Death and Rebirth; Arise Eris, the New Chaos Queen!
----(|--Death and Rebirth; Arise Eris, the New Chaos Queen!--|)----
)||~~Salt Lake City, Utah~~||(
Erin was always a good little girl. She listened to her mom, payed attention in school, didn't fight with the other kids, and was nice to her pets. She was a very imaginative child as well, always dreaming up new adventures to go on with her loving mother. She had been following her mother to the store to pick up the ingredients to make spaghetti, one of her favorite foods, on the day it happened.
“Mom?” she asked, tugging on her mother's pant leg. Her mom preferred effective pants to frou-frou dresses any day of the week, but shopping was pants-only. No exceptions.
“Hmm?” she hummed, glancing down at her daughter, wearing today's mish-mash of clothing. On her right leg was a long, green rain-boot, and on the other leg was a brown cow-girl boot. She had a brown dress, with a frilly red trim. She had a little two-tone blue backpack on, with her stuffed puppy Seth inside. On her left hand was a yellow glove, and the right had a yellow mitten. On top of her head was a pair of reindeer antlers, which she had found in the Christmas supplies her mom had just pulled down. All in all, she looked very silly, in a cutesy-sorta-way.
“What kinda cookies are we making for Santa this year?” Erin asked, her focus on the many storefronts lined with gift ideas and delicious food. Her mom chuckled, knowing full well what her daughter was trying to do. Just a year ago, she came up with a clever, if simple, idea: 'Make mom think about treats until she goes and gets some.' It worked often enough, or in other words, 'whenever mom thought the two should have a treat.' “I want to make M&M cookies. Or those mac-a-dime-ee-a cookies.”
“Macadamia, sweetheart. I was thinking… triple chocolate.” When her daughter didn't respond, she glanced down again. Erin was looking around, quite obviously searching for something. “What is it?”
“What's that noise?” she said, cluing her mother into the low rumble coming from down the street, and the wail of sirens.
“Sounds like a police chase. Come on, lets get over to the store.
John Stewart is not a smart man. Clever, perhaps, but not smart. He was great at coming up with plans, and making them work, but he had one problem: He never thought of the police. The crazy driver shot down the street, with the police right behind him. He was high on multiple drugs, and carrying just over two million dollars in his trunk, recently 'collected' from the bank, but not all madmen are amoral. He managed to see the child crossing the street, and in spite of his frazzled mind, he attempted to steer out of the way. Due to the wet and icy conditions of the early winter road though, he ended up skidding and sliding sideways, smacking the girl away as he spun out into the nearby building, totaling the car and dying on impact. Erin's mother shrieked as she ran towards her struck daughter, already shrouded by the blood beginning to escape her body.
Erin looked up to her mother, her eyes already fading, and she managed to choke out a goodbye, without even understanding what was happening. A massive thunderhead formed above them, blotting out the chill light of the December sun. Lightning flashed, thunder boomed, but nothing fell on the dying child or her mother.
“Mamma… I'm tired…” she whispered, unable to move.
“ERIN! Oh, my sweet, baby girl…” Erin's mother was crying as she clutched her dying child, the only remaining reminder of the man who went to war to help defend life and liberty for all, even if he wasn't protecting America. He had been struck down by a mortar, and now Erin was dying as well.
“Don't cry, mamma… I like it better when you smile…” Erin's voice cut out with a weak, yet still body-shaking cough. “I'm so tired mamma…”
“NO! No, please don't leave me, sweetheart… You can do it! Stay with me… I love you so much…” Erin's mother tucked the small stuffed puppy her daughter loved so much into her arms, trying to comfort her.
“Love you too, mamma… Goodnight…” Erin's eyes finally faded away, leaving only bloodshot, amber orbs of chilling death. Her body fell limp, her heart petered out, and her breathing faded to silence. The police approached slowly, with the chief already calling for an ambulance, as Erin's mother sobbed over her child's limp form. Few noticed the massive storm that had formed the above them, and none saw the pattern of a grand star form from lightning. All did witness the terrifying result. Lightning suddenly shot down, blowing back the mother, as Erin was lifted into the air, held aloft by an unknown power. Her eyes opened, glowing a brilliant white, as energy flowed around her, creating a violent vortex of intense wind. In a flash, she and everything in a ten-foot radius was blasted into oblivion, leaving a spherical hole in the area. All stared at the perfectly smooth hole left over from where she had been, before mass panic ensued. Erin's mother stared in complete shock at the devastation that was all that remained of her daughter, unable to think. Police attempted to calm the terrified populace, as they shivered in the thought of what would have happened had they been any closer to the child.
)||~~Beyond and Between~~||(
Erin was dreaming. At least, she thought it was a dream. A bunch of little glowing lights were flitting by, each a different color. All surrounded a glowing crystal, shaped like a sitting woman. Erin clutched Seth closer, scared of what was happening. Where there wasn't a dancing light or the crystal woman, there was a never ending darkness, that seemed almost… she couldn't think of the right word, but it felt more than empty.
“H-Hello?” she called, hoping for someone to respond. All the lights stopped, and shot over to the crystal, buzzing around it like bees.
“Greetings, young one,” called a gentle voice, one that reminded Erin of her mother.
“Who are you?” she asked, giving Seth a squeeze.
“I am known as many things. The Warrior Princess, the All-Mother, Aquarius, Karma, and more.”
“What are you?” Erin asked, still scared of whatever this thing was.
“I am an essential force, the guiding hand behind some aspects of reality… I am a God.”
“Oh… Where am I?”
“You are in Limbo. We need your help, young one. You have a pure heart, a wonderful mind, and a beautiful imagination. One of my children has been… naughty, and is facing punishment. He lost the right to his power, but the power he wielded was important. You would have… not lasted long after that crash… would you be willing to help us?”
Erin was confused. Why would a god think she was able to help? She was just a little girl. She looked back at the crystal, and asked, “What about mamma?”
A wave of sadness washed over the area, and Erin shivered in response. “She'll… be able to join you at a later time. Would you be willing to help us?”
She didn't like that she couldn't see her mother, but Miss Aquarius said that she could see her later… “Okay…” she whispered. “Okay, I'll do it. So long as I get my mamma back.” A loud sigh filled the area, and the lights calmed down.
“Are you ready, Eris?” She nodded. “Then brace yourself… and have fun in Equestria.” In a flash of light, Erin disappeared.
“Are you certain a mere child will be suffice?”
“Our decision was final. She was the perfect choice, from all realities we watch over. Any other would have either not taken fully to the power, or would have gotten corrupted over time. She is perfect.”
“The poor dear… hopefully they'll go easy on her…”
)||~~Northern Ponyville~~||(
The Elements of Harmony stood around the statue of their foe, Discord. For whatever reason, Celestia wished for them to 'Reform' him. With a nod from the solar princess, they sent the Harmony Beam to strike the towering statue, cracking it and allowing the creature within to escape. All present braced themselves for harsh words, random magic, or worse… and were instead met with absolute, undisturbed silence. Giving each other glances of confusion, they turned to face the unfrozen deity. Discord stood where he had been, in a neutral position. His eyes were glazed over, showing no intelligence, and very little life. The only things revealing him to not be a statue were his color, the slow blinking, and slight sway he had from breathing.
Celestia was stumped. Surely he was awake? She cleared her throat, but he didn't so much as twitch. Opening her mouth to speak, she suddenly found her words drowned out by a massive thunderclap. All the ponies looked up to see a massive storm, the likes of which not seen since before the Chaos wars, in barely contained fear and awe. This slowly shifted to outright terror as a vortex began to appear directly above Discord, sparking with energy. In a sudden, violent upheaval, the vortex stretched up into oblivion, revealing a hole filled stars and inky blackness. A single beam of energy shot down, covering Discord and his pedestal, and creating a harsh wind over the field, pushing the ponies back somewhat. Discord slowly floated into the air, falling limp as the light held him, as a glowing sphere fell slowly towards him, drifting directly into his upwards-facing chest. With a sudden *BANG*, the light vanished, the portal shut, and the storm dissipated. No longer being held aloft, Discord collapsed, as a glowing light coated his limp form. All tensed for attack, but such pre-emptive motion was proved unnecessary as his body slowly shrank and shifted, taking a feminine appearance as it shrank down to the size of a foal, curled up to sleep peacefully, with a small stuffed puppy tucked against it's chest. All present stared in shock at the young creature before them, unsure of how to react.
The voice of a certain multi-chromatically-maned mare cut through the silence. “Uh… Just what the Hay is goin' on?”
Princess Celestia stared in shock. No magic had been used, released, or even present… the spell they'd cast had made sure that for a few minutes, Discord should have been utterly powerless. Yet, by some method, he had shrunken and taken on a new appearance, and a stuffed toy had appeared out of nowhere.
“That's not possible… That is not scientifically possible!” shrieked Twilight, as she started laughing maniacally. Her loud voice made the tiny not-quite-Discord stir, and it cringed and curled up tighter, with it's ears now down as it began to tremble. Celestia cast a spell to surround the small thing with a soundproof barrier, before turning to her student who was having a mental breakdown. As she comforted the twitching, panic-stricken mare, the other elements all looked to each other in fear and confusion.
“Somethings different…” muttered Pinkie, as she stared at the tiny chaos incarnation. All eyes turned towards her.
“What was that, sugahcube?”
“I always had this icky feeling when Discord was around, even when he was in stone… but today, something seemed wrong, and I just realized what. That thing… It's not quite Discord.”
“Not quite? Ya mean it's a fake?” ventured Dash, giving a wary glance around herself.
“No… more like… he's not quite the same as he was before… I don't have the icky feeling. It's more like… the feeling I get around the Cake's foals. Like, foalhood innocence, with a hint of silliness. That thing is Discord, but it's not…”
Most of the ponies looked to each other in confusion. They all turned to the Chaos creature, and to their surprise, it had begun to stir. Celestia dropped the barrier, as the creature stretched and yawned. It looked around blearily, and apparently seeing something it disliked, it curled up into ball, clutching it's toy and shaking in fear. “N… Nice… horsies…" it muttered, in a tiny, feminine voice, seeming terrified of the ponies surrounding it.
Erin had no idea what was going on. That pretty voice said to have fun, but having fun is hard when big, colorful horses are staring at you, while completely surrounding you. She squeezed Seth tighter, and tried not to move too much, hoping not to scare the big horses that could easily hurt her even if they didn't try to.
Celestia quickly drew the rest of the ponies to her, and placed a soundproofing barrier around them.
“Princess? What do we do?”
“I… I don't know. It could be a trick, but it could not. Let's see where this goes.” Groans of protest met her ears, but begrudging agreement followed. She dropped the barrier, and held up a hoof to stop the other ponies as she slowly, calmly strode to the tiny critter.
“Hello?” she asked, looking at it curiously. The creature 'meeped' and curled tighter, now violently shuddering. In a moment of indecision, Celestia knelt to nuzzle the small thing, wishing to calm it. It froze on contact, then leaped up and clutched her neck, sobbing in a storm of raging emotions. “Hush, young one. You are safe here, we mean you no harm.” The creature continued crying, still holding her tightly, with the stuffed puppy between them. The other ponies slowly approached, uncertain as to what was happening.
“Princess? What… Why? What's wrong?” Celestia cast her gaze between the mares before her, careful to avoid disturbing the child on her neck.
“This being… it has Discord's magic and body, but his mind is absent. Entirely.” There were many gasps of shock…” before all present gave her an odd look.
“What the hay does that mean?” came a chorus of confused voices.
“This being is no longer Discord. I can sense the power, but none of the intentions. All I can sense, is unbridled fear, and longing for something… possibly a loved one. This creature is only Discord in body.”
“So… what do we do?” asked Pinkie, her head tilted to the side. “I mean, if she's not really Discord, are we really gonna need to reform her?”
“Her?” mirrored a series of voices, all confused.
“Yeah, her! Look, she's got a long mane, a filly's voice, and she looks smoother, less like a monster and more like a scared mare.”
A quick inspection by all present revealed such to be true. Another chorus of agreements rung out, followed by the tiny thing sniffling.
“Who… who are all of you?” Erin asked. The horses were talking, and they were all pretty and colorful. She could get to like them, if they were nice. She hugged Seth, and flopped backwards into a sitting position. The big white one with a pretty mane gave her a nuzzle, causing her to giggle and nuzzle back.
“My name is Celestia, young one. What is your name?” Erin thought to herself. The pretty voice called her Eris, not Erin. Eris was a pretty name, and she'd called herself that when playing before… She could call herself Eris, and her mom would recognize her. This 'Celestia' sounded like her mom… she would use that name. It felt… right.
“My name is… Eris. This is Seth!” She lifted Seth into the air, so he could see the ponies, and they could see him. In doing so, she saw her hands looked funny, and started playing with them. They didn't match, and neither looked like they used to.
“Ah'm Applejack.” Eris looked towards the orange one, with a cowgirl hat on. She liked cowgirl hats, and as such she smiled and giggled at the pony cowgirl.
“You're a cowgirl!” she cried, clapping her hands in glee. Applejack looked at her funny, but smiled as well.
“My name is Rarity, dearest.” Eris swiveled her head to look at the littler pretty white one. She had a nice mane, but seemed like she wouldn't be very fun. She still smiled back and nodded at her, though.
“The name's Rainbow Dash, 'Eris,' or should I say… Discord!?” Eris looked at her funny, then looked up at Celestia.
“She's weird.” Most of the present ponies laughed at that. Dash just snorted and stormed over to a nearby boulder, and all watched in morbid fascination as it slowly became rubble. Eris took to hiding behind Celestia, shaking again. Eventually, Dash returned, and Twilight stepped up to greet Eris. Leaning down to address the tiny chaos elemental, she was promptly met with a face full of stuffed puppy. “Seth likes you.”
“Does he now?” With a flash, Twilight summoned an illusion of her Smarty Pants doll, making Eris giggle in delight. “This is Smarty Pants, a doll from my foalhood.” She reached for it, and to everypony's surprise, she grabbed it and began to snuggle it as well. “But… That's… Huh?”
Celestia tittered at that, then pointed at Eris, and whispered in Twilight's ear; “Chaos incarnate, remember?” Twilight gave her a sheepish grin, and looked back to Eris.
With a bow, she introduced herself. “My name is Twilight Sparkle.” Eris watched her, grinning happily. She heard a struggle behind her, and turned to see a surprisingly close pink mane and teal eyes. With a shriek, Eris disappeared behind Celestia. All present were quite surprised, including the normally timid Fluttershy. She was scared of the chaos creature, but it was terrified of her?
“SCARY HORSEY!” She wailed, hiding behind Celestia. All turned to Rainbow, her jaw dropped. After having tried to force the timid Fluttershy to meet 'Eris,' Eris had turned and fled, scared of the scaredy-cat? She met the glares with a sheepish grin, and backed off.
“Eris? Can I come say 'Hi?'“ Eris peeked out from behind Celestia, seeing the pink-maned yellow pony scuffing a hoof on the ground. “I didn't mean to scare you…”
Eris slowly approached the pony, and when she nothing happened, she nuzzled her. “Sorry… you scared me… But you're really pretty!” Most of the ponies laughed at that. Eris giggled too, then looked around. Wasn't there a very pink one before?
With a loud *BANG*, Pinkie's Party cannon went off behind Eris. There was a scream, and a small sphere of darkness appeared where Eris had just been, which slowly faded, revealing a missing Chaos God and a round dent in the ground. All ponies stared at the spot where Eris seemed to have stopped existing, all in complete shock. Moments later, a loud scream from far above them drew their attention. Somepony was screaming on a pink cloud high above them. Without a thought, Dash launched herself up to the stray cloud, and was met by none other than Eris, shaking like a leaf, covered in streamers and confetti, sobbing as she squeezed her toys. Dash reached for her, and found herself suddenly on the other side of the cloud. Frustrated, she decided to instead tow the entire thing to ground level, where maybe somepony else could deal with her. The cloud was somewhat stubborn, but still drifted down to the ground as Dash tugged on it.
“Eris!” Celestia, with nary a thought as to the repercussions, dove forward and swept up the terrified child, cooing softly as she attempted to help her settle down. All the ponies not occupied with fretting over Eris took up glaring at the shocked Pinkie Pie. How could she have made somepony cry? She was trying to make her laugh! Pinkie's mane began to droop, as she let her head fall in shame. She'd been trying to be nice, and this is what happened? What if it happened again? What if Eris hated her for doing that? Pinkie began to tear up as well, thinking she may have just lost a potential friend, and gotten her friends and the Princess mad at her. Soon, the sound of soft snoring reached their ears, and all turned to see Eris snoozing in the crook of Celestia's forehoof, her two toys clutched tightly in her little arms. “She has had a rough day. I shall bring her to the castle, and watch over her myself. Tell nopony of this development. I shall announce the… death of Discord, and subsequent birth of Eris, to all of Gaia in a few days. You may, if asked, tell ponies that Discord has passed on, freed from his insanity.” With that, she disappeared in a flash, taking Eris and her stuffed toys with her.
“So… I guess that's it?” Dash gave the now somewhat wispy pink cloud a good buck, and it dissipated. “We just go home now, right?”
“Ah guess so, Dash. Pinks, you gonna be alright?”
“…” With no response, the other ponies turned to look at her.
“Pinkie?”
“I… I made her cry…”
“What was that?”
“I MADE A FILLY CRY!” she wailed, before taking off at a gallop towards Canterlot. The ponies saw her mane fall flat, and her colors faded to a dull sheen. With a quick nod, they decided to follow behind their frantic friend, leaving the field in mere moments.
None witnessed the jester-like unicorn marching by, a scanning spell flowing through her horn, and a maniacal grin on her deformed face. “Soon… The Lord Discord shall return to power… heh… ha-he-hah! EEYAH-HA-HA-HA!” she cried, falling into a fit of deranged laughter, until she vanished with a pop, only her laughter ringing through the air giving away her existence.
