//------------------------------// // Chapter 20: Chaos, Chaos, and More Chaos // Story: KINGDOM HEARTS: Fractured Friendship // by KHXhero //------------------------------// Chapter 20: Chaos, Chaos, and More Chaos Luckily, with loads of help from the girls, the group managed to make it out of the Everfree Forest all in one piece. As they made their way out of the forest, they stopped to take a breather. "Well, that was pretty fast." Goofy said. "You're telling me." Donald said. After regaining his breath, Sora glanced up. But then, he let out a gasp of surprise. "Look!" Sora said. The group glanced forward to see what was going on. Just up ahead was the town of Ponyville. But there was a lot off about Ponyville. Ponyville was in what could be said, Chaos. The entire town was broken up, a pink cloud was sprinkling what appears to be chocolate rain, and there were a couple of buildings and trees floating up in the air, including Town Hall, and a windmill. "Whoa!" Sora said. "What happened to the town?!" "It's like everything is in disorder!" Goofy said. Rainbow Dash looked around, and glanced up in the sky. She gasped. "I know who." She said. "Look!" Pointing her hoof forward, the group saw a very familiar draconequus, sitting on a floating throne high in the middle of the town. "Discord!" The girls and Spike shouted. "Who?" Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle asked. "The Bringer of Chaos?" Sora asked. "What's he doing here?!" Donald asked. "He must be causing trouble in Ponyville!" Applejack said. "But out of all places, why here?" "Maybe because Twilight told him to." Rainbow Dash said. While the group was talking, Fluttershy took another glanced in the distance at the draconequus. Does he look... sad? "Well it doesn't matter." Sora said. "We have to stop him!" "Then let's get that sneaky devil!" Donald said as he brought out his staff. "Right behind ya!" Goofy said as he brought out his shield, and Sora summoned his newly restored keyblade. "Apple Bloom, you and yer friends go for cover, ok?" Applejack said. "But, we wanna help!" Apple Bloom said. "Don't worry, sugarcube." Applejack said. "We'll handle this. Just stay here, ok?" Reluctant, the filly gave a nod. "Spike, you look after my sister and the others, ok?" Rarity asked. "Sure thing, Rarity." Spike said with a salute. "Ok, let's go!" Sora said as the girls, except one of them, were ready for action. "Right!" The girls, fillies, and Spike said as they went on ahead. "Girls, wait!" Fluttershy said, but the group already took off. She only gave a sigh as she flew in and followed them, while the cutie mark crusaders only watched. "How come we usually get left out?" Sweetie Belle asked. "Well, we gotta do something!" Scootaloo said. "I know, let's call the Princess!" Apple Bloom said. "Princess Celestia will take care of this!" "But how?" Sweetie Belle asked. "Don't we need dragon flame to send a letter?" The three fillies turned their attention towards Spike, who widened his eyes open. "Oh no, not this time!" Spike said, but it was too late, the three fillies pounced him. In the middle of the broken up town, on the red and black throne was Discord, just sitting there watching the sky and the buildings floating up towards it. Usually with him, seeing so much chaos would be very delightful. But right now, he was feeling down. The way to better describe his mood would be both distraught and bored. From Twilight's suggestion, he thought that maybe causing chaos in a town would bring him some joy, but it wasn't working for him. He was still down with the blues. That image of Twilight hurtling that boy out the window was still on his mind, and it was bothering him still to a lot of degree. He just couldn't think straight because of it. He sighed, blinked his eyes, and dug a bit into his ear, and flicked off whatever was in there. "This... is so boring." He said to himself. 'Why do I feel bored. Come to think of it why do I just feel... terrible?" He examined his glass of chocolate milk and examined it. He took a sip and tasted the flavor of it. No, it certainly wasn't the chocolate. "Nah, the milk is fine." Discord said as he leaned his head on his hand and arm. "Man, it would be nice if something interesting happened right now." "Discord!" Multiple voices called out, making him turn his head with surprise. He saw the mane five galloping towards him, and right behind them was Sora, Donald, and Goofy. The draconequus widened his eyes as he saw the spikey haired boy, alive and well! He survived that fall. "You!" Discord said as he pointed at the boy. "You're alive?!" "Yep!" Sora shouted as he and the others got into position. "Surprised?" "Well, yes!" Discord said. But in truth, he wasn't just surprised. He was actually relieved. Wait, why was he feeling relieved? Maybe because the long fall out the window didn't kill him. His surprised and relieved expression was something that Fluttershy caught on. "You picked the wrong town to mess up, Discord!" Applejack called out. "Yeah, and now we're gonna teach you a lesson!" Rainbow Dash said, raising her hoofticuffs. The draconequus only smiled. "Oh, please, this again?" He asked as he took a sip of his chocolate milk, though he didn't drink the milk, he only sipped the glass that was holding it. He then tossed it aside, creating an explosion as it hit the ground. "You're not gonna get away this time, meanie!" Pinkie Pie called out as she brought out her party cannon. "And what makes you think you all can stop me?" Discord asked. "Twilight is no longer with you, and without her, you can't harness the Elements of Harmony. Come to think of it, you don't seem to have them anymore. Didn't Twilight destroy them?" "Yes, but we fixed them!" Donald said. "And they're back where they belong!" "Oh, so you went to the Tree of Harmony and restored them?" Discord asked. "My, my, I can't believe you guys learned about the Sacred Tree." The girls were surprised. He knows about the Tree of Harmony? "Wait, how did you know about the tree?" Rarity asked. "Well, duh." Discord said. "Princess Celestia isn't the only one who knows almost everything. Why else would I plant the plunder seeds in the Everfree Forest to begin with?" Sora raised an eyebrow. He remembered Ephemer explaining that Discord had something to do with the plunder vines. "So you were the one responsible for those vines that were growing in the forest." Sora said. "You were trying to kill the tree!" "Yes, but they weren't sprouting at that time." Discord said. "The tree had a lot of magic to prevent them from doing so. Didn't expect the tree to have all that magic for a millennia... give or take a few years." "Well, your plan didn't work this time either." Sora said. "The magic's back, and we're ready for another fight!" "We may not have Twilight with us, but we will fight to protect the town we love." Applejack said. "Yeah!" Rainbow Dash said. "We'll never leave Ponyville hanging!" Seeing the girls and the trio ready to take him on made Discord smile. "Ok then." Discord said. "Bring it on... knaves." "Gladly!" Applejack said. "Let's Go!" With that said, the boys, and the girls charged straight forward towards the draconequus, who only snapped his fingers, summoning a pink cloud above them, making it rain chocolate all over the floor. Suddenly, everyone began to slip from the slippery chocolate, causing them to fall down. Discord couldn't help but laugh. "History quickly crashing in your vains, using you to fall back down again." Discord sang. "Chocolate Rain!" Sora, Donald, and Goofy tried getting back up, but they almost slipped again. "We're not gonna fight well like this!" Sora said. "We gotta stop that rain cloud!" Goofy said. "But how?" Donald asked. "Don't worry, I got this!" Pinkie Pie called out as she brought out her Party Cannon and jumped right into it. "Pinkie, what are you doing?" Applejack asked. "Don't worry guys." Pinkie Pie said. "It's chocolate!" She then pressed the button on the cannon and then... -BOOM- "Weeeeeeee!" Pinkie Pie cheered as she blasted out of her cannon and flew up towards the sky, making a perfect landing on the pink cloud. As she hopped on it, she opened her mouth widely and began to chomp on the cloud, eating pieces right off of it, and she took another bite, and another bite. She was devouring the whole pink cloud, which was almost the size of a building, until she took one last bite and swallowed the whole cloud down into her stomach. She dropped to the ground on her back and rubbed her tummy, which hasn't even grown an inch, while everyone watched with amazement. Donald had his beak wide opened seeing that. "Geez Louise..." Sora said. "That's something you don't see everyday." Goofy said. Pinkie Pie let out a sigh, and a loud... -BUUUUURRRRP!!- "Mmmm… Chocolatey!" Pinkie Pie said with a smile. Suddenly, there was a gurgling sound, coming from Pinkie Pie's tummy. To her surprise, her tummy was starting to expand, and bloat out. "I don't think the raincloud's done." Rainbow Dash said. Suddenly, Pinkie Pie's hooves began to spread out as they began to expand too, and quickly, her entire figure turned into a round shape from all that chocolate that was raining in her tummy, with her hoofs beginning to sink into their sockets. Despite tipping on her back, she let out a giggle as she continued to expand. "Whoa nelly..." Applejack said, seeing their pink pony friend expanding more and more. "How much more can she take in?!" Rainbow Dash asked. "I don't think we should stay to find out." Rarity said with a face of shock. Suddenly, there were cries of screaming coming from everywhere. Taking a look, Sora saw some of the townsponies running for their lives by vicious animals, likely from the Everfree Forest, with some of the buildings beginning to break apart with dozens of ponies inside. They were gonna get hurt. "Applejack, you and the girls go help the townsfolk!" Sora said. "We'll deal with Discord." "Ok!" Applejack said. "C'mon y'all! We gotta save the townsfolk!" The girls, seeing the disasters happening, quickly took action and galloped, and flew off to help them, leaving Sora, Donald, and Goofy to deal with Discord. "Oh, so it's just you three and me?" Discord asked. "Oh this will be fun." "You're going down you jester!" Donald shouted. "C'mon!" Sora called out as he rushed forward, with Donald and Goofy not too far behind. "Ok, try and get me, spikey boy!" Discord said as he snapped his fingers, causing the ground below him to break up and create a small but big platform for his throne, flying upwards into the air. Using Pinkie Pie's growing body as a bounce boost, Sora jumped high into the air, jumping from rock to rock before running up the long one and making a successful leap onto the battlefield. Discord, however, looked amused. Sora, Donald, and Goofy, the latter two finally making it to the platform, charged straight forward. "Look out, it's going to get... Freezy!" Discord said as he shot out a spark onto the ground, causing it to freeze up. Luckily, Sora saw this coming and spun his new keyblade, which began to transform into a mighty staff known as the Mirage Staff. And with it, he was able to hover above the ground, not slipping onto the ice below him. Aiming his staff forward, he fired golden rays of magic at Discord, who quickly got off his throne and dodge, with his seat destroyed by the ray. Sora kept firing more rays, one that managed to hit Discord in the tail. "Ow!" He shouted. "Oh now you're gonna get it, boy!" He then pointed his hands out and shot out bullets of bees, all of the buzzing and angry. "Not the Bees!" Goofy shouted as he raised his shield up, with the bees jabbing into his shield, while Donald ran for it. But Sora, he dodged out of the way with his Avatar Shift, leaving a hologram of himself in different places as he dodged. "What the?" Discord asked. "Try this!" Sora and his holograms shouted as they all pointed their Mirage Staves. "AVATAR BARRAGE!" Then all at the same time, the boy and his illusion selves shot out magical bullets at Discord, hitting him all over, and caused him to fall down. But the draconequus was now unamused. "Ok, you got a couple of lucky shots, I'll give you that!" Discord said. "But what about these?!" He then conjured up boulders, hard as rocks, and he began to juggle them. "Let's see how many stones it takes to kill three birds!" He said as he began to toss the big rocks forward. Sora didn't flinch, and then he transformed his staff into a big drill known as the Drill Punch, and believe it, it backs a punch. With the drill spinning, Sora jumped forward and drilled through the rocks that were thrown at him. Drilling through all but one, his drill then transformed into a claw and it picked up the last rock, and with it, he flung it right in Discord's face, causing him to fly into the air. "Sora, it's my turn!" Donald called out as he jumped into the air. "Ok!" Sora said as the two pointed their weapons forward. "METEOR CRASH!" They both called out, and suddenly behind them, multiple small but powerful meteors rained down from the sky, and all of them hurtling towards Discord. "Oh dear." He said. "Good thing I have an umbrella." He pulled out an umbrella and opened it, using it to cover his body. But at least, the meteors broke through and tossed him to the ground. "Gotcha!" Sora called out, but the draconequus quickly got back up. "Impressive, but that's nothing." Discord said. He then flew up into the air and wound up his bear fist. "Hope you brought your 3D glasses, cuz I'm coming at ya!" He shouted as he flew downwards with a burning fist. Sora and Donald held their weapons up for defense, though that wasn't going to help them. Suddenly, Goofy arrived before them. "Get behind me!" He shouted, as Sora and Donald got close behind him, and he held his shield up in defense. All three of them began to glow brightly, and when Discord gasped when he realized it, he was too late. As his fist hit the shield, the three were only pushed back a tiny bit, while Discord let out a scream, feeling his hand hurt badly. "TRINITY GUARD!" Goofy called out, and with a great push, he, Sora, and Donald lunged forward fast and struck Discord with a great magical shield blast, hurtling him across the floor. "Got him!" Sora said. "We did it!" Goofy cheered as Donald gave a victory dance. Discord, however, lifted his head up, not feeling very happy at all now. "This was not how my day was suppose to go." He hissed. Yeah, he was in a bad mood. And this was suppose to cheer him up, and frankly, it didn't. He felt more bummed out... and still conflicted? This was noticed by Fluttershy, who flew upwards to see the fight. She had just got some of the ponies away from the animals. But at the sight of things, the girls were having a little bit more trouble, with Rainbow Dash struggling to catch every pony falling to the ground, but succeeding regardless, Applejack trying to get ponies out of the crumbling houses and into another safe house, Rarity trying to put out the fires, and Pinkie Pie, well, her body was still growing larger and larger, while she was just giggling away. Back on the battlefield, Discord got back up and glared at the Trinity Trio. "Ok, busters, time for a real fight." He said as he raised his hands, lifting multiple buildings from Ponyville, wagons, carts, trees, pieces of metal, sharp objects found in the dresser, even chickens. Seeing this made the three gasp in surprise. Discord was really gonna go all out. "Garsh..." Goofy said. Despite seeing this, Sora and the others kept their ground. "We can do this all day." Sora said. "Really?" Discord asked with a creepy raised eyebrow. "Then let's see if you can!" He then pushed his hands forward, sending everything towards them at once. Surprised, they raised their weapons up in defense. -FLASH- A sudden flash of light pierced the sky, causing the objects to stop and fall gently onto the ground, surprising Discord and the others. "What the?!" He asked. "What's going on?" Sora asked surprised. Suddenly, he saw the sun was beginning to rise up from the horizon, magically being lifted up. It was morning time already? Then a spark flashed the sky. Everyone stared up straight as the sky, seeing what was going on. Discord gasped in surprise, while Sora and company gave a happy smile. Above in the sky were two alicorns, one white and one dark blue, both with flowing manes. It was Princess Celestia and Princess Luna! On their backs was three little fillies and a baby dragon. "The Princesses!" They called out, just as the two alicorns flew towards the field, slamming their hooves into the ground, causing a slight shake. Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle, hopped off, followed by Spike, who was still shaking a bit. "Hi Sora!" Apple Bloom called out. "We brought the Princesses!" Scootaloo said. "Good job!" Sora said. "Thanks, girls!" Goofy said. "You're welcome!" Sweetie Belle said. As the three fillies and Spike stood by the trio, The two princesses had their attention towards the Chaos Bringer, and stepped forward. "Discord... we meet again." Celestia spoke. "How?" Discord asked, still surprised. "Three little fillies sent us a letter." Celestia said, with the CMC giving happy smiles. Princess Luna stepped forward and then spoke... loudly. "Discord, thou has made the wrong move bringing disharmony to this wonderful village!" Princess Luna shouted with her Traditional Royal Canterlot voice. "Time for thou to stop thy reign of terror, or suffer a terrible punishment!" Discord was a bit shocked to see the two royal sisters, but he gave a smirk. "Well, well, the Princesses of Equestria are finally standing up to fight." He said. "To be honest, Princess Luna, you really need to work on your sentences because they're so outdated. And Princess Celestia, you look as benevolent as always, though it looks like you've put on a bit of weight since we've last met. Must've been binging on cake again as always." Princess Luna gasped while Princess Celestia said nothing, though Sora, Donald, Goofy, and the rest of the ponies gasped in surprise. "How dare thou make fun of my speech, and insult my sister's physic!" Luna shouted with her voice. "Thou shall regret-" Suddenly, her mouth was covered by Celestia's hoof. "Sister, allow me to handle this." Princess Celestia said, stepping forward. She cleared her voice and took a deep breath... "HOW DARE YOU MAKE FUN OF MY SISTER'S VOCABULARY, AND SAY I EAT TOO MUCH CAKE!" Celestia shouted in her own Traditional Royal Canterlot Voice, though it was much more booming and louder than Luna's. "YOU DISCORD, SHALL FACE SERIOUS CONSEQUENCES IF YOU DO NOT SURRENDER NOW!" The sound of her voice brought a bit surprise to the ponies, even Sora, while Donald and Goofy shivered a bit. They have never seen Princess Celestia yell like that before, at least in a thousand years. "Whoa..." Sora said. "Now I see why everypony doesn't like to see her mad." And he was right, for even Discord was frightened by her shout. "Oh boy, she's using the Canterlot voice. That's not good." Discord said, seeing that Princess Celestia was in a bad mood. He quickly did his best to keep his cool and shook his head. "Now, now, Celestia." He continued a bit nervously. "No need to get angry. Is that even a way to say hello to your old boyfriend?" Wait... boyfriend? "BOYFRIEND?!" Sora, Donald, and Goofy asked. "Oh, not this again..." Luna said annoyed. "Whoa, wait a second!" Sora called out. "You guys were a... a thing?!" The Princess of the Sun gave a blush. "It's complicated..." Celestia answered, before returning her attention towards the draconequus. "Discord, you are bringing disharmony and chaos on this beloved town, now I ask that you leave now, or face the consequences." "Really?" Discord asked. "You really think you can stop me? You, who couldn't save your sister from the darkness, you, who couldn't defeat that Changeling Queen from invading the castle? Well, you know full well that you can't seal me up in a stone statue again. You're no longer connected to the Elements of Harmony and your little precious Twilight, the only one who can ignite the Element of Magic, has fallen to darkness. But who do you have to blame for that? Not me, of course." "You're right..." Celestia said, lowering her head, her mane slowly showing discolor. "I cannot seal you away without all the Elements, and I do hold blame for Twilight's turning." She then however lifted her head up, showing determination. "I may have failed Twilight, but I will not fail my subjects!" She continued, her mane now showing more color once again. "I may not be able to seal you away, but I will stop you from harming my beloved ponies!" Discord gave a smile. "Awwww, the Sun Princess is actually gonna take me on?" Discord asked. "Oh, that is just so adorable. I would love to see you-" -ZAP- A beam of light bashed Discord right in the face, like a sucker punch to the nose, causing him to fall quickly on his back. Attention was drawn to Princess Celestia, who's horn was steaming. She let out a snort. "Oh boy..." Luna said. "She's pissed..." "You were saying..." Celestia hissed. Discord then lifted his head up, dizzy from the beam, and his face was covered in soot. He quickly shook it off, showing an angry face. "Alright... it's on...!" He said, showing a glare. He raised his left hand, and it began to glow brightly. Suddenly, two more buildings in Ponyville began to be lifted out of the ground by his own magic. He raised them both in the air. The two princesses stood their ground as Discord hurled them straight towards them. Luna ignited her horn, and both buildings stopped in place, with Celestia flying in to shoot a beam from her horn, which struck Discord's hand, making him wince in pain. He then summoned a barrage of ducks with spikes all over them, and hurled them straight upon the Sun Princess. She then summoned a glowing shield around herself to protect herself as the ducks exploded on impact, giving quacks as each one hit. Luna then took flight, summoning her Lunar Blade, a long sword with the crescent moon at the guard and swung it down, as Discord brought out a rubber chicken. Wait, rubber chicken? "Whoops, wrong one." Discord said as he tossed the rubber chicken and pulled out a rapier, which was a thin, but long, and light sharp-pointed sword which is usually used for thrusting and fencing. With it, he blocked the attack from Luna and pushed her with his hind legs. Celestia then came in to attack, using her axe spear to swing hard, though Discord leaned out of the way and tried to attack, but the Sun Princess managed to whack him away with her own wing. With a strong opening, Celestia swung upwards to hit Discord, causing him to scream in agony. But suddenly, he didn't feel any pain from that. Surprised, she swung again, but it went right through him! The axe didn't hurt him at all! Of course, he's the freakin' God of Chaos. "Oh, right, I'm immune to weapons." Discord said as he began laughing. But that was met with a punch, or hoof to the face by Celestia, making him cringe and groan in pain. "Ow! What the- OW! OOW! That Really Hurt!" "Serves you right." Celestia said. "That was also payback for snatching my tail away last time." Discord lifted his head up and gave a glare. "Oh, now you're in for it..." He hissed. He took up to the air, high in the sky and raised his hands up, causing the ground to shake, and sprout out long vines from under the Mane Five in the town below. Thankfully they weren't plunder vines, but they were big enough to cause the ground to shake. The vines then grabbed Applejack and Rarity, while Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash took off flying. Unfortunately, Rainbow Dash hit her head on the base of the vine, making her give a dizzy face and get grabbed by the vine. Spike and the CMC saw the vines coming after the too, but Fluttershy swept in and grabbed them. "I got you!" She said as she flew, with the vines going after them. Pretty soon, the ground below Sora, Donald, and Goofy were beginning to shake up, with part of it breaking up, causing Donald and Goofy to drop from the ledge. "Guys!" Sora shouted, but the two began to fall towards the ground. Luckily, Princess Luna was able to grab them both just in time. "Don't worry, Sora!" Luna said. "Go help my sister!" "Got it!" Sora called out ran forward. "Princess!" He called out, getting her attention. Seeing the ground below him breaking up, she flew down to his level. "Jump!" She called as he made a leap just as the ground broke up, making it on the alicorn's back. "Thanks." Sora said. However, the two glanced up to see Discord with multiple vines at his side. "Get ready for a good whippin'!" Discord shouted as he thrusted his hands downward, causing the vines to charge towards them. "Hold on." Celestia said as Sora held on, and the two flew upwards toward the draconequus. With his new keyblade, Sora swung at each vine, slicing through them, allowing the two to evade each one. As they got close enough, more vines began to charge towards them. Sora then summoned his second keyblade, and spun them both, slashing the vines and allowing Celestia to charge her horn for a clear shot. Next to her, Princess Luna, with Donald and Goofy on her back, was flying beside her. They glanced at each other with a nod. "Day and Night Collide Into One!" The two shouted. "TOTAL ECPLISE!" They crossed horns and ignited a mighty magical orb charged with yellow and dark blue energy. Pointing their horns forward, they shot a mighty beam at Discord, who gasped upon the sight. "Oh butternuts..." Discord said. -BOOOOOM!- The explosion ignited as the beam was a direct hit, causing the draconequus to fall out of the sky and land flat onto the platform below him. He was a bit dizzy, so dizzy he didn't notice the butter colored Pegasus hovering onto the platform with the three fillies and baby dragon in tow. As she landed on the ground, she saw the draconequus regaining consciousness, but not even seeing her. "Ow..." He said, just as the Princesses, with Sora, Donald, and Goofy, cornered him. "It's over, Discord." Celestia said. "The jig is up." The draconequus looked back at the royal sister and scuffed. "You know what, I don't have time for this." He said, snapping his fingers, causing two vines to appear out of nowhere and grab the Princesses, and the trio as well. "Let us go, Discord!" Celestia shouted. "Do not make me shoot you again!" Luna shouted, igniting her horn and shooting forward, but Discord raised up an invisible shield, which absorbed the attack. "Don't bother." Discord said. "I'm not in a really good mood right now, so just leave me alone." As the princess, Sora, Donald, and Goofy attempted to break free from the vines, Discord only sat down and shook his head. He was still feeling distraught, and these fights aren't making him feel better. From the side, Fluttershy noticed that he was not feeling... well, like himself. Back at Canterlot when he made his grand entrance, he was confident and sinister, but now, he looked... miserable and distraught. But why? Wanting to know what's wrong, she approached him. "Fluttershy?" Apple Bloom asked. "What are you doing?" Spike asked. "Um... excuse me, Mr. Discord?" Fluttershy asked, getting his attention. Seeing the Pegasus and the others took him by surprise. "Hey, how did you get past my barrier?" Discord asked. "I just got onto the platform when you crash landed." Fluttershy said. "Are you ok?" "Yes, I'm fin-" Discord said, but then he felt a crack in his back. "Ow! Ow! That hurt! Ok, I'm not ok... I'm not ok!" He began to wince in pain as he fell to his knees. The butter colored Pegasus gasped as she flew towards him. "Oh my, where does it hurt?" She asked. "Right here." Discord said, pointing at his back, right at the spot where the crack came from. "Oh dear, let me help you." Fluttershy said as she began to massage Discord's back with her hooves. The massaging actually made Discord feel more relaxed and good. He could feel his sore back feeling much better... actually it felt much better since he left Canterlot. "Oh, that feels good." Discord said, while the Princesses and the trio were watching. "Fluttershy, what are you doing?!" Donald asked. "Wait." Sora said, seeing that something was going on. Fluttershy was helping Discord? There has to be something and a reason why she is doing so. "Feel better?" Fluttershy asked. "Yes, I feel much better now." Discord said, feeling his back was a lot better. "Well, physically I am, but everything else... probably gonna take more than your massaging to fix." The butter colored Pegasus leaned in. He looked conflicted... actually, he looked distressed. "You seem distressed." Fluttershy said. "Well, I'm actually more than distressed." Discord said. "And why is that?" Fluttershy asked. "I... I just don't know." Discord said. "I mean, it was fun and chirpy for me when I finally got out of my prison, but ever since doing my grand entrance at Canterlot, I've been feeling... droopy." He only looked down at the ground, still troubled. "If you don't mind me asking, why are you even doing this?" Fluttershy asked. "Why do you spread chaos?" "Why?" Discord asked. "Well, because I like it!" "Do you?" Fluttershy asked. "Of course I do." Discord said, with the butter colored pegasus walking up to him. "Are you sure there's not another reason?" Fluttershy asked. "Because it looks like there is." The draconequus glances down at the Pegasus, who was staring up at him. He then started to think, and gave a sigh of defeat. Apparently, there is probably more than just one reason. "Ok, ok." Discord said. "Confession time. You know how it's written in history about how I do things because I'm evil? Well, that's not necessarily true." "What do you mean?" Fluttershy asked. "I didn't do this evil stuff because I was downright evil." Discord said. "I did this evil stuff because no pony likes what I do. All I do is spread chaos from time to time because it's my job as the Bringer of Chaos to spread chaos, and everyone hates me for it. So, I figured if they see me as the bad guy, then I'm the bad guy." "You're just spreading chaos because you're labeled the bad guy?" Fluttershy asked. "Of course." Discord said. "I mean, they all hate me, so why not hate them back? All the years I've spread chaos and misery all over Equestria because chaos is like the darkness, and harmony is like the light. You can't exist in a world where there's just harmony without chaos, because they're too sides of the same coin. But no pony wants that." "But don't you think you're spreading a little too much?" Fluttershy asked. "That's the point." Discord said as he conjured up a cup of tea and drank it, only drinking the cup instead. He tosses it away, where it explodes upon impact. "People don't like chaos and they hate me for it, so I cause twice as much chaos to make them feel how I feel." "Well, don't you think your chaos is... too much?" Fluttershy asked. "What do you mean too much?" Discord asked. "Well, you seemed pretty startled by how Twilight threw Sora out the window." Fluttershy said. The draconequus only sighed with disturbance. "I won't lie, that did make me sick to my stomach." Discord said. "I don't like the concept of hurting ponies, or people in your friend's case. I don't like going that far in physically hurting someone, let alone killing someone. That's where I draw the line." "Well, don't you think your chaos is hurting ponies?" Fluttershy asked. "I mean, look down there. There are ponies trapped under a crumbling school, crops are on fire, even animals are going ballistic and hurting ponies." She was right. Everything she was describing was happening down there. "Oh c'mon." Discord argued. "I'm not hurting anyone. Sure I may have frozen an apple field with ice and snow and almost caused an entire population to starve to death, and I may have caused some lava to overflow and burn down a village, and I may have let ponies fall from very high cliffs where they scream in agony-" Then suddenly, Discord's eyes opened wide. Causing a population to starve to death? Lava to burn a village, and making cliffs break where ponies fall to a short death! That was... hurting ponies! "Oh my gosh." He said to himself. "I'm... actually doing what Twilight did to your spikey haired friend. I'm... hurting people." He then glanced down at the town of Ponyville below, seeing the crumbling school house where Cheerilee and several fillies and colts trapped inside, the crops set ablaze while ponies are unable to save them and the burning houses, and the animals going vicious and chasing ponies aggressively. Discord gasped at what he saw, at what he caused. His chaos was hurting ponies, physically and emotionally. And hurting ponies, was something he didn't like. Was this truly the path of a villain, do whatever he wanted not even caring of the pain he causes everyone? "Wha.... what am I doing?" He said, his eyes swelling up with tears and regret. "I'm actually hurting ponies, but I don't want to hurt ponies..." He couldn't help but look down at his claw and paw. No wonder he's been feeling more miserable and distraught. Looking back on everything, he truly was hurting ponies. He looked at Fluttershy, and he gave a sigh. "You really are something, my little pony." He said. Then he snapped his fingers. Suddenly, the vines around the Princesses and the others ceased, releasing them, Sora, Donald, and Goofy. The rest of the girls were also freed from the vines and placed back on the ground. Then, the entire town began to shake. But to their surprise, the platform was just floating back to the ground slowly. The school house was suddenly back to it's normal self, with Cheerilee and the fillies inside safe. And the houses and trees were then placed back into their regular positions. The fires began to cease, and everything that was burnt was restored as if they were never caught on fire. The animals stopped acting vicious and reverted back to their normal states, going back into the Everfree Forest, and Pinkie Pie, who was about ten times the size of Canterlot, quickly shrunk down to her normal size, much to her disappointment. Everypony, even the princesses were surprised, seeing Discord returning the town to normal. "Alright, now's our chance!" Rainbow Dash said as she was about to charge forward, but she was stopped by Sora. He shook his head, telling her not to attack Discord. He just returned the town back to normal, so attacking him wouldn't be right. "Flutters, what did you do?" Applejack asked. "I just talked to him." Fluttershy said. "Sometimes we just need to stop fighting and talk." The girls looked at each other. Fluttershy was right. They kept fighting and nothing was working, and she talked to Discord and now the fight was over. "Wow..." Rainbow Dash said. Princess Celestia and Luna were shocked, and they glanced at the draconequus with a bit of confusion. He then turned to the royal sisters and gave a bow. "I'm... I'm sorry, your majesties." Discord said, then turned to everypony. "I'm so sorry... I truly am." He then flew off, disappearing into the forest. Everypony, everyone, even the princesses watched, feeling sorry for the big guy. "Awww..." Donald said. "Why do I feel bad for him?" "He was never a bad guy, Donald." Sora said. "Everypony labeled him as a bad guy." "Garsh, I really feel sorry for him." Goofy said. "He was just doing his job bringing Chaos." "Yeah." Sora said. "Order cannot exist without Chaos, just like Light can't exist without Darkness. They're both two sides of the same coin." "But the bad guys we face, they use darkness." Donald said. "They become corrupted with it." "But there may also be people who use the light for evil ways too." Sora said. "And that's something we can't change either." Goofy said. "It's just human nature... or any kind of nature." "Yeah." Sora said with a nod. Goofy was right. There are people who use darkness, and even use light for evil ways. That cannot be changed. Pretty soon, the group turned their attention towards the royal sisters, who approached them. "Your majesties." Goofy said as he, and the rest gave a short bow. "Thank you for coming!" Applejack said. "We're glad that we arrived just in time." Luna said. "But you should thank these three." Celestia said, turning her head towards the Cutie Mark Crusaders. "They informed us about the situation.." Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle gave nervous smiles and waves. Applejack and Rarity rolled their eyes, but they gave proud smiles. "Wow, nice call girls." Rainbow Dash said as she hive fived Scootaloo. "You three did great!" "Really?" Scootaloo asked with sparkles in her eyes. "You bet." Rainbow Dash said. Scootaloo couldn't help but give a muffled squeal, before almost fainting into Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle's hooves. "What about me?" Spike asked. "I helped sent the letter." "Yes, yes, Spike." Luna said. "You've done good as well." Hearing that made the baby dragon feel a bit of pride. It took a little while, but some of the Royal guards were able to arrive to Ponyville to make sure that everything was ok. But they were a bit surprised hearing Discord fixing the whole town up. Well, at least their arrival wasn't a total waste, for some ponies needed help in figuring out what just happened. The Mayor was able to calm the population, thank the Princesses for saving the town and congratulated Sora, Donald, Goofy, Spike, and the Mane Five, and along with the CMC in helping protect the town from Discord. Unfortunately, the CMC weren't able to get cutie marks for saving a town. But hey, they'll find another talent to try, after all, the possibilities are still endless. The group was now speaking to the Princesses, giving them an update on what has happened so far. "So, what is the current situation?" Celestia said. "Well, we got the magic fixed." Goofy said. "It turned out the problem was the magic tree in the forest was losing it's power." The two royal sisters gasped. "The Tree of Harmony?" They asked. "Yeah." Sora said. "It was losing it's magic and the Plunder vines that Discord planted was trying to kill it. But we returned the Elements of Harmony back to it, and that restored the tree's power." "It even spoke with us!" Donald said. "Impressive." Luna said. "I'm surprised." Celestia said. "It seems the Tree of Harmony had a consciousness of it's own. I never expected it would lose it's magic. I guess we didn't do a good job protecting it after all." Sora tilted his head. "So you took the Elements from the tree, to use them to stop Discord the first time." Sora said. "Yes, we did." Celestia said. "After we told Starswirl about the tree, he requested that we build our old castle there to hide evidence of the secret entrance." "Secret Entrance?" Donald asked. "We didn't find any secret entrance." "That's because the old castle sealed the secret entrance so no one could find it." Luna said. "But I must ask, how did you find the tree?" "There was another entrance when we followed the vines." Sora said. "It was all the way on the other side of the forest." "That's right." Applejack said. "We followed the vines to Sora and the others when we went in there to find our sisters." "But what really matters is that everything's good now." Rainbow Dash said. "Note quite, Rainbow." Sora said. "There's one more thing we have to do, and it's gonna be hard." The girls then knew what and who he was talking about. "Twilight." They all said. "But hey, at least we can tell her what really happened before the wedding." Rainbow Dash said. "Maybe that will help her come to her senses." "It's not going to be easy, Rainbow Dash." Rarity said. "I doubt that Twilight will listen to us. That's going to be the hard part." "Yeah." Sora said as he glanced down. "Excuse me, Princess." Jiminy said as he hopped out of Sora's hood. "You did get my message about the Chancellor, have you?" "Yes, we did." Celestia said, still showing a bit of surprise. "I still cannot believe that he was involved with the Unicorn Anti-Union Movement." "We sent our scouts to collect him back at the castle, but he was nowhere to be found." Luna said. "He seemed to have escaped." "Escaped?!" Sora, Donald and Goofy asked in surprise. "How did that happen?" Goofy asked. "There's no way he could've escaped. We chained him up so he wouldn't." "What if someone released him?" Donald asked. "There's no way it could've been Twilight." Rainbow Dash said. Sora began to think, and suddenly, someone did come to mind. "Maleficent." Sora said. "The witch?!" Celestia and Luna asked, showing that they seem to know the evil witch. "Yeah, we saw her and Pete up by the mountains." Sora said. "They seem to be interested in taking the Crystal Empire." He then gasped in surprise. "Oh No!" Sora shouted. "We forgot about the Crystal Empire! Riku and the King are still up there!" "And they don't know that Maleficent and Pete are here in Equestria." Goofy said. "Oh no, if the witch takes the Crystal Empire, Equestria is doomed." Luna said. "We'll notify King Mickey right away." Celestia said. "In the meantime Sora, you, Donald and Goofy must focus on finding Twilight, and make sure she doesn't release the Pony of Shadows." She then turned to Spike and the girls. "You all head straight to the Crystal Empire to help the king." She said to the group. "Sorry princess, but no can do." Applejack said. "We're gonna save Twilight first. She's our friend, and we need to be there for her." "Yeah, no way in Tartarus we're gonna leave our friend hanging again!" Rainbow Dash said. "That's right." Pinkie Pie said. "We need to show her how much we love her, even if it means die trying." Celestia was a bit surprised, but she gave a nod. "Ok then." Celestia said. As the girls cheered and spoke on how they could save Twilight, Sora stood there for a moment. They were choosing to save their friend. He was happy to see that they're willing to do anything for their friend. But, he couldn't help but think. It was gonna be difficult to get Twilight back, and they could get hurt if they're not careful. And Riku and the King were still up north dealing with Faust knows what. If anything happened to them, who will warn the King and Riku and help them? "Hey, look at that!" Donald said, pointing forward, getting Sora out of his thoughts. "What is it?" Sora asked. "Dark clouds!" Donald said. Everyone then saw what he was looking at. Looking northeast of the mountain where Canterlot was, there were a set of mountains, known as Foal Mountain, just East of Canterlot. But something was wrong. Very wrong. Close to the mountains, there were some dark clouds forming in the sky. And they weren't just the typical thunderclouds either. They were black and a bit purple, showing that there was indeed dark magic at work there. "That can't be good." Goofy said. "Ponhenge..." Celestia said. "Ponhenge?" Sora asked. "Is that where the Pony of Shadows was sealed away?" "Yes." Celestia said. "That is likely where Twilight is right now." Sora looked forward to the mountains. That's where Twilight is. It's where she is now. She must be preparing the ritual that will release the Pony of Shadows from it's imprisonment. It was time. The battle for Equestria was about to begin. "Then we better hurry." Sora said, with Donald and Goofy giving a nod. The Princesses turned to some of the Royal Guards. "You all prepare a chariot for us." Celestia spoke. "We're going to Foal Mountain." The guards gave a nod and prepared the chariot for travel. "Apple Bloom, you head straight home." Applejack said. "We're going in alone." "But Applejack, I wanna help you." Apple Bloom said. "Apple Bloom, let's not start." Applejack said. "Me and Twilight have a lot to talk about, and I don't want you to see it. You girls head straight to the farm until we get back, ok?" "Ummm… Applejack, that might be a problem..." Rainbow Dash said. "Why?" Applejack asked with a suspicious tone. "Your barn's torched." The rainbow-maned Pegasus answered. "WHAT?!" Applejack asked as she turned her head, and saw what Rainbow Dash was pointing at. One the far side of Ponyville, there was Sweet Apple Acres. The red big barn... was busted up and in flames. The farmpony looked at it with her mouth hung down. The barn was burnt and still flaming. Luckily firefighter ponies were there on the scene putting it out. But how did that happen? Sora and Goofy glanced at Donald with a raised eyebrow. "What?" Donald asked. "Any chance one of those comets crashed into that barn?" Sora asked, remembering Donald casting his Meteor Crash attack during their fight with Discord. "I didn't do that!" Donald said. "You also casted it with me!" "I think I know who..." Applejack said as she cleared her voice. She then shouted on name. "BIG MAAAAAAC!!!" The shout was so loud, that it caused a huge sign standing straight on the ground to fall over, revealing a frozen and petrified Big Mac behind it. Applejack spotted him, with a flaming apple eye. "Uh oh..." He said. "Somepony's in trouble..." Apple Bloom sang quietly. "Big Mac!" Applejack said as she marched towards the stallion. "You have a lot of explaining to do!" She stopped marching as she got close to his nose and stared at him. A moment passed before she spoke. "You were running the boiler again, weren't ya." Applejac asked. "Yup." Big Mac said. "Tryin' to fix it?" Applejack asked. "Yup." Big Mac said. "But you couldn't." Applejack said. "Nope." Big Mac said. "Discord showed up?" Applejack asked. "Yup." Big Mac said. "You were running in fear." Big Mac said. "Yep." Big Mac said. "Forgot to turn the boiler off?" Applejack asked. "Yup." Big Mac said. "Did you try to?" Applejack asked. "Nope." Big Mac said. "Didn't think about it?" Applejack asked. "Nope." Big Mac said. "Met a mare?" Applejack asked. "Yep." Big Mac said. "Caught in the heat?" Applejack asked. "Yup." Big Mac said. "And when all the craziness blew over the boiler exploded and you weren't home when it did?" Applejack asked. "Eeyup." Big Mac finished. Applejack then scuffed and shook her head, trying to figure out what to do now. No way her sister and her friends can't stay at the farm now because it's broken. If Granny Smith was here, who was no doubt a sleep at home during all this, she would give Big Mac a whoopin' he would never forget. Donald glanced at Big Mac. "Is that all you can say?" Donald asked. "Yep." Big Mac said. "He's not much of a talker." Sora said. "Nope." Big Mac said. "He don't need to talk too much." Goofy said. "He would just let his work do the talking for him." Big Mac heard that, and he was surprised to hear that. Then suddenly. "YES!" Big Mac said with relief and joy. "Another one understands me! Come here, I'm not afraid to hug a walking dog." He then pulled Goofy and gave him a warm hug and nuzzle. "I like this guy." Goofy said, while Sora gave a smile and Donald rolled his eyes. "Do not worry, Applejack." Luna said approaching the farmpony. "I'll take your sister and her friends to Canterlot, and I'll watch over them." Applejack was surprised. "Really?" Applejack asked. "Really?!" Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo asked with joy. They can stay at the castle? "Oh, I don't know." Applejack said, knowing that her sister and her friends have a habit of getting into trouble. "Do not fear, Applejack." Luna said. "They'll be safe in your absence and in my presence." "Please Applejack?" Apple Bloom asked. "I promise I'll be good." She gave her puppy dog eyes, making the farmpony sigh. "Ok, fine." Applejack said. "But you behave yourself and listen to Princess Luna. Understand?" "I promise." Apple Bloom said. "Me too!" Sweetie Belle said. "Aye Aye!" Scootaloo said, all three of the Cutie Mark Crusaders giving a salute. "Please don't let them out your sight, Princess." Rarity said to the Lunar Princess, showing concern for her sister Sweetie Belle. "Don't worry, I won't." Luna said as she turned and knelt down, allowing the three fillies to hope on her back. She then rose up and turned to the girls, Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Spike. "Be very careful." She said. "Twilight is quite powerful, so do not let your guard down." With that said, she floated into the air, and with the CMC, who all waved goodbye and good luck, they flew off to Canterlot. "Princess, the chariot is ready." A royal guard said. "Then let's depart." Celestia said, giving a nod. "Ok." Donald said. "Let's get going!" Goofy said as he and Donald headed for the chariot, while Sora glanced forward. "Yeah..." Sora said as he followed them. As Spike, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, and Applejack headed straight towards the chariot, Fluttershy turned her head for a moment, and saw something... or someone on a lone flower. To her surprise, it was Discord, sitting on the flower sad and guilty. He must've shrunk himself so no pony could see him. She approached him. "Discord?" She asked. He looked straight at her, and then looked away in shame. "Fluttershy, c'mon!" Rainbow Dash called from the chariot. The butter-colored Pegasus glanced back at Discord. "Discord... thank you for fixing the town." She said, and gave him a kiss on his cheek. As she left to depart with the others, the draconequus was a bit surprised by her act of kindness. Out of all the ponies that have scrutinized him over the years, she was probably the only one who has ever thanked him, because he did a good thing and fixed the town. As he saw the chariot leave for Foal Mountain, he couldn't help but smile. Perhaps he doesn't need to act like a bad guy anymore. Maybe, he can be a good guy. Not much is known about Foal Mountain, probably because it's not a high mountain or so. According to animal books, it's north of the Everfree Forest, a common home for orphan birds, birds that are known for living on their own most of the time, and when they lay eggs, the good ones float at the top, while the bad ones sink to the bottom where they will live alone and uncared for. In short, if they're bad eggs, down the chute. It's actually horrible if you think about it. Pretty soon, the chariot with the Princess and the others descended just north of the mountains, where at the base of it is where Ponhenge was located. They didn't want to get too close because Twilight would've spot them. As the chariot landed, Sora and the troupe exited out to take a look at the area. There were lots of trees, but they saw behind them a pathway that lead to a small town. "Where does that lead to?" Sora asked. "That leads all the way to Hollow Shades." Celestia said. "It used to be the home of Stygian. But now it's abandoned, as no one lives there anymore." "But where are the ruins?" Sora asked. "At the base of the mountain, that way." Celestia said as she pointed her hoof forward, right up towards where the dark clouds are circling. "Then that must be the way to Ponhenge." Goofy said. "Ok." Donald said. Sora took a glance back at the Sun Princess. "You going back?" Sora asked. "I'm not sure." Celestia said. "Perhaps I should go with you. Maybe I can reach her-" "Wait, Princess." Sora said with his hand up. "You should go back Canterlot." That was a surprise. "What?" Celestia asked. "But Twilight is down there. I must speak with her and try to reason with her. I must tell her how sorry I am-" "Princess, please." Sora said. "Equestria needs their princesses, and we don't want anything to happen to you. I know you feel guilty for what happened to Twilight, but she's angry at you a lot more than the others. If you go down there, it'll probably be more difficult to reach her. Let us handle this." The two princesses glanced at each other. Perhaps Sora is right. If Celestia goes down there, Twilight will refuse to listen. After all Sora was right, the lavender unicorn is no doubt angry with the Sun Princess the most. She gave a nod. "Very well." Celestia said. "And Princess." Sora said. "Yes?" Celestia asked. The boy got on his knees and gave a short bow. "If anything happens to us, let Riku and the King know what has happened, ok?" Sora asked. "That is my only request." The Sun Princess then leaned forward and kissed the boy on his forehead. "I will." Celestia said. The boy gave a nod and got on his feet, giving one last bow. Behind him, Donald and Goofy, Spike and all the girls gave a bow too. "May your hearts be your guiding key." She said, and with that said, she floated off the ground with her wings, and took flight, while the Pegasi guard flew with her back to Canterlot. "This is it, y'all." Applejack said. "We got a big fight ahead of us." "Well, what are we waiting for?" Rainbow Dash asked. "Let's go save Twilight!" As the girls nodded in approval, Sora looked at them, seeing that they're willing to risk their lives to save their friend. He glanced down at the ground and began thinking. It's gonna take a lot to save Twilight, and there was without a doubt a good chance that only of few of them, or no one would make it out alive. Then, he remembered Riku, and the King. They were still at the Crystal Empire, helping Cadance and Shining Armor protect it from King Sombra. If anything happens to the girls and himself, who's gonna help Riku and the King protect the Crystal Empire, and stop Twilight if he and the girls are unable to? "You ready sugar hog?" Applejack asked, getting the boy out of his thoughts. "Yeah." Sora said. "You guys go on ahead. I'll catch up." "Ok." The girls said. They then headed down the path that led to the base of the mountain, while Sora, Donald, and Goofy stayed behind for a minute. The latter two were a bit surprised, why Sora needed to wait for a moment. "Sora?" Donald asked. "You alright?" Goofy asked. Sora didn't answer. He was thinking. This was going to be a tough fight, and knowing how powerful Twilight is, there was a lot at stake here. Riku and the King might need help up in the North. So if Sora and the others are taken down, who's gonna help them? The spike haired boy took a deep breath. He finally made his decision. "Jiminy." Sora said. The cricket with the top hat jumped out of the boy's hood. "Yes, Sora?" He asked. Sora extended his hand out, and the cricket hopped inside. Sora then placed him in Goofy's own hands. "What's the matter, Sora?" Goofy asked. "Guys." Sora said. "You can't come with us." "Huh?" The three asked. The boy then glanced towards the direction the girls went to. "Me and the girls, we're going on alone." He said. "You guys head straight for the Crystal Empire." "What?!" They asked. "But Sora!" Jiminy said. "No Way!" Donald said. "I'm going too!" "Yeah, and besides, you might need a couple of more half pints!" Goofy said. The boy turned around to look at the two. "Guys, just think about it." Sora said. "If Twilight was able to block the Princess's attack, then she might be able to turn you both into fried soot." "But Sora, we can take her on together." Goofy said. "Sorry guys, but I have a much more important job for you two." Sora said. "More important than making sure you don't get killed?" Donald asked. "Yes." Sora said. "I know I'm going to have to fight Twilight. If I'm unable to reach her and if she manages to... do her worst, you guys will be the only ones left. If anything happens to all of us together, then no one will be able to warn our friends what's coming. So you guys head straight for the Crystal Empire without me, help Riku and the King protect the kingdom, and informed them and everyone else what happened. So that way, you'll be able to carry on if anything happens to me, and Equestria can still have a chance to be saved..." "Sora..." Donald said. "STOP IT!" "We know what you mean, Sora." Goofy said. "But you don't have to face this by yourself." "I'm sorry guys." Sora said. "My mind is made up. I'm going alone with the girls." As he turned around and began making his way into the forest, Donald only shook his head. "Do you always have to make the sacrifice play?!" Donald asked, making the boy stop in his tracks. "You know as well as everyone that you don't have to face this alone! You don't need to prove to us that you're competent enough-" "CAN'T YOU SEE THAT I'M TRYING TO SPARE YOU GUYS?!" Sora shouted loudly and aggressively. "DO YOU GUYS WANNA GET TORCHED OUT THERE?! DO YOU?!" The sudden angry shout made Donald and Goofy jump back a bit, surprised he let out an angry shout. No doubt everybody near them heard that. The boy quickly got ahold of himself and shook his head. "I'm sorry." Sora said. "It's still there. The adrenaline. The doubt. The fear of losing you guys." He glanced down at his hand, which was twitching a bit. "I just want to save you guys while I still can." Sora said. "I just don't want anything bad to happen to you guys. Many lives will be at stake if we go in together. I don't want to put you guys through that again." Donald and Goofy glanced at each other, feeling concerned. It was still there. The trauma was still affecting Sora. They both approached him. "It's ok, buddy." Goofy said, his hand on the boy's shoulder. "We understand that you're still going through a lot. That's why we want to go with you." "And besides, we're your friends." Donald said. "We'll face whatever happens." "We ain't leaving your side." Goofy said, he and Donald took the boy's hand with assurance. "No matter what." Sora looked at the three. Donald, Goofy, even Jiminy are willing to let themselves get hurt, risk everything to help him. The boy couldn't help but smile, and shed a single tear. "Thank you guys." Sora said, with the three giving nods. "And I'm sorry..." He pulled away from them, much to their surprise. "Sora?" Goofy, Donald, and Jiminy asked. The boy summoned his keyblade. "Too many lives mean more than one." He said. He pointed the keyblade straight at the ground between himself and the three. Suddenly, a large magical wall emerged from between, conjured up by the keyblade's magic. Donald, Goofy, and Jiminy were surprised. "Wha... Sora?!" Donald asked, his hands on the barrier, but could not get through. "Sora, what are ya doin'?!" Goofy asked in shock. "Go to the Crystal Empire!" Sora said. "Go help your King!" "Sora!" Donald shouted, banging on the barrier. "Open this barrier this instant!" The boy then took a grip on his crown necklace, and yanked it off. "Give this to Riku!" Sora shouted. "Make sure he gives it to Kairi!" He then tosses it, and it phases through the barrier and into Donald's hands. "SORA!" Donald and Goofy shouted. "Sora, wait!" Jiminy said. "I'm sorry guys, but a lot is at stake here." Sora said. "You two head straight to the Crystal Empire, and help your king, ok? Tell Riku I'm sorry." "SORA, NO!" Donald shouted, trying to get through the barrier, as did Goofy, but they couldn't get through. "SORA, Don't Go!" Goofy said. The boy turned away, but took one last look at the three. "And tell Kairi..." Sora said, a tear going down his face. "Tell her... tell her I love her..." He then bolted onward, into the forest to catch up with the girls, leaving Donald, Goofy, and Jiminy behind. "SORA!" All three of them cried, but the boy disappeared into the forest, leaving them. All three of them only watched on. But Donald only shook his head. "NO!" He said. "We can't let him go alone!" He summoned his staff and pointed it forward. "BLIZZAGA!" He shouted, shooting out a massive ice crystal to break through the barrier. But it bounced backwards, and shot right at Donald, trapping him in solid ice. "Garsh..." Goofy said. Suddenly, the solid ice began to shake, and Donald broke right out of it. He then rushed forward and began to whack his staff on the barrier, but it couldn't break. The royal wizard couldn't help but quack in defeat. "So... we just let him go alone?" Jiminy asked. Goofy looked up at the sky, and placed his hand on his own heart, remembering what Princess Celestia had just told them, the same thing that Master Yen Sid told them. "May our hearts be our guiding key." He said. "Huh?" Donald asked. "Sora's heart may be telling him to go on his own, to protect us from harm, and to ensure that Riku and the King get help." Goofy said. "But my heart is telling me to be by Sora's side and support him all the way through." "Me too!" Donald said with a nod. Their hearts were telling them to go help Sora, even though he wants to do this own his own. They have to be there for him. "Same here... but how do we break through this dang thing?" Jiminy asked. Donald only let out a questioned quack. "Donald? Goofy?" A familiar voice asked, catching them by surprise. It wasn't the King or Riku's voice, but someone they know too. They turned around and saw a group that they knew for more than a decade. "It's You!" Donald and Goofy called out with a smile. Up in the North... Just outside of a huge crystal gate, Riku was watching in the distance, just in case anything would try to break in. He was wearing his hood over his head, and his clothes have sprouted thermal arms and leggings to help keep him warm. Nice that his battle garments came with good additions, thanks to the Three good fairies. He and his group already made it to the Crystal Empire. While Shining Armor and Princess Cadance went into the kingdom to check on the situation, Riku decided to stay near the entrance in case the Heartless, or the Unicorn King would try to get in. But more importantly, he was waiting for Sora and his group to arrive soon. Hopefully it shouldn't be too much longer. "You alright?" A voice asked from behind. Turning his head, he saw King Mickey, wearing a snow hat on his head. He couldn't help but smile. "Yeah, I'm just a bit cold." Riku said. "You wanna trade shifts?" Mickey asked. "Nah, I'm good." Riku said. "I'm just seeing if anything's coming, or at least waiting for Sora." "I'm sure he'll be here." Mickey said. "He knows how to find his way around." "Yeah." Riku said as he glanced back forward. But then something caught his eye in the distance. While the snow was falling around him, he did see something odd far, far away. Some strange clouds circling above an unspecified place. He could feel it. The stench of darkness. A great darkness to be exact. It even caught Mickey's attention. "You feel it?" Mickey asked. "Yeah... I feel it." Riku said. "Darkness..." "Is it Sombra?" Mickey asked. "No, it's something else." Riku said. "I feel... a dark spark. Magic turning into a black shadow." "It's happening far down in the south." Mickey said. "This must be Twilight..." "Sora..." Riku said. "He's down there." He could sense it. Sora was indeed down that way. But there was nothing he could do right now. All he could do was wait and see. But Sora should be able to handle it... Right?