//------------------------------//
// The Return of Discord 
// Story: The Guard And His Sword 
// by Himntor 
//------------------------------//

	I was halfway to Ponyville on the train before I realized I had my sword again and could have flown home. No big matter, it gave me more time to think about what I’d do.
First off, I’d start keeping track of how many stars in my cutie mark were left. I had three now, but who knew how long it’d be before I had two? So when I arrived in Ponyville, I went and bought a small notebook to keep track, and afterwards stopped by the library and talked with Twilight about what Celestia had learned about the sword. She seemed as curious as I was about how Celestia was going to learn the source of the enchantment’s power, but couldn’t think of how she’d do it.
After deciding to borrow a book on the history of enchanted objects, I headed home. Tomorrow I’d go back to work, and everything would return to normal. At least as normal as I was used to. So the last few hours of the day were spent reading and snacking on carrots, trying to escape my problems.
The next morning, I was back in armor and commanding Canterlot’s wall patrols. I still had three stars, and it seemed like every guard was talking about it behind my back, but besides that the day passed by as usual, until we got a report of something odd going on in Ponyville. Apparently a gigantic fish bowl had been magically placed over it. Not that I was concerned, since Twilight and her friends were there. I only hoped they could solve it before this evening, as I’d heard some delegates from Saddle Arabia were going there tonight, strange as that was. But it was none of my business where Princess Celestia conducted meetings.
 
A few weeks went by, and life largely stayed the same. The problem in Ponyville was taken care of, and only one more star had disappeared, leaving the two middle ones. I thought they would disappear over only one week, but they didn’t, leaving me a bit confused. By the rate at which the others disappeared, I supposed I’d be completely without a cutie mark in only two weeks.
The only other thing worthy of note in those weeks was a moment where I was patrolling the walls and heard Pinkie Pie’s voice in the distance yell “Don’t forget to write!” so loudly that I swear the mountains were trembling.
I often took spare time to practice magic on my sword, doing my own research and experiments, testing the resistance it had to my magic. It was strange to find that it had no resistance, when compared to any normal object. Anything not enchanted has a different resistance to being manipulated by magic, even by something as simple as levitation. The difference changes based on weight, density, and size, but my sword ignored any of these factors. I could levitate and shape it without any strain on my part, unlike other unicorns that had trouble just balancing it in the air.
It also kept me up some nights with the thought that the enchantment was alive. I wondered if it was aware of its surroundings and watching me, or if it was possible it could seize control of the sword for itself. Ridiculous, but… I wondered.
On the day of the Royal Summit, I was called into the throne room to see Princess Celestia. I wasn’t told why, but I assumed it was about the summit. I made my way there and was surprised to find Celestia sitting with the box that contained the Elements of Harmony at her side.
“Thank you for coming, Swordulan,” Celestia began. “I believe I have a way to learn where the source of your enchantment’s power comes from. It was a difficult decision, but ultimately one that I am willing to risk.”
“Are you going to use the Elements of Harmony on my sword?” I asked confusedly.
I’d imagine the Elements would most likely obliterate the sword, or turn it to stone, or something else that would ruin it.
Celestia laughed. “Oh, no, I am going to have them used on something else. Please follow me.”
I followed as she stood up and left the throne room, levitating the Elements box beside her. She brought me outside to the castle’s garden of statues and headed for the largest one. I recognized it immediately and couldn’t stop myself from scowling.
Discord.
I had to stop before we reached the statue. “Princess Celestia, with all due respect, are you seriously thinking about releasing Discord!?”
Celestia looked back at me with a calm smile. “I have thought about it for a long time, and I believe that Discord can change for the better. I’m going to bring him to Ponyville with the Elements of Harmony and have Twilight and her friends try to reform him. I know it’s a big risk, but if Discord can be persuaded to use his magic for good instead of evil, it would be a great benefit.”
I huffed. “It’s never going to work. You can’t reason with someone like him. He’s called the Spirit of Chaos for a reason!”
“I understand your concern, but I have faith in my student and her friends. If Discord is unable to cooperate, they can turn him back to stone.”
As she finished speaking, two groups of pegasus guards flew in with a pair of chariots and stopped by Discord. Celestia levitated him onto the first chariot.
“I will return shortly,” she said, climbing onto the second chariot. “Shining Armor will soon be here for the Royal Summit. I believe he wants to talk to you.”
I bowed my head slightly. “Very well, Princess. I hope you know what you’re doing.”
Celestia smiled. “Don’t worry, Swordulan. I know Twilight and her friends can succeed.”
She nodded to the guards, and they flew off towards Ponyville. I wouldn’t be surprised if the world turned inside-out within the hour.
I’ll worry about that later.
I headed for the train station to wait for Shining Armor, and fortunately I arrived just as he came out of the Crystal Empire’s train, clad in armor. I wondered for a moment why the Empire got the prettier looking trains.
Shining Armor’s eyes fell on me and he approached with an escort of two guards.
“Good to see you, Lieutenant Shield,” he said, causing me to give a formal salute, which he quickly reciprocated. “Looks like things are going well in Canterlot.”
“As well as they can be, Captain,” I said. “How was the train ride?”
“Boring, and I expect the Royal Summit to be worse.”
We began heading for the castle. “Shouldn’t Cadance be the one attending the Summit?”
Shining Armor sighed. “Yes, but she’s got a lot of other important meetings to attend today, so I had to come in her place.”
“Sounds like you got the better deal.”
“Yeah, but when both deals are boring… well, I shouldn’t complain. How’ve you been?”
I gave a half-hearted shrug. “Fine. Down to two stars. Wall command has been going smoothly. Worrying off my horn about Princess Celestia trying to have Twilight and her friends reform Discord.”
“Oh yeah, she sent Cadance a letter about that yesterday. I guess she must have a lot of confidence in Twilight to have them do that on today of all days.”
I raised an eyebrow at him. “You’re not concerned?”
“Nah. If she has that much confidence, I have double that. Twilight and her friends will do just fine. Anyway, I hope you’re not upset about missing the Crystal Guard’s paperwork reform. I had all the old methods documented if you ever want to go through them.”
“That’s alright. I might like to go through them some time eventually. Life’s just been busy.”
“Yeah, I understand.”
We continued on through the bustling streets of Canterlot in silence for a moment, when I remembered why I had met up with Shining Armor in the first place.
“So Celestia told me you wanted to talk to me about something. What was it?”
Shining Armor winced slightly. “It’s about some changes that I need to make in the Royal Guard, but some of the details need to be ironed out in the Royal Summit. I’ll have you called to the barracks when it’s over.”
“Alright.” As I refocused my attention to my surroundings, I noticed we’d made it to the castle already. “I guess I shouldn’t keep you then.”
“I’d rather you did. Ugh, I’m not looking forward to this. Well, see you in a bit, Lieutenant.”
Shining Armor gave a farewell salute, which I returned, and he disappeared into the castle with his guards.
I went back to my patrols on the walls, and kept a keen eye on Ponyville. Discord was out there somewhere, doing who-knows-what. Twilight better know what she’s doing.
 
Some hours passed, and everything thankfully still seemed in order, but while I was watching over Ponyville a bizarre question struck me. What was I doing here? It seemed super obvious at first, but for a moment it rang through my head like a gong that standing here on the wall, waiting, was entirely pointless. I was of no use here.
I violently shook my head. Stupid thought. Of course I was of use, I was a Lieutenant and had the duty of commanding wall patrols, and I did a pretty good job at it. None knew the patrols as well as I. Except Shining Armor, I guess.
Speaking of, I was finally called to the barracks to speak with him. I quickly flew over there on my sword and entered the Captain’s Quarters. Shining Armor was sitting in his chair overlooking some files, looking far more tired than earlier. He looked up as I walked in and smiled.
“Glad you made it,” he said heartily. “Is Ponyville looking alright?”
I gave a nod and sat down across from him. “Yeah, though a guard had spotted at least one house doing summersaults in the air earlier, but it stopped after a few minutes.”
“That sounds promising.” Shining Armor looked back to the paperwork on the desk and took a deep breath. “I guess I should get right to the point. Canterlot needs a new Captain of the Royal Guard.”
I blinked in surprise, but quickly allowed my mind to process the statement before speaking. “You’re resigning?”
“Not as a Captain. Right now I’m the Prince of the Crystal Empire, which makes me its High Captain. I know I left Canterlot in your and the other Lieutenant’s good hooves, but I’m worried about another potential changeling invasion situation. Princess Celestia will need a Captain here.”
I nodded slowly. “Are you promoting one of us, then?”
“I want to, but no.” Shining Armor turned the paperwork around and slid it towards me. “Which is why I wanted to talk to you personally about this. I’ve been reviewing your records again, and as usual your performance is excellent. You were the top candidate for the choice of Canterlot’s Captain.”
I narrowed my eyes at the paperwork. “Were?”
Shining Armor sighed. “Yeah. With your cutie mark condition… Princess Celestia and I agreed you weren’t fit for the position.”
I looked up at him. “Not fit? But my condition hasn’t been a roadblock in my performance. My records show that.”
“I know, but Celestia and I are worried about you. We don’t know what could happen in the future, so we think it’s best to wait until you are ready. Until then, one of my Lieutenants from the Crystal Empire is moving here to be Captain. I’ll be introducing him to you and the others about an hour later. Are you alright?”
I nodded slowly, though I was feeling slightly dizzy. “I understand.” In reality I felt like I had been bucked in the stomach. Not fit for the position? My performance had been solid even with my cutie mark disappearing! There was nothing wrong with me. How could Shining Armor do this to me after all the work I’ve done?
Shining Armor took the paperwork in his magic and put it away. “I know you’re disappointed, but I believe it’s for the best. I have full confidence in the new Captain, and I bet you’ll get along with him just fine. Anyway… how many stars do you have again?”
“One,” I said, glancing at my flank for a moment and grimacing. “Only one.”
Shining Armor frowned. “Well, I hope you find a way to bring those stars back. The Royal Guard could use them.”
“Yeah… I hope so too.” I stood up and gave a salute. “I’ll be getting back to my station.”
Shining Armor returned the salute. “I’ll see you later.”
I nodded and headed out, but as I left the barracks a guard came trotting up to me with a message that Princess Celestia wanted to see me in the castle study. I promptly changed my sword into a surfboard and flew up to one of the castle towers and made my way to the study, where I found not only Celestia, but Discord, standing side by side without so much as an attempt to strangle one another.
So Twilight and her friends succeeded, it seemed. Well, why should I be surprised?
“Swordulan, it’s good to see you,” Celestia said. “Please come in, there’s no need to be afraid. I’d like you to meet Discord.”
I slowly stepped further into the study, my eyes deadlocked on Discord. “We’ve met before.”
“And what a chaotic meeting it was!” Discord said enthusiastically. “But I’m beyond that now. I’ve had a change of heart, truly. Princess Celestia has told me about your little magic crystal crisis, and I’ve promised to help in any way I can.”
“I wouldn’t call it a crisis.” I looked to Celestia. “Are you really sure about this?”
Celestia gave an amused smile. “I am. Shall we see what Discord can learn from your enchantment?”
I looked back at Discord and reluctantly brought out my sword. “You better not perform any funky tricks on it.”
“Cross my heart!” Discord said, making an X with his claw over his chest. “I hold no resentment for the time you put me in a police box.”
Celestia raised a curious eyebrow at me. I gave her the ‘it’s a long story’ look and levitated the sword to Discord. “Let’s get this over with.”
“Down to business, then!” Discord said, grabbing the sword out of the air and crumpling it into a ball like it was a piece of paper, then reshaping it into its surfboard shape, or rather similar to how I shaped it like that. A magnifying glass appeared out of thin air which Discord used to closely examine the crystals.
“How does that help?” I asked.
“How else do you expect me to work with it? Your sword was too small, I needed to make it bigger. Now hush, this requires an extreme amount of concentration.”
Celestia and I patiently watched as Discord continued to study the crystals, occasionally humming to himself. He made more and more complicated magnifying glasses to use, and eventually he began tapping on the crystals, which caused his eyes to widen.
“Swordulan, I need you to stand on the sword and keep it hovering for a moment,” he said in an eerily serious tone.
I gave a confused look and took the sword into my magic and jumped on. “Anything happening?”
Discord eyed the largest crystal closer than ever. “Shush shush shush… yes, I see…” He tapped it one more time and jumped back as a small blast of energy came from within. “Ah! Well that was quite rude of you! Where did you get such a sour attitude?”
“Who in Equestria are you talking to?”
“The magical entity inside the large crystal here, obviously. Weren’t you aware of it?”
“We only knew that the enchantment was alive somehow.”
Discord gave a short laugh. “Of course the enchantment is alive. Don’t you know anything about magic? No, the word which you are really confused about is conscious. The enchantment is conscious of its surroundings because there is a magical entity living inside of the crystal.”
“How is that possible?” Celestia asked curiously.
“I’m not the kind of draconequus that goes snooping in the business of such entities, I’ve had a few particularly unpleasant meetings with some, but I would guess the main way such entities form in the first place, which is crystals being exposed to magical energy over a few hundred, or thousand, years. Are you aware of such crystals containing magic enhancing powers for the unicorns that use them? How certain crystals can influence and often corrupt their users? Like the large crystal here, those also have magical entities inside them.”
I frowned. “Are you saying I’m being influenced by the entity in my sword?”
Discord shrugged. “It’s hard to say. You seem to be the same boring Royal Guard now as you were back at our first meeting. Though even at that time you still had the sword, so perhaps you are.”
“Great… not only a disappearing cutie mark, I’m also potentially under a spell. But how does this all explain why I can do such crazy things with the sword?”
“And why does it resist the magic of others besides Swordulan?” Celestia asked. “That is what most confuses me.”
“The answer to both questions is the same,” Discord said, adjusting a monocle that had appeared over his eye. “You already know what a normal enchantment does. When a crystal with an already powerful entity inside of it is enchanted, it boosts the power of the enchantment and binds itself to the one who enchanted it. It is the entity that resists use from magic sources other than the enchanter. Of course, it was no match for me, and that has made it quite upset.” He poked at the large crystal with an amused grin. “You’re so cute when you’re angry.”
I jumped off the sword and levitated my helmet onto a desk to scratch the itch on the back of my neck. “If this is all true, that entity is one of the most powerful forces in Equestria.” I looked to Celestia, and she also seemed to be thinking the same thing. “It was able to match, and even best, the power of Nightmare Moon. It held against the strength of a hydra. It even flew faster than Rainbow Dash one time.”
Celestia’s eyes narrowed. “Do you think there might be anything to worry about with the entity, Discord? Is it dangerous?”
Discord shrugged. “I believe it’s not quite happy being trapped inside the crystal, especially for so long. However, I’m sure there’s no cause to worry. While its power is great, there’s nothing it can do to escape or take control of the sword, and as far as I can tell, it doesn’t have any ability to influence anypony either.”
Celestia looked to me. “Perhaps it would be best if the entity was removed, Swordulan.”
I nodded slowly and looked to Discord. “Is that possible?”
Discord tapped the crystal a few more times. “Hmm…” He snapped his claw, and then his jaw dropped. He snapped again and blinked in shock. “I don’t actually think it is. What are you?”
Celestia frowned. “What’s the matter?”
Discord scratched his chin. “It won’t budge. My magic has no direct effect on it. Well, this is quite a puzzle. I’m afraid I can be of no more help here. If you want to remove the entity, you’ll have to figure it out on your own.”
I took the sword into my magic and shaped it back to normal. “Maybe it’s not necessary. I mean, I’ve had the sword for over a year now and nothing bad has happened yet.”
“Perhaps,” Celestia said, watching the sword skeptically. “I would prefer to keep it under safe guard, but for now I’ll allow you to keep it. But let me know if it begins acting strange in any circumstance.”
I nodded. “Of course, Princess. I’ll be extra careful with it from now on.”
“Good. I’ll let you get back to your duties. Discord, if you would follow me, please.”
Celestia and Discord left the room, while I remained for a moment to stare at my sword. I wondered what was going on in that little crystal… what was on the magical entity’s mind? I could never tell there was any emotion coming from it while I used it…
Well, I’m not gonna get anywhere just thinking about it.
It was about time to meet the new Captain of the Royal Guard, so I left the study and found the nearest room with a balcony and teleported down without using my sword. It left me a bit dazed upon reaching the ground, having not teleported that sort of distance without my sword in a while. At least I was still in one piece.
For now, anyway. Who knew what the future held? Disappearing cutie mark, powerful magical entity, new Captain... it was so much to take in. Too much.