It looked like yet another fine day in Canterlot. The Sun was already high, awakening the blooming nature in and around the castle with the blessed warmth of an invigorating spring morning. Many ponies were out enjoying the national holiday, playing, talking, or just having a walk in one of the many parks around. There were a few clouds in the sky, but those coming too close to the Sun quickly evaporated, no hint of them remaining except for a rainbow trail going away from where they used to be. On a clear day like this one, or the many like it before and after it, the sight available from Canterlot was simply marvellous. Within the castle itself however, there was a given anxiety existing between all the servants caused by an alicorn that restlessly wandered around despite her resting time being long overdue, which was a fact she couldn't hide despite her best efforts. At long last, she found the throne room and pushed inside, ignoring proper protocol. Fortunately, the solar princess was currently unoccupied due to it being tea time in the court of Canterlot.
Seeing the other alicorn walk towards her throne, Princess Celestia calmly sipped from her cup and said, "Yes?"
"Is that a way which to use in order to greet thine sister?" Princess Luna called back while she was making the giant journey between the door and the throne.
"I'd take a different one if she were present."
Luna paused where she stood, then said, "Let's not have to shout at each other, will you, Celly?" and leapt forward with the assistance of a flap of her enormous wings, landing where ponies would usually stand during an audience. Once there, she conjured a little green flame from her horn which ran down her spine until the middle of her back, then split, and continued to go down her legs. Once they had reached her hooves, her skin dropped off, revealing a pitch black figure of equal proportions within.
The guards instantly moved in to apprehend her, but Princess Celestia raised a hoof to stop them and said, "Let her talk. I'm warning you, demon. Should you have any malicious intent for my subjects, leave now or feel my wrath."
"My dear Celestia, do I look like I'm in any stance to fight right now?" Queen Chrysalis said, stretching out herself to allow easier inspection. It was odd to call her unclean or malnourished given the usual appearance of an untransformed Changeling, but it was obvious that she had been going through a bad period since her last defeat. "The hive hungers since you successfully countered our desperation effort to secure nourishment for all of our race. No hard feelings, by the way. That's why I come with no declaration of war, but an offer for peace."
A quiet murmur began to rise in the room between the servants that lined the walls. "There already is peace between our races, you stay to the hive and the ponies to Equestria. How do you imagine such a pact?"
"Simple." Chrysalis briefly concentrated, causing a map of the land to appear on her chest. In one corner, a big green spot marked the location of the Changeling hive with a line of the same color separating Equestria from its surroundings. "You see, here's Equestria, which ends over here as the outskirts - you call them infested terrain, we call them home - begin. What I propose is that," she rubbed out the border line with a hoof, "we put aside our differences and become one society. Changelings and ponies aren't too different, you know. We don't really need love to survive, regular pony food will also do the trick, though love tastes so wonderfully pink. I've also heard minions reporting successful coupling with ponies. Just imagine the glory our combined efforts could achieve!"
The murmurs rose. Chrysalis was obviously very talented in the art of persuasion. If she managed to win the crowd for herself, Princess Celestia would have no option but to accept. "And what would we have from it? Your benefit is obvious, but there needs to be a reason why my subjects should want to live and love with, forgive me for that word, monsters like you."
"You mean, besides having to worry about one less threat in Equestria? Well, you'd get a significant boost to your population, one which can technically live without requiring food and can be literally anything you want it to be. We understand that having a bunch of Changelings suddenly integrate into society would be unnerving, so we would take shape to resemble your kind, without stealing any personalities, of course. Plus, do you know how our society is organised?"
"Feral?"
"Oh, Celestia, you are charming. In principle, we Changelings are just ponies with a few... abilities. So whatever they're saying about us is probably not true. Except, what is true is that we have a superphysical connection, in other words, a literal hive mind. Let me see..." Chrysalis scanned the room until her eyes focused on a particular unicorn who quickly bowed down and revealed her true form as a Changeling. "Yeah, that's pretty handy. But that's not entirely the point. All who are at least partially Changeling are connected from birth, but we can also link others with a relatively simple spell."
"Captain," Princess Celestia said with closed eyes and stiff facial expression, concealing any emotions, "did I not explicitly order you to inspect all recruits for possible spies?" He did not respond, instead just bowing his head in shame and retreating out of Celestia's reach. Apologies and reasons were without meaning now. "Anyway, disregarding the quality of my most... trusted... subjects, why should I trust you when you suggest that my ponies give up their free will?"
"Oh, no, it's not one will shared between all Changelings, darling. They all have a mind of their own," Chrysalis said while behind her, the Changeling saluted and began to bang her head against a wall. "Whoops. Stop that. As I was saying, it's merely an uplink to relay orders and news from the, ah, field. They don't have to follow them, they just are that obedient. Or so they tell me, anyway."
"You didn't answer my question, Chrysalis. We saw how much you value the free will of your victims." The background noise began to grow again after dying down momentarily while all the ponies hadn't wanted to miss anything the queen said. Celestia was pleased. That argument, unfair as she had to admit it was, had lost Chrysalis some much needed support from the crowd.
"Oh, didn't I? You must forgive me. The captain was just a necessary sacrifice. Even if he hadn't been, I have to say he does look rather handsome. Though, sorry dear, not into nonalphas. Did I mention that it was either attempting that invasion or seeing my, uh, people starve to death while tearing each other apart in blind hunger? To be honest, I think I did. Also, connecting to the hive mind wouldn't really harm a pony's psyche, it'd just be adding another layer for communication. There'd be no more need for any sort of other communication, Celestia! Just imagine the productivity ponykind could achieve that way!"
And every doubt the audience had had against Queen Chrysalis' intention was gone again just as soon as they had begun to have any. Even if the political situation hadn't been clear, Princess Celestia had to admit that Chrysalis did have a point. If she was to deny honest equines shelter in her domain, how much better would she be than the monsters she made them out to be? "Very well. Your race may live in peace in Equestria so long as they do not conceal their true origin when openly confronted. Also, you may not connect any ponies to the hive mind before my researchers confirm that the spell is harmless and only if they explicitly consent. Don't take this for granted in any way. Should I receive word that anypony came to harm through the actions or inactions of Equestria's newest inhabitants, all shall feel the consequences. And," Princess Celestia let her stern expression of command melt into a smile and conjured a second throne besides hers, "let us hope that this new pact will lead our combined empire to never before experienced glory."
Queen Chrysalis moved onto the seat offered to her by the princess, "I'm glad to see you are not prejudiced. You can come out now, children."
On this command, the chamber was bathed in green light as more than half of the ponies present changed forms into the familiar insectoid, yet still equine, shape. "Exactly how many spies did you place in my court?" Celestia asked as the cascade was dying down.
"A few. Don't think of them as spies, more as... unpaid labor that was not asked for."
Princess Celestia chuckled gently, "You're like Luna in our earlier days. I believe we are going to have quite the time ruling over Equestria."
With that, the United Kingdoms had been founded, and everything had begun.
Queen Chrysalis hadn't been lying on the Day of Union. Merging their populations had brought both sides nothing but benefit. For almost two decades now, there had been no conflicts in the empire for there was no longer considered to be any difference between the two races. In fact, what continued to differentiate them was rapidly diminishing as many ponies had found love with a Changeling and even interbred already, with interesting results. As their parents were as vastly apart as they were, many would have expected for the Shapies, as they were called, to be walking mistakes of nature, perhaps to not even survive embryonic development. However, they somehow overcame the contradictions implanted into them and became not partially either race, but a full unit of both. Seemingly normal colts and fillies on the outside, there were ponies who swore they had a different mane color or style whenever backs were turned.
Despite their obvious differences however, Shapies saw no separating treatment except for their name, going side by side with other foals through their maturation. In fact, Twilight Sparkle thought, one particular Shapie named Mirage was going side by side quite closely with her little baby Daylight. Not that she could do anything against it if she wanted, of course. The second generation was maturing and it was their turn to explore and claim the world as their own. They were adult mares now. She could only hope that they came to her once in a while to allow her to partake in their problems, their drives, their joy. She walked out onto the balcony. Ponyville had grown into a small town bigger than what Canterlot had once used to be when she had left it, though it obviously was no competition when compared to the state of the castle as it had profitted equally, if not more due to its higher starting population.
Coming naturally with the Changelings' arrival had been heavy resistance against the idea of forming a common mind, but the results spoke for themselves. With just a brief touch by any Changeling, the ponies could reach a synergy and efficiency which was above anything they would have dreamt of normally, allowing Equestria to flourish as it had done in the previous years. But not only was coordination between them at a peak, they had also managed amazing scientific breakthroughs, as a pony was no longer limited to her own mind but could instead exchange with others at any distance. There were still such that had refused connection to the hive mind, Twilight's family among them, but their numbers shrank daily. She didn't want to hinder progress, perhaps she was the one out of all that the hive mind needed, but she simply hadn't seen a reason to connect, not after what had happened to her beloved wife when she had entered it.
The Changelings had caused a new era for ponykind, an era of peace and equality. Twilight was about to retreat back inside so that she could go out for real and bask in the glory of the sunlight Ponyville was experiencing when something odd happened. The earth had slightly trembled, far too little to be called an earthquake, followed by a slight headache befalling her. Just a few seconds afterwards, a note materialised beside her. "Come to Canterlot, now. Bring the two," she read aloud to herself. The writing looked like Princess Celestia's, so Twilight figured she had to expect the worst and sprinted downwards to fulfill the order as quickly as possible.
Coming down the stairs, Twilight found the two young lovers in a rather conspicuous position, both lying on their stomachs, stacked with Mirage atop Daylight. "Kids, we don't have time for such silliness. Get up," she said and searched the shelves of the library for a particular book.
"Mom! This, uh, this seriously is not what it might look like," Daylight called as she pushed herself free. "She just tumbled into me, and I guess we took that opportunity for cuddles instead of rising right away."
Twilight turned around, a thick tome titled Runes For Everyday Spells With A Bit More Oomph hovering beside her head, "I know you weren't, I didn't raise a moron who would in the literally most visited room of the house. Besides, that wouldn't work even if you two wanted to. How do you think you were made? Although, since she's a Shapie, I guess you could... anyway. Don't. You are not ready, even if you think you are." She put the book down on a reading pult and began skimming through the pages.
"Gee, what's going on?" Daylight tried to see what spell Twilight was looking for, but achieved little besides causing a strand of her long, sun yellow mane to fall into her eye without having a chance to react to it. "Gah, dumb hair," she shouted while frantically magicking it out.
Twilight found what she had been looking for, turned around, and smiled at Daylight, "That's the same strand your mother always struggled with. Anyway, the Princess has requested all of us at Canterlot as soon as possible, so would you kindly help me with this one for a second?"
"Aether Pathway. I see, it's that urgent then."
"Yeah, didn't you feel it? I think we should reach Canterlot with two Powers."
"Mom, that'd be a waste of energy. One does the trick just as well. Ugh, why do I always have to correct your configurations..."
"Whose flank has Power on it again?"
Mumbling further objections, Daylight ignited the tip of her hoof with the standard rune drawing spell and went to work redrawing the runes listed in the book in front of her. "What was I supposed to feel, anyway?"
"I noticed a slight disruption, physically and mentally, just a few minutes ago," Twilight explained.
"Nope, can't say I did." She finished the configuration and turned her head towards her friend, "Did you, Mirage?"
Mirage looked up from her hoof, which she had been cycling through every color of the rainbow out of boredom, let it return to the light silver blue that she had chosen as her base appearance, and said, "Maybe. The mind's kinda quiet, though, except for a bit of rumor. Nothing special going on in it."
Twilight empowered the formation drawn before her, creating a see-through door out of thin air glowing magenta, "Well, anyway. Move on through, kids." She ushered them through, then stepped into the portal herself.
Daylight enjoyed travelling by teleportation. Not only did it get her to where she had to be in an instant, the way itself was often her goal. Of course, everything was always over after half a second, one if particularly long range, but that split second was worth every trouble of achieving it. For half a second, Daylight felt like she could do everything in her imagination while her admittedly slightly overweight figure was being consumed by the space inbetween. She mentally awoke to the sound of birds singing in Canterlot's trees as her once again material hooves made contact with solid ground. She looked around to ensure that everypony had gone through the journey as well as her. Her mother was already impatiently tapping her hoof waiting for them to recover into walking condition while Mirage was struggling using all four of her legs in combination with phantasmal wings she momentarily shapeshifted into existence to bring herself upright again, though she achieved nothing more than looking like a knocked over bug. "How did you even manage to do that?" she jokingly asked while helping Mirage up.
"Pony magic. That always gets me off guard."
"Says the filly who does practically the essence of pony magic for a talent," Twilight threw in.
"I'm gonna keep saying it's Changeling origin," Mirage replied, fading out until only her face and blood circuit remained visible. "Really, who cares where it comes from when it's awesome like this. But seriously, I prefer shapeshifter magic. Maybe there's not so much of a difference any more, but, you know. Why should I rely purely on my own power when I can also bask in the collective of all within the mind?"
Twilight silently ordered that they finally get going. "Good advice, don't rely on the hive mind as a solution for everything, little one."
"Mother was in it," Daylight said.
"Well, you know what happened to her," Twilight snapped. "Uh,sorry, but, you know."
"No, I actually don't."
Twilight sighed. "I was dreading this day, when you'd ask me this question and be too old for me to further hide the truth from you. You do know the concept of the Magic Flow, as in, the essence of the world and everything within, that which we just used for transport?"
"That hippie nonsense?"
"That your very mother Midnight was the lead researcher of, young lady. She could see it, temporarily phase out of here and into it, she even took me along a few times! She theorised that we are already all connected, in essence, through the Flow. It's probably that binding which the hive mind exploits. Imagine what she could do once her connection to ponykind actually exceeded a philosophical basis. But, unfortunately," she cleared her throat, "Midnight was never known for necessarily sharing our ideals. With the hive mind to back her up, she recognised that she had found all that she could find about the Flow with her physical form, so she put duty over everything and became one with the Flow. Now she's beyond, but still with, us. I firmly believe in it."
"So... she's still in the hive mind?"
"If she is, she's not saying anything," Mirage commented.
"We may not be able to detect her, but she's with us."
"Would you kindly get a move on up here already?" somepony called from above. Looking up, the three saw it was Queen Chrysalis awaiting them on one of the nether towers. They quickly complied with their own method each. Twilight simply teleported up with a standard displacement spell, Daylight sketched down her favorite rune configuration to copy her mother's spell that was still floating about, and Mirage sprouted wings and flew up. Upon landing, she quickly bowed her head down, to which Chrysalis said, "Compliant like a drone from the early days. Cute, but ultimately unnecessary. Come on inside, there is much to do." She ushered them into her personal chambers. They were different than what may be expected of her. The decoration was simple and to the point, enchanted to change size and shape as well as herself to adjust to her needs. The only constants in the round room were the black-draped, circular bed in one corner accompanied by a stand with various chocolates on it and a spectral map floating in the middle. "You, my child," she pointed at Mirage. "How are you feeling?"
"Not much different than usual. Slightly confused about what in the hay might be happening," she replied.
"Are you receiving anything through the hive mind?"
"No. Now that I think about it, it's being kinda quiet."
Chrysalis sighed. "They're blocking out communication to prevent you from catching onto their madness too early." She began to drag a hoof around on the map, causing various colorful markings to appear and vanish until finally, she stopped when it showed a small red blob where Ponyville stood.
"What's going on down there?" Twilight asked.
"It's become corrupt. Something evil has taken hold of the mind."
"Then why is Mirage not doing, I don't know, something?" Daylight said, keeping a close eye on her fillyfriend, who kept up her exact usual behavior of disinterest in what was going on around her.
"It couldn't affect all of them at once, so it started with those of importance. Those who would fare well in spreading their infection. Those not currently making out under the protection of a paranoid unicorn's ward spell."
"Hey, I WAS right," Twilight retorted. "Do you have any further information on the matter? Who is affected? Anything specific about what is taking hold of them?"
"As mentioned, ponies of importance. More accurately, your closest friends, our dear princess, and some additional. More importantly however, it won't stay between just those. Already they have begun to take more ponies into their madness."
"Then we need to stop them now while their numbers are weak!"
"I adore simple solutions, but this won't work. They're already a small army, by the time any significant guard effort could be mobilised, we'd be outnumbered three to one. Besides, if they get only a brief chance to mentally assault you, you're one of them. Let's try to prevent that from happening for now." Behind Chrysalis, the blob grew ever so slightly, easy to miss if not paying attention.
"But we'll be able to cure them? If not, we need to secure as many innocents as possible."
"I think we will. It's our only hope anyway, since the insane would only take us in upon any attempt to fight them directly. We need to bide our time and develop a devastating strike from afar."
"Strike against our friends?"
"Not against them, against the mind itself. If we can make a telepathy spell with enough power, we will probably be able to cure it of its insanity."
"How can a psychic link itself go insane?" Daylight asked.
"The hive mind is more than that. It's a common subconscious and if something disrupts that with more force than a group of drones who are connected to each other more closely than to others can take, well, then they won't be able to keep their unit stable and go nuts together," Mirage said.
"Correct. So we'll still be able to use the healthy part of it at least for now. I'll be honest with you, we're getting exponentially outnumbered by the second, you stand no chance if caught out in the open, and they could probably instantly win if they get enough unicorns and the idea to use a telepathy spell of their own... drone one four echo two six five seven, is it too late to switch sides?" The Changeling Chrysalis had adressed meekly nodded. "Oh well. I'm sure three percent chance of success are enough. I've spoken to Luna," Chrysalis ignored Twilight's eye twitch, "she promised to keep Celestia," as well as the second, "somewhere safe where she can't do harm. But it'll keep her busy, so I guess it's essentially between us now. It's a matter of minutes until they're strong enough to start remotely corrupting ponies in other settlements than Ponyville."
"Couldn't Shining Armor's magic protect Canterlot?" Twilight said.
"I tried, but he's unavailable. Either he's already been taken or his princess has convinced him to flee for now. You know, protect their foals."
"Aside from the fact that he didn't care to mention that I'm an aunt, then I'll provide the spell. By the way, you two know what to do once this is over. Wait, no. Not yet. Marriage. Anyway."
"Don't exhaust yourself too much. We'll need somepony to actually perform the telepathy. I'd suggest shielding a small area only. This tower should serve as a refuge. Don't worry, we won't starve, even if most of us would be locked inside. Just make sure to conjure it from the outside, yes?"
Twilight sat down in meditating stance. Every unicorn had a signature spell, a particular magic that helped them with their special talent for incomparably less effort. Not much after the Day of Union, she had done some research on the topic and discovered that she, of all ponies, did not have her own signature spell. Instead, she could imitate everypony else's almost as if it were her own, requiring only a bit more energy than the original pony would, which was still far below casting it regularly. Nevertheless, Shining Armor's took a lot out of her as it wasn't an easy spell to begin with. Finally, she rose again once their refuge was enveloped in magenta energy.
"That should at least buy us some time once they march up. Still, we need to be quick. I think you will find all that you need within this tower," Chrysalis said before taking another glance at the map floating behind her and frowning. "They are spreading to other cities faster than I expected. Your spell should protect us from remote psychic attacks, but we all know it's no permanent solution. I estimate it to be a few hours before they realise we're here and put up a strike force in Canterlot plus maybe half an hour which the shield will hold after that. I've collected all that might be useful downstairs. Everyone, we need to search those books and find the required spell before it's too late. So let's get to it."
"Mind bending, mind moiling, mind boiling... nothing of use!" Daylight called out, tossing the three books laid out before her onto the evergrowing pile of unusables.
"Couldn't you just draw one from scratch?" Mirage asked, lying beside her.
"Am I the plot device for everything? You can see how complicated those configurations are. Even if I could put together something of that much power without messing up, I could never utilise the synergy needed to get the required effect. So it's down to searching for somepony else before us who thought a spell able to purge about five to ten thousand minds at once was something the world really needed."
"You're always my plot device. Uh, you just gotta believe in yourself... beliefe in our love."
"Focus, fillies, you're already misspelling," Twilight drily said as she happened to walk by their lane in the endless bookshelves. "Tsk, young lovers, so much like me and her..."
"'Believe in our love'," Daylight repeated as she magicked forth the next couple of books. "As if that was worth anything."
"I didn't eat in weeks," Mirage commented.
"Anyway, the point is, this is searching for a needle in a haystack. One the size of Canterlot."
"I know that I've heard of it before, though only heard, not seen. We'll find it if we keep looking," Twilight's voice came from beyond the bookshelves.
"You'd better, my little ponies. They've noticed us," Queen Chrysalis said peeking over the shelves from the opposite direction.
Hearing this, everypony dashed towards the nearest window. Mirage was first to express everyone's impression of the image, "Oh my gosh. What have they done to this place?" Outside, there was an evergrowing number of ponies, Changelings, and interbreeds amassing just before the forcefield. Behind them, many more were running rampant, seemingly hunting for additional ponies to convert to their twisted mind without caring for collateral damage. Ponies ran in terror as structures collapsed and burned behind them, only to then be caught and brought into the new hive mind unit. Twilight quietly allowed a few tears to drip from her face as she witnessed the destruction of her old home, which became accompanied with a few sobs when a certain group of five ponies came into sight. Daylight quickly went over to comfort her. The ponies outside looked odd. Their physical appearance wasn't altered in any way, there were no wounds or other visible signs of physical struggle preceding assimilation into the mind, but they still looked strange, evil in a way. There was a given aura around not any particular pony or Changeling, but the group as a whole. They also seemed to attempt to breach the shield with psychic attacks, concluding from the headache Mirage got from watching them.
"Of course, forceful assimilation from range. As long as they keep trying that and not actually attacking the shield, it should buy us some time. Twilight Sparkle, are you still feeling good?" Chrysalis said once Twilight had recovered from her outburst.
"Yeah. I can feel them draining on the shield, but it'll be a long time before I'm exhausted."
"Perhaps you should rest, to keep it that way."
"No, I mean, I'm needed here, right?"
"Actually, mom," Daylight said while abusing her runedrawing spell to scribble down temporary notes on the floor, "your influence in the search is fairly small, reducing the estimated time needed by something that's not that big. However, if you're focused entirely on keeping us safe, then that prolongs our lifetimes by quite a lot. See?"
Mirage creeped up next to Twilight. "Miss Sparkle?" she whispered in a volume clearly meant to be heard by all. "You have raised an egghead, methinks."
"Yes, it seems like I have," the purple unicorn responded. "Fine, I'll be off then." She turned and headed towards the door while mumbling, "Didn't want to dig through ancient knowledge anyway..."
"And another stack through. We're not getting anywhere with this. Why couldn't ye olde unicornes be more clear in their writing, like, saying stuff like, 'Use this to cure mentally ill ponies'," Daylight complained as she tossed yet another couple of books onto the stack. Sleeping in Chrysalis' quarters hadn't done very much for her. She was clearly used to resting in the library like a princess, not like a Changeling drone. Mirage couldn't completely explain her best friend's behavior, but then again, she still had the required suppressors within herself despite being half pony.
Suddenly, the pile sprouted legs and a head, "As much as I enjoy your sarcasm, I'd like to ask you not to file me in here." Mirage climbed out into the open again. "Maybe you need a bit of air. C'mon, let's go outside."
"How? They're still swarming us. Maybe you could sneak out, if the shield didn't repel you as well."
"They're insane, not brainless. I think they'd notice me trying to blend in. Besides, we've got a balcony over there. That'll do."
"You're right, let's go." Daylight rose to her hooves and quickly went out through the door, yet another tome floating next to her. Once there, she laid down and beckoned for Mirage to join her. "You're right, that's better. Let's see then. Mind broiling, mind... minding?"
"Ah, at last she's not listening. At least while I watch what I think." Mirage set to gently grooming herself.
"Is the queen really always in your mind?"
"Yeah. It's not that bad, really. Unless you want some privacy, at least. All of my brothers and sisters are constantly with me, there when I need them. Except for now, of course."
"Make me a part of it."
"Excuse me?" Mirage was clearly shocked by Daylight's request.
"I don't care what she says, I want to always be with you. Take me into your hive mind. And, once this is all over, promise you'll marry me soon."
"I... I guess I can do that. Hold still, I don't want to hurt-" Before Mirage could finish her sentence, Daylight had already pulled her into a deep, all out kiss. They had been together plenty of times before, but it felt somehow different from those. She had never noticed how soft and warm pony lips were. After a seeming eternity, Mirage remembered what she was supposed to do. Just when Daylight's tongue had penetrated into her, so did her mind join the greater. Even after backing off, they never separated for they were now connected by more than simply love.
A voice came into Mirage's head, "Wow, this feels... unimaginable. The Flow... lies at my hooves." She could only hope that Daylight wouldn't hear everything she thought, although she would probably love to hear how incredibly happy Mirage was that they were now semi-united, that she would no longer have to share the unicorn's sweeter-than-nectar voice with any others that could hear it when it was transferred using air instead of magic.
"My little ponies - and other - focus on the task, would you kindly? You'll have plenty of time to make me puke after this crisis," a third voice joined in, one that Mirage knew very well.
With a spell of her ancestral magic, she lightened the fur on her cheeks so that the blush she also shared with Daylight at this interruption would be near invisible. "Yeah, get used to her, you'll hear her kinda much when you're in tune with the mind, But she only means well, I promise. Anyhow, let's take a different approach. You know your runes, what would a spell need to have to be what we're looking for?" she communicated.
"Well, we'd surely need Mind in it, Target, Energy... maybe throw in Harmony for the required power," sounded in Mirage's head in response.
"You know what's awesome about this? Now, I can actually read those things. Mind, Energy, Target, Harmony, you mean, something like this one over here?"
Daylight's head spun around. The sniplets of magic she had been emitting during their amazing kiss had apparently blown the pages around like a gust of wind. "Yes! That could work! Quick, we gotta tell mom and," she didn't continue that train of thought. Right in that second, the wall keeping them in and the turned out shattered into fragments, each vanishing before it hit the floor, now useless in their defense. A pained expression came onto Daylight's face as she clenched her head between her hooves, quickly replaced by a sinister grin. The whole process was a mystery to Mirage only for so long as she began to feel it herself soon afterwards.
"Begone!"
"Twilight Sparkle! They've found it!" a voice tore Twilight from a well-deserved nap. If the encyclopedists hadn't wanted her to use their works for cushioning, they shouldn't have made them so comfortable.
She found her way back into the conscious world fairly easily with the given motivation, "Wh- really? Where are they?"
The Changeling queen pushed an opened tome in front of her, "It's one of those."
"Gotta be this one, the other can't affect the mind. Did Daylight draw it down already?" Silence was the only thing that answered her. "Chrysalis," she said with significantly more tone in her voice, "where is my daughter?"
"Well, how do I put this, first off, your ward failed and it's a matter of minutes - hell, maybe even less - until they've either gone up the stairs or breached my own hasty blockage of the balcony door. You'll want to shout at me, but listen. The two made the wrong mistake at the wrong time, my dear. They opened their minds just as the horde could reach them with psychic attacks, so they kind of..." she took in a deep breath then said in a hurry, "turned and I pushed them off of the tower, Don't worry, they're safe among the others, and if this method works, they'll be cured as well. So just quickly cast the spell, please?"
"Uh, okay, okay," Twilight said, not wasting any time igniting her hoof and quickly, but carefully, redrawing the configuration sketched. "There. It's been two days, yet Canterlot is already burning. Is the solution to this conflict really that easy?"
Twilight concentrated, pushing everything that was not related to pumping as much power as she could into those runes out of her mind. It was not failing yet, at the very least. As she began to doubt if it was going to resolve, the sound of the door crashing open tore her from her concentration, causing her to instantly release all stored up energy.
Then, time stopped.
Slowly, Twilight rose to her hooves. Queen Chrysalis was as still as the horde which she had sensed coming ages ago and turned to fight off if necessary to buy her the necessary seconds. Among the front attackers, she found the proof that the queen had told just the truth. She was nothing but glad to see that they were both unharmed and united even in savagery.
"My legacy is not wasted, then," suddenly sounded from behind Twilight. She spun around and spotted a phantasmal unicorn leaning against a bookshelf. It looked like the pony was made of pure energy with sparks occasionally rising through and out of her. She was heavily damaged. Several hemorrhages covered her body and white bone fragments stuck out of three of her legs as well as her chest.
Nevertheless, or perhaps because she looked like that, Twilight instantly recognised her. She instantly embraced the apparition as tightly as she could and said, "Midnight! You've come back for me! But, by all you want, it didn't treat you well," weeping for a seemingly illogical reason as tears would not help even if they weren't lost over the image of a pony gone long since.
Midnight gently, but unmistakably, pushed herself free and retrieved a certain book from the shelves, then raffled through the pages until she reached a section topped by a drawing of a branched line of energy they both knew very well, a section which she herself had contributed most to. "It turns out the Flow does not like my kind. It punished me by forcing me to keep my last form and thus forever endure the pain I knew last. Actually, I think I might not be myself, just an incarnation of your imagination." She waved the words away with her healthy foreleg, "But that's beside the point. Right now, we should focus on what you are doing. That's what I pulled you out for, after all. Take a close look at that spell, would you kindly? Does it remind you of anything?"
"Harmony, Energy, Target... wait, that's Mend!"
"Exactly. I've finally made history, haven't I. And you're about to. Forgive me for asking so many questions, but you know how it works, basically. How do you think could I have done anything against nonphysical injuries using what's basically an energy spell?"
"You couldn't, unless you'd put it directly... Midnight, is that why nearby insects always seemed to crash when you were bored?"
"Anyway, moving on, this spell is the answer to all of your troubles. If you keep empowering the runes, especially Energy, it'd result in a wave of pure energy treating all that are connected to the corrupted mind the same way I once did."
"You mean, kill them? I couldn't do that. Our only daughter is amongst them!" Twilight said, pointing towards Daylight.
Midnight practically floated over towards the invading crowd, stopping at her filly. With her healthy foreleg, she gently stroked Daylight's mane and said, "Such a beautiful filly, taken by savagery. Just why couldn't you have been born into another family, one where greatness and sacrifice aren't so common and simultaneously unseperable? Anyhow, Sparkle, once you're dead for a while, you start to gain perspective about sacrifices in the interest of the many."
"There wouldn't be many left. There must be another way."
"Ponykind could persevere without them, they're still relatively weak. That being said, I think you should be able to simply take over the hive mind if you focus your energy on Harmony. That'd stop the crisis, but it'd effectively turn everyone within the mind into slaves, albeit to a new master."
"As long as everypony survives, that is still far preferrable to just killing them all."
"As long as you, the mastermind, remain stable in your good intentions. No offense, Sparkle, but you've seen what simply being a part of the mind did to me." She adjusted herself to put every wound on her body into open sight. "How long could you stand being the hive mind itself? Imagine what the insanity of a mind as vast as yours would do to this land."
"But I must do it, else they'll die for sure."
"Actually, there might be another way. If I may," Midnight said as she began to fumble around at the back of Twilight's head. "You're special, have they ever told you that? Of course, twenty times a day. Well, check this out." She bit into her love's mane. As she pulled back out, there was no physical stress, however. Instead, a cloud of various colors, mostly those that made up Twilight, came forth. "In simple words, this is you. But it's not just that. I had noticed this even in life, but now I know for sure. You're more than a pony on the inside, Sparkle. Your essence holds that of the entire world. You are literally the Flow incarnate. Consequently, there's also every species on the planet present here. If you were to untie that energy and bind it into the spell, that should also end this conflict."
"How? Without bloodshed?"
"Yes, although... I believe that would pose the final step in our evolution. There would be no more distinction between any races, Sparkle. No more hostile takeovers since the drones keeping the hive mind powerful as it is would lose their powers. The connection between ponies would remain, but it could no longer bind them to its will."
"Wouldn't we still be vulnerable to insanity within the mind?"
Midnight gently chuckled. "Ah, Sparkle, did you really think this is a coincidence? That she pulls you out of Ponyville instead of telling you to, I don't know, apprehend your friends first to stop the entire mess where it began? That she tells you, the magic expert, to rest while hunting for the correct spell? That our girl turns insane at the moment when she could have easily found the spell? Changelings have devoured various species even before ponies came to exist. That's how they got their shapeshifting powers in the first place."
"But why should she give me the correct spell then?"
"To look like she meant to help you! All she knows, this is a simple healing spell. You'd be destined to fail and be taken when alone. Without any of your gang, who could still stand against them?"
"And this could get fixed by assimilating everypony?"
"As mentioned, there'd be absolutely no more difference between any two equines or whatever those bugs are. She'd be a simple whatever and have no more commanding power over the mind. But, keep in mind, we're talking about changing literally everyone on this planet into those awful inbetweens. You'd give her exactly what she wants! Possibly the monsters will remain loyal to her and ponies will be bred out within a few generations. Is that a step worth taking?"
"I guess, then, I'd - but, untie my essence? Wouldn't that hurt?"
"Twilight," Midnight paused for a second. Over all of the years they had known each other, she had never used that name. "You gotta be strong now. Whatever you choose, the only way to give the spell enough energy is to pour your burnout into it. But dying isn't so terrible if you're prepared. It's more like transcending what you think is real and entering the actual truth."
"Will you be with me?" Twilight tried to remain objective, but she couldn't prevent releasing the flow of liquid again at least for a few seemingly burning hot tears.
Midnight pulled her into a hug and kissed the water from her face, "From now to eternity, I will never leave you again. Promise. Now make your choice."
Exactly a year had passed since the Unity, but Mirage still just couldn't believe what had happened despite Queen Chrysalis having explained everything to the best of her ability. Given the enormous threat to ponykind they had managed to thwart and what it had cost them, it had been clear from the start that this date had to be marked in history forever lest it be forgotten and forced to repeat. For the first time, the day had come again to remember events past and Mirage, as well as her beloved, had been the obvious choice to speak to the population.
She risked a look outside. They weren't due for a little more time, but she started to feel a hint of stage fright even where she currently was. She didn't want to go outside into view. Instead, simply disappearing seemed like a far preferrable - and, on second thought, also very much possible - option. Daylight didn't quite seem to share her opinion though as she was doing final touchups on her mane style, visibly glad that doing so took only a bit of magic out of her now. Whatever Daylight decided to do, wherever she went, Mirage would follow, so she would probably also manage this speech if they could do it together.
"Ready?" the gray unicorn asked, establishing eye contact through the mirror. Mirage didn't use any words to respond and instead used her favorite illusion to reveal the fairly disquieting pace at which her heart was currently pumping. "I knew it. If that trick wasn't so awesome, I'd have to wish you stop doing it." She turned around and gave Mirage a quick peck on the cheek while walking past, "Come on, we gotta go. Glory awaits."
"Easy for you to say, I gotta do most of the talking," Mirage complained while following. Together, they walked onto the podium, the same one that had originally been used only for the Summer Sun Celebration. Now that their height advantage had increased, the crowd was slightly easier to oversee, but it was also a lot harder to ignore the truth of how gigantic it really was. She saw many of her friends from Ponyville, but many more whom she wouldn't know if that was physically possible.
"They're yours, my dear. I'll give you cues if you need them."
Mirage stepped to the border and cleared her throat, both for the obvious purpose and to signal that she was about to begin. "I am alive. All of us, original ponies, Changelings, and us interbreeds, have been changed. The madness is over, and through our combined efforts, we have managed to rebuild beyond what was before. Where previously Changeling corruption threatened us with extinction, its genetic memory now brings us the collective knowledge of all who came before. As a united race, we can now finally live the lives we have wished for. Much time has passed already, but we are still only taking our first steps into a brave new world where all can coexist peacefully, regardless of what once used to separate them. With peace across the empire and unlimited exchange of knowledge," she paused for a moment to look through Daylight's eyes at the spot where one of the most iconic statues of Equestria had stood as a monument of Canterlot's immortality, "to recover the glory that was lost... and surpass it."
Following a sudden urge, she stepped aside, allowing Daylight to continue speaking, "As the line between races and species disappears, we may transcend mortality itself to reach a level of existence I cannot even imagine. Mother Midnight believed that Utopia is not a place, but a people, united by pure purpose without struggle between themselves. Out of simple consequence, mother believed this world was irredeemable, but she was wrong. We are Utopia, each and every one of us simultaneously. While a physical utopia may be unreachable, it is within us already. And if we continue down this path towards limitless unity, we may be able to project a shard of Utopia into our world. But even in paradise, we will remember that this chance for a new life did not come without cost. While many of you may be unable to remember your deeds, the simple fact that we all are standing here today as we are is only because of those great heroes, ponies and Changelings alike, who stood in our way, who gave everything to save this world."
Mirage retook the lead following a shared impulse, "No matter how far we advance beyond our original forms, we will remember the sacrifices of those who made it possible. And we will remember Twilight Sparkle. She who ended the impending apocalypse while simultaneously assuring that it would always be replaced with peace. Because of her, I am alive and I am not alone. As all joined together in unity, I have come to realise the meaning of being alone, and want to never experience it again." She knelt down, careful to not think anything to keep the surprise, "Today, on the first anniversary of the unity, I, Mirage of Emnas, would like to ask you, Daylight of Twilight Sparkle, who stands before me, to be my wife."
Once spoken, those words felt far heavier to Mirage than they had in her head. The excitement of the crowd was obvious from the buzzing that arose within the hive mind, but she was missing one particular voice, both vocally and telepathically. Doubts overcame her, growing unbearable until suddenly she felt a pair of forelegs pick her up and almost force her into the greatest kiss Equestria had ever known.
