“And as you can see, by focusing the matrix inside of our horns we can--”
What did I do to deserve this? Neltharion thought, only to remember how he ended up in Equestria in the first place. Oh, right. He had been stuck in a chair for eight hours inside Twilight’s library listening to her ramble on about pony magic in an attempt to ‘teach’ him about it. Needless to say, he was bored out of his mind.
It had actually been almost interesting to hear the theory around unicorn and alicorn magic, for about fifteen minutes. When Twilight had gone into extensive detail about formula’s and how they could help ponies on calculating how they would be able levitate an apple the most efficient way and the history of magic, which consisted a collection mostly of theories from Starswirl the bearded, Neltharion’s mind had abandoned ship. For the lack of a better word, it was agonisingly boring.
At one point, Twilight had even gotten Neltharion to try and levitate an apple, which only resulted in apple juice all over the library, sticky book pages, a purple dragon getting the pleasure of slowly going through every single book hit and make sure their pages hadn’t become attached to one another, and then Twilight had continued the lecture, while carefully inputting a few select words that were intended to scold Neltharion.
Then to make the eight torturous hours even more infuriating, Twilight had even had the nerve to give Neltharion a scroll with twenty questions, a pen, and twenty minutes to answer them all. Neltharion only managed to answer one, as he could barely read what Twilight had written.
Neltharion’s thoughts drifted between the past few days events and the words of the night princess he had met earlier the same morning. No progress on their efforts in returning me home, i’m starting to doubt if they’re even trying. Perhaps I should start my own investigation on the matter? I could probably find a faster solution myself.
“But if we take in account Eisenmane’s magic relation theory, we can deduce-”
Neltharion had completely zoned out on Twilight’s lecture and into his own thoughts, but from her view Neltharion was staring very intently at the blackboard behind her.
Maybe they aren’t trying after all? Neltharion thought. Perhaps they are only trying to stall me with their meaningless games and trying to find out how to get rid of me? Neltharion’s eyes narrowed. It would make sense, but perhaps i’m not thinking deep enough? For all I know, they are trying to find a way to contain my magic once more, or maybe even steal it. The air seemed to be getting hotter as Neltharion’s thoughts roamed his mind and made him grit his teeth. Can I really trust these ponies or their allies? I wouldn’t if I were in their position. Yet it still angers me. Only two on this pathetic world has shown me the respect I deserve. I could annihilate these ponies without resistance if the mood struck me, yet I haven’t, and it still puzzles me why. I don’t want to be the monster that was feared, hated and despised, yet it seems to be my only path no matter my actions. The temperature in the room dropped to normal once more.
“And this concludes my thoughts on the history of basic levitation magic.” Twilight turned away from the blackboard and smiled, satisfied with her presentation, only to have her mouth drop when her eyes fixed on her only attendee.
Neltharion shook his head free of his thoughts as he felt eyes on him. He looked to Twilight and raised an eyebrow, “What?”
First then did Neltharion notice the smell of something burning and looked down at his chair which was turning black in color, smoke rising from it and the wood was starting to creak beneath him.
Neltharion stepped off the chair which collapsed as soon as his weight disappeared from it.
“Uhhh, perhaps that’s enough theory for now,” Said Twilight, while smiling nervously.
“Agreed,” Neltharion replied.
“How about we put some of those theories into practise?” Twilight suggested with a smile.
Neltharion resisted the urge to groan and nodded with half lidded eyes. “Fine.”
Twilight walked over to a nearby wooden table and placed a rock on it. She then walked away, lit her horn and placed a purple barrier around Neltharion and the table, keeping herself at a safe distance. “Okay, just like before, try and levitate the rock, gently.”
Her tone didn’t amuse Neltharion. Levitating something as simple as a rock with unfamiliar magic, while having no idea how much of said magic he actually held while at the same time trying his best not to use his own much more powerful Aspect magic in the process, is difficult to say the least.
Neltharion began to concentrate on his crooked horn and on the rock on the table. He felt a rising heat in his horn and he could spot fiery orange light just above his eyes, an indication that he was actually using his pony magic. A faint orange aura enveloped the rock on the table and it began to tremble.
Spike appeared in the doorway to the library. “This can only end badly…” He said, shaking his head and walked away.
“Yes, that’s it! Now just float it above the table!” Twilight cheered on Neltharion from outside the bubble.
The fiery glow above Neltharion’s eyes got brighter as he concentrated even more on the rock and it responded in kind by trembling even more. The rock’s aura got brighter as well, and Neltharion gritted his teeth. Why is this so difficult?! He thought angrily as he stared frustrated at the rock that still hadn’t begun floating.
A low cracking sound was heard as Neltharion kept focusing, and with every second that went by, the more frustrated and irritated he became. The fact that he, Neltharion, one who had been called the Earth-warder, having shaped mountains and continents, some even going so far and calling him the destroyer of worlds, couldn’t lift a simple rock, continued to strike at his enormous ego and pride.
Twilight’s eyes widened as she knew what was about to happen and poured more magic into her barrier, fearing that what might happen would just barrel through it like paper.
Neltharion gritted his teeth harder as his frustration only got greater and he eventually dropped focus and the fiery aura began to spread to the wooden table beneath. The cracking sound of the rock got louder and the table it stood on started to smoke and fiery cracks appeared across it.
A loud boom sounded as the rock exploded into a million pieces that stopped flat in their tracks as soon as they hit the purple barrier and Neltharion who didn’t even flinch.
Twilight dropped the barrier and rock pieces fell to the crystal floor. She stared at the ashen remains of the wooden table with sadness and then turned to Neltharion whose horn had stopped glowing and he was once more standing straight, an annoyed frown on occupying his features.
Neltharion snorted. “That was even worse than the last time we tried.” He stated.
Twilight smiled sheepishly, “Well, you have to start somewhere,” She smiled, even if there were a small trace of nervosity to be found in it. “We just have to keep on trying.”
Some days just seem to occupy one's mind with strange thoughts. No matter what one does, one cannot sway from those strange thoughts. Thoughts that are just nagging and keep drilling into one’s mind with no intention of stopping before they are given voice. To Discord, this was one of those days.
He was on his way to the throne room inside Canterlot castle, it just having gotten some special visitors from up north.
For the last week, Discord hadn’t done much. In fact, he had been unusually quiet and used most of his time in his room, contemplating the events of the strange two weeks. And finally he had had enough.
Strangely, both Celestia and Luna had ignored his previous requests for a meeting during the week. He didn’t understand why, but he thought that a meeting was long overdue.
As Discord spotted the golden gate to the throne room, he snapped his talon and disappeared in a white light.
He appeared inside close to the ceiling, looking down at the ponies beneath.
The room was occupied by Celestia, Luna, Cadance and Shining Armor.
“So as you can see, the last few weeks have been very…Hectic to say the least.” Luna said from her throne.
“Yes, we understand it must’ve been difficult,” Cadance said, standing beside her husband, both of them wearing serious frowns. “But what I don’t understand is why you didn’t tell us earlier, we could have helped.”
“Cadance is right, your majesties,” Shining continued from his wife. “We could have provided vital support from the empire, and then last week’s events could maybe have been averted entirely.”
Discord felt like snorting at Shining.
“No, it wouldn’t, Shining Armor.” Celestia replied from her own throne, shaking her head.
“You can’t know that for sure,” Shining retaliated.
“Yes, I can.” Celestia replied, her regal posture not wavering. There was not the slightest sign of a smile on her features. She kept a serious frown. “You were not there under the affair and that was entirely my choice. Involving you would only make you worry about Twilight’s and everypony else's safety. Right now we are at a crossroads on what our next action should be.”
“Also, Discord’s siding with Deathwing is quite worrisome.” Luna inputted.
Celestia, Cadance, and Shining nodded in agreement.
Discord scowled down at the ponies for their mistrust in him.
Without waiting any further, Discord snapped his talon and both Cadance and Shining Armor disappeared from the throne room. Discord snapped his talon once more and appeared before Celestia and Luna with crossed arms, a scowl on his face.
“Discord, what did you do to our niece and her husband?” Luna yelled, scowling herself.
“They’re fine, I just transported them into the garden” He scoffed. “They can play bunny rabbits there while we have a long overdue chat.”
Celestia sighed. “Discord, I don’t know how much you heard, but we can have this discussion lat-”
“No.”
Celestia raised an eyebrow. “Excuse me?”
“I have been very patient with you two for the last week,” Discord stated and began hovering back and forth like an impatient flying lion. “I gave you the time to think of a plan or even sort out the recent rumors that has been damaging both of you’s public image. But now, i’ve tired of waiting and want answers,” He stopped in front of both princesses. “We need to discuss that day.”
“What is there to discuss?” Celestia asked angrily, her ears splayed back. “You sided with a homicidal maniac that could destroy us all over your own friends.”
“What he did was necessary!” Discord yelled. “When will you see that the changelings were not going to change?!”
“When you were given the chance, you changed in less than two days!” Celestia retaliated. “So why couldn’t they?!”
She had him there, but Discord was not willing to submit this fight. “And what were you going to do to convince them? Give them the choice to be good little changelings or get blasted by the rainbow canon like you did to me?!”
The instant those words left his mouth, Celestia’s furious expression was gone with the nonexistent wind and had been replaced with one of doubt and sadness, biting her lower lip as she wasn’t sure how to retaliate. Luckily, Luna came to her rescue.
“Enough, Discord!” Luna yelled. “You are not being fair to my sister.”
Discord snorted, “I’ve never played fair, my dear Moona.”
Luna’s eye twitched at the nickname.
“And besides,” Discord continued. “The most recent events involving a certain centaur from Tartarus proved that it took much more for me to change. It took so much more than simply a few days being threatened with the friendship cannon. And the lesson I learned that day cannot be taught, only experienced.”
“But back to the topic at hand. For diarchs of order, harmony and friendship, you are being very judgemental towards our resident interdimensional volcano on legs.” Discord smirked as both princesses’ expressions changed into ones of shock at his words.
“Judgemental?” Celestia muttered, her expression turned into one of confusion and then anger. “Are you serious?”
“Quite.”
“That thing can destroy everything!” Luna yelled, her expression having turned into one of anger as well.
“I fail to see your point.”
“Discord, we’ve been over this,” Celestia said, taking a deep breath to calm herself. “We are just being cautious and trying to find out of his intentions. That’s why Luna went to spy on him last night.”
“And how did that go?”
Luna shrugged, “Well… We...I followed him around, had guards standing ready in case things got out of hoof and he eventually discovered that I was following him.”
Discord felt an urge to roll his eyes and groan at the mention of Luna bringing guards.
Celestia raised an eyebrow, “Wait, he discovered you, how?”
Luna’s face flushed red in embarrassment and she looked away. She was not about to tell her sister that she had been discovered on a stealth mission because she couldn’t stop snickering at her target’s clumsiness. “Uh, I don’t know.” She answered with a sheepish smile.
Celestia sighed and shook her head. “What happened after he discovered you?”
“We talked…”
“About?”
Luna shivered at the memory of the conversation. It was not something she wanted to put too much thought into right now. She could think about it later. “Strange things, sister, things that makes one think…”
Discord snickered. It seemed Neltharion had had a heart to heart with her as well.
Celestia shot Discord a strange look. “What are you laughing about?”
Discord smirked mischievously. “Nothing, my dear.” Discord remembered why he had come to the throne room in the first place. “But this does raise an interesting question that might provide you two some peace. Luna, did Neltharion seem hostile towards you during your little ‘talk’”?
“Not really, but what has that to with anything?”
Discord smirked deviously. “Let me answer that question with a question of my own. If Neltharion had any intentions of ‘hurting’ us or reducing Equestria to an oversized mud hole, wouldn’t he then have done so already? I know we have talked about this, but think about it.”
“He could just be manipulating us.” Celestia replied.
Discord’s smirk only widened at her response. “Ahh, but Celestia, as Luna so appropriately explained before, if he wanted to, he could destroy everything, yet he hasn’t. A creature of his immense power has no purpose in manipulating us. The only thing he has asked for since he arrived was help getting home to his own world. If he wanted to, could he destroy Equestria? Probably. If he wanted to enslave the entire pony population to his will, could he do so? Most likely. Could he have forced us to help him getting home? Certainly. Yet, he has done none of these things, and there is only one possible explanation.”
Luna and Celestia gave Discord skeptical looks.
Discord stepped closer. “Neltharion is telling the truth. There is no other explanation.”
Discord snapped his talon and three pictures appeared behind him. One of Neltharion as an orange earth pony, another of him being half transformed getting attacked by changelings and the last of him in his true form with him and Discord restoring Ponyville after the battle. “Since he arrived, a lot of things have changed. The weirdest one being that since his arrival, I have been the logical one around here!” Discord yelled with a look of frustration.
The princesses gave him a confused look.
“I mean seriously, the lord of chaos using logic more than once a year isn’t healthy. Look at my scales!” Discord wiggled his tail in front of the princesses. “They have become so pale and dull.” He stroke his red dragon tail affectionately. “But seriously though, this situation isn’t much different from when I first returned, and you two weren’t this protective then.”
“This situation differs greatly from the events of your return.” Luna said, scowling.
Discord raised an eyebrow. “Really? How so?”
“You never wanted to destroy Equestria, just play with it and its inhabitants.” Celestia answered.
“I thought we just concluded that Neltharion doesn’t actually want to destroy Equestria, or did I miss something?”
Discord was promptly ignored.
“And we actually had the means to stop you.” Luna took over. “We expected that your recklessness would be your downfall, just like the first time.”
Discord was taken aback by the princesses’ words. And more than anything, those words annoyed him, angered him. Do they really think this little of me? “So, let me get this straight, you are only treating this situation differently because I was predictable?”
The princesses realised what they had said might have been hurtful towards the chaos lord. They both opened their mouth to interrupt him and save the situation, but then they both realised they had no idea how to actually save the situation they had put themselves in.
Their lack of response only made Discord grit his teeth as he felt anger starting to cloud his other emotions and judgement, but he made the best effort not to let it show. Instead he took a deep breath and plastered his usual mischievous smirk on his face. “So i’m assuming my betrayal and team up with Tirek was planned as well?”
“Well, uhh…” Luna tried to mutter out some coherent sentences that would help them, but fell short once again.
Discord laughed. “So I am right?” He laughed even louder and even had to wipe a tear from his eye. Then stopped abruptly. “What wonderful friends I have.” He scowled, his voice laced with venom.
Both princesses shivered at Discord ice cold tone. Celestia spoke. “No, Discord, we didn’t--”
“Do you two have any idea how hard it is to fit into a society where everypony hates you?!” Discord interrupted her, shouting as he couldn’t keep the emotions bottled up any longer.
Both princesses faces fell as those words rang through their heads.
Luna looked up at Discord with a sad frown, “We d--”
“Oh, spare me your self pity, Moona!” Discord interrupted, effectively making Luna flinch. “What you’ve endured since your return is nothing compared to what I have been through! Heck even your punishment was a thousand times more merciful than mine! You were put to sleep inside your precious moon for a thousand years, and I was put into a rock, unable to feel, to sleep, and used as every bird’s personal bathroom!”
Discord floated close to Luna and gave her a face she would remember for many nights after. He had gritted teeth, a beginning twitch in his left eye and both of his usual round pupils had turned into red predatory slits. “To even considering comparing yourself to what i’ve been through is an insult of cataclysmic proportions! You were feared, Luna. Never hated, never despised, never what everypony would consider an eyesore and a black stain upon today’s society. I am all of those things and more!” He turned to Celestia. “Even those so called friends I have can’t even look at me without doubt and underlying resentment!” His furious gaze faded and was replaced by one of sadness. “Even Fluttershy…”Discord grew quiet as and realised something. Perhaps Neltharion is right? Maybe friends isn’t worth it in the end?
Celestia and Luna were torn at Discord’s emotional words. It was rare for him to expose himself like this. Celestia bit her lip as she looked at the crestfallen draconequus and spoke. “Discord, we’re--”
“And that is why I want you to reconsider things with Neltharion,” Discord interrupted, his face now void of all emotion. “If you aren’t careful, he will be driven over the edge, and there’s no telling what will happen then.”
With those parting words, Discord snapped his talon and disappeared in a white light, leaving the princesses with the echoes of the conversation roaming through their minds.
*Crash!*
“Again!”
*Boom!*
“One more time, I know you can do it!”
*Bang!*
Countless tries. All failures. This was what Neltharion had endured for the last hour. Twilight giving him a simply magical task, and him failing horribly. ‘Levitate this, move that, see if this helps, you can do it, it was just a slip up, I know you can do it.’ Those words were all that Neltharion had heard from Twilight. Each time she spoke with enthusiasm while Neltharion himself got into a darker and darker mood due to the frustration these simple tasks were giving him. He didn’t understand why it was so difficult, and he didn’t understand why he was even trying in the first place.
Twilight walked up to Neltharion, him staring intently at a black soot mark on the crystal floor with rubble of stone, wood and boiling liquids in front of him. She could feel the rising heat coming from him and felt tempted to back away, yet walked closer up to the side of him and gave him a reassuring smile. “Don’t worry, you’ll get it. We just have to keep trying.”
Neltharion turned to Twilight with a look dismay and frustration. “No,” He answered. “I am sick of trying to learn this enfeeble magic.” He gritted his teeth. “It has no use for me other than to pass time.”
Twilight was saddened and slightly offended by his words. “That’s not true, unless exploring your full potential is a waste of time.” She mocked.
Neltharion snorted. “This magic will not increase my already sizeable armory or knowledge of magic. What you have seen is very little of what I can do with my magic. My magic can so much more than just destroy and manipulate the land.”
Neltharion blinked and the room went dark.
Twilight looked around in the darkness, unsure of what was happening. She tried to light her horn, she could feel the heat in it, but there was no light. She felt a presence and heard a voice in her head.
“I offer you the earth. The soil, the ground, the deep places. But know that the earth is the basis of all things. It is where we are rooted. Where you must come from, if you are to go to. Here is whence true strength comes. From deep places...within the world, and within oneself.” This was the gift the titan Khaz’goroth gave to me. My gift and my curse.
Twilight was frozen on the spot in the darkness. Listening carefully to the voice of Neltharion in her head.
I am the earth.
Twilight felt the crystal floor disappear under her and get replaced with something softer. A smell of dirt filled her nostrils.
The elements bend to my will.
Twilight felt water running between her hoofs.
Water.
The feeling of water stopped and was replaced by a strong wind that almost knocked her over.
Wind.
The wind stopped and a light appeared in the darkness. It was a small flame that quickly spread in a circle around her.
Fire.
With them I can create or destroy.
Around Twilight the fire spread in four lines out each to a corner of the room. Then everything seemed to stop.
And just as suddenly as it was gone, the light had returned to the room. Twilight’s eyes took a moment to adjust to the sudden light and when her sight cleared up, she gasped at the sight.
The room had been split up into four cells, all divided by fire lines. Each cell was in a different climate. One was filled with sand and Twilight could see the heated air bounce over it. Another had a small rock that resembled a mountain sprouted from the crystal floor, snow falling from the ceiling. On the third was a giant rock formation that resembled a volcano with lava running down the sides. The fourth one was a giant bowl of earth filled with water, an island in the middle. It had a large mountain with sand beaches, grass and small plants starting to grow in a ring around the mountain. To Twilight’s delight, all of the cells were a safe distance from her precious bookshelves.
Twilight gawked at what had seemingly appeared out of thin air. It was incredible.
These are my gifts.
The second Twilight heard Neltharion’s voice finish that sentence, the room went dark.
Not more than a second went by before the light returned. Now Neltharion was standing beside of her once more, but the four cells had been removed completely. His face was completely void of emotion.
“What you just saw was merely a fraction of what I can do. Learning pony magic is unnecessary. It is inferior and weak compared to my own magic.” Neltharion said and began to walk out of the library. “Now, if you'll excuse me, I will go back to my room to get some much needed sleep. Goodnight princess Twilight Sparkle.”
Twilight managed to wave as Neltharion walked out of the door and down the hall towards his room.