The Discord Accord
Chapter 6
Discord began his tale when the King had sent the Queen into the other room. The nightmare had been enough; the words pouring out of his mouth made his heart ache and his hands shake. When the story reached the end of his dream, everything just seemed to blur for him. Once again, vision twisted and mutated until Twilight Sparkle's face formed one of fear and tears poured from the eyes. Then; furiousity. He now no longer faced student, but teacher!
"How..." Celestia whimpered. Then shouted. "HOW COULD YOU?!"
Discord flinched. "T.. Tia, please, I..." His jaw quivered. "I didn't mean to..."
Celestia ran to her father's body, shaking it. "F... father? Father!" She cuddled it. "Please, daddy..."
It was enough to make him cry. Her face... was burned into his memory. It would never leave. When he saw her now, Discord always felt that knife in his heart. He walked over to Celestia's side, putting a claw on her shoulder.
"I'm sorry, Tia. Father wa..."
"You..." Celestia squeezed her eyes shut. "You have no right to call him that..."
"Please, I'm so sorry. He just... I..." Discord sighed. "I don't know what happened. I just... don't know..."
"Well, I do..." the princess' horn glowed and the prince was thrown to the floor. She turned to him, standing with as much strength as she could. "You murdered my father!"
Discord grunted, rubbing his head that had smacked against the marble upon impact. "I didn't mean to!"
"LIES!" Magical force smashed against the draconaquus' face, sending him back to the ground. She stomped her hoof. "Leave my castle, NOW!"
"Listen to me!" Discord nearly screamed, rising to his feet. "Please, Tia! You have to believe me!"
"I don't care!" Another wave of energy, and this time, when the energy made contact with the dragonic being, a large fang flew through the air. Blood splattered the floor. "I NEVER WANT TO SEE YOU AGAIN!"
"But I love you!" Discord yelled and confessed from the ground. He was now crying, too.
"W... what?" Celestia's eyes widenned.
"I... " Discord sighed shakily. "I love you... and always have..."
This news silenced the princess. Her hooves wondered, unconciously moving her to the western wall of the room. After a minute of unconfortable quiet, she shut her eyes, sighing. "Discord..."
"I know that... that what I did was horrible." He inhaled stale air. "But please, Tia, please, for the sake of our love..."
"I do not love you..." Celestia now seemed quietly enraged, suppressing her urge to tear the ceiling down. "I never will."
"Tia..."
"NO!" Celestia fired a bolt of lightning in Discord's direction, only missing by a mere foot. "I will NEVER LOVE YOU, MONSTER!"
The word truly hit home. For the enirity of his life, she had been his only reason for keeping sane, for not letting his nature take hold of his life. She had comforted him when everypony else sent this very name at him. Now that she thought him a monster as well, and rejected his love, nothing mattered anymore. Life became a void, time a maze. Nothing was real anymore.
The hardest part of his take-over, Discord thought, was teleporting out of the castle in a flash of golden light. Sitting on a random, uncharted island in the center of Eternity's Crossing for years, alone, had driven him nearly mad. Like life, he was no longer real. That is, until the nightmare arrived.
The nightmare was no evil dream, but the embodiment of the word itself; dark, cruel, evil, hellish, demonic... these words hardly described what the nightmare was. However, in sight, It had no form, and thus could be anything it desired. Discord was sitting, criss-crossed, in a cave on the lonesome island, when he heard;
What's the matter?
Discord swung around, searching for the bearer of the voice. It was the first he'd heard since...
I understand you are confused. But truly, I am a friend.
"How am I to know you do not lie?" The ex-prince asked in suspicion.
If I were not going to help you, then I would not be here... helping you.
Discord rose to his feet. The moonlight poured in through the cave's openning, and the sillouette of an alicorn was seen in the path. Immediately, he came to the conclusion that the pony was his former younger sister; The Princess Luna. Whether this was a side-effect of going mad, or the madness itself, no one could be sure. "L... Luna? Sister?"
The pony's wing flapped and the horn glowed in show. A menacing voice answered with a laugh;
I am no such pony, my dear Discord.
"Then..." He asked. "Who are you?"
A friend... that is all you need to know for now. However, I am here to... strike a bargain with you, oh god of discord.
Discord snarled. "I'm no god. I am lowely filth that the world is better off without."
How untrue! The alicorn vanished. You are vitally important to the future of this land. What gives you such dark thoughts?
For a reason Discord could not fathom, as he pulled his knees to his snout, holding himself, wings curled around his fetal-positioned form, he felt compelled to answering the entity's question. It just seemed fitting for him to empty himself out to this... whatever it was. "I... I murdered my father."
The king? He is no father of yours, draconaquus.
"He accepted me as son, therefore I saw him as father. But I killed him..." Discord answered. "And now she hates me..."
Who hates you? The princess? Discord nodded weakly. The entity chuckled. You need not her love, oh chaotic lord! You've the power that no creature in the world could ever match!
"And of what importance?!" The hybrid cried, unwrapping himself and standing in high-pressured rage. "It means NOTHING! Without her, I AM NOTHING!
The voice was silent. The alicorn figure was no where to be seen. The sound of water dripping onto the cave floor from the stalactites. The eery lack of sound horrified the draconaquus, as the recent voice had given him the oppertunity to converse with another. Now seemingly alone, the buzzing in his ears could be heard, a throbbing hum that made his blood chill. When he was convinced he was truly alone, the voice returned, though the pony did not.
What are you?
"I could ask you the same question." He replied.
The prescence giggled. I suppose. But... what are YOU?
Discord sat on a rock to substitute a seat. "Maybe you know better than I, as you know so much about my life so far."
I know what is fact. You believe yourself to be weak for simply accepting, even for that small time, that you are Discord, Lord of chaos and disharmony. Those foolish equines know not your potential, and you DENY your right to rule! Why is that?
He snorted. "I am not fit to rule. Besides..."
How are you not fit? You chose to strike fear into the hearts of your enemies. You knew that a simple act could completely shatter their hope. And you succeeded. Do you know the product of your actions?
"I made the situation even worse. Or at least, that's what father...
Bah! Worse?! The zebras surrendered as soon as word of a single unit wiping out a military camp containing the Emperor reached Zevros! You KNEW what needed to be done, Discord! And you were right! What do you make of that?
"I... I suppose I did do something of worth. But that hardly makes up for..."
And, might I reiterate, you alone demolished scores of Zevros' finest royal guard within half of an hour! You ARE fit to rule!
Discord turned to the cave wall behind him. As he scanned the rocky surface for any interesting carvings, he realised the voice was right, no matter how hard he tried to deny it, the crown was meant for him. It was truly his destiny!
He turned back to the open cave entrance, mouth open to answer, but came face-to-face with a jet-black face, eyes glowing blue as well as mouth, curved into a grin.
You understand?
Discord, eyes like saucers, unmoving, replied. "Y... yes. But... what would I do?"
The figure, near-skelatal hands holding a malnurished belly in laughter. The skin of this creature made it almost impossible to make out the sillouette.
Is it not obvious, dear Discord? The creature slipped around Discord, a hand on his feathered shoulder. You must end the Equine Dynasty. The ponies of that land must know who they should truly fear, truly kneel to.
"But what about the princesses?" Discord asked timidly. "Surely Celestia wouldn't just..."
Let you? Don't you dare believe that she could ever compare to your power! The mysterious spirit whirled around, summoning, in his hand, a small insect; locust.
Do you know what this is?
Indeed, Discord knew this devil well. Swarms had assaulted Equestria's crop during droughts of all times! It was still unknown as to why they acted in such dry times, but the equines decided it was simply nature. "Yes, but what does..."
What would happen to Equestria should these creatures become... deadlier.
The locust, which had been sitting idly on the figure's hand, mutated into a fluffy ball of crimson and black. Wings grew to sustain flight for the now-heavier insect.
Witness, now, the parasprite! This delightfullly destructive monster has the ability to multiply by simply feasting on green. Their kind died out centuries ago when I ruled, as you will soon.
"Interesting..." Discord took the parasprite in his claw, stroking it's spine, and it purred. "But... That brings something to my attention..." His expression turned deadly serious. "Who are you? I tire of all this cloak and dagger."
The creature put a hand to it's chin, then shrugged, grinning. I suppose you deserve to know now. I am Nightmare, the end of all things and ... shall I say... he who walks behind the roads.
"You say you ruled. What happened?"
Once upon a time, Nightmare continued. Two alicorn lovers decided I was an unfair tyrant that must be brought down. They sought the aid of a mage who resided in ancient Everfree. This mage told the alicorns about a creature of another reality destined to save the world from my rule. The alien was found, and did the royal's bidding, traveling with many other ponies to bring me down. I used ancient magicks of a relic of pure shadow energy, powerful enough to transmute a living being into whatever I desire; The Rainbow of Darkness. With it, I managed to partly complete the final touches of my plan to throw the equine's world into eternal darkness.
Discord shifted his position. He was not scared of this 'Nightmare', nor was he against its intentions. He simply listened to its story, wary now of its power.
The ponies consulted the mages, and discovered a means to bring me down. The con of the Rainbow of Darkness' pro, the Rainbow of Light proved far more powerful, and sent me into a void of space and nothingness. Eventually, I tore through the barriers, back into this world, but there was nothing for me; The alicorns became King and Queen and ruled Equestria in peace and harmony.
"What did you do?"
Nightmare chuckled. I did what I did best; frightening ponies within the confines of their own dreams. That was untill the princess of night was born, and severed my ties to the dreamscape.
"Luna..." Discord's voice trailed off. He looked out the mouth of the cave in mourning. He so missed his sister...
Yes, the one you call familly. Of course, that is the past. I know you are not of equine birth, nor are you a petty little pony. You were born from chaos itself! You are the true ruler of these lands!
"Yes..." The draconaquus ex-prince stood. Thoughts of the king turned from regret to reason. "You're right!"
Am I ever not? Believe me, King Discord! With my help, this world will bow to you, and only you! In the order of chaos!
Discord nodded. "Yes, they shall!" He looked to Nightmare. "But... what puzzles me is, why do you not wish to share the throne?"
Bah! Nightmare waved a dismissing hand. I do not desire that kind of power. I want only to see the equines suffer!
"As do I." He agreed.
Nightmare smiled that purely melevolant smile again. Then, where the parasprite was resting against a rock, it glowed a dark purple. Suddenly, it twisted and disinigrated, swirling into a whirlpool of energy. Discord watched in fascination as it crawled along a non-existant maniquine, forming a hairless pony of energies and colors Discord didn't know existed. The entire show seemed utterly... chaotic... discordant. It was, in his mind, the most beautiful thing he had ever witnessed, surpassing Celestia's own looks.
Draw blood, oh Discord, and mix your own aura with this.
Discord suddenly became paranoid. "What is this? Some trick to leech..."
HAVE I NOT PROVEN TRUSTWORTHY?! Nightmare summoned a sphere of fire, ansnared in shadow, and smashed it into the cave wall. His chest heeved and his voice was terrifying, but only during that one ooutburst. He cleared his throat and calmed himself. This will essentially double your ability to ensure your position as king. Do not doubt that I am here only to aid you.
Discord's gaze shifted from the slim, charcoal figure to the colorful pony. Finally, he sighed, dug a talon into his wrist, grunting. The ichor soaked orange fur, but dripped into the energy pony.
Suddenly, the entire cave lit up. The blood was easily visible within the pony, transforming into a heart, veins, and other organs, muscles, and skin. After what seemed to be an hour, a purple pony, whose mane was curled beyond belief, a deeper shade of purple and white, flopped to the ground, seemingly asleep. A green propeller hat sat upon the pony's mane.
It's eyes openned, revealing an iris matching the body's coat. No pupil showed, only a swirl, turning continuously, never ending.
The eyes moved to Discord, and the face screwed up into a wild smile.
"DADDY!" The pony charged Discord, tackling the awe-struck dracconaquus to the ground. The pony licked at his face in glee. "Oh daddy!" And then came the bear hug, which almost made the chimera split in two. The pony's happiness and pure joy made Discord chuckle, despite his confusion. He projected his question to Nightmare, who's smile was still plastered onto his face in amusement.
This is the incarnation of your magickal essence. Did you not feel the difference?
"Wait... so..." Discord had, indeed, felt a major slice of his magic be torn out. He put two and two, and hardly liked what he came up with. "You took my magic and gave it to this... whatever it is?"
At that, the pony leaked tears. "D... daddy... doesn't like me?" she (Discord figured it was female) started to cry.
Discord groaned. "No no no. I don't... not like you... little pony." He scooped the pony in his arms. "I like you." He smiled.
It shouldn't have been possible for the pony's tears to completely dissolve and replace the sad look to the joy she was essentially built for within those mere seconds. "Hurray!" Once more, Discord was crushed with loving hooves.
Nightmare chuckled. I didn't take all of it. Merely a portion, just enough to make this creature. It will be your, shall we say, "other half", but perhaps "Insurance" is a better term. Should you fall, it will not. It will be where you cannot. I had such a spawn, but he became corrupt... He was led astray from his purpose.
"How do I know this one will not do the same?"
This pony is created directly from your bloodline, and will always be loyal. I guarantee that.
"Hmmm..." Discord pondered something that wasn't necissarily important, but decided it was worth asking; "Should I name it?"
If you desire to.
Discord put a talon to his chin, then looked to the pony, still cradled in his lion arm. He noticed the mark upon her flank and instantly knew what he would call his creation.
"Screwball..."
