Chapter 9: A Sore Back

The dripping sound of water, hitting a flat surface of stone echoed through the air and reached Rainbow Dash's consciousness. Before opening her eyes she felt how her body was weak and sore and how she was laying on something strange. She really had to force her tiresome eyes open and when she saw her surrounding and current state she was in, so couldn't she help it but to feel fear creep up her back. She was laying on top of some kind of odd triangle shaped thing with its top cut flat and which were she had her chest resting against. Its length was about as her own and it was actually not uncomfortable to lay on when the whole thing was covered in dark red cloth which was both soft and thick. It was however strongly uncomfortable due to the fact that she was strapped and tied to it with some kind of thin leather strips around her all four legs that then connected to chains that pulled them towards the floor. She was firmly stuck to it and couldn't move at all.

By fright Rainbow Dash immediately tried to break free, but all she manages to do was to make the chains echo through the room she was in. Speaking of the room she was in so couldn't she say it made her feel any more calm as she looked around. She was surrounded by a few candles but that was it, everything else was pitch black. No rain or lightning could be heard which could only mean two things, the storm had either stopped, or she was somewhere deep, far away from the outside.
In front of Rainbow Dash she had something big that stood up and was covered in a white sheet with total darkness behind it. She also had on her right side, next to some candles a similar sheet on the stone floor covering something else as well. Her head went left and right as she tried to get a hang on where she was but it was simply too dark. All she saw was the first couple of meters around her by the light the candles provided and the two covered up things with sheets.

“Ssso we are finally awake.”
A voice unexpected broke loose from the darkness and that could only have been one particular creature. Dash looked around her as much as she could but the darkness was all that she could see.
After the voice had died out, only the dripping water from before were there to be heard and Dash even had trouble in just determining which direction the voice had come from.
“W-where are you... show yourself!”
Rainbow Dash yelled but not with anger, but with worry as she was leering all around her for movements in the dark. But in the next second appeared Chrysalis next to the covered up object in front of Rainbow Dash with jumping into the light and adding amused.
“As you wisssh... and here I am.”
Rainbow Dash twitched her head over to Chrysalis and stared long at her like a frightened child.
“What'sss thisss... why ssso tenssse sssky pony?”
She asked a bit surprised when she saw Dash's expression but kept her cruel smile despite that.

“W-w... what are you going to do with me!?”
Rainbow Dash desperately continued to ask and this time, Chrysalis actually lost her smile all the way through. She looked dead in her face, turned back and walked behind the covered up object and as she disappeared behind it so fell the white sheet off it. A giant mirror then got revealed with Chrysalis coming up on its other side. She didn't say anything and just watched Rainbow Dash as she watched her own reflection in the mirror. Dash got even more scared when she saw how frightened she actually looked in her humiliated position and didn't know what to say.
Her heart pounded and her hind legs was shaking but she wasn't sure if it was just fear or because of her fever, or both. Anyway so was she sweating rivers in the unbearably heat of her body but at the same time feeling a painful cold in her legs. All her muscles were tense like mountain and the swelling on her two sides were Chrysalis had made two giant wounds earlier was so tight it pushed harshly against her ribs. Every breath, every movement she made was a torturing experience and with the chains pulling her legs roughly apart from her body made it even worse.

Chrysalis after a while went up to the other sheet on the floor next to Dash and while she did that, Rainbow Dash asked.
“W-what is the meaning of this!?”
Chrysalis stopped and grabbed the sheet on the floor and before pulling it off, so stared she deeply into Dash's eyes for a couple of breaths. In a sweep the white sheet then flew off behind Chrysalis into the darkness and what had been laying under it was almost too much for Rainbow Dash.
Next to her there now was laying a big rectangular shaped piece of wood with pale grey cloth almost covering the whole thing and on it, a wide selection of twisted tools.
Rainbow Dash lost her sanity there for a second as she saw all the knives, hooks, tongs, saws and other sharp objects. There were mostly knives, shaped into all kinds of strange angels and spirals.
Dash watched them with her eyes vibrating and slowly looked up at Chrysalis.
“C-Chrysalis... I-I beg of you... p-please.”
She said close to burst out in cry but held it in, Chrysalis went then up to her and stroke her mane carefully and added.
“I am sssorry but... thisss hasss to be done.”

“W-what have I possibly done to deserve torture... why isn't killing me just enough for you... do you want me to beg for mercy... because I will do that if it means an end to this?!”
Rainbow Dash started shouting desperately with tears in her eyes, she was basically crying but not fully out just yet. Her voice was filled with dreaded terror which Dash very well knew, she wanted to prove that she really was terrified as she had mention on the small hill outside Ponyville, but that wouldn't help her.
“Ssshhh... itsss okey.”
Chrysalis just whispered out, trying to ignore everything Rainbow Dash said and she actually this time didn't have her cruel facial expression.
“No it's not... do you really hate me that much... is there something you want from me... please tell me?!”
Rainbow Dash was more than desperate at this point, her words left her with haste and she really was giving in to the crying.

The fear of more pain and the imagination of the suffering these tools could provide to Rainbow Dash were overwhelming. It was almost like Dash already could feel how Chrysalis picked up one of the many hooks laying next to her and shoved it in her already existing and on-going healing wound on her side, just to rip it wide open and tear out her organs.
“Thisss hasss nothing to do with hate or anything elssse... and to be honessst... I don't want to do thisss to you.”
Chrysalis said which only made Rainbow Dash's mind more confused than ever, she could understand if Chrysalis wanted to hurt her with simply her cruelty. But not showing any dislike what so ever towards her and even tell her that she didn't want to harm her didn't make sense.
“But why are you then doing this?!”
Rainbow Dash continued to yell and looked up in a quick motion at Chrysalis.
She really looked miserly in her face with the two black eyes which now were red by the tears and far from being done with releasing them. Her imaginations were currently at the moment causing more harm to Dash than Chrysalis herself.

“It'sss... complicated... but sssoon... you will underssstand.”
Chrysalis just simply answered as she continued to only use calm and as few words as possibly to give Rainbow Dash, which in one way only made the whole situation worse.
“Please Chrysalis... d-don't do this... you can't possibly deny my fear now... just look at me!”
Rainbow Dash screamed with so much tears in her eyes that everything was blurry.
Her weeping were loud and the sound of the water from her eyes, hitting the stone floor as she waved her head brutally left and right made even Chrysalis to give an expression like she thought bad for her. In time, Rainbow Dash calmed down herself somewhat but far from completely, but when she did let her head hang lifeless down, facing the floor and with her face in shadow, so forced Chrysalis her to look up at her again.

Sobbing without a stop didn't really affect Chrysalis that much more then she trying to comfort Rainbow Dash with patting her on the head and then saying.
“Everyone have a fear for pain... and that'sss good... becaussse that help usss avoid it... I do not sssee you as sssomeone weak or as a coward for ssshedding tearsss in moment like thisss... ssseeing what'sss sssurrounding you while being tied up... I can underssstand that.”
Rainbow Dash was far over the edge of being broken, Chrysalis had bested her and was in full control.
“Chrysalis... please!”
Continued Dash to beg for mercy but she was willing to do much more than just that. Because of her mind being so weak and easy to manipulate at the moment, Chrysalis wouldn't have any difficulty with getting Dash to do pretty much anything for her. But Chrysalis already knew what she was going to do with Dash and nothing was going to stop her, especially not the stranger for her which was the emotion sympathy.
Chrysalis stayed quiet and went slowly up behind Rainbow Dash which forced Dash to look into the mirror in front of her to be able to continue to see the Changeling queen without turning her head painfully back. There she then sat down and made a small sigh as she watched over Rainbow Dash's head into the mirror where they created an eye contact for a while. Dash's crying seemed to never have a stop, she was already exhaust from the terrified fear she was bound to and the screaming she had let go off every time she had said anything.

She wasn't the slightest afraid in showing Chrysalis her wrecked face and her true emotions, but if it just had been a couple of days back when she wasn't alone, so would it have been a big different.
Chrysalis then turned coldly enough her head simply away from the eye contact with Rainbow Dash and looked over at the tools and selected one to pick with a thin and flexible hand out of her mane.
Rainbow Dash didn't see what she exactly choose due to her panic and neither wanted she really to know. She gave attempt after attempt to break free but once again, only in vain and losing more strength. She was so weak and tired plus being in so much pain that she wouldn’t have been able to stand up on her own. Chrysalis then leaned over Rainbow Dash's exposed back and stroked it with one of her hoofs.
“Your ssskin... it'sss ssso... sssoft and fragile... beautiful in itsss colour as well... and as much as I would hate to harm it... ssso will itsss fragility make thisss easssier.”
She said while looking at Dash's back and almost lose herself while touching Dash's boiling hot skin. In the reflection of the mirror so saw Rainbow Dash how Chrysalis eyes were focused down on her and how those eyes of her had an obsessed look on them.

It must have been one of the scariest things Rainbow Dash had ever seen which made her to look down at the floor when she couldn’t bear to watch what was happening in the mirror any more. She cried for herself while feeling her back being gently touched, but then all the sudden a cold wave hit Rainbow Dash's entire back and that spread quickly through her body. She threw her head up to face the mirror and screamed terrified out, but all that had happen was that Chrysalis had poured some water over Dash's back with a bowl she apparently had the whole time next to her. Surprised she looked up at the mirror and saw Rainbow Dash's facial expression, she found it rather sad that Dash was so twitchy already before she even had started.
“Please do try to gather your thoughtsss and relax... if you sssimply would accept thisss ssso would it be ssso much easssier... mossstly for yourssself.”
Chrysalis said and from now on, Dash could barely handle using words any more, all she did was to cry and scream loud and wild which made Chrysalis just to shake her head in a sigh.

She knew at this point that nothing could calm her down, but at the same time she could understand why and knew that what was coming up next wouldn't help.
“I'm sssorry to sssay thisss but... I think have to remove your wingsss... they are sssimply too much in the way.”
Chrysalis said and in that moment the world just stopped for Rainbow Dash, she froze in place and her crying just died out and became silent. A strange sound came from her throat like a dagger got driven into her chest and followed shortly with her nose to start bleeding. Soon after that, Chrysalis grabbed firmly the base of Rainbow Dash's both wings with two hands and pulled them tight and at that point, Dash just dropped her head hanging. Chrysalis was simply going to just break the hard parts like bone and cartilage an such with brutal force and then cut the flesh and muscles with something sharp, but in the abrupt silent Rainbow Dash fell in to made Chrysalis to also stop by surprise. It was quiet for once wherever they were and after have been thinking some in the silent so had Chrysalis strangely changed her mind.
“Well... when I thing about it... ssso can the wingsss ssstay... they aren’t that much in the way.”
She said and without looking up, Rainbow Dash just kept her head low and with long drawn-out words, she ignore her sorrow for a second and spoke with a clear voice.

“You really deserve the Changelings as a family... because no one else would ever want you.”
Rainbow Dash whispered out quietly with no fear in her voice, but she didn't realize those words would have such impact on Chrysalis because the first thing the Changeling queen did when Dash was done, was to jam a curved blade right into Dash's lower back. The thin cold blade dug deep into her flesh and scratched lightly a part of a bone. Rainbow Dash twitched with her whole body and screamed quickly out. She threw her head back immediately and saw the blade still being stuck in her body just above her right cutie mark. Her eyes started to get tears in them and as she looked up to face Chrysalis, so felt she a wind filed with unease pass by. Chrysalis face was terrifying, she looked like a creepy doll with no facial expression, meaning she didn't look mad or anything else.
Rainbow Dash just kept as quiet as she possible could with her eyes watering and throwing her gaze back and forth at Chrysalis face and the blade stuck in her.
“You know... I have myssself thought about that.”
The Changeling queen said calm as nothing had happen and brutally pulled out the blade from Dash.

A disgusting sound was created as she made a long cut in the same motion as she pulled it free along her lower back and made Dash to moan in pain.
She then reached for a different tool on the side and while doing it she continued to speak.
“Maybe... maybe I'm jussst unlucky being the one I am.”
Chrysalis voice was still calm and horrifying and whatever she had picked up so shoved she it between Dash's shoulders without delay. Rainbow Dash bit firmly her jaws close and was fighting the pain, Chrysalis slowly then pulled along Dash's spine with her new tool like a zipper and made a line in the middle of Dash's back. Rainbow Dash managed to keep her screams for herself in the beginning, but the further Chrysalis pulled the harder it got. In the very end she couldn't take any more and gave into the pain, shouting.
“No more please!”
Chrysalis stopped with some space to spare to Dash's tail and once again pulled loose the blade without caring.

When Rainbow Dash's shouts of pain faded out, placed Chrysalis each of her front hoofs on each side of the line on Dash's back she just had made and stretched out the wound.
While Rainbow Dash gave birth to new screams of agony so didn't the Changeling queen care this time and talked over it.
“I'm going to give you a mark... but which purpossse aren’t relevant for you to know jussst yet... sssee it as a tattoo... a tattoo made out of your ssscarsss.”
“I... I don't under...”
Rainbow Dash tried to ask while breathing heavily and enduring massive pain, but she got interrupt with another sharp tool being forced into her skin and breaking it apart which this time happen extremely quickly. Rainbow Dash never got the chance to talk or to use words at all, she every time had to release a long crying roar but Chrysalis, she spoke in every opportunity while Dash had to keep her mind in handling the fresh cuts on her back.

“You sssee... cutting in sssinge linesss makesss relative thin ssscarsss... making them hard to be visssible.”
Chrysalis started to explain but all that Dash could feel or hear was her own blood flowing on her sides and the burning pain which echoed with her high voice.
“But you know how to force the body to create a good ssscar... it'sss pretty sssimple... you jussst make another line next to an already exisssting one.”
She continued and once again Dash felt and heard her back being tortured but Chrysalis who seemed strangely experienced in curving flesh made it quick this time and was already to the next step. Rainbow Dash felt how her throat was sore from all the screams she had released but her crying oddly enough wasn't that bad, she handled the pain with screams and emotion with tears.
Chrysalis leaned over Dash's back and put a pressure on her, the Changeling queen’s skin was crude like mountain and it felt according to Rainbow Dash like laying on her back on a cliff. Chrysalis stretched her head over to Rainbow Dash's ear and pulled in a breath as she smelled her mane, she then went even closer with her head and whispered with slow words, making the warm air from her mouth to make Dash's skin to crawl.

“And then... you sssimply peel of the ssskin... in the thin ssstripes you made.”
“No... no... please.”
Tiredsome Rainbow Dash said both weak and slow but it was already too late. Chrysalis did exactly as she had explained and a tearing sound then broke lose. It sounded just like thick spider web being torn apart except for louder, Dash didn't feel any pain more than she already was in and was at first confused in the sound she was hearing. But then the horror once again laid itself to peace as a long stripe of pale, light blue skin was thrown in front of the mirror with its backside red and moist by blood. It hit the floor in a weak splashing sound and as Rainbow Dash saw it, realized she what it actually was. Slowly but sure her mouth opened and her facial expression changed drastically, she felt the pain on her back raise as if she was reaching a hoof over a fire. In the beginning it only stung a little bit but it quickly increased and Rainbow Dash was prepared to release her charged up scream, if it wasn't for Chrysalis. The Changeling queen grabbed Dash's muzzle and forced it close so Rainbow Dash's upcoming roar of pain only became a muffled scream like she did it into a pillow.

“Sssave your agony... and your preciousss voice... thisss isss far from done little one... I didn't think I would enjoy thisss but it'sss jussst sssomething with your voice that makesss my ssskin crawl!”
Chrysalis shouted and she wasn't lying, in the next past hours she tortured Rainbow Dash in the same means and it was awkwardly calm actually. Of course in the beginning Dash couldn't bear to stay silent, but as she lost with time the feeling of pain expect for those time when Chrysalis went deep, so was she only crying lightly as she knew what in fact happen behind her. Stripes of her skin went left and right and in time she was surrounded by them, she felt butchered, being the poor animal as she was while getting partly skinned for some sick purpose. Chrysalis used most out of her tools and they quickly grew to a bloody mess on the grey cloth they were laying on, except for the saws which Chrysalis most likely were going to use to get rid of Rainbow Dash's wings.
Why she decided to spare them was unknown but they ended up anyway on the side, all clean and untouched.

During the course of time so started Dash to throw up at a regular base, probable just a different reaction to the pain that she now couldn't feel anymore, she didn't want to know how her back looked like but she could guess it was completely destroyed. But after a couple of hours that felt like an eternity, so straightened Chrysalis her body from have been leaning over Rainbow Dash's back and just sat their quiet. Rainbow Dash didn't believe it was over yet and didn't hope for anything, she felt like there was no more hope for her in the first place. She could hear and partly see how Chrysalis reached for something behind her as she stared into her own eyes in the mirror.
The Changeling queen then appeared with a bowel grabbed with her mane and leered to her side at Dash in the mirror. She reached the bowel in front of Dash's nose and immediately so could Dash feel a strong smell. It set her nostrils on fire but she didn't flinch more than her eyes twitching a bit, Dash saw that it was something similar in the look of water but that obviously wasn't.
When Chrysalis then saw that Rainbow Dash had gotten a good smell out of it, so pulled she in the bowl to her and said as she looked at Rainbow Dash through the mirror.

“Now little sssky pony... I'm going to pour thisss fluid over your back to make sssure your woundsss ssstay clean... now... as you may guesss... it'sss pretty ssstrong and I don't expect you to be able to take thisss without passsing out... but the next time you sssee me... I will tell you everything... why I did thisss to you... and more.”
Rainbow Dash stared twitchy and half consciousness into Chrysalis dark but yet calm eyes while struggling to say only two simple words.
“B-b-b... b-bite me.”
Chrysalis pulled half a smile but only for a brief second, she found it rather cute how Rainbow Dash still resisted but at the same time she tried to realize the situation. Her cruel face soon enough once again returned and she then did it, she released whatever was in the bowl over Rainbow Dash and as it flushed away some of the blood so could Dash feel something strange happening. Her legs got hard as rock and stretched out by themselves, she couldn't bend them and soon after that she felt how her entire body started to itch some extremely. Without be able of controlling it so fell her eyes shut slowly and she couldn't understand why, but the reason for that was that she was passing out by the pain, pain that her body was to numb to feel but still was there.

Author's Note

As you may have notice, my story is now cancelled due to lack of interest and inspiration from my part. I don't even know if there’s anyone following the story but if that's the case, I guess no one got disappointed. I had tons of fun writing what I did and I have no clue if I ever will finish it.
I'm extremely grateful for those who actually took their time to read/rate/comment/favorite the story and are super thankful for you all, even though I maybe didn't say that to everyone, Thanks.