Contrary to Discord's lifelong assumptions, simply being spontaneous was a lot harder than one would initially think. Being one that often kept to himself in his past life, even just opening up to the creatures around him was hard to do. Now, he had another three individuals around him that would be helping him to try and open up. Mother needed him to be at a point where he would be open to disrupting the human's lives from time to time, but not to the point of Drocsid, who would have been open to just destroying their lives.
One of the first excersizes Mother initiated was leaving him locked in an old courtyard behind the palace. From what her and Gaea could figure, this was likely a field used for bare-knuckle fights, and maybe even gladiatorial combat. Gaea resorted to using her immensely strong vines to cordon off any of the entrances, so he could not move. As Mother tended to Eris for the day, Gaea sat in the upper deck seats, keeping her eye on Discord as he simply explored his surroundings. Mother did not allow anything inside, either. She wanted to see what he would do without company, before putting Discord in the state of mind to do anything in a crowded place.
So there stood the man, a newly ascended Spirit, thinking. What could he do? For all he can remember, plant-life is a majority of his power. So, he looked around the grounds of the courtyard, which had been covered in coarse sands and dirt. He would brush away layers when he felt something may be growing, unsure whether he could simply conjur up a tree out of nothing. Then, he thought back to his six months with Drocsid, and to the first battle in which he got the being to submit. He had made dandelion vines sprout, yes, but he had the seeds thrown at him by the other. But, where did Drocsid get them? Discord never stocked up on plants he did not perceive as edible. Perhaps Drocsid was able to simply wish them into existence.
And so, he readied his hand to snap, before thinking. Perhaps a little flourish would make things better? Beforehand, he rarely ever lifted his hand to snap, but maybe a little flair would help him relax about the idea. And so, this time, with a smirk, he looked to Gaea.
"Hey, Sister!" he shouted to her, getting her to look his way. "How about some of this!?"
As he raised his arm, he did a little twist of his writs; his palm flicked from down, to up, followed by a loud snap. Following his flair, a massive oak tree sprouted out from underneath the courtyard floor, reaching well above the open roof. Gaea let out a little giggle.
"I mean," she said, snorting, "it's better than what you had going, you dolt! Even I flick my wrist when I snap though. Don't be stealing much more from me."
Discord bowed to her, chuckling. "Oh, now come on! A flick of the wrist is hardly unique, even though you added the snap. Though, with your control over the plants, have you ever considered using them to do the trick for you?"
Gaea shrugged, leaning back in her seat. "Well, unlike you, brother, I do not need to snap my fingers to cast my spells. There's a good chance you don't, either, but I think it's more fun when you can hear it."
Discord nods in agreement. He had not tried casting his spells without making his middle finger slap his palm, after sliding off his thumb. He also could not think of a more pronounced way to cast a spell. If a room was silent, all would hear it. If it was too loud, only him, and those closest to you, would hear it. That was almost as chaotic as you could get. And plus, a snap was often used to get someone's attention.
Being a Spirit of Chaos, Discord decided being the center of attention was probably the intention from Mother. In a sense, she was turning him into his own antithesis; he used to loathe being the center of any sort of events. He would often find his way out of gatherings in his old home, and even his human mother had difficulties getting him to come to a dinner table if there were more than just their family. And now here he was, happy to gain attention from a woman who hadn't known more than an evening and one morning. Though, he also reasoned he had just been missing human contact, and this specimen of a woman was more than he could resist.
I mean, Discord, he said to himself, be careful, she is your sister-in-Spirit. Blood means little here.
Though admonishing himself, he decided to try another spell; unfortunately, it was again nature related. He snapped his finger with a little spin of his body, causing the grains of sand and dirt to be replaced with a tightly packed floor of lush green grass. Gaea rolled her eyes, thinking.
"Discord!" she called form her seat. "While Mother and I love your gardening skills, Mother also wants you to expand on your skills. I'm supposed to be the forest Spirit, not you."
Discord nodded, thinking to himself. "What do you suggest?"
"Try anything, honestly. See if you can create someone from the ground, like Mother can do," Gaea said. "I mean, from what I see, she has made you almost as strong as her."
Discord shrugged. "I don't know if I can create my own humans, Sister."
Gaea rolled her eyes. "Okay, quit calling me 'Sister,' Discord. While I understand the idea, being that we have a common mother; we are disconnected by over 150 years of time. We have no blood relation. Just call me Gaea, and I shall call you Discord. Or maybe Dissy, if you'll let me."
Discord nodding, thinking over what she said. And she wasn't wrong. "Very well, Gaea, you may call me whatever you wish."
Gaea nodded, smirking. "Alright, Bastard."
Discord stopped in place as he was getting ready to try another trick, and turned to look at her. He tried to keep a straight face, but was struggling not to burst out at her little malicious compliance.
"Well, Street Wife," he said, winking. "Two can play at your games."
"Ah, ah, ah," she said, waving a finger at him. "I didn't say you can call me anything other than Gaea, unlike you, Beef-for-Brains."
He rolled his eyes. "Hey, now you have officially lost pet name privileges, Miss Gaea."
The Spirit feigned shock, putting a hand over her heart. "Oh, boy, you wound me!"
Their spat continued for a few minutes, before they began running out of retorts. Being that Gaea was not raised a human, she lacked a lot of the good comebacks a man like Discord would have gained with his years of experience. Soon, the fun died down, and Discord would return to his tasks. He still had difficulties thinking of what he should do to make this anymore interesting, until he had a thought come to him mind.
Turning towards the large tree, he once more snapped his fingers. As he did, a Poison Joke flower sprouted at its base. Gaea watched closely, unsure as to what he was thinking of doing with such a dangerous flora. To her surprise, the proximity of the flower to the tree was starting to affect the larger plant. While the grass immediately adjacent to the flower began to turn a blood red in color, the tree's trunk began to turn from brown, to an almost solid green. The texture was changing, as well; it shifted from the rough bark, to a solid smooth barrel. Gaea realized what was occuring as the tree's leaves began to change into roses, and small spines started to protrude from the trunk and limbs. Discord had turned the massive oak tree into a hysterically proportioned rose bush. Impressive once more, but disappointingly plant-based.
Before Gaea could voice her annoyance, Mother came into the arena, with Eris following along. Discord smiled at the two, getting rid of the blue flower before Eris could get too curious.
"From what I could see in the tower, Discord," she spoke warmly, though seemingly a bit more serious, "you have grown an impressive amount of power with my nature. But, as Gaea said to you, I need you to try and open up to something more interesting. Therefore, I need you to follow me, for some time. I am going to need to provide you with something important."
Discord nodded, leaving Eris with Gaea as Mother led him out of the coliseum, and back into the palace.
"My son," she said firmly, "I do sense your wish to apologize, but do not. I am not blaming you for anything; in fact, I am overjoyed with how you have come along. But, your connection to the nature is somewhat overpowering your ability to think about just acting on more than just plants. Do you not remember your growth potions; do you not remember the strength potions?"
"I do, Mother," Discord said softly. He had never really considered them for his spells.
"Did you ever find your gift of flight?" she said, catching a very surprised glance from her son. "Yes, my son. As a Spirit, like Gaea, you have the ability to fly. As do all the demigods and their Spirits. But, before that, I am going to give you and Gaea a gift to help you for the next hundred years."
"Another hundred years of trials, Mother?" Discord said, raising an eyebrow.
"In a sense, Discord," she said. "But not quite. Instead, your task is to revive this Empire. You may use all the resources you have come to create, discover, and those in the future to your advantage. Discord, you and Gaea are going to be ruling this Empire, without outside interference. The forest's perception spell will be reinforced by my magic, as I need to return to my roll as a watcher."
"For since the beginning of the planet, I was involved with creation. I could never let my planet just follow its own path. And now, I have a creation that will forever be able to protect itself, and its inhabitants. This Empire is in this forest, having been hidden for the eyes since its rulers departed. And so, by the time the day is over, my son, you will rule side-by-side with Gaea for the next century. I will no longer interfere in my creations' lives, their history, and their development. Perhaps, over time, after your final trial, you will be seen as gods by the humans once you finally emerge; well, you, anyway. Gaea will stay put, as it is her duty. You, however, will need to find your way in the world."
And so, with her intentions made clear to Discord, and to Gaea over dinner, Mother stayed for this last evening, before vanishing from the old Palace. With this, she left her greatest creations to rule over her last vestige. Mother Nature's time had come to an end, and she now resided in the stars of her system. She had doomed herself to watch, likely until the end of the star system's life.
For now, the Spirit of Chaos, and the Spirit of Protection, set about creating a new world for their own, with a little bit of help from two tiny hands.
End of Book 1