The world came to her slowly at first, ushered in on the howling sound of rushing magic and panicked cries. Her body felt whole, undamaged, but dazed. She felt sluggish, like she were coated in cold molasses.

"Mmf... what...?" Her voice sounded hollow, and rang back to her on a faint echo. The afterimage of bright green light still filled her mind, making her head spin wildly. She tried to move her legs, to stumble around at least until she fell over. At least then she'd be able to orient herself properly. But she was unable, her legs encased in something hard. Panic set in, and she thrashed at her bonds. Her wrenching only gave her pain, and the faint sound of fabric tearing.

"What is happening?"

"That's what I'd like to know!" Celestia's voice rang out, sounding doubly more hollow than Twilight's own. But it was a voice, and pierced through the faint buzz of magic and panicked cries, which had incidentally died down a little.

"Celestia?"

"Twilight, you're okay! Thank the stars... Luna, she's a-"

"AAH!" Another crashing wave of magic shook the floor (if it could be called that) beneath Twilight's hooves. Celestia gave a clipped cry before her voice cut out once more, and the green light swelled to new intensities.

"Let us GO!" Another voice cut through the cacophony, making Twilight wonder if this wasn't all a dream.

"Dash?"

"It's Luna, Twilight! She's a changeling!"

"WHAT?! Lucidity returned to Twilight in an instant, snapping her back to reality like a light switch flicking on. All around her was a translucent, pale-green orb, distorting and twisting the vision of the ceremony room beyond. Her legs were encased in the same material as that orb, which would explain why she was unable to move. But around her head and upper torso was a bubble of air, further explaining the hollow quality of her voice. She could breathe just as easily, which might also explain why she could hear the others. Similar orbs dotted the area around her, a total of eight that she could immediately count. Celestia's face emerged from the bubble immediately opposite Twilight, and Cadance still stood off to her left. There were four out in the audience containing indistinguishable faces, and if she craned her neck as far around as possible, she could see two more behind her, and one out in the audience on her side of the chamber.

But more frightening than that development was outside of the windows, where green flashes erupted upwards from the city below. Black dots filled the sky, zipping by the windows to erupt in ever-more lights. And before her stood the face of a nightmare, the changeling queen, her horn glowing brightly with the same sickly aura that encompassed her friends and loved ones.

"Chrysalis!" Twilight snarled, throwing herself against the crystallized goo covering her legs.

"Oh my dear, sweet 'wife.'" The queen cooed, turning her face towards Twilight. Her lips split in a devious grin, and she lifted her hooves to the translucent surface of her prison. "You couldn't be further from the truth."

"What?! Who else could impersonate Luna so convincingly?! You felt the exact same as her! Down to the way her mane looks, and even her EYES!" Twilight snarled, rage and anger filling her body at the creature before her. How DARE the changelings interrupt this day?! She would show them all. She would-

A wave of exhaustion washed over her, draining all the strength from her muscles. She groaned, her head spinning as she collapsed against her bonds. Through one half-lidded eye, she saw the changeling queen's horn glow brighter, a thread of energy trailing from it to caress the surface of the translucent crystal that made her captive.

"Yes, who, I wonder, could impersonate a Princess so convincingly?" The queen chuckled again, running her hole-filled hooves over the surface of the bubble surrounding Twilight's head. Her piercing green eyes never left Twilight's, holding them captive every bit as much as the stuff around her legs. Twilight wanted to fight and rage against the changeling, she wanted to break free and incinerate them all. She wanted to make sure the entire insectoid race knew better than the mess with the Archmage.

"My drones are busy taking over your city, so allow me a monologue, would you? I know it's dreadfully cliché, but I just can't help myself." The queen continued to stare at Twilight, even as her hooves caressed the orb holding her prisoner. "You see, I am indeed a Queen. But I am not Chrysalis. She was... Hmm, 'replaced' some years ago." The new Queen sat back, throwing her teal mane over her black-carapace shoulder.

"You may call me Liliana, the new Queen of the Changelings."

"So Chrysalis is..." Twilight managed to whimper.

"Gone. Dead, for lack of a better term. Though you could say we as a race 'absorbed' her. It's a complex bit of magic, and I'm not about to spill all my secrets to you, but let's just say we inherited all of Chrysalis. Her memories, her plans, her schemes, her failures and retrospective improvements... And we've improved, Twilight. Grown smarter. Faster. More powerful. You see," She glanced first to her right, at the green orb holding Cadance, and then out into the audience, close to where Shining Armor had gone to stand. "These two made some trouble for us last time with their 'true' love. What's more, Chrysalis was wildly unprepared to invade Canterlot." The queen's eyes strayed back to Twilight, fixing on her own once more.

"She made many amateur mistakes. Sending a threat to the crown before her own invasion? Her biggest mistake. Keeping the horde outside of the city? Even worse. Not subduing the competition as soon as she was able?" Those lips split into another dark grin, her white teeth glistening. "Her biggest downfall."

"Luna..." Twilight groaned. "What did you do to Luna?"

"Oh, she's not in the caverns beneath Canterlot, if that's what you're thinking." Liliana muttered, her voice cooing not unlike a dove's. Twilight felt sickened. "I've kept her close this whole time... Intimately close." Around the queen's neck was Luna's pendant, and she lifted a hoof to caress the metallic surface covetously. "It took some powerful magic, but with her love for you, I managed... Luna is in her own little prison, deep inside this very pendant."

"You... bitch..."

"My, my, Twilight! Such a vulgar selection of words for such a pristine young bride." Liliana chuckled. She reached a hoof through the surface of the orb, snatching the veil off of Twilight's head. She pulled it out, the surface returning to its unblemished self once more. "To think, I was going to let you kiss me to seal the deal. But my oh my, that vow... Ooh." Liliana closed her eyes and shuddered visibly, like a mare at the heights of orgasmic bliss. "So much love and compassion in those words... Why, I've never felt so powerful in all my life."

"Not... Meant for you..." Twilight panted, struggling with the effort of feeling so exhausted. "That was my vow to Luna. Not you."

"Wasn't it, though? You said it yourself," Liliana vanished in a wreath of green-tinted flame. In her place was Luna, still wearing the dress, but a devious grin split her lips. "Nothing could impersonate her so convincingly. As far as you're concerned, Twilight, I am your Luna. And you are going to love me."

She hated to admit it, but Liliana was right. Even seeing Luna after such a revelation, and knowing the evil black creature that lurked behind that visage, Twilight couldn't help but feel a surge of love. That was Luna out there, just a hoof's length away, warm and alive and REAL.

'No! Not it's not! Snap out of it, Twilight!' Her admonishment fell on deaf ears, as energy surged into her muscles once more. She lifted her head to look into her lover's eyes, only to have another wave of exhaustion wash over her. The sensation of energy vanished as soon as it came, stolen on another wisp of green energy.

"Hmm, delicious." Luna licked her lips lasciviously, smiling into the orb at Twilight. "I think I've given you and yours enough time. I'm not like some storybook villain, Twilight. I know when to wait for you to tip your king over in check," Luna leaned in, her face breaking through the surface of the orb until it emerged in front of her. She could feel Luna's breath fill the space between them, her cyan eyes wide and bright and oh so beautiful.

"... and when to knock your king over to win the game."

The kiss happened before Twilight could stop it. Luna's lips were as soft as ever, and even her scent was the same. That deep, earthy, metallic aroma of magic and night time filled her nostrils, flooding her senses with Luna's glorious presence. She felt whole again, after being gone for so long in Ponyville. Six nights and seven days without Luna, with the nightmares hovering over her. All of the preparations and red-eyed mornings, the whimpered prayers she whispered to her pillow, the heartache and anticipation for this very day; no, this very moment.

Gone, as Liliana sucked the strength from her wholly, her horn glowing green instead of Luna's dark, royal purple. Twilight felt those hopes and dreams sapped out of her, draining away as the changeling queen stole them all, made them hers, and would turn on Equestria with them.

"Oh yes, that was divine." Luna's voice filled her ears, and even that soft resurgence of love was sapped away as well. "You really do love her. More so than Shining Armor did for dear, sweet Cadance. It's a shame, really." Liliana purred, disappearing in a flash. She returned to her normal form, the black insectoid creature with slitted eyes looking straight into Twilight's. In the absence of Luna, Twilight felt completely devoid of hope. She sagged down, though her head was wrenched upwards as the queen pushed a hoof into her prison, using her horn for leverage to push Twilight's head up.

"I don't feel like draining you dry, dear Twilight. But you're one of my greatest threats. Well, second to your brother, of course... Don't you worry, I'm about to go handle that as well. But once I'm done with him and dear Princess Cadance, I'm coming back for you. And I am going to sap every last morsel of love from your shriveled body until your heart gives out, and you shuffle off this mortal coil. Just like my predecessor, just like the dozens of ponies I've had to remove to get to Luna... And just like your love, when I'm done with everything." Liliana's eyes danced with glee, her voice shaking as she giggled.

"And then I'm going to take Equestria."

----------

Twilight wasn't sure how long it had been. Maybe one minute. Maybe fifteen. But Liliana had left her to sag into the bonds of her prison, her muscles aching and even her magic feeling weak and depleted. The queen had put them all in check by taking one key piece off of the board and putting herself in that place. Unlike targeting Cadance like Chrysalis had done, Liliana had moved for Luna. Using her love for Twilight, Liliana had subdued her greatest threat, and was now draining them of even their ability to fight back.

'Come on, Twilight, THINK! Shining Armor and Cadance have beaten her before, using true love... But she's got them apart, and probably feeding off of either of them right now. Not to mention, she said she's stronger now. Better... She'd have to be, to get past Shining Armor's sleuthing spells. And her horde is out there in the city right now, draining everypony of their love. How many years has she planned this? How much preparation did she get into? How did she know the right time and place to move?' Those questions and more poured into Twilight's brain, and brought with them no answers. Twilight focused hard on Luna, trying to summon more strength from her love of the princess, but it was drained from her the moment she tried.

'This isn't Chrysalis, Twilight.' She found herself snarling in her mind. 'It's a whole new changeling, an entirely different horde. Chrysalis made mistakes. She put me in the same prison as Cadance. She didn't subdue the six elements of harmony when she had the chance. She didn't even subdue Celestia until they had fought horn-to-horn. This one, she's put us all out-of-commission with this... this... Whatever this is.' Twilight focused on her prison, trying to dissect its composition. It felt like pushing a boulder uphill, but the faintest flicker of her magic came back, giving her a chance to survey the makeup of the stuff holding her legs.

It seemed to be a physical manifestation of love magic, congealed until it had crystallized. It acted as a sort of conductor, a sponge of sorts, to the magic that resided within everypony. Whenever Twilight felt love for Luna, this prison sapped that from her and fed it directly back to the caster. Liliana. What's more, there was a faint trace of her own magic in the prison.

"I see," Twilight panted. "You've tailored each of these to the pony that holds them."

"Oh, that's good, Twilight." Liliana's voice caused her to flinch, though she summoned just enough strength to look up at the queen. She was crackling with green energy now, and an icy touch of dread ran down her spine. Who had she just fed off of? Which one of her friends and loved ones had just been sapped so that there was nothing but a husk of them left? Her own magic flickered and gave out, the introspection she had paid to her prison fading away like smoke on a breeze. She was a prisoner again, weak and sapped of energy.

"You've figured it out. It took me three years to formulate these prisons. And I couldn't cast them without an immense well of energy. You see, everypony here loves something else, and that love gives them strength. That's what helped Cadance and Shining Armor break free of the spell Chrysalis had placed on them all those years ago. Cadance loved Shining Armor, and Shining Armor loved Cadance. Rather than trap that love, as I have, Chrysalis merely fed off of it. I have managed to do both with these prisons. Look around you." A faint surge of energy shot into Twilight, enough to lift her head more and look around.

"Cadance, no..." The prison to her left was dim, looking like a dark green shadow. She couldn't even see inside of it.

"Ah yes, she gave me more love than I've felt in a long time. Just as much as Luna had given me, actually..." Liliana chuckled. "She loves Shining Armor so. It was her downfall. Your friends behind you? They've got loves of their own. Weaker loves than the one you and Luna share, but powerful in their own right. Rainbow Dash, she cares so much for her friends. Loyal to a fault. Applejack, her family and her farm. Pinkie Pie the smiles she spread on other ponies' faces... Dear Fluttershy and her oh so vanilla love for Big Macintosh. Say what you will, I do love the classics. Aah, and Rarity..." Liliana chuckled and tapped the surface of Twilight's orb.

"One would think your alabaster friend cares most for dear Cross Stitch over there, yes?"

"You mean... she doesn't?" Twilight felt dread in her heart once more. Liliana wouldn't be able to hold her if she didn't sap the thing Rarity loved most.

"Oh no, dear Twilight. Miss Rarity doesn't love him - or any stallion - that much." Her hoof reached into the orb, pulling Twilight's eyes up. In horror, she watched as Liliana shifted into Rarity, her friend emerging before her in a flash.

"She loves you."

Twilight didn't even need to think about it for a moment before she knew it to be true. Of course she cared for Cross Stitch, that much was certain. But Rarity had followed Twilight to the edge of oblivion and back. They had been through more together than even the other elements of harmony. Twilight had given Rarity her life, and even helped her find the love she shared with Cross Stitch. Maybe Rarity didn't have romantic or erotic feelings for Twilight, but there were deeper and stronger bonds of love than those. She knew, she shared those bonds with Luna. The feeling she got knowing her partner was happy, knowing they were fulfilled. The sensation of seeing a smile on their lips, and a laugh in their very eyes, lighting up their whole existence like daybreak on a dark and cold world.

Rarity might not have been married to Twilight, but she was most certainly in love with her.

And that love was what would kill her.

Twilight didn't need to be exhausted to slump over this time. The impostor Rarity's hoof fell away, and in its wake, Twilight had never felt more desolate. The tears came then, fast and free, pooling in the bottom of her own prison of love.

----------

Her thoughts ran wild. At a million miles an hour, they flitted through her mind, questions and answers blending into one never-ending drone of misery and hopelessness. She despaired as Liliana moved around the room, systematically draining the translucent spheres until they were as dark and cold as Cadance's. Twilight couldn't help but blame herself for this mistake. If only she had noticed Luna was actually a changeling, or begged to see her before the ceremony as the nagging doubts in her mind had told her to. If only she had done something to stop this. In the end, it was a fruitless bout of blame, but the guilt still remained. She was trapped, and she was probably going to die.

'Is this my destiny? Is this what the prophecy in that book said about me? "Sucked dry of all love by the heartless Queen of Changelings?" What a way to die...' The tears continued to trickle from her eyes, most certainly ruining her makeup and staining the neck of her dress where it melted into her prison. That despair continued to mount on her as she realized Liliana was going to conquer not just Canterlot, but all of Equestria. And who could oppose her? The gryphons would probably turn a blind eye, as long as the changelings didn't come into their territory. The Crystal Kingdom would be defenseless without Cadance and Shining Armor. Saddle Arabia might be the next target, but they were so far away that Liliana would be hard-pressed to go to them. And to the South, the dragons likely would leave them be. There was little love to be had there anyways. No, Liliana would be content lording her powerful magic over Equestria, feeding off of its imprisoned citizens for... who knew how long?

Equestria was doomed, and it was at her wedding.

Equestria.

Celestia.

'What does Celestia love the most that Liliana could use to imprison her?!'

The thought lanced into Twilight's mind, jolting her awake. She looked across at Celestia's orb, the surface darkening slowly. She could see the princess' face inside, tears staining her muzzle as she watched Liliana. The two of them made eye contact after a moment, and the tears doubled. Liliana was across the room, so she dared speak to Twilight.

"I'm so sorry, Twilight... I should have known something was wrong."

"Was Luna acting strangely the past few days?"

"Yes," Celestia nodded solemnly. "But I figured it was because of her anxiousness to be wed to you. I had no idea it was because... because of this."

"Don't blame yourself, Celestia." Twilight sobbed, feeling empathetic towards the crying princess. "She's bested all of us. She's smarter than Chrysalis was, and with Luna's love, even more powerful."

"She's a worthy foe, indeed." Celestia sobbed, her head sagging as a thin thread of green energy slid off of her prison to shoot across the room to Liliana. "But you know what I always say..."

"What?" Twilight choked, blinking the last wave of tears from her eyes. Celestia looked up at her, a sad smile on her face.

"Woe to the pony who thinks they can best the Archmage."

"HEY!" Liliana's insect voice thundered through the room, shocking Twilight enough that her exhausted body couldn't handle it. She slumped down once more, though she could hear the angry hoof-beats of the changeling queen drawing closer. "What did you say to her?! What did you tell Twilight?!"

"None of your business, fiend." Celestia gasped. Twilight could tell she was having difficulty speaking. "Leave her be."

"Oh, that was not very nice." Liliana growled. "I thought as much from you. One last-ditch effort to subdue me... But I know of your power, I learned it from Chrysalis before I devoured her and ascended to the top. And I know that which you love the most, Celestia. I think it's time I removed your threat. Watch me, Twilight." Liliana glanced at her, and another shock of energy filled her, just enough to raise her head. "Watch me as I drain your mentor of that which she cherishes most."

"And what would that be..." Twilight growled, putting a token bit of strain against her bonds.

"Why, the one thing a princess loves the most." Liliana's horn blazed to life, and Twilight watched in horror as the surface of Celestia's prison darkened. The last thing she saw was the princess' face, her eyes ablaze with defiance, before the last bit of her love was taken from her.

"And now, Twilight." Liliana turned on her. The changeling queen hummed with power, the love of all of the other ponies having filled her with so much energy. She could feel it in the air, even if the faintest spark of her own magic had been dwindled so much that she could hardly lift a feather with her telekinesis, she could still tell that Liliana commanded a great amount of power. Equal to all of the princesses of Equestria combined, and with plenty to spare. The green energy lanced from her hooves into the floor, crackled from her horn, and danced in her eyes.

"Say goodbye to the one you love the most."

Twilight felt stripped. The last morsel of energy left her body, sucked out through her horn. It felt like a high-powered vacuum was pulling at her face, sucking the very fur off of her body. Instead, it took her strength, her will, her very life essence.

"The one thing a princess loves the most."

Twilight's own thoughts came to her in her dying moments.

'I AM the Archmage. If not in name, then in spirit. Celestia cannot take that from me or relieve my solemn duty. I might not be serving the crown, but I am still the Archmage, and should Equestria or the crowns need me, I will answer the call.'

Twilight's head rose, with a frown of determination on her lips.

'Even if it's in the middle of my wedding to Luna.'

"What-"

KRA-BOOOOOOM!

A blinding flash of light. A scream. The mortal sound of magic erupting into existence, powerful and absolute and deadly. Twilight surged to her hooves, standing tall and bright amidst a wave of light the likes of which not even Liliana could summon in her state.

"What are you- WHAT IS THIS?!" Liliana shrieked, stumbling backwards with wide, fearful eyes. "I had you! You were sapped of everything you had! Your love for Luna, for your friends, for Celestia and Rarity and all of your colleagues! You had nothing! I HAD EVERYTHING!"

"You've overlooked one major point." Twilight's voice shook into existence, reverberating loud enough to send dust sifting from the ceiling. She strode forward, her dress igniting from the intense heat of the day, hissing and melting away into nothingness as the night wreathed itself around her. The air grew dry as droplets of moisture condensed. A gusting wind blew in the windows, shattering glass and sending a wave of shards cascading down around them. Fire ignited into existence, swirling around her as roots took hold in the cracks in the tile. Pure, purple arcane energy crackled from her horn, and Twilight's eyes lit with a blaze of glorious energy and life.

"I am the Archmage of Canterlot. And nothing," She narrowed her gaze at Liliana.

"Not even my love of Luna,"

The crackling intensified to all-new levels. Liliana's eyes went wide with shock and mortal fear. Twilight stood over her, commanding a maelstrom of power.

The elements.

Nature.

The night.

The day.

Hatred.

Anger.

Friendship.

Love.

"IS GREATER THAN MY LOVE FOR EQUESTRIA!"

----------

Twilight stood in the middle of the fallout of her last spell, panting and feeling shaky. This exhaustion was different from the one she had just been subject to at the queen's machinations. It was one of having spent too much magical energy, of having pushed herself to her limits and maybe even a little beyond. Her horn ached so much that it throbbed into her head, and a vicious migraine began to thud at her temples.

Liliana's prisons were gone. Inside, her friends were unconscious. Each of them had been sapped to their last, devoid of any love magic until it had begun to tax their bodies. None of them would walk away from this without repercussions. But Twilight had saved them, and indeed all of Equestria, in the past few minutes.

But one prison remained, glowing green and crackling energy directly in front of Twilight. She squared up with it, looking through the translucent surface at the visage of Liliana inside. She snarled at Twilight, lunging and twisting about as best she could. Twilight sighed as she forced a spark of magic into her horn, focusing it on the prison before her.

"WHAT?!" A thin wisp of energy flowed off of the prison and into Twilight. It surged into her muscles, soothed the ache in her horn, and fed her the energy she had just expended. "NO!" Liliana raged, snarling at her. "THAT IS MY SPELL! MINE!"

"And now it's mine." Twilight groaned, popping the joints in her back and legs. "Man, that took a lot out of me to cast... And I had to do it without the love of anypony else surging into me." She leveled her gaze at Liliana through the surface of the prison, glowering angrily at her. "You changelings have some incredible magic. Hurtful as it is."

"How could you possibly have done this?" Liliana growled, having stilled her thrashing. Twilight had made sure to enforce the changeling queen's spell with her own flair, adding arcs of earth and fire to the casting so that it was more structurally sound.

"It was hard, let me tell you... And I don't feel so good feeding off of this love, either." Twilight blanched as she took another green wisp of energy from the prison. Liliana flinched inside, her own energy leeched off of her. "But I need it to wake my friends up." Twilight turned from the prison to the scattered forms of the ponies Liliana had imprisoned. She imparted some of the energy from the spell into them, smiling as they all moaned and came awake. They looked around, confused and scared, at the devastation around them. Twilight's realization had shattered the windows, and the nature magic she'd summoned had accelerated the growth of the plants around the castle, breaking through minute cracks and into the ceremony room.

Like waking from a collective dream, everypony rose to their hooves. They made their way towards her, some with questioning frowns, others with relief, and most of them with disbelief and shock on their faces. Celestia was the first to speak, and she was the only one with a warm smile on her lips.

"I told you. 'Woe to the pony who thinks they can best the Archmage.' How did you do it, Twilight?"

"It's funny," Twilight looked at the defeated queen. "She told me the solution herself."

"How so?"

"Well, when she fed off of you just before turning to me." Twilight chuckled. "She said 'the one thing a princess loves the most.' And it made me wonder, what is it that you, Celestia, could love more than anything?" She opened her hooves, indicating the room around them, and indeed everypony gathered.

"It's Equestria. You've always put your constituency first, even before your own sister. You banished Luna to the moon to save the land you love most. And when I realized that was what was poisoning you," Twilight inhaled deeply, dropping her hooves and closing her eyes.

"... It became my strength. I love Equestria just as much as you, Celestia. Even more than I love Luna, or my friends, or anypony and anything. And I think anypony here can find that strength as well." She smiled at the gathered faces all around her. Cadance, Shining Armor, Celestia, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, Cross Stitch, Fluttershy, Rarity, Bastion, Warden, Night Dancer, Green Gable, Archer, and all of the other ponies who had been trapped by Liliana. "As long as that love isn't what's being used against us, then we can use that love to triumph over anything."

"Oh good." Liliana's low voice cut her off, and everypony's eyes turned to her. "Now I know what to trap you all for next time."

"Hah." Twilight pulled another thick wisp of energy off of the prison, watching as Liliana groaned and sagged in her binds. "I don't think there's going to be a next time, Liliana." Twilight reached through the translucent surface of the orb, and just as she had thought, it yielded to her. She pulled the pendant off of the changeling's head, smiling faintly at the sight of Luna's necklace. "We're going to put an end to the changeling threat once and for all. With you in this prison, we have the changeling horde under our control. Or more specifically, my control."

"So, wait a moment..." Bastion interjected, his brow furrowed. "You mean you control this prison of hers?"

"In a fashion, yes." Twilight nodded, pulling Luna's necklace over her head. The pendant snapped against her own necklace, the reassuring sound making her sigh happily. "She designed this prison to feed off of the most intense love she knew in any of us. For instance, she keyed Shining Armor's prison to feed off of his love for Cadance. Celestia's love for Equestria. My love for Luna. You get the point." She gleaned past Rarity's most intense love with a faint blush.

"So... What are you using her love for?" Celestia sobered them all with a simple question. Twilight sighed once more, looking into Liliana's eyes sadly.

"Her love for her changelings."

"What?"

"Really?"

"That doesn't seem right..."

"She's a queen." Twilight silenced them all with a shrug. "Whatever she does, she's done it out of love for her constituents. Just like Celestia's most powerful love was for Equestria, hers is for her changelings."

"Please," Liliana sobbed, trying hard to lift her head inside the prison. "Please, don't hurt them."

"See?" Twilight lifted a hoof to her, feeling rather sad for the sight. To think, just a few minutes ago, this creature had been intent on the destruction of Equestria as she knew it, and now was begging Twilight. "She knows her priorities, and I know her. If she has a greater love than that, she could break free of this prison, just as I broke free of hers with my love for Equestria. Isn't that right, Liliana?"

"It is." The queen choked, still crying in her prison. "I... I thought I had you, using your love for Luna. This whole nation has been abuzz for months about the wedding. Everywhere I've been had talked about it. It's all that seemed to possess your minds... I was wrong. I was foolish! You don't love Luna, you love the very ground you walk upon; the air you breathe, and the ponies who share this land with you." Liliana looked to Twilight again, tears streaming from her eyes.

"Please, I beg of you, don't hurt my changelings! Please!"

Twilight looked to Celestia, the two of them sharing an intense look for a long, long while. After almost a full minute, Celestia heaved a sigh.

"We will do no harm to your changelings, Liliana. But we must reach an accord. I can't allow them to terrorize my land any longer." As she spoke, another flash of green light erupted outside, followed by a panicked scream. They all turned towards the source, and Twilight felt her heart beat inside of her chest harder. There were ponies out there that were still in trouble! She glared at Liliana, her ears laid back against her head.

"Stop them. Stop them right now."

"I... I can't!" Liliana panicked, writhing against the prison again. "I can't reach out to them! My magic is blocked by this prison!"

"Damnit!" Twilight whirled to Celestia, her eyes bright with anger and frustration. "We have to let her out of the prison!"

"Not yet." Celestia glowered. "I want your promise, Liliana. No more open hostilities against Equestria or her citizens."

"Done!"

"No more feeding off of our love for one another."

"Okay!"

"No more killing, and I fully expect you to answer for those crimes as well!"

"We- we didn't kill anypony! We've still got them, they're just in their own spells like this one. We keep them to feed off of!" Liliana was thrashing now, and Twilight could tell she was hurting herself in a fever pitch.

"You will release them all." Celestia stepped forward, looking intently into the prison.

"Of course! Princess, I promise you, release me now and I will do as you please! JUST LET ME GO TO MY CHANGELINGS!"

"... Very well. Twilight, release her."

"As you wish." Twilight focused on the spell, dissipating the energies that had restrained the queen. Liliana blinked as the energy dissipated around her, gently setting her back on her hooves. Twilight still stood at guard, ready to blast the queen if she tried anything. But the changeling took one look at her, bristling with energy, and Celestia as well, before closing her eyes. A ripple of magic washed over them, echoing out from the palace and into Canterlot.

Night Dancer broke away from the group, dashing over to one of the shattered windows. Her hooves sent shards of glass skittering across the floor, but she reached the aperture unharmed, throwing her hooves up onto the sill to look outside.

"They're... They're leaving! The changelings, they're leaving!"

"I see." Celestia relaxed, and even Twilight felt a wave of relief wash over her. All eyes turned to the queen, and Liliana cowered beneath their piercing gazes. "Now." Celestia stepped forward, towering over the cowed queen. "We must reach an accord. I do not wish to kill you or your changelings, but so help me Liliana, if I don't feel you're being sincere in any promises you make, or have made, I will end you and your pathetic race right here and now." The promise was not a hollow one. Twilight knew Celestia to be immensely powerful, particularly if she wasn't caught off-guard, as she had been by the changelings before. Indeed, the changelings might have been the one thing Celestia could be bested by. Not even Regal's spell, which was designed to kill a princess, could harm Celestia. With a threat directly in front of her, Celestia was as dangerous as she could ever be. Twilight felt a faint hum from Bastion as he began preparing a barrier to protect the group, should Celestia act on her promise.

All for naught, it would seem. Liliana looked up into Celestia's eyes, her own still brimming with tears.

"Please, don't. That won't be necessary, I promise! I'll do whatever you say. What... Whatever she says." Liliana's eyes flitted to Twilight for a brief second. Celestia noticed that, and smiled faintly.

"Good. I have just a few questions for you, then. What brands of love can your changelings feed off of?"

"What?" Liliana choked, blinking up at Celestia. "What do you mean?"

"I mean friendship, lust, and camaraderie. There are many types of love in this world. Some of them are more strong than others, but what kinds can you and yours exist off of?"

"Uum..." Liliana blinked, obviously taken aback by the question. "I don't... I don't know."

"Then we will consider it a continuing study. For now, can you survive without feeding on the love you have been up until now?"

"For a while," Liliana admitted. "We were running short on ponies to feed off of before now. Chrysalis had it worse than I; which may have been part of the reason she attacked when she did. But I suppose we can live for another few months on what we have...?" Liliana sounded sure enough, at least for Celestia, who nodded firmly.

"Alright, then. Here are my conditions for your survival. First: Release Luna from her prison."

"I can do that." Liliana nodded to Twilight. Loathe as she was to remove the pendant, Twilight unclasped it and pulled the two apart, passing Luna's necklace over to the changeling queen. Liliana focused on the pendant, her horn glowing green. As she watched, the aura wrapped around the metal teardrop with Twilight's cutie mark emblazoned on it, growing brighter and brighter until a second aura detached from it, roughly the same size and shape as the pendant. Liliana turned to an open portion of the floor and set the aura down. It shimmered and crackled a little, but began to grow in size. The coloration shifted as it grew, going from green to red, darkening into a deep mauve, and then to purple and finally blue. Twilight watched with a sigh of relief as Luna emerged from the spell, curled up peacefully on the floor, her nose tucked under her wing as if she were asleep. Indeed, her chest rose and fell peacefully.

"She will wake in a few minutes," Liliana groaned, sagging down once her magic died away. Twilight snatched the pendant from her, going to stand over Luna protectively. Celestia squared up with Liliana once more, her expression still serious.

"My second condition is for you to release and stop feeding off of all the ponies you are currently using."

"That will take time." Liliana muttered, glancing away from Celestia. "There are quite a few, and they are all over. Many of them in Trottingham, since we needed the libraries there. Here in Canterlot, there are only four. Guards, mostly, who grew suspicious of me. And a few elsewhere. Ponyville, Stalliongrad, one in Horseshoe Bay..."

"We will do what we can to accomdoate your travel to these places so you may release those ponies, but this command is absolute. You will release them."

"O-of course!" Liliana raised her hooves defensively. "I'll release them all. I-is there anything else?"

"Thirdly, you will stop open aggressions against Equestria. Twice in the past ten years, you and your changelings have disrupted the balance of power and very nearly overthrown a peaceful way of life for we ponies. I will not stand for any further aggression." Celestia stomped a hoof, snorting at Liliana angrily. "This ends NOW, Liliana!"

"Of course! Of course!" Liliana cowered into a ball, throwing her hooves over her head. "B-but, we'd starve if we d-don't feed! You cannot let us starve!"

"I know," Celestia sighed, calming herself with a breath. She looked down at Liliana with a serious expression. "Which is why my fourth promise isn't one I request from you, but rather one I give to you. If you release all of the other ponies and promise to never attack us again, I will personally see to it that your kind is given another form of sustenance. There MUST be some way that you can live without imprisoning and harming us so! Should such a way exist, then I promise you." Celestia offered a hoof to Liliana, a kind smile on her lips. "I will find it and share it with you. Even if it means extending a hoof of friendship to your kind."

----------

"So, I guess the wedding is postponed?" Pinkie Pie asked, the train rattling back towards Ponyville. They were all out of their dresses, though Rarity still mourned the loss of her masterpiece after Twilight had accidentally burned it away.

"I don't think we're going to have a big wedding again." Twilight chuckled, looking out of the window at the dwindling city of Canterlot. "But I'm sure Luna and I will want to exchange our vows for real. I promise you all, when that day comes, I'll invite you."

"A-and me?"

"Yes, Liliana, and you as well." Twilight smiled at the changeling queen, who was disguised meekly as a shy earth pony with an ash-grey coat. Her cutie mark was a crossed hammer and wrench.

"Ah still don't see why she had to come with." Applejack growled, glaring daggers at the disguised queen.

"She said there were ponies in Ponyville that she had imprisoned. I'm escorting her so she can release them, per her agreement with Celestia." Twilight propped an elbow on the windowsill, setting her chin in her hoof as she watched Canterlot disappear around a bend in the tracks. "Then maybe when we get back, Celestia would have found a way to keep the changelings alive."

"Oh, uuh..." Liliana muttered, a blush rising to her ashy cheeks. "We think she may have, uuh... Found a way already."

"Really?" Twilight mused, arching an eyebrow at her. "She didn't tell me. Then again, we've only spoken through letters since she took Luna beneath the palace." Indeed, her wife-to-be hadn't awoken from her slumber as Liliana had said she would. Celestia said it was due to her own magic having been drained, and there was thankfully a hearty deposit of it nearby in the caverns beneath Canterlot. She had taken Luna down to the shield battery to help recharge the princess, at least enough that she could wake up and replenish her own energy. Twilight had agreed to escort Liliana while Bastion took over as Regent, helping run the minutiae of Canterlot in their absence, with Cadance and Shining Armor providing a healthy check to his balance.

"W-well, it's not exactly conventional, and-"

"It's not bucking, is it?" Rainbow Dash deadpanned.

"N-no! It isn't!" Liliana sputtered. "I swear, it's... Well, you'll think me silly..."

"You can tell us." Twilight coaxed, smiling at her. Liliana returned the smile before looking down at her hooves shyly.

"It's... Well... Drinking."

"Drinking?"

"Drinking. Like, alcohol." Liliana shrugged. "We were talking, and she offered me a drink, and jokingly I said cider... Well, she managed to get me some and... Here we are."

"Huh." Applejack grunted, peering at Liliana searchingly. "So y'all mean to tell me you changelings cin survive jes' by... drinkin' cider?"

"Well, drinking communally. I don't know what it is, but when she and I toasted, I just... Felt it. Like when I feed off of a pony-" She cast a furtive glance around, but Twilight nodded encouragingly. "I just felt it, okay? We're going to try this. And I won't... Well, I won't try to take over Equestria anymore."

"Great." Applejack groaned, leaning back in her seat. "As if ah thought demand fer cider weren't enough, now we've got a whole race of bugs who're gonna need it ta live."

There was a moment of silence before they all burst into laughter.