Giving Chaos

by Dirty Bit

Chapter 25

The train sailed through the sky as the sun and moon bounced up and down in tandem, making it seem as if several days were passing by at a rapid pace. Inside the train, the group, with all the former homunculi accounted for, awaited the final confrontation over the horizon.

Envy tried getting used to the haphazardous flight pattern the train was showing while coping with the continuous change of scenery outside, but to no avail. It grunted in frustration while trying to remain planted in its seat.

"Geez, somehow I'm glad I was the last to be saved. This ride sucks." Envy complained openly.

"Tell me about it." Rainbow Dash said wryly "It wasn't easy at first, and Discord had this thing remodeled ever since we picked up Sloth."

"That explains how roomy this thing is." Envy said before turning to Rainbow Dash "Hey...I never thought I'd say this despite us being together for so long, but...thanks, Dash." Envy muttered before looking down "I can't believe this place actually has me feeling guilty." A light smack on Envy's forehead made it focus on the cyan pegasus smirking.

"Come on, palm tree head. You're better than that. I'm not letting that bother me, and neither should you. Let's just put Discord in his place and we'll go back to our thing in Ponyville. Sound cool?" Rainbow Dash offered. Envy stared before giving a friendly scoff.

"You're still a prismatic prick sometimes, but you're right." Envy smiled before showing an eager grin "This is gonna be interesting if we play our cards right." Rainbow Dash placed a hoof on her chest with a look of confidence.

"Just you wait. We're gonna get my element, and me and the girls will set things straight!" She proclaimed proudly.

"Looking forward to it." Envy said before its smile dropped "I gotta ask though. Was it just as hard to grab the rest of my family as it was me?"

"Oh, definitely. Lust almost lost her friendship with Rarity after Blueblood got hurt, and Twilight, Greed, and Sloth got swallowed by Gluttony." Rainbow Dash explained, earning Envy's rapt attention.

"Seriously? But how did they get out? Does Twilight know alchemy or something?" Envy asked, drawing a quizzical glance from the cyan pegasus.

"What? No. Discord somehow put a lever inside Gluttony's stomach that helped them get out." Rainbow Dash said, to which Envy stared before looking away bitterly.

"Lucky..." Envy murmured irritably.

At another seat away from the two pegasi, Twilight, Greed, Rarity, and Lust were watching them bond and catching up on lost time. Rarity sighed contently at the sight.

"I know this is nothing short of a calm before the storm, but it's so nice to see those two together again..." Rarity said with a touched smile.

"Yes, but we must first see to the peace of Equestria before they can actually take comfort in their relationship." Lust said with her eyes closed.

"Well, I'm ready to go." Greed said proudly "I'm gonna make that bastard Discord regret ever messing with us!"

"Greed, you shouldn't be so headstrong about this." Twilight chided "Discord still has Rainbow Dash's element in his grasp, and there's no doubt he'll put us through another treacherous trial."

"Well excuse me for being optimistic." Greed replied while rolling his eyes "We're almost done with this thing, and if we play our cards right, we'll curbstomp his scaly ass." He laid back against his seat with a smug look in his eyes "This is WAY better than learning about generosity."

"Don't think you're getting away from that once this is all over..." Twilight said with a devious smile, to which Greed's smugness was replaced with mild dread.

"Crap..." He muttered to himself.

"Hey, everypony! We're almost near Canterlot!" Applejack said with her head outside of a window. She brought it in with a frown "But let me tell ya, it's not pretty like it used to be."

Curious of Applejack's words, Greed and Twilight looked outside their own window to view Canterlot, only to gawk at an entirely different sight.

What was once a luxurious and ornate city was turned into what appeared to be a disturbing amusement park with several Discord-themed rides and buildings. The castle was the only thing that hadn't changed entirely, only representing a swirled tower. Ponies were seen on the ground running away in fear from what appeared to be mascots that resembled Discord, only with soulless eyes and opened mouths while a jovial, yet unsettling melody was playing.

"And here I thought Tartarus was bad..." Greed uttered.

"This is awful." Twilight added sadly "Everypony in Canterlot has had it the worst while we were away." She then shook her head and narrowed her eyes "Well, it's time for us to do what we can and make things right!"

"I think it looks pretty fun!" Pinkie said, viewing the city-turned-park with interest despite its dark scenery, only to draw the attention of her friends "What?"

"Stand clear, everypony. We're nearing the castle gates." Shining Armor warned as he looked out as well. The train swooped down and had cruised through the opening entrance, with the engine nearly in front of the castle gates. The engine slowly opened its mouth and rolled out a tongue for the group to walk out of.

They made their way inside of the castle to see that the vestibule was like that of a set of crazy stairs winding into different directions. Everyone but Pinkie Pie had been thrown off by the very sight as they stood on the platform.

"Wow, I'm so dizzy..." Gluttony said as he swayed left and right in a daze "Too many stairs." He gently leaned against Lust while he held his head.

"It's probably gonna take a miracle to find the right path." Envy said while looking around.

"Dammit." Greed growled "I don't know if we can risk splitting up again..."

"Hey, everypony!" The group looked to their left to see Pinkie Pie standing next to a lone door that said 'Throne Room' "I think I found the path we're looking for!" Pinkie held a chipper smile. They were baffled, to say the least, but were just as cautious with the random door the pink pony stood next to.

"Pinkie, I don't think we can actually trust that door, even if Discord has completely redecorated the castle." Twilight said pointedly.

"Well, we're surrounded by chaos, aren't we?" Pinkie asked "Besides, as funny as those stairs look, I think this is a whole lot easier!"

"Can't argue with that." Greed nodded in agreement "Either way, we're gonna be met with trouble. I guess we'll follow Pinkie's suggestion first."

"Yay!" Pinkie cheered as she opened the door, which led to blackness when she looked inside "Huh...Pretty dark for a throne room. Oh hey! There's a staircase leading downstairs!" She said as she pronked her way through the door.

The group looked among themselves warily before traveling single file into the door leading into the dark room, descending down a spiraling staircase with Pinkie taking point. Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Wrath, and Envy made sure to fly while the others walked further down as the door shut behind them, with Sloth being the last to enter.

"Everypony...I'm starting to have second thoughts about this path." Fluttershy said anxiously after the door shut behind them.

"Yer not alone, sugarcube." Applejack said as she trailed down "But we gotta press on either way; no turnin' back now."

"It can be noted that we're to expect something on our way down." Lust said as she looked around the abyss surrounding her "We'll have to be more than careful."

"I hope it isn't any more obscure projectiles or animals being thrown our way like our time on the train." Blueblood said as he darted his eyes around "We were lucky to have been met with either only once on our adventure."

"I'm more worried about this staircase myself." Spike said as he rode on Twilight's back "How long is it anyways? It looks endless from up here." A loud clunk was heard, causing everyone to cease in their tracks, and the stairs below their hooves suddenly receded until the staircase resembled a slide. The group, save for the pegasi, began to slide down further into the dark room.

"Everypony hold on!" Twilight called out to her friends hastily before clinging to one another in a chain. The pegasi quickly gathered with their friends as they picked up speed from their sliding.

After what felt like minutes, the group found themselves at the end of the staircase, though their momentum carried them off and broke their grasp with one another as they fell down into darkness. The element bearers, Spike, and Blueblood were screaming while Shining Armor and the former homunculi attempted to brace themselves as they noticed what appeared to be a large white floor coming into view.

They all fell, expecting a harsh landing, only to bounce from the supposedly plush floor. The pegasi descended as they examined their friends were unharmed.

"Hey, this is fun!" Gluttony chirped as he bounced up and down the plush floor.

"Yeah, this would be super awesome for a birthday party!" Pinkie said jovially as she bounced with Gluttony.

"Soft..." Sloth said with invisible comfort as he laid on the floor.

"Is everypony alright?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"Yeah, we're fine." Greed said as he got up and stretched "This is pretty weird, though. I figured Discord would've wanted us out of the picture."

"Au contraire, mon capitan!"

Lights flashed on the floor as it turned into solid concrete, showing the group that they were trapped in a large arena. Behind the group on the audience seats were the princesses, who were trapped in a barrier that covered the entire area. around them. They looked down below with eyes of concern.

"Princess Celestia!" Twilight said "Princess Luna, too!"

"Cadence!" Shining Armor called out to his wife as he looked up, but was distracted by a maniacal cackling courtesy of Discord, who was seen on the other side of the arena.

"So glad you finally made it to my throne room! Do you like it?" Discord asked with a smirk.

"I dunno." Pinkie said with a pensive frown "If this is your throne room, where's your throne?" Discord snapped his talons and made his signature throne appear behind him for the group to see "Oooooh, there it is!" Pinkie said in realization.

"Alright, Discord! Where's the last element?" Twilight called out vehemently "We've been playing your game for far too long!"

"Oh, I concur, Twilight." Discord said in a melancholic tone as he rested his arms behind his back, striding across his platform above the others "I've grown quite tired of this cat and mouse chase I've set up for you all. It felt as if nearly two years had passed since I first started my little game."

The draconequus smiled as he snapped his talons as Rainbow Dash's element appeared in his eagle claw "To show you how serious I am, I have your precious element right here...among the rest, that is." He added deviously as he revealed the five remaining elements in his lion paw, laughing at the shocked reactions from the element bearers.

"Enough screwing around, Discord!" Greed barked "What say we settle this here and now?"

"I couldn't agree more, Greed. But why not make it more interesting for a final confrontation?" Discord said as he made the elements disappear in his grasp. They reappeared next to his throne in a large glass bottle "I'll just put these here for safe keeping while I get on with our final duel!" He snapped his talons as a large flash covered the area.

Greed shielded his eyes until the flash subsided, and he looked around to see that the arena around him was barren, save for Twilight, who was nearby.

"What the hell!?" He instantly looked up at the audience seats to see that his friends were trapped with the princesses, who were openly voicing their displeasure with their current position. The only one who wasn't entirely enraged was Shining Armor, who instantly saw comfort in being near his wife again. Twilight was just as nervous, but looked over at Greed.

"Why are Greed and I the only ones on the field? What's going on?" Twilight asked.

"Oh, Twilight, I said I would get on with our final duel..." Discord explained before narrowing his eyes with a gleeful grin "I never said you were going to fight me to save Equestria."

"Y-You mean...?" Twilight asked with dread before looking at Greed, who shared her same reaction before glaring up at Discord.

"You sick bastard! You want me to fight Twilight!?" Greed roared.

"Splendid! He can be taught!" Discord cheered sarcastically before rubbing his claws together "You're right on the marker for my intention. You two are just perfect for my entertainment." He pointed a claw at Greed "You're the only homunculus left that I haven't exploited in this game."

"But I remember you saying that my past was too boring!" Greed countered angrily.

"Doesn't mean your combat experience isn't. And now you'll have the option to duke it out with your beloved bookworm while I have the luxury of watching it." Discord said as he floated back to his throne and lounged on it "Now, before I begin, allow me to go over the terms of your decisive battle." He shifted his gaze between the two unicorns "The rules are simple: Last one standing wins, no attacking Yours Truly, and of course, no lollygagging." He tented his talons as he donned a wide smirk "I cannot have you two following Sloth's example when you have your precious Equestria hanging in the balance..."

"You can't make us do this, Discord!" Twilight shouted "This is wrong, even for you!"

"Is it, Twilight? Is it wrong of me to plot my well-deserved revenge on you all in the form of a fun activity?" Discord asked with faint irritation before looking cheerful "Now for the terms! If Greed wins, I'll free your friends AND the princesses, but I'll keep the elements for myself and make another game where all of you will participate in." Discord then grinned "If Twilight wins, I'll simply let you use the elements on me, but..." His grin became more evil "The homunculi will be trapped in stone with me..."

Greed and Twilight widened their eyes at that last part before looking amongst themselves. The others in the audience seats were speechless with what had been presented.

"That jus' ain't right..." Applejack uttered sadly "Greed an' Twilight fightin' against each other?"

"That and the stakes are beyond messed up!" Rainbow Dash vented "What good would come of this!?"

"I don't even know who to cheer for at this point..." Spike murmured as he curled up in his seat, feeling helpless that his surrogate mother was in the worst circumstance yet "Twilight..."

"Greed!" Gluttony shouted as he placed his forehooves against the barrier "You can't do this! You just can't!" He pleaded innocently "You love Twilight! This is wrong!"

Greed grunted to himself as he looked down. Here he was, presented with a battle he was unable to walk away from if he felt up to it. The future of his home hinged on not only his actions, but his loved one as well. If he were to attack Discord, he would possibly jeopardize his entire quest and plunge Equestria deeper into pandemonioum. He gritted his teeth as he struggled with his inner conflict.

Twilight was faring no better, thinking about what Discord had presented to her, her current situation, and the future of her friends and herself. If she were to stand idly by with Greed and refuse to fight, more innocent lives would succumb to Discord's chaos. She was nearly about to break down before she took a deep breath. It was clear what she had to do as she looked over at Greed, who raised his head to glance back at her.

"Greed..." Twilight said morosely "As much as it pains me to do this..." She slowly got into a stance.

"Yeah..." Greed said as he got into a stance of his own, a fixed smile on his face "No other option. It's now or never." He replied calmly "Whatever happens, it's up to you to decide whether or not to forgive me."

"I do." Twilight said as she held a small smile of her own "Because I know you'd do the same for me. My feelings for you will never change despite this chaotic setup."

"Good to hear..." He said as he cracked his neck left and right "Time to see if all that time learning magic under you has paid off."

"Finally, some agreement!" Discord said happily before snapping his talons once more "To make sure this battle will be both interesting and fair, I sealed access to your respective Ultimate Shield spells." he clenched his claws as he squealed in delight "I'm just bristling with excitement!"

"They wouldn't." Rarity watched in fear.

"This is messed up on so many levels." Shining Armor said as he held Cadence close, the two staring down at Greed and Twilight with mournful eyes.

"That Discord is a monster!" Luna proclaimed irately with a hateful glare towards the draconequus.

"As much as I agree with the rest of you, I'm afraid we've no choice in the matter." Celestia stated calmly, albeit sadly as she looked down at the arena "Between Twilight and Greed, the fate of Equestria is in their hooves. All we can do is watch them and see who will triumph in the end."

Everyone in the audience awaited the dreading confrontation between two lovers as they prepared for battle. Discord, who was trembling with anticipation, conjured a kazoo and blew into it, producing a baritone horn sound as he smiled.

"Greed...Twilight...You may begin!" He said as he spread his arms and cackled in delight at the match that was about to ensue.