//------------------------------// // Chapter one: Chaos is Born // Story: It takes a Kingdom to Raise a Draconequus // by Foal Star //------------------------------// It all started one cold Hearth’s Warming Eve, three Reindeer known as The Gift Givers were inside a cozy, warm cabin filled with presents. They were swamped during this time of year, preparing gifts this year as it was fast approaching. The three reindeer looked very different: The eldest one, Aurora, had a teal coat with brown eyes and wrinkles underneath them that looked worn with age. She had a pink and white striped mane tied with a bun, and a crimson shawl around her neck had spectacles at the end of her muzzle and seemed to be the least worried compared to her sisters as she went about teleporting gifts to their destinations with her magical antlers that glowed. The second eldest, Bori, was a light pink coated reindeer with a much thicker red and pink swirly mane, with two bells attached to her ears as earrings. She wore a cute, buttery yellow apron around her waist with a skirt that went up around her flank. She seemed the most observant of the sisters, reviewing every single gift with care and ensuring they were labeled correctly. The youngest of the group, Alice, was an earthly tan-colored reindeer with a short lock of green mane with green eyes. She had a red ribbon tied around her neck with a little golden bell in the center of the cloth. She was the most energetic of the three, bouncing around the cabin, grabbing gifts, wrapping them up in pretty bows, then walking them off to Bori to ensure they were correctly labeled. The three were working as hard as they could to ready presents for creatures of all kinds, dragons, ponies, and especially the yaks whom they shared a special connection with (seeing as they’ve lived in the frozen north, hidden from prying eyes). Everything seemed to be going smoothly despite the rush until the youngest reindeer suddenly started to groan and rub a hoof over her forehead. The other two were somewhat surprised as they saw how distressed she looked and asked together. “Alice, are you ok?!" Alice shivered as she rubbed her hooves over her body as if a sudden chill swept through her. It was rather cold, but they were used to living in the frozen wastes their entire lives, so it was odd that Alice would act like this. Bori felt her sister’s uncomfortable feeling as well and asked. “Is everything alright, sister?” Alice gave a nervous look at her sisters and then said. “I don’t know, I’ve never felt like this before. It’s like this wave of chaotic magic we haven’t felt since Pinkie Pie was born!” The other two deer were now getting nervous as they looked at each other with worried expressions. Then there was a knock on the door, and the three squeaked out and turned towards it. They all slowly came close as they opened it up to see a stork. He was unlike any stork they’d seen before, though. He had some glasses on his beak, sporting a blue hat and a pouch around his waist. The stork bowed. “Good evening. I know you three are busy, but I wouldn’t be here if it weren’t necessary.” Aurora gave the stork a warm smile as if she knew him as an old friend. “Alpha, it’s so good to see you. How's the soul factory?” The stork sighed as he scratched the back of his neck. “It’s fine, just the same old, sending souls to be born like always. It's rather tedious and dull, you know all this.” “Well, it’s always good to see you,” Aurora responded with a playful smirk, which made the stork blush a little. “Yes, and I see you’ve brought a living being today?” Bori asked, seeing that a wicker basket was at the web feet of the bird. Her motherly instincts started to kick in, seeing it was probably another baby. It wouldn’t be the first time Alpha dropped off a mortal at their doorstep. Alpha laughed as he started the back of his neck. “Nothing gets past you, Bori. Yes, I'm here to bring you a living being again. But unlike that pink female earth pony I dropped off last time, this creature is much different.” He brought out a wicker basket with a sleeping baby inside. The creature was unlike anything they’d seen before: Having a body covered in brown fur looking part goat, its face covered in gray, while his torso had a brownish hue. He had a small eagle’s claw on his right hand, a lion’s paw on his left, his right leg was a green-scaled dragon’s claw, and a cloven hoof for his right leg. The creature seemed harmless, but it radiated magic, making the three reindeer quiver. “What is it?” They all asked in unison. Alpha had a queasy look on his face as he answered. “Well…um…I don't know. We keep an eye on the voids of chaos; every millennium, a creature is born from it. Our policy is usually to discard them…but…well…this one is different.” “What do you mean different?” Aurora asked, somewhat concerned. Alpha sighed as he scratched the side of his head and explained. “He’s indeed born of chaos magic, but …there’s something different about him. I sense good, and if there’s even a small chance he’s good…disposing of him feels wrong…I was hoping you three could take him in and raise him. Or maybe find someone who can?” The three reindeer looked at each other with confused eyes as Alice chirped. “I sense the same thing from this young one! We shall take the child and ensure he has a bright future!” “Of course, thank you very much,” Alpha replied with a sigh of relief as he placed a wing over his chest and bowed. He then quickly departed and flew off into the blizzard. Then, with a bright green light, he vanished into thin air. The three reindeer were now looking downward at the baby, and Alice dawwed. “Aww, how could this cute little guy be dangerous? He’s adorable!” Aurora looked down with a sad look. “Yes, he is now. But he could grow to become the most dangerous creature in the universe. I know from experience allowing such creatures to exist is a risk.” Alice turned to her older sister. “But you don’t know that for sure. I can sense this one can be good! Lika Alpha said, if there’s a chance he can grow up to use his powers for others, then we should take it!” Aurora turned towards her younger sister and replied in an assured tone. “I know, young one, there is a chance he can grow up to be good,” Then she got rather somber. “But it’s a small chance, and if we were wise, we would rid ourselves of this child and be done with it.” A solemn silence came over the group. Alice spoke up. “We don’t know that for sure, so how can we judge a gift? We can find mortals who will cherish and love him and raise him right.” Aurora was a bit unsure. “But who will be up to raising a creature born of chaos? Who would even be willing to take on such a responsibility?” They all paused once more as they pondered, then Bori smirked as an idea popped into her head. “I think I know the two who are up to the task…. lucky for us; they are not mortals either.” Celestia and Luna sat together during Hearth’s Warming Eve with cups of hot cocoa in the center of the grand hall within Canterlot’s palace. A massive pine tree was covered in ornaments in the middle of the room. The court was empty, and most of the royal guards and staff were celebrating the holidays with their families, so the two sisters decided to have a small Hearth’s Warming Eve party between the two of them. The sisters sat silently, drinking their steaming hot cocoa as they exchanged gifts seeing that this was their first Hearth’s Warming Eve together since Luna was brought back from her banishment on the moon. “Socks?!” Luna shouted, a bit astonished at her sister’s gift as she saw two pairs of violet and black striped socks. She then glared at her sister. “How dare you mock me! I don’t need socks!” Celestia rolled her eyes and showed off her hooves, each one covered in pink and white striped socks as she explained, “First of all, sister, you don’t need to use the Royal Canterlot voice anymore. Second, you have outgrown all your old clothes while banished, so I went out and picked you up some new ones. And seeing how it's cold here during the winter, I thought some socks would be nice.” Luna eyed the socks as she put all four legs into them. She was impressed that each leg fitted rather well and felt cozy and warm. After walking around for a few minutes, she turned to her sister and blushed. “I apologize for my outburst earlier. I have to admit, sister, they do feel nice.” “See, I told you!” Celestia replied with a smirk as she clapped her hooves together. “Now it’s my turn.” She picked out her present, which was in a circular cardboard box. She could tell it was probably cake, her favorite pastry on the planet. But as she opened the lid, Celestia gasped in surprise at how beautifully designed the cake was: With white frosting and pink swirls around the edges of the single-layered cake. On top, there were candied versions of herself and Luna hugging each other, with the word 'sorry' spelled out in icing. Luna seemed to be somewhat nervous as she stammered. “I…It’s been a thousand years since I made you a cake for your birthday. And I remembered your favorite flavor was strawberry with vanilla icing.” Celestia’s eyes filled with tears, remembering that when they were younger, and Luna did something wrong that hurt Celestia, she would bake her a “Sorry Cake.” The fact that Luna did this made Celestia realize she still remembered the good times before their split a thousand years ago. The princess of the sun then embraced her sister. “Oh, it's a wonderful gift, thank you!” Luna was speechless as she hugged her sister back; despite its decorations, she was still unsure if she had baked it right. Celestia then diced the cake with a knife, and the two shared slices of cake and drank their hot chocolate together as they wore comfortable, cozy socks. The night couldn’t be perfect as the two sisters basked in the silence. However, Luna saw it was an excellent opportunity to catch up on things in Equestria and asked. “So, dear sister, do the ponies still hold this tradition well?” “Yes, they do enjoy this holiday very much. But ponies forget why we celebrate it. Every year, I put on a play to remind them that they should remain united.” Celestia replied. Luna nodded in approval. “That sounds like a fine idea. It seems things have gone rather smoothly in my absence.” Celestia looked down at her hot chocolate, thinking of the pressures of ruling and how it would soon be transferred to Twilight. “Yes, I fear for the future, and the trials Twilight will have to go through. But for now, let’s focus on the present. On us being here to enjoy this fine holiday.” The two then clinked their mugs and continued their drink. But then they heard a loud thump, and the two sisters got up and headed towards the castle's front gate. They opened it to see a strange present, an infantile creature. It was swaddled in blankets, wearing a floppy red cone-shaped hat with a little white ball of fluff hanging off the end of it. A wreath was dressed around the creature’s neck, and it had a pacifier made of peppermint and was sucking on it as it slept. Luna was confused as to what this creature was and asked out loud. “What is it?!” “I don’t know, sister,” Celestia whispered as she unfurled a letter revealing the creature’s story. By the end, her jaw was wide open as she whispered. “My goodness! It’s a being of chaos!” Luna took the child close. “What?! Why is it here?!” Celestia continued reading the letter. “It says that the stork senses good in him and wishes us to raise him.” “Storks?!” Luna blinked in disbelief. “You're saying that storks from the ethereal plane bring babies to mortals?!” Celestia’s cheeks flushed red. “It’s rare, but it does happen from time to time. Pinkie Pie is one.” The two looked back at the creature as it started to wake up. The two alicorns stepped back, waiting for it to cry. But instead, it blinked its large red eyes as it looked around, cooing at its surroundings. He then started to kick about underneath the blankets and giggled. Princess Celestia suddenly burst into laughter at the pretty sight. She then picked him up with her magic and brought the creature, still wrapped in blankets, close to her face. The princess gave him a look over. Despite his odd appendages, her heart melted at how cute he looked, and she squealed. “Oh, he’s so adorabl- eek!” The alicorn cried out in horror as the creature took her nose, revealing it gone as if it were made of clay. Celestia started to freak out, flapping her wings as she shouted! “hey, give that back!” The baby gurgled and cooed as he plopped the nostrils back on the princess’ nose. This time, Luna burst into laughter. “Oh my, he is a cutie!” The princess of the night then sat down using her back hooves and cradled the creature in her front feet. Despite being banished for a thousand years, she had gotten good at rocking foals to sleep, and it wasn’t long until the creature was nuzzling into her night blue fur, seeking warmth. Then he started to drift off to sleep. Once he was snoring, Luna whispered. “Well, I don't mind trying to raise him. If we take good care of him and make sure he utilizes his magic for good, he can’t be that bad.” “Well, if you say so…” Celestia grumbled as she rubbed a hoof over her muzzle. “I also agree that we’re the only ones who can raise him.” Luna turned her attention to her sister and asked. “So….is that a yes?” Celestia looked down at the baby, and despite him just taking her nose, she felt no ill will towards such an innocent young foal. “Yes, we shall raise him. Tomorrow, I’ll have my maids, who have experience with newborns, fetch us supplies. And we can work together to care for him day and night.” Luna flapped her wings with delight, getting rather excited. But then she had a puzzled look on her face as if something was bothering her and asked. “What should we name him?” Celestia tapped a hoof to her nose, seeming unsure, and whispered. “Hmm, he’s quite chaotic. But Chaos would be a dumb name….” “Troublemaker? Destroyer?” Luna suggested as the two princesses just shook their heads. “Lord of chaos!” Celestia laughed, but that was a joke. Both princesses went silent for a few minutes, then they both looked at each other and shouted at once. “What about Discord?!” The baby woke up again and squealed in delight, kicking about underneath the pile of blankets, seeming to agree with the name. Luna nuzzled the child and whispered, “Oh, I think he likes it. Yes, I think Discord is a great name. That will be your name: Discord.” Discord looked upon the two alicorns, not knowing what they were. But it seemed he saw them as safe and felt reassured at being around them. Still tired, Discord curled up into Luna’s hooves and nuzzled back into the recesses of her coat. “I’ll put the child to sleep and watch him during the night.” Luna gently whispered. She slowly got up on three hooves, using her right front foot to cradle Discord as she gently flapped away. Celestia looked over with a worried expression. She was okay with the two caring for the creature, but they had never had real experience caring for babies. She wondered if Twilight had any books on parenting because if so, she’d need to ask about borrowing some.