//------------------------------// // The Calm // Story: PIE: Patapon In Equestria // by Runa //------------------------------// Durak stumbled northward. He still couldn't stop grinning. The terror of Discord that he had had since he was born was gone! At least, mostly. It had been about two days on his journey northwards, and his wounds were still healing. But he went kept going, just in case Discord found out that he wasn't dead. It wasn't likely, but Durak had been waiting most of his life to be free, and now was his chance! Snowy mountains were in sight now. He had vague recollections of Discord rambling about this place before. He had said that there was no one there. And Durak figured that he could survive the barren wasteland in the north. He was also grateful for Discord forcing him to mass produce troops, as those memories had given him ideas on how to make more of his kind. Ones that weren't bound to Discord. "But what will we call ourselves?" He wondered out loud. "Certainly not the Discons. Hmm, I guess I'll just come up with it when I make another one of us." Kami sat on his throne, well, hovered in a position which made it seem like he was sitting on it, and idly tapped his cheek in a thoughtful manner. He was just bored. Discord hadn't been doing anything as far as Kami knew, and Celestia was only advancing at a snail's pace into Discord's land. On the bright side, the building that the science machine was going to be housed in was nearly done. An idea occurred to him of something he could do. He got up, and walked to Mater. He touched it, and looked through the list of civilian Patapons. He couldn't find any Patapon scientists in the list, but he did find a natural philosopher Patapon. "You two." He said to the two diggers. "Get these materials." He then rattled off a list of seemingly random items, including a polished stone from the bottom of a river, a feather, a tuft of fur, a reed, and a stick that splits only once. He had to wait almost an hour as the diggers recruited others for the scavenger hunt and gathered materials. When they came back with the materials, they dug the hole quickly. They attempted to put the items in, but had to take them all out again to make the hole bigger. There was simply too much stuff to fit into the average hole. This time, all the stuff fit, barely. Then they filled in the hole. The lights that preceded the birth or rebirth of a new Patapon seemed to be slightly faster this time, as if Mater just wanted it to be over with. What emerged from Mater was a somewhat gangly, for lack of a better word, Patapon, with a beard that was almost twice as long as he was tall. Instead of landing on his feet, which all other Patapons seemed to do, he face planted. "Oof!" the Philosopher exclaimed. "I want to know who put that floor there!" Kami facepalmed, wondering if this was a good decision. "Someone help me up! I'm too old for this!" Meden helped him to his feet, before retreating into the gathering crowd. "What are you all gawking at? Don't you all have business to attend to!?" They all just kept on staring before Kami spoke up. "Just... come with me for a moment. Alright?" The Philosopher nodded. "Of course! What else would I do before I begin pondering how the flight patterns of birds impact the health of the trees?" Kami was tempted to facepalm again, but didn't. He led the Philosopher to the building that the science machine was going to be in. "First off, do you have a name yet?" The Philosopher patted his beard for a moment before replying. "By Jove I don't believe I do! How am I supposed to wonder if I am a Patapon dreaming if he is an animal or vice versa and the like if I don't have a name!" Kami really wished he didn't have to deal with this. "I'll just call you Ibid then. Look, we need someone to upgrade our weapons, make new discoveries, that sort of thing. That is the role you have in the Tribe. Do you think you can do it?" The newly named Ibid stroked his beard for a moment before replying. "I believe I can. But just be ready for me to fail. I would be much better discovering the relations of how cat populations affect bee populations than this." Kami smiled. "Good. This building will be your house. Construction of a machine that should boost your cognitive abilities will begin in it soon. Get settled in, and I will see you later." "Good bye and good luck!" Ibid said as Kami went back to his throne. Discord had changed significantly since Durak left. He now seemed more like a god that would demand blood sacrifice than the mere embodiment of chaos, and a secondary wave of chaos was spreading through his land, making it more and more impossible. Angles that were acute but acted obtuse, parallel lines that intersected, straight lines that bent in on themselves. He was currently shaping a wad of pure energy in his hands before crushing it in rage. "BAH! Nothing encompasses what I need! I need minions, but what would work..." He suddenly had an idea. "Of course! I just need to make them Lovecraftian!" He formed another ball of energy in his hands, shaping it into the matter he wanted. What he sculpted out of pure power was an offense against nature. He smiled cruelly as his first minion knelt before him. Celestia was still fuming from Dox's intrusion. "HOW DARE HE SIDE WITH THAT BARBARIAN OVER ME!" she shouted in the royal voice. "CAN HE NOT SEE THE EVIL LURKING THERE!?" Harmony tried to calm her, only to be met with her fury. It had enough of Celestia's antics, so it used its power over her to knock her unconscious. It then began planting ideas in her head. Ideas about seven Arch Paragons that would be able to use Harmony to it's fullest. She mumbled the names of the virtues, smiling. "Earnestness, Tolerance, Justice, Adamance, Restraint, Valor, Purity."