Chapter Two: Only The Beginning

Vision blurry and disoriented, Salvation slowly opened his eyes. The stallion’s head pounded, lifting his hoof up to his forehead and wincing. However, something didn’t seem right. Salvation felt a tugging sensation on his leg as he moved around, the stallion’s vision starting to clear up. Salvation tilted his head to look at his legs, finding something that made his stomach lurch a little. A green goo was wrapped around his legs, and upon his vision clearing even more, he seemed to be in what looked like a cocoon. Salvation let his front legs go limp and they hung out above his head, the grey unicorn bouncing up and down slightly as the goo stretched a little.

“What... what is this?” Salvation thought to himself. He reached his hoof out to the wall of the cocoon, making a small echo within the hollow green shelter around him.

“What the... where am I?” Salvation said quietly, turning his head to his left. The cocoon had a clear side on it, the forest he and Tranquility had landed in viewable through the glass like side of the cocoon. Salvation squinted his eyes to see another cocoon hanging from a tree on the other side of the circular clearing in the forest. Tranquility hung from inside of the other green casket, her eyes closed as she swayed back and forth slightly in the cocoon.

“Tranquility? Tranquility! Hey, wake up! Damn it, help! Somepony help!” Salvation yelled as he came fully conscious, pressing his hooves against the sides of the cocoon and pushing.

“Nopony can hear you, dear. We’re a long ways away from your little pony friends.” Chrysalis said as she walked around the cocoon Salvation was in, stopping at the clear side and staring at the stallion dangling within her cage.

“Chrysalis! Let us go! We don’t have anything for you, just let us get on our way!” Salvation said as he continued to push against the sides of the cocoon in hopes of breaking it.

“Oh quite on the contrary. No pony just goes out to the outskirts of Equestria with some mare that he has no connection with. She is your marefriend, correct?” Chrysalis asked, lifting an eyebrow. Salvation stayed quiet, giving up on trying to break the cocoon as he turned his head to look at Chrysalis. The changeling laughed to herself a little and she put her hoof up to the cocoon, tapping on it lightly.

“With only two ponies, I’ll be able to bring my army back to life. Equestria will be mine. Now, if you don’t mind, let me start the process.” Chrysalis said. She lowered her head and pointed her horn at the cocoon, moving forward a little and inserting her jagged horn into the side of the green casket. Salvation flinched a little, expecting her to move forward further to the point where Chrysalis’s horn would come in contact with him. However, Chrysalis stayed where she was, a small smirk on her face. Salvation opened his eyes as he heard the sound of gas releasing from something, turning his head back towards the clear side of the cocoon to look at the changeling’s horn. A thick dark blue gas emitted from the tip of Chrysalis’s horn, filling the cocoon completely with Salvation still inside. The grey unicorn coughed and spit as the gas surrounded him, Chrysalis taking her horn out and watching the cocoon shake around as Salvation tried to break it.

“What is this? What are you doing!?” Salvation yelled, continuing to cough as he was forced to breath in the gas.

“Making my first changeling. You’ll be ready in a little more than a week. Until then, good night...” Chrysalis said, laughing manically as she walked away from Salvation’s assimilation chamber.

“Chrysalis! Let me... let me out... I... Tranquil... no...” Salvation trailed off, slowly dosing into a deep sleep. The grey unicorn hung limp, unconscious as he continued to breath the gas that had filled the cocoon. But soon enough, a unicorn he would no longer be, but the beginning of a new era. The era of changelings.

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The forest was quiet for its nature. No creatures of the night scurried through the bushes, flew in the night sky, or even snored to add ambience to the matter. The only sounds that filled the air were the leaves blowing peacefully in the trees and the sound of the stream flowing slowly to the lake at the end of it. The nocturnal heavens above gleamed with thousands upon thousands of stars, a full moon above dimly lighting the forest. On the floor of the dense forest laid an unconscious Salvation, the stallion laying still underneath the broken cocoon he had been in not only an hour ago. He stirred lightly in his sleep, adjusting to the changes that he had undergone from being in the green casket for more than a week. His eyes slowly opened and they met with the clearing in front of him, Salvation laying still for a second to fully awaken. The stallion shifted his eyes around to look at the forest surrounding him, lifting a hoof up to his head as a headache slowly edged it way unto him. Salvation rolled onto his stomach and lifted himself onto his hooves, swaying a little as he still tried to shake of the tiredness still lingering in his eyes.

“H... Hello? Is anypony there?” Salvation said quietly, lifting a hoof up to his eye and rubbing it. As he took his hoof away from his eye, he noticed that his coat seemed a little darker, but shrugged it off as his vision still adjusting to the darkness of the night. Salvation slowly began walking to the middle of the clearing, glancing from side to side to see if anypony was around. The quietness of the forest gave Salvation an eerie feeling as he stood in the middle of the clearing, his breathing heavy as he looked at his surroundings. The headache Salvation had spiked suddenly and he put his hoof up to his head, wincing again.

“Ah... damn it. Is anypony out there? Anyone?” Salvation said, putting his hoof back on the ground and looking at the edge of the clearing. His gaze met with the cocoon that he had seen when he was in his cocoon, but it seemed to have been broken open.

“Tranquility...” Salvation said quietly, running across the clearing and sliding to a stop at the broken cocoon. The stallion leaned forward and looked inside of the green casket, but was only met with an empty shell. Salvation sighed and he turned away from the cocoon, looking deeper into the forest around him. To his surprise, another cocoon was sitting off in the distance, Tranquility visible through the clear side of the cocoon.

“Tranquility!” Salvation said, his mouth curving into a smile as he dashed toward the cocoon further into the forest. However, he was not alone. A quiet laugh came from the forest and Salvation stopped in his tracks, a few yards away from the cocoon Tranquility was hanging in.

“Who’s there?” Salvation said, turning his head from left to right as he looked for where the laugh had come from. Another laugh pierced the quiet of night and Chrysalis walked out from behind the cocoon Tranquility was encased in, giving Salvation a sinister smile.

“Chrysalis, you monster! Let her go!” Salvation said, starting to walk towards the cocoon hanging from the tree in front of him.

“Ah ah ah, I wouldn’t so that if I were you.” Chrysalis said, pointing her horn at the cocoon next to her. Salvation came to a stop, staring at the changeling queen with hatred burning in his eyes.

“Or what?” Salvation asked.

“Or I do what I did to you to her.”

“What is that supposed to mean?”

“Oh, you haven’t seen yourself yet? I suggest you talk a look, it’s something that you might not want to miss.” Chrysalis said, casting a light spell and holding it out in front of the cocoon. Salvation’s stomach lurched as his gaze met with himself in the reflection of the cocoon, the stallion speechless at what had been done to him. The red-orange eyes that he had only a week ago were now a solid dark blue, the middle of his eyes a little lighter than the rest. Fangs hung partially out of Salvation's mouth, the stallion opening his mouth to look at the long and sharp teeth. His coat had been darkened to an almost black shade, barely lighter than Chrysalis’s. His horn had been smoothed, curved slightly, and pointed, Salvation putting a hoof to touch the surface of his horn. Salvation felt a tugging sensation on his sides and he turned his head to look at them, finding insect like wings tucked against him. His mane and tail had remained their normal appearance, but had been turned into a silky material, much like Chrysalis’s mane and tail. Salvation started to hyperventilate at the sight of himself in the reflection of the cocoon, taking his breath away as he stared at what he had become.

“What... what did you do me!? What am I!?” Salvation yelled angrily, feeling to urge to attack Chrysalis where she stood as he stomped his right fore hoof on the ground.

“Calm yourself, Salvation. I can explain everything to you. You are a changeling. That gas that I had put in the cocoon slowly took over your body, altering your appearance as you breathed it in and absorbed it.”

“Why!? You have nothing to benefit from this, why would you turn me into a monster such as yourself!?”

“That’s where you’re wrong. I’m going to need somepony to do my work for me. I can’t risk going out and preparing my army myself, I need somepony that can be made again. A changeling, like you.”

“Do you really think that I’m going to work for you!? Look what you have done to me! What makes you think that I’m going to follow your order!?”

“Why, for the sake of Tranquility, of course. You wouldn’t want her to become a ‘monster’ like you, would you?”

Salvation opened his mouth to speak, but slowly shut it as he turned his eyes toward Tranquility. She was still asleep, hanging peacefully within the cocoon next t Chrysalis. Salvation stared at Tranquility for a moment, his thoughts conflicting with himself. If he were to go again Chrysalis, Tranquility would be put to rest, or worse, be turned into what Salvation was turned into. However, if he were to cooperate with Chrysalis, Tranquility would remain the way she was. Salvation sighed and shifted his eyes back to Chrysalis, staring at her with anger for a short moment.

“You’ll spare her if I do your work?” Salvation asked quietly.

“Precisely.” Chrysalis replied.

“You won’t harm her?”

“Not at all.”

“She’ll remain the way she is? Nothing will happen to her?”

“Well... I wouldn’t say nothing, but basically, yes.”

“What do you mean?”

“You’re going to have to get your power from somewhere.”

Chrysalis extended her hoof out at the cocoon, Salvation staring at Tranquility within the green casket hanging from the tree.

“You... you want me to...”

“Use her love for you.”

Salvation bit down on his lip lightly and he closed his eyes, tilting his head downwards and exhaling slightly.

“I can’t. She and I have been close for so long... I can’t do this to her.”

“Oh, but what about her? She would be heartbroken is she found out that you were the one that caused her death... or her new changeling form. But, what can you do? Oh well, might as well start the process.” Chrysalis said, shrugging and leaning forward to pierce her horn through the cocoon.

“Wait, wait, no!” Salvation shouted, stretching out his hoof in front of him. Chrysalis turned her head to the changeling, a slight smile on her face as he look down at the ground again. “I’ll do it... I’ll do it, okay? Just... please, leave her alone. She has done nothing to deserve any of this. Let her be.”

Chrysalis chuckled slightly and she stood back up. “That’s what I thought. You have an hour to tap into her before I decide if you’re worthless or not. I’ll be over by the lake when you’re done.” Chrysalis said as she began to walk away from Tranquility’s cocoon. “And don’t think about breaking the cocoon open. It’s designed to crush inwards if anypony tries to break it. An hour, Salvation. Hop to it.” With that, Chrysalis walked out of sight, her hoofsteps growing faint as she headed for the lake. Salvation turned his head away from the direction Chrysalis had walked off in to Tranquility’s cocoon. The changeling slowly trotted his way toward the green casket hanging heavily from the tree it was attached to, Tranquility sleeping peacefully inside. Salvation lifted his hoof up to the cocoon, making a small ‘clunk’ noise against the hollow cell. Closing his eyes, Salvation slowly lowered himself to the ground, a few tears falling from his eyes as he sat down.

“I didn’t want any of this to happen. I didn’t know. I’m sorry... I should have listened. But everything’s going to be alright, I can feel it. We’ll get out of this and Chrysalis will be gone again. I promise. We’ll be back home and we can see our friends and the rest of the ponies again. I promise...” Salvation said quietly, letting his tears fall down his face as he held his hoof against the cocoon. A small ‘clunk’ noise came from the cocoon and Salvation felt pressure on his hoof, the changeling looking back up at the glass like side of the green casket. Tranquility had her hoof up against the cocoon’s curved side where the changeling’s hoof rested, staring at Salvation with tears welling in her eyes.

“Salvation... is that you?” Tranquility asked.

“Yeah... it’s me, Quil. I’m here.” Salvation said, smiling as his eye met with the mare in the cocoon’s.

“What... what happened to you?”

“Just an illusion through the cocoon, honey. I’m the same pony.”

“What’s going to happen to us?”

“I’m... not sure. But we’ll make it through, alright? We’ll be able to hold each other again. I won’t let anything happen to you.”

“Promise?”

“I promise. Just... go to sleep for now. I’ll get you out of there. It might take a while, I saw a branch that looked strong enough to break the side of the cocoon a while off into the forest.”

“What about Chrysalis? Where is she?”

“She’s not here. I haven’t seen her since I woke up, so I’m sure she’s gone. Go to sleep for now, I’ll be right back.”

“Okay, I’ll see you then. Be careful.”

“I will.” Salvation lifted his hoof off of the cocoon and he stood up, giving Tranquility a reassuring nod. She returned the gesture and Salvation walked to the side, going out of view from the clear side of the cocoon. Salvation made his way over to one of the trees next to Tranquility’s casket, waiting for her to fall asleep. Soon enough, light and gentle snores came from the cocoon, Salvation swallowing slightly and coming back out into the clearing. He stopped in front of the green cage, taking a moment to admire Tranquility one last time before she would go under Salvation’s control. The changeling walked forward to the cocoon and his horn glowed with a dark blue aura along with Tranquility, the mare twitching slightly in her sleep.

“I’m sorry.” Salvation said quietly and the spell cast. A smokey cloud of dark blue magic flowed out of the tip of Salvation’s horn, winding through the air and passing through the side of the cocoon. The smoke made its way to Tranquility and it absorbed into her, the mare’s breathing slowing down and becoming quiet. Salvation felt his tears begin to well up again, but held them back as best he could. The changeling soon felt a powerful force come over him, Salvation almost falling over from the sudden rush of energy. Salvation used a telekinesis spell to open Tranquility’s left eye lid. Her eye was staring off blankly into the forest past the changeling on the other side of the cocoon’s wall, her pupils shrunken and tinted dark blue. Salvation sighed and he closed her eye lid, putting his hoof up to the cocoon once more.

“I love you.” Salvation said and he turned away from the green casket, a tear slowly edging its way down the side of his face.

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Chrysalis sat at the edge of the calm lake, watching as a small group of fish swam through the shallow shore in front of her. The full moon reflected on the blissful body of water, Chrysalis tapping at the shore and admiring the ripples as they cascaded across the lake. The sound of hoofsteps slowly came into earshot and Chrysalis stood up, turning around to face the noise. Salvation walked through the trees and across the clearing, the balloon that he and Tranquility had used to get there still sitting in its place.

“I assume that you did it?” Chrysalis asked as Salvation came to a stop in front of her on the sand.

“If you lay a hoof on her when she’s in that cocoon, I am ridding this world of you personally.” Salvation said angrily.

Chrysalis chuckled. “Then you are almost ready to begin your work. Come, take a seat.” Chrysalis said, turning back to the lake and motioning her hoof to her side. Salvation stayed where he was, glaring at Chrysalis.

“I said take a seat.” Chrysalis said sternly, stomping her hoof on the ground in front of her. Salvation sighed and he hesitantly walked next to Chrysalis, he and the changeling queen sitting down and staring out at the lake.

“Just to think, all of this will be mine in a matter of time. And guess what? You’re going to make that all happen. With a few orders from me you’ll be on your way to causing the downfall of Equestria itself. It’ll be just perfect.” Chrysalis said, putting her hoof around the changeling next to her.

Salvation hit her hoof away. “Don’t touch me. I’m only following your orders to keep Tranquility the way she is. If it weren’t for her, I would be long gone by now.” Salvation said, keeping his gaze at the water.

“Ah that you would. Without her, none of this would be possible. She’s the spirit in all of this, providing your power so that you can do the unthinkable.”

“She’s not just some generator for magic! She’s a mare! Don’t you ever talk about her like she’s just an object!” Salvation yelled, standing up and raising his hoof to strike Chrysalis. The changeling queen smirked and turned her horn towards Salvation. A rounded bullet of magic released from the tip of her horn, colliding into Salvation and taking him with on its path. Salvation and the bullet soared backwards and entered the forest, Salvation snapping a number of trees in half before slamming to a stop against another as he lost momentum. The changeling fell to the ground hard, the wind knocked out of him as he gasped for air on the ground. Chrysalis appeared in front of him with a teleportation spell, quickly lifting her hoof up and stomping down on Salvation’s neck. Salvation lifted his hooves up to Chrysalis’s hoof, trying to lift it off of him.

“You will not disobey me! You will not harm me! And you will most certainly not fail your missions! If you do so, Tranquility is gone! Do you understand me!?” Chrysalis yelled, her voice echoing in the distance. Still struggling to get loose, Salvation managed to mutter a ‘yes’. Chrysalis lifted her hoof off of Salvation and he inhaled deeply, breathing heavily as he laid on the ground on his side.

Chrysalis stood straight, fixing her mane. “Your missions will begin tomorrow. Until then, get some rest.” Chrysalis said. Slowly regaining strength and breathing normally, Salvation stood back up on his hooves. He rubbed his hoof on his neck, coughing as he watched Chrysalis walk away from him.

“And forget about your name, Salvation. What you’re doing is anything but that. From now on, you’ll be known as Augury. Sleep well.” Chrysalis called from the edge of the forest. Salvation spat in her direction as she turned away, putting his hoof back on the ground and standing upright. The changeling sighed and walked through the forest, heading back to the clearing further into the woods away from the lake. Salvation slowly made his way into the clearing, walking across with his head down to Tranquility’s cocoon. He stood for a moment in silence, watching Tranquility hang upside down as she was under his control. Salvation sighed and laid down next to the cocoon.

“I’m sorry Tranquility... but for now, Salvation is gone. He’s been replaced... but I can assure you that this isn’t the end for him. We’ll be together again, Salvation and Tranquility. Good night...” Augury said quietly. He closed his eyes and slowly drifted off into sleep, resting for tomorrow. Chrysalis would have her plans for him ready bright and early. Next Chapter: [3] Bonds Of Magic Estimated time remaining: 8 Hours, 49 Minutes