Following his somewhat successful attempt at apologizing to the Pegasus ponies at the Wonderbolt Academy, Discord followed Scorpan to the small town of Appleloosa out in the western part of Equestria. This town housed much of the Apple family, including Applejack's cousin, Braeburn. However, upon approaching the town's borders, both Discord and Scorpan came across an empty town, almost as if that they were expected to come.
"They must know we were coming somehow," whispered Scorpan, trying to stay on his guard. "Otherwise, the town would have life in it."
"Perhaps," added Discord, who produced night vision goggles with a snap of his fingers. "Or maybe it's because they are after me. You know how these Earth ponies are."
"Well, I remember them as being open and welcoming," remarked Scorpan. "It's best we proceed with caution. Follow me."
So the two creatures carefully entered Appleloosa as quietly as they could, not knowing what would happen if somepony came out from hiding. There had to be a reason for this, but neither Discord nor Scorpan had any idea of what was going on. Unlike their visit to the Wonderbolt Academy, there were at least ponies in sight, but here there was nothing.
"Shh!" whispered Scorpan, as silent whispers were heard in one of the buildings. "Don't move, Discord. There are ponies here and they are planning to ambush us."
"Then, what do we do?" whispered Discord, transforming into a camouflaged soldier and armed with a rifle. "Do we fight or…?"
Not wanting to cause any more trouble than his pony friends had already endured, Scorpan leapt on the rifle and caused Discord to fire a gunshot, triggering the ponies who had been hiding to jump out with a loud cry.
"Get them, Appleloseans!" cried a brown pony in a sheriff's uniform as he and several other ponies charged at the two creatures and tied them down to the ground with rope and nets. Discord and Scorpan struggled against their bonds as the citizens of Applelossa held them down with all their strength.
"Release us at once!" grunted Scorpan. "We mean you no harm at all."
"Oh sure," remarked the Sheriff, mockingly as he glared at the two creatures. "Just like when you stole all our strength, is that it? I've got a really nice jail cell just waiting for both of you!"
The Applelossans hauled Discord and Scorpan to the town jail where they were both put in a cell together. For Discord, the welcome that he and Scorpan just received was just another reminder that he was still considered an enemy of Equestria.
"Scorpan, we've got to do something!" cried Discord, dressed in a prison uniform. "I need to show them that I am sorry for what I did! You know these ponies and such! Talk some sense into them!"
"They need to understand what they are dealing with," replied Scorpan as the sheriff walked back into the room. "Sheriff, we mean no harm to you at all!"
"That here excuse is already getting old!" chuckled the sheriff as he sat back in his desk. "I've already arranged for you to be shipped back to Canterlot for your crimes and them Princesses will decide what to do with you!"
At this point, Scorpan was beginning to lose his patience with this pony and decided that now was the time to reveal the real reason to why they were in Appleloosa. He was known to Equestria as its greatest ally, but these ponies probably never heard of him probably because they were foreign to the outside world.
"WILL YOU JUST LISTEN TO US?!" he snapped in a roaring voice, clutching the bars and shaking them. "WE…DON'T…MEAN…NO…HARM…TO…YOU!"
The roar of Scorpan's voice caused both the sheriff and Discord to cower in fear, with Discord shrinking slightly.
"Take it easy there, feller," whimpered the sheriff, climbing out from underneath his desk. "That mishmash pal of yours is a wanted criminal in Equestria and must pay for what he did! Can't let him wander free after doing something like that, I reckon."
"By stealing magic? He was tricked," grunted Scorpan. "And the one that accompanied him here to this town was my brother, Tirek! I am in no way in league with him anymore and I am here helping Discord make up for what he did to you. If you free us from this prison, I can assure you that Discord…"
"Pardon me, Scorpan," said Discord, snapping his fingers and zipping up Scorpan's mouth. "Let me handle this."
With Scorpan's silenced, Discord pushed him back and was now staring at the sheriff with a look of determination on his face. In fact, Discord couldn't believe that he and Scorpan would be treated like this. Unlike the last time, he came in peace and that is all there was to it. He didn't come back to steal the Earth ponies' strength and had a good indication that Celestia and Luna were not behind the WANTED poster that bore his picture at all.
"Look sheriff," said Discord. "I'm not the creature that you think that I am. This fine handsome gargoyle is right, I am not here to steal magic from anyone. In fact, I am here to help with anything I can do, whether it is apple bucking or entertaining your townsfolk with songs like what Pinkie Pie did when she was here."
The sheriff was amazed that for a creature that wasn't even a pony, Discord could remember such events that took place in Appleloosa, like when they were at odds with the neighboring Buffalo tribe over the removal of an apple orchard. Still, he had his suspicions.
"How do you know that, varmint?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Why the pink pony and her friends are also my friends, too," answered Discord. "And I can assure you that if they were here now, they would say the same thing as I would right now."
The sheriff considered the matter and thought that maybe this was another trick up Discord's sleeve, but he had to be positive that Discord was indeed telling the truth about his situation.
"Is this another trick, ya varmint?" asked the sheriff. "Because if it is…"
"It is not," replied Discord, producing a halo and a harp again. "Let me show you that I mean you no harm and that I am sorry for what I did."
Seeing that Discord was trying to tell him that he would do anything to get back in Appleloosa's good graces along with the rest of Equestria, the sheriff felt that, even though it was against his better judgment, it was best that Discord prove that he was really there to help his town recover.
"Well, if you are here to help and not harm," sighed the sheriff as he opened the cell door and allowed Scorpan and Discord to be free. "Then I am willing to give you a chance. But, I have to warn you varmints that if this is a trick…"
"It's not a trick," interrupted Scorpan, who now had his mouth freed from the zipper that Discord had placed on him. "I am trying to help Discord make up for what he did while he was allied with my brother, Tirek. We really mean it when we say that we come in peace."
Discord then noticed his WANTED poster and knew that there was only one pony who wanted him to be tried for his betrayal.
"Actually, I couldn't help but ask," remarked Discord as he took the WANTED poster off the wall. "Where did you get this poster from, anyway?"
"From Canterlot," replied the sheriff. "They says that if you are spotted, then you are to be captured and sent off to Canterlot. Trust me, that's all I's heard."
Discord took a hard look at the poster and realized that if Celestia and Luna wanted him punished for his betrayal, then he would have been denied the chance to atone for his actions and that he would have been turned back to stone by now. He could tell that it was Shining Armor who was responsible for the poster and not the royal sisters.
Discord would have to eventually confront Shining Armor again over what he was trying to do to him. Little did he know however, that Shining Armor was starting to let go of his anger. Still, much like the sheriff, Discord was not going to believe the actions of Twilight's older brother unless he would see it for himself…