Chapter Eleven: Lies, Cries, and the New Master
Shining Armor’s heart was torn. How could he betray his promise to Discord? But then how was he supposed to get Twilight back? And Sultan? They wanted him, a lowly street-rat, to be Sultan? He sighed as he walked through the gardens and into the small building, ignoring Discord’s one-creature band and cheeriness.
“Psst,” Discord whispered as he floated near where Shining Armor fell onto the pillows. “You’re line is...” his whispering continued as he held a script of ‘Aladdin’. “Any time,” he whispered. Shining Armor grit his teeth, guilt surging through his heart.
“Discord, I can’t,” he shook his head as he spoke the cruel words.
“Sure you can, just go, “Discord, I wish you were free,” Discord looked slightly hurt when Shining Armor shoved him backwards.
“I’m serious! Look I’m sorry, I really am. But they want to make me Sultan! NO! They want to make Prince Shining Star Sultan of Saddle Arabia,” his blue hues met Discord’s misshapen ones. “Without you, I’m just Shining Armor,” Discord wrapped his eagle arm around Shining Armor.
“But you won!” Shining Armor poked him with his now crystal-free horn.
“Because of you! The only reason I’m worth anything is because of you!” Shining Armor sighed. “What if they found out I’m not really a Prince? What if Cadence found out? Then there’s Twilight, that monster has his hooves on my little sister!” Shining Armor looked to the Draconequus helplessly. “I... I can’t wish you free,” Discord looked angry and sad at the same time.
“I figured as much, since everypony in all of Equestria only cares about themselves. And everypony except me gets love,” he floated down into his misshapen lamp. “I thought I actually had a chance, but after all you’ve lied to everyone else, hey I was starting to feel left out,” he glared at the stallion. “Now, if you’ll excuse me...” he spat the word angrily, like the venom on his tongue. “Master,’ he snapped, going back into his lamp.
Shining Armor leaned down, picking up the lamp. “Discord, I’m sorry...” he barely missed the spit that came from the raspberry. “Fine! Then just stay in there!” he threw the lamp under the pillow. He saw the surprise on both the Dragon Carpet and the Dragon/Elephant. “What are you looking at?” he snapped. They glared and looked sad at the same time, before leaving. “No, wait... I didn’t mean. Come on!” Shining Armor sighed again.
“What am I doing?” he sighed once more. “Discord’s right...” his ear twitched as he heard Cadence’s voice from outside.
“Shining Star, oh, Shining Star, will you come here?” she called. He took a deep breath and pulled his turban onto his head.
“Cadence? Where are you?” he called out, not seeing his bride-to-be.
Chrysalis cleared her throat, hiding in the bushes while disguised as the Princess of Love. She licked her lips and sighed with pure bliss as she felt the love that the stallion had for this mare. Her eyes glowed green before turning into Cadence purple. “Out in the menagerie, hurry!” she heard Shining Armor say he was coming, but she didn’t pay attention. She had a disfigured lamp to grab.
The moment the stallion was gone she grinned but stayed in the Pegasus’s form. Why not get a bit more love out of it? All the more power to be had. She grabbed the lamp with her hoof. “I can just hear Sombra now,” she turned into the Unicorn.
“Excellent work my Queen,” she turned into herself.
“Aw, you’re to kind,” she said in her normal voice before returning into Sombra.
“No, really on a scale from one to ten... you are eleven!” she returned to her parrot form.
“Still to kind, I’m embarrassed, I’m blushing,” she flew off with the lamp.
~Starswirl, Cadence, and Shining Armor~
“Mares and gentle-colts of Saddle Arabia, my goddaughter has finally chosen a suitor!” the crowd of ponies cheered.
“Cadence?” Shining Armor saw the pink Pegasus at the top of the steps. She grinned when she saw him.
“Shining Star, where have you been? The whole kingdom has turned up for Starswirl’s announcement!” she gave him a quick kiss before pushing him up to the stage, ignoring anything he tried to say to stop her.
“Prince Shining Star!” Starswirl introduced as Shining Star took his place.
“Oh, boy,” he smiled nervously and waved a slow hoof as the crowd cheered for him.
~Fluttershy~
She couldn’t take it anymore, she was unsure when Discord wanted her to open the box but she did it now. She pulled the string off it, and pulled the lid off. She pulled out the object and the rest of the box fell to the floor as she gasped. It was a carousel but it was more than just that. The making was white, with instead of horses or seats it was fluttering pink butterflies circling the center. The designing itself on the top, in the middle, and on the bottom were all butterflies. Pink as her cutie mark, and each moment the soft twinkling music hit the highest note the pink would shine a bright white light.
On the top, next to the pink/white butterflies, were Discord’s cotton candy clouds with chocolate milk rain. But the most beautiful part, perhaps even her favorite, was what was in the center. It was a smaller version of her and Discord, with even the garden around the two of them, with rabbits dancing around them. The smaller her and Discord were spinning around with Discord holding the smaller Fluttershy in his mismatched arms. It was the most wonderful thing the Pegasus mare had ever seen.
Fluttershy had been more than just happy when she found out she would never have to worry about marrying Sombra, but when would she be seeing the Draconequus again? She hoped soon... But what gift could possibly match this? “Perhaps, the gift to give in return of item love it the unseen but givable love,” an unfamiliar mare’s voice said to her.
The mare jumped, carefully clutching the butterfly-carousel in her hooves, as she looked to see the source of the voice. Her teal eyes met the unearthly green ones of an Alicorn of all ponies! Her mane and tail were completely white. The whites of her eyes were instead yellow, with a gray coat that had brown splotches and spots on it, and the tips of her wings were green and red. “Be afraid not, beloved mare. I’m merely here to wish you luck,” the Alicorn mare smiled, showing a fang that stuck out on the side. A replica of Discord’s.
“Who are you?” the Alicorn’s smile grew.
“I’d tell you, but you could honestly as Dissy. FYI, I ship Fluttercord,” Fluttershy raised a curious and confused pink eyebrow.
“Fluttercord?” the mare blew a soft raspberry and waved her hoof.
“You’ll figure it out from your pink friend, later I’m sure,” she grinned. “But beware of he with a dark heart that is colder than the ice he fell through, and the mare that always changes,” Fluttershy couldn’t even ask before the mare disappeared.
“Why do they always do that?” Fluttershy asked with a happy sigh, holding the carousel to her chest lovingly with a smile.
~Sombra~
Chrysalis sneered at the sight below. “Look at them, cheering that little pipsqueak,” she spat.
“Let them cheer,” Sombra grinned as his hoof rubbed the lamp.
“You know, Shiny, I’m getting really---” Discord’s eyes widened when he saw who rubbed the lamp. “I don’t think you’re him,” he pulled spectacles to his eyes. “The part of Shining Armor Star will be played by a tall, dark, sinister Unicorn,” the stallion glared.
Sombra grabbed his beard and threw him to the floor, pressing a hoof unto his face. “Discord, I am your Master now!” he growled into the Draconequus’s face.
“I was afraid of that,” Discord confessed.
“Grant me my first wish, I wish to rule on high... As Sultan!” Sombra grinned as the Draconequus reluctantly snapped his fingers.
~Shiny, Cadence, and Starswirl~
Dark clouds covered the formerly celestial blue sky. They stormed and raged above their heads and the citizen ponies ran back to their homes. Starswirl’s Sultan attire was magically removed, leaving him with his Sorcerer’s hat and cape. They watched as the attire went onto Sombra. Said Unicorn was laughing darkly. Starswirl glared. “Sombra, you filthy betrayer!” the lighter gray Unicorn snarled. Chrysalis was no longer in parrot form, but her Changeling Queen naturalness.
“That’s Sultan Filthy Betrayer!” she grinned as the ponies of Saddle Arabia screamed as her Changeling Army attacked. “We’ll just see about that!” Shining Armor pulled his turban off his head and gasped as he realized what he’d done. “The lamp!” Sombra chuckled.
“Finders keepers, colt,” Sombra laughed as a much bigger version of Discord pulled the Palace from the ground and placed it on the mountain. Shining Armor whistled and the Dragon Carpet flew up. Shining Armor jumped onto it and it flew up to Discord’s ear.
“Discord, no!” Shining Armor pleaded as he saw the pained look in the Draconequus’s eyes.
“Sorry, kid... New master...” Discord stated sadly.
While down back at the stage. “We will never bow to you!” Cadence vowed. Sombra glared and Chrysalis snorted.
“If you will not bow to a Sultan...” a flash went through Sombra’s eyes before he shouted; “Then you will cower before a sorcerer!” he turned to the Draconequus. “Discord! My second wish! I wish to most powerful magical creature in the world!” Discord placed his eagle hand over his eyes as he pointed his lion’s finger towards the stallion.
“Discord!” Shining Armor was near begging as the lightning bolt shot from his finger that struck the dark Unicorn.
“Ladies and gentle-colts, a warm Arabia welcome to Sombra!” the Unicorn’s eyes glowed as his Alicorn Amulet Scepter was renewed, with a red cape with white fur appeared on his back, new silver armor on his hooves and chest, with his own royal Sombra crown.
“Now, where were we?” he looked to Cadence and Starswirl. “Ah, yes. Abject humiliation!” he forced them to bow with the magic. Philomena tried flying towards him but he turned her into a yellow chick. “Oh, Princess. There’s someone I’m dying to introduce you to!” he lifted the Princess with his magic.
Shining Armor, on the Dragon Carpet, began flying towards him. “Get your filthy hooves off her!” Sombra began singing his own twisted version of “Prince Shining Star” and he grinned maniacally. “Whose lies were to good to last, say hello to your precious Prince Star!” he turned Shining Armor’s royal attire into his old ‘rat’ attire.
“Star...” Shining Armor and Cadence held each others hooves.
“I tried to tell you--” Sombra cut them off.
“So Star is really just Armor. Just a con, need I go on,” he turned Spike back into a baby Dragon. And sent Armor and Spike into the Palace tower, with the Carpet flying after them. “To send him packing on a one-way trip. His assets frozen, the venue chosen is the ends of the Earth!” he waved the scepter and the tower went flying. “SO LONG!” he called out.
“Ex-Prince Shining Star!” he began laughing more maniacally than before and it was worsened with the red lightning behind him. Starswirl and Cadence held each other, huddled in fear and frightened for the worst that was bound to come.