Cadance was following Luna across the rooftops of the Crystal Empire, blasting bolts whenever she caught sight of her, times which were proving to be fewer and fewer. Eventually she lost sight of her altogether. She landed in an alleyway to gain her bearings, when a shadow clamped a hoof around her mouth and pulled her away. She started struggling.

“Hey,” Luna’s voice whispered in her ear. She started struggling harder, “what say thee put this on hold for now?”

Cadance stopped struggling.

“Thou see, we figure thou hadst not been given a timeline with which to kill, maim and eviscerate us. So it would all save us some trouble if thou put this on hold until further notice. Savvy?”

Cadance nodded.

“Glad to see we’re in agreement,” Luna said as she pulled away her hoof, letting Cadance take a gasp of air.

“So, Auntie Luna, what did you have in mind?” Cadance asked.

“We figured that we’d try to free our Sister. Dost thou know where she has been held?”

Cadance nodded, “Follow me,” and she took off, Luna following.

----

Safer Sombra launched himself towards the glowing black pony-bug...thing, which was attempting to vaporize him. He dodged bolt after bolt headed his way, charging up some dark magic of his own. He came within striking distance and fired...only to find that Chrysalis had vanished. He sensed an attack and held up his right forehoof, which was met by a powerful blow, followed by a blocked kick to the gut with his right hindhoof. Chrysalis pulled away and blasted him with her green magic square in the barrel. Not enough to kill, but enough to send him careening down to the ground, where Chrysalis was waiting for him. She bucked him straight into the sky, then launched herself upwards, headbutting him in the back. Safer Sombra cringed from the pain of the blows, but righted himself and blasted a bolt of dark magic at her, met by a green blast of her own magic. Combined with the forward thrust of her trajectory, his dark magic bolt was easily overtaken by her magic blast as he felt a sharp pain in his horn.

“IT SEEMS I OVERPOWER EVEN THE GREAT SAFER SOMBRA! NOW DIE!” Chrysalis roared as she fired a wave of green magic at him.

----

Cadance had led Luna to the Throne Room, where Celestia was still hanging by her neck. Luna stared in horror at the sight before her.

“She’s just sleeping,” Cadance said, “she had a rough day,” as she blasted the rope, which severed and unceremoniously dropped Celestia to the ground, Luna cushioning the fall with her magic. Luna looked worried and trotted over to her sister and slapped her in the face.

“Eggs on rye!” Celestia blabbed while shooting straight up. She then looked around and saw Cadance and Luna staring at her. She blushed a little at the noticed outburst.

“Auntie, did you just…” Cadance asked.

“Yes. I was having a wonderful dream of eating eggs on rye, and I was just about to take a bite when my sister woke me up!” Celestia harumphed, crossing her forelegs.

“It appears we have bigger issues than an interrupted dream, dear sister…” Luna said.

“What could be more important than-” and was cut off as half the throne room was vaporized in a wave of green, causing everycorn to jump back. “What was that?”

“Well, it seems that in your stead, we enlisted the help of Queen Chrysalis to aid in our battle…”

“CHRYSALIS?!” Cadance and Celestia said in unison. Luna nodded.

“But she trapped me in the Canterlot Caves and took my form to do who-knows-what with my Shiny!” Cadance yelled.

“And she defeated me in direct combat in my own throne room and put me in one of her...cocoons, invading Canterlot!” Celestia said loudly.

“Pull yourselves together, there are things more important than old wounds here! And Celestia, that’s exactly why we enlisted her! You were gone for twelve hours by the time we got to her! You never leave the throne room without guards for an hour, at most!” Luna shouted.

“I still don’t recall her being THIS powerful…” Celestia said.

“That’s because we may have...cast a teensy bit of an Amatory Charm on her…”

“AN AMATORY CHARM!?” Cadance screamed, “YOU CAST AN AMATORY CHARM ON THE CHANGELING QUEEN!? ARE YOU INSANE!?” Luna held up a hoof, bending it slightly at the fetlock, “A little, that’s great…why didn’t you go all Nightmare Moon on her then!?”

“Because that was not us!” Luna shouted, stomping a hoof, “we were...possessed by an unknown force...we did things nopony should have to witness themselves do!”

Cadance shied away, “I’m sorry, Auntie Luna. I had no idea…”

“No matter, I suggest we…” and let out a panicked yelp as a grey blur shot past her through the floor of the Throne Room, followed by a black and green blur following post haste, ”...move out of the blast area!”

Everycorn nodded at that and took to the skies.

----

Chrysalis felt so alive as she pummeled Safer Sombra into the Throne Room into the Main Hall, chasing after him with glee. She flew in for the kill, when Safer Sombra blocked her charge with a forehoof, embedded in the floor. He then screamed and let out a blast of energy, creating a crater around him whilst knocking Chrysalis away from him. She felt the pain, relishing in its delight as the throbbing sunk into her system as Safer Sombra rushed her, knocking her into what appeared to be a column of stairs. She caught herself on the wall, then blasted Safer Sombra, who fell down the stairwell. She sighed, disappointed that her opponent was finished. She began to fly up the stairwell when she sensed something. She moved out of the way just in time for a massive black bolt to rush past her, singeing her mane and tail, the stink of burnt hair filling her nostrils. She then felt herself beat through the wall into what appeared to be a kitchen, she noticed, grabbing a few knives with her telekinesis. She saw Safer Sombra rush in, throwing the knives at him with incredible glee and incredible speed, Safer Sombra barely dodging them. Chrysalis then sped to Safer Sombra and punched him straight in the barrel, the force of the blow liquefying the pots and pans. She then grasped the liquefied metal in her telekinesis and flung it at Safer Sombra, who screamed at the scalding hot metal assaulting his skin.

Chrysalis laughed, “SO THE MONSTER DOES FEEL PAIN!” she roared as she charged up a blast, “WELL, FEEL THIS!” as she blasted Safer Sombra with a concentrated blast of viridian, which he barely managed to catch, “THIS IS FOR THE HIVE! AND FOR EQUESTRIA! AND THIS PLANET WHICH WE BUILT!”

“YOU built? HA!” Safer Sombra laughed.

“YES! EVERYPONY AND EVERYLING HAS A PLACE IN THIS WORLD, AND I CAN SEE IT NOW, INUNDATED IN SO MUCH LOVE! CAN’T YOU SEE IT?”

“See what?”

“THAT THIS HORN OF MINE GLOWS WITH AN AWESOME POWER!!” Chrysalis roared as she strode towards Safer Sombra, his grip on the blast steadily weakening, “ITS BURNING SHEEN TELLS ME TO KILL YOU!” she continued, approaching Safer Sombra, drawing the power into her horn, itself taking on a deep shade of viridian, “TAKE THIS! THEIR LOVE, THEIR ANGER, AND ALL OF THEIR SORROW! SHINING...HORN!!!!” finally impaling Safer Sombra on her horn, his eyes burning out as green shot out from them along with his mouth, eventually falling to the ground as a pile of ashes. Chrysalis then toppled forward into the ash pile, kicking it up as she lost consciousness.

----
Celestia saw a glow come from the kitchen, “This way, girls,” she said as everycorn followed her to the kitchen. They came upon the kitchen to see Queen Chrysalis passed out with her face in soot and bits of congealed metal.

“Awww, she looks kind of cute like this…” Cadance cooed.

“Nevermind that,” Lua said, casting a spell over Chrysalis. Her mane and tail lost their sheen, reverting to their ordinary lime green, “I just cast the counterspell to the Amatory Charm.”

“Then why do I still feel love for her?” Celestia asked.

“Why, dear sister, that is the love you feel for all of your subjects.” Luna said.

“And however did you pull that off, sister of mine?”

“A simple trade for the Amatory Charm, loving sister.”

“How shrewd of you,” Celestia said, “I suppose she’ll be demanding rights when she wakes up.”

“If she wakes up,” Cadance said. Both Princesses glared at her, “What? Can’t a girl dream? Speaking of dreams...where is Shining Armor?”

Celestia and Luna giggled, “Oh, I suppose he’s very busy right now…” Celestia said.

----

“Day court is now in session!” Shining Armor said. Ponies started asking questions.

“Where is Princess Celestia?”

“What do this mean for the Crystal Empire?”

“Will Canterlot be focusing more on sports now?”

"WILL SOMEPONY THINK OF THE CORN FUTURES!?"

Shining facehooved. This was going to be a long day.