'Growth' and what it means · 4:10pm Oct 20th, 2021
So now that the Sombra chapter is out, I can talk a little about where the story is going, and why.
In the short story Rot, Twilight assumed that everything that Discord had told her had to be true. He was an ancient, powerful creature, and possessed knowledge far beyond that of Equestrians. It never occurred to Twilight that Discord could be wrong. Or that his motives, while chaotic, might have had a different purpose than he had let on.
Twilight has also never considered the motivations of the foes that she has fought against while she and her friends were being guided by Celestia. All so called 'villains' have a reason behind what they do. Something that set them on the path to what they eventually would become.
Celestia never told Twilight very much about Discord before he was imprisoned. What he had been doing up until that point, how long he had been in Equestria, or even where he came from.
Discord believes what he does, because that was what he was 'raised' to believe.(Small spoiler for future chapter). It doesn't make him all knowing, or correct in his belief.
Twilight believes that Sombra was evil because that was what she was told to believe. This chapter was meant to shed light on his possible motivations for doing what he did.
If you look at what is canon in regards to the Crystal empire story arch, the ponies of the empire couldn't remember what had happened when Sombra ruled. Celestia knew almost nothing about him. She and Luna attacked the empire, not the other way around. He didn't destroy the empire when he knew he was going to be defeated, he sealed it away to keep it safe. And my biggest sticking point was the crystal heart. Why would he keep it safely hidden away in his castle? If it was a threat to him, why didn't he destroy it? (On another note, Celestia used Dark magic, which Twilight used later to access where the heart was hidden. We just gonna gloss over them both using Dark magic? OOOOOkay).
Sombra spent this past chapter having a dialog with Twilight. He, and Chrysalis, and desperate to convince her to join their cause. He bared his life to her because he genuinely sees Discord as a threat. He knows nothing about what happened to Discord after he was freed from his stone prison. Conversely, Twilight has no idea what Discord had been doing before Celestia and Luna imprisoned him in the first place.
'Growth' is not about Twilight coming into her powers. Growth is about the characters in the story growing as individuals, and coming to understand that the world they knew isn't as simple as they were led to believe. All of the beings involved have room for growth. Sombra, Chrysalis, Celestia, even Discord. Will there be conflict? Absolutely! When ideals clash, understanding can fall by the wayside. But when there are things that are more important to you than your past grudges, then there can still be a chance to avoid a bad end.
A chance.
Remember, most of the characters in this story are extremely powerful. If they came into full blown conflict, it would be all to easy for something tragic, or irreversible to occur...
Ah, we're remembering that Twilight is too deferent to authority to be a competent scientist.
I just started and finished everything thats out and I’m loving it and reading everything you’ve written about it. Can’t wait for!