My Little Pony, Friendship is Magic: Stallion Edition

by SuperPinkBrony12

Chapter 37: Making Things Right

Shining Armor's first stop was Sweet Apple Acres, where he knew Big Macintosh was waiting. Upon arriving, Shining Armor could see quite clearly that Discord had gotten to Applejack and Granny Smith as well. Applejack was now a complete pushover, whenever she tried to buck the apple trees, she put forth practically no effort at all. As for Granny Smith, she actually seemed to have changed for the better. She was now tap dancing with the greatest of ease, and didn't seem to have a care in the world.

"And of course, I tried to fight off Discord. But none of my so called 'friends' would even lift so much as a hoof to help me." Big Macintosh lied.

"I love that story every time you tell it Big Macintosh." Applejack said, all the while failing to buck an apple tree.

"Never fear Big Macintosh! I've come to fight for you!" Shining Armor proclaimed.

"Oh, so now you've come to help me? Well, where were you when I was busy fighting off Discord?" Big Macintosh lied "Oh wait, you weren't there at all. You just let me get defeated."

Shining Armor quickly tackled Big Macintosh, tired of listening to his friend say things he knew he would never say of his own free will. "This isn't you Big Macintosh! You're not a liar!" Shining Armor said crossly "And I've come to make you see that! One way, or another!"

"I don't need help Shining Armor!" Big Macintosh lied.

"Oh yes you do!" Shining Armor replied, and lit up his horn "Hold still, and this will only take a few seconds."

"Don't touch me, you'll only make things worse!" Big Macintosh lied, as he felt Shining Armor's horn touch his forehead. And then, everything stopped. Repressed memories came flooding back. Big Macintosh could now remember the first time he'd met Shining Armor. How he injured himself prior to applebuck season, his inability to do anything as the parasprites destroyed his home, his stand at The Grand Galloping Gala, and most importantly, how he became the element of Honesty. Then he remembered what he had seen just prior to Discord brainwashing him. Now, however, he was more convinced than ever that what he saw wasn't the real future.

"Big Macintosh, are you okay?" Shining Armor asked, as he helped his friend to his hooves. Big Macintosh's body was now back to normal, and his red coat shined as if it had just been cleaned.

"I.... think so." Big Macintosh said "Shining Armor, when we were seperated in the maze, Discord showed me the future. He tricked me into thinking our friendship would fall apart, so I started lying in the hopes that I could prevent it. But now I see that such a thing was wrong. Honesty isn't always the best policy, but lying about things is just as bad, if not worse. Can you ever forgive me for what I said and did?"

"Of course I can." Shining Armor smiled "You weren't yourself when you were lying. But now you're back, and with your help, we will defeat Discord once and for all!"

"I'm with you all the way." Big Macintosh said firmly "After what he's done to me, Discord is gonna pay!"

"Easy there Big Macintosh." Shining Armor reassured him "First things first, we need to get the rest of our friends back to normal. I can't do it alone however."

"Whatever help you need I'll gladly offer it." Big Macintosh replied.

"Good." Shining Armor stated "I say we go after Braeburn next. He'll be a big help in freeing the others."

It took quite a bit of effort for Shining Armor and Big Macintosh to find where Braeburn was, but they eventually tracked him down. Unfortunately, Braeburn was anything but happy to see them.

"Well, what an unexpected surprise. Why are you idiots here?" Braeburn hissed "Come to make fun of me again I suppose?"

"Of course not, don't be silly." Shining Armor replied.

"We're here to free you from Discord's corruptive influence cousin Braeburn!" Big Macintosh shouted "And we can do this the easy way, or the hard way!"

"I don't need Discord's help to realize what you're going to do to me." Braeburn said crossly "You just want me to go back to my old ways, because without someone to act like the idiot and absorb all the negativity, everything will fall apart. Well I hate to disappoint you, but I'm never going back. The past is in the past, and I've changed for the better. And if you two can't see that, then I'l just have to make you see it!"

"Bring it on cousin!" Big Macintosh shouted "I'm not afraid of you!"

"Then you're a fool!" Braeburn replied, and he lunged at Big Macintosh. The two earth ponies tusseled for a while, but despite his strength, Braeburn was no match for Big Macintosh. Eventually, he was defeated.

"Now's your chance Shining Armor!" Big Macintosh called "You know what to do!"

"Right!" Shining Armor replied, and lit up his horn.

"No! I'm not turning back into an idiot!" Braeburn protested, as Shining Armor's horn touched his forehead in the same way it had touched Big Macintosh's. Just like with Big Macintosh, Braeburn remembered everything. And when he realized who was truly laughing at him while pretending to care, his body returned to normal, and his coat regained its color.

"Sorry I did that to you cousin, but you left me no choice." Big Macintosh apologized.

"Hey, if the roles were reversed I would've done the same thing." Braeburn replied "You did what you thought was right, and it all worked out for the better."

"Glad to have you with us again Braeburn, we've all missed you." Shining Armor said honestly.

"Where's that Discord fella?!" Braeburn asked furiously "Cause' the joke's about to be on him!"

"All in good time Braeburn." Shining Armor said, calming him down "We need the rest of our friends back first. Think you can lend us a hoof?"

"You betcha!" Braeburn said eagerly "In fact, I think I have a good idea where we can find Fancy Pants."

"Well then, lead the way." Shining Armor encouraged. Braeburn did so, and before long, he, Big Macintosh, and Shining Armor, had arrived at Carousel Boutique.

"A trio of freeloaders! Come to steal my diamond eh?!" Fancy Pants hissed "I'll teach you all a thing or two! Come and get it, unless you're afraid!"

"Them's fightin' words Fancy Pants!" Big Macintosh snapped "If I wasn't the stallion I was, you'd be in serious trouble right now!"

"Just take it easy Fancy Pants, we don't want to hurt you." Shining Armor said calmly "Just hold still and let me free you from Discord's control."

"Oh no you don't! I see your little game for what it really is!" Fancy Pants protested "You want Timantha all to yourself. Well too bad, she's mine, and I won't let anyone or anything take her away from me!"

"I don't want to do this but-" Shining Armor spoke up.

"Then don't!" Fancy Pants shouted.

"This isn't a better choice." Braeburn stated "It doesn't have to be this way. We can work this out."

"No we can't, stop pretending that we can!" Fancy Pants said fiercely "If you want a piece of Timantha, you'll have to get past me first!"

"Fancy Pants please, I want to help you!" Shining Armor spoke up.

"If you truly wish to help me, then leave me alone!" Fancy Pants shouted, but before he could do anything, he was silenced by a sudden blow from Big Macintosh.

"Sorry Fancy Pants, but I had to do that." Big Macintosh apologized.

"I'll hold him still Shining Armor, you do your whole horn thingy." Braeburn said, and true to his word, he held onto Fancy Pants as tightly as he could. Preventing the unicorn from escaping.

Fancy Pants was too exhausted to protest, but he tried to resist as Shining Armor's horn touched his forehead. Once again, memories came flooding back. Now Fancy Pants could see that Discord had delibertly taken advantage of his weak mental state. Something that would never happen again. In addition, Fancy Pants now saw Timantha truly was nothing more than a plain old boulder. And although he was all for seeing beauty on the inside, he knew there was no use in keeping such a thing around. "Let us never speak of us this again, okay?" he asked his friends after he gotten rid of the boulder.

"Agreed." Shining Armor replied "I'm glad you're taking this so well."

"What can I say, my years of being subjected to constant stress have really helped me mellow out and be more accepting." Fancy Pants explained "Besides, a gentleman knows it is not polite to lose your temper unless seriously prevoked. But mark my words, Discord will pay for this!"

"Well, we still need two more of our friends to come back." Big Macintosh stated.

"And unfortunately, they're both pegasi." Braeburn added "So it looks like we've got our work cut out for us."

"Not necessarily." Fancy Pants said with a smile "I know for a fact that the last time I saw Thunderlane, he was still on solid ground. If we can find him and bring him back to our side, we shouldn't have too much trouble dealing with Soarin."

"Sounds like a plan." Shining Armor acknowledged "Let's go!"

"I've told you once, and now I'm gonna tell you once again!" Thunderlane shouted "The old Thunderlane is gone, the new Thunderlane is here to stay!"

"Don't you see, that's exactly what Discord wants you to believe!" Fancy Pants shouted back.

"No, that's exactly what you want me to believe!" Thunderlane snapped "Nice try, but your pathetic attempts at brainwashing won't catch me off guard! I'm too smart to fall for the same old tricks!"

"Please Thunderlane, we don't have to fight each other!" Braeburn pleaded.

"Yeah, we're not enemies!" Big Macintosh added.

"Shut up, all of you!" Thunderlane shouted.

"You've left me no choice Thunderlane!" Shining Armor said crossly "I hate to do this, and this will hurt me more than it will you, but I refuse to give up on you without a fight!"

"Do your worst, I'm ready for it!" Thunderlane said firmly.

"Very well, don't say I didn't warn you." Shining Armor said with a sigh, and fired off a stun spell. It was something he'd been trained to use while still a rookie in the royal guard. The idea was to use it only as a last resort, to subdue violent criminals. He had hoped the day would never come when he would be forced to use. Alas, that day had arrived all the same.

"A stun spell?" Fancy Pants asked.

"Unfortunately, yes." Shining Armor said glumly "It's only temporary, but I couldn't think of any other way to subdue Thunderlane without any of us getting hurt."

"Hey, you did what you had to do." Big Macintosh reassured him "Now hurry up and heal him before the stun spell wears off."

"Indeed I will." Shining Armor said, and lit up his horn. The routine had practically become an old habbit by this point.

When Thunderlane finally realized how cruelly he had been thanks to Discord, he was most upset. "I wish this was all a bad dream." he said sadly.

"Unfortunately, it's not." Shining Armor sighed.

"But at least you're back, and this nightmare of a reality is almost gone." Braeburn said cheerfully.

"For once, I agree with my cousin." Big Macintosh nodded.

"We can't get Soarin back without you Thunderlane, you're the only one who's on an equal playing field with him." Fancy Pants explained "Can you help us track him down so we can finally go after Discord and put an end to this nonsense?"

"I'll do my best." Thunderlane said "No promises."

"Any help at all would be greatly appreciated Thunderlane." Shining Armor said sincerely "Now lead the way."

"Very well then, follow me." Thunderlane stated.

Soarin proved hard to locate, but eventually, Thunderlane was able to lead his friends right to the corrupted Wonderbolt's location.

"So, you traitors have the nerve to step hoof into my territory?" Soarin asked crossly "I guess Cloudsdale never should've allowed for non-pegasi to visit."

"Now how in Equestria could he possibly think that tiny little patch of clouds is the gaint city of Cloudsdale?" Fancy Pants asked.

"Probably the same way Discord got you to think that a rock was a genuine, bonified diamond." Big Macintosh said, trying his best not to laugh out loud.

"I thought we agreed to never speak of that again Big Macintosh!" Fancy Pants said crossly.

"We did, but I couldn't resist." Big Macintosh replied.

"Getting back to the subject at hoof, how are we gonna free Soarin from Discord's control?" Braeburn asked.

"I have an idea, but we'll need Thunderlane in order to pull it off." Shining Armor explained, and he proceeded to whisper his plan to the others.

Soarin was snoozing comfortably, unaware of the fact that Shining Armor and his friends were approaching him in a hot air balloon.

"Okay, we're all set here." Big Macintosh said to Shining Armor.

"Alright Thunderlane, it's all up to you now." Shining Armor whispered "We need you to tie up Soarin so he can't escape. Once that's taken care of the rest should be simple enough."

"Why me? Thunderlane asked.

"You're the only one here who can fly, and the only one who can keep up with him in the air." Shining Armor explained "I know it's hard for you to do something like this to him, but it's for the best. And he won't be hurt, you know that."

"Well, okay, here I go. Wish me luck." Thunderlane said nervously, and with a rope in hoof, he flew over to where Soarin was. Then he tapped him lightly.

"What do you want traitor?!" Soarin asked, not noticing the rope Thunderlane held behind his back.

"I'm sorry Soarin, but I'm gonna have to hold you down against your will for a little bit." Thunderlane apologized, and he threw the rope around Soarin's body.

Soarin tried, to no avail, to escape. The rope was secured too tightly. "How could you do this to me Thunderlane?! You betrayed me!" he shouted.

"No I didn't, you betrayed yourself." Thunderlane said, as he attached more ropes to Soarin so that he could be held in place.

Even once he had been lowered to the ground, Soarin continued to try and break free. But Big Macintosh, Braeburn, Fancy Pants, and Thunderlane, all held onto a rope attached to him. And with all those ropes wrapped around him, there was no way he could escape.

All he could do was grunt, groan, and snort in fury, as Shining Armor lit up his horn, and touched it to Soarin's forehead. Slowly but surely, the memories came back. And at long last, all of Discord's brainwashing had been undone. "I'm back!" Soarin said happily, and he and the other stallions shared a group hug.

But they quickly realized that they still had one thing left to do. Defeat the mastermind behind everything, Discord.

Just as he had said earlier, Discord had made Ponyville the center of his new empire. And he was enjoying every moment of the chaos that was being unleashed all around him. All the while, he sat in his own throne, and chuckled to himself. "Ah, chaos is a wonderful, wonderful thing." he said to himself, as he filled a glass with chocolate milk from one of the pink cotton candy clouds.

"Not as wonderful as friendship!" Shining Armor shouted boldly. He and his friends suddenly appeared before Discord, wearing their elements with pride.

Discord did not appear concerned "Oh, this again?" he complained "Excuse me, I need a drink." he proceeded to drink the glass cup. "Ah, refreshing." he said, and threw the chocolate milk away. In the distance, there came a high pitched scream. "Oopsie, I guess I don't know my own strength." Discord smirked.

"You've had your fun Discord, and this time, you're going to lose!" Big Macintosh stated.

"Oh Big Macintosh, please don't lie to me." Discord said, lifting Big Macintosh into the air by his necklace "You forget, I'm the one who made you a liar. And you needed my help, because you were never a good liar on your own."

"Hey, what's with the unrelenting grip?!" Big Macintosh asked.

"You're in an awfully big hurry to meet your doom." Discord teased "And I was hoping to drag this out a little. But hey, why should you get to have all the fun? Your 'friends' deserve the same thing, don't you think?" And Discord proceeded to bring all six of The Elements of Harmony bearers towards him. His grip tightened, and for a moment, defeat seemed inevitable.

But Shining Armor refused to give up, and using all of his strength, he was able to conjure up a protective violet bubble that he encased himself and his friends in. The bubble brought them safely back down to the ground, and even returned the portion of it that it touched back to normal.

This made Discord cross. "Okay fine, go ahead and blast me with The Elements of Harmony. Friend me for all I care!" he shouted, before he teleported back to his throne "Just make it quick, I'm missing out on some excellent chaos here!"

"This is it, it's now or never!" Shining Armor thought to himself. And one by one, he and his friends activated their elements. Beams of light began to shoot out of them, putting on quite a display.

But Discord wasn't worried, at least until beams in the shape of the necklace jewels began to whiz past his head. He snapped his fingers, but nothing happened. He snapped his fingers again, but still nothing happened. "What's going on?" he asked himself, as he snapped his fingers again and again with no results. All the while, the six stallions began to draw closer and closer together. "Wait, uh-oh!" Discord gasped, as he realized, too late, what was happening. A second later, a massive rainbow colored pillar of light descended upon him, turning him back to stone. "NNNOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" he shouted "THIS CAN'T BE HAPPENING! NOT TO ME! MARK MY WORDS, THIS ISN'T OVER! WHEN YOU LEAST EXPECT IT, I'LL BE BAAAAAAAAACCCCCCCCCK!"

Once Discord was completely turned to stone, the rainbow colored beam of light expanded over all of Equestria, undoing Discord's chaos magic and making everything right again.

"Whew, glad that's over." Shining Armor said, once he and his friends set hoof on solid ground once again. Then he turned his attention to Discord, who was now immbolized. A look of terror frozen on his statue face. "Now, let's get you back to Canterlot. And this time, you'll be under tighter security." Shining Armor said firmly.

Author's Note:

Well, that scene in the original episode was begging for a wilhelm scream. So it was only natural that I put it in this chapter.

Comments

[Fox Boss]

Would have liked to have seen some of the other alterations of certain characters, like Rumble, Rarity, an Fleur.

[Yoshifan30]

well So shining armor finally broke out of his depression and finally getting the others back to normal and defeat discord once again

"NNNOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" he shouted "THIS CAN'T BE HAPPENING! NOT TO ME! MARK MY WORDS, THIS ISN'T OVER! WHEN YOU LEAST EXPECT IT, I'LL BE BAAAAAAAAACCCCCCCCCK!"

Oh don't worry we will see you again in season 3