"The nations involved in this, withdrawn from the TSDI or not, that were involved in this regrettable portion of history will pay." President Smith addressed the country. "With the swift action of EFC forces, the war has been ended, and now begins reconstruction; but don't be fooled. A bridge can be rebuilt. A building can be rebuilt. A dead friend or family member cannot be 'rebuilt'. Now is a time for us to come together."

He wasn't as nervous as the first time he had addressed the country with poor news and grave words. "We all, Americans, EFC, the world, endured much to reach this point. As we pick ourselves up from this, the truth will be found. Already we are gathering those with answers, and we will have them. We will know how this started, and how to stop it from ever happening again. This I promise."

This wasn't a promise he could reasonably make, but it seemed right to say.

John was met by two stern-faced drones. They pointed away as one, but didn't take flight. As they stepped out of the old hideout, they were engulfed in green flames, becoming humans, a male and a female in casual clothing. They stepped into a car.

Unsure, John became a random White House aide he had talked to many times and got in the back of the vehicle. "We're going to Chrysalis?"

"Not that you deserve it," spat the male of the two as the car began to move.

"What were you thinking?" asked the female, not turning back towards John. "You were their king, all you had to do was give it to the Queen and you would have been a hero."

"That's not how it works." Even if he had wanted to, that would not have worked. "They don't have a king, and a president can't just 'give' their presidency to someone else. If I had tried, they would have thrown me out even faster than they did."

"Seemed fast enough." The male shrugged lightly. "Whatever. Buckle up, mister 'follows the law'."

They drove on largely in silence save for the sounds of the engine and other cars that passed them by, only interrupted when the female reached over and started some country music with some fiddling with the dashboard. The car came to a smooth halt in front of a two story long building on the less affluent side of town. "Out," barked the male.

As one, they departed the car that beeped a moment later, locked. The male led the way, knocking twice on a metal door before pushing inside. It couldn't have been much more different inside. While the neighborhood was rundown and tired, the inside was bright and even smelled nice. Everything was clean, with fanciful art hanging from the walls.

"Pleasure Palace," hung over the first archway in welcoming letters. To the left of the archway was a sign that seemed to list all manner of situations and price points. John glanced at it on the way past, fighting a mild blush at some of the depraved things on offer, though some were downright tame in comparison. You could pay to snuggle or just talk, if you cared to. Companionship was on the tap, and no flavor was out of the question, it seemed.

This was, of course, incredibly illegal. John kept himself from bringing that up. It certainly wouldn't help his case, he decided.

As they walked through that archway, they came into a more open reception area. The were other people waiting there. A shapely female looked up from behind the counter. "Hello and welcome." She leaned forward, bringing her hands together, fingers interweaving. "Is that the lost lamb?"

"That's him." The male that had accompanied John hiked a thumb at John. "She available?"

"Go right in." The secretary separated her hands, hiking a thumb towards the back. "Have fun."

The woman of the two moved forward. "I'll take him. C'mon." They went down a narrow hallway, doors on either side. No sounds issued from within any of them. "They're busy," the woman noted without prompting. "She made sure to soundproof them."

They stopped at the last door on the right. She rapped on the door firmly. "He's here," she shouted through the door.

There was a moment of quiet. A faint noise caught John's ear and he saw a camera swiveling to look at them. The door opened a moment later. "Come in," came a familiar female voice.

The lady changeling backed away and gestured through the door. "Have fun."

"Yeah..." John moved past her into what seemed to be a well-appointed bedroom. A few humans floated in green pods, breaking up what would have otherwise been a fine place. Chrysalis was perched on a great heartshaped bed, smiling gently as John walked in.

"About time..." She tapped at the bedtop lightly. "That was a waste, but I'm not even mad, oh no, not at all..."

John blinked as he approached on unsure feet, soon hooves as he became a changeling once more. "You are not, Your Highness?"

"Why should I be?" She made a dismissive gesture with a hoof. "Look around you. We've done it. These--" She gestured at the floating green tubes. "They pay for the privilege of being drained. Their wildest fantasies all that they will know until the end of their days, all for the low price of the contents of their bank account." She snorted softly, a triumphant smile on her face. "We will never go hungry again."

John glanced left and right at the floating captives, willing or not. "You have... done well, My Queen."

"Of course I have." She leaned forward towards him, over the edge of her bed. "And you will help. Some humans really like the idea of doing things with a former president. That'll sell... But first, punishments!"

John jerked in place. "I thought you weren't mad?"

"And I'm not, but rules are rules." She blew across one of her hooves softly. "You messed up, time for punishments. Can't have you drones thinking that's alright to do." Her horn lit up brightly. "You've been living in the lap of love, time to pay up." Green power crashed into him as she began feeding from him without a shred of gentleness. "Mmm, delicious..."

The soundproofing was as good as promised. Neither of them heard the front door slamming open. Neither of them reacted as armed agents came rushing in, arresting everyone they put their eyes on. Some changelings took flight, erupting into their natural forms, but the building was made to be small, cozy, and windowless. This had served them well, until that very moment.

Why couldn't human buildings shapeshift as well as their natural hives?

Surprised humans were caught in the middle of their liaisons with equally shocked changelings. "Freeze!" They were wielding non-lethal weapons, but that didn't mean they couldn't hurt. Rubber bullets flew when tasers were not employed. One changeling suddenly grew as large as they could, filling up much of the space as they became a bugbear with a mighty roar.

Chrysalis inclined an ear at the faint sound. "These humans are curious creatures. Some of them fantasize about being ravaged by fearsome beasts, as if that would complete them. Others wish to be depraved and belittled. Others crave more sensible things... Are you paying attention?" John was having a hard time responding, writhing in pain under her magic assault. "How rude..."

One agent drew out a can of what could have been mistaken for mace. They sprayed the great beast in the eyes and across the face in a generous spray of bright orange. Its roars turned almost instantly from aggression to utter horror. With a rush of flames, it was a changeling again, its eyes squeezed shut, its hooves over its eyes, writhing and screaming. OC Spray was just as effective on bug bears as human eyes, and just as painful. The would-be aggressor had been reduced to a whimpering mess, handcuffed without further resistance.

They worked from room to room, subduing and arresting each person they found, creature, human, didn't matter. Even one cat that the changelings had adopted was captured and thrown in a carrier, in the off chance that it could be a changeling in disguise. The possibility wasn't 0%, so they took no chances. They had no cuffs small enough for the beast, alas.

Chrysalis looked up at her monitor, a bit of movement catching her eyes. Several humans were rushing her door. They were carrying some kind of heavy object. She raised a brow with confusion, her magic petering off. "What..."

They slammed the hand-ram against the door and the door jumped, bending inwards, but holding fast.

John couldn't help it, he smirked a little. At last, the cavalry had arrived.

"You did this!" she screamed, throwing him bodily in her magic against the wall. With a rush of flames, he hit the corner, becoming his true, new, self, a reformed changeling. "You're one of them!" She stepped down from her bed, scowling at the sudden enemy and easy thing to blame. "Wretched traitor. I will murder you slowly, so slowly."

The door exploded inwards, unable to resist further abuse. Chrysalis coiled in place, sending a beam of angry magic that carried the agent struck by it across the hallway to become a crumpled pile, but there were others behind him. Taser leads struck her and she barely got a 'ha' of laughter before tens of thousands of volts began to course through her.

She screeched as she threw out a hoof that grew and changed as it stretched outwards. "You'll never keep me," she roared, smashing through the archway of the door and slamming all three agents that were there at once. "I have more than enough love to stop--"

Her hoof, shoved into the hallway, made a perfect target. Tens of thousands of volts became hundreds as every agent with a taser made use of it. Her form had no particular resistance to electricity, not that she really understood how electricity worked or tried to work against it. She howled in pain, saved only by the fact that she reverted to her usual form, the leads falling where they were. She crumpled off the bed, collapsing in a heap in her room.

John forced himself to his hooves just in time to see other agents rushing in. "Thank god," he muttered just before one slammed him right back into the ground and began to cuff him. "Wait, I'm... with you..." They weren't in the listening mood, and he was arrested like every other changeling there.

They had to revive Chrysalis. As soon as she was thoroughly cuffed, they hurried in a medic to resuscitate her stopped heart. Thankfully electricity had stopped it, and a more carefully applied jolt was enough to get it beating properly once more, its rhythm broken, and restored. She was carted away with her subjects and her clientelle.

America would get its answers.

Author's Notes:

Mmm... Mmm... That felt like the right place to leave this chapter off. Good call?

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