//------------------------------// // The Turning Point // Story: Chaotic Will // by Mega NewWays97 //------------------------------// How could this have happened!? The thought echoed in Discord’s mind, quite literally in his case, since he had room to spare up there. How could I be rendered powerless? How is it possible? I was the most powerful being on the planet! Nothing could stop me. Discord flashbacked through the days events, trying to figure out where he had messed up. I was free. Free of rules, and free of consequences. I bowed to no one, and did as I pleased… and now I’m stuck here, completely helpless. Discord was trapped in a bubble along with five ponies and a baby dragon, ponies who had once called him friend. They floated together as Tirek bargained with Twilight for their release. Discord gave her a sad glance, and clenched his talons into a fist. Then those princess came along, and locked me in stone. Discord remembered the horror of it. Despite what they might have thought, he was fully conscious the entire time, unable to sleep. That was a special kind of torture, the kind one of Tartarus's demons would find amusing. Then came Celestia’s plan to 'reform' him, Mere months after Chrysalis defeated her. Celestia, she.... she wanted me as a pet? A thug at her beck and call? Somepony she could use whenever she felt threatened? But that means- Discord turned to Fluttershy and the others. They were never my friends, not for real..... and I can't believe I fell for it! They used me, every single one! The shock of realization quickly turned to doubt and despair. I’m alone, just like before. Is this my fate, to be the target of their hate, to be their slave? Liars, they’re nothing but liars... Discord turned away as he started to cry. Friend or foe, he still didn’t want them to see. Once his tears had dried, he started to plot, although he kept his outward mannerisms pathetic. Friendless or not, I still have a job to do. And this time no little pony is going to stand in my way! Deep Space, Sector 45679 “Green Lantern of Sector 45679 Deceased, Scanning. Scanning. New subject detected.” In the depths of space a green ring coasted, searching for a new wielder. As it looked into the vastness of the galaxy, it felt a spike, the sign of one who could learn to wield it. It changed course, heading for a planet steeped in magic. The ring dove into the atmosphere, aimed right at its new bearer. Gaia Twilight felt her magic leave her as her friends fell to the ground and Tirek stomped off. Discord stood up, and approached her. "I thought I didn't need friendship," He started as he removed Tirek’s gift, looking down at the ground. "In a way I was wrong..... but," Discord’s head snapped up to meet her gaze, and she flinched away from the fury in his eyes. "You are not my friends," he snarled. Discord slammed the necklace onto a nearby rock, shattering it. As it broke, it shifted, turning into the last key for the magic chest, only mangled beyond use. Discord turned his back on the ponies and stalked away. Twilight stared down at the broken key in disbelief as it crumbled to dust before her. "Discord, no." Fluttershy said. Discord spun on his heel and jumped directly into her face, eyes flashing. "You weren't really my friends,” he roared as Fluttershy cowered, “It was all a lie, a lie conceived by your ‘benevolent Princess Celestia’” He spat on the ground. “This isn’t the first time she’s done something like this either. You’ve all been manipulated by her at some point. Remember the Changeling invasion, The Crystal Empire? Nightmare Moon? You’ve been doing her dirty work since before you were friends, been forced to clean up her messes because you wielded the Elements of Harmony. And even now that they’re gone, she’s still making you save the world!" Discord closed his talons. "Well I won’t stand for it! I refuse to live with a spear at my throat, I refuse to be her attack dog, and I refuse to fall for her ridiculous schemes!" He turned away from their pleading eyes, not giving a fuck what they thought one way or the other. "Without your magic and without your Elements I have nothing to fear. Good-bye and good riddance." He stormed into the forest, punching anything that got in his way. After venting his anger on his surroundings, he sat on a log to brood. After an indeterminate amount of time had passed, a green light sailed by overhead. Confused, Discord looked up, watching as the beam of light solidified into green ring marked with a circle bordered at the top and bottom by two parallel lines. The ring levitated in from of him, and a recorded voice said, "New wielder found. Discord of Gaia." Discord stared at the surprise, wondering what it was blathering on about. "You have the power to overcome great fear." The ring moved onto one of his talons, and he felt a surge of power through his body. "Welcome to the Green Lantern Corps." The Tree of Harmony Twilight stared despondently at the box. She’d been so close to figuring out what had been inside, and stopping Tirek once and for all, but then... She shuddered, remembering the undiluted rage Discord had unleashed. He’d been the final key bearer all this time, but that hatred, it destroyed any chance of the key working, and with it, Tirek’s undoing. “I failed you, girls,” Twilight said, turning to face her friends, who were all thinking along the same lines. “If I’d just been a bit nicer to him, maybe this wouldn’t have happened.” “It’s not your fault, Twilight,” soothed Rarity although inside she was fuming, “It’s Princess Celestia’s. Maybe if she’d let Discord befriend us normally, he wouldn’t have had reason to think our friendship was fake!” “I agree with Rarity, here,” said Applejack, “It’s the darn Princess’s scheme blowin’ up in her face, not anythin’ you could have done. The same goes for you, Fluttershy,” she said to her weeping friend, “Just ‘cause Discord thinks you weren’t really his friend doesn’t mean you weren’t. He’s just a little dense, is all.” “Ok, as nice as all the sappy talk is, guys,” Rainbow cut in, “We’ve still got a magic sucking demon to take down! How are we supposed to stop him without our magic, without the box, and without the Elements of harmony!?” "Nothing can oppose me!" Screamed Tirek, helpfully driving in Rainbow’s point as he dropped into the clearing with a crash. “And now the Tree of Harmony will burn, and you along with it!” The Mane Six flattened themselves against the ground as he conjured a massive fireball, and prepared for the end. However, just before Tirek could fire, a pillar of Green light appeared right behind him, and a familiar voice shouted. "In Brightest Day, in Blackest Night" The Main six turned to the pillar, staring in disbelief at the figure inside. "No evil shall escape my sight" Triek spun around and fired at the pillar, which had no effect what-so-ever. "Let those who worship evils might, beware my power." The energy beam surged, becoming even brighter. "Green Lanterns Light!" The Pillar exploded, engulfing the entire forest in green energy, and blinding the main six for almost a solid minute. When they’re eyesight finally cleared, their magic was back, where was Tirek a soot stained patch of ground, and the pillar had vanished without a trace. Twilight was reeling, trying to process what she had seen. Eventually, she said, “Was that DISCORD!?” OA, sector 0 Discord was falling, falling through an endless void peppered with prismatic lights. Every color of the spectrum was present, but green was the most common. As he fell he heard whispers, voices just on the edge of his hearing. He couldn’t make out what they were saying, but they sounded angry, and one word in particular kept popping up: change. It repeated itself again and again, passing from voice to voice as they became more passionate. As the voices grew louder, the yellow light grew brighter, then purple, then red, then blue, then orange, then indigo. When the had all grown to match the strength of the green, the blackness surrounding them started to grow, eating the lights one by one. As it did, the voices became audible and they were screaming. Finally a blight white light was seen. Discord awoke, disoriented and woozy. When his head finally cleared, he found he was lying in a bed in a clean, undecorated room. He shook his head, trying to shake the last remnants of sleep from it. It felt like that time he’d overdosed on cotton candy and tripped out for days. “Woah, that was a freaky dream.” He said. However one quick look at his talons confirmed the existence of the green ring. “If you’re referring to the ring, no it wasn’t, dunderhead.” Discord looked to his left, where a strange bird fish being was approaching him. Discord had never seen anything like him before, which was an unusual feeling for a Lord of Chaos. “So that actually happened,” he said, “Huh.” Compared to everything he’d done this seemed a bit low key. “Where am I, anyway? And who are you?” Discord asked he looked out to see an unfamiliar planet with huge golden buildings. He could feel his magic as well meaning Tirek had been dealt with, somehow. As a quick test, he summoned some chocolate milk. The action was nowhere near as chaotic as it had been the first time he’d done it, but it still counted. “You are on Oa, the planet at the center of the universe and the homeworld the Green Lantern Corps. Also, my name is Tomar.” Discord turned to him. “ Nice to meet you Tomar, I’m Discord. And this is the homeworld of the what?” he asked, sipping at his milk. This was basically out of a fairytale for him. The Corps was some vague boogey man from his childhood all those thousands of years ago. He’d never expected to actually see it. Tomar’s ring glowed. “It would seem the Guardians wish to speak with you.” Discord had no idea who those were. With a sudden grinding noise, the window retracted into the wall, allowing Tomar to fly outside. Discord used his magic to join him, but it took more effort than it should have. “Excuse me, is there a reason I feel weaker than usual?” he asked. Tomar looked at him in confusion before he asked, “Are you by any chance a magic user?” “Yeah, I am. What’s that got to do with this?” Discord asked. “Well, there have only been a handful of magic users in the Corps entire history but they all feel weakened on Oa. It is believed that places like Oa are antitheist to magic users such as yourself.” Discord had to bite back a curse. “Well that’s just peachy,” he grumbled, “Let’s get going. Where are we supposed to go, anyway?” ‘Follow me, Tomar said, taking off across the sky towards a green beam of light far off in the distance. Discord followed him, equal parts nervous and excited. This was new, and new was good, but he didn’t like the sound of these Guardians. If they were anything like what the name entailed, they wouldn’t like him. At all.