A song played from seemingly nowhere as Jekyll and Luna walked through a metal corridor, their mouths moving as though they were arguing about something.

Without warning, the scene shifted to show the two of them looking grim as they stood over a pale body. Jekyll appeared to be pointing out how the figure died and gesturing to the lack of blood on the ground, though no words could be heard as he spoke. Only the song.

When it changed again, Luna stood in the background with wide eyes as Jekyll lifted a zebra and slashed the equine’s intestines out. Luna’s face held naught but fear, though Jekyll’s was filled with anger and disappointment. The zebra’s mouth opened in a scream, but no sound could be heard over the music.

Again their surroundings changed, and when it solidified Jekyll and Luna stood back to back with their weapons drawn as blurry figures whirled around them. Both of them stood with scowles of determination as they fought back against the indistinct figures, their weapons of choice flashing in the dim light of the sunset.

The world seemed to turn as the battle was replaced with a peaceful field with pony shaped figures running around. Only Jekyll and Luna appeared to be in focus as they sat against a tree with looks of contentment. A dark pony, slightly larger than the others, ran up to them, though it bounded off happily when Luna nodded in response to whatever it had said.

Darker this time. It was raining. Luna stood alone as Abaddon fell behind her, his once imposing form lit aflame and brought low. Her closed eyes added to the water covering her face, but her jaw was set. In the distance, a dark figure smiled behind glowing white eyes. The world spun and dematerialized just as Luna opened her eyes to reveal their slitted appearance.

Daytime now, Jekyll stood with a look of rage as he pointed a greatsword in Luna’s direction. Luna in turn held her scythe ready, her eyes still slitted. The world seemed to turn as the view moved around them, revealing their location at the base of Canterlot Falls. The scene ended as they lunged at each other…

...to be replaced with the two of them lying in bed with confused looks on their faces as the song ended.

“What the intro sequence fuck was that?” I demanded as my sight jumped back to my eyes. I could see the spot where my vision had just been coming from, but there was nothing there.

“I need a mirror, I need to see my eyes,” Luna cried as she ran out of the room, though she didn’t make it very far if the sounds of retching were any indication.

“No seriously, what the fuck just happened?” I repeated. At this point, I expected the universe itself to give me an answer.

“A warning,” a voice replied. I didn’t recognize the voice, but it wasn’t hard to figure out who it belonged to.

“Fuck off Discord. If you’ve got something to say then just say it,” I snapped.

“Alright then, I’m starting to get angry at the two of you for excluding me. The whole reason I’m here is because you’re a constant source of entertainment, but you intentionally leave me out of your adventures. You can consider that a warning, a taste of what may come if you continue to ignore me,” Discord threatened.

“It’s an open invitation, just tag along if you want to. Or did you want an invitation written in virgin blood and sealed with wax made from Luna’s bones?” I spat, not taking the threat well.

“A knock on my door as you passed would do, just something to show that you haven’t forgotten about me,” Discord responded.

“I’ll specifically invite you during the next minor crisis, but no shenanigans,” I allowed.

“I guess it’ll have to do...for now,” Discord replied warningly as he disappeared into a cloud of smoke.

“Jayyy,” Luna groaned from just outside the door, “I can’t move. Bring me a mirror.”

“Yeah,” I agreed distantly, my mind on the flashes Discord had shown us and whether or not they were of our future. I had decided they weren’t by the time I reached Luna, my destiny was my own. That figure with the glowing eyes though, I’d seen it before.

“Uuuugh,” Luna complained, holding her forehooves out like a child wanting to be picked up.

“I didn’t think those images were that disturbing,” I commented as I obliged and carried Luna back to bed.

“But-But I fell...AGAIN. How can I reconcile that? Knowing what I’ll become...I’d rather die,” Luna rambled.

“I wouldn’t take that nonsense too seriously, plenty of things in it weren’t even possible,” I reassured.

“Like what?” Luna asked quietly, her voice tinged with a glimmer of hope.

“Abaddon burning down for one,” I replied easily.

“What?” Abaddon asked, forgetting to use his inside voice and rumbling his question over the plains.

“Do you have any idea how much firepower that would take? I doubt this world has enough incendiaries to accomplish that,” I continued, heedless of Abaddon’s concern.

“I suppose that makes sense, and if one thing is wrong then none of it is certain,” Luna agreed hesitantly, some color already returning to her face.

“Come on, your eyes are perfectly fine and you need some food. How do hayburgers sound?” I offered as I cleaned the spittle from Luna’s chin with my thumb. Luna smiled at the prospect of good food and nodded her agreement.

“That sounds good, maybe we can catch up with Twilight while we’re there. She’s about due for another magic lesson,” Luna replied.

We made small talk as we traveled down to Ponyville and entered the fast food restaurant, though we avoided talking about anything significant until we were seated and reasonably sure no one was listening.

“What’s wrong?” Luna asked suddenly, abandoning our previous discussion about the storm schedule and how best to position Abaddon so the grass under him wouldn’t die, “You’ve seemed stressed ever since you talked to Tia yesterday, did she say something?”

“Yes and no, but I’m not sure I should talk about it,” I replied, being intentionally vague.

“Did she confess her love for you?” Luna teased, cracking a smile.

“Har har, no she...She said something wrong, something she should know but didn’t,” I responded quietly.

“What did she say?” Luna pressed, her voice dropping to match mine.

I looked around before placing a hand on the side of Luna’s head to establish a link, “She got the rules for demon resurrection wrong. She said they had to be whole to come back, as in entirely whole.”

“That doesn’t make any sense, Cat had her throat ripped out by the spiders and she came back right away,” Luna replied silently, her brow furrowing.

“The actual rule is that their skeleton has to be in one place for it to burn away and allow the demon to return. Unless the bones are destroyed, in which case the demon is gone forever,” I corrected, prompting Luna to throw a glance at the sword attached to my hip.

“It opens portals and turns white when you feed it power, bone white,” Luna commented, forgetting to use the link and speaking out loud.

“Use the link,” I reminded gently, “Yes, my sword is made from one of Belial’s fingers. The rest are scattered and hidden so well that not even I know where any of them are, not that I’m looking for them beyond ensuring they don’t pop up in a museum.”

“Why are you telling me this now?” Luna asked.

“Because Dopple knows this too and he might try to exploit your sister’s ignorance in order to take Tartarus from me. While this isn’t likely, it would have disastrous repercussions and can’t be ignored,” I explained. Luna paused as she contemplated the situation, eventually reaching the same conclusions.

“This can’t be allowed to happen, who knows the locations?” Luna asked out loud.

“No one alive,” I replied.

“Explain,” Luna prompted, “Out loud, you sound fuzzy through the link and I need to know my ponies will continue living in peace.”

“This is the part I’m not sure I should say, it seems disrespectful,” I stated quietly, pausing as I weighed my options. After a few seconds, I decided that Luna could better aid in the prevention of that possible outcome if she was informed, “It was an operation the like of which has never been seen before or since, a dozen knightly orders were involved and the compartmentalization of information was extreme. No one person ever knew where the bone was going or where it ended up, and every single person involved committed suicide afterwards to keep what little information they had secret. And I mean everyone, even the janitors that buried the burned letters between other members. I’m the only exception; in addition to serving as a mark of my rank, giving me Cataclysm was meant to serve as a last bulwark in case the other bones were somehow found and collected. I’d killed Belial, I should be able to handle whatever fool would try to bring him back. That or become strong enough to break the damn thing and eat it so the whole endeavor can never be rendered pointless.”

“Wow, so that’s why you won’t bring it to Tartarus,” Luna breathed, her expression unreadable as she shook off my hand and tended to her thoughts privately.

“Tens of thousands killed themselves so it would be impossible to track down them all, I won’t fail them,” I added. Luna had seen how I got when I was drunk, she knew how much I revered the dead.

“The number was intentional I take it? To prevent necromancers from getting the whole puzzle?” Luna guessed.

“No, burning themselves to ash with specially made charms did that. The number was to keep the process spread out and vague enough that none of them could be coerced or manipulated,” I corrected.

“And how do you know all of this?” Luna asked, sounding more curious than accusing.

“It was voluntary, everyone knew what it entailed before they signed up. The goal and the expectations were public knowledge in the kingdom,” I answered.

“I knew he was evil, but so many lives lost just to keep him from coming back,” Luna breathed, “But you can’t destroy his remains?”

“Too powerful, I’ve tried everything but I can’t even scratch them,” I confirmed.

“I’ll keep a lookout for anything that might be able to. Moon and stars, I’m going to need a drink after this,” Luna sighed, looking down and shaking her head.

“Agreed, they deserve more toasts than I could ever give,” I replied, “Want to hit Vinyl’s after we eat? It’ll be more tame during the day.”

“Are you even allowed in there? I wouldn’t want you in my establishment after the stunt you pulled,” Luna asked pointedly, tossing me a light glare.

“You’re kidding right? I own the building, the land it’s sitting on, and the leviathan replacing both of those, they couldn’t keep me out if they wanted to. Besides, I’m pretty sure Vinyl’s too scared of me to say no,” I scoffed.

“Jay, no. That’s the way a villain talks, don’t be a villain,” Luna admonished, “We will ask them politely and respect their wishes, we have drinks at home if they don’t want us frightening their other customers.”

“Spoilsport,” I grumbled, relenting to Luna’s assertion.

“Thirty-five!” a mare yelled, signaling that our lunch was ready.

“Who ordered this mess?” Five complained.

“Nobody, One wants to make an impression and solidify his place as captain,” Three replied sourly.

“Stow the chatter, the dignitaries should be arriving any minute. You hear anything out there Two?” I asked, silencing the others.

“Negative, but we all know how seaponies are about their secrecy,” Two rumbled back, the vibrations of his speech carried the extra distance by the higher pressure near the seabed.

“We’re wasting our time here, they’re not coming,” Four declared as his head poked through the surface far enough for him to look towards the horizons, “Our only company is the Palimodes.”

I released a heavy flow of water in our version of a sigh and rose to the surface to take Four’s place and speak to the captain of the fishing boat that had been following us all week.

“Now there’s a big catch,” one of the ponies aboard the vessel laughed as Four sunk below the gentle waves to wait for the seapony diplomats and I pushed more of my body out of the water and turned one of my large eyes towards the vessel, “Didn’ hook ye, did we?”

“I wouldn’t notice if you did,” I replied, causing many of the crew to jump in fright. They were ill accustomed to being spoken to by creatures of the sea. I ignored them and focused my attention to the one who had spoken, deciding that he must be in charge, “Why are you following us?”

“Hehehe, I seen ye haulin’ wrecks ta shore. Seen it wit me own eye, so I says ta me crew I says ‘Colts, we’re gonna follow them fish.’ See ‘cause I knew, I knew ye were the savin’ type and we needed that in these here troubled times,” the stallion explained.

“Why are you talking like that? You are sailing a fishing boat, not a pirate ship,” I pointed out, finding the manner of speech distracting.

“Me Palimodes is a versi-versa...changeable vessel, she be whatever we need her ta be. These days here, being a ship built fer fightin’ will only get her a trip ta Pony Joe’s locker,” the captain corrected, being surprisingly candid about his willingness to avoid protecting Equestria and hint at his ship’s time as either a privateer or pirate ship. I also found it amusing that the stallion accidentally referred to the bottom of the sea as a doughnut and coffee shop, but didn’t put voice to my humor.

“I see,” I rumbled as I debated passing along what I had learned or simply hauling the entire boat back to port and exposing them as cowards, “And what is your name then?”

“Captain Kal Quin, at yer service ma’am,” the captain replied easily, “And yers?”

“I am Kraken One-One, captain of the krakens. I am also neither a biological female nor interested in being one, though you may address me however you like; I simply wanted to prevent any confusion,” I corrected, maintaining my friendliness while I internally debated. I was also curious whether or not this pony was intoxicated, I didn’t consider myself to be feminine by even the slightest margin.

“Having fun up there One?” Three teased, the waves carrying his amusement. Even the possibly drunk boat captain noticed the change in the current Three’s chuckle had caused.

“I’m not keepin’ ye, am I? Don’t wanna get ye in hot water,” Kal asked. I’d made my decision, I’d let him continue on his chosen heading until the tides turned and left him dead in the water. And I’d be there when it did.

“No, I’m the highest authority on these seas at the moment. Only my father can judge me and he trusts me to act as I deem appropriate,” I replied curtly, “However you are correct, I do have other matters to attend to. I trust we may continue our conversation another time?”

“O’course, never has Captain Quin turned down a nice chat with a lady,” the captain allowed with a polite bow. This pony fascinated me, he was steady as a rock despite his drunkenness and the rocking of his vessel yet still insisted on describing me as female.

“I look forward to it Captain,” I bid as I stopped pushing myself out of the water and sunk beneath the waves, though I heard his call of farewell through the hull of his ship and tapped the planks as I returned to my previous position.

“Did you make a new friend?” Four asked as I came to rest beside him. There was no insinuation in his voice, just idle curiosity.

“I did, and he is of a less than savory sort,” I replied, rumbling louder so the others would hear and understand.

“Oh, I hadn’t thought of that angle. Good thinking One, a lead into the rumor mill is one swell of an accomplishment,” Three allowed, his usual joking tone drowned by his surprise, “I didn’t think we could get that kind of advantage.”

“He also seems to think me a female,” I confessed. There was no room for secrets among my squad.

There was a long pause before Six rumbled an awkward, “Well… you are rather... slender.”

There it was, I knew the laughter and mocking from the rest of the squad had been coming. It was almost tradition for us to tease each other, as all squads before us had done.

“Hey-Hey One, if we go a couple klicks further east we’d be able to marry the two of you. The drunken captain and his sea monster bride, a match made in Tartarus!”

I smiled as well as one could with a circular mouth, my tentacles shaking as I laughed with them. The seaponies never arrived, but we gained a source of information and I made a friend. We called the mission a success anyway.

It was time. My security teams, all having been replaced with enforcers, stood ready while a swarm of aids, only half of them being disguised spies, awaited the arrival of the various representatives.

I hadn’t quite gotten over the loss of Margarite, but Two Nineteen Dash Five was doing her best to keep my mind off of her by sending plenty of extra work my way. It was a kind gesture, but I would still need another two days before I could finish processing and storing the important parts of Brute’s memories of her so I could seal off the rest. Maybe after this mission I’d be able to take a break and be someone easier, someone who could get a dog.

My thoughts snapped back to the present as the heavy door was pulled open to admit the first set of representatives. It was the minotaurs that arrived first, led by the delegate himself in a show of bluster that impressed no one and gave us all a good indication of how the next week was going to go.

“Ah ha, you must be the head of security! Good on you, my boy, way to show those turkeys how it’s done,” Regnot praised as he attempted to dislocate my arm with vigorous shakes of my hand and pats to my bicep.

“I’m the shift leftenant sir, the SecOIC is General Harnd,” I corrected before quietly adding, “A gryphon.”

“And modest too. Word has reached all the way back home about you and how you’ve turned this place around, you’re the hero of South Minos. No need to let the bird get all the credit son, we know who the brains are around here,” Regnot continued, making everyone outside of his view, including the real minotaurs, sigh.

“If you don’t mind sir, I’ll need to leverage my heroics in order to keep the other representatives in line,” I requested, raising a hand to gesture for the insufferable minotaur to move along. Regnot laughed and clapped my shoulder as he finally moved on towards the conference room.

The other representatives arrived and moved through the security checkpoint without fanfare, barely acknowledging me beyond a nod of approval to show that their standards were met. I followed the last to arrive, a gryphon named Felix that constantly stole glances at Mar-Five’s rear, as he followed her towards where the other representatives were waiting.

Everything changed as soon as I barred the door, and not by any of the enforcers present to spy on the exchange. While we had strict orders to maintain our cover until the opportune moment, another force obviously did not.

The sound of steel scraping against steel was the only warning any of us received before the personal guards that had arrived with the representatives drew their swords and detained my security officers and the representatives they were supposed to protect.

I was pushed against the wall as the blade pressed against my throat in a way that would open arteries if I tried to escape, my fellow enforcers finding themselves in similar positions as a single gryphon stepped out of the confusion and into the center of the room.

“What is the meaning of this? Felix, get your gryphons under control!” Regnot barked indignantly before the minotaur holding him down dug an elbow into his back and forced him into pained silence.

“I’m afraid none of you hold any sway over these soldiers, they belong to me alone,” the male gryphon in the center of the room declared with a distinctly female voice. Another shifter? An enforcer wouldn’t be this obvious, even a rogue one.

“Who are you?” I growled, feigning a struggle against my captor.

“I think you meant to say ‘what’, not ‘who’,” the gryphon mocked as its talons and paws burst into flame.

“No, it can’t be. They were all destroyed,” I gasped in genuine shock before I could catch myself, left otherwise speechless as the creature before me revealed itself.

As the flame traveled up the gryphon’s legs, fur burned away to reveal the black chitin hiding just underneath. If I’d had any doubts about what sort of monster stood before me, the holes in those legs erased them. I was looking at a member of an extinct species, a changeling from times long past. The emerald blaze had passed the creature’s shoulders now, revealing it to be much taller than before. It was easily as tall as Mistress Luna or the enemy Celestia, marking it as a queen.

“There, isn’t that better?” the queen asked as it looked around smugly and the last traces of the gryphon burned away, revealing an unsurprisingly feminine face and long fangs that dripped with only slightly less venom than its voice. My eyes found the vampire’s waist in an effort to discern the hive it had come from, identifying it easily. This one had come from the same hive that had ignited an instinctive hatred in my entire species, one directed towards the bugs of that hive in particular.

“No,” I replied simply, bound by my orders to remain hidden but likewise compelled to wound the beast however I could.

“Oh trust me, the feeling is mutual,” the queen bug shot back with a knowing wink. She knew. She could detect us. She needed to die now before she could expose our presence here.

“TO ARMS!” I shouted as I headbutted the minotaur holding me and rammed the disguised changeling’s own sword through its chest, my brothers and sisters doing much the same as they freed themselves and their weapons.

“How adorable,” the queen droned as her crooked horn flashed and we were halted in our tracks. I tested the paralysis field holding me and found that I’d be forced to give up my cover to break it. A glance told me my companions were in the same situation.

“What do you want?” Felix asked with a surprising amount of calm, drawing the queen’s attention off of us for the moment. With a flick of her head, the changeling holding the gryphon representative down pulled away and allowed him to rise, “Thank you. If I may ask again, what are your demands of us?”

“Why would I want anything from you?” the queen sneered, but Felix continued to hold her gaze.

“Why else would you come here, much less as our guards, or the specific guard I’ve been having relations with, if you didn’t desire something we could provide? If I were to take a guess, I would wager that you intend to use our invasion to facilitate one of your own,” Felix began, keeping his eyes trained on the shapeshifter as she walked around him in a manner reminiscent of a hungry shark. I was mildly surprised to hear the gryphon admit to having a homosexual relationship so publicly, but also knew that he was a politician and that his pride always came second to his ambitions.

“And why would I wait this long before invading a peaceful country like Equestria? Why would I need or want your assistance?” the queen pressed, leaning in to nibble on the representative’s neck and making him squirm at the contact.

“Because of the same reason we’re hesitating to take action. The reason why we took so much care in keeping this bunker secret and away from his spies,” Felix managed awkwardly as he cringed away from the changeling.

“Jekyll,” the queen hissed as she pulled away, “Very good, you’ve figured me out. I need you to attack early so I can gather the power I need to kill him, something large enough to pull him away and allow me to gorge myself on the ponies. Celestia could defeat him if she tried, I intend to surpass even her if my plan works the way I expect it will.”

“There’s little honor in attacking an unprepared enemy like that, but those blasted spies are everywhere and there’s no honor in them either,” Felix allowed, nodding along with the queen’s proposal, “When?”

“The walls have ears my sweet, I’ll tell you when it will be too late for them to act on their stolen information,” the changeling replied with what could be called a purr.

“And until then?” Felix asked, a touch of fear finally entering his voice as he realized how intently the vampiric bug was looking at him.

“You’ve already fathered and fed thirty-five thousand of my young, what’s a few hundred thousand more? We do need an army after all,” the queen answered as she returned to making the gryphon uncomfortable, her wings buzzing as she showed her amusement.

“What do you intend to do with us?” Regnot demanded, his face showing the terror his voice belied.

“You will assist me as well, though the zebra is useless and should remain to uphold the illusion that I’m not here at all,” the bug responded, as though there weren’t any other options.

“And if I refuse?” Regnot demanded, his own words seeming to scare him.

“Then I’ll take your mind and use you anyway, though that would be a waste of precious love and I would prefer to avoid doing so. I will also be retaining my true appearance to conserve resources, along with my retinue,” the queen explained.

“One final question, if I may? Do you have a name?” Felix asked, his demeanor calming noticeably as he no longer had venomous fangs less than an inch from his throat.

“I am the last queen, sole survivor of the Everfree hive, the savior of my race, and the destined ruler of this world. I am Chrysalis. And you, you are surrounded by the children of my most hated foe.”

Father was going to be livid.

“You’re joking,” Luna stated in disbelief as she stared down the young stallion checking the ages of the patrons.

“No princess, the two of you are still welcome here whenever you like. Vinyl apparently got swamped with requests to open up the floor to different styles after Mister Jekyll’s show and I can say for sure that profits are up. We even had some stuffy nobles here for Octy’s rendition of Maretova last night,” the stallion replied easy.

“Cool, does that mean we don’t have to pay the cover charge?” I asked.

“No, that’ll be one bit each,” the stallion responded, his demeanor returning to that of the dedicated doorpony. I flicked two bits his way and he opened the door for us after the coins landed in his saddlebag with a pair of muffled clinks.

“Show off,” Luna teased as I followed her inside.

Instead of the usual overpowering bass thumping that usually drowned out all possible conversation, the air carried the soft melody of a piano as some pony beyond our sight played a calming tune. I didn’t know this song, but it seemed to speak of sorrow and loss that hadn’t struck yet despite their inevitability. An emotion I knew far too well, one I felt every time Lucky or her children crossed my mind.

The song ended as we neared the concert hall, replaced with a boisterous voice that rang through the building with familiar ease.

“And that, my dear ponies, was Rarity Belle playing ‘I’ll miss you’. Believe it or not, this was the premiere of that particular song. Who knew Ponyville’s own seamstress was so good with the keys? We’ll have to get her and Octavia on the stage at the same time, that might actually make me cry,” Vinyl Scratch praised as we walked into the room and saw Rarity blushing behind the wheeled piano onstage, “Next up on our roster is yours truly with a remix of Octy’s performance from yesterday, it was just too perfect to pass up.”

Two stallions emerged from backstage and escorted Rarity away as they removed the piano while Vinyl pushed her massive speaker system to the forefront by herself, an impressive feat for a unicorn, though it left me wondering why the DJ didn’t use magic to help her. I continued to watch the mare onstage as Luna led me to the bar, following her movements and noting the lengths she went through to maintain an impressive stage presence without using magic once.

“That’s some dedication right there, keeping it natural,” I commented approvingly after a minute or so, finally turning my attention to Luna and the drink in front of me.

“About time you took your eyes off that mare, trying to make me jealous now?” Luna accused jokingly as she swirled her glass and took a sip.

“Just impressed, you only see that level of restraint in true enthusiasts and my enforcers. She hasn’t used magic once this entire time,” I replied, nodding towards the stage.

“I thought you hated music like this?” Luna asked.

“I do, but I can still appreciate the skill. I don’t particularly like the sound of a piano either but I have a new respect for Rarity after hearing her play,” I countered.

“Why thank you, dear. I must say, playing in front of all these ponies was terrifying,” Rarity replied gratefully as she slid onto a stool on Luna’s other side.

“If you don’t mind my asking, what inspired that tune?” Luna asked, turning to regard the mare.

“If we’re going to talk like this, we should grab a table,” I suggested before Rarity had time to stumble over her answer. I caught the look of deep seated fear, one not belonging to anything here, and made the snap decision to stall on her behalf while she sorted out her answer.

Luna looked between the two of us and nodded, “I suppose it would be rude to talk over one another like this.”

We found a table easily enough and around the circular piece of furniture to continue our drinks and conversation, though we had to ignore the preexisting empty glasses that hadn’t been taken away yet. Luna and I forsook the chairs in favor of sitting on the floor so we would be at roughly the same height as Rarity’s chair enhanced stature.

“Yes, this is much better darlings. As for my song...It-It’s for my parents…” Rarity began uneasily, shivering in the dim light despite the warm temperature.

“Are they sick? I’m sure Jay would be happy to treat whatever ails them,” Luna offered, looking my way for confirmation.

“They’re fine, they’re fine. But they both got very sick last winter and nearly passed, Sweetie and I were so scared for them. We didn’t know what to do, none of the doctors could do anything so we just had to wait and see if they’d recover. They both got better and we were happy to see them up and healthy again, but it made me realize that they wouldn’t be around forever,” Rarity continued before having to stop and collect herself. Luna placed a sympathetic hoof on Rarity’s back as I nodded.

“I know exactly what you mean,” I agreed quietly, my rare show of real emotion catching the unicorn’s attention.

“You weren’t lying then, when you said that thing to Twilight. About you…” Rarity trailed off.

“I’ve been adopting whole families that’ll have me, maintaining the role of uncle until their line ends. I’ve lost so many, I know the creeping dread you’re talking about. It was my only constant companion for a long time,” I explained, prompting Luna to place a hoof on my back as well.

“Not anymore, I’m not going anywhere,” Luna declared as she pulled me closer, drawing Rarity in as well. Rarity’s chair scratched across the floor as she was pulled into Luna’s embrace, downy wings extending as though to shelter the two of us from time itself. I looked at Luna when she didn’t release her hold and shrugged in Rarity’s direction, it seemed Luna was content to hold us both for the moment.

“Yes, um, as I was saying, I cried a lot that spring and found music seemed to help. One thing led to another and I started playing the piano, that song just seemed to come naturally to me,” Rarity concluded.

“It felt lonely, unfinished. I think it was missing something, even in loss there are others to share the burden,” I appraised.

“A violin, perhaps a larger stringed instrument as well,” Luna agreed, earning a nod from Rarity.

“I was thinking of asking Octavia, but I don’t know how to write music,” Rarity replied.

“I can play by ear,” I offered.

“And I can write it out,” Luna added, “Wait, you play?”

“I’ve had a long time to pick up hobbies, guitar, drums, violin, knife throwing, chemistry, painting, pottery…” I reasoned, listing off a few on my fingers before trailing off and shrugging.

“This would be a good time to gather your friends, I’m sure each of them has some skill that will help us finish your beautiful song,” Luna suggested, obviously trying to turn this into a lesson of some kind.

“Luna, this doesn’t need to be a group effort. I wouldn’t expect Rarity to share the stage with me, I was just offering to be polite,” I whispered, though Rarity tilted her head and gave me a sad look.

“I wouldn’t deny you just for trying to help, of course you could play if you wanted. And Twilight could make sure we all start at the correct times, Fluttershy could...Fluttershy…” Rarity attempted before losing steam and falling silent as she thought.

“She sings, but good luck getting her to add her voice,” I replied.

“Yes, that makes sense. She does have a lovely voice, it’s a shame the poor dear is so scared of other ponies,” Rarity commented.

“AJ and Dash would be good for an ambient sound in the background, like raindrops on a roof,” I continued, an idea taking form.

“I can help Twilight with organizing and writing everypony’s parts,” Luna offered again, “What about Pinkie? Where would she fit in?”

“Pinkie’s brand of music is far too jovial for this dear, she would need to work in the background to help us with distribution. Her massive network of friends can help with that, including getting Vinyl to use her equipment to record it,” Rarity suggested.

“We’ll leave you to it then, let us know when you’re ready to give it a shot,” I instructed, looking forward to this now that we were talking about a studio song instead of a live one.

“What about right now? While we’re thinking about it and focused,” Rarity suggested, “After you finish your drinks, of course, I couldn’t ask royalty to drop everything like that.”

“No offense was taken my little pony, I understood your meaning,” Luna replied with a smile as she tipped her glass and finished her whiskey. I followed her lead and did the same, the familiar burn giving me a measure of comfort. It was one of the few things that never changed, grass grew, whiskey burned, and the world kept turning around me.

I had to take a second and correct myself after that errant thought, the world didn’t change around me. It changed around us, I wasn’t alone anymore. I’d found that same solace in my enforcers once, immortals to keep me company through the years. But they hadn’t filled that void, they were more like pieces of myself than actual people.

“I just thought of something, we have a celebration to plan,” I declared, surprising both of my companions with my outburst.

“What happened?” Luna asked, confused.

“You should know, you were there. One of my enforcers is ready to enter the world as her own person,” I replied happily.

“Veil! Of course!” Luna exclaimed, bringing a hoof to her forehead, “How could I have forgotten?”

“Her own person?” Rarity asked.

“The enforcers are more like children than you realize, they are kept close to keep them under control as they develop and learn how to be themselves instead of Jay’s fragments,” Luna explained, periodically looking at me for confirmation that her synopsis was accurate enough.

“She’s hit that point, she’s ready to be released from my influence and make her own way,” I reaffirmed, a mix of pride and sadness coloring my mind.

“We can do that while Rarity here sets up the practice session,” Luna declared, rising to her full height and folding her wings in anticipation of our departure.

“Alright, see you later Rarity,” I bid as I picked myself up and cleaned the floor grime off of myself and Luna. I didn’t think anything of the action until I saw Rarity’s red face looking around frantically, “What?”

“I would ask the same, is it that uncommon for one friend to assist another in such a way? I cannot see my backside, as such it would be quite difficult for me to brush myself off adequately,” Luna added, her voice loud enough to carry and deter any other onlookers from getting any problematic ideas.

“O-Of course dears, I simply have no idea why that surprised me,” Rarity replied, “I’d better get going as well, so much to set up and all that.”

Despite bidding each other farewell, we still ended up awkwardly walking out together before heading our separate ways.

Luna and I discussed our plan to inform Veil as we walked, figuring out the best way to give her the news. Once we arrived and flew up to the deck, I sent a Mike to retrieve the soon to be ex-enforcer while Luna headed straight for our room. Now that Luna was hidden and the message was away, I retreated to the staging room to wait.

“You, uh, wanted to see me sir?” Veil stammered as she slowly walked into the room to find me lazily sitting against the wall.

“Yep, figured it was about time,” I replied evasively, now stalling so Luna could get down here and wait outside for the right moment.

“The right time for what?” Veil asked nervously.

“Everything has consequences, today you’re going to face the repercussions of what you did while ‘helping’ my wife,” I warned, keeping my tone menacing for effect until Abaddon gave me my next cue.

“B-But I thought-I thought everything went okay...ish? I mean, I made a few mistakes but there wasn’t any permanent harm,” Veil attempted eyeing the door fearfully though she knew it wouldn’t open at her pull. Luckily for Veil, Luna had just arrived on the other side.

“Okay-ish? You think it went okay-ish? Do you have any idea what you did out there?” I demanded.

“No?” Veil offered weakly as the door opened and Luna walked in with a smile.

“You picked a name for yourself and showed your real personality, you met the last requirements for being considered your own entity,” Luna replied, getting a dumbfounded look from Veil as the enforcer looked between the two of us.

“I knew it was either really good news or really bad news when you started teasing me like that, but I wasn’t expecting this,” Veil admitted, “This...this isn’t either.”

“I don’t understand,” Luna commented as she placed a hoof on Veil’s side.

“She doesn’t want to go her own way,” I clarified, getting a nod from the enforcer.

“Oh, I remember feeling similar when my parents died. It was so scary for Tia and I during those first few months. But that’s what makes us stronger,” Luna reassured as I stood up.

“Can’t I just go back to my old job and pretend nothing ever happened? Or just not have my genes removed?” Veil pleaded, stopping me as I mulled over her reaction.

“I’m reminded of the birds, the way they’ll push their own young out of the tree when they don’t fly right away. This is me giving you a push, you’ll still have a soft place to land if it doesn’t work out,” I reasoned, offering my hand instead of forcing freedom on the enforcer. This had to be her choice, one of many to come.

“That’s a no then, I’ll have to go out there and do...something,” Veil sighed, “It’s bad enough that you know my name, I was happy with working in the shadows.”

“I’ve known your designation ever since you established yourself as a leader among the other Romeos, watched you develop and grow from afar. I could see that you didn’t care for attention so I kept my distance, just the way you liked it. But I’ve been taking notes for all these years as well, marking off all the different times you did things because you wanted to. Every disagreement you solved, every bit of advice you’ve given, all the times you’ve snuck into town to buy sweets with money you didn’t think I knew you took. You’re ready, go show the world what I’ve seen,” I responded sincerely, making the enforcer cringe at a couple points.

“It’s scary, what if I can’t fit in?” Veil asked worriedly as she extended her hand to hover above mine.

“Then ask for help, what are friends and parents for,” Luna replied easily as she poked at Veil’s side.

“Can I come back if it doesn’t work out?” Veil continued, her hand drifting lower until less than a millimeter separated her from true freedom.

“Of course,” Luna answered softly. That was enough, Veil’s hand dropped the rest of the way into mine and gripped it firmly, giving me far more than the contact I needed to adjust her cells and remove my control over her.

“It’s done,” I declared after a few seconds, though Veil continued to grip my hand.

“I don’t feel any different, am I supposed to feel different?” Veil muttered, sounding more like she was talking to herself.

“Veil, just relax and take it slow,” Luna advised.

“Relax? How can I relax? Everything I’ve ever known is gone, what if I don’t like Manehattan or Minos or wherever I’m supposed to go?” Veil rambled as she pulled away from us.

“I think you misunderstand. I can’t force you to do anything anymore, you’re not supposed to go anywhere or do anything. You can go wherever and do whatever you want,” I corrected.

“Can I stay in Ponyville?” Veil challenged.

“I think I understand, Jay’s waiting for you to stop asking permission and just go where your heart tells you to go,” Luna responded thoughtfully.

“We don’t have hearts,” Veil and I corrected at the same time.

“I’m still right,” Luna insisted.

“Maybe, but what do I do?” Veil pressed.

“You stumble and fall, fail again and again, until you find something that you love to do,” I answered easily, though this did little to ease the former enforcer’s fear.

“Fail…” she muttered blankly.

Luna’s hoof brought Veil out of her stupor, “I know you’re scared, so is every filly and colt when they go out into the world, but that’s no excuse to panic. We’ll still be here to pick you up when you fall and set you back on your hooves.”

“Hooves?” Veil asked, retreating into her thoughts once more.

“You picked a pony name, why not live a pony life as well?” Luna suggested, reading Veil’s expression well. I was content to remain silent and watch them talk it out, though I agreed with Luna. Veil had always been very empathetic for an enforcer and would be able to hide herself well as a result.

“I’ll need to get a job,” Veil commented quietly.

“Something involving conflict resolution,” I offered, knowing my daughter well enough to guess her strengths.

“What about social work? You could help foals find loving homes,” Luna proposed.

“That sounds nice. Okay, now what?” Veil asked with an expectant look towards me.

“Now I have your documents forged while you setup your new appearance and go look for a job,” I replied, sending the order as I spoke.

“Oh, that sounds hard. I’ve never invented a persona before,” Veil muttered.

“Start with an existing template and make adjustments until it’s you,” I instructed as I dropped to my talons in the guise of Best Defense.

“Wow, I haven’t seen that face in a while,” Luna chuckled as I walked over to Veil and grabbed her shoulder.

“Life is an adventure, ready to start yours?” I baited, playing into the pride of the enforcers. Veil may have been reserved, but no enforcer refused a direct challenge like that.

“Yeah, alright. I’m gonna make up a new face and go make a name for myself,” Veil declared, a new determination entering her voice. She didn’t waste any time striding out of the room towards parts unknown, but I had a feeling she’d do alright.

“Why do the cheesy lines work so damn well?” Luna asked seriously.

“Pretty sure it has something to do with ambient magic or some such nonsense,” I replied honestly, “Can’t blame me for weaponizing something that’s already there.”

“As long as it isn’t used for evil,” Luna allowed.

“Ready to go finish Rarity’s song?” I asked, ignoring Luna’s implication.

“We will discuss this later, but alright,” Luna relented.

“Come on now, we’ve finally got something innocent to do. What could be more relaxing than writing a song?” I scoffed.

Three hours later we were back in Vinyl’s club and ordering three drinks at a time. Twilight’s mane had loose ends sticking out in odd directions and Rarity had a stick and leaves marring hers. Pinkie had a deflated look as she pounded chocolate vodka, eager to forget the nightmare we had all come from. Fluttershy had simply gone home, retreating to familiar ground after the embarrassing practice.

“Well that was horrible,” Twilight commented from behind her wine cooler. She seemed to be trying to use the wide glass to hide her shame.

“Well, it could’ve been worse I suppose,” Rarity offered.

“Eenope,” Applejack responded, “Applebloom and her friends did better than us on their first try. Maybe writin’ music just ain’t our barrel of apples.”

“Octavia laughed at us, and it wasn’t a nice laugh,” Pinkie sniffled. The drunker she got, the closer she came to crying.

“That’s because it was super funny,” Dash rebutted, drawing incredulous looks from her friends.

“How could you say that, dear? It’s just mean,” Rarity huffed.

“No it’s not, it’s true. We downright sucked at playing music today, that’s for sure, but it doesn’t have to be a bad thing. We had loads of fun and did so badly that as soon as you stop being embarrassed, it becomes hilarious,” Dash asserted.

“You listening Lu?” I asked, somewhat concerned with how quickly Luna was drinking.

“Nah, her and Twi are too darn busy tryna ferget today,” Applejack replied as she stacked her fifteenth glass, eclipsing both of the other two heavy drinkers combined.

“Remind me to set you up with some kind of support group,” I teased, getting a shrug from the farm mare. My jokes about her alcohol tolerance were nothing new.

“Oh come on you two, it wasn’t that bad,” Dash insisted.

“Horrible experience or not, I’m calling it,” I added, waving the waitress away before she could take another order.

“Dammit Jay, I’m not...not drunk yet,” Luna griped, bringing a hoof to her stomach and cringing as her body tried to reject the alcohol.

“Dash, could you get Twilight somewhere comfortable?” I requested as I stood up.

“Callin’ it already sugarcube? I guess those two were drinkin’ mighty fast,” Applejack asked.

“Sorry AJ, I know you haven’t gotten to cut loose in a while,” I apologized as I walked around and picked up Luna.

“No worries, Ah’m pretty well used to drinkin’ by mahself at this point... That sounded better in mah head,” Applejack replied before looking down at the drink in her hoof in a new light and setting it down, “Maybe Ah’ll call it here too.”

“But I’m not drunk,” Luna protested as I hefted her onto my shoulder and used my other hand to help Dash do the same with Twilight.

“Never let me drink that fast again,” Twilight managed as she tried to hold her liquor.

Dash said something in response, but I was already carrying Luna out the door by then. I briefly considered what this might do to Luna’s reputation, then dismissed the line of thought. Luna would be fine. She was inadvertently setting herself up as the more down to earth princess who was inclined to live alongside her subjects, and normal ponies sometimes got so drunk that they had to be carried home. Luna’s current state fell in line with all of this.

I hadn’t expected reporters.

“Mister Jekyll, what do you have to say about the rumors that you’re dating the princess?”

“Is that her? Is she sick?

“Stop,” I commanded, not having to raise my voice or make threats, “Luna and I are dating, yes. She’s right here, but she’s had a bit too much to drink so I’m taking her home.”

“Scandalous, what else can you tell us?” another reporter asked hopefully.

“What are you talking about? Luna moved in with me months ago because her sister was being a bitch. I actually have a question for all of you, why are you pestering us? Shouldn’t this be old news by now?” I countered.

“It’s what our editors want, they think you and the princess will sell more papers if we get an interview,” the first reporter answered.

“And you all had that conversation earlier,” I guessed, getting nods in response, “Alright, be annoying if you want, but stay away from the giant next to the town unless you really hate being alive.”

This caused concerned muttering among the newsponies for several seconds and made me wish I could just jump over them, although this would upset Luna’s stomach more than I would prefer.

“It’s our home, we’ve increased security after some of the Wardens broke in, murdered one of our friends, and ponynapped another. You might recall that I killed them all over that incident,” I elaborated. This seemed to remind the overeager ponies who they were talking to and they all shuffled back to let us pass without further questions, except for one pegasus that had to ask one last question and spark another round.

“Do you have any comment on the rumors that you are the king of Tartarus?” the pegasus mare asked, making me pause.

“No comment for now, but I’m drafting one to address those rumors the next time I’m in Canterlot,” I replied evasively.

“It’s a simple yes or no,” the mare pressed.

“Let’s say I am the king, would it really be within my status to reveal something like that through a cheap tabloid? Even if I’m not, using any of your papers as a medium would be spitting in the face of the knightly order I once called my brothers. Take the facts that are already known and be happy,” I responded warningly.

“You were a knight?” the second reporter confirmed.

“Again, that was already public information,” I droned.

“Jay, der’s a spike pokin’ me,” Luna groaned, prompting me to adjust how she was sitting on my shoulder plate and mentally kick myself for not taking off my armor. Break in period or not, it was just in the way right now.

“What about that armor? Where did it come from? You were never seen in armor before,” a third pony asked.

“I’ve had enough of this, you are all officially impeding my duties as Luna’s personal physician. Begone or I will have you detained,” I snapped, startling the paparazzi and getting them to leave us alone.

“Jay...be nice to them, jus’ doin’ their jobs,” Luna chided weakly.

“Next time you can be the sober one and answer all the questions you like,” I replied as I set off once more.

No one else spoke to us as I carried Luna back to Abaddon, the only sounds being those of the town’s daily activities and Luna’s occasional groans as her body rebelled against her actions. I refused to fly us to the deck and instead forced Abaddon to pick us up and carry us all the way to his back, an action he found amusing for some reason. Something about reshaping the tendril into an umbrella next time.

Luna was holding a hoof to her mouth by the time I got her into our room and the sounds her stomach was making made it clear that she wouldn’t be able to hold back much longer. I barely got her to the floor and pulled her hair back in time, though Abaddon was much quicker in making a hole to catch the mess.

“There you go, you’ll feel better once you get all of that alcohol out of your system,” I cooed as I stroked Luna’s back and helped her lie down as her legs gave out. I continued trying to comfort her until some new crisis interrupted us.

“Lord Jekyll!” an enforcer cried as it skidded into the room.

“Better be good to justify delivering your report personally,” I warned, irritated by the interruption.

“Well, I wouldn’t say that it’s good news. The opposite actually,” the enforcer stumbled nervously.

“Spit it out then, forewarned is forearmed. Don’t know why else you Indias would exist,” I ordered sternly.

“Right, uh, we lost the bunker and the representatives might be getting eaten alive by changelings right now,” the India summarized, freezing me in place as I processed that last part.

I didn’t bother with fanfare as I purged the toxins from Luna’s body and set her upright, dizzying the mare with how quickly her situation changed, “Explain the changeling part.”

“They got in disguised as the representatives’ personal security, then outed us and took over the base,” the enforcer elaborated, “I got here as quickly as I could.”

“For the love of-come here!” I demanded, pulling the details from the India’s memories instead of fussing with actual speech. I was silent for a solid five minutes after I released the enforcer and waved him away, my stoicism seeming to make Luna increasingly nervous as she watched the developing situation, “I missed one.”

“No,” I begged as I made for the door.

“Sir you ca-” One of the guards began before the other waved him back with a hoof. I absently noticed the one who had waved was Steadfast, the guard I had lectured so many years ago. They let me pass without incident, for better or worse.

Sigrid was there, lying in a still warm pool of her own blood. It wasn’t spreading, there wasn’t anything left to bleed. I didn’t care about the guards’ crime scene, I walked right into the mess and kneeled to give her one last hug while I looked around at the rest of the room. A dozen dark bodies were strewn around, the sword I’d made last night still lodged in one of them.

I choked back a cry of anguish, I should’ve been here. I should’ve stopped this. I had one mission and I’d failed it. Greed blood stained the walls in thick weeping streaks, giving me the impression the dark bodies were more like insects than ponies. I felt more than heard the guards walk in as I set Sigrid back down and turned her body over to inspect her wounds, bites. They’d bitten pieces out of her until she bled to death.

The guards were talking, but I was beyond their words as I moved from Sigrid to her murderers. I found the most intact body and held it up to get a better look at it. It was a mix between a pony and a beetle, a face easy to hate. The monster’s head exploded in my iron grip as my disguise dropped and I closed my fist.

“They’re changelings,” Steadfast explained, “I’ve never heard of them killing anypony before.”

“Freydis,” I demanded, not bothering to look at the guards.

“Taken. Based on the scene, she was their target,” the other guard replied.

“They don’t have a scent,” I noted, holding the remains of another up to my nose.

“Ookay, so?” the guard asked blankly before the body collided with him and sent him flying into the wall hard enough to disrupt his disguise.

“Neither do you,” I finished as I descended on the monster and drove my fist through it’s abdomen, absorbing the remains and gaining the location of the nest.

“Gods, they took Shield Wall too?” Steadfast cried in alarm.

“Infestation,” I growled, “You need to warn the town, gather the militia and lead the locals to somewhere safer. Ponyville is dead.”

“What? But how?” Steadfast stumbled, uncomprehending.

“Your protectors are gone, your options are to be taken by these things or eaten by the beasts of the forest. Leave while you can,” I ordered.

“Where are you going?” Steadfast asked, turning grim as he fully understood what he was witnessing.

“To war. I know where they are, I’m gonna kill ‘em all,” I stated with a homicidal calm, my body shaking with rage.

“If you hurry, the gr-” Steadfast attempted, but I wasn’t listening anymore. I knew what I was, I’d known since I woke up in the forest six years ago. I was the fury, the rage, the death of those who would call themselves enemy, and they would know the true meaning of retribution.

My roar of anguish and rage left Steadfast writing on the floor with blood leaking from his ears, his fault for not leaving to warn the town like I’d told him to. I left him there as I walked out and started walking towards the changeling hive responsible for this, my pace increasing until every step tore pieces from the ground and another roar tore from my throat.

The cave that led into the underground complex was guarded by two bugs wearing stolen militia armor, they didn’t even have time to shout an alarm before I burst from the trees and collided with the first one, shattering the thing’s exoskeleton and pivoting on the spot to drive my foot through the other’s head. Only one entrance means only one way out, a punch hard enough to shatter stone trapped them inside with me. I would have my revenge.

I didn’t form my claws, I used my hands to tear them apart as I found them. They screamed and begged for their lives as I pulled their legs off and left them to bleed the way they had done with Sigrid. This wasn’t a fight, not one of them even tried to stand against me, it was pest control.

“Mobilize, my children, a beast seeks to destroy the hive!” a commanding voice echoed through the tunnels, visibly changing the demeanor of the bugs as they now sought me out instead of running away. I grinned ferally as I finally revealed my claws and started slashing through them, the one who had spoken was in charge. The queen bug had given away her position, providing me with a target.

I was strong but the bugs seemed to be endless, their bodies serving to hinder my path even in death. Slowed but still moving towards the source of the voice, I roared my challenge once more and shook the entire complex as I made sure the queen knew her end was coming.

Cut. Cut. Cut. Kick. Stomp. Cut. Always forward, always moving. Every swing of my claws ended the lives of a half dozen bugs but eight times as many crowded in to fill their place, choking the tunnels and forming an organic wall I constantly had to push back even as their dead aided them from beyond the grave.

“Kill it, bring that beast down. It must get no further,” the voice ordered again, its fearful tone putting a grin on my face as I relished in my revenge.

“I’LL KILL YOU ALL!” I growled, shouldering the wall of bodies back even as I cut them down. They had nowhere to go and I’d run them out of bugs eventually. I ran out of tunnel first, the wall breaking to reveal a massive chamber with several structures carved from the stone itself. The wall divided, seeking to trap me on the ledge I stood upon.

“You. You who came here seeking violence, you will see the might of our hive and tremble at our strength!” a larger bug declared dramatically from one of the structures.

“FUCK YOU!” I spat, kicking a rock at the queen hard enough to shatter the chitin on her leg. She cried out in pain at the impact, her shout serving to enrage the smaller bugs, “Come on then, come at me and face my claws. Rage versus rage, let’s see which one burns brighter!”

Changeling blood dripped from my claws as a massive number of bugs emerged from seemingly everywhere and descended on me from every angle, trampling each other as they came down the ledges and pushed each other out of the way in the air as they suicidally charged from the air.

All met their end at my claws, teeth, and stomping feet in the cases when they ended up on the ground. It took hours, but the hive ran out of bugs. I still held the severed leg of one drone in my teeth and dragged another along the ground as I closed in on the now terrified queen. Once so confident and proud, the queen now crouched low and whimpered fearfully as I stalked towards her.

She jolted when I spat the leg at her hooves and tossed away the lifeless body to free my claw, knowing her end was fast approaching.

“Where is she?” I demanded.

“W-wha-” the queen stammered before I grabbed her snout and whipped her over my head hard enough to shatter her legs and back when she hit the ground on the other side.

“STOP SCREAMING AND TELL ME WHERE SHE IS!” I roared over the queen’s wails of pain.

The bug stifled her cries and saw that her only chance for survival required her to give in to my demands, the realization and hope crossing her features briefly before she managed to choke a few words through her mangled jaw and probable concussion, “Who come for?”

“Young gryphon. Female. Taken today. You should know, given that your vermin waited until I left for the day before attacking. They killed her mother and took the child,” I growled dangerously, seeing a spark of recognition in the insect’s eyes before it was clouded with confusion.

“Don’t kill, no good from dead. Dangerous too,” the queen argued, shaking her head.

“Save it for someone who gives a fuck. The gryphon, tell me where she is,” I ordered as I lunged down and stopped my claw right before it could touch the surface of her eye.

“Down. Outgoing shipments. Husk,” the queen bug rasped, sounding amused. I swiped down as I walked away and severed her wings and legs, leaving her to bleed to death while I found Freydis.

I followed the path down from where I had broken the queen and killed the hive, searching one antechamber after another until I located one full of large pods. As I ventured further into the room I inspected the nearest cocoon, inside was a pony that looked exactly like the bug I had killed in the cabin. Another held Blueprint. The mare that ran the candy shop was locked inside a third and withered to the point that one could see her bones poking through her skin. I searched every cocoon, not stopping when I located Freydis but continuing until the face of every replaced citizen of Ponyville had been seared into my memory. Only then did I cut Freydis free and try to revive her.

“Come on, Frey. You’re gonna...miss...breakfast…” I attempted, shaking the gryphon. Her feathers seemed to have lost their sheen, appearing dull and lifeless in a way that even corpses couldn’t compete with. I fell back and allowed grief to overtake me, sobbing tearlessly as I lamented how badly I had failed them.

Freydis took a breath.

I jumped back to her side and resumed my efforts to wake her up, but failed to accomplish anything. Pulling her eyes open revealed them to be staring straight ahead in an empty gaze. She was alive, but this wasn’t Freydis. Everything that had been her was gone, sucked out by those monsters.

At least there was one I could share my pain with.

I set Freydis on my back and felt tendrils extend to lock her in place, just as they had every time she decided I needed to carry her. The memory almost made me stumble as I ascended to the dying bug. I found the queen attempting to heal herself with some kind of dark green magic, having already stopped the bleeding and fixed whatever had been obstructing her speech.

“I trust you’ll be leaving now?” the queen asked, feigning disinterest.

“What did you do to her?” I demanded.

“What we always do, what we are paid to do. We sucked the emotion out of her soul and consumed it, leaving her as a husk ripe for a new owner. You want someone to punish, try the one that gave us this contract,” the queen spat.

Her attitude changed when I knelt beside her and tore a portion of her shoulder chitin off, “You live for as long as you tell me useful things. Starting with who sent you after my kid.”

That word startled both of us, but at the same time I knew it was all but true. I’d been the male parent in Freydis’s life just as long as her real father had been. I needed her to get better not because of some stupid mission or goal, it was because I loved her as though I was her real father. Anything that stood between Freydis and becoming whole again was that much closer to being a memory, starting with the bug that caused all of this.

Another section of chitin was torn away, making the bug cry out and beg for mercy. Her pleas fell on deaf ears, there was no mercy to be found here. Only answers and death.

“No names, we don’t use names. It was a male though, earth pony, he has a dark brown coat and lighter mane,” the queen revealed desperately. I knew the name that matched that description, I had built his house. He would die too.

“Last opportunity to survive, fix her,” I ordered, fully intending to honor the deal. Today.

“It can’t be done. Emotions only come out of the soul, you can’t jam them back in,” the bug retorted as though I was stupid.

“Shame, I would’ve walked away too,” I replied before backhanding the queen’s head from her shoulders and running a claw along the body from neck to groin so I could stomp the life from any eggs she might’ve had left.

With the last survivor purged, I found the tunnel I had emerged from and began my trek back into town so I could cleanse it of the remaining bugs and get a second opinion about Freydis’s condition.

I had heeded the call, seen the damage the intruder had done to mother, but I wasn’t permitted to fight back against the beast massacring my lesser kin. Instead a swarm of drones had covered me and used their deaths to hide my existence from the beast, sacrificing themselves to ensure that the hive wouldn’t die. At first I had cursed their lack of faith, but I quickly saw how devastating the monster was and how quickly we would be defeated.

I remained under my fallen brothers and sisters until I was sure that the monster was gone, only then did I venture out of my hiding spot to check on Mother. She too was dead, everyling was dead. The only reason I was alive was because of the foresight of my siblings and their sacrifice.

I wasn’t a queen, not yet, but I’d become one sooner if I found a strong source of love. That would present its own issues, I didn’t have any infiltrators to harvest for me yet. I’d need to adapt and learn to survive undetected in pony society until I could begin my own hive and overtake them. Yes, that was the key, more, even more changelings would be needed if we ever hoped to destroy that beast. I could only hope that my aunts would survive until then.

I knew there was only one task left in this hive for me to do, and so I touched my diminutive horn to my mother’s desecrated body and absorbed what little energy remained within it along with that of the hundreds of thousands of dead drones. I grew several inches in the process, but it was the rapid maturity that I sought from this endeavor. No simple nymph could survive on her own, but a deinymph had a chance. The push into the next stage of my life left me weak and fragile as my chitin fell away to reveal my new larger body, but the increase in power was well worth it.

Queen Calyx was dead. Nymph six-three-two was no more. I needed a name to reflect who I was now. My experience with the new threat to our hives had changed me, given me new priorities. I was the next stage in our evolution, the catalyst that would push us into the future. All it took was a broken chunk of my mother’s chitin to catch the dim light in a way that reminded me of a hatched egg to give me my name.

“I am Chrysalis, queen of the future and savior of our race. This world will be mine!” I declared formally, my shout stirring the other nymphs that had survived. No matter, I was destined to kill them anyway. Cruelty and surprise would be my weapons, as the monster had shown their effectiveness against even the might of the hive. There would be no exceptions, not even for my sisters.

I was as far from calm as one could get. I knew who I was going to kill, I just had to hold on until he incriminated himself. Fortunately for my vastly reduced patience, Stupid Rich’s sense of self awareness was as non existent as ever.

“And just what do you think you’re doing with my property?” Rich demanded as he stormed towards us, forcing other ponies out of his way as he went.

“Your property?” I hissed, my blood rapidly starting to boil. Just a little more.

“That’s right. I paid good bits for that husk and I expected it to be delivered by those damnable bugs, not you,” Rich snapped.

“You paid changelings to kill a mother and suck the life out of her child? And then you wanted the remains of the child? Why?” I asked, making sure to highlight everything so one of the town guards could either step in and attempt an arrest or justify staying out of my way.

“Humph, a professional wouldn’t ask questions like that. A stallion’s business is his own,” Rich spat.

“A husk can’t press charges,” I translated, “You disgust me.”

“It doesn’t matter what you think, give me my property or I’ll have you arrested,” Rich threatened.

“You publicly engage in abduction, trafficking, and murder, yet think that the law will side with you?” I baited, looking at a few nearby guardsponies. After a moment of discussion amongst themselves, one stepped forward.

“We had to check our books to be sure, every law he should be breaking here says anypony. Legally speaking, you’re withholding his property,” the guard stated, sounding sickened by the act of speaking those words.

“An oversight I will happily abuse. Now, about my bel-” Rich managed before I kicked him into the air and punched him back to earth, making sure to only break a few ribs in the process. I picked him up my his stupid mane and growled in his face.

“I don’t give a FUCK about your stupid FUCKING loophole, you destroyed my FUCKING family you dumb sack of shit. You’re not getting this gryphon or any other, because I FUCKING SLAUGHTERED THOSE BUGS! EVERY FUCKING ONE OF THEM! But you, you seem to think you’re immune to justice because of how a law is written. You. Are. NOT. ,” I declared furiously before slamming the most evil creature I’d seen in either of my lives into the ground and grabbing a handful of his flesh. Piece after piece, flapping section after section of skin, was torn away, leaving the small crowd that had gathered horrified but unsympathetic to his plight. They knew now what kind of pony he was, this was a punishment well past due.

Rich was still alive when I left him there, twitching and trying to scream without vocal cords. I wasn’t worried about the guards stopping me, they’d all turned away when I struck; feigning ignorance that anything was happening at all.

“Celestia,” I growled, “She’s Frey’s best chance.”

“Canterlot, the new city they’re building up on the mountain,” one of the citizens replied.

“Thank you, but be warned that there are still bugs in this town,” I responded gratefully before pulling the stallion in and giving him the names of those I’d seen entombed within the hive. He nodded when I released him and went running off to mobilize the militia.

I was saddened to leave Ponyville, knowing that it probably wouldn’t be there when I returned, but Freydis was my priority. She had to survive, she had to recover. I’d wasted too much time on vengeance already.

“One survived out of the millions that they once were, it’s not your fault that they came back. You’ve done more for Equestria than anyone else by eradicating as many of them as you did,” Luna consoled as I slumped against the wall to find the point where I had failed. The queen had shown her face in the bunker, her colors marked her as coming from the Everfree hive. The hive that had taken Sigrid and Freydis. The first hive I had destroyed. This new changeling queen was the daughter of the one that had destroyed my first family on this world.

“Luna, would you call it unethical to hold a child responsible for the actions of their parents? Specifically, is my rage towards this new queen unjustified, given that it’s borne of my hatred for her mother?” I wondered aloud.

“You mean this new queen is from the hive that took Freydis? Oh dear, uh...that’s a hard question, I want to say no but at the same time…” Luna stumbled. I nodded to cut her off before she devolved into rambling, I understood well enough.

“Either way, she’s become a threat that needs killing. Hopefully I can find her before she births an heir,” I commented, putting my hypocrisy aside for the moment.

“It’s been a thousand years, she could have spawned hundreds of other queens by now,” Luna countered worriedly, looking around before remembering that we were inside a walking fortress that was immune to changeling spies.

“How much do you really know about the bugs?” I asked, finding her statement interesting.

“As much as anypony else, not much beyond rumors,” Luna replied, her fear spiking again, “Why? What horrors have you discovered?”

“A changeling queen can only birth one clutch of nymphs in her life, these then kill and eat each other until only one remains. That’s the heir. If the previous queen doesn’t die, the new one will start a new hive and the process begins again. They’re somewhat slow to take new territory, but damn hard to stomp out,” I explained.

“Then how do you know that one is from the same hive as before?” Luna pressed now that her interest had been piqued.

“The queen doesn’t get a new color unless she leaves to start a new hive, this one has the same coloration as the one that drained Frey. She survived my attack and salvaged the remains to start again,” I reasoned.

“And if she does have an heir?” Luna continued.

“Then I’ll devote everything to finding and killing it before it can build another hive and repeat the cycle. Without any queens, they’ll fall into chaos and die on their own,” I replied easily, thinking I had already done this once before. Indeed, they had died out before, the drones withering and dying without orders from their queen. I had just missed one of the queens.

“So what do we do? Can we call in the army?” Luna asked.

“This isn’t their fight, nor is it yours. Go, take Discord, and Chelly if she’s still here, to Canterlot. I have an old war to finish, one last battle to finish what I started,” I instructed quietly, though Luna was already in the process of getting her armor on when I turned to face her, “What are you doing?”

“Go fuck yourself Jay, I’m not going to run and hide at the first sign of danger. We’re a team, we’re supposed to help and support each other through times like this,” Luna argued.

“You can’t be seen at an Allied bunker, that would make it an act of war. Like it or not, you’re a symbol of the Equestrian government and military. Besides, they belong to me,” I responded, growling by the time I finished speaking. These changelings were bold, bold and stupid enough to challenge me directly. They’d pay for that stupidity just like the rest of their species had paid for what they had done to my daughter.

“No,” Luna replied simply, sitting down as though to force her chosen course.

“No?” I challenged, my temper flaring.

“No, I’m not going. I’ll stay aboard Abaddon if I absolutely have to, but I’m not leaving you alone with your inner demons again. Not after you came back from Fillydelphia, I refuse to see you that broken again,” Luna pressed stubbornly.

“I agree with Mistress Luna, she should stay,” Abaddon added, “I’ve already informed Discord that we will be going into battle, he has insisted on remaining as well.”

“Discord can come with me down to the front, you will stay clear of this,” I instructed sternly, though Luna just smiled victoriously.

“Good, I’ll be waiting right here to either congratulate you on a well earned victory or help you through the guilt of killing off an entire species over a crime committed by one who died long before they were born,” Luna snarked, actually making me smile. I was taking this too seriously, it was just a bug hunt. Luna was right, even if she was being a bitch about it.

“You’re right,” I relented, causing Luna’s grin to widen as she stood and walked over to look me in the eye.

“What was that? I didn’t quite catch what you said,” Luna requested, tilting her head to bring her ear closer to my mouth.

“You were right,” I repeated.

“Just...one more time,” Luna pressed, leaning in even further before flinching back quickly, “Ow, no biting.”

“Just practicing,” I lied, earning myself a scornful look as Luna rubbed her ear, “I’m gonna need to be ready to remind these bugs why they should’ve just died a thousand years ago.”

“Doesn’t mean you can practice on me,” Luna protested, “Besides, I don’t get to be right very often, can’t I savor the moment?”

“I’m sorry for that too, I’m just-” I began.

“Stressed over everything that’s going on and trying a bit too hard to be your usual goofy self?” Luna interrupted, “I can see that. I’ll expect your three part apology once this is over, starting with a back massage.”

“You really like those,” I commented.

“And ending with my flight muscles, I assume you can figure out the rest?” Luna finished, tossing me a light glare for interrupting.

“Everything in between and around?” I guessed with a sigh.

“That’s right, I want the bottoms of my hooves as smooth as Abaddon’s ass,” Luna replied, feigning haughtiness.

“I do not possess what you would call an ass, but my backside is covered in hard plates. I wouldn’t call it smooth,” Abaddon chimed in, receiving a fireball to the face of his secondary for his efforts.

“Hold on Abby, we’re discussing terms,” Luna responded without looking away from where she was holding my gaze.

“I have a counteroffer, a day. One full day to ask anything you want of me without any refusal or fear of judgement, so long as it doesn’t hurt anyone,” I countered, making Luna pause as she thought about her options.

“You know I could then use that time to get the exact same massage,” Luna pointed out.

“You could,” I allowed. Luna remained silent until she figured out my real proposal, a day to rest and ignore everything along with a reason we could use to justify it.

“Yes, I think that’ll work wonderfully,” Luna agreed.

“Abaddon, get us moving. I have a war to finish,” I ordered without breaking Luna’s gaze.

“Once more, we go to battle. Once more, my cannons sing the song of war!” Abaddon cheered, his voice echoing through the halls as his bulk pitched and rose sharply.

“I’ll be waiting,” Luna promised as she gestured for me to get moving.

“Just this once, and I’ll be back soon,” I replied, getting a nod before walking out of the room and making my way to the deck to take my place at the front of our assault.

As dramatic as Abaddon was when he felt like it, he was invaluable. His mass was much more than a weapon and mobile home, he was a political statement. Whole nations noticed when he moved, the army held within his bulk more than a match for any of theirs and his cannons were more powerful than their strongest walls. Abaddon was the biggest piece on the board, a visible sign of my presence and the power I could bring to bear on any of them at any time.

But as powerful as Abaddon was, I was the one they feared. I was the one who could send a thousand spies into their offices and factories, I was the one who could kill their leaders without any of them knowing. I had earned that fear though innumerable acts both for and against them, but one faction alone had forgotten. One nation of pests that had neglected the lessons of the past and made an enemy the rest of the world tried to placate.

One nation that was not long for this world.

Author's Notes:

There it is, the conclusion to the cliffhanger from Chapter 2 and the return of the changelings. Sorry for the delay, things kept getting pushed back by the re-writes and some other projects going on in the background.

Eric's Editor's Note:

* cough cough * mistakes where made * cough cough *