//------------------------------// // The Third Team // Story: Harmonics // by ezra09 //------------------------------// Was Discord on their side? The question burned in Scootaloo’s mind. She was lying under a tree, pillow propped against the trunk. She’d eschewed the tents and crowds, enjoying the cool night and the time alone to think instead. As guilty as she’d felt for so long, and as much as she was hoping that Discord was honestly on her side, she knew it would be crazy to just accept it. There was a chance that as soon as Nocturne was dealt with, Discord would be back to his old ways. But no matter how she turned the question over, there was no answer. No way of uncovering the truth, and in some ways, no point. If he wasn’t on their side, then that was it. He was already free, and nothing they could do was going to save them. The night was quiet. With her thoughts of Discord and the questions keeping her up, she was reminded of her past. Of the silent nights alone at the clubhouse, and of the questionable presence that had kept her company. She hesitated as a thought struck her. “Discord?” she asked, her voice barely more than a silent breath. I was wondering if you’d want to talk to me again. She smiled despite her nerves. “I was just thinking. About before. We used to talk like this every day. I wasn’t sure if you’d be listening this time, though.” There were no words, but she felt an acknowledgement of the statement, the mental equivalent of a shrug. She rolled onto her side and unfurled a wing, absentmindedly brushing her mane from her eyes. “I’ve been wondering something. Why are you and Nocturne enemies?" There was silence for a long time, and Scootaloo wondered if he’d heard her. Finally, he responded. It’s complicated. “Oh, Celestia, don’t tell me you two dated.” Discord chuckled. Not that complicated. Before ponies came to Equestria, there were many of us. Many eternal spirits, each embodying some concept. Now there’s two. “What happened to the others?” They lost, Discord answered. There were more than a dozen immortal beings, each with their own view on how the world should be shaped. Chaos, a constant shifting from the monotony of yesterday conflicted with the pursuit of understanding everything. The idea that every creature owed its life to the mercy of those stronger than it conflicted with the idea that every creature was inherently equal. Some were imprisoned. That is the simplest way to deal with us. Others weakened and driven into hiding, and some lost interest in the conflict. When it was all over, chaos reigned over all of Equestria. For about six months. You know the story from there. “Why do you want to conquer Equestria?” Scootaloo asked. You know why, Discord said. That’s something I never lied about. I wanted to make a world where anything can happen, where ponies don’t just have to live through the same boring things every day for their entire lives. “But not everypony wants to live like that,” Scootaloo said. Clearly, otherwise I wouldn’t have spent over a thousand years as a lawn ornament. Scootaloo got the impression that Discord was yawning. And I think that brings us to the real question you’ve been wanting to ask. “How do we know you won’t try again once Nocturne’s out of the way?” You don’t. Scootaloo shivered at the sudden smugness in his voice. Well, that wasn’t the answer she’d been looking for. Get some rest. We’re just about done with all of this boring planning, and tomorrow’s going to be busy. Like she’d be able to sleep now. “Yeah, okay.” Goodnight, Scootaloo. “...Goodnight, Discord.” ***** Morning dawned on Camp Canterlot, and before long Scootaloo and her friends made their way back to the Royal Guard tents. Scootaloo heard another set of hoofsteps, a bit faster than anypony in the group, and looked over her shoulder. The pegasus from yesterday was trotting along behind them. After a few seconds, he’d caught up and slowed to match their pace. “Uh, hey everypony.” “Oh, hi there,” Apple Bloom said, turning. “Wind Rider, right?” “Yes. And I never got any of your names, I don’t think.” “Ah’m Apple Bloom. Nice to meetcha.” “I’m Sweetie Belle.” “Spike. Hi there.” “I’m Lord Thistleroot, right hoof to Her Royal Highness, Princess Celestia.” “No he’s not. And I’m Scootaloo.” “Nice to meet you all,” Wind Rider said. “Though I already knew your name. You’re the one who freed Discord, right?” “We all decided it was a good idea,” Apple Bloom said, taking a step to the side so that she was between Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle. “Yeah, it’s not like she was—” Sweetie Belle started, moving as well, but cut off as Scootaloo put a hoof on her and Apple Bloom’s chests and nudged them out of the way. “Yeah, I freed him. If you’d seen Nocturne with your own eyes, you’d have done it too,” she said flatly. Wind Rider raised an eyebrow, half turned, and pointed a hoof out toward the ruined Canterlot skyline. “Yes, I’m actually on your side on that, believe it or not.” “You know, now that I think about it, setting up right next to Canterlot probably wasn’t good for morale,” Spike said said dryly. “Anyway, I wasn’t trying to judge, I promise.” “Well, alright then,” Apple Bloom said, giving him a stern look before continuing on her way. Scootaloo gave an apologetic smile and the group followed. “So, Wind Rider,” Scootaloo said. “That’s an interesting name.” “Oh, thanks,” he said. “I uh, got it for my birthday?” Scootaloo rolled her eyes while Thistleroot chuckled beside her. “You know, not to brag or anything, but my sister’s actually a Wonderbolt.” “Oh, cool,” Wind Rider said, head perking up. He glanced sideways and asked in a quieter voice, “What’s a Wonderbolt?” “Oh,” Scootaloo said. “I just assumed, because of your name. The Wonderbolts are a team of the fastest pegasi in Equestria. One of them was named Wind Rider, so I thought you were named after him.” Wind Rider shook his head. “Oh hey, we’re here.” A little over a hundred ponies had joined the Canterlot Royal Militia, and another thirty Royal Guards had still been around when Shining Armor returned. It looked like most of them were gathered. Scootaloo and the group took a place near the center. Discord spotted her from where he was standing with Shining Armor and appeared beside her in a flash. Most of the ponies near her group backed up, startled by his sudden appearance. Some of them turned to begin moving away, only to stop short when they saw that he was still on their other side talking to Shining Armor at the same time. “Well, good morning ponies!” Discord said. “Morning,” Scootaloo answered. “So, how did the planning go?” “About as well as could be expected, I suppose. They had a bunch of maps and were all talking, I wasn’t paying that much attention except for when they needed to ask me a question. It’s not going to be easy, though.” “What did you do to get yourself banned from the hives, anyway?” Spike asked. “Oh, let’s just say that even with my magic, some things are better suited for staying on the ground.” “That doesn’t actually answer anything,” Spike said, but Discord talked over him. “Anyway, Shining Armor should be going over the plan here in just a moment.” As he spoke, the other Discord stepped back and Shining Armor moved forward. Silence fell over the gathered ponies. “I’m glad to see that everypony is still here,” Shining Armor said. “As I’m sure most of you have heard before now, and as all of you can see, Discord has been freed for the purpose of helping us.” There were whispers in the crowd at that statement. Shining Armor let them continue for a few seconds before he cut them off. “Through his help, we have discovered the location of a weapon that can be used to fight against the first changeling queen. We now have a way to protect our homes, our families, our friends, and our princesses.” More whispers, the energy in the crowd seemed to rise. “But before we can use it, we must retrieve it from the changeling hives. We have information on how it is guarded, and last night we were able to send pegasus scouts out to it, and we now believe we have the best strategy for doing so.” “How did ya’ll send scouts?” Apple Bloom asked Discord, keeping her voice down so as to not interrupt Shining Armor. “It’s on the other side of Equestria.” “Oh, that part was simple,” Discord answered, waving his paw modestly. “I can’t teleport directly to the hives, but I can get us close.” “Our scouts informed us that there was very little activity near the hives. Given other information we’ve received over the past weeks, we believe the majority of the changelings have joined Nocturne in her castle in the North. We’ll be splitting into three groups for this operation,” Shining Armor said. “The first group will be comprised entirely of pegasi. Using hit and run tactics, their job will be to provoke the changelings into leaving the hive and pursuing them to the second group, which will be waiting outside of the hive’s magical protection. Between my shield spells and Discord’s... whatever it is he does, the first and second groups will be able to stall the changelings long enough for the third group to enter the hives and retrieve the weapon.” “That sounds a lot like the plan we used at Night’s End,” Sweetie Belle said. “Let’s just hope it goes better,” Spike added. “It will,” Discord said. “I know Rosie well enough to know she wouldn’t leave the weapon guarded only by regular changelings. She’ll be there. And since we know that, we can be sure not to send the third group in until she shows herself. Once she does, the hive will be more or less safe, and I get to have some fun with her.” “Oh, good,” Thistleroot said, edging away from Discord. “The third group will be comprised of the fastest ponies we can find,” Shining Armor said. “They aren’t going in to fight. Their job is to get in and get out as quickly as possible. I don’t know you ponies well enough to choose members of the team myself, so I need volunteers.” “I’ll go,” Scootaloo said. “Quick, everypony, act shocked,” Thistleroot said. “It’s gonna be awfully dangerous,” Apple Bloom said. “Maybe this is one we should let the trained Royal Guards handle.” “How many Royal Guards have been inside the changeling hives?” Scootaloo asked, loud enough for everypony to hear. Nopony answered. “That’s what I thought. I’ve been through the hives twice, once when Lirian brought me to the cells, and then again when I escaped. I didn’t do much exploring, but I know the basic layout.” “We’re not in any position to turn down volunteers,” Shining Armor said. “Anypony else?” “The rest of us,” Sweetie Belle said. Shining Armor’s face soured. “This team has to be pegasi only.” “But ya just said ya weren’t in any position to turn down volunteers.” “The entrances to the changeling hives are at the top, and if things go poorly you would have to escape in a hurry. I’m sorry, but there’s nothing any of you can bring to the team that a pegasus can’t, and we can’t afford mistakes here. And Spike, I need you close by. Your ability to send messages to the Crystal Empire is too valuable to risk.” Nopony else from the militia seemed brave enough, but three Royal Guards volunteered. “Scootaloo, ya can’t really be thinking of going without us, are ya?” Apple Bloom asked. “I don’t want to,” Scootaloo admitted. “But somepony has to. And I owe Rainbow Dash and the princess too much to not even try.” She turned back to her friends. Wind Rider, standing behind Thistleroot, averted his gaze quickly, as though he’d been staring at her. The pegasus’s brow was furrowed. After a few seconds, Wind Rider glanced back, saw that she was looking at him, and quickly looked away again. He moved away and into the crowd. Weird, Scootaloo thought. Shining Armor had begun moving onto more detailed plans, pulling maps out and explaining the locations and movements of the first two groups. “Does anypony else think Wind Rider’s a little off?” Scootaloo asked. “What do ya mean?” “Well, like how he didn’t know who the Wonderbolts were.” “That’s not that weird,” Sweetie Belle said. “Yeah, not everypony is into the same stuff,” Spike said. “Yeah, but he has the same name as one. Even if it wasn’t on purpose, I can’t be the first pony to have mentioned them to him.” “He has the same name as a disgraced ex-Wonderbolt,” Thistleroot said. “Maybe it’s an awkward subject for him.” He grinned. “Are you sure you’re not just mad that he didn’t know your famous sister?” Scootaloo rolled her eyes. “I’ll volunteer for the third group.” They looked back toward the group to see that Wind Rider had made his way to the front and was now standing with a hoof raised. Shining Armor nodded to him and continued with the briefing. “See,” Thistleroot said. “He’s just a guy trying to do his part.” Scootaloo watched Wind Rider turn back into the crowd, shake his head, and march toward the back of the group, shoulder checking a smaller unicorn out of the way. “You’re worried about nothing.”