//------------------------------//
// Chapter 16- A Fairytale Brought To Life 
// Story: Only the Broken, Only the Cursed (please read blog post) 
// by DougtheLoremaster 
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***


6 years ago


***

“Mom, who’s this?”
Hearing Twilight’s voice, Celestia rushed over to find her staring at a strange photograph of an unknown creature, dressed in a tuxedo and raising a champagne glass as if in a toast. The photograph had been inserted into a solid gold frame, engraved with Celestia’s cutie mark and a strange spiral swirl, intertwined. Celestia’s normally piercing glare softened, and a goofy smile graced her lips as she stared at the portrait. 
“A horrible being of great power, from a lifetime ago.”
Twilight glanced at her mom of the last two years and blinked in surprise. Celestia had replied in her normally deadpan tone, though the lopsided smile remained.
“But why is it hanging in your room?”
Celestia smirked.
“Memories.”
“Memories?”
Celestia didn’t respond as she unfolded her wing, and while Twilight watched, reached out towards the frame with them. Twilight tried again.
“Memories of what?”
She watched as her adoptive mother, slowly dragged the tips of her right-wing down the frame, as though caressing it, that same strange smile on her lips. Her voice trailed off as she responded to the young filly.
“Of a Fairytale…”
Twilight could see that tears were streaming from her mother’s eyes; an event she had not witnessed before or since that moment. And yet, even crying, Celestia still had that goofy smile, as she stared demurely at the golden picture frame of the strange creature. Celestia whispered her words once again, as she used her left wing-tip to wipe the tears from her eyes.
“Just a fairytale.”

***


Present Day


***

“Wh-where are we?”
Twilight looked around wildly in confusion. She was no longer in the cold stone castle, but rather a cozy-looking living room. A roaring fire blazed in a massive fireplace and she was perched on Discord’s lap, within a large easy chair. Discord seemed strangely different too; wearing reading spectacles and his hair seemed almost grayer, he seemed aged and tired.
Looking down at her, his eyes twinkled, and though he seemed to physically show his age, he spoke in a singsong, poetic-styled juvenile tone. 
“Where indeed? I just thought this place would be the perfect place to read.”
“Read? Read what?”
The Dracquonicus’s eyes twinkled as he responded.
“A wonderfully magical and whimsical tale, of a game started long ago. I’m rather fond of the past, you know. It started back in eons past before anything came to exist. The creators of the game had a single kid. An heir of chaos, his powers unmatched, uncontrolled since the day he hatched. The mom and dad sat down one day, and the game they began to play. The models colored so rather bright, and one creature, in particular, filled his sight. A firestarter of fierce mindset, he fell in love and wouldn’t forget. And on a day, way back when...That is when the fairytale began.” 
And with those mysterious words he once again raised his taloned hand; poised to snap his claws yet again. Twilight started to shout at him in panic, her eyes wide with fear.
“For the answer, you don’t seek, I suggest you take a peek. It all unfolded way back when. Within these pages, the tale does spin. Is history to repeat, or will it bend on broken knees? The time has come now little one, for the story has only just begun.”
“Wait. Discord…”
*Snap*

***

In a blinding flash of light, Twilight appeared in an unknown living room still shouting.
“-Don’t!”
A long time ago, before Nightmares, before Alicorns, before Unicorns, Pegasi, and even Earthponies, There was a house. And Within the living room of the house, Twilight Sparkle materialized in confusion.
Still looking around wildly at her surroundings, Twilight could very clearly hear Discord’s voice, and it sounded like he was reading a story out loud. Wait a moment.
Am I part of the story? Those were the thoughts of Twilight as she tried to make sense of her new location. Unfortunately, she had little time to contemplate the answer as at that moment a nearby door flew open, and a strangely familiar; albeit, a much younger and handsomer version of the Greatest Creator of Chaos Equestria has ever known, appeared. He barreled straight towards the bewildered Unicorn.
Twilight muttered under her breath while rolling her eyes.
“You forgot humble.”
As humble as he is currently, the truly amazing Lord of Chaos, was but a child at the time, and he had just had a nightmare.
Sure enough, at that moment, the door to the living room flung open, and in ran Discord, but he seemed younger. Twilight watched the child run directly at her and braced for impact. But there was none. He passed seamlessly through her and seemed to be shouting something. Twilight, still surprised by this turn of events tried to make out what he was saying.
“Mommy! Mommy!”
Is Discord crying for his mother? Does discord have a mother?
As Twilight pondered the seeming impossibility of a child having a mother, the child ran towards the couch behind her, upon which sat a mare. Twilight turned around and her eyes beheld the most curious sight she had ever witnessed.
Turning around Twilight shouted out.
“Will you stop doing that? What in the…You weren’t kidding.”
Twilight's eyes went wide with surprise as her gaze fell upon the strange being. The mare was equine but was neither Unicorn, Pegasi, nor Earth Pony. 
Her horn twisted upwards, almost resembling a Kirin’s. The mare’s wings boasted the plumage of Hippogriffs on the inside, but the outer texture was that of a Batpony’s leathery wings. Her mane was that of a Zebra’s, while her tail flowed with a Seaponies grace, ending in a pair of leaf-shaped fins. What…
While Twilight pondered the existence of the strange being, the mare spoke, quietly, patiently, and calmly; almost as if at peace or rather a state of perfect Harmony. 
“Discord honey, what are you doing out of bed? Decided that mommy needed a visit from chaos?”
“Mommy! I had a nightmare!”
Twilight felt a pang in her heart as the horn of the mare glowed with a dazzling assortment of colors, canvassing the entire spectrum of magic, itself. The multi-colored magic surrounded the little Discord and lifted him, before levitating him into his mother’s lap.
Tears now streaming down her muzzle, Twilight yelled out in distress.
“Stop playing with my emotions, Discord!”
Twilight hated to admit it, but Discord was right; Twilight did feel a deep-rooted pain gazing at the mare talking to her son. Why did it feel like she was talking to her? The mother spoke in a soothing, almost therapeutic way, as she nuzzled her infant.
“Tell mommy about it, sweetie. Was it about what your dad said earlier?”
Sniveling, Discord cried out.
“Uh-huh!”
The majestic entity gently wiped Discord’s tears away as she hugged him tightly.
“You needn’t worry about it, my little chaos, your daddy has been quite stressed as of late. You most certainly are not a mistake. After all, every creature needs a little chaos.”
“Really?”
“Yes...”
Like she had for the past few centuries, she calmly manifested some stars and proceeded to ease her son’s anxiety. She spoke of the heavens and the many realms she had crafted in tandem with his father...
Twilight’s heart stopped as the mare paused mid-sentence. Discord could be heard still narrating but his voice sounded muffled in her ears. Her eyes dilated in shock and her breathing quickened. She began to sweat. The Mother of Discord was staring directly into her eyes as she finished her sentence.
“All chaos and Nightmares have a reason to exist. It would seem you have finally broken the veil; Twilight Sparkle. Welcome to my home realm, I was wondering when you would visit me. Come, let’s talk. I’m sure you have many questions.”

***

“He really can’t hear us?”
Twilight sat at the dining room table and watched as Discord’s mother poured some freshly-brewed tea into a porcelain cup. Glancing up, the mare laughed.
“My son may be the current Lord of Chaos, but I’m afraid the only thing his narcissistic nature will allow him to see right now, is the wonderful tale he believes to be telling.”
“Oh. How is it you can talk to me? Isn’t he retelling the past?”
Sitting down at the table, the mare seemed quite amused at this question.
“The past? Oh Twilight, the past, the present, the future; none of that matters to me. I am not tethered to the present, so the past may as well be today. How is your tea?”
“It’s fine, but why have you brought me here?”
The mare seemed hesitant for a moment, before giving an amused chuckle.
“I...I think that question would be best answered by my husband. His answers will, no doubt ironically, shed some light on the situation.”
“Ironically?”
Sipping her own teacup, the mare grinned.
“My husband is quite famous in your realm, Twilight. I do believe your kind refers to him as ‘the one who carved the underworld, in time immemorial’.”
Twilight’s pulse quickened. It couldn’t be, could it? No, that’s not possible.
“What’s...Your husband...What’s his name?”
The mare’s eyes twinkled with joy as she spoke the name of the one and only God of Chaos; the so-called Creator of the Land of the Dead. A creature considered so vile, so revered, that his mere name was forbidden to be spoken out loud.
“Grogar.”
It was as if a cursed ritual had been performed, for no sooner had she spoken the name then a loud crash of thunder could be heard, and the temperature in the room skyrocketed and plummeted all at once, causing Twilight to become violently nauseous from vertigo. Quickly the mare took notice of this and immediately wrapped Twilight in a warm hug. 
Just as quickly as it had begun, her world stopped spinning and Twilight felt her nerves and insides settle down. Meanwhile all around them lightning crashed through the roof and stuck spots around the table erratically. The non-existent wind around them howled with gale force, while the ground itself shook violently and split open beneath Twilight’s hooves, revealing bubbling magma oozing from within. That’s when two hooves reached out from the split flooring and slammed down. 
Twilight watched in horrified fascination as a massive ram-like being clambered out of the depths and stared imposingly at his wife while noticing the filly on her lap. His voice was harsh and grated, but his words were respectful as could be.
“You called, Clover?”
Twilight’s ears lay pinned back as she looked up at the imposing being. He was as tall as Celestia, and sure he was just as intimidating, but what really terrified her was the feeling emanating from him. An indescribable aura flowed from the ram, an aura so intense, that Twilight felt like her fur was literally being separated from her flesh. His eyes were alight with malice as he looked down at Twilight.
The mare, however, just rolled her eyes and giggled.
“Must you always be so dramatic, dear? You’re scaring our guest, the guest I might add, that you, yourself, asked to be here. You’ve had your fun, now apologize.”
Twilight blinked in confusion. Was she going crazy or were the sounds of unintelligible chanting filling her ears at the mare’s comment? Why had her skin begun to crawl and goosebumps prickle across its surface at the remark?
The mare’s voice carried a strangely dark undertone as she added.
“That is unless you wish for me to become a bit chaotic, as well.”
The effect of these playful-sounding words was evident immediately as all chaotic magic around them ground to a halt and Grogar cleared his throat; as though uncomfortable at the thought.
“There is no need for such drastic measures, Clover.”
Grogar’s voice caused Twilight to feel unclean; as though she were stricken with an incurable plague. Her skin felt slimy, her pulse felt weak; from hearing the rough, grating voice. Shivering, she forced herself to look up into the surprisingly gentle eyes of the massive ram.
“I may have gone a bit overboard, and for that, I apologize. However, you can’t blame me for being a bit excited, it’s not every day I can meet a creature from a realm of my own design that neither I nor my wife, created.”
Twilight felt a sudden warmth as Clover hugged her close to her body; the feeling of illness vanished completely. The feeling of life returning to her body again, she managed to stammer in disbelief at Grogar, feeling like her life was being shortened just by speaking to him.
“What...What do you mean?”
Instead of him responding, however, Clover’s gentle tone graced her ears.
“What he’s saying Twilight is you were not our creation, and we created everything. This has us quite intrigued and so you have been invited for an audience with us.”
Twilight’s eyes went wide, thunderstruck by what was just said. She craned her head back to look up into the eyes of Clover.
“What...You both created everything?”
“Everything there is, Twilight. From the Land of the Dead to the realm you originally hail from. Hundreds upon millions of realities, we’ve made them all.”
“The realm I originally hail from...Wait what does that mean? And why did you say you didn’t create me?”
An orb of bright yellow light appeared on the harness around Grogar’s neck. Reaching up with his forehoof, he pulled it off and held his hoof flat, letting the orb of light rest upon it. Twilight looked at it confusedly, before uttering.
“What is-”
Clover whispered, cutting off her question mid-sentence.
“Shh, just watch.”
In silence, Twilight closed her muzzle and stared wide-eyed at the scene before her. The ball of light, flattened and twisted, forming itself into a small model-sized pony. What in the… The details of the pony filled in, revealing none other than a miniature Twilight. That’s when Twilight watched it blink and move, trotting in place on the hoof.
Clover explained in a soothing tone.
“This is you, Twilight. This is the you we created; the soul of yours that was lost the night your Ponyville burned. It was lost on that night and returned to us. Look closely at it, and you may notice something peculiar.”
Twilight stared entranced by the tiny her, now appearing to stop and smell some kind of flower. The resemblance was uncanny, but that’s when she also became aware of a glaring flaw.
“Where’s her...er...my cutie mark?”
“On your flank.”
Twilight’s veins turned to ice, as the gentle words were uttered. How was that possible, wasn’t her mark her own?
“No, child.”
The gravelly voice of Grogar tore through her thoughts, she felt the searing agony of thousands of needles tearing through her flesh. She cried out in pain, something that Clover instantly took note of. Nearly smothering Twilight, tightly pressing her against her midriff, Clover's ever-soft voice rang out.
“Dear, perhaps you should let me explain the situation. It would seem your magic is rather infectious with her.”
Silently, Grogar nodded and gestured for Clover to explain.  She softened her hold on Twilight, whose pain had vanished with the warm embrace. Holding out her two hooves, a figure appeared on both; one Twilight knew all too well. Celestia, the Tyrant. Though the other one was also Celestia, one Twilight didn’t recognize.
“We’ve linked your current self’s beginnings to these two beings. Princess Celestia, and Tyrant Celestia. Two sides of the same coin, but unable to actually contact each other. You see, your realm is the reflection of another of opposite nature and vice versa. Those of your realm appear within this reflection, exact opposites of each of their doppelgangers. A barrier, however, prevents the interaction between the two as the two realms build and grow; mimicking the reflection of the other. Or at least it did.”
Twilight’s voice conveyed curiosity as she watched the two Celestias seem to imitate the actions of the other.
“What happened?”
Clover’s next words took on a playful tone.
“Well if I recall correctly, you came here for a story, right?  Get comfy, Twilight. This is the tale of two immortal rulers and how one stopped at nothing to save the only meaningful being she had ever encountered in her everlasting life. Even at the cost of shattering reality.”