//------------------------------// // Chapter 39: A Storm of Chaos // Story: Harmony and Courage: Running Parallel // by SSJRandomMaster //------------------------------// Chapter 39: A Storm of Chaos -------------------------------------------------- Azure was guided towards his home almost like a moth to a flame. The only thing he was convinced of was that he should leave Ponyville. All other things in the path, before, during, and after the move would be contemplated like an endless series of variables. The grayed-out, headband-less pony continued back to his home. "Should I take the train station? Should I walk?" Azure asked himself, a strangely distant tone from his normal self now. He sounded much less confident in his ability to decide for himself what to do. "If I walk, it'll take me forever to get back...and leaving the others behind is best if I do it soon...But if I take the train, I could get mugged! I couldn't fight back...I might wind up doing them far more harm than necessary, without meaning to...But if I don't, everypony'll wonder what's wrong, and then they'll know..." Azure continued in this haze of zero confidence, not even bothering to help ponies in need, ponies he would have otherwise helped with no questions asked. "I should walk...no...train...Walk...? Train...?" If Azure were himself, he'd have already made up his mind to get to the train. He also wouldn't even be considering this action in the first place, but he clearly wasn't himself, to anyone who cared enough to know him. "I can't do anything right..." Azure lamented, continuing his path, "Can't even do something simple right...I'm a worthless excuse of a pony..." The pony continued onward, dragging his hooves, trying to stall, as the sub-decisions of his move began to pile up. "When I get there, should I really tell the others? Should I hang around long enough to explain things?" the corrupted Azure continued, "Should I...leave without explaining anything?" Azure trotted along, dragging his hooves, trying to delay himself as much as possible. "Train...hooves...train...hooves...explain...don't explain...explain...don't explain..." There was a cry of terror that Azure definitely heard, but he didn't even so much as look towards the potential danger. He just didn't care for other ponies enough right now. -------------------------------------------------- "What are you two doing?!" Shining slid back, leaping away from grayish lasers. He wasn't quite sure what was up with his subordinates, but Crimson Blitz and Virid Strategem were definitely different. Even their armor seemed to have lost color; and Virid didn't seem to care that his armor was buffed out. "Doing what needs to be done, you novice..." Virid sneered, "You need to know how worthless your magic is!" "C'mon, Cap," Crimson taunted, "You know you can't beat us..." Shining gritted his teeth. "I'm not sure what's gotten into you two," Shining said, horn alight in a violet glow. "But I'm gonna take a page from your cousin's book...and knock some sense in your heads the old-fashioned way!" -------------------------------------------------- The hedgemaze was full of twists and turns, for sure, Twilight realized. At each turn she found one of her friends somehow twisted, no color and acting not at all like themselves. Pinkie was acting completely abrasive and way too defensive. Even smiling at her was bound to set her off now. Rarity was forcing her to lug around a gigantic rock that she was convinced was a diamond...somehow. Fluttershy was just plain mean now, not at all like her sweet self. And Rainbow, the one mare above all others who Twilight thought she could count on, was flying off. Though Applejack had obviously lied before that there wasn't anything wrong with her, this time, she was lying: there was Rainbow Dash, clearly flying off. "How can that be?" The earth began to quake as thunder roared around the lot, the sky overran with dark clouds--Twilight had to be sure they were not a shade of pink of any kind. There wasn't even any question as to what was happening. "Well, well, well..." All heads whipped around to see Discord appearing from seemingly nowhere. "Somepony broke the 'no wings, no magic' rule," A snap of griffin's talons later, Rarity and Twilight had their horns back, while Fluttershy got her wings back. "Game's over, my little ponies. You didn't find your precious elements..." Twilight couldn't hide her disbelief, and she could tell Discord relished in that fact as he gloated, "Game's over, my little ponies. You didn't find your precious elements...not that you had a chance in the first place..." Thunder roared again overhead as Discord conjured an unfolded umbrella out of thin air; the umbrella was actually inside-out without even any wind to make it so. "Looks like we might be in for a long-overdue big storm of chaos!" His veritably mad laughter echoed around them as the others began to fight amongst themselves. Fluttershy was openly mocking Pinkie Pie, which severely annoyed the latter and amused the former. Applejack was maliciously lying about just about anything she could actually lie about. Rarity, meanwhile, was viciously protecting the large rock. It was like they were entirely different ponies. What happened to them in that maze? "Girls, why are you acting like this?" Twilight asked, but none of them seemed to care for her concerns, "We have to stick together!" Still nothing. Twilight's ears twitched, and she turned, watching Discord lay back on a couch, completely uncaring of the mess he'd made, munching on some popcorn. "Stop it, Discord, you're not playing fair!" "I'm not playing fair?" Discord questioned, "I'm sorry, perhaps we haven't met. I'm Discord, spirit of chaos and disharmony..." He got in Twilight's face, "It comes with the title! Besides, I'd say it's plenty fair...to me, anyway!" "How are we supposed to find the Elements of Harmony when you took away the labyrinth before we could get to the end?" "Oh, wait, did you--" Discord couldn't hide his amusement at the whole situation, "How funny, you thought the Elements of Harmony were in the labyrinth?" Discord asked, moving up beside Twilight. With a snap of his talons, a flash filled Twilight's eyes. She was now watching the events in the castle not too long ago. She could see the group, clearly with their colors intact, standing with Princess Celestia and listening to his riddle once more. "Twists and turns are my master plan. Then find the Elements back where you began." Another flash filled Twilight's vision. The two were now back in the present. "I never said they were in the labyrinth," Discord said, still clearly beside himself. How humans like this guy is beyond me. "But...but..." Twilight said, realizing they had all been given the run-around. Even before he started, he had, unapologetically, messed with them before he'd even lured them here. "Keep trying, Twilight Sparkle," Discord continued to mock her efforts, "Maybe the magic of friendship can help you. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have some chaos to wreak." With another snap of his talons, Discord vanished, leaving behind more of his calling cards: pink, cotton-candy clouds and chocolate milk rain. "Chocolate?" Pinkie called out angrily, "I hate chocolate!" "Think, Twilight, think!" Twilight grunted to herself, "Find the Elements back where you began..." She repeated this to herself a few times, trying to find out something she may have missed before. It was, however, hard to think with her friends continuing their out-of-character antics. Part of Twilight just wished they could be over with this so she could go home. She also wondered where Azure was in all of this. It wasn't like him to not be around in times like this. However, it finally occurred to her where she should look for the Elements. "Wait a minute...home!" Twilight smiled. -------------------------------------------------- Unfortunately, the solution to the problem was far harder to come by than Twilight realized it would be. Rarity refused to drop the rock, which she had taken to naming "Tom", so the group's pace was agonizingly slow. Not only that, but it seemed like reality around them was just getting more and more unpredictable. The ground seemed to change from dirt to other things, but it seemed like soap was the best. Not only that, but day and night were shifting every few minutes. Twilight wasn't sure what was going on. To add further insult to the whole situation, her friends were fighting amongst themselves the whole way there. "And why are you laughing, huh?!" Pinkie yelled out, glaring at Fluttershy. "Because it's funny." "No it's not!" "Then why am I laughing?" Fluttershy proceeded to let out several punctuated laughs for emphasis. "Girls, stop!" Twilight yelled at them, trying to catch their attention. "We can't be fighting amongst ourselves. Now come on, we're almost to Pony-" Twilight turned back to where she knew home was, and let out a gasp at what she saw. Ponyville was not normal. Buildings were floating in the sky. Some were upside down yet still connected to the patch of earth it stood on. Cotton candy clouds were everywhere; some random areas raining chocolate rain. The sky was now green, the ground now a plaid green-blue pattern. "Do you like it?" With a flash of light, Discord appeared in front of Twilight and her friends, "Some of my best work if I do say so myself," He put his two vividly different arms to his sides as he admired his work. "What have you done to Ponyville?!" "Hey, compared to the state those other ponies left it in, I'd say it's an improvement..." Discord said, "Especially compared to the state you all seem to like it in, it's a big improvement!" "Well, don't enjoy it for long, Discord, because as soon as we find the Elements you're going back to stone..." Twilight walked past Discord, only to find herself losing traction and sliding along the ground. "Whoa!" She exclaimed before falling flat on her stomach and landing face-first into suds. That was only for a second before somepony crashed into her. "Sorry," Applejack's voice abrasively called in. If Twilight didn't have eyefuls of suds she might have seen telltale signs on her friend's face it was just the opposite of the truth. However, Twilight began to rub the soap away from her eyes, squinting. As she began to finish wiping the suds away, she saw something; another pony. She couldn't make out the colors, but she definitely remembered the body shape. Azure...!? Twilight thought to herself, getting the soap out of her eyes quickly. As soon as her eyes were clear, she saw there was no longer a pony there. Getting up, she looked around, still not seeing anypony else other than her grayed-out friends and a very smug-looking Discord. "Did anypony else see that, I think I saw Azure..." Twilight said aloud. Most of the others didn't pay attention. Discord remained surprisingly passive for a creature that was probably still laughing quite openly on the inside, and Applejack... "Az, where!?" She quickly snapped to full attention, looking around. Twilight definitely felt slightly suspicious at her very conspicuous smile, but opted not to say anything. After a few moments, Applejack's smile faded into a glare. "I don't see him," Applejack said, "Now who's the liar?!" Twilight felt slightly taken aback seeing Applejack so...aggressive, over what she thought was a dead issue, "I swear I thought I saw him..." Twilight said, "Really wish he was here right now..." Her worried glance would have been cared about, had her friends not been altered and were she not within inches of Discord. "Oh, I bet you'd like that..." Applejack said, walking up to Twilight, "To have him show up every time you're lonely, just so he can comfort you..." Over the earth pony's shoulder, she could see Discord with a tripod and a very conspicuous laugh, filming the spectacle for his own amusement. "Bet you never even thought somepony else would like that too!" Applejack hissed, practically in Twilight's face. "W-what's that supposed to mean?" The purple unicorn wasn't sure what had gotten in her friend. Applejack was scowling straight into her very soul for what felt like forever. Applejack eventually receded, letting out a huff. "Nothin'," Applejack's face pinched again, "Don't we got Elements to find or somethin'?" Applejack walked away. Eventually, Twilight remembered she could move, and began again her way back to Ponyville. Applejack...what's happened to you...? You and the others...? -------------------------------------------------- Azure Courage knew one thing for sure: he couldn't face up to his friends. There was that strange abomination with them, too, who seemed to have opened his eyes to the havoc he himself had wreaked on their hearts with his unthinking ways. If he had been aware he was hypnotized, he'd have probably continued to deny the fact. However, as such, he was still unaware. As for his decision on whether or not to take the train or walk, the decision had been made for him when he'd reached the train station and discovered that the trains had been changed into giant steel cobras. Had Azure been himself, he would have taken them on without hesitation. However, he wasn't himself. As soon as he saw the train-snakes, he immediately turned on his hoof and began sprinting away from the train station. Now, his decision on whether or not to tell the others what he was doing was clear: he couldn't tell them at all what they were doing. Nopony bothered him; he could hear Applejack yelling at Twilight over him up there, and it made him feel horrible to be the one that caused it all. Not even the abomination from before that had opened his eyes to the "truth" of his actions seemed to notice him when he had shown around them. The gutless pony continued to drag his hooves, finding the ground now an assortment of graham crackers. He didn't even care where he was going. He knew he was getting close to the end now. Soon, he'd be packing up and ready to leave Ponyville together. The pony continued to walk through the forest outside of Ponyville, steeped deeply in his own self-loathing and lack of ability to make a choice, when he somehow happened on a clearing. The pony looked around, grayed-out eyes scanning the area. Something washed over him at this moment, something so intense he couldn't deny it was real... ---------- Azure had taken to meditating in this spot, to up his magic control. Very rarely did he get a lot of peace to get super deep into it. It was shortly after he was crowned the Protector. The unicorn had taken to it to keep his magic control up, and he knew he couldn't get a whole lot of peace even in his home since Pinkie knew where he lived. However, this day was different. It was the day Virid and Crimson had visited, shortly after Azure had recovered from the whole situation with Trixie. He could see a pony who looked nothing like himself, facing against the very ponies that had entirely abandoned him themselves. To be precise, he had dueled Virid here, and had been losing, badly. "If not for their numbers, the waste of space wouldn't be so bad, but seeing as how they are...they can't harness magic actively..." Virid said, in the past. "They have no worth. Come back to Canterlot with us, Azure. You should be able to find balance there..." "You seriously believe what you're saying...?" Deep down, Azure faintly remembered this indignation... "You've known me, how long, Blue Soap? I've always believed this..." His past self's rage at his cousin's statement felt so distant yet so justified, so familiar yet so unlike how he should have acted. No...it was justified...who was he kidding...? The past Azure's horn roared to life... "You fool! Whether you care to admit it or not, these ponies are not worthless! I won't ever be like you, Virid! I need them...I need them all! You've read my letters! I've shown why each one of them has their worth! But you ignore it in place of your magical bigotry! Magic use has no bearing on whether or not a pony is worthless! Yeah, sure, Crimson can increase his speed. Yeah, maybe you can change your magic to physical attacks! These six are the best of friends a pony could ask for! And that's why, Virid...that's why I won't lose to you!" --------- Azure's eyes widened as the memory washed over him, but he quickly scoffed. "What was I thinking..." Azure grumbled, rubbing his head. For some reason, it suddenly began to hurt for reasons other than the cuts that were still on his body. "Virid had the right to an opinion..." Did he now...? A different voice asked from within. However, it didn't shake Azure's resolve to abandon those ideals he stated that very day. Or at least, it didn't shake it enough to make him stop and think about why he did the things he did, and what had really happened during each situation that Discord had called into question. Azure trotted around again, trying to find his way through Ponyville. His home was on the complete other side of the town from Canterlot, but he didn't care. When he got home, he was moving, pure and simple. He continued his walk, past more troubled or altered ponies. However, as he happened upon a floating gingerbread house of sorts, Azure felt the sands of time wash over him again. ---------- Pinkie's spirit had been unshakeable, Azure knew. However, after the Shadow Fangs had attacked Applejack's farm and sparked the incidental attraction between them, Azure had went to check on each of his friends in turn, only to find them, for the most part, unconcerned, having faith in each other. However, when he got to Pinkie, he found something surprising...she wasn't exactly herself. "You mean the spooky story you told?" Pinkie asked in reference to Azure's account of the two incidents prior to that winter; he'd told it to the ponies that didn't already know in Twilight's home just a few days prior. "Didn't scare you too bad, did it?" The cyan colt repeated, making sure to keep his eyes on the mare's again. "I'm not scared...It's just like my song..." Pinkie sang again the song about giggling at the ghosties. Azure had his own solution to them at the time. While Pinkie had acted normally, Azure recalled there was something off about her...she seemed worried despite her cheery demeanor. "Is that it, Azie? I need to get back to work so the Cakes don't think I'm not doing stuff..." Azure remembered he'd picked up Pinkie's fear; it was strangely akin to his own at the time... "You're scared for them, aren't you...? ... It's not that something might happen to you, it's that something might happen to the others..." Pinkie's mane and tail deflated just a bit, tipping Azure off that he'd gotten it right. Azure would have been more convinced he'd hurt her, if his subconscious hadn't continued the scene. "Pinkie, I can understand your fear...truth be told, I am too. But you don't need to be. They aren't helpless! Rainbow, Applejack, and Twilight can take care of themselves." Azure remembered he hadn't included Rarity and Fluttershy in that list. In retrospect, maybe he should have, a voice echoed in the back of his head. "I can tell you now, no matter what, I'll make sure our friends remain safe. I'll personally see to it none of our friends get hurt." "You promise?" She looked to him, her eyes full of hope again. Not that they'd lost a great deal of it. "I promise..." Azure smiled, but the look on his face quickly faded when he saw Pinkie's expression didn't immediately change. She started to smile, but she wasn't satisfied with just that. "Uh-uh," The earth pony grunted the negative, "You have to Pinkie Promise." "Cross your heart...Hope to fly, stick a cupcake in your eye." "...Stick a cupcake in my eye..." Azure winced when he watched his past self do it. ----- "Was I really this kind of pony...? Are all of my decisions really so harmful...?" ----- "Thanks, Azie!" Again, her mood returned to the abnormal space he remembered it being ever since he'd known her. Quickly, Azure made the mental note to hurt the pony that would cause the mare to ever lose her smile, if only because the fact a sad Pinkie was a sight that depressed him just by schematic. "Anytime, Pinkie..." "Oh, and Azie? Nopony breaks a Pinkie Promise..." The wink she gave him, for some inexplicable reason, told the cyan colt he really did not want to break the promise he'd just made. Not that he planned to, anyway. He tried to hide the shiver that the look had given him and smiled again. "Don't plan on it..." --------- The grayed-out Azure remained passively shocked. Was that memory true? Had he given comfort to a friend who he knew was not herself at the time? The memory of the "Pinkie Promise" he'd made intrigued him. There was no way...Weren't all of his decisions just "shoot first, think later"? "I..." Azure stated, grimacing, as his head hurt more with the memory. "I...I have to get home..." Azure began to walk, a much faster pace in his walk. He still walked past those in danger, still too afraid to help those accosted by possessed inanimate objects. However, if anypony could notice him as he passed them, they could see a very light, almost non-existent, spot of color among his gray, dismal coat.