Angelic Vampire

by kurusagi16

Calm Just Before a Storm

Calm Just Before a Storm

Fluttershy rested a hoof gently on her stomach. It still ached and hadn't completely heeled, but the bandages that Discord had put on her helped a little. She thought about how afterward, she and Discord talked. He told Fluttershy about how he was sucked into her aunt's scheme and how she had him going around spreading panic and strife to ponies in the towns of the attacks.

"Mind you, it's not nearly as entertaining as say, turning everything topsy-turvy with just a thought." Discord had said. "But it was still better than nothing. Heck, anything is better than nothing after being cooped up in stone for a thousand years." Fluttershy had asked him if he ever felt bad about tricking ponies and being so mean to them. Discord had regarded her question before answering, "Not really, no. However, you so far, have been the only pony that I actually pitied." Fluttershy then had asked him, why he'd pitied her. He'd waved his lion paw and had said, "I don't really know myself. Maybe because I thought that aunt of yours had gone too far or something."

"What do you mean?" Fluttershy had asked.

"I may be a Spirit of Chaos, but even I draw the line at certain things." While sitting on the floor of her prison, Fluttershy thought about how those words actually made sense (oddly enough). Discord so far, seemed to be more of a manipulator and a trickster. Somepony who got off of a good laugh at other ponies' expenses.

Fluttershy sighed. She couldn't tell for sure whether or not this was just another one of Discord's tricks, or if he was truly being sincere to her. So much was happening so fast that she still felt overwhelmed and confused. 'I'm just going to have to trust him.' thought Fluttershy. 'After all, that's what friends do. Trust each other. Even if he's an almost friend, I still need to try and give him the benefit of the doubt.'

---

After what felt like forever, Alistair's carriage finally pulled over in front of the mansion in the woods. Before getting out, he turned to Twilight and Rainbow Dash, and looked them both in the eye.

"Stay here." he said firmly. "I shan't be but a moment." And with that, he left the carriage and hurried inside the mansion.

"Sooo, what now?" asked Rainbow Dash. "Are just supposed to sit here and do nothing?"

"It's best if we do as he says." said Twilight wisely. "We just need to wait here until her gets back, and then we can continue trying to rescue Fluttershy."

"Ugh! But that could take forever!" groaned Rainbow. She stood up and headed for the carriage door.

"What do you think you're doing?!" asked Twilight.

"What does it look like I'm doing? I'm going out to see if I can speed things along."

"But Alistair told us to stay here!"

"Look, I get that, but we can't just sit here doing nothing. You saw what that vampire mare did to Fluttershy, imagine what she's doing to her now! We came here to rescue her, and that's exactly what I'm gonna do." Without another word, Rainbow Dash slipped out of the carriage, and headed for the mansion.

"Rainbow, wait!" Twilight called, following close behind Rainbow Dash.

Rainbow opened the creaky old door and stepped into the mansion. Long, dark shadows draped across the foyer, with only the dimmest of candle light available to provide a better view of the room.

"Whoa." she breathed, stepping further inside. "This place is like a haunted house." And indeed it was, very much like a haunted house. Complete with dusty furnishings, cobwebs, suits of armor standing on either side of the doorway, an old crystal chandelier, hanging from above, threatening to fall at any given moment, and faded portraits of serious and somewhat creepy ponies. Twilight couldn't help but shiver a little, getting a feeling of dread from knowing they weren't supposed to be there.

"L-let's just go back." stuttered Twilight, eying one of the suits of armor warily.

"No way." said Rainbow Dash, shaking her head. "Not until we find Alistair and his pals so that we can get in on the action."

Twilight let out a groan of frustration over Rainbow's stubbornness and trailed behind her, as the two continued deeper into the mansion. The rickety floorboards squeaked and creaked with every step their hooves made, the sound caused some of the critters, such as spiders and mice, who were hiding about on the floor, to quickly scuttle away as soon as the heard and saw the girls approaching.

"I don't like this." whispered Twilight. "Maybe we should--"

"Shh!" shushed Rainbow Dash, motioning for Twilight to be quiet. She raised an ear, and listened carefully. Just up ahead, coming from the room on the left, the muffled sounds of voices was coming through. Rainbow Dash flapped her wings, and quietly flew over to the door, gently resting a hoof on the knob. Twilight frantically moved her arms in wild gestures to tell Rainbow to stop, and mouthed the word no, but Rainbow Dash didn't pat any attention. She twisted the knob, and swung the door open, heading inside the room. Twilight put her hoof to her forehead and chased after her friend.

"What on earth is going on here?!" asked one of the vampires in shock. All heads turned to the doorway, looking at the two mares who stood there.

"I thought I told you two to stay in the carriage." said Alistair crossly, getting up from the futon he was sitting on.

"Right." Twilight laughed nervously. "So sorry to have intruded, my friend and I will get out of your hair immediately."

But Rainbow Dash remained where she was, floating a few inches off the ground with her arms folded over her chest. "Look, my friend and I came all this way to help rescue our other friend, Fluttershy, and we sure as heck aren't just gonna sit around and wait for you all to finish talking. Whatever it is, we want in on it too."

Twilight gaped at her, wondering if she wanted to get into more trouble or something. The vampires were silent, until one of them, a very elegant mare, spoke, "Very well then, you may sit and join us." she motioned for them to come closer and to have a seat. Twilight and Rainbow Dash obliged, and sat close to Alistair.

"Those are some very bold mares you have there." said the mare. Alistair glanced at them before nodding to the mare. "Now then, as we were saying before that, slight, interruption, you say that Eldra is responsible for all these attacks?"

"Yes Scarlet, and I know without a doubt, that whatever she plans to do with them, it's going to be big."

Scarlet nodded thoughtfully. "And she wants us at the Mortem Mountains, correct?"

"Correct."

Scarlet stood up, and began to pace the floor. "A little while ago," she added. "We've begun to notice that the half breeds are staring to withdraw from their attacks, no doubt Eldra plans to have them as her guard for your negotiations."

"What are you guys going to do about it?" asked Rainbow Dash, speaking up.

Scarlet glanced at her and said, "We will follow Eldra's established demands, and we will wait until there's an opportunity for us to strike down Eldra and her forces, while also rescuing your friend."

"Will it even work?" asked Twilight cautiously.

Scarlet looked away and muttered, "It must, we don't have very many other options on hoof."

The other vampires lowered their heads, solemnly agreeing with Scarlet. "We shall begin preparations to head for the mountains at once." she commanded. The rest of the vampires stood up, and went to carry out their orders.

As Scarlet passed by Alistair, she whispered sympathetically, "You have my deepest condolences."

"Wait a minute, what do we do?" called Rainbow Dash after Scarlet.

"You," Scarlet said with a coy smile. "Will wait for the the rest of us to take care of the dirty work before going and seeing if you can find where they're keeping your friend." And with that, she was gone.

Rainbow groaned. "But I actually wanted to help with the fighting! I mean, come on, how awesome would it be for me to fight off a horde of vampires?"

Twilight shook her head, wondering what she was going to do with her.

---

"And then, the old wizard actually thought he could try to negotiate with me. Me!" Discord chuckled. He'd stopped by to visit her, and she'd asked him to tell more about himself. "Though, to be perfectly frank, if I'd known that the alternative was being turned into a lawn ornament, then maybe I would've considered his negotiations."

"But why?" asked Fluttershy, looking at him with curiosity. "Why cause trouble? Why do any of this?"

Discord glanced at her and then said, "Well how could I not? After all, I am the Spirit of Chaos and Disharmony. Chaos and mischief has always been a part of me. Without it, well, there wouldn't be much reason for me to exist, no would there?"

Fluttershy tried to imagine Discord not having his magic. Without it, all he'd be is an eccentric and unusual creature. Very little would change to her. "I wouldn't say that." she said.

Discord folded his arms and arched a bushy eyebrow. "Oh really?"

Fluttershy nodded. "You'd still be you without your magic." she explained. "Even if you weren't able to do the things you normally do, you could try to find a new place in the world for yourself."

Discord was stunned by this. While this was all hypothetical, Discord couldn't help but wonder himself where he'd stand if he no longer had his chaotic power. For as long as he could remember, chaos came to him as naturally as breathing. To suddenly lose it was almost unthinkable. And to no longer be the Master of Chaos, what else would there be for him? What other role was there in this world that he could play?

"And if I don't find out on my own?" asked Discord. "What then?"

"Then I'd help you." answered Fluttershy kindly. "After all, friends help friends."

Discord couldn't help but scoff a little. "And what could a little pony like you possibly do that I can't on my own?"

"Well for one thing, I think you being my friend would be a good place to start."

Discord's smile wavered and he looked away from Fluttershy. "I'm afraid my dear, that your choice in friends is rather poor." he said. "Considering how I played you like a fiddle in order to bring you here." To emphasize his point, Discord conjured a little fiddle once he mentioned it, and played a little rendition of shaved at the haircut two bits.

Fluttershy put a hoof over her mouth, holding back a giggle and a smile before continuing. "We may have met under...bad circumstances, but, when papa comes, Eldra is stopped, abd all of this is over, I'd be happy to still have you as a friend. Maybe we could have tea in my villa and we can sort everything out."

Discord slowly turned his head and looked into Fluttershy's teal eyes. Had they always been so deep? So mesmerizing? He cleared his throat and said quietly, "That would be, lovely." Fluttershy beamed at him with a beautiful smile. His body grew warm, and he could feel his heart beating, he wondered if he was blushing. And if so, why in the world would he be doing so?

"Yes, well, that is if your father ever does come." said Discord, changing the subject.

"He will." insisted Fluttershy.

"You sound so certain." he remarked.

"When I was a baby, papa made a promise to mama that'd he'd take care of me and protect me."

"I can see how well that turned out." Discord muttered under his breath. But Fluttershy didn't hear and went on.

"So I know that no matter what, papa will do whatever it takes to find me and bring me back home."

"How do you know he will?"

"How do you know he won't?"

Discord had to admit, she had him there. It was possible that her father would do as she said and come gallantly to save her, like some knight in armor out to save the damsel. But unlike Fluttershy, Discord knew about the horde of vampires that Eldra had rounded up to deal with her father. While a great number of them had been eliminated by the other Pure Bloods, they were still great in numbers. Eldra had even made them all starve themselves so that they'd be ravenous for when the attack actually came. 'There's nothing more dangerous than a hungry animal.' Eldra had said. But Discord didn't have the heart to tell Fluttershy any of that. Instead, he sat down beside her on the stony floor and said, "You maybe be right, your father sounded like he cared about you dearly."

"He does." said Fluttershy. "I hope he's alright. He must be worried sick after seeing Eldra stab me."

"I'm sure he'll be alright." said Discord. "From what I've heard from Eldra, she made him out to be quite a powerful opponent."

Fluttershy laughed and nodded. "Yes, he is." As Fluttershy shifted, she winced and let out a groan of pain, putting a hoof over where her bandaged wound was.

"Is your wound bothering you?" asked Discord, showing concern.

"No, I'm fine," said Fluttershy, wincing once more.

"Here, let me."

Fluttershy froze, completely still, as Discord gently and tenderly began to apply some pressure to the wound as he redressed it. Both looked away from one another, their hearts pitter-pattering oh so slightly, and both wondering why they were acting this way.

"Th-thank you." said Fluttershy shyly.

"A-anytime." Discord replied, with a similar amount of shyness.

Little did any of them know, they were being watched, through a secret peephole in the wall. Eldra had been spying on the nauseatingly sweet scene, listening to every word and seeing every action.

"So, it seems Discord has decided to take pity on the poor dear." she sneered. "Then it shall be a pity for them, once I split the two up. They must be taught a lesson."

Eldra turned, as Drake entered the secret room, his red mane a slight mess, and his breath rigid.

"Well?" she asked him. "What did you find out?"

"They're on their way here now." gasped Drake.

"Excellent." She turned back to the peephole. "In a little while, I want you to summon Discord to my quarters. He's done his work, and I think it's about time to end our partnership." A devious smile crept onto Eldra's lips. She thought to herself, 'Soon, everypony will be taught a lesson.'

Comments

[HeartfireFirebrand]

"Excellent." She turned back to the peephole. "In a little while, I want you to summon Discord to my quarters. He's done his work, and I think it's about time to end our partnership." A devious smile crept onto Eldra's lips. She thought to herself, 'Soon, everypony will be taught a lesson.'

That would be a bad idea.