Chapter 32: The return of a Princess – Part 1
The royal guards stood still in front of the gate, in a closed formation, aiming their weapons at the door. Their eyes grew large, when they heard the first cracks, the death scream of the wooden gate, which eventually gave in to the violent attacks of the changelings and broke into pieces. The stallions immediately faced dozens of hissing, feral beasts. Only the pile of debris and furniture stood between them and now that the way was open, the invaders were ready to swarm Canterlot Castle. The guards glared at their enemies with somber faces, knowing they won't have enough power to stop them now. Yet, they ossified their hearts and prepared for the final battle, using up their last reserves of strength.
“I didn't thought it will end like this.” one of the younger unicorn guards said grimly.
“Be strong.” the platoon leader replied and turned to his company. “Gentle-colts... thank you for your service, it's been an honor... DESTROY AS MANY AS YOU CAN!”
A devilish smirk expanded on the faces of several changelings as a response, as they raised the sharp, ebony blades in their hooves to strike down the resistance. The young unicorn guard shut his eyes, and the attackers paused for a second, to enjoy every drop of their victory. Both the changelings and the royal guards were utterly shocked when a mighty roar torn the deadly silence apart and trembled the ground beneath their hooves. The dark creatures who were the first in line didn't even have the time to look up and see the instrument of their demise. The ones behind them only saw a rapid golden streak, before their comrades have fallen. Death arrived on swift wings from above, in the form of a snow white mare.
“SO FAR AND NO FARTHER!” the solar alicorn roared on the Royal Canterlot Voice.
Celestia's sudden appearance in the battle caused quite a commotion on both sides. The royal guards turned to stone, their jaw dropped in shock and surprise. The sun goddess did not hesitate, she fought vigorously, decimating the changeling attack force. She alone started to push back the invaders, who were no match for her superior combat skills, as she struck down with the power of 13 years of suppressed fury. And she did not come alone.
“RELEASE THE ARROWS!” the Princess of the Sun commanded, her voice echoing in the hallway.
Three dozen archers emerged from the two balconies above the gate who all answered Celestia's call. The two pegasus guards who she met at Luna's office helped her gather the warriors from the walls. The solar alicorn flared her wings and took off, while the royal guards behind her spread out to different directions before the arrows began to rain down on the invaders. Their attack stuck in and they soon encountered the Creator as the arrowheads pierced their hearts and other vital organs.
“DO NOT RETREAT! DO NOT HESITATE AND DO NOT SHOW MERCY!” Celestia shouted passionately. “THIS IS OUR HOME!!! PONIES OF EQUESTRIA! AFTER ME!!!”
She destroyed the remains of the gate with a strong kick and jumped into the whirling mass of the changeling army. Seeing her courage, the exhausted royal guards were filled by new strength and determination and broke out of the Castle, following the path their Princess was creating. The numbers of the enemy losses grew exponentially and Celestia was causing so much damage in so little time, that the changeling attackers turned around and tried to run away in panic.
“DESTROY THEM! NOT EVEN ONE SHALL ESCAPE!” the sun goddess shouted.
She threw her sword up in the air without even looking. The golden blade went through the body of a flying beast and returned into the hooves of its owner. The changeling plummeted into the earth after a wing flap. After an hour or so, Celestia cleared the parade-ground of the Castle with her handful of warriors. The bodies of the fallen changelings covered the ground everywhere, only a few were lucky enough to escape her wrath. The enemy sustained heavy losses, the attack halted completely and the invaders retreated to downtown.
The Princess of the Sun stood in the middle of the battlefield, resting the sword by her side. Her snow white coat was soaked with the green, fluorescent blood of the changelings and her features were relentless. Her sharp eyes were constantly sweeping the area, as if she would suspect another attack soon. There was no sign of discomposure on her, she idled there immovably, like an alabaster statue. Only her rapid breathing indicated that she was a living pony. Her mane and tail billowed gently around her in sky-blue, lime and pink colors. She combed back the sparkling hair, revealing her scars, not even minding the circle of royal guards forming around her. She just stood at the sight of the victorious battle, enjoying the open air, the soft breeze and the weak sunlight for the first time in 13 years. Since the fight was over, more and more ponies showed up to see what happened that changed the outcome. They gasped for air in surprise as they laid eyes upon the dainty, yet strong figure of the solar alicorn, but none of them dared to approach her. Celestia looked around and saw worn out, frightened faces and her confidence started to melt away. Even after what she did, her subjects were still terrified of her.
Or they fear me exactly because of what I just did... the sun goddess thought. Desperation and doubt started to overwhelm her soul. She stood in the middle of the circle of the Royal Guard, feeling naked and exposed and could not decide what to do. The tension built up in the silence, the wind made the only sound. Every muscle in her body strained and her wings fluttered as she prepared to fly away, but something stopped her.
“ALL HAIL THE SOLAR PRINCESS!!!” a guard called out all of a sudden, his voice traveled far with the winds.
“WE HAVE WON!” another guard exclaimed.
After a few moments of silence, the crowd began to cheer, praising Celestia's name in union.
“WE HAVE WON!” hundreds of throats shouted the same at once.
Celestia remained mute, but the reaction of the crowd left her jaw hanging. The ponies around her began to approach the white alicorn, like if she was a visitor from another world. A sigh of relief escaped her chest and a gentle smile formed in the corner of her lips.
But soon, the relieved, calm expression melted away from her face. She furrowed a brow and looked around once again, like she was searching for something. A sudden sense of coldness penetrated her mind and made her disconcerted. Her skillful eyes swept the horizon and soon spotted a lone silhouette on the hill above the downtown buildings, wobbling toward the Castle on the main road.
“Mirage...” the solar Princess gasped.
The cobalt stallion had no idea he was walking into the arms of the enemy. The entire changeling army stood between him and Canterlot Castle, for the invaders assumed control over the heart of the capital. Celestia opened her wings and took off, flying rapidly over the heads of the dark beasts, carefully evading the magic bolts fired on her. The changelings soon spotted the lone earth pony and a smaller squadron was already surrounding him. Mirage narrowed his eyes and glared at the enemy, preparing to battle for the last time. Despite his weakened condition, he managed to take out a few of the changelings, but eventually he flopped down to the ground completely exhausted. The mud was cold, but it felt good to his aching joints. His eyes slowly closed, blocking the image of the approaching creatures.
I did my part... Was his final thought before he saw a bright light through his eyelids.
Mirage heard some rumble around him, but he did not have the strength to open his eyes. In the next moment, gentle hooves lifted him up from the dirt, into the air. Pleasurable warmness suffused his tired body and his lips curled up into a weak, but satisfied smile. His eyes finally opened for a little once more, but his vision was blurry. The stallion only saw a pair of white wings flapping majestically, taking him higher and higher, gliding in the skies, while numerous magic bolts exploded around him.
“My Princess...” he whispered powerlessly, being certain of his own approaching death.
Then his mind gave in to the exhaustion from all the ordeals he's been through and his consciousness slowly drifted into a thick haze.
*** ***
The changeling colonel walked into the residence of Cantelrot's Minister of Education, which was currently occupied by the beasts and functioning as the headquarters of high ranking officers. His heart was heavy and every step meant a struggle, for he knew what awaits him at the end of the road. With an anxious sigh, he opened the door in front of him and entered the spacious living room. There were several officers inside, leaning over a shimmery, holographic map of Canterlot, but one tall figure stood out from the crowd. She immediately looked up from the map and gestured the colonel to move forward.
“Report.” Chrysalis said shortly.
“My Queen..." the colonel began and gulped in fear. “The attack... have failed.”
“WHAT?!” the changeling queen shouted furiously; her subject winced by the harsh voice and the other officers gazed at her as well.
“My Queen... it was...”
“Would any of you fine gentle-colts care to explain to me how a weakened and vastly outnumbered Royal Guard managed to repel such an intensive and overwhelming assault?” Chrysalis asked on a surprisingly gentle tone.
The eyes of the perplexed and frightened need officers met, but none was brave enough to say a word, as the Queen continued.
“I thought I made it clear: I want the Castle. If we claim it, our victory will finally break the spirits of the ponies and demoralize them completely.” her jagged horn flashed with emerald green magic aura and an orb of the same color formed around the colonel.
“No, please! We did everything we could!” he cried in desperation.
“You wouldn't be here, if that was true. “ Chrysalis replied sharply, piercing her eyes into the changeling's. “You would be lying dead on the battlefield. But do not worry. I will arrange that for you.”
As soon as she said the last words, the orb around the colonel began to shrink slowly, leaving less and less space around his body.
“No, no, no!!! My Queen, please have mercy!!!” he called out in pain as the solid magical aura started to crush him very slowly.
“Mercy is such an obsolete concept.” Chrysalis stated cruelly. “Failure is not an option.”
The dark mare turned around and walked back to the other officers, who tried to look away from the colonel in agony. The green orb continued to shrink even more and the sound of screams and breaking bones filled the room.
“Everything went according to the plan...” the colonel rattled in anguish. “We took down the resistance... Aaaaarrgh... we were about to swarm the Castle...”
The Queen did not even paid attention to his words, and resumed studying the map in front of her, while the other officers tried their best to ignore his suffering. The colonel was forced into a fetus-posse by the orb, which already broke his wings and horn, but was still shrinking relentlessly.
“Please, listen to me...” he coughed vehemently as he was using up the last reserve of oxygen in the death trap. “The Castle was ours...”
“Make sure you get these orders to our troops in time.” Chrysalis commanded, handing over some documents to one of the officers, and turned around to leave the premise.
“We've defeated the alicorns...” the colonel gasped. “but there was another... it wasn't our fault... it was Celestia!”
Chrysalis halted abruptly in the door, and her eyes grew large. The magic orb stopped decreasing in size as the Queen turned back once more and approached the trapped changeling.
“You mentioned a name... What was it again?” she asked softly.
“CELESTIA! IT WAS CELESTIA! SHE DECIMATED OUR ATTACK FORCE!!!” the colonel cried in pain.
“Thank you for delivering this vital information to me, colonel.” Chrysalis said with a smile, but it disappeared from her dark features after a second. “But it still won't save you.”
“NOOO, PLE...”
His last words were cut short as the emerald sphere shrank to a size of a basketball in a second and turned red, as blood filled its inside. It was visible for one final moment, then it vanished into thin air with a flash. The other officers were shcoked by this brutal murder, but were too intimidated to speak a word. Chrysalis walked to the large window, which was facing toward Canterlot and feasted her eyes on the city. She gazed at the Castle and a devilish grin expanded on her face.
“Well-well-well, it seems an old nemesis of mine decided to return from her exile. I'll make sure she receives a proper welcome. BRING THE PRISONER TO ME!!!
"I'll make sure she receives a proper welcome."
