Luna stared at Discord, unsure if she'd heard correctly. Discord gazed back at her impassively. Not a flicker betrayed him. But then, he’d always been a good liar. He'd had centuries upon centuries of practice. After all, hadn't Discord fooled Luna—fooled them all—for however long he'd been plotting to usurp Celestia and take the Equestrian throne all those centuries ago? Why should Luna be surprised that her old friend could lie convincingly?
But the words the Night Princess had spoken only the day before slipped into Luna's mind, taunting her with the echoes of a promise made to the foster brother who might just be going mad.
Discord, I don't understand. Please, explain it to me…Why should I bother? Discord had asked. You won't listen…I will, Luna had said. She'd promised to listen. And when Discord had predicted, You won't believe, Luna had promised to try. Perhaps such an oath had been rash, because how could he believe that Discord had gone from the changelings’ unwilling prisoner to their general and the leader of their invading force? It was preposterous.
"The cell next to yours?" Luna echoed, not even bothering to hide her disbelief. "Did you take it and feign imprisonment in an attempt to woo the mare's confidences? Gain her trust? What did she have that the changelings could want so badly?" Was this Rosedust that Discord spoke of even really dead? Did she even exist?
The chaos lord shook his head wearily. For a moment there was something in Discord's face that caught Luna's eye, an almost-feral desperation—there one instant, gone the very next, pulling at the concern always hanging over Luna like a threatening cloudburst. But then, replacing that whisper of bestial phobos, was Discord's familiar disdain. Rolling his eyes, he sneered, "Of course that was my design. After all, of course the changelings would seek to harness the power to destroy entire worlds in an eye-blink, with just the wave of a hand."
Luna's eyes widened. Horror shivered through her. Could their enemies truly possess such power? Could there be a pony as powerful as Discord claimed? Then if the changelings ever returned to Canterlot in full force, they could wipe out the rest of the ponies in seconds. Midnight blue eyes stared at Discord in dismay as his thin lips curved into a smirk.
"Such power, and all in the hands of a single pony. Truly a powerful weapon. Of course the changelings wanted her power under their control. Once the silly filly fell under my power, it was a simple enough matter, wooing her to our side."
Luna stepped back from the ensorcelled bars. The buzz of the magic dissipated as she put distance between herself and the containment spells. Sick disappointment churned in her stomach, mingling with the ever-present simmer of anger. Silence descended, broken only by the snap and crackle of the torches in the corridor. Shadows danced along the walls while coldly enraged blue eyes locked with taunting amber.
"You almost had me fooled, Discord," Luna muttered, no little bitterness tingeing the words. She'd thought they were making progress. Had truly thought she was getting through to Discord a little. But it had all been a cruel little game. What was the Night Princess supposed to tell Celestia? "I should have known better than to trust anything you said," she added softly. "A soldier for the changelings to the end, I suppose? You tricked the mare into using her powers for your twisted queen and then killed her yourself, did you? And here you had me feeling sorry for you."
A flash of vicious hatred and something that might have been betrayal in Discord's green-tinged eyes should've sliced Luna to the bone; she tried to shove the feel down, where she could ignore it. Surging to his feet, Discord stalked forward. The smirk was gone; all traces of amusement had vanished. In a voice smoldering with abyssal fire, Discord snarled, "Sorry for me. You felt sorry for me. Let me be the first to tell you how very much I appreciate your pathetic and so-sincere sentiment, little moon."
Eagle claw and lion paw slammed against the bars. Under Discord's strength, normal bars would have buckled, cracks spiderwebbing across through the iron before shattering under the blow. The enchanted cage merely shuddered. Sparks of gold and magenta magic shot through the bars in incandescent waves. Discord pressed his forehead against the sparking, crackling metal, despite the fact that the magic had to be pushing at him, vainly attempting to shove him back with little needle-pricks of pain against his fur.
From between clenched fangs Discord spat, "Are you stupid? Are you blind?" Luna bristled, but before she could snap a reply, Discord jerked his claws back from the bars and brought them crashing forward again. The bars rattled harder under this second blow. The magic in it blazed with magenta and amber fire that reflected like dancing flames in Discord's eyes. The chaos lord added with savage heat, "You sanctimonious idiot! You really are a fool. Will you believe anything I spoon-feed you? You've not changed at all."
Squaring her shoulders, Luna said coolly, "I'll not be toyed with, Discord."
Discord sneered at her. Luna's hoof ached to knock that sneer off his face. Her foreleg ached with the strain of holding herself back. Discord's voice dripped contempt when he hissed, "But you make it so disgustingly easy, Princess."
With a cry like an enraged harpy, the Night Princess took two furious strides forward and brought her hoof down on the bars. They shuddered under the impact. Both alicorn and draconequus seemed surprised by this flash of temper from Luna, but Discord's surprise quickly morphed into disdainful amusement. Luna narrowed her eyes as thin, pale lips curled into a cat-like smile. Her heart hammered as fresh anger flooded her veins like molten star-iron.
"Windigos freeze your soul, Discord," Luna thundered. A knife-thin white brow winged upward in mocking inquiry. Every word picked up more volume as Luna bellowed, "For once in your life, abandon your webs of falsehood and tell me the truth!"
The words echoed in the corridor. Luna's chest heaved as she fought to control her breathing, fought to cool her not-inconsiderable temper, fed by hurt, and bring it to heel. Discord merely regarded her with unfathomable topaz eyes. The contempt and condescension faded from his expression, leaving it blank as a brand new sheet of paper. Something impossible to read glittered in the depths of that jewel-gaze as the two ex-friends regarded each other. At last Discord's mouth curved into a smile with just a trace of mockery in it—mockery aimed at Discord himself, Luna thought with some surprise, not at the Princess of the Night. Discord nodded slowly, as if coming to a decision.
"The truth?" Discord murmured conversationally. He shook his head as if in disbelief and pulled away from the bars of his cell, turning his back on Luna to amble over to the table and chair that he so often occupied during these visits. As if too weary to stand any longer, Discord slumped into the chair and stretched out his long legs. Long claws trembled as they reached for a single sheet of paper on the table.
From her semi-distant vantage point, Luna could see the cramped, spidery handwriting that filled the entire page. The top-most line was the only part of the thing discernible from that distance. The alicorn thought she saw a word beginning with "R"…but couldn't quite make it out. That small detail seemed important, though she couldn't have explained why.
Discord's eyes roved over the paper for a long moment of silence before he dropped it to the table again. Then he lifted his gaze to Luna's. "You want the truth? Really?"
Her anger finally under control once more, Luna nodded. "It is all I have ever wanted from you, Discord." Work with me, Discord, she tried to say with her gaze. Will you not help me to help yourself, old friend? Tell me the truth.
Discord sighed and leaned back. Propping his elbow the arm of the chair, he brought his lion paw to his mouth and draped two claws across his lips as Luna had seen him do when considering a difficult problem. After a time, Discord nodded again and fixed her with a look that was almost pitying.
"I shall give you the truth, then, since you want it so much."
He straightened, dropping his arms so they draped across his thighs. He leaned forward, golden eyes piercing, and stared at Luna like a serpent watching a mouse. A strange unease shivered through the alicorn under the full weight of that gaze.
Discord swallowed audibly and a shudder rippled through his tall, lean frame. "Tell me, Luna…do you have any idea what it is to be locked away in a dank, dark pit for days, weeks, months on end?" Discord's brow arched upward as Luna's brows furrowed. "Do you know what it's like, Luna, to be trapped in a box so small you can't take three paces, nor even stand without stooping, but are forced to crawl like a worm?"
Luna opened her mouth to reply…and found she had no words. She couldn't imagine Discord crawling. Couldn't imagine anyone having the audacity to try and make him do so. Even when he'd stood before Celestia to receive the judgment of the Princess of the Sun for his crimes against Equestria, Discord had stood tall, refusing to kneel before a mare he named "a treacherous liar." And Discord hadn't seemed to be crawling under the cruel weight of the changelings’ torments when he'd murdered Zephyr Breeze or overseen the attack on Canterlot. When he'd stabbed Luna after the alicorn had pleaded with him one last time to surrender and come home. What fetters had bound him then?
The fetters that bind me are stronger than any that Celestia could devise…The words echoed in Luna's brain, a whisper of doubt that she ruthlessly shoved away. Let Discord spin his lies like a slender, black spider biding time in the center of his web, intent on ensnaring the princess as his prey. Let him try to spin his web of falsehoods. Luna would have none of it.
But there was the memory of his anguish when he'd called up the vision of the little foal. Eris. If the foal didn't exist, if she were merely a tool for Discord's latest scheme, then where had he even heard such a name? And what if she did exist? If she and Rosedust were in fact real…what had wrung such grief from the draconequus? Why had he needed to swear to protect young Eris, and from what? And what had caused him to fail?
What was Luna supposed to believe?
She focused once more on Discord as the steady voice suddenly wavered and trailed away. Wrinkles furled between Discord's brows and he bit his lip hard enough that a red spot stood out against the dust-gray fur. Discord pressed his palms flat to the table, bowing his head so that strands of stringy gray hair spilled across his face, hiding his features. Breathing ragged with some unknown strain filled the otherwise quiet chamber and the corridor beyond.
Finally Discord rasped, "Have you ever been shut up in pitch blackness for so long that you cannot remember the feel of the wind, the song of the Equestrian Sea, the sight of sunlight or moonlight or even the faint glimmer of the stars? Have you any idea what it's like, to be wrapped in silence so absolute that you only have the sound of your heart roaring in your ears and your own screams to listen to?" Discord's hands knotted into fists so tight they shook. "Do you know what it is to be clawed at so savagely by thirst that you'd drink the blood of the rats scuttling around in your cell in order to quench it, only to choke on the poisonous salt? Have you ever known hunger so savage it tears at your guts like rabid wolves until you think you must eat something—slop or sawdust or glass, anything—or you'll go mad with the pain tearing at your belly?"
He turned his head away, as if unable to look at his former protégé any longer. He drew a sharp, shuddering breath. "Tell me that, Luna. Tell me if you've ever known the degradation of being treated worse than the lowliest cur, with no hope of ever escaping captivity unless you give in and do the unthinkable—and yet you still refused. Even when you thought insanity loomed on the horizon, even when your claws were torn and bloodied from scraping at the walls for hours in a futile attempt at escape…even when you sought to take your own life in order to escape, only to be thwarted by your torturers...have you ever experienced such, Luna?"
"We never put you in such a place," Luna snapped, masking her horror and unease with irritation. It hurt, like a knife through her heart, to think of anyone in such a place. But Discord had looked fine when Luna had found him on the Night Tower during the invasion. There was no proof of such torments.
In an utterly dead, emotionless voice the chaos lord replied, "I am not talking about the prison cells of Canterlot, or the stone prison where you twice sent me."
"Then what are you talking about?"
"I am talking about the changeling dungeons."
And despite the wall of doubts assailing her, Luna was suddenly reminded of that first visit and reconnaissance mission to Discord's cell on Celestia’s behalf. Discord had knelt before the fire as one of the infamous and unknown drawings crackled amidst the searing flames. In an almost-tortured rasp, Discord had demanded, "What do they know of darkness? What do they know of the choking blackness of the void? What do they know of isolation? Nothing. Nothing at all." Had this been what he meant?
Bile seared the back of Luna's throat. No. No, she couldn't believe he’d been subjected to such tortures after vanishing the day the Guardians of Harmony had freed him. Luna wouldn't—couldn't—believe it. Discord was lying. That was all there was to it. For if he was telling the truth, how had he become the changelings’ commander on the invasion field? And the changelings didn’t keep prisoners as some did; only locked them away in cocoons to absorb their magic and love. Why would they change their methods now?
But of course, if the princess asked such questions, of course Discord would have an answer ready; a perfectly good answer, which would come tripping sweetly off his forked tongue, the deceitful snake.
In a lifetime of lies, it was nearly impossible to discern the truth. And Discord could never seem to hold onto sincerity for long, even during these conversations. Not without being poisoned by the mad rage or disdain so prevalent in his dealings with Luna.
Discord at last opened his eyes and stared unseeingly into the slowly-dying hearth flames. Shadows cast by the fire flickered in Discord's empty gaze. The princess could only stare in baffled silence. Discord's voice rang with sincerity…but then, it had done so the day of Celestia’s coronation thousands of years ago, when he'd professed his fraternal love for his foster-sister.
For a long moment, Luna continued to stare at Discord and try to fathom what he was telling her. Which was the truth? Every word vibrated with such rage and desperation when Discord spoke of what the changelings had supposedly done to him…but then, there was the question of Rosedust. Her identity. Whether she had been intended as a tool for the changelings’ invasion force, or whether she even existed. And the foal, Eris—what if she, too, were a lie? Was Discord simply attempting to manipulate them all? He'd done so many times before. What if this was just another such attempt?
"I told you that you wouldn't listen," Discord murmured, leaning his forearms atop the table. He stared at the paper filled with his careful but miniscule handwriting as if his gaze could devour the words like a starving man at a banquet. A tired yellow-gray gaze flicked to Luna's face, then back to the paper. Discord sighed. "You never listen. It seems I'm not the only one who's never sincere."
Wondering vaguely if ruthlessness or true curiosity prompted the question, Luna demanded, "And did she listen? Your precious Rosedust? Did she drink up all your sweetly poisoned lies?" But Discord said nothing. Merely closed his eyes and laced his claws together so that he could rest his chin atop his hands. "Answer me!" Luna shouted. The blood pounded hot through her body once more as fresh anger lanced him. Did Discord have to be mysterious about everything?
A swift transformation overtook the golden-eyed creature. The ruffled gray brow furrowed, wrinkles snarling betwixt his thin white eyebrows. Thin lips pulled back slightly as Discord bared his fangs in something to savage to be called a smile but too pained to be snarl. That new and all-too-familiar arctic loathing filled eyes like topaz knives that threatened to cut Luna open to the bone.
"How dare you speak her name?" Discord slowly rose to his feet, gaze fixed on Luna. Each word was chiseled from jagged ice. "How dare you speak of her at all? You don't deserve to truly know her. You don't deserve to even know of her. How dare you? How dare you mock what you do not know?"
The words sent an odd pang through Luna's chest. She still couldn't shake the feeling that whoever this Rosedust was, Discord had cared for her. Perhaps deeply. But Discord had supposedly cared for his foster family, and look what he'd done to all of them. Forcing coldness into her voice, Luna said, "You take offense because I dare to take you to task for lying to her—"
With a swift savagery that seemed to Luna almost to be madness, Discord lunged forward, raging, "I never lied to her!" Luna jerked back from him, stunned. Discord roared, "How dare you! How dare you speak of lies when your own sister lied to you when she blasted you off to that infernal rock! How dare you accuse me of lying to her when you and Celestia are the ones who lied to your precious Twilight Sparkle! I was watching. Yet I am the liar? I am? You had a choice! You didn't have to force her into the alicorn trial! You could have gone handled it yourself! I had no choice! None! There was nothing I could do! It's your fault, damn you! It's all your fault! You wouldn't let me return!"
"Return where?" Luna demanded incredulously. "You had no means of traveling between the kingdoms, no way to leave Equestria—"
"I begged you to turn away!" Discord snarled. "You wouldn't listen! I begged you to let me go, begged you to—"
"Demanded I let you," Luna contradicted. "Demanded I release you, and for what? To wreak more havoc? To butcher more innocent ponies? To shame our family, betray our princess and our honor—"
Discord snarled low in his throat. His eyes, bright with a crazed light, seemed almost green in the uncertain illumination from the torches. "I owe Celestia nothing. Nothing. Because of her and because of you, Rosedust is dead now. Celestia sent you after me, sent you and Twilight Sparkle to interfere, and because of you, Rosedust is dead. She's dead, damn you. They both are. Don't speak to me of betraying honor. Where is the honor of the House of the Sun and Moon now? Drowned in the blood of two innocents. If you had just let me go, instead of betraying me yet again, they would still be alive and all those ponies wouldn't have died in vain."
Hiding her unease and uncertainty with feigned disgust, the princess shook her head. "You've changed, Discord. At least before your latest betrayal, you would accept responsibility for your own mistakes. The blood of the ponies you slaughtered isn't on my hooves. Look in the mirror to see the face of a true killer."
Luna nearly attempted to leap through the bars and strike him when Discord sneered at her yet again, his lip curling in obvious contempt. In a hissing, almost snakelike voice, Discord said, "A killer. Oh, yes, I am a killer, aren't I? My claws are stained by so much blood they'll never be clean again. I can even tell you where it comes from, all that blood—the blood of innocent mares, fillies and colts. Foals. Yes, little moon, I am a killer. I know it; I don't need a coward, a traitor, and a murderer like you to tell me."
Midnight-blue eyes widened. "Traitor? Coward? Murderer? How dare you? You betray the princess of Equestria—to whom you owe your life, to whom your swore fealty, who took you in as her own brother—usurp the throne that rightfully belongs to your sister, try to kill me while laying waste to our city, join forces with the changelings, murder innocent ponies, stab my friend and comrade in the back, command a slaughter, and yet you name me traitor and coward?"
Discord raised one mocking brow. "Is that what I did, little moon?" He asked in a faux-shocked tone. "All of that? Tsk, tsk. No wonder you wish I were dead. I must be such an embarrassment to you. I suppose nothing I did would surprise you after all that."
"Don't mock me, Discord! And do not put words in my mouth!"
He glared, contempt practically dripping from him. "You think you're so superior, don't you? You think you know everything. You think you know how it was. You and all the rest of the ponies have always believed yourselves so far above me. Nothing I could do would ever make me your equal. I would always be inferior to you in the eyes of the kingdom." Discord shook his head in disgust. "Get out of here, Luna. Go away, and don't come back. Tell Celestia it's pointless. Ah, yes—I knew why you were here: to offer her some small ray of hope that her precious foundling was still in here, somewhere. Well, let me tell you this: Discord the Chaos Lord of Equestria is dead, and I am what's left. Don't look for answers here."
"Tell me what happened when you disappeared that day, Discord," Luna demanded, only to be ignored as the draconequus turned and strode not to the chair, but to the cot that served him for a bed. Flinging himself carelessly upon it, he fixed his eyes on the ceiling of his prison. "Tell me! Curse you, Discord, you will tell me the truth!"
"You don't deserve the truth," Discord murmured, closing his eyes. "Stop pestering me for it like a foal wanting a sweet."
Willing to use almost any means necessary to keep him talking, Luna snapped, "Like a foal, am I? A child like your little Eris?" Every muscle in Discord's body stiffened. His eyes shot open, though he didn't look toward the princess. "Where did you find her? Did you trick her into helping you, promising your protection and friendship, feigning affection for her, only to betray her in the end?" Discord's claws convulsed into fists. He took one single sharp breath. His eyes blazed, but he still didn't look at Luna. "What was she to you? Hmmm? A servant? A slave? One of your pawns?" He was using Blueblood's goading approach, which Luna realized was pathetic, but if it would make Discord say something, perhaps it was worth it.
There was a long silence, then Discord slowly released the breath he'd been holding. Keeping his eyes focused on the plain stone ceiling above, he said tonelessly, "Still so very blind. Still so dense. How does anything get through that thick skull of yours?" Luna growled, but said nothing. Finally Discord added, "The question you should ask is not what was she to me, Luna. The proper question is, what was she to you?"
Luna's mouth fell open. Her thoughts stuttered to a halt for a split-second, then began racing through her skull. But no matter how Luna prodded or coaxed, Discord closed his eyes and would speak no more.
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