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- Heir by Anon
- ---
- >The room you find yourself standing in is quiet, except for the judge delivering the sentence once more.
- >It's common practice for the convicted to be read their sentence immediately before its execution.
- "...Miss Twilight Sparkle is to receive 50 lashes. Given the circumstances surrounding the convicted, she has been permitted a private execution with this sentence and has chosen Anonymous as her executioner."
- >The use of your name in that context drops a lead weight into your stomach.
- >You see the two royal guards, there as necessary, approaching you.
- "Miss Sparkle, if you would make this easy on us..."
- "As if there's anything I can do."
- >The magic dampener on your horn ensures you can't use magic to get yourself out of it this time.
- >Not to mention the guards are both significantly stronger than yourself. You couldn't physically resist them if you'd still had the will to.
- >Slowly, you allow them to lead you over to the restraining equipment.
- >It's a cruel device which forces your face into the dirt while your rear is thrust high in the air.
- >In little time the hold it has on you is tight enough to prevent motion.
- >The most you can do is open your mouth.
- "There has been a change of plans,"
- >That's the Mayor's voice, of course she's required to be present as well.
- >Out of the corner of your eye you can see she's presenting a large case to Anonymous.
- "Instead of a paddle, she will be receiving her beating with..."
- >The tapered length of leather is unmistakable, and you shudder as you realize what their intentions for you are.
- "You...you can't do this to me! The laws-"
- >You are cut off by a quick look from Mayor Mare.
- "I know full well what the laws state, Miss Sparkle. I also know that orders from the Princess take precedence."
- >That shuts you up good.
- >It's almost incomprehensible that your long time teacher would do something like this.
- >I mean sure you got a bit carried away and accidentally summoned an eldritch horror but it only destroyed one wing of the royal library!
- >Considering what it was the damage could have been far worse.
- >The first crack of the whip as Anon finally works out how to use it appropriately shocks you out of your reverie.
- >Immediately your thoughts turn to escape, and you begin struggling against your bonds.
- >Not that those assembled care, except for Anon of course.
- >He pauses, hesitant to begin striking.
- "Anonymous, if you do not execute the punishment the guards will."
- "All right...all right..."
- >You hear him take a deep breath, and the sound of the whip being spun through the air above his head drives you into a frenzy in your attempts at escape.
- "Anon...please!"
- >The crack as the whip tears through the air echoes in the enclosed space, much like your scream as it makes contact.
- >You can feel the skin being cut open from the impact of the narrowest portion of it towards the tip.
- >The instinctive recoil of your body away from the source of the pain has your face shoved into the dirt.
- "One!"
- >The guard tasked with counting states in a loud voice.
- >Your own is cut in volume to your more normal speaking voice.
- "Anonymous...you don't have to do-"
- >Another crack, another impact, another fresh cut in the skin.
- "Two!"
- >Your voice is now hardly above a whisper, still you keep struggling against the bonds.
- "Please...let me go."
- >The sound of the whip circling through the air above tells you that isn't going to happen.
- >You renew your struggle, hoping you can somehow break the bonds before-
- "Three!"
- >The most recent impact strikes home, tears built up in your eyes begin dropping to the ground.
- >Anon has good aim, he's yet to hit the same place twice.
- >You can feel the blood running across your flanks, matting up your otherwise pristine coat.
- >It's getting harder to struggle, the continued shock of the painful impacts splitting open your skin saps away at your strength.
- >By the fifth impact your pleading has turned to tearful begging.
- >By the eighth it's left only as semi-intelligible sobbing.
- >As the eleventh impact comes and goes, you descend into open weeping from the pain.
- >Not just the pain, it shocks you to the core that Celestia would ever do something like this to you.
- >Especially for just a simple mistake made in curiosity.
- >You don't think you'll be able to look at her the same way ever again.
- "25! Halt!"
- >The half-way point reached, you hear the sound of a door opening as Nurse Redheart enters the room.
- >Being the resident medical expert, it's her responsibility to make sure you're not going to be dealt permanent harm.
- >You can hear her gasp as she looks at your torn and battered rump, only able to imagine what it looks like.
- >After a few moments, she comes around front of you and administers the necessary checks.
- "She's still conscious...and she's not in shock."
- "Very good, Anonymous. Proceed."
- >You turn a plaintive look up to the white mare before you.
- "Please...help me."
- >She looks, pitifully, into your eyes. You know there's nothing she can do.
- >The next impact rips open your flank once more.
- "26!"
- >The ensuing impacts come and go with little acknowledgement of the passage of time.
- >It feels as if hours are passing.
- >Anon waits just long enough between strikes for you to recover from the shock of the former.
- >It's to make this as painful as possible for you.
- >Despite the fact that he is the one doing you harm directly, you don't feel any hatred towards him.
- >You're not even angry with him. He's made it fairly clear that he likes you.
- >Even if he thought he was hiding it. This must be hard for him.
- >Of course that doesn't make this hurt any less.
- >Or make the betrayal by your teacher any more excusable.
- >She knew you were the curious sort, she knew you couldn't resist knowledge of magic.
- >And still she left such an evil tome lying out for you to read from.
- "40! Halt!"
- >Another pause, you wonder why they're stopping.
- >Anon's reaction tells you all you need to know.
- "Are you insane?! You're going to cover it with SALT?!"
- >They've decided to make the end the very worst part of it.
- "The princess was very specific in her commands, Anonymous."
- >Your face has been rubbed in the dirt so much that your lips have cracked open.
- >Your face is a mess of soil, tears, snot, and a little blood.
- >A pool of the same mixture has gathered down below.
- >And you know its only getting worse.
- >At least they can only go to 50.
- >You can tell there's a brief argument on the subject
- >Whatever the case it doesn't seem to last long, the world is barely coherent to you now.
- >Of course the shock of the next impact rouses you into waking.
- >In this one the pain doesn't just end. You can feel it like fiery needles being dug into your flesh as the salt does its work.
- >The next strike comes closer on the heels of the one before than those previous.
- >Seems Anon is wanting to help, but the pain only compounds with each strike.
- >The next minute is pure agony, and you writhe about violently in your restraints.
- >Your eyes are practically swollen shut from the irritation of so much crying.
- >You aren't certain, but you guess you look like one hell of a mess.
- "50! Cease. Release the prisoner."
- >Over. It's finally over.
- >As they release you from your binds you fall quite unceremoniously onto your side.
- >The world steadily goes black as the pain finally wins out over your nervous system.
- >Your last memory before falling into unconsciousness is Anon scooping you up in his arms.
- -----
- >You awake with a start.
- >It's quite dark around you, but as your eyes are already adjusted to the dark you discern that you are in an overnight room at the local hospital.
- >Anon's fallen asleep sitting against the side of your bed.
- >You reach a hoof out to gently ruffle his ma- hair.
- >The sound of hoofsteps reaches your ears, and you turn your gaze to the entrance to your room to see...
- "P-princess Luna?"
- >Even as you say that, her form begins to change.
- "Not quite, my dear twilight."
- >The shock has you rise and try to prepare yourself to attack. Unfortunately doing so causes irritation to your wounds and the pain breaks your concentration.
- >The now fully revealed Changeling Queen trots, remarkably silently, towards you and takes hold of you by the shoulders.
- >Just as you think this is about to be the end, she gently eases you back down into the bed.
- "Now now, no need to be rash. I'm just here to talk."
- >Her chitinous hoof gently rubs the top of your head, and trying to move a hoof to push it away brings about more pain.
- "Talk about what?"
- >The Queen's facial expression shifts to a genuine, in appearance, look of concern.
- "I'd heard about what Celestia had done to you. It seems unfair doesn't it? Her delivering such a harsh punishment to you just for sating your curiosity? Makes you angry, doesn't it?"
- >You grit your teeth, as much in anger at the changeling as at your teacher.
- "What are you getting at?!"
- >Chrysalis clicks her tongue a few times chidingly.
- "Temper, Twilight, temper. I'm just here to extend an offer to you. I'll help you get your revenge on Celestia."
- >You go silent for a moment.
- >Despite the anger you'd been feeling up to this point revenge never seemed like an option.
- >After all, Celestia's...well Celestia.
- >But if anyone would know how to defeat her, it would be the only one who'd ever done it.
- "And what do you get out of the deal?"
- >This is where a wide smile, almost a motherly one, crosses Chrysalis' face.
- "I get you. As my heir."
- >You're so shocked by the offer that you have no real way to respond to it for several long moments.
- "Wha- why? I'm not even a changeling."
- >Chrysalis keeps that maternal smile on her face as she looks into your eyes.
- "You see, my dear, I am without a daughter of my own. Without a daughter, my hive will have no queen when I finally pass from this world. I cannot allow my people to go without a leader, and I fear I may be unable to produce a Queen through the more...conventional means. As to you not being a changeling, that much need not remain true."
- >She is soon gently stroking your mane, like your mother used to do when you were little.
- "But...but what about my friends?"
- >The prospect of getting revenge on Celestia for what she's done to you, but you couldn't turn your back on the others.
- >Dash, Flutters, Rarity, Pinkie, AJ, Spike, Anon.
- >If you join the changelings, you leave them behind.
- "My dear, when we dominate this land they can join you."
- >The smile on Chrysalis' face remains motherly, even as her green eyes begin to shine with a light from within.
- >You and the Queen turn your gazes towards Anon at the same time, and her meaning is clear.
- >Slowly, gradually, you find yourself liking the idea even more than before.
- >Your front right hoof, painful as it is to move right now, emerges from beneath the sheets.
- >Another moment and you've touched it to Chrysalis' own.
- "Deal."
- >Her eyes light up, and she pulls you into a hug as gently as she can manage.
- "Excellent my darling. We will begin your training as soon as you are well enough to move on your own."
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