Sunshine

Sunshine

A My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction

By Gen

DISCLAIMER: This is a non-profit fanbased work of prose. My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic is the property of Hasbro, and the reinvention of Lauren Faust. No copyright infringement is intended, please support the official release

Hard to beleive that it's been a day since then.

A day since since I was plucked from my normal life, and thrown into another filled with what I could only describe as 'chaos'. Granted, it wasn't all bad. I got to meet Fluttershy, and her friends. No matter how much trouble they may have put me through, the experiences they provided were more than worth the pain. Everything about them almost made things seem less important. Fluttershys' incredibly angelic personality, Pinkies' bottomless well of happiness, Raritys' unique but fancy way of living, Rainbows' blunt attitude, Applejacks' honest sincerity; even Twilights' constant efforts to study me was something to be missed.

Perhaps I should explain myself, hm? Easier said than done, but I will make an attempt. Following my departure from Ponyville, I was escorted to my current residence in the royal city of Canterlot for the tests that Celestia spoke of in her letter. To be flown out on a chariot pulled by winged ponies was a frightening discovery to make when leaving with the princess, but it definately was not an experience that would be soon forgotten. My fear of falling off and splattering on the ground like a water balloon made certain of that. As much as I would like to go into more depth about how unsafe I felt to be breathing such thin air though, at the moment I had much more dire affairs to attend to.

Canterlot, the capital of Equestria, and a thriving city built onto the side of the Canterbury Mountains. If there was ever a single city that you could ever wish to visit, this would have to be on your top five 'must visit' loctions.

Just as you would expect from the city that was home to a princess, Canterlot was a bustling city where profit seemed to be an inevitability. Everything was an unquestioned success; no matter what it was. If it was in Canterlot, there must have been a reason for being so popular. Strange, I could have sworn to have spotted a few designs showing in store windows that looked exactly like what Rarity had in her boutique...

Although it was true that most of the inhabitants of this rich town seemed rather snobby, the view I had from within the chariot more than made up for it. Not only that, but when looking at everything with a sort of birds' eye view, Canterlot had an astonishing image to give off. Ivory towers that seemed to pierce the sky with golden spires. Gushing waterfalls pouring down the sides of the very mountain the city stood on, but missing the city just enough to trail underneath the main bridge that allowing entry into this fair city. Not to mention the elegant castle where Celestia resided on a daily basis. It goes without saying that Canterlot was most certainly a beautiful place to live.

Unfortunately, I would not be given the leisure to view more.

Canterlots' royal dungeon was the exact opposite from everything the city displayed on the outside. Underneath the Canterlot Castle, a dungeon resided within the mountain itself. Dreary, and lifeless were mere understatements to describe such a place. I feel it unfortunate to say that this is where I've been staying for the past day while awaiting Celestia to call for my attendance.

A stronghold of sorts, the intricate layout of this location proved to be impossible to navigate through without proper guidance. Pitch blackness, and freezing cold worked hand-in-hand with one another within these underground walls. It would be impossible to step out of ones' cell, let alone escape this place.

Stone composed these walls that made up the Canterlot Dungeon. Hallways, staircases, everything but the bars to each individual cell had been made of the stuff. It was a old-fashioned, castle style dungeon; kind of like it took references from a medieval design. Different kind of rocks and stones protruded from a wall as it seemed that its' entire composition was made of a concrete mixture of different kings of stone and gravel. The thick walls were not anything to scoff at either. If it could handle the weight of being underneath a castle, I could only imagine just how tough these stones were.

Bar after bar of interlocking steel rods crisscrossed themselves horizontally and vertically to make up a strong sliding cell door for easy access to my cell. The bulky steel bars would be impossible to move without the key needed, so any attempt to flee would be useless. Not like I would be able to see past this blasted darkness even if I could manage to get my hands on a key.

A thick candle stood in-between me and the bar door to my cell as I sat and watched the flame dance to provide me my only source of light. To expect such a measly amount of fire to provide me much warmth was a ridiculous assumption, but it was better than having nothing. The light projected from the wick only stretched a couple feet so that I could easily see a small piece of my cell door letting the light glint off the black bars ever so gently. The only blessing that I could think of from having this candle had to of been that it told me that I was still alive.

I remember how I had to burn my bandages yesterday just for a little more warmth. It didn't last more than a couple minutes, but those minutes were bliss to me until I could feel how sore my body had become from the cold numbing my muscles.

From what warmth that could be retained within my body, a thick quilt surrounded my body in a gracious hug. Aside from my face, my entire being had been swallowed up by the lump of fabric and embroidery. The blanket did a great job on keeping me warm, but every now and then I would feel my nose beginning to freeze over.

Without this quilt, attempting to acquire warmth would be a useless endeavor. I was better off with it than without. The moisture in my breath had come to be a constant reminder about how careful I had to be around my candle. The moisture in my own breath had become visible enough to where it was beginning to make me paranoid. One strong breath, and I would extinguish my only source of light. Every puff of air was a cruel reminder of what there was to watch for. I feared that if that candle went out, I would not last too much longer.

Since the intense cold scared off even the rats of this dungeon, sleep had come to me very easily after everything that happened yesterday. I always woke up to darkness though. Not a single dream occurred, but with a rough stone floor acting as a mattress this was to be expected. As long as there was this surprising lack of vermin, it gave me enough peace of mind to rest.

Every once in a while I would begin to wonder how things were back home. How was my family? Was my apartment still as messy as I left it last? Only now did I truly appreciate my sister deciding to take both the cat and dog with her when we decided to live in different apartments, otherwise my cat would have been growing impatient with me by now. Has work called? What was I talking about, of course they've called. I worked as one of the top chefs at a restaurant. They would notice if I was missing, right?

It tore me up inside that I could have been worrying my family right about now. Sure, usually no-one noticed when I was gone, but a part of me guilted myself into feeling this way. Sometimes, I would ponder about how I was going to get home, and the complicated factors that it could take just to do so. One thing was for sure though, if my family found out about my time of absence an apology would be most definitely in order.

Sure this place was cold, dark, and miserable, but I did at least get some visitors. A couple of guards here and there with their trusty torch or lantern to guide their way. These visits were actually the only time I got to see light other than my own candles'. On the most common of occasions however, I had even begun to receive visits from the very same princess that brought me here. It seemed that I was more than enough for Celestia to bring her watch upon every now and then.

While these visits were enjoyed, that did not mean that they weren't odd. Celestia did always stay for about thirty minutes after every few hours passed. She would visit, leave, and wait a few hours before revisiting. The visits were the oddity, but it was nice to speak with somewhat while I waited. I do feel the need to say that these conversations were not bad. She did not threaten, or interrogate me. Celestia actually only seemed to wish to ask me about some things about my life. Don't take this the wrong way, but coming down only to ask a question every few hours was a tad bit suspicious.

"What was it like growing up?"

"Did you have many friends?"

"What is it like where you are from?"

Simple questions, but complicated all the same. With Celestias' constant baiting and guidance, things became somewhat easier to clearly answer. The purpose of these questions eluded me, but I suppose that was to be expected from someone as dim as me. I was only able to answer Celestia through her assistance and constant assumptions. One thing that I could come to notice about these questions was that they eventually led up to one single topic every time. Somehow, the conversation would always steer in the direction of what was important in my life, and how I decided to live during my time among the living. At around this point, it had become nearly impossible for me to understand what Celestia was asking without her assistance during every step of the process. If I remember correctly, she said that 'I knew myself less than a complete stranger would'. I'm still not sure what Celestia meant by that.

The reason behind my indecisiveness with these questions may have been due to the fact that I've never really tried living for myself. It was dumb to say, but true. Throughout my life, I've always been the guy taking orders from the background and never questioning what was asked of me. It was an enjoyable trait to have. Helping family, and friends always made me feel happy. You would think that something like this wouldn't be a problem, but occasionally there would be a time when it could set myself up for failure. As you couple possibly imagine, I was easy to take advantage of when it came to asking for favors.

It was hard for me to turn others away when they asked a favor. Okay, scratch that; it was impossible for me to do so to when asked a favor. Granted, at about the time that I figured out how manipulating people could be, I had closed myself off from the world and the people in it. Other than school or work, I did the best that could be done just to keep myself away from other people. Truth be told, Fluttershy tending to my wounds yesterday was the first thing anyone had done for me in a very long time without having something they wished from me in return. The warm feeling in my chest told me that I was grateful to have met such a kind individual, but the sinking rock in my stomach caused a slight depression upon realizing that I may not ever see that sweet little pegasus again.

No use in focusing on all of that though. If I could get out of here, I could just get back to Ponyville and see Fluttershy again. Maybe I could find a way back home too. First, I had to be rid of any damper on my spirits. Slowly shaking my head, I tried to be rid of the thoughts that clouded my current mind-set before gazing back to my candle. The fire carried upon the wick lit up the area only enough to somewhat see the forlorn expression on my face. As breath escaping from my lips, I watched as its' moisture vanished into nothing during its' drift upward in the air.

"I wonder how it is that I wound up in this predicament."

You know, that was a pretty good question. How did I wind up like this? Thrusted into the strangest of places that I could even imagine. Left to shiver in the dungeon belonging to the ruler of an entire country. In all honesty, I knew how I ended up in this dungeon. The only answer that escaped me now was about how I could even be here in the first place. To exist in a world where your' entire species doesn't is sure to bring rise to at least one or two questions; all of which have gone unanswered. I could try to think about it, but it had become greatly difficult just to ponder in the harsh conditions of the Canterlot Dungeon. The only thing relevant that I could think about at the moment was the trip I had with Celestia on the ride here. The memory was still clear and pristine as I could plainly remember the haunting truth that Celestia revealed to me.

Barely even a minute passing after we had left the town of Ponyville, Celestia and I were being pulled through the sky on the princesses chariot. The moderately large chain connecting to my cuffs had been stuck in a locking mechanism on the dash of our ride. If I had only known where I was going, I would have enjoyed the sunlight a little bit more. I could feel the wind while it pushed back my hair enough to let my forehead be seen completely.

"Do you know why I have brought you away from Ponyville, human?"

My answer was slow only due to my lack of morale. My mind was elsewhere while I watched the clouds ahead of us pass by. I was too worried about what my future held for me. "I'm afraid that I don't." My gaze never left the direction we moved in. I placed my hands on the front border of this carriage just enough to where I could lean on them. Slight sorrow had overtaken me for the moment as I remembered how Twilight and Spike looked upon me so frightfully. "Whatever it was, it scared Twilight pretty badly." The wind that pushed past us blustered against my ears in a low whistle.

A look of compassion from Celestia was directed my way after noticing my grief. With the gentle finesse of a parent, Celestia watched me with a kind smile while letting my eyes trail along the chariots front railing. She almost seemed pleased. "Yes; I suppose it did." A prolonged silence stretched itself out before us as Celestia sat in her seat with a satisfied posture. Veering off subject, I could feel that the only reason she did so was to try and bring some peace of mind to me for the time being. "I wouldn't suppose that you would be offended for me to think that you are not native to Equestria." Hearing this tugged a sarcastic laugh from my lungs as a matching smirk appeared on my face while I brought myself to look upon the princess. I couldn't help but notice her multi-colored mane flowing like the wind had no effect on it.

"My, whatever gave you that idea? Could it be that I'm a freakishly tall creature that in no way resembles a pony?"

With a roll of my eyes, I slowly backed out of the conversation. Letting my head hang downward, I peered over the edge of the chariot to see a few clouds hovering above a grassy plain. "-Also, spare me on the whole 'different world' topic." My cheeky smirk then faded when a mono-toned voice overtook my regular one. "It was the only answer that that I could think of, while still making any sense." Celestia almost seemed a little surprised to my insight, but kept quiet in case I had more to say. Finding nothing else of interest to look at underneath us, I picked my head back up before looking at any other clouds that came our way. A wry look carried itself within my eyes. "I guess that I was just going through denial. Still..." I let out a momentary silent laugh. "You're 'Faithful Student' was the one to finally get it through my thick skull that I was at least a few universes away from home." The momentary smile I showed faded away in the blink of an eye.

My lack of frustration now seemed to have brought rise to Celestias' urge to speak as she kept her eye on me. She made no effort to press for any answers, but instead spoke calmly. "You are not angered by Twilight Sparkles' actions?" Not adverting my gaze from the clouds ahead, I simply flicked a wrist to show how easily I cast the statement aside.

"Why would I be? She was just doing what she thought was right. You can't really blame someone for that."

My answer more than pleased Celestia, but her satisfied state of being went completely unnoticed while I so negligently ignored it to look at the clouds before they passed us by. For a second or two, the silence we gave was accompanied by wind brushing past our ears as a constant clinging and clanking sounded from the chains to my cuffs. "I'd give anything to know just what it was that scared her though. It made me feel like a monster to see someone cowering in front of me like that." Once more, my returning sorrow left a bitter taste in my mouth. The rhythmically soothing song these chains sung for me were something to ease my mind, but they did not quell the emptiness that mental image brought on to me.

"Would you like to know?"

Pulling a reaction from me, I straightened my back before quickly looking to Celestia. The clueless appearance I gave off was slightly laughable, but did show my urgent desire to listen. Once again, Celestia seemed to be quite content with my reaction. "I'll take that as a 'yes'." She spoke with a laugh. The blank nod I gave confirmed her guess. "As you may have noticed, humans are non-existent in this world for reasons that do not concern you at the moment." In other words, I'll tell you later. "This being said, in ancient scriptures, humans are commonly seen as a form of harbinger." Hmm, that word was not one that I believe to have heard before. Harbinger... What did it mean? The mystifying term left me baffled.

"Harbinger? What's a harbinger?"

Giving a definition must have been an easy feat to the Princess, so Celestia took her own time with an answer.

"A Harbinger is known as something that foreshadows a future event. An omen, if you would like to call it."

An omen? So I was an omen? As truly interesting that this may be, I couldn't help but wonder what was the point of stating that I was some sort of sign for the future. Wouldn't that be good? I would just have to listen closely and find out. "Humans were known to be a sign of an upcoming event in Ancient Equestrian mythology. Predicted to bring one of two different events, it was said that the direction would be fully reliant on their essence." My essence? By the way she looked, I guess that she was expecting me to have something to say.

"I'm sorry, but I'm not sure what exactly an essence is."

Celestias' stared back at me in a calm radiance as if to understand how I couldn't comprehend what she spoke of. It was kind of odd to see, but kind of nice at the same time. "What do you think makes you, you, human?" The first question that Celestia would ask to leave me stumped would be this exact one. Before I could answer anything though, it was time to make one thing clear.

"Ma'am, my name is 'Jacob', not 'human'."

'Human' wasn't a nice label. It would be like I called Celestia, 'horse'. In that same calm joy, Celestia acknowledged this in slight embarrassment. "Oh, my apologies. I'll try to remember next time." Not like it was her fault. The two of us never really got to introduce ourselves to each other before I was pulled onto this crazy trip.

As if to take the apology but continue from the situation, I brushed it all off with yet another slight hand movement to try and get it across that there was nothing to fret. Getting back to the question asked, focus was needed to think properly. My eyes trailed along their upper corners to search for an answer. "What makes me, me, huh?" I couldn't help but hold my chin while the other arm crossed my chest to hold onto the joint between it's forearm and bicep. A tricky question, but I eventually came up with a confident answer. "I suppose that would be my personality." The playful shake Celestia gave with her head let me know that the answer had been wrong.

"I'm sorry, but no. Your' essence is the core of your true self. Another term for it would be a soul."

Making surprisingly good sense of the matter, how Celestia soon grew a little more serious prevented me from speaking up. "Your essence will predict a future that you will be involved in one way or another." Hearing this wasn't easy, so talking had become an all the more difficult task for the moment. I really was beginning to miss the calm joy that Celestia showed only a couple moments back. My cautiously earnest desire to learn more about this subject caused me to press the matter at hand.

"What do you mean?"

As much as I may have wanted to believe it to be so, all of this was beginning to sound almost like a screen play. Like it was all a movie, or just some action flick. The pause Celestia gave sent me into a state of uncertainty of whether I truly wanted to know the truth of this. My curiosity was the winning side of this argument however, so I prevented myself from objecting to any explanation. Moments passed as the princess directed her gaze downward before back to me.

"If your soul is kind and pure, it will be a sign of prosperity and a long standing peace in the world. However, if your soul is to be tainted-"

If my soul was tainted? What would happen if my soul was tainted? By how Celestia trailed off while showing her own concern on the conversation, the gravity of it was weighing down upon me. Not showing any signs of backing down, I pressed on even further. "What? What will happen then?" I gently clinched my teeth at how Celestia looked upon me; worry and caution were the only readable emotions. What could it have possibly been that brought such a feeling upon her?

"If your soul is to be tainted, it will be a sign of the complete annihilation of this world and everyone in it."

The unexpected shock caused me to lunge back enough to where my shackled cuffs yanked at me the moment I tried to leave their grasp. A growing fear inside of me began to make itself known when I spoke. "W-what?" A joke; this had to be a joke! Any second now, Celestia would start laughing and I would awkwardly go along with it. Yeah, that's what would happen.

Moments passed, and this did not happen. This was quite real.

My knees nearly buckled in on themselves, but by some force of will I kept standing. This was ridiculous, how could something so urgent rely on me of all people? "You've got to be kidding me." Weakly, I tried to shake myself of this news. It had to be understandable just how difficult it could be to absorb this kind of information. Showing pity on my behalf, Celestia hung her head and shut her eyes as if to shield herself to the sight of my unsuspecting reactions.

"I fear that this is not all."

I almost could not bring myself to hear any more of this. Didn't Celestia believe that enough had been said? I regretted ever wanting to learn about this. It was too late to stop though. I would be learning one way or another. "Humans may predict certain things about the future, but that is not truly what they are a symbol of." I held my tongue to prevent myself from interjecting as Celestia struggled to speak this truth. "Humans are a symbol of war." A symbol of war? No, this couldn't mean that... No... it couldn't. "It pains me to say, but there will be a war in the near future." No, that couldn't be possible. What about my family? What about my job? What about my life?

"I refuse!"

My shout did more than bring Celestia to look at me a little surprised. In my mind, I didn't know where she got off to telling me something like this. This horse just comes up out of no-where, starts taking me to God-knows-where, and tells me that I was going to be fighting in a war!? No Ma'am! The rivaling glare she gave me was one that caused me to back away for a split-second, but I stood my ground firmly the moment after. "I beg your pardon?" Celestia kept polite formalities with her even now as she glowered down at me. Leaning ever closer to me, I did my best to step away while doing my best to stand ground. "You refuse? Refuse to what? To fighting to protect those that live within my kingdom? Are you selfish, or just idiotic?" So much for formalities. Celestias' angered, mono-toned voice shot through my bravery like a sword through a sheet of paper. "Do you fail to understand this weight of this? What on earth could it be that you do not understand?" Going off of my last shred of courage, I blasted out against the princess with a shout.

"Everything!"

Any leverage that Celestia had at the time completely shifted to me as she now leaned back to her side of the chariot. The posture she had immediately let me know that she was not used to having someone raise such a tone to her. Even the pegasi that pulled us through the sky showed signs of panic in their flying when I raised my voice. The fire in my tongue vanished quickly though. With the heat of the moment gone and passed, and I couldn't bring myself to look at Celestia. I felt bad for yelling, but I was also dealing with the inner conflicts within my mind. The wrestling opinions kept battering at each other relentlessly while I tried my best to keep my brain together.

Once more, I rested myself upon the front border of the carriage while Celestia watched me curiously. Thankfully, enough time had passed for me to speak calmly and reasonably. A noticeable sorrow hung in my voice while I spoke. "Listen, I don't know what you were expecting from me, but I'm not some sort of soldier. Nor am I a warrior; heck, I would be lying if I even told you that I was a fighter of any type." I refrained from looking at Celestia as I moved a hand from right to left in one slow sweep across the flat top of the edge that I leaned upon. "I'm not some sort of god that can just sweep the playing field with the wave of a hand." I turned my head only enough to get a look at Celestia from the corner of my eye. She had already reclaimed her stature by the time I began to fidget with my posture to the point of standing up once more. "I'm just your average, every day guy. Nothing more, nothing less." With her relaxed attitude obtained, Celestia began to oppose my argument.

"Maybe, but even gods and goddesses must ask for assistance when they cannot conquer the challenge at hand. That is why I am asking you to do this for not only me, but for Equestria as well."

At first unsure to what had been heard, I looked at Celestia strange. It took a second to compute with what she had said, but finally the realization hit me. "Wait, you're a-" It felt like a stone landed in my stomach. I was just shouting my lungs out at a goddess... Holy crap! Celestia brushed off my question with a sharp interruption.

"To a certain point, but look past that for a moment."

A little hard to do so, but I guess all could be done with a little bit of time.

"As I said, you will be involved with this war until further notice. There will be tests that await for your attendance when you arrive in Canterlot. They will determine what kind of human that you are, and if you will be ready for the inevitable path that fate has chosen for you."

So that was it, huh? I was sunk into this mess lock, stock, and barrel? Still, what was there to do against the orders of someone like Celestia? A 'goddess', for crying out loud! Lord knows what she might do if I refuse. This could mean life or death for me, so it was impossible to deny Celestia to perform such tests. No, this did mean life or death for me! "If you are proved to be too dangerous for the people of my nation, you will be executed on the spot. I cannot afford for you to cause harm to any of my subjects." That was that, then. Celestia wasn't letting me out of this. There was nothing that I could do besides rest my head in my hands while awaiting our arrival to wherever this crazy horse was taking me to.

"Fine. Just give me some time to get my head together. A day. That's all I ask."

Looking down at me once more while I leaned onto the railing in my own misery, my defeat had been anything but unexpected for Celestia. She said not a word before directing her gaze ahead in time to see the capital city of Canterlot come into view from their hiding place behind two large clouds. Letting herself be merciful, Celestia let out a dull sigh. "Very well, you will be granted this time to gather yourself." Although I was thankful, the reason why couldn't be explained. "Your living arrangements will not be the most satisfactory, but they must suffice for the rest of today. Apologies in advance for this, but at the time you must be forbidden from associating with the public under my rule. There have been warnings of your' arrival, and if you were to walk freely in the public, I fear it would cause panic." Understandable; not like I was really the most comforting thing to look at in the world. "I will have you summoned to the throne room later tomorrow; try to get some rest for the day ahead." Not sure what to say, I kept to myself. It was only right about now that Canterlot had come into view for me as well with only the turn of a head. It surprised me that such a place as this was so close to Ponyville.

I hoped everyone would be alright back at the library.

So, here I was. One day later. Shivering, cold, and in the dark. The time for my tests had been drawing closer. Had my nervousness made itself known? Of course. It was only natural to act as such. I wasn't ready to beg for my life if it came down to it; I was far too prideful for such a thing. if I am to die, I will die with whatever dignity I have left intact.

Something had come from the ordeals from yesterday, at least. Not only was I able to meet some girls that I felt to be able to call my friends, but somehow I felt at least a smidgen closer to finding out what brought me here in the first place.

So many questions; so little time. I feared that my death would arrive before any mysteries could be solved. They relentlessly zoomed around my cranium ever since I got here, and it seemed that they will be here even in my final moments.

"Ha, ha, ha, ha..."

That is, unless the sound of a deep cackling laughter slices through every single one of them, killing the taunting questions instantly. That would put them to rest very easily.

The laugh erupted from out in the darkness and bounced off the walls to project a menacing echo. The sound of it alone froze my already shivering spine in place.

"Oh, what's this? Could it be that the word really is true? Why, yes; it does seem so! There is finally a human in our midst once more!"

My face shot up to look into the all-consuming darkness beyond my cell. This voice... It didn't sound anything like any of the guards that I had seen currently. It sounded male, so that definitely kicked Celestia from the possibilities. Then again, she was a goddess... Who knows what she was capable of?

Already on my guard, I took the dim candle in hand before jumping to my feet. Leaving my blanket behind, I left it where I once sat to warm my spot. Air vapor steamed between my upper and lower jaw. As adamant as I was to finding the source of this voice, my candle did nothing to help. "Who is there? What purpose do you have here?" My solid tone did nothing but bounce off stone walls. It wasn't until a couple seconds passed that I finally got a reply.

"Oh, don't be so cruel. I'm just here to visit everyponies favorite little jail-bird."

Blast this darkness! It sounded like whomever it was that had begun speaking to me was directly on the other side of these iron bars. My candle didn't nearly have enough light to shine that far as it was. I would have to get closer. "Where are you?" I inched towards the cell bars, cautious of what possible dangers could await for me.

Grasping the cold metal of one of the bars my remaining free hand, I held my candle out on the other side of the cell after managing to squeeze my arm through one of the moderately sized gaps between them. There was nothing to see but the same darkness as before. "You're getting warmer." My body had become worked up enough to cause my breath to fog up the glasses sitting on their nose. I could feel my body tighten as I held out this candle in a constant struggle to search for anything visible in the dark. My mind had come to play tricks on me so it was uncertain if whatever movement I saw was real or just a hallucination. "Oh, just a little bit farther. I'm sure that you will see me then." The voice beckoned me further while I now pressed my body against the bars just to gain some extra ground. "Just a little bit further." What was driving me to do such a thing as this? Had the cold finally caused my brain to catch freezer-burn? Why was I listening to some voice that was coming out of nowhere? Maybe my mind was desperate for a little comfort about what was yet to come.

Then I dropped my candle.

That was quite literally the best way to describe what happened. I lost my grip on the chunk of wax before it fell onto the ground, extinguishing its' flame and leaving me to be enveloped by the dark.

My breathing already becoming panicked, I pulled my arm away through the bars and jumped back a few steps. In the dark, the cold burned my skin even more than usual. My mind began playing tricks on me while fear spread through my body like a disease. I suppose that you could guess what was going on right about now. You know how fearful of the dark I was. "Oh, look what you did now." I jumped when listening to the mild scolding. I could not tell where I was any more. The dark left me blind as I could then hear 'tsk'-ing in my direction. "What a klutz. What. A. Klutz." The voice sounded just as quickly as it subsided into a bitter sigh. "I suppose that I'll have to come to you. I swear, you're more trouble than you're worth." I could feel that the voice had begun to sound somewhat burdened. How I was being talked down to left a spark of frustration in my gut toward whomever it was that had been speaking to me, but the pitch darkness kept me quiet.

'Snap!"

The snap echoed throughout the dungeon before the entire area was enveloped in a blinding light. With the transition between complete darkness to nearly the same burst of light that you would expect from a flash bomb, it goes without saying that I was left covering my eyes. Even shortly after, I couldn't help but feel a little blind. At least the feeling went away. That's all that matters in the long-run, I suppose.

Upon my eyesight returning, I could feel something else; warmth. Such a drastic change in temperature made me suspect that I had caught some level of hypothermia, but the feel of my skin was still ice cold. I couldn't even see my breath anymore. The dungeon was getting warmer somehow...

"Stunned by such a weak flash? My, you must be the most pathetic human in existence."

Weak? A flash like that could blind someone if not careful! Finishing the task of trying to rub the stinging from my eyes, a muttered low grunt expressed my detest for what had been said. I swear, once I got a hold on this guy he was getting a black-eye. As I finally lowered the hands from my eyes, I couldn't help but notice a problem. That was the problem, too! In darkness, one was not supposed to see anything! Yet here I was looking at the hall on the other side of my cell bars, and into the cell on the opposite side of mine. Darkness was now non-existent! It had been like one huge light bulb lit up this entire dungeon!

The lighting was not my biggest concern at the moment however. Sure, I could now see, but what was there to see? An empty brick chamber on the other side of mine? From the direction that a voice once spoke was now vacant and empty. Seeing this left me quite befuddled. A part of me believed myself to have gone mad, but that would just be too easy. My vision lingered towards the outer area of my cell to try and catch a glimpse of anyone that could have been around. Who had only spoke to me moments ago? Who turned on the lights? Who turned the heater on?

I got my answer in the form of a hand resting on the back of my shoulder.

"Looking for someone, boy?"

My blood ran cold once more, and would have frozen if not for the growing warmth. My head tried to force me not to look behind me as I slowly twitched it around to gaze at that hand that had now been placed upon my right shoulder. To my shock, I soon found it to not be a hand at all.

It was a large birds talon.

A mental siren went off in my head, already alerting me of a possible danger. Immediately, I slid out of reach from the talons gasp just in time to spin on my heels and spot just who it was behind me. Looking back on it, I wish I never did.

Whatever it was standing before me, I wasn't sure. One thing was absolutely certain; this thing wasn't like anything seen before. Much like the manticore, this being was composed of different body parts. However, this layout of parts was... unsettling. A deer horn, and a blue deformed goat horn was pointed upward from the skull of this being. His head showed its' elderly age. A white goatee sprouted from the bottom of its' chin. Matching the beard in color, the creature had bushy eyebrows that hung over large yellow eyes. Both eyes had a red pupil, but neither pupil had been the same. One seemed to be permanently dilated while the other was about as normal as it could have possibly been. It had a muzzle which pushed past its' cheek bones and led to a jaw showing off one sharp fang that pointed downward to the floor.

The neck was elongated and wriggly as a thick coat of gray-ish fur grew there. I could plainly see a mane when getting a good look at it; its suspicious likeness it had to a horses mane went noticed. The gray hair ending at its' shoulders, a new brown coat of fur started directly above the shoulder line. It's arms were nothing similar to one another. An eagles claw for the left arm, and a lions paw for the right. Just as the same case, the legs were nothing alike with the left being a goats' and the right belonging to a lizard. All four of which attached each other to the snake-like body this being owned. Two wings were attached to the back of this being. One looking much like a cyan pegasus wing, and the other showing resemblances to a bats wing. A tail flicked out the back almost making the body look like a giant 'S'-shape with arms, legs, and a head. Scales only made themselves known when the hair ceased to exist a little ways back from this things' legs. it was a sort of a watered down red color with a white tuft at the very end. The scales alone sort of made me feel as if this thing was some sort of Chinese dragon, but that couldn't possibly have been true. It looked like some force of nature used all of the crayons in the box just to make this abomination.

"A chimera?"

Off put by my labeling, the creature showed a loathing nature towards me. Furrowing a brow, this being placed a hand on its' chest. "A chimera; Moi?" A quick wave dismissed this while giving a puff of air through puckered lips. By the look it gave me, my assumption was quite laughable. "I, my boy, am a draconequus." A draco-what? I've never heard of such a ridiculous thing. To call this thing as such smelled a little fishy, but that wasn't the only thing that smelled about this guy. "Head of a horse, and such. I guess you can say that I'm a grab-bag of fun." The same cackling laughter from before blasted powerfully through my cell.

Whoever this was, he reeked of bad news. Not just because of how he looked, but it was like I was talking to some sort of con-artist. It felt if I let my guard down, that I wouldn't be given the time to regret it. My guard wasn't as well as I would have hoped for though.

Slinking to my side, the creature wrapped its' talon of an arm around my shoulder while rubbing his lion paw against his chest. Taking the time to check his nails, a crooked smile appeared on his face. "So, I hear that you're the human. You know, the one that's here to either bring harmony or chaos?" I suppose that was me, no matter how much I hated to be involved in any of what was currently going on. Lifting a hand to try and brush the claw off me, I could feel a sneer forming with my lips.

"That is true, but-"

Happiness filled the creatures being as he spun me in circles like a top. Overjoyed, the creature cheered. "Wonderful! Absolutely wonderful!" My spinning came to an end when the beast grabbed me by the shoulders. The tight grip that effortlessly restrained my movement explained to me clearly just how strong this creature was. "So, if you're anything like the humans I think you are, you must be here to pillage, kill, and..." Letting me go, the creature nudged my shoulder with an elbow while giving me a cocked eyebrow. A soft giggle left him. "-have some fun with the female population." I was still recovering from all that spinning, so any blushes I had were on the floor with me while sitting on my rear.

The room was spinning, but things were becoming far too obscure even for my dizziness to keep me down. Holding my head, I struggled to my feet to get another good look at the creature. "What are you talking about? Why in Great Greens would I do something like that?" Was this abomination out of his mind? I wouldn't stake my life against it. "Who are you, anyways?" The creature 'tut-tut'-ed me, which sparked annoyance in my soul most indefinitely.

The creature held his lion paw behind his back and his talon-arm to wag a finger at me. With a lifted chin, his posture was one of a scholar. "Now, now, Mr. Froster. Do you not know that it is impolite to ask for someones name without proper introduction?" Coming out of his posture, the creature carefully placed a hand upon his lips for a sarcastic state of worry. "Didn't your mommy teach you better?" I scorned this being for his words, but he was right on some level. I guess it was only polite to introduce myself first. Let my patience run thin before letting out any unneeded outbursts. For the remainder of my patience, I was just going to have to appear calm and professional.

"Alright, my name is-"

I barely got past straightening my shirt collar before being cut short in my sentence. "Boy, if I call you by your' name, that means that I'm already familiar with what your name is. Keep your introductions to yourself." Okay, that certainly rubbed me the wrong way. If I were to say, my patience had already begun to vanish enough for me to let a few loose words fly.

"Then don't play dumb, you old geezer."

My snap caused the creature to applaud my frustration and anger to show that he was impressed. The creatures' gaze narrowed while his smile showed its' one large fang. "Well, you have some spice in you, after all." He was enjoying this. It didn't take a genius to see that any arguments made against this thing would be pointless.

In the blink of an eye, the creature used its' wings to slither through the air like a snake would on land. It flew in gentle swaying motions until simply gliding on nothing but still air. Our gaze never left the others' for a moment. I feared what would happen if I did. "You may call me Discord." He chuckled before rolling on his back to somehow move through the air while reclining. "Lord of all Chaos works just as well, but I'll let you take your pick." Discord; so that was this things' name? Nothing like the other names heard around these parts, but this wasn't really a pony that I was looking at. It was a draconequus; whatever that was.

"Okay, Discord..." I stopped to ponder what could have been possibly said next. "Would you mind telling me how you got past all of the guards just to see me?"

The draconequus scoffed to mock me for questioning his abilities. "My boy, that was the easy part." When Discord lifted his talon arm, I pondered over his actions while looking at the hand he lifted. The middle finger pressed together with a thumb made their steady preparation for snapping. "All it took was a little bit of this." What was he going to do? Snap his fingers?

'SNAP!'

It was that noise again.

In a split second, Discord disappeared into a flash of light. I was left aghast and wide-eyed at what had taken place before me. My body froze in place when fully realizing what had happened. Where Discord once stood, there was now nothing.

"Surprised?" The disembodied voice of Discord earnestly asked.

'SNAP!'

Another flash of light, and Discord was standing back where he once stood. It was like he never left. That crooked smile kept me in its sights while its' owner stood there smugly.

What was this guy? Some sort of magic user? Breaking myself of any fear that paled my skin, I did my best to make a stand. "What do you want from me?" The rushed question never once tripped up Discord. He took it with stride. To play off the question as if it were nothing at all, the Lord of Chaos shrugged his shoulders innocently.

"Why Mr. Froster, I'm here to offer your freedom here in Equestria. I've been watching you for sometime now, I feel as if that needs to be said."

Watching me? It would be hard to believe this, but that display of power Discord just showed... It provided more than enough evidence that Discord shouldn't be underestimated. If he could vanish at the drop of a hat, who knows what else the chimera-like creature could do?

This mild display of power had put me on edge as I tried to keep myself in some dominant stance in the conversation. It was a struggle, but still manageable. "My freedom? Do you believe that I need help from someone just to live freely?" Discord looked down upon me like I was a child in his presence. Thinking out loud, the sarcastic tone that came from him burned me.

"Oh, you are right. You're just being held against your' will, forced to fight in a war that you want nothing to be a part of, and got thrown in jail to wait for tests that you will inevitably fail and be sentenced to execution for. Sounds like freedom to me."

On every point made, Discord made sure to count each one with a separate finger. That last thing he said though caught my attention the most. Was he expecting me to turn a blind-eye to it, or was Discord baiting me? It had become hard to tell. "What?" One word was all I could think of saying. Discord however had plenty more things to speak of. He showed me pity with a sullen shake of his head.

"It's a shame, really. The princess is going to put you to the test in the most difficult ways possible. Your' death will certainly be unavoidable."

I had a hard time thinking this to be anything but false. Celestia didn't look like the type to do something so backhanded. This guy on the other hand looked like he would sell me for a shoe-shining, and it got under my skin how Discord would describe Celestia. "I don't like liars, Chimera." One of Discords' eyes twitched. It seemed the title struck a nerve with him that I could classify him as a chimera. In a follow-up, I crossed my arms sternly. "Besides, I have no intention of failing." It seemed that now I was the one bothering Discord, for a change. Not by much, but enough to where his expression turned sour.

I did not give any ground when Discord approached; leering down upon me as if I was some sort of problem. I kept my fists tightly clinched together while Discord glowered down at me, scornfully. His towering height over me by at least a foot and a half was something he did not waste. He appeared to have almost become angered, but it slowly contorted to neutral after giving a raspy laugh. "Do you think that these tests will be easy?" He leaned in close to speak. His voice had become rough. "They won't be." Reaching for me with his eagle talon, Discord pinched my cheek before giving it a good tug. The enjoyment Discord got from this showed while he smiled. "This is not some sort of pen-and-paper exam. Do you really wish to tread on this subject so lightly?" The moment Discord released, I brought a hand up on my face to try and sooth the stinging in my cheek with a slow rub. "Do you not realize just how foolish you were for requesting a day to wait? Thanks to that, Celestia has made sure to find any ways for you to pass and exclude them from your tests!" Standing tall , Discord swooned and placed the back of a hand on his forehead. "Alas, now you are doomed for sure." With a snap of his fingers, a pony-like skull landed in Discords palm just in time for him to rehearse Shakespeare. At least, I think that's what he was doing. "Oh Jacob, I hardly knew thee." He inspected the skulls empty sockets with a smile.

"I told you, I have no intention of failing."

'CRUNCH!'

The sound of splitting bone hit my ears as Discord smashed the skull in his claw like styrofoam. It was hard to tell with the look he was giving off, but it appeared that Discord was about to snap. It didn't take much to set him off, did it?

My unwavering stubbornness had begun to strike at Discord like he did with me only earlier. As Discord loosened his grip, I watched shards of bone clack against the ground while his hand went back to its designated side. He turned toward me, struggling to keep a smirk. His anger and frustration had become more than visible. "What did you say?" He laughed. "You have no intention of failing?" He angrily laughed to mock me. This time, when Discord stepped towards me, I made sure to take a step back. "Oh, golly-gee! I guess that means that you'll live for sure!" The sneer Discord gave backed me into the wall just in time for the draconequus to pin me against it in what I would expect to be the least violent way possible. The lumpy rocks that formed the wall behind me pressed into my back painfully. The finger that was pressed into my chest held me still while Discord looked upon me with anger. The power that he held was unnerving. I dared not think of what he could do with a little more pressure.

"Listen here, Cupcake-"

The beginning of this obvious threat was all that came out of Discord before he stopped himself mid-sentence. Taking the time to think to himself, Discord grumbled before starting to back off. First taking the finger off of me, he moved away slowly to give me room. A jocular smile now replaced Discords scowl while he left me to recover. You could be as brave as you wanted, but no amount of bravery could keep you from feeling even a twinge of terror from what had just transpired here. Still, Discord seemed to think that he could pick up the conversation like nothing happened.

Doing just that, the draconequus dusted himself off casually. "Pardon me, I got a little frustrated. Maybe I should try a different approach to explaining things to someone as thick headed as you are." My heart felt as if it was going to burst from its chest cavity before I finally stepped off the wall with a right hand grasping its' chest. It was getting to where I felt as if that I could die before it came time for my testing.

Discord had been busy muttering to himself while I did my best to reclaim whatever bravery possible. Cowering in the presence of this thing was out of the question. To someone like Discord, there would be no backing down without serious consequence. Call me a do-gooder if you want, but that would not change my mind. "Let's see if I can get this across to you." Discords pointing talon hung in my direction.

An instant is all it took for Discord to snap his fingers to bring a green, translucent screen into reality. Unfolding in the air like a folded up piece of paper, it weightlessly floated in place. As peculiar that it was, I couldn't help but notice that the screen seemed kind of hi-tech. Much too advanced for anything to compare back to my world. Linear lines intersected each other on this screen to separate different areas.

"Watch closely kid, I'm I'm only going to show you this once... Or maybe twice if I find it funny enough."

Discords eyes were locked on his screen as he chuckled to himself. What was he planning? It was becoming a well argued mental debate whether I should interject to Discords' abilities, but any intentions of putting an end to this stayed locked within my mind. For the time being, I was just going to have to allow Discord to continue.

Upon giving a second glance to the floating window, its empty screen stood still. There was no noticeable significance going on with the screen. It was just a blank slate of nothingness that composed this viewless window. It did not stay this way for long, as a dark shade of green lined the bottom of the screen about two blocks deep. It was obvious that what was being observed had been a formation of land. A flat section of land for someone to walk upon.

Moments passed now as a figure began its trek on screen. The character was easily identifiable, even though it was just a silhouette. A tall, white, two-dimensional figure of what could only be thought was an alicorn elegantly stepped into view. It would take a fool to not know this was Celestia. Aside from its' horse-like body, the large wings and horn were a dead give-away.

Upon the screen, Celestia had been walking from the right side of the screen before coming to be the focus when reaching the center. At this point, Celestia was simply in a stationary walk to no-where. "I'm sure that you are perfectly familiar of Princess Celestia. One of the Royal Sisters, leader of a nation, highly loved and respected political figure." Discord gagged after his unintentional complimenting. "Blah, blah, blah." Yes, I was quite familiar with her. She threw me in prison. Maybe that was his point? "I bet you aren't familiar with her zero-tolerance policy though." A zero-tolerance policy for what? When I could see other silhouettes entering from the left side of the screen, I felt as if I would know soon enough.

Many different forms of different shapes and sizes passed by Celestia along this two-dimensional plain. Many different creatures passed Celestia by without there being any problems. Each of which, walked by on four legs or had strange features that left me unable to identify what could have been the organism to take such a shape. Ponies were the easiest form to identify, but that was about it. Except for the last figure that entered the screen.

It took me a moment to fully realize that I was looking at the form of a human being.

Celestia came to a halt as this other figure tried to walk by her like the others. It never got the chance. The moment that the humanoid got within a few steps of her, Celestias' silhouette shot a beam from her horn and reduced the figure turned to a pile of ash in the blink of an eye. It was truly a terrifying sight to behold.

'[ P A U S E ]'

The word appeared in the center of the screen. An amused humming sounded from Discord as he walked to my side. "Ooo, that was my favorite part." Discords' lion paw placed itself around my back and upon my shoulder. His talon hand was already preparing itself to snap once more. "Let's watch that again." A mischievous look accompanied Discords grin as he placed pressure upon his fingers.

"...Shall we?"

'Snap!'

A fuzz striped itself over the screen like when rewinding an old VHS tape before going back directly to when Celestias' sillouette vaporized the humanoid form. The level of disturbed nature that this had to of held sky rocketed by the time Discord laughed at both my misery and the sight before us. "Oh, oh! That tickles my funny-bone!" I kept my eyes shut forcefully while looking away. I thanked god that this video was silent, or else I would have had to cover my ears as well.

"As funny that this is, you should know that we both have something in common here."

The screen before me closed in on itself and disappeared from the world before Discord turned both of us around. Leading me away from the point that we stood, Discord kept an arm behind my back to keep me moving. It sounded like Discord was trying to be sympathetic, but his body language more than told me how he enjoyed speaking on this topic. Kind of like he was trying to stay down-to-earth, but was doing a crap job of it. "You see, the princess has a strict policy that anything different needs to be put-down, dangerous or not." Something about the sound of that didn't feel right. The video, and now this explanation? Something about it didn't make complete sense. "That's where we are the same. Both of us are on 'Equestrias Most Wanted' for the same crime." The doubt that lingered within me had become much too strong to keep hidden. Slowly pushing myself away from Discord, I took a couple steps back. Discord watched me, frustration already reforming within him. My mind in its' own rut, I could only think to say one thing to doubt everything Discord just showed to me.

"I'm sorry, but after knowing that my friends follow her, I can't exactly think that Celestia can possibly be like that."

Doubting his opinion on the matter wasn't exactly what Discord wanted to see come as a result from all of this. He probably wanted me to take his word as a fact without any questioning. What I did though, it let Discord show me just how unamused he had become. He wasn't angry this time, but he did seem to be growing tired of what I had to say.

Turning to me slowly, Discord rubbed his palms together. To him, I was a stale joke that got worse every time it was told. "Friends?" His tone of voice was discomforting. Rubbing his chin as if in deep thought, Discord looked away for a moment. "You call those malice-ridden munchkins, 'friends'?" Leaning down to me face-to-face, Discord frowned. His eyes leered into mine to try and burn his oppinion into my brain. "You know what; Let's talk about those 'friends' of yours?" The draconequus made sure to add emphasis with his fingers when needed. This action alone ticked me off to the point of clasping discords mouth shut with a hand. I took it away cautiously, but never cowardly.

"I don't want to hear it. I owe one of them my life so keep your' trap shut."

If Discord was going to talk bad about my friends, I wanted nothing to do with him. Apparently though, Discord wanted everything to do with me as he seemed to be doing everything he could to keep my attention. Grabbing my sleeves tightly, Discord held me in place. "Pay attention when I speak to you!" Extreme malice was shared between the both of us. "Don't you realize that those mares were only using you for their own benefit? Even the ones that didn't, do you not remember how they tried to end your existence?!" We exchanged an angered glare before Discord shook me. "They put you in here. They led you to your own demise!" Discord had nearly talked himself out of breath. The tightening grip on me squeezed my body to the point of a mild pain appearing within my arms.

My silence kept my mouth sealed shut while I squirmed within Discords grasp. Bruises were to be an inevitability at this point, but the draconequus released me before any blood could be drawn. I slid away from Discord once more, sensing hostility beginning to rise. A low growl emanated from my throat. "Why should I trust the person that keeps hurting me, over and over again?" Admit it, I made a good point. "Give me one good reason why I should believe anything your' spewing from that rancid mouth of yours!" The demand caused Discord to breathe into his palm before giving the puff of air a couple good sniffs. By the recoil he gave, I could see that my accusation wasn't wrong. This did little to stop him though. In fact, he seemed to favor my challenge. Still showing some seriousness, Discord beckoned me to continue while he began to somehow recline on air.

"Very well. Ask me a question, and I will answer it. Any question at all."

Really? He was just going to answer whatever question I asked? Not really what I had in mind, but it was better than nothing. What would I ask though? What could I ask? It had to be something clever; something that Discord had to answer so that I knew that he could be trusted. It had to be something that I knew the answer to, but what could I possibly know to help me here? "Ah... Um..." My mind fuzzed like snow on a television set as these sounds left my vocal chords on accident. "What..." I faded out as Discord inspected a now floating clock that had somehow made it into the cell.

"Tick-tock, boy. We don't have all day..." Discord paused. "Well, YOU don't have all day. I have all eternity. You on the other hand, only have a few more hours."

What could I possibly say as a follow-up to that?

"Tell me about the upcoming war."

Discords' eye-lids flew up like shutters at the mere mentioning of the subject. Having to catch himself before flopping onto the floor, Discord struggled to keep decent balance while staring at me a little uneasy from what I had said. It seemed that I had finally found something that could bring recoil upon even this brute. Discord actually had a plastered nervous smile on his face. "That wasn't really a question, boy. Maybe ask something else?" He was trying to find a way from answering me? Why? I had to press further. Suspicions high, I did just that.

"Okay, then; what is this upcoming war all about?"

Discord broke into a sweat the moment the question made itself known. It was like I shattered a wall of defense with him. What the heck was this guy hiding? That plastered smile soon swiveled into a frown as an eye twitched upon the creatures face. "Nosey little brat..." I could hear him mutter under his breath. There was no possible way that I was going to listen to Discord now. He had too much to hide from me. Raising his voice to a scolding shout now, Discord stepped up brashly. "Oh, come on! You don't honestly believe that load of malarkey, do you?" Taking a sarcastic act, Discord swooned in a cheap imitation of a worried person. The horribly feminine voice he used would be funny if it weren't so mocking at the same time. "Oh dear, what ever is there to do? There's a war coming, and it desperately depends upon you." Discord became stone cold in his tone the moment he looked back at me when speaking that last word. The way Discord brandished this way of speaking hit me delicately while poking fun at me in the most delinquent way possible. "Come on! This war stuff is all a hoax! A sham! A con! Why do you think that you conveniently got escorted to a pony that just so happened to know the princess?" Discords growing annoyance aside, he actually made a good point. Why was it that I was taken to Twilight Sparkle, a student of Princess Celestia? Sure, Twilight was smart, but was she truly the only pony that could help me in a matter such as this?

My moderate thinking brought Discord to calm down, even if it was just a little. What was said vexed me to no end. What possible logic was it that I was just conveniently escorted to Twilights' home? If she was a student of Celestia, would she not simply live here in Canterlot with her teacher? "Celestia has been known to withhold information from her loyal subjects. What could possibly keep her from spreading a few lies about a dangerous a creature that just appeared out of no-where?" Maybe it was the logic talking, but this actually sounded quite reasonable.

"I guess you have a point, there. Twilight did seem rather anxious after I left."

Discords' loins paw slithered around the back of my neck and rested upon my shoulder just as confident as its' owner. He was able to put on quite the believable act whenever he wanted to. I almost thought that Discord felt sincerely sorry for me. The lions paw patted the shoulder it was placed upon. "Yes, punishment is swift to anyone that goes against the wishes of the princess. Wholesome threats that can be carried out on a whim." The sneer Discord carried as he stood beside me went unnoticed. A raised fist clinched itself almost like Discord had some sense of righteousness within him. "A tyrant that took my throne." I would have to be deaf to miss that. Discord just claimed that he was dethroned by Celestia? Honestly, I can see the reason, but maybe there was a bit more information that I could pull from this?

Seeing the continuous deep thinking process from me, Discord placed himself in front of me. A near accomplished look came to him when joining both mismatched hands together behind his back. "You do realize that, like me, Celestia has been watching you." She has, has she? An itch of suspicion crawled into my cranium. I wasn't afraid to ask what I did next, but more intrigued by the possibilities of answers that I may receive as a result. It was like a student awaiting their teacher to give an answer to a deeply sought after question. Curious, but cautious.

"Does this mean that you are a god, as well?"

The amused laughter was the only answer I needed.

"Hahaha, guilty as charged!"

This alone sparked so many more questions. Was 'God' a lightly used term for a figure of great power, or was it an all-mighty being? Could it be that I was really gazing upon an omnipotent life-form? What other secrets did Discord conceal from me?

Needless to say, Discord had now obtained at least some of my attention. Even if I still had begun to immensely dislike the god, he could feel better for gaining any at all. I'll admit, everything that Discord has told me came off as a little strange, but not all of it was completely illogical. Was Celestia really this evil monarch that over-threw its previous owner? None of the ponies I saw back in Ponyville seemed to be feeling pressure on their necks from a tyrannical rule. For some reason, it wouldn't feel right to completely believe this. For now, I would just have to allow Discord the benefit of the doubt.

"Alright, say that everything you just said was true; what do we do now?"

With the snap of Discords fingers, a large circular rift tore open in the middle of my cell in between me and him. Like the screen previously, the extra-dimensional device floated in the air, motionlessly. The appearance of the device gave off the feeling like this was a tear into the very fabric of space and time, but how could something like this be possible? Then again, Discord was a god. It may have been wise to tread lightly around him for now.

The inside of this rift swirled and churned in onto itself as a deep shade of purple and black mixed itself together along the outer edges of the strange device. From inside of the window, I could see through it plain as day. A single moving picture of a bountiful grass-land was all I could see as the wind brushed by through the landscape. In the background was a great mountain. Upon it, a moderately large area on its side was what I could only presume to be Canterlot. The massive size of the city surprised me. From how the picture seemed, the mountain was off in the distance, but I could still see the city clearly. I almost brought myself to trying to touch the vortex before the sound of Discords amused humming brought me back to rational thinking. "What I propose, is a bargain." A bargain? Stepping to the side of this rift, Discord stared down upon me with a smirk. He leaned upon the purple rim of the circular rift as if it were a wall. I crossed my arms when looking back at the god.

"I'm listening."

Yuck, it felt like I was some sort of criminal just to agreeing to listen to Discord any longer. It felt like I was the right-hand-man to a con-man. The feeling would just have to be stomached for the while. If Celestia really was some sort of tyrant, this may have been my only chance at survival. "I can get you out of here, but first I want you to make a deal with me." The anticipation was unsettling as Discord show-boated his portal. "In order to obtain your' freedom, I just want one little thing." Beginning to draw closer to me the draconequus lightly pinched his index fingers with his thumbs to attempt to display a delicate situation. With every passing word, Discord came ever closer.

"Just. One. Little. Itty. Bitty. Thing."

Bending down to look me in the eyes, the two of us had come to be face to face. It was only for a second though, as when that moment passed Discord backed away to his portal; his back to the rift the entire time. It was here that Discord showed himself in a darker point of view. "Destroy Ponyville." I could feel my eyes widening at just the mentioning of performing such a task. "Burn it to the ground. That is all I ask." How could he ask me to do something like this so easily? Did he have no heart?

Was freedom worth something like that? To burn down an entire village just for one mans' desires? Ruining the lives of many just to save your' own? No... No, there was something very wrong here. "I..." Discord watched me, eagerly awaiting my answer. "I don't think that I can do that." The pitiful sound to my answer caused Discords' smile to vanish almost instantly. "I just don't think I can do that to the ponies that live there... To my friends... To Fluttershy." It wasn't until I mentioned 'Fluttershy' that Discord became deeply angered. His face contorting in and out of rage to try and keep calm. Finally managing, it was easy to tell that there was a struggle for Discord to not begin some sort of rampage as he anxiously tapped his fingers together.

"What was that name? Fluttershy?"

A cruel laugh emanated from Discord as he began to try and verbally beat me down. "You think that mare is your' friend?" He laughed once more to try and discourage me. "That ugly mare?" I could feel something twinge in my gut at Discords statement. "That dastardly, manipulative mare?" A bit of anger had already begun to rise in my own stomach as Discord continued while drawing closer once more. "That stupid, worthless-" Discord had no time to say anything else before I had reared back a fist only for it to make contact with Discords face the moment it was thrown forward. I had become far too angered to think logically any more. I wasn't sure why, but listening to Discord ridicule Fluttershy set me over the edge.

The blow had been strong enough to cause Discord to take a couple steps back, but other than this all it made Discord do was stop talking. This of which was good because I had a few things to say, myself. "Don't you ever say those things about her. She saved my life, so I'll rot in the ground before I let you badmouth that angel." A claw resting upon the cheek I had hit, Discord had his head only turned due to the force from the blow. His expression was... Surprised. Almost as if something happened that he wasn't expecting.

He stood up straight, taking his hand away only to inspect it in awe. There was no blood, not even a bruise had been left on his face. "You hit me? It hurt?" A cocked brow let its' eyes gaze upon me as Discord loomed over me, clueless. "You hit me, and it hurt?" With a snap of his fingers, the vortex had disappeared into a puff of dust. Cluelessness burning into anger and rage, a deep rumble emanated from Discords throat. In an instant, Discord had a hand around my throat before he slammed me into the bars to my cell.

My feet dangled and kicked themselves around in a desperate struggle to free myself. It was all in vain however as I stared into the burning eyes of my assailant. Discords tightening grip brought my hands to grab onto the hand to attempt at loosening it before my air-way could collapse under the pressure. "You little snot! How dare you raise your hand to me!" Once again, I could feel Discords claw tighten around my throat. "Do you think that you can just do anything you want? I ask you one simple task, and this is how you repay my generous offer? No, more than generous offer!?" My breath was running low as I could begin to feel my head spin from the lack of oxygen. The fear of passing out soon had circled my mind before being dropped flat on the floor.

The rush of air entering my lungs left me gasping and wheezing while I was on my knees, forced to keep down from the lack of air. This chimera was going to kill me if Celestia didn't do so first. Was I simply doomed to die here? Maybe so.

"Maybe we got off on the wrong foot, here."

Funny thing about that; in order for Discord to get off on the right foot, he would have to have one to begin with. Grabbing me by the back of my shirt collar, Discord stood me up-right like I was some sort of figurine. His hand slithered around my neck, and up to my face to squeeze my cheek to direct my gaze to his. "I don't have to tell you that I could end your existence without breaking a sweat, do I?" The involuntary shake of the head I made was brought on my Discords own hand turning my head from right to left. "No? Very good. Then maybe we can get back to our little bargain?" Releasing me, Discord had seemed to believe he had exhibited enough power to put me in place. My angered scoff proved otherwise, but Discord now only saw me as a playful challenge.

"Oh, don't be that way. Isn't there anything you want? Fame, fortune, power, love?"

Only the last of these suggestions brought me to slightly withdraw from this worthless bargaining technique. I couldn't care less about the other three, but that last one brought on a slight reaction. While I kept silent, Discord now had more than plenty to say. "Ah, not so popular with the ladies, eh?" The glare I gave Discord made him sarcastically rebound. "Oh, look-out. We have a real tough-guy over here." Never in all my years of life, have I met someone as unpleasant as Discord. I mean, he was smack talking, physically assaulting people, and simply unpleasant. Now here he was brushing me off like I was nothing. "Drop the attitude, junior. Last time I checked, you were the one just pinned up against the wall." Rubbing his chin now, Discord looked at me now like I was some sort of toy. Scanning me up and down, Discord hummed to himself. "Not like you're grotesque, so what's the problem with finding a girl?" Already knowing the answer, Discord continued to pick my brain and delve deeper into my own thoughts. His humiliating tone brought me to look away. "Afraid that your lady-friend would wind up running off with someone else?" As much as I hated to admit it, Discord hit the nail on the head. "Then maybe instead of love-" The echoing snapping noise Discord made brought me to look back up at him if only for being cautious of what may happen. What I saw though was another portal. No danger; just a portal. A portal that I could clearly see very familiar sights within. Familiar landmarks showing up on the circular screen that this rift portrayed. Monuments, statues, people. I don't know how, but this rift was letting me see another world. My world.

"Maybe you just want a ride home?"

Discord could see that I was showing signs of vulnerability at these images, and took full advantage of it. The moment I drew close to the rift it was gone in a flash, leaving me somewhat sullen. "You know my price." I had been the closest to home as I had been over the past day, even if it was just looking at moving pictures. Something like this couldn't be allowed to cloud my thoughts. I had to be strong. So swallowing every last bit of my desires, I shook my head to refuse this offer.

"Then you know my answer."

Taking a deep sigh when hearing my refusal to his offer, Discord covered half of his face with his lions paw. Disappointed, the god was soon pinching the area of the bridge of his nose that it could attempt to relieve stress. "Listen kid, if your' still being sore about that stupid mare, just get off your soap box and-" Before he could even finish, I swung another punch at Discord for his slander. This time however brought a different outcome than the first.

Dodging my punch completely, Discord treated the swing like a game of limbo as he leaned back slyly. The dastardly grin he showed was enough to instill a sense of terror as I could almost feel time slow down. Everything quickly sped up the moment I could catch glimpse of Discord swinging his tail directly at my body. Unfortunately for me, I didn't have nearly as impressive reflexes as Discord owned.

The impact of the blow came slamming against my side. The hit had been so great that the moment it came into contact with me, I was lifted off my feet and sent soaring through one of the stone walls of my cell and directly into its' neighboring chamber. What crumbled rubble that I wasn't laying upon landed on top of me in a thick blanket of stone and concrete.

My body hurt. I've never been this hurt in my entire life. I've been shot, burned, shocked, and hit by a car. Never in my life have I experienced a pain such as this though. This was a whole new level of excruciating for me. No doubt that I would have a few broken bones after this if I lived through it. My body felt broken, so what was there to do now?

The sound of stepping could be heard over the remains of the now crumbling wall I was thrown through. With this came a strong grip on the front of my shirt collar that yanked me from the debris and in the air. A blank stare stuck itself to my face as the head it was attached to lolled back in a state of near unconsciousness. The shaking Discord provided made it more than difficult for me to reach this envied state however. Over the sounds of my chokes and gargles, Discord made a persistent attempt to keep me awake.

"You still persist on defying me, boy!?"

Barely having the energy to do so, I found myself struggling to try and keep myself from passing out. It almost took whatever power I had left just so that I could lift my head up enough to look at Discord. The seething anger he held for me was unmatched by any that I had seen before in a living person. It felt like I was staring death in the face. "E-everything-..." I could feel myself coughing on blood when trying to speak. The warm liquid had already done more than line the bottom of my gums. Lifting both arms to clinch themselves tightly around the lions paw that kept me hanging in the air, I spat what amount of blood that had begun to well inside of my mouth onto Discords face. It wasn't much; just enough to leave a small splatter on his cheek. My vision had already begun to blur, but the dislike the two of us had for each other had at least been made known.

"Everything you told me was a lie, wasn't it?"

To my question, Discord gave no answer. His lips curled to show a set of gnarling teeth. Discord knew that I couldn't trust him anymore, and he didn't like that one bit. In a fit of rage, Discord threw me into the metal bars of the now occupied cell with a heavy clank. The cracking that I heard in the back of my head was no doubt my skull.

I hit the ground on my stomach with a lifeless thud. Pain spread throughout every last part of my body. I could only guess that the warm liquid sliding down the back of my head was blood. The pain didn't end there though. A surge of agony shot up and down my body once Discord began to step on my back. "I could have given you anything you wanted! Anything! Yet, you choose to be squashed under my foot like a bug!" Discords pressure increasing, it was getting difficult to not yell even with the blood that flooded my mouth. My eyes were widened completely during this act of cruelty. There was nothing that I could do to stop Discord. All that I could do was lay still until Discord took his foot off of me.

My breathing had more than quickened in pace. How I had come to endure this violence was a mystery to me. Was I really going to die here? Maybe, but I didn't want to die because of this guy. Discord didn't deserve the pleasure of seeing me die. I couldn't give him that. If Celestia was really going to kill me like Discord said, I wanted it to be because of her; Not because of Discord. "...I thought I told you..." It hurt to speak, but that wasn't anything shocking. If I spoke without trouble after everything I just endured, then I would be concerned. Discord appeared to be fed up with my stubbornness as he lifted a displeased brow to me.

Darn it, it even hurt to breathe now. Coughing once more, I found enough energy to turn my head to look at Discord with nearly blank eyes. I knew that either I was going to die soon, or worse. I hoped for neither. "...Whatever these tests are going to be..." Wheezing had come to be the only way that I could pull air into my lungs now. My vision had become far too blurry for me to see anything. Everything was just a messy mixture of colors and textures.

"...I... Have no intention... of failing..."

If I could have seen anything at this point, the only thing that I would have seen would be Discord being pushed past his breaking point. It was hard to know what was happening, but by the sharp pain there was in my stomach it seemed that Discord decided to kick me while I was down. His blasting voice then filled the room.

"FINE! THEN ROT HERE AS YOU WAIT FOR DEATH!"

With that, Discord snapped his fingers one last time before leaving in the same flash of light as he entered on. With him, the heat and light left as well. I could feel my body starting to tighten up from the freezing cold temperatures once more. There was nothing left to be distorted in my eye-sight. Only an endless darkness.

At least I was alone now. It was only me, my blood, and the rubble. If I died here though, I would have no regrets. These past few days were the most exciting of my entire life. I've met some good people during this little misadventure. Well, they were ponies, but you get my point. I have no regrets what-so-ever to dying here, so all there was to do now was to accept my fate.

Sorry mom, I guess I won't be coming home.

Sorry, Sis.

Sorry everyone.

This is where I die.