>You sit by a low table in Chrysalis’ room.
>Close to the fireplace and its warm flames.
>She’s on the opposite end of it, sitting on a large pillow.
>You’ve got a pillow too, luckily.
>The floor isn’t super comfortable, after all.
>On the table is a wooden board with numerous ornate pieces on it.
>You move on across a few marked squares.
>Chrysalis’ predatory eyes follow it.
>The two of you are playing chess.
>”Interesting.”
>Her horn glows.
>One of her bishops shoots forward and knocks your last remaining knight off the board.
>Fuck.
>You sigh.
>Chrysalis grins.
>”I can still admire your persistence.”
“Thanks, I guess.”
>You’re losing, of course.
>Badly.
>Chess isn’t exactly a specialty of yours.
>But you never considered yourself downright lousy at it.
>Chrysalis, however, is frighteningly good at it.
>It’s almost confusing how she can predict your moves and use all the little openings you fail to notice.
“You’re not cheating and reading my mind are you?”
>She does have magic tricks.
>Chrysalis gives you an amused look.
>”No, I’m afraid not.”
>She moves a pawn forward, making it a tempting target.
>You ignore it and move a rook into a more flexible position.
>Her queen obliterates another of your few remaining pawns.
>This is becoming embarrassing.
“I’m still not sure why you thought this was a good idea.”
>She had left you in her room, only to reappear later with the chess game.
>”Aren’t you having fun?”
>You don’t bother to answer and move your bishop into a position that threatens one of Chrysalis’ knights.
>The question didn’t sound serious in the least anyway.
>Your bishop is suddenly ambushed by Chrysalis’ other knight.
“Let’s talk about something else.”
>”Does it involve ponies?”
>It had only been a couple of hours since they were captured.
“Yes.”
>You’re still not quite sure how Chrysalis could go from getting her hooves on the bearers of the Elements to wanting to play chess so fast.
>Then again, she does have her “quirks”.
>”You want to know what I plan on doing with them?”
>You move a pawn forward.
>You MAY have brought this subject up a couple of times already.
>It does weigh pretty heavily on your mind.
“Something like that.”
>Her eyes still on the board, she frowns with unhidden annoyance.
>”That isn’t something I want to discuss.”
>The knight from earlier conquers your pawn.
>… Interesting.
>Having taken the bait, you make your rook snatch her knight.
>Chrysalis pauses.
>Her eyes’ focus moves from the board to your face.
>”You know I won’t release them.”
“I can’t just sit and watch you execute them either.”
>You’re not actually sure that’s what she has in mind, but it wouldn’t surprise you if her plans aren’t much better.
>She grins.
>”Why not?”
“You know why.”
>She goes silent for a moment.
>The grin turns into something more contemplative.
>”And you have the audacity you ask me to release some of my worst enemies?”
“Of course.”
>You know she’ll never do that, even if you ask nicely.
>But you feel like you have to make your stance on this issue clear.
>She rolls her large eyes.
>”I’ve already promised to be merciful.”
“Your sense of mercy might be a little lacking.”
>You still don’t fully trust her to be nice when she says she wants to be.
>Only nice by her own standards.
>Her eyes narrow at you.
>”You do realize I’m having a hard time even complying to your need for mercy.”
>Sure.
>Worst enemies, yadda yadda.
>Chrysalis smirks.
>”Imagine my grief if they had succeeded in stealing my most precious of belongings.”
>You raise an eyebrow.
>You can’t resist smiling at her silly statement.
“Oh no, they nearly stole your ape.”
>”Indeed.”
“Such a grievous crime.”
>”The punishment must be severe.”
“No.”
>”Yes.”
“Stop having such a fetish for apes already.”
>”… What?”
>Wait, maybe that wasn’t the best way to put it.
”I mean-“
>”I know perfectly well what that means.”
>She looks offended.
>Uh oh.
>”I’ll have you know I have no ‘fetish’ for apes as a whole.”
>She then leans forward with a REALLY scary smile on her face.
>”Just you.”
>Now it’s your turn to roll eyes.
>Should’ve seen that coming.
“You sure enjoy praising me.”
>”I need to win you over SOMEHOW.”
>You almost frown.
>She gives you a cheeky smile.
“And flattery will do the trick, right?”
>”Should I rather shower you with gifts?”
>Huh?
“I guess some luxury wouldn’t be bad.”
>Wait, can you use this?
>Chrysalis laughs.
>”So you want to be spoiled?”
>You wouldn’t exactly complain.
“Sure.”
>She keeps smiling with great amusement.
>It makes you wonder if she’s just playing with you.
“So I should expect goodies in the near future?”
>”I should be able to come up with a few things…”
>Of course you should.
>You’re a damn queen.
>Her smile is sly, though.
“Or are you just going to leave me with nothing?”
>Her smile turns rather sinister.
>”We’ll see.”
>Great.
>Maybe you can turns things around a bit.
“Maybe I should give up whatever gifts you could come up with.”
>That makes her look a little confused.
“For the sake of a favour.”
>Now she frowns.”
>“I’m not going to release those ponies.”
>Crap.
>You look at her.
>Try to give her a sort of stern, serious look.
>Imply that you mean business.
>She doesn’t say anything.
>You wait too.
>Then she sighs.
>”You can be very troublesome sometimes.”
>Isn’t that part of what makes you fun?
“I know.”
>She smiles at that.
>A hint of malice creeps into the smile.
>”You’ll have to wait and see what I have in store for your loved ones.”
>Not very comforting, Chrysalis.
“What if I don’t have the patience?”
>She gives you an unimpressed look.
>”Then nothing. There’s not much you can really do.”
>… That’s probably true.
>She suddenly stands up and abandons your game, heading for the door.
>”Why don’t you simply trust me?”
>A smirk is plastered across her face.
>You just raise an eyebrow.
>She knows damn well what you think of that.
>The door is opened by her glowing horn.
“Where are you going?”
>”I have things to do.”
>She turns towards you with a grin.
>A teasing one.
>”As much as I’d like to, I can’t spend all day with you.”
>Oh you.
“What a pity.”
>She chuckles softly.
>”Indeed.”
>She goes through the door and closes it behind her.
>You’re alone.
>You turn back the remains of your game.
>You’re mildly surprised at its existence in this world.
>But maybe you shouldn’t be.
>There’s already a fuckload of stuff here that can also be found back on Earth.
>Chrysalis didn’t actually call it “chess” but some other weird word you quickly forgot.
>The name didn’t matter since the rules are the same.
>You stand up and look around.
>Gotta find something else to do now.
>Something properly distracting.
>Because your worry for the six mares nags you like a pest.
>Damn it.
>You head for the door.
>You were allowed to leave before and you don’t see why she’d change her mind now.
>Your hand grabs the door-handle.
>Or maybe she would?
>It’s twisted easily and the door opens.
>Nope. All is well.
>The door swings open and reveals two changelings.
>They look at you.
>Uh…
“Hi.”
>”Hi.”
>Their greeting comes at the exact same time.
>Which sounds weird because they’re of opposing sexes.
>So…
“What’re you here for?”
>The stallion steps forward.
>”We’re here to escort you.”
“Am I supposed to be going somewhere?”
>You weren’t told anything.
>”No.”
>Huh?
“I’m confused.”
>The mare snickers.
>The stallion continues.
>”If you want to go somewhere, we’re taking you there.”
>Oh.
>Good.
“Okay.”
>”Where do you want to go?”
>Right. Where.
>Hm…
>You could always go to the bathhouse.
>That place IS pretty relaxing.
>… but there’s another place you’d like to see too, actually.
>Although you wonder if it’s possible.
>Might strike a nerve with Chrysalis if she found out.
>If you get to go there at all.
>But…
>Fuck it, you give it a shot.
“Can you take me to the dungeon?”
>The stallion stares for a moment.
>Then the mare suddenly jumps forward.
>”Sure!”
>Really?
>The stallion looks at her.
>Then his expression turns into something akin to ‘Fuck it, I don’t care’.
>Looks like you’re good to go.
”Alright. Then where do we go?”
>”This way!”
>The mare’s surprisingly cheerful and immediately begins trotting down the corridor.
>The stallion follows in a more relaxed pace.
>You tag along, of course.
>You’re not entirely sure what you want to do with this.
>Probably just see how those six are doing and make sure they’re okay.
>It seems rather unlikely that you could actually break them out of there.
>You move through who-knows-how-many corridors and down several flights of stairs.
>The difference between your nonchalant male guide and cheerful female one is pretty amusing.
>Although it bothers you that the mare is a little familiar.
>Because you’re pretty sure you’re not very well-acquainted with any changelings.
>Except Chrysalis.
>But she’s queen, so she doesn’t count.
>Anyway, the others come and go.
>You continue moving downward whenever a staircase allows it.
>The winding paths start to gain an eerie chill.
>No, the temperature’s actually dropping.
>You know deep caves are prone to doing this, so…
>How far down are you?
>The changelings don’t seem bothered.
>Which doesn’t surprise you.
>They’re changelings.
>They’re weird.
>A particularly wide stretch of corridor reaches a solid-looking double door.
>Alright, this must mean something.
>The mare swivels around.
>”Here we are!”
>Her smile would’ve been cute if she wasn’t a monstrous bug-horse.
>Wait…
>Oooooooh.
>She’s the weirdo from last time!
>The one who offered to bathe with you.
>… That was a pretty interesting offer.
>But you push it out of your mind.
>You have other things to think about now.
“So, this is the dungeon?”
>The stallion stands next to you.
>”It leads to it.”
“Okay.”
>Good.
>The two changelings walk over to the doors and the stallion knocks on the dark wood.
>It creaks open and another changeling peeks out.
>Your guides tilt their heads toward you and the guard gives you a quick look.
>Then he pushes the door open and makes space for you to pass.
>Huh. That was simple.
>The three of you continue on with no trouble.
>Behind the door is a broad, spiraling staircase.
>No carpets to soften the surface of the floor either. Just hard, cold stone.
>It makes the echoes of steps unusually loud.
>The places seems unusually dark.
>And spooky.
>You wonder if it’s just your mind messing with you, though.
>Dungeons tend to make you think of unpleasant things.
>Even Celestia’s was oddly sinister to you.
>Moving on, you and your escort reach another guard sitting by a wooden table.
>It’s got a few pieces of parchment and a bundle of keys on it.
>The guard’s busy reading but immediately looks up when you approach.
>His eyes fall on you, of course.
>”Oh. Hi.”
>His hoarse voice is a notch deeper than most others you’ve heard.
>Is he older?
>He looks at you with only a small amount of surprise.
>It’s starting to seem like you coming here isn’t such a big deal to any changelings.
“Hi.”
>You wave for good measure.
>The changeling hops down from his stool and walks over to your companions.
>”I’m going to take a break.”
>They nod and him, and he walks around you and exits the dungeon.
>Your guides walk on into the depths of the dungeon.
>You give the table a quick look before following.
>A small stack of parchments with unintelligible scribbles in black ink and a large keyring with several old-fashioned keys in it.
>Much like ones you’ve seen in medieval movies.
>The two changelings lead you two the first row of cells in the dungeon.
>A few torches on the wall keep this part properly lit rather than leaving it in semi-darkness like the rest.
>And then you see them.
>In six adjacent cells, the bearers of the Element of Harmony are imprisoned behind bars.
>Pinkie Pie is the first to notice you.
>”Oh! Hey! There he is!”
>Her voice is as joyous and carefree as ever.
>She waves a hoof frantically.
>”Over here!”
>You walk over to her cell while your escort doesn’t bother to approach.
>A chain is locked around Pinkie’s neck, much like a collar, and nailed into the back wall of her cell.
>And there’s remnants of green goo in her fluffy mane and tail.
”Hi, Pinkie.”
>You can’t help but smile at her, though.
>Her happiness is pretty infectious.
>”Oh dear Celestia…”
>You hear Rarity from the neighbouring cell.
>Turning to look, you confirm that it’s indeed her.
>She’s in the same state as Pinkie Pie.
>With the exception of a very familiar gem strapped to her horn.
“Calm down, it’s just me.”
>Please don’t freak out.
>”Thank goodness! We had no idea what had happened to you!”
>Well, that’s unsurprising.
>They were dragged away in a matter of moments.
>And you yourself had feared for your well-being.
>Or life.
“I’m fine. Obviously.”
>”How did you even get here?”
>You recognize Twilight’s voice from further down the row of cells.
>You walk down to her cell to see her.
>Passing Fluttershy who looks at you with huge eyes.
>Twilight’s as messy as the rest.
>She stares at you pretty desperately.
”I just asked to get here, actually.”
>”Just asked?”
>Now she just looks confused.
“Yeah. I guess it’s okay for me to come visit.”
>You look back.
>The two changelings are still watching.
>”That’s… surprising.”
>Rarity mirrors Twilight’s confusion.
>”Whatever. This place is too boring without him coming.”
>You notice Rainbow Dash in the next cell.
>She looks about as grumpy as you’ve ever seen her.
>Besides being collared to the rear wall, her wings are bound against her torso.
>”I ain’t gonna complain either.”
>Applejack occupies the next one.
“You’re all here.”
>”Of course we are, silly!”
>Pinkie seems like the only one who isn’t overly bothered by their predicament.
>But that surprises nobody.
>”Hey…”
>Twilight’s chain jingles as she tries to approach you.
“What?”
>She almost whispers.
>”Can you make those changelings leave?”
>Her eyes flicker towards your escort.
>You frown a little.
>Can you?
>How?
>Ask them nicely?
>… Hm…
>You turn towards the pair of changelings.
“Could you guys, uh… give us some privacy? Please?”
>… That sounds kind of stupid in a fucking dungeon.
>The mare looks at you for a moment before turning around and heading up the stairs.
>Oh. Nice.
>But the stallion hesitates.
>You wait, feeling your anxiety rise.
>Then the mare pokes him with a hoof and he follows her out.
>… They’re gone.
>Holy shit, asking nicely actually worked.
“Okay, so what now?”
>You turn back to Twilight.
>Twilight leans her head towards you.
>”Take the magical suppressor off.”
“The what?”
>”The gem!”
>Oh.
>Your arm easily fits between the cell’s bars.
>You reach into Twilight’s cell since her chain makes it impossible for her to stand against the bars herself.
>When reaching with your whole arm, your hands grabs her horn.
>”Ow!”
“Sorry.”
>Your fingers work for a moment to properly grip the gem.
>Its bindings around the unicorn’s horn are pretty tight.
>There’s no knot you can unfasten.
>You try pulling.
>You can hear Twilight grit grunt in pain.
>Her pain makes you hesitate.
>But she doesn’t complain.
>You pull a little harder.
>And feel the gem loosen.
>Twilight apparently does too since she pulls against your grip, adding force.
>The two of you struggle for a little while.
>Until the gem suddenly slips off her horn, nearly making you fall on your ass.
>Twilight takes a moment to rub her sore horn with a hoof.
>And she gives you a beaming smile.
>”Great! Now just wait a moment.”
>Her horn starts glowing and her magic fumbles with her collar.
>It cracks apart and drops to the hard floor.
>The other ponies have begun staring with obvious anticipation.
>Twilight magically handles the lock to her cell.
>She concentrates.
>…
“Twilight, what are you doing?”
>”Unlocking.”
>”Uhm… Could you come over here?”
>You look at Rarity.
>Her eyes flicker to her horn.
>Oh.
>You go to her cell and reach for her gem.
>Just like with Twilight, the pulling seems pretty unpleasant.
>”Gently, please.”
>”JUST GET IT OFF ALREADY!”
>”Rainbow, not so loud!”
>Jesus…
>With an extra hard tug, you remove the annoying gem from her horn.
>She winces but doesn’t say anything.
>”Twilight, dear, please stop that.”
>You look back at Twilight.
>She’s still working on the lock.
>And looks pretty damn frustrated.
>”Not yet! I almost have it!”
>Rarity sighs.
>”These things require a certain… finesse.”
>Her horn’s magic envelops her own lock and you hear its machinations click and rattle.
>After a few seconds the bar-like door swings open.
>Rarity gives you a proud smile.
>”There.”
>Huh.
>You look at Twilight again.
>She’s stopped her project and stares at Rarity.
>Rarity starts working on her collar.
>Instead of cracking apart, it opens neatly and drops to the floor.
>”Oh! Oh! Do me next!”
>”In a moment, Pinkie.”
>Rarity calmly trots out the door, gives you a wink, and goes to Pinkie Pie’s cell.
“Twilight, how’s-“
>A loud boom from Twilight’s cell makes everyone’s head snap in her direction.
>Her cell’s door is literally blasted open, the lock completely gone.
>Oh shit.
>You immediately turn your attention to the exit.
>The dark staircase is empty.
>You don’t hear any buzzing wings or galloping hooves.
>Everyone’s quiet.
>… Nope, nothing happens.
>You breathe a sigh of relief.
“Goddammit, Twilight. Try to be a little quieter next time.”
>”Next time?”
“You know what I mean.”
>”It wouldn’t open!”
>Rarity rolls her eyes.
>”Just let me handle these things.”
>A moment later, Pinkie Pie is free too and bouncing around with her usual energy.
>Twilight carefully scrutinizes Rarity’s method while Fluttershy gets set free.
>It’s a little funny to watch the intense look on her face while Rarity works with perfect calm.
>”Uh, hello?”
>”Rainbow, please be patient.”
>”I can’t stand this place!”
“No one can.”
>You’re pretty sure no one is supposed to, though.
>A minute or two later, everyone is free and standing around in the otherwise empty dungeon.
>Applejack somehow managed to keep her hat, you notice.
“Okay, so… now what?”
>It kind of hits you that you didn’t ask if the purple organizer had a plan beyond this.
>”We get out of here!”
>Twilight gives you a triumphant smile.
>… Okay…
”… How?”
>Her horn starts glowing with magic.
>And a searing light bursts from its tip
>You want to complain about being blinded, but you suddenly feel yourself getting sucked through random space.
>Oh fuck, teleportation!
>When you hit solid ground again a single moment later, you manage to (somehow) land on your feet this time.
>Although you still feel like your insides have been tumbling around more than they should.
>Looking around, you see the ponies being much less affected by the magical trip.
>Must be used to it.
>Also, you don’t recognize the place.
>You’re in the middle of a corridor.
“Okay, so where the heck are we?”
>Twilight looks around too.
>”Not where we need to be.”
>Duh.
>Pinkie Pie jumps over to Twilight.
>”Let’s try again!”
>Twilight’s horn glows again and you prepare to get shot through nowhere.
>Everything flashes white and you hit the floor one more time.
>This time you feel less queasy.
>Nice.
>Checking your surroundings, you-
>You’re in the middle of a corridor.
>And in front of your group is a group of changelings who were making their way to where-ever.
>Lead by Chrysalis.
>She blinks.
>GODDAMMIT, TWILIGHT!
>Before you can call Twilight a bloody fucktard, she teleports the seven of you again.
>You wind up in some weird chamber that’s, luckily, empty.
>Twilight pauses and seems to clear her head.
>It looks like the magical exertion is taking a toll.
>Applejack fixes her hat’s position on her head.
>And gives Twilight a worried look.
>”Twi, that was bad.”
>You definitely agree.
>Twilight nods.
>Rainbow Dash zips ahead of the group to the door.
>”It’ll be fine. If they catch us, we’ll just beat them!”
>Yeah, sure.
>No one argues, though, and Twilight and her take the lead as the group exits the chamber.
>You follow, hoping that you can find the way out.
>Much like last time, you make your way through many, many corridors.
>In eerie silence.
>Although it doesn’t take long before you think you spot dark figures at every intersection.
>You know better than to think it’s your nervousness influencing your mind.
>Unsurprisingly, in the middle of a particularly long corridor, a group of changeling appear out of nowhere.
>You all turn around, only to see your way back blocked by another group.
>… You’re trapped already?
>Rainbow Dash and Applejack look ready to throw themselves at the bugmonsters.
 “Uh, Twilight?”
>Got any ideas?
>Twilight gives you a reassuring smile.
>”I got it.”
>With a flash from her horn, all of you are teleported again.
>And you end up by in a new large chamber.
>… A familiar one, this time.
>Several doors line the walls and tapestries decorate said walls.
>Oh sweet pony princesses, this is…!
>You spot the gate.
>The way out of here.
>Holy donkey balls, it’s actually there!
>It’s even open!
>Your pony companions don’t hesitate before galloping towards it.
>Which turns out to be a good idea, because it suddenly starts creaking loudly.
>The wooden barrier, which works like a bridge across the moat, is slowly lifted by thick metallic chains.
>No no no no no no!
>Don’t fucking close now!
>You run.
>Sprint.
>Move as fast as you can!
>You, and the mares, reach it before it’s entirely shut.
>Heavily tilted, you ascend it like a ramp.
>You don’t care about the moat at this point.
>You’ll risk whatever it’s full of.
>When you reach the edge, you push yourself hard and force your legs to make you fly.
>You leap.
>The cool air from the outside world embraces you.
>And suddenly something else.
>You fall slows and you drift gently to the safe side of the dark moat.
>Purple light has enveloped all seven of you.
>No, not all seven. Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy just fly.
>Twilight’s magic.
>When your feet (and hooves) hit the dry ground, it disappears.
>You’re outside Chrysalis’ domain and in front of a vast, untamed forest.
>Twilight trots ahead and starts drawing stuff in the dirt with magic.
>You take a moment to take in everything.
>Jesus fucking Christ…
>You can see the large trees make up a solid wall of impenetrable plantlife.
>The sky behind it is colourful from a setting sun.
>Or rising?
>You’re not even totally sure.
>The air is chilly and fresh.
>The dirt under your feet feels almost weird.
>It’s been a while since you last walked on it.
>Behind you, you hear the gate clunking deeply once from closing fully.
>Rarity steps over and helps Twilight draw her complicated pattern.
>All the ponies gather around it.
>You take a look at the changeling castle.
>Large, cast in a multitude of shadows from the low-hanging sun, looking pretty intimidating.
>Suddenly there’s a loud slam against the closed gate.
>”Get over here! NOW!”
>Twilight calls from behind you.
>Another slam.
>Someone’s trying to force it down.
>Or break right through it.
>Yeah, okay, you’ll go to Twilight.
>You hurry back to her and notice all the ponies standing in the middle of a circle with super-complicated patterns inside it.
>Lines moving about in straight-up hypnotizing ways.
“What’s this?”
>”Long-distance teleportation.”
>Oh.
>Neat.
>… You didn’t know she could do that.
>You step into it as you hear the metal chains of the gate groan loudly as the gate is forced down.
>Twilight’s horn starts glowing and the dirt-circle lights up with it.
>You turn around and see the wooden barrier slowly tilt downwards.
>But before it’s even halfway down, changelings pour out from the narrow opening.
>And immediately afterwards, Chrysalis pushes her way through them.
>Her emerald eyes lock onto you.
>Her face is a mix of rage and…
>horror.
>You hear the circle by your feet hum with energy.
>Hundreds of changelings swarm toward you.
>Their queen in their center.
>Through the immense buzzing of a thousand wings, she roars.
>But she’s too late.
>Even you can tell.
>Twilight shouts at her behind you.
>”We! Are! Leaving!”
>And the world turns white.