Taking the Queen

When Chrysalis awoke from her slumber, it was not amidst the grass she had fallen asleep on, though it was no less cushioned. Her head was elevated, and the crick in her neck from the past few days was greatly diminished. It felt as though she were in a small bed, up against a wall.

What might have happened ran through her head. She always transformed before going to sleep, just in case she was found. It was standard practice when travelling the roads, and an extra safety measure when cutting across the countryside. She was too valuable to lose, being the queen, so in any circumstance, she needed to sleep shifted. It was the only safe route. She had probably been picked up by some stallion who brought her back to his home to nurse her back to health.

As soon as she opened her eyes, though, she remembered that she hadn't shifted. It would have taken too much of her energy to shift because she hadn't eaten in so long. She had just been herself. So when she was found, she was immediately identified as not only a changeling, but a changeling queen. That meant...

"You're awake."

Chrysalis knew that voice. She'd recognize it anywhere. "Princess Twilight Sparkle." Chrysalis chuckled as she stood up, rolling out of bed. "Come to gawk at my little cage? Or perhaps you're here to surrender before things turn ugly?"

"It's a little late for that," smirked Twilight. "Surrendering now would be quite the misplay. I'm not a big fan of backsteps. The question is, are you willing to cooperate with us?"

Chrysalis chuckled as she took a step closer to Twilight. "I'm an open book, princess. Ask me anything."

"How many changelings did you have in your invasion party?"

"Two hundred and six."

"Where are your guards?"

"Just up the stairs and to the left."

"What is your plan this time?"

"We're going to dress up in kitten costumes and be adopted by Fluttershy. She has enough love to feed us all for centuries."

Twilight sighed. "So, you're not cooperating?"

"Of course I am!" smirked Chrysalis. "I've given answers to all of your questions!"

"Unbelievable answers," scowled Twilight.

"Even if I were to tell you the truth, would you believe a word of it? You're already set to strike me down with a prejudicial treatment, whether I say I have no guards or a thousand, whether I'm cutting a swath through Equestria or just going to the west coast for a beach party, and whether my plan is to slaughter all of Equestria or start a new breed of vampire puppies. No matter what I say, you're prepared to not believe me." She leaned in close, pressing the corners of her snout against the bars of her cell. "Isn't that right, Princess?"

Twilight sighed. "I was going to give you the benefit of the doubt. I was going to send a recon team out to verify that your information is accurate and go from there. I was even legitimately willing to cut a deal with you to improve your situation. A nicer bed, a bigger cell, even somepony to feed you. But if you're going to make this difficult, then I have little choice but to let you rot in here."

"Oh, you most certainly do have a choice, Twilight," grinned Chrysalis. "And you're going to take the other option. I know you will." She turned and walked back into her cell, flagging her tail to show Twilight her arse. "Because unlike me, you don't have the stomach to let your prisoners starve to death. You're too caring for your own good. You'll feed me, you'll make sure I am regularly bathed, and you'll ensure that I am kept healthy. Because you care." She sat down on the bed and cackled. "Tell me I'm wrong."

As much as she wanted to, Twilight could not disclaim the validity of Chrysalis' accusation. Her threat to let Chrysalis rot down here was an empty one, as even with the safety of Equestria at risk, she could not bring herself to sentence the changeling queen to death, even through inaction. She'd be thinking about Chrysalis starving every time her mind began to wander, and it just seemed too cruel for her. Twilight did not have the heart for it.

"Your silence speaks volumes," snickered Chrysalis. "Even though it is I that is behind bars, you're more a prisoner than I am, simply through your own emotions. You're trapped in here just as much as, if not more than, I am. You'd do well to settle in for the long haul, Twilight. I can outlast you."

"Is that so?" huffed Twilight. Her frown twisted into a smirk. "Well, I'll take your word for it. I'm going to go have a big lunch, talk to whomever I so choose, and go back to my very own plush feather bed after nightfall. I may even have company that I can invite in or send away at my leisure."

"But you'll be back," sneered Chrysalis. "Whether it's tomorrow morning or three days from now, you'll be standing in the exact same spot, feeding me because you took pity on me, and you don't want me to die in your care."

"We'll see about that," growled Twilight, turning and walking away.

With Twilight gone, Chrysalis approached the cage wall again, looking up and down the corridor. A single guard was patrolling the hallway, and the silence indicated that she was fairly isolated from all of the others. She waited for the guard to come close, then grabbed him through the bars.

Rather, that was her intent, but she had not noticed that her legs were bound to the back wall. Her hooves moved a few centimetres through the bars, then the chains went taut, and her legs could go no further.

"Yeah, you've been deemed a hazard to other ponies," explained the guard. "You're pretty well in there on a permanent basis until Princess Twilight says otherwise. You'd best make yourself comfortable; you're going to be locked up for a very long time."

"You know what would make me comfortable?" she asked, licking her teeth. She pushed her face as far forward as it could go, trying to suck away all of his love, but it did not work. She received nothing.

"Is there anything else you want to try?" asked the guard. "I'll outright tell you that most of it won't work. We've accounted for almost every scenario."