//------------------------------// // Chapter 3: The Stand // Story: Discordia // by HowardHugheson //------------------------------// The storm had remained. The rainbow maned pegasus remained laying next to the baby dragon all through the night. Where Spike had slept, however, she had not. All night she laid by her friend in the grass at the back of library and watched the storm in the distance. If the wonderbolts were nervous about it, she could only imagine what sort of creature it produced. It didn't matter though, she had determined. Whatever was coming, no matter what it might be, she would fight it. As the sun rose over Equestria, her eyes narrowed slightly, prepared to watch the sunrise. “Rainbow Dash?” Spike asked wearily, his sleepy eyes looking up at her. Rainbow Dash smiled down at him, nodding. “How you doin' champ?” she asked. Spike glanced to the distant storm as if to check it, making sure it was still there. When he saw that it was he sighed, looking back up to Rainbow Dash. “Have you been here all night?” he asked. The pegasus smirked, and gave a shrug. “So what if I had?” she asked. “Somepony has to look after you if you're going to be sleeping outside instead of the safety of indoors.” Spike smirked, leaning up into a sitting position and then leaned against the pegasus. Rainbow Dash didn't move at all, as though welcoming Spike to lean on her. The two set together, turning their focus on the sunrise, watching it. “Whatever's coming,” Spike said, “I think it might be a little like Discord.” Rainbow Dash blinked but continued staring at the sunrise. “How?” she asked. “I dreamed,” Spike said, still leaning on his friend. “I dreamed of Mother Abagail.” That did cause Rainbow Dash to turn her head towards Spike, looking at him with a concerned look but remained silent, allowing him to talk. “She didn't tell me this,” he said, “but just as I was waking up, right before I opened my eyes, I heard two names. I somehow get the feeling that one of those names, Thunderclap, may be the name of the part of the world that they're from, and the other is where the opening between their world and Equestria is.” Rainbow Dash glanced momentarily toward the storm before looking back at Spike. “That would explain the storm,” she said. Spike smiled weakly. “The other place,” he said. “The place where the passage between our world and theirs is at is called Discordia.” ***** “Discordia,” Princess Celestia said as she used her magic to pick up a quill pen and begin writing on a piece of parchment. “It certainly does sound of Discord, but that would not be possible.” The ponies were in the library once more, all of them looking over books on history. Rainbow Dash was the only pony missing from the group, having gone upstairs to take a nap. Spike sat in a window, occasionally glancing out to the town of Ponyville but keeping the majority of his attention on his friends inside. “From what it sounds like,” Twilight said, still keeping her nose in a book, reading quickly, “these things don’t need Discord’s help.” “Probably not,” she said, still writing. “If they can evade my senses, then they are truly not of this world.” Applejack sat in a corner of the large room when she looked up from her book and over at Princess Celestia. “Beggin’ your pardon, Princess,” she said, “but who’re you writin’ to?” Princess Celestia’s eyes remained on the letter that she was writing. “My sister,” she said. “I’m having her bring us the Elements of Harmony, as quickly as she can.” All of them stopped and slowly looked up from their reading to gaze at the Princess. “Do you think that’s going to be necessary?” Rarity asked, frowning as she closed her book with her nose, using her magic to pick it up and placed it back on the shelf. “We should never be too careful,” Fluttershy said, looking first to Princess Celestia before turning to the others. “I mean, um, maybe, in this case, it’s better to be safe than sorry?” Spike’s voice then cut in. “Guys,” he said, his tone shaky. Pinkie Pie left her book lying on the floor, galloping over to the dragon in the window. “What is it Spike?” she asked, then gazed out of the window with him. For a moment she paused, as though she was trying to get her focus on whatever it was that the two were looking at, before slowly turning back to the others. “We… We may wanna wake up Dashie now,” she said slowly. Twilight frowned and stood up, walking over to the two at the window. “What’s going on?” she asked before looking out of the window and up towards the sky. Then she was silent, only a blank look on her face. That caused Rarity and Applejack to glance at each other before running over to a window of their own, so that they could get a good look at whatever it was that the other three were looking at. Princess Celestia, who was already standing next to a window while writing her letter, looked to the side, then slowly her head tilted back, her eyes narrowing. Fluttershy was hesitant for a moment, her legs shaking under her. “I, um, I’m going to get Rainbow Dash,” she said softly, running up the stairs, her eyes avoiding any windows as she ran. They all gazed towards the sky. Throughout Ponyville, everypony had stopped whatever it was that they were doing to also gaze up. The entire town had slipped into a quiet, awkward and frightening silence as they all stood or sat, their heads tilted back. Hovering above Ponyville, silently staring down at the small town was a cloud. It was as dark as the clouds that had been hovering on the horizon, but it was silent. No lightning fired from it, nor did it move. It just stayed there, floating. It stretched out across the sky, like an impossibly long bridge that went to the horizon, where it met with the clouds that had already been there, that still continued to communicate with the ground through electrical violence. The ponies began to run to their homes, some grabbing foals to take inside with them, all slamming doors and closing windows. In short time the town looked as though it had been abandoned, the residents all hiding from the thing that had once been safely in the distance, but now looked as though it was stretching out a long arm towards them. Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy had joined Applejack and Rarity at the window to gaze up at it. Nopony said anything. It was Spike who finally said, “The beam. It’s pointing at us.” The baby dragon backed up into Twilight, pressing in to her arms as she quickly responded by hugging him. “It’s pointing at me,” he added. Princess Celestia gazed at the cloud formation, her eyes not moving from it as she rolled up her letter, it disappearing within a gentle puff of light as it was sent on its’ way, back to Canterlot with the help of her magic. All of them were silent, as though waiting for the cloud to do something. There was a knock at the door. ***** Spike had hidden under a table, unsure of what else to do. The baby dragon couldn’t contribute anything to the fight, if there would be one, and was the target of whoever, or whatever, these creatures were. All six of them stood in front of Spike facing the door. Princess Celestia slowly walked to stand in front of the six, between them and the door, her eyes narrowed. “You cannot have him or anypony,” she called out to the door, and whatever it was that was beyond it. There was a silence. Then, a laughter. The noise was crude, arrogant, evil. It was far worse of a sound than any noise that had ever been heard from any of their enemies. None of them backed down, however. Even Fluttershy remained standing tall and facing the door. “Thissss is noooot of yourrrrr concern,” a voice from behind the door said, it voice deep, scratchy, as though the creature talking had to make an effort to speak. “You have trespassed into our land,” Celestia said. “You have entered into our world uninvited and unwelcomed. Leave, or we will be forced to make you leave.” Again, the voice laughed. “Give ussss the dragon, Princessss, or our employerrrr will be forced to… to reinsssstate theeee Sombra Initiative.” Celestia’s eyes widened at the name, her mouth dropping open in a shocked expression. “That got you thinnnnking, didn’t iiiiit?” the voice asked. “The Tet Corrrrporation’s influence fallssss short in certaaaain worldssss. Give us the breakerrrr, and we will not trouble yourrrr world any further.” Celestia’s head lowered slightly, her eyes narrowing once more as though taking on a defensive position. “No,” she said, her voice flat. “Your threats mean nothing to me. Leave.” The thing behind the door snarled through the wood. “You know nothinnnng of the Towerrrr, of the kinnnng, of breakerrrrrs, of gunslingerrrrs. Do not interrrrfere. This is not of yourrrr concern.” Rainbow Dash then jumped forward, standing next to Princess Celestia. “No way,” she said, taking on the same defensive posture as the alicorn Princess. “You must be crazy to think that we’re just gonna stand by and let you take our friend! You’ll have to get through us first, and that’s not happenin’, so why don’t you just…” BAM! All of them, including Rainbow Dash, stepped back at the sudden sound of something hitting the large library door. All of them except Princess Celestia, who continued to stare at the door defiantly. BAM! Amazingly, the thick door began to crack on its’ hinges, buckling at the pressure of whatever was being slammed into it from the outside. BAM! “C’mon everypony!” Pinkie Pie shouted. “Let’s get ready for them! We can take ‘em, right Fluttershy?” Then she nudged Fluttershy with a hoof, the shy mare only giving a nervous squeak in response. BAM! The door fell from its’ hinges, banging against the floor of the library. From the other side they stood, the four of them, wearing their filthy yellow coats that draped over them and the hats that covered their faces. Twilight stared at the four, stunned. She had never seen or heard of anything like these creatures. They were shaped like ponies, but they were not ponies at all. Twilight could tell that it was as if the pony shapes these things had took on were a disguise for whatever it was that was hiding under those coats. Though their faces were mostly hidden, she could tell that they weren’t really faces. They were almost like masks, life masks made from some sort of true flesh, stretched over the front of them. The idea made her want to run, to get away from them, but she stood with her friends. “We shallll warn you once morrrre,” snarled the first of the four things as it stepped forward and now stood on the broken door that laid on the ground. “Ourrrr patience runnnns thin, and we arrrre tired of this world. Giiiive us the breakerrrr, or we shallll destroy you!” Princess Celestia slowly lifted her wings, stretching them out as if to shield the others. “Never.” The thing that had spoken yelled, and leaped forward. Then something happened, something that caused all of them, even the other things that were still at the entrance, to stop in momentary shock. A large burst of sudden and violent electricity erupted between the alicorn and the thing. While Princess Celestia remained standing unharmed, the thing was thrown back to the entrance, causing it to land on its’ side in a sudden THUD as it hit the ground. The other creatures watched as their companion hit the ground. If they had faces, they’d probably look as surprised as the ponies who had watched as the monstrosity was thrown away from them by some invisible force. The things looked back to Princess Celestia, snarling at her as she continued to stand, her wings still outstretched. They all leaped at her. The sudden burst of electricity once more threw them all back, all of them landing on top of each other at the entrance. Princess Celestia folded her wings back at her sides once more and took a step forward, staring down at the four creatures. “Leave,” she said. The other six looked at each other questioningly, as if wondering what they should do, if anything at all. Twilight once more looked forward, at the four creatures who were laying at the entrance of her library, of the four who had trespassed into this world, who had no right to invade it. Twilight lifted a hoof, preparing to step forward. The purple mare gulped nervously as she looked down at her hoof, wondering if this was the right thing to do. Then she stepped forward, and looked toward the things in yellow coats with both challenge and courage. “Leave,” she said, walking up to stand with Princess Celestia. “Get outta here,” Rainbow Dash said, also stepping forward to stand with Twilight Sparkle. “And never return,” Rarity said as she stepped forward, standing with Rainbow Dash. “Yeah,” said Applejack, walking forward to stand with Rarity. “Y’all get out and stay out!” “Yeah!” Pinkie Pie said, stepping up to stand with Applejack. “Get out ya’ big meanies!” Finally, though Fluttershy was the last to walk forward, her angry expression and determined voice did not hint at the slightest amount of fear. “Leave,” she said, standing with Pinkie Pie. The clouds that had formed in the distance, that had, for the past day, continued sending down their bolts of lightning to the spot on the ground that had shot bolts of lightning back into the sky, suddenly stopped. The cloud that had stretched out from them to Ponyville began to roll back towards it, as though being pulled back into it. The things that lay at the library entrance snarled. “No!” one of them shouted before all of them were picked up and pulled back toward the horizon. All of them, even Spike, ran out of the library to stand and watch as the clouds were pulled back, almost like a blanket being shoved into a drawer. “What in tarnation is happenin’?” Applejack whispered. “The rift is closing,” Princess Celestia said as she continued to watch the clouds. “The thinny is gone, and our world is safe.” Within moments, the clouds were gone. The horizon and the sky had gone back to the way they were before the rift had opened. Spike looked up to see if the same disturbed pattern was still stretching across the sky. It wasn’t. The sky was normal, and the beam was gone. “Princess Celestia,” Spike said, still looking up. The Princess had turned from the horizon that had returned to its’ normal state, looking at Spike. The others turned to face him also. “The beam,” he said, looking back to them, smiling as he pointed upward. “It’s gone!” Twilight smiled as she walked forward, looking down at him as she smiled also, looking back up at her. The purple mare reached a hoof forward and pulled Spike to her, hugging him. Spike’s eyes filled with tears as he hugged her back, his head leaning forward, crying on her. Twilight reached down and kissed the top of his head gently. “It’s ok now Spike,” she said. Spike sniffed and shook his head, still crying weakly on Twilight. “It’s not that,” he said, taking in a small gasp of air, calming down. “It’s something that Mother Abagail told me. Something that, I think I can now say is true.” Twilight continued to smile down at him. “What did she say?” she asked. “If I could stand for love, for kindness, for friendship, that I wouldn’t have to grow up to be a selfish angry adult dragon.” Spike reached a hand up to his face to wipe away some tears that had just rolled out of his eyes. “If standing for that stuff made those creatures go away, along with that weird storm, then I know it’s true. I don’t have to grow up to be evil.” Twilight pulled him forward again into another hug, her eyes closing to stop the tears that were threatening to form. “That’s the magic of friendship,” Twilight said. Gently, she laughed as she held Spike in the embrace, almost scared to let him go. “Friendship is magic.” Rarity took a slow step forward, looking from Twilight and Spike to Princess Celestia. “Forgive me, your majesty,” she said gently, “but, how in the world did you manage to fight those creatures?” Princess Celestia smiled to Rarity. “I didn’t,” she said. Rarity blinked, looking confused. “All I did,” Princess Celestia said, “was believed in everything that Spike just said, in love and friendship. This world, its’ innocence, and the faith we all shared was more than enough magic to defend ourselves. The evil of those creatures could not touch us for that reason.” Then she turned to Spike, still smiling. “What Spike says is true. If the faith that we had was enough to send those creatures back to the world in which they came, and then close the rift behind them, it is enough to keep Spike innocent, even into adulthood.” The others cheered as they ran forward, all gathering around Twilight and Spike, taking them into a large group hug. Princess Celestia continued to smile as she watched them. “Friendship is magic, my faithful students,” she said gently.