Unity

Vizio stood at the Gates of Death.

Well, this wasn’t technically true. It was nowhere near close to reality, actually. But that still did nothing to help the changeling relax. She hesitated before the yawning entrance before her, just as she did every other time she came here. The hesitation was pure instinctual. Every fiber of self preservation she possessed was screaming at her to get away from the swallowing darkness before her, as fast as she could possibly go. But she couldn’t. She had to approach, had to eventually get this done and over with. Her employer had called for her, and, as much as she dreaded this particular meeting, she was not about to ignore its summons. Vizio might be greedy and self absorbed, but she was not stupid. Avoiding It would bring about disaster. So, she steeled her resolve one last time, and entered the cave before her.

Nothing but blackness greeted her. Even with her sensitive changeling eyes, Vizio was literally blind. Her other senses fared little better. There was not a sound to be heard, not even a drip of water; nothing but an oppressive silence that forced itself down upon her, suffocating her. There was nothing to smell, and the only thing she could still feel was the cold stone beneath her hooves. How long Vizio stood like that, she wasn’t sure. She never was. It would make itself known eventually. In the meantime, she could do naught but wait. A deep part of her subconscious knew what was going on, why her employer did this every time it wanted to speak with her. Fear. The longer she was kept here, the more jumpy she became. She started breathing quicker, and began imagining sounds that weren’t really there.

Eventually, however, she realised that there was another sound with her. Breathing. The noise was slight, and could barely be heard over her own heavy pants. But when she held her breath for a moment, it she could hear it clearly. Vizio tried to get herself to calm down. This was nothing new. Her employer did this every time it called for her. Her instincts argued otherwise, insisting It was going to swoop through the fell darkness and drag her away, never to be seen again. Finally, at long last, her employer spoke, and It did not sound happy in the slightest.

“You have failed me, changeling.” Vizio never saw who was speaking to her, on any of her visits to this cave. The Voice filled her mind and her ears, echoing slightly around the pitch black cave. And what a Voice it was! It was rich and slimy, croaking and whispering all at the same time. It sounded like what Vizio imagined the voice of the living dead would be. “You promised me that you would be able offer me the rest of your kin as a stepping stone to my Ascension, and yet you have failed me.”

Vizio spoke now, her voice struggling to gain strength. “I sent assassins. They weren’t supposed to fail as they did.”

“Fool!” the Voice crashed upon her ears and her thoughts. “Sending assassins to do your dirty work is elementary! You should have confronted the Usurper directly and slain her yourself! It would have been the only way for you to be sure that the deed had been done, and leaving you open to take the crown. I’m of half a mind to kill you where you stand, insect.”

Vizio was not above pleading for her life, and she did so now. “Please, Mighty One, please let me have a second chance! I promise you I can still be of use!”

The Voice ignored her, almost talking to itself. “Every day that goes by without this backwater little planet within my grasp, the Alliance grow ever closer to stumbling upon this portal, just as I did. It must be mine before they find it! This planet, and all of its magic wielding inhabitants, must answer to me before the Alliance gets here. With so many new, powerful weapons at my disposal, the Alliance will no longer be able to resist me! I’ll finally get rid of them once and for all and turn the galaxy into my playground!”

“What shall I do, master?”

The Voice seemed to register Vizio’s presence again. “You might still be of use to me, changeling. These ponies you speak of are not used to war and strife, correct?”

“Correct, master. They have been surrounded by peace far too long. They have grown content and soft. What armies they do have only offer a symbolic gesture. And I must say, it was a stroke of pure genius that you managed to bring Celestia, of all ponies, under your sway... ”

The voice snorted. “Of course it was! It was almost too easy to subvert my old mentor to suit my needs. With her under my control, I don’t even need her weaker sister or niece. Now, changeling. Let me explain to you exactly what you are to do to remedy this situation...”

***

Queen Twilight Sparkle sucked in a deep breath. She could do this. She knew she could. She had faced Nightmare Moon. She had faced Discord, and Crysalis, and an Ursa Minor, and a whole host of other creepies and baddies. But never in her life had she had to break such momentous news to the ponies who conceived her. And telling herself she could do this didn’t really make anything better. How did one go about telling their parents that their daughter had changed overnight? Twilight was an outcast. So was Rainbow. They might be a Queen and Princess now, but it did nothing to change the fact that nothing like the pair had ever been seen before. Would Twilight’s parents see that their daughter was an abomination, and turn away from her? Would they be consumed by anger, like Celestia, and disown her? Try as she might, Twilight simply didn’t have any answers.

It took her a moment to realize that she had been standing outside the door of the Sparkle Manor for the past several minutes. No one rushed her. They stood, patiently, waiting for the nervous mare to gather her courage. As Twilight stood there, she took the opportunity to study her comrades, if only to get her mind off the task before her. First, there was Rainbow Dash. The Wonderbolt had been through so much, never wavering from her best friend’s side. Between the Unity Chalice and Chrysalis’ revelation, Dash had always been there. Then, in some freak twist of fate, Dash had been turned into a hybrid, just like Twilight. And the mare was still here, ready to face Twilight’s parents. Then there was Lyra and Amethyst. Two lovers from completely different cultures. They were able to overcome many obstacles to finally be together. Amethyst had aided Twilight out of respect for her future Queen. Lyra had helped Twilight as a good friend.

Next came Flicka. So far, the cyberpony had spoken very few words, and only when talked to. But she was still here. Twilight’s silent guardian. Twilight barely knew the pony. Didn’t know her story, or where she came from. But Twilight still felt comfortable with Flicka there. Maybe that had something to do with the memories Chrysalis left Twilight. And Nailiah was still here. The zebra Seer was every bit as silent as Flicka. But Twilight knew the Seer preferred the silence. She preferred to operate from the back seat. Eventually Twilight would get a chance to really talk to her half sister, but for now it was just enough to see her there. Blockade and Harbinger. Both had flat out refused to let the Queen tramp through potentially hostile territory. Twilight barely knew them, but they still treated their new ruler with respect they felt she deserved. Shining Armor. Cadance. Princess Luna. They all saw the real Twilight, the same Twilight she’s always been. They didn’t judge her. They were prepared to listen to the story before making comments. If those three especially supported her, there was no way Twilight Velvet and Night Light would turn their daughter away. Before Twilight could even register what exactly she was doing, she reached up a hoof and rapped on the door.

Immediately, the Queen was assaulted on two fronts. First came the outpouring of love and comradeship, flooding into her before the door had even opened. The emotions were slightly sweet and bubbly, and Twilight could guess who the emotions belonged to even before Pinkie Pie had tugged open the door and launched herself at her friend.

“Twilight!” Pinkie gushed. “You’re back! Omigosh you’re a changeling now! A Queen! This calls for a ‘Congratulations on becoming Queen of the Changelings party’! We must invite everypony! And cupcakes! Must have cupcakes! Do changelings eat cupcakes? What about punch? Can’t be a party without punch! Omigosh--”

“Jeese, Pinks, let the poor gal breathe.” A new voice interrupted Pinkie’s excited chatter, prising Laughter off Twilight as she did so. “Mighty good to see ya, Twi. Ah reckon we were all right worried.” Applejack moved aside to punch Dash on the shoulder and was immediately replaced by Rarity and Fluttershy.

Rarity looked to be close to tears, and couldn’t seem to manage any words. She settled for hugging Twilight tightly while Fluttershy spoke next. “You had us scared, Twilight. We could feel you fading away. Try not to do anything like that again, okay?”

Twilight could only nod dumbly as her last two close friends were replaced by the two ponies she dreaded to see the most: Twilight Velvet and Night Light. To Twilight’s surprise, Night Light had tears in his eyes as he hugged his changed daughter, and then Twilight Velvet was leading them all inside the manor with little insistent nudges, struggling to hide her own tears of relief. Twilight was completely nonplussed. This wasn’t how everypony was supposed to act at all! Where were all the hateful comments, the outpouring of anger? Wherever it was, it certainly wasn’t here. Despite being rather new at feeling emotions, Twilight couldn’t detect a single negative emotion. The Queen began to realize that whatever had went on with her former mentor wasn’t supposed to be the norm. This all changed slightly, however, when Twilight Velvet walked up and slapped her daughter across the face. It was a weak blow, meant to reprimand, but it still stung.

“Don’t you ever do that to me again, Twilena Star Sparkle!” The little foal inside Twilight recoiled instantly. Her mother never used her full name unless she was in some serious trouble. Twilight’s ears flattened against her skull and her tail instinctively tucked between her legs. Blockade and Harbinger looked nonplussed, completely unsure how they should react. On one hand, this unfamiliar mare had just struck their Queen. On the other hand, this unfamiliar mare was also the mother of said Queen. Lyra and Amethyst shrank back too, lest they become the next targets of a mother’s wrath. Only Flicka reacted, casually batting aside the next half-hearted blow Velvet directed at her daughter. When the enraged and still secretly worried mother whirled to the unimpressed cyborg, Flicka stepped closer to her ward.

“I cannot allow you to harm my Queen like so,” Flicka spoke softly, her tone warning.

Velvet’s eyes flashed, now truly annoyed that somepony had stood up to her in such a fashion. “I can discipline my daughter as I see fit.”

“Then you shall have to do it when I am not around. My magical contract with the changeling royalty demands I intervene when my Ward is attacked, no matter the intention. I cannot fight this even if I wished.”

Velvet regarded the machine pony for a moment longer, before her eyes softened and fresh tears began leaking down her muzzle. “My Sparkle… She came so close to death. We all felt it. We’ve been… so worried…”

To everyone’s great surprise, it was Flicka who approached the distraught mare. The cyborg gave Velvet a gentle hug, before saying gently, “I would never have allowed anything to happen to my Queen. Rest easy knowing from now on that she shall be safe with me.”

Velvet nodded once, jerkily, before finally expelling a breath. “Tell us, little Sparkle. Tell us what has happened to you.”

And so Twilight talked. She started with her arrival in Canterlot, detailing her visit to the Board, the subsequent visits of the Princesses with news of her selection into the Unity Chalice, and her training. Velvet and Nightlight knew most of this already, having received letters from Celestia. Then Twilight went on to explain other details. She spoke of her changes, how some sixth instinct nagged at her that not all was right, but couldn’t recall what or why. She spoke of the attack by the rogue changelings, how everything had come into the open. She gave credit where it was do to Lyra, Amethyst, and Flicka, then went on to describe the trip to Hive. Here she lingered, giving detailed descriptions of the great changeling capital, and how it really wasn’t all that different from a mighty place like Canterlot. She then launched into her arrival at the city, how it seemed every changeling there was out in the streets, cheering her on.

Pausing for a moment, Twilight accepted a glass of water from Pinkie Pie to wet her throat. The next part of her tale was important, and Twilight wanted to relate it all. She started with her arrival into Chrysalis’ quarters, and the subsequent blunt statement the old Queen had made. Twilight left nothing about their discussion out, before telling of her final decision and her ‘Ascension’ into being a Changeling Queen. She then spoke of Vizio, how the young changeling refused to accept Twilight as the new leader and seemed determined to overthrow the Element of Magic at any cost. Twilight ended by relating the funeral of the old Queen and her decision to immediately seek out an audience with a couple of the most important ponies in her life.

For the most part the others were a good audience,  gasping in all the right places and listening raptly. At the end of it, silence reigned. Twilight bowed her head slightly, so she didn’t have to see the reactions of her parents, brother, and sister. Her head came up, though, when Shining Armor finally spoke. “What is your role in all of this, Rainbow Dash? You stand here as a changeling, but still with a pegasus colors and wings. Why?”

Twilight turned to steal a glance at her friend. The cyan flier was hesitating with something, showing it clearly in her maroon eyes. “I think its because me and Twilight already shared that link thingy, and, well, we’re already really close.” Rainbow’s mouth turned down in a slight grimace. “The changelings called me their Princess. I really wasn’t too keen on the idea, or about my transformation. I’m not sure I am, really. But honestly, I don’t have much of anything to be upset over. I’m stronger. Faster. I can beat myself up and not be sent to the hospital over it. I’ve made my peace with Twilight, and myself. I can’t say that I’ll be a good Princess at all, but I am still the Element of Loyalty.”

A slightly stunned silence greeted Dash’s speech. The hybrid glanced around uneasily. “What?”

Applejack chuckled. “Shoot RD, Ah don’t reckon Ah’ve ever heard something that well said ever come from your mouth.”

Dash glared playfully at the cowpony. “It comes with being inside the egghead’s head all the time. You start to learn things.”

Night Light interrupted the budding friendship argument by turning to his daughter. “So what do you want us to do, little Sparkle?”

Twilight stared at her father in slack jawed confusion. “What do you mean, do?”

“Exactly what I said, Twilight. What do you want us to do? If you think your mother and I are going to let you fight some rogue changeling and her renegades all on her own, you’re mistaken. We’ve still got contacts in Equestrian Intelligence. We can help.”

“No,” Twilight spoke flatly, and finality. “Siding with me means you’ll be siding with Celestia and your country. I won’t let you be branded a traitor.” Seeing the confused looks, Twilight launched into a clipped tale of her visit with the Solar Monarch, and all that had transpired.

It was Rarity who broke the stunned silence that followed. “Is our Princess mad?” She demanded. Then, when everypony turned to stare at her, she blushed crimson and tried to explain herself better. “Its just… she sees Twilight as a daughter. She’s practically Twilight’s second mother. And she just… spurned her best student away?”

Princess Luna answered, slowly and thoughtfully. “She’s not mad, We do not think, but she is not herself. Ordinarily We’d say that Tia is having issues relinquishing things that transpired in the past, but something is not right. I’ve been replaying the events in my head, and that was not Celestia that confronted Twilight and sent her away. Somepony--or something-- caused her to act the way she did.”

“You mean she’s--” Whatever Velvet had been about to say as Queen Twilight and Nailiah both stiffened simultaneously, then let out resounding cries of dismay. Both of their eyes were distant, unseeing, seemingly focused on things they could not see. Rainbow shook the lavender hybrid gently but the touch went ignored. Lyra tried the same with the Zebra but with little success. Princess Luna was staring intently at the pair.

“The future is changeing,” she half whispered, sounding slightly awed. “The future is taking a different course, and both of them are Seeing it.”

“Is that Nailiah?” Velvet said, voice shaking. “I’ve not seen her in years… I didn’t even know she was here!”

Luna was about to answer when both Seers, novice and expert alike, broke out of their wide eyed trances. Both had tears in their eyes, and Twilight could only stammer.

“The Princess… Celestia… She’s been attacked.”

”What?!” A multitude of voices cried out.

“It was Vizio… She changed into me and confronted the Princess. Celestia was acting funny, didn’t seem to know it wasn’t really me. Vizio attacked the Princess with my face. Oh, Luna… they’re coming for me.”

“Who?” Luna demanded, wings flared protectively.

“The Wonderbolts. They’re chasing who thought attacked their Princess. They’re coming to bring me to justice.”

Silence greeted her words for long moments. Then Night Light spoke. “Velvet, the secret passageway! It’ll lead to our old Equestria Intelligence headquarters. We can use it for our own base of operations. We can regroup there and find out how bad the damage is.”

Rainbow Dash was already shaking her head. “Not me. Its time I confronted my old division. Go, Twilight. I’ll be there later.”

Twilight’s friends were already dragging the still stunned Queen after them. They followed her father throughout the mansion, before disappearing behind an enchanted floor length portrait. Rainbow Dash, however, strode calmly out the door to await the arrival of the Wonderbolts. She didn’t have long to wait. Several blue and yellow streaks honed in upon the hybrid, before they dropped down directly in front of Dash. Dash recognized each and every one of them, but most of the ones she had expected to see were ominously absent. There was one, though, how stood out more than the rest. Dash strode out to meet him, cautiously prepared for an attack.

“Soarin’. What are you doing out here without the Captain?”

To Rainbow’s utmost surprise, Soarin’ shook his head and replied, “I am here for my own reasons, Captain.”

Rainbow’s thought processes almost shut down. “Captain?” She repeated. “Why did you…” It was then she actually realized who all was here. It was her entire squad, the same one she had flown with during the Academy, the same one she had formed once they had become real Wonderbolts. Flitter and Cloudkicker. Cloudchaser and Blossom. Thunderlane and Rumble. Pinkie’s cousin Surprise. Snowflake. As her gaze swept over the assembled ponies, she also recognized ones who weren’t a part of her squad. Soarin’ was one. Fleetfoot. Raindrops. Rapidash. Flareon. Lightning Dust. It looked like half of the entire Wonderbolt division stood before her, each of them alert and awaiting orders.

“What are you all doing here?” Rainbow demanded, prepared for the fight of her life.

Rainbow’s own second in command stepped forward. “Is it true Twilight is now a changeling Queen?” Flitter asked cautiously. The last thing she wanted to do was to set her captain off.

Rainbow hesitated. “Yes,” she answered curtly. “And I’m their Princess.”

Shocked silence greeted her words, before Flitter spoke again. “Our orders come from Princess Celestia. She directed the Wonderbolts to find Twilight. But most of them don’t know where she disappeared to after attacking Celestia. But we--”she indicated the ponies behind her with a wing-- “knew that if we found you, we find Twilight. Where is she?”

Rainbow Dash set her jaw. “Already on her way into hiding. If you expect to go after her, you’re gonna go through me first, Flitter. That goes for all of you,” she added.

Flitter snorted in slight annoyance. “Forgive me Captain, but sometimes you are so dense. We have no intention of bringing Twilight in. We’re here to help her. Celestia has declared all out war on any changeling who follows Twilight. She’s going to need all the help she can get.”

It was Dash turn to snort, this time skeptically. “I’m to believe that all of you are here to ‘fight’ for Twilight? I’m not buying it. Especially with some of Spitfire’s own squad present here.”

Soarin’ stepped forward. When he spoke, his voice was hard. “Spitfire is no longer our commander. She has forgotten her Oath, the same that binds us all. Until such a time Spitfire and the remaining ‘Bolts come to their senses, they are no longer worth anything. Do you recall your Oath, Captain?”

Rainbow Dash remembered, all right. It was a magically binding Oath, that when broken, stripped the offender of their Wonderbolt role and status. She then quoted the most important part of the Oath. “‘The duty of the Wonderbolts, first and foremost, is to ensure the protection of the Elements of Harmony. Should they fall, one of Equestria’s only lines of defense fails. The second duty of the Wonderbolts is to ensure the safety of the Princesses of Equestria. Should they fall, Equestria will sink into chaos. In the event of wartime, it is to be assumed that the almighty Princesses of Equestria are capable of ensuring their own well being, and as such, the Wonderbolts must make the Elements of Harmony their top priority.’ I rememer, Soarin’. Is that why you are here? You believe that Twilight is still the Element of Magic?”

“We know she is,” came a chorus of voices.

“So long as magic remains in the world, the Element of Magic still lives.” Raindrops said.

“That’s right!” Cloudchaser added.

“Our Oath is clear!” Thunderlane spoke his piece.

“And so you are our Captain, Rainbow Dash.” Flitter finished. “You have remained true to your Oath, whether you mean to or not. I doubt you’ve left Twilight’s side since this ordeal started.”

Rainbow could still barely believe what exactly she was hearing. There was just no way. “You say Equestria has declared war on any changeling who follows Twilight. What exactly is the deal with that?”

Flareon, who barely spoke a word as it was, stepped forward. “I saw it,” she said boldly. “I saw the evil changeling take the form of Twilight Sparkle and attack Princess Celestia. I tried to warn the Princess of the deception, but I don’t think she’s in her right mind. She wouldn’t listen to anything I say; and she always listens to the Wonderbolts, even the least of us. The next thing I knew, she had sided with the evil changeling, formed an alliance with her, and ordered the ‘Bolts to track down the Element of Magic and bring her in. I sent the general alarm and the true of us responded.”

Rainbow gazed thoughtfully at the sky. “So for the first time in years and years, Equestria is about to go to war again. What of the other leaders? What did they think?”

Flitter hesitated. “Most of them were unsure what to believe. No one could understand what transpired between Twilight and Celestia, and they were confused. Even as Equestria’s allies, I’m not too sure that they would have picked sides. The Dragons, they are still neutral. Their leader believes that there are pieces to the puzzle no one knows about yet. Officially, the Griffons and Zebras have sided with Equestria after the ‘attack’ on Celestia by Twilight. But there are pockets of them who are ignoring the call to arms to aid Equestria. These pockets are more likely to seek out Twilight and offer her aid. As for the ponies… I’m afraid us Wonderbolts are it. Even Shining’s Legion won’t listen to him, and he’s the one who created them from the hoof up. Ignoring the Princess when she gave them an unreasonable order was one thing. Siding with the Changeling Queen after she attacked Celestia is another.”

Rainbow sighed. “Come on then, all of you. Lets see if we can convince the others you’re on our side.”