Manipulation and Deceit
Discord and Celestia appeared inside a dark space of nothingness.
The ground was cold, bare rocks and stones, seemingly endless, yet limited to a small space. The atmosphere around them was dark, yet everything around her was perfectly visible. There was nothing to be seen, yet Celestia had a feeling that anything could emerge from the ground or thin air if a native of such a land wished so. If there were such a thing as inhabitants in that land. Which, obviously, there seemed to be, even though it seemed absolutely and frighteningly deserted.
The place defied the laws of logic in a way that made Celestia confused if she even tried to think about it. Everything about the empty, endless place confused her. Discord seemed completely at ease with the senseless place, however. He seemed right at home, if only a bit reluctant to be there.
He landed on the ground without minding the cold feeling of it. He gently set Celestia down on her hooves.
"What...?!" Celestia looked around at the place, alarmed by their sudden appearance in such an unknown location. They could be in another... dimension, for all she knew. "What is this place? Luna! Where's... Where's Luna?!" She turned to face him as he simply watched her. "Discord, where did you bring me?!" She shifted nervously in her hooves as she gave Discord an uneasy look.
Discord floated in the air before her. "Heh, heh. That's a pretty long explanation. I'll just narrow it down. You see... My memories showed me many things, Tia. And this place... This is amongst those things. It's where the Dark One created Chrysalis' kind, the changelings, then Sombra, as well as other dark creatures... Including me." He stood on his two feet. "This is my true home and birthplace, princess. The Dark Land, also known as the Dark Dimension."
He proudly looked around at the dark, empty splendor that was the Dark Land. The cold winds blew around them. All the way to the horizon, nothing but black rocks were seen. He sighed and smirked a bit, ready to continue his story. "We were created and raised here. He tortured and mistreated us for so long that the only thing we learned was hate and evil. When we were sent to the land of the 'ponies', we were stripped of all our memories of this place, as well as anything we may have felt, including the feeling of hatred in some cases, like mine. There was only one instinct that He made sure to keep deep within all of us. Evil was that instinct, Tia." He looked back at her once he finished, giving her a serious look.
She did not flinch when he came close to her. She did not even let any sad or frightened expressions come upon her face as he looked at her mockingly. She looked at him from the corner of her eyes, not showing any attention or interest for the empty land around them. "So this is where you came from... Good for you, Discord, that you were finally... enlightened."
She shook her head and looked up at him. "What did you bring me here for? Do you want me to die in here? To be corrupted like you? Discord, I'm not interested in serving evil and darkness. You should know that better than anyone. And I no longer wish to be anywhere near you or any of those enemies." She stepped back to prove her point.
Discord frowned as he watched her back away from him. "Is that so... You really..." He shook his head. "Hmph. Too bad. You seem uninterested. Well, you should be more excited, Tia. Another creature was made in this forsaken waste. Someone you'll find quite interesting, I do believe." He pointed behind Celestia. "Go on, take a peek."
From the sky, dark clouds gathered into a single unit and red glowing eyes shone from beyond.
Celestia gasped and stepped back at the sight of those cold, but fiery red eyes. "Wh-What is that? Who is that?!"
"That's the Dark Lord, Tia. But watch, look what He's about to do."
Two black-armored claws struck thunder from their palms. There was a flash of blinding light. After it vanished, the frightening eyes and the claws had disappeared. The clouds were gone as well.
A black mare laid on the ground, groaning with exhaustion. The light blue shining armor that she wore was too heavy for her to bear, making her buckle under the weight. Her eyes were moderate cyan, with catlike irises. Her mane was a flowing, brilliant blue that emitted a light violet aura.
Discord chuckled as he looked at the mare. He then turned to glance at Celestia. "Look familiar, Tia?"
She gasped as she stared at the tired mare. "That's..."
Discord smirked. "Heh, heh. I think you and I both know who that is, Tia."
"You... You're lying!" She shook her head and looked at the mare again. "There's no way...!"
"This is a recreation of MY memory. She is real, and she, too, was born here with us. I'd say she's the youngest of us all." He grinned as he watched the mare struggle in the dark space around her. She was trapped far away from them.
The mare stood up and, with an expression of loath on her face, unleashed magic out of frustration of her abandonment.
Celestia created a shield around herself that vanished the harmful energy from the mare's magic. She gasped when the dark mare disappeared so suddenly. She then took a deep breath to calm down. "Again... What do you want me here for, Discord?" Once she managed to calm down, she looked at Discord. "I'm not going to fall for your tricks or magic."
Discord did not say anything to her as he snapped his fingers and appeared them both in a ruined wasteland. Whether it was day or night, one could not tell.
He looked at her with a serious expression. "Celestia, do realize that my world will also prevent other pains, like tragedy, war, and famine. As your friend, I advise you to reconsider my proposal. It's for the best, y'know. War, and the trouble of an unchaotic world, can bring grave consequences."
Celestia watched him as he flew around her. "That is rich, coming from you. You just ruined our kingdom, no doubt damaging some of my subjects with your 'beloved chaos'. Yet you dare gloat about how benefiting it will be to plunge the world into this unnatural disaster every time you fancy it? How... How shameless of you, Discord." She did her best to keep her voice from rising, as her temper would only encourage and amuse him further. The last thing Celestia wanted to be was part of Discord's amusement.
Discord shook his head. "You're too delicate for the consequences of your troublesome world. A world of competitiveness and want. Of so-called 'love' and 'harmony'. YOU'RE the one who lives in lies and wrong."
He waved his paw dismissively when she tried to protest. "C'mon, get real, Tia! There's no such thing as 'harmony' in your world! There's no such thing as friendship,and there is NO 'unity'! Everypony is always watching out for themselves, wanting more than the next pony possesses. They all want to hoard the 'love', 'friendship', and other goodies for themselves!"
He snickered as he showed her the shadowy shapes of six different ponies. They all argued and shut each other out as they drifted further and further away from one another.
Celestia frowned at Discord's puppets as they moved around her. "What..." She cringed as two of the shadow puppets started to argue right in front of her, while the others also bickered away around her. "Discord!"
"How accurate, aren't they? Look, I can prove it to you. They all lie..." Discord looked at Celestia to confront her before he glanced at each of the shadows. "They're all bitter. They're selfish to no end, cruel and traitorous by nature. They all end up giving up on one another to get themselves, and themselves only, to the top. All of you ponies are like that, Tia, don't deny it. I've seen it with my own eyes."
"But-"
Discord waved his claw. A little part of the city of Celestia's kingdom appeared in front of him. It was shaky from how lacking it was. It was deserted except for old, worn-down little houses and starving ponies. They looked longingly at stores and ponies that seemed happy, unlike they were. Other desperate ponies actually attacked each other as soon as they saw that others possessed the happiness they lacked. They clung to them and tried to rip happiness out of them. All of those ponies, except for the very few that they clung to, seemed truly unhappy, angry, and desperate.
"See, some here wish and long for things to gain, for emotions to feel, until their souls grow bitter and cold..."
He waved his lion paw and appeared another part of Celestia's kingdom. That place nearly tipped over from the heavy load that was suspended in the air along with it. Wealthy mansions surrounded it all, with great bundles of possessions, emotional and material alike, that the ponies took snobbish pride in hoarding all to themselves. A few of them seemed like they were suffocating under the weight of their hoarded possessions as they passed by those less fortunate ponies.
"...While others there drown and pride themselves in all those luxuries, looking like selfish dragons instead of ponies. They wallow in their arrogance, ignoring those that are truly wishful for those fleeting affections and privileges."
Celestia stared at the two different pony lands with a bit of fright. She quickly looked at Discord. "Just what in the world are you talking about?!" She stomped her hoof down impatiently as she vanished the puppets.
Discord's laughter interrupted her. He startled Celestia as he grabbed her front hooves and started doing a rather fast-paced dance with her. He chuckled and grinned at her. "I think you know what I'm saying here. You of all ponies should know well. Aren't you the ruler, after all? Those feelings that your land takes so much pride in are nothing but lies. There's no way anypony could ever feel that way if it wasn't for lies!"
Celestia shook her head. "Discord, you-" She gasped as Discord held her tightly from her back. "Oh, Discord! Stop it-ngh!" She tried to put some distance as he leaned down to whisper to her ear.
"I'll get rid of those lies, Tia. I'll do it for us. We'll live in a world where nothing ever matters anymore. Nothing except what we want. Cool, huh? Who'll tell us what to do when we're our own bosses? They all deserve what's coming to them, they've been nothing but fakers from the very beginning!" Discord stretched his claw out to roll Celestia away. He teleported behind her again and caught her.
Celestia stared at him with wide eyes as he tilted her down and quickly continued their crazy dance. "Discord, you have lost your mind!"
"Far from it, I've finally gained it!" He shook her a bit. "Don't you see?! Everypony's a liar. Everypony's after their own good. Actually, y'know... You and I are no different." He snapped his fingers and held her in the air despite her attempts to fly away. "We've become what this boring, maddening world has wanted us to be. That is the fate of anything that lives in this place, and in your stupid dimension. We'll rot away and hate until we destroy each other. Everything around us will go down in its own vice. That's its fate, because it makes so much sense and it's so orderly. That's what your order will bring. It'll tear us all apart!"
Celestia finally pulled away from him. "Ngh!" She could not help looking at him with a bit of disgust as he stepped back and turned away from her.
He bent down on the air, on his knees. "It'll tear us all apart and you can't see it... No, you're too dumb to see it! But order is wrong!"
Celestia frowned. "Don't say that! Our order and peace has done nothing wrong to you, you have no reason to attack us like this! You're the one who's wrong, YOU'RE the one who can't see that we're trying to-"
"SHUT UP! You're so annoying, shut up! You're a stupid, blind princess that can't see things the way they are if they hit her in the face, like they are now!" He growled a bit as he got agitated again while glaring at her.
Celestia could feel her voice breaking, but she did not care. "You are an evil, self-centered draconequus that does not care about others enough to realize what they feel! To see that at one point, they would have loved to help and live in peace with-"
"You think I care about 'living in peace' with such lies?! Being any way other than who I am?! Don't be ridiculous, princess!" He turned away from her again, looking down into the bottomless hole that suddenly appeared beneath them.
Celestia screamed and tried to fly higher. "Discord! Did you do this?!"
Discord ignored her as he muttered to himself. "We'll all keep living in the shadows of this foolish world's dishonesty... We'll never have anypony that accepts us how we are, unless we do what they want... It'll all be broken with those fake emotions..."
He closed his eyes a bit as his frown revealed a hint of sadness. He continued to stare at the pit while he heard Celestia calling out to him. And I will never have you... Oh, we will never be happy in this world of lies... Where injustice is okay, and imbalance is approved... Where everything, everywhere, makes sense...
The draconequus raised his look, which was no longer shadowed by sadness, but alight with resentment and manic excitement instead.
Celestia cried out as he held her close to him again. "You're insane! Let me go!" She tried to push him away with her front hooves, but grunted as his grasp only tightened. "Let go, you're hurting me!" She could not flutter her wings in the slightest, she could not even push herself away at leg's length.
He touched her cheek softly and took on a solemn face. "You're not ready for what you are about to witness. You're not ready for the consequences of your world, Tia. Heed my words. I warn you as a friend, I have the best interest in mind for you."
Celestia opened her wings to fly away from him once he released her. She was beginning to be frightened by the volatile behavior that her former friend showed. It was unlike anything she had ever seen, even from him. But even so, she stood her... air, and spoke to him as calmly as she could ever manage. "...But we are no longer friends. You made that decision yourself not long ago, remember? According to you, all we wanted was for you to 'live a lie'. How can you give me advice as a friend if, as you say, it was all just a lie?" She closed her eyes and turned her head away. "I don't believe you or anything you might show me."
He narrowed his eyes annoyed by her answer. "That so..." He sighed and shook his head with feigned burden and disappointment. "Very well, Celestia. You were warned..." He smirked, then vanished in the gray fog that surrounded them.
From afar, the whimpers and cries of a pony were heard. "Why...? Why...?!" Her yells echoed all around.
Celestia turned around as soon as she heard the new noises. "...Discord! Stop this! You already know I will not fall for it!" She knew yelling at him was useless, though. So she continued to walk, at the same time trying to collect her thoughts. It was a difficult task, though, since the whimpers of the pony continued, and she could not even find said pony.
"I am sorry... They are all gone... My friends..."
The fog began to clear, revealing a cloudy night, with thunder echoing in the distance. The land was deserted; it was the ruins of a battlefield, with chariots, spears, and helmets laid everywhere. A white mare stood beneath the moon's white light. She was crying and sniffling. Though the field was full of dim, green grass, the alicorn mare was surrounded by what appeared to be a circle of white sand.
Celestia tried to get closer to the mare. "Hello?" At the same time, she looked around for Discord, though of course sensed nothing. She did find the area quite familiar, though. "This land..."
The alicorn mare continued to cry as she looked up at the moon. "I... I am so sorry... Luna..." Her tears fell on a small black tiara with a crescent moon drawn on it. "Please forgive me...!"
"What...? Wh-What is going on...? Where is Luna? ...Wait." Celestia stepped back as she tried to calm down again. "Get it together, Celestia. Luna... Luna is in our kingdom, trapped under Discord's magic. This is just his illusion. Do not fall for it." She took a deep breath and continued to walk forward. I have to find him. Isn't there a way I can break this myself...?
Just before she was about to cast a spell, Discord's voice chuckled around her. "Oh, you're too cute. Trying to convince yourself this isn't real... Don't fool yourself, Tia."His echo voice laughed briefly as she tried to locate him. "Really, why trick you with illusions? Visions of what is to be are much more effective."
Royal guards arrived from the castle. They gathered around the young version of Celestia as she continued to cry. "Thy Highness, art thou alright? Where ist Nightmare Moon?"
Celestia blinked with confusion when she heard the guard. "Nightmare Moon...?" She looked up at the moon, her heart sinking when she saw the new shape formed by the craters. The moon was now marked by the head of a dark mare.
She quickly turned away from the painful sight. "No, no, no! I refuse to see this. Even if it is the 'future', as you claim, I do not want to see it. Why should I believe you, Discord?! After all, can you not bend reality and whatever else you wish to create chaos?! This could easily be another of your tricks, all of it!"
Suddenly, she began to remember the good and fun times that the three spent together, the three of them. How distant it all seemed now. Things had changed so drastically, it seemed like their future would never again give them the chance to enjoy moments like those.
Discord had done things that were too serious to ignore, despite all the kindness that the princesses had shown him. Luna was the first to meet Discord. She was the first to provide entertainment for him, albeit unwillingly, and had later become like a little sister to him. Luna had trusted him unlike anypony else, and had become truly happy around him. Celestia had welcomed him to their kingdom with so much kindness and joy. She had accepted him without a doubt, and defended him when everypony else around her was against him. After all that the princesses had given him, Discord returned the favor by hurting Luna and Celestia, through traps and painful visions.
She then remembered when he invited her to go down his bizarre chocolate slide with him, when they had played with their magic together, and then the rest of odd, but amusing antics of his that followed. She couldn't help think of the awkward, but memorable dance they shared during his first ball. Now she understood why she had felt so uncomfortable back then. It actually had not been discomfort at all. It had been... Her thoughts drifted to what little she remembered about last night, after he had saved her life. Her feelings had definitely been far more special, and only at that moment, when she thought about it all, was she able to recognize them.
She took another deep breath as she thought to herself. She repeated in her mind the same words that her mentors, particularly Starswirl the Bearded, would say to her....Keep it together, Celestia. You are a princess and a ruler. Do not let foolish emotions get the best of you!
She frowned and glared up. She knew that Discord would listen as she spoke, from wherever he was hidden. "Sorry to disappoint you, Discord. Unfortunately for you, I will not fall for these sad premonitions of yours. Why do we not get back to the fight? Or, can you really not fight without trickery?" Her horn started to glow white as she used the emotions inside her for power. The sad scene around her began to flicker as she flew into the air.
"Oh, come now, Tia. You can't possibly be this foolish and selfish." Discord flew around her. "Like I said, why use illusions when I can show you the truth of what your future is? It's a kindness that was bestowed upon me, and I feel it's my duty to do others that big a favor. Face it, Tia; you'll betray Luna and send her away, as certainly as you'll most likely finish me. I wonder what you'll have after that, Celestia. An eternity of solitude?" He snickered. "Oh, that'll fit you nicely. The mighty immortal Celestia, without a single friend or sibling at her side. Has a ring to it, doesn't it?"
He stood in front of her as she tried to attack him again. "Listen... We had fun while it lasted, Tia, I'll give you that. But... I am who I am, and nopony can deny that. Not you, or even myself."
Celestia gritted her teeth with anger as she glared at him. "I am not being selfish! That is only what you want to make me believe. Discord, like Luna, I will always look out for the better of my kingdom. I will look after the ponies that depend on me to support and protect them. Do you know why?"
Discord rolled his eyes and mocked her as she spoke.
"Because I have that responsibility in my hooves and shoulders, and I embrace it. I take it upon myself to be their bringer of safety and peace. Much more than I can say for you."
Discord raised an eyebrow and gave her a bored look when she stared right into his eyes. "Hm...?"
"You, on the other hoof, have shown to be the complete opposite. All you have cared for is your own amusement. You only see this land as some place that will entertain and serve you while you're interested in it. You have no care for the creatures that live in this kingdom. You see them only as pieces for your twisted games. To you, everything and everypony are just playthings that you will manipulate and reform to your liking."
Discord clapped at her. "Bravo, Celestia, you summed everything up so well! That was perfect, I couldn't have said it better myself!"
Celestia flew away from him as she gave him a serious glare. "Chaos and disharmony are not the best for everypony. But you do not care about that at all. All you care about is yourself. Your purpose. Your power. Your well-being. That is just sickening."
Discord grinned. "Oh, ho-ho, you're quite sharp on letting me hear it, huh, Tia?"
"You know I am right."
"Of course you are!" He turned upside-down, booping her nose. "And I'm not. But that's the fun of everything, isn't it? You, being 'right', orderly, BOORING... And me being wrong, crazy, and interesting!"
"Again, there goes your selfishness."
~~~
Luna knew she did not have much time left. She hardly had any room available in the hourglass, and found it difficult to breathe with all the sand that surrounded her.Almost... there...! She had been hitting the hourglass all that time, trying to tip it over and knock it down from the table. It had slowly inched closer to the edge, she was almost there.
With one last hard tackle, the hourglass finally fell down on the ground, shattering. She coughed and shook the sand off. She blinked as the broken glass and the scattered sand vanished. "Good thing We broke out before it disappeared..." She looked around and saw that neither Discord nor Celestia were back. "It ist no use... We cannot get to them without knowing where they art... Not even with our best teleportation spell."
She closed her eyes and started to pace around as she thought. Sister, We hope thou art doing well... Please return soon, We cannot help thee where thou art...
~~~
Discord laughed to mock Celestia further. "So you're not selfish at all, huh? You, who refused to fight me? You, who saw her kingdom fall apart and STILL would not harm me?" He held her face with his lion paw. "You, who said you loved me, yet will not accept me?"
He simply watched as she moved away from his touch. "Now, you're angry, and I know why, Tia. It's not because I hurt your feelings, your sister and your citizens. You're angry because... Because you think that after I'm gone, perhaps you will allow yourself to stop loving me. That scares, infuriates, relieves, and disappoints you, all at the same time."
Celestia gasped and glared at him. "How dare you...?!" She blasted him away. "Now you're shielding yourself behind that, too?!" She tried to calm down and keep her head cool. She could not be beaten by his manipulative tactics. She would not be defeated by such dirty methods. Not right there. Not by him.
Discord stood up after the blast hit him. He shook his head and dusted himself. "Wow, you still pack quite a punch. But really, it felt like a filly shot that thing. Barely stung. But... Did it barely sting you? Oh-ho, that burn hurt, didn't it, Tia?"
Celestia held her head high as she spoke. "I do not know what you are talking about. Me? Mad over feelings for you? Hmph, you could not be more wrong."
He laughed as she prepared to attack again. He rolled his eyes and teleported next to her. "Tell me. If I'm so wrong..." He passed his paw gently beneath her eye to pick up a tear. "Why do you shed tears, my princess? From remorse, perhaps? Remorse at how much you wish that I had never come into your life? If only to spare yourself the agony of having to decide between what's the best for the kingdom and what YOU really want... Isn't it like that?"
"That choice is something I prepared myself to make, from the very moment I took oath to the kingdom. I will readily give up what I want or wish to ensure that you do not harm anypony else, Discord. That is something else that you do not know about: sacrifices."
"Your loss is no graver than mine, Celestia." He floated even closer to her. "You know... It's not easy, knowing that I must now battle the one pony who welcomed me into this world..." He held her face briefly before she pulled away. "And helped me become something else. Something that perhaps was not really the true me... But we both know we had found happiness in that." He looked down sadly as he spoke.
She looked at him doubtfully. "...Why not embrace that happiness, instead of chaos and harm? What was so wrong with the way you were before all this?"
"I know what my purpose is, Celestia... Perhaps..." He held her hoof. "Yours is to fight me. To not be happy at my side, just like I was not destined to be happy at yours. In the end, Tia..." He sighed and let go of her hoof, just as she was about to say something to him. "You will be the princess, and I will be the monster that must be defeated." He lowered his ears and looked away from her.
"But would you go so far as to harm us? I..." She shook her head and turned around. "Oh, forget it. It is ridiculous to ask you. Of course you would go that far."
She could not understand why she was beginning to feel weaker. The forces that she had found earlier were leaving her slowly. She took a deep breath again to concentrate. "If that is all that you will be, if this is what will happen, then I will accept it. There is no other choice." The tip of her horn began to glow. Think, once again. From the beginning. Get back your strength... I cannot fail...
"But there is, Celestia." Yeah, there is, alright. You'll definitely be mine, I've decided it. I gave it all up for this. "Let us be together. Just you and me, let's be happy at each other's side once again, once and for all. Weren't those memories of yours worth treasuring? We can revive them, and make so many more!" Discord took her hoof and smiled hopefully. "All I ask is that you be with me, Tia." He playfully brushed her body and mane with his tail.
"Discord, I... I cannot be with someone that will cause so much damage and will not stop. Look at what you have already done to my home and the subjects that I care about! Not to mention Luna... How can you care for me if you hurt me like that? It could... It could never work..." She muttered as she looked away from him.
Discord shook his head. "Tsk, tsk. Is that Starswirl I hear? Or the beautiful princess that I fell in love with?" He caressed Celestia's mane. "Your life is important to me, you know that, Tia. Nopony else matters now."
She frowned and shook her head. "No, you're wrong. Everypony matters. I cannot simply ignore-"
He continued to speak through her statement. "Because, they don't love you the way I do, Tia. You know that. They didn't fall in love with you the way I did." He smiled as he cornered her against a rocky wall. He closed off her path with his eagle claw as he placed it right beside her.
"Y-You fell in love with, me...?" She looked up at him, quite surprised. She had thought that only she had developed those feelings, that he was far too gone to feel anything like that, and for her, for that matter. Perhaps there was a chance that he... No. He is only saying this to distract me. I cannot trust him! But... Something is up, why is it so difficult to get away? She frowned a bit as she tried to listen to that fading voice of reason. "Listen. I-I..."
~~~
Luna cried out a bit as the spell that she had tried to cast backfired at her again. "Ow! Luna... Thou must try again!" She took a deep breath. "From the top, review from the beginning. These special forces, We must learn to use them. Honesty. Loyalty. Kindness! That ist what we have discovered..."
She concentrated her magic aura around her horn. "Get it correctly... Honesty! Loyalty! Kindness!" She groaned when the magic faded and she fell on her knees. "It ist not enough power...!"
She then remembered how strong she had felt during the time that she, her sister, and their draconequus friend spent together. During that time, she was not bothered by nightmares at all. She was free to be herself, and for once enjoy herself and her surroundings. "Fun... That which nurturest good feelings and cheers in order to move on..." She let out a breath and raised her head again. "Laughter!"
After much concentration, Luna was shocked and glad to see that her magic was growing much stronger. She easily vanished all traces of Discord's magic that had remained in the area, and even changed a lot if the affected surroundings the way they were prior to the effects of Discord's chaotic power. "Dear... What ist this power?!" She did not stop to marvel at her newfound power for long. She concentrated again and did a few more exercises to try to master the new source of energy.
~~~
Discord interrupted Celestia as she searched for her resolve to speak. He picked up her face in his lion paw. "Let's just be together, Celestia. No more wars, no more fighting, nopony but you and me. Let yourself be happy! Quit fighting and do what you really want. Quit denyin' what you really feel. It's already out there, why hide it? Let's take the opportunity now." He knelt down to Celestia's eye-level and kissed her hoof.
She stared at him, nearly breathless from the shock. "D-Discord. You... You are..." She knew she had to fight him, but... Honestly, how did one fight someone they loved? And he'd said he loved her, too. "You're right... If... If you feel this way for me, too..." She looked up at him and smiled hopefully.
He caressed her face. When she blushed slightly at his touch, he chuckled a bit as and nuzzled his face against hers. "Of course I do. I want what you want. Nothing else. Will you be with me?" He gently stroked Celestia's mane behind her head, with a tender smile on his face. His eyes didn't leave hers as they started to glow, very slightly at first, slowly gaining intensity.
Celestia blinked as the two remained still, close to each other for a while. She vaguely noticed something odd about his eyes. "Wh-What...? Wait, Discord..."
"Feeling a bit weird, Tia?" His crazed, red eyes looked straight into her confused, absent violet ones. "Perhaps those butterflies in your stomach are gettin' to you. You can see it, right? What I really feel?" He laughed as his hypnotizing spell took effect.Go on, my princess, give in to my change of heart. It's all a matter of time... I've got you now, Celestia. I've got you!
Her eyes soon reflected the shifting rings of colors in Discord's, and her mind went blank. Her frown softened into a relaxed expression.
"Will you stay with me?" Discord's voice called into her mind.
She smiled a little and swayed a bit as she mumbled an answer. "Yes... I-I will... stay..." She was barely able to speak that simple, broken sentence.
"Lower your guard, then. Otherwise, we'll never be together. C'mon, it's alright. I won't do anything. This is what true happiness feels like, Tia. It's liberating. Let me show you how great everything will be from this day on, now that we've finally accepted ourselves how we really are. You as a nice, pretty princess..."
"W-Wa... Wait, Dis..."
He held her chin as he leaned closer to her. "...That obediently stays by her king's side. By the side of the Master of Chaos. That's lovely, isn't it?"
"So... dizzy..."
"That's because you're not listening to me, Tia. I'm trying to help you break from this spell."
"S-Spell...? What..." She frowned slightly with confusion as she tried to think about what he said, but it was no use. Everything in her mind was blank, and what little reason she had left was already beginning to blur. He could tell her she was a rock instead of a pony princess and she probably would believe it.
"Can't you see it? I've been trying to tell you. You've been under a spell all along. I'm finally getting through to you. Let me save you, princess. Look at me a bit longer, just a bit more, I'm almost done with this spell."
She felt completely relaxed as he coaxed her deeper into his illusion. All other thoughts left her mind, except for the image of Discord and her finally together and happy. It was as though her mind had been reformed, for she no longer remembered anything else. Her wings lost the will to fly, though she obviously did not notice that she was falling.
Discord held her gently before she fell to the ground, not breaking eye contact with her for more than a few seconds. "There, you're free. Now tell me with all honesty... Do you love me?" The colors of his eyes picked up speed.
Celestia nodded. Her eyes started to close slowly from the weight and power of the spell.
He disappeared the hypnotic rings from his eyes so that she wouldn't fall into a hypnotic sleep, but would still remain under his trance. He patted her back as he held her. "Very good, that's it. Do you love me enough to obey every command of mine, Tia?" He looked at her with a malicious grin and gripped her a bit tighter as his anticipation began to get the best of him.
His words came vaguely to her, she could not recognize them or think them through. But she liked the sound of his voice alone. She nodded slowly. "Yes... I... I do..."
Discord laughed triumphantly. He spun around in the air, nearly dropping Celestia while doing so. "Yes! I did it! I got the brave, dutiful, sweet Sun Princess wrapped around my fingers. How's that, Tia? The mighty, powerful ruler of the kingdom, turned into a little rag doll of mine! You should be ashamed of yourself!" He played around with Celestia, watching her as he wrapped his body around her and moved her like a toy. "Much better than puppy guards."
He made her stumble around while she remained blankly content about her situation. He snickered. "Oh, that was SO worth the wait!" He bounced her in his tail. "It would've been way too boring to just force the spell down on you in seconds. Playing around with you was much too entertaining. Don't you think so, you little fool?" He glared down at her with a smirk as he held her upside-down with his tail.
"Yes..." Celestia's voice was now a soft monotone. Her eyes were still open, with the swirls of colors that kept her enchanted, unable to see anything other than the happy illusion he had put her under. "Discord... King... of Chaos..."
"Well said! Good girl, Tia! Finally things are how they always should have been. I told you we'd be together. Now don't strain yourself, no need to talk anymore." He patted and ruffled her mane. Then he danced around with her. He tossed her up in the air and caught her under his eagle claw. "Alright, take a nap, my little princess doll." He snapped his fingers and held her under his arm as she drifted off to sleep. "Don't worry, Tia, there'll be plenty for you to do to show me your love. Let's go celebrate! That kingdom is as good as MINE!" He laughed as thunder cracked through the deserted land. It enveloped both in a blinding flash of light. Once the light faded, they were gone.
Phew! Another ten-pager! Thank you so very much for taking the time to read through all of this, I love you lots! And bless those of you that actually care enough to give me feedback, every artists needs and craves it. I will be quite grateful to you caring souls.
...Discord, I love and hate you both. You gotta be the coolest character I've ever seen. I also really enjoyed improvising this scene of mind-control. Loved how Discord toyed around with Celestia, manipulated her expertly, until he finally got what he wanted and turned her into his puppet. All of this manipulating masterpiece from a kid that wouldn't be older than around fifteen.
Celestia would be just a few years younger than he is (like twelve, thirteen), while Luna would be a little filly of around, um, nine (suddenly felt like comparing the immortal creatures' ages to our human measurements XD). For the young creature he is, he's got skills!
The part that looks as though he's losing it while analyzing the pony world, I kind of got it from Sweeney Todd's 'Epiphany'. Such a lovely song. 'We all deserve to die... Even you, dear Celestia, even I...'
Hm. Discord did all this to gain control and make the world chaotic, yes, but in a way, it was also to keep Celestia (...and Luna, too) at his side. In a fleeting, quickly-lost-to-insanity kind of way. I improvised the whole 'I'll keep you when I get rid of the lies' concept, and I really liked it, even if it's quickly overshadowed by the sudden rush of evil flowing through Discord.
Meanwhile Luna's busy discovering the Elements of Harmony.
I think this chapter was among the best, or one of my personal favorites, along with chapter 11, and some others. Again, thank you for reading and all other feedback!