Chapter 6: Miscalculation
He ran back the way he had come, blindly trusting his instincts. As the familiar buildings of Ponyville came into view, he doubled his pace. He rushed back into the library, slamming the door shut behind him. Breathing heavily, he dove under the covers on the couch, shaking with fear. He had done something bad, he knew that much. Nothing good laughed that ominously. But as his heartrate slowed down, his eyelids became heavy once more. He would think about it more in the morning. He should probably have told Twilight about it, but he couldn’t help it. As he drifted back into the dream world, he chuckled slightly to himself. It wasn’t as if anything that bad was going to happen.
Once again, he was surrounded by darkness. But this time, he was running. Someone, something, was chasing him. the blackness retreated for a moment, but it only revealed a dead end. He turned around. Something was coming. He could hear its footsteps resonating down the hollow hallway. As it got closer, he could do nothing but scramble backwards pathetically. He heard the monster laugh, and say: “Come now, I’m not going to hurt you.” He managed to stutter out: “Wha-what do you want from me? Leave me alone!” The monster chortled. It was a horrible sound. “My my, What do I want from you? Isn’t it obvious?” And with that prophetic statement, everything faded to black.
Someone was shaking him. He forced his crusty eyes open. It was Twilight Sparkle.
“Wake up!” Twilight was impatiently waiting. Phew. It had just been another dream.
“I heard some noises last night. Would you happen to know anything about that?” She asked him as soon as he got up.
Uh-oh. Had his midnight walk really been a dream?
“I-I’m not sure...what did you hear?” he stammered, hoping for the best.
Twilight sighed. “It was around midnight, and suddenly there was a loud cracking sound, then a explosion. Caused quite a commotion.”
His blood ran cold. It hadn’t been a dream after all. He would have to explain now, whether he wanted to or not.
“Alright, Twilight, it's like this: I had a nightmare last night, so I decided to go out for a walk. I don't know how, but I ended up inside a hedge maze, and at the center of the maze there was a statue. As I approached the statue, it seemed to whisper to me, and then it...um, well..." he gulped. "...blew up."
Twilight looked at him. Then she flipped out. “And you just thought to tell me this now?! Do you have any idea how serious this is? We must report this to the Princess straight away!” The urgency in her voice troubled him. Exactly what had he done? Then he remembered the ominous laughter. “I suppose you’re right. Let’s go.”
Twilight threw open the door, and dashed outside. He ran after her, trying to figure out how he was going to explain this to the Princess, when a rainbow colored missile smashed into him.
“Oof!” We meet again, jocktard.
“Oh, hey dummy! You got your cutie mark yet?” Rainbow Dash teased him as she dusted herself off.
“Good day to you too, miss.” He replied sarcastically.
Twilight Sparkle broke in before they could start sparring again. “We’re on our way to Canterlot to report to the Princess.
“Couldn’t you just send one of your fancy letter things using Spike’s fire breath?” Rainbow Dash did a few aerial somersaults while she asked Twilight. Seeing her move through the air so gracefuly made him feel a pang of envy, which he immediately quashed.
Twilight sighed. “It’s really urgent! Discord may have escaped, yet again!”
Rainbow Dash fell out of the sky. “Wha-wha? I thought we imprisoned him using the Elements of Harmony!”
Twilight sighed again, exasperated. “I’ll tell you the story on the way to Canterlot, okay? Right now we need to get moving!”
Rainbow Dash looked annoyed. “Geez. Someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed.”
He smiled.
As they continued their journey toward Canterlot, they bumped into that cowgirl pony. What was her name again? She had that weird western accent that made it kind of hard to understand her.
“Where y’all goin’ at this time of day?” She asked them.
“We need to get to Canterlot to make a urgent report to the Princess!” Rainbow Dash said, letting out an excited squeal.
“Rainbow! This is no laughing matter! Discord might have escaped!” Twilight scolded Rainbow Dash. That made him feel slightly better.
“D-Discord? Y’all sure?” the cowgirl pony seemed shocked.
“Yes, Applejack, we’re sure. Apparently mister amnesia here had a midnight stroll, and accidentally freed him.” replied Twilight in a rather dull monotone. Mister amnesia? That almost sounds like a superhero.
Applejack. Was that her name? He decided that it made sense, since her “cutie mark” was three apples. Wasn’t that a brand of cereal? The memory slipped away before he could grab it. It didn't matter. He would give up all of his cereal knowledge if he could just get his name back.
They continued walking toward Canterlot. But as luck would have it, they bumped into yet another pony. This time, they encountered a marshmallow colored unicorn with violet locks of hair.
“Hello dearies, where are you all headed this fine day?” Her manner of speaking certainly fit the diamonds that she had as her cutie mark.
Twilight Sparkle quickly filled her in on last night’s events. As they continued walking, they bumped into the shy one whom he had met before, apparently called Fluttershy, and the psychotic one, the one called Pinkie Pie, if memory served him. It seemed a bit too coincidential that they could just bump into this group of ponies that all seemed to be good friends. Perhaps they all had some kind of telepathic connection. Or perhaps the author just wanted a convenient way to get all the mane six together.
Finally, they reached Canterlot. Seeing the Princess' faithful student, the royal guards quickly admitted them inside. The Princess warmly welcomed them as they found their way to the throne room.
“Hello everyone. Seeing how you are all gathered here, I assume that this must be about what happened last night?” Celestia cut right to the chase.
Twilight began talking. “We believe that the loud noises last night were the sounds of Discord escaping from his containment.”
The Princess looked like she had just been slapped. “How is that possible? The Elements of Harmony should still be holding him in captivity! I still sense the connection each of you has with your element! This defies every law of magic!”
He decided to speak up. “Um...your majesty? I think it may have something to do with me.”
The Princess looked at him wearily. “As I suspected. Do tell, please.”
He took a deep breath, and continued. “I couldn’t fall asleep, so I decided to go for a midnight stroll. I found myself in a hedge maze, and I encountered a draconoquus statue. As I approached it, the statue cracked apart into a white haze, which disappeared in a flash of light. Then I heard this really weird laughter. I ran away after that.” Finishing his narrative, he looked around.
The Princess looked extremely concerned. "Each Element is still bound, and yet their power was not enough to contain Discord. I see that there is no choice then...”
Twilight broke in. “Then what Princess?”
The Princess sighed. “I suppose it is time. There is something I have not told you all about, not even you, Twilight Sparkle. The Elements of Harmony are not the only “Elements” that exist. Besides those, there is one other set.”
The six ponies began talking amongst each other, speculating about what they could be.
The Princess continued. “I am afraid this is the only way we will be able to defeat Discord. These elements are known as the Elements of Disharmony. They are: Lust, Gluttony, Greed, Sloth, Wrath, Envy, and Pride.”
Rarity gasped. “How Horrible!”
The Princess ignored this interruption. “Unfortunately, I do not possess these elements. You must find these elements. Once united, perhapsthey will be sufficient to defeat Discord.”
Fighting fire with fire, huh? He was impressed. But then he thought of something. "How can there be seven Elements of Disharmony but only six Elements of Harmony?"
"An excellent observation. I myself am not clear as to why there lies a discrepancy in the number. Perhaps there are meant to be seven heroes this time?" She smiled at him. The smile caught him off guard. He quickly turned his face to conceal his blush.
“Where are these Elements of Disharmony, Princess?” Rainbow Dash spoke up. “If we don’t know where they are, how are we supposed to find them?”
The Princess gravely began. "I have heard only stories regarding these elements. I am sure of their existence, but how to find them I am not completely sure. In the tales I have heard, seven deadly monsters guard the elements. Wherever they are, I am sure that they will not be easy to find."
Deadly silence was the only sound that could be heard.
The Princess continued. "Equestria needs you. Equestria needs heroes to save it. I believe that you all can do it."
With that, the ponies began to file out of the room with heavy hearts. As he prepared to leave, Celestia pressed something into his hoof. It was a necklace of some sort, with a miniature paper scroll instead of a jewel.
The Princess whispered in his ear: “Save this for a life or death situation. This was not easy to create. When in need, pull the scroll out from its holder and open it, and hence shall you be saved.” With that cryptic comment, she sat back on her throne. The thought that he alone was given something so powerful gave him a slight boost in confidence. As they headed out of Canterlot, he mused to himself: “Elements of Disharmony, huh? Ready or not, here I come.”
“My hooves are getting all pruny!” Rarity whined. “Are we there yet? I must look absolutely awful!”
Twilight looked up at Rarity. “We haven’t even entered the Everfree Forest yet!” Rarity fainted.
Pinkie Pie laughed. "Cheer up, Rarity! This is gonna be a walk in a park, literally!" At last, much to Rarity’s relief, they entered the Everfree Forest. From the moment that they stepped foot inside the forest, a dense mist obstructed their vision. It was nearly impossible to see, and Applejack was suggesting that they leave and wait for the fog to lift when the white mist solidified in front of them. It took the familiar shape of a certain draconoquus. The sight of the statue, now living and breathing, sent chills through his body.
“Discord.” muttered Twilight savagely.
“Ho ho my dearies!” Discord taunted them. “Look at you, all weighed down with those heavy sacks. Here, let me help you.” With a snap of his fingers, all of their provisions turned into sand.
“Hey!” complained Rainbow Dash.
“Oh don’t worry. I know all about your precious Elements of Disharmony. In fact, if you wouldn't mind, I'd like to play a little game.”
Twilight Sparkle groaned. “Not this again.”
Discord laughed heartily. “I’ve hidden all the elements inside the Everfree Forest. You’ll have to split up to find them in time! And no cheating, or you lose!”
They had no choice. Discord was much more powerful than they were, so they would have to play by his rules for now. They split up, grudgingly heading for separate directions in the forest. Discord watched them smugly.
He was on his own. Again. They had all gone their separate ways in the Everfree Forest. To his dismay, he suddenly realized that Discord was strolling along beside him.
“Chaos. Such a volatile and wonderful thing. You know, you and me, we’re not so different.”
He growled. “I’m nothing like you!” Discord chuckled. He seemed to do that a lot. “You’ll think differently once I tell you a story.
Once upon a time, there was a young dragon. As you know, dragons are noble creatures, filled with pride. This particular young dragon did not care for the lifestyle of his ancestors. He did not want to prove his strength through slaughter of his bretheren. He did not want to show his maturity by ravaging the land. He did not want to live his life guarding useless jewels. Instead of becoming vindictive, the dragon considered himself impure, and decided to purge himself from the rest of the "normal dragons". Throwing himself into a volcano, he only waited for his own demise. And yet, fate would not have it. When he awoke, he was not dead. He was anything but dead. His body had been horribly deformed by the volcano, and he was frighteningly emaciated, but as he soon realized, he had gained an immeasurable power. As it turns out, that day was the Solstice Celebration, the day that magic was strongest in the world. The volcano had erupted with intense, uncontrollable, chaotic power, and he had been imbued with that power.
The blast had thrown him far from his home, far from everywhere that he had ever known. Eventually, he ended up in Equestria. But his life here was just as bad. They called him a monster. They threw rocks. Some even created militias to keep him away. He tried to help. He changed clouds into cotton candy and rain into chocolate milk. He tried to add more flavor to their boring lives. And what did he get for his efforts? He was frozen in stone for eternity. Finally, he was freed. Of course, after being frozen in stone for thousands of years makes one very vengeful. He tried to show them that chaos was the truth, that their order was a mere farce, but once again, he was misunderstood. They thought he was evil.
"Those biased, moronic ponies don’t understand me. No one ever will. Except you. You know how I feel. You know my life. I can feel the wrath in your heart. I can feel your lust. I can feel your greed. I can feel your gluttony. Your sloth. Your envy. And, I can feel your pride. They blindly look for the supposed ‘Elements of Disharmony’. As a creature of disharmony myself, I understand. The Elements of Disharmony do not exist by themselves. They can only be created through evolution of the Elements of Harmony. I learned these truths as I was locked away in my stone prison. Chaos is the higher form of order. How else can Disharmony come from but surpass Harmony? And yet these Princesses and their stupid ideals get in my way! The world is not so fair that you can always win if you merely do what is 'right'! The world is not so fair that heroes always win. No. There is no such thing as a hero. Those who call themselves heroes are merely the victors. After all, they are the ones who write history, are they not?”
He was shocked by the draconoquus’s speech. He wanted to reject it. He wanted to yell at him. He wanted to shout "You're Wrong!". He wanted to shout "I'll become a hero! I'll save my friends!". But he couldn't. Because he knew that what Discord was saying was true. Ever since he had arrived, they had thought he was crazy. He had merely told them the truth. He had been naive enough to believe that they would trust him. Instead, he was made the laughingstock of the entire town. Why? Simply because they didn’t understand him. Discord was right. They would lock him up at the first opportunity. They acted kind, but they would turn on him if he stepped out of line. He was a freak to them. They would never understand him. He was breathing heavily. No. He couldn’t let his anger overcome him. He needed to get in control.
“Will you join me?” Discord spoke. His question hung in the air.
He thought. He thought again. If he joined Discord, infinite power could be his. He could be a king. No one would dare insult him. He would be respected, instead of feared. He could get revenge. He could have anything he wanted. Finally, he would be able to live a life without rules, like he had always wanted. He smiled darkly.
“No.”