Chapter 2: The Caves

Chapter 2:  The Caves

The king and queen began to glow as they departed, fading into translucence before disappearing all together.  Celestia and Luna watched their parents reappear in the astral window they had left open for them, watching them fly through space on their way toward the world.  While the sight of the two alicorns in flight was a spectacular one to behold, the princesses had beheld it so many times that it had become routine.

The two princesses waited impatiently for something exciting to happen, bored by how long it was taking their parents to reach their destination.  To relieve their boredom, the sisters summoned a glowing ball of light to roll back and forth between the two of them.  Luna bounced the ball around in her hooves before tossing it toward her sister.  “Tia, this wait is so dull!” she exclaimed as she watched the ball fly through the air beyond her control and hit Celestia in the head.

Celestia shot her sister a dirty look for the impact messing up her perfect pink mane.  “Watch it Lulu,” she replied as patiently as she could as she fixed her hair with her magic.  “If it makes you feel any better, I at least know how you feel.  I do not wish to wait anymore than you do, but I am sure something exciting will happen soon enough.”

Luna sighed as she watched her parents land majestically in the snow in front of the cave that held Discord.  “I do hope so,” she said, brushing her hooves along the ground in boredom.  “I can’t imagine it would be all that exciting since they left you in charge.  You know how they don’t like being gone long with us by ourselves.”

While Celestia was annoyed by her sister’s comments, she couldn’t help chuckling at Luna’s failed attempt to spin the glowing on the tip of her horn.  “Do not be surprised if this ends quickly,” she said, picking the ball up with her magic to make it spin in mid air.  “I do not understand why mother and father stress so much over this Discord creature.  He seems more of a nuisance than anything.  Surely a lapdog could create just as much havoc as this Discord, and the world would not crumble to pieces.”  Luna grabbed the ball from her sister’s levitation.  “I must disagree,” she said sternly.  “You saw for yourself the effects his presence made upon the ponies of Paradise.  It is possible he could be the culprit of further corruption.”

There was a long silence between the sisters, broken as Celestia watched her sister toss the ball in the air and catch it while laying on her back.  She could not help questioning her sister’s black and white opinions of right and wrong, especially when so many shades of gray existed.  She chalked it up to Luna’s youthful optimism as she watched the younger alicorn toss the ball higher and higher above her head.  “Perhaps you may have a point, Lulu,” she admitted with a teasing sisterly smile, eager to see what kind of debate she could spark up.  “Yet one must wonder if it is the malleable will of the ponies that is more of a threat than Discord.”

Luna accidentally dropped the ball on her face as she listened to her sister’s words.  “How can you say this, Tia?” she gasped as she rubbed where the ball had hit her.  “One can not suggest that the ponies are wicked!  Have you gone completely mental?”

Celestia firmly shook her head at her sister’s accusations.  “Quite the contrary,” she replied as she once again lifted the ball with her magic.  “They were but innocent creatures who are far too easily lead to do wicked things.  I feel mother and father are right in going to Discord, for it may be possible to use him to lead the ponies to good things instead.  We have just watched his leadership skills brought to life on screen, so it may be possible to use him for good.”

Luna laughed off Celestia’s ideas as she watched her sister roll the ball along her shoulders.  “Such an idealist you are my sister,” she smiled teasingly.  “Perhaps you should think about the imminent well being of our subjects instead of one’s own ambitious ideals.”

Celestia rolled her eyes in defeat as she bounced the ball against her forehead.  “Your point is taken my sister,” she admitted, smiling mischievously at Luna.  “But perhaps it is you who should think fast!”  Celestia head butted the ball back to Luna, who squealed with fits of laughter as their ball game intensified.

The game was cut short as soon as they noticed their parents unsealing the cave, readying themselves to confront Discord.  The princesses abandoned their glowing toy as they sat so close to the astral screen that their noses almost touched it.  Luna rested her hooves against the astral screen while watching her parents gazing at their impending threat.  “Finally, the action has begun!” she exclaimed, clapping her hooves enthusiastically against the screen and hearing a dull glassy echo coming from each of her impacts.

Celestia rested her hoof on her sister’s shoulder to keep her calm.  “Lulu, stay still!” she exclaimed.  “Mother and father want that we pay attention.  I can not concentrate with your excessive movement!”

Luna stuck her tongue out at Celestia.  “I am paying attention!” she replied.  “I am merely eager to see.  One does not have to be so mean!”  The two sisters bickered between the two of them while their parents began their battle of wits with Discord in front of the cave.

Celestia ended the argument when she noticed that her parent’s fight with Discord had taken to the caves.  “Why are they going in there?” she asked, still trying to hush Luna.  The two sisters gasped when they saw the screen split in two, one half showing Discord standing by the sealed up entrance and the other half showing their parents running headlong into the caves.

Luna panicked as she put her hooves back on the floating screen.  “What has happened?” she asked, not taking her eyes off the images presented on screen.  “Why are they in the caves?  Could they have been tricked?”

Celestia shoved her sister away from the screen with enough force that Luna lost her balance.  “Do shut up!” she hollered at her fallen sister.  “I do not know!  If somepony had calmed down like I asked, than perhaps we would know what is going on!”

Luna cowered at her sister’s harsh accusing tone.  “It is not my fault my sister!” she cried out.  “Even if I did calm down, would that have changed what happened to our parents?”

Celestia took a deep breath to help even her tone.  She felt terrible for letting something enrage her so quickly.  “Lulu, please forgive me for my harsh actions,” she admitted as she gently approached her sister.  “You make a valid point, one I should have listened to.  We must not dwell on our disagreement, and instead find out for ourselves what has happened to our parents.”

Luna was grateful for her sister’s forgiveness, and was eager to accept an affectionate nuzzle.  “I forgive you Tia,” Luna said as she dried her eyes.  “But how will we get down to earth?  We have never been there before.”

Discord’s laughter echoed out of the floating astral screen as the two girls looked around for ideas.  Luna sneered at the cackling menace on screen.  “Oh, if I could reach through the screen and throttle him I would!” she exclaimed, tapping furiously on the astral screen in aggravation.

The very suggestion gave Celestia an idea.  “Lulu, you’re a genius!” she declared, hugging her sister.  “We can jump through the screen!  I must come up with a spell.  Give me a moment to think.”

Luna stood back as Celestia lit up her horn, watching the astral screen’s surface ripple like the surface of a lake under her sister’s magic.  “Are you sure this is safe?” she said as she touched the screen’s surface, its texture feeling like cold jelly.

Celestia shrugged her shoulders as she stood at her sister’s side.  “I am not sure at all,” she said as she wrapped her arm around Luna.  “No matter what happens, hold onto me.  I do not want to lose you too.”

Together the princesses stepped into the astral screen, the sensation reminding them of swimming around in a cold pond filled with jam.  Everything looked blurry and distorted as they floated around between their world and the world they had seen.  They could see the astral window beginning to fade from view when they looked behind them, giving them a sense of sinking further and further into the unknown like a rock on its journey to the bottom of the sea.  Within a matter of moments, they could feel themselves slipping out of the glimmering gelatinous bond and being pulled down by earth’s gravity.  They both let out a girlish scream of terror as they felt gravity pulling them toward earth, doing the best they could to glide on the unfamiliar winds of this new place.

Discord witnessed the two princesses’ glide awkwardly toward him, eventually making a rough landing in front of the sealed cave entrance. “Well, what do we have here?” he said as he turned curiously to the disheveled girls.  “Such pretty little things you are.  What could possibly make young mares fall from the sky?  I certainly didn’t cause this, but I do like the idea!”

Luna gritted her teeth at the inquisitive teasing.  “Where are our parents Discord?” she demanded, standing at her full height in front of her sister to show that she meant business.  She didn’t care if Celestia was the older one.  She was not going to be intimidated because of her age!

A wide smile crossed Discord’s face as he watched the pony squaring up against him.  “Parents you say?” he inquired with delight, affectionately stroking Luna’s chin and barely avoiding being bitten.  “Well, nopony told me the illustrious king and queen of outer space had children.  Sneaking out for a shopping trip while mommy and daddy are out of the house?”

Celestia stamped her hooves impatiently at Discord’s wasteful small talk.  “Enough!” she hollered, hoping to intimidate the spirit of chaos with her tone.  “Tell us where we can find our parents!  What have you done with them?”

Discord leaned comfortably against the sealed off cave.  “Such force!” he said sarcastically as he picked at his fingernails.  “Well, it doesn’t surprise me.  You are a product of your environment after all, and your parents are a force to be reckoned with.  Maybe their little spelunking trip will help calm their nerves.”

Celestia beamed her magic on the cave’s entrance to try to open it, only to have it dispelled by Discord’s enchantment.  “How do we release them?” she asked, trying out another fruitless spell on the cave entrance.

Discord knocked on the rocks, listening to a deep echo the knocking caused.  “Rock solid I’m afraid,” he teased.  “But don’t worry your pretty little head about it.  It’s not permanent.  They’re free to come out of there anytime they want.”

Celestia stopped blasting the rocks with magic as she listened to Discord.  “What do you mean?” she panted, her face covered in sweat from the effort her magic took.

Discord gave the princess a sarcastic smirk, raising an eyebrow at her serious demeanor.  “They chose to go in and take a look around,” he said, his tone becoming bitter.  “I don’t trap ponies in caves in case you’re wondering.  I wouldn’t take a page out of their book of bad decisions.”

Luna shot Discord dirty look, noticing the Draconequus sticking his tongue out at her in a childish fashion.  “If you insist that they are free to choose, than why is the entrance sealed?” she asked, tapping on the heavy rock blocking the entryway.

Discord smirked as he cupped Luna’s face.  “Free will is such a fickle thing, isn’t it,” he smiled, expecting the sour look on Luna’s face not to change.  “Ironically, free will was a gift your parents gave to the world.  It’s their own free will that gave their little ponies the chance to see what ambition could grant them, and it is their free will seals them in this cave, not my magic.  Ironic, isn’t it?”

Luna angrily lifted her head from Discord’s mismatched hands, bearing her teeth at his remarks.  “You know nothing of our parents, nor do you know of the ponies of this world!” she hollered, stamping her hooves out of frustration.

Discord began to laugh at Luna’s theatrics.  “I know nothing?” he giggled.  “How often do the two of you interact with the ponies of this planet?  I assume mommy and daddy don’t let their precious princesses out to play very often.”

Luna began to blush at the correct assumptions, still bearing her teeth to hide her embarrassment.  “That is not important!” she yelled, hoping to sound more serious than stumped.  “What is important is that we are here now, here to battle with you!”

Luna’s tough girl attitude had given Discord an idea.  “You would think that,” he smirked.  “Perhaps it would be best if the two of you saw things from a pony’s perspective, instead of an alicorn’s.”

With a snap of his fingers, Discord took away Celestia’s wings and Luna’s horn.  “Much better, don’t you agree?” he asked, watching to the two girls frantically running around screaming over the loss of their parts.  “Oh calm down, drama queens.  You can have them back in due time.”

Celestia beamed a magic spell at Discord, who easily deflected it back at her.  She landed hard on her rump, eyes wide scared that her spell did not work.  “Give me my wings back!” she demanded, charging headlong at her opponent to impale him with her horn.

Discord quickly sidestepped the attack, causing Celestia to run into the rocks.  “Dawww, just like your parents,” he provoked as he quickly healed Celestia’s cuts and scrapes with a snap of his fingers.  “You just have to find your parents and everything will turn out alright.  Doesn’t it always work out when you run to mommy and daddy?”

Luna ran to her sister, seeing that Celestia was just as frustrated as she was.  “I knew we could not trust him,” she scowled as she watched Discord doing a handstand on top of the sealed entrance to the cave.  “We must find a way to defeat him at his own game, or things may never go back to normal!”

Discord dipped his head in on the sister’s conversation to eavesdrop.  “Would you like a little hit my dears?” he asked, watching the girls act surprised by his sudden presence in their conversation.  “Very well then.  Listen closely, because I'm only going to say this once.”

Discord lifted himself into the air and began to fly in fast circles around the princesses, kicking up a strong wind around them.  “Now we begin,” he said, his voice dripping with wickedness as it echoed around the wind wall he had created around the sisters.  “Things are not the same as when they begin, but where there’s a will there is a way in.  Twists and turns play their own part, as elements to the task at heart.”

The sisters could feel themselves being lifted by Discord’s gusts, holding hooves and screaming as they were lifted into the air beyond their control.  Even Luna’s wings were powerless to the tempestuous winds that lifted them higher and higher.  “Hold on to me sister!” she hollered, doing the best she could to hold on to Celestia.  “I will not lose you on top of everything I have lost today!”

The winds died off as quickly as they had started, depositing Celestia and Luna in the branches of a dead tree.  Discord laughed at how disheveled the princesses mane’s looked as they took in their surroundings.  “I think this is a good place to start, don’t you agree?” he said, watching Celestia fall from a tree branch and land on a pile of pillows he had conjured up.  “Your parents are nice and close now, and if you two are as clever as you appear than I might end up intimidated after all.”

Luna flew down from the tree and landed right in front of Discord, bearing her teeth as she scowled at him.  “You will learn to fear us!” she hollered, making Discord laugh all the harder.

The cocky Draconequus leaned down to Luna’s level, pressing his nose against hers.  “Is that so?” he heckled.  “Than good luck to you my little pony.”