A demon is banished from the depths of Hell, and is deposited into the magical place known as Equestria. At first, he's not happy crashing through someone's roof. Then, he meets a certain pony... (REWRITING)
(ON HIATUS UNTIL I FINISH THE REWRITE)
Demons are not to be tampered with. This is known by all species ranging from the humans on planet Earth, to the magical talking horses in Equestria. However, did it ever occur to you that demons could be banished? Sure, failing at a 'mission' a couple hundred times is enough to send anyone packing. However, one demon in particular crossed the line. His name is Alvar, and he's a complete asshole.
(WARNING : Comments contain spoilers, so...)
(Takes place a little before Season 1) (Yes, I am aware that the picture looks like the Devil from the game Cuphead. It's just literally impossible to find a demon picture that isn't demonic or worshipping something. So, here we are.)
Celestia trotted down the halls of Canterlot castle, a slight hint of worry in her step. It was only a little 'unlike a princess,' but she was just too worried. The chaotic outside she passed went ignored, and so did everything else. Even when she stepped into her room, the guards saluting her were just a blur of color and static. The time to strike was almost here, and there was so much planning to do. How would they attack? What would they attack him with? To many questions and work. So, she removed her golden shoes and brace to help her focus more. Nopony wants to be all dressed up while trying to work. The weight and tightness of clothing can get to a pony.
"So much to do..." Celestia plopped down on a large pillow, levitating a quill and neatly rolled scroll over towards her.
That was, until something landed on her head.
The impact was enough to shock her so much, said items fell to the ground in an unorganized heap. The object rolled off her head and clattered to the ground, leaving the princess to rub the top of her head in pain. With an unprincess-like snort, she glowered down at the object. It was a wooden oak box, no bigger than a shoe box. It seemed to have been carved out with superb talent, with how neat it's curves and edges were. However, symbols of some unknown language littered the wood as if they had scoured and fought for an open spot. With newfound curiosity, Celestia levitated the box over and gently set it down in front of her. She allowed a snowy white hoof to graze the top of it, surprised by how smooth the aged wood felt, even with all the symbols it embellished. Her curiosity peaked at the sight of a golden latch, held tightly in place by an old, rusty lock. Celestia's horn glowed and she allowed her magic to enter the keyhole, pushing the little teeth back until she heard a satisfying CLICK. A smirk of triumph plastered itself onto her muzzle, but quickly diminished when she opened the top to see the items inside. She felt confused. Why in the world would such strange items be in a box like this?
Inside sat six crystal garments. One was orange and shaped like an apple. Another looked like a blue balloon. A red lightning bolt. A pink butterfly. A blue gem. A bright purple star. Why would objects like these hold any significance?
The fiery pits around him roared with screams of pain and terror, just barely drowned out by the crackling fire. The red ground, ruined buildings, and patches of dead, black grass seemed to never end. He skidded to a halt, darting behind a ruined yet large, stone pillar. His chest heaved as he flattened himself against it, not daring to make any noise. He waited, his spear-pointed tail curling around his leg, when the mob finally caught up. He peaked out, eyes widening. There were at least 25 mini, winged demons in total, all cackling and hissing. These were the kinds of demons they sent to hunt for monsters or outlaws, but they would kill if they weren't given the order not too. What made this whole situation worse than it already was, was that the lord and ruler himself could only command these things. However, these ones obviously hated each other, with how they would occasionally nip at each other with their thorn sharp teeth, but they all seemed to have one goal in mind that kept them from killing one another. Find him, and possibly bring him back to the castle.
"Where is he?" One croaked.
"How the hell would I know, you lout!" Another spat.
"Would you shut up?! We've got a traitor to find!" A more gruff, yet squeaky voice growled.
He gulped, turning away from the hunters. This was bad. This was very, very bad. He would have hit himself if it wouldn't attract attention to him. Relax. His brain liked that word, but he did not at that moment. He felt his muscles starting to relax from his mad dash, despite his protests for them not to. It felt as if his body just gave up on him, because everything suddenly began to ace. It shook a bit, as if contemplating what to do, and he collapsed. The chittering of the mini demons ceased, replaced instead by the scrambling of claws against rock and dirt.
"We gave him a real workout, huh fellas!"
His ears twitched, barely registering laughter and the little voices that followed. Even as they pounced on him and tore into his flesh, he barely felt anything. It was like an itch, but no matter how much you scratched, it wouldn't go away. His head jerked to the side as one of the demons made off with one of his ears and another scrambled away with an eye. He looked down at his body, which was torn to shreds. The demons dove in and out of the bloody cavities, a few coming up to cackle in his face. One even ripped a chunk of flesh out of him and stared into his eye while it feasted.
His vision blurred, and he allowed the black void to consume him
The surrounding void was pleasantly warm and dark. The whispers that constantly echoed through it, whispering sweet nothings to him until his heart swelled, had become a sleeping necessity. Sometimes they would grace him with myths and tales, bringing images of a lady living in a large shoe, or the Jabberwocky with it's jaws that bite and claws that catch. There was no time, or hunger, or thirst in the void. There was just sleep, tales, and warmth. Occasionally, there would be the sound of a breeze, but the void always blocked the cold from reaching him. This was home.
Alvar opened his eyes to the sight of the void's darkness before him, nothing to be seen but the yellow of his claws and the grey of his hands and feet. He let out a sigh of content and began to close his eyes, when he noticed something. He noticed something. Nothing ever appeared or disappeared. This was a void of pure darkness, so seeing something different was... Abnormal, to say the least.
Before him were two glowing red orbs, slanted slightly to make them look like they were scowling. He tilted his head to the side, slightly unfurling out of his fetal position. What were these orbs?
"Alvar," The orbs glowed and a deep, rumbling voice emitted from them, "You have failed your duty as demonic guard of the Elements of Harmony. After escaping your death and spending 6,000 years in the void, you are hereby banished from the Underworld. You served well in your time during the guard, up to the point you turned traitor. As always, try to forget us as we will try to forget you. This is goodbye," The orbs faded and, with them, so did the void.
[1st Person : Alvar]
There was a flash of light, wind rushing passed and ruffling my fur. My eyes snapped open, panic gripping my chest as I began to flail at the sight of the ground below me. Bland colors of sandy yellow and stone grey blurred together, but all I could focus on was the rapidly approaching thatch roof below me.
'Huh, I thought humans moved passed that.'
I rolled in the air and onto my back just in time, pain almost immediately erupting from splinters and dry hay digging into freshly formed cuts. The roof crashed all around me, caving in on itself and damaging my body even further. I looked up through the sizeable hole I had made, resting in the rubble and letting my body scream in agony. Letting out a small groan, gasping lightly as I struggled to sit up, I allowed a clawed, light grey hand to rest against my forehead. Looking down at myself, I took in the damage.
My gnarled, dark grey fur was covered in dry hay and small pieces of wood, some refusing to let go of my dark grey the fur as I picked at them. A large gash ran down my arm, my blood caked fur sticking into it made the wound more agitated. A few small cuts ran across my chest, but from how much my back stung it was evident that part of my body was worse. To be completely honest, I was kinda afraid to see it. My almost white horns hadn't taken any damage, thank devil. My eyes widening, I whipped my tail around to my front so I could give it a thorough examining. Letting out a sigh, I was relieved to see it had miraculously been spared any damage, and it's spear shape was still sharp as ever.
"O-Oh Celestia, what is that?!" My red eyes darted up to the source of the voice.
'Oh, great,' My entire body sagged.
Standing before me was a light purple unicorn with a dark purple mane and tail, a stroke of neon blue and light purple shooting through both. A mark of a dark purple star with neon blue streaks shooting out behind it sat upon her haunches. Her eyes were like dark blue pools of water, staring at me wide-eyed and fearful.
I inhaled the scent of her fear, suddenly realizing how hungry I was. So, I latched onto the scent and allowed almost obscure wisps of purple fear to flow from her to me. My hunger died down a bit, but the small growl it emitted told me of it's greed. Shaking my head, I stood up and stretched, hearing a satisfying pop and crack. Looking down at the four foot pony, my six foot form towered over her.
"What are you? W-why are you here?!" She cried, shying away from me.
I smirked. Time to make a scene, "Why, didn't thee summon us? Thy wished for a demon, correct? Though, we do not think the way of entry was the best. We do not have control of this, unfortunately." My smirk formed into a glare,"Since thou hast summoned us improperly and caused us such pain, we shall have to punish thee,"
Her eyes somehow widened even more and she dropped into a curled up ball of purple fluff, her shaking hooves covering her head, "N-No! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I should have done better! I pr-promise it won't happen again!"
I kept my glare for a bit longer, before bursting into laughter, "O-Oh my Devil! You should seen the look on your face!"
She looked up, confused, "W-what?"
I dove into her shadow, popping up right in front of her face and earning a terrified squeak, "I'm not gonna punish you! I don't even know how I got here or why I'm here! But be completely honest with me, Fluff," I narrowed my eyes at her, my playful demeanor dropping, "You never denied summoning a demon. So, did you mean to summon something like me?"
She looked to the side, her blue pools shrinking slightly, "Yes, I-I tried to summon a demon w-with a spell. When nothing happened for about an hour, I figured it didn't work. T-then you came crashing through my roof. So, I-I guess it worked."
I stared at her for a bit, my close proximity causing her to fidget, "So, you wanted to make a deal, huh?"
She took in a sharp breath of air, her gaze darting back to stare into my red orbs, "Yes."
Darting out from her shadow and forming back to my original shape, I cast my playful smile back onto my face, "Well, what do you want?"
Her mouth tightened into a thin line, a light blush of embarrassment coating her cheeks, "I want you to do my bidding, like a servant. You have to do anything I order you to do," She waved her hoof at me, seeming to calm a bit, "You can have whatever you want in return."
I nodded, smiling, "What I want, is for you supply me with some delicious fear every other week. I don't care who it comes from, or where you got it, but just get me a jar of fear. I hear you ponies are terrified of almost everything so, it shouldn't be too hard, right?" a devilish smirk plastered itself on my face, "Do we have a deal, Fluff?"
She nodded and stood up, reaching out a hoof, "We've got a deal, and please stop calling me that!"
"Not a chance," Snatching her hoof in my hand, smiling at the sizzling of flesh, and pulled away to see a small pentagram on the side of her hoof.
I let go, tail absently swishing from side to side, "So, what's the first thing you want, Fluff?"
She smiled, obviously trying to ignore the nickname and her stinging hoof, "I would like a staff that allows me to take the cutie marks of other ponies, along with a vault to store them in."
I snapped my fingers and said items appeared, the 'vault' being the size of a large dresser and the staff looking like a dowsing rod, "Done."
"Good. Now that we've tested that, let's get you fixed up. Oh, could you also fix my roof?"
My eye twitched, my tail lashing in annoyance. What made me think that making a deal with a pony, was a good idea?
"Alvar! Come here please!" Starlight called up the stairs.
Groaning, I climbed out of my bed and shouted, "Imma comin'!"
In the past few weeks, Starlight had been about as demanding as a pregnant female. Constantly asking for stuff like food, water, clothes, furniture, and even add-ons to her house. Sure, my magic was practically infinite, but I was getting exhausted.
'I should have asked for her soul,' I thought, marching down the rickety stairs.
However, she had kept her end of the bargain by giving me jars of fear. Like, literal jars filled with pony fear. I don't care how she got it, but it was better than the fear I took from her the first time we met.
"Alvar, Alvar hurry! Look at this!"
I quickened my pace a bit, almost falling down the stairs from the change of speed. I sped through the neatly decorated living room, through the small dinning room, and finally into the cutesy kitchen. Starlight had her forehooves up against the wooded counter, gazing intently at the moonlit night. She turned her head to look at me, a look of excitement adorning her features. However, the very feint smell of fear hit my nostrils.
"Look! Look at the moon!" She pointed at the orb with a slightly shaky hoof.
I stood beside her and gazed out at the planet's satellite, nodding my head like I understood, "Yup, the moon's bright tonight. Good job on noticing that, Fluff."
She huffed, shaking her head, "No, you don't understand. The mare on the moon is gone! She's been there ever since I was a filly! Do you know what this means?!" She balanced herself on her hindlegs and shoved her hooves onto my fluffy chest, "This means that Princess Luna, along with Nightmare Moon, is back!"
I shrugged, "Whoop de do, the princess is back. So what?"
Her jaw practically dropped to the floor, "So what? So WHAT?! This means that there might be an ETERNAL night!"
"And?"
She sighed, dropping back to the ground, "You know what, never mind. Before I saw the moon, I was going to ask you to get me a potion, so I'm going to do just that. Do you know this potion?" She held up a picture of a clear glass, potion flask that contained a sparkling pink liquid.
My ear twitched, "Nah. Don't know about it, can't get it."
She looked at me, puzzled, "Can't you just make one, I don't know, pop into existence?"
"Only the things that I know about, can I 'pop into existence.' I don't know much about potions, so..." I turned to the kitchen sink, digging through the cabinet next to it for a glass.
"But... You're a demon! You're supposed to know stuff like that!" She cried, tugging on her ears. Must be painful.
"Well," I filled the glass with water, "When there's more than one universe, it's hard to pay attention to all of the spells and potions the beings there end up making. I just chose not to give a crap on how they make them, what they named it, and what the recipe or incantation is," Tipping the glass back against my parted lips, cool water invaded my mouth.
"Fine. If you find the ingredients for this potion, I'll give you four jars of fear for the next three weeks,"
I choked on the water, sputtering and spraying the liquid out in front of me. My wide eyes darted over to her, suppressing the urge to laugh at her slightly damp face, and held out my hand.
"Alright, Fluff, you've got yourself a deal."
She put a hoof to her chin, humming, "Maybe. Do you mind if I add one more condition?" When I shook my head, her eyes seemed to shimmer, "If you stop calling me Fluff and get the ingredients, you may have four jars of fear for the next five weeks instead of three," She batted her eyes, leaning closer towards me.
Taking a step back, I weighed my options. Do everything this little fuzzball desired and get four whole jars of fear for five weeks, or go back to having one jar each week, probably break the deal, and go out into the world of vicious monsters... Hmm...
"Alright F-- Ahm, Starlight, I'm willing to take your deal," I held out my hand.
She gripped it, though I'm not sure how that works, and we shook on it. With the snap of my fingers, I transformed my body into a 2-year-old golden retriever. A red collar gripped my neck, a tag with the name ALVAR sketched into it. My red glowing eyes were the only indication it was me, along with the abnormally sharp teeth and toenails. Due to the sudden height change, plus actually being a little below eye level with Glimmer, made me slightly disoriented. A grinning Starlight walked me to the door, my nails clicking off of the wooden floor, before flinging the door open with her magic.
The unicorn patted me on the head, "Now you be a good boy and get me those ingredients," She levitated a pair of saddlebags onto my back, "In one of the bags is a list of the things I need, along with the proper amount of bits. Now run along! Don't get into trouble!" She snickered.
I glowered at her before taking off through the door and into the night, towards the nearest town. Ponyville.
Cold cobble greeted my paws as I jumped off the colorful train, sprinting towards the familiar grocery store. Starlight had sent me here a few times before, despite just ordering me to make almost anything appear. To be completely honest, I think it was just to get me out of the house for a while. Craning my neck to pull out the list, I noted that it was literally just herbs and leaves. So, to the tea shop. I looked up at the moon, noting from it's position in the sky that it was close to midnight.
'Shit.' I mentally cursed as I trotted up to the tea shop doors.
As expected, a sign with big, bold red letters read CLOSED. A whimper escaped me and I began pawing at the door, hopefully getting the attention of somepony inside. And surprise, surprise, my efforts didn't go wasted. A dark purple, Earth pony mare with a lighter purple mane and tail opened the door with sleepy eyes. A tea cup with three tea leaves near the top adorned her flank.
"Alvar, it's nearly midnight. Why'd your owner send you out this late?" Kenya Tea tiredly rubbed her eyes, her British accent slurred a bit.
I lowered my head, careful to not get slobber on the list tucked into my mouth. Looking up at her with big, sad eyes and the streetlights hit my eyes just at the right angle to make them sparkle. As a finishing touch, I let out a whimper. She glared at me, which softened into a look of adoration and an 'aww' escaped her muzzle. She stepped aside, opening the door wider for me as I entered the dark building.
'Heh, puppy dog eyes always work.'
Inside were shelves upon shelves of tea leaves and herbs, all neatly packed into a jar or a small cardboard box. They were all labelled and organized in alphabetical order, proving for fast findings. A check-in counter sat at the far side of the room, a door with an 'EMPLOYEES ONLY' sign attached to it. Just adjacent to the counter was a flight of stairs. Kenya took the list from my mouth, going wide eyed at the amount of leaves and herbs needed.
"Is your owner planning on a huge tea party?" She looked down at me with a questioning gaze.
I just wagged my tail, allowing my tongue to loll out of my mouth. Devil, I hated doing this sometimes. I looked so stupid.
She rolled her eyes, "Fine, don't tell me. I'll get what you need, just give a few minutes. Now, sit," She pointed to the ground and I obediently sat, "Good boy! Now, stay." She held up her hoof in a staying motion before turning to the door behind the counter, trotting through it with a speed I had never seen her use before.
A few minutes later, she appeared with two medium sized bags, both containing dry leaves. She dropped them beside me before digging in one of my saddlebags, bringing out the large bag of bits.
"Just like always..." She muttered.
After counting the amount, she nodded before setting that on the ground and shoving a each bag of leaves into a designated saddlebag. She pat my head, picked up the bits, and began walking towards the stairs.
She called over her shoulder, "You know the way out." Before climbing her way to the second level.
Turning towards the door, I shoved it open with the side of my body and trotted out into the street. Only, I had to back up to avoid being trampled by a stampede of pastel ponies. I looked in the direction they were coming from, seeing more ponies run from Town Hall. Rolling my eyes, I made my way back to the train station before hoping on a cargo cart. As soon as I laid down, the train started moving.
I slammed the door open with a clawed hand, glad to be back in my actual form. Grumbling sourly, I dropped the saddlebags onto the dining room table before walking upstairs and into my room. Now, my room wasn't that great. Just a bed with a red blank, white sheets, and a pillow. I had a wooden dresser, a nightstand with a small lamp, and standing mirror that I had broken on accident.
Flopping onto my bed with a groan, I was about to fall asleep when- "Alvar, are you home?"
"Yup, now leave me alone so I can sleep!" I snarled, pulling the covers over me and turning my back to the door.
There was silence, then shuffling of hooves, and a door closing. Thank Devil, she left me alone.
I woke up to a crash, the breaking of glass, and a "Shit!" from downstairs. Cool, I got little miss Equality to use one of my words. Pulling myself out of bed, I trudged down the stairs and into the kitchen to see Starlight sweeping up a broken plate.
"What the hell did you do?" I asked, materializing a cup of coffee and taking a sip.
She huffed, "I was washing the dishes and was about to put it away, but then I turned around and stubbed my hoof on the counter," She made her way over to the trashcan, dumping the pearly white shards inside.
Wearing a shit eating grin, I replied, "You're probably the first I've seen to ever stub their toe, or hoof, on something that literally has a space big enough so you don't do that. With how long I've lived, that's saying something," I finished off the coffee with a big gulp, snapping my fingers and making the cup disappear in a cloud of smoke.
"Shut it. Anyways, here's your food for the week." She levitated four jars of dark purple fear into my arms, as promised, before she continued with her daily chores.
Staring at the jars with excitement, I muttered out a "nice" before going to the living room and plopping down on the sofa. I set three jars down on the coffee table and greedily opened the one clutched in my hands, wasting no time in dipping my hand in and pulling out an acceptable amount of jelly-like fear. Shoving it in my mouth, I practically melted at the taste, some falling away before it even got the chance to be eaten.
'Mmm, paralysis. One of my favorites.' I dipped my hand in again, coming out with more, before shoving that into my mouth as well.
Somehow, instead of getting wispy fumes of the stuff, Starlight had found a way to make the fear like jelly. Don't ask me how, just know that I absolutely loved it and I wasn't complaining.
"Why don't you use a spoon instead of your hooves?!" Starlight cried, hurrying over with a towel to clean up the mess I had, rather quickly, made.
I rolled my eyes, "Because 1) I don't have hooves, I have hands and 2) I can just make the messes I make disappear," I snapped my fingers, the mess she was cleaning disappearing mid wipe.
She huffed, "I don't care. I order you to not make a mess and use a spoon when you eat stuff like that," She motioned to the opened jar of fear, not caring that the mark I gave her was glowing.
I tensed up as my eyes flashed purple for a second, before I nodded and returned to my relaxed state, "Alright, Glimmer."
I stood up with my jar, made my way to the kitchen, picked up a clean spoon from the drawer, and proceeded to eat again right there. Starlight stared at me for a second before going outside to the newly formed town, shutting the door behind her. That brings me to the next new thing in my life. The town I had magically poofed into existence. So far, we only had about fifteen, cutie mark-less ponies living in this boring little town. Starlight had said it would grow overtime as more ponies came looking for their loved ones, or just stumbled upon the town. Looking out the window to the front through faded pink curtains, I grumbled at the blandness of it. All the houses were in a neat, straight line and barely had an inch between them. All were stone with just a simple wooden roof, nothing on the exterior to give it some pizzazz. The only exception was if your home was a store, then you'd get a bland wooden sign to tell everypony it just that. A store. As a mare walked by, her flank adorning an equal sign like everypony else, that reminded me of the vault and staff. Starlight had told me to move them to a cave in the mountains, tripling the vault in size and setting the staff on a pedestal for "generations of ponies to see the de-cutie marking." Devil, doesn't anypony get sick of her constant 'equality' talk?
'Anypony? Bleh, Glimmey is rubbing off on me.' I pulled away from the window, letting the curtain fall away as I dug into the fear with my spoon.
Shoveling spoonful after spoonful into my maw, I kinda felt... gross. Looking down into the jar in confusion, I wondered if Starlight had done something to it. Yeah, probably. She seemed like the type to do something crazy like that. Ugh, I feel... Grosser. Then it hit me, causing me to drop my jar and have it shatter from the realization.
Was I feeling... Guilty?
'ACK! It's like poison! Guil-ty. It sounds like some kind of disease or something.' I shook my head, nearly barfing at the mention of that dreadful word.
I snapped my fingers and cleaned up my mess, sad to see fear like that go to waste. To take my mind off of emotions and how fucking confusing they are, plus my loss of delicious fear, I transformed myself into my Golden Retriever. I pawed the door open, using my hindleg to kick it closed, the hot sun beat down on my golden fur the moment I stepped out.
'Starlight couldn't have picked a better place to live? You know, one that isn't like a desert?' I begrudgingly thought, that gross feeling increasing.
Maybe I should just stop thinking about Starlight.
A few ponies walked up to me to give my head a pat or asking me for help, help of which I begrudgingly accepted. After multiple tasks that took up more time than I wanted them to --four hours, to be exact-- Starlight finally approached me. The thing that caught me off guard was how worried she looked, though she seemed to be trying to hide it. Being bound to her by contract, plus ponies being terrible with hiding anything, it was easy to notice. Rolling my eyes, I trotted into up to her house and followed her inside. With a swirl of black smoke, I morphed back into my normal self.
Starlight spun on me, rearing up and shaking me with her hooves, "They won't comply! I've tried everything and-"
I softly yet firmly gripped Starlight's muzzled, shushing her, "I literally have no idea what you're talking about. Calm down and tell me why are you so freaked out."
She took in a deep breath as I let go of her, "Well, there are some new ponies that came into town. They came for their daughter, Morning Bell, and I offered to allow them to join our town so they could see her all the time... If they gave up their cutie marks, of course. They said no, they just wanted to bring her back home and... And..." She teared up, "I don't know what to do! I tried everything!" Sobs wrecked her body as she buried her face in my fluffy chest, the tears making my fur wet.
I awkwardly hugged her, giving the small pony a pat on the back as something in me seemed to kick into action, "Well, find a way to make them conform. Show them what the town has to offer and, if they don't..." Her glazed over eyes stared up into my mischief filled ones, ".... Find a way to force them to join your town."
Her eyes widened, a spark in her eyes at my words as she set herself back onto the floor, "Why didn't I think of that before? It was so obvious!" Her normal spark was back, her eyes showing excitement instead of stress and worry, "Alvar, do you think you can make a medium sized, square, wooden shack? Make sure it's aligned with the houses so it doesn't look out of place. Speakers on each wall, along with windows and curtains. Make sure that everything inside is about how great it is to conform and join our town, giving up your cutie mark for a better life! I'll take care of the speaker recordings," She nudged me towards the door, "Go! We have to get this done by today, or they may leave with Morning Bell!"
I shrugged, turning back into that dog and making my way over to the very end of one of the lines.
'At least she's back to her normal, equality obsessed self. Never thought it would feel good to have her like that again.'
Starlight and I were casually not arguing about who cheated in Ponopoly in the dining room when we heard a knock on the front door. Starlight froze as I darted into her shadow, but she quickly calmed down and walked towards the door.
"Starlight, we have some new visitors."
Starlight opened the door and I relaxed a bit at the sight of Double Diamond and Party Favor, but tensed up again when I saw this new group of ponies.
There was a purple alicorn with a darker purple mane and tail, a streak of pink and blue shooting through them. On her haunches sat a purple star with small, white sparkles surrounding it. To her left was a white unicorn with a dark purple mane and tail, both fashionably styled. Her cutie mark was three blue gems. On Purple's right was a orange earth pony with a blonde mane and tail, a cowboy hat sitting upon her head. Three red apples for her cutie mark. Next to that one was a pink earth pony with a darker pink, cotton candy-like, mane and tail. Three balloons, two blue and one yellow, sat on her haunches. Coming in through the door was a cyan blue pegasus with a rainbow mane and tail, a cloud with a rainbow lightning bolt marking her. Following up the rear was a yellow, almost cream colored pegasus with a long pink mane and tail. Three pink butterflies on her.
Great, more ponies to give me a colorache. Ya know, a headache from too many colors.
"Welcome! I'm so pleased to have you here!" Starlight greeted, getting a groan from Skittles and an eye roll from me.
"This is Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, and Twilight Sparkle," Wow, straight to the introductions, huh Double Diamond?
Starlight eyed 'Twilight' up and down, causing the alicorn to nervously fidget her wings, "Forgive my bluntness, but I'm assuming it's Princess Twilight Sparkle? We don't get may Alicorns around here."
"Yes, but Twilight is fine," I narrowed my eyes at the nervous princess. For royalty, she was informal.
"So! How did you hear of our little village!?" Geez, tone down the enthusiasm a bit, alright Glimmey?
"It's kind of a long story... Let's just say we found it on a map!"
"Technically, it's a tree chest castle map!" Pinkie blurted before suspiciously glaring at Starlight, slinking back to her spot in the group.
"Well, however you found us we're happy to have you! We're happy to have any pony who wants to experience true friendship for the first time!"
"Say what?" Applejack gave Glimmey a 'seriously' look, and I had to try to hold in a laugh.
"Oh indeed, that's what's so unique about our village. You see, around here we don't flaunt our special talents because we don't have and special talents to flaunt!" Starlight smiled, adjusting an equal sign picture frame.
"Is that why you all have those cutie marks?" Twilight pointed at Starlight's powdered haunch, apparently not catching the glare Glimmey directed at it.
"Perhaps it would be easier to understand if I gave you a tour of the village!" Starlight smiled, walking towards the door with the ponies trailing behind her. Devil, don't tell me she's going to-
"Heads high ponies, marching proud!" She burst through the door, marching past a few ponies and encouraging them to join her.
Damn it, she is going to-
"All together now. Every one of you!" Starlight began marching down the street, ponies gathering around her. "No pony left behind!" She cried through a pony's door, said pony coming out to march.
Rainbow burst into laughter, "Your kidding right?! Give up our cutie marks? No way!
"Rainbow Dash, don't be so rude," Fluttershy gently scolded, "I don't think we should judge them. They all seem perfectly happy with their choice," Fluttershy smiled at the gathered ponies, each giving her their own fake smile.
Pinkie seemed to appear out of nowhere to scream in the yellow pegasus' ear, "Don't believe their smiles, Fluttershy."
Twilight walked to the front of the group, silencing them, "I'm sorry, I guess we're all just a little confused by all of this."
How is it possible for royalty to be informal, yet formal at the same time?!
"We have no judgements here in our village. Each of us was confused once as well, blinded by the false promise of our cutie marks." Damn it Starlight,
"Woah woah woah, is she for real?" Stuck-up Rainbow...
"When we were sent to this village, we assumed it was to help in some way but... Well, it doesn't seem like you need any help." Sparkles....
"Have you considered perhaps that might have been sent here so we could help you?" Starlight....
This was pointless talk. You sure know how to take your time Glimmer. No wonder everypony who came here ended up staying.... Plus the brainwash shack works pretty well.
Besides that, I'm tired. Sorry Starlight, but you're on your own until I wake up.
I jolted awake by a strong sense of excitement coming off of Starlight, then I understood why. Twilight Sparkle had come out of the brainwash shack, Fluttershy awkwardly standing beside her. Huh, figured she'd be one of the firsts to turn.
"....But I just want to be sure. If I agree to leave my cutie mark in the vault, I'll really be happier?" Sparkles gave Starlight a look of confusion.
Why do I always miss the important stuff?!
"Just look around!" Starlight motioned to the rest of the town, "Equality has given us more happiness than you've ever known.
"And you wouldn't just let me live here in the village with my old cutie mark?" Twilight lifted her wing to gaze at her equalized flank, giving it a look of reluctance.
"Out of the question. A pony with a different cutie mark in our midst would destroy our entire philosophy! We are all equal here!" Starlight smiled, the ponies gathered murmuring their agreement.
"Then how do you explain this?!" Fluttershy threw a bucket of water at Starlight, showing surprising signs of courage.
I jumped into action, rising from Starlight's shadow and blocking the water with my shadow like body. Black smoke billowed from my solid yet misty form, the only thing seen through it being my red eyes and teeth (if I chose to smile). My eyes narrowed at the shocked, scared ponies.
"What is that?!" One shouted.
"Will it hurt us?!" Another questioned
"It's a demon!" Twilight cried, taking a step back.
I smiled, my sharp teeth gleaming, "Bingo. Now, you're both going to go back in there and sit there for..." I turned to Starlight, "How long do you think they should stay there?"
Starlight smiled up at me, "Let's go for five weeks. If they don't want to be our friends by then, they'll stay there for a month."
I nodded, stepping out of Starlight's shadow and allowing my shadowy form to fade. I looked about as normal as a demon could get among a bunch of ponies. Bolting forward, I plucked Flutters out of the air and tucked Twilight under my arm. I nudged the still open door even wider, throwing the two in like a sack of potatoes. The fear radiating off of their friends was intoxicating, and it took everything in me to turn, shut the door, and lock it behind me.
"Starlight, why do you have a demon with you?" Double Diamond asked, ears flattening as I made my way back to the unicorn.
"I needed help. It's not easy running a town on your own, and I needed an assistant. It just so happened to be a demon," Starlight smiled at the nervous pony.
"But aren't you worried he'll destroy everything we've worked on? Destroy our equality?"
Glimmey snorted, "Of course not. We made a deal. Plus, he doesn't have a cutie mark to faun about. In fact," Starlight looked up at me, "Adding onto your role as assistant, I order you to be my personal body guard as well. You are not to leave me unattended until I tell you so."
My eyes flashed purple, only getting a flinch out of me this time, before I nodded and straightened my posture.
"Good. Now, let's continue," She turned her attention back to the shack, "They should be turned soon. Everypony eventually is. Back to your daily duties everypony! Everything is okay!"
The equalized ponies gave her a look of uncertainty before heading off to their respected jobs, the day starting back into motion. Starlight and I walked down the dirt road, stopping at the door before she turned her gaze up at me.
"You can terrorize them in the night, if you wish. After the stunt they tried to pull, they deserve a little insanity."
I nodded, trying in vain to hide the grin that spread across my lips.
During the five weeks the Band of Misfits, as I liked to call them, were held in the shack, more ponies than we could have ever hoped for flooded into town. Some had to be held in another brainwashing shack before they could join our little slice of Equestria, but nopony complained in the end. Instead of two rows of houses, we ended up with six. Instead of 20 ponies, we had about 40. The vault had to be tripled in size, and speaking of ponies, they had all gotten pretty used to seeing me around town and eventually moved into conversing with me.
However, I knew they ignored the terrified screams for mercy coming from the shack at night. I never relented, keeping the nightmares and shadow hallucinations constant throughout the night. Never once did I allow that nosy Princess Luna to see into their dreams, no matter how much she tried. Though I kept my appearance hidden, she had even taken to pleading and begging me to let them have a peaceful night's rest. I refused every time.
At least I gave them a break during the day.
Besides that, Starlight and I were playing a game of chess. Chess was something I loved to play down in Hell when I had the time, and I actually took it seriously. Starlight huffed, angrily stomping her hoof against the table and causing a few pieces to fall. She had just lost for the tenth time, and it was starting to get on her nerves. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't amused.
I snapped my fingers, setting the board once again, "You'll get the hang of it."
"No," Starlight growled, "I won't! I'm terrible! What kind of leader am I if I can't beat such a simple game?!"
I shrugged, "Well, I am a demon and I've been playing before you were born," Motioning to the pieces, a smile made it's way onto my face,"Plus, you're thinking of this as a game. Instead, think of it as a battlefield. The pieces are your troops, and the board is Equestria, or some other country like the Griffon Kingdom. Think of it as reality, not just a silly game."
She stared at me for a bit longer before letting out a sigh, "Fine, I'll try it."
My smile grew as she picked up one of her white pawns, placing it on the black square just a little in front of it. With such a small movement, my mind raced with tactics and methods on how to win. So, I move the black pawn in front of my Queen over towards Starlight's pawn. The unicorn reached forward, just about to pick up another pawn, when the old grandfather clock chimed midnight an caused her to knock over the small piece.
I snorted, a smile on my face, "Time to go to bed. Do you want me to tuck you in, or should I just go ahead and torture some Misfits?"
A light blush coated Glimmey's face, "I can tuck myself in, thank you."
I shrugged, "A'ight. Seeya in the morning Glimmey."
"Don't call me Gli-" I had already poofed myself onto one of the beams in the Misfit shack.
They already knew what was coming. All six of them had huddled together in a corner, eyes wide and frantic as I allowed shadows to fill the room. One shadow morphed into a wolf, another a human. Both charged at the group, causing them to squeal and scramble over each other as the shadows passed through them. They all instantly passed out, from both fear and my magic. Chuckling to myself, I dove into their combined nightmare.
Fluttershy was being tormented by angry animals. Rainbow Dash was being booed at by a crowd of nameless ponies. Pinkie Pie was sad and couldn't laugh away the shadows that attacked her. Applejack was cast out by her family for being a stealing liar. Rarity had failed to make anything nice and everypony was revolted by her dresses. Twilight had no friends, had failed at magic, and was hated by Princess Celestia. All were combined into one dream, yet none of them could see the other even though they both passed through each other. Add a heightened sense of fear and you've got a pot of mortified stew.
After watching them for a bit, I was about to join the fun when a light shone from above and the shape of an alicorn took form. Growling, I cast a thick blanket of black smoke over the ponies, turning into a cloud of smoke myself. I allowed a large boulder to float up from the void so the princess could stand on it, and she angrily did so.
"Show thy self!"
Floating up towards her, I couldn't help but chuckle at her glare, "Hello princccesss," A snakelike hiss escaped my disguised voice, "Ssso niccce of you to show up. I want you know that your sssubjectsss are in good handsss."
"Lies! Our little ponies are not safe in the hands of thy demon!" Wait. How did she-
Luna must have sensed the change in my energy, a smirk making it's way onto her face, "Yes, we know what thou is. It will only be a matter of time before we find where thou hides. Time is running short for thy demon. We are close to finding thee," Her eyes flashed, a spark filling her eyes and encompassing her horn, "In fact, we know exactly where thou is. Thee is not good at hiding thy magical energy." With that, there was a flash of white and I was thrown out of the dream world. The Misfits woke not long after, forcing me to melt into the shadows.
That damn princess had- She had fucking- AGH! I was so STUPID!
I teleported back to where Starlight slept, just as the first rays of sunshine peaked through. Geez, time sure flies when you're in a dream. That's besides the point. I lightly shook Starlight and she didn't respond, so I resorted to a very violent shake. She jolted awake, sending a sleepy glare my way.
"What is so important you had to wake me up?!" She cried.
"I fucked up! That's what!" I shouted, sitting on the side of her bed.
Her glare turned into a startled look, "What?"
"Luna found us! Me! Whatever!" Starlight opened her mouth to speak, but I cut her off. I knew what she was going to ask, "She used my magical energy waves to track me, and she knows what I am! I think.... Sometimes it's hard to tell with how weird she talks. Nevermind, the point is that the Princess' probably know where we are and my duty as bodyguard tells me we need to leave!"
"No," I gave her a confused look, "we won't leave. This is my town, my equality, and I can't let all of my hard work go to waste. Anyway, you can protect me if anything goes wrong."
I bit my lip, "Yes, but-"
"What? Are you scared of a couple of alicorns?" Starlight snickered.
"Psh, no.... Okay, maybe a little bit. What? Back in Hell, it was the worst punishment ever to get sent to Equestria. Why? Because the rulers here hunt you like a dog the moment you enter!" I tried to ignore the fear that slithered into my voice.
"You were here for a year, and nopony came for you," Starlight pointed out, "So relax. She was probably trying to get under your fur. Don't get your tail in a knot," She trapped my thrashing tail under her hoof.
I tugged my tail away from her, my ears flattening slightly, "Maybe you're right. I dunno. Thanks anyway you snot-nosed, equality based, pony." I snorted, trying to regain myself through humor.
"There's the Alvar I know! The arrogant, self-centered, dirty-mouthed demon that finds a way to weave through the cracks in my orders," She poked my side with a hoof before turning back over in her bed, pulling the covers over her, "Anyway, I'll see you *yawn* sometime today when I wake up."
"Alright Glimmer. See you then."
I refused to get up from her bed, even when ponies came and knocked on her door.
I was jolted awake by a loud and aggravated voice echoing through the house, causing my tail to lash in annoyance. Pushing myself up and off of the bed, I morphed into my pony form. I was a green pegasus stallion with a black mane and tail. Pretty normal, but I had my primary and secondary wing feathers dyed yellow to make myself stand out a bit more. My cutie mark was, of course, an equal sign. I didn't want to take any chances with turning up at the door as a demon. It's just not what you'd call 'normal.'
Trotting downstairs, I opened the door to see a unicorn and earth pony stallion. The unicorn was snow white, tall, had a messy blue mane, and had a shield for his cutie mark. Golden armor adorned his body, a helmet his size held to the side in a field of magic. The earth pony looked almost the same, only he was normal sized, had a Mohawk that stuck up through his helmet, his tail was cut short, and armor covered his entire body. From the slight shimmer it gave off, I could tell it was enchanted.
I put on a nervous, yet suspicious look, "Can I uh, help you?" Ruffling wings for effect...
"Sir, I am Captain Shining Armor and this here is Private Sharp Eye. Would you mind if we asked you a few questions?" When the unicorn got a nod, he continued, "Have you seen any ponies behaving different recently? Sneaking off at night, or just not acting themselves?"
I pretended to think, "No, nopony I can think of. We're all pretty friendly here, and I can't imagine anypony doing something bad. It would be against the rules!"
Shining nodded, "If you don't mind me asking, why do you all have the same cutie mark?"
I brightened my face, "It's to prove that we are all equal and united in friendship! It's also a symbol to prove our citizenship to the town!" Starlight blabbed her mouth constantly about this stuff, so this was an easy question.
"Have you sensed any changes in the magical field? Any at all?" A shake of the head.
"Any strange new residents?" Nope.
"Damn it!" Shining slammed his hoof on the doorframe, leaning in closer towards me, "I KNOW you've got something! I can see it!"
I put on a concerned look, "If you could please not do that. My friend decided to go to sleep at midnight last night, and she's still sleeping. I don't want to deal with a cranky pony. Now I know you're upset but no, I don't know anything. For the way you're acting, you can leave." I put on a stern look, hardening my gaze.
Shining took a step back, "I just... I'm...." He sighed, lowering his head, "Please, if you know anything just let the guard know. My sister Twilight has been gone for about five weeks now and.... Just let us know if you see anything," Shining nodded to Sharp Eye and the two walked off.
I closed the door, slamming my back onto it and sliding down it's side. The princess' had found us and sent the guard, the captain being the brother of Twilight Sparkle. I held my face in my hooves, taking in deep breaths. This was okay, just a little unexpected and added to the bundle of problems. We were going to be fine, and nopony would find the Misfits.
Oh Devil I'm an idiot. Of course they're going to find them! They're in a shack, for crying out loud! It's not that hard to find them!
Well, maybe they just won't look? After all, it is locked.
You think that's going to stop the Royal Guard from finding a bunch of missing ponies?
"What do you want me to do?!" I shouted down at Starlight, "They're going to find them, and we were stupid enough to think nopony would come for a damn princess!"
"I'm sorry, okay! Quit yelling at me and let me think!" Starlight shouted back, tears slipping from her eyes.
I flinched, her crying finally registering. She had woken up not even that long ago and I was already yelling at her. Ugh... I hate guilt. So, I nodded and backed off to dull the awful feeling. Starlight let out a shaky breath, seeming appreciative, before plopping down right there on her bedroom floor. She put a hoof to her chin, tapping it every so often.
"Maybe we could... No, that wouldn't work.... Or maybe....! No, that's stupid!" Starlight hummed in thought, her blurry eyes suddenly brightening, "Alvar, since you're a demon, you can do things that are considered impossible right?"
I nodded, bringing into existence a bubble of purple water containing an 'alien' fish, "Does this look possible to you?"
"Question answered! So, I'll leave this problem to you. From what I've seen, demons are creative in the ways they deal with things." Glimmer promptly got up and exited the room, a confidence in her step.
"But... Ugh. Asshole." I tapped a clawed foot against the wooden floor, an ear flicking absentmindedly.
Maybe I could...
A sharp toothed grin spread across my face, getting larger by the second, and my pupils shrank to small black dots. It was so obvious, so blatantly obvious and simple. Why hadn't I thought of this before? I let out a psychotic giggle, my tail lashing happily from side to side. This was going to be so much fun.
The void was silent all around me, the sense of familiarity comforting. I had wanted to come here for a while, and now I could share it. The Misfits were all huddled together, their hooves or wings keeping them from drifting apart. Every so often one of them would drift from the others and they all scrambled to get them. It was rather amusing, to say the least.
"Why are you doing this?" Twilight choked out, her voice heavy with unshed tears.
I shrugged, a smirk finding it's way onto my lips, "Dunno, maybe just for the amusement," My smirk dropped as a deep, guttural growl escaped me, "Now shut up, or I'll make you."
"But-"
"You don't want me to silence you, Twilly." I spat out her nickname.
The alicorn seemed to try and make herself smaller as I turned away from her, my mouth tightening into a thin line as I focused. Taking in a deep breath, I allowed my magic to build and churn in my chest as I held my hands out in front of me. Once it had built to an almost unbearable amount, I unleashed it and my breath as a portal took form. A slight ripping sound was heard, the village slowly coming into view. I snapped my fingers, purple eye contacts appearing as I transformed into a beaten Twilight. Smiling a half-lidded smile, I put the contacts in just as the portal opened up and allowed all to see me. I curled up and cast a mortified expression on my face, just as Shining Armor came into view to investigate.
"Twilight...?"
"Shining...?" I uncurled myself a bit, the fake tears falling down my face becoming a steady stream.
"Twilight!" Shining ran towards the portal with a desperate, tear-filled look, "Guards, to me!"
The guards fell in line behind Shining, most looking nervous or relieved. Just as they stepped through, however, they disappeared and were cast to the place nopony wants to go or visit. I stood and clapped my hooves together, stepping towards the now portal-turned-barrier, as the Bone Dry Desert faded in. The group looked around in confusion before their eyes landed on me, only causing their ignorance to grow. I let out a dark chuckle, surprising them, before I morphed back into myself.
Plucking the contacts from my eyes, I threw them through the barrier and 'accidently' hit a guard on the forehead, "You are really dumb. Your little sister wasn't that stupid to fall for a trick like that!"
Shining charged at the barrier, stumbling back a bit when his head hit the window, "W-Where's my sister? Where is she?!"
I waved Twilight over to me, gripping the back of her shivering neck, "Right here, safe with me. Don't worry though, I haven't hurt her and I don't plan too. Well, unless I'm ordered to, of course."
"Let her go!"
"Nah, I quite enjoy her company. It's nice to have somepony to talk to, plus digging around in such a smart pony's brain can be pretty informing. No idea you had a wife and child, by the way," I shrugged, boredom taking hold.
"I swear to Celestia if you hurt them, I will personally send you back to Tartarus where you belong!" Now that's new...
"Pfft, I can't go back there. Family issues and all that... Anyway, toodles! Have fun with dehydration and hallucinations!" With the snap of my fingers, the portal closed.
Twilight burst into tears, burying her face in her hooves as sobs wrecked her body, "Wh-Why? Why a-are you doing *hic* this to m-me? To us?"
"Ponies are so emotional. It's sickening," I let her float back over to her amazingly silent friends, "Though I will admit, it's rather admirable how much hope your species has. Now why I'm doing this? I've already answered you. Entertainment," With the wave of my hand another portal appeared and spit me out in Starlight's town.
Now that we've gotten that out of the way.... I turned towards Glimmey's house, I've got a unicorn to apologize too.
Just as I was about to turn the knob on Starlight's front door, it burst into a bunch of hard candies and floated up into the air. A low growl escaped me as I turned to see the Embodiment of Disharmony, Discord, who was now a reformed buffoon. He was better when he wanted to rule Equestria and not when he wanted goody-two-shoe friends.
The Draconequus popped up right in front of me,"Ally! Good to see you! Long time no see, eh?" He nudged my arm with a talon.
"Yeah, sure. How is it being reformed and bored?" A slight, silent jab.
"Very boring, but I have some great friends! Y'know, the ones you don't have to make contracts with to keep them." Discord smiled.
My tail slowly waved from side to side in simmering anger, "I'd rather stick to what I do best than have friends who'll eventually send me back to Hell. Remember the time you did that? Yeah, that was great wasn't it?"
"Yeah, fantastic," Hissed Discord.
The tension between us was so thick you could cut it like butter. Some ponies even stopped and stared, sensing the hatred flaring between us. By now my tail was lashing like an angry cat and my pupils thinned into slits. Discord's eyes were narrowed and he had set himself on all fours, poised to strike at any moment. Before we could say more to set off the other, Starlight opened the door and bumped into my back. She looked up to see both me and Discord, our eyes never leaving each other.
"Umm... Alvar? Why is he here?"
I plastered a bright smile onto my face, clasping my hands together, "Yes, what are you doing here Dissy? Please, tell us." A growl rose from my throat despite my cheerful façade.
Discord drew himself up onto his hindlegs, beaming down at Starlight, "I have come to take back my dear Fluttershy and her friends. Have you happened to see them, by chance?"
Starlight's eyes widened slightly, "Oh, no I haven't. I'm sorry, really. I'll keep an eye out for them though."
"Oh thank you, miss. I would really appreciate it. Now if you don't mind, I'd like to have a word with you," He returned his gaze to me, glaring, "If you could please move this abomination out of my way first, I'd be quite pleased."
She nodded, motioning for me to move. With a deep growl, I did as I was ask and moved to let the smug draconequus in. Starlight happily trotted over to an armchair, setting herself down and looking at Discord with a quizzical look. I stood right beside her, glaring at him even though he looked as cheerful as ever. He was a master at acting, I knew, and he was more than likely acting right now. If I let my guard down for one second he could rip Starlight to shreds or destroy the town or--
"Alvar, could you go make us some tea?" Glimmey smiled up at me.
With slight hesitation, and a sharp glare at Discord, I made my way into the kitchen. I grabbed the set from the cupboard, filled and set the kettle on the stove, and got the green tea bags from the drawer. Their voices carried into the kitchen, laughter heard every now and then, but it was muffled. My hearing was pretty good, so why couldn't I hear them? Was Discord using a spell? Something to block me from hearing them? Maybe it was--
The kettle whistled, drawing me from my slightly panicked thoughts. I turned off the stove and put the kettle on a decorated glass tray, along with two tea cups, their tiny plates, the tea package, and a small sugar bowl with a few spoons. Picking up the tray, I made my way back over to the two and set the tray on the coffee table, pouring each of them a boiling hot cup of water. I set a tea bag in each, looking up at the two chatting creatures.
"One or two?" I growled out. How were they getting along so well?
"And I said-- Oh, could I have three?" Discord asked.
"I'll have one. Thank you, Alvar," Starlight and Discord went back to chatting.
Slumping slightly, I put three spoonful's in Discord's cup and one spoonful in Starlight's cup. I stirred them before waving my hand, the cups floating up to their designated creature. The draconequus lifted his lion paw, 'accidentally' knocking over his cup and splashing the hot tea all over me. I tightened my jaw to suppress a cry of pain.
Discord put the paw over his mouth, acting sorry, "Oh, I'm so terribly sorry, Ally! I've just been so clumsy today! First I trip getting on the train, then spill my candy on my seat! Now this happens?" He shook his head and leaned further into the couch, making it clear he wasn't going to help.
"Alvar, you should go clean yourself up. From experience, it's awful to have sticky fur." Starlight suggested, a look of worry on her face.
"Fine," I growled before turning towards Discord, "No games or tricks while I'm gone, understand? You hurt one hair on her head and I swear I'll--"
"Alvar! Go take a shower. I'll be fine." Starlight narrowed her eyes at me.
I opened my mouth to say more, but her glare had me turn tail into the bathroom and close the door behind me. Making my way towards the shower, I turned on the hot water and added a bit of cold to make it bearable. I'd probably turn the heat up later, anyway. Drawing back the curtain, I step in and close it again as my fur soaks up the water like a mop. Within moments, I look like a wet, shaggy dog that just got yelled at for stealing a steak off the table. The steam from the water made it harder to breath, or maybe that's just my own panicked thoughts.
What if he hurts her? What if he takes her? Will she be okay? Devil, I hope she's okay. She better not be dead when I come back. Will he hurt her? I hope not. Maybe if I hurry, I'll get there before he kills her. But what if I'm to late? What happens to her? To me? Will she go to hell? I hope not. I wouldn't be able to see her then...
I rest my head on the wall beside me. Why did he have to show up? Why couldn't he have just stayed in stone?
"Of course! The surprise would be ruined without it!" Discord bat my hand away from the blindfold.
From what I could tell, we were heading down a narrow, spiraling staircase. My outstretched hands brushed against the stone, claws getting caught in the grooves every so often. The only sound was the tap of claws against stone as we made our descent, and eventually we hit dirt. Yes, dirt was the floor. It was upturned in some places and got between my toes, annoying me greatly. Where in hell were we that had a dirt floor? Dissy let go of my shoulder and had me fumbling around, leaving me without a wall to hold onto. I wanted to open my eyes, but what if we were at the surprise? The last thing I wanted was to make Dissy disappointed or upset.
"Ready?"
"Yup!"
Something hit the back of my head, knocking me unconscious within moments.
I opened my blazing eyes, eon old anger arising within me. After everything we had done, after everything we had been through he had just.... I let out a sigh, grabbing the shampoo and rubbing it into my fur. After I washed that out, I put in conditioner and did the same. I turned off the shower and made a towel pop into existence, drying myself off. It disappear in a cloud of smoke as I made my way out of the bathroom and back towards the two. I was relieved to see that Starlight was, in fact, very much alive.
Discord smiled at me, holding out his cup, "Would you be so kind?"
I stared at the cup before looking up, glaring daggers at him, "Get it yourself. You have a paw and a talon, don't you?"
With a huff, I turned and made my way upstairs towards my room. I was not dealing with his shit.
A groan escaped me as I stood up, stumbling a bit on my wobbly legs. I rubbed my eyes to try and clear my vision and, after multiple attempts, it remained smeared. However, every so often it would allow me to see a glimpse of where I was. I think I was in the same room Dissy had brought me into, the dirt floor and stone walls a dead give away, only there were some very unsettling.... Markings.... surrounding me. I stood in the middle of a pentagram, a small circle of salt trapping me there. A candle was at each corner of the star, causing my uneasiness to grow. A larger circle of salt encompassed the pentagram itself, ensuring no escape. At the point of the star stood Discord, a disapproving frown on his face.
"Dissy, what--"
"Do NOT call me that, you abomination."
I took a few steps back, ears flattening and tail curling nervously around my leg. After one final step, my back hit the invisible wall the salt had formed. I gulped, eyes wide and frantic as the realization of what was happening registered with my now clearing vision.
"Diss-- I-I mean Discord, what are you doing? I thought that--"
"That we were friends? Oh, of course not! Why would I want a demon for a friend? There were so many times I tried to shake you, to get rid of you, and yet your disgusting loyalty always had you come running back!"
"But the contract--"
"I don't care about the contract. In fact, I'm ending it. I have all the power I could possibly need and I certainly don't need a friend. A demon friend, at that. Now, let's get this moving along shall we?" He summoned a book, flipping through a few pages before stopping at one, "Ah, yes, here it is. Let's see... Sending a demon back to Tartarus!"
I awoke to maple syrup pouring down my head and waffles being skewered on my horns, causing my fur to become sticky and matted. Again. I let out an agitated growl. Why wasn't he gone?
"Wakey wakey, Ally! It's time to get up!" Discord flew in front of my face with a big smile.
I shoved him away, "Why the hell aren't you gone?"
"Oh! Well since I had gotten here so late Starlight offered to have me sleep over! I must say, you really should have been there. We made all kinds of foods and played a variety of games. It was just wonderful!" He crowed.
I stood up, snapping my fingers to make the mess on my head disappear. Discord followed me downstairs where Starlight was making breakfast, though it obviously wasn't for me. A jar of fear rested next to the stove where she was making pancakes, levitating it into my arms when I came in. Looking back into the dining room, I only saw two plates and two sets of silverware on the table before I turned back to Starlight.
"I could have prepared breakfast. You know that, right?" I asked the mare.
She nodded, "Yes, I know, but after your little outburst last night, I figure you needed to sleep it off. We need to talk about that, by the way."
I rolled my eyes before giving her a nod, grabbing a spoon and trudging into the living room. Plopping down on the couch, I popped open the jar's lid and dug in. However, it was a bit awkward having Discord watch me eat with his bewildered expression.
"What? Never seen somepony eat their breakfast before?"
"Oh, no, I have! You're just not a pony, and I've never seen a demon eat... Whatever that is," When I gave him a glare, he continued, "I don't remember you being this harsh before. What happened Ally?" He gave me a pouty look.
"You sent me back to Hell, that's what happened. After enough hurt and betrayals, I decided to do something about it," My glare darkened, causing Discord's ears to droop slightly, "We both know that your act is a lie. You've used it on me for years. Now, we both know you came here for the guards."
Discord hissed suddenly, baring his teeth, "Where-"
"Here's a riddle for you. I build castles, yet tear down mountains, make some men blind, and others see. What am I?"
Discord flew forward, knocking the tea set from last night to the floor, before grabbing my chest fluff and pulling me up to eye level. Starlight ran in, freezing when she saw the hostility between us and a spark of annoyance at my spilled jar of fear.
"I don't have time for games, Alvar. Celestia sent me to figure out where the Elements of Harmony and the missing guards are, plus I won't be able to live without my best friend."
My ear twitched at the word 'elements' as I tilted my head slightly, "Elements, you say? Those buffoons? The Elements of Harmony? Devil, I really wish they hadn't fallen here. Wasn't my intent."
Discord dropped me, "What?"
I jumped into Discord's shadow, appearing behind him and placing my claws on his shoulders as I leaned in towards his ear, "After you banished me, I made you have terrible luck. Spells not working or backfiring. Ponies actually standing up to you. In fact, two princesses rose up and used some strange new gems to turn you into stone. How did they acquire these gems? You asked yourself this for years, until you didn't care anymore," I shifted to his other ear, adding more malice to my words, "Well, thing is, Dissy, those gems are not items of harmony. They came from my home, Hell, or Tartarus in your case. How did they get here?"
Discord's pupils narrowed into slits, "No."
I shaped my form into that of a snake, wrapping my shadowy self around him so I could look into his angry eyes, "Yes. I was demoted to a demonic guard after I failed to keep such a simple contract. I thought that if I successfully stole something so heavily guarded without being seen, I would get my job back. However, I accidentally dropped them in an unknown universe, which just happened to be Equestria. You getting turned to stone was merely an accident, but a bonus at the same time," My red eyes glowed like fire, "Unfortunately, I was smelled out instead of seen. A small mistake I was ripped apart for. How am I alive then? I don't know, but I consider it a second chance."
"A second chance for what?"
I made my way to the back of his neck, "A second chance to prove myself, to give up my old cowardice, and destroy those who betrayed me," I sunk my fangs into his neck, my grip on him tightening even as he writhed and squirmed.
"Alvar! What are you-" Starlight stopped, covering her mouth with a hoof at the sight before her.
From where my fangs were still embedded, his veins started to be seen from under his fur as I pumped his bloodstream full of black venom. Discord dropped to the ground and trapped me underneath him, much to my surprise. I let out a pained hiss before turning back into myself, my shadowy form dispersing.
"Why do you weigh so much!? You're only a few feet taller than me! This isn't right!" I tried pushing him off, only to causing him to roll closer to my face and possibly block off my air flow.
"Alvar! What did you do to him?! Is he dying?!"
I scoffed, "No, I just knocked him out with some good ol' demon venom. All it does is put him to sleep for a few hours. Nothing terribly harmful."
Raising my hand to snap my fingers, a purple field of magic stopped me, "No, you're staying there for a bit. Then, you're cleaning the house. With no magic."
I stared at her in disbelief despite my eyes flashing purple, confirming my orders, "That's so unfair! Why the hell-"
"Now, what would you like to drink in your temporary prison?"
I crossed my arms, leaning back to rest on the floor, "Tea, please. I didn't get any last night. I was to angry."
She nodded, disappearing into the kitchen. Then I realized I'd have more dishes to do......
