After Discord

by Faindragon

Chapter 29

To find the light in the darkness.
Do you sometimes have to look away from yourself.
Look at the ones around you.
And put faith in them.

“What did you just say?” I looked at Corelight in disbelief. The emerald green unicorn smiled at me.

“You have followers. Lightheart talked around. We have more than half of the guards on our side, they are ready to help you cleanse Trotholm!”

Lightheart. Can I trust him? He had been one of the higher ups at Project Discord. But on the other hoof had he helped me to escape. I shuddered. It did not matter. Nothing mattered right now. Honey...

“And the list?”

“I have fulfilled it, I have one of them with me and the other is at my office, in the hooves of one of the guards that wants to follow you. I did, however, remove one name from the other list.”

“Lightheart.” I said, earning me a questioning look.

“Yes... But how did you know?”

“Does it matter?”

“No...”

“Let us leave. It’s time to take care of Trotholm.”

I turned my tail to the town, turned away from Carrot Mansion. Turned away from my daughter. I’m sorry Honey.

*^*

We walked in silence, and it was first when we got close to the city that I remembered. How should I get in there? There where guards, they would recognize me.

“How are we going into the city?”

“Through the gate of course.”

“But there is still an arrest order on me right?”

“Eeyup, but all the guards at this gate are on your side. In fact, every guard that will go with us are waiting in there. We are ready to cleanse the city on your orders.”

“Wait, you have gathered ALL the guards here? And you do not think that would raise any alarm?”

“Actually...” Corelight looked away.

“You did not think about it?”

“I did! But they all wanted to be here to greet you welcome, they want to cleanse the city tonigt.”

“Oh well, the sooner the better. And the damage is already done.”

*^*

I looked out over the small room. How all of the guards fitted in here had I no idea of. They had all welcomed me. But I had to speak to one person first. Before all of this started.

“Lightheart, the office, now.”

Lightheart looked confused at me, but he followed me into the small room.

“Welcome back, my friend. Are you ready for this?” He smiled at me.

“Project Discord.” He seemed to become horrified at those words. “What did you do there.”

“Do we have time for this?”

“I will make sure we have. I have to know. What did you do there?”

“I made sure that the guards behaved. Turned out I did not have to care since you killed them all.”

“Not me, Discord. The monster inside of me. The monster you planted. The list of corrupted ponies, why did you appear on it? What had you done before Project Discord?”

If he was surprised at the change of topic then he did not show it.
“I was born into it. Before Project Discord? Before I met you would be more accurate. I arrested people, for no reason. I arrested you when you prayed that day. I was the one responsible that you ended up in Project Discord.”

“But... why? You are not a bad pony, what made you do that? I have seen the real you.”

“Do you really want to know?”

“Lightheart, I see you as a friend. Even after the fact I was given. You saved me from getting hanged!” I said.

"Do you know how I got my name?" he snarled at me. "I was weak when I came to this world. My lungs was weak, my body was weak!" he shouted at me at this point. "My father took one look at me. ONE LOOK! before he had decided a name."

Lightheart trembled before me.
"Do you know why he named me Lightheart?" he snorted. "My heart was weak. The doctors gave me two weeks to live, at the most. My father took one glance at me, then he walked out, laughing and saying that I could not be his colt."

“He said that no pony with a heart that weak could be the son of Lionheart."

“Lightheart, I’m sorry to hear that. I had no idea. But why did you chose to go in his hoofsteps?” I asked, but I think I already knew the answer.

“I wanted to be better, wanted to prove that I was his son!”

I looked at Lightheart, gave him one look.
“Go home.”

He just stared at me.
“Go home, Lightheart.”

“Wh.. Why? Do you not trust me? Do you not want to see me?”

“Pull yourself together! I trust you more than any other of the ponies in there, but I will not let you go and die. You have a colt! Think about him. It’s bad enough that I do not think about my daughter. I will make everypony with a foal leave, I will not be the reason for any foal loosing a parent.”

“I will not leave you.”

“We are not discussing this Lightheart, that is an order! I might not have any power, but I’m not doing this to make a lot of foals grow up without a father or a mother!”

“But..”

“Go. NOW.”

He looked at me.
“Thank you.”

With those words did he leave.

“What are we up to? Are we going to kill Warden? Are we going to slaughter them all? I want to slaughter them all!”

“You are quiet. I will take care of you later.”

*^*

“I want to thank you all for coming here.” I hated to talk to a big audience, but I had to. “When I first did this did I think I would have to do everything myself, it turns out I do not have to. We will do this quickly. First, I want everypony that have a foal raise a hoof.”

Fewer hooves than I had expected was raised in the air.

“Second, I want you who raised your hoof to leave this room. Now. You are not to assist in this. I will not be the reason that a foal loses a parent.”

Of the eighty five guards did twelve leave the room, murmuring to each other. I suspected that that was not all of the parents. But I could not do anything else.

“Thirdly, I want each one of you to get three partners. We have a hit list, and each group is going to hit one target. We are going to cleanse this city all at once, tomorrow when Luna’s eye have reached its peak. That is, when the moon stay as high as it can.”

I looked as the guards started to pair together, looking at the list and receiving the number for the one they should hit.

“The once who have not been assigned a number is going together with me. We are going to pay our dear leader a visit. All of you, Trotholm trusts you. Cleanse the ones on the list, use non-lethal force against any other target. We are not here to slaughter, we are here to help this city. Go home, sleep and act natural tomorrow. We do not want to raise any suspicion, more than there already is.”

The guards did not seem to be the group to ask any questions, they simply left and started to trot home. That was, expect for two. Corelight and the black mare that had stopped me when I left the city. Corelight trotted to me.

“What are you gonna do?”

“I’m going to pray.”

Comments

[viperxix]

because I have just realised I havent done it on any other of your fics
FIRST!
now that thats out of the way, great job. sad to hear this is ending soon