Chaos Incorporated

by DontTreadOnMe777777

Jailhouse Rock-Statue

“So, what was it you wanted to show me?” Ricky held up a hand to shield his still-adjusting eyes from the bright lava and other assorted means of light.

“Our ticket to freedom, my good man! Come on!” Discord pulled a cartoon-style rubber band movement in that his legs got a huge headstart, while his torso stayed in the same spot, before shooting after his legs.

‘Freedom? Well then, that was faster than I expected.’ Ricky began to plod after Discord, his mind beginning to pick up what this meant.

‘We’ll be out of here very soon. God, I hope the Grossdeutschland is ready. This is also going to bring up the problem of logistics. Is Chrysalis ready yet?’ These thoughts and more flew through his mind as he tried to trace Discord’s path, which he had conveniently marked with loaves of bread. Ricky chuckled. ‘Nice reference to the Hansel and Gretel tale.’

Eventually, the trail ended, at which he happened upon Discord, who was standing next to… a statue of himself?
“I didn’t know your ego was so big, Discord.” The trademark snarky reply caught Discord’s attention.

“Oh, hush you. I didn’t make this. This was created when I was turned into a statue back in Equestria.”

Ricky cocked an eyebrow. “Wait. Why are you a statue in Equestria? Actually, for that matter, why are you a statue at all?”

“Well, my dear boy, it’s a long tale. Actually, all it is is the Elements. They turned me to stone, just like that.” Discord snapped his fingers to accentuate his ‘that’.

Ricky was now five times more terrified of those six girls.

“Anyways, that’s beside the point,” Discord dismissed, waving a claw. “What I really wanted to show you is this.” He pointed a talon at a few small cracks, criss-crossing most of his stony figure.

“Somebody is a shitty mason. So what?” Ricky shrugged quizzically.

“What this means is that we don’t have to deal with Cerberus at the Gates. This will allow us to completely bypass him and immediately be in Canterlot.”

“Celestia meant for the Elements to freeze me in stone ad infinitum, but just as it hit, I managed to weave a strand of Chaos magic into the spell of the Elements, putting it on a time limit.” He continued, striding around in front of Ricky. “Unfortunately, we can only bring three through, the portal only has enough magic. You and I make two, so who do you think should be our third?”

Ricky hummed in thought for a minute. “Chrysalis. She’ll help with supplies and is the most battle-wise,” he remarked confidently.

Discord nodded, then snapped. In a few seconds, Chrysalis was there with them. “That beacon you thought up feels weird on my horn. Ugh,” she shivered as Ricky cocked his head at Discord expectantly. That expectation was in vain, as Discord ignored him completely.

“Alright, before we go through, let’s lay down some ground rules. First, we have to be quiet. Even though it’s been a thousand years and even the best of memories fail, Celestia keeps guards around in case of a contingency. Second, I’m going to leave you two once we get through. We need to neutralize the Elements before we make a move. You two are going to have to get out and away from the palace and through the streets without being detected. Chrysalis, this should be easy for you. Ricky, you’re going to have more trouble. The last thing: when you’re both off palace grounds, rendezvous and find somewhere to hunker down.”

‘I didn’t think Discord could be so thorough,’ Ricky reveled in his mind as he listened to Discord lay out his plan.

“Okay. Are you two ready?” The two in question nodded resolutely. Discord gave a small nod in return, before turning back to his statue and placing a finger on one of the small cracks. Shutting his eyes tight, he began to seemingly channel magic into his hand, with his index finger glowing white and the crack also reflecting the same color. Escalating to the point of being blinding, everyone had to look away or risk being blinded.

And with a whip-crack sound, the light was gone.

Ricky opened his eyes to see that they were now in a garden, dotted with statues and finely-hedged shrubbery. Discord and Chrysalis stood beside him, seemingly thinking about the best ways to achieve their tasks. Ricky, for his part, decided to take some initiative.

Before he left, he leaned over to Chrysalis. “Hey, how’s about we meet up at the train station? I can see the tracks leading out, and I’m assuming it’s at the bottom of the city, which should be safer.” Chrysalis nodded in agreement, and Ricky went on his way.

Finding a path that seemed to lead out of the garden, creeping along managed to guide the teen out of the garden area, without having any encountered anything besides a few animals scurrying to and fro. ‘Guards aren’t a problem yet, good.’

Eventually, he found his way to what seemed like the end of the palace grounds, but there also lay a gate, paired up with three guards. One was facing his way, while the other two were on the other side of the wrought iron gate, watching the street.

‘Thank god I brought my rifle,’ Ricky thought as he unslung his rifle, before suddenly being struck with inspiration. Searching for a rock on the ground and finding one, he wound up. “Baseball don’t fail me now,’ he whispered as the rock was flung to the opposite side of the road leading up to the gate.

The timeless trick didn’t disappoint. “Is anyone there? Come out, you’re trespassing!” To Ricky's utter bewilderment and astonishment, a miniature pony - probably one of their young - crawled out from behind one of the hedges, crying softly.

‘Who in the hell… wait a minute, is that Chrysalis?’ It was highly unlikely that someone had actually got stuck out here, and Chrysalis did have those shape-shifting abilities she talked about.

“Mister!” The little pony, which was still crying quietly, called out. The guard trotted over to her, looking her over with a critical and suspicious gaze, before it softened. He knelt down next to the little girl. 'Foal, I believe, is the correct term,' Ricky mentally corrected himself.

"Why is a filly like you out here? The night's dangerous for little ones like you,' the guard questioned softly as the filly tried to wipe away her tears.

"I-I got lost, and now it's dark out and I don't know where my parents have gone," the filly sniffled as she recounted her story. The guard's expression lightened.

"Here, let me take you to the police station and we can help find your family." The little filly's expression visibly brightened at that.

“Thank you mister! I knew my mommy was right when she said to trust the Guards!” The filly squeaked excitably, her sorrow all but forgotten. The Guard just chuckled, before walking over to his two comrades. Whispering before turning back to the kid, he smiled again.

“Come on, little filly. Stick close!” he cautioned before the two of the cantered through the now-open gate and off down the street, towards the lower levels. And just like that, it was only Ricky and the two other guards.

The fence surrounding the gate was wrought iron, tipped with sharp points every foot or so. It was tall, but only for a pony. It was just above Ricky’s head, and his outstretched arms could reach it easily. The gate was little taller, still reachable. However, Ricky knew that trying to get past the guards while on the street was impossible.

“Well, this is stupid.” In a flash, Ricky was running up to the gate, his quick footfalls not heard by the guards that listened for hard hooves. Quickly scrambling up the side of said gate and getting to the top, the next thing the guard on the right saw was a flash of tan, and then he was in a world of black, unconscious from having his head slammed into the stone.

The other guard was quick to notice this, however, and whirled around, spear leveled to face this strange creature. He’d heard around the barracks that a strange new creature had been banished to Tartarus. Later, he’d have to pay up on the bets he’d made.

Only too late did he realize that the creature’s stick was already pointed at him.

Not knowing exactly what this creature could do with said stick, he decided to speak.

“By the authority vested in me by Princess Celestia-”

“Do you really think I respect her authority? She put me through Hell - literally - just to get back to the real world, and you’re asking me to respect her authority? That’s too rich,” Ricky let out a short bark of a laugh, the otherwise still night echoing his sentiment.

The guard, now seemingly shaken, backed up a step. Ricky advanced, not giving the guard anything. “Not to mention you’re heavily outmatched. This weapon could kill you from two hundred yards away before you even knew I fired. Meanwhile, you use a spear that barely reaches three feet and is also known in my culture. The last time we needed it was almost five hundred years before the time period I’m from.” The guard looked even more unsure of himself.

Ricky took a few steps forward, just out of reach of the spear now waveringly brandished at him. He then sat down, cross legged.

"You see this?" He pointed to the trigger, the guard subconsciously leaning in closer to look. "This is what activates the mechanical parts inside of this weapon. It is so sensitive, that a single twitch can set it off."

Suddenly, his finger twitched.

"Oh, that was a close one." Ricky said in fake relief. "Your head was about to pull a magic trick and vanish." He chuckled darkly, the guard already long gone.

The erratic clopping of his hooves on the cobblestones as he ran in blind panic slowly faded as Ricky stood up once more, on his way again.

It didn't take too long to work his way down through the city, and he was now staring at the train station from a dark alleyway across the street. Suddenly, he felt a hoof on his back shoulder, as well as one covering his mouth. He panicked for a split-second, before he heard Chrysalis' voice from behind him, shushing him in an effort to get him quiet. After he stopped struggling, the hooves fell away.

"You know, you didn't have to do that," Ricky grumped as Chrysalis chuckled a bit. "Also, was that you at the gate?"

"Yes, it was. I must say, killing him was quite enjoyable. First, I blasted his-" Chrysalis started her story, but didn't get far before Ricky waved his hands to stop her, already looking a little queasy.

Chrysalis shook her head disapprovingly, a small frown on her face. "How are you gonna make it through one battle?" She queried, getting no response from Ricky. "Either way, to get to that point, we have to wait. This house next to us is foreclosed, empty. I think we can make it work until Discord gives us the go-ahead."

Ricky barely nodded, and the two walked quietly to the front of the house. Chrysalis' horn lit up with magic for a few seconds, before she pushed the door open, the squeaking of the hinges giving them both pause. Satisfied that no one heard after waiting for a few seconds, they slowly latched the door behind them and promptly collapsed on the hard wood floor, not caring about the stiff surface, where sleep took them in its embrace.

Author's Note:

I'm gonna be honest: I needed a break. I didn't write more than a paragraph for this chapter's whole development process until last night, where the inspiration to end the chapter finally struck, and I finished this in bed on my phone.

I hope you enjoy!

Comments

[DontTreadOnMe777777]

5492702 Wish I had one, but no

[DontTreadOnMe777777]

5493525 Yeah, but there's also the problem that I'm still a closet brony.

[DontTreadOnMe777777]

5493715 Most of my friends and my brother (along with everyone on here, obviously,) but not my parents or relatives.

[DontTreadOnMe777777]

5495370 I shall. Thanks!

[DontTreadOnMe777777]

5498193 It actually wasn't a gimmick for readers, I just needed an attorney, he was first to mind. Also, after what happened (and what will happen) I'm pretty sure nopony wants to be around him.

[Blaze the draconic mage]

WILL THERE BE MORE

[DontTreadOnMe777777]

5562180 Yes. (Although I am quite slow).