Chapters Ugh...My...My head...
Where...Where am I...?
"Welcome back, changeling." a voice spat.
No...Not him, not again...
"Cozy in your new, permanent home?"
"Shining Armor..."
"Don't you dare
As her vision cleared and brought into focus a furious white unicorn, Chrysalis realized that she was laying on the cold stone floor of a jail cell; probably in Canterlot. Loose bits of hay littered the floor and a wooden bucket sat in the corner, reeking of excrement despite being empty.
Shining Armor stood on the opposite side of the thick iron bars while two unicorn guards took a post on the wall behind him; facing Chrysalis.
"What do you have to say for yourself?!" Shining Armor growled, resisting the urge to let loose his magic and kill the changeling. He was under strict orders from Princess Celestia and technically wasn't even supposed to be down here at all.
In response to his fuming question, Chrysalis crossed her front hooves comfortably and smiled slyly. "That your love tasted like strawberries."
~=(♥)=~
Help me, my subjects! I am trapped in Canterlot in some sort of dungeon! Chrysalis thought, sending her message through every channel in her Hive.
They cannot hear you.
Chrysalis's eyes shot open, breaking her concentration as a new, stern voice spoke into her head.
Who...Who dares invade the mind of their Queen?!
I have no queen, Chrysalis; for I * AM** a queen.*
At that, the voice stopped talking and Chrysalis stopped trying to broadcast to her swarm.
They'll figure it out eventually, oh yes they will. And then...Then I'll have my revenge on all of your precious little ponies...
Content with the thought of her imminent rescue, Chrysalis began eying the two guards posted just outside of her cell hungrily; telepathically searching through their mind and memories for desires of loved ones that were too strong to resist.
She was hungry, and she knew very well that Princess Celestia knew that actual food held no value for a changeling.
But something strange was happening with these guards.
Despite all of her best efforts, Chrysalis couldn't even see a faint outline of memories from either of the guards.
It was as if something were...Blocking her...
The realization hit Chrysalis like a bag of bricks and she reached up with both hooves to claw at the enchanted ring that wrapped around the base of her horn.
"Damn you, Celestia! DAMN YOU
The guards hardly shifted from their positions as Chrysalis began hurling every obscenity she knew at the Sun Goddess's name.
Eventually, after a few hours of this, she had either run out of terms or simply worn herself out.
Get a hold of yourself, Chrysalis! You're blowing off magic, and it's apparent that these ponies are trying to starve you. Just think...How to get out of here? Think, think, think...
A realization never came to her.
~=(♥)=~
"Are you hungry?" a voice asked softly.
If it weren't for the masked hatred that Chrysalis could feel ebbing off of the creature she hardly would have noticed her presence.
But she did, and was awoken from her fruitless slumber.
"Are you hungry?" Princess Celestia repeated, doing her best to keep a neutral tone.
Chrysalis simply glared at the monarch as she continued to lay on the cold, dirty floor of her cell.
The staring contest went on for a few more minutes before Celestia sighed and trotted away.
"Alert me if she asks for food." she commanded two new guards who had taken up post as she slept.
Yawning and thinking nothing more of the matter, Queen Chrysalis settled her snout on her crossed hooves and sunk back into her dreams; ignoring the throbbing pain that rocked her mind as her body cried out for nourishment.
"What do you propose we do with her, dear sister?" Princess Celestia asked, grinning wickedly and not removing her gaze from a terrified Chrysalis.
Chrysalis struggled to calm her beating heart while her body was frozen in place. She watched in awe and horror as Celestia's fiery mane flowed gently and danced along to the left.
"We have spent much time reading after our return, sister, and are quite fond of the book 'A Most Dangerous Game ." Princess Luna replied with the same demeanor as her sister.
Princess Luna's mane was a swirling length of darkness, and if Chrysalis stared long enough she swore she could see the faint outline of pony skulls in addition to a strange visual that made it seem like Luna's own skull was visible through her face.
Princess Celestia nodded in agreement at the notion of it being a well written book, taking her eyes off of the shivering changeling queen for only a moment before continuing.
"You have ten minutes." Celestia said, and Chrysalis suddenly found herself in the streets of Canterlot; her hooves pounding against the cobblestone as she ran to hide somewhere.
She had not read this book, nor had she even heard of it, but that was most likely due to the fact that the author was likely a pony.
She had no idea what to expect.
And then, suddenly, the cobblestone began changing into a swirling black and dark blue mist.
Chrysalis skidded to a halt and looked around in search of the two alicorns that were apparently chasing her.
She did not see them.
In fact, she couldn't see anything besides the swirling mist. The buildings of Canterlot had dissolved and even the afternoon sky was no longer bright.
Just black and dark blue mist.
Everywhere.
~=(♥)=~
Chrysalis let out a whimper before risking a glance at the door to her cell.
The guards had gone and all was quiet, save for a few low whispers that Chrysalis barely managed to catch from the corner of her cell.
As she spread herself out from her protective, cowering ball, she inched her way quietly to the bars of her cell and strained to hear what was being said.
"I gave you specific orders not to...." the first voice said sternly, dropping its tone to a hush at the last few words.
"We apologize, sister. We are not as apt at controlling ourselves as you are; perhaps due to our social difficulties after one thousand years of banishment." the second voice spat.
"That's not fair, Luna. You would have done the same to me if you were in my hooves."
"Tis not fair? Tis not * fair**?! We believe we know much more about 'fairness' than thee, Celestia! And this is a pony- nay, a *Changeling , who threatened our home and our ponies! She deserves what she has earned and what we are giving her!"
"Luna, control yourself! I understand that you are still the goddess of war, but how can you not see the potential behind this? If we are to change Chrysalis, then we can secure peace between the Changeling nation and Equestria."
"To Tartarus with peace! She has insulted our name, our crown, and even imprisoned and then impersonated our own daughter! Peace does not travel on the back of war, Celestia; only revenge."
There was a pause between the two voices for quite some time before the first one spoke up again.
"If you ever happily send you back to your little moon cave."
A pained gasp of shock sounded from the second voice as the clip-clop of hooves fainted into silence.
There was a long pause of well over a few minutes before the second pony's hooves sounded fainter and fainter; slowly trotting up the stone stairs that were just out of sight.
~=(♥)=~
Hello? Can anyone hear me? Queen Chrysalis thought loudly, still confident that eventually she would come into contact with another loyal changeling.
It had been three days since she first woke up, and her head continued to throb in pain with hunger.
She was nowhere near hungry enough to throw herself at the hooves of the enemy, especially after that little conversation she had overheard a day ago.
Just what was Celestia planning? How would she "change" Chrysalis?
Only time would tell, she knew, and she plenty of time on her hooves...
Chrysalis was content.
She had no worries, no fears, no regret, no hunger, and no anger as she slowly, peacefully, walked through the never ending fields of wheat.
It was blissful; it was pure calmness.
She hummed a soft Changeling lullaby to herself as she continued forward with her eyes closed, certain that nothing would come at her and that she wouldn't, by chance, trip over a rock or root or something of that nature.
There were no memories of the prison, the failed invasion, or the starvation that had led her to attack.
She hardly even knew why or how she was here, but she didn't care.
Chrysalis was content.
And then she woke up.
~=(♥)=~
Two eyes stared back at her in a curious but neutral way, and Chrysalis let out a snarl as she realized Celestia's student was examining her.
"Come to rub it my face, or perhaps you're here to beg for forgiveness for when I break out of here and take over?" Chrysalis mused with a sinister smirk.
Twilight stared, unamused, at the helpless Changeling Queen before flicking her horn rather painfully.
"You little whelp! I'll skin you alive, I'll hang your corpse from the rafters, I'll-" Chrysalis screamed as she clutched her horn in an attempt to null the pain.
"I'm sorry." Twilight interrupted.
Chrysalis could feel the emotions rolling off of the unicorn in waves.
Sadness, hope....Curiosity? the Changeling thought as she tasted each emotion.
Chrysalis wasn't sure she liked the feeling of curiosity coming from Twilight Sparkle, but no matter how hard she searched for it she couldn't find the one emotion that would put her above the bothersome unicorn.
Fear.
Twilight Sparkle did not fear the Changeling but she should, and she soon would...
Rising to her hooves quickly, Chrysalis grinned like a maniac and jabbed her horn into Twilight's chest--
Only to have the apparition dissolve into purple powder.
The real Twilight Sparkle sat safely behind the iron bars, channeling her magic into the image before her concentration broke at Chrysalis's attack.
Twilight blinked at the Changeling Queen in confusion and even intenser curiosity, which nearly caused the Queen to double over.
"Maybe it would be better if I came back tomorrow..." Twilight said awkwardly.
"Perhaps it would be better if you didn't come back at all!" Chrysalis snapped, trying to flare her magic and wincing in pain every time the metal band around the base of her horn reacted; sending waves of pure energy through the Changeling's body that felt like pure fire.
The purple unicorn sighed and shook her head in a disappointed manner before turning away to leave the Changeling alone.
So dreadfully alone.
But I'd rather be alone than in the company of such vile creatures! Chrysalis thought furiously, a gentle flow of doubt quietly entering her mind.
~=(♥)=~
Chrysalis grinned wickedly at her victory.
She had finally beaten the ponies.
She had done it.
There, again! I won again! Chrysalis mused happily as the Royal Guard blinked again.
Queen Chrysalis had yet to blink, although she certainly had an advantage with her 'second eye', or the thin, transparent film that she could willingly close over her eyes to keep out the rushing wind and bugs when she flew.
Chrysalis chuckled to herself as the guard changed and the losers retreated back to wherever they had come from.
New challengers, goody.
...
Did I really just think that? 'Goody'?
Chrysalis snarled at herself; she had been getting too soft while in the presence of these ponies.
She needed to be back in her swarm, her children, where she could feed them and keep them safe.
Chrysalis turned to the left wall of her cell and inspected the scratches she had managed to make in the wall.
Six days. It has been six days since I woke up here. One more and the hive will fully revert back to its primal instincts... Chrysalis thought sadly.
The life of a Changeling was a sad one indeed.
Changelings were born without a mind, lived only to serve their ruler to their dying breath. Changeling royalty were the only ones with true sentience in the hive, and all males in the royal line were restricted to positions such as the Changeling Military, or Scavengers.
The Queen held all the power, but without her the hive would eventually collapse.
Not wishing to remind herself how her hive worked and would eventually fall without her there, Chrysalis turned her attention to the small, barred window behind her.
Soon, my children...Soon...
~=(♥)=~
Food...
Feed...
FEED! Chrysalis's body screamed.
It was a painful experience to starve, but even more painful when it was a Changeling starving.
In addition to the simple but intense pains on the inside that normal creatures would feel, a Changeling felt every inch of their body as if it were aflame while the green or blue scales that adorned the Changeling's torso slowly fell off to expose the inside of the Changeling anatomy.
Chrysalis's scales had only just begin to crumble at her touch, but she knew it would only worsen if she did not feed soon; especially in a hostile environment.
What would the ponies do when they discovered what was happening?
Would they string her up in public to let the ponies watch in morbid fascination as her scales fell away and her vital organs spilled from her body?
Would they tear the rest of the scales off faster to add to her pain?
...
Would they laugh as they did so, their voices forever echoing in the dying Queen's mind as a reminder of her failure?
Chrysalis didn't even notice the four white hooves that stood outside her cell as she quietly began to sob.
"You know it doesn't have to be this way." a motherly voice whispered, making her concerns for the pitiful Changeling known.
Chrysalis glared inn anger and frustration.
How * DARE** she try to console me like a child!*
Chrysalis was on the verge of slamming herself against the iron bars in an obviously feeble attempt to get at the Princess of the Sun when she spoke again.
"I hold no ill will towards you or your kind, for whatever reason you chose to invade Equestria. I only keep you here because you are a threat to Equestria if left unchanged."
"Ha! Fearful of us as you should be, wench!" Chrysalis spat.
Celestia's face held no signs of shock, disgust, pain or even fear.
Instead, she sported an understanding smile paired nicely with two soft eyes.
"You do not feed on fear, so why do you crave it so much?" Celestia wondered aloud.
"My desires are none of your concern, pony princess!"
"As a matter of fact, they are. Because you lead a nation, Chrysalis, a nation that may very well aim to harm my little ponies. But I see something in you, something I should have seen in another but did not one thousand years ago. It may seem selfish that I'm simply changing you to make myself feel better about the past, but it is also for the sake of your kind. I have endured thousands of years of hardships, two thousand or more of those years alone, and never once have I come across a creature so malicious and vengeful as yourself. Equestria is not prepared for a war- of this you are aware- but my ponies will fight to the death if their lives and freedom are at stake. I have never heard of your kind and do not wish for a history lesson, but surely as a ruler you must see that the path you are walking can only lead to the destruction of your race, if not my own as well."
Chrysalis stared, dumbfound, at the white alicorn who was settled on her stomach before her. She hadn't expected the white ruler to be, or at least seem, so wise.
Is it true? Am I only leading my children down into their demise...?
...
Chrysalis jumped to her hooves and thrust her horn through the bars, missing the Princess by mere centimeters and only succeeding at slamming her head against the cold, hard metal.
She gritted her teeth in pain and struggled to close the gap between the two for a few seconds before giving up in exhausting gasps.
But Chrysalis held her glare.
It would do her no good to appear completely weak and vulnerable, despite her being so, to her jailor.
Who knows what these ponies would do to me...
Princess Celestia held a long, hard gaze with the Changeling Queen; but her eyes still held no sign of fear or even anger.
Only disappointment.
"I will return later today but you need to eat something, Chrysalis. I would never forgive myself if you starved to death."
The alicorn's words sounded sincere, but Chrysalis wouldn't be fooled.
"Then perhaps I'll just refuse any 'food' you decide to give me." she declared with a smirk.
"And then where would that leave you and your hive?"
Chrysalis blinked in surprise.
She hated this pony, the pony that was hitting all of her soft spots like she knew them by heart.
A soft, non malicious smirk found its way to Celestia's mouth after she knew she had won and she gingerly rose to her hooves; towering above the confounded Changeling before opening the gate and stepping inside.
"I do not trust you with my little ponies just yet, so tonight I will be your meal."
Chrysalis had to suppress her laughter.
The fool probably doesn't even realize what she just said. No matter, she meant food and food is what I desperately need right now...But should I do it? Would it be dishonorable, to submit to my foe as such?
Chrysalis pondered this for a while as Princess Celestia stood before her, waiting for the Changeling to take its toll.
"This doesn't mean anything; I will not submit to any more of your demands or suggestions." the Changeling hissed as she rose to her hooves and rather violently sunk her fangs into Celestia's neck.
The Royal Guards almost burst into the cell to down the Changeling until Celestia waved them off.
She felt no pain, no sense of dread; just Chrysalis sucking out some of her emotions.
But Celestia was no fool, for she knew the power a Changeling had over its prey, so she 'installed' magical barriers to keep the starving Queen from taking too much or taking the wrong thing.
And Chrysalis slammed against many of those barriers before she settled for the least appetizing emotion she could find: Trust.
And it tasted disgusting considering the situation, but the symbolic meaning was not lost on the Queen.
She simply chose to ignore it and feed.
~=(♥)=~
A soft, satisfied gasp escaped Chrysalis's lips as she carefully removed her fangs from Celestia's neck.
No blood spilled, the wounds sealed themselves rapidly, and Chrysalis was left with a full 'belly' of emotions to distribute to her hive.
The realization struck Chrysalis hard, so hard that she took a few steps back and let her eyes widen in shock.
"You monster! You knew what you were doing and you still let me do it, how dare you!" Chrysalis shouted.
"I did what I had to to ensure that the Changeling race survives. While I still grieve for your kin, wherever they may be, I cannot help them. But I can help you, and you can help them." Celestia replied.
"Not with this anti-magic ring around my horn-" Chrysalis began rudely before a the 'tinkling' sound of metal could be heard as it fell to the floor.
Chrysalis stared down at the devilish metal ring, now in the shape of a '3', in silence; her eyes wider than they ever had been before.
Her arch nemesis and jailor had just released her, a fully healed and fully fed Changeling Queen , right in front of herself.
My, my, today is becoming * VERY** interesting...* Chrysalis thought.
"You have one chance, Chrysalis. One chance to prove yourself to me that you're willing to travel down the right path and keep your kind from going extinct. The entire fate of the Changeling race rests on your decision."
And so, after much thinking, Chrysalis made her choice.
Her horn flared with a bright green that made it seem like it was encased in some kind of gel as she carefully distributed her food to the rest of her hive, although it was quite difficult considering the immense distance between her and them.
But it had been done.
Chrysalis had retraced her steps from the dark path she had been happily wandering down for most of her life and instead took the bright path that she had ignored before.
But not before sending a little message to those she fed...
WARNING: THIS CHAPTER IS NOT YET COMPLETED!
Chrysalis sighed as she stood on her hind hooves and braced herself against the wall to peer out the barred window.
She had fed on the ruler of a nation, an honor itself supposedly, and then fed her darling children.
Did Celestia truly trust her? If so, then why keep her magic locked down with that painful ring?
Oh, of course. She thought grimly. Because she * doesn't** trust me.*
Just then, a door slammed open from above and furious hoofsteps sounded from the stairway.
"Guards, remove her from the window!" a voice barked, quivering in poorly contained rage.
And here we go again...
Chrysalis suddenly found herself grabbed by a pair of hooves on each shoulder and pulled back violently with nothing to catch her as she slammed against the floor.
"Good to see you too, Shiny." Chrysalis taunted softly with a smile, imitating Cadance's voice and earning her a white hoof to her nose.
"Do not speak unless spoken to!" Shining Armor shouted. "And do NOT
Giving a sigh and wrinkling her nose, Chrysalis simply laid there on her back as Shining Armor screamed obscenities and threats at her, adding an occasional punch or two now and again.
By the time he had finished, left, and had the guards sworn to secrecy, Chrysalis was a heaving pile of flesh; coughing up green goo that the guards could only imagine substituted for blood in the Changeling body.
But they made no attempt to help her.
They held no sympathy for the creature who attacked them all.
THESE are the ponies Celestia is trying to convince me not to 'target'?
The Changeling Queen began laughing to herself.
~=(♥)=~
Twilight Sparkle came in much later after her brother and the Guard had changed.
The only reason Chrysalis hadn't fully healed like she normally would have was because she was cut off from feeding and cut of from the Hive.
She would have to endure the hardships that normal ponies faced when they had broken a bone or something of the like. At least, until Princess Celestia managed to move her lazy flank down here and get her a doctor.
"Are you awake?"
"No, Sparkle, I hate you so much that I've learned to glare at you even in my sleep." Chrysalis replied with a roll of her eyes.
Twilight only offered a slight grin in return before the guards let her into the cell.
"How are you feeling today?"
"Like I hate absolutely everything in this world. That's normal, right? I'm pretty sure that's normal."
"I meant after...You know."
How does SHE know?! Ah, of course, big brother shares all his dirty little secrets... Chrysalis thought darkly, which only increased her hate for the purple unicorn before her and the rest of the entire pony nation.
Chrysalis held her glare at the curious unicorn, but Twilight seemed unaffected.
"I'm sorry for what happened, but you'll be...Happy to know that he's being reprimanded for what he did. In fact..." Twilight said sadly. "He might even be kicked out of the Guard..."
"It would do all of Equestria a favor to have that fool out from a position of power."
"Hey, that's my brother you're talking about! And you have to understand what he did, he did only because you threatened him, his wife, and all of Equestria!" Twilight shouted in defense.
"And you have to understand that I only did what I had to to keep my race from dying out completely! Have you ever wondered why you're just now hearing about Changelings? Why none of your precious little books held any information on us? Because
Twilight Sparkle's snout hung agape as she processed what she had just been told, and Chrysalis growled.
"Get out of my cell and leave me alone. I want to die with what little dignity I have left, at least."
The pair simply stood silent in the cold, dark cell for a while before Twilight shook her head as if awakening.
"I don't believe it! Why should I believe you?" Twilight shouted in return. " Princess Celestia would have known, or at least Princess Luna would have remembered!"
