Queen of the Crystal Empire

Chapter 3
Changes

The negotiation was as tedious and dry as you expected. Cadance came prepared with a long list of complaints from ponies you had wronged in your attack, as well as demands that they wanted fulfilled. It mostly involved an apology tour that you were to take around Canterlot, but there was also a section mentioning private discussions with Celestia. After all of that nonsense, you could finally discuss all the things you wanted. Your list of demands was a short one— allow access to the Crystal Empire at will. It had originally been far longer, but recent events provided a new alternative to your original plan of drawing out negotiations until your changelings could secretly fill up on love before your return trip.

You gently rub your stomach. As far back as you can remember, you've never had this feeling of being full. It was always degrees of hunger to starvation. Gliding your hoof just a bit lower, you graze something that wasn't there before and the sensitive sensation makes you flinch away.

"—Listening?" you vaguely hear in the background of your distractions.

"Yes, of course I'm listening," you lie, "but please repeat the last part again so I can be sure I heard you correctly." You fight to urge to look down at yourself to see what's amiss and instead stare across the large, crystalline table at Cadance. The room also feels as though it's gotten warmer over the course of your discussion.

The princess tilts her head slightly and repeats herself, "I asked if that was really all you wanted?"

You give her a genuine smile, "Yes, Princess, that is all we want."

She appears a bit discomforted by this news and asks, "Might I ask why? Surely you are not interested in Shining Armor and myself, and the city was only recently added to Equestria, so it is not something you likely knew existed."

That's as good an excuse as any you could think of. You thank Cadance in your head as you say, "Why, of course you and Shining Armor are the reason. We wish to make amends for our past by assisting you in any way we can." You sit up tall and raise your chin to appear proud before continuing, "Once we have proven our change of heart, we look forward to being welcomed as equals to Equestria. It is the land of love, after all."

"I... suppose that makes sense," Cadance responds as she taps her chin with her hoof. "Shining Armor will probably be... dissappointed by the news."

For the negotiation to proceed smoothly, Cadance suggested that Shining Armor should busy himself with guarding the rest of your changeling escort— far away from the meeting room. That way, he could not interrupt either of you after every sentence. In his place, he assigned a dozen guards, all standing in a full circle around the table to keep a close eye on you.

A strange sensation emanates from the place you previously grazed. You can't help but finally look down as nonchalantly as you can manage and are shocked by what you see— your teats, normally barely visible, have significantly increased in size. It now appeared as though a couple of apples were attached to your underside. A mild panic spreads through your mind, but outwardly, you project complete serenity.

Cadance seems to have misinterpreted any slip of expression you just had and reassures you, "Don't be concerned with Shining Armor. I will talk to him tonight and see if we can come to an understanding. In the morning, we can have our closing discussion and go from there."

You twitch slightly, "Do you plan to keep us here overnight?"

Cadance smiles and nods, "Of course we plan to host you, Queen Chrysalis. Your changelings as well." She pauses and looks embarrassed to continue, "I hate to ask, but do changelings eat, well, anything other than love? We normally prepare a lavish meal for visiting dignitaries before having our meetings, but we were unsure if that might be viewed as an insult to a changeling."

You put your growing problem on hold for now and answer her query, "Yes, we can eat food the same way anypony can. How can I explain in pony terms?" You scoot closer to the table to hide your lower half and tap your hoof on its surface as you think. "It acts as a filler, perhaps, providing us with a feeling of being sustained, but providing relatively little energy. Love provides both."

You blink at yourself in surprise. You are actually enjoying speaking with Cadance, and freely providing her with information she doesn't need to know. All of that rage from before feels as though it has just... dried up. It is... nice. Should that disturb you? It probably should, but you can't bring yourself to care that it doesn't.

"Interesting. That brings me to a problem we need to settle before we continue any further," Cadance says as she repositions herself in her chair to sit up as straight as possible. "How, exactly, do you intend on collecting love if that is what you need to sustain yourselves? We have already seen you do it through force, and it was... unhealthy for the ponies involved."

She's not smiling for this question. Should you tell her about the heart's affect? You glance down for a moment. No, that would be extremely undignified. Simply stating the feeding part should satisfy her. You give her a small nod and speak, "In that regard, it seems we have been most fortunate. Your crystal heart's protection spell is saturated with love, and has fed us beyond anything we've experienced before. There's simply no need to feed on ponies directly."

Cadance doesn't say anything for a few moments. It's a long enough pause that it makes you wonder if perhaps you said something you shouldn't have, and then Cadance confirms your fears, "You only recently learned about the Crystal Empire, and the effects the crystal heart has. You did not originally come here with peaceful intentions, did you?" she finishes bluntly.

You feel a powerful urge to continue being honest with her, but your nature yanks at you like a chain. You have a hive to protect! You can't jeopardize your progress now. You take a deep breath and begin speaking, but you can't keep eye contact, "Of course not, Princess! We have change..." You take another breath and try again, "Changed. We only requested a chance to prove ourselves, and..." you glance up at Cadance. She wears a look of disappointment, but doesn't make any attempt to confront you.

Against all of your instincts and desires, you make a serious decision that you feel needs to be made. No games, no tricks, no greater scheme, just the truth. You stare at Cadance with a blank expression, "I came here to find a weakness to exploit. The changelings I brought are all specialized in collecting and storing the largest amount of love possible. The rest of my hive is indeed starving and on the brink of death, and they await my return in my own land only because they lacked the strength to make this journey. This was the only option I saw, and I had no intention on being swayed away from my goal, no matter the cost to myself or your empire."

Cadance leans forward, resting her head on her hooves, and her expression softens, "I guess Celestia was right." She looks you up and down as you process what her statement meant. "So, this is the real Queen Chrysalis. I am pleased I could meet you."

What does that mean? You blink, but can't find any words to respond with.

The princess gives you a smile and returns to her normal sitting position, "From the way you phrased your confession, it sounds as though you no longer intend to go through with your original plan." You look away before she finishes her last thought on the matter, "I am glad you no longer feel so desperate and cornered."

You feel something clench in your chest and your vision blurs. Climbing down from your seat, you ask, "Where did you intend to host us? I believe we've spoken enough for tonight. You do love the sound of your own voice, Princess."

"The guards will show you where you'll be staying," you hear her say. Raising her voice slightly, she orders the guards, "Show our guest to her quarters. I believe the order Shining Armor gave you to stand watch from inside her quarters will no longer be necessary; standing outside her doorway will suffice. If this upsets him, please send him to speak with me."

As you follow the escort of guards out of the meeting room, you hear Cadance say something too quietly for you to understand. Whatever, you have too much to think about right now to worry about it.

The guards open an imposing, ornate door for you, which leads to a lavish bedroom. As you step inside, they close the door behind you. You were hoping the room would feel cooler than the rest of the castle has thus far, but you were mistaken. You look around at the decor as you lightly fan yourself with a hoof and ask yourself out loud, "Do ponies get cold so easily? This is ridiculous!" The bed is excessively massive, there's a large dresser with an equally large mirror adorning the top, and you could open a shop with all the curtains and fabrics hanging on the walls. Everything is as though it were carved from solid crystal of various colors. It's fit for royalty, such as yourself, although it's probably used to host any important guests.

You throw open every window in the room, as well as the balcony doors for good measure. The crisp night air floods the room, but it hardly makes you feel any better. You decide to check on your other problem instead. Climbing onto the bed and laying down, you look over at your swelling teats. You swear they're even bigger than just a short while ago in the meeting room. Reaching down and gently rubbing them elicits a light moan. Your nipples are thick and far more sensitive than they should be. Even the gentlest touch makes you flinch in pleasure. You think it's very indignant, and yet...

The next thing you notice is how soaked your nethers are. There's a light, but constant trickle of fluid running down and soiling the clean bed covers. Even your ovipositor is peaking out from your slit, exactly where you'd expect a pony clit to be, and contributing to the mess with its own lubricant. Not even the seasonal heat has this dramatic an affect on your body and mind.

Your hooves shake as you reach past your engorged teats and nearly reach your crotch, but you stop yourself and shake your head. "Get ahold of yourself, Chrysalis! You're on an important diplomatic mission to save your changelings, and here you are, behaving like a youth in rut! Is your mind so weak?!" You shout at yourself in your mind.

You leap out of bed and pace around the room a bit to cool off, leaving a dripping liquid trail everywhere you go. You ignore it and focus your thoughts on your mission. Cadance seemed pleased with you in spite of what you told her. If she can convince her thick-headed husband, then your mission will be a resounding success. She even arranged to have their guards stay out of your private quarters. Considering recent events, that was more helpful than she'll ever realize. You glance out the windows as you pass them. There are still plenty of guards flying around and watching each exit to the room. You stop pacing and look back at the mess you're making. Perhaps you should just sleep it off.