TD meets Discord and Discord uses him to try to defeat the Elements and Princess Celestia.
An alternate version of the TDverse, first seen in No, I Am NOT a Brony, GET ME OUTTA EQUESTRIA!!! where after TD leaves the Gala, he comes across a certain petrified statue. Curious, he walks up to it and sets in motion a chain of events that may change the face of Equestria forever. Even worse for the wayward human, his meeting with the being known only as Discord may ensure that he never gets home...
A note before we begin: this is a much darker version of the TDverse than the one presented in Not A Brony and a darker take on Discord (all of which I will justify). If you prefer the funnier side of TD's adventures in Equestria, turn back now. If you liked the more dramatic, emotionally heavy sides, then this is that turned up to eleven. If you prefer the comedy and choose to read this anyway, well, I warned you...
Peace and tranquility. It reined over the Canterlot Statue Garden in a way that little else did. Statues are like that, ever vigilant, ever watchful, never moving. Of course, not every statue in the garden was carved from stone by skilled craftsponies. No, on occasion, when the need of Equestria was great, a later addition to the gardens tended to be more... alive than its naturally stone brethren.
This was the case with the strangest of the statues in Celestia's collection. If one didn't know better, and few did, one would just assume that the random assortment of animal parts was a mistake or a joke on the part of the stonecutter who crafted it and nopony bothered to remove it. In fact, that was a common explanation that the royal sisters gave to foals who asked about it. They said that they kept it around because it made them laugh.
It was ironic in its own way.
Of course, none of that was important right now to either the being trapped in stone, nor the one who burst through the doors of the castle, shattering the carefully built silence. The being, a human that had been brought to Equestria by Celestia herself, was distraught; it was obvious enough from his gait and expression. Something had gone seriously wrong in this human's life tonight. His was no ordinary form of misery.
Within the deepest center of Discord's stature, a small fire awoke inside. Oh, it was nothing powerful enough to allow him the freedom he so desperately craved, but it was a start. It had begun when he had seen the human. How strange... and inviting.
By some stroke of sheer luck, or fate, whichever one prefers, the human maneuvered himself into the statue garden. Maybe he was drawn to it by the deathly calm. It certainly wasn't for the decor as the shroud of night covered any aesthetic qualities that the statues may have held. No, this one wanted to be alone with his misery that much was certain.
Discord grinned inside his statue prison. He loved misery more than little else. It was so easy to twist into something deliciously chaotic. That was his game, after all, chaos, and to him it was a game. The princesses 'secure' in their castles might valiantly believe otherwise, but Discord was older, stronger, and smarter than those two misguided fools. He knew better than to believe that ponies had any worth other than as playthings for the powerful. The weak were meant to be controlled by the strong. That brought chaos. When the weak rose up against the strong, that brought chaos too. Whoever won the struggle, there was always chaos to be had. Such was the natural balance of life, whether Celestia chose to believe it or not.
Still, the human needed to be the focus at the moment. The human could not be manipulated for chaos if Discord did nothing with him.
In another stroke of what Discord considered to be pure luck, the human chose to rest leaning on his very statue! Why he had chosen to lean on the oddest one in the garden none could say. It probably had something to do with the fact that he didn't care what he leaned against right now, he just needed something to be there.
Discord examined the distraught human that leaned at his hooves. He sensed a lot of chaos from this one, more so than he had felt when three fillies had fought in front of him, something that allowed his escape. It was a pity that Twilight Sparkle and the other Elements had encased him in stone again. He had planned to make those three fillies his jesters, sentenced to fight with each other for all of eternity. Oh it was a beautiful thought. Still, what was done was done and this human required more attention.
Discord used what magic he could muster to probe into the human's mind. Hmm, TD was what they called him. TD Harrison Powell. He couldn't find what the T and D stood for, but it was an unimportant detail at any rate and certainly not one he would waste his time with.
Further analysis of the human's mind revealed something... interesting to the trapped god of chaos. He knew the Elements of Harmony. He had spent some time with them it seems. What's more, he had a good reason to hate almost all of them! Well, not that dratted Element of Kindness, but Discord didn't like to think about her. So, this human had met the Elements and had good reason to hate almost all of them. What was even juicier to Discord were his feelings toward Celestia. Oh yes, if he ever escaped he could certainly use those.
The human sighed and muttered something to himself, completely unaware that his mind was being read by the being he leaned against. Discord grinned as he unraveled the human's mind. It was foal's play, even for a being like him. Humans, it turned out, were remarkably simple creatures, driven by base desires and unable to feel much empathy. Or at the very least, that seemed to be the case for this one.
TD sighed again and picked up his new walking stick in his hands. It portrayed on wood what Discord was seeing in TD's mind, creating a sort of parallel between the two. Each were examining his memories, wondering what to make of them and what brought him to this point. Each wondered what to do next with the information that they had been given. For Discord, the answer was as plain as the chaos inside the human. For TD, it was as clear as the statue in front of him.
"This isn't fair," TD muttered to himself, tightening his grip on the walking stick. "Celestia interferes and now I'm stuck here forever! Isn't that just freaking great?!"
"It does sound like a rather poor position to be in, I must admit," said Discord. The human bolted upright and looked around wildly, searching for the pony who intruded on his private angsty thoughts. Well, conventional thought would have him searching forever, time Discord didn't have. "You won't find me wandering the grounds, TD," said Discord. "You have to think a little more outside the box than that."
TD frowned and tried to gauge where the voice was coming from. It didn't seem like it was coming from one direction, which was confusing him, instead it sounded like the voice was inside his head. He frowned and scanned the gardens one more time before his traveling eyes landed on the chaotic statue before him.
"Excellent!" said Discord. "You have found me, TD, and for that I applaud you. Not many know I'm here."
"I don't imagine that you talk to many ponies out here," TD replied.
Discord let out a slight chuckle that held no trace of mirth. Indeed, it sent a shiver down TD's spine. "Very astute of you, TD," said Discord. "And on the flipside, I don't imagine that you talk to many statues, even after having come here from your planet."
TD took a step back and narrowed his eyes. "How do you know about all of that?"
"Oh it wasn't really too difficult to discern. You see, you are not a pony, nor are you a member of any of the other intelligent races scattered across the planet. Combine that with your hatred for Celestia and you've got yourself a being from another world that was brought here by mistake... or otherwise."
"How do you know that I don't like Celestia? We only just 'met'." Discord was silent for a moment and TD took that moment to take a step backwards. "You stay out of my head, you got that?!"
"Or what, TD, what are you going to do?"
"Just--"
"To be fair, I can definitely see why it would bother you. I mean, Celestia controls you, the Elements control you, so why add a statue of all things to that list of things that ensure that you are powerless here?" said Discord evenly. This was going to be too easy.
TD scowled at the statue for the briefest of moments before something clicked in his brain. Now that he really saw this statue, he knew where had had heard about it. "So, you're Discord then, huh?"
"In the... well... not 'flesh' exactly, but you know what I'm getting at. I'm pleased to meet you, TD. Yes, very pleased indeed."
"Uh-huh. I take it that you have some grand escape plan involving me then, yeah? Isn't that what you do?"
Discord gasped in fake surprise. "My goodness, how did you figure me out so quickly?"
"Hey, sarcasm is my department." TD walked up and knocked on Discord's right leg. "It seems that being a target for the birds is yours. I'm not falling for your stupid tricks, dude, I'm leaving."
"Me oh my, it certainly seems that the chaos you've brought with you isn't going to be the instrument of my escape this time," said Discord. "It's too bad that you couldn't have brought the Cutie Mark Crusaders with you to the Gala. I'm sure the four of you could do it. I mean, the three of them did it before."
TD stopped in his tracks at the mention of the fillies. For the briefest of moments his face flashed with anger before he leveled himself out and continued walking. It was too late and the damage had been done.
"You should have seen what I was going to do to them as thanks for helping me escape!" taunted Discord. "All it took was arguing about what I was and I was free as a bird! Well, that and the princesses not begin connected to the Elements anymore, but enough chaos would allow me to escape. I'm sure those fillies are dense enough to help me escape again."
TD stopped walking away once more and his grip tightened on his walking stick. It was as if he wanted to go back and beat the statue into submission with it. It was almost unbreakable so there was a shot that the statue would suffer damage before the staff did.
Discord reached out and read TD's mind once more. He doubted that the human would actually attack him. That would be foolish. But he wasn't after TD attacking him. That alone would not do. He wanted the conflict. The two opposite ends of TD's thought process fighting each other. One side saying walk away, he's a statue and can't hurt them while the other said to go and make sure that Discord knew to never touch the Crusaders of there would be more hell to pay. Frankly Discord didn't care which side won out in the end. It was the conflict, the internal chaos of his thoughts and emotions, which interested him.
The best part? It was working. He felt the slightest easing of the protective spells and the tiniest crack in his stone form. He knew that he needed to keep this going as long as he could, but the human would not stay forever, letting Discord needle him into conflict.
Discord spouted off a few more words vaguely threatening the foals, but he had a larger purpose: there was a larger section of chaos around, he could feel it. Since the castle was close by, he felt that it might be... ah ha. Jackpot.
Something had gone on in the castle, something big. It threw every occupant into a state of chaos and it was beautiful. All he needed to do was feed off of it for just long enough to escape. Further sensing revealed that the Elements were in there too. What's more, they were upset about something. Yes... that would do nicely.
Discord turned his full attention back to TD. He'd smirk if he could. "It seems you created quite the ruckus back there," he said. "What did you do I wonder that would send an entire castle into disarray?"
"We're done here," insisted TD.
"You could have walked away at any point," stated Discord. "I certainly wouldn't be able to stop you."
"Good, let's keep it that way." TD began walking towards wherever he was going but Discord wasn't giving up so easily.
"Good luck out there, TD!" he called out. "I hope you like having your life more or less dictated by Celestia and the Elements! I'm sure your family will get over you quickly enough, but foalsitting the children once a week should make up for that!."
TD stopped once again and Discord allowed himself an internal smile. That had done it. The crack increased allowing Discord to draw from both the chaos in the castle and the internal battle raging within the human. It was ironic really; if the human did decide to attack, it would do more to stop him than merely trying to decide what to do. Seeing upon which side the coin would land wasn't nearly as interesting as the constant chaotic spinning that took place before it landed.
It was almost too good to be true for Discord. The Elements were emotionally distraught, Celestia and Luna were upset, the castle was in an uproar and this human had provided the spark that had set the explosives off.
And, speaking of explosions, it seems that TD had just about had enough of Discord's taunts.
He tossed his backpack on the ground with as much fury as he could muster and grabbed the walking stick with both hands. Discord readied himself for freedom; the crack had grown until it was all along his back, as TD charged, shouting a few very not foal-friendly words that only added to the flames.
With nothing left to lose, TD swung the staff directly at the statue. It collided with the base of Discord's left leg with a satisfying crack. The crack was followed by several more as the blow had fractured the area where it had hit. TD's eyes widened in horror when he realized what he had done, but it was too late. The cracks spider webbed up the statue until in a blinding flash of light, the stone dissolved leaving an empty statue pillar where the god of chaos used to reside.
TD stared at the empty base in open mouthed horror. "Oh no," he whispered to himself. "No, no no no this can't be happening!" He looked down at the staff in his hand and thwacked the tip on his head. Not hard enough to do any damage, but enough to remind himself that he had screwed up big time.
He looked up and his eyes landed on the castle in front of him. Of course! The Elements and the princesses were all still inside the castle! He felt like chuckling slightly at the realization that he would have to walk back in directly after he had punched Celestia in the face--for the second time no less--to ask her and the Elements to clean up the mess he made in unleashing Discord.
Deciding to bite the bullet, TD took a step forward but immediately tumbled to the ground when his foot refused to move. Undeterred, he pushed himself up and tried to move forward again, with no success. He swore and looked down at his feet. To his horror he was no longer standing on grass, but rather in a thick, gooey substance.
"You'll never get anywhere like that, you know," said a voice above him. TD's head shot up and there, in all of his non-stone glory, was Discord. The creature was even more twisted this close up and TD was more than a little unsettled that this thing was focusing all of its attention on him.
"I'd say 'let me go' but we both know that's not going to happen, don't we?" said TD.
"Hard to say," said Discord, thoughtfully scratching his chin with his paw. "You are such a wonderful source of chaos but something I find rather depressing about mortal sources is that the source will run out at some point. There are very few things in this life that produce infinite chaos and you, human, are not one of them. I suppose it also depends on how quickly you could break through extra sticky molasses."
TD's eyes flickered over to the castle once more, hoping desperately that somebody would decide to take an evening walk to cool their heads after the disaster that was the Gala.
Following TD's gaze, Discord smirked. "Do you wish to call for help, TD? If so, I won't stop you."
"Or you might," TD replied.
Discord help up his paw defensively and looked vaguely offended. "Say what you will about me, but I am a creature of my word."
"Or are you? I imagine that me not knowing would cause a lot of chaos."
Discord scoffed and shook his head. "You may be right, but that's no fun after a while. The ponies eventually go mad trying to figure it out and it's just boring."
"I thought that kind of chaos would be fun for you," TD retorted.
"Pure chaos cannot come around without at least some order, human," stated Discord. "I imagine your species would know that."
"Hard to say, you're fictional in my world."
Discord let loose an uproarious laugh that he quickly quieted down when he remembered that the princesses and Elements were still nearby. "Excuse my mirth, TD," said Discord, "but I find that very amusing." The draconnequus slowly floated downwards towards TD and placed a claw on his forehead. “I guess in the end it doesn't matter if I'm fictional in your world or not," said Discord. "What matters is that I am free and I intend to stay that way. I mean, have you tried being trapped in stone? It's a nightmare, an absolute nightmare!"
TD glared at Discord and opened his mouth to retort, but Discord grabbed TD's head in his claws and shoved him downwards, submerging him completely in the molasses he had conjured before diving in himself.
The molasses pool on the ground quickly began shrinking down until it would prove to all but those who witnessed it that the ground had been undisturbed by anything, magic or otherwise.
The events of in the Canterlot Statue Garden complete, silence and tranquility reigned over the grounds once more.
The sleek train pulled into the Ponyville station at around four in the afternoon the day after the Gala. The arrival of the steam beast automatically set in motion a hubbub of ponies all departing or boarding. Everypony had some place to be; everypony had a purpose with the train this afternoon.
Amongst those disembarking were six rather sullen mares that wasted no time in collecting their luggage and departing for the town proper. If one didn't know better, one would say that they hadn't just come from what was supposed to have been one of the best gatherings in Equestria. However, they had and the events thereof were weighing on them and it was apparent by their demeanors.
Yes, the Elements of Harmony were worried about their human friend. They had not seen him since Luna had broken his spine the previous night. He had stormed off after Celestia had repaired it and Applejack had the sense to tell her companions that he needed some alone time to digest the magnitude of the news he had just received, that is to say, that Celestia couldn't send him back to Earth as the journey would have likely killed him.
They had searched for him after a while, of course, but he was nowhere around Canterlot that they could determine. As such, they had decided to go back to Ponyville as TD had a home there and it was the closest thing to a safe and familiar place that he had. If they had to put bits on it, they would have bet that he was there.
Applejack took a deep breath and shifted her saddlebags on her back. "What if he ain't there?" she asked. "Ah mean, he had a return ticket so Ah know that he had the means, but what if he didn't go back?"
"Where else would he have gone?" reasoned Twilight Sparkle. "I mean, what other part of Equestria would he be comfortable going to?" The purple unicorn shook her head as the town proper came into view. "No, after hearing what he did, he'd want to go somewhere he felt safer."
"And you think that's here?" asked Rarity.
Twilight nodded. "I do," she said. "His house here is the closest thing he has to a home and he feels more at home when he's with the foals. I think he came back here."
The group walked to the town center and Twilight walked up to a nearby Berry Punch. "Hey Berry, have you seen TD around? Did he come in last night?"
Berry Punch shook her head. "No, I don't think so. Granted, I'm just one pony and he had this whole town to walk around, but I didn't see him, nor have I heard anypony else talk about how they saw him either. Why? Did he not come back with you?"
Twilight shook her head. "He got some rather bad news at the Gala and left before we did."
"Then he probably came back and I just missed him. If he left after or during the Gala he would have made it home late at night, yes?"
A look of relief crossed Applejack's face and she let loose a sigh of relief. "Yeah, Ah'm sure that's it!" she said. "Ah'm sure he's at home."
"I think you're right," said Twilight. "Thanks Berry!"
The earth pony nodded and the ponies went their separate ways.
The Elements quickly went over to the simple brown house and Rainbow Dash knocked on the thick wooden door, hoping desperately that TD was inside. Even when he was feeling down, he always answered when he was home.
However, this round of knocking was met with deathly silence instead of the noise of Ponyville's resident human coming to open the door. Frowning, Rainbow Dash knocked again with no success. She turned back to her friends.
"I don't think he's in there!" she said.
"Maybe he went to go talk to somepony?" suggested Fluttershy.
"Like who?" asked Rarity. "I doubt that he would come to any of the foals with something like this and Cheerilee's away in Manehattan for the weekend."
"So you think he never made it back to Ponyville?" asked Rainbow Dash.
Twilight didn't respond for a moment, choosing instead to look at the door one more time, hoping that TD would answer and they could talk to him about the events of last night, but nothing happened. She sighed and turned back to her expectant friends. "I think we need to find out what happened to him," she said. "If he went off and is alone, then something bad might have happened!"
"I feel that I have to agree," said Rarity. "He only knows his way around Ponyville! If he went somewhere else in Equestria then I'm not sure what would happen to him!"
"Now hold on y'all," said Applejack. "He could just be out and about, you know, takin' a walk to clear his head or somethin' like that. Ah'd rather make sure of that before we go off and search Equestria for him."
"You may be right," said Twilight. "Okay, I'll write to the princess to see if she knows where he is. Applejack, and Rainbow Dash, you take the east end of town. Ask anypony if you know where he is. Pinkie Pie, Rarity, and Fluttershy, you take the west side of town and do the same. We need to help him, girls! TD got some rather terrible news last night and we need to make sure that he's doing okay! Meet me back at the library in an hour!
The Elements cheered and split up to do their respective tasks.
Traversing around Ponyville, it became more and more clear that TD was not there. Everypony that the five asked gave the same answer: they hadn't seen him but they were sure that somepony else had since he had shown up late at night. Each denial made the five of them more and more nervous as to the fate of TD. Granted they hadn't known him that long, but the idea that he'd just go and get himself lost after news like that? It didn't seem very likely.
So, Applejack and Rainbow Dash found themselves walking back to the library after dozens of failed interviews.
"He'll be okay," said Rainbow Dash. "This is the guy who punched Princess Celestia, I think he can handle himself."
Applejack glanced over at her friend, but she couldn't bring herself to agree with her. What was more, she thought she saw a look of unease come across Rainbow's face. She wasn't sure Rainbow believed herself. "Say Rainbow, did soemthin' about today seem... off to ya?" she questioned.
Rainbow glanced over at Applejack and raised her eyebrow. "Uh, no, I don't think so. What do you mean?"
"It's probably nothin', but... throughout the questionin' Ah occasionally saw somethin' a little odd. It was little things here and there that made me more than a little nervous, but every time Ah looked again, it was back to normal."
"Like what?"
Applejack frowned as she tried to recall the specifics. "Ah think Ah saw a flower in Roseluck's basket turn bright green with blue spots but again, when Ah blinked Ah realized I'd been seein' things." Applejack cocked her head. "You didn't see nothin' like that?"
To Applejack's surprise, her pegasus companion didn't respond to the contrary. She simply stared ahead and continued walking towards the library.
"You did, didn't ya?"
Rainbow took a deep breath and slowly nodded her head. "Just like you, it was little things that I couldn't quite explain: a shingle would be an odd color, a pony would be walking into a wall... and just keep walking. Their legs would move forward, but they wouldn't." Rainbow Dash shook her head. "But it's like you said, every time I blinked it went away and I thought I was hallucinating."
"Ya don't think..."
Rainbow Dash shook her head. "No, I don't think that Discord got out. I mean, Celestia would have told us long before now, right?"
Applejack pondered her words for a brief moment before slowly nodding. "Yeah, Ah think so. Still, it's worth at least mentioning to Twilight, right?"
Rainbow Dash nodded and the duo walked up to the library's front door. Rainbow Dash pushed forwards and the door swung open revealing...
"TD!" said Rainbow Dash.
Sure enough, the lost human was sitting at a small table that Twilight had apparently set up for him. He was surrounded by Twilight, Spike, and the rest of the gang as well. When he saw them come in, TD gave them a wry smile and raised a hand in greeting.
"Oh mah goodness gracious, are y'all okay?"
TD shrugged and looked down at the plate of food that had been set in front of him. "I think so," he said, picking up a cupcake and taking a large bite out of it.
"Where were you?" asked Rainbow Dash.
"He was here at the library when I got here to ask Princess Celestia about if she had seen him."
TD shrugged and finished off the cupcake before grabbing an apple. Applejack didn't want to voice it, but there was something a little... animalistic about the way he was eating. It was like he was tearing into his food like a predatory would his prey, it just seemed a bit off to her. She chalked it up to him just being hungry and did her best to push it out of her mind.
"You haven't answered me," said Rainbow Dash. "Where were you?"
TD frowned and took another bit of the apple before answering. "I came back early today," he said.
"How?" asked Fluttershy.
"The train of course!" said TD with a laugh. "How else was I supposed to have come back?"
At the laugh, all six ponies and Spike took a small step backwards. It wasn't the laugh that TD normally had. No, this one sent chills down their spines, and there was something vaguely familiar about it.
TD, noting their unease, frowned. "Is something wrong?" he asked.
"We were wonderin' the same thing, actually," said Applejack. "Yeah, we wanted to talk to you about what Princess Celestia told ya at the Gala. You seemed pretty upset about it."
Whatever vague happiness TD's demeanor held immediately vanished at the mention of the Gala. His hand, which had been reaching for another apple, slowly curled into a fist and the corners of his mouth stretched down into a frown. "Let's not talk about that," he said quietly.
"But TD," said Fluttershy, "we're just trying to--"
"If you try to talk about it with me I'll give you what I gave Celestia, is that clear?"
The room gasped and Fluttershy's lower jaw quivered.
"TD, that was uncalled for!" said Rarity. "Look what you did to Fluttershy!"
"Well now she knows that I don't want to discuss it," said TD, taking the apple from the plate.
Twilight frowned and narrowed her eyes. She was about to use her magic to take the plate of food away, but before she could, she looked up at TD and saw something a little unsettling: a small streak of his hair had gone grey. It was small enough that Twilight found herself lucky that she had spotted it at all.
"TD, why is your hair gray?" she asked.
TD reflexively reached a hand up to his hair, but stopped himself and instead stretched his arm behind him, draping it over the back of the chair. Twilight continued to study the lock of hair, but TD made no effort to answer her question. However, the mere fact that he reflexively went up to touch it told Twilight that he knew it was there and the fact that he was silent about it meant that he also knew why it was there.
"TD, what's going on?" pushed Twilight. "Something seems... off about you."
TD snorted and put an empty apple core on the plate. "I've had a long few days as you can imagine," he said. "I think we all know that something is wrong: Celestia refuses to send me home!"
"TD, you know that isn't true!" insisted Rarity. "She told us all about it, she won't send you home because she can't!"
"Uh-huh, suuurrre," TD deadpanned. "I'm sure that she's telling the whole truth and nothing but the truth. You know, like she did when I first came here."
"TD, you're scaring me," whispered Fluttershy.
TD turned to the pegasus with a raised eyebrow but broke out into a large smile when his eyes landed on her. Somehow it was even more unsettling than his laugh. "And how am I scaring you, Fluttershy?" he queried.
"You're acting funny," she mumbled.
TD rolled his eyes and turned back to his plate of food. He picked up a piece of hay bread and buttered it before taking a large bite out of it. As he did, Twilight took a look at the Clovevellian Staff that he had come in with. The two of them had briefly talked about it when she had seen him, but she hadn't looked at it in any detail. She wasn't too sure why her eyes were drawn to it at that moment, but something about the bottom carving caught her interest.
"Hey, TD, do you mind if I take a look at this?" she asked.
"Be my guest," said TD.
Twilight thanked him and picked up the staff with her magic. As she brought it over to her, Applejack gasped, grabbing the attention of everypony else. To their surprise, she slammed her front hooves on the table and put her face really close to TD's.
"Hello to you too, Applejack," he said with a chuckle.
"Who are you?" said the workhorse with an impressive level of venom.
"TD Harrison Powell," said TD without missing a beat. "You know, the human that Celestia brought here a few months ago when she--"
"Don't gimmie that!" spat the farmer. "Ah know you ain't TD so why are ya really!"
"Applejack what are you talking about?" asked Rarity. "Sure TD might be a little off but he's gone through a bit--"
Applejack shot Rarity a glare that silenced her. "This ain't TD!" she insisted. She put her hooves back on the ground and pointed at the plate that TD had in front of him. "Ya see that?"
"What, the hay bread?" questioned Rainbow Dash.
"Exactly! HAY bread!" Pinkie Pie gasped when she realized what Applejack was getting at. "The real TD is deathly allergic to hay and this feller here has eaten five slices of hay bread! The real TD's lungs closed up when he ate a cupcake with a few sprinkles of hay!" She wheeled back to TD and fixed her glare on him again. "If you really were TD, you'd be dead after eatin' that!"
The rest of the group's jaws dropped and everybody took a nervous step back, save for Applejack. TD's face split into a wide grin at the reaction.
"Maybe the butter acted as a cure," he said.
"Who. Are. You?" growled Applejack.
"Why are you asking me?" said TD. "Twilight has the answer right in front of her."
The group all turned towards Twilight as TD leaned back in his chair. Twilight frowned and re-examined the staff once more. Her eyes scrolled down the various carvings, none of which held the reason for why this may not be TD.
Then she reached the bottom carving and her eyes widened in horror.
Carved into the staff was a carving of TD standing in front of a very, very familiar statue. Discord's statue, as a matter of fact. The carving of TD was facing it and his head was tilted up as if he was talking to it. The realization of it all caused her to drop he staff and take another step backwards, staring at TD in horror. TD's unsettling smile grew even larger and his eyes trialed over to Spike who seemed less than okay with being the subject of TD's gaze.
"Five," said TD. "Four... three..." As TD counted down, Applejack glanced down at the staff that had rolled over towards her. It didn't take her long to put the pieces together herself and she let out a loud gasp. "Two... and... one."
At one, Spike's cheeks inflated and it sounded like he was about to throw up. Everypony in the room knew it as the signal that a letter was being sent from Celestia and sure enough, Spike belched out a scroll in a jet of green flame. It hit the ground and lay there, unmoving as the ponies around it looked at it.
"Go on, Twilight, read it. I'm sure it will be most informative."
Twilight shakily used her magic to pick up the scroll. She broke the seal and cleared her throat. "My dearest Twilight, I am afraid that I must call you to Canterlot once more. It seems that Discord has escaped once again! You know where the Elements are so I don't need to tell you to bring them. Please hurry! I do not know how long he has been gone."
At the news that Discord had escaped his stone prison once more, the Mane Six gasped and looked at TD in fear.
"Now you know," he said. Only this time he didn't say it in TD's voice. No, the voice that came out of TD's mouth was not that of the human that had come to Equestria a few months prior, but rather that of the god of chaos that they had sealed away after a brief confrontation. "Well, now that the cat is out of the bag, Twilight Sparkle. I only have one question for you." TD stood up and summoned the staff over to him.
Fluttershy screamed. Rainbow Dash flared out her wings to protect her pegasus friend, but her legs were shaking in fear. Spike, who had not been privy to Discord's mind games before but had heard about them, was hiding behind Twilight who had a look of pure horror on her face. Pinkie Pie and Rarity were holding on to each other for dear life and Applejack's jaw was nearly on the floor.
Discord just laughed.
"Oh you ponies are absolutely priceless!" he crowed. "I know I've said this before, but you should see the looks on your faces! They're absolutely marvelous!"
Hearing his voice once more snapped Twilight out of her shock. "What are you doing, Discord?!" she growled.
"Come now, what does it look like, Twilight Sparkle? I've borrowed the body of your friend here for a teensy little bit while I search for the elements." Discord's face darkened and he took an imposing step forward. "And you will give me the Elements, Twilight Sparkle."
"Why would we do that?!" said Applejack.
"Why I need them is a matter mostly between Celestia and myself, but since the seven of you are the only ones who know where the Elements are, I thought that I'd ask you first. We wouldn't want things to get nasty now would we?"
"Go to Tartarus!" spat Rainbow Dash.
Discord let out another crow of a laugh and shook his head. "I'm afraid that I can't, Rainbow Dash. Even if I could I wouldn't. But that's another story for another time." He reached out his hand and the staff flew into it. "Where. Are. The. Elements?"
"What could possibly possess us to tell you that?!" said Twilight.
Discord's grin widened. "I'm so glad that you asked, Twilight Sparkle. You see, I don't like being encased in stone. I mean, would you like it? It's the most uncomfortable thing on this planet, and I mean that literally. The last time the two of us faced each other, I was my usual happy, wonderful self, content to cause chaos throughout the world without being too, shall we say, cruel about it."
Discord took another step forward and touched the tip of Twilight's horn with the staff, something that caused her to flinch backwards. "You used my overconfidence to defeat me, and I tend to learn from my few mistakes. So, if you could give me the Elements, I wouldn't have to tap into my, shall we call it, darker side."
Applejack glared at him. "What, what would ya dare do while Celestia is watchin'!"
"What can't I do while Celestia is watching?!" said Discord. "Think about it, Honest Applejack, what did it take to defeat me the first two times?" Discord paused for a moment but continue on when he realized that he wasn't going to get an answer. "The Elements of Harmony, of course! I'm not like Chrysalis or even our dear mutual enemy, Sombra. I can't be defeated by a powerful blast of magic or else Celestia would have done it without the Elements. Even when that jealous little sister was by her side, it still took the Elements of Harmony to defeat me. I doubt that your brother and sister-in-law's love could defeat me, Twilight Sparkle. I do not see why you think so yourself."
Twilight glared at Discord but didn't say anything. Discord let out a slight chuckle and shook his head.
"I have plans, Twilight Sparkle; I have means of creating chaos that you couldn't imagine in your wildest nightmares. I can turn the entire world against you and your precious princesses and the best part is that I won't even have to expend a shred of magic to do it."
"Celestia will destroy you!" said Rainbow Dash, flaring out her wings.
"Don't be silly, Rainbow Dash, it's quite ridiculous," said Discord. "If she could then she would have by now, am I correct? She wouldn't have called you to Canterlot, telling you to bring the Elements." He turned back to Twilight. "Which brings me back to my original question: where are they? You obviously know where they are or Celestia wouldn't have asked you to bring them."
"We'll never tell you!" said Rainbow Dash.
"Yeah, do your worst, Discord!" said Applejack. "We ain't never gonna tell ya!"
Discord let loose another laugh and he leaned over Applejack. Applejack stared directly into his eyes and was horrified to see that TD's natural eye color had been replaced with Discord's vivid yellow and red eyes. "It is unwise to ask the god of chaos itself to 'do his worst' when you have something that he wants," said Discord with more than a little menace in his voice. "Do you realize how long it would take me to have you begging for the end, knowing that I would never oblige because every dead pony is one less pony that cannot be privy to the chaos of the world?"
Despite her best efforts, Applejack gulped and took a fearful step back. Discord straightened back up, satisfied that he had gotten his point across when out of the corer of his eye, he saw Spike with a scroll in his hands just about to send it off to Celestia. With a snap of his fingers, the scroll was in his hands.
"Ah ah ah," he chided. "That's a bad dragon, trying to correspond with the princess when we're not finished here!" Twilight gasped softly as Discord unfurled the scroll. "Let's see what he have here, shall we?" Discord cleared his throat. "Celestia, Discord is here. He's holding the seven of us and is demanding the Elements. Get to them as soon as possible." Discord clicked his tongue and crumpled up the note. "Really, Spike, it was a good effort but--"
Suddenly, Spike pulled a second scroll out from behind his back and before Discord could react, he engulfed it in a jet of fire. He turned to the possessed human and smiled triumphantly. "Guess you won't be able to get the Elements now, huh?" he said smugly.
Discord's eyes narrowed and he took a step towards Spike. "That, my dear dragon, was very, very, very foolish of you."
Before anypony could react, Discord extended his hand and Spike was lifted off the ground. He flew into Discord's hand as Discord clenched it around his neck. The dragon gurlged in Discord's grasp and the Elements began rushing forward in the defense of their dragon friend. Discord held out his other hand and encased him and Spike in a forcefield not unlike the ones Shining Armor was adept at conjuring. Twilight and her friends pounded on the forcefield, desperately trying to save Spike.
Discord grinned evilly at the dragon who looked at him with fear in his eyes. "Any last words?" whispered the god of chaos. Spike's eyes went wider and he desperately tried to struggle out of Discord's grasp. Discord merely snapped his fingers and Spike let out a howl of pain before he let out a final gasp and went limp.
"SPIKE!!! SPIKE!!" cried Twilight. "Let him go you monster!"
"As you wish, Twilight Sparkle," said Discord. He opened up his hand and let the dragon fall to the floor. Twilight bolted towards him and picked up the baby dragon in her forelegs.
"Spike! Spike are you okay?!" Spike shuddered in Twilight's grasp and she turned him over to check on him. The Elements gasped when they saw what Discord had done.
"WHAT DID YOU DO TO HIM?!" screeched Rarity.
Discord laughed. "I thought that the sight of it would be enough to answer that, Rarity," he said. "I took his mouth so he can't send any more of those pesky letters, nor can he receive them." he looked down at Twilight and grinned. "I heard how Celestia sent those friendship reports back to you to restore your memories of your friendship. Gracious, I hope she doesn't do that this time or who knows what might happen!"
Twilight's horn fired up and she desperately shot a spell at the dragon. His head was engulfed in a purple glow, but when the spell faded she saw that her efforts had been in vain.
"Do you really think that your magic, powerful though it may be, can undo the works of a god?" asked Discord. "Although come to think of it, you're welcome to keep trying. Your futile attempts are very amusing!"
Twilight hugged the mute dragon and looked up at Discord with rage in her eyes that would have made a lesser being wilt in fear. "I. Will. Make. You. PAY for this, Discord," she growled. "If it's the last thing I do, I will make you suffer for this."
Ooh, that's a bit nasty, don't you think?" said Discord. "He's still technically perfectly okay. He can still breathe just fine and all. Still, I suppose that this is as good of a time as any to make a deal. If you tell me where the Elements are, then I'll give him his mouth back. It's as simple as that."
Twilight was silent as she continued to glare at Discord, tears of pure fury falling from her eyes.
"Don't do it, Twilight," pleaded Applejack. "We can fix Spike, Ah promise we can."
Discord rolled his eyes. "Oh let her make her own decisions, Applejack," he said. "She's a big filly and can decide how much she wants to let her pet dragon suffer all on her own." Discord looked back down at Twilight who was still holding the shivering dragon close. "Of course if she wants to let him continue to suffer then more power to her."
The tears fell faster from Twilight's eyes as she took a deep breath. "If I give you the Elements, then he'll continue to suffer regardless," she whispered. She pulled Spike into a tighter hug and whispered into his ear. "I'm so sorry."
Discord frowned and leaned back on the table. "If that is your final answer, then," he said. Twilight nodded sadly. Discord shrugged and straightened back up. "It's your choice then," he said. "If you won't tell me where the Elements are, then I guess we know what has to happen now."
Discord snapped his fingers.
* * * *
The front door of the library opened, and the possessed TD stepped out into the Ponyville sunshine. He closed the door behind him and snapped his fingers. The doors and windows of the tree library instantly vanished, replaced by solid wood. Satisfied, TD walked away and began whistling a tune to himself and adjusting a mysterious box underneath his arm that he hadn't walked in with.
TD's eyes snapped open to reveal a pure white room with a large pane of glass that made up the wall. The room was completely empty and had no decoration except for that. Frowning, TD sat up and looked through the glass wall. He was surprised to see Ponyville through it, just like he remembered it.
TD pushed himself off of the floor and walked over to the glass wall. He was interested to see that the images on the other side of the wall were moving, as if he was watching a movie of some sort where the camera represented a character that was moving forward.
TD raised an eyebrow and ran his hand through his hair before deciding to reserved judgment on the glass wall and instead examine his surroundings.
White. Pure white walls and nothing else. No doors, not windows, just a plain white room with a glass wall.
"What the heck?" he muttered to himself.
He tried to think of why he would be in a room like this with no visible way out. Heck, how did he get in if there was no way out? Was he put in this room and then the glass wall was put in behind him? He couldn't be sure.
TD shook his head and turned his attention back to the glass wall.
"Where the heck am I?" he muttered.
"Your mind," said a chilling voice behind him. "Or rather, your mind as I see it." TD wheeled around and was horrified to see a twisted creature behind him. It seemed to be made of all sorts of animal parts sewn together. It was like some mad doctor had created this being and now... wait, he knew what this thing was. He had seen it before. It was... it was... Discord! Yes, that was it, Discord!
Immediately a flood of memories returned to him and the images through the wall behind him suddenly changed to a view of him and Discord's statue. His jaw dropped as he saw him hit the statue with his staff, shattering the stone encasing and releasing Discord.
"Rather strong blow, that," said Discord casually. "It was enough to completely shatter my stone prison and for that I must thank you."
TD wheeled around. "What are you doing?" he said. "Why am I trapped in my mind?"
"Oh I just borrowed your body for a teensy while," said Discord. "You see, I rather dislike being trapped in stone so you make a good human encasing. The Elements wouldn't dare use the power of harmony to turn both of us into stone."
TD turned back to the wall which had changed back to the shot of somebody moving throughout Ponyville.
"I take it I'm seeing you're seeing while in my body?"
"Correct!" cried Discord. "What you see is what I see through your eyes while I am a resident of your person."
"I suppose asking you to get the heck out of my body would be pointless."
"My, my, you are perceptive."
"I thought so," TD muttered. He took a deep breath and rubbed his temples. "So what now?"
Discord grinned and walked up to TD. "What happens now is that I use your body to take over Equestria. I've already dealt with the elements in a frankly horrifying manner which was a lot of fun for me!"
"What did you do?" growled TD.
"Oh come now, TD, I don't want to spoil the surprise just yet!" said Discord. "After all, my plans for Ponyville rival my best work!"
TD's eyes narrowed and he would have kicked Discord in his tiny Draconequus balls if he thought it would have done any good. "You stay away from the foals, got it?" he said with a frankly impressive amount of venom. "If you even think about hurting a single hair on any of them, I will forgo going home if it means that I get to rip your limbs off of your body."
Discord raised an eyebrow in mild shock at the sheer fury behind TD's words. However, he soon burst out into rambunctious laughter. "You should... you should hear yourself, TD!" he howled. "You're threatening chaos incarnate while trapped inside your own mind because of a few threats to a few insignificant foals!"
Suddenly, Discord's eyes narrowed and he grabbed TD by the throat and slammed him against the glass wall. He leaned in next to TD's ear. "I could make you know torture like you've never experienced before. I could reduce you to a bloody mass on the floor but still keep you alive if I wanted to. And you know what? I would do it too if it weren't such a waste. You are one of the most insignificant beings I've ever had the pleasure to use for my own gains."
TD gurgled under Discord's grasp but he managed to spit out a few words. "Go... buck yourself."
Discord snorted and released TD, causing him to tumble to the ground.
"It's really quite a shame that you aren't more powerful. I mean, do you know how little effort it took me to completely take over your mind? I mean, it was really quite boring, how little challenge you posed." Discord tapped his paw on his chin thoughtfully. "Having said that, you do have a spirit to you that I find amusing, particularly when it comes to the Ponyville foals." Discord chuckled. "I'll tell you what, I like your spirit so much that I won't physically harm the foals, nor will I cause them any mental harm either. I'll simply allow them to live in a world where there is no hope of escape or return to normalcy and everypony that they know and love is a shadow of their former self. The chaos from their despair will be, shall we say, hilarious!"
TD slowly sat up until he was sitting down, leaning against the wall. Upon hearing Discord's plans for the foals, he clenched his hand into a fist and punched Discord in the balls.
Now, TD had no illusions that Discord would begin hopping around; clutching has family jewels so TD could escape his own mind and reclaim his body. Quite the contrary, Discord merely laughed at his attempt once again.
"Did you really think that would work, TD?" he asked. "Honestly, if punching Celestia twice did absolutely nothing then why did you think that doing the same to a being far more powerful would have any effect?"
"I didn't," TD retorted. "But it felt good."
Discord leaned in on TD once more and an evil grin crossed his face. "I imagine it was," he said. "I only have one question for you: was it worth it?"
With that, Discord placed his finger on TD's head.
* * * *
TD's eyes snapped open once more. It took him a few seconds to regain his bearings, but to his surprise he saw that he was in Celestia's room in the Canterlot palace.
"What the--?"
"TD?" said a voice behind him.
TD turned to see Celestia standing behind him with a worried look on her face.
"Are you okay, TD? You kind of phased out there for a moment."
TD frowned and put a hand to his head. "Uh, I guess I did," he said. "What were we talking about?"
A smile spread across Celestia's face and she wrapped a wing around TD's shoulder. "I was just saying that I've perfected the portal magic. You're going home, TD."
A look of utter disbelief crossed TD's face and he began blinking rapidly. "Home?" he said. He gave a half-chuckle and for the first time in months, a genuine smile formed across his face. "Just like that you can send me home?"
Celestia copied TD's smile and nodded. She looked to the far wall and fired up her horn. Instantly a ball of energy appeared that rapidly expanded into a portal. The image from the portal made TD's jaw drop. That was it; it was his room back on Earth, just as he remembered it.
"No way," he whispered to himself.
"And if I recall right from what you've told me, your parents were picking you up that week to take you back to your other house. If my calculations are correct, they should knock on your door a few minutes after you get back."
"My parents?" said TD. "I..." TD's smile widened and he slowly began approaching the portal. This was it. After six months in Equestria, surrounded by talking ponies from a kids TV show, he was going home. The very notion sounded impossible to him, but there it was, right in front of him. The thought had driven him so long, it had been his sole motivation for everything that he had done for such a long time, that now that he was actually here, about to live his goal, it almost felt too good to be true.
Slowly TD raised his left hand and extended it towards the portal. Just a few more seconds now, just a few more seconds and he...
Suddenly the room was bathed in a bright light as the portal collapsed and sent a shockwave of energy through the room. TD was pushed back a few steps and he raised a hand to his eyes to shield himself from the bright light.
No. No this wasn't happening, he had it! It was right there!
He turned back to Celestia to demand that she open the portal once more, but she wasn't there. In fact, nothing was there. It was a simple white room with... oh no.
Discord chuckled beside TD and reclined against the wall. "It's like I said, human: was it worth it?"
TD fell on his knees and clutched his head in his hands. He let out a quiet groan of pain that quickly gave way to a full blown wail of pure anguish. He screamed repeatedly, hoping that the noise would lessen the tightness in his chest that came with the knowledge that he wasn't about to go home, that he was trapped inside his own mind while a twisted god of chaos controlled his body for his own ends.
"Do you want to know something, TD?" said Discord. "That actually was a portal home. If you hadn't taken your time then you would be home right now and my plans would be for naught. It's funny really, you had a chance to get back to Earth and you completely blew it by being slow."
TD slammed a fist on the floor and let loose another anguished scream. "YOU BUCKING SON OF A--"
"Ooh, language, TD," said Discord. "How would the foals react if they heard you say things like that?"
"I wouldn't really waste your breath with meaningless threats," said Discord. "After all, the foals might not benefit from your poor choice of words. I suppose we'll find out right about... now."
TD heard a pop behind him as Discord vanished. He slowly got to his feet and turned around to look through the glass wall of his mind.
"Oh no," he whispered.
There they were. He saw them through the wall and that meant that Discord could see them too.
The laughter of the three Crusaders reverberated throughout the park as the foals bounced a ball between themselves, happy to be out of school for the day. They giggled merrily as TDiscord approached them with an evil smile on his face.
"Hey there, kids!" said TDiscord. "How are you doing?"
Instantly the Crusaders stopped their playing and turned to the approaching human. Their smiles widened and they eagerly trotted up to him. "Hey there, TD," said Apple Bloom happily. "How are ya today?"
TDiscord's smile widened and he knelt down to the foals. "Well I'm doing just dandy. And you three? I take it you're having a lot of fun?"
"Yeah!" said Sweetie Belle. "We're playing with this ball here and we're having a blast!"
TDiscord frowned and scratched his chin. "You're not crusading today? I thought you wanted to get your cutie marks?"
Scootaloo raised an eyebrow and cocked her head. "Well, we do want to get our cutie marks," she said. "But we can't go crusading all of the time. Besides, we're just taking a little break and having some fun!"
Inside TD's mind, the real TD stared on in horror. He didn't know what Discord was playing at, but he didn't want to just stand there as Discord hurt them. Licking his lips, TD ran to the back of the room and turned around, facing the window. He cracked his neck and took a deep breath before charging at the window with all of his strength. He hit it with a resounding crash and a bounced backwards, flying back across the room.
His shoulder ached and he let out a groan of pain as he looked up at the window. All thoughts of pain instantly faded away when he saw what he had done: a large crack had appeared in the center of the window. His spirit renewed, TD jumped back to his feet and rushed to the back of the room once more.
Outside his mind, Discord flinched slightly when TD collided with the window but he shrugged it off as unimportant and turned his attention back to the Crusaders. "Well, I don't know about you, but isn't that a little lazy of you?" he questioned. "I mean, don't you want your cutie marks?"
The Crusaders glanced around at each other uneasily. "W...Well yeah," said Apple Bloom. "But like Scoots said, we can't go crusadin' all the time. We're just havin' a little fun."
TDiscord flashed a condescending smile and shook his head. "It hardly looks like that from where I'm standing," he said. "It seems to me that you're ignoring your one goal in life which is to get your cutie marks. Have you given up already, is that it?"
TD smashed into the window once again, widening the crack. It would be soon now.
Sweetie Belle's bottom lip began quivering and her friends glared at the possessed human. "What's gotten into you, TD?" scolded Scootaloo. "We're just having a little fun!"
SMASH
"Oh I can see that," said TDiscord. "But if you'll forgive me for saying so, I think it's because you've given up and realized that you're going to be talentless and directionless little fillies forever. You're playing with that silly little ball because it's all you're really good at." Now the other two looked like they were about to begin crying and Apple Bloom began backing away. TD widened his smile and advanced forwards. "It's tragic almost that you three won't be good at anything. I should know, you aren't on the show."
Sweetie Belle did begin crying at that moment and Scootaloo hugged her friend close while glaring death at TDiscord. "You... you... meanie!" she shouted. "You can just go away and never talk to us ever again!"
TDiscord smirked. "If I did it'd be no loss to me. Why--"
SMASH
TD lurched forward as if he had been bucked in the back of the head. He fell to his knees in front of the distraught Crusaders and groaned in pain. The three fillies looked at him uneasily as he slowly got to his feet.
"TD, are ya--"
"Run," whispered TD. "It wasn't me saying those things, it was Discord. He's back and he did something to the Elements." TD made eye contact with the Crusaders and they were surprised to see a solitary tear fall from his face. "You have to run and warn the others!" he said wildly. "I--"
A demonic growl escaped TD's lips and he lurched backwards, nearly falling to the ground. TD suddenly found himself back in his mind, the glass window repaired and the three fillies looking at him. Discord was back in control.
The possessed TD shook his head to clear it and looked at the Crusaders again, his evil smirk back on his face. "So sorry about that, kids," he said. "I'm having a rather off day."
Apple Bloom's eyes widened in terror as she looked into TDiscord's eyes. No longer were they the color that she was used to seeing when they made eye contact, now they were an evil red and yellow, something they hadn't been when he had told them to run.
"Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle, we gotta get outta here!!!" screeched Apple Bloom. The yellow filly tore off in the opposite direction, followed closely by her fellow Crusaders.
TDiscord took a small step forward as if to give chase, but he stopped in his tracks and scratched his chin. "They're not worth it," he muttered. "Besides, I have a meeting with Celestia to get to and it wouldn't very well do to spend my day chasing after three worthless foals, would it?" Discord chuckled to himself and disappeared with a snap of his fingers.
* * * *
TD laid on the floor of the room with his head in his hands and wondered what to do next. He had escaped the confines of his own mind and warned the Crusaders away. Hopefully they wouldn't be too upset with what Discord had said but with how Sweetie Belle was crying... still, Apple Bloom seemed to have understood his warning that he was being possessed by Discord so hopefully she would be able to explain to her friends that it wasn't actually him that had said those nasty things. He would never say that to any of them. Ever.
"Well, TD, that was exciting, wasn't it?" said a familiar voice.
TD groaned and forced himself to sit up. "Buzz off," he growled. "I have nothing to say to you."
Discord laughed and leaned against the glass wall. "I'm sure you don't," he said. "The fact remains that I would like to congratulate you on your brief escape from the confines of your own mind. Not many beings out there would have the ability to do that." TD remained silent and Discord rolled his eyes. "Oh the silent treatment won't hurt me. What am I, a teenage filly?" Discord shook his head. "I suppose all I want to say is that it was a good effort, you getting out and all, but don't expect it to work again. I admit that I wasn't expecting it to work but you have a spirit to you that somehow broke my defenses. Well it won't happen again and I wouldn't even bother trying if I was you. You'll get your mind back when I'm good and ready."
TD looked down at the floor and turned so his back was to Discord. "I'd kill you if I could," he muttered. "You don't get to say that stuff to the kids."
Discord chuckled. "And who's going to stop me, you? Would you stop me, human? You saw what I did to the Elements. I know you know that I could show those worthless foals suffering and chaos that they couldn't even begin to comprehend." TD felt a cold hand on his shoulder and he felt Discord's warm breath on the back of his neck as the god of chaos leaned in to whisper into his ear. "And if you ever try to escape again, I will. That's a promise."
* * * *
Princess Celestia, goddess of the sun and ruler of all of Equestria, was worried. Now, everypony became worried every now and again, it was simply equine. However, Princess Celestia had lived long enough and had seen enough to know that only the most horrific of things are worth getting worried about so when she got worried, something was definitely wrong.
In this instance, Princess Celestia was worried about Twilight and her friends. She had received a letter from Spike saying that Discord was holding them hostage and was demanding the Elements, but nothing had been sent since then. Now considering that Discord was holding them, that was not unusual, but Discord was a being of action and if he wanted the Elements for whatever reason, he would let Celestia know. This kind of silence from him was unusual. The clouds weren't even cotton candy yet! No, something was going on, something terrible.
Celestia had sent Luna to Ponyville with a detachment of troops to see if they couldn't free the Elements and she had gone personally to move the actual Elements of Harmony from their hiding spot and move them to a far safer location. She had even placed a spell on them so Discord could not simply summon them to him, even if he knew where they were which he likely didn't. Still, she had to remain in Canterlot to protect them.
Princess Celestia sighed and looked sadly out the nearest window. On any normal day, she would have been able to see the petrified Discord right where he always stood. It was grimly comforting, knowing that he couldn't get out to cause havoc to her ponies while he was in stone like that. However, whatever comfort came from seeing him petrified was gone when looking at the empty base where his statue once stood.
She didn't understand it, she didn't understand how Discord could have gotten out! Did it have something to do with what happened at the Gala? It had to, how else could Discord have escaped now? On that vein, where was TD? She hadn't seen nor heard from him since he had walked out after she had repaired his spine. He would have likely gone back to Ponyville, and maybe he was still there, but what if Discord had gotten to him? What would he do with a being like that?
Celestia shook her head and turned back to the large double doors that granted access to the throne room. Since she had sent Luna out, there was only a paltry guard there to protect her in case anything went wrong, but how good would they be against a being like Discord? For that matter, how well could she protect her ponies from him without Twilight Sparkle and her friends to wield the Elements? They were nothing more than pretty necklaces without ponies to control them.
She didn't have to brood for much longer as the doors burst open and a harrowed messenger scurried into the room. "Princess Celestia, I have come to inform you that the human who was at the Gala last night has returned! He is demanding an audience with you!"
Celestia gasped. "Send him in!"
"Already here, Celestia, you don't need to waste any more of your regal breath."
Celestia's eyes snapped up just in time to see TD walk into the throne room with a staff in one hand and a smug smile on his face. She frowned at the approaching human. Something was off... something was definitely off.
Their eyes locked and in a second Celestia knew why TD unsettled her so much. "Discord!" she cried.
"In the flesh!" crowed Discord. A shiver went down Celestia's spine at the sight of Discord's voice coming from TD's mouth. This wasn't TD, not the one that she knew. No, that TD was gone, possibly forever.
Still, Celestia was nothing if not resilient. "What have you done to him?!" she growled.
"Oh I just decided to take his body for a little bit while I do a few things around Equestria," said Discord. "You know, you really had better hope that your sister is able to free the Elements from Twilight's library, otherwise how on Earth are you going to stop me?"
"You'll never get away with this!" said Celestia angrily.
"And why not?" asked Discord. "What exactly is going to stop me from doing whatever I want to these pathetic little ponies that you rule over? They're playthings Celestia, that's the whole point of their existence. Why bother denying it?"
"They are not playthings, Discord!" Celestia insisted. "They are their own beings and they don't deserve to be subjugated by the likes of you!"
"Or you if you think about it," said Discord. "Who gave you the right to rule instead of me? Nothing more or less than those precious Elements." Discord's grin slid from his face and he took a step forward. "Speaking of those, I'd like them please. You and I both know that not even I can flat out destroy them so if you would be so kind as to give them to me I would highly appreciate it."
Celestia flew up into the air and spread her wings out as far as they would go. she fired up her horn and fired a blast of pure magic that hit the floor right next to TD's left foot, leaving a sizable crater. Discord merely looked up at her with an unimpressed smile.
"What was the point of that, Celestia?" he asked. "Why bother with something as petty as a warning shot?" Discord pointed at his chest. "I'm right here and I haven't moved yet. You could have used that blast of magic to send me to the moon if you wanted to! You could have obliterated me right where I stand, could you have not?"
Celestia's eyes narrowed and she landed in front of Discord. "You will never get the Elements," she whispered.
"You sound like such the cliché hero right now, do you know that?" said Discord. "You don't even know what my plan is but you know what? I think I'll tell you!" Discord began circling Celestia. "I want you to give me the Elements of Harmony right now. If you do not, I will bring chaos to you that you wouldn't believe possible. Not physical chaos, mind you, I won't make bigger chocolate rain cotton candy clouds if that's what you're wondering. No, for you I think emotional chaos would be far better and a lot more fun for me! I will make you beg for release but I will not give it, not for the rest of time.
"Of course, that can all be avoided right here and right now if you simply give me the Elements. If you do that, I will leave this place and not return until a moment of my choosing." Discord stopped his pacing in front of Celestia and met her venomous glare. "You will be guaranteed nearly a hundred years of peace and prosperity without my interference. I will leave and I will not cause chaos of any kind while the wielders of the Elements are alive.
"I'll never give you the Elements, Discord," said Celestia. "You'd use them for ill purposes!"
"You cut me to the quick, Celestia!" said Discord. "I wouldn't because I can't. I can't turn them into the Elements of Disharmony, no matter how much I would simply love to! Give them to me now, and this can all end for a long, long time. I promise to not return to Equestria until the wielders of the Elements are dead and the Elements useless. I'll even make it so that I don't return the day of the death of the last Element. In fact, I won't say when I'll return but that will be the one constant in your mind after their deaths: You'll always wonder when I'll return. The last Element will die and you'll build up your defenses, waiting for me to return but you won't really know when. It'll be a quiet thing, your fall. You won't really know it's happened until its far too late."
Celestia continued glaring at Discord, the gears in her mind turning at every word he uttered, hoping that she could come up with a plan to stop this psychopath before he did more damage. Discord noticed and raised an eyebrow.
"You want to destroy me, don't you? Well I don't have to tell you that any of your more powerful spells would result in the untimely death of the human whose body I now share." Discord chuckled. "It was him who released me, did you know that?"
Celestia's eyes widened and she took a step backwards. The momentary display of weakness only served to egg Discord on. "It's quite tragic really, if you had just even tried to send him back to Earth then I wouldn't be here right now and the Elements would be safe. I'll bet you regret not sending him back now!"
"It would have killed him, Discord!" said Celestia. "The portal doesn't work both ways!"
"Oh I know that," said Discord with a wave of his hand. "I know that you'd only be left with his remains if you tried to send him back through, but if you had tried then I wouldn't have gotten out of my stone prison!
"Think about it, Celestia, if you knew what you knew now, that the human would lead to my release and you would find yourself in this precarious position then would you have sent him back through? Would you have let that car turn him to roadkill? Or better still, would you have imprisoned him in Ponyville, never having him leave so that he couldn't come across my statue? Would you have made it so that the first things you said to him were commands that he stay right where he was? I guess what I'm saying is, would you have killed or imprisoned the human to prevent this?"
"All life is precious," said Celestia. "Even if he did this I would still not kill or imprison him given the chance."
Discord rolled his eyes. "I'm sure you wouldn't have," he said. "But that means that we end up right where we are now, with Twilight and her friends incapacitated and you slowly beginning to realize that you have failed. I see now that you aren't going to hand the Elements over which honestly makes little difference to me. In all honesty the way things are going to play out will be far more fun."
"You won't win, Discord," said Celestia. "Let's say that you do begin to bring chaos to the world, the ponies will endure as they always have. Eventually you will be defeated as life must have a balance. Chaos cannot reign in such a pure way."
"And it won't, Celestia," said Discord simply. "I agree that would be boring. Life must have a balance in order to continue and if I only created chaos then your ponies would simply give up and I would be left without beings to share chaos with. That's why when I take over; I will balance out my chaos with shreds of harmony, logic, and order, just as I did when I first ruled. Your ponies will thrive on these times to balance out the chaotic world that they live in. It will be those moments that keep them sane and moving forward in their lives. The longer they're sane, the longer they can register the chaos, right?"
"The Elements will stop you," growled Celestia. "No matter what you've done to them, they will endure and defeat you as they did last time."
Discord laughed and shook his head. "Oh I hardly think that's true, Celestia," he said. "You should see what I've done to them!"
Celestia's eyes widened and she let out a small gasp before her glare returned and her horn fired up once more. "What did you do to them?"
Discord chuckled and reached behind his back and pulled out the black box that he had taken out of Twilight's library. "You heard from their stories of our first battle in the maze that I had taken their wings and horns, correct?" Discord's evil smile widened and he slowly took the lid off of the box. "Well, the classics never die!"
Discord grinned and reached into the box and pulled out a pair of unicorn horns, one white and the other purple. Celestia gasped and fired up her horn to retrieve them, but Discord put them back in the box and waggled his finger. "I wouldn't do that if I were you," he chided. "I mean, you wouldn't want me to disintegrate them, would you? I assure you that I will."
Celestia's horn powered down and she took a menacing step towards Discord. "Give them back, Discord!" she commanded.
Discord snorted. "Or what? You forget, you're not holding any cards here, Celestia." He scratched his chin thoughtfully. "Well, unless you wanted to obliterate the body I'm in, then I'd be out in the open and you could use some of your more brutal offensive spells to at the very least give the Elements their wings and horns back so they could stop me. Well, those and the other things I took from them."
Celestia took another step forward. "What did you do?" she whispered threateningly.
Discord chuckled and reached into the box once more. To Celestia's surprise, he pulled out what appeared to be a small glass orb and began tossing it up and down. "You should have seen the expressions of your student and her friends when I took these from them," he chuckled. "Poor Fluttershy was a sobbing mess on the ground and that loyal ex-pegasus Rainbow Dash was trying her best to calm her down but me oh my, she was seconds away from breaking out into the most delightful little sobs."
Celestia opened her mouth to speak, but Discord smirked and levitated the orb over to her and floated it in front of her face. Celestia frowned and squinted to see what was inside. The realization hit her like a brick and she let out a loud gasp. Inside the orb fluttered three pink butterflies, each desperately trying to get out of their prison but unable to do so.
"Her cutie mark," whispered Celestia in pure disgust. "How could you do that to them?!"
Discord shrugged. "They're too distraught to use the Elements against me," he said, levitating the orb back to him and placing it back in the box which promptly disappeared. "So even if you got them to those cursed ponies, they wouldn't be able to use them against me! They need to be harmonious in order to use the Elements, Celestia."
Celestia could only stare in horror at Discord for a brief moment before she closed her eyes and sighed. "I'm so sorry, TD," she whispered. She opened her eyes and fired up her horn.
"What are you--?"
A beam of magic shot from Celestia's horn and hit TDiscord directly in the chest, knocking him back and slamming him against the wall. TDiscord let out a howl of pain and struggled to get back to his feet but was knocked back by another blast of magic.
"You're only hurting him, Celestia!" said Discord. "Every attack forces him to endure pain that he never knew possible! Those spells are meant to subdue gods!"
"It is a sacrifice that I must accept," said Celestia sadly. "I cannot let you continue on the way that you have!"
Discord let out a caw of a laugh as another spell slammed into him. "Isn't it tragic?" he said. "You brought him here and he let me out so now you have to destroy him! It would have been better just to let him get flattened!"
"Enough of this, Discord!" yelled Celestia. "You will not hurt my little ponies any more than you already have! Now give me that box!"
Celestia fired another spell at Discord that he side stepped leaving a crater in the wall behind him. "No dice, Celestia," said Discord. "I know you think this is whittling down my resolve, and I admit that it does hurt, but it's as I said before, you are not holding any of the cards here!"
Celestia let out a loud shriek of anger and let loose an absolutely gigantic blast of magic that slammed directly into TDiscord's chest, slamming him into the back wall so hard that it left a large crater where he impacted. She was grimly satisfied as she heard him utter a howl of pain but her small smile faded when she realized that it wasn't Discord's howl, it was TD's.
"What the heck did you do that for?!" screeched TD. "He left my body, Celestia! You didn't need to do that!"
Celestia gasped and ran over to the fallen human. "Oh TD, I'm sorry! I didn't know that he had--"
"You know, you're too gullible, Celestia," said TD, once again in Discord's voice.
Celestia screeched to a halt but it was too late. Discord snapped his fingers and the floor beneath Celestia became like molasses, trapping the solar goddess on the spot.
"I have no doubt that you can escape from that eventually," said Discord. "Still, I have other things to attend to for now so if you would be so kind as to stay there for a while I would appreciate it."
With that, TDiscord snapped his fingers and was gone.
A crowd was gathered outside the library. Something was wrong; something was very wrong. What had once been a simple tree that housed the library was now just a tree with a few lamps hanging off of it. There was no indication that it had ever housed anything.
The townsponies were vaguely used to oddities, of course. It came with all six Elements of Harmony living in Ponyville. Twilight Sparkle alone had caused many an explosion with her magical experiments and the library basement had to have repairs done more than once as a result.
This...this was different. This wasn't just the result of some wayward spell; something evil was at work here. Even Twilight couldn't pull something like this off, right?
A few of the braver unicorns in town walked up to where the door might be and tried to see if they couldn't reverse whatever it was that had done something like this to the tree but with no success. Even when as many as six unicorns at a time tried, the tree remained only a tree. It was more than a little unsettling.
"What do you suppose happened?" asked Berry Punch. "Do you think that the Changelings attacked again?"
"I don't think so," said Bon Bon. "I'm not even sure that Celestia herself could pull something like this off."
"I thought I saw Princess Luna flying away from the library," said Cheerilee. "Do you think that has anything to do with it?"
"Possibly," said Bon Bon. "I--"
"Hey, isn't that TD?" said Derpy.
The crowd looked where the town mailmare was pointing and sure enough, Ponyville's resident human was walking down the road towards the library with a rather satisfied smile on his face, a smile that only got bigger once he saw the large crowd that had gathered at his destination. "Hello everypony!" said TD cheerfully. "How are you this fine afternoon?"
The crowd watched silently as TD got closer to the library. He reached the spot where the front entrance used to be and leaned against it. "So, you're admiring my handiwork then, yes?"
"Your handiwork!" said Lyra in shock. "You mean that you did this?!"
"That's kind of what 'my handiwork' implies, does it not?" said TD, idly examining his fingernails. "I mean, I'm hardly the type of guy that would take credit for the works of others; it's just bad form."
The crowds stunned reactions only served to amuse TD all the more and he straightened up and walked in front of them. As he did so, a suspicious look crossed Lyra's face. She eased her way through the crowd and stopped when she reached TD's position. The human stopped in his tracks as the mint green unicorn approached him. He turned to face her and flashed her another smile. "Is there something I can help you with?"
Lyra looked up at TD and examined him for a few seconds before her eyes narrowed. "You're not the real TD," she growled.
TD threw his head back and let out a caw of a laugh that frankly did nothing to make the Ponyvillians gathered at the library think that Lyra was mistaken in her assessment. Now that she mentioned it, there was definitely something wrong with TD, something that they couldn't quite put their hooves on.
TD for his part didn't lose that unsettling grin. "And why do you think that I am not your resident human?" he asked.
"Because the real TD wasn't this creepy and he certainly didn't have these kinds of weird powers!" Lyra insisted. "What did you do with the real TD?!"
TD raised his eyebrow and his smile faltered for the briefest of moments before it returned full force and he took a step towards Lyra. "While those are obvious markers so I can't call you 'perceptive', I must admit that you have done well in your reasoning." TD shifted his gaze from Lyra to the whole crowd and took another step forwards. "Mares... gentlecolts... sheep..." TD's smile widened as he relished in calling them that last word. "As your green friend has deduced, I am not TD!"
A collective gasp ran through the crowd. "Then who are you?" asked Cheerilee.
TD let out another laugh and to the horrors of the ponies watching, his voice changed to one that they had not heard before, but they knew it had undeniable malice in it. "As I said, I am not TD. I just borrowed his body for a little bit while I enact my plan." His eyes scanned the crowd, basking in the fear of the crowd for a moment before continuing. "Doubtless you have all heard of me thanks to Twilight Sparkle and the rest of those pesky elements, but if you haven't then allow me to introduce myself. I am Discord, god of chaos and disharmony and let me tell you, it is my pleasure to meet all of you!"
If the crowd was stunned before, it was nothing compared to the silence that came from this newest revelation. Discord, the literal god of chaos and disharmony, was standing in their midst. Not only that, but he seemed to have trapped the Elements of Harmony as well.
The silence was broken when Roseluck let out a piercing shriek that set off a chain reaction throughout the crowd. The towns ponies all tried to bolt in opposite directions to escape whatever cruel tricks Discord had in store for them, but the draconniquus was one step ahead of them. He gleefully snapped his fingers and the grass on the ground grew into thick vines that wrapped around the forelegs of everypony in the crowd, trapping them.
TDiscord calmly began walking amongst the trapped ponies, many of whom were whimpering in fear while others were trying to free themselves from their vines. "I suppose you all are wondering why I've called this town meeting," said Discord with a chortle. "Well it's quite simple really. You see, I have recently been freed from a stone prison that I am not quite keen on returning to. As such, I have enacted a plan that will ensure that I rule Equestria like I did in the years before the reign of those two pesky alicorns."
"You'll never win!" shouted Lyra. "The Elements will trap you in stone just like last time!"
A cheer went through the crowd at this but Discord only smiled. "A cute sentiment, Lyra Heartstrings, but a foolish one indeed. How can the Elements defeat me when they cannot even free themselves?"
With another snap of his fingers, Discord materialized a window of sorts where the library door used to be. A collective gasp went through the crowd at the sight. There, lying on the floor in various states of pure sorrow, were the wingless, hornless, and blank flanked Elements of Harmony. Fluttershy had her head buried in Rainbow Dash's shoulder and both were openly sobbing. Rarity was rocking back and forth on the floor and stroking her mane while Twilight hugged a mouthless Spike close. Pinkie Pie's mane was deflated and she was staring at the floor, unmoving next to Applejack who continuously acted like she was going to stand up, but never did so.
Discord let the ponies drink in the sight of the defenders of Equestria degraded in such a manner for a few minutes before he snapped his fingers, causing the window to vanish. "If they cannot stop me than nopony can," said Discord coolly. "Your precious princesses could never beat me in a fight when they are bound by the laws of reality and I am not. Make no mistake, Ponyville, I will win and I will rule Equestria as I did in the past."
Discord took a deep breath and walked next to Lyra. "But this does not have to be your fate, Ponyville!" he said. "Equestria will be plunged into eternal chaos, but you do not need to be subjugated in such a manner. I can make your town the order capital of the entire planet, a place where everything runs as it should and you do not suffer. All you have to do is renounce Celestia."
"We'd never renounce the princesses!" said Lyra defiantly.
"Yeah, do your worst, we'd never betray Equestria like that!" Nurse Redheart called out.
Discord raised an eyebrow. "Did you seriously just tell a god to whom the laws of reality do not apply to do his worst?" Discord scoffed. "Your sad devotion to Celestia has made you even blinder than even I had imagined. I suppose a demonstration of what I'm going to do to you if you do not accept my generous offer is in order."
With that, Discord grabbed Lyra by the throat and violently lifted her up into the air.
"LYRA!!!" screamed Bon Bon.
"I hope you enjoy what is about to pass," Discord told the gurgling unicorn. "You'll be like this forever."
Discord raised his hand to neck level and snapped his fingers once again. In a flash Lyra's horn and cutie mark both vanished from her body. Lyra would have let out an ear piercing shriek if she could as her very identity was taken away from her, but with Discord's hand wrapped around her throat noise was almost impossible. Bon Bon did enough screaming for the both of them, though.
Unfortunately for the green ex-unicorn, Discord wasn't done. He slowly reached his free hand towards Lyra and placed it on her forehead. The second his hand made contact, the tip of Lyra's tail lost all color, an effect that quickly traveled up Lyra's body. Lyra convulsed in Discord's grip as the color was literally sucked out of her while the entire town watched, absolutely unable to do anything about it.
Within seconds the unicorn that had once been Lyra Heartstrings was nothing more than a colorless husk in Discord's hand. Satisfied, the god of chaos threw her to the ground where she lay still. "Don't worry, I didn't kill her. That would have been far too boring." Discord knelt next to Lyra and examined his work. "Having said that, I'm guessing she wishes that I had killed her instead."
Bon Bon let out a loud wail of sorrow at the sight of her best friend lying on the ground. A few ponies close to her tried to comfort her by nuzzling her sides, but all of them were too far away to do anything.
Discord stood up and scanned the crowd again. "Does anypony else think that not doing what I tell them to do is a good idea?" he said. "That's only the tip of the chaosberg. Anything I can imagine I can do and let me promise you, I have quite the extensive imagination."
The menace in Discord's words sent shivers down the spines of the towns ponies, with the exception of Bon Bon who was still trying to reach her friend. Discord paid her no heed, instead scanning the crowd for a new potential victim.
He took a deep breath and walked over to the closest child he could find. Yes, she would be perfect. "Hello there, little filly." He knelt down close to the filly who was doing her best to curl up into a ball away from Discord. "If TD's memories are correct then your name is Dinky, am I right?"
Dinky squealed in fear and tried to move away from Discord even more.
"How about you, will you renounce Celestia and Luna? I promise you that you'll be safe if you do."
"Go away," she whimpered. "Please leave us alone."
Discord sighed and shook his head. "I guess there's nothing else for it, then. You'll have to end up like Miss Heartstrings over there and--"
Discord never finished his sentence. He was cut off when a wall of solid grey collided with the side of his head. Before he hit the ground three blows had already landed on his face and the flurry continued even after he had hit the ground.
"YOU DO NOT EVER GET TO TOUCH MY FOAL YOU BUCKING PIECE OF SCUM! I'M GOING TO RIP YOU APART PIECE BY PIECE UNTIL YOU ARE BEGGING ME TO END YOUR PATHETIC LIFE!!!!"
The Ponyvillians in attendance looked on in sheer awe at the sight of Derpy raining blow after blow upon the hapless being underneath her. Some even guessed that such an assault would reduce a dragon to a weeping pile of scales. Derpy didn't let up. Such was the intensity of the fire in her fueled by pure maternal rage. It was more than a little unsettling to see such rage from an even tempered pony, but none could blame her.
However, before Derpy could hurt him further, she heard the sound of clapping behind her. Not the kind of clapping that came from somepony applauding your efforts, but rather the kind that dripped with condescension. Derpy stopped her assault and looked up to see the most horrifying creature she had ever seen in her life. It looked like a mishmash of several different creatures sewn together.
"Well done, Ms. Hooves, I must say I am impressed with how you broke free of the vines and attacked poor TD like that. Why, I daresay that in another moment or two somepony would have had the blood of an innocent human on her hooves."
Derpy looked down and was horrified to see what used to be TD's face hidden under a plethora of cuts and bruises. "Oh my Celestia, what have I done?" she whispered. She whimpered in sorrow and wrapped TD's head in her forelegs. "Please forgive me, TD!"
TD spat out a fair amount of blood before chuckling slightly. "'s okay, he whispered. "I punched him in the nuts when he threatened the Crusaders. I don't bl--" TD was cut off as he coughed up more blood. Derpy let out a wail of sorrow and began gently stroking his hair.
"Dawww, isn't that a touching scene? A repentant attacker apologizing to the one she nearly killed. It’s really quite beautiful if you ask me," said Discord.
Derpy's eyes shot up and she gave Discord her best glare. "What I said still stands, I will tear you apart,' she growled.
Discord scoffed. "You know it really isn't smart to threaten the god of chaos, especially right after you've gotten done brutalizing an innocent being," said Discord. He walked closer to Derpy and tapped his chin thoughtfully. "Well, I took Lyra's cutie mark, horn, and color for defying me so I wonder what we'll do with you."
Derpy squealed in fear and bolted towards Dinky. She wrapped her foal in her forelegs and tried to pull her out of the vines that trapped her, desperately hoping that she could get away from the madness.
Derpy's cries of emotional agony rang through Ponyville while the rest of the town could only look on in shock.
A hornless, colorless Dinky was desperately hugging a nearly comatose Lyra and shaking her shoulders. "Mommy, wake up!" she cried. "Mommy we gotta go!"
"Dinky, Mommy's here! Mommy's going to help you!" The colorless, wingless pegasus struggled to reach her daughter but the fact that her legs were frozen made that impossible.
To the horror of all of the onlookers Dinky turned to Derpy with rage in her eyes that none had ever considered possible from the good natured filly. "You're not my Mommy!" she spat. "I've never seen you before in my life!" She pointed at Lyra. "This is my real Mommy!" The filly turned back to Lyra and began shaking her again. "Mommy, come on Mommy, we gotta get outta here! There's this bad mare that's trying to take me away, she says she's my Mommy! Mommy, wake up!"
Derpy's cries of agony returned full force.
* * * *
Apple Bloom's ears perked up as the cries reached the Crusader clubhouse. She looked out the window of the clubhouse for a moment before turning back to her fellow Crusaders who were in each other's forelegs, still crying their eyes out. Apple Bloom wiped her eyes and took a deep breath. "Girls, did ya hear that?"
Scootaloo sniffled and wiped her own eyes. "Yeah I guess so," she muttered.
"Ah think Discord did somethin' real bad again," whispered the yellow filly.
"I'm sure he did," whimpered Sweetie Belle. "He's doing a lot of bad stuff to ponies."
Apple Bloom nodded and looked out the window once more. "We gotta stop him," she whispered. "We gotta do something to make sure that Discord doesn't do anythin' else to innocent ponies!"
"But what can we do?" asked Scootaloo. "How can we stop him from doing anything else? We can't even wield the Elements!"
"But we can get his backpack!" said Apple Bloom. "Discord wouldn't keep that backpack around at all times unless there was somethin' in there that was important. Maybe we can find somethin' in there that'll help us at least help mah sister and her friends!"
"But we don't know where he is!" said Sweetie Belle.
"He'd be somewhere 'round here, right?" Apple Bloom mused. "He'd be 'round the Elements in case somepony tried to help them."
"The Everfree Forest?" whispered Scootaloo. "There's this clearing where TD likes to have lunch, we could start by checking there."
The other two Crusaders looked over at Scootaloo. Apple Bloom nodded and stood up. "We have to at least try."
* * * *
TD's eyes snapped open and he took a few rapid breaths before looking around and seeing where he was. He wasn't in his mind anymore, he was... in the clearing? The clearing where he talked with Pinkie Pie. Yes... he wasn't in his mind anymore.
His breathing slowed down and he pushed himself up to his feet. The thought crossed his mind that this was another Discord trick and with a snap of his fingers Discord would reveal that he was still trapped inside his own mind, forced to watch as Discord committed atrocities while essentially wearing his face. He had been forced to watch as Discord turned Dinky against her mother, something that Derpy would be forced to remember even if all of this was fixed.
TD took a few more deep breaths and began looking around the clearing. If he really was free from Discord, and the last time that had happened Derpy had nearly killed him, where was Discord now and why was he free in the first place? A feeling of unease crept up inside of him. Something was off. This was too easy of an escape and he didn't remember anybody saving him from Discord's influence.
"Greetings, TD, and welcome to your one happy spot in all of Equestria!" said the familiar voice of his tormentor. TD wheeled around to see Discord behind him grinning like a Cheshire cat. Discord leaned against a tree and idly began examining his claws. "I suppose you're wondering why you're out of your mind."
"Clever word choice, Discord," TD retorted, "but I'll grant that I'm curious."
"Well you recall my interaction with Celestia wherein I told her that some order was necessary to counter-balance the chaos? That is what is happening here. If you stayed in your mind too long then you'd eventually go mad and then I'd get bored of you after a very short while."
TD snorted. "So basically this is more of your mind games even though I'm not in my mind."
Discord rolled his eyes and his grin faded to a smirk. "If you wish to put it that way then I suppose I won't stop you," he said.
"Okay then, what are we doing out here?"
"I'm glad you asked!" said Discord, rubbing his paw and claw together eagerly. "You see, I was hoping to touch base with you a little bit and get your thoughts on what's going to happen in the near future." Discord snapped his fingers and TD suddenly found himself sitting in a desk completely unable to move anything except his head and neck. "I suppose that I'm just wondering how far you are willing to go to protect the ones you've actually grown to care about here. You were willing to attack me to protect those silly little foals even though I know you knew it wouldn't work in the slightest. I'm curious to see what you would do to protect all of them from me."
"I wouldn't have to do much, the Elements will beat you," TD snarled.
Discord shrugged his shoulders. "Very well then, I suppose if you aren't actually willing to do anything then we'll get to playtime with the Ponyville foals right now."
TD's eyes widened. "NO!" he cried, causing Discord to stop moving towards him to repossess him. TD closed his eyes and took a deep breath before looking back up at Discord. "What is it that you want?"
"I didn't ask you to do what I want; I asked you how far you'd be willing to go to save them."
TD took a few more deep breaths and began blinking rapidly to hold back the first angry tears. "Depends on what saving them means," he said through clenched teeth.
"They don't have to endure a life of chaos. I will not use them as playthings and I will leave them alone. I will not make their lives miserable, I will not do to them what I will do to others, and I will ensure that they grow up as happy as I feel generous enough to allow." The two stared at each other in silence for a brief moment before Discord spoke up again. "How far would you be willing to go to give them that gift?"
TD slowly opened his mouth to respond, but found the words die in his throat when he saw flashes of color in the corner of his left eye. He slowly tilted his head downwards and allowed his eyes to shift to the left to see what he had noticed. The sight almost made him flinch his head violently. The Cutie Mark Crusaders were coming towards them.
"Crap," he mumbled to himself. What were they doing here?!
He looked back up at Discord who was looking down at him expectantly. "Give me a moment to think," he muttered.
Discord nodded. "Oh of course, take all of the time that you need. It is admittedly a big decision after all. Are you going to be selfish and let them suffer or will you endure psychological torment the likes of which you have never imagined for the sake of sparing them the same fate?"
TD snuck another glance at the approaching Crusaders and realized what they were there to do.
The backpack. They were here for the backpack with the horns, wings, and cutie marks of the Elements. He slowly nodded to himself. He had to buy them time.
"So what happens if I do choose the 'selfish' route?" he asked.
Discord shrugged. "That depends on how generous I'm feeling at the moment I suppose," he said. "Anything from being sent to a land away from Equestria to live the rest of your days in peace to flat out being sent back to your world. Both instances come at the expense that you have to watch what I do to the foals so you can truly grasp the consequences of your choice. Although, if you're a 'better them than me' sort of human then that might not be too bad."
TD sighed and reached his hands up to rub his temples but was frustrated by the fact that he was still frozen. He looked back up at Discord, this time with a slightly uncomfortable look on his face. "Uh... I kinda have this tick where I rub my temples. It helps me think a bit so..."
Discord snorted but snapped his fingers and freed TD's entire body. TD tumbled onto the grass as the desk disappeared out from under him. He recovered quickly and sat up and glared at Discord who merely shrugged. TD took another deep breath and rubbed his temples. "So basically you're asking me if I want to endure untold suffering the likes of which would make Pinhead cringe or if I want the foals to do it instead."
Discord raised an eyebrow and cocked his head. "Pinhead?" he asked.
Apple Bloom had her mouth on the strap of the backpack now. He just needed to hold him off for a few more seconds.
TD raised an eyebrow now. "Yeah, Pinhead. You know, 'we'll tear your soul apart'? That guy?"
Discord scratched the back of his head. "Er... I'm afraid that I've never heard of such a being."
TD giggled like a madman and shook his head incredulously. "You mean you had unlimited access to my mind for a few days now and you never used that opportunity to learn a little more about me? I mean, didn't you at least look around to see what you could use against me?"
"Well I suppose I can if you want--"
"I mean geez, this is basic Possession 101. If you're strong enough to possess somebody then you can read their mind to see what makes them tick, right?"
She was balancing the backpack on her back now. Just a little while longer. She was clearly straining under the weight but if Discord was distracted long enough...
Discord frowned and moved a few steps closer to his victim. "And why would you know so much about possession?"
TD snorted and shot Discord an amused half smile. "I watch The Exorcist annually."
"The what now?"
TD facepalmed. "Oh come on, did you do any poking around in my brain at all?!"
"Maybe," said Discord, "and maybe if I did right now I'd find out why you're delaying. This isn't delaying for the sake of the decision; you're trying to buy time."
TD's smile evaporated and despite himself his expression changed to one of unease. "That's crazy," he whispered. "I just don't want to decide right away, that's all."
Discord's smile returned and he took another step forwards. "Don't lie to me, TD," he said. "I've dealt with ponies trying to buy time for thousands of years and believe me, I know when it's being attempted." Discord leaned over and looked TD directly in the eyes. "Why are you trying to distract me?"
TD remained silent, not daring another glance at the Crusaders. If they were smart they had gotten out of here a long time ago. That was something that did indicate that there was a 50-50 shot that they were still watching which would make all of this for nothing.
Discord reached his claw forward and stopped just short of placing one of them on TD's forehead. "It'll just take me one second to figure out just what you are up to and then--"
"NO!" screamed the voice of one of the Crusaders.
TD's breath died in his throat and he had no choice but to look over to see Sweetie Belle huddled up next to a tree. The other two Crusaders were nowhere to be found. "Don't hurt him!" she whimpered.
"Sweetie Belle what the buck are you doing?!"
Discord observed the shivering filly for a few moments before he snapped his fingers, teleporting the frightened Crusader directly in front of him, eliciting a squeal of terror from Sweetie Belle. "The human makes a fair point, what are you doing here?"
Sweetie Belle looked down at the ground and began shivering like it was thirty below in the clearing. "L-L-Leave h-him alone!" she stuttered.
Discord threw back his head and let out a cawing laugh. "Oh isn't that precious? I'm asking him what he'll do to protect you and here are the Ponyville foals gift-wrapping themselves for me to play with!" Discord shifted his evil smile to TD. "Maybe I don't need to ask you after all," he said. "Maybe we should ask the child to see what she would be willing to do to protect you."
TD was silent for a moment as he looked at Sweetie Belle but before Discord could react, he lunged at her and wrapped the frightened foal in his arms and turned his back to Discord to make himself into a human shield. Discord let out another guffaw at his attempt allowing TD to lean his head close to Sweetie Belle's ear. "What the buck are you doing here?" he growled. "Why didn't you get away."
"He was gonna read your mind," she whispered back. "Then he'd see us and none of us would get away."
"Might this be a conversation that I can be privy to?" said Discord's voice, cutting through the whispers. "It does sound most important."
"Just buzz off and leave her alone!" TD growled. "She isn't a part of this!"
"She isn't?" said Discord. "Well then I don't suppose she falls under the question she asks you which means that your suffering, if you chose that, wouldn't protect her which means..."
TD's eyes widened and he tightened his grip on the now crying Sweetie Belle but was unable to protect the filly from being teleported out of his grasp when Discord snapped his fingers. "JUST LEAVE HER ALONE!" he screeched, wheeling around to see Sweetie Belle hysterically crying in Discord's grasp.
"Oh I will," said Discord, waving his paw at TD. "After I make a few modifications."
Sweetie Belle squealed and began struggling to get out of Discord's grip just as TD dove towards the god of chaos. "LEAVE HER--"
Discord snapped his fingers.
* * * *
Scootaloo and Apple Bloom reached the front of the library, tears streaming down their faces. Sweetie Belle had told them to go, that if Discord read TD's mind then they'd all get caught and then they wouldn't get the backpack. As it was, Sweetie Belle had told them to go and they hadn't argued with her. They had just...just left her.
Scootaloo hopped off of her scooter and wiped her eyes with the back of her hoof. "We left her, we left her alone!"
Apple Bloom was in the back of the wagon next to the backpack, crying too hard to answer her friend. They had gotten the backpack and could hopefully fix the Elements. But now Sweetie Belle was in the hands of Discord and it was likely that they would never see her again.
At that moment Scootaloo looked up and was surprised to see not only a platoon of royal guards, but Princess Luna herself tending to the ponies that Discord had toyed with. The ponies were all free, though Lyra, Dinky, and Derpy were all still drained of their colors and appendages, and Luna had even managed to free the Elements from the library and was now doing her best to comfort a sobbing Fluttershy while the rest quietly talked about what to do next.
Knowing what needed to be done; Scootaloo hopped onto her scooter and zoomed up to the princess and Elements. "We got it; we got the box from Discord!"
The Elements and Luna all looked up at the sound of Scootaloo coming up. Rainbow Dash gasped when she saw the filly and ran up to her. "Scoots, you're okay!" She wrapped her fan in a giant hug that Scootaloo eagerly returned. Feeling her idol hugging her nearly brought her to hysterical tears as the weight of everything almost came crashing down on her, but she squeezed her eyes shut and held it in. She had to brave like Rainbow Dash had undoubtedly been inside the library.
Applejack had run over to the wagon and now held a sobbing Apple Bloom in her forelegs. "AB, you're okay," she soothed. "Ah gotcha. Princess Luna's here and she's gonna help us out. We'll beat Discord and get TD back. It'll be alright."
Apple Bloom continued sobbing into her sister's shoulder but managed to point to the backpack inside the wagon. Twilight gasped when she saw it. "That's TD's backpack!" She rushed over to it and opened it up to discover the box inside of it. She grinned excitedly and took the box out of the backpack. "Princess Luna, this is the box where he's been keeping all of our horns and wings, if you can use your magic to give them back to us then we can use the Elements!"
Luna flew over to Twilight and opened the box. "If that is true then we have no time to waste."
"Wait a minute," said Rarity, "Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, where is Sweetie Belle? Wasn't she with you?"
Hearing the name of their fellow Crusader caused Apple Bloom to increase her sobbing and even Scootaloo finally broke down. Rarity whimpered in fear and walked up to the less distraught of the two. "Where is she? What did that monster do to her?" she whispered.
Scootaloo had to take a few seconds to calm down before she managed to stutter out an answer. "W-We were in the clubhouse when we heard Ms. Hooves crying about something and we knew that it was Discord doing something bad. We thought that since we seemed to be the only ones that he hadn't trapped yet, we had to at least try to find TD and do something about it."
Rarity whimpered and her legs gave out and she sat on her haunches, the first traces of tears in her eyes. "What did he do?" she repeated.
Scootaloo sniffled and wiped her eyes before continuing. "W-We went to a clearing in the Everfree Forest where TD liked to take his lunch breaks and we found him there. Discord was out of TD's mind and was talking to him. We tried to take the backpack that we saw Discord carrying because we knew he wouldn't carry it unless it was important so we quietly stole it from him. TD noticed and distracted Discord, but Discord figured out what he was doing so he went to go read TD's mind to see why he wanted to distract him." At this point Scootaloo's tears returned full force and she sobbed for a few moments before regaining her control and continuing on. "Sweetie Belle...Sweetie Belle said that we had to go," she whimpered. "She told us to go and she'd distract Discord." She began sobbing again and buried her head in Rainbow Dash's shoulder. "And we did," she finished quietly.
Rarity stared at Scootaloo for a moment, tears pouring down her face. "S-Sweetie Belle did..." All of a sudden the alabaster unicorn let out a cry of sorrow and collapsed on the ground, hysterically sobbing into her forelegs. Twilight quickly gave the box to Princess Luna and rushed over to her distraught friend.
"We'll get her back," she said sharply. "We won't let Discord get away with whatever he's done to her, I promise you."
"But what if he killed her?!" she wailed. "What if he twisted her so much we can't fix her?!"
"He would not have killed her," said Luna. "That is not his way. In terms of the latter worry I can only say this: we will fix her. That is not a promise so much as a state of fact, dear Rarity. As powerful as Discord is, his magic can be undone with the Elements of Harmony. Everything he did will be undone once he is returned to his stone prison."
"You have to be strong, Rarity," said Twilight. "We can't do this without you. If you're strong then we can fix Sweetie Belle and she'll be okay."
Rarity continued sobbing hysterically on the ground but Twilight's words had lessened the crying somewhat. Fluttershy had managed to calm down herself through that time and now walked up to Rarity and nuzzled her foreleg. Rarity's head snapped up and she looked into her friend's eyes for a moment before throwing her forelegs around Fluttershy's shoulders. Fluttershy gave a small smile and hugged Rarity, rubbing her back. "Shh, it's going to be okay, Rarity. Sweetie Belle will be okay. She's going to be okay because her big sister who loves her very much is going to make sure that it's okay, right?"
Rarity sniffled and slowly nodded. "Yes," she whispered.
"Exactly," said Fluttershy, pulling Rarity away and looking her in the eye. "She's going to be okay because you're going to make sure that it's okay. You love your sister very much and not even Discord can get between that."
Rarity sniffled again and wiped her eyes. "You are of course correct, Fluttershy," she said quietly. "I'm not going to help Sweetie Belle by being a blubbering mess now am I?" She took a deep breath and stood up, turning to face Luna. "Princess Luna, I think I have had quite enough of this. If you would be so kind as to give me my horn and cutie mark back I would be most grateful."
Twilight smiled and walked up next to her friend. "We're not going to let Discord take everything from us. We beat him once and we'll beat him again!"
One by one the Elements got into a line, each determined to once again beat Discord and save the lands from his twisted visions. Princess Luna nodded and levitated the wings, horns, and cutie marks out of the box and placed them in front of their respective ponies. Rarity gave a determined smile when her horn and mark began floating in front of her. "Let's do this," she growled.
A yellow pegasus poked her snout out of its hiding spot in her mane and gingerly looked around at her friends. "Did it work?" she whispered. "Did we get our wings and cutie marks back?" Fluttershy looked forward and saw Princess Luna lying on the ground, the tip of her horn looking burnt. She was breathing heavily and it almost seemed to Fluttershy that she was unconscious. She gasped at the sight of the princess and ran over to her, her wings fluttering nervously. "Princess Luna, are you..."
Her wings fluttered.
Fluttershy gasped and looked to her back where two butter yellow wings fluttered right where they should have been. And her cutie mark? A trio of pink butterflies adorned her flank right where they had been since the day she got it. "It worked," she said breathlessly. A large smile spread across her face. "IT WORKED!!"
Fluttershy ran over to Princess Luna and threw her forelegs around the night princess' neck. "IT WORKED!" she cried.
One by one her friends made the same discovery and gave cries of excitement and relief as the marks and appendages that Discord had torn away from them had returned to them. Twilight shot a few sparks out of her horn to test its abilities and smiled. "It's all what it should be." Her grin widened. "Discord's going down."
The only one who hadn't said anything was Rarity. Her horn and mark had returned as well, but her face was an expressionless mask, something that confused her purple friend. "Rarity, are you okay?" she asked.
"Oh I'm fine," said Rarity simply. "I'm simply imaging what we're going to do to that bucking draconniquus when I get my hooves on him, that's all." She turned to Twilight with a wry smile. "I wouldn't read my mind for a while if I were you."
"Oh come on, Rarity, I'm sure that a lady like you wouldn't think stuff like that," said a familiar young voice behind them. All six turned and gasped when they saw Spike standing behind them, his recently returned mouth split in a wide smile.
Rarity's blank mask slipped off and she copied Spike's smile. "SPIKEY WIKEY!" she cried, running up to the baby dragon and wrapping him in a big hug. "You're okay!"
Spike basked in the feeling of his crush hugging him close for a moment before answering. "Well yeah," he said. "You can't keep a dragon down for long!"
Twilight gleefully walked up to Spike, a scroll in her magical glow. "Spike, take a letter. We have some Elements to get."
* * * *
Twilight and her friends ran towards the forest with new purpose and the Elements of Harmony securely around their necks. Celestia had already been on her way to Ponyville with them when she had received the letter so it wasn't more than a few minutes before she arrived. She had decided to stay with her Discorded subjects while the Elements found Discord himself and turned him to stone.
Rarity led the charge to the forest, a fire in her eyes that frankly terrified the other members of the Elements. However, they knew not to snap her out of it. Her sister was at stake and it wouldn't be wise to try to talk her out of her tranquil fury. On that note, though, none of them could blame her. A few of them even wanted Discord as dead as Rarity did.
The run to the clearing was not a long one and soon the six ponies were there, all looking around for any sight of TD or Sweetie Belle. Rarity's mood had dissolved from one of fury to fear and she was running around the clearing. "Sweetie Belle!" she cried. "Sweetie Belle where are you?!"
Applejack looked over at her friend and leaned in close to Twilight. "Are we sure she's here?" she asked. "How do we know that Discord didn't... you know."
Twilight shook her head. "No, Discord isn't the type to kill anybody. It's not his style. If a pony is dead then they can't experience his chaos."
Applejack sighed and nodded. She opened her mouth to respond but her words died in her mouth when she heard rustling in the bushes behind her. She wheeled around and saw one of the bushes moving. "There, there's something in the bushes there!" she said.
Immediately Twilight ran over to the bush and pulled a few branches aside to see what was inside. The sight of the occupant of the bush made her gasp. The black, insectoid body, the holes in the form, the green fangs, all of it left no doubt of what kind of creature that was. "It's a changeling!" she cried.
The changeling squealed in fear and zoomed out of the bush. Twilight fired a beam of magic at it that froze its legs to the ground, trapping it. The changeling continued to cry out in fear, desperately trying to get its legs free from Twilight's spell. The six ponies surrounded it with Twilight standing in front of it. "Can you hear me?" she said coldly. The changeling looked up at her, shivering like it was wintertime but it slowly nodded. "Good. Now here's what I want you to do. I want you to shift into a form that can talk and I want you to answer any question that I have, is that clear?"
The changeling whimpered and shakily turned its head away from Twilight. Its frightened eyes scanned the other ponies around it until they landed on Rarity who was looking at it uneasily. When the changeling saw her, it squealed again but this time it wasn't fear, it was almost like happiness and relief. Immediately it tried to free itself and get over to her.
Rarity frowned at it. "Twilight, darling? Why is--" Rarity's words were cut off as a thought crossed her mind. She gasped and began gingerly walking up to the changeling. "S-Sweetie Belle?"
The changeling vigorously nodded and continued trying to get to Rarity. The unicorn's jaw dropped and she began blinking quickly. "Oh my," she whispered. "I..." The unicorn suddenly let out a piercing wail and rushed over to the changeling and wrapped it in her forelegs. "Oh Sweetie Belle, I'm so sorry! I should have been here to protect you!"
Twilight had to take a moment to register what she was seeing in front of her. That thing was Sweetie Belle? Discord had done...
Instantly the spell faded and the changeling Sweetie Belle wrapped her forelegs around Rarity's waist. Rarity began sobbing and stroking Sweetie Belle's head. "Sweetie Belle, you're a c-changeling so can you change back to how you used to look? Hmm? Can you do that for big sister; can you change back?"
Sweetie Belle whimpered and shook her head. Rarity let out another howl of sorrow and Sweetie Belle buried her head in her big sister's chest. Twilight walked up to the sobbing unicorn and gently put her hoof on Rarity's shoulder. "We'll fix her," she said. "I promise you that we'll fix her once we turn Discord into stone again."
"No," Rarity growled menacingly. "Once we DESTROY Discord!" She turned her head to face Twilight, now angry tears streaming down her face. "Once we turn him to stone I'll personally take a sledge hammer to his statue and reduce him to a pile of rubble for what he's done to Sweetie Belle; what he's done to all of us!"
Twilight uneasily took a half step backwards. "Rarity, I know you're upset, we all are, but right now we need to focus on finding TD and Discord so we can fix this. We need your help."
Rarity's expression softened and she wiped her eyes with the back of her hoof. "You are of course correct, Twilight," she whispered. She turned her head back to her changeling sister and nuzzled her head softly. "Big sister is going to take you to your friends now, okay? They're going to look after you while my friends and I fix you."
Sweetie Belle whimpered and nuzzled her sister's chest. Rarity wiped more tears from her eyes and gently levitated her sister onto her back.
* * * *
TD leaned against a wall in his mind, not even bothering to look at the window that would have allowed him to see what Discord saw while he possessed him. Truly there was nothing else he wanted to see anymore. After seeing what discord had done to Sweetie Belle...
He sighed as that image replayed once again. Sweetie Belle had let out a loud wail that sounded more like a hiss when she had seen what Discord had done to her. Her first instinct was to try to scrape off the outer shell she had been given in the vain hope that it was merely encasing the real her underneath and she would be fixed. Once she had gotten to the point where such an action caused her physical pain, she had scrunched up her eyes in an attempt to return to her normal looks that way.
And Discord just stood and laughed the entire time. He was almost on the floor he was laughing so hard. When Sweetie Belle had tried to shift to a pony again, Discord gleefully told her that he had only given her the appearance of a changeling and not the actual powers. 'What's the point of turning you into one of the most hated creatures on the planet if you can just change right back?' he had said.
TD half closed his eyes before remembering that doing that caused the image of changeling Sweetie Belle to flash in his mind in a more pronounced manner so he opened them once more. He quickly wished he had kept them closed when he saw his tormentor standing before him. However, it seemed that Discord was not here to make fun of him as the god of chaos looked slightly... contemplative.
TD took a deep breath. "Buzz off; I have nothing to say to you."
Discord snorted and materialized a chair. "Maybe not, TD, but I have a great deal to say to you and I think you may want to hear it. It involves our future together."
"You make us sound like a couple," TD snarked.
"We may be more than that if things get more out of hand than they already have," said Discord. "By now I assume you have guessed that the diversion that those foals created was successful and Twilight and her pony friends likely have the elements in their possession meaning a confrontation between us would lead to me being turned to stone once more." Discord leaned in close to TD. "And you with me."
TD's eyes flickered up so they met with Discord's once more. "So what do you want me to do about it?"
Discord leaned back in his chair. "There's nothing you or I can do about it in the long run. I could go into hiding until the Elements die, but in doing so I would need to refrain from causing mass chaos lest they find me and turn me to stone anyway. I do not wish for it to play out that way. Besides, I don't like the idea of running."
"So you're going to take your medicine, is that it?"
"I've escaped from my stony prison twice in the past two years. I can do it again," said Discord confidently. "But in the event that I can't I'm curious to get your thoughts on what your future is like. In the event that I am turned to stone, you would be turned with me."
"I know," said TD blankly. "But it just harkens back to my question of what I can do about it. What do you want me to say; that I don't want that to happen to me? You already know that I don't but I'm not powerful enough to stop you from doing whatever you want to me. It's not going to be so easy for me to break out of my mind and even when I did, you just took it right back and didn't really leave my mind anyway." TD looked back up at Discord. "The only one who can get me free from your influence is you."
Discord shrugged. "Probably, yes," he admitted. "It is unlikely that the Elements can physically tear us apart and even if they do, they're meant to subdue gods. What do you think they'd do to your mind?"
"Rip it to shreds," said TD. "It'd probably have the same results as a lobotomy." TD leaned back and stared at the ceiling. "Kind of ironic that such a pure creation could do that to me."
"Power is power," said Discord. "If it's powerful enough to turn a being like me to stone then it has enough to tear your mind apart. How could it not?
"But let's say that when I'm imprisoned once more that it doesn't separate us. Well then you're stuck in here, never aging and never decaying, with me until such time that I am freed and let you go. It's a good opportunity for me to get an ally, don't you think?"
TD snapped his head down and glared at Discord. "I'd never ally myself with you. Why the heck would I do that?"
"Because I would be your only source of interaction," said Discord idly. "It wouldn't take a lot of effort to at least rationalize tolerating me while we're trapped in stone for however long." Discord gave TD a wry smirk. "Imagine what I could do to you in just a year’s time even."
TD remained silent but turned away from Discord and faced the wall behind him. Discord snorted and stood back up. "You think this a defiant act?" he said. "It isn't nearly as defiant as your initial ones. Oh yes, there was such fire, such passion, such hatred for me behind those actions. You really wanted to see me suffer for what I did.
"But it seems that after seeing what I did to the Elements, to Celestia, to those Ponyville simpletons, to that ridiculous child, you simply don't care anymore. Oh, and let's not forget the fact that you're faced with a possibly endless oblivion once the Elements arrive. I may not be able to cause widespread chaos like I wish to right now, but I can at least set up for next time and cause chaos with you." Discord snorted and turned away from TD. "And the Elements I suppose. I can't wait to see the looks on their faces when it hits them that they've essentially killed you as far as they're concerned. Who knows? It may hit them hard enough that I'll get out in a few months at worst."
Discord smiled as he looked towards the window. "And we're about to find out."
With that, he was gone.
TD continued staring at the wall for a few more seconds. This really was it, wasn't it? He was essentially about to die if not physically then mentally. TD sighed and slowly got to his feet. No reason he couldn't face it like a man.
He turned around and walked up to the window. Sure enough the Elements were there, saying something to Discord. Huh, Rarity looked beyond livid right now. It was probably because she had found Sweetie Belle. TD supposed that he couldn't blame her for that. He would have been pretty mad too and he supposed that on some level he was but...
There was nothing left. No emotions anymore. His own mental death was about to occur one way or the other, and he couldn't bring himself to care at all. The Elements and Discord were talking to each other, probably some stereotypical good guy/bad guy schlock. It'd be soon now. They looked determined but at the same time there was an unmistakable hint of sadness and pain in their demeanors.
The Elements were firing up now. They were...they were glowing and shooting out... uh, their beams of... No...no this couldn't actually be happening!
TD took a frightened step back away from the window. This was it, it wasn't a dream, it was reality. Despite himself he really wanted to... scream. Tears of fear were already welling up in the corners of his eyes as he continue to back up as if the only thing that gave him hope was the notion that getting as far away from the inevitable blast would somehow free him if he...
The bright rainbow blast shot out of the individual Elements and just as they did, TD found himself in control of his body once again. He knew the Elements could see that. Discord's confidence and wild eyes would be replaced by his fear and normal ones.
TD whimpered in fear, almost as if he was a child getting a shot from the doctor, as the stone encasing traveled up his legs. He...he thought he could handle this, that if he removed himself from... his chest was stone now... from emotions that this wouldn't be so terrible. Discord was still in his mind, he felt that, but... He thought this would be easy! He thought... he thought...
TD's last action in Equestria was to let out a piercing cry of fear that seemed to shake the very foundations of the earth.
Then he was gone.
* * * *
Slowly the Elements of Harmony trudged back into the town square where the townsfolk were cheering and celebrating. Everypony who had been under Discord's influence in any way had been freed and they were happiest of all. Derpy had her forelegs around her daughter and both of them were spouting tears of unadulterated joy. Life was happy for them again now that Dinky was safe in the arms of her mother.
Lyra had her horn, colors, and cutie mark again. She too was wrapped in the forelegs of one who loved her, in this instance her best friend Bon Bon.
Even Sweetie Belle was returned to normal when Discord was trapped again and she was now jumping happily in the air with her fellow crusaders.
Ponies were lining up to thank Princess Celestia and Princess Luna for freeing them from the vines that Discord had trapped them with. They all seemed to be okay and the Princesses were glad for their thanks.
Princess Celestia had just finished pulling her foreleg out of the grip of The Mayor when she saw the Elements walking towards her. Her smile of joy widened when she saw her star student, but quickly fell. There was no joy in her movement, of the movement of any of them for that matter. Surely they had...
Frowning, Princess Celestia spread her wings and flew over to meet the Elements. She landed in front of them and accepted their half-hearted bow. "Is it done?" she asked quietly. "Is Discord back in his stone prison?"
Twilight nodded slightly and sat on her haunches. "Yeah, he's back." She took a deep breath to hold back her tears. "And TD's in there with him."
Princess Celestia gasped softly as Fluttershy whimpered and buried her face in Applejack's shoulders. "The Elements didn't separate them?" she whispered.
Twilight shook her head. "I...I..." Tears began pouring freely from Twilight's face. "I THOUGHT IT WOULD WORK!" she cried. "They're the Elements of Harmony, can't they do anything?! Isn't it in their power to do things like that?!"
Twilight continued to sob as Celestia wrapped her forelegs and wings around her distraught student; unsure of what to say, unsure of what to do. She sighed as she recalled Discord's words to her that day in the throne room. Would it have been better to kill him by trying to send him back than to keep him here and force this pain and suffering on not only him, but all of her subjects in Ponyville as well?
She took a deep breath.
No, she decided, no that wouldn't have been best. Even if he was trapped in stone he was alive and that was enough for right now.
Celestia leaned her head down next to her sobbing student. "Twilight, I promise you that I will find a way to free him. I will not let him be trapped in stone forever. I will find a way to make sure that he can get out and live a long life that is as happy and content as he can. This isn't the end for him. We will not fail him."
Yes, they wouldn't fail him... again.
Alternate Ending: Not Quite as Good but Ultimately More Satisfying
If you liked the original ending for how powerful and bleak it was, don't read this ever. In fact, you might not want to read it because it's kind of dumb but in a fun way. If you didn't like the original ending because TD really needs to be cut a break for once for goodness sake, I present you with...
TD continued staring at the wall for a few more seconds. This really was it, wasn't it? He was essentially about to die if not physically then mentally. TD sighed and slowly got to his feet. No reason he couldn't face it like a man.
He turned around and walked up to the window. Sure enough the Elements were there, saying something to Discord. Huh, Rarity looked beyond livid right now. It was probably because she had found Sweetie Belle. TD supposed that he couldn't blame her for that. He would have been pretty mad too and he supposed that on some level he was but...
There was nothing left. No emotions anymore. His own mental death was about to occur one way or the other, and he couldn't bring himself to care at all. The Elements and Discord were talking to each other, probably some stereotypical good guy/bad guy schlock. It'd be soon now. They looked determined but at the same time there was an unmistakable hint of sadness and pain in their demeanors.
The Elements were firing up now. They were...they were glowing and shooting out... uh, their beams of... No...no this couldn't actually be happening!
TD took a frightened step back away from the window. This was it, it wasn't a dream, it was reality. Despite himself he really wanted to... scream. Tears of fear were already welling up in the corners of his eyes as he continue to back up as if the only thing that gave him hope was the notion that getting as far away from the inevitable blast would somehow free him if he...
The bright rainbow blast shot out of the individual Elements and just as they did, TD found himself in control of his body once again. He knew the Elements could see that. Discord's confidence and wild eyes would be replaced by his fear and normal ones.
Suddenly, TD was thrown back with a bang, The feeling he experienced was akin to somebody grabbing him by the waist and pulling him backwards to protect him from a speeding car in the middle of the road. He hit the ground, banging his head on the soil dazing him for a moment.
He took several deep breaths. If this was what being encased in stone was like, it wasn't quite as bad as he imagined. He didn't dare open his eyes for a moment, expecting to find Discord standing over him with a smug grin on his face, extolling the positives of being trapped with him and what they should do together when they get out as they inevitably would.
But... that wasn't happening.
Discord wasn't commanding him to open his eyes, he wasn't getting the feeling that he was dead and... it almost sounded like Twilight was talking.
His eyes shot open revealing the Elements of Harmony standing in front of him, their mouths open in shock. Twilight's was moving up and down, she was speaking to him. TD rubbed his temples to clear his head and Twilight's words slowly became clearer.
"TD? Are you okay?"
TD slowly got to his feet and looked around. "Did...did the Elements just free me?"
The Mane Six stared at him in silence for a moment before Pinkie Pie let out a loud squee of excitement and tackled TD in a giant hug. "YOU'RE ALIVE!!! You...YOU'RE OKAY!!!!"
For the first time in a long time, a genuine smile appeared on TD's face and he returned the pink mare's violent hug. "Yeah.. I guess I kinda am, aren't I?"
The Mane Six all joined in with the hug and soon they were all laughing joyfully at TD's freedom.
After a few moments, a snarky voice cut through the joy, bringing them out of their happiness. "If you all wouldn't mind paying attention, I'd like you to either free me or finish the job."
The Mane Six and TD looked over to the source of the noise and to their surprise they saw none other than Discord; encased in stone from the waist down, hands included, encased in stone. A sly smile spread across TD's face and he got to his feet and half skipped over to Discord. "Well, looks like the shoe is on the other foot, wouldn't you say?"
Discord's scowl deepened. "Oh as if you could hurt me anyway. You forget, TD, that I am a god and you are simply a human and a weak one at that."
TD sighed and nodded in agreement. "Yes, but I can't begin to imagine how good this will feel," he said. "I don't recall it hurting my hand at all when I punched you."
Discord snorted. "It would after a while. You are as weak physically as you are mentally."
"I'll concede that," said TD with a nod, "but that's why I'll switch from my hand to..."
TD paused and looked around. Discord had carried his walking stick with him for the most part and as far as he was aware, he had it before they had hit him with the Elements. He frowned and scanned the ground for it and his eyes eventually landed on it. To his absolute surprise, the walking stick was glowing with a bright rainbow glow.
Twilight gasped when she saw it as TD picked it up. "I've heard about this!' she whispered. "But I wasn't sure if it was true!"
TD cocked his head. "What? What happened to it?"
Twilight walked up to the walking stick and examined it for a moment before nodding. "Clovevellian staves cannot break and as such occasionally will absorb something that strengthens them even more. Discord used it to try to block the Elements of Harmony so unless I'm mistaken..." Twilight turned to TD. "Your Clovevellian Staff has absorbed some of the powers of the Elements of Harmony."
TD's jaw dropped ever so slightly as he looked from his staff to Discord. "Does that mean...does that mean that if I hit him with this it'll hurt him?"
Twilight's ears flattened slightly. "Well yeah I think..."
But TD had already walked off. "I'll be right back!" he called over his shoulders.
The Mane Six didn't ask where he was going, they didn't want to. When he walked off it was apparent that TD had a plan and they didn't want to interfere with it. Discord had been privy to their conversation and as such he was looking a little nervous.
"You know people can change, see the errors of their ways," said Discord nervously. "Wasn't that supposed to be a plan that Celestia had for me?"
"We're not talking to you," said Rarity coldly. "Sweetie Belle will have been changed back, but whatever TD is doing I want a part of it!"
They didn't have to wait for more than five minutes before TD came back. Under his arm was his laptop computer of all things. "I remember that you dropped a lot of things off at my house before you started my rampage," said TD as he walked up to Discord and placed the laptop on the ground. "I figured that if I was going to do this then I had better do it right."
Discord shifted nervously as best as he could. "TD I want you to know--"
TD fixed Discord with the biggest glare that he could. "Shut. The. ****. UP!"
The Mane Six gasped but TD was in the process of opening up something on his computer. Twilight walked up to him and nervously placed her hoof on his shoulder. "TD, we can just turn him back to stone and you don't need to do anything bad."
"I know," said TD. "Have you ever heard the phrase 'the straw that broke the camel's back?" Twilight nodded. "Well, then you can imagine that being possessed by Discord and watching him do all of those things to ponies I've legitimately come to care about right after I was told that I'm stuck in Equestria for the rest of my life... Well, you can imagine how that might be more like the boulder that broke the camel's back."
"TD I know..."
TD raised a hand and cut Twilight off. "You remember the song that I played at the Gala, right?" he said. "It's one of my personal favorites. It's by Steeler's Wheel and it's in a favorite movie of mine."
"TD--"
TD ignored Twilight and pressed play on his computer as the familiar melody began playing from his speakers. TD rhythmically began dancing to the music, just like in the movie. Before long TD began singing along to the music, readying his Clovevellian Staff for the penultimate moment. Discord for his part was growing steadily more nervous but as his nervousness increased so too did TD's mad smile.
Clowns to the left of me.
TD swung his staff backwards like a baseball player aiming for a home run
Jokers to the right.
TD moved closer to Discord and got into the proper stance.
