• Published 7th Aug 2014
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Doctor Whooves Episode 22: Black Sun - Doctor Perseus



The Doctor seeks to unravel the mysteries of Discord Whooves's past.

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Into Darkness

Author's Note:

Alternate chapter title: I'M NOT DEAD! But, in all seriousness, sorry for the LOOOOOOOOOOOONG wait for this chapter (thanks, school...and procrastination). I'm back and, hopefully, the wait for the next chapter won't be nearly as long.

Chapter 2: Into Darkness

Canterlot Castle, Canterlot, Equestria, Gaia, Winter, 1002 C.E.

The human counterparts of Spike, Rarity, and Fluttershy stared through the window and out upon the battle that was reaching across all sides of the city of Canterlot. Spike was shaking a bit but he calmed down once he felt a gentle hand touch his shoulder.

"Spike? Are you okay?" asked Rarity in a soothing tone.

Spike sighed and shook his head. "No. It's just like what happened a year ago," he replied.

"It does look exactly like what happened in our Canterlot," Fluttershy commented.

"Things are different now. We have more people and ponies fighting alongside us," said Rarity. "We're prepared now."

"But how are we any closer to defeating Discord Whooves?" Spike asked. "Sure, we have more soldiers. Sure, we're a bit more prepared for this. But we still have the same weapons and magic. The Cybermen are still strong. We don't have anything that increases our chances of stopping Discord Whooves."

"We have the Doctor," Fluttershy suggested. "And from all we heard about him from Colgate and Clockwork, it sounds like he's more than capable of helping us win the war."

Spike crossed his arms and pouted. "I don't know," he said.

Just then, the sound of quick footsteps caught the trio's attention. They turned back towards the hallway just in time to see Twilight, Flash, and the Cyberman that was Shining Armor run past.

"Well now," said Rarity as she approached the doorway leading to the hallway. She peered out to see the other trio dashing down the hallway. "I thought they were helping the other Twilight with her family."

"I wonder where they're going off to in such a rush," said Fluttershy.

"Come on!" Spike exclaimed before breaking into a run. "Let's follow them!" Rarity and Fluttershy silently agreed before making a mad dash forward.

Outside Zecora's Hut, Ponyville, Equestria, Gaia, Winter, 1002 C.E.

Trixie stumbled through the front door of the hut and fell forward into a mound of snow. She looked up to see the brown Ponyville clock tower glaring down at her. She knew that she needed to get up but her body was fighting against her will.

Oswin let out several coughs as she stumbled out into the snow. She quickly took notice of the fallen Trixie and moved to help her up. "Come on. Up we go," she groaned as she lifted Trixie up and hastily slung Trixie's right foreleg over her shoulders.

"Thank you," Trixie managed to say as she leaned into Oswin.

Oswin smirked and nudged Trixie a bit. "Come on, Trixie. I know you're stronger than that. You can't expect me to do all of the work."

Trixie returned a smirk before putting pressure on her hind legs, while still holding tight onto Oswin. "...That better?"

"It's enough."

"Dad! Come on! We need to go!" ordered the voice of Julianna from within the hut.

Trixie and Oswin looked back to see Julianna pass through the threshold with a dazed Monty walking alongside her. They were followed by Zecora, who was carrying a still unconscious Francis on her back.

"What...was...that?" asked Monty groggily as he stumbled across the snowy surface. He shook his head and slowly returned to his senses.

"It was Trixie!" Julianna chimed. "And she was awesometacular!"

Trixie couldn't help but laugh a bit. "I was what?" she asked.

Julianna gave a wide smile at Trixie. "Awesometacular!"

"Copyright: Montague," chuckled Monty as he patted Julianna on the head. His eyes suddenly widened a bit. He began to look around frantically. "Opal? Opal?!" He faced Trixie and Oswin. "Where's Opal?"

"She...she's not with us," Oswin replied with a sigh.

All signs of weakness seemed to vanish from Monty. He dashed towards Oswin, grabbed her shirt collar, and stared straight into her pupils. "Then where is she?!" He was beginning to snort like a horse ready to kill.

"What we know, we will explain," said Zecora as she pointed towards the sky. "For now, we must go or we'll be in a lot of pain."

All eyes looked up at the group of flying Cyberman diving straight towards them. "RUN!" ordered Oswin. Everypony took off as quickly as they could manage.

"STOP! STOP!" ordered the Cybermen from above.

"Where can we go from here?!" asked Julianna.

"The hospital!" Oswin replied. "That's the perfect place for everypony to be rounded up and kept safe. I'm sure my fellow soldiers are there already."

"Then let's pick up the pace!" said Monty as he pushed Julianna along.

The group continued to race off towards the hospital with the Cybermen close behind them.

Discord Laboratory, Beneath Rainbow Falls, Equestria, Gaia, Winter, 1002 C.E.

Discord Whooves gave a sly smile as he watched Thalia slowly eat her way through a fresh blueberry muffin. He couldn't help but be entertained by the innocence she held. She was such a simple creature at the moment. Like a newborn foal, but one that was physically and mentally ready to venture out into the world on its own.

"So?" he asked as he leaned closer to the mare. "Do you like it?"

"It's...it's lovely," Thalia replied with a shy smile.

"Good. I'm glad you like it. There's plenty more where that came from. You're going to need your strength." Thalia returned to eating her muffin and Discord Whooves fell silent again. The silence lasted for another minute or so. It was a moment of bliss for him. Silence used to be a source of fear; but now it was an aspect of life he thoroughly enjoyed. Times where everypony and everything around him would shut up and allow him to carry on with his thoughts. Silence was good.

"MR. WHOOVES!" shouted Pinkie Pie as she burst into Thalia's bedroom. Her necklace of broken wands bounced against her chest as she skipped across the floor.

Discord Whooves cringed. He enjoyed Pinkie's company and was proud of the improvements he had added to her personality but it was far too often than he would have liked that Pinkie was usually the cause of his glorious silence being broken. But the interruptions of his silence was a fitting sacrifice to make in exchange for a thoroughly loyal and wonderfully insane apprentice. "Yes, Pinkie?" he asked, keeping his smile.

Pinkie came to a stop next to Thalia's bed. Thalia looked away from Pinkie and focused on eating her muffin. "I just wanted to let you know that the others are very close to being finished!" Pinkie replied with her normally large grin.

Discord Whooves nodded. "Excellent. Keep up the good work and make sure everything goes according to plan. I want the rest of my girls to come out perfectly."

"Okie-dokie-lokie, Mr. Whooves!" Pinkie gave a salute before running back out of the room and slamming the door shut behind her.

Discord Whooves turned back to Thalia and chuckled. "You're not very keen about my apprentice, are you?" he asked.

"She makes me nervous, Mr. Whooves," Thalia replied. "She's just...off."

"Of course she is, Thalia; and that's what makes her perfect."

Thalia raised an eyebrow. "How?"

"In the world that's to rise out of the ashes of the one we're currently in, the qualities Pinkie possesses are exactly what I'm looking for in those who shall reside in it. Insanity, craziness, unpredictability, and devout loyalty to me."

"Oh." Thalia's head lowered. "I guess I won't be able to live in that world then. I'm not insane, crazy, and unpredictable enough."

Discord Whooves moved closer to Thalia, placed his right forehoof underneath her chin, and raised her head up so that they were eye-to-eye. "Are you loyal to me, Thalia?"

Thalia shook in response to his touch. He was such an intimidating figure and yet she couldn't help but feel relaxed after seeing that determined fire within his eyes. "Yes, Mr. Whooves."

He leaned in and planted a soft kiss on her right cheek. "That's my mare."

Thalia blushed and a giddy laugh escaped through her lips. She quickly took another bite out of her muffin in order to calm herself down. Once the next bite had found its way into her stomach, she collected her thoughts. "Can I ask you a question, Mr. Whooves?"

Discord Whooves gave a hearty laugh. "You can ask me whatever you want!"

"Who are the others that Pinkie was talking about? Is she talking about those mares and that dragon?"

"Definitely not them, my dear. You need not worry yourself about them or what happens to them. They are my burden to bear, or rather they are my property to take care of. Do not think about them any longer. They will serve their purpose and be properly disposed of soon after. They have no place in the world I'm creating." He cleared his throat and continued. "As for who the others are, let me answer that with a question of my own: do you feel lonely, Thalia?"

Without hesitation, Thalia shook her head. "I'm not lonely. I have you, don't I?"

Discord Whooves's smile grew. "Yes, of course; and you always will. But, still, you must feel some sort of isolation. You're a clone. There's definitely not that many of those out there. Certainly being in that state of being must make some part of you feel a tiny bit lonesome."

Thalia shrugged her shoulders. "I suppose. But I guess that's one reason why I don't feel lonely around you."

The gray stallion shuffled his wings and cocked his head. "And why is that?"

"Because you understand more than anypony what it's like to be alone. To be the last of your kind. To be the last Time Lord of Gallifrey."

Discord Whooves's face became very dark and stern. "I don't believe I've mentioned that to you before."

Thalia gave a confused look and scratched the side of her head. "I...I don't know where that came from. I just...remembered it...I think."

Thoughts and memories from her original worming their way through the cracks, Discord Whooves thought. Better attend to that soon. There's already two Twilight Sparkles running about. I don't need my Thalia becoming a third.

The stallion cleared his throat and adjusted his bowtie. "Anyway...let's just say that your status as the sole clone will be changed in due time."

Thalia shrunk back as Discord Whooves's gaze burned into her like a laser. Once again, she turned her attention back to the muffin in her hooves.

Just then, there was a knock at the door. "Yes?" Discord Whooves asked.

"Mr. Whooves! Someone's here to see you! It's one of your bat things!" Pinkie called through the door.

"I'll be right out, Pinkie." Discord Whooves turned back to Thalia. "You just rest and enjoy your muffin for now, dearie. I have some more work to attend to."

"Yes, Mr. Whooves," Thalia replied with a nod.

Discord Whooves made his way across the the room and through the door, making sure to close it all the way behind him. Pinkie was waiting for him in the hallway.

"Where's the visitor?" he asked.

"Up front," replied Pinkie as she began to lead Discord Whooves down the hallway.

"What do they want? My creatures should be out in the forests of Equestria right now."

"He found something interesting that he thinks you should look at."

Discord Whooves followed Pinkie to a medium-sized room decorated like the waiting room in a doctor's office. Standing in the middle of the room was a creature that looked like a humanoid bat with goat legs and dressed in battle armor.

"Sir," the bat said with a quick, respectful bow of the head.

"This better be important, bat. I'm working on some demanding projects at the moment," Discord Whooves said sternly.

"I apologize for distracting you, sir, but I discovered this in the Everfree Forest and thought you'd take an interest in it." The bat produced a large sack, which he then proceeded to turn upside down in order to empty the contents. Out of the sack fell an earth pony mare with a yellow coat, a yellow-red mane, and a cutie mark consisting of a smiley face next to a hammer.

Discord Whooves looked down at the dazed mare, looked up at the bat, and raised an eyebrow. "A mare? You came all this way to show me a mare?"

"She had this with her, sir." The bat reached into one of his armored pockets and pulled out a sonic screwdriver with a red tip.

Discord Whooves's eyes widened a bit. He then quickly snatched the sonic screwdriver from the bat's claws and examined it. "This...this is a genuine sonic screwdriver." A devilish smile appeared on his face. "Good work, bat. You may return to battle now. This is certainly an interesting development."

The bat nodded before allowing Pinkie to lead it out of the room.

The mare on the floor rubbed her temple and gave out several, pained groans. "Monty? Are you there?" she asked as she started to come to.

Discord Whooves knelt down in front of her. "Sorry. There's no Monty here."

The mare gasped as she looked up. "Doctor?!"

Their eyes met and Discord Whooves chuckled. "Not exactly."

The mare gasped. "Are...are you-"

"Discord Whooves, at your service." He presented the sonic screwdriver to her. "And it appears that you're rather close to the Doctor."

The mare jumped up. "Where am I?!"

"You're in my little base of operations," he replied as he stood up. "Welcome to Discord Laboratory!"

The mare began to back up but quickly found her path blocked by Pinkie, who was now showing off the extensive collection of butcher knives and medical equipment she kept hidden in her clothes. "I hope you try to escape. I'd love to play Chase and Cut again!" Pinkie said with a shrill laugh.

The mare began to shake as she stepped away from Pinkie and towards Discord Whooves. "What's your name, dearie?" asked Discord Whooves.

"Opal," replied the mare with disgust.

"Opal, huh? Such a lovely name." He slowly approached the mare and placed a hoof on her shoulder. She jerked out of his grasp and he proceeded to laugh. "Well, Opal, I'm glad you're here. Now, why don't you join my apprentice and I for some muffins and tea because we would love to hear all about that special friend of yours who gave you this." He waved the sonic screwdriver back and forth. Opal was silent for a few seconds. Discord Whooves sighed before taking a few steps towards her. "I'm being nice here, Opal. It's either have some muffins with me and talk or my apprentice will happily turn you into a batch of muffins."

Opal looked to see Pinkie rubbing two knives together like a professional chef. "I'll play your games, Discord Whooves," she replied. "But nothing I say is going to help you defeat the Doctor or win."

"Dear Opal, I don't need your help to defeat the Doctor." Discord Whooves turned back towards the hallway and beckoned Pinkie and Opal to follow him. "I've already won."

Crystal Caverns, Beneath Canterlot, Equestria, Gaia, Winter, 1002 C.E.

Discord the hologram danced around the main console of the TARDIS-turned-paradox machine while the others looked on. "I must say that it's good to have company again. I've been cooped up down here for way too long...though...I suppose it's all my fault in the end," said the draconequus with a mixture of playful teasing and regretful melancholy.

"So this is Discord," said Clockwork in a state of awe. "I remember Twilight telling me all about you."

Discord gave a smug grin. "But hearing about it is nothing compared to actually seeing something with your own two eyes. Am I right?"

"This isn't time to gloat, Discord," groaned Matilda.

"Come now, Matilda. There's always time to gloat."

The Doctor stomped his hooves down hard on the floor. "Not now!" he snarled. Matilda and Donna shook a bit and Discord stopped dancing around the main console. "Explain! Why are you in this...this mutilated TARDIS?!"

Discord let out a long sigh as he crossed his dragon leg over his goat leg and leaned forward in the Doctor's direction. "Quite a demanding tone you have there, Doctor," teased the holographic draconequus.

"Excuse me for sounding demanding when a dark version of myself is threatening the world of my friends while having simultaneously cannibalized his own TARDIS!"

Discord scratched his chin. "Okay. I suppose that acts as a just reasoning behind your rude behavior."

The Doctor rubbed the side of his head and groaned. "Can you please explain how you ended up in Discord Whooves's TARDIS?"

"And can someone explain to me who this...thing is?" Donna asked as she pointed at Discord.

"Well, Donna, I think it's best that we keep this quick as I think the Doctor's going to explode if I don't explain my situation soon," Discord replied as he floated towards Donna and extended his claw. "Name's Discord. Former ruler of Equestria. Was kicked off the throne by Celestia and Luna a millennia back because the ponies may have had a few problems with my shenanigans. I was turned into a stone statue and was stuck like that for a thousand years before I broke free...only to be turned back into a statue by Twilight Sparkle and her friendship power. That's the part of my backstory that everypony here knows aside from you." Discord patted Donna's head with his holographic claw, which Donna was unable to feel due to it passing through the top of her head. "But now you do know; and knowing is half the battle." Discord snapped his claws and a voice rang out throughout the console room.

"G. I. JOE!"

Matilda face-hoofed. "Okay. Enough with the 80's cartoon references. Start talking, Discord," she ordered.

"Man. Everypony's so pushy today," sighed Discord as he floated back to his space above the control console. "To answer your question, I'm in here because...I'm the reason Discord Whooves exists in the first place."

"What?!" asked the Doctor, Donna, Matilda, and Clockwork simultaneously.

"Yep. I'm the Guilty Below. I'm the one who made Discord Whooves the way he is today; and this is my punishment for that." The draconequus leaned against the console and looked upwards. "As I bet you've already figured out, I'm not the same Discord from the universe we're in right now. I'm from the Equestria which Discord Whooves originally came from."

"Go on," urged Clockwork. "It would be nice to finally get some more information about Discord Whooves's past."

"I was just getting to that, if you'd let me continue," said Discord with a roll of the eyes. Clockwork gave a nervous laugh before falling silent and continuing to look after the unconscious Colgate. Discord continued. "My first encounter with Discord Whooves was back when I was in control of Equestria...and back when he was the Doctor. He had arrived with his friend Derpy Hooves to explore but it wasn't long before they caught wind of me and how I ran things. I'd be lying if I didn't admit that the Doctor wasn't one of the most entertaining and challenging obstacles I have ever faced. I eventually grew bored and used a simple piece of dark magic on the Doctor in order to convince him to leave me and my kingdom be. He retreated back into his TARDIS with Derpy, they disappeared, and I didn't give the Doctor a second thought for another thousand years."

"You used dark magic on the...er...the other Doctor?" Clockwork asked with a quick glance in the Doctor's direction.

"Probably the same trick you used centuries later in your attempt to break Twilight Sparkle and her friends apart," Matilda deduced.

"Pretty much," Discord admitted. "Anyway, after Twilight Sparkle and her friends turned me into stone following my return, I was later revived by a stallion who called himself the Master."

"WHAT?!" gasped the Doctor, Matilda, and Clockwork.

"Yeah. Apparently, he and the Doctor go way back in my universe."

"We go way back in any universe, I would think," the Doctor stated with a slight twitch.

"What I mean is that the Doctor and the Master had been clashing with each other in my universe for quite some time. The Master brought me back to help him take care of the Doctor because he was, according to the Master, no longer fun and a huge pain in the rump. I accepted the challenge as the thought of going up against the Doctor again made me excited. However...the Doctor I was led to was far from the Doctor I had first encountered back during my rule. Aside from the whole becoming gray and black with wings sort of thing, he was a lot darker. Too dark for my liking. I tried to take care of him but he used some powerful technology and magic against me that I wasn't prepared for. He killed the Master and trapped me inside the TARDIS."

"Just like that?" the Doctor asked.

"Just like that," Discord replied. "It was a pretty short fight, I hate to admit. My life from there up to this point has been...well...pretty miserable, to be honest. He used my body and my magic to power his TARDIS when it started to fight against him. I watched him eventually reduce the Equestria in my world to dust, and the planet of Gaia along with it. He ruled it, watched it wither away, and then left. And he kept going. Planet after planet. Galaxy after galaxy. Every planet he could find, he eventually took it over and watched it die under his care. It was an endless cycle that spanned countless centuries. I can't really remember how long it's been exactly since my time in this ship began, to be honest. Long enough for my body to be completely eaten away by the TARDIS's need for power, at least. This is all that's left of me." Discord waved his arms around his holographic body. "I'm just an echo of my former self, forever trapped inside this stupid box. I don't know what my magic did to him...but I'm certain that's why the Doctor became Discord Whooves."

Everypony was silent for a brief moment in order for Discord's tale to sink in properly.

"Well...that cleared up a few things," said Clockwork with an awkward cough.

"But not enough," said the Doctor. "We still don't understand what makes Discord Whooves tick. His ultimate motives. We know how his change started but not why it continued or what it really did to him. I need to understand Discord Whooves thoroughly in order to stop him."

"Are you sure, Doctor?" asked Discord with a raised eyebrow. "Are you sure you want to go down that road?"

The Doctor stepped towards Discord. "What are you saying, Discord?"

"I'm asking if you really want to fully understand Discord Whooves. If you do, I think I may have a way of helping you do just that." Discord tapped the TARDIS console. "I may be a shell of my former self but I may just have enough energy inside me to connect you to the remnants of this TARDIS's soul. If I do that, I'm sure you'd be able to access Discord Whooves's history. It's kind of like that memory basin, or whatever the heck it's called, from those Harry Potter books."

"You know about Harry Potter?" asked Matilda with a raised eyebrow.

"I've read a lot of ebooks since I was trapped in here," Discord replied.

"Nevermind that!" the Doctor interrupted. "I want you to do that. Show me Discord Whooves's past!"

Discord floated down towards the Doctor. "This is where my warning comes in, Doctor. Discord Whooves was a lot like you when he was the Doctor. Seeing his history as Discord Whooves might...change you."

The Doctor shook his head. "It won't."

"Are you sure? You might end up becoming him in the process."

"I'm sure. No matter what I see or hear, I know for a fact that I will never turn into him."

"And how are you so sure about that, Doctor?"

The Doctor turned to look at Donna, Matilda, Clockwork, and the unconscious Colgate. He thought about all the friends he had made during his travels in Equestria's universe: Twilight, Derpy, Spike, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Rarity, Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, Opal, Monty, Trixie, and everypony else. He turned back to Discord. "Because I have something worth fighting for, and I don't intend to ever stop fighting for it."

Discord smirked at the Doctor and nodded. "Very well. Let's get started then."

"Doctor," said Donna.

The Doctor turned back to Donna. "Yes, Donna?" he asked.

"Don't become Discord Whooves, you hear me?"

"Like I said, I don't plan on it."

"Good. Because I wouldn't want to have to smack some sense into you."

The Doctor chuckled. "Yeah. Let's try to avoid that."

"We'll be right here if you need anything," said Matilda.

The Doctor nodded. "Good to know." He turned to Clockwork and shared a respectful nod with him. He then faced Discord once again. "I'm ready."

"Took you long enough," Discord scoffed as he placed his holographic paw and claw on both sides of the Doctor's head. "This may sting a bit. You are falling into darkness after all."

The Doctor chuckled and closed his eyes. "I think I'm always falling into darkness."

"At least you've got some experience." Discord chuckled. "Okay. Here. We. Go!"

The Doctor felt an electrical surge course through his body. The floor spun out from under him. He opened his eyes to find himself looking into nothing but pure black. He was falling now. Wind whipped through his coat, mane, and suit as he plummeted through the endless void of remembrance.

"Into darkness I go," he whispered to himself as he prepared for the inevitable impact with whatever waited for him at the bottom.