Dear Discord,
I know you are currently doing work for Princess Celestia, but you are required urgently in Ponyville. I have already spoken to the Princess and she has agreed not to send you on any more errands until this matter has been resolved. Please come quickly. Fluttershy could be in danger.
From Twilight Sparkle.
Discord read the letter several times to make sure that he hadn’t misunderstood. He threw the letter onto the ground and flew out the window of the castle, heading in the direction of Ponyville.
If Fluttershy is in danger, there is no time to waste.
As he approached Ponyville, he saw Fluttershy’s friend Rainbow Dash waving at him from a cloud.
Discord slowed and flew towards the cloud, but the impatient pegasus met him half way.
“Discord, glad you came. Twilight is looking for you. She’s at the library.”
Without another word, the pegasus flew off.
“How rude,” he said, flying in the direction of the library.
The trip to the library was uneventful, and he landed outside the front door gently. Without bothering to knock, Discord strolled inside to find Twilight frantically reading several books, occasionally saying something to the dragon beside her.
“It could have something to do with the amount of magic Discord has,” she said to the dragon, who quickly scratched out a note onto an ever growing piece of parchment, “make sure to write this all down Spike.”
Spike muttered something about not being deaf before writing more.
“Just what is wrong with my magic quantity?” asked Discord, eliciting a yelp from both Spike and Twilight.
“Oh, sorry Discord. I didn’t realize you had arrived.”
Twilight used a hoof to pat down her ruffled hair and walked over to Discord. Spike sighed with relief and placed the quill and parchment onto the table.
“Why don’t you come and sit down,” said Twilight, levitating all the books on the table onto the floor, “we have a lot of things to discuss.”
Discord obliged, making himself comfortable at Twilight’s table.
“So what do we need to talk about?” he asked the unicorn, procuring a sandwich from the air before munching on it loudly.
Twilight sat back down across from Discord and opened her mouth, unsure of where to start. The spirit lazily finished his sandwich and yawned.
“Hurry up Twilight,” he demanded, scratching his chin, “I’m starting to think that Fluttershy being in danger was just a ploy to get me here quickly.”
Twilight frowned.
“I am not joking about this Discord. I would never pretend one of my friends was in trouble!”
Discord raised an eyebrow and stared at Twilight, who was glaring back at him.
“I’m sorry,” he said, “just please, get on with it.”
“I’m sorry too, Discord,” the purple unicorn murmured.
She called Spike over to her and whispered something in his ear. The dragon groaned and stormed out the door, leaving Discord confused.
What is with everypony today? He asked himself.
“Discord, I will put it simply.”
Twilight’s voice was uneasy and Discord couldn’t help but feel nervous as well.
“Fluttershy is going to have a foal.”
“That’s it?” questioned Discord, feeling a little let down.
“No,” replied Twilight, not meeting his eyes.
She took a deep breath.
“It is your foal Discord.”
Discord’s laughter rattled the entire library, causing one of the windows to crack.
“HAHAHAHAHA! Really?! Of all the things you could have said to scare me, THAT is what you came up with!?”
He wiped the tears out of his eyes before he continued.
“I may not be a pony, but I do know how foals are made, and I can assure you that those things did not happen. You must think me as gullible as Fluttershy!”
Twilight shook her head and groaned in frustration.
“Will you be serious for one minute!” she yelled, “Fluttershy could be in danger because of this and you aren’t taking it seriously!”
Discord dived over the table and Twilight gasped in surprise, jumping off of her own chair.
“Let’s say, that for a moment I believe you. How could something like that happen without my knowledge?”
The unicorn opened her mouth to speak but Discord clamped it shut with his talon.
“Not that I do believe you. I need some solid proof first.”
He released Twilight’s mouth and she rubbed it with a hoof angrily.
“I just sent Spike to collect Fluttershy,” she growled, “now if you would just calm down I could explain!”
She was glaring at Discord by now, and the spirit smirked before floating back over to his side of the table.
“Go on,” he said, placing his legs on the table and leaning back.
“Hate you!” snarled Twilight under her breath, before returning to the table. She levitated a stack of papers over to her and cleared her throat.
“Foals are created by two parents; a mare and a stallion. I won’t go into detail, but I assume you know that much.”
Discord nodded lazily and Twilight continued.
“Some creatures however, are not formed in that way. Take the cockatrice for example. It is a fusion of a chicken and a dragon, or some other unknown serpent.”
Twilight showed Discord a drawing of a cockatrice and he stared at it, un-amused.
“This creature was created after one of Starswirl the Bearded’s experiments with shape changing. He accidentally infused a regular rooster with immense amounts of magic power. This chicken was then devoured by a pregnant dragon (or other wyrm) and the resulting hatchling took on the qualities of both the mother and the rooster.”
Discord sat up slightly, genuinely interested in where Twilight’s explanation was headed.
“The same happened with timberwolves. Normal wolves headed into the Everfree forest when it was young and were warped by the residual magic that latched to the forestry. Other examples include Ursa’s and Manticores. All of these things have one thing in common: large quantities of magic mixing with life that was already there. And I believe that is what has happened here. Your excess magic is being absorbed by Fluttershy, and that magic is strengthened further by your friendship.”
Discord was sitting up perfectly straight by this point, his attention focused on Twilight.
“Hold on a minute,” he said, leaning forward, “assuming that you are telling the truth and Fluttershy is pregnant, how would my magic create a foal? If anything, the magic would be warping her.”
“That is why I am worried, Discord,” fretted the unicorn, “unless some life was already inside Fluttershy, you could be warping her internally.”
Discord’s earlier skepticism was gone, leaving only worry in its place.
“So how can we find out what is happening to Fluttershy?”
“We will have to find out a few things first. Like if anything happened that could have triggered life to begin growing within her.”
“I think I can answer that,” came the timid voice from the doorway.
Discord and Twilight both turned to see Fluttershy standing nervously in the doorway of the library. Spike stomped in after her and walked off, mumbling something about excess work.
Must be some form of dragon depression, thought Discord.
“Fluttershy, glad you could make it,” Twilight said warmly, inviting her to have a seat.
Fluttershy nodded silently and sat down at the table with the others.
Discord pulled several glasses of water from the air and handed them to the ponies before eating his own in one swift bite.
“Big Mac!” shouted Fluttershy, before staring into her glass of water.
Twilight choked on her water and Discord spat shards of glass all over the table. After regaining their composure, they stared at Fluttershy, making her sink further into the chair.
Twilight was the first to start asking questions.
“What? When? Really? I guess you do match, both being shy and all. Why didn’t you tell us? Oh right, you wouldn’t really talk about those things would you?”
Her stream of questions was cut short by her mouth disappearing. Discord lowered his paw and then turned his attention back to Fluttershy while Twilight sulked.
“I know this is extremely hard for you Fluttershy, but we will have to ask you some questions so we can make sure I will not harm the foal you are carrying.”
Fluttershy nodded and Discord relaxed.
“First question,” began Discord, a scroll and quill materializing in front of him, “we will need to know the approximate date that this happened.”
Fluttershy stared into her glass, almost like it could be an escape route. Discord sighed empathetically. He placed his paw on her hoof.
“Fluttershy, please. I promise I won’t ask more than I need to know. I just don’t want you hurt on my account.”
The yellow pegasus stared up at him, her eyes glistening from the forming tears. She took a deep breath and began to speak.
“It was about two months ago.”
Discord nodded and scratched out a few notes.
“Were any external influences involved? Like alcohol or any form of drugs?”
Fluttershy shook her head. Discord admired her courage, as she still had not started crying.
“One last thing,” he said, jotting down a few more points, “did it happen at all before or since two months ago?”
She looked surprised at the notion before quickly shaking her head again. After making sure no more questions would be required, he tore off the piece of paper he had been writing on and returned Twilight’s mouth to her.
Scowling, the unicorn took the piece of paper that was offered to her and checked her own notes. Carefully, she checked Fluttershy’s answers against her list of things to look for. After a few minutes, she looked back at her two quiet guests.
“My suspicions have been confirmed,” she said, looking rather sad, “Based on this information, and the information I have gathered recently, there is a ninety-eight percent chance that Fluttershy is carrying a foal, and a ninety-six percent chance that it has been influenced in some way by Discord’s immense magical power.”
She waited for the information to sink in. Fluttershy didn’t seem too surprised by the information, but Discord had stopped completely, his eyes wide.
“So what do we do now?” asked Fluttershy.
-----
Discord carried a box of toys toward Fluttershy’s house, with a surprisingly chipper Twilight in tow.
“Is there any reason why I am the one carrying this?” complained the laden spirit.
“You don’t have to use magic to do so,” Twilight replied.
Didn’t really answer my question…
“Just because the foal will be here soon doesn’t mean I have to break my back,” he groaned.
Twilight simply ignored him and continued on her way.
The two approached Fluttershy’s cozy abode silently, though Discord was still grumbling internally. As they arrived at the door, Discord and Twilight both noticed something out of place.
“The door has been broken through,” noticed Discord, placing the box on the ground behind him.
Twilight nodded in agreement.
“You can see where it has been hastily rebuilt, most likely with magic.”
The door shattered from the force of Discord’s kick, sending chunks of wood flying everywhere. Twilight stepped into the house, horn alight, and Discord followed.
The house was a mess. Books had been scattered everywhere, drawers had been emptied, chairs had been pulled apart, and even the floor itself had been cracked in parts.
“Somepony was searching for something,” said Twilight, surveying the wreckage.
Discord shook his head and pointed to some of the chairs.
“No, they weren’t.”
Twilight looked at him quizzically and he explained.
“The chairs have all been busted and parts of the floor are cracked. Somepony looking for something would not have bothered with those and headed straight for the drawers and bookshelf. But as you can see, all the contents of said shelves and drawers are on top of the wreckage. This was done hastily.”
He turned to the broken door and peered out of it.
“Nopony was looking for something. They were covering up what was already taken.”
“And what was that?” asked Twilight.
She hoped he wasn’t going where she thought he was going.
Discord reached down and picked up a small badge off of the floor. He dusted it off and his face darkened.
“They took Fluttershy.”
-----
“How do you know who took her?” shouted Twilight, panting to keep up with Discord.
The spirit turned back, but kept flying in the direction he was going.
“That badge that I found.”
His voice was surprisingly clear given the wind howling in Twilight’s ears.
That seems too easy, thought Twilight.
“It had the seal of the Moon’s Nightmare Legionnaires. Moon Legion for short.”
“Who are they?” asked Twilight, even though she had a good idea what they stood for.
“They are a psychotic cult that believes Nightmare Moon was never vanquished by the Elements of Harmony. They all think she was returned to her imprisonment on the moon in a weakened state. While that sounds harmless enough, they often do things that are against the law. Kidnapping Fluttershy is actually quite tame compared to what they do to ponies that publicly opposes them.”
Twilight shuddered at the thought.
“I have had many run-ins with them while working for Celestia. They are quite hard to catch, despite numerous search parties looking for them. Though I guess if you haven’t heard of them, they could hide in Ponyville and other small towns unnoticed.”
It took a while for Twilight to process the information that Discord was giving her. She ran into the spirit when he stopped suddenly, and she looked to see why. The two of them were standing on the edge of a hill, looking down at a large rock formation below.
“That is the entrance to their hideout. They have little signs that allow members to identify the entrance. This one for example, has a small crescent moon carved into the rock over there.”
Twilight followed his gaze and saw the small engraving.
“Is that a switch of some kind?” she whispered.
“Yes,” Discord replied, not bothering to change the tone of his voice.
He vanished suddenly and re-appeared next to the engraving. Twilight followed in a flash of light.
“Trace then tap,” recited Discord under his breath.
The rock they were standing near began to dissolve, and in its place was a large trap door.
“After you,” said Discord, opening the hatch.
Twilight stared at him un-amusedly.
“Fine, be that way,” said mockingly before diving head first into the open trap door.
“I hate you,” whispered Twilight, before descending.
-----
“My fellow Legionnaires!” cried the hooded pony on the makeshift stage, “We meet once more to save our Queen from the cold tomb she currently resides in!”
Twilight and Discord watched the display from a distance, hiding behind two boulders.
“Why are we doing this alone?” hissed Twilight.
“Because we have a better chance of being undetected,” Discord hissed back.
Twilight shook her head and returned her gaze to the ludicrous display.
“We have discovered a great vessel for our Queen, and tonight we shall return her to this desolate land!”
The crowd of cloaked ponies cheered, and the one on the stage waved a hoof.
“Behold!”
Two more cloaked ponies wheeled a cage onto the stage and Discord tensed as he saw its captive.
Fluttershy lay unconscious at the bottom of the cage, her forehooves bent awkwardly around her pregnant belly. Discord began to stand but a sharp nudge from Twilight’s horn advised him not to. He returned to his hidden position, trying to control his anger.
“This pegasus carries a suitable vessel for our great Queen, and tonight, with the help of one more powerful than he knows, we will bring her back once more!”
“That’s it!” snarled Discord, leaving the cover of the boulder.
“No!” Twilight hissed.
Discord teleported onto the stage and gasps escaped the cloaked ponies around it. The speaker however, did not seem surprised.
“Here he is my family! The one who will lead us to victory!”
Discord ignored him as he made his way to Fluttershy’s cage. He reached out and clasped the bars. As he did, they sparked, and magical black chains surrounded Discord. They suddenly solidified, becoming a solid, black crystal.
“Let me go!” he yelled, struggling against the bindings.
“I’m afraid I can’t do that, Discord.”
The cult leader walked over to him and threw away the cloak, leaving only the stallion beneath.
The stallion was an extremely light blue, almost white, unicorn. His mane consisted of three different coloured stripes; one indigo, one cobalt and one ivory. The multi-coloured mane hung over one of his eyes, and his other was a light yellow, similar to that of Fluttershy’s coat.
“Did you really think that it would be that easy, Discord?” asked the blue unicorn, “That a badge from the Moon Legion would just happen to be left behind? Or that our hideout would be so obvious?”
He shook his head and sighed.
“You have become foolish Discord. Perhaps you are not the one I require after all.”
Discord launched a bolt of energy at the unicorn, before breaking free of his bonds and slashing Fluttershy’s cage in two.
At least, that’s what was meant to happen. Instead, Discord struggled a bit against the crystals binding him and the cult leader watched amusedly. When his efforts had proven useless, Discord stopped struggling against his bindings and growled.
“Oh, did I forget to mention? Your bindings are made from special crystals; very similar to the one’s used by King Sombra. I like to call them Onyx Ward Crystals.”
A cloud of black magical energy, identical to the one that had sparked from Fluttershy’s cage, flowed from his horn. It formed a small ring in the air before him and then solidified, turning into a flawless, pure black ring.
“These crystals take on a magical form, but can be hardened when needed,” explained the stallion, gesturing for one of his fellow cult members. They walked over to him and removed their cloak, revealing a dull grey mare with a short brown mane.
“This mare is Smooth Stone. She is a master at earth based magic and can manipulate the earth at will.”
He nodded and Smooth Stone’s horn shimmered. The ground beneath Discord suddenly parted, leaving only a small levitating block for the bound spirit to stand on. The stone beneath Discord’s feet was returned to normal and Smooth Stone stood silently again.
“Now watch what happens when she comes into contact with the Onyx Ward Crystal.”
Smooth Stone held out her hoof and the cult leader balanced the ring on it. Smooth Stone concentrated on the ground beneath Discord’s feet, but nothing happened except a few loose chips shaking.
Smooth Stone relaxed and gave the ring back to its owner.
“Thank you Smooth Stone,” he said.
“I serve you in place of our Queen, Azure Magister.”
Discord, who had by this point lost interest in the cocky display of magic, snapped to attention at the uttering of Azure Magister’s name.
“You don’t mean - ?”
He was cut off before he could finish.
“Yes,” he said, bowing, “I am one of Celestia’s elite Rainbow Magi. I am the mighty Azure Magister!”
His performance earned him cheers from the other cult members, but Discord wished his ears would close themselves.
“I really don’t care about your titles,” the spirit said plainly, “I just wanted to know if you worked close to the Princess. And I have that answer, so please quiet down.”
“Silence, Discord!” Azure demanded, stamping his hoof, “We have wasted enough time! You will return our Queen to us now!”
“I hate – scratch that, love to break it to you, but I can’t use any magic right now, even if I wanted to help you.”
Discord smiled devilishly, but Azure Magister did not seem fazed.
“That is the best part,” laughed Azure, “you don’t have to do anything. We will syphon your magic from you and use it to accelerate Fluttershy’s foal’s growth. Then, we will give it all our power, letting our Queen return from the moon and inhabit the foal. And when we all leave, the only two left here will be you, and Fluttershy. Of course, one of you will no longer be alive.”
With that Azure chuckled and pointed his horn at Discord.
“Now watch, as we use your power to return our Queen!”
This is insane! Not only is he going to kill Fluttershy and her foal, but nothing will come of it! I have to do something!
Azure Magister and Smooth Stone both pointed their horns at Discord, and Discord felt his magic begin to drain.
I have to break these crystals! He thought, struggling against them, But I can’t use external magic!
With that his eyes closed, and he knew what he could do. He couldn’t use the magic to affect anypony around him, but he could use it internally.
Discord focused, allowing the world around him to fade away. All that remained was himself.
“I haven’t done this in a long time,” he sighed, “but it has to be done.”
He sensed a minute spark of magic inside of him and he kindled it, helping it to grow. He could feel it being wrenched away by the second, most likely from Azure Magister’s spell, but he kept at it.
When he had accumulated enough magic energy, he felt the familiar whispers of his inner self. They were constant and random, chaotic even. They never stopped and anything but Discord would go insane could they hear it. But it strengthened Discord. The chaos of his inner being gave him enough strength to do what needed to be done. Something he didn’t want to do.
He transformed.
His body contorted, cracking the Onyx Ward Crystals that surrounded him. His face became more dragon-like, and his body elongated further. His appendages grew to fit with this new body and in a matter of seconds, Discord was changed.
What stood in his place could only be classified as a beast. Discord was five times larger than he was earlier, making him bend over on all fours, much like a dragon did. His back scratched against the roof, breaking the roof and sending stalactites into the crowd of ponies below.
Large fangs protruded from his mouth, glinting in the light of the torches around the cave. His eyes had become more feline and his wings now ran down his entire body. While the combination of beings that made up Discord was still random, his new form looked a lot less chaotic than his old one.
And that was the scariest part about it.
The members of the Moon Legion scattered everywhere, all looking for a way out of the cave. Discord’s hulking form looked down at Azure, who had stopped his draining spell, and smiled.
“Surprised?” he boomed, rattling the cave, “I am. I haven’t had to get this close to my true form in a long time. Too bad you forgot that anything can be broken with brute force.”
Azure Magister’s mane was blown back, revealing his hidden eye. It was no different from his other, and Discord was almost disappointed. Azure Magister brushed his mane back into place and stared up at Discord. A faint glow surrounded his horn, and Discord wondered what spell he could possibly be casting.
Beside him, Smooth Stone leapt forward, her eyes glazed over, a dead giveaway for mind control. The mare reached Fluttershy’s cage in two lunges and thrust a knife into the sleeping pegasus’ stomach. She removed the blade as swiftly as she had planted it, before dropping backwards. The knife dropped from her hoof and clattered along the stone floor, before disappearing into a large crack in the ground.
Everypony’s attention, was not on the blade, or even Smooth Stone, but at the horrendous wound inflicted on Fluttershy.
The scene, too terrible for Discord to describe in any detail, made ponies that saw it gag, and even Azure recoiled at the sight of it. There was Discord’s only friend, cut open, and her foal irreversibly damaged. And Discord snapped.
Discord roared in rage and slammed his giant talon into Smooth Stone, impaling her in one movement. He flicked her corpse from his claw and turned on Azure Magister, slamming him into the wall of the cave with a swipe from his paw. Discord’s monolithic tail sliced through the air, sending the remaining Moon Legion into all corners of the cave.
Azure Magister, whose lower spine had been shattered on impact, gasped in pain. Discord stormed forward and readied his talon above the mangled unicorn. His fate would have been the same as Smooth Stone’s had an incredible light not removed Discord from the cave.
Princess Celestia, flanked by several guardsponies, strode towards Azure. A few medical ponies rushed to Fluttershy and Smooth Stone, though they instantly knew the latter was lost.
Seeing his chance to redeem himself, Azure began to tell the Princess what happened.
“We found him,” he croaked.
His throat had been injured in the collision, but he put more emphasis on it to obtain the Princess’ sympathy.
“He had taken Fluttershy, and we confronted him. Smooth Stone and I found him trying to resurrect Nightmare Moon, and we had to fight some of the Moon Legion. When we tried to stop him, he went crazy and maimed Fluttershy, killed Smooth Stone, and attacked me. I only hope we weren’t too late.”
With that he feigned unconsciousness and collapsed. The solemn princess ordered her guards to secure the area, before leaving to deal with an enraged Discord.
-----
Discord’s head hung sadly as he sat in the Canterlot dungeons. His misery was interrupted by the sound of his cell door opening.
“I hope you know that I don’t want to do this.”
Fluttershy’s voice soothed Discord’s restlessness, and he looked up at her.
She stood in front of him, wearing the Element of Kindness. She almost looked like her normal self, bar the large stitch that ran along her underbelly. Discord cringed at the sight and hung his head again.
“I know,” he whispered, “I just hope you know that I didn't do half of what they said. Celestia obviously doesn’t trust me enough to listen to my side of the story.”
Fluttershy placed her hoof on his shoulder.
“I don’t believe them, Discord,” she said, “I believe you. If this wasn't a royal order, I would not even consider it. I just hope that, when you are finally free, you can forgive me.”
Discord chuckled slightly.
“Good old Fluttershy,” he laughed quietly, “always asking for forgiveness, when everyone should be apologizing to you.”
He looked her in the eye, noticing the other Bearers entering his cell.
“You don’t need my forgiveness,” he whispered, “because it was never your fault. Go and live your life. Without my interference.”
With that, he took on a solemn and sad pose. A pose he would keep for decades.
As the light of the Elements flashed around him, he could feel his body becoming stone. When the light faded, the six ponies left the cell. The last thing Discord saw before the door closed was Fluttershy's crying face.
He was alone once more. He was trapped once more. But this time, he didn't want to be freed. He knew that being freed would take him from his friend.