Sides - Discord and Chrysalis
Her eyes darted around with intensity the moment she appeared, as she jumped out of her chair and allowed her satin wings to beat furiously as an expression of her absolute displeasure.
Outside, the skies glowed red, blotting out the dawn, faintly pulsating lights echoing their intent on the distant horizon.
The Cafe remained empty, dusty, dirty, cracked and unpolished; the only upright table the one from which Queen Chrysalis pulled away.
The periodic waves of sirens and the rumble of air pushed past the walls, filling the room with muffled thuds as dust scattered from the ceiling like a sprinkling of salt upon a dead flowerbed.
The queen narrowed her eyes, glaring at the one sitting across from her.
“Do you understand what you have done?” She spat. “The agreement promised your non-involvement until the talks were concluded!”
“Ah, ah, ah,” Discord shook a finger, relieving himself from the chair to stand in kind. “The agreement promised me not to act under command of Queen Twilight or any of her surrogate forces. It said nothing about me acting under my own whims.”
“Do you think,” Chrysalis blared, fury in her eyes, “that mere wordplay will excuse you from a violation of the terms? The hearing is tomorrow! And you could not even wait one single day?”
“Oh please.” Discord rolled his eyes. “Do you think none of us already know how these talks will go? We all know that you’re just stalling for time. But that’s not what I’m here about.”
“Then you know that you have given me the excuse to slaughter all of your kind! You kidnap me while I humbly abide by the rules! The very reason why your non-involvement was dictated!” Flecks of spit ran off her forked tongue. “I will run the blood of thousands into the ground!”
Discord shrugged, smiling faintly. “Fine then. You got me. Leave. Walk out that door.”
He pointed, a single scaly claw hovering in place.
“You should know, of course,” Discord continued, “that we are currently in the middle of Canterlot. And, oh. You do seem to be trespassing, a clear violation of the conditions that the peace talks were built on.”
The queen’s pupils constricted to pinpricks.
“Now, should I start calling for the guards now, or did you want to run off first, maybe turn into something else, make this a little fun?”
The queen lowered her head slightly, fumes of green smoke emanating from her nostrils. “What do you want?”
“Just to talk,” Discord said, beckoning to the chair beside her. He didn’t wait before retaking his own seat.
Chrysalis remained standing.
“Suit yourself,” Discord said. “Now, as I mentioned, I came here by my own volition, believe it or not. The games between mere mortals do not interest me in the slightest.”
The creature across the table assumed a twisted, bemused smile.
“However, I am here to ask you to consider taking the peace negotiations tomorrow seriously.”
“I beg your pardon?” her smile dropped.
“You heard me.” Discord narrowed his eyelids.”Take them seriously. Actually consider peace. Consider stopping all this… foolishness.”
The queen stood, silent, trembling with anger. Finally, her mouth spread open, and with a expulsion of ichor, she laughed one single time.
“You!” She declared. “You? Asking for peace?”
“Yes, me.”
“The lord of chaos?” Chrysalis sang, mockingly, shriekingly.
“Surprised? Well, isn’t that just what chaos is? Always surprising? Always–”
“More foolish wordplay!” Chrysalis cut him off. “Your trickery may work for those with slower minds, but you are dealing with the Changeling Queen! And she will not be easily swayed!”
“Alright then,” Discord drummed his paw on the table, “what else can I say?”
“Why would you want peace between our kinds?”
“Maybe I just feel sorry for everyone. Ponies and changelings alike.”
“I do not believe you to be capable of a single altruistic deed. You are even more heartless than I. Lie to me again, and I will walk out those doors myself, and give you the war that you so very much desire to avoid.”
“You certainly are committed, aren’t you, Chrissy?” Discord chuckled. “No. No, I think I shall call your bluff.”
“You think this to be a bluff? Do you doubt my devotion to this war?”
“Ooooh! Okay. This is fun.” Discord danced his hands through the air with glee. “Let’s play this out. Let’s see. So, okay. You walk out that door, and you get captured. Right? Then what happens? Oh, let’s see. Violation of the terms also means that I no longer have to play nice. And then… oh! You’re far away from home, no backup, no magical shields prepared, you know, given how easily I managed to snatch you up… Do you see where I’m going?”
“You would not kill me with such underhanded tactics.”
“Wouldn’t I?”
“The years have made you soft!” Chrysalis shot out once again, with venom and spite. “The ponies have weakened your heart!”
“Which heart, though?”
Chrysalis plucked up a tattered, weary hoof and pointed it toward the Draconequus. “You hide behind your jokes and cavalier nature. But in the end, you are merely hiding what you know to be the truth. It is the same reason why you listen to the False Queen Twilight. It is why you even agree to such silly things as contracts in the first place!”
The changeling brought her hoof back down.
“No. I am inclined now, to believe that you indeed wish to avoid further bloodshed. To avoid further culling. That much is certain. You wish to spare others from death. But I do not believe the reasons for such are for the simple love of the ones who have made you this way – weak and pathetic. If anything, I would believe you are merely trying to stretch out their torment and suffering.”
“Well,” Discord shrugged again. “So if I said that were the reason, would you consider maybe stopping all this silly little fighting?”
The queen smirked, baring her fangs. “No.”
“Fine then. The truth. If it will please you.”
“It will not. But it will show me how far you have been broken.”
“War… is boring.” Discord looked up. “And I’ve had enough of it.”
“Boring? All this mayhem and destruction is boring to you?”
“Only a fool would confuse chaos with constructed warfare. No. War is utterly, absolutely boring. And when it’s all done and everyone’s dead, then what? No one for me to play with. No one for me to… annoy.” Discord clicked his tongue. “And that would be a real shame.”
“How absolutely selfish.”
“I’ve had nothing to do all this while, you know. Not a single day of fun. So would you please stop all this fighting so that I can get back to business?”
“No.”
Discord sighed, bobbing his head. “Figured. And how much longer do you want this war to last? Another two years? Three? Maybe make it eight so we can have a snappy name. ‘The Ten-year War’. It’ll be talked about in legend. By whomever’s left over, I suppose.”
“As long as it takes!”
“Now, I don’t see why you need to fight. You will find Queen Twilight’s offer tomorrow rather generous, I believe. Fertile lands. Free rein. Everything you’re fighting for, really. You get it all.”
“Not everything.”
“What could possibly be missing?”
“Do you… think…” Chrysalis hissed, “that I do this for land? For tithe? For what I can merely take? No. I do this because I want to. I care not who has to die for it. But the heavy hearts and burning minds, and the pain that is drawn forth from every single tear that the False Queen sheds each night reaches me in my homeland. And I await the day that I am able to drink of it myself.”
“So this is all… just for revenge?”
“Is it not a simple reason? One that I think even you can appreciate.”
“How much do you hate Queen Twilight?” Discord lowered his voice to a mutter.
“I am beyond hating. She fuels me. She is the only reason I continue to live. As long as her world continues to crumble, I will survive. Nothing else will nourish me.” Chrysalis ran her tongue over her cracked, dry lips.
“I see. Well, that’s rather unfortunate, isn’t it?”
“Perhaps for you.”
“So you aren’t going to change your mind, are you?”
“Not until I have what I want.”
Discord kept quiet, eyes straight, looking off into the distance, to the world outside the window.
“Now, our conversation is over.”
“Yes. Yes, it is,” Discord mumbled.
“I am disappointed, though.” Chrysalis smirked. “No theatrics? You truly have gone soft. I expected mo–”
Discord snapped his fingers.
The queen disappeared.
No, there was no need for theatrics.
No need for anything else.
Discord, absent of any trace of a grin, snapped his fingers once more, and a laminated square materialized between his fingers.
He stared at it.
“Mister Discord?” The Owner said, as he drew forth from the quaking shadows. “You appear to have had time to consider. Can I take your order?”
Discord spoke, as he stared forth, not turning to regard the being waiting at his side.
“Hate is a powerful force, isn’t it?” Discord asked.
“Quite so, sir,” replied The Owner.
“Almost as powerful as other things.”
“And what would these ‘other things’ be?” The Owner asked.
Discord shifted in his chair, gazing toward the master of the broken bar. “Bring me whatever you have. I don’t care what it is, as long as I can drink it.”
“Very good, sir. I shall be back momentari–”
“No. Bring two. One for me,” Discord settled the old photo of Fluttershy down on the table, “and one for her.”
“Very good.” The Owner nodded, disappearing.
Discord sighed again, staring at those long-gone eyes that stared back.
“I tried,” he whispered. “I’m sorry. I really did.”
Fingers danced upon the table, absently remembering times once past and nevermore.
“But now, I will have to break our little promise,” he told the room. “I’m sure you’ll understand. Right?”
He frowned, as he listened to a phantom.
“You always make it difficult for me.”
He pulled back, stretching, the act itself giving him some reprieve, as he turned to gaze at the skies.
“War it is, then.”
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Every bright future casts at least one shadow. Well, they did prior to the cross-temporal consolidation.
That was... intense.
thank you thank you thank you
5894191 Heh, I completely glossed over that while prereading.
5894092
Yeah, now it's sort of like a grab-bag of fun sticks.
Wooooow.
Yes, I can see this happening.
Just... the two drinks, the second one is for Fluttershy's picture?
Eh. I'll roll with it.
5894744
It's more for her memory, eh?
Dunno what to say to this one. I love it, sure; I'm just having trouble forming a proper impression. Maybe Discord resonated with me more than I thought, since my thoughts are a little chaotic at the moment. Regardless, very enjoyable (as always).
Ooh, my, this... This was positively perfect. Not to mention it also gave me flashbacks of Ponies Make War/The Immortal Game*
*Same story, different titles. First was the original, Second is the current and final title.
Alright Chryssy, Discord just did his unlevel best to avoid going to war with you. How much of an idiot do you have to be to force his hand/talon/claw on it anyway when you completely lack any of the magical macguffins required to deal with him?
Wow.
Blessed Luna, Kitsune, that was rough on the heart. It was bad enough to see Chrysalis so unrelenting; I'm rather optimistic at heart and hoped that some of what Discord was saying - not to mention the (apparent potential) change in behavior - would get through to her.
Then the photo appeared, and I finally really grasped the timeline... and that's when the pain hit.
I want what Lauren Faust said about Twilight not outliving her friends to be true. In this story it's clear that wasn't the case, at least for one of them. Ouch.
Well done, many-tail. Thanks for another wonderful story.
Light and laughter,
SongCoyote
Nothing is more boring than a corpse
I was reminded of this quote from Discworld: