> Moon Milk > by Wonderbolt Writer > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > Chapter 1: The Perfect Mix > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- (?) - Unkown years before Nightmare Moon. Working long and hard into the day was very taxing on Princess Luna given her usual nocturnal nature. But she couldn't give up now, not after all the sleepless days she had spent perfecting her recipe. This, would change everything, most probably. Chocolate and milk, both delicious and oh so different from one another but she was dead set on meshing her favorite candy and dairy product together into some new perfection. The combination often reminded the Princess of the Night of her own relationship with her elder sister Celestia. Two different entities co-existing in harmony for the betterment of all Pony kind. Now if she could just get this chocolate milk to do the same, surely it would do double the good. After being booted from the castle kitchen and other locations several times over, she felt her room was now the only place she had left to carry out her work. Sure blending the ingredients together was simple enough but it had to be more than that. It had to be perfect. And she had no shortage of time needed to devote herself to this little project. In these peaceful times, the Kingdom of Equestria could practically run itself. That simple fact troubled her sister to no end. She would say, 'Don't be so carefree Luna. This could merely be the calm before a great and turbulent storm. We must remain vigilant.' A knock came at the door. "Luna are you in there?" called out Celestia, barging in before Luna could respond. Luna didn't bother to look up from studying her notes. "I believe you just answered your own question before I could, sister." Celestia smiled sheepishly. "Sorry, I shall be more respectful next time." Her gaze panned over her siblings room, all seemed neat and in it's place save for that small patch of unholiness in the corner that was filled with a pile of milk bottles and chocolate bar wrappers. Quietly, Celestia gobbled down the last third of an abandoned chocolate bar left lying on the floor. "You know Luna-" "Yes, yes. I should be asleep and saving my energies for the imminent moment when the lives of all of Pony kind are threatened by some as-of-yet unforeseen foe!" Luna interjected. "I see you got your mane in a bit of a twist? Too bad, I've got to get this mix right. I have almost..." she trailed off, concentrating on mixing the confectionery concoction in front of her with a steadily increasing speed. "Don't you think you've maybe spent a little too much time on this project of your's already? How many ways can there possibly be to mix chocolate with milk?" Luna shot a semi-piercing gaze at Celestia, obviously offended. "Hmph...Is that a serious query, sister? I've got notes you know. Lot and lots and lots of notes, from my many moons of research! So given your love of note taking, surely that must amount for something in your eyes?" The night pony haphazardly guzzled down her latest creation at once, giving it no time to breathe. Celestia nibbled on another bit of candy she'd found after committing the un-princess-like act of rummaging through her sister's trash. "Luna, you've only been at this for just two days. And I've told you before, the second batch you gave me to try was practically perfect. Why go on?" " 'Practically perfect' will not suffice, Celestia." At once Luna used her powers to condense a mass of wrappers almost as large as her bed down to the size of a mere volleyball and tossed it into the waste basket. It blew apart upon making contact with the heavy wad. "And that second batch will be nothing but a distant memory once you treat your taste buds to my very latest creation!" Celestia magically grasped the newest bottle that Luna had levitated over to her. "Okay, if it will help get your focus back on your royal duties, I will try it." Luna watched anxiously as her sister slowly moved the top of the bottle to her muzzle, taking in the fragrance as both a joy and a precautionary measure. Then she drank it. A mere sip at first then, before she knew it the whole thing had been downed a fraction of a second later. Luna's heart beat rapidly, that was the very reaction she had been hoping for. No words spoken, just a pony genuinely devouring and enjoying her product with gusto. Celestia was ecstatic. "Woah, Luna..." Wide eyed she gazed at the bottle, "This was the most amazing drink I have ever tasted in all my life. Absolutely wonderful work!" Nothing but silence came from Luna as there were no words to describe how happy she was right at that moment. Just a massive, head weight increasing smile was plastered on her face. "Oh sister, this has made me most happy." Okay, maybe there were some words to describe her inner delight. "Why I haven't been filled with joy like this since we both got our cutie marks!" A very pleased Celestia embraced her little sister. "I am happy you met with success, Luna. But what are you going to do now that you've done it?" By now if the smile Luna bore grew any wider her head would explode. "I am going to personally deliver a shipment of my patented 'Moon Milk' to some random citizens of our land!" She placed a crudely drawn map of Equestria down on the table and placed a blindfold over Celestia's eyes. "Now just place your hoof down on the map after I spin you around three...or ten times and wherever you point is the lucky settlement that is to be graced with my royal presence." "But Luna..." Celestia stopped herself. She had hoped the response would be that her sister would now return her focus to her duties. "Just let her get this out of her system." she thought. "She'll end up going no matter what I say." Without saying a single word more on the matter she allowed Luna to spin her around. Then after being sufficiently disoriented she planted her right hoof down firmly on the table with an audible thunk. "So, hehe, where will you be headed?" "Hmm..." Luna examined the map. "Okay, sooo where you just chose is the complete and utter middle of nowhere. Not what I had in mind. But it looks like the closest place to where you landed is a fledgling, little settlement called, Manehattan. I still say it should've been named Ponyville but I digress, it shall do just fine." Almost immediately Luna took flight to depart. "Wait!" Celestia shouted, more than a bit shocked by her sibling's rashness. "You're leaving right now, as in right now?" Luna raised an eyebrow, almost confused by this query. "But of course dear sister, why delay my journey?" "But I...u-um." Cele stammered, at a loss for words. "Okaaaay, I guess now is as good as ever but what about packing the milk properly or getting some sleep first and while you're at it, why don't you just stay here and treat the castle guards to your drink?" "One, no packing is necessary as I shall prepare the beverage fresh on site. And two...you are right. I am tired and will start fresh tomorrow, thank you." Luna took a deep breath inward, taking on a more serious demeanor before switching into her royal canterlot voice. "AND THIRD, LET IF BE KNOWN THAT PRINCESS LUNA DOES NOT SHOW FAVORITISM TOWARDS THE PONIES THAT ARE CLOSEST IN PROXIMITY TO HER RESIDENCE. I CARE FOR ALL OF MY SUBJECTS EQUALLY." Her booming voice echoed throughout the castle halls, shaking even it's sturdily constructed walls. "There, now the ponies of the land won't be filled with envy at the castle guards being the first ponies to enjoy chocolate milk." Suddenly in the distance, the sound of a eight layer cake that had just been completed and taken all morning to produce could be heard toppling over along with the alarmed gasp of poor lil' Gwetta the royal baker. Celestia remained calm by gently placing her hoof to her forehead and letting out a deep, calming breath. Luna knew immediately what her sister would say next. "Yes, yes Cele. I am aware of what has just happened. I shall go and give my sincerest apologies to Gwetta and clean it all up...yet again." > Chapter 2: Manehattan Mix Mish Mash > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Three cloaked figures trotted lightly down the cobble stone streets of Manehattan, breaking the pure silence of the early morning. Dark clouds and fog loomed over the quaint village, enough so that even the brilliant beams of the full moon could hardly pierce its thick web. Two of the beings followed behind the lead of the third, the back of their coal-black robes bearing the crest of the Princess of the Night. "Shall we clear the sky for you, Princess?" one asked, "Just give the word." Princess Luna, who had led her accompanying guards through the ordeal stopped in her tracks. "Yes, please. That would be best as it is also time for me to perform my duty." The twin Bat-ponies accompanying her glanced briefly at one another before taking flight. Even a task as simple as this was done with a sense of urgency and as efficiently as possible. It was a rather beauteous display. The pair dashing to and fro creating a swirling vortex of cloud with Luna at the center, eyes closed as she raised and bowed her head in one smooth motion as she retired the Moon for the day to begin. As the sun rose the landscape transformed. Where only a minute ago they saw only ten feet in front of them now the view stretched out for miles when not obstructed by some building. Straw and wood houses with foundations made from stone came to light all about them. Luna assumed them to be in the center of town given the circular shape of the area with streets darting out in all direction, not to mention the magnificently massive well at it's middle. Manehattan slowly began crawling to life as ponies started to get ready for the day to come. Luna though had preparations of her own to begin as well. She turned to address the sibling guards. "Dusk, Lavean, would you be so kind as to procure all of the ingredients listed on this parchment? We must not waste any time..." Lavean took the scroll into his mouth, grunting in agreement as he and his brother began to carry out their assignment. Luna raised her hoof, causing them both to pause mid-trot. "And boys, please try not to let that recipe out of your sight. It is something I have worked very hard on." The guards nodded and promptly went on their way. Luna turned, taking note of a rather large sign posted in front of one of the larger houses. The sign was constructed out of an odd mish-mash of old and new wood, a splatter of moss and vines across it. Some boards looked as if they would snap in two at any moment while the others had a sheen to them she could nearly see her own reflection in. The lettering on it read: 'Home of your glorious leader - Mayor Drocsid'. "How humble." Her eyes focused off the sign and on the home behind which was to no big surprise upheld in a similar manner. "After today I need to see to it that they have the necessary funds to restore this place properly." she thought aloud "An official's home should not be held in such a state." "Hello there!!!" Luna jumped with fright as a pony suddenly popped in next to her, scaring the nightly flow right out of her mane. "Oh I agree." The new Pony shook his head. "Tsk, tsk, any respected town official should have his residence in a state of better upkeep than this." He looked to Luna, her heart was beating out of her chest with her eyes crossed and legs shaking. "Oh dear! Please forgive my absolutely deplorable behavior Miss Luna. My sincerest apologies. I am the head of this enchanting little corner of Equestria." He extended his hoof to her. "Mayor Drocsid at your service." Luna quickly recomposed her figure with one deep breath, trying to act as if nothing had happened. She shook his hoof. "Y-you are forgiven D-Drocsid..." Just saying his name left a bad taste in her mouth, like eating tofu injected with slug slime and nose hairs. She looked him over, not having had the chance to really do so beforehand with nearly being frightened to death and all . He was a Unicorn of average height with a Dark-Grey mane and Goldish-Grey coat. But what stuck out most to her was the peculiar coloring of his eyes. Nevertheless she continued. "I shall get straight to the point Mr. Mayor. I have come today to offer your 'Manehattanites' a first-hoof taste of my most dazzling creation. Presenting..." She unfurled a poster sized parchment from her saddlebag. "Chocolaaate Miiillk!!" Her cute lil' poster depicted the full moon as a large pitcher of pure white milk pouring down from the night sky as Luna herself used magic to transform the drink mid-air into her new drink and simultaneously disperse it into bottles. Happy ponies everywhere enjoyed it, gulping down two or three bottles all at once, dancing and partying under the stars. Drocsid leaned in close to the paper, a dour expression on his face. "Did you draw this yourself?" Luna's beaming smile, once filled with joy and pride began to deflate. "Why y-yes I did, is there anything wrong with it?" she asked, anxiety in her voice. Droc said nothing. He got closer and closer, eyes squinting all the more the nearer he got to it until his muzzle touched the very surface of the drawing. Finally he spoke. "Nope, nothing at all." Luna sighed with relief as Droc used his magic to roll the poster back up and place it vertically in her bag so it lovingly poked up out of the corner when the top was closed. "I do love the creativity my Princess. So will you be needing my assistance with your little endeavor?" Just then Lavean and Dusk had returned with their bounty of goods in toll. "Not at the moment, thank you." Luna replied. "Just making the intentions of my visit clear to the local authority. But thank you for the offer." The Mayor took a step back almost as if he were a bit off put by her answer. "Well, that really is too bad. But...I wish you the best of luck and will be at your disposal whenever you should have need of my services." At that he began to energize magic in his horn in preparation for a spell. "I'll stop by and try some later but ta ta for now." A flash of light later and Drocsid had teleported away and where he had gone to was anypony's guess. "I probably ought to be concerned about that, shouldn't I?" Luna thought. But her fears where quickly cast aside in favor of finally kicking things off. She turned to Lavean and Dusk. "Ready my assistants?" After she slapped her personal poster over the Mayor's semi-dilapidated sign she began the seemingly effortless act of levitating all of the bat-pony gathered products at once. All around her things were in a different state of production. The ingredients were being mixed, stirred and finally corked inside bottles with Luna's likeness on them and then neatly stacked all right outside the home of the town's Mayor. The timing was perfect. Several of the ponies had already begun to pour out into the town center. Just as she had finished with all her preparations, complete with her own wooden stand which more than a little bit resembled one you might see a young Filly selling lemonade out of. The giddy lil' Princess simply could not prevent herself from bouncing up and down just as one would in anticipation of opening many sizeable Hearthswarming gifts. Her royal Canterlot voice kicked in. "ATTENTION, CITIZENS OF PONYV- I M-MEAN MANEHATTAN! HEAR ME NOW!" That got everypony's attention. Even the ones clear across town. "KNOW THAT THINE EYES DO NOT DECEIVE THEE. I AM INDEED YOUR BELOVED PRINCESS AND HAVE COME TO OFFER YOU ALL A FIRST-HOOF CHANCE TO EXPERIENCE THE WONDERS OF...'' At this she put all the bottles into an orbit around her. "CHOCOLATE MILK!" "I'll try one, Princess." Came a familiar voice from the void. An instant later Mayor Drocsid appeared. "As I believe it is technically now later. Even if just by a minute or two." "Most excellent," Luna said, knowing full well all the good publicity that would come from having the town's Mayor drink some. "All I would ask for in return for a free sample is your complete and honest review." And by golly Luna was confident it would be a glowing one. Droc smiled. "But of course. I would never lie to you!" "Then here you are good sir." Luna presented him with the first bottle ever to be consumed by the masses of common ponies. "Enjoy." Her calm demeanour did little to truly express the huge mass of bubbly joy she felt growing within her, threatening to burst out. Drocsid uncorked his bottle. He took one sip and the bottle was empty. "Wha- B-But how in Equestria??" Luna was flabbergasted, antics like that were usually only seen with Chancellor Puddinghead. In a rather unexpected moment Droc leapt up over the table and embraced Luna. "Simply incredible!! The very second that delightful, wonderful, enchanting, super duper beverage touched my lips something came over me. I had to finish off the whole thing in one sip. I want more. No..." he corrected. "I must have more!" Nopony could dislike the drink...indeed. The joy was now too great for Luna to even care that a pony she had just met a few minutes ago was now all up in her personal Princess-space bubble. "I am delighted to hear that Mayor! Of course you can have more, for the reasonable price of one bit per bottle. All the proceeds with bene-" "One bit?!" yelled Droc, looking like his world was ending. "One bit for one bottle? I'll be broke within the hour and I'm the Mayor!" He then took on a whispered tone almost mumbling to himself. "Maybe if I...no, no, even the entire treasury couldn't buy enough." "Pardon?" Luna asked, believing she must have misheard. No pony could possibly love her chocolate milk enough to actually go and spend an entire town's treasury for it, right? She cleared her throat. "So the first will be free and then it'll be one bit per bottle thereafter. All the proceeds will go to a good cause, helping any and all of my ponies in need." "Perfect," Droc shouted. "I'll give you all my bits, drink all the milk then I'll be a broke miserable pony in need and you'd have to give all the bits back to me a-and it's the perfect cycle!" Despite all the craziness he was spouting he had an air of delight about him. "Mayor! You can't be serious!" The happy-joy in her now turned more into slight discomfort. "Calm yourself. Surely this drink isn't worth all that right?" She held up a bottle. Like a shark breaching the water Droc leapt into the air and seized the milk. All of it was gone before he even hit the ground. Rapidly Droc teleported the remaining bottles out of sight and in their place he left an equivalent pile of bits. "Now if you'll excuse me, I hereby resign as the Mayor and will be taking the remainder of your stock, Miss Luna." He poofed in a giant hat that said 'New Mayor' and placed it on her head. "This all has to be some kind of a dream." Luna closed her eyes, gently rubbing at her temples. "I mean...I know it's not given who I am but still. You can't be serious." "Oh I am most serious." said Droc. "Thank you for all the joy you've brought me, I must now go and concentrate. I need to get this next step just right." "Mayor-" "Ex-Mayor, thank you." he corrected. "I wouldn't be caught dead 'Mayor-ing' in this place again." "Well of course you wouldn't." Luna deadpanned. "...as you'd be dead. Therefore you'd be unfit not to mention unable to carry out the necessary duties of your office." Droc pondered her statement. "Indeed...but yeah, I got no snarky comeback to that, so toodles!" And with that he teleported away, his crimson eyes being the last thing she seen. "Um, Princess Luna. We've got a problem." Dusk said, plucking one bit from the money-pile the now ex-mayor had left them. He peeled back the 'coin's gilded wrapper. Fury overtook Luna's eyes. Quite literally as her eyes where now white with rage. Swirls of storm clouds began to manifest as lightning danced across the sky. "HE DARES PAY THE PRINCESS OF THE NIGHT. HIS BELOVED PRINCESS!!! WITH WRAPPED-CHOCOLATE CANDIES!!" And then it began to pour down rain. Though it came from the clouds above, it's source was not from Luna but elsewhere. Luna calmed down, finding herself in a most odd situation. She gently let out her tongue to catch a single drop as it fell to earth. "Is this...c-chocolate milk rain?" > Chapter 3: Chocolate Madness > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Drocsid, the former Mayor of Manehattan eyed Princess Luna from afar. He did not budge an inch from his relaxed position against the trunk of the sole tree that occupied the large plain of grass he'd fled to. The patch wasn't too far off from Manehattan and he had not even tried to mask the residual magical aura left by his sudden teleportation. So it was no surprise she had managed to track him down so easily. It fact he had counted on it. "Like what I've done, Princess?" he spoke, referring to the downpour of chocolate milk from the sky and the miniature castle he made around the tree out of her stolen bottles. "Now all the ponies across this glorious land of your's will get to experience your gift...to them." She gazed upward at the ever-growing storm of chocolate rain. "You did this? Why?" "It isn't obvious to you? It will take time though for the storm to get large enough to cover all of Equestria, just have some patience. Maybe then you'll see it's brilliance. " "You speak of patience?" Luna countered, her scolding accented by a hoof pointed his direction. "Mine is wearing dreadfully thin Drocsid. This behavior that you are displaying is purely unacceptable for anypony, let alone a Mayor." Droc immediately burst into a fit of laughter, collapsing to the ground. Even the storm clouds themselves gave a thunderous shout as if mocking her. "What? What is funny to you about anything that I have just said?!" she asked. He stopped chuckling long enough to answer, wiping away the tears from his eyes. "Why everything, all of it! The scolding you gave, that oh-so-serious attitude of your's. But what really takes the cake is that name you keep calling me by! It's downright hilarious at how imbecilic you are!" "How dare you so blatantly insult a ruler of Equestria!" she stomped the ground in anger with both her front hooves. "Well then, enlighten me won't you? I'm finding these crazed ramblings a bit hard to follow." This only caused more chuckles from him as he fell again head over heels, laughing all the harder. "Oh of course it is, hahaha! You never were the smart sister!" Anger and annoyance transformed to a boiling rage that filled her being. Her eyes and horn lit aglow for a mere second as she shattered every one of the bottles of milk from around him with the resulting deluge soaking him down to the bone. Now his attention was fully focused back onto her. She took a moment, attempting to calm herself. But it wasn't all that effective. "Now Drocsid, I'm s-sorry I did that-" "Oh it is quite alright!" he said interrupting her insincere apology as he swiftly took to the air. "However, do not call me Drocsid! That is not my name!" A magic aura swept from his horn down over the entirety of his body, rendering his soaked form completely dry. His skin began to crawl, literally, shifting and bubbling all over. Luna witnessed this twisted act, moderately resembling a snake shedding. Parts of his flesh elongated and drooped to the ground. Seconds later two wings burst through the now paper thin hide on his back as an eagle talon ripped forth from his side. The shriveled husk of the unicorn known as Drocsid was cast aside as if surrendering a cloak to the wind. It dissolved quickly in a light mist as a new, shadowed form stood before her. "Much better! Now you may address me properly as...Discord, lord of chaos!" At his command streaks of lightening blitz across the darkened sky, illuminating him in an attempted display of grandeur. Luna shifted uneasily, taken aback by this disturbing turn as she looked him over from top to bottom. "What...what are you?" "What am I?" Discord's bottom jaw unraveled like a scroll crashing to the ground. "That now is an original question, truly. Not at all like the classics I've heard before." He swooned back and forth as he mimicked the voices of various ponies. " 'Aargh, a-are you a monster?' 'Will you eat me?' 'Why did you destroy my home?'...and so on, et cetera." She placed a hoof forward, cautiously, prepared to take any offensive or defensive measures necessary. "Well b-be that as if may, I must still ask that you take action to amend what you have done, Discord." "And if I do not?" He teleported right in front of her, playfully pressing a talon to her nose. "Boop!" "If not then you shall pay for your crimes by other means, after I clear Equestria's skies of this mess you've made." Luna pressed off the ground soaring toward the tempest. Her horn shone, charged with magic to dispel the storm. "Hopefully this will suffice..." she let loose a powerful blast rippling over the darkened clouds. It had little effect. The clouds softened and began to grow transparent but her magic was rebuffed as they quickly regenerated back again as if nothing had happened at all. "What kind of magic is this?" In frustration she lands and turns toward him. "Discord, stop this! Before it's too late." She bowed her head slightly but did not break eye contact with him. "For the sake of my subjects I want to end this peacefully." "Oh, so the Pony Princess finally realizes that she is in over her pretty little tiara-wearing head. And what do you mean, your subjects? From what I've seen, they don't give a care in the world about you anymore!" His magic flowed into her shadow molding to a shape resembling that of her elder sister. "And If those clouds are too much for you to handle it's no wonder everypony loves Celestia more than they love you." "W-what nonsense is this!?" her rage quickly returned. The words churned something within her. Feelings she thought were buried. Ones she had tried to dismiss as purely residing only in her own imagination. "Struck a nerve, did I?" He fluttered gracefully through the air, wearing a huge grin. "You see I've been around for a while now and it seems that all I hear is 'Celestia this..' and 'Celestia that...' but not a single syllable of appreciation have I ever heard for the Princess of the Night. It must be so hard for you, living under somepony's shadow your whole life." He extended a paw over to her, patting her gently on the back. "But it's okay. They've never really said any nice things about me either, my dear." She could almost feel a tinge of pure sincerity in his words but that mattered little to her now. "Enough of this! Celestia and I are co-rulers of Equestria. My subjects respect and admire me just as much as-" Discord interjects by thrusting his talons straight into the earth and pulling them back out again. Up rises stone statues of the two sisters, both of equal height with a heart connected between them. "You may be rulers of Equestria together and share that responsibility equally but you know just as well as I..." Slowly the stone mock-up of Luna began to shrink in comparison to that of Celestia's figure, until it became eclipsed by it. "The love your adoring ponies share for you isn't the same as Celestia." The stone heart fractures straight down the center breaking the Luna statue's bond with it's sister, causing it to fall over haphazardly and break into dust. Luna felt something slide down her cheek, with a swipe of her hoof she wiped it off. "A tear? When did I?" Suddenly her statue regenerated, growing all the larger until Celestia's stone image shattered and eroded away. His grin returned. "However, join with me Luna and you won't have to worry about her shadow any more." Seeing the image of her sister being blown away like that, she recoils. Despite everything, she can't stand it. The thought of ever losing her sibling is too much to bear. "So you're saying that overthrowing Celestia, my one and only sister, is supposed to help matters? That will bring only pain and misery to all ponies! YOU KNOW ABSOLUTELY NOTHING, VILE SPIRIT OF CHAOS! " "Oh, but..." He blinked several times over, somewhat surprised by her reaction. "I believe I k-know a great deal more than you think I do, Princess Luna." Before he finished speaking, he snapped his fingers. At once her giant statue sprang to life and made a mad dash straight for her. Luna fired off a barrage of magic bursts, easily reducing it to rubble. The next act caught her off guard. Her very shadow took a tangible form, ensnared her body and began pulling her down into a freshly created bed of quicksand. Struggle as she may the dark creature refused to relinquish it's grasp. Controlling the sand with her magic she forced the fine granules in between her body and the shadow. She then bound the particles together, making them harden to a stone-like consistency. In one swift motion solid spikes began to come forth from her form, jutting outward and shredding the darkness as if it were cloth. It weakened, just enough for her to finally rip it to bits and be free of it's grasp. She let loose a plethora of heated blasts of her own toward Discord. All of which were easily dodged as he simply wriggled and contorted his body away from the danger. With little effort she re-directed each of her blasts to come back around in boomerang like fashion for a second strike from behind. As they came in for a strike Discord maneuvered around these as well as if he could sense their location without even looking. Luna adapted, taking the last shot left incoming and expanding it to the size of small house, lessening it's power but making it much harder for him to even attempt to dodge. It directly hit Discord's backside sending him flying forward. As Luna prepared another blow a portal opened before her, safely transporting Discord behind her. But it was all for naught. Instantly she took note of his new location and bucked outward with her rear hooves, smacking him square in the jaw. With a quick snap of his fingers another portal opened above Luna. As a Quarry Eel lashed out from within in attempt to devour her she dropped down and levitated Discord from behind her into it's path. Without enough time to react he is hastily swallowed up by the beast. "Oh now this is just great!" He spoke from within the creature's mouth. "And I just had my hair done too." Another magic snap, the portal closed and Discord appeared unscathed before her. "You know Princess, d-despite our differences you're actually...quite a lot of fun." Luna gazed upward at him, her mane drooping lazily in front of her eyes. She was still panting from all the exertion. "F-Fun!?" "Yes, fun. As in I've had an absolutely delightful time with you." He swoops down to her level. "Boop! Ah, I haven't played around like this in years!" She smacked his finger off of her nose, rising up off the ground she fixed her mane slightly. "So all of this is nothing but fun to you?" "Yes, it is. But I think we've already established that much." Discord snapped his finger once more, transforming the very landscape itself. Large swaths of land detached from the earth rising up into the sky where they now stood, floating gently in the breeze. Fish began to manifest and swim around through thin the air as if they were still in the water. Then as if that all was not enough already the ground began to tremble as a mound of earth rose up forming a small hill. Atop this newly formed perch Discord teleported in a throne and quietly floated down to it, resting his buttocks on the comfy seat. He nonchalantly waved to her. "Now if you'll excuse me, I've got some more remodeling to do. We can play some more later." The sudden sound of flapping wings from above caught both their attention. Discord smiled. "Oh look, right on time. It's 'Flippy' and 'Flappy' come to take you home." He waved to the pair of bat Ponies incoming as well. "Dusk, Lavean!" Luna addressed them. "Everything go alright with your task?" Her twin guards bowed before her, with Dusk speaking on their behalf. "We did as you instructed Princess. Your sister is on her way as we speak. She should be arriving momentarily at the rendezvous point." Luna nodded her approval. "Excellent work, you two. Given the recent events I think it best if we retreat for now. I need to discuss any further action with Cele before we continue. Come, there is no time to waste.'' Luna takes flight with her guards, all the while eyeing Discord until she believes herself to be a safe enough distance away. Remarkably he took no action. He merely watched as his new friends flew away. "Sooo, Celestia's coming too is she?" His crooked smile widens. "Oh, now the fun has been doubled indeed!" ~ End ~