Day 10, 15:00

Amidst the pounding in her head, Pinkie could hear a voice calling her name. It sounded distant, but was increasing in volume, as if the source was drawing nearer to her. As her senses began returning to her, the voice became clearer and she began to feel her head flailing about as her shoulders were shook aggressively.

“Damn it Pinkie, wake up!”

Pinkie tried to open her eyes, only one obeyed her, the other cracking open lazily. Her vision was swimming before her, but as she watched, a familiar figure began forming before her.

“Fleet… foot?” Pinkie mumbled, her voice sounding thick and choked.

It was only then she began to notice the numbness in her muzzle, and the faint taste of iron in her mouth, and her memories of what happened after she left the study came back to her.

Pinkie lashed out wildly with a forehoof, catching Fleetfoot in the midriff, forcing her back. She then shuffled back across the stone floor before stumbling onto all fours. Lifting herself up, she stood precariously on her hooves, teetering as her head began spinning once more. She felt like she was going to pass out again, but she had enough adrenaline in her body to keep her standing after remembering what Fleetfoot had done to her.

“You hit me!” Pinkie exclaimed, her voice still muffled as a result of her broken nose.

“I didn’t!” Fleetfoot insisted, glaring at her. “I saved your life!”

“How the hay is breaking my nose saving my life?!” Pinkie demanded, stumbling back from the other mare.

“That wasn’t me,” Fleetfoot repeated, her voice calming slightly. “I came down the corridor just in time to see somepony who was pretending to be me hit you.”

“What a load of…” Pinkie began, but Fleetfoot interrupted her.

“Look behind you!” she snapped.

Pinkie hesitated, before briefly glancing at the floor a few feet behind her. There, lying discarded on the tiles was a pair of cracked purple sunglasses. Turning back to Fleetfoot, Pinkie saw she was still wearing her own pair.

“I only own one pair of these,” she explained.

Pinkie opened her mouth, her head spinning as she tried to comprehend what was going on. Before she knew it, her whole body was falling to the floor, but before she collided with it, she felt a pair of hooves wrap around her torso, placing her down gently.

“I’m telling you,” Fleetfoot said as she positioned Pinkie with her back resting against the wall. “I came down here just as some poser knocked you out. They dropped those glasses when I chased them but got away before I could catch them.”

“How did they get away?” Pinkie asked suspiciously.

“No idea,” Fleetfoot admitted. “They flew around the corner, I was only a second behind them, but when I went around they had just vanished. I just came back here to see if you were alright.”

Pinkie thought about what Fleetfoot was telling her, it sounded fanciful but she sounded so genuine in what she was saying.

It wouldn’t be too hard to believe a doppelganger is running around, they pretended to be me a couple times after all.

“Thanks,” Pinkie said at last, hoping her sincerity came across with her altered voice.

“It’s alright,” Fleetfoot said dismissively. “But we’re probably late for the trial, and you don’t look like you’re in any fit state for it anyway.”

“No, we have to go,” Pinkie insisted, trying to stand up.

“I figured you’d say something like that,” Fleetfoot said with a sigh. “At least let me help you, you’ll probably collapse if you try to walk there on your own.”

Pinkie nodded, not having nearly enough strength to argue with her. Fleetfoot put her head under Pinkie’s barrel, and using a surprising amount of strength, rolled Pinkie onto her back. The pair travelled slowly back down the corridor in silence, mostly because neither had the energy to speak. As they arrived into the entrance hall, Pinkie could begin to hear the loud talking of the others out in the courtyard. They sounded panicked, no doubt worried as to why the pair of them were so late.

Fleetfoot shuffled out through the castle gate, and they both looked up to see the others already locked into their circles, staring at them in shock.

“Pinkie!” Fluttershy exclaimed upon seeing Pinkie laying across Fleetfoot’s back, her face caked in blood.

Fluttershy tried to run from her circle but was immediately repelled by the runes locking her in.

“It’s alright,” Pinkie mumbled weakly as Fleetfoot set her down near her own end of the courtroom, making sure she wasn’t about to keel over.

“What happened?!” Rainbow demanded, looking between Pinkie with concern and Fleetfoot with suspicion.

“Pinkie was attacked,” Fleetfoot informed them before hesitating, unsure of how to explain who exactly had been responsible.

“Well we need to adjourn this trial,” Rarity insisted. “Pinkie needs medical attention.”

“I cannot allow that,” the Mastermind cut in. “Pinkie will have to take part as she is, or forfeit all your lives.”

“But that’s insane!” Soarin shouted. “She’s in no fit state to be debating anything.”

“I will make sure Pinkie remains standing throughout the trial,” the Mastermind assured them. “Afterwards you may give her medical attention.”

Some of the gathered ponies looked like they were about to argue more, but Pinkie interrupted them.

“That’s fine,” she said simply, hobbling over to her circle while Fleetfoot did the same.

Once she stepped onto the runes etched into the ground, they came alive, but this time rather than merely glowing, the ethereal light seeped from the ground and began wrapping around Pinkie’s body. Pinkie could feel her body drinking up the magic, the pain in her head and muzzle fading away. Pinkie figured it was only a temporary fix, and after the trial was over her symptoms would return in full, but it was ideal for the time being.

“Pinkie, are you sure about this?” Maud asked warily.

“I am,” Pinkie said, determined.

From the corner of her eye she noticed Octavia nod approvingly.

“Always so professional Pinkie,” the Mastermind said, sounding pleased. “Now, we’ve delayed this trial quite long enough. Let us begin.”

Trial 3: Applejack

Pinkie reached into her saddlebags and brought out the knife along with Maud’s notes, setting them on the bench in front of her. Then as an afterthought, she quietly slipped the revolver from her bags and set it alongside them, confident that nopony could see it even if they peered over.

“So what exactly happened to you Pinkie?” Shining Armour asked curiously, eyeing the blood that was still coating her face with worry.

“I had just left the study when the trial was announced,” Pinkie began, her voice now clear. “When I was punched in the face by someone disguised as Fleetfoot.”

“Wait, what?!” Rainbow exclaimed, staring daggers at Fleetfoot.

“I would like to emphasise that she said ‘disguised’,” Fleetfoot said quickly.

“At which point the real Fleetfoot came by and saw the doppelganger,” Pinkie continued. “The imposter fled and Fleetfoot stayed to help me, that’s about it.”

“Hold on a moment Pinkie,” Fleur began, eyeing Fleetfoot curiously. “Did you actually see Fleetfoot at the same time as this lookalike?”

“No,” Pinkie admitted reluctantly. “When I regained consciousness I was convinced it had been the real Fleetfoot.”

“So you’re basing the assumption that it wasn’t really her, on her own word alone,” Fleur concluded.

“It sounds ridiculous I know,” Pinkie agreed. “But the fake Fleetfoot was also wearing a pair of sunglasses, just like the real one, which she dropped when fleeing.”

Fleetfoot reached into her own bag and produced the cracked pair, showing it to everypony.

“What’s to say she doesn’t have a spare?” Shining questioned.

“She doesn’t,” Soarin jumped in. “Those glasses are… sentimental, she only has the one pair. If those glasses really were there, then I’d believe the possibility of there being a fake.”

“Oh now you’re on my side,” Fleetfoot muttered angrily.

“But this doesn’t make any sense,” Rarity chipped in. “How does anypony make themselves look like somepony else? As well as producing unique accessories?”

“I don’t know, but this does answer a lot of questions that have been raised these past couple of days,” Pinkie pointed out. “First, Fluttershy thought Rainbow Dash had attacked her, then Applejack saw Rarity stealing food. Rarity thought I had given her new medicine, we thought Maud had been carrying that rope, I gave the knife to Shining Armour, and Fleur says I asked Applejack to go to the throne room. If somepony could pretend to be us, it would explain all of these situations.”

“A few of those seem random though,” Fleur mentioned.

“They were probably all carried out with the intention of creating rifts between us,” Maud suggested. “Which worked out well at the start.”

“But…” Fluttershy began tentatively, “if somepony could pretend to be us, why did they only start doing it these past couple days? Couldn’t they have used that ability to kill off anyone of us from the start?”

“I’m not actually sure,” Pinkie admitted. “A lot of this does seem fairly random.”

“Alright, so we know the killer has been pretending to be all of us at some point or another,” Octavia began. “Why don’t we begin discussing the case and see where we get?”

“Alright then,” Rainbow agreed, coughing the clear her throat. “Applejack was lured to the throne room this morning by the killer pretending to be Pinkie. Once there, the killer surprised Applejack by stabbing her with the knife they got from Pinkie last night. However, Applejack fought back, disarmed them and tried to drag herself to safety. The killer however caught up and finished her off by hanging her out the window.”

“I think I might have missed a step,” Fleetfoot cut in. “What makes you think Applejack fought back?”

“That was after you left,” Soarin explained. “The prints in the blood trail and the blood on Applejack’s hooves indicated she dragged herself away.”

“On top of that, the way the knife was lost near the throne suggests the killer had it knocked from their grasp,” Rarity added.

“Applejack would never go down without a fight,” Rainbow insisted.

“No offence, but dragging yourself away doesn’t sound like fighting,” Fleetfoot replied nonchalantly.

Rainbow’s wings flared at that and she opened her mouth to retort, but Pinkie cut in before an argument could kick off.

“Where did you three get off to anyway?” Pinkie asked, looking between Fleetfoot, Shining Armour and Fleur. “Did any of you find anything?”

“I was at the library,” Fleur answered coolly. “I wanted to see if I could find anything more on that book from the chapel.”

“How does that relate to the murder?” Maud asked.

“It doesn’t,” Fleur answered simply. “But after running around and finding nothing of relevance, I decided I could use my time a little more productively.”

“More productively than identifying Applejack’s killer?!” Rainbow exclaimed.

“But hang on,” Shining cut in. “I was in the library as well, how come I didn’t see you?”

“It’s a big library,” Fleur reminded him. “I certainly didn’t see you.”

“Why were you there?” Rarity asked.

“Well at the first trial Pinkie brought up the newspaper clippings Filthy Rich found there,” Shining explained. “Then at the second one she talked about that plant book. I thought maybe there was a theme developing and I should look for clues there.”

“That actually sounds quite logical,” Maud pointed out. “Did you find anything?”

“Well I found something, but it’s nothing to do with this case,” Shining answered. “Pinkie had told me a while back about the odd behaviour of the waiters at the gala, and I found something that might explain it.”

“Really?” Pinkie asked surprised. “What was it?”

“It was a book about magical ailments,” Shining explained. “It was pure luck I happened to come across it really; it was a passage about ‘Love Sickness’.”

“Love sickness?” Rarity repeated, sounding bewildered.

“Yeah, has dozens of possible causes,” Shining continued, “but it makes the sufferer appear like a zombie according to the book.”

“Can we please stick to Applejack and stop getting side-tracked?” Rainbow requested, sounding irritated.

“Oh, sorry,” Shining said quickly. “Well that’s where I was.”

“What about you Fleetfoot?” Soarin asked

“Medical room,” Fleetfoot answered simply, only elaborating when everyone gave her curious looks. “I wanted to figure out what those drugs we had been about to take were.”

“Did you find anything?” Fluttershy asked quietly.

“Nah, the place was in too much of a state,” Fleetfoot replied.

“What about the food?” Rainbow chipped in.

“What food?” Shining asked, raising an eyebrow.

“We found all the food that had been stolen,” Rarity answered. “It had been stashed in the store room, the same place the Maud imposter claimed to have found he rope.”

“So the thief was just throwing it away?” Shining repeated. “They didn’t eat any of it? Who does that?”

“That’s what I said,” Rainbow agreed.

“Someone that doesn’t need to eat presumably,” Octavia proposed.

“I don’t know if you’ve noticed,” Fleur began in a dreary tone. “But all ponies need to eat.”

“You’re right,” Octavia agreed, sounding a little too upbeat. “All ponies need to eat.”

Pinkie blinked, something clicking in her head.

“If I was in Applejack’s place,” Shining picked up. “And I knew it was hopeless, I’d at least try to identify my killer.”

“I think we can forgive her for being more focused on preserving her own life,” Rarity retorted.

“I don’t know, it’s like I said,” Soarin continued. “Applejack wouldn’t have deluded herself into thinking she had a chance.”

“Well what message could she possibly have left?” Fleetfoot asked. “All she could do was pull herself away.”

Unless that was the message…

Pinkie thought back to the throne room, picturing the crime scene in her mind’s eye. She followed the trail of blood from the centre of the room over to what the pillar stood and Applejack lay. She glanced up at the shattered window, it wasn’t all broken, she could still make out some of it.

Pinkie tilted her head up, her eyes panning across the assembled ponies, their arguing voices fading into the background.

One of these ponies is not like the others…

Memories rushed through Pinkie’s mind, fragmented pieces that had never meant a great deal at the time, but now, as her eyes fell on those of the figure almost directly opposite her, it all made sense.

One of these ponies just doesn’t belong…

“Fleur…” Pinkie began, her voice even.

“Yes?” Fleur answered curiously.

“Do you know what a ‘Fool’s Mate’ is?” Pinkie asked.

“Um, no, I’ve never heard of it,” Fleur admitted, sounding confused.

“It’s a move in chess,” Pinkie explained. “It’s the fastest way to get a checkmate.”

Fleur thought about that for a moment before coming to a realisation.

“Oh, that’s the move you used against me the other morning,” Fleur said remembering.

“That’s right,” Pinkie said smiling. “Do you know who taught me that move?”

“No,” Fleur answered simply.

“You did,” Pinkie said.

Pinkie’s smile faded and Fleur’s face became stony. The others began staring at Fleur in confusion, while Pinkie subtly smacked her computer below the bench, causing the prongs to snap out.

“Or should I say…” Pinkie continued, fitting the revolver into the prongs. “The real Fleur did.”

Nopony had time to react as Pinkie’s hoof swung out from behind the railing, the gun halting with the barrel aimed directly at Fleur’s head. One twitch was all it took, and the gun exploded, the bullet speeding out ready to embed itself in Fleur’s forehead.

Everypony either screamed or shouted in shock, some ducking behind their own railings, Pinkie merely stared, recovering quickly from the surprisingly strong recoil on the gun, and Fleur… simply stood there, the bullet hovering in front of her, held in her telekinetic grasp.

“Are you trying to kill me Pinkie?!” Fleur screamed.

“No,” Pinkie replied, her smirk returning. “Just trying to make you show your true colours.”

Fleur’s eyes widened in realisation, the others all noticing her slip up. The bullet fell to the ground, Fleur releasing her grip on it, but the damage was done, they had all seen it, seen the venomous green of her aura.

“Now why don’t you show us what you really are…” Pinkie said in an icy voice, “Changeling!”

The courtyard fell deathly silent as everypony stared at Fleur who appeared frozen solid. Then, after several agonisingly long minutes, the corners of Fleur’s mouth twitched into an unmistakable smile. Fleur burst into laughter, it started out low and infrequent, but then it became loud and hysterical, making her sound completely insane.

Suddenly Fleur’s body burst into vibrant green flames, her flesh stripping away to reveal to black chitin beneath, the crooked horn, and the webbed, translucent insect wings.

Queen Chrysalis only stopped laughing when the flames had died away and she could now be seen standing tall in all her terrible glory.

“Hello Chrysalis,” Pinkie greeted, glaring at the changeling queen before her.

“That’s Queen Chrysalis to the likes of you,” Chrysalis spat, her laughing cut short.

“I’ll pass on that,” Pinkie replied.

“You…” Shining breathed, his eyes burning with rage.

“Oh yes,” Chrysalis said, as if noticing him for the first time. “If it isn’t my would-be husband.”

Shining Armour was too shocked at seeing her to formulate a response, instead Rainbow Dash jumped in.

“So you killed Applejack!” she exclaimed.

“Yes, I did,” Chrysalis replied, offering Rainbow a sickly sweet smile. “You should been there, watched as she feebly tried to escape me.”

“Shut up!” Rainbow screamed, trying desperately to smash free of the invisible barrier holding her in.

Chrysalis began laughing once more at Rainbow’s display.

“A Changeling,” Octavia muttered, staring curiously at Chrysalis. “I’ve never seen one personally; I was away during the Canterlot invasion. Tell me, were you always pretending to be Fleur, or did you take her place since the game began?”

“I had replaced Fleur in preparation for the gala,” Chrysalis answered. “It had served me well as a disguise; I was beginning to think nopony would see through it. Tell me Pinkie, how did you figure it out?”

“Besides your little slip up with the chess game,” Pinkie began. “You never used your magic since we got here, opting to use your hooves for things like when you reached under the stove for that syringe. Then there was what Octavia mentioned about ponies eating food, if a Changeling had stolen the food they would have had no need to eat any of it since you feed on love, which you’ve probably been getting off Rainbow and Soarin.”

“It’s much more substantial to take love directly, rather than syphoning it from its intended course,” Chrysalis explained. “But to do that I would needed to have taken the place of one of them, which until recently I was unable to do.”

“Indeed, why did you only start changing lately?” Maud asked.

“You can thank your sister for that,” Chrysalis said grinning. “This accursed gauntlet was blocking my powers, leaving me trapped in that prissy unicorn’s skin permanently, but then Pinkie showed me something interesting.”

Chrysalis tapped her computer, causing the prongs to emerge.

“For whatever reason, releasing these broke the bonds restricting my powers,” Chrysalis continued. “So really if it weren’t for you, Pinkie, I could never have killed anyone at all.”

“Don’t pin this on Pinkie!” Soarin exclaimed. “You’d have found a way to get your powers one way or another.”

“That’s true,” Chrysalis agreed. “Although it was certainly difficult finding the time between keeping up the act.”

“I suppose you tried a little too hard with that act,” Pinkie commented. “Acting like your nightmares didn’t bother you. I should have realised then something was wrong, the Fleur I knew still got emotional over her past, but you obviously would have felt no remorse for the things you’ve done.”

“Ignoring the obvious fact that your stuck up little friend never seems bothered by whatever haunts her at night,” Chrysalis reminded her, looking over at Octavia.

“I’ve had a lot of practice hiding my emotions,” Octavia replied. “Just like yourself I imagine.”

“And lastly I realised that Applejack did leave us a message,” Pinkie continued. “The window she dragged herself towards, the one you threw her out of, it showed Shining Armour and Cadance banishing you and your army using the power of love.”

“Not one of my finer moments,” Chrysalis said sneering at Shining Armour who was still seething at her.

“So you were the one who attacked Fluttershy,” Maud stated. “Stole the food from the kitchens, gave Rarity the medicine, took the knife from Pinkie and the rope from the store, and lured Applejack to the throne room.”

“It was you who had said a Pinkie lookalike had lured her there,” Rarity added. “Making you appear innocent, but then no one could have backed you up on that.”

“You also attacked Pinkie outside the study earlier,” Fleetfoot pointed out. “And no wonder I lost you, you escaped with magic once you were around the corner.”

“Indeed, although I couldn’t teleport, I still had other options available to me,” Chrysalis replied.

“Another one of your slip ups. I remember at the wedding when Changelings turned into Applejack they had a copy of her hat, and when you were impersonating us you wore our clothes as well as Fleetfoot's unique sunglasses,” Pinkie explained before adding, “Also, am I to take it you were pretending to be Soarin when he blamed Fleetfoot for Spitfire’s death.”

“Wait, what?” Soarin interrupted, bewildered.

“Wait, that wasn’t really him?” Fleetfoot asked, sounding slightly hopeful.

“No, I knew it was totally out of character for him,” Pinkie replied.

“Well yes, that was me also,” Chrysalis acknowledged.

“Why though?” Fluttershy asked. “Why did you hurt Pinkie… and me?”

“You were just collateral damage,” Chrysalis answered casually. “All part of turning you against one another, which I’m disappointed did not stick in the end. As for Pinkie, I wanted to retrieve the knife from her; however I was intruded upon before I got the chance.”

“I suppose you did translate it then?” Pinkie asked. “Those notes had been moved about when I arrived at the study.”

“Yes, I did manage to keep my word, even if those words were spoken in Shining Armour’s voice,” Chrysalis answered. “It’s nothing you’ll find particularly interesting, just some archaic enchantment to do with deception. Hardly any use for a being such as myself who is a natural expert of deception.”

“Well I think there’s little left to be said,” Rarity commented. “So why don’t you put an end to this game, we beat you after all.”

“Oh, do you think I’m the Mastermind?” Chrysalis asked, sounding amused. “Sorry to disappoint you, but I’m as much of a prisoner as the rest of you. Wrong place at the wrong time.”

“What were you doing at the gala?” Shining demanded.

“I was there for a little diplomatic meeting with your dear Princess Celestia,” Chrysalis answered. “The kind of diplomacy that ends with me assassinating her.”

“You what?!” Soarin exclaimed, furious.

“Oh yes, it took months of planning,” Chrysalis continued. “First I had to infiltrate the homes of all the waiters for the gala, replace their spouse or some other close family member, then steadily infect them with what you call ‘love sickness’. Then secondly, and perhaps most importantly, I had to obtain my disguise. So I asked myself, who could get close to Celestia without anypony being suspicious in the slightest? Well, with her little protégé dead and her beloved sister under such high guard, the answer was obvious. Her adopted daughter, living right there in Canterlot.

“Now I take impersonating others very seriously,” Chrysalis stated, her voice taking on a sinister tone. “I like to know everything about my new identity, and I find the best way to do that… is through extensive torture.”

Pinkie’s mind froze upon hearing those words; Chrysalis was looking straight at her, a sadistic smile on her face.

“Oh yes,” she purred. “You should have heard her screams, watched her sob as I killed her darling husband right before her eyes. She sang like a bird for me, told me her most intimate secrets, and I ended up learning some very interesting things, things that Celestia had covered up. In the end, it was really down to my merciful nature that I allowed her the release of death.”

Pinkie was shaking with a mixture of horror and rage, only Soarin could voice her thoughts aloud.

“Fleur… is dead…” he whispered, as if he didn’t dare believe what he was hearing.

It can’t be… after everything she survived, only to be murdered in her own home alongside the love of her life…

“How…” Pinkie murmured before raising her voice. “How can you be so heartless?!”

“How can I be heartless?” Chrysalis repeated, no longer sounding amused, only hatred in her voice now. “Do you know how many of my Changelings died from being expelled from Canterlot? How many of my own children were burnt up in the magical output, and how many more died upon impact with the ground? Did you ever think about them? Did you ever care? You ponies call us heartless, call us evil, but look at your own history and you’ll see you’re not paragons yourselves!”

Chrysalis stopped shouting, taking several deep breaths before continuing.

“I’ve maimed and I’ve murdered,” she continued. “I’ve done terrible things, and I’d do them all again without a moment’s hesitation for those I care about.”

The courtyard was silent for a long time, only broken by Octavia.

“So you murdered Fleur and took her place,” she summed up coldly. “And then you attended the gala with the mind controlled waiters as your backup.”

“Correct,” Chrysalis replied. “Everything was going perfectly right up until this kicked off. In the confusion my minions became hectic; the individual Changelings I’d assigned to take control of them had misinterpreted the chaos as the signal to begin the assault.”

“That black mark on Celestia’s statue,” Maud pointed out. “That was you?”

“Yes, once my powers had been restored, I decided to finish what I’d started,” Chrysalis explained. “Although it would appear the Mastermind had prepared for that.”

“Enough of this!” Rainbow exclaimed. “Is there anything else you want to confess to you disgusting bug before we kill you?”

“I’m so glad you asked you disgusting equine,” Chrysalis replied, her evil smirk reappearing on her face. “For I have indeed committed another crime, one so terrible that even I am ashamed of myself for it.”

“And that is?” Shining asked impatiently.

“I have lied,” Chrysalis answered, in a mock horrified voice. Everypony just stared blankly at her. “Or should I say, I’ve lied for one of you.”

Pinkie blinked, suddenly worried.

“What are you talking about?” Rainbow demanded.

“Haven’t you been curious as to who the original Mastermind was?” Chrysalis asked. “Pinkie has certainly been eager to stop you from finding out, she practically ordered Soarin and I not to tell you all.”

Pinkie’s eyes widened slightly, her heart began hammering in her chest as the others began glancing at her, confusion written all over their faces. Soarin looked worried, Maud looked concerned.

“That’s enough!” Pinkie exclaimed, knowing that now she was only delaying the inevitable. “You already admitted to killing Applejack, so let’s just cut straight to the chase.”

“Oh,” Chrysalis said, her grin stretching even wider. “I’m sorry to disappoint you Pinkie Pie, but I have no intentions of being executed today.”

“Well it’s a shame it’s not your decision,” Pinkie retorted.

“Oh but it is,” Chrysalis replied. “You remember those notes you showed me, the ones your sister wrote?”

Pinkie froze again, worried as to where she was going with this.

“Unfortunately for you, I happen to know a thing or two about magical runes,” she continued. “Enough that when I read what you had discovered, I learnt how to do something interesting…”

Pinkie opened her mouth, unsure what exactly she was going to say, but it was too late regardless. Chrysalis’s horn glowed a bright, sickly green, flashing outwards, spreading over the entire courtyard in mere seconds. As it washed over the ground, the stone slabs cracked and shattered, the runes beneath them flickering and dying. Pinkie knew she was free to move about, but as soon as the runes were extinguished, the pain in her muzzle returned in full force, causing her to collapse in agony.

Chrysalis moved fast, she was nearly a blur to Pinkie as she sliced through the water between them, her wings buzzing furiously. Pinkie could see the wide smile, the mouth packed full of razor sharp teeth, all before Chrysalis’s head dipped, her gnarled, twisted horn pointing directly at Pinkie. Pinkie took in the sharp point, and realised what was about to happen. Everything had happened so quickly, she hadn’t a hope of reacting, she was going to die, and there wasn’t a thing she could do about it.

But she didn’t die.

She was still staring as a flash of blue sped in front of her, coming between her and the oncoming Chrysalis. The figure seized, and Pinkie saw spots of red dropping onto the ground in front of her, heard a heart wrenching scream.

Chrysalis pulled her horn out, Soarin falling to his knees in front of Pinkie Pie, blood gushing from where he had been impaled.

Chrysalis didn’t hesitate in striking again, pointing her head down once more she made to dash forward into Pinkie Pie.

“NO!” The Mastermind bellowed before Chrysalis could move more than an inch.

In a split second, the pool beneath Chrysalis turned jet black, chains bursting from the surface and wrapping themselves around her.

“No…” the Mastermind growled as the dark chains lifted Chrysalis into the air.

Chrysalis began fighting against her bonds, but the chains began wrapping themselves tighter around her, constricting her limbs until she was paralysed.

Pinkie watched as the chains began cutting into Chrysalis, listened as she began screeching in agony while her whole body began to glow. The chains tightened even further, all the while Chrysalis’s body began shattering like glass, shredding up within the Mastermind’s clutches. After a short time, very little of her remained, Pinkie looked up into her face, into the terrified eyes just before they too were wiped away.

Nothing remained of Chrysalis, her body utterly destroyed. The black chains fell limply into the pool where they were absorbed, the water turning clear once more.

Pinkie stumbled back, falling on her rump, her head spinning.

“Soarin!” Rainbow screamed, speeding forward and scooping up Soarin. “Speak to me!”

Soarin didn’t move, he didn’t make a noise. Pinkie was afraid to ask, but she didn’t have to in the end, Rainbow’s sobs told her enough.

Her head fell back, but she felt herself caught by a pair of hooves. Looking up she saw Maud crouched down beside her, giving her a pained look. Pinkie felt herself slip out of consciousness once again, all the while, the sound of Rainbow’s anguished wails ringing in her head.

Author's Notes:

Huzzah! We are now half way through the story! What's that? Didn't I mention there was going to be six chapters in this one as opposed to five like last time? Well, now you know, and knowing is half the battle.
I'm very pleased with the amount of interaction this chapter gained, hopefully I can maintain the level of intrigue.
Plenty of people realised the involvement of a changeling, although there was quite a lot of debate as to who exactly it was, with the general consensus being Fluttershy. However, to absolutely no ones surprise, ClickClackTheBrony correctly guessed who was the changeling and the murderer. However Wolfe and Windsilver also guessed the culprit to be Fleur, and I would be remiss to say they were wrong. Finally a very special shout out to Basic13 who deduced Chrysalis's involvement as a result of the waiters behaviour at the gala, although they incorrectly assumed that she was disguised as Fluttershy, I found their reasoning behind such an assumption to be incredibly clever, particularly the bit about the smell of Fluttershy's hair (Congratulations, you have my permission to feel chuffed).
I hope you're all hyped for chapter 4, because things are about to flip upside down...