Mega Mare

by DrakeyC

The Return of Harmony

Twilight thought, staring at the speakers in confusion. "Discord? I've never heard of you."

"I have." Spike slid Twilight's visor down, text scrolling across her display.

The sound of a groan came from the speakers. "Oh, tell your little pet to keep quiet. Did you think I called you up here to discuss that fabulous new armor of yours?"

"Alright then." Twilight dismissed her visor. "What do you want?"

Discord chuckled again. "I want you to carry a message to Celestia. Somehow you've proven immune to my powers. It's really quite annoying, the original five were difficult but I could bend them with effort. You however are another matter. Despite my best efforts I can't even interface with you. A curious conundrum, but one I've lost interest in unraveling. Now you will be my messenger one way or the other."

Twilight tilted her head. "What are you talking about?"

Spike spoke up before Discord could. "Discord was one of the scientists working on cybernetics centuries ago, just before Luna's banishment. He was the head of the implant project Luna volunteered for."

Discord let out an indignant gasp. "Do you mind? I was talking first!"

Spike ignored him. "He resorted to increasingly extreme and dangerous projects before Luna's augmentation. Celestia wanted to fire him but Luna considered him too valuable to lose."

"Yes, that little princess was the only one who understood my vision. A pity her big sister was so nosy."

Twilight heard something in his voice. A feel of dread overtook her. It quickly turned to anger. "What did you do to her?"

"Oh, it was a very simple thing to program. Celestia didn't see the future like I did. I saw a chance for ponies to abandon their bodies entirely, to become one with data, to become unstoppable. But she wouldn't listen. So I needed a little test to prove my theory."

"Luna."

"I didn't have nearly the access to her I'd have liked with Celestia breathing down my neck. So I took matters into my own claws. I digitized a copy of my mind and downloaded it into Luna's databanks when we fitted her for her new armor. Had it worked there would have been two of me running around, one of them in control of an alicorn princess."

"You're the one!" Twilight gasped, glaring at the camera lens. "You're the cause for her corruption!"

"Corruption? Please. I just messed up the programming a bit, a minor error but one that had disastrous consequences. Luna and I had to fight for control of her body when it wouldn't listen to either of us, then Celestia sealed us away. Luna slept these past thousand years. I didn't! The real me is likely long dead and forgotten, but I remember, Twilight. I've waited a long, long time for my freedom. And when the chance came I seized it."

Twilight's eared flattened against her helmet, her eyes narrow. "Trixie set Luna free and you with her. You took control of Trixie, then all the other ponies."

"Right on both counts. Care for a prize?" Discord snickered. "While I kept the aides scattered to distract anypony Celestia sent to look for them, my more malleable servants raided Canterlot and seized all that fascinating medical data on cybernetics. You ponies have done so much in the centuries I've been gone, my plan turned out to be even easier than I thought. Now my programming has transcended the technological. Anypony, cybernetics or not, is mine to control." A low growl came from the speakers.

"All was going perfectly. Then you showed up and shattered all my expectations. I threw the best I had at you. And you stomped it beneath your hooves. As powerful as Luna was even she has proven unable to defeat you. You have demonstrated power far greater than I'd have ever imagined for a single unicorn. You would make a perfect vessel for me in Luna's place, if only I could corrupt you. But it doesn't matter now. Everything is coming into place soon. I have no need for a single vessel to carry me across Equestria. I have dozens orbiting over us as we speak."

Twilight blinked. "Dozens… orbiting?"

Discord laughed. "In mere minutes Equestria's satellites will be in perfect alignment for a simultaneous broadcast across the globe. I will beam my consciousness to everypony on the planet! Pony, griffon, zebra, even dragons will come under my control! And those that resist me will be eradicated! A new era of Equestrian technology will follow, under the command of Discord! I haven't decided on my new title yet, do you think Emperor Discord or King Discord works better?"

"Neither! We'll stop you!" Twilight snapped.

Discord snorted. "Please, do you think I'm that stupid? That I'm going to power up this speaker and tell you everything when there's a chance it could backfire? You have no way to stop me. Even Canterlot's central core cannot override my authority in this place."

Twilight narrowed her eyes. "Where are you?"

"That's strike two. You're never going to find me and you're not going to stop me. I've told you this because I want you to start running now. Return to Celestia, if there's anything left of her by the time you get to Canterlot, and tell her you failed. This is my kingdom now and there is nothing either of you can do about it. Goodbye, Twilight. You did your best, but your best wasn't good enough." The console turned off and the camera slumped down.

Twilight cried out and reared up. The old metal crumbled under her armored hooves, sparking and crackling. She growled and spun around to look over the throne room again. "Spike! Scan everything, find him now!"

"I don't know, Twilight! There's way too much interference. I'm not even sure what to look for! He could be anywhere!"

Twilight ran back to the middle of the room. "There has to be something! We have to find Discord and stop those satellites! Come on, think!"

"… the core…"

"What?" Twilight looked behind her. "Spike?"

"Wasn't me."

Twilight saw movement and turned her attention from the hologram. A midnight blue hoof put itself on the floor and began to push. "Princess Luna!" Twilight rushed to her side, the alicorn struggling to stand. She was breathing heavily, her eyes opened to slits.

"The core… castle core…"

Twilight leaned closer. "What?"

Luna swallowed and turned to her. "The castle's core… below… Discord..." She staggered and fell to her knees.

"She must mean the castle's central computer core," Spike said. "It was the system Celestia based Canterlot's core on. If it's still working Discord could control the satellites from there, and since it's the original system he could override Canterlot's access to do it."

Twilight nodded. "Thank you, Princess. We'll get you out, then-."

"No time." Luna shook her head and looked up. Her horn lit up in a magic aura. There was a rumbling and Twilight looked ahead. The platform the thrones were on split and slid apart, revealing a staircase descending into the floor. Luna groaned and fell back to her side. "Go…"

"But…"

"I'm fine… stop him…" Luna closed her eyes and kept breathing.

"Twilight, her vitals are fine. We can't help her."

Twilight knelt by Luna's ear. "I'll come back for you. Just hang on." Luna nodded slightly. Twilight turned and galloped to the stairs. She rushed down them rapidly, almost falling as her hooves missed steps and tangled in each other. She reached the bottom, a long hallway lined with the rusted remains of security fields and sentry guns hanging from the walls and ceiling. She galloped down it, the hallway ended looking over a long shaft into the earth, metal structural supports crisscrossing over dull grey stone. Twilight switched her Multitool's function and raised it. Derpy Thunder fired, a storm cloud launching down into the shaft and coming to a rest. Her horn glowed as she cast her cloud-walking spell and she hopped down to the cloud. It bobbed with her weight and she fired her hoof down again. Slowly Twilight made her way down the shaft, clouds filling the air.

After what seemed an eternity, she saw the shadows of the shaft fall back to reveal the bottom. The elevator platform had long fallen and broken, now just a pile of rusted metal shards. Twilight hopped down between them and looked forward. Down a wider, shorter passage, a pair of steel doors barred her way, emblazoned with the familiar image of a sun and moon. Twilight ran through a mental checklist, her hoof reconfiguring with her thoughts. Every weapon was functional and primed. Her limbs were sore and tired from all the fighting she had done. As she had done before she ignored it and pushed past it. There would be time to rest when she defeated Discord. If she didn't, rest wouldn't be a concern.

"Ready, Spike?"

"Ready, Twilight."

Her horn lit up. A magic aura wrapped around the doors, pulling them apart. With a crunch and a creaking of metal, they slowly slid open. Twilight narrowed her eyes and stepped out into the central core complex.

The complex was a vast underground cavern, so large the walls and ceiling and floor were in darkness. The path before Twilight was a dull steel platform, wide enough to accommodate a small crowd. Massive steel supports descended from above to hold it aloft, aided by massive concrete columns beneath it. All around the chamber red metal shafts rose from the darkness and then vanished up back into it, covered in exposed wire panels and blinking lights. Wires, cables and girders connected the shafts. Twilight followed them through the air. In time, the small cores were connecting to a massive central shaft at the end of the path.

The central core was as large around as a building, covered in circuitry, blinking lights, air vents, metal rungs that climbed up to maintenance ducts, and loose cables that hung around it limply. A large central screen dominated the structure's bottom, several smaller screens around it. As Twilight approached she saw what they were displaying – a map of Equestria from outer space, the smaller monitors showing different views. And on each monitor, satellites were floating through the depths of space, slowly moving into alignment.

In front of the core, at the end of the platform where the platform widened out, a silver robot was standing at the controls. Two claws floated in the air beside it, crossing from side to side and typing rapidly. The robot had the head of a pony, the body of a dragon, and Twilight didn't care to begin trying to guess where the models for the feet, claws, and horns, had come from. As she stopped behind it the robot stood up straight. The two floating claws floated to connect to its shoulders.

"Well, well, well… Twilight Sparkle." Discord slowly turned around, bright red mechanical eyes glowing at her. His mouth curled into a grin, a single metal tooth poking over the lower lip. "It's so good to see you with my own eyes at last." He made a face and crossed his claws over his torso. "Though it's a bit annoying to see you here after I said you'd never find me. Don't you have the courtesy not to prove your elders wrong?"

"No time for talk, Discord." Twilight stood up and reconfigured her hoof into the Shooting Star. "Let's finish this."

"You ponies are always such drama queens." Discord raised a claw to his mouth and feigned a yawn. "Doesn't the condemned robot get last words? I've been working on this victory speech for a thousand years, somepony needs to hear it." Discord looked back at Twilight and waited for a response. There wasn't one but for the same glare she had given him since she readied herself for battle. "Fine, be that way." Discord scowled and snapped his claws out to the side. They detached and floated in the air beside him. "Let's just go with the abridged version. I'll destroy you and leave your broken body buried here for eternity. The fragments of the Harmony Program will be lost forever beneath the castle of your fallen princesses, while I begin a new era of chaos across Equestria!"

Discord's claws clenched into fists and aimed forward. Boosters ignited on their ends and they shot at Twilight. She jumped to avoid one and ducked to avoid the other, then looked forward to counter-attack. Discord was gone. Twilight looked around and saw Discord's claws turning to zoom at her again. She activated her thruster boots and shot into the air. The metal projectiles shot beneath her and Twilight saw a flash of green light. A bright green outline of Discord traced out on the platform, becoming solid with a gleam across the surface. The two claws snapped to his shoulders and pulled one back, an orb of bright blue-green energy forming in his palm. He thrust his claw forward, the orb shooting towards Twilight. She leapt over it and fired a concussive blast, landing a shot on Discord's torso before he could teleport.

"Twilight, behind you!" Twilight turned at Spike's warning to see the energy orb circling in the air and coming back towards her. She activated her thruster boots to jumped back over it. As she watched, the wire-frame image of a pair of claws formed in the air over her head and became solid. Discord's claws caught the orb and separated, each holding a sphere of energy now. They pointed down at Twilight, clenching into fists. She turned and ran. One of the claws followed her, firing a long green energy beam into the catwalk. Twilight saw movement and skidded to a halt as the second claw shot past her and stopped to aim down at her. She spun and ran back as it followed her, another energy beam lancing into the ground in her wake.

"Overhead!" Twilight looked behind her as Discord appeared floating in the air, his claws snapping back to his shoulders. He grinned and dropped to the ground, a shockwave of green energy bursting from his feet on impact. Twilight jumped over it and bombarded him with energy blasts. Discord scowled as his body rang with the crackling of magic. He brought his claws forward, an orb of green magic forming between them. He flung it forward, his claws detaching afterward. Twilight jumped aside as the magic orb flew past her and similarly dodged the shooting claws. She looked behind her to see the two claws catch the orb as before, then race towards her firing energy beams at the catwalk. She fled until they ran out of energy and charged magic into her horn.

Discord appeared at the opposite end of the catchwalk. Twilight turned and fired her concussive blast at him, following it up with a barrage of normal attacks. Discord recoiled from the blows, crying out. Twilight swung up her Multitool and fired the Shooting Star, striking Discord in the torso and sending him stumbling back. Twilight began to focus another powered-up concussive blast when Discord's body lit up green, turning into a wire-frame image and erasing itself line by line. Twilight stopped and looked around, waiting for his claws to manifest.

She saw a blip of light and stopped as Discord's left claw appeared beside her, palm held out towards her. "Twilight, the right!" At Spike's warning, Twilight turned to see the right claw on the other side of her, energy gathering in its palm. She activated her thruster boots and jumped. The two claws fired at each other, creating a small explosion where Twilight had been standing. She landed, the catwalk clanging from her landing, and looked back to see the claws turn towards her and launch themselves at her. She dodged one but the other slammed into her flank, pitching her backwards. She hit the catwalk and skidded along it, wincing.

Twilight saw green light shine overhead, Discord's image tracing out above her, claws floating into place by his shoulders. She pushed herself up and used her thruster boots to jump away as he stomped the ground, another shockwave flying from his feet. Twilight landed and charged up a concussive blast. Discord's claws launched towards her as Twilight lowered her head and fired. One of the claws took the blast and wobbled in the air. Twilight swung her hoof up and launched the Shooting Star. The crackling blue energy slammed into the fist, the machie exploding in a small burst of fire and green magic. The other fist shot over her head, stopping and turning to form a ball of green light in its palm. Twilight charged another blast and fired. The violet orb met the green and both exploded, pieces of the claw flying through the air.

Twilight turned and began galloping towards Discord, his eyes wide. She held up her hoof and fired the Shooting Star, sending Discord teetering backwards. A barrage magic bolts knocked him on his back. Twilight jumped, the thruster boots blazing orange on her hind hooves. She pointed her hoof down as she rose over Discord. He looked up at her, blinking.

"Well… didn't see this coming."

Twilight fired the Shooting Star at Discord's chest. Discord's eyes lit up yellow, his robotic body convulsing. Twilight landed behind him in front of the central core and turned. The catwalk rang with the sound of Discord's thrashing limbs, currents of energy shooting over his body. His head snapped back, rays of light shining from his eyes. With a mighty eruption of magic, Discord's body exploded. Twilight looked away and raised her Multitool to shield her eyes from the blast. Pieces of shrapnel rained down around her, still crackling with magic.

Twilight slowly lowered her hoof and looked. The catwalk was scorched black where Discord had fallen, the railings and floor bent and twisted away from the center of the blast. Sparking circuitry and metal humming with magic littered the area. Twilight approached the burnt metal, stepping between the debris.

"We did it…" she whispered, not fully realizing the disaster she had just averted. "Spike…we did it!"

"If I had real arms I'd hug you!" The hologram cheered. Twilight turned her head to look at him, when a familiar laugh filled the chamber. Twilight gasped.

"Very impressive," Discord's voice rang from the speakers in the room. Twilight looked around. "You do not disappoint. I didn't expect my shell body to be a worthy match for you after all the power you've shown so far. Congratulations. But you've wasted your time." Twilight looked up as hologram emitters came to life on the central core tower and began projecting, colored lasers tracing out an image in the air. A green wire-frame image of a familiar face appeared, red eyes blinking open and looking down at Twilight with a smirk.

"No…" Twilight shook her head, staring in horror. "But… how…"

The giant Discord head's mouth moved in time with the speech coming from the speakers. "You see, my little pony, I uploaded my consciousness to the central core in preparation for my plan long before you arrived. Destroying that robot body just means I'll have to build myself a new one if I want to actually sit on my well-earned throne once this is all over. A trivial concern."

"Then we'll blast the core!" Twilight charged energy into her horn and fired at the hologram. The blast went through the display and fizzled out in a burst of light. A field of blue energy shimmered in the air, ripples forming from where it had absorbed Twilight's attack.

"Really? You're powerful but you aren't that bright, are you?" Discord laughed, the hologram shaking its head. "This energy barrier is powered by ancient samples of Luna and Celestia's magic. Not even your strongest blast could penetrate it. Shoot all you like, you'll run out of energy before this shield loses even a percentage of its power."

Twilight shook her head. "No… there has to be a way…"

The Discord hologram smirked. "Now, now, it's not all bad news. It seems that the satellites are taking a little longer than expected to move into alignment to broadcast my signal across Equestria. Hypothetically speaking, if you could destroy the central core before that happened you would be able to stop me. But I really don't see that in your future. The shield isn't the only piece of technology I've reactivated down here." Twilight looked around the room as defensive turrets moved to life across the support columns running to the central core. They ran up and down on tracks, each hosting four cannon barrels that turned to aim at her. She pushed herself to her hooves and glared up at Discord.

"I don't care!" she declared. "Power up all the turrets you like! We'll rip them apart and come after you next!"

"So confident. It's really getting a little annoying," Discord yawned.

"You haven't seen anything yet!" Twilight slowly walked towards the console, the holographic Discord head snickering. "You may be powerful, you might have taken control of all these ponies, even Luna. But you are not stronger than me and you are not leaving this chamber, one way or the other!"

Discord faked a pout. "Oh my. Am I meant to feel threatened?"

"No. This isn't a threat, Discord! It's a vow! For Celestia, for her aides, the Shadow Hunters, Luna, and all the other ponies and creatures you've wronged! For all my friends that are counting on me!" Twilight thrust her head toward Discord's visage. "I vow here, somehow I will defeat you!"

There was a flash of white light and all three occupants of the chamber cried out. Twilight squinted through the light and looked down. The gemstone around her neck was glowing brightly.

"Twilight! This energy output, I've never seen anything like it!"

Twilight barely heard Spike's words. She didn't need to. She could feel the energy herself. Every part of her body was pulsing, magic surging through her veins. Her armor glowed bright purple, an aura of light surrounding her. Twilight both heard and felt the magic focusing its energy around her and turned her head. Lines of violet magic were forming in the air on the sides of her saddle, tracing the outline of a familiar shape. The wing engravings on her armor were glowing the same color.

"Twilight…"

Discord's eyes widened, his mouth dropping open. "No… it can't be… you…"

Twilight raised her eyes to meet his. "This is the power of Harmony, Discord! The power someone like you could never hope to harness!"

With a flash of light the magic forms on Twilight's sides solidified. Wings of pure energy raised into the air, their surfaces glowing translucent violet. Over Twilight's armor more magical lines were forming and becoming solid. Backward-swept spikes on her boots, fins on her helmet. The engravings over her armor were lit up in the same violet light, sending pulses of magic coursing over the surface. The power crystal beneath her horn shone brightly, light travelling from the center of the star to the six points. Golden bands traced out from the sides and swept over the helmet to the sides, swirls of gold branching out along its length.

Twilight closed her eyes as the transformation completed. The power flowing through her was unlike anything she had ever experienced. Every inch of her body felt like it was alive with magic, like she was magic itself. "Spike. Do those wings work?"

"Yes they do." Twilight heard the grin in his voice. You focus on shooting, I'll handle the flying."

Twilight opened her eyes and looked up at Discord. The hologram was sneering at her, Discord's voice from the speakers growling. "This means nothing! You're too late! It's over!"

Twilight coiled her hooves. "Not yet it isn't." She focused on her new wings, the appendages glowing. Her thruster boots lit up orange, her visor sliding down over her left eye.

Spike pumped a fist behind her head. "We can do it Twilight! Robot unicorn attAAAAAH!" Spike's cheer turned into a scream as Twilight launched into the air. Her thruster boots propelled her past the central core, her hooves angling to turn. Discord's holographic head swiveled around the core to keep facing her. Spike's voice sounded in her head. "The Harmony Program has diverted its power directly to your helmet's crystal. Let 'im have it!" Twilight nodded and snapped her head down, her horn glowing brightly. A flurry of violet magic blasts rained towards the core. The energy shield lit up blue and absorbed them, Discord's hologram smirking. "My scans show that definitely strained the shields, but it'll take a lot more firepower than that to bring it down."

"We don't have time!" Twilight replied. "Find another way." There was a flash out of the corner of her eye and she looked towards it. One of the turrets around the central core was shooting lightning blasts down at her, the four barrels recoiling in their settings as they fired in sequence. A display screen above the turret displayed the flickering image of rising bubbles. Twilight dove and banked to avoid the lightning, another turret up ahead.

"The turrets!" Spike called. "There are eight auxiliary generators powering the central core along with those turrets. If we can destroy them we can cause a power overload and destroy the generators. He can't power the barrier without them."

"Sounds good to me!" Twilight yelled out loud. She approached the turret ahead. The four barrels turned to her and the image of three apples appeared on the screen above. The cannon barrels fired, metal claws shooting towards her. Twilight pulled up and raised her Multitool to fire the Shooting Star. The turret crackled with magic as it moved up its track. Another quartet of claw projectiles launched, but Twilight turned and flew to the side. They sailed past her harmlessly and spiraled into the abyss below. She looked up at another turret moving down its track in front of her. A trio of gemstones appeared on the display monitor and the cannons fired, gleaming white gems racing through the air. Twilight spun in the air, dipping and climbing as the gems shot past her. She grunted as she regained her sense of direction, unfamiliar with flight. "Spike, why are they using my weapons?"

"Based on these reading, Discord uploaded brain scans of the Shadow Hunters and Celestia's aides to the turrets. They're not copying your skills, they're copying theirs!" Twilight pulled around to bring the turret back into view, her display blinking to a schematic of the weapon. More gems she now recognized as Rare Shield shot at her, her thruster boots turning to propeller her to the side and avoid them. She focused on her Multitool, the Pinkie Cannon forming in an instant. She neared the cannons and pulled up, firing as she flew over it. The turret exploded, black smoke rising from the ends of the cannons. A shockwave raced up and down the support column, sparks flying and metal panels falling off in its wake.

"Core power down to eighty-nine percent!" Spike reported. Twilight nodded and flew towards another turret. The display screen flashed, the image of a forked lightning bolt in three colors appearing. The turrets tilted up and fired the Rainbow Tornado. Twilight cried out and struggled to stay flying, her magic wings taking her down out of the wind. The turret tilted down, this time Twilight fired first. The charged concussive blast slammed into the four cannons, followed by the Shooting Star. The turret sparked and fell apart, the cannon barrels dropping off the base as a series of explosions rang out around it.

"You're starting to get on my nerves!" Discord's hologram turned over the central core as Twilight flew past. A hatch opened behind it and two steel black robots with green eyes flew out, metal wings buzzing like insects. Twilight looked behind her as they approached, their front hooves sliding apart to form cannon barrels. She transformed her Multitool and spun in the air, raising it up. The Rainbow Tornado knocked the two of them back, magic bolts raining down on them as they fell. They each exploded in a burst of green smoke, black metal spiraling through the air.

"Not good enough, Discord!" Twilight looked towards the giant holographic head and smirked as she headed for a third turret. Discord snarled in response. The turret aimed for Twilight, three butterflies on its display monitor. A storm of small energy pellets rained down on her. She shifted her Multitool and held it out as they came near. The Rare Shield flew from her hoof, her magic swinging the gems through the air to catch and absorb the attacks. The charged gems flew forward, one each going down the turret barrel. Twilight flew past as the gems released their payloads, the barrels bursting from the inside with the force, and the metal jewels flew back to Twilight to disassemble and snap back to her hoof.

Discord's hologram roared in rage, eyes flashing. "You won't get any further!" With a rising hum, his mouth opened and a large ray of red light shot through the air towards Twilight. She turned to see it coming and dropped, flying behind one of the support columns hosting a turret. The laser lanced through it, the turret's display shorting out and the music cleft on it vanishing. Twilight looked back. Discord's attack ceased, his hologram flickering. Taking the chance she flew towards the next turret. It locked on her as she neared, the display showing a crescent moon with a star-topped wand. The cannons fired out a quartet of Shooting Star blasts, the blue magic stars crackling in the air. Twilight dodged them and shot a flurry of magic bolts at the cannons, ending with a larger charged blast. As she pulled away at the last moment she finished by aiming her Multitool behind her and firing her own Shooting Star. The cannons exploded in a blue flash on impact, the monitor above them fading.

Spike whooped in her head. "Central core power down to thirty-eight percent! Keep it up, Twilight!" Discord's hologram opened its mouth again, another large laser blast firing. Twilight swooped down, her thruster boots blazing to stay ahead of the attack. As Discord stopped, two more black robots emerged from the core and flew towards Twilight. She turned and sent a Shooting Star shot at one, charging up her horn and firing a concussive blast at the other. The two robots exploded and she turned her attention to the next turret. Three apples blinked on the turret's display and the cannons lowered to point at Twilight, launching four metal claws. Twilight avoided three but a fourth caught her side, raking down her armor and pitching her down. She regained her balance and flew up, firing rapidly at the turret. There was a small explosion and a burst of smoke. Twilight flew up past it and let loose the Shooting Star at point-blank range. The turret detonated, the column's lights and panels going dark as power shut down.

Discord laughed. "You're too late!" Twilight looked at him. Four large numbers appeared over his head, displaying '60:00'. "One minute until broadcast!" Discord laughed again as the display began ticking down the seconds. Twilight gritted her teeth and activated her thruster boots, flying forward. She approached another turret, the image of a trio of balloons displayed on its monitor. The cannons fired in rhythm, pink energy orbs arcing down at Twilight. She flew between them and charged a magic blast, letting it loose and firing rapidly after it. The turret exploded widely and Twilight turned towards the last one.

Spike called up Discord's timer on her visor display. Forty-six seconds. "Twilight, hurry!" Twilight narrowed her eyes and charged her magic. The last turret shot blasts of lightning towards her. The air was alive with electricity, the hairs of her coat standing up as she dodged the attacks. Concussive blasts and the Shooting Star fired in unison. The turret exploded in a shockwave of energy, the support column sparking and smoking.

The entire chamber shook, the cables connecting the central core to the auxiliary cores sparking and snapping. Discord's hologram looked around, his jaw dropping. "No! This can't be happening! I was so close!" Over his head the display ticked down to twenty-three seconds. The entire core and the monitors below flickered, lights dimming and sparks flying.

"He's on emergency power, Twilight, no shields left! But he's still broadcasting!"

Twilight stopped and turned to face the central core. "Spike, divert all system power to the crystal, now!" She felt her systems hum to life, violet light filling the top of her field of view. Over her eyes the power crystal on her helmet blazed white, all the energy of the Harmony Program focusing into it. Discord turned towards her, eyes wide.

"You can't! I've waited a thousand years for freedom, for glory! All ponies are mine to control, to rule! I will not let a single unicorn ruin it all!"

"DISCORD!"

The hologram fell silent at Twilight's call. The display beeped down to ten seconds. An orb of shining energy formed on the end of Twilight's horn, rays of light shining out in the darkness of the cavern. She stared down at the Discord hologram, and smiled.

"I am gonna love and tolerate the crap out of you."

Twilight swung her head down, and fired. A rainbow beam of magical energy erupted from her horn, streaks of color streaming along it. Discord let out a scream as the beam struck the core. The entire cavern began to shake as energy poured into the blast. Discord's hologram flickered, rapidly changing color, his voice distorting. It vanished, the display over it clicking to six seconds. The control console at the base of the core sparked and exploded, the monitors displaying static before they shattered. Twilight tilted her head, dragging the beam up the core's length. The shaking of the area grew stronger, a rumbling filling the air. Smoke and fire began to crawl along the core's sides, metal panels falling off and exposing sparking circuitry.

In a flash of white light, the castle core exploded, a shockwave of rainbow energy shooting out through the air.

"Twilight, the cavern is collapsing!"

Twilight looked behind her and flew down towards the entrance at the far end.

The roof of the Castle of the Two Sisters exploded outwards as a beam of shining light stretched into the sky. In orbit over the planet it struck a satellite. The satellite shone in rainbow colors, the light splitting off from it to hit other satellites. A network of machinery joined by the light formed over the world.

In the throne room, Celestia's aides were standing battle-posed before rows of guard ponies, eyes glowing. Then they halted, the red glow fading from their eyes, and the group stumbled and groaned.

"Did we win?" Pinkie Pie lowered her cannon, confused.

A hoof and wing over Applejack's shoulder for leverage, Luna looked behind her at the pillar of light through the window behind the thrones. Her eyes widened. "She has done it… Twilight Sparkle has destroyed Discord!"

The castle began to shake, the roof cracking. Rainbow Dash skidded to a halt in the air as a piece of rock fell in front of her. "Great, let's go!"

"We can't go, Twilight is still down there!" Fluttershy called up. A moment later Twilight emerged from the stairs down, landing on the floor and stumbling to stay standing.

"Time to run everypony!" She looked between the group urgently. They turned and ran, the confused guard ponies looking between them and following. Luna pushed herself up from Applejack to run to the front of the group.

"This way!" She charged down the hole she had blasted in her battle with Twilight, galloping down a side-passage. The group followed her, Twilight bringing up the rear. Ahead of them the castle was coming apart, walls collapsing, floors splitting open to reveal passages below, pillars falling. Rarity jumped over a crumbling piece of wall that smashed on the hallway floor behind her, Rainbow Dash flying over it. Twilight saw a guard pony stumble as he tried to make the jump and shifted her Multitool, launching her thruster boots to sail over him and digging the Apple Whip's claw into it armor to haul him forward. She landed and kept running, the guard stumbling beside her but keeping pace.

They reached a larger room and stumbled down the stairs to the lower floor, the pegasi guards and Rainbow Dash flying down. A group of guard ponies came out of a different passage, staring in confusion. Luna ran down a third path, her horn shooting energy blasts in front of her to shatter falling debris. Applejack passed by the guards, calling out to them. "Best get runnin'!" The guards saw the group fleeing and fell in line, following them down the hall. A second larger chamber stretched out, a bridge reaching over it. In the middle of the line Luna looked around, her eyes narrow.

"This way!" Luna stopped and turned to run down a balcony to the right. The group moved to follow her, Twilight watching to make sure they got through. More of the black robots Discord had used were in the castle, but they were standing still with no master to control them, some exploding as larger pieces of debris fell on them. Twilight heard a loud crack and looked up. The roof above her was breaking apart. She turned and ran to follow the group, the hall behind her collapsing. Luna led them down a hallway, galloping as fast as she good. She turned a corner and kept running.

"Wait!" Just behind her Applejack looked forward. The hallway ahead of them had a single door on the left collapsed, beyond it at the end of the hall was a blank wall. "This is a dead-end!"

"Trust me!" Luna lowered her horn and concentrated. A blast of lunar magic shot forward, blowing the wall out. The night sky appeared beyond the smoke and Luna leapt through the hole, wings extending to take flight. Applejack hesitated at the edge and looked down to see the chasm circling the castle's foundations below, a river running through it. She gulped loudly and jumped. The other four behind her followed with the mass of guard ponies. At the back of the group Twilight looked behind her, the castle walls falling in and the roof collapsing. With a final cry, she leapt and activated her thruster boots, jetting out the exit Luna had made.

The assembled group tumbled through the air, landing in the river below. There were a few grunts of pain as hooves hit heads and flanks, but one by one soaking-wet heads emerged from the surface. Celestia's aides looked up as the castle overhead began to crumble. Turrets and battlements toppled inward as the underground area caved in. Above it all the pillar of light continued to shine, the power of the Harmony Program projecting across Equestria. The sound of rock and stone collapsing began to die down as the destruction stopped. A massive cloud of dust erupted into the air, the castle's structure obscured within.

On the muddy shore next to the river Twilight descended, landing with a small thud. She looked up at the pillar of light shining from the fallen castle. It shrank and grew thinner, then faded away. In the river, one by one the floating ponies turned to face her. The gem on Twilight's neck shone and then went dark. The glowing fins and spikes on her armor receded, her wings dissolving into sparkles of light. Noticing she was being watched, Twilight lowered her head. She looked between the group and swallowed.

"Um… everypony okay?"

There was silence for several seconds, and Twilight forced a smile. It was Rainbow Dash who finally spoke, her eyes wide.

"You… are… so awesome."