony who crosses me," said the spider, raising one of her insect legs and pointing it at the mare's neck.

"No! Wait! Don't touch her! I give up!" Exclaimed a frightened Chrysalis who rose to her hoofs and shouted to the others: "My children, retreat, we have lost!"

"Ha-ha, you give up?! Because of her? I see you're still trying to save those wretched ponies," Ashaisha grinned. "Is she so important to you that you're willing to lose?"

"Yes, I am. This mare is my husband's sister and I don't want her to get hurt," the queen said.

"C-chrysalis?" Twilight whispered in surprise.

"Oh, how noble. But I'm afraid you can't pacify me," she laughed and snarled at the unicorn, "It's time to die, little pony!"

"Noooooo!" Screamed Chrysalis as she saw her leg drop sharply.

Twilight closed her eyes, preparing to receive the death blow, but then she was shaken violently and fell to the ground. The mare opened one eye before she landed, and saw a blurry blue line crash into the spider queen's side.

"Hey! Don't touch my friend!" Said the rainbow-haired pegasus, who had landed next to her.

"Rainbow!" Rejoiced Twilight.

"Cheeky pony!" Ashaisha hissed, turning to her. "I'll smash you into a pancake!"

"Hey, Evil Queen, aren't you forgetting something?" Somepony tapped her on the shoulder.

"What?" She growled in annoyance and then turned around to see the pink earth pony sitting on her back.

"Before you make pancakes, you need to add some eggs first," Pinkie said, and immediately dropped a crate of eggs on her head. "Then some milk and flour", she beamed, dumping said substances over her back before leaping off.

"Well, now it's just a matter of time," said the mare, contentedly. "I've got to butter you up and put you on the griddle."

"Why, you vile..." Ashaisha said, trying to brush the flour out of her eyes, and seeing Pinkie before her, she tried to kick her, but an apple flew into the back of her head.

"Hey, don't forget the apples!" Said the farmer who jumped up to them, with baskets full of rotten fruit hanging from her sides. "You know what they say: An apple a day keeps the doctor away."

She pulled out a couple more worm-ridden fruit.

"And I have a lot of them, as you can see," she finished, launching them under the spider's legs, causing her to slip and fall to the ground.

"Applejack! Girls!" Said Twilight who came up to them. "I'm glad to see you! But how did you get here?"

"I brought them, Twilight," said Luna, who had landed beside them. "Hi, Cadence."

"Luna, you found us!" The Princess of Love smiled. "Did my dream help you?"

"Well, not exactly," Luna said with a modest shuffle of her hoofs. "It was the lieutenant of our guard who told me where to find you, when he and some of his squad were going out this morning, without me and my sister knowing."

She turned toward Chrysalis.

"And how surprised I was to find out that he was, in fact, a changeling, and a daughter of our dear Chrysalis."

"Wait, you're a mare?" Shining grunted, turning to the lieutenant.

"Yes, sir," said Varris embarrassedly.

"And you kept quiet about it? Not even when I showered with you?" The unicorn blushed. "And a week ago we were seeing who have a bigger…"

"Ahem, sorry to intrude, captain, but perhaps you could discuss this later." Luna interjected. "So, Varris and I talked it over, and I thought I'd bring you some help," she pointed to the gathering of Twilight's friends and Spike the dragon, who was sitting on Fluttershy's back.

"And I brought something to help you in the battle," he said, jumping down and handing Twilight the crown with the Elements of Harmony on it.

"Thank you, Spike," the unicorn smirked, and she flashed her horn as she looked at the spiderqueen lying on the ground. "So, girls, shall we all strike at once?"

"I'm ready!" Said Rainbow Dash as she landed next to her.

"Me too! Let's teach that pest a lesson!" Pinkie joined her, bouncing back to surround Ashaisha with the others.

The elements glowed brightly, and the mares prepared to use them, but Chrysalis got in their way.

"Stop!" She shouted.

"What?" Twilight didn't understand.

"Please don't shoot her," said the queen. "This is a changeling business. Which means it's up to me to decide her fate."

"Well, that's fair," the unicorn agreed.

Chrysalis strode over to the defeated spiderqueen.

"So, sister, you've won," Ashaisha said. "And now you probably want revenge. Go ahead, I'm ready. Finish me off."

Her children stared at the two queens in horror.

"Finish you off?" Repeated Chrysalis. "Actually, that's not what I meant. I was going to spare you."

She held out her hoof.

"What? Spare? After all I've done?" Ashaisha was surprised.

"Yes, Chrysalis, are you crazy?" Rainbow Dash said. "She kidnapped Shining, attacked you and Cadence..."

"...and wanted to kill me and make war on Equestria," the queen added. "Yes, I know that, Rainbow. And in the old days, I'm sure I would have said her actions deserved punishment."

The Spider Queen turned away from her and lowered her head.

"But having lived among the ponies, I've learned that not everything can be solved by violence. Sometimes it is necessary not to punish, but to pity and forgive."

She took the spider queen's leg and helped her up.

"And to admit the mistakes," she said, looking her in the eye. "And that's what I want to do now. Ashaisha, I am sorry that I and the other queens banished you to the wilderness. By taking away your support and leaving you alone, we pushed you down the wrong path, and I want to apologize for that. I'm very sorry for what we did to you."

"But... but she wanted..." the pegasus tried again to intervene.

"Shh, Rainbow," Twilight hissed.

"Being alone and abandoned by everyone was a terrible feeling that haunted me for years, too," continued Chrysalis. "But then, I met my husband and wife, who helped me and taught me real love. The kind that doesn't have to be taken from anyone or stolen."

She gently took Ashaisha by the shoulders.

"And you can learn it, too, if you stop feuding with other species and start being friends with them."

"Friend? With the ponies? But we'll always be monsters to them. And no matter what we do, they'll never accept us," the spider frowned.

"I used to think so, too. But then I found out not all ponies are like that. Yes, neither you nor I can win their trust in an instant, but if we're patient and open our hearts to them, sooner or later they'll love us."

As she spoke, Shining and Cadence came up behind her and put their arms around her neck.

"It's true. At first I didn't trust Chrysalis, like everypony else, and I thought she was a monster. But then, after a while, I got to know her better, and we became close," the alicorn confirmed. "Though I never imagined I'd ever fallen in love with a changeling before."

"But I'm not Chrysalis. I'm a spider. And unlike her, I don't look like a pony at all," Ashaisha said. "No one would love someone like me."

"That's where you're wrong. There are no limits to love. And I sincerely believe that, in time, you will find someone who accepts you for who you are," Cadence said. "Believe me, I am the Princess of Love, and I know a thing or two about it."

The spiderqueen looked at her incredulously. In her eyes she could see that two conflicting feelings were struggling inside her-her old beliefs and the hope Alicorn had given her.

"So, what do you think, sister?" Chrysalis asked after a couple of minutes. "Will you give me and the other species another chance?"

Ashaisha hesitated for a few seconds. She turned around and looked at her children, who were waiting with the others for her answer.

Finally she made up her mind and said quietly:

"All right, Chrysalis. I'm willing to risk it."

As soon as she said this, the ponies and changelings around her applauded loudly. And this joyful stomping was so sincere and loud that the spider queen involuntarily shed a tear. She stood up straighter, meeting Chrysalis's gaze before leaning forward and embracing her in a tight hug.

"Thank you, sister," she said.

"Hey, no problem. You know how changeling queens are supposed to help each other," Chrysalis smiled as she patted her on the back.

Finally, that happy moment was over, too. Twilight and her friends and Luna went to help the changelings and free the no longer dangerous spiders, leaving Shining and his wives alone.

"Phew, glory to Celestia. I'm glad that's all behind us," he said.

"Yes, it was quite an adventure," Cadence agreed. "We traveled hundreds of miles by train, went to gay clubs, fought ghosts..."

"And I had to climb up the sewer pipes and fight the rats and then swim out of the toilet bowl like a goldfish," added Chrysalis.

"Gay club? A toilet bowl?" Shining snorted in surprise.

"Oh, never mind. We'll tell you when we get home," said the queen.

"But first I propose we celebrate our victory," Cadence said, pulling Shining and Chrysalis close to her.

"Oh yes, we'll have a party!" The queen said to the cheers of Pinkie Pie.

"And I even know where," the princess smiled. "I saw a really great place while Chrissy and I were walking around the Wildsberry where we could hang out."

"Oh yes? Where would that be?" Shining asked cautiously, remembering that they were near a cowboy town, which would mean some kind of saloon or bridal inn.

"Oh, I'm sure you'd like it there," Cadence smirked slyly.

***

"Well, kids. Who wants to hear a song?" The big Robot Pinkie said loudly to the foals gathered around her.

"We do!" They shouted.

"Then get ready, now I'll sing you my most favorite song about smiles!" She said with a slight metallic echo, and the robot friends standing next to her began to play musical instruments, making their little audience jump happily.

"Here you go, your order is ready," said the waitress who came up at that moment, placing a huge, freshly made pizza on the large table where the entire Shining family, Twilight's friends, and Princess Luna were gathered.

"Is this what you call a great place?" Asked the white stallion as he watched his spouses and friends gorge themselves on the food. "A foal’s café with animatronics?"

"Yeah, what's the big deal?" Cadence said, quickly devouring a huge slice of pizza. "It's really fun and cozy and plenty of room for our new friends."

"And the food is good, too. Cadence and I haven't eaten in a long time. Not since you were kidnapped," said Chrysalis, dipping her bite into the gravy and swallowing it whole.

"Actually, to be honest, you did take a bite once," the Princess of Love giggled. "When we were doing something in the warehouse."

"Well, yes, but I'll never turn down fresh pizza," the queen said, taking a new slice and stretching the cheese with her teeth.

"Well, lucky for the owner of this place," said Shining. "I'll bet he's never had so many customers before."

He turned and glanced around the pizzeria. The disguised changelings of Chrysalis and Ashaisha were sitting at its many tables, celebrating the end of the conflict with them.

"It's definitely been a long time since my pizzeria drew such crowds," Pinkie Pie nodded with a smile, not stopping as she ate one slice of pizza after another.

"What?! You own this place?" Rainbow Dash gasped in surprise.

"Of course I do, silly," the earth pony confirmed. "I run a whole network of them, and I've established them all over Equestria, to keep the little foals happy and entertained."

"It's... amazing! I never would have guessed that you ran such a huge business," said Rarity.

"Oh, really? Why do you think I always carry a lot of bits?" Pinkie asked.

"Well, I don't know. I thought you just..." said the unicorn, uncertainly.

"Get them out of your mane? Oh, no, that's impossible," the pink pony said. "I don't know how to get money out of thin air."

"He-he, I know that would be too much..." chuckled Rarity.

"I only keep party decorations and goodies in it," Pinkie Pie finished, retrieving a large jar of sweet and sour sauce from her mane to dab on the pizza.

"…for you," the unicorn finished with her mouth open. "Uh... how did she..."

"Don't ask. It's Pinkie," Rainbow Dash whispered in her ear.

"Yes you're right," Rarity agreed.

While they and the others were discussing their daily business, Twilight quietly sat down with Chrysalis.

"Um, can I talk to you for a minute?" She asked.

"Sure, Twilight, what is it?" Wiping her lips with a napkin, the queen said.

"I just wanted to apologize to you for being so suspicious all this time," the purple mare replied. "Honestly, I was surprised when, during the battle, you were willing to surrender and sacrifice yourself to save me. I... didn't expect that. Thank you."

"You're welcome, Twilight. It's no surprise, though. After all, you're my husband's sister, and I couldn't help it," said Chrysalis. "And besides, we're practically related, so I..."

"No," said the unicorn.

"No?" The queen raised an eyebrow.

"We are related," said Twilight. "I'm glad my brother has such a sensitive, caring wife. And also..."

She paused for a second to exhale. It was obvious that it wasn't easy for her to admit her mistakes, but then she pulled herself together and continued:

"...I'd like us to forget our old differences and start over. Unless, of course, you don't mind."

"Of course, Twilight," said Chrysalis. "I've wanted to for a long time. Back when I was a guest of yours. I'd be happy to have you as my friend."

"Then, peace?" The unicorn asked with a smile.

"Peace," the queen confirmed, and they both hugged each other tightly.

While Twilight and Chrysalis were talking about mending fences, Cadence, still hungry, turned away from the table and watched with interest as the little foals ran around the pizza place and played with the big robots that the enterprising Pinkie Pie had copied from herself and her friends.

"They're great little guys," she said as she watched a group of foals celebrating a mate's birthday at a nearby table.

"Yeah, they are," Shining Armor, who was sitting next to her, confirmed, not sincerely. He, too, had taken a break from eating and was now watching the blond unicorn guard who was dragging the colt with the bandage on his cheek by the ear.

"That's it, mister, you're through playing, you're not getting into our animatronics anymore," she said to the reluctant cub, who kept kicking her in the legs. "They cost money, by the way."

"Yes, the colts are something else," the unicorn said with a frown.

"You don't say. Every time I see a foal, it makes me want to burst into flames," said Cadence, ignoring her husband's sour expression. - "Kids are so..."

"Noisy," said Shining.

"Cute," the princess protested.

"Harmful," the stallion said.

"Funny," the alicorn continued.

"Nasty."

"Oh, Shiny, you don't know what you're talking about," sighed Cadence. "Foals are bliss."

"Yeah, when you look at them from the outside, but they're so much trouble in reality."

"Maybe, but they make you happy, too," said the princess. "I hope we can have children someday."

"Well, yes, perhaps in a few..." the stallion began uncertainly, but Alicorn interrupted him:

"Tell me, Shiny, why are you so afraid to have foals?"

"Afraid?"

"Afraid," Cadence repeated in a hard voice. "Why don't you want us to have children?"

"Well, it's hard to explain. It's just that, uh... just a few months ago I was a free and independent stud, and then our weird wedding happened and everything spun so fast. And then, during dinner with my family, you and Chrysalis started talking about foals, and I got scared...well...that I wouldn't be able to handle them."

"Is that all?" Snorted the alicorn.

"Yes," he nodded. "I'm not sure I can be dad."

"Nonsense, dear, you are a wonderful husband. I'm sure you'll be just as good a dad."

"Do you think so?" He asked. "But I've never took care of somepony."

Alicorn looked at him with a smirk.

"I mean, somepony small," he clarified.

"So? There's a first time for everything, but that's no reason to be afraid of responsibility. Look at Chrysalis. How many children she has, and how sincerely they love her. Do you think it's easy for her to raise such a huge family?"

"Not easy, believe me," said the queen hugging Twilight.

"You see, Cady," the unicorn said.

"But I don't regret it," said Chrysalis. "And as hard as it was for me sometimes, I wouldn't trade the day I spent with them for anything."

"You see, dear," Cadence repeated with a smile. "Anyway, think about it and tell us when you finally decide to be a dad."

She turned away from him and continued eating another pizza he had brought.

"When will I decide?" He repeated mentally, watching the mares and studs running around the pizza parlor. "Oh, it's so hard, having one, two, maybe thirty babies at once. But on the other hoof, I'm not a kid anymore, and I'm well aware that sooner or later that day will come."

He looked hesitantly at both spouses.

"But since it is, why wait with it? Put it off until later? I'm going to say it someday anyway, and we'll have foals, and therefore, it's time to stop being afraid and take the next step. The last and most responsible one of my life."

"Cadence, Chrissy," he said loudly, making all the ponies around the table look at him. "I've made my decision and I'm ready to be a dad."

For a few seconds it seemed as if there was a dead silence in the room. Both wives stared at him in surprise, mixed with delight, without a word, and then suddenly broke away from their seats and jumped into his arms.

"Yes! Hurrah!" Cadence shouted.

"He agreed!" Chrysalis cheered.

"Oh my goodness! So I'm going to be an aunt soon!" Twilight smiled.

"This needs to be celebrated! With the biggest party ever!" Pinkie Pie said, jumping on a chair.

"Oh yes, it is," the unicorn affirmed. "Except this party won't be at some cafe or pizza place, it will be in our bedroom," he added mentally as he hugged his wives, experiencing the most frightening yet best moment of his life.

Author's Note

So this is the penultimate chapter. I'll admit that it was quite difficult to write, but thanks to my own diligence and the help of a few friends, it's finally ready. Thank you all for reading it