Chapter 7
 
>A flurry of loud steps fills the silent alleyways.
>And behind you, was the slightly flustered Changeling queen.
>A step on a puddle of water coats your shoes and legs in the murky cold sensation.
>Well, ‘slightly flustered’, is a monumental understatement.
>The snowing ash has subsided, but the cold wind blew it up.
>Lucky for you, the wind blew on your back, not against you.
>It was almost like it was propelling you.
>Your feet race faster.
>Tonight.
>It ends tonight.
>You take a left turn in a fork, and come to a main road.
>You can reach the marketplace straight from here.
>The plan?
>There is no plan.
>You don’t need a plan.
>You follow the yellow brick road into the marketplace.
>It should be empty at this hour of night, but due to recent events, it is filled to the brim with refugees.
>The fire flushed most of them out, the rest- dead.
>And of course, the queen will return to her people.
>You and Chrysalis pass glances at the changeling drones in disguise.
>Many are busy tending to their own to even realize your presence.
>But even in this chaos, there are those with sharp eyes.
>As soon as a pony suddenly rushes away from you, it begins.
>You slowly turn to Christie, and nod.
>She smirks, before enveloping herself in green flames.
>From it, came her usual disguise, an average pony.
>The two of you quickly separated, taking off to opposing directions.
>Chrysalis easily blended with the crowd, but for a tall human like you?
>No dice.
>You found yourself being chased through the camp once again.
>Funny how things turn out.
>You push a confused stallion out of your path, and jump over a few baskets.
>You take a sharp turn between two makeshift tents, skipping through the narrow path.
>You appear out of a small ‘street’ stretched across the tents.
>You duck and hide from view.
>Just like the city.
>Too many paths to escape.
>You take the moment to catch your breath, before peeking over the red tent.
>You hear a shout and a few pegasi hovering over you.
>You don’t hesitate, and make haste.
>Five guards block your path, but you easily push past them.
>They quickly get to their hooves and chase after you.
>Too slow.
>The chase attracts quite an attention, scared civilians and changelings alike.
>Of course, this means more chasing after you.
>Even the actual guards are after you- they’re probably expecting you to steal something.
>Just enough to grab the attention of the queen.
>Your eyes dart through your field of vision, looking for anything that might resemble a changeling queen.
>”What is the meaning of this?” A voice booms through the market square.
>You see a tall mare on the gallows, shifting her sights through the ruckus.
>”Who is-“ Her speech is cut short as she lays her eyes on you.
>You stare back for a moment, still on your run.
“Hello.” You whiper.
>You make a sweeping path over to the gallows, the queen’s eyes on you like a spotlight.
>You disappear into the waves of makeshift housing.
>You squeeze through a path between two shops, and jump under a cart.
>And the die is cast.
>Your turn, Chrysalis.
 
>She blew a stray mane away from her face, scattering the ash to the air.
>She took one step forward, with her soft, pink hoof.
>And then another, the decayed leg.
>A small ring of fire traced her body, slowly transforming her back to her original form.
>Ponies around her eyed her silently, and then followed her.
>They also shed away their looks, back to their repulsive look.
>They hissed and growled at each other, blindly following their queen’s lead.
>The group slowly grew bigger-
>And large enough to divert the other queen’s attention.
>Chrysalis shot a hostile stare at her competitor.
>The other queen replied with a smug look on her face.
>And the two monarchs shared a moment of tension, before chaos erupted.
>Changeling killed changeling, and soon enough, screams of agony filled the streets.
>The royal guards came in, but no way they could subdue the fight in that mass.
>They eventually decided to withdraw to a corner, and fight off anyone stupid enough to attack them.
>They knew what this fight meant.
>The guards knew, for once, to stay out.
>And in the heart of the storm, the two queens were locked in battle.
>Two rays of pure energy met with each other, and quickly escalated to a tug of war.
>Chrysalis tried to pull on the emotion she felt a while ago.
>She could supply herself with some bit of power.
>Now, it was up to her willpower.
>And Anon.
 
>You kick a changeling square in the face, and push through the battle.
>You feel a nip on your leg and a light scratch on your forearm.
>A changeling suddenly jumps on you, scratching away with its holed leg.
>It was quite sharp, and you felt tiny jolts of pain on your torso.
>You rear up your leg and kick the changeling away, not before earning a scratch on your cheek.
>You swipe your hand over your cheek, and find crimson stain on your palms.
>You get up and keep moving towards Chrysalis.
>How to find her?
>Easy.
>Follow the lights.
>The changeling swarm begins to thin down as you near the source of the light.
>Spark fly overhead, as you are blinded by the sea-green light.
>You put up an arm over the light to protect your eyes, as you slowly made your way.
 
>”Is that what you bring? Is this the best you could give?” The other queen taunts.
>Chrysalis did not reply, but focused her magic.
>She knew she was tiring out.
>The other queen knew that too.
>”Sad, really.” The queen put more strength into her beam. “To think my sister would be this bad.”
>Chrysalis blinked once.
>”Sister?” She asked.
>”Yes, dear sister, we are from the same hive- what makes you think we can control the same swarm?”
>The other queen sighed.
>”Chrysalis, dear sister, don’t you recognize me? It’s Regina.”
>”Regina? Doesn’t ring a bell.”
>Regina went deadpan for a second, before assuming her original outlook.
>”I wouldn’t be surprised; you were still a welp- cowering into the streets of Canterlot.”
>Regina continued.
>”It is nice to see a family member, but don’t take this personally- it’s just business.”
>Regina poured more energy, and Chrysalis’ magic began to wane.
 
>You saw the green light losing.
>That is obviously not good.
>Chrysalis is struggling, you can see her face streaming with sweat.
>And here was your mother’s murderer, distracted in her own fight and ego.
>Screw honor and nobility.
>You were a thief.
>And she was a changeling.
>You reach for your pocket knife, and draw it slowly.
>You are also walking towards her, bent on ending this creature.
>She doesn’t even see you coming, until you are right by her.
>And when your footsteps are finally heard, it is too late.
>You plunge your knife on her neck, and let go.
>Her offensive magic quickly fades away, and she stares at you with eyes wide open.
>”Y-you…”
“For mom.”
>You see her blood slowly oozing out of her broken carapace.
>She envelops your knife with her magic and pulls it out.
>She begins to hyper-ventilate, as her pupils focus on the blood coated knife.
>She looks down to her wound, and then to you.
>And she begins to laugh.
>”You think this would kill me?”
>She scoffs, and fires a beam at your shoulder.
>You are thrown three feet to the ground, lying on your back.
>You clutch the hole on your shoulder.
>The queen cackles, as she slowly made her way to you.
>You see her blood trickling down her neck, as she looks down with a mad gaze.
>”Well, any last words?” Her horn begins to glow.
“Yeah. She’s always right.”
>”Who-“
>The other queen is quickly cut off, as a bolt blasts her away from you.
>You turn to your right, to see Chrysalis, her horn still glowing.
>”’She’s always right?’ Those are some deep words to leave the world, Anon.” Chrysalis lifts you up to your feet.
>You crack a smile.
>And then lose the expression as you turn to the downed queen.
>You pick up the knife again.
>You kneel over the other queen, who is still paralyzed over the surprise attack.
>”How…”
>You don’t let her continue, and stab her in the heart.
>You worked with ponies long enough to know where it was.
>”Please…” She begs.
>You pull it out, and clutch the knife with both hands.
>And with all the strength you can muster, you bring it down on the heart again.
>Changeling blood squirts up to your face.
“You feel that?” You shout at her ear.
“That is from mom, and every other pony you fucked with!”
>She struggles weakly, before going silent.
>Your anger disappears as fast as you could bring it up.
>You look down at the dead queen, and then to the warring changelings around you.
>They stopped when you intercepted the duel, and are now watching the two of you silently.
>As if they are waiting for an order.
>Chrysalis looks down to the body as well.
>”See you later, sis.” She adds.
 
>For once, you hear music and cheers.
>Ponies offer each other drinks, as they celebrate.
>They are all changelings.
>Celebrating their new-found leader, and the victory.
>So this is what victory feels like.
>So…
>Empty.
>You had no satisfaction on murdering her.
>You wanted her to suffer, you’d admit.
>”What’s with the doom and gloom, Anon?” Christie takes a seat next to you.
>You groan once, and point at the bandaged shoulder.
>”Come on.” She hands you a cup of cider.
>”For us.” She smiles, and puts the cup up.
“For us.” You return, and clink it.
“So, what happens now?” You ask, relaxing a bit.
>”Well, we must organize the populace and-“
“Wait wait wait- organize? What have you done to the Christie I know?”
>She rolls her eyes and punches you in the arm.
>”I know, don’t get used to it.”
>Her eyes drift away, looking over the party.
>Especially to this stallion.
>She raises a brow and smirks, and he stallion slowly makes his way to her.
“You know, I could hel-“
>”Yeah that’s great, see you.” Chrysalis gets up and reverts to her Changeling form.
>She is suddenly escorted by a large changeling.
>”See you tomorrow, Anon.” She passes a look to the changeling with her.
>He only got this smug look on his face.
>Must be a changeling thing.
>The two slowly go away from the party, and head into a house.
>Noticing this, you call to Chrysalis.
“Christie!”
>She ignores you.
>Well, your voice is drowned in the merry making.
>The door closes, and the lights inside switch off.
 
“Christie?”