Eris' game

by Java Joe

The Final Battle

They didn't have to wait long until Celestia showed up once again with her sister Luna in tow. Celestia looked a little frazzled and Luna looked more than just a little sleepy.

Rick explained the situation to them, told them of his suspicions and brought them over to where Twyla was. Both alicorns looked at the child, he saw the golden glow of Celestia's magic and the dark cobalt blue of her sister's envelop the child. Twilight came up next to him and grabbed a hold of his arm. She didn't want to speak but felt it was difficult to keep her mouth closed.

After a moment the glow subsided and Luna said, "it is difficult to say. We think there might be something there but we... I mean I'm not sure." She turned to Luna and asked, "with your permission sister?"

Celestia nodded and Luna came up behind the baby and gently placed her hands on the child's head. She closed her eyes and her magic covered not only herself but Twyla as well. Nothing happened for a minute or two then Luna's eyes opened but they were completely dark.

"Tell me who you are?" Celestia asked.

"Oh Celestia, don't tell me you've forgotten already?" Luna said but in Discord's voice.

"Discord!"

"Oh yes! I'm back baby and I'm now a part of this child. You can't get rid of me without getting rid of her."

Twilight cried out in anguish at those words, her magic coming to the fore, her eyes blazing with fury and in an unearthly voice that shook everybody there yelled, "leave my baby alone Discord!"

"Ah, the Element of Magic. What are you going to do? Kill your only child? That's the only way to get rid of me. So go ahead, take your best shot."

The house started to rumble at that point and the ground shook as Twilight's anger grew, there was no reaching her at this point. She was a mare who was protecting her family in the only way she knew how and to hell with the consequences. She wanted her baby back and she'd get her back at any cost.

Rick, a little more pragmatically just slapped her across the face. She turned her terrible gaze on him and looked like she was going to strike him down when the glow in her eyes died and she collapsed in his arms, crying bitterly. He looked at his Mom asking her to help out.

Mabel shook her head slightly as if clearing it before coming over and gently bringing Twilight back to the couch where she comforted her the best way she could.

"Well played Rick. Looks like this round goes to you."

"What do you want Discord? You can't do anything in that body, not yet. She's still not even a week old. It's hardly a fitting vessel for you."

"You're right, but there was a serious lack of available bodies to deal with when you and those fillies tried to defeat me. I had to act fast and your brat was the best place to hide. I had hoped to wait a little while longer but I never figured on you creating a new portal and getting trapped on this side. But maybe that's for the best, over here I have no competition."

"You're a monster Discord. She's just a baby, she has no stake in any of this. Take me instead, I'm grown, I'm young and can legally do things like buy guns and drink alcohol. With Twyla you'd have to wait a few years until she's able to talk."

"No Rick, you can't do that, it's what he wants, " Celestia warned.

"Celestia... that's my baby he's got. Wh-wh-what am I supposed to do? Just let him stay inside her, slowly corrupting her over time until she's as evil as he is? I'd rather die than let that happen and if that means I need to take her place I'll do it in a heartbeat."

"Rick no!" Twilight cried. "I can't lose you! Can't we use the elements of harmony?"

He turned to look at Twilight and said, "babe, we tried that the last time he possessed Trixie and it didn't destroy him. He was just able to jump to another body. It has to be me. If he took control of you, then he'd not only have your power at his disposal but that would leave Twyla without her mother."

Without waiting for confirmation from anybody Rick just walked up to Twyla and said, "take me instead."

Immediately he felt sick, nauseous and something foul and sinister seemed to pour into his very being. His body went numb and he felt himself falling down a dark hole as if he was pushed to the side. Cold, iron chains seemed to pop out of nowhere to bind him tightly. Then he heard a chilling sound, it was his voice laughing in triumph but laughing without humour or joy. It was one of the most chilling things he had ever heard.

The magic that Luna had used on Twyla stopped and both alicorns now focused their attention on Rick, binding his arms and legs so that he couldn't move. Twyla started to cry at this point and Twilight rushed over to take her little girl and held her close to her bosom.

"GET THEE ALL BACK TO EQUESTRIA, " Luna boomed slipping back into her old style of speaking, "DISCORD CANNOT FOLLOW THEE THERE!"

Twilight took Rick's parents with her and they all made their way downstairs to the library and safety.

"Damn! That's loud there Luna! You maybe want to turn down the volume a bit?" Discord complained using Rick's voice and words.

"Why did you send them to Equestria sister?"

"It's because she wants to kill me and didn't want to do it in front of Twilight or Rick's parents isn't it sweet thing?" Discord said looking straight at Luna.

"Neigh! I simply wanted them away from this creature so that there could be no other possession."

"She's lying of course. She doesn't want you to think she's like Nightmare Moon anymore so she comes up with this lie to mask her true objective. Once I'm gone, she'll see if she can stir up more trouble until she's the one ruling the night and the day."

"Discord, I learned long ago that your words could not be trusted. I am not listening to you or your lies, " Celestia said.

"Ah, that's what you say but can you afford not to listen to me? Deep down you know what I'm saying is true. You can't trust your sister and every day you're afraid that she'll turn back into Nightmare Moon."

During all this, Rick struggled to regain control of his mind and body but it was no use. Discord was like a force of nature, towering over him and his power was like that of a god compared to a normal nothing like Rick. So maybe it was necessary to try a different track. Instead of fighting he just sat down in his mind, unable to do anything to fight him and simply observed.

"What's this Rick? Giving up so soon? Oh c'mon I know you can fight me better than that. Look, I'll even turn my back on you, " Discord taunted Rick from within his own mind.

The sound of Twyla's crying disappeared which meant she and the rest had gone back to Equestria. Rick sighed in relief as there was no way Discord could follow them back. Responding to Discord he said within his mind, "what's the point? You're stronger than I am, my wife and child are safe as are my folks and given enough time Luna will probably wind up killing this body along with you. Basically I've won."

"What do you mean you've won? I'm the one in control here."

"No you're not. This is my mind, my rules and my body. You're just an unwelcome guest that I need to make sure they can't leave until I want them to, " Rick of course was bluffing. He didn't have the strength to defeat Discord head to head but maybe, just maybe he was sneaky enough to make sure Discord stayed where he was.

During this altercation in Rick's mind, his body had gone limp as the spirit of disharmony was no longer focused on it but instead was listening for the first time to a little voice in his own head.

Once through the portal into Equestria, Twilight finally allowed herself to breathe. Twyla was crying, possibly hungry, or maybe just fussing. Twilight excused herself and trotted upstairs with her foal.

Mabel and Walter took some getting adjusted to walking on 4 legs. It was because of that focus on their hooves that they didn't notice Spike come up from the basement and walk in on them.

"Oh hi there, anything I can help you with today?"

"You're that dragon that eats jewels right?" Walter asked.

"Okay, kinda weird way to start a conversation but yes, I do eat jewels as do all dragons."

"Sorry, it's just we never really met a dragon before except for that night you came over, " Mabel said.

A moment of realisation and Spike said, "ooooh, you're Rick's parents right? I thought I heard a foal crying, does that mean that the princesses were able to help her? That's great!"

"Yes, Twilight and Twyla are upstairs but Rick is still back home. I don't really know what's going on but he was possessed by whatever it was that possessed Twyla, " Walter said.

Shock and anger showed on the young dragon's face. That was his Big Bro that had been possessed, and he knew he had to do something to help him. Problem is, he didn't know what that was.

Twilight came back down the stairs, having left Twyla in her crib and when she saw Spike ran to him and gave him a hug.

"So Twilight, what's going on? What happened to Rick?"

Twilight sighed and seemed to deflate a bit. "Twyla was possessed by Discord, Rick in a stupid but utterly sweet move offered himself to Discord instead. Now he's possessed. The princesses are over there right now seeing if there's something they can do. All we can do now is wait." She looked longingly at the portal, wanting to go through and do whatever she could for her husband but knowing that this was currently impossible and all she could do now was wait.

"So Discord, I gotta ask considering that I really can't do anything else right now, what's your motivation for all this?" Rick asked the draconequus.

"What do you mean human?"

"What do you get out of out of this spreading of discord and chaos?"

"Why fun of course! I bring something interesting to the mix, a new way of seeing the world and a new way to experience reality, " Discord said proudly.

"And you do this by magic right?"

"Well, nothing quite so crude. Yes, you could call it chaos magic if you wanted but you're not a magic user so you wouldn't understand."

"No, no of course not. But this just begs the question... nah don't worry about it, " Rick said trying to drop the subject.

"No please, ask your question. It's not like there's anything else you can do right now."

"I guess you're right there. I'm kinda trapped, I mean you're the dude in charge but what can you actually do with my body now that you're in control? I mean I'm just human, no abilities, no special powers, nothing."

"Well I... you're the... you can... oh don't try to confuse me with this. I just needed to get out of your daughter for the moment. You know stretch my legs and all that."

"But you're only a spirit, you don't have any legs."

"I was talking metaphorically."

"Oh, gotcha. But back to the point, what can you actually do in my body?"

"You'll find out soon enough!" Discord said ominously.

"You don't know do you? You just agreed to my swap because you couldn't do much within Twyla's body. And now you realise that you can't do jack in mine."

"Stop jabbering will you? You're starting to give me a headache."

"Fine, but remember this is still my mind. You might have taken control of my body, but in here I rule."

Discord started to laugh, amused beyond measure by the Rick's boast. He was Discord, the embodiment of chaos and this... human thought he was stronger? But maybe it would be fun to just play with him a little bit longer before crushing his spirit completely. "And what do you think you can do to stop me?"

"Right now? Absolutely nothing, I haven't learned enough about you yet. But how about we play a game in the mean time?"

"And what game do you propose human?"

"Do you realise that while we've been having this conversation, I've managed to regain control of a few things? Seriously, that's me tapping my finger on the floor right now."

"What? That's not possible!" Discord immediately took control of Rick's body once more only to notice that Rick still hadn't moved and his finger was not tapping. "Nicely done."

"Oh you think that's nice? How's this?" Rick brought forth the memory of Eris and her defeat in full colour and sound. "Nice isn't it?"

Discord fought to regain control but it was difficult. This human had an incredibly strong will and a strangely powerful and agile mind. He finally managed to squash the memory, but it had taken him a lot of effort to do so.

"If you keep this up, I'll destroy you and leave you trapped inside your own mind forever, " Discord hissed. Gone was the false bonhomie and the true face of evil lying behind it was apparent.

"C'mon Dizzy, you can do better than that. I heard more terrifying things in the schoolyard when I was 5."

"Don't tempt me you worm. I can destroy you with but a thought."

"Then do it if you're so big and tough. All I've heard so far from you is bluster. You're a fraud, a cheat, a trickster that desperately wants people to think he's tough but you made a big mistake, " Rick taunted, full of confidence.

"And what's that?"

"You got into my mind. I could go on and explain everything but where's the fun in that. This isn't a James Bond movie where the villain explains his entire plan giving James a chance to escape. But you made a mistake in talking to me and letting me distract you. I couldn't have done this by myself but had to distract you long enough for the princesses to do their thing."

The mental chains that had surrounded Rick at that moment fell off and within his mind he stood up and faced Discord. "You're no longer in control here. I am." And with those words the chains that had bound him snapped out and wrapped themselves around Discord.

"What? How? Let me go!" Discord wailed.

"No, if you're so damned powerful then do it yourself. Hmmmm? What's that? Can't move Discord?" Rick taunted.

"Need to find another body, need to get out and possess somebody else!" Discord said.

"There's nobody else here. Just me and the princesses."

"Yes! Princess Luna!" Discord cried and laughed madly as he cast himself out of Rick's mind towards the princess of the night.

Rick seemingly snapped back into his body, the princesses looking down on him as he was still bound and lying on the floor.

"Luna! Are you alright?" Rick called as he struggled to sit up.

"Yes, we are fine. Why do you ask?"

"Discord left my mind, and said he was going to possess you."

"Neigh, nothing has happened to me."

"Celestia?"

"I'm fine too Rick, " she glanced at him and probed his mind finding no evidence of Discord then for good measure probed Luna as well. Discord had disappeared again.

"But where did he go? The closest neighbour is like 10 minutes away on foot so there's no way he could have escaped."

Struggling to his feet, Rick didn't notice the small brown spider that was crawling down the wall towards him. He didn't notice the malice in the tiny arachnid's 8 eyes as it advanced. He paid no attention to it as it got within leaping distance of him and would have bitten him had Luna not taken the expedient route of absent mindedly smashing it first.

None of them heard the ethereal cry as Discord, having been unable to possess the princess found the closest living thing he could and died when Luna squished him with her palm. The spirit of Chaos had finally been defeated through an absent minded smash and a princess's dislike of spiders.

After an exhaustive search, Celestia declared that Discord had simply vanished. There was no trace of him anywhere so the trio headed downstairs to the portal and through to Equestria.

His parents were overjoyed to see him but it was Twilight who truly lost it when he finally walked through into the library. She rushed up to him and practically tackled him to the ground.

"You idiot! You stupid, stupid pony!" she berated him through her tears. "I thought I had lost you and Twyla would have to grow up without a father!" she collapsed against him sobbing tears of relief & joy.

"Twi, I did it to save Twyla. I was just thinking of her and that if she was safe, my life didn't matter."

"Of course your life matters! You matter to me and to your parents and Spike and Rarity and Pinkie Pie..." any other words were cut off as he kissed her.

"I did what any stallion would, I protected my family and the good news is, is that Discord is now defeated for good. He's been destroyed, " turning to the princesses, "Celestia and Luna have confirmed this."

"Your husband is right Twilight Sparkle. Discord is no more and we have Rick to thank for that."

"I'm still angry with you, " Twilight sulked.

Rick smiled and nuzzled her gently. "Be angry with me all you want. Provided you and Twyla are safe, that's all that matters."

Comments

[AcerMane]

wow.... anticlimactic much?

[RaptorCalloftheShadows]

NO LIKE BUG. HULK SMASH!

[Genesis1212]

For discord an anticlimactic spider smash is utterly hilarious and a more fitting end to discord this was a great chapter xDD one chapter left I DONT WANT TO FINISH THIS Dx I'll need to read the last chapter slowly xP

[darkmagician41]

1528069
I just started reading this story today/tonight and I have to totally agree with way Discord went out... Not with a bang; but a whimper.

[The_Filthy_Casual]

I have to say... I have never seen a better Discord defeat to this day. Out witted and then distractedly destroyed as a second hand annoyance. A fitting poetic end for the egotistical puppet master.

In all things, keep it casual.