Thread 79: Stories 16-30

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>PD
"Security Guard"
~~~

>It's all coming together... soon... soon I'll have my final piece, and assemble my puzzle to depict my image of greatness!... That's good, I should write that down... where's my fucking pen. You know what I need to make? A collapsible pen. Just a little pen you push on the side and SHINK, it's full sized... holy shit, that's a brilliant idea! I need to write that down too... with the pen I don't fucking have! Damn it! this is why we need little pen holders on our hooves, just a little strap with, FUCK THIS IS SO GOOD I NEED TO WRITE THIS DOWN BEFORE I-

"MA'AM! BOSS! BOOSSSSS!"

>....

"Ma'am, this is-"

>FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUUUUUUUCK!

"Oh, uh... you know?"

>Know what!? Who cares what your problem is! I forgot what I was thinking thanks to you! It was fucking brilliant too! No idea what the fuck it was, but it was brilliant! It had puzzles or something!

"...if you don't remember it, how do you know it was-"

>You are SO fired!

"So then I don't have to tell you about the intruders?"

>...the what now.

"Uh... you know that complex we don't know about? The one we don't know has that crazy blue pony we've never met? That one that may or may not exist?"

>........whooooo?

"Well, according to security footage... a changeling agent."

>Pfft, who cares. Just 'hope they don't accientally shoot him' and-

"And... the A-team..."

>...like... like just the dragon?

"...Past members included... all of them..."

>...By all of them, this includes-

"The princess, yes."

>...and she's... alone?

"... she uh... she brought her friends."

>Which ones?

"...."

>...

"... and they're all inside..."

>...

"..."

>...

"..."

>.....................FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF

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NC
>Cadence
"18"
'???'
~~~

>Eighteen! Did you steal my lipgloss!?

"Steal is a pretty strong word when I managed the funding to pay for it."

>It's my money!

"Technically, it's the taxpayers money."

>Don't you get Semitic on me!

"One, it's semantic... even if that does kind of fit now that I think about it. Two-"

>GIMME!

"Hey! Don't grab!"

>Don't you tell me what to do!

"OW! Why you little!"

>OUCH! MY HAIR! YOU LITTLE!

*CRASH!*

>I'LL SHOW YOU!

"BRING IT! I'LL PUT MY POLISHED HOOVES UPSIDE YOUR HEAD!"

>MY HOOF POLISH!? IT! IS! ONNNNN!

"GRAAHHHH!"

*Shining walks in*

'... Wait a minute... this... this is okay now! I can enjoy this! THIS IS FINE!'

>Wait a minute, you're okay with us fighting!?

"You find this nice!?"

'W-wait, no, it's a-'

>I can't believe you! You are sleeping on the couch! Not even the good couch, the crystal one!

"The nerve... enjoying the fact we're hurting each other."

>Come on, Eighteen, let's leave mister 'I enjoy mare on mare violence' to himself!

"HRMPH!"

*They both leave*

'...Yes, Twelve year old me, I did hear it die... yes, it did sound like a wail of a dying fantasy... yes that did sound like pain... 'shaving' in the tub?... I'll consider it. First... I need to mourn...'

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>Scientist
"Scientist2"
~~~

>Dude, fuck! We're being raided!

"OH FUCK OH FUCK OH FUCK!"

>We gotta get rid of the thing!

"What thing!?"

>ALL THE THINGS!

"Which first!?"

>That stuff!

"...Seriously?"

>Look, buddy, if they find the abomination against nature over there, worst they can do is take away my license. They find the drugs and I'm going to fucking prison!

"...Our judicial system is weird."

>Shut up and start flushing!

~~~

-WAIT, THAT WAS THE CURE FOR THE COMMON COLD THAT WE CULTURED FROM THOSE BREEZIES!-

>GET THE PLUNGER!

~~~

>Which one is the cancer cure and which one is the crushed crystal!?

"NO TIME! FLUSH THEM BOTH!"

>...Well, I guess fish get cancer too...

"Not anymore they fucking don't!"

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>Rainbow
„Fluttershy“
~~~~~~~~~~

Somewhere, deep underground...

A muffled grunt, a light scrape of fur against metal. Then, all motion stopped.

>I'm stuck.

„S-stuck?“

>Yeah. Can't move an inch.

“Try again, maybe?”

>Nnnggggh! Mmmmph! Yeah, nope. Stuck. End of the line. Crud!

Stuffed as they both were in the tight air vents that ran through the complex like veins, their panting breath and the exertion of shuffling forwards soon had them sweating.

„What do we do now, Dashie...?“

>Lemme try backing up.

„N-no, wait, I-I a-umph!“

>Whoa, cold!

“Mmmhmhmblb!”

>Don't, hey, stop making- don't- aaaaahn!

A shove, a push... and they separated, one licking her muzzle instinctively, the other blushing.

“...”

>...

“...”

>...this never happened.

“You-you mean like last time this happened?”

>Yep. That didn't happen either.

“...okay...”

Several long second passed, and Fluttershy noticed how Rainbow Dash began shivering.

“Rainbow Dash?

>I am not good with small spaces.

“I know.”

>I... I can't stretch my wings. I can't see where I am going. I hate this.

“I am sorry...”

>...

The shivers intensified, Rainbow Dash's breathing growing deeper by the second, nearing hyperventilation.

“Sitting in the Wonderbolt's office all day made your ass fat, didn't it?”

And just like that, the claustrophobia was gone.

>DID NOT!

A mirthful giggle echoed throughout the ventilation shaft.

“Did so.”

>I am not fat! You take that back!

The cyan mare felt a little prod to her butt, causing her eyes to go wide.

“It's okay, Rainbow Dash. We're not little fillies in Flight Academy anymore. You are... a big mare now.”

With renewed vigor, and some righteous anger, Rainbow Dash started kicking and and flailing in earnest. Until she felt her hoof impact with something soft.

“Ouch!”

Yet, the force of that kick propelled Rainbow forwards, down the chute she had been stuck in and into a hallway after crashing through the grate.

>”OOF!”

Fluttershy followed a moment later, landing atop her friend with a squeak.

>...

“...”

>You said that to get me to make a fuss and move, didn't you.

“I'm sorry. I just, I knew. I knew you get af-”

A small, friendly nuzzle from the other pegasus interrupted her.

>Thanks, Fluttershy. I owe you one. Uhm, did I hurt you with that kick?

The yellow mare just rubbed her nose with one hoof, smiling a little as she stood up.

“It's okay. My animal friends sometimes get rowdier than that.”

>I bet. Come on, let's go that wwwaaaaa.... uh... are those turrets speeding up their barrels?

“...meep...”

*WHIRRRRRR-*

>DODGE!

*DAKKA DAKKA DAKKA DAKKA DAKKA DAKKA!*

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>Sunset
„Variolus"
~~~~

Life in the Crystal Empire was pleasant, predictable and straight-forward. On most days, at least. Thus, the crystal pony who happened to encounter Variolus in the middle of the street didn't really know what to do with what he saw.

The stallion watched the strange mare paw at the ground and break it open bit by bit with trepidation. On one hoof, he wanted to ask her why she was doing that. On the other, she wasn't a crystal pony and gave off a very unsettling vibe. Plus, the ground was solid crystal. No normal pony should be able to split it open unassisted.

The situation changed when he saw her horn glow, in response to which a blood-red piece of crystal erupted from her chest.

'Holy Mother of Cele-URK!'

Teleporting across the street, smashing the stallion muzzle into the ground with extreme prejudice and going back to embed the crystal into the ground took Variolus less than four seconds.

She had left a trail of bruises and unconscious bodies in her wake across the Empire. It wouldn't be long before they all would descend upon her. But she also had left gifts like this one for them.

Let them come. She was almost ready.

“Sunset Shimmer.”

It was like a splash of water into the previously slumbering mare's face face. From complete unconsciousness to sharp awareness, without any smooth transition. When she opened her eyes and beheld spires of Crystal and drifting snow beyond a magic dome, she was understandably lost.

>Where am I?

“The Crystal Empire. Home the Crystal Heart, and capital of kindness, if I am not mistaken. Also, currently holding the entirety of the Chrysalis Hive.”

>Why... why are we here?

“Because our joint journey is coming to an end today.”

Relief flooded Sunset instantly, her wits starting to come back to her in their entirety.

>Good... that's-that's good. What's left for you to do?

Raising her chin, still fully in control of their joint body, Variolus smirked.

“We attack the Crystal Empire.”

>WHAT?!

“You heard me. I will shift into my Titan form, and then smash, rage and battle whoever or whatever gets into my way. And you will help me.”

>Are you CRAZY? They will tear us apart! You would hurt ponies who don't have anything to do with this! Why would you do that? That's suicide!

“Because Chitania's child is here and my son is with her right now. If he did his part right, he lured her out. The moment he realizes what I am doing and that I cannot be stopped, he will have her call Chitania.”

>And then?

“We lose.”

>She's.... she's going to kill me.

“She will not. Trust me.”

>Trust you. Trust you! You are planning to use me to cause harm and damages to ponies that have been enslaved for centuries and are just starting to rebuild their land! You are going to piss of the Chrysalis, Shining Armor and possibly Celestia, who will all attack us!...fuck... FUCK! FUCK YOU! No, seriously, go fuck yourself, you homicidal maniac! I will not help you in your crusade against another Queen. That's it! This deal is over! Get OUT of my body!'

Variolus could feel her host struggle, strain and fight her. Sunset summoned magic, tried to banish her, to will her out of her body... without success. So she kept talking.

“You can either cooperate and try your best to keep the collateral damage to a minimum. Or I put you back to sleep, with the distinct possibility of both of us dying while I defend myself alone.”

Slowly, the struggle ceased and Variolus sensed dejection from the pony she had used as her ride so far.

>...I hate you. You lied to me.

“Pffht. And you should have known better. But I will uphold my side of the deal. As I shift into the Titan form, you will see. And you will learn. Is that not what you wanted all this time?”

>Not like this. You're using me to hurt others. I thought you wanted closure.

“I do. But it requires sacrifice.”

Sunset didn't respond, and Variolus knew their time was running out. The Changeling she experimentally sucked dry earlier would be found any time.

“So. What will it be?”

She heard a hiss, angry like a snake's in her mind. Then, something within their joint mind relented.

>...I will help you. Just... please... don't kill anyone.

“You know what, Sunset Shimmer? You have honored your deal and treated me with more respect than I would have thought possible. I will try. Out of respect for you. ”

“...great.”

Sunset Shimmer felt like retching, trapped within her own body, watching Variolus approach the central crystal castle. But she only had herself to blame. Twilight had been right. She had crossed a line of no return.

>Why didn't you stop me, Twilight...?

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>32
“13”
~~~~

Thirty-Two had seen various shades of the Changeling inaptly named Lucky Number 13 over the years. Joy, Depression, Cynicism, Ignorance... The indignant anger directed at him was new. And boy, she could raise her voice if she wanted to. Makes sense, considering who her mother was.

“-here, saying things like that about our Queen! Why? Why would you say something like that! She cares for us, she loves us! And you just throw that in her face! That's so cruel!”

Some kind of diplomat he was, putting his hoof into his mouth like that. He doubted she would willingly follow him after all. Maybe it was time to move away from the subject of what he thought about their Queens.

>Thirteen, look, there is no reason to get worked up. The reason I came to the Empire wasn't actually to see the Queen, or cause her troubles. I came to see you.

And in an instant, that anger evaporated. Curious, really.

“Me?”

>Unmistakably. Or rather, the one beneath the mask you always wear.

“Mask? What mask? I don't wear any masks.”

A bit too hurried in your response there, mare. He gave her a flat look.

>You needn't keep up appearances with me. I was with the Hive when you were picked up. Like me, you had been abandoned and starved, left behind by your Queen. A remnant from another Hive.

“No... N-no, I haven always been with our Queen. I am Lucky Number 13. You can't just come here and say awful things like that!”

>An adorable moniker, really. But what about your disguise?

“What disguise? I am a Changeling, I am who I am!”

He tapped his hoof to her chitin provokingly.

>This? This isn't the real you. You are hiding a Changeling beneath a Changeling. Ingenious, really. But I want you to be as honest as I am with you.

As he closed in on her, she retreated, eyes now fearful. It was like all pretense of happiness, obliviousness had fallen away from her.

“No... Stop. Please. Stop. STOP! I SAID STOP!

He touched her, very lightly, stripping her disguise away ever-so-gently.

Beneath the mask, as that green fire washed over her and returned the form she had been born with and grown into, was a Changeling slightly older, less jovial and far more jaded even in appearances.

And all she had was one question.

“Why?”

>Because you and me are alike. Against the odds, despite abuse and the pain the put us through, we loved our mothers. We would have given anything to please them, even our own lives.

The Changeling just looked at him. Just... looked at him, with a gaze as heavy as the burden they both shouldered.

>But unlike you, I have had closure. She abandoned me, left me to die... and when she saw me again, she once spoke in riddles, then used me again. It is why I am here now. Our mothers are connected. And thus, are we.

“I left, so she wouldn't be a burden, 32. I left by choice. Why are you trying to make me miserable?”

>I am not. To the contrary. That is why you should seek her out one final time. To seek closure.

“There is no need for closure! She has always been the greatest one of us. The most compassionate, the most caring, the strongest. I would weight her down, to the point I become a liability to her. I can't allow that. She would get hurt, though me!”

>Then at least give her the credit to say this to you herself. Not just you need closure, so does she.

Thirteen sighed, then glared at him.

“Why are you doing all this?”

>Because that is what my mothers asked of me. After all these years, after all the disappointment, I still believe that she and I both want the same.

“And that is...”

>We want to do the right thing.

They stared at one-another, seizing the other up for their intentions.

“Does our Queen know you are here to get me?”

32 just shook his head.

>She would never let you go. Because she cares.

And yet, 13 smiled in response to that.

“...I know. She's great, isn't she?”

>So, let me ask you formally. Will you accompany me to Canterlot, see your mother and find out what she and you both have become? Or will you stay and keep your secret? I came directly to you, not Chrysalis, because that is you choice to make. Not hers. And whichever choice you pick, I promise to see it through to the end. I will stay at your side, and protect you with my life if needed. Or I will remain silent, until the end of days.

13 gazed up at the other Changeling. Like she, he was a child of the old Queens, and a piece of the past.

It wasn't a difficult choice to make.

“Lead the way.”

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Non-Canon
>Pinkie
"AJ"
~~~~~
>Welcome to Not Late Night /pa/ with your host Pinkie Pie! It's during this time that content does matter, but I want to check out something! Now for our main guest...APPLEJACK!!!

"Pinkie, this isn't a good ti-"

>It's always a good time when I pop in! Which character class are you? I think Rarity's an enchanter and can give you buffs.

"Uh, Ah don't know maybe a paladin or some-"

>A buff healing tank is fine, but don't skimp out on damage. Rarity might be able to back you up there though.

"That's only if she takes if she brought enchanted equi-"

>That's our show I'm leaving with Twilight now! I can't affect canon in NC space, but don't forget to turn on the autopilot.
AJ stops zoning out.

"...Huh."
Shakes her head and turns to Rarity.
"That just leaves ya'll and me, sugar cube. You up for this?"

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NC
[Talking about how Variolus likely only know the growth, not the shrinking Titan magic.]
~~~

>As promised, the secret of the Titan! At last, you may grow to unparallelled heights! Did I not keep up my end of the bargain?

"Uh, you did I guess... but how do I shrink back down? We have growth spells, this isn't the part I was interested in."

>Oh? Well, what a pity, you should have made that more clear.

"W-WHAT!? HEY! HEY COME BACK! I can't shrink down! If I do, the air inside my body will EXPLODE me!"

>Well, that doesn't sound like my problem. Ta taaaa!

"WAIT!.... Fuck, uh... I can explain."

'...'

"..At least I can't fit through the mirror..."

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~~~~~

With the pulsating, central heart of the Empire so very close, Sunset did as Variolus told her moments before and tethered their accursed heart to the ancient artifact.

It wasn't ritual-assisted, it wasn't done with knowledge of the item itself. She just knew where it was, thanks to her newfound abilities, and what the long-dead Queen told her to do.

But if there was one thing Sunset Shimmer was good at, it was improvising.

“What did you mean earlier, 'Chitania's Child'?”

The first pulse of power came, and it was unlike anything Sunset had ever felt before. There now were two heartbeats keeping them alive, keeping them powered. And she doubted they would destroy the Crystal Heart to Variolus.

>I meant what I meant. Her daughter is here. The one she believed dead. The one she would throw everything away for.

Finally, it clicked.

“That's what I saw that day! She wasn't tearing the place up to kill that Changeling. She was looking for her daughter!”

>About accurate.

“...tell me you're not actually going to kill her.”

>I am not actually going to kill her.”

“Very re-assuring, you monster. I can't believe you would stoop so low.”

>As with Chitania's secret, you get just what you asked for. But this is part of Chitania's secret I promised to show you. Deep down, beneath all the rage, anger and resentment... she cares. She even used to care for me. She has so much love.... She just uses it differently. Wrongly.

“I... what are you trying to say?”

>You will soon understand. Now watch. I will likely only do this once, before the end.

~~~~~

18's eyes darted across the prone form of the Changeling that had been brought before her. He was weak, his chitin pale and brittle, his breathing shallow. He was almost completely devoid of love, as if he had been starved for months.

But that was impossible. She knew this one. He had been in the assembly three days ago, when the Queen had fed them all.

“Watch him and try to feed him with some of your reserves!”

She left the office like a whirlwind, hurrying across the corridors, dread building in her chest. Something terrible was afoot in the Empire, and Chrysalis needed to know.

~~~~~

Power in the form of raw love was fleeting from Sunset's body, heading for the gem in her chest. Like being unprotected in the snow, she began to feel coldness in her extremities. It burned, and she started to feel dizzy.

Variolus was storing all of it, every single drop, like bottling this still vastly misunderstood power inside of her. If she didn't know better, Sunset would say it was volatile. And then, the Queen poured something all over it.

Rage.

Pure, radiant, all-consuming, non-distinguishing fury. It twisted all that love, turning it into the same counterpart emotion like an infection. It resonated throughout her body, and then began to expand. It was as if the complete reversal of this pure, beautiful emotion did something to its potency.

Like a miniature explosion of the arcane power of an enchanter preparing for battle, it rushed back into her body. Stuffing it, filling it, lining every part of her flesh, skin, bones and organs with it. And then it began to bloat, in a shockingly controlled manner.

She felt and saw herself rise, casting a shadow across the ground... then the castle... then, the land beyond.

With the power re-directed and re-purposed, a shimmering, chaotic blend of colors surrounded their body like a shield. It looked wild, unpredictable, uncontrolled. It was pure Chaos, fed by their new strength.

It made sense. It made... so much sense, in a convoluted, thaumaturgial way.

But linked as she was to the Queen, she noticed the other beginning to slip. Madness was born from this insatiable rage at all things not itself, and she barely held her own sanity together.

~~~~~

The door to the room Bronze Pommel, Steamgauge, Quicksilver Sash, Haymaker and the rest of his most trusted had hunkered down in flew open, a panting, wild-eyed guard rushing in.

“CAPTAIN POMMEL! The-The room with the Portal to the Empire! They, they are all...! We're being attacked!”

The Captain of the Day Guard cast a glance at his soldier, the same thought racing through their minds.

Had Queen Chrysalis finally snapped?

~~~~~

In the room that contained the portal, the tiny crystal that Variolus had smashed in expectation of disabling any travel to and from Canterlot slowly reassembled itself. Once it did, a bright flash of light illuminated the room full of unconscious ponies on both sides.

Twilight Sparkle was no fool.

~~~~

The titanic form that now stood near the Crystal Empire's central plaza reared its head back, took a single, long breath that caused the shingles on the surrounding roofs to shudder and fall to the ground before bellowing out loud enough for the entire capital to hear:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

>MY NAME IS VARIOLUS THE BETRAYER!

>I AM POWER BOTH ANCIENT AND UNRIVALED!

>I DO NOT BLEED, I AM POWER GIVEN FORM!

>HEAR ME, CRYSTAL EMPIRE, FOR I WILL GRANT YOU TRUE, UTTER ANNIHILATION!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The screaming started as a gigantic hoof slammed into the side of the Crystal palace itself, smashing the north wing to pieces and letting a hail of sharp crystal shards rain down upon the everything beyond it.

The Attack on the Crystal Empire had begun.

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~~~~~

Back inside the castle, 32 stared in horror at the enormous, twisted form of his mother starting to smash buildings, cracking them open like eggs and then tossing the shards at the castle. The entire structure shook with the impacts.

Too large to look at her face, he only saw her dark chitin, split open all over and emitting burning steam into the surrounding air.

Blood-red spikes of crystal were poking out all over her body. Crystals like the ones exploding out of the streets of the empire, twisting, re-shaping and becoming... Changelings. Counterparts. He saw them look around, indistinguishable from his brothers and sisters, then start spreading across the city, chasing ponies before them.

He gave a sidelong glance to 13, his voice trembling.

“Call her.”

“Wh-what?

“Call her! Your mother! You have to get her here! NOW!”

“What? No! I don't want it to be this way, I don't want her HERE. This is a trap!”

Calmly, 32 reached for her shoulder and looked her into the eyes.

“13. I know something about my mother you do not. You MUST get Chitania here, or she is going to DESTROY EVERYTHING. I beg you, not as 32, nor an ambassador, but as a fellow Changeling: CALL HER!”

“No... no... you're lying.... she... our Queen is strong. She... Can't be...”

But she could see it in his eyes, the fear. Not of dying, but for them. All of them.

With trepidation, her mind reached out across the land, seeking the long-silent channel to the one she feared never loved her to begin with.

~~~~~

There it was again. That mild, building pressure just behind her forehead. That nagging sensation of someone wanting to speak to her. Or rather, call for her help.

She had half a mind to completely ignore it. But despite the intensity of her study, it was an arduous, dull task. Maybe this would provide distraction.

What she didn't expect when she accepted the distant call was for a quite, whispering voice she never dared hear again to reach her sense.

“M-m-moth-...Queen Chitania. Please, you must help us...”

She was out of her seat in an instant, standing up so fast it slammed into the shelf behind her, causing Sweet Note to jump back, casting her a bewildered look.

Chitania's voice was a snarl, like a barely controleld attack dog growling.

“Who are you? How DARE you use her voice, you worthless waste of chitin. Give me your name so I can find and crush your SKULL for the audacity. DO YOU HEAR ME!”

But that voice was undeterred by the threat, now almost whimpering.

“Please. You have... you have to stop her, she's here. She's attacking-”

A sudden hiss-like static reduced the far-away whisper to nothing.

And it was instantly replaced by another voice she had never thought to hear again. A rolling, smooth voice, predatory in nature.

“Oh, I am SORRY. Did you want to talk to your darling child after all this time? I am afraid she is a little... preoccupied right now. In fact, she might be a dead corpse if you do not do exactly as I say, so listen and listen well while I crush this laughable city she was hiding in.”

Chitania was already moving. She didn't notice herself, but she was moving. She heard a voice, in the real world, calling out for her. But that wasn't important now. Nothing was, anymore, but one thing.

“We are both waiting for you in the Crystal Empire. If you take too long, I will split your daughter's pretty little head open and feast on her brain like I did with your ladyfriend. Hurry, hurry, or she will SUFFER as I break everyone bone in her body before giving her the mercy of death, you worthless, pony-loving ingrate.”

Seconds later, the enormous double-doors of Canterlot's library exploded outwards, dropping all the way down the long flight of stairs and crashing into the ground upon which they broke apart.

Queen Chitania was long gone before that happened.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________

NC
~~~

>Whooo-nelly, we saved 12 and finally made it back to the Crystal Empire! Time ta turn y'all in so... soooo....

Only drifting snow and seemingly bottomless canyon as wide as the Crystal Empire once was greets our intrepid heroes.

>WHERE THE FUCK DID THE CRYSTAL EMPIRE GO?!

Sombra pops his head up

"...did I miss something?"

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________

"Steam Gauge"
'Quicksilver Sash'

---

'It's happening all over again...'

"First Canterlot, now here... damn, man."

'I... I can't... this is way too much, Gauge...'

"Woah, no, don't cry lil' dude... It's gonna be fine, the Princesses'll shut this bitch down and we can all go home in time for tea."

'I dun...'

"Sssh, there there, dude.."

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>Sunset
„Variolus“
~~~~~

>HOLY FAUST-HUMPING GARDEN GNOME, YOU FUCKING WRECKED THE PALACE! YOU JUST SMASHED IT! WHY DID YOU DO THAT! I THOUGHT WE AGREED WE WOULDN'T DO THAT!

„Sorry.“

>You said no casualties!You PROMISED, you cunt-rotting spermwiper! SHIT! SHIT! What if someone was in there! You might just have squished over a dozen ponies!

„I didn't.“

>Seriously? SERIOUSLY?! Variolus, I may love to shop but I'm not buying your BULLSHIT!“

„We are bigger than the last time I did this. I am getting used to my strength here. I didn't think-“

>Well, shit, I bet your brain feels as good as new, seeing that you never USE IT! If you are going to be two faced, at least make one of them pretty!

„Will you shut up, you NAG?!“

>MAKE ME! Don't you get that they won't stop until we are but a smear on the ground if you kill ponies! If I wanted to kill myself I'd climb your ego and jump to your IQ!, you knockoff gaylord tranny!

“RRRRAAARGH!”

>Yes, that'll solve our problems! Get angrier so you smash even more stuff! RRRAAAAAAGH! I haaaaaaaaaate youuuuuuuuuuuuu!

~~~~

In the Chaos that was now spreading across the Crystal Empire, two Guards stopped in confusion as the otherworldly Titan began to smash itself in the face repeatedly while screaming obscenities.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________

>Crystal Guard
"Variolus"
~~~

There was something... empowering about this.

It was a horrible thought to think, he knew. This was the worst possible time for bravado there had ever been.

And yet, there was something empowering about this. About lining up with all his brothers-and-sisters in arms, leveling his shoulder straight at the black fiend threatening his home...

And lighting up the world when they all cut loose with the most advanced missiles this land had ever seen.

It was empowering to watch her be consumed.

...Less so when the smoke faded after the barrage, and she was still standing.

"My my... you strange ponies are much more powerful than you were in my days."

That smiling, wicked face in the smoke cloud brought back haunting, terrifying memories.

"But still not powerful enough."

For a moment, true terror gripped his heart. But, as terror could be used to bring fear... so could it be used to spur one on.

>I'm not getting fucking enslaved again.

If for no reason other than that, he reloaded, and prepared to fire again.

And he was not going to stop until she died...

Or he did.

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>Chrysalis
"Changelings"
~~~

She had been down there in an instant. Hovering over their terrified, huddled masses in the blink of an eye after her appearance.

She knew who that was. She knew that name, what she was capable of, what she meant.

And that she was most certainly supposed to be as dead as dead could be. She was supposed to be a headless nothing at that moment. She was supposed to be.

But she wasn't.

And now, running throughout the Empire were those... things. Facsimiles of changelings. Ones that looked like them, but had no minds, no emotions and no thoughts. They were attacking the innocent citizens, and likely would bring their deaths soon enough. The guard, as apt as they were in physical combat, might not be a match for them. There were too many, and they were too strong.

But they were not the only ones who were strong.

She had felt pride, honest pride, when 42 had gone behind her back and left to go rescue 12 personally. In truth, she had been watching her since the moment her choice was made, and when she could no longer detect her in the castle she put it together quickly enough. How she had managed to do so so quickly, not a clue, but she had.

And she had taken 77 with her.

Her two best and brightest, off to go save one of their own. A noble venture if ever there was one.

And now she was left without them when she needed them the most.

"Majesty? Should... should we go out there?"

Her face remained stone cold as she looked to them all.

But in her heart, there was fear. She fought it with all she had, but there was fear nonetheless. Fear of what was to come should she relent and let them go.

Fear of history repeating itself all over again.

This had happened before. Variolus's attack, a changeling army descending upon the populace, a new home that had accepted them when no others would now in danger...

And it had gone so, so badly before.

Here it was. The risk that everything fought and struggled for would come to an end. That at last the Changelings save a few would be wiped from the map, little more than a blip in history. This was it.

She wanted to tell them to run. Instead of defending, to run run run away as fast as their wings could carry them to a new land, a new home.

...But they had no where left to go.

They had been chased to the end of the earth, to a single bubble in the middle of the snow. This was their last stand in a world that wished them dead.

To try to return to Canterlot would be folly in the wake of an attack like this.

The gryphons would not have them, save their heads on a platter.

All others feared them and despised them.

There could be no home after this. If they were to run, it was to run back to the old ways, of hiding in the shadows, of sapping love through cold means. If they ran, they ran back to a life of hiding.

A life of being monsters.

She wanted so much for them to run.

But they had run away too much. They had run from every place before, and now were on the edge. Civilization, or diving back into the old ways. She had let herself be pushed and pushed, and now her back was to the wall.

There were so many she wanted to protect here. Shining, Cadence, Two, Mane-Iac, Eighteen... she even wanted to protect that smoke thing, as loath as she was to admit it. This was a place she wished to remain...

But at what cost?

Were they all worth her hive?

Was a few kind words, a lack of hatred, all of that, worth the changeling species?

She was the Queen of the last hive.

She protected this hive.

...But she wanted to protect those she cared about as well.

This was her final choice. She had, at last, forced a choice she could not flee from or blame on others. Stick with them, fight for them, or run away and never look back as they are wiped out. The hive or the Empire, and she had to make a choice.

Being a Queen was not supposed to be this hard.

"My Queen... what do we do?"

Dust fell from the ceiling as another shockwave rippled through the Empire, another building destroyed no doubt. There was no time to think, no time to debate, no time to deliberate.

History was going to repeat itself one way or another. Either that of Chitania's fall, or that of the resurgence of the changelings cloaked in the night.

It was all for nothing...

>T...

She felt something building up in her at that moment.

She had never needed anyone in her entire life. She had never needed this hive for anything but to serve her. She had not needed these ponies for anything but to give her a place to be when she wasn't being herself. She did not need them, any of them. Not her hive, not these ponies, nothing.

...But they had still been there. Both of them, all of them, whichever.

She did not need them, but when the time came, they had been there.

There was one single, tiny change in history between then and now.

They... still... lived.

>...change.

Confusion rippled through them, the ones before her. Confusion that was soon cast away by a loud, booming voice.

>CHANGE!

Her magic rippled out, and indeed they did change. Of no volition of their own, they changed. Magic shifted them, changed them.

Marked them.

No longer did only one of them hold armor, no. They had transformed, shifted with magic. No longer was only the solider class in arms. All of them, as one, were armed. All of them at last held a mark upon their armor.

The mark of the hive of Queen Chrysalis.

>These... things think they can pretend to be us? They think us a mockery, weak? They think we fear!?

Her voice split, booming out into a massive roar.

>WE ARE THE HIVE!

As one, their own roar joined her.

>Wear that mark with pride! SHOW WE ARE NOT LIKE THEM! SHOW THEM WHAT WE REALLY ARE! MY HIVE, YOUR QUEEN COMMANDS! DESTROY THE IMPOSTERS!

Impossibly, the roar grew louder.

>TEAR THEM... APAAAART!

Their wings buzzed with power as they all rocketed off, breaking out from the stadium in a perfect, synchronized swarm of destruction and death.

As one, they descended upon the imposters, the ones chasing the citizens of their new home, and like animals they were upon them. Lasers, hooves and teeth. She could not see them, but she knew. And she felt nothing less than pride.

>...I am not Chitania.

The fire encircled her as she looked to the towering monster beyond, a snarl curling her face.

>I am QUEEN CHRYSALIS! I AM THE GREATEST QUEEN TO EVER LIVE!

It consumed her, and left no trace but the echo of her call.

>AND I WILL RUN NO MORE!

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