The precious, Saddle Arabian silk curtains were open just enough to let some of the morning light filter in the room, highlighting the bright pink and golden colour scheme of the decor and revealing the elegant fresco emblazoned on the ceiling. In the middle of it, there was the portrait Princess of Love in the act of ascending, surrounded by the ethereal glow of the magical plane she had found herself in. Around it, almost like a frame, there were many ponies happily celebrating the event in the many different cities of Equestria. There were the tall buildings of Manehattan, the desert of San palomino, the fields of Ponyville, and naturally the palace of Canterlot; Discord himself was portrayed right in front of it.
As Cadence opened her eyes, slightly reddened due to the copious crying of the previous night, the fresco was the very first thing she saw. But while usually the sight brought her joy, today it only reminded her of her position... And of how she had failed to uphold her duties. Letting a criminal escape, especially one involved in the foalnapping of her dear friend Pinkie, just because he was... Cute? She sighed, trying to get up from the bed despite the crushing weight of the guilt she was feeling. Guilt that was soon going to double, as the second thing she would see that day finally came into view.
"Good Morning, Mia." Only one creature did affectionately call her that: the one that gave her the name of Mi Amore in the first place. At the very end of her bed, sitting sideways on the oversized mattress, there was the Lord of Chaos itself. His demeanour seemed calm, composed, and he was even putting up a little smile.
"Uncle!" The princess' eyes widened in surprise, as the conflicting emotions started to untangle and manifest into her head. On one hoof, she needed to talk to him, and she was glad he was there already. She needed to know if his search was fruitful. On the other hoof, though, he could barely mask her crushing guilt while looking at him. The previous evening she just had to hold the nobles for a little while, then Discord came and took care of everything. She was sent home so she could rest, while his uncle went instead back into investigating. "You didn't sleep at all, did you?"
The lord of Chaos simply shrugged, confirming her niece's suspicion. It was not as if he needed, being a Draconeequs and all. And even if a good night of sleep helped him relax, it was certainly not his priority "I have been searching everywhere in Canterlot" While he was trying to stay level headed, Cadence found in his eyes the very flame of rage burning inside him. And being him the lord of chaos, that was not a metaphor. She was scared, albeit for just a moment, and then felt even guiltier, as she knew he would never lay his claw upon her. "But without success. All the ponies we assume were involved have already left the city..."
She thought so; he must have turned every stone in the city searching for her... While she was there sleeping. And they couldn't capture any suspect; all because of her mistake. No; mistake wasn't even enough of a word to describe what she had done. Betrayal, maybe? That felt more like it. "I'm sorry", Cadence simply said, as tears started to well in her eyes.
And the rage vanished from Discord expression once more, replaced by nothing but worry for his dear nephew "Don't be, it was not your fault" But it was. "You did your best" But she didn't. "We had no way of knowing such powerful unicorns could fly under the radar like that" She had no idea what that was. But still, the white stallion was not as powerful. Had she not sent him away, they would at least be able to capture him. To interrogate him. To have at least a trail to follow. "But don't worry," he said with a comforting tone, "I won't let them get away with it."
Cadence was trying to wipe her tears away, but they were too soon replaced by new ones. Seeing his uncle's kindness, the way in which he was trying to hide his rage not to cause her distress, she couldn't help but be moved. And finally raising her head, she spoke with the most decisive tone she could muster "Let me help you."
he nodded, simply "I do need your help." As to say that he was going to ask nonetheless. But there was a bit of pride in his voice, showing how glad he was to have such a loyal nephew. And that did hurt, although she still tried not to show it. "I can't search for Pinkie and rule at the same time." The hopeful smile that was finally emerging on the alicorn's face suddenly wavered. That was not what she had in mind. "Can I count on you to run the government for a few days?" His tone was serious, and so were his eyes now firmly focused on hers.
And she wanted to say no, that she had to go with him. Turn every stone in the whole Equestria and beyond, until Pinkie was saved. Do what she should have done earlier. And yet she stayed silent. Asking to administer Equestria in his stead was an incredible demonstration of trust, one she had never once been granted before. And it was certainly more than she deserved, anyway. Her misdeeds still fresh in her mind, she didn't feel like she could refuse that request. And so, not without a pinch of bitterness, she nodded and answered: "You won't be disappointed"
"Good", he said with a small grin. Extending his right foreleg, he affectionately ruffled the mane of her nephew, wordlessly showing gratitude. Then it was time to go back to business. "As soon as you are ready, get to the palace." She had all the time. And most often, ponies expected him to be some thirty minutes late anyways. He snapped his talon, and immediately a scroll appeared from thin hair. It was Discord's handwriting, and there was a royal sigil at the bottom. "It's not as if anypony would dare to disobey you, but to be safe that's my royal decree", he declared handing it to Cadence.
And with the scroll held in her magic, she looked at her Uncle once again. She had so many questions, and so many things she wanted to say. But when he raised his paw, ready to snap his fingers and teleport away, she to choose just one, and to choose quickly. "What will you do?" And then she held her breath. She was worried. For Pinkie, clearly. For his uncle, a little bit. And as much as she wanted to deny it, even for that cute white stallion.
And just a moment, Discord was startled; he didn't like the question. Then he looked back at her with an unreadable chilling gaze. There were too many emotions in there to pinpoint just one, but few of them were positive. Even his words, despite him clearly trying, where all but comforting. "What I have to."
And just like that, he went away without a sound.
There was only darkness in the room, then Discord appeared and snapped his claws. Despite the lack of any source of light, every corner of the room was immediately lit to perfection. It was as if each of the artefacts on the ground, each of the bricks on the wall, and even each of floating stained glasses were projecting their own light.
And yet none of those items interested Discord.
Sure, sometimes he would have fun looking at the masterpieces of pony (and other creatures) ingenuity scattered on the floor, playing with the amazing powers they possessed. Child play in comparison to his chaos, but entertaining nonetheless. Other times he would look at the stained glasses pertaining to the history he never wanted to be known; the enemies he destroyed too cruelly for ponies to even imagine, the sins he committed while blinded by rage, and he would just feel regret.
That very same rage was blinding him once again, making him focus his attention only on the cursed pillar located in the centre of the room; an inconspicuous stone cylinder one meter wide and two meters tall. Ominously, he inched slowly towards it, slightly raising his right paw.
"You shouldn't do this..." The paw, now replaced by the head of a grimacing unicorn, was looking at him judgementally. And for a moment he actually stopped, turning the paw/head towards his own face.
"You think I don't know?" He asked through gritted teeth, pain and sorrow and anger all showing in his expression. He didn't like to go here, to be reminded of his mistakes and maybe to make new ones. And yet his anger was too great, too overwhelming. He could see no better option. He had no other choice.
"I know you know. I'm you." The head sighed, hopelessly "But you are still going to do it..." And as magic started to flow copiously around his horn, golden at the onset and quickly shifting to a bubbling purplish, his expression became more and more strained. And when his pupils disappeared in the glowing green sea of his eyes and a purplish smoke emerged from them, he started to scream. A long, high pitched, terrible wail, which was promptly ignored by the Draconeequs. he was still looking at the pillar, which grew taller and taller until, around the five meters mark, a door emerged from it, only the first few steps of a stairway visible through the darkness. The grinding of stone on stone and the wailing both ceased immediately.
"I thought that, besides me, only Sombra could open this place, now..." The ancient tyrant of the crystal empire, possibly the most feared dark magic user of all times, currently sealed in the frozen north with his kingdom. Not a problem now, not a problem in the past centuries, and not a problem for a long time coming (hopefully). And yet, at least one more wielder of that cursed magic still existed... The incredibly secure lock that only for almost a thousand years only he could open suddenly didn't feel as safe "I'll have to think of something. Any idea?" He asked hopefully.
But the unicorn head would not respond anymore, and Discord wordlessly turned it back to a paw as he disappeared into the darkness.