A Villain's Power
The infirmary. As he regained consciousness, Discord could hear the sound of confused and disbelieving chatter. Around him stood the eight ponies that would be the most curious about the battle at the funeral. The Elements, the Princesses, and the brother of Sheogorath’s first victim all stood in anticipation. He attempted to shift into a comfortable position, but found that he was completely bound to the bed. Leather straps held him in place, though they would be useless if he decided to use his magic.
Sheo-Rainbow was strapped in the bed beside him, his head bruised by the magic blasts it had received. The abomination scoffed internally at the thought of those bonds being able to so much as slow the Madgod down. As soon as he regained consciousness, he would be back to toying with everypony’s emotions.
The beast sighed, “Are these really necessary?” He struggled against the bonds on his left side, half-considering just warping out of them.
Princess Celestia stepped forward, anger and determination in her eyes. She said bluntly, “Yes they are. After your show by the throne neither of you are leaving without some sort of explanation.” Her horn glowed temporarily as the restraints seemed to tighten to further restrict movement.
Discord scoffed, “Forgive me for not being too terribly concerned, Princess. You wouldn’t believe me if I explained it, anyway.” He rolled his eyes, continuing to pull against the straps.
Twilight Sparkle tittered, “‘Daedra’, ‘limited magic’, ‘ruling this province’…do they ring any bells?” She looked toward the figure of her friend, uncertain just what kind of explanation could be offered.
The draconequus chuckled, “Of course. Those were the taunts I used in the fight! Well, except for that last one. That was Sheogorath’s line.” He glanced toward the pony-form Madgod as if to signify that he was the aforementioned competitor.
“Who in tarnation is this Sheo-whatsit?” Applejack stepped forward, disbelief in her tone. To her it sounded like gibberish.
“If you’ll undo these bonds, I’ll gladly tell you all about it!” The beast was getting angry now. He was being wrongfully detained, after having already been temporarily blamed for an innocent pony’s death.
The ponies all shared looks of uncertainty. After several seconds of silent contemplation, all eyes turned toward Fluttershy. She nodded and said, “I trust him. Rainbow Dash attacked him first, after all…”
With that, Celestia’s magic snapped the straps, releasing the victimized creature from his bed. He groaned, “Thank you, Fluttershy. At least somepony has a brain…” He turned his attention toward the still-unconscious blue Pegasus. “That isn’t Rainbow Dash, I’m afraid. Not anymore, at any rate.”
A collective “What?!” rang out through the group.
Buckler shoved through the crowd to examine the fallen blue pony. He scoffed, “Her eyes were just like Aegis’s. Yellow. Little slits for pupils. Then he cast that cheese spell and died. Whatever killed him possesses her. Not a doubt in my mind.” The end of his analysis was met by a dark chuckle.
Sheo-Rainbow’s eyes shot open, fully revealing the golden glow to everypony in attendance. He laughed, “How very observant of you, mule! I think your usefulness is almost non-existent now!” A sudden burst of green magic shot from his head, making a midair U-turn back toward the intended target. Redirecting magic was something else to add to the list of strange Pegasus powers.
Turns out the Madgod wasn’t kidding. He had no use for Buckler, so the guard’s time expired instantly. When the curious beam made contact, the victim was essentially vaporized. Horror filled the witnesses’ emotions as the only remains of the guard scattered in the draft. Discord simply stared, his brain unwilling to register what had just happened.
Twilight stammered, “R-Rainbow…what did you…do…?” A mixture of crippling sadness and utter disbelief accompanied her broken inquiry.
The Pony-Madgod laughed, “Do you really need me tied down? I mean, these straps obviously can’t handle me!” Without waiting for a response that probably wouldn’t come, he sliced the bonds open with a bit of magic. The pony-form Daedra casually walked through the throng of dumbfounded ponies, receiving no resistance as he attempted to leave the medical room.
Somewhere between the rat problem and Buckler’s death, most of them were lost in a daze of confusion. Suddenly, all these ponies were dying in a world of peace. And they were actually dying, rather than being petrified or banished!
Just as Sheo-Rainbow reached the door, he turned to chuckle, “Do you still think you can win, my friend?” He resumed his unobstructed exit.
Two ponies were dead. The Madgod had killed two of them. Discord had just sat back and watched the first one, even knowing it would come. He hadn’t intervened in any way. The abomination cursed aloud and slammed a claw against a small medical tray. It gave under the force, sending several pieces of primitive equipment flying to the opposite side of the room.
Seven. Seven ponies. In a matter of five minutes, the body count had decreased permanently.
“What…just happened?” Twilight looked up at the floating beast, anger flowing from his eyes like tears.
Celestia sighed, “Who was that beast, Discord? Why did it call you a friend?” She regained a regal posture, the sadness leaving her expression in favor of anger.
The draconequus wasn’t certain how to begin. He groaned, “That thing is a creature from another world. It came here looking for company, or so it said. Apparently that was just garbage!” He clenched his claws, trying to visualize the first meeting they’d had.
Friendliness, light-heartedness, and happiness were three feelings that emanated from the Daedra. And yet, not a week later, they were here, in this odd position. He was killing them. Quite successfully, one could add.
“He controls a magic he calls Madness. He used to rule an entire realm of his own, until one of his brothers killed him. Ever since, he’s traveled from world to world, apparently looking for a worthy world to conquer…” Discord lowered his gaze, not wanting to admit to having ‘befriended’ the demon in secret.
Celestia stepped toward the door and scoffed, “You were the first creature he interacted with. Instead of informing us, you let him develop his plans. And now we’ve lost two ponies, a possible third on the horizon.” She nodded toward her sister, who simply nodded and followed her out of the room.
The five remaining Elements shared disbelieving expressions. Eventually, they all turned toward the depressed beast floating a few feet away. Fluttershy stammered, “Is there…anything you can do…to help?”
Discord was impressed, honestly. Of all the ponies that should’ve been crippled by what they just witnessed, Fluttershy was at the top of his list. Followed immediately by Rarity. Then again, friendship had proven to be a powerful thing on multiple occasions, and this could perhaps be no different. As long as their Pegasus pal was in trouble, perhaps they wouldn’t be able to give up hope.
And then it hit him. Friendship! The Elements of Harmony! The only magic that had ever bested him, until the Madgod showed him up in the throne room! If he couldn’t do it, perhaps the Elements could!
The abomination cheered, “There might be a way, girls! But you have to do exactly as I say…” The five focused their attention on the suddenly perked-up beast.
…
“Ahh, this is a nice piece of furniture. It could use some more purple, but I’ll handle that after I usurp the throne.” Sheo-Rainbow was kicked back in the golden throne of Canterlot Castle, enjoying the comfort of the cushioned seat. It was just firm enough to provide support, but soft enough to not put pressure on his bum.
He had a wheel of cheese in one hoof and a glass of Skooma in the other. A bite of one, a sip of the other. It was the perfect snack in any Daedra’s opinion. That is assuming the Daedra had good taste, which most of them didn’t. Every few moments the Pony-Madgod would alter something within the room, trying to get a feel for what the castle should look like once he took over.
He had just changed the door from its large purple bulk into a dark black window when the two Princesses appeared on the other side. Expecting things to get interesting, he sent away his refreshments and sat upright, mocking a proper ruler’s posture. He opened the door for them, a courteous gesture in most cultures.
With a smile, he greeted them, “Welcome to my throne, ladies. Can I interest you in some cheese? Or maybe you’re more of the cabbage types?” He summoned the aforementioned products respectively in his hooves.
The two were unfazed by his display, and continued walking toward him with blank expressions. Over a thousand years of dealing with ponies of all breeds left them somewhat prepared for anything he could pump out. Celestia commanded, “You have murdered two of our loyal subjects—“
“That you know of,” he chuckled.
“—and are currently possessing a dear friend of ours. If you know what’s in your best interest, you will leave this realm immediately.” Her horn began to glow its golden light, preparing some sort of spell that would, in theory, fix the mess that was made.
He relaxed again and scoffed, “Yeah, I’m gonna have to pass on that one, Princess. But you’re more than welcome to try whatever you like.” He waved a hoof approvingly toward the two of them before taking a huge bite of the cabbage.
The regal ponies shared nods, and their horns exploded with magic. A mixture of gold and cobalt swirled toward the demon, who refused to move an inch at its sight. Rather than counterattack or attempt to dodge, he took the blast with full force, much to the princesses’ delight.
Of course, that delight faded when the magical blast evaporated into thin air. Rather than do what was intended, it simply faded away. Sheo-Rainbow waited until it was completely gone before laughing, “Is that the best you can do, Princesses? Aren’t you supposed to control celestial bodies? Yet you can’t even scathe a poor little Pegasus!” He munched down on the cheese, open-mouth chewing it in an insulting manner.
Without saying a word, the two nodded in unison, summoning forth more magic from their horns. This time the attacks travelled separate, flanking the target. In theory he could only block one. In theory.
But theories can be wrong, and this one was no different. The only difference between the first and second attack was that, rather than the magic evaporating, it seemed as if it was being absorbed by the monster. It made contact with his body, but then it vanished. It didn’t evaporate or get bounced back; it simply disappeared.
The pony-form Madgod crushed the food he was holding before leaping to his hooves. He growled, “Thanks for the refreshments, ladies, but you’ve pissed me off! One attack is fine, but two is just crossing the line!” A beam of magic etched a literal line in the floor, just behind the alicorns. Another beam of magic targeted them directly, a sinister mixture of gold, cobalt, and green zooming toward them.
The throne room doors burst open as a voice boomed, “Now girls, use them!”
At the front of the room appeared the Elements, followed up by Discord. The five remaining Elements had some sort of jewelry adorning their bodies, with a sixth floating above them. At Discord’s cue, the jewelry lit up a bright white, and the ponies lifted into the air. Magical energy began to swirl around the group, changing to a solid rainbow color.
In the span of a few seconds, Sheo-Rainbow’s magic was blocked by the incoming rainbow. Tearing through his beam, it smashed directly into him, sending the physical body flying beyond the throne. The spiritual being sat in place, unscathed by the attack.
So much for that… he groaned silently.
When all the magical energies dissipated, the humanoid creature was revealed to the whole world in his natural state. It took the Madgod several seconds to realize that he could actually be seen, but once the revelation set in he put it to good use. Not missing a beat, he summoned a staff in one hand and a blade in the other.
The five Elements shared disbelieving looks. Twilight cheered, “It worked! It really worked!”
“But how did Rainbow’s Element activate when…” Rarity started, thinking back to when they had fought Discord and all the Elements needed to be present both physically and spiritually.
Discord darted toward the Princesses, half checking on their health and half readying for a fight with the murderer. He scoffed, “Looks like you’re fully exposed, Madgod! Now anypony can fight you on an even plane!”
“True, you all can see me,” he started with a smile, “but it isn’t even close to an even plane!”
The five Elements stepped up behind the master of chaos, the jewelry they were wearing still emanating a faint glow. The first attack hadn’t finished the job, but there was always a chance that a second one would. Discord chuckled, “Would you like to bet on that, Sheogorath?”
The Pony-Madgod scoffed, “If it’s a fight you want Discord, it’s a fight I’ll gladly win!” The staff in his hand disappeared, leaving only the bland extended toward the crowd of ponies. “But why don’t we fight with honor? An honest battle, one on one! We’ll start with physical ability!”
“Do you think we’re stupid, Sheogorath? There’s no chance we’ll win in an honest battle!” The draconequus looked around, receiving approving nods from the ponies.
“Your friends are willing to fight honorably. I promise I won’t cheat. You have my word as a murderer. As much as that means to your kind,” Sheogorath groaned, his blade waving gently in the air.
After a moment’s contemplation, and further approval from his friends, Discord sighed, “Fine. We’ll play fair. I have a bad feeling about this, but…”
All eyes turned toward Applejack. She was an earth pony, naturally giving her a greater physical strength and endurance than any other type of pony. Considering magic was a no-go, the unicorns and princesses were out of the question. Fluttershy wouldn’t do much for their case, and neither would Pinkie Pie’s admittedly energetic desire to party.
With a determined nod, the orange mare stepped forward. Face to face with a creature that had killed two ponies in cold blood, she summoned every bit of strength she could gather in her muscles. With a kick to the floor, she took off in a mad dash toward the humanoid, preparing for a full-on tackle.
Twilight cheered, “C’mon Applejack! Show this jerk who’s boss!”
The Madgod sighed, “I’m sorry you had to be the pony with the short straw. I kinda liked your accent if I’m honest.” At the end of his ramblings, the attacking pony leaped toward him, attempting to make direct contact with his breast. The Daedra wasn’t having any of that, and with barely a flick of the wrist the mare was sent flying off to the side, drops of blood falling behind her.
The crowd of hopeful ponies suddenly fell mute, the brutal nature of what just happened hitting them hard.
“Six, if I count right. Not counting the blue one and the abomination.” Without moving from his spot, Sheogorath marked off one opponent from his list of obstacles. He laughed, “Would you care to try magic, then? Seems my swordplay’s a bit much for you quadrupeds.”
Discord held his tongue. Magic was the key. Physical strength was something that Equestrians lacked, but magic was in abundance. Before there could be any debate, Princess Luna stepped forward.
She grunted, “You’ve killed three ponies, and that’s three too many. It’s time for you to pay the price!” With that, a blast of cobalt energy burst from her horn, engulfing the murderer.
With a snap of his fingers, the sword became a staff, which he pointed toward the offending mare. The cobalt wave of energy stopped in place, reversing its flow back toward the caster. As it did so, three faint silhouettes appeared to the side of the room. The beam made full contact to the creature that had summoned it, and she was cast backwards through the throne room’s doors. A fourth silhouette appeared.
The ponies were speechless.
Sheogorath, however, was not. “I’m getting tired of this game. You obviously can’t win, so just surrender and save yourselves the pain.” He removed his staff and replaced it with a bow. “Perhaps you can do better with sharpshooting? I’ll even let you use your telekinesis.” He conjured a particularly shiny arrow and drew it back in the bow’s string.
Twilight—anger blinding her rational thinking and logical processes—ripped a spear from a suit of armor at the entrance to the room and aimed it at the humanoid’s chest.
Sheogorath laughed, “Fire when ready!”
The draconequus mouthed the words, the irony not lost on him. It had been the very taunt he used when the Elements defeated him and sealed him away. Somehow, he didn’t expect things to turn out so well for them.
Letting her anger add extra force to the attack, Twilight released the spear at him. With a smug grin, the Madgod released his arrow. What followed was impossible, at least by normal standards. The projectile zipped past the ponies, colliding with the spear. It struck the spear at such an angle that it flipped into the air. As it began its downward arc, the blade of the weapon caused it to fall at a steep angle, right toward the pony that had fired it.
I needn’t explain what happened next. Suffice to say it wasn’t pretty. Not for the good guys, anyway.
Another silhouette appeared. Sheogorath laughed, “I suppose that’s it then. You have no chance in combat against me. Just give up why don’t you.” He dismissed his bow, turning back toward the throne.
Celestia stomped forward, “That is enough! You shall not get away with what you’ve done, monster!” A concentrated blast of golden light pierced the inattentive Madgod’s heart.
Clutching his chest where small drops of blood trickled from, he chuckled, “Good play, you cheating bastard. Good play.” Anger suddenly overwhelmed him. He screamed, “But you’ve made the last mistake I’m gonna let you!” Though slightly pained by the unexpected happening, he simply turned on his heel and fired a black blast back at her.
The first time Discord had seen the Madgod’s personal magic. A black aura to contrast Celestia’s golden. It complimented his green.
The energy raced toward the princess, almost certainly designed to kill her. With barely a second to consider his options, the draconequus warped between her and the beam. Without wasting time, he sent a concentrated blast of his own magic at the evil energy. If he couldn’t stop it, then he would take the blow for Celestia. If he could, then perhaps she could find a way to set things right.
The two beams of energy collided. Green swirled together with black, a vortex of sickening evil. Madness and Chaos mixed into one. If things went as Sheogorath wanted, that’s how it would always be. If Discord could pull off a miracle victory, then maybe Madness would leave the realm for good.
The vortex expanded, hurricane-force winds sucking in anything in range. The corpses of the ponies that had just died, the surviving equines, the draconequus, and the Daedra were all forcefully drawn into the cone. Everything went black for everypony.
The smell of steel filled the air.
*HERE IT IS, FOLKS. THE FINAL BATTLE IS ALMOST UPON US! WHO WILL WIN? YOU DECIDE! WOULD YOU PREFER THE MAGIC OF MADNESS, OR THE CHARM OF CHAOS? CAST YOUR VOTES!*
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Who do you want to win?
Sheogorath?
Discord?
Decide the fate of Equestria.
This got updated as I was looking through my favorites
2281307 The Magic of Madness
2281307
Personally, I want it to end in a draw. I don’t like the idea of Sheogorath losing and being killed or something and neither Discord so I want it to be a draw or something similar.
go SHEO!!!!!
So he killed Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Luna and Twilight? Oh you.
Anyway, let's have a happy ending and a bad one, yeah?
Sheogorath must win.
Kinda obvious but I'll say it anyway. Discord.
At first I wanted madness but that ending just seems to sad, so I'm going with chaos. I like this discord
2281359 Not an option.
Your opinion sucks. 
You are the weakest link, goodbye. 
jk
If Sheo has the Wabbajack, Discord has lost.
If not, it's a even fight.
Although I wonder what Jyallaglig (can never spell that name) is doing right now...
2281424
If that is the case then, Sheogorath.
I want Sheogorath to win. I think Madness is a pretty cool guy. Eh kills ponezs, and doesnt afraid of anythign
SHEOGORATH! MADDNESS ITS OH SO MUCH FUN!
Cheese for Everypony!
I hereby declare my allegiance to the true incarnation of Chaos, SHEOGORATH! Only he can ensure that the cats of Equestria can be hats can be bats can be rats can be gnats can be thats CAN BE THISES!
Just a suggestion, maybe write an ending for both sides, so that everyone's happy?
Luna is dead..... Go discord make him pay!!!!!!
2281307
lets see... madness vs. chaos...
I'm banking on something REALLY unexpected happening... Hitchhikers infinite improbability drive unexpected.
oh and
2281424 *Tseeew*
Discord
Discord, chop Sheogorath into tiny bits, turn those pieces into stone, use then to make cement, make an statue of you fliping the finger with the cement, seal that statue into the core of the moon, throw the moon at the sun, throw the sun into a black hole, put the black hole into a quantum paradox of nonexistent and give whatever is left lactose intolerance.
Only if it was no clear, I want Discord to win.
When the Mane 6 or any other major character get's killed off (villains excluded, as long as it done good), the story's dead to me. I'm sorry, but killing Applejack, Twilight, and Luna just crossed the line big time for me.
2281656 Oh come now, where's the fun if the stakes aren't high?
Imagine Discord pulling off a superb fight and winning, everypony coming back to life and the Madgod leaving the realm of ponies. Imagine how Discord must feel, knowing the fate of Equestria is in his claws!
And imagine what Sheogorath will do if he wins. With two Elements and a Princess out of the way, essentially nothing can stop him if Discord loses.
The stakes are high. Both contestants are all-in with astonishing poker faces!
But who will call whose bluff?
SHEOGORATH MUST WIN
discord
Sheogorath is the one I vote for
Discord for the win
Discord
Sheogorath, obviously.
BOTH!
I'd love for the bad guy to win, for once, so I'll say Sheogorath
I don't suppose I could convince you to write an alternate chapter when Discord eventually wins? Eh?
Sheggorath's champion from Oblivion had basically fully transformed into him by Skyrim, he doesn't need the victory, Discord however does.
My votes for Chaos.
Discord for the win baby
SHEOGORATH
shoegorath for the win. i want him
sorry madness, you have been a great companion, but I cast thee off in favour of the friendship of chaos!
KILL THAT SUMBITCH DISSY! HE KILLED TOO MANY PONIES!
discord
I honestly don't understand why anyone would want Sheogorath to win.
I mean, yes, he's an awesome villain, but what kind of sicko would want a story where the bad guy wins?
2281680
Why the hell would you even make Sheogorath's victory an option? If the Mane Six die, I will hate you forever.
I think the issue is that "want to win" doesn't really come into play. Sheogorath is a concept made flesh; he IS Madness. He's far, far beyond Celestia and Luna, or even Discord.
Discord
SHEOGORATH For the win!
2283675 Trololo. Umad? Join Sheogorath! He's mad too! So is Discord, but Discord is no longer the fun kind of mad. He's just jelly. Homocide (well..ponycide) is hilarious when Sheogorath does it. Cheese for everypony! My vote's for the madder one. Blood for the blood god! Gore for Sheogorath!
Sheogorath all the way up the pony buttocks! Weo Weo Sheo!
2284231 Have the madman stick Discord where the sun don't shine. Horns n' all up the fat, cake-filled flanks of the killed princess ponies.
Skooma vs. Chocolate milk and soda. Gonna go with Sheogorath on this one. I want to see ponies flip their shit.
Chaos should win
As much as I like Discord, I love me some Madness.
Sheo, obviously.
Sheogorath
2284175
Don't be an asshole, I'm asking a legitimate question? Why would you want the characters you care about to die?
2284743 Because it's out of the ordinary! The typical, predictable ending is that Sheogorath will die and everypony will be perfectly happy!
Deviating from the norm makes for fine entertainment. And fine entertainment leads to interesting story.
*SPOILER ALERT*
Take a look at Game of Thrones.
I doubt anybody that's ever watched the show can say they hate Ned Stark. And yet, at the end of Season 1 (or Book One, depending), he gets killed off. He's the main focus of the entire first season, and they kill him off. You build such an emotional connection to him, and then they rip him away from you!
But instead of not watching the show any more, you keep watching. You want the bastards that killed him to pay, and you want to watch it happen. You want to see just what will happen because of his death. But though your first-or-second-favorite character is dead, you can't help but keep watching.
*END SPOILERS*
The same principle applies here. Just because you love someone doesn't mean they should be immortal or invincible against the evils of the challenger. If there's the possibility they can die, then it adds a sense of reality to an otherwise unbelievable scenario. Anyone can die. Anyone.
And if they do die, then you're left to wonder what will happen as a result of that.