“NOOOOO!!!”
Rainbow-colored swirls twirled around Equestria, spreading their light throughout the entire world. The six jewels shimmered in the night sky, expelling their magic with unprecedented force, each wielder basking in the glimmer of the energy.
One minute, those six were arranged in a wide circle, their gems vibrating with uncontrollable power; the next, they were gone…
It had been Equestria’s last hope against the Prince of Darkness, the most feared monster in Tartarus. Nopony could have known that he had been slowly eroding the powerful barrier, the last safeguard that held the creatures of darkness separate from the world of ponies, griffins, and the rest.
They would have tried to use the Elements directly on this Monster of Monsters, but he was simply too quick, too agile, and with the time it took to charge the ultimate weapon, the first shot had to count.
And therein lay the solution: release the harmony everywhere, giving the Prince no place to hide. Twilight had spent countless hours modifying an ancient spell, and it had been ready to cast the moment she put on her crown.
Alas, the consequences of the spell, she knew, would be immense.
It had been the last resort, for with the increase in output, the Elements themselves would have to be sacrificed…
Along with the Bearers.
And the harmony spread. All remnants of darkness and chaos had disappeared from the face of the planet. Discord himself no longer held his powers, but that was the least of his problems.
He was a pony, no longer the majestically chaotic form of a draconequus. He missed his oddly-shaped fingers and his scaly tail, his unique form.
And still, that was not the greatest sacrifice, in Discord’s eyes.
It was that image, that last view that tormented him. No matter how cold and unfeeling he supposedly was, he still felt that pain in his heart, a feeling so unfamiliar yet nostalgic and brutal.
That yellow coat.
That pink mane.
Those blue eyes.
That kind heart.
Never to be seen again.
If only I hadn’t been so stupid! I should have helped them in their time of need.
It was the least I could have done…
The least, for my dear friend…
For my dear Fluttershy.
So much he wished for his powers back, and for the first few weeks, that had been his sole goal, his only pain…
Until he saw that note, riddled with tears as the ink smudged ever so slightly.
Dear Discord,
I am so glad for all the time I spent with you. I do admit, some of your jokes were very funny, though I know you could easily get carried away. I enjoyed hanging out with you, and I treasure every moment we spent together. I am glad to call you my friend.
I know at times we would have small fights arguments, and I know we haven’t been on speaking terms since I accused you of letting loose all the darkness around Ponyville, but I wanted to let you know that I still consider you one of my best friends, and I ask for your forgiveness.
By the time you get this, I may no longer be here. I have decided to go on with the plan to stop the Prince of Darkness. From what I heard Twilight say, it is possible that I may diepass away no longer be here with you. It must be done, and I only hope that with this, you may keep living a happy life.
I will always hold you close in my heart, until the last breath.
Thank you for your friendship,
Fluttershy
So began the otherworldly pain, the unknown sensation of guilt, the deepening void in his spirit. The nightmares arose as well, the sleepless nights always reminding him of that sole image.
What happened to me? I, the Bringer of Chaos, should not have to feel pain over the loss of one simple pony!
But she wasn’t a ‘simple pony’ at all. No, she was the one pony who tended to him when he was sick, the one pony who tolerated his antics, the one pony who enjoyed his company. Not in a million years had there been anypony like that in his life, and he had lost her.
No, I can’t let it end this way.
I could have helped them. I could have stopped him.
But my anger blinded me, and I failed them.
I failed my best friend.
And now I have to find a way to make it right.
For weeks, months, years, he searched. Under the name of Catalog, he checked the shelves of the Canterlot Archives, sorting through all the material as he longed to find something, anything that could help him fix his mistake, to save that one pony who had believed in him, the one pony he had let down.
Page…
After page…
After page…
And still, nothing.
After 7 long years, he reached the last of the archives, the last shelf, the last stack of parchment. His hope had waned long ago, but something still stuck in the back of his mind, that last image:
A warm, teary smile upon Fluttershy’s face as she looked down at him, Element around her neck as it dissolved her very existence.
And then he found what he was looking for:
A time-reversal spell.
Quickly inspecting his surroundings, he snuck the entire piece of paper in his knapsack, walking out of the complex and heading directly towards that one place he knew so well, that large slab of stone with three small butterflies etched onto it.
Discord had waited for this day for so long, yet his hopes faltered as he noticed the amount of chaotic magic he would need. He had been saving up a small amount over the years, but it would have taken about forty times as much to reach the amount necessary to cast the spell. It didn’t help, either, that the amount needed increased exponentially as more time passed between the present and the destination.
I don’t think I’ll live long enough to accumulate this large amount. I have to try to cast it.
For Fluttershy’s sake.
Slowly, the brown unicorn began to concentrate magic on his horn, a small swirl of darkness emanating from its tip.
“O dux de tempore et spatio, reverte me praeteritum corripere mea errata!”
The darkness arising from his horn tripled as he felt what little chaos magic leave him, enveloping him in a cocoon, his brain splitting as he struggled to keep up the spell.
And then it stopped.
Discord fell to the ground with a small thud, panting heavily as he struggled to make sense of his situation.
I failed…
No, I couldn’t have failed!
He tried a second time,
A third time,
A fourth time…
The ground around him trembled as the power was released…
And still he could not complete the spell.
That was when he finally let his emotions run free.
That was the first time he cried.
He cried for the warmth of her hugs.
He cried for the cute smile she would wear.
He cried for the kind heart she possessed.
He cried… knowing he could not save her.
NO, I MUST TRY AGAIN!
Little did he know that he was getting stronger, for in those past millions of years, he had failed to discover the most chaotic entity of all:
Emotions.
Tears streamed down his face, anger welling up as he cursed himself for not having the necessary power.
FROM THE DEPTHS OF MY BEING, I URGE YOU TO COME OUT, POWERS OF CHAOS, AND LET ME RIGHT MY PAST WRONGS!
I must see my dear Fluttershy again.
The swirl of magic stayed this time, his entire body lifting from the ground as his hooves changed form, his chest expanding as his tail began to lengthen.
“YES, I DID IT!”
Yet one small thought crept up from the dark recesses of his mind:
What if I fail? What if I can’t stop the monster? What if I’m not strong enough?
“Then I will perish with them, for this is no life for me, not when my heart aches for that one kind pegasus!”
Now, there’s no time to waste!
“... CORRIPERE MEA ERRATA!”
The flash was blinding, the pain searing, but it mattered not to the draconequus, now in his true form.
I’m coming to save you, Fluttershy!
“YOU FOOLS! YOU CANNOT DEFEAT THE DARKNESS!”
Monster after monster continued to crash onto the barrier around Ponyville, the guards struggling to keep it up under the massive onslaught. It only took three more seconds for the shield to start developing cracks, and in ten, the entire spell shattered into innumerable fragments.
“Guys, quickly, lets charge up the Elements!”
“STOP RIGHT THERE!”
In a single sweep, all of the monsters froze in place, morphing into candy canes of various colors and flavors.
“Probably a little too early for Hearth’s Warming, though.”
“I SEE, SO THE MASTER OF CHAOS WISHES TO CHALLENGE ME!”
“Twilight, under no circumstances should you use that spell on the Elements. Do you hear me? Or better yet…”
A simple snap of his fingers, and soon Twilight’s horn disappeared, the purple mare standing aghast and shooting him a deathly glare.
“Trust me, it’s for your own good. I’ll handle this joker here.”
“WHO ARE YOU CALLING JOKER, YOU FARCE? YOU USED TO BE THE BRINGER OF DOOM, THE CREATOR OF CHAOS AND CACOPHONY!”
“Correction, I still am.”
Another snap and the Prince found himself in a tight magical cage, a prison that he easily destroyed with his dark magic.
“WITH THAT PITIFUL POWER, YOU WILL NEVER BE ABLE TO STOP ME!”
The Prince shot forth multiple beams of darkness at the draconequus, who effortlessly dodged all the missiles while creating a small tornado on top of the enemy. The cyclone easily picked up the Monster of Monsters, tossing him back a couple hundred hoof’s lengths.
“I guess it was about time to make some sweeping changes.”
“RAAAARRRGGGGHHHHH!”
The monster began to accumulate a breathtaking amount of dark magic in one of his many arms, shooting out around twenty beams directly at Discord, who once again snapped his fingers and changed them into cotton candy. Unfortunately, he didn’t notice the next volley, narrowly dodging them when he heard a shriek.
“EEEP!”
One of the beams was headed directly towards the yellow pegasus.
In a state of desperation, Discord teleported in front of her, stretching out his arm and punching the ball of dark energy, splitting it into millions of tiny pieces. One of the pieces, however, shot off at such an unexpected angle that it flew right into the pegasus’s chest, her eyes wide open as she fell down.
“No, Fluttershy!”
Time seemed to slow for a second as the draconequus lunged forth to stop her descent. He quickly placed his paw on top of her, concentrating his chaotic magic on the small sliver, absorbing it while healing his best friend.
Please be all right!
And then he saw it, her eyelids fluttering open, her breathing returning to normal.
And in that instant, a nearly-fatal beam of dark magic exploded as it hit the Bringer of Chaos, blowing him onto his back as he dropped the yellow pegasus.
“FRIENDSHIP HAS MADE YOU WEAK, DISCORD. NOW, PREPARE TO FEEL MY WRATH!!!”
All around the Prince, everything seemed to lose its color, replaced by dull shades of gray as a small ball of dark energy began to form overhead, expanding ominously.
“Discord, are you okay?”
The winged pony had flown over to her friend as fast as possible, tears in her eyes as she nudged his body, attempting to wake him up. Slowly, the draconequus stirred, eyes opening ever so slightly as he beheld the pink-maned pegasus.
“Fluttershy…
“I have failed you. I came back from the future to stop this, but I’m not strong enough…”
“Shhh, it’s okay, Discord, you did your best.”
And for the first time in years, he felt it all, the warmth, the joy, the sorrow… everything came back to him as he welcomed the embrace, the one thing he had longed for ever since that day…
“Can you ever forgive me, Fluttershy, for getting angry at you?”
“I forgave you the moment you left. I-I’m sorry for accusing you like that. It wasn’t the way to treat a good friend like you.”
The winged pony pushed him back a bit as she spoke next, in a more serious tone.
“Now, Discord, I need you to l-listen to me.” Fluttershy’s eyes watered as she attempted to control her stuttering. “Y-you have to return Twilight’s horn s-so we can stop this.”
“No, Fluttershy, I can’t do that.” He stared directly into those kind, blue eyes, never breaking his gaze.
I returned for a reason, and I’m not going to give up yet.
Not while there’s a smidgen of life inside me…
Not until you’re safe.
“I came back here to save you, and that is what I shall do.”
With newfound strength and another snap of his fingers, he departed from the pony's sight, all while the indomitable accumulation of dark magic expanded.
“NOW YOU WILL ALL TRULY SU–”
The Prince’s speech was cut short as he was encased in another cage, the disruption in concentration leading to the dissipation of the sphere of dark magic.
“HAVEN'T YOU LEARNED? THIS CANNOT CONTAIN ME!”
But try as he might, the Prince could not escape, for the cage itself was Discord, the entirety of his chaotic magic used to keep the monster inside.
“Quickly, use the Elements! By trapping me, you will trap him, too!”
“Discord, you’ll turn to stone, too!”
“I know, but it’s the only way!”
“But I don’t want to lose you!”
With a snap, the draconequus utilized as much energy as he could spare on one other spell he had found in the Canterlot Archives:
A time-freeze spell, expanding it to include his best friend.
“Fluttershy, we don’t have much time. I need you to put on your Element and use its power to stop the Prince of Darkness.”
“B-B-But you’ll be trapped in stone along with him!”
“It’s the way it has to be.” The draconequus slowly approached the pegasus, staring directly into her soaked eyes.
“I owe everything to you. You showed me I didn’t have to be evil. You gave me your friendship, and you stuck by me no matter what.” Discord stretched out a paw, wiping away a stray tear from her muzzle. “You have given me the best life I could have asked for, so let me repay you by saving you from this monster.”
“But I don’t want you to leave!” The sight of the bumbling pegasus almost broke his resolve, but he knew what had to be done.
“Don’t worry. Just remember, I will never be truly gone. Chaos will live in everything, especially…”
The draconequus gently placed her hoof upon her chest.
“Especially in here.”
The mare could not take any more as she broke down, sobbing with a pain from deep within her heart as she hugged the Creator of Chaos one last time.
“I am so lucky to have you as my friend, Discord.”
“As am I, Fluttershy.
As am I.”
The spell broke less than a second later, the draconequus once again encasing the monster as it summoned beam after beam of dark magic.
“Of course, you don’t have to use the Elements right now. You can always just wait for my power to run out and watch all of Equestria suffer his wrath.”
“Alright, you heard him! Charge the Elements!”
The six Bearers soon began to rise, the jewels vibrating with power, but Discord knew this time, it would be different. Without Twilight’s spell, they would all be fine.
Fluttershy would finally be saved.
Only one thought ran through his mind as the familiar rainbow beam engulfed him:
I did it.
I saved her.
And he couldn't help but smile.
“Fluttershy, are you ready for your spa massage?”
“Yeah, um, if you could just wait a few minutes? I have to take care of something first.”
“Oh, of course, dear. I’ll be waiting by the boutique.”
The birds were whistling happy tunes, the sun shining brightly as the winged pony trotted, flower in mouth, over to the same place she visited every single month. As she sat down in the same exact location, she set the flower in front of her, trying her best to keep from releasing her tears.
Every single time, she would read the inscription on the statue. It would always calm her spirits, for Equestria’s savior had used the last of his magic to etch those words into the stone, before…
Before he himself was completely encased by the Elements’ power.
Always look forward, Fluttershy, but never forget the past. I will always be with you.
In every prank, in every catastrophe, in every little bit of chaos, I will be there.
It was then when she noticed some more writing, a couple lines she knew had not been there the weeks before. As she tilted her head to read it, her eyes once again grew watery as every word burned into her memory:
I guess I was wrong right from the start:
Friendship really is magic.
Thank you for being my friend.
“Thank you, Discord, for being mine.”
And she cried, weeping for the one misunderstood draconequus who had saved them all.
And as he watched from his stone imprisonment, he no longer held any regrets.
He had saved his best friend.
And that was all he ever wanted.
Author's Note
EFNW 2014 Writing Contest Entry 1... Confirmed! (Or, at least, I already sent them the link.)
It's hard to write when you're restricted to 3k words!
