I had to work very hard not to make sudden movements. If I moved too fast I could almost feel the energy spark in my head. Now I understood why running into Pinkie’s cannon had nearly killed me. Enough force to shift magic energy around was too much force. And unfortunately “too much force” was bending down to pick up a book off the floor.
The smallest actions gave me headaches. It seemed that since my diagnosis, the micro-charges were becoming more frequent. The most I could do was walk slowly along the hall. So that’s what I did to keep myself from getting cabin fever; I walked the halls of the castle. Rarity usually joined me and would distract me with current events.

“Oh! So apparently Sweetie Belle and the Crusaders were called by the Cutie Map.”

“Really?”

“They’ve been summoned to Mount Aris.”

“They’re going to Aris by themselves?”

“Of course not! None of us would ever dream of allowing that. Twilight is going with them. Something about it being for research purposes.”

“That sounds like fun. The trip, not the research.”

“Mount Aris was quite the site when we went there. Despite the top being a ghost town. I can only imagine what the hippogriffs have done with it now.”

“We should g-“

I paused as a tremor passed through me. I felt my insides turn as they tried to reorient themselves.

“Do you want to sit down?”

I shook my head and took a deep breath.

“We should go someday. It would be an adventure.”

“I’d love to go on adventures with you. We’ll do as much as we can before-“

She cut herself off and blushed. I forgot my discomfort and stood up straight.

“What?”

“Nothing.”

“We should go on adventures before we...”

Her cheeks were red. I’d never seen her so embarrassed. It was cute. I tried to coax it out of her again.

“Before we...”

She took a deep breath and said it fast.

“We should see Equestria before we have any children.”

She looked at me, anxiety in her eyes as she waited for my answer. Wow. I knew I wanted to be with her, but it had never occurred to me that we might want kids one day.. And it seemed like she had thought about this already.

“Are you..”

“Oh no! No! I just meant... Well can you blame me for thinking of our future? Have children not even crossed your mind?”

“Not until just now.”

She looked embarrassed.

“Never mind.”

I smiled and tapped her with my rump.

“They’d be beautiful like you.”

She looked up in surprise.

“You want to?”

“Not immediately, but yes. I would love to have children with you. I don’t think there’s enough going on in my life as it is.”

She bumped me back and I chuckled.

“How many do you want?

Her expression turned thoughtful as she debated with herself.

“One or two?”

“Can we make sure it’s one of each?”

“That’s not really how it works dear.”

We giggled and continued to walk.

———————————

I was sitting in a chair, reading a book. Rarity had some errands to run and so I’d opted to spend some time in Celestia’s library. I’d picked out a book on unicorn magic and anatomy. I figured I should gather as much information as possible in regards to the magic residing in my brain.
Celestia walked in on me and smiled.

“A little research?”

“Whatever I can find to help my cause.”

“I had a similar thought. We could use any help possible.”

I looked up from my book.

“What do you mean by that?”

“I asked Starswirl to come and take a look at you.”

“Really? I’m sure he has better things to do.”

“You underestimate his boredom. Twilight and the girls have been protecting the kingdom for years. And he was missing for a millennia. He’s been bored since he ended his travels.”

“And how do you know this?”

“Because I told her in my letter.”

The other door opened to reveal Starswirl. Celestia seemed shocked at his appearance.

“You’re early! I thought you wouldn’t be here until later.”

“I’m never early. Nor am I ever late. And besides, I doubt Shade wants to wait around too long.”

He walked over to me, his horn glowing.

“I hope you don’t mind if I dive right in.”

“Go ahead. I’ve got nothing else to do.”

His horn glowed brighter and I felt a tickle growing inside my head. I twitched slightly.

“Is this going to hurt?”

“Only if you break my concentration. Now quiet.”

I closed my mouth and did my best to sit still as Starswirl probed my head. I felt a couple of small discharges as his magic shifted through my head. His eyes lit up as the discharges went off.

“Interesting.”

The glow of his horn dimmed and I felt his magic pull away.

“Magical overflow.. It should be impossible, but considering your circumstances I’m not entirely surprised. You’ve already experienced one major discharge, yes?”

“Right. I hurt Celestia pretty bad. I don’t want that to happen again.”

“The discharges happening now are due to the unstable nature of the magic that has saturated your brain. It’s raw magic energy from your former reserve. Normally you need the reserve as the area for replenishment, but with how much your head soaked up it seems your brain has taken over as the breeding ground for new magical energy.”

“So this won’t stop unless I can expel all of the magic?”

“All of it? I doubt you could. Your brain is holding almost three times what an average unicorn reserve holds. And it would take either constant use over a few days or extremely powerful spells to expell that much energy. The only thing I could think of that could possibly burn off that kind of energy would be...raising the sun.”

“I have that much magic?!”

“It took everything I had to raise the sun and moon. I went prematurely grey because of the amount of magic I used! And I had barely enough time to replenish my reserve before I had to do it again.”

“So if I tried to raise the sun, I’d run out?”

“Possibly. But I doubt that would be advisable. And you don’t even have a horn to do it.”

“Right.”

“Though I wonder...”

He turned and began looking over the shelves of books around us. He eventually pulled one down and began flipping through the pages.

“I’m the past there have been artifacts that could wield magic. They essentially act as the reserve and the horn. This allowed for others that weren’t magically inclined to use them.”

Celestia stepped forward.

“The staff the Storm King used. He drained us of our magic to fuel it. And it gave him control of everything.”

“Exactly. I’m wondering if we could have something similar for Shade. Though I don’t know where any of these artifacts are at the moment...”

I looked around the library and my eyes landed on a book I’d read before; Crystals and Their Magical Properties.

“What about this?”

Celestia levitated the book off the shelf and began looking at it.

“I think he’s on to something Starswirl.”

The older unicorn looked up from his book and narrowed his eyes.

“Crystals? Crystals! Of course! Brilliant idea Shade. Crystals are natural storage units for magic.”

I smiled.

“Now I just need one big enough for mine.”

Starswirl shook his head.

“Size doesn’t matter. It just needs to be the right composition. We find the right crystal and it should hold every last drop of magic in your body.”

“And then what?”

“Then what? You could use it my boy!”

My eyes grew big. I could use magic again? Celestia smiled and nodded in agreement.

“It’s true. If we can find the perfect crystal, your magic can be extracted regularly and stored for use.”

Starswirl began walking towards the doors.

“Finally I have something to do!”

I watched the unicorn walking away.

“Where are you going?”

“I have to find as many crystals as I can. We’ll need a good variety to test.”

His horn lit up and he was gone in a flash. I blinked the spots from my eyes and felt a headache forming. Celestia was rubbing her eyes.

“I hate it when he does that.”

I chuckled.

“As if he’d make a normal exit. How long do you think he’ll be?”

“Hours. Days depending on how picky he gets.”

“Great.”

“But this is the best option we’ve found. This could solve a lot of problems for you.”

I nodded as I heard hoofsteps coming down the hall.

“Hello princess. Is Shade still in there?”

Celestia stepped away from the door.

“Of course. He’s just been reading.”

Rarity appeared in the doorway. She looked between the two of us, curiosity crossing her face.

“What did I miss?

———————————

I laid in bed as the moon rose outside my window. What would it be like to have magic again?

“You should rest.”

I turned over to Rarity. Her eyes were closed, but she was still aware of everything around her somehow. I sighed.

“I know. It’s just... I hope it works.”

“I do too. I just don’t want you to be sick anymore.”

“Me either.”

“Having magic again.. What will you do?”

“I don’t know... Nothing different I guess.”

“Nothing at all?”

“Nope. My life is good the way it is.”

She opened her eyes and scooted closer to me. Her head rested on my shoulder as she snuggled up to me.

“Mine too. I hope it works out well with Starswirl.”

“Thanks Rare.”

We laid there as the night grew colder. Eventually I heard Rarity’s breathing slow as she fell asleep. I yawned and closed my eyes. Sleep crept in as I felt something spark in the back of my head.

———————————

I was in darkness very similar to the black that had enveloped me during my coma. I looked around for any identifying marks. Nothing.

“Its so good to see you after all this time..

I froze as I listened to the voice. I had heard it many times in my dreams, but something felt off now.

“Where are we?”

“Don't you recognize your old home?

A landscape slowly faded into view. Trees grew tall, the darkness still inhabited many corners. My breathing began to quicken. I was standing in the Everfree Forest. A place I hadn’t gone near in six years.

“Do you fear the forest Shade?”

“I do. And rightfully so. You’ve not seen what I’ve seen in there.”

Large eyes began to glow from the shadows. And then the growling began. I shuddered as my mind drifted back to the day with the timberwolves.

“The creatures of Everfree are nothing against my power. You would do well to not doubt your Queen.”

She stepped from the shadows and smiled.

“Or your mother.”

I sneered at Chrysalis.

“You never wanted anything to do with us. You treated us like common insects.”

“You were my Elites. You still are.”

“I’m the only one left. And I don’t serve you.”

“Why do you treat me like some dirty creature?”

I began pacing.

“Because that’s what you’ve become Chrysalis. You’re not a queen. You’re not a ruler. You’re not even a changeling like the rest of them anymore.”

She bared her fangs.

“I am the Queen of the changelings! And none can deny me my right to rule or take what is mine!”

“What exactly is yours? This forest? Has it become your new domain in your exile?”

“I would not live in such squalor! It’s just...difficult to navigate.”

I stopped pacing.

“You’re there now, aren’t you? Hiding amongst the trees and plotting your next move.”

She glared at me as I started to laugh.

“This isn’t a dream. You’ve actually reached out to me again! What’s the matter? Getting lonely?”

“Do not disrespect me! I am your Queen!”

“My apologies Your Highness. I wasn’t aware that living like an animal in the forest qualified you for respect.”

“You’re my eldest now. Does that mean nothing to you?”

“Absolutely nothing. Just as I never meant anything to you. You stand there trying to sway me, thinking that I’ll bend to you if you’re clever enough. Trying to make me think that somehow I’m special. You’ve tried that before.”

“You are special. I’ve heard the whispers around Equestria. Everyone speaks of the strange pony that has taken a seat of power in Canterlot. Countless rumors about who it could be. And among the rumors are specks of truth. I quickly realized it was you.”

“Your point?”

“I seek revenge on all the ponies that have wronged me. And I seek to regain my former power. What better way than to have the Right Hoof sew a few seeds of tension?”

“Revenge on every pony. You do realize that includes me, don’t you? Do you really think I would be stupid enough to trust you? You left me for dead six years ago. And did you show any concern? No! You wanted me to spy for you.”

“I have nothing against you anymore. Your mistakes are small compared to Starlight and the alicorns.”

“Please! My mistakes cost you the invasion. You’ve never forgotten it. And you’ll never forgive me for it either.”

“I can learn to forgive. Why couldn’t we make amends and begin again? Wouldn’t you like to have someone to be..close to?”

“I don’t need you. Especially if all you want is another conquest.”

She smiled, her eyes glowing in the darkness.

“Oh! So you’ve found your own mate? She must be quite the prize. Did you trick her into loving you or did she take pity on you?”

I felt my blood begin to boil.

“Don’t say another word.”

Her smile grew bigger.

“Is that love I sense? I could live a long time off of that. Perhaps I should find out who the lucky mare is..”

Me eye twitched and a tremor passed through me.

“If you dare-“

“What’s to stop me? You have no power. You’re nothing compared to me!”

I felt a shooting pain in my mouth. My jaw dropped as I felt two fangs protrude from my top row of teeth. I hadn’t had fangs in years. But the hatred that was flowing through me was overwhelming. I hissed at her.

“You are nothing! Slinking about in the dark, hoping that you alone can bring down Equestria’s greatest heroes? Your power is nothing compared to theirs. You’ll never wield that much power again! And if you dare to use anypony that I’ve come to care for I will hunt you down like the animal you are!!”

She was starting to laugh.

“Your inner changeling emerges! How does it feel to be yourself again?”

“SHUT UP!!”

She actually flinched. And that’s when my anger and rage spilled over. I began stepping towards her.

“I’ve been through too much. You abandoned me to die and I crawled out of this Celestia-forsaken forest. I’ve stared into the eyes of true monsters. Monsters that make you look like an amateur. For years I’ve had to balance myself between changeling and pony thanks to you.”

Her eyes grew bigger and she took a step back. I continued towards her.

“I’ve grown out of the need for your approval. Away from your influence. And now I’m the one with power. You’ve lost everything and still think that you’re as powerful as ever. You can’t bear the thought that you might be less than what you once were while every other changeling has become more. While I have become more!”

“Don’t come any closer.”

I felt my lips curl into a grin.

“What’s the matter Chrysalis? Surely you’re not afraid?”

I bared my fangs and hissed at her.

“I’ve lost all reason to fear you. You hold no power over me.”

She stopped backing away. Slowly, her smile returned.

“Perhaps...your mare?”

“An empty threat.”

“Not at all. I’m in your mind after all.”

I paused. Was there any possibility she could know? Chrysalis took a step forward.

“Tell me. Just how much do you love her?”

She took another step.

“How much do you love...Rarity?”

I felt that spark in the back of my head again. This time it snapped something. My hooves carried me the few feet to Chrysalis and I leaped at her. Shock filled her eyes as I sank my teeth into her neck. I bit down until I tasted blood.
Chrysalis screamed in anger as she tried to pull me off. I only released her so that I could bite her again, this time dragging my teeth along her as they sank into her skin. Our eyes locked for a moment and I saw it. There was no anger left. She was afraid. Truly and honestly afraid.
I recalled the nightmare I had had months ago. The one I had nearly died of shock from before Luna had intervened. Was this similar? I wasn’t sure how the mental link worked, but if Chrysalis was this scared there must be some consequence from the wounds I was giving her.
I continued my attack and sank my teeth in at several more points. Her screams of anger had turned to screams of terror. I finally let go and stood over her, her blood dripping from my fangs. She looked up at me, blood pouring from her wounds.

“You will pay for this.”

I shook my head.

“No. I won’t.”

I lunged at her as if to attack and she flinched back, a small whimper escaping her body. I took a deep breath.

“If you ever speak her name again, I’ll make sure you die next time.”

I turned and began to walk away. After a few steps however, the entire world shook. Everything turned fuzzy for a moment before returning to normal. I looked around the forest.

“What in Equestria?”

It happened again. Everything shook. This time I felt a sharp pain pass through my head and down my spine. I fell down and cried out. I heard Chrysalis get up behind me. I looked back at her to find her grinning, despite her current state.

“What’s the matter? Having trouble sleeping?”

The pain passed through me again as the dreamworld shook once more. Through the pain, I made the realization.

“What did you do?”

“I’m in your mind, remember? What’s it like? Having all that magic trying to kill you?”

She’d found out about the discharges.

“What did you do?!”

Her smile grew more sinister.

“Don’t you know that stressful sleep is bad for your health?

Everything went fuzzy again as another tremor took me. Chrysalis began to laugh.

“It’s over!”

She’d planned this. She’d figured out my biggest weakness and used Rarity to provoke me. The rage and violence had done the rest. I tried to stand up, but fell over onto my side as a sharp pain hit my chest.
Chrysalis’ laugh filled the forest. Amongst the laughter I heard something else. It sounded like cracking glass. I looked towards the sound and saw a literal crack in one of the trees. The crack grew bigger. And bigger. Chrysalis hadn’t noticed. At last the tree shattered. White light poured through and both Chrysalis and I covered our eyes.

“Do you really think you could hide him from me?! This is my realm!”

I peeked from behind my hoof and found Luna standing over me. Her eyes burned with a rage I’d never seen before. She took a step towards Chrysalis.

“Leave!”

Chrysalis stood her ground.

“I have business to finish with my son.”

Luna’s horn lit up.

“No. You don’t.”

Her form began to change. Her body turned black. She grew taller. Her eyes narrowed into serpent-like slits. Chrysalis’ confidence disappeared as she witnessed the transformation.

“What- What are you?!”

The voice that spoke was not dissimilar to Luna’s, but it had a certain tone that made my body quiver in fear.

“I am your reckoning. You’ve crossed into my realm thinking you can kill one of my subjects. Did you think there would be no consequences?”

“You can’t do anything to me. Not here.”

I coughed.

“She’s lying. Look at her wounds.”

Chrysalis was bleeding out. I saw her legs tremble slightly as her wounds were brought to the attention of the dark alicorn.

“You've not physically hurt me.”

“You know nothing of my dreamworld. Pain is all too real here. You’re body is nearly spent here. If you should die in my world, you may very well die in yours.”

“You’re bluffing. You can’t die from your dreams!”

I chuckled.

“Trust me. I’ve come close. Do you really want to test her?”

Chrysalis looked between the two of us. Her face was a mix of fear and anger as her knees buckled.

“One day I’ll find you in the waking world. And you won’t live to see another day.”

“Be gone!”

The alicorn’s horn lit up and magic enveloped Chrysalis. She cried out in pain as she faded away into the darkness.
The forest shook again. I looked up at my savior and trembled.

“What’s happening to me?”

“Chrysalis triggered several discharges in your head. You’re having a seizure.”

The black alicorn melted away to reveal Luna again.

“Rarity got us as quickly as she could. You’ve been in this state for a few minutes.”

“It feels a lot longer.”

“Dreamworld, remember?”

“Right.”

I gripped my chest as another spike of pain hit me. Luna looked at me with concern.

“She may have triggered a heart attack as well. I need to wake up and help Celestia. We need to get you to a hospital. Fast.”

“Please.. Don’t leave me.”

“Don’t worry. I’m not leaving you alone in this place.”

Her horn lit up and the forest disappeared. In its place was the inside of the boutique. I looked around and smiled.

“Thank you Luna.”

“This should help calm your mind. I don’t know if it will be much help, but it doesn’t hurt to try.”

She disappeared in a flash of light. The light died to reveal Rarity in her place.

“Can’t you give me a hint about date night?”

Date night. A good memory to distract me from the waking world...

———————————

Rarity paced back and forth in the hallway of the hospital. Her eyes were red from crying. She couldn’t bring herself to walk into the room.
She’d been so scared when she woke up to movement in the bed. Shade had been twitching and shaking. She’d tried to wake him up for a minute before realizing something was wrong. It hadn’t taken long for Celestia and Luna to take action.
Now here they were at the hospital. Again. Why did they have to be here again?
Luna emerged from the room and approached her.

“I think he’ll be okay. It was close though.”

“What happened?”

“...Perhaps we should find a more private place.”

Rarity nodded and followed the princess into an empty room. As soon as the door was closed, she asked her question again.

“What happened?”

“Shade wasn’t just dreaming. He was pulled into a mental link with Chrysalis.”

“Mental link? You mean like when he and I were together during his last incident?”

“Similar, but this was much stronger. It’s changeling magic. Chrysalis always seemed to have a connection to every changeling under her. She apparently decided to reach out to Shade again after all these years.”

“Why?”

“To kill him. I don’t know if that was her original intent, but it became her goal once she realized the state of his mind.”

“The seizure? The heart attack?”

“Both Chrysalis. Though from what I saw in there, Shade put up a fight. He nearly killed Chrysalis.”

“Killed her? I don’t believe he could be capable of such a thing!”

“Hatred is a strong emotion Rarity.”

“He doesn’t hate! She had to have provoked him! She had to have something against him..”

Tears formed in her eyes as she realized what must have happened.

“What would you kill for, Luna? What would make you so angry that you’d kill anpony for it?”

Luna lowered her gaze in understanding.

“If they threatened somepony I loved.”

Rarity felt the tears roll down her cheeks. Shade had nearly died to protect her. She was touched by that commitment, but torn by what it had nearly cost.
She wiped away her tears and shook her head.

“If he pulls through, I swear I’m going to kill him.”

Luna smiled.

“Celestia’s rubbing off on both of you.”

———————————

Celestia sat next to the bed. Shade laid there unconscious. It was too soon for him to be back in a hospital bed. Movement by the door caught her attention. It was Rarity.

“I was wondering when you’d come in. I’m guessing Luna told you?”

Rarity nodded.

“He’s going to be alright, isn’t he?”

“He’s stable. He needs to rest now.”

“Is there anything I can do?”

Celestia stood up and nodded.

“Take my place. He’ll want to see you when he wakes up.”

Celestia let Rarity take her seat and moved towards the door.

“It’s going to be okay Rarity. He’s a tough stallion.”

“I know. I just wish he didn’t have to prove it so often.”

Celestia left the room and walked down the hallway. She’d see if there was any new information from the doctor.
As she approached the front desk, she could hear a commotion.

“I’m sure you’re doing a fine job, but I have to see your patient. It’s a matter of life and death.”

“I’m the doctor here, sir. And I don’t feel comfortable with letting just anypony back with somepony in critical condition.”

“I’m not just anypony!”

Celestia reached the desk and found Starswirl arguing with the doctor. She cleared her throat and they both turned to her. Starswirl smiled.

“It’s about time! I brought several candidates to the castle only to find out everypony was here!”

Celestia looked at the doctor.

“He’s with me. I’ll keep an eye on him.”

The doctor nodded and walked away. Celestia began leading Starswirl down the hall. He levitated six crystals from his saddlebag.

“I felt these were the best choices. It will take some testing to see their capabilities, but I’m confident it will be one of these.”

“You found them faster than I expected.”

“I had a few ideas of where to look. It didn’t take long from there.”

“Does Shade need to be awake for this?”

“It would be best, but not necessary. What happened?”

“Chrysalis triggered his discharges and it caused a seizure and a heart attack.”

“Damn. She doesn’t pull her punches.”

“He’s doing better, but it will take some time to get to his full strength again.”

They reached Shade’s room and entered. Rarity had fallen asleep.

“Shhh. You’ll wake her.”

They both froze as their eyes locked on the bed. Shade was awake. Celestia stepped forward.

“You should be resting.”

“I know. I only woke up two minutes ago. I guess I’m doing better?”

Starswirl stepped forward.

“It sound like you gave everypony a good scare. I’m hoping we can keep it from happening again.”

He placed the crystals on the bed. Shade looked down at the jewels thoughtfully.

“Where do we start?”

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