//------------------------------// // Chapter 92: Second Rate // Story: My Little Pony, Friendship is Magic: Stallion Edition // by SuperPinkBrony12 //------------------------------// "Well, we did it," Big Macintosh commented, as he and the other stallions stood in the middle of Ponyville. "We managed to convince everyone to stay indoors until further notice." "Yup, and I reckon it's time we took our own advice," Braeburn nodded. "Not sure 'bout the rest of you, but I think it might be best if I go back to Appleloosa. Tirek won't think to look in a place he's already been." "I'm sure none of this is necessary though," Thunderlane replied. "Discord will probably capture Tirek, and we'll have nothing to worry about." Soarin frowned. "Yeah, well knowing Discord, I can imagine he'll take his sweet time toying with Tirek." "Perhaps, or perhaps these things just take time to accomplish." Discord spoke up, appearing before the ponies. "You're back!" Thunderlane exclaimed, racing up to the spirit. "Oh thank goodness, I was starting to worry! Just wait til I tell Fluttershy the good news! And heck, we've gotta tell Pinkie Pie, so she can throw you a hero party!" But Discord didn't budge an inch as Thunderlane turned towards the path leading to Fluttershy's cottage. He just stood there, with a sad and guilty look on his face. "I'm sorry about this." He said, barely able to look the five stallions in the face. "For what?" Fancy Pants asked, noticing how odd the spirit was acting. Before Discord could explain, a giant cage materialized from out of nowhere, trapping all five stallions inside it! Even Discord seemed surprised at this! "What's goin' on?! What is the meanin' of this?!" Big Macintosh demanded, glaring at Discord. "Excellent work, Discord. You led me right to Shining's friends, and I didn't even have to lift a finger," A deep, booming voice called out, soon revealing itself as a hulking red coated centaur, with two big black horns, and a tuff of white for a mane. "So, these are the friends for whom Prince Shining Armor would do anything for? I must admit, they don't seem like much of a threat. Still, I could use an appetizer before the main course." The centaur proceeded to use his magic to lift up the cage, and absorb all the magic from the five stallions trapped within. Then he set the cage back down. "Why are you doing this, Discord?!" Thunderlane sadly commented, looking at the spirit with the faded color in his eyes. "After everything we've been through together, this is how you repay us?! Does our friendship mean nothing to you?!" "No, no, no! You don't understand, it's not like that at all!" Discord hastily replied, looking at Tirek. "Tirek told me that if I helped him get all the magic in Equestria, he'd leave my friends alone. He tricked me!" Tirek laughed. "Come now, Discord! You were more than willing to betray the ponies, given the proper motivation. Did you really think that, even with how powerful I've become, I wouldn't suspect you might inevitably betray me as well? I merely beat you to the punch." "But, but, this wasn't part of the deal!" Discord protested, glaring at Tirek. Tirek laughed again, before he added. "Well, Discord, if there's one thing the princesses should've told you, it's that I am NOT a centaur of my word!" When those words reached Discord's ears, the spirit of chaos felt something snap inside of him. Flames appeared in his eyes, as he narrowed his brows and looked straight at Tirek! "That does it! You just made a huge mistake, Tirek!" He bellowed at the top of his lungs. "And now it's time to pay the piper!" If Tirek was at all concerned by Discord's behavior, he sure didn't show it as he merely snickered and taunted. "Come now, Discord. Be reasonable. Do you really think you can stop me?" "No question about it! I'm gonna do what I should've done in the first place, and send you on a one way trip back to Tartarus!" Discord vowed. Tirek threw back his head and laughed as loudly as he could. "You're an even bigger fool than I imagined, Discord! But then I suppose you always were good, for a laugh." All the stallions gasped, and even Discord seemed to briefly be stunned by what Tirek had just said. But then the spirit looked at Tirek, and with a sly smile he simply said. "So, I'm just good for a laugh, huh? Well then.... what do you think of, THIS?!" With a snap of his paw, Discord changed into a superhero costume, complete with a mask and cape. Then he proceeded to shoot what looked like bolts of lightning (but were actually pure chaos energy) at Tirek. All the while he kept shouting. "Take this! And this! And this!" Even as the bolts of energy kicked up thick clouds of smoke, Discord simply prepared one more bolt, and at the top of his lungs he cried out in a heroic fashion. "And for good measure, THIS!" Then he fired off the last bolt! There was a tremendous boom, and the sound wave shook the ground! Slowly but surely, the smoke cleared, and Discord was noticeably panting and sweating. But when the smoke cleared up completely, there was no sign of Tirek anywhere. Feeling a surge of confidence, Discord heroically shouted. "Haha! 'Good for a laugh' eh? Well, Tirek, whose got the last laugh now?!" But just when Discord was certain he'd defeated Tirek, he heard an ominous and sinister cackle. All of a sudden, there stood Tirek, looking completely unharmed. "Oh, why I believe it's me!" He said, flashing a creepy smile. Then he grabbed Discord with his magic and pulled him close. "Wait, what are you.... Oh no!" Discord commented, realizing what was happening. "Oh yes!" Tirek smirked, and began to sing (as he transformed Discord into a stage magician): I must admit, your little 'parlor tricks' are amusing. Ooh! Why, I've bet you've got a bunny under that hat. Now you've had your chance to get the best of me, and it was all for naught. But come on, Discord! Let's see what you've got! Discord broke free of the costume, and tried to strike at Tirek with a blast of chaos magic. But Tirek effortlessly shrugged it off as he tauntingly continued to sing: You can try to hit me with your hardest stuff! But your chaos magic's just not up to snuff. So let's set the record straight, you're simply way out of date. And you're only second rate! Furious at the musical taunting, Discord transformed into a vicious timberwolf and tried to pounce on Tirek! But the crafty centaur merely moved to the side, and made a flaming hoop appear in Discord's path, causing the spirit to turn back once he'd made it through. Tirek then continued to sing, as he put a dunce cap on Discord and sat him on a giant stool: You like to think you're a meany, but your heart's been tamed. You've got a lot to learn about this villain game. Now, for your education, let me reiterate that- You're only second rate! Discord plunged off the stool, only to end up inside an illusioned giant version of Tirek's right paw. Delighting in how much he had frightened Discord, Tirek mockingly sang: Ponies will cower, at the power, in my pinky. My thumb will be number one on all the lists! Appearing before Discord, Tirek then sang in a boastful tone: Yet if you're not convinced that I'm unbeatable then, put me to the test. 'Cause I'd love to lay this little 'rivalry' to rest! Breaking out of a tombstone Tirek had tossed him into, Discord summoned up all the chaos magic he could muster and hurled it at Tirek, who just sang: Go ahead and zap with your big surprise. Slap me in a trap and cut me down to size! I'll make a grand escape, it's just a piece of cake. 'Cause you're only second rate! Tirek effortlessly escaped from Discord's trap, and then continued to sing: You know your 'hocus pocus' isn't quite tough enough. And your 'mumbo jumbo' doesn't quite measure up. Now allow me to pontificate upon your sorry state. You're only second rate. Discord tried to run away from Tirek, but he soon found himself facing several illusions of the centaur, and he couldn't tell which one was real. Meanwhile, all the Tireks were singing at once: Zabacabadabra! Old Tirek's gonna grab ya! Suddenly, one of the Tirek's grabbed Discord and pulled him in close. When the other illusions faded away a second later, Tirek then sang as loud as he could: Alakazam tomas! This thing's bigger than the both of us! Discord tried to glare at Tirek, hoping to maybe unnerve him. But Tirek only laughed and continued to sing: Oh, spare me your tremendous stare! Wanna clash with me? Your power doesn't even compare. And I can't even wait to discombobulate! It's time to send you packing in a sorry state! You'd make a better living with a spinning plate! Now that you're only second raaaaaaaaaaattttttttttttttttte! The song ended, as Tirek flipped the spinning plate Discord on, sending the spirit flying high into the air. When he came back down, Tirek snatched him with his magic, and pulled him in close. "So you see, Discord. You never had a chance against me, not in a million years," He boasted, and then demanded. "But I must admit, you're proving to be a very pesky thorn in my backside, and I can't allow you and Prince Shining Armor to team up against me! I doubt it'll make a difference in the long run, but I want your magic and I want it now!" "Never! I'l never give you my magic!" Discord protested, as he squirmed about helplessly, unable to break free of Tirek's grasp. "You assume I'm giving you a choice in the matter, but I'm not!" Tirek growled, and much to the shock, surprise, and horror of everyone present, he effortlessly drained Discord of every drop of chaos magic. When he was finished, he tossed the now powerless spirit to the ground like a worn out rag doll. "It's nothing personal, I just can't stand traitors and double crossers," He added. "I learned from the mistake I made with my brother, after all," Then, to add insult to injury, Tirek commented. "Your magic was hardly even worthy of being appetizer, and to think you believed you could stop me." And with that, he stomped away to look for Shining Armor. But Tirek hadn't gotten very far, when Discord weakly called out. "W-wait. B-but, you said that this amulet was a sign of our trust," He held up the very amulet Tirek had given him just a short time earlier, and added (recalling the exact words Tirek had spoken). "A gift from someone very near and dear to you?" Tirek looked back at Discord, and replied. "That amulet was given to me by my useless brother, shortly before he betrayed me to the ponies and had me sent to Tartarus to rot for all eternity, while he got to return to our native land and assume the throne in my place. It is as useless to me as you are now." Then he turned around and stomped off into the distance. "Surely, you saw this comin', right?" Big Macintosh asked the weakened Discord. "This is all part of your crazy scheme to lure Tirek into a false sense of security, and any moment now you're gonna slap him right back into Tartarus, right?" "No, this was never part of my plan. Even in my wildest dreams I never imagined an outcome like this." Discord weakly replied, unable to say more. "Well then, that's it. It's all up to Shining Armor now," Soarin commented. "Unless he's found that sixth key, he'll have to stop Tirek by sheer force." Discord hung his head. "We're doomed. Even if Shining has all the alicorn magic in Equestria, Tirek has the magic of just about everypony else in Equestria, and my chaos magic. At best they'll be evenly matched, but I have that nagging feeling that my chaos magic gives Tirek the edge." "So, this is it? This is how it all ends? With us pinning our hopes on Shining?" Thunderlane asked with concern. "I'm afraid so," Braeburn glumly replied. "Poor Shinin''s about to face the fight of his life, and he's got no one to support him. He's all alone." But Fancy Pants shook his head, even as he weakly retorted. "No, nopony is ever truly alone, not as long as they have friends and loved ones. We may not be there in pony, but we'll definitely be with him in spirit. I just hope that'll be enough." No one dared to consider the outcome if that support wasn't enough. The very real possibility that Tirek would prevail after all, was something that no one, not even the most pessimistic among the group, wanted to think about.