//------------------------------// // Chapter 2 // Story: Discord's Apprentice // by JP Jackson //------------------------------// “It’ll take me a few moments to set up the bedroom,” Twilight said to Eris when they entered her little Library/Treehouse home. “Feel free to make yourself at home while I’m upstairs though.” Eris examined the front room of the meticulously organized library carefully, making sure that there were no hidden magical traps or spells scattered throughout the house. Behind the books, on the shelves, under the table, in the closet, even in the sink. But in the end she found nothing that she considered dangerous, nothing except that damn owl. The feathered beast had bitten her at least twice while she was searching the house as if Sparkle had trained the avian monstrosity to attack anyone who dared snoop around her house. She glared at him channeling her rage through her focused gaze, imagining the owl bursting into flames. But sadly no hellfire engulfed the bulbous bodied bird, he merely continued to preen his feathers. “Stupid beast,” Eris hissed at him through clenched teeth. “I’ll make sure Master Discord makes your punishment extra painful!” “Hoo?” the owl cooed, making Eris jump, she didn't’ know that the beast was smart enough to speak. “My great master, Discord? Haven't you heard of him?” “Hoo?” “The Lord of Chaos? Last of the magnificent Draconequus race?” “Hoo?” “This is going to take a while isn’t it?” Eris said sighing. “I see you're making friends,” Twilight’s voice called from behind her. Eris turned to see the Alicorn descending from the bedroom back into the library. “Friends? … Why yes!” Eris said, putting on her now well practiced smile. “I was just conversing with your… wonderful pet… what is his name?” “Owlowiscious!” The Alicorn said grinning. Eris glared back at the owl. “A stupid name to match a stupid mind,” she hissed at the feathered fiend. But luckily neither the owl nor Twilight seemed to hear. Eris followed Twilight up the steps into her bedroom, letting out a bit of magic she made sure that there was no hidden enchantment on the stairs to spring a trap. But just like the rest of the house, she found nothing. Eris sighed, she was honestly disappointed in her quarry, she had searched the entire house and found not a single sidgle, seal or sign protecting it. “What is it in this little Alicorn that Master Discord fears?” She asked herself, shaking her head as she followed the purple mare up the short staircase. She and Twilight soon reached the top of the steps and Twilight gestured to the far end of the room where two beds had been neatly laid out. “You can take the bed on the right,” she said. Eris walked over and examined the strange contraption. So this was a bed, she thought. A bed was one of the (many) luxuries that Discord had forbade her for the purposes of her training, but she supposed it would be acceptable if she used it for the goal of her mission, so long as she didn’t give was to the pampered lifestyle of the other ponies. She turned to her host, giving her a now genuine smile. “Thank you,” she said through. “It’s wonderful.” Suddenly Twilight dashed over and smothered Eris in a firm grip. “AGAIN WITH THE HUGGING!” Eris screeched, all semblance of control lost. But Twilight ignored her cry of distress and continued in her attempted asphyxiation of the unicorn. “Hee! Sorry! But it’s exciting having someone over! Most nights it’s just Spike and me.” “Spike?” Eris inquired, slipping loose from Twilight’s vise like hug. “He’s a baby dragon,” Twilight said simply “We’ve been together since we were both little!” A DRAGON!? No wonder Twilight didn’t have any protections around her house, a dragon she knew, even a baby one, would be an incredible obstacle to overcome. Below them a door opened and a voiced called out. “Hello?” it asked. “Anyone home?” Twilight brightened and slipped past Eris and skipped down the stairs. “There he is now,” she said cheerily. Eris froze where she stood. This was bad, this was very, very bad! From her years of study she knew that as a dragon’s hoard grew, so did it’s power and age, eventually leading to the glorious dramatic irony of killing itself with greed by dying of old age once it achieved a big enough hoard. She was sure that this dragon must possess at least a few hundred TONS of gold and gems, as it was the guardian of an Alicorn princess. Cautiously Eris proceeded down the staircase back into the main room of the library. She look cautiously around the moonlit hall Twilight stood at the front door blocking Eris’ view of the doubtlessly monstrous creature awaiting them outside. Twilight turned to look at Eris and beckoned her with her front hoof. “Eris, come meet Spike,” she said to the cowering Chaos Mage. Slowly Eris plodded forward toward her doom. she was sure that with her Chaos magic she could easily defeat a dragon. But with Sparkle right there and her magic weakened by the abominable taint of Harmony that lingered over this town she wondered if she would be able to draw up enough power to do the deed! As she reached the door she clamped her eyes shut and gulped then looked up at… the empty night sky. “Wh-where is-.” “Uh, down here maybe?” a small voice asked from below her gaze. Eris glanced down from her vantage point. her dark purple eyes met the two bright green ones of a small purple and green dragon. He was not a village destroying monster. Hells! She doubted the scamp could destroy a bag of cookies! he was about the size of a newborn foal and stood on his back claws leaving the front ones to cross angrily across his skinny chest. The brat hadn’t even grown wings yet! Eris scoffed, discussed with herself that she could have ever feared something so insignificant! “Eris, this is spike, my personal assistant!” Twilight said to the fuming Eris. Eris stared down at the little scaled purple anthropomorphic iguana, who stared back up at her, confusion and mistrust, written plainly on his pointed little face. “Charmed…” she said, and turned to return into the house. Twilight and Spike entered the library behind her. “Um, Spike this is Eris, she’s going to be staying with us for a while.” “Oh, is she?” The infant dragon asked. “Eris, I just thought,” Twilight began. “I never asked what town you’re from!” Eris stopped in her tracks, halfway up the stairs. “Um, I’m from…” Eris glanced around the room looking for something to help her. She had never been good at lying, that had been one thing that discord did not tolerate from his students. She searched the room hoping for anything that would help her. “I’m from Lampshade,” she said finally. “Lamp...shade?” Twilight's expression showed that she didn’t believe her for a minute, but Eris stood firm, she was in too deep to back out now. “Yes, it’s a town far away, on the other side of the forest.” “Can’t say I’ve ever heard of it,” Twilight said, her disbelief replaced by a pensive expression. “Can’t say I believe it exists,” Spike interjected. Eris began to back slowly up the stairs. “Yes well, I’ll tell you all about it tomorrow, but golly! All this celebration has made me plum tuckered out and I think I’ll run to my bed now. Gute nacht!” With that she sped up the last few steps and stormed into the bedroom painting. LAMPSHADE?! That was the best name she could come up with? Eris pounded her head angrily against the wall. Eventually her horn chipped a chunk of the wall of and caused it to tumble down towards the steps! Eris cursed and dashed forward to snatch the splinter up just before it reached the top step. “I don’t like her Twilight.” spikes voice wove up the stairs and into Eris’ ear. She stopped and moved in closer to listen. This should be interesting, one of the tenants of Chaos was: ‘An honest opinion is only given when the subject is nowhere to be seen’ this would be an opportune moment to study what sort of impression she had made on Twilight Sparkle. Her ears perked as the Alicorn began to speak. “I admit, Eris is a little… strange. But as a princess I feel that it’s my duty to help her out, she’s not from around her so I’m sure she’s scared.” “Yeah, I bet they do things differently than us over in Lampshade.” “Eris will tell us the truth when she’s ready, until then we treat her as our guest! Do you understand?” “uhg… yes.” Eris smirked and stepped away from her perch at the top of the stairs. It appeared her trickery had be sufficient enough to persuade Sparkle that she would do the Princess no harm. How wrong she was!