Prologue: Cracks in Reality
Through My Eye Prologue: Cracks in Reality
Written by MiekusChocohoof.
07/10/12
Hello! My name is Mikeus Chocohoof, and I am the royally appointed defender of the element of Optimism. If you're reading this then I'm guessing you found it in one of the many libraries across Equestria. This is an account of my life, an exact point to be precise, one that lead onto saving our very world itself. I am an immortal brought back after my time as an act of pity, finding nothing but agony within life thereafter. Soon I began to beg for a cause, and I asked the gods above why – why I was forced to live in such pain, never knowing my final rest. And they answered, with her – Celia, the element of Optimism, never sad, always understanding and always wanting to make sure everypony is happy, because at the end of the day, nothing can go wrong for her. But it did for others. If you're still reading then well done, Lady Sparkle would be proud of your enthusiasm of the world of reading. I shall recite this tale from my perspective.
It all started with:
Chapter 1: Just Another Day in Ponyville
My eyes slowly opened, gently at first then rapid blinking ensued. Shaking my head a little, I noticed the sunlight shining through the curtains in front of me, and as I yawned and stretched, I was halted by the feeling of something warm and soft on my chest. Looking down, I gave a warm smile to seeing Celia curled up beneath me. The green Pony with a purple mane was sleeping softly, barely making a sound as she breathed. Moving off without much trouble, I slid the covers back over her and shook my head with a smile, remembering now that we cuddled last night.
Entering the washroom I took a look in the mirror. I was as fresh as a daisy, my lip piercing, two eyebrow studs and ear studs reflected the light coming from the bathroom window. A growl from my stomach called to me, reminding me that it was past breakfast time, possibly around noon in Ponyville, so getting some dinner for us both would be a nice gesture, not that Celia ever needed them, of course. I shook my brown mane about a little to loosen it and gave my tail a wag, before exiting back to the living room, taking my little saddle bag and heading outside.
The afternoon sun was as bright as ever and it warmed my hazel fur as it beamed down upon my back. Thankfully the Pegasus had scheduled a sunny day today, so retrieving dinner would go down without a hitch. Trotting casually through Ponyville, I greeted many a Pony, all happily going about their days. These days had always aided me well; I hadn't had any plans that day and felt free to do what I liked, and getting a cupcake for me and Celia from Sugercube Corner would be the best of plans, I felt. I knew that Twilight would be busy with her studies today; being her assistant was tough but, such is the life of one who serves the Princess directly.
On my way to Sugercube Corner I recalled my past for a moment; meeting Princess Celestia, finding out she was the reason I still existed, and becoming good friends with Luna...how 1000 years has passed so quickly. Losing Luna was a tough blow to all of us, but for me it cut much deeper, and it meant that I'd left in my despair. Celestia begged me not to go due to my painful history alone, but I couldn't bear to walk the castle halls no longer. My history is a long one, and I've never sat down and told anyone but Celia about it. I know I can recall every part of it though; the perks of being a unicorn!
As these thoughts left my head I stepped into Sugarcube Corner, noticing the two little tykes going about their impish business with Pinkie Pie, who was almost always over at the cake shop helping to be a the great baby sitter she was. I also noticed the Cutie mark Crusaders helping her, and I'm pretty sure they had already shouted, "Cutie mark crusader baby sitters!" The thought made me chuckle as I smiled and approached the counter.
"Hello there, Mr Chocohoof,” Mr Cake asked in his usual nervous voice, “what can I get you today?" I tilted my head, smiling back with a cool fashion.
"Two blueberry cupcakes please, Mr Cake, and could you put a cherry on one?" With this he nodded and moved to collect the items. Meanwhile, one of the little Foals tugged at my tail. I looked down to find she was chewing on a little toy brick, and then she leaned up and pointed at my cutie mark, giving a nervous chirp.
"Haha, I'm sorry my little Pony, that's not a real chocolate bar." I said, chuckling lightly. It was always subject to question but my cutie mark was a bar of chocolate with a bite taken out of it – meaning, I was good at being food. But to everyone else, I said it was because I could make good chocolate. Thankfully, no one ever asked about that part in particular; I make terrible chocolate. Then it was Pinkie's turn to say hello, although her perception of personal space was never a great one. She brushed up against me and grinned greeting me in her usual happy way.
"Hellloooo Choccie!" she chimed with her beaming smile, and I returned the smile in a more settled manner.
"Good afternoon Pinkie.” I said as she bounced a little. “How're you?”
"Oh I'm super-duper terrific excited,” she exclaimed, “because I have the Cutie Mark Crusaders helping me and we're taking care of the cake kids and we're going to -" Mr Cake cut her off with a short "Ahem," before he handed me the two cupcakes. I nodded at him with a hint of noticeable relief; Pinkie was a bit too much sometimes.
Back at the house, Celia had already awoken and looked delighted to see me, as always, bouncing over she cuddled into my side. Thinking this was the perfect time, I presented her the cupcake, she smiled at me sweetly but then her face dropped a little.
"What's the matter Celia?" I asked, very confused to see her face drop for even a second. I swear, she naturally smiles!
"Where's the cherry?" she asked, her ears dropping a little.
"Oh,” I said, “I got one but, it seems Mr Cake forgot it." I looked confused as to where the cherry was. Mr Cake was flawless, and Celia was never unhappy, especially at something so trivial. I brushed it off and sat with her as she started to snack on the cupcake.
"So, tell me about you and Woona, Mikeus." she said suddenly as I gave a soft smile, feeling her warm nature form back.
"You never do get tired of that story, do you Celia?"
"Nuh uh!"
"Well, I met Luna after I woke up in her care, I had just came face to face with an Ursa Major, and.. well, what happened was a blur so, it's not important. She took care of me like I was her own little brother, we grew up together but." I paused for a second suddenly finding it difficult to recall the memory... Odd. "I never did see much of Celestia, at all for that matter, maybe she wasn't around much."
"Well, what happened to Woona?" she hummed like she didn't know.
"That's a dark path Celia.” I replied, feeling a slight pain above my right eye, probably just my piercings. “She slowly became more jealous of Celestia, and I tried to warn her as I was the only one to spend nights with her. But she became too bitter – something...had a hold of her. It was like she was a completely different Pony."
"Oh...well, she's happy now though!" she smiled and cuddled into me as she finished her cupcake. "What was coming to Ponyville like for the first time?" She grinned. Again, it felt a bit strange that she was asking this like she didn't know. But shaking it off as just a silly notion I proceeded to tell her about how Celestia had by royal decree ordered me to be her personal guardian, a command I had happily accepted as Celia had brought me so much joy. The day went on and I found myself once again cuddling up with my little Pony.
Chapter 2: Differences
This morning felt different, a lot colder perhaps. Once again I woke before Celia and let the cover move over her, but this time within the washroom I noticed a distinct difference about me. I was missing the two studs I had upon my right eyebrow. I remember feeling a slight pain there last night, but never remember them being removed at all. It was strange, but something I could ignore. I left the small house we shared once more, knowing that Celia would happily awaken on her own accord. Today I was to help Twilight with more experiments, something I took great joy in doing; she was such a smart and interesting Pony, always knowing what to say to any queries or questions. We spoke a lot about Celestia and life at Canterlot, but I've never gone into my past with her, I didn't want to burden her.
Trotting through the early morning streets of Ponyville, a blue Earth Pony caught my eye. I had never seen this Stallion before, but for certain I knew what was coming as Pinkie Pie was heading right for him, and I smiled to myself as she got closer. But the smile soon left my face, for she trotted right past him – how could that be? She always greeted newcomers with a crazy party that she had – this wasn't Pinkie at all! I gallopped a little to catch up with her.
"Good morning, Pinkie." I said as she smiled at me.
"Morning Mikeus!" she replied. My ears pricked up – she always called me Choccie, but this time she'd called me by my first name.
"I guess you've already met the new guy, hmm?" I said, feeling a bit silly and paranoid.
"Hmmmm? Whatcha meeean?" she asked as she kept trotting.
"Well, that Pony has never been here before and you didn't throw your greeting party for him. I remember when we first met – you told me you always did them." My memory of the party she'd thrown me when I'd first arrived, which still remained sharp in my mind, arose at this.
"Ohhhhh well, I guess I just forgot it!" she hummed.
"But Pinkie –" She bounced away. She never forgot that party kit, the powers that be were messing with me and it was getting a little on my nerves, so I hurried to Twilight's to greet her.
At the large tree house I gently knocked on the door, Twilight opened it slowly and smiled seeing me.
"Ahh Mikeus! Hello!" she said in her cheerful and intelligent voice.
"Hey Twilight,” I said as if it was hot gossip... honestly I felt like a bit of a jerk. “I saw the weirdest thing this morning y'know? Pinkie pie actually didn't greet a newcomer to Ponyville!"
"Pinkie?” she said happily as she invited me in. “Wow, that's not like her! But, ah well, nothing to worry about!" Moving forward with a gentle trot, I nodded, trying to see the funny side of it. The day went on as it always would, helping Twilight with her amazing assortment of ideas and experiments, and she never ceased to amaze me on how many things were possible in this world. Halfway through sitting and discussing the certain volumes of what liquid would go best with the concoction we had been creating, I decided to bring up my eyebrow piercings. She gave a cute little head tilt with a huff.
"I have to say that doesn't make any sense whatsoever!" The purple Pony looked dumbfounded. "Those piercings were put in by Metal Heart. The only way they could ever come out would be by a brutal amount of force...or removed by yourself." This made her think for a few seconds, then she shrugged. "But I guess it just happens!" I felt a little unsatisfied with the answer; putting a hoof to my chin I shook my head slowly.
"But you said it isn't possible, which means someone must have taken them!" I said, hoping to rekindle the convesation, but it was all for naught as Twilight simply shook her head.
"Like I said, I guess it just happens." This day was getting a little too confusing for my taste, but we were done by noon and I said my goodbyes ready to head home. On my way back I watched the sky's idly, enjoying the noon sun. Not many clouds in the sky at this time of year, I thought to myself with a little smile, catching one of the clouds with a certain Rainbow Pony lying atop it. She looked down and noticed me giving a little wave.
"Afternoon, Rainbow Dash!" I said in a happy tone, trying to find some way to distract me from the day's events.
"Yo! Howzit going Mikey?" she said, causing me to give a slight grin.
"Mikeus, you know that Dashi" She gave a shrug and continued to speak.
"Ahh, come on! You know I know the difference bro! So whatcha up to? Heading home?" This was something I was used to, but she had always loved my piercings, although I guess she was just too energetic to notice they were missing.
"Yeah, just heading home now.” I replied. “You seem energetic today – fancy a race back? Winner gets a blueberry cupcake!" I added teasingly with a grin, though she shook her head.
"Sorry, no can do buddy. But perhaps another time?" And then the rainbow Pony flew away, just like that, leaving me bewildered. First it was Celia, then Pinkie, and Twilight and now Rainbow Dash. She never turned down a race, even when she's tired she never turns them down. Was I missing something? This was beginning to feel like the time Pinkie thought everyone hated her parties.
Shaking away the feelings yet again I continued down the pathway. I wanted to get home before something else happened, but barely had I even thought about it, there it was, right before me, a small injured bird lay on the ground. Its wing seemed to have been clipped by something and it couldn't fly.
"Oh, you poor thing," I said gently as I approached it. Hearing trotting from behind me, I turned, hoping to seek aid from whoever was approaching, and as luck would have it, Fluttershy approached me. I grinned; this was perfect. This bird would be perfectly safe with her.
"Hello there, Fluttershy!" I said with a gentle smile. She looked back at me and returned it.
"Oh hello there Mikeus, how're you?" She shone in the early afternoon sun, looking as kind and gentle as ever, giving me a sense of relief.
"I'm fine thank you, but I've found this little bird, he seems to be injured. What do you think?" I said with a concerned tone in my voice. But Fluttershy didn't seem too moved by what I said. While she approached I felt a distinct lack of shared concern as she looked down at him, before she turned to me with a hum.
"Oh, she's fine!" she said, and with that trotted away. My jaw literallly dropped. I could take Pinkie, Rainbow dash, Twilight and even Celia! But this was absolutely one hundred percent not a snow balls chance in a volcano! Wrong! I looked back to the little bird and sighed picking him up gently and putting him on my back.
"You didn't even get the gender right." I grunted feeling disappointed as I proceeded home. Who were these Ponies, and what did they do with my friends? Were there imposters in place of them, or had something more gone badly wrong in Ponyville?
Chapter 3: Dream Eaters
Entering the house with a bit of a slump, I noticed Celia wasn't home. She was probably over at Lyra's or playing with Pinkie, if I knew her by now. I knew she was safe though; my magic could sense it. Walking over to the desk, I placed the little bird on there and opened one of the drawers, the one where I kept my shared locket. Both me and Celia had one, and it contained a picture of me and her, though we acted like we were an item. I felt my relationship was much more then just love. I wanted to protect her, keep her safe; it was my purpose, and if she was ever to be harmed, then there wouldn't be a safe place on Earth for the perpetrator. She often refered to me as "Dad", but the title made me shudder sometimes and I was often subject to being teased. She was the same age as me, and she saw me as her body guard.
"Well little guy, you can stay here for however long you need." I spoke to the little bird. He gave me a bit of a thankful look and turned onto his side. "I'm sure Celia will just love you!"
While I tended to the birds wing and got it some food, I started to recall a memory of when me and Celia first met. She was alone in the Everfree forest and was happily skipping around, sniffing flowers and singing. I had never met anyone like her, that day I'd fought off a Manticore just to save her, knowing it would have surely ended badly for the little mare. Sustaining injuries from the fight, I was told she'd take me to Canterlot castle to seek aid from the Princess. At that time I didn't know who or what she was, but it was the first time in many years that I saw Celestia again, which hadn't changed at all, and neither had Luna. We spent many days catching up while Celestia made plans for me to live in Ponyville, and she soon mentioned her student Twilight Sparkle, and said that I was to assist her in her studies on friendship, though Twilight had more on her mind for a Pony assistant. When the day came that I learnt who Celia was, I lived from that day forward to protect her.
"Y'know, it's been two weeks since the royal wedding,” I said to the little birdy who allowed me to bandage his wing. “I didn't know much of Twilight's brother: Shining Armor or Cadence for that matter, but the wedding had been nice, despite the little interruption from a certain changeling army. It was quite a battle, but the power of love prevailed." It felt a bit soppy, but we had won, so life could go on as normal. "I try to remember this stuff to help me smile, considering today has been a bit of a rough one – not that yours hasn't, little fella." He stood on his two feet, moving his injured wing a little. "Maybe that cupcake will cheer me up, whatcha think? Wanna share it?" I said to him as he whistled a little. Entering the kitchen, a crumb riddled plate with a note on caught my eye, and it read:
That Cupcake was delicious Mikeus, thanks!
But please try and remember the cherry next time!
~Celia
Giving a low grumble and face hoofing I mumbled, "That cupcake was from yesterday, Celia." At this point I wasn't about to say, "That's not like her!" and let my mind go into overdrive, maybe a nap would help.
My sleep was interrupted by a little whisper.
"Sleep now."
I woke up and looked around, blinking rapidly once more before shaking my head.
"Celia?" I called out. By the time I'd woken, it was dark outside. "Celia?" I called once more, but with no answer. The small green mare was nowhere around. Forget oddness – this was bad. My magic could not sense her! Rolling off the couch and standing up, I made for the door, seeing that Ponyville was still lively even at this time of night. I tried not to panic, despite horrible situations and scenarios rushing through my head, but nevertheless, I galloped towards town. Seeing Twilight trotting through town, I approached her and with a panic ridden voice, choked out my words.
"Ce- Celia.. Mi.." I was out of breath, not due to running, but due to fear, but upon Twilight's face was a look of horror.
"Mikeus...your horn!" she exclaimed. I tilted my head in confusion and frustration.
"My horn? Twilight, Celia is missing, and I need to find her!"
"Missing? Mikeus, your horn is missing!" she said, pointing at my forehead. A sudden rush of pain flowed through my entire body starting right from my head. I tried to rub my horn but my hoof touched nothing.
"Ah...buh." I stuttered. My horn was gone, broken...but, how?
"Mikeus, maybe you should get some sleep." Twilight said softly.
"Sle...what?" I shouted in complete confusion. "I can't sleep, Twilight. Celia is missing, my horn is gone, and today has been one hell of a trip. I need to find her, so if you're not going to hel-" she cut me off and put a hoof on my shoulder.
"Mikeus, we'll find Celia, don't worry about it." As if on cue, her friends walked from behind her, not one of them looking shocked from my loss of horn. "Yes, sleep Mikeus. We'll take care of this." she said with a gentle smile. I stumbled backwards a little and coughed. My chest felt heavy, like I'd just taken a hit from a stampeding bull.
"N- No!” I growled, rushing over explanations in my mind while feeling a rush of pain to my left eye. “I don't know what's going on here girls, but you're not the mares I met when I first arrived here! In fact, ever since the royal wedding I've noticed things being different. At first I could ignore it, but no, not now."
"Mikeus, you've had a hard day darling." said Rarity. "Let us take you home, keep sleeping." I growled angrily.
"Why are you so obsessed with me sleeping? Enough, I'll find Celia! With or without your help!" turning around something in the sky caught my eye, a huge black rip as if it was paper "What the hay is that." I uttered in shock.
"Nothing Mikeus, you're delusional." Twilight said soothingly, causing me to shoot her a glare, my left eye burning as sight faded from it. What was happening to me?
"Sugercube, let us find Celia.” AppleJack said gently. “We'll get Zecora to mix up a potion to help you sleep!" But I was having none of it. My body felt like it had just been through a brutal battle. Memories of my time in the war shot through my head before I shook it violently, then it hit me. My face was blank as the realization rushed through my mind and I knew it for certain as fear grew on each of the Ponies faces. The streets were bare now, just me, and them.
And I knew what they were.
Chapter 4: Time to awaken
"Step back, all of you!” I roared at them. “I thought I was paranoid, I honestly thought I was just having a rough day. But you messed up – I'm not that stupid. Your failure to be yourselves showed you were acting! Your obsession just now with my sleep, and that rip in the sky!" I slam my right hoof down, the pain rushing through my body causing me to yell out loud. "You're not Ponies! You're Dream Eaters!" They stepped back, gazing right through me. "And that right there, is a crack in reality!" But then fear rushed through me. I had been comatose somehow, and I knew that Dream Eaters could only be found in the presence of evil – that's why it's never wise to sleep in an evil place, but if this was true, then I had been slowly fading back to reality, because I failed to shrug off the problems that the mares were making they had lost there grip on me. And now I was starting to wake up, but there was one more thing that had to be done to stop a Dream Eater – and that was for one to let them know that they're aware that this reality is a dream.
"Mikeus please, you're scaring us!" Fluttershy squeaked and hid her snout.
"Come on bro, just head back up home, I don't even know what you're talking about!" jeered Rainbow Dash.
"Not a chance Demons.” I shouted victoriously, even through my body was wrought with pain. “Show your real selves, for I know what this is. It's well and truly a dream! I'll give you that! You tried your hardest but there was one big mistake that you made, and that was letting your confidence go to your head!"
"I think you're doing just that." said Twilight in a bit of a peeved tone, quite venomously, but my confidence did not waver.
"I'm ready to awaken." I growled at them. For a few moments there was nothing but confusion and anger. But then it happened – Twilight leaned forward and growled angrily, and in a demonic tone she spoke:
"Well done Stallion, you obviously know of us.” she said. “But your mind was delicious while it lasted, I fear my peers may have lacked in encouragement feeling full from your Immortal memories, ah yes indeed the mind of an immortal is once in a life time." Its body began to deform, and all of them started to do so now, their eyes turning a pale white and their mouths opening to reveal a dark void with row after row of sharp teeth. "But we shall have more.” it hissed. “I shall reset your memory and we will continue to feed!" This was not something I was ready for; I only read that telling them you knew this was a dream would banish them, but I was wrong and now, I was almost definitely screwed.
"No," I say with dismay. "Not a chance! Where ever I am, it's filled with evil. Celia is in trouble, and you will not stop me from saving her, horn or not you will not stop me from waking up. This is my dream and I wish to awaken!" At this point I was starting to cough up blood, my heart filling with fear. This told me that I was seriously injured – this was not good. Standing my ground, the six Ponies raised up before me, their deformed demonic faces tilting back, and a gust of wind started sucking me forward towards there mouths. But it couldn't end like this – I wouldn't let it. "This is my dream, and I shall awaken!" I yelled again as a small tear in the sky opened behind them. it was working!
You shall not keep me within this dream for I have duties
within my own reality! You have fed for long enough
On me demons so this ends here!
This is my dream!
And I shall Awaken!!
The crack burst open and an even more powerful gust of wind pulled at me, but more so at the Dream Eaters. In shock, they roared out and grasped at the air tumbling back into the dark void, and the world around me started to slowly dissolve. Soon, I found myself waking up from my coma. I felt a warm nudge by my side, and my heart gave a leap. It was Celia!!
"Ce...Celia, is that actually you?" I stutter, feeling agony rush through me. My left eye was now completely closed.
"Mikeus, I don't have much time, you and I are connected, and you have done so well to take heed of the cracks in reality. I knew I could count on you. Now wake up! Equestria needs you!" I knew for sure this was the real Celia, everything about her was right. Smiling gently to her I nodded, but her face was stern and determined.
"Celia, I don't know what's going on anymore."
"We lost, Mikeus. They were smarter then any of us thought. They covered their ruse with another one. You're asleep now In Canterlot Castle, seriously injured but able to move. I know this will be hard for you to take, but do not come for me."
"Lost what? What happened?" I cry out, panicking as she starts to fade away.
"I love you, Mikeus." she breathed, her voice weakening with each word.
"Celia! No! Come back! CELIA!" I yell out, tears forming within my eyes. But soon, I start to feel too dizzy to stay awake, and slowly I fell on my side. The last thing I saw was the little bird I saved. Its wing was fixed and it was standing before me with a worried expression. And then, darkness.
Chapter 1: When evil triumphs
Chapter 1: When evil triumphs
Through my eye Chapter 1: When Evil Triumphs
Chapter 1: Critical Condition
Silence. The smell of blood and death, not exactly what I wanted to wake up to. My stomach turned at the smell and I tried with all my effort to open my eyes, but only my right one cracked open, sleep coating it like some sort of natural cement. My chest ached and I coughed heavily, moaning and groaning in agony. My mouth and throat were dry. Just how long had I been lying here? As my eye quivered open, I noticed that I was looking down a corridor within Canterlot Castle, recognizing the interior. My eye darted left to right and suddenly I was full of shock, my breath quickening into terrified rasps as my heartbeat once again started up. I never noticed until now, but my heart hadn’t been beating – had I been dead? I couldn’t move an inch; my body felt locked in place upon the cold hard castle floor. I tried to cast magic to make some sort of healing spell, but all I got was a powerful rush of pain once more rushing from my head to my tail – it seemed my horn was most definitely broken. Though a Unicorn's horn is made of bone, when using magic as much as I do you form nerves within it, which means if you insist on being a powerful Mage you must learn to protect your horn, as breaking it could cause pain enough to kill you.
I needed to get up – I couldn’t lay here and die just like that. My eye slid down to the floor, and I noticed that I was lying in a sizeable pool of dry blood. The horror struck me that I had been here for a good while now, bleeding out in a coma; in fact, the only reason I wasn’t dead was most likely because the blood had dried around whatever wounds I had, but that was just assumption. I was too confused to think clearly about it; I had to move.
Feeling completely numb through my entire body apart from pain, I started by flexing my legs. My front hooves moved slowly to life and I felt a stiff sensation run through them before feeling came back to them.2 Placing them on the ground, I attempted to push myself up, giving a huge effort and straining my body while growling and whimpering in pain. My right rear hoof stood firm and I felt confidence rush through me, but that disappeared as quickly as it came. My left rear leg touched the ground and I yelled out in agony, falling flat on my face, coughing from the dryness in my throat and holding back tears. Breathing heavily, I forced myself to roll onto my back, but when I looked down at my leg, I found it had suffered a heavy fracture. With my mouth agape, I bit my lip and shivered, whimpering at the horrible sight and not taking note of the fact that I was wearing chest armour. I had to get out of here. My body was almost numb again and I felt like simply falling asleep, going back to that world, letting the dream eaters feed off me until I died peacefully. But then I realized what I was thinking – it sickened me that this thought came to me as an actual option.
Shaking my head, I spat blood to the left of me and growled, focusing all of my remaining energy into standing. Rolling onto my front, I performed a press up, moving my right rear leg up and gently placing my left rear leg down. I was up for now and could now focus on what mattered – saving Celia. I took a few steps forward, ignoring the pain that ran through my body and the feeling of nausea that mounted. My mouth was completely coated in dry blood, and that told me that I wouldn’t last much longer in this critical state, particularly not now that old wounds had opened once more, so more blood was now flowing from me. Moving up to a window, I noticed it was raining outside. An uncontrollable thunder storm had arose, but no Pegasi could be seen; the only ones I could see were back in the corridor, where I saw only fallen palace guards littering the floor. I stumbled up to one, but there was no life. I shook my head. He was long gone; his body was mutilated and the parts that had been left unscathed were covered in little two pronged tooth marks. He had been viciously eaten, but by what?
I coughed once more. My throat and mouth were dry, but I was still able to taste the metallic bitterness of my blood. Spitting again, I hung my head and staggered away. Before me lay the Grand Hall, the one in which Shining Armour and Cadence had been married in. Moving up to it, I noticed a puddle of water to my right, which made me shudder with dread. Wanting to get a look at the damage yet fearful of what I'd discover, I limped over to it. It all became clear now; I could barely breathe at all because my nose was completely blocked with thick blood, and my mouth was cut up pretty badly. My right eyebrow piercing had been ripped loose, leaving nothing but an open wound. My left eye was closed and only a soft burning sensation came from it, which worsened when I tried to open it. I feared I'd gone blind in that eye, for it would not open no matter how much I tried. Sighing softly, a rush of dismay and defeat ran through me. My right ear was a mess, the piercings having been ripped loose, and it was only now that I took notice of the fact that I was wearing armour, and even when I'd seen my injured leg I hadn’t taken notice of the chest plate. It was cracked and pushing against my chest, which meant it needed to come off. Loosening the strap on my side, I let it fall to the ground and breathed a long sigh of what little relief I could muster. My body looked undamaged, but from the pain within I'd say that I was suffering from a cracked or broken rib cage, which may have been why I continued to cough up blood. How I was still alive in my condition amazed me.
I looked towards the door to the Grand Hall, feeling a cruel vibe pulse from it, then turned and gently took a small drink from the puddle, lapping at the water and swishing it around my mouth before spitting it out. I cleared my throat and turned towards the giant doors, limping pitifully towards them. A green glow could be seen emitting from the room as I got closer; I didn't like the feeling of dread that ran through me.
Chapter 2: The battle we lost
I swallowed that feeling down and pushed against the door, entering the darkened room and slowly raising my head. It didn't take me long to process exactly what had happened, and this realisation shook my very foundation. I fell back a little and squeaked, accidentally touching down my left rear leg, causing a rush of excruciating pain to burst through me. The room was filled with cocoons, some struggling and some not moving at all, but all emitting a green glow, and a stream of energy flowed from them to the back of the room. But on the throne sat a very relaxed looking dark form.
I began my approach, limping forward and breathing heavily now, my body shaking with fear, fury and pain. As I got closer I could see out of the corner of my right eye that things were moving through the darkness between each cocoon. The room was coated in a thick gooey substance and the only light came from the cocoons and the throne.
“Halt!” echoed a voice. It covered the whole room and caused me to stop dead in my tracks. “Not another step, who goes there?” the voice spoke.
“Wha...?” I coughed heavily when I attempted to speak, the form before me moving to a standing position and looking down upon me.
“Speak quickly little one,” said the dark form, her voice booming and sounding quite sadistic, “for you have entered the Queen's chamber, and for that, you shall die.”
“Que...Queen...Chrysalis,” I choked the words, now seeing shadows move from the darkness, little Changelings surrounding me. Looking around with fear running through my blood, I turned back to her. “You...what have you done?”
“Oh, what's the matter?” she teased with a maniacal grin. “Can you not speak properly to your new Queen? Are you feeling...a little horse?” She and all the little changelings hissed and laughed at the terrible pun.
“But we, the power of -” I stuttered in disbelief.
“I feed off the power of love my dear.” She laughed once more as the green stream of energy continued to flow to her horn. “I cannot be defeated by it, you foal! Oh, how everyone was so foolish. You'd think that they would have noticed a doppelgänger or two in the audience of the wedding, but no. You simply let it go by.” She grinned and stared right at me with those soul piercing green eyes. None of this made sense; we had won. I even saw her shot through the window, both me and Celia too. Could it have all been a dream – a mistake? We had lost, and thought we'd won all along.
“I won't. I can't let you.” I whimpered.
“Oooh, are you going to try and stop me?” she gloated, as she wiped a way a bit of loose drool from her snout. “I do so love to see my changeling children rip apart morons like yourself! Mmm, yes...love is delightful, but flesh tastes all the better!” She hissed as she made eye contact with me again. I gagged slightly at the thought; if any of these little freaks had touched a single hair on Celia's head, then broken or not, I would make sure every single one of them choked on their own blood. Growling furiously, I roared out suddenly, my voice breaking as blood shot forward from my mouth. The thoughts had got to me, and I could feel my rage ascending.
“I'll kill all of you!” I roared. I stamped my hoof down, drawing power to myself, though the pain was in heavy doses. I knew for sure Celia was here, and I had to save her. My horn sparkled slightly, but the Queen showed no reaction, smiling as she sat back down, even though I meant business.
“Enjoy your meal, my children.” she cooed. And with that, the Changelings charged at me. I managed a few bolts of magic, firing at them and watching them fall back as the beams shot right through their bodies. I was done messing around; I would not let them have Celia, but my magic became weak, and a small pool of blood formed beneath me as one of my wounds tore open. My mouth oozing more blood, I spat to the side and breathed heavily, watching as they moved around me, ready to tear me apart. One moved too quickly and smashed his horn right against my cheek, cutting it open forcing me to fall back. One step on my damaged leg and I was down, leaving me howling out in pain and struggling to stay up. Staggering forward a little, I felt a heavy hit to my jaw as one had thrown an uppercut at me. Falling onto my back I groaned and looked at the ceiling. This was my end, I had tried to fight, but alas, I was beaten already, there was nothing more I could do.
I felt a few Changelings bite into my legs and sides, the venom from their fangs numbing my body, to my relief. I was being eaten alive, but it didn't feel so bad; I was ready to die, I'd given it my all and my all hadn't been enough. But a new determination came to me; I wasn't going to give in now – not without a valiant fight. The weak thought ran through my head that this was someone else’s story, not mine, and my attention turned to the cocoons. But my gaze levelled on one of them in particular, and from how it looked down towards me, I realized who it was instantly.
It was Celia.
My body burst forth with a rush of magic, the Changelings yelping as they fell back, and I raised into the air, emitting a fluorescent glow all around the room. Rolling forward in the air, I looked right at the Changeling Queen, my right eye fixated on her noticing she had stood to attention at my sudden burst of strength. I had only ever gone into overdrive once before, and before I realized it, angel wings burst forth from my back and my magical strength doubled, though it did not heal me. Letting out a deafening roar of fury, I glared at her, my eye burning like a large green candle flame, magic sustaining my life as this was a last ditch effort. I had only one burst of strength left, and if I was to die, then Chrysalis was coming with me.
Launching myself forward at her, she charged a spell with her horn pointed towards me, but my motive did not falter. I was heading right for her and there was not a thing she could do to stop me...but something else did, and I was forced backwards. I hit a shield around her, seeing only a grin as I bounced off and hit the ground, tumbling a few times before coming to a painful halt. I staggered and stood up once more with heavy breathing. As the Queen watched my movements, I knew that my final effort had been for naught. My mind rushed, knowing this was truly it.
All I could do now was remember all the happy times I had with Celia; seeing her smile, watching her play with her friends, helping her to learn about the world, cuddling her when she was cold, and saving her when danger followed. But this was the one time I could do nothing for her. Tears streamed down my face as I looked up at her cocoon, hoping that whatever death that she'd be greeted with, it would be a painless one.
“I'm sorry.” I whimpered in utter defeat and despair. Coughing one last time I fell forward, hitting the ground and looking up at the victorious Queen. But hitting the ground sounded a lot stranger then I thought. As I slumped down, I heard a loud crash of glass, my eye looking forward as the Mare in the moon herself burst through the window and landed before me, countering the Queen's spell with her own and throwing it off to the left, causing a large hole to appear in the wall and smashing several of the cocoons. My eye quivered shut a few times, as more blood drained from the wounds on my head, but I knew for sure it was not a dream. I wasn’t dead yet, and Luna herself had come to the rescue.
Chapter : Who I really am.
Luna growled angrily and barked a few inaudible words towards the Queen, who could be heard laughing. She then turned to me and leant down, and right away a few Changelings tried to attack her, but bounced off just when it looked like they were about to hit her – she was wearing some kind of shield herself. She picked me up by the scruff of my neck and lifted me up, easily placing me on her back. With what little strength I still had, I slumped over her and looked at the Queen. She had a look of frustration in her eyes now, I simply smiled and shook my hoof back and forth at her, giving the “Wanker” gesture; not like me, but I could barely comprehend what I was doing. Feeling a rush of air, Luna took off, blasting a hole in the ceiling and rushing up through it. It was then that I really saw Canterlot, and what had happened to it – the whole place was covered in a thick black fog. Ponyville could not be seen at all, as the entire land was covered in the dense mass of darkness and glowing green energy. As Luna flew through the midnight sky, my weight no impediment to her, I drifted off into a relaxed but dreamless sleep. Where exactly we were going, I did not know, but all I felt was thankful that I was safe this time.
My right eye flickered open sometime later and I felt warm and comfortable. My body no longer hurt at all and I could hear the soft sound of something's belly. With a bit a a muffled groan, I tried to get my bearings, looking up, then down, then left and finally right. It was then that I realised I was underneath the wing of the Mare in the Moon. Giving a half smile, I shuffled a little, feeling her wing raise slightly to let me out. Standing up without any trouble, without the pain of my fracture, I trotted out and took a look over my body. All of my wounds had gone, my broken leg was fixed, and with a wiggle of my ears I felt no pain; I felt fresh and as good as new.
“We hope you slept well, Mikeus.” Luna's voice spoke from behind me. I turned around with a big smile, although my left eye still wouldn’t open. She looked as beautiful as ever, sitting and looking down at me. “We tried to repair the damage you took as best we could, but I'm afraid your eye is beyond repair. We do not know what caused it to receive such a trauma, but it's something far past our ability.” Despite this devastating news, she still sounded humble – even though what it meant was that I'd never have my sight in this eye again. My mind raced as I tried to put my dismay to one side; I had a thousand and one questions to ask her, and I was willing to bet she couldn’t answer many of them.
“I owe you, Luna.” I started, my voice rasping from dryness. “How did you know I was in danger?”
“We were circling Canterlot castle, looking for signs of our sister,” she explained, “and when we felt that burst of energy rush past us, we thought it was her, but instead we found you. As sad as we are to see it was not our sister, it is replaced with relief for seeing you, Mikeus. We thought you were lost to us.” She nuzzled around me as I brushed against her neck. At that moment I lost all fear and thought of what had happened, just through seeing my dear sweet Luna once more. For a long moment I stood numb, barely able to comprehend what she'd said.
“So your sister was not there?”
“We are afraid not,” she said with a slight smile, “but in turn that leads Miss Sparkle's theory to be true!” My ears perked up at the sound of that name. I recognized it instantly – there was no forgetting that name in Ponyville's quarters. And when it sunk in, I realized what she was saying – she'd emerged unharmed from the conflict. It was a long while before I could speak – joy unlike anything I'd ever felt before took hold of me in that moment.
“Twilight! She's alive!” I stuttered in shocked amazement.
“Fortunately yes.” she continued proudly. “She was lucky to escape with us and a few others. We have formed a resistance with my brother, and now that our armies have gathered, the Changelings shall know defeat!” She almost spoke in a Royal Canterlot sounding voice for a second there. “But if you've noticed, like us, they gain their power from the night. We need our sister Celestia if we are to ever win this war against them. The sun must shine once more.” I showed her a wide smile. It was so amazing to hear that at least someone had survived the horrible attack, but then I recalled something she'd said earlier that I'd felt unable to bring up.
“Luna, you spoke of Twilight's theory. What is this theory?” I asked her, seeing her bow her head.
“Twilight believes that the Chrysalis that Shining Armour and Cadence defeated on the day of the royal wedding was not her at all, but another Changeling.” I tried to comprehend what Luna had just said.
“Wait a minute...she had us fooled from the very beginning, but at the time, who was Chrysalis?” Luna looked suddenly pensive.
“Twilight firmly believes that she had become Celestia,” she replied as I looked around, “and where our sister is, is not known to us. So now, here we are.”
“Where are we now?” I asked.
“The land of the Changelings.” she answered. “We know you may not be back at full strength, Mikeus, but we need you to help us find the Chrysalis here. There's two now, and this one may know where our sister is.” With this, she began to trot away, with me following close by her side.
After a while of trotting through the swampy wilderness, I decided it was time to break the silence.
“I saw her, Luna.” It was a little blunt and didn't make much sense, but it caught her attention.
“Saw who, dear?” she asked with a gentle smile.
“Celia.” I said with a sombre look. “She was in one of the cocoons; she's the reason I was able to release my overdrive and cause that burst of power you noticed. I have to go back for her, Luna. I can't lose her.” To this, Luna simply smiled and brushed against me.
“Mikeus,” she started, “Do you remember why you have your Cutie mark?” I blinked a few times, confused by the sudden change of topic. I wasn’t really feeling up for this story, given it had always been a cruel irony as to why my Cutie mark was a chocolate bar.
“Because I'm good at being food.” I grunt with a disjointed groan, looking away from her. “The Ursa Major and Griffon made sure of that.” Luna laughed a little, which caused me to give her a look of disbelief.
“Oh my no, Mikeus,” she chuckled, “we thought you might have realised by now, that chocolate does not represent food at all” I looked even more disbelieving at this, and shook my head, thinking it couldn't possibly be true.
“What are you talking about, Princess Luna?” I asked, my mind mixing around, trying to remember any other reasons why.
“When Celestia brought you to us on that fateful day,” she explained, “a tiny little pony curled up and shook with fear while he slept. We asked who you were, but Celestia said she'd found you in the Everfree Forest and that she would ask us to care for you. We were not aware of what had happened with the Ursa Major, but all we knew is we had ourself a little brother.” These words caused me to blush and divert my eyes as she continued. “As time went on, we saw you grow into a young little Colt, always ready for adventure and excitement, but furthermore always striving to please others. Always making sure everyone was happy, weather you were or not.”
“But Luna, what does this have to do with my Cutie mark, or saving Celia?” I said, not understanding any of it. But Luna remained smirking.
“Oh, my silly little pony, don't you see?” she continued. “Chocolate is always there for others. It has always been there for the sad and lonely nights, and for when you just need something to make you smile, before what happened, happened. You were the only one by our side every night, as we watched the moon together, always there to make us feel like we were special. Sometimes we wished we could have taken you to the moon with us, but no pony deserves that. Think about it Mikeus, Think about who you are.” She trailed off as she looked at me with a soft smile. I was speechless for a moment, but, this actually made sense. When I thought about it, chocolate is always there, as goofy as it sounds; you can always have chocolate when you're down, and it's there to make others feel better!
“Luna... I...” I paused once more and then begin to laugh, stopping and putting a hoof to my face and laughing even more. “That is hilarious! The powers that be must have had one heck of a sense of humour!!” I keep laughing feeling very tickled by the thought, Luna also laughed a little, still smiling at me. “I don't even know where to begin! Everything makes sense now, but at the same time, I feel flattered.” I say cracking up once more at this crazy realisation.
“Why's that, dear?” she asked with a little giggle, happy to see me smiling at the worst of times.
“Think about it!” I said. “Whatever gods above decide what a Ponies destiny is, they must have thought pretty high of me too give me a Cutie mark that resembles such a thing!” Slowly my delight began to calm down. I'd never felt a feeling of such relief, but I see now why she had told me. Fearing the worst of everything, I needed some resolve, and here it was! All my life I thought I had no destiny of my own, that my meaning had been some cruel joke, but no; my destiny was to make others feel better – to be there when they needed me. And that's what I was going to do! This battle had just begun.
“Luna!” I said with a smirk. “We'll find Celestia. We'll raise an army, and together we'll take back Canterlot Castle!” She gave a smile in response, even though it did sound pretty corny.
“I wish I could have told you this sooner, Mikeus. It looks like you needed it.”
“Now more than ever Luna. Thank you! Now let's go find Chrysalis!”
Chapter : The real Alicorn
A green glow rose to us on the horizon, and with a stern expression I looked towards it, blinking as I took it in.
“It seems we have arrived.” said Luna, glaring toward the Changeling lair.
“Indeed.” I sighed, and thought to myself for a few moments. I'd failed to save Celia, but now, I would make sure that Celestia was back with Luna, no matter what it took.
“Let us depart, then.” Luna sighed as well. It seemed neither us were ready for what we might find. Heading down the hill toward the nest, I noticed two Changelings standing guard, and before I could react, they hissed at us and prepared for a battle. One rushed into the air, while the other charged for us. Luna dashed for one of them, leaving me to the other. I summoned a fireball at the end of my hoof with a simple spell, letting it float for a moment in front of me before punching it skyward watching the changeling screech in shock, obviously not expecting me to do such a thing. The fireball hit it dead on and it burst into flame falling through the sky, while Luna took the other changeling out with no trouble at all, impaling it upon her horn and tossing it aside.
“Foolish creature! To run right at us was its last mistake!” She seemed to have anger seething through her as green blood ran down her horn and face. She shook her head left to right and looked to me. “Shall we?” she said. I nodded and followed her, slightly afraid of this side of Luna.
Within the Changeling lair, we found nothing but cocoons everywhere. It seems they had taken Ponies from Ponyville and Canterlot, bringing them back here to feed in solitude. I looked upon them with dismay, hardly daring to believe what I was seeing, but something caught my eye.
“Luna!” I gasped.
“What's the matter?” She turned to me and hurried to my side looking towards the same cocoon as I was.
“Do you see it Luna? This pony is...” I paused, trying to bring myself to say the words, but Luna beat me to it.
“Half Changeling.” she confirmed, and looked upon the poor creature with sorrow.
“They...can change us, to them?” I cried out in shock. My lip quivered at the sight of the pony moving within, looking to us as it struggled violently. But it wasn’t a plea for help. It was trying to attack us savagely, snarling at us while scratching at the walls of its fleshy prison. I had to look away – the sight of the wretched abomination was too much for me, turning my stomach. “If they can change us, then we must make haste!” I stammered in a panic ridden voice. “I will not see them change Celia to this!” I growled and turned to Luna, who was studying the Pony.
“Rest in Peace... Miss Cheerilee.” she spoke softly before her horn started to glow, firing a bolt of magic at the cocoon. It exploded, killing the cheerful school teacher instantly. I hung my head, only thinking of Celia now. “The Elements are stronger then normal Ponies, Mikeus.” Luna said, hanging her head. “We do not know if they can be changed. But they cannot be killed.”
“What do you mean, Luna?” I asked; this was the first I'd heard of it.
“Mikeus, you did not gain your immortality from being brought back.” Luna met eyes with me now. “When we return to my brother's castle, we shall tell you everything. But now, we fear the worst of our sister.”
“Oh, do not worry!” a voice spoke out of the darkness before us. “Your sister is just fine.” Both of our heads bolted up in shock. I bared my teeth, the voice running through me invoking memories of what had happened that night.
“Chrysalis!!” I barked, glaring at the form moving from the darkness.
“What do you want?” she spat. “If you've come for the Ponies we took, then it is too late!”
“We know what you are!” Luna spoke up calmly, stepping forward. “You are not the real Changeling Queen.” At this, Chrysalis simply looked to the left then back again.
“Right.” she grunted dismissively. “I'm sorry, but why are you here?”
“Where is our sister?” Luna demanded, quickly losing her cool. “Do not play us for fools!”
“She's back at Canterlot!” Chrysalis hissed at us, causing a rush of confusion.
“We stood within those very halls and we saw but one thing – you!” Luna bit back at the Queen.
“Then how am I right here?” she argued back. I had been silent, just listening in so now was a good time to chime in.
“Simple! You yourself are a changeling of your Queen!” I shouted, seeing Changelings start to surround us. “You have fooled us once, but we know now that there cannot be two Queens!”
“You banish me from Canterlot Castle after my perfect day,” she roared, beginning to rise into the air, “and now you come to my very home and accuse me of taking Canterlot?” She spread her wings wide as she finished. “Children, destroy these morons!” With that, the Changelings surged towards us, although I was not fazed; I looked to Luna and nodded.
“Chrysalis,” I started, “we do not have to –” I was cut off by a Changeling punching me square in the jaw, cackling as it laid the heavy blow. I spit blood out and huffed; I had no choice but to fight now.
“Very well.” I snarled. I saw Luna burst forward as I cast my spell, heading right for the Queen. She flew into the air and left me with the small group. Now that I was back at full strength, the fun was about to begin.
The same one that threw the punch dashed at me yet again, but this time I moved aside and jabbed him in the chest with my hoof, summoning fire to it and throwing the fireball into his chest before throwing him aside. Another was upon me in seconds, jaws open wide as it attempted to take a chunk out of me. I rammed my hoof forward and right into its mouth, grinning for a second before blasting its head to pieces. I had fought for many years in the war, and these guys were a poor match. The Mare in the moon and the Changeling Queen battled it out above me, while below, I threw many a changeling aside, my magic as strong as ever and not weakening for a second. The two Mares had locked horns now, I watched as Luna pushed back with little effort against the Queen, blasting her back against the wall of one of the cocoons. She fell to the floor hitting it hard with a cough, struggling to stand for only a second before Luna was on her again, pinning her to the floor and charging a spell. The Queen thrashed back and forth in fear, trying to get free from her doomed state.
For a moment I looked over the two. Luna questioned her time after time on where her sister was, but every time she got the same answer, this was either a very well trained Changeling or...it hit me, right then and there – the Ponies becoming Changelings, Celestia nowhere to be found, and this fake Queen's resistance. She didn't know where Celestia was because she was resisting.
“Luna, stop!” I yelled out.
“Mikeus, do not interfere!” Luna commanded. “We shall know where our sister is!”
“Then look no further.” I gently said, walking over to the two. Luna turned to me, then to the Queen, before suddenly stepping away from her in shock.
“Mikeus,” she said, completely disbelieving, “you don't mean...”
“Chrysalis,” I said soothingly, but my voice having no effect on the terrified Changeling “you don't know the location of Princess Celestia...because you are Princess Celestia.”
