To the Ends of Reality
Spike regarded Discord in silent fear and for a long moment didn’t know what to do now. What could he do? It was Discord after all. Theoretically, his chaos magic all-but trumped other forms of magic, and as Spike didn’t even have that much, it meant that Spike wouldn’t stand much of a chance trying to resist the draconequus, especially on his own. After all, he had just frozen an entire audience of ponies with casual ease just so they could “talk” apparently…it was hard to even know how to defend one’s self against something like that.
So while Discord watched Spike with a smug grin, waiting for him to make the next move, Spike decided not to fight it for now until he had a better idea the true depth of his situation. “What do you want with me?” he asked aloud, his nervousness showing in his voice.
“I told you, I want to talk!” Discord repeated brightly. “Isn’t that what friends do? Get together and talk, like the chums they are?”
By this point, it had occurred to Spike that Discord hadn’t yet confirmed he actually knew it was him he was talking to and not some other dragon. “How are we friends?” he asked, trying to act innocent and unknowing. “I’m just a normal dragon citizen living in Vanhoover. We’ve certainly never crossed paths before, have we? So—”
“Oh please, spare me the act!” Discord bemoaned with unnecessary exaggeration. He snapped his talons and suddenly Spike’s false glasses flew off his face and onto Discord’s before Spike could even do anything to react. “You may have fooled all of Vanhoover with that silly disguise Spike, but you’re certainly not fooling me!” He gave Spike a critical look through the false eyeglasses he now sported on his nose. “Couldn’t you have at least chosen a better name for yourself? I mean, Spark? How unoriginal.”
Spike frowned, and folded his arms with harrumph. “I thought I’d still try, even if it was a long shot,” he confessed to the draconequus.
“Long shot indeed!” Discord agreed, snapping his fingers and returning Spike’s glasses back to their owner. “And it’s not like it’s even necessary!” He swept one paw out at the frozen audience sat before the stage they were on. “They certainly aren’t going to notice anything. No one on the airship is going to notice thanks to me.”
Spike blinked as he realized what Discord was implying. “You froze everyone that’s on the airship?” he repeated in alarm, realizing this likely included Thorax.
“All except us!” Discord confirmed with a nod. “It wasn’t like it was that hard. It’s mostly just our lovely audience here and the skeleton crew running the ship. The rest of the ship is practically deserted now that your little convention is all wrapping up.” He turned back to Spike with a grin. “That gives us plenty of time to talk, and without any fear of interruption! Or any fear of you getting discovered!”
Spike snorted, angered by Discord’s casual attitude about all of this, as well as his habitual tendency to be vague and not straightforward with his little games. “Why go to all this trouble then?” he demanded. “If you really just wanted to talk, couldn’t you have just asked?”
“Where’s the fun in that?” Discord whined. “I wanted to surprise you! Surprise!”
“And why do you want to talk now?” Spike challenged next, not having the patience for this. “In all this time you could’ve used to seek me out at any time to talk in the space of time we’ve known each other, both before and after your so-called reformation, you have never done so. You’ve barely even acknowledged that I exist! So what changed? What do you really want?”
“What, now that you’ve taken up the life of a banished outcast in hiding, you’re suddenly too good to talk with ol’ Discord?” Discord criticized, putting his hands on his hips. “Hmpf, how much the life of crime changes people these days…”
Spike’s eyes narrowed suspiciously and he felt a cold chill run over him as he realized a frightfully real possibility of why Discord might be here. “Did Twilight send you?” he asked simply.
“Twilight?” Discord crowed, apparently finding the very thought mock-worthy. “HA! She wishes she could get me to tell her where you and your little changeling friend are, but she’s just jealous she hasn’t been able to find hair or hide of you two anywhere herself!” Discord shook his head, starting to pace in a circle around Spike. “No, if anything, I’m trying to get away from her constant nagging on the matter. ‘Oh Discord, go find Spike for me,’ ‘Discord, a good friend would help me find Spike and get him away from the evil changeling,’ ‘Discord, find Spike before I get really mad!’ ‘Do it now, Discord, or else!’” Discord wiggled one claw in his ear. “You know, for a nerdy princess of friendship, she can really shout when she wants to. I don’t know how you managed to put up with her for as long as you did…”
“How did you find me?” Spike asked next, growing concerned if there was some trail he and Thorax had left that Discord followed, and if others could follow it if they found it too.
“Dear Spike, I always knew where you were,” Discord replied sweetly, leaning a little too close to Spike in the process. “Right from the beginning! You could never hide from me. I am the veritable king of hide and seek…though even I have to admit Pinkie Pie comes in a very close second place…”
“If you really knew where I was at this whole time, then why come now?” Spike challenged, suspecting Discord wasn’t being truthful, and if so, what the game he was playing really was. “What changed? And if you really knew before now, why haven’t you led the others right to me, since that’s clearly what they want?”
“I thought you wanted to keep away from them though, Spike!” Discord reasoned as he continued to circle the dragon. “Wasn’t that the whole point of getting yourself banished like you did? I must commend you on that by the way, what a wonderful little mess of chaos you’ve brought about because of that! You just might have more of a talent for chaos than you think, Spike!”
“Answer the question Discord,” Spike pressed, who was now wondering if Discord was deliberately stalling for time. Even though he doubted he could escape Discord, he began discreetly eyeing ways to escape should this all really be some kind of trap. But as he already knew, his options were not especially good, the only reason why he was still here trying to argue this out at all.
“Then the answer is that I just wanted to wait and see, see how things played out!” Discord answered immediately this time at least. “Can you blame me? It’s all playing out a little like a soap opera! Will Spike ever forgive poor Twilight? Will Thorax ever prove he is a friend and not a foe and gain the trust of other ponies? Will we ever find out where Fly Leaf stands in all of this? Will Spike and Thorax ever go to the Dragon Realms already? Actually, I suppose that one’s been more or less answered already, hasn’t it?...”
“Then for the last time, WHAT CHANGED?” Spike roared, fed up with the draconequus’s playing around. “You don’t just do these things without some kind of ulterior motive Discord, you never come just to talk! So what do you really want?”
“I do too come just to talk!” Discord pouted, ignoring Spike’s question, to the dragon’s growing fury. “I do that all the time with Fluttershy! She’s been speaking of you often, by the way! Good things, too! Lamenting that you went missing, wishing you were back in Ponyville and all that…” He leaned closer to Spike, pressing his face into the dragon’s and smirking. “It’s all so…touching.”
Inwardly Spike felt a flare of panic, worried Fluttershy might have told Discord something about how she had secretly visited them when Thorax was sick, and thus was one of the few ponies that actually knew who and where they were…not that it would seem to matter at this point, as clearly Discord knew those same details himself. But Spike determinedly forced himself not to show it, and instead pretended he knew nothing of that. “And just what would Fluttershy know about the matter?”
“You have more friends than you realize, Spike,” Discord said, straightening again and putting on professional look that seemed off on him, the master of chaos. “That’s why I’m here.”
“You’re here because I have friends,” Spike repeated flatly, wishing Discord would get to the point already.
“Well, I know all your other friends,” Discord reasoned, placing his talons to his chest. “So I think it’s only fair I get to know this changeling pal of yours too.” He glanced around the dining hall. “So where is the little bug?”
“You leave Thorax out of this,” Spike growled, wanting to spare Thorax this grief as much as he could.
“You know, I don’t think he’s even in here!” Discord remarked, proceeding to ignore Spike while standing on his tippy-toes and peering over the heads of the frozen audience. “It’s certainly not your pumpkin orange boss there.”
Spike glanced at Fly’s frozen form, stuck obliviously in the middle of a big grin, and realized, even though it should’ve struck him sooner, that Discord already knew all about her…meaning she wasn’t guaranteed to be safe from his torment either if Discord ever got the fancy. “Whatever you want Discord, you focus it only on me,” Spike repeated. “You leave them out of this.”
“Oh fine,” Discord said, throwing his arms down to his sides, stepping up to Spike once more. “If you won’t tell me where he is, we’ll just go to him.
Spike’s eyes widened in alarm. “Discord, don’t—”
But it was too late. With one snap of his claws and a flash of light, they were suddenly teleported from the dining room stage to an entirely different location on the airship. Spike quickly glanced around and realized it had to be the observation deck Thorax had spoken of, for the room came to a point at the center edge, matching the shape of the airship’s prow to form a loose triangle shape, and was lined with large windows that overlooked the city of Vanhoover. It was actually a wonderful view, with the sun just finishing setting on the western horizon, but Spike couldn’t enjoy it at the moment, and was more worried about Discord and what he planned to do to Thorax if he found him.
Fortunately, there were a couple of ponies in the room at that moment, all frozen like the audience they had left in the dining room, and as Thorax was naturally still disguised among them, Discord didn’t seem to immediately know which one was him. “Hmm, let’s see, which one, which one…” he muttered to himself as he strolled about the room, scanning each of the ponies in turn.
Spike’s eyes ran over where Thorax stood to his left, disguised as Thornton and had been calmly standing at one of the windows facing away from the Martingale Building watching the sunset before getting frozen by Discord’s magic. But Spike forced his eyes to move right on past Thorax and onto the other ponies in the room without slowing, determined to do nothing to give away his friend to the draconequus searching for him. Whatever Discord planned, Spike wasn’t going to play along with it.
Unfortunately, he didn’t have to. “I suppose it’d be easier if he wasn’t trying to blend in though, wouldn’t it?” Discord remarked finally, shooting a teasing glance in Spike’s direction before snapping his fingers once more. With a flash of cyan, Thorax’s disguise suddenly dropped, revealing the frozen changeling’s natural form to Spike’s utter alarm. “Ah, there he is!” Discord remarked, and proceeded to stroll up to his target. “The famed changeling that dared to take the young Spike away from the grand Princess of Friendship, Twilight Sparkle!”
Spike immediately moved to put himself between Discord and Thorax. “Put him back the way he was, Discord!” he demanded, barring the draconequus’s path.
Discord simply walked right through Spike like he was a ghost, not even slowing. Spike had to stop and pat himself over urgently, making sure he was all really there and still fully tangible. This gave Discord the chance he needed to walk right up to Thorax and look him over critically.
“Hmm, not much to look at is he?” he remarked aloud, rubbing his chin as he eyed the changeling over. “But then again, these changelings all look alike, y’know?”
“Discord,” Spike said in a warning tone, turning to approach the draconequus. “Leave him alone!”
“Oh hush!” Discord said, snapping his fingers and causing a zipper to seal Spike’s mouth. “You’re almost as bad as Twilight. I’m not doing anything to hurt him.” He then proceeded to poke Thorax up and down his back with one claw. “Wonder how resilient this chitin or whatever he has is…I suppose he’ll need it if caught in the crowd of ponies and unable to disguise himself…” he turned thought for a moment. “Makes me almost want to try it and find out…”
With some fumbling, Spike managed to unzip his lips and charged at Discord, tugging at his goat leg. “Don’t you dare!” he shouted. “You give him back his disguise, right now!”
“It’s not like anyone is going to see him!” Discord argued, playing with Thorax’s wings, waggling them back and forth with his claws. They made squeaky hinge noises as he did this, no doubt thanks to some subtle use of magic from Discord. “Besides, who’s going to stop me?”
“I swear Discord, if you don’t back off from him right now…” Spike snarled, giving Discord’s leg a hard shove in his attempts to stop the draconequus.
This resulted in Discord immediately whirling upon Spike, suddenly menacing. “Or what?” he growled darkly, advancing upon Spike and thrusting his face into Spike’s forcing the dragon to backpedal away. “What? You’ll thrash me? You? You couldn’t even get Twilight Sparkle to listen to you…what really makes you think you could possibly take on the lord and master of chaos himself, eh?”
Furious, Spike responded by punching Discord as hard as he could in the face.
Surprised, but unhurt, Discord reeled back, standing straight. “You hit me!” he declared in surprise, rubbing his cheek. “Twilight never hit me.”
“I’m not Twilight,” Spike replied firmly.
“Indeed not,” Discord agreed, raising his eyebrows approvingly. “You’re much easier to provoke, to fight back.”
“Darn straight!” Spike declared, moving to stand between him and Thorax, throwing his arms out to bar the draconequus from approaching him again. “Maybe I am outmatched by your abilities in every possible way and then some, but Thorax is my friend, and I will not just stand here idly and permit you to walk all over him and do him harm!” He leveled his gaze coldly at Discord. “I will do whatever I can to protect him from the likes of you if I have to…even if it’s a fight I can’t possibly win.”
Discord was quiet for a moment, letting Spike’s words hang in the air between him, before finally grinning. He snapped his fingers, and with another flash of cyan, Thorax’s disguise was restored back to precisely the way it was before, with no one but him and Spike the wiser. “How fortunate for you.” Discord remarked. He snapped his fingers again, and then suddenly he and Spike were back on stage in the dining room, standing before the still-frozen audience. Discord resumed circling Spike again but this time with an air approval. “Congratulations Spike, you’ve passed the test!”
Spike, blinked, confused by this unexpected turn of events. “What test?” he asked, turning to watch Discord circle him.
“Well, that’s what I wanted to talk to you about, but I couldn’t just tell you that you were being tested,” Discord explained with a smirk. “That would’ve spoiled the whole test, told you what you needed to know to pass.”
Spike’s brow furrowed, still not sure he understood. “So what was the test?” he asked cautiously.
“Well, like I said, I had been holding off on doing or saying anything about you two, wanting to wait and see what would happen,” Discord explained patiently as he continued to circle Spike. “But it’s been just shy of three moons and I still hadn’t seen for certain the answers I was looking for.” He leaned closer to Spike as he walked around the dragon, smirking. “There’s far more to friendship, Spike, than merely being in the presence of one another, following them around, and tolerating their company on a regular basis after all…an element that truly shows that you actually care.” He motioned to himself. “Take myself and young Fluttershy, for example. Should danger make the silly mistake of threatening her in any way, I would personally go to the ends of reality itself to protect her from harm…and I wouldn’t let a little thing like insurmountable odds stand in my way, either.”
Spike blinked again, taken aback by this rare and passionate display of self-confession from the draconequus, having never realized Discord actually cared that much for anyone other than himself. But then again, Spike conceded it did make a degree of sense, because out of everyone, Fluttershy was the one to show the most trust in Discord, the one who was willing to stand up and defend him. And then it clicked in Spike’s brain what Discord was getting at. The same could be said about him and Thorax.
“You were testing to see if my friendship with Thorax was actually genuine,” he breathed in realization.
“Yes!” Discord declared eagerly, snapping his claws and making a graduation cap appear on Spike’s head along with a diploma in the dragon’s claws. “He can be taught!” He grinned smugly as Spike proceeded to toss the cap and diploma aside. “And after that little display of yours, I am pleased to announce that your friendship is very real and very strong. I know now you would go to similar lengths to protect that friend, just like I would for my own. And I heartily approve!” He ruffled Spike’s spines in an oddly affectionate manner, and Spike found he couldn’t help but grin a little. Discord then strolled on past Spike, turning to stand to one side of the stage. “I see now that the danger Twilight and the others believe in does not actually exist, and never did. So I will continue to keep your little secret Spike. I won’t breathe a word to Twilight and her friends about any of this, nor to anyone else that might try to mess with that wonderful friendship of you’ve got going, and with a changeling of all things!”
Spike’s grin grew. “You promise?”
“Cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye, as the pink one likes to say,” Discord responded, seriously miming out the Pinkie Promise. “How is it that she puts it…something about breaking it and you’ll lose your friend?”
“FOREVER!” Pinkie suddenly shouted at the top of her lungs from where she stood ringing up the total for Sugercube Corner’s last customer of the day. Behind her, in the middle of moving some empty baking trays as the bakery prepared to close, Mr. Cake stumbled in surprise at Pinkie’s shout and crashed to the floor, sending the pile of baking trays clattering to the floor. Pinkie’s customer simply stared on in wide-eyed shock at all of this as Pinkie, acting like nothing had happened, finished working with the cash register, humming a little tune. “That’ll be three bits!” she told the customer cheerily.
Spike regarded Discord for a long moment. “So you’re saying we’re friends now?” he asked, partly in teasing, knowing that was something Discord didn’t usually like to admit upfront.
Discord merely continued to smirk. He snapped his talons and with another flash, Spike was back in the chair and Discord standing beside him, disguised as the stallion hypnotist once more, as if they had never moved. “It will be an uphill battle that you two face young Spike…but I believe you’re more than up for the task.” He grinned knowingly at Spike, before glancing out at the audience, raising one hoof. “Smile for the audience now.”
He stomped twice yet again and abruptly the audience resumed moving again like nothing had happened, finishing the laugh they had been in the middle of before proceeding to applaud for a finished act that had never taken place.
“Isn’t he wonderful?” Discord declared, playing the part of the hypnotist again while thrusting a hoof at Spike and motioning for the dragon to stand. “Let’s give him a big ol’ applause!” The applause continued eagerly while Spike sheepishly stood, Discord patting him on the back in the process. “Thank you for your time, young volunteer,” he said to Spike, offering his disguised hoof.
Spike grinned as he took the offered hoof and shook it. “Thank you,” he said in reply.
They then parted ways, Discord waving cheerily at the unsuspecting audience as he walked off the stage and was not seen again, while Spike walked almost in a daze back to his seat beside Fly Leaf, none the wiser from the whole event.
“That was a hoot!” she chuckled as Spike sat himself back down. “The way that he made you hop around the stage like a rabbit was just too much!”
Spike chuckled sheepishly, a little embarrassed that was what everyone was going to remember from all of this, but he otherwise didn’t comment, and continued munching on what remained of his dinner, having suddenly worked up an appetite. He sat through the rest of the show without paying too close attention to it, having much to think about. After it ended, they met back up with Thorax, still in disguise and none the wiser as well, and finished packing up their booth into Fly’s cart, filed out of the airship and back down through the Martingale Building, and made the trip back for the shop. It was well after dark by the time they stepped through the front door, and Fly urged them to head right for bed so they could be up bright and early for work tomorrow.
Thorax was in a good mood as they slipped into their room, Spike numbly closing their door behind him. “That airship was a joy to be in,” the changeling remarked aloud as he dropped his disguise in preparation for bed. “Too bad we couldn't have actually flown anywhere in it…but I do hope I get the chance to be in an airship again.”
Spike watched him curiously as Thorax adjusted some of the blankets making up his sleeping nest. “You really don’t remember a thing of it, do you?” he asked aloud, finding this almost odd to perceive.
Thorax glanced at him blankly. “Remember what?”
Spike remained calm and still. “During the show,” he explained simply, without cause for concern. “I was visited by Discord.” Seeing Thorax turn to look at him with concern, he nodded. “Yeah…the personification of chaos himself.”
Thorax was quiet for a moment, processing this. “What did he want?” he asked finally, with caution.
At this, Spike grinned. “I guess to help,” he replied, and proceeded to explain in brief the encounter to Thorax.
By the end, Thorax was tilting his head at Spike, looking both heartened and uncertain by this development. “So…Discord is siding with us now?”
Spike smirked. “More or less.”
“Well that’s good, right? We’ve got quite a powerful ally now!”
“…sort of. Let’s not forget that Discord’s idea of helping is to more or less turn a blind eye to the whole matter and not get involved.”
“But he did promise to cover for us, and not tell anyone where we are…” Thorax smiled optimistically. “…sounds to me that maybe Discord isn’t as bad as I had always thought. I mean, to put it delicately…he does have a bit of a reputation back in the hive…”
“And he’s probably earned every word of it too,” Spike stated confidently, but there was an optimistic grin on his face too. He shrugged. “I just have to admit, I’m still sort of stunned by it all. I never knew Discord had a soft side like this.” He sighed. “I just hope he doesn’t decide to get clever with this and turn it into something for his own amusement…he’s had problems with that in the past.”
Thorax just shrugged, indifferent. “Nobody’s perfect.” He proceeded to settle down into his sleeping nest. “Nonetheless…I think all in all today was a pretty good day.”
Spike chuckled as he proceeded to take off his disguise for bed himself. “And may we have plenty more days like it ahead of us,” he murmured aloud, finding he still had much to think about on the matter.
I originally did not plan for Discord to appear at all in this story. Beyond maybe a verbal reference to him in passing by name, he wasn't to feature in the tale in any form at all. In fact, back in the early chapters of the story, I told one reader asking about Discord precisely as such. But some chapters back, I got the idea for Discord making his sudden appearance here and talking with Spike and found it appealed to me. By that time I already had plans to speculate on where Discord stood on all of this in conversation during Fluttershy's visit, but I figured you readers would rather hear it directly from the draconequs's mouth himself, so I made it happen. Plus, it enabled me to put Discord in a very Q-like sort of scenario, and of course I couldn't pass THAT up.
The problem with Discord though is that, frankly, he's too OP. He literally could just snap his fingers and sort out this whole situation for the better just like that...which sort of spoils the whole story, and that's why I hadn't been planning to include him in the first place. He provided a much too easy way out of the mess that I would have to excuse away somehow if I got him too ingrained in the tale, and past experience has taught me that the best and easiest way to fix that is to just not bring such things into the tale in the first place, and keep it that way. So, with that in mind, you probably won't see much more of Discord after this in this story, for largely those same reasons. I know that might disappoint some, and I can't really blame you...Discord honestly is a fun character. But I hope I make my reasons why clear, and at the very least, I still found way to get him a moment in the spotlight regardless. 
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HA! That was good. I like the Aladdin reference in that exchange of Discord and Spike as well. Looks like Spike and Thorax have a good ally to have now...though I would have liked Discord to at least talk to Thorax for a bit. Oh well, this was still really good.
Also...I think this is a mistake here:
Do you mean 'a hoot' here?
it would be better to have skipped Discord. He is not a trickster mentor and this doesn't really read true to him. I also don't think giving him precognative abilities so he can say "oh things are going to be worse before they're better"
How much longer until the climax, and then the conclusion!? The suspense is figuratively killing me here!
Ah yes, the best scene from the entire first season of DS9. Don't lie, you heard it in the Sisko's voice as well
Discord may be "reformed", but he still has to be true to himself, and I'm sure he would never ever provide an easy way out of a mess.
8166853 I don't think its about the easy way out compared to the fact that Discord could basically teleport Spike and Thorax right to Twilight and make them talk it out. Unfortunately, despite that being the easiest solution to all of the problems, there would be ZERO fun in it. That's why Discord is OP but can still be used. He can provide the easy way out every time. He just doesn't have to.
couldn't discord easily disprove the mental control theroy being a master of such magics himself?
I love these. So much.
I think if you wouldn't have included Discord, I would've assumed that he would have played this sort of role of letting things play out without intervening, it seems like that is usually how his character works in the show, he sort of aims to teach others a lesson by letting them figure it out on their own.
However I am glad that you included this elaboration on his part in the whole story, even if it could've hypothetically worked without including it, it still adds to the world and character building you've made thus far.
Also, you seem to use the [
] in your authors notes a lot, is this foreshadowing kappa???
Was there a reason why Discord was testing Spike ? Douse he know something Spike doesn't ?
I don't know if Discord could predict the future but if he could I feel like that makes sense on why he was testing Spike.
Pinkie randomness get me everytime
I think I know why Discord finally moved his behind to work the case. Fluttershy was worrying for Spike scince he left but she knows he's fine now. Discord must've noticed a change in her behavior and decided it might be intresting to check it out for himself after all... Twilight doesn't have crap on Discord.
oh i'm sure you will find a way to bring discord back eventually. if only to stand in spikes corner when this entire situation comes to a head. as it inevitably will. or just for 'shits n giggles' in a random situation. After all, the master of chaos does whatever he wants for whatever strange reasons.
8166781
*sighs* Yes. *goes and fixes it*
8166796
I can tell you that we're about six or seven chapters away from the "beginning of the end," if that helps.
8166803
And it worked too; Q never bothered Sisko again after that. You taking notes, Picard?
8166872
Yes he would. That's sort of why I view him as the "easy way out."
8166941
Sadly no, it's just the smiley in the site's selection that's most often the most fitting for the sort of emotion I wish to convey.
8167233
I'm certainly on the lookout for a way to do it, I just haven't found it yet. Still got a few more chapters to write until the end of the story though, so...I've got time.
Congratulations on ruining my sleep for a night while I binged through the entirety of this fic. Intriguing premise that's spectacularly executed so far. It's been quite a long, slow burn, though, and I hope we're closing in on the endgame arc soon. Anxiously awaiting the rest, but for now you have an avid fan. Keep it up.
--CG
8167571 Sorry. Didn't mean to frustrate you.
Discord will totally come back... though, probably to congratulate everypony once this mess is resolved.
8167006 Well he did say three moons so the send and receive letter spell block is about to wear off
Nearly 200,000 words and it feels like no progress has been made since they got the job at flyleaf's. I'm getting story fatigue and I find myself skimming the last few chapters. It just feels like there are no consequences. YOU'RE EXILED! they don't leave. IT'S AFFECTING EVERY PONY VERY MUCH! focus instead on the mundane lives of Spike and thorax as you learn about changling headcannon.
Once again, I'm complaining just to complain, and you certainly have many readers who enjoy this story, but I don't know if I'll be able to finish it if it continues like this. The earlier chapters gave me the assumption of something so much more. Just frustrated that I got my hopes up. Sorry.
I'm really glad Discord Showed up. I mean he's the Lord of chaos there's no way he wouldnt at some point get invovled
to tell her where they are.
Also in so glad you brought Discord in like this, it worked so well. And I totally understand how OP he is. This is frankly more like something he'd do anyway.
Also also,I love Thorax's "Nobody's perfect" near the end. It was touching for some reason.
Loved this chapter, but...
...I know you have your own ideas but...
...look, what I'm trying to say is...
Thorax X Fly Leaf would be AWESOME!!!!!
Besides that I'm loving the story.
Great chapter. Discord is the best
... Lol, DS9 reference - awesome! Especially thr blooper of that scene where DeLancie accidentally says "ravish" instead of "ravage" lol
8167743
Nah, really only frustrated at myself for missing that obvious error.
8168083
Actually, to be perfectly honest...that spell wore off ages ago. Unless Thorax has been renewing it regularly since then...haven't decided yet.
8168126
Sorry there isn't enough action, drama, explosions...whatever catches your fancy...in the story. Regrettably, I've already cut out all the supposed "fluff" that I can from the story plan. Everything else MUST be in the story in order to ensure...certain things...are adequately set up as they happen in the ending. Y'know...setting the scene stuff. But from the sounds of it, I'm pretty sure you'll like the ending of the story, or at most be intrigued by it. If nothing else, maybe you can come back and read the final few chapters once it's all said and done.
8168305
Fixed.
8168327
No Thorax x Fly Leaf, I'm afraid...I have something else in mind. You'll see in about two more chapters.
8168541 sorry! its great, but its just one tease after another! flyleaf almost finding out due to a sick thorax. the fight where thorax's identity might've gotten revealed? oh, nope, gang kids cool, and the crystals are not cameras. and this chapter!
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and again nothing happens.
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just alot of false starts that get to be too draining.I really enjoy your prose and world building. i cannot stress enough that its an awesome story! Im just mad cause im so excited! Im TOO excited. Im So EXCITED I COULD JUST -media2.giphy.com/media/fk2WAfDYRFwvS/giphy.gif
THE SUSPENSE IS KILLING ME!
8168541 Oh. Well alright then.
8168597
This isn't what you're going to want to hear then, but I'm actually immensely thrilled to hear that. As you might have guessed, I love building the suspense.
...sometimes to a fault though, which is why every time you or someone else has commented about things not moving along fast enough, I treat it seriously and, every time, look for some way to possibly fix it and hurry things along. Already I've dropped about 5-6 planned chapters precisely because of these comments, and wish I could do more to appeal to you and others on this. Unfortunately, I really have reached the point that if I start cutting out any more, I feel it's going to start hurting the overall quality of the story, right as it starts to hit THE most key chapters, and I don't think any of you want that.
But at the very least know your comments on the matter certainly aren't being ignored. And there's usually a method to my madness, I just can't elaborate right now because of spoilers. And also if it helps, I'm eager to get to the end of the story too...though obviously for completely different reasons, as I'm excited to see what everyone's reactions will be. That will be when I know if it all paid off.
What? I'm caught up?! I never asked for this! I need more!
Here's a thought, why havent they locked up Shining Armor? Or any of the ponies from the Canterlot Invasion? Because if this hive mind twilight made up exists, then they would be a part of it too.
Also would this show up on the Castle Map as a friendship problem? And if so, where would it appear? Because if it was centered on twilight's location that would be hilarious.
Love this chapter. Especially when, Discord, got punched in the face.
Discord may be OP but, he still doesn't make things easy for others. Which is good in a lot of ways. You did good on his character.
8170571
That's actually a very good point! I'll have to remember to bring that up in a later chapter...I think it would lend credence to Spike and Thorax's defense nicely.
As for the map, I haven't had the chance to really bring it up in the story yet, but the map IS aware of all of this and has already...acted accordingly. It's just no one has realized what it's been subtly doing just yet, much less why.
Love this chapter. Fav. part was the punch in, Discords, face.
He maybe OP, but he doesn't make things easy for others. You did good with his characters.
Wow, what a twist awesome chapter!!!
question,
Technically Chaos Magic was trumped by the Elements of Harmony. It was also disabled during To where and back again.
Short of mind-controlling everyone into compliance, he couldn't, really. I mean, what can he do in a physical sense that would be more capable of convincing Twilight than anything Spike or Thorax are actually capable of saying? The fundamental problem here is that her problem with Thorax is unfalsifiable: reality doesn't matter, because nothing he could say, do or show her is capable of disproving her stated assumption that it might still just be a lie. If Discord got involved, what changes, really? Nothing. She has almost as little reason to trust him as to trust Thorax. If all her friends together couldn't change her mind, then Discord (a well-known jerk) won't, either.
Discord is only OP if you keep putting him into situations where his powers are actually capable of making a difference. A good story simply puts him into a situation where they're not.
I see that Aladdin reference.
Ok, I also want to mention this. You've made me pull a Thorax. I should've gone to bed 2 or 3 hours ago, but I just had to keep reading. If that isn't a sign of a well written story, I don't know what is.
I understand your reasons for not bringing Discord in except as a "I'll keep your secret but won't be involved" way. Another author called the involvement of Discord in a story "Mutually Assured Discords" using the same acronym as Mutually Assured Destruction.
Honestly, Discord does seem like the kind of guy to sit back and watch things unfold.
Heck, the only reason he stepped in now is because he wanted to be sure that the whole thing was worth checking out.
Way to pass the test Spike
.
This gag has just been hilarious all the way through.
Heh, a Q reference.
Even Discord is not immune from Pinkie Pie…