You're All Alone, Sweetheart

Chapters

Times are a Changin'
Wake Up Call
One in the Same
Fried Chicken
A Change of Heart?
When the Death Belle Tolls...
No Gods, No Masters, No Lords, No Tyrants
Who Dares Wins?
Victory, But for Who?
Discord's Epilogue
Alternate Ending: I Came, I Saw, I Conquered

Times are a Changin'

"CUTIE MARK CRUSADER CHEMISTS!"

That was the last thing I remembered hearing before the accident. Three years ago. Three. Long. Miserable. Years.

It's amazing how much ponies can change in just a short amount of time. I used to be precious little Sweetie Belle, the cutest filly in all of Ponyville. I had a sister named Rarity, whose really short tempered but fair at times. Then I had the two bestest friends in all of Equestria, Scootaloo and Applebloom. But like I said, allot can change in three years. Friends, family........appearances.

Here, let me tell you the whole sob story:

We, the three young adventurers, were hanging out in the clubhouse, just waiting for something, anything to happen.

Scootaloo skimmed through a checklist, marking off all of the attempts we made at trying to obtain our cutie marks. Applebloom was trying to balance a ball on her nose, I watched.

"Well, it's official," Scootaloo announced. "We tried everything, and still no cutie marks." Her eyes fell to the ground.

"We could try tax filein'!" Applebloom suggested.

We gave her stiff looks. "Who'd want a tax....thing on their flanks?" Scoot asked cockeyed.

Then I got an idea. That STUPID idea! Just the thought of it makes me want to scream. But I was a filly back then, still am, but I was dumber. We all were.

"How about we take a whack at chemistry?" I asked with hope glimmering in my soft green eyes. My friends, my former friends, nodded in agreement.

The next day, after school, we walked back into class and borrowed Ms. Cheerliee's chemistry set from the science cupboard. We had no idea what we were doing, we just let our dreams carve the path.

We made our way back to the clubhouse and gathered around the beaker set over a small fire, excitedly mixing random chemicals together. The concoction turned from a navy blue, to coal black, into a sour apple green. My face hovered right over the bubbling mixture.

Scoot and Apple hopped up and down cheering. "CUTIE MARK CRUSADER CHEMISTS!"

The burning chemical mixture erupted like a geyser. My face was showered with the searing hot mixture, just as Scoot and Apple's cheering turned into screams of bloody murder. I fell back, hooves over my bubbling face, releasing muffled cries and sobs.

I was screaming, "Rarity! Help me!" as my volume of pain increased. Scootaloo was just staring at me, shocked, unable to move. She was just leering over me with tears in her eyes, allowing the chemicals to sink deeper into my skin. Well, that's a bit of a lie. After staring at me like a moron for three minutes, she finally snapped out of it and tried cleaning off the sizzling mixture using our CMC uniforms. Unfortunately, the dumb fool was inadvertently rubbing it into my eyes.

After what felt like hours of agonizing pain, Applebloom came back with Applejack. Why not the authorities? Medics? Anyone other than a cowpony?

Now Applejack may be an apple-bucking hick, but she knows what to do in a situation like this. She set me on her back and told my friends to get Rarity and the others. I dozed off from pure exhaustion before we even made it to the hospital.

When I woke up from a daylong's rest, I only saw the whiteness of bandages blocking my vision. Taking a deep breath of fresh air, I almost gagged at the strong scent of floor cleaner. I tried speaking. The only sounds I made were nails-on-chalkboard voice cracks. But then I heard shuffling to my right, like somepony was flipping through a magazine.

The speaker had a very familiar voice, "Girls! Girls! She's waking up!" It was Rarity. And just for the record, I was surprised she left her precious boutique to stay with me in the hospital. A crowd of hooves clopping on the tile floor approached each side of my bed.

"Sweetie Belle, you're okay!" Scootaloo said, sounding particularly relieved. I smiled, only to realize my entire head was wrapped in bandages.

"Ya gave us a real scare, Sweetie!" Applebloom set her front hooves on my bed.

I spoke, though my voice was fairly hoarse. After many painstaking attempts I said, "R-Rar-ity?"

She gently placed a hoof on my head, "Yes darling, I'm here. My friends will be here in a couple hours to see how you're doing."

At the time, I thought it was because they cared about me. How naive I was back then; they were only there because Rarity asked them to.

After three days of bed rest and regaining my voice, the time finally came to remove my bandages. My friends, as well as Rarity's gathered around my bed. Doctor Hooves unraveled the wrapping around my head. He gently lifted them off, careful not to harm my irritated skin.

When I opened my eyes, everything was a blur, but I did hear some very peculiar whispers and murmurs. Vision steadily returned. The look on everpony's face would stay with me the rest of my life. They looked shocked, Rarity in particular was rather horrified.

"What?" I asked sweetly.

Rarity started to tear up. Scootaloo said, "You look like a burnt marshmallow!" I had no idea what she meant. Rainbow Dash shot her a nasty glance.

Dr. Hooves returned with a mirror, to show the disfigured monster once known a Sweetie Belle. My left eye was now a milky white, no green iris or pupil. Just a void blank stare. The eye on the right was okay though, but it had a hideous burnt scar going from my brow all along my cheek and finally ending at the corner of my lips. My once beautiful white coat was scorched in several places, mainly edging the scar though. My skin was infected, making it lumpy and uneven. The area around my nose looked like chewed up bubblegum. Repulsive is too kind of a term to describe me. And last but not least, my ice cream swirl mane was no longer soft and fluffy. It was oily, disgusting, and gave off a rancid odor whenever I got sweaty, forcing me to take a bath nearly everyday. I looked like a monster, no, I am a monster. At least, that's what a little filly called me in the market once.

I started to cry, my friends consoled me. I asked for Rarity, who was also sobbing. When she heard me calling, she gave me a distant look, like I was an alien, aversly trotted over to me, and gave me the most reluctant hug possible, lightly wrapping her arms around me, not even trying to hug tightly, like I had some contagious disease. It stung me. It created a wound between Rarity and I that will never heal. The past three years she just kept throwing salt without letting it heal, though she made some pretty lame attempts.

As if my life couldn't get any worse, Scootaloo and Applebloom had 'big news.' Can ya guess? They got their frickin' cutie marks. Do you know in what though? Scoot somehow got one in chemistry, represented by a filled beaker. And Applebloom got her's in medical, represented by a red cross. Over the past three years, Scoots focused her studies on making chemical bombs for demolition when she's older and Apple worked as a ranch doctor with Granny Smith.

Did I get mine? NO! OF COURSE NOT! Why would I? It's my destiny to be a blank flank! Maybe that's my special talent. But my friends promised to stick by me, always. Sounds nice, huh? Well, you know that old saying, 'Don't make a promise if you know you can't keep it?'

Well, it's true. Just ask those treacherous little twits I once called friends. Though they kept their promise for a few months, they'd eventually start saying, 'Sorry Sweetie, I'm busy.' when I tried setting up a playdate. But it's all B.S. I saw them on one of those 'busy days' hanging out with Silver Spoon and Diamond Tiara. That's right, I was replaced by our arch-enemies. At first, I thought it was because I didn't have a cutie mark, cramping their popularity. But now, looking back at it, I noticed a bunch of ponies whispering to eachother whenever we'd walk by, stealing glances at the circus freak. Foals would laugh at me and call me 'burnt marshmallow.'

Scootaloo and Applebloom didn't want to be around the freak, that's what it really is. So instead of talking about it, they abandoned me. Just like they promised. And of course, no other pony would want to be around the ugliest filly in Equestria, so I haven't had anypony to talk too in years.

In my spare time, I'd go to Twilight's library and borrow a couple of books on magic. She happily lends them to me, like a big sister would. Or should. In fact, Twilight is the only pony who doesn't shun me for my appearance. She speaks in a celestial tone and always greets me with the warmest smiles.

The books I rent teach Unicorns how to use magic. I suppose that if I'm gonna be a blank flank, I might aswell do something worthwhile.

I'm gonna say this right now: Rarity is the worst sister in Ponyville. I always try to embrace her, to which she cautiously returns. As I walk out of the room, I'd hear her spraying something in the air. After a brief investigation, I found out it was a can of disinfectant spray.

Whenever she goes out, I offer to come along.

"Hey big sis! Can I come?" I'd happily trot over to her wearing a misshapen lumpy grin.

She'd always gaze at my greasy lanky hair. "It's okay, uh, Sweetie. It's just a bunch of boring shopping trips, you won't like it."

"Okay." I'd say sadly. I actually believed her. But soon after I realized she didn't want to be seen in public with me. She'd stay a short distance away from me, or give me some money to buy ice cream.

I tearfully called mommy and daddy to see if I can live with them, but they're always on some important business trip. They probably don't even know what happened.

My name is Sweetie Belle. I'm eight years old, younger sister of Rarity, the most gorgeous pony in Ponyville.

I'm all alone in this world. There's no one to be with, to love. I guess I should just live the rest of my life as an outcast. As a burnt marshmallow. As a freak.

I'm tired of Ponyville, tired of these ponies.....tired of living.

Wake Up Call

Come on! Concentrate! I know I can do it! My horn began to glow a vibrant green, defying the foreboding darkness of the night. Across the room, my porcelain clock began to glow the same shade.

Just a little more! I felt the muscles in my neck tighten, sweat poured down my face. The clock began to shake as it was slowly lifted in the air. Come on you stupid horn! Work!

I screamed in frustration as the luminous mint green light filled my darkened bedroom. Cracks began to form at the base of the porcelain clock. Just one last push.... My knees locked, my good eye shot daggers at the target. A little more.... A crash rung my ears.

Chunks of glass like material shot across the room. I did it! I managed to perform the demo-spell! Sure, it cost me this priceless family heirloom, but what the hay? It's just a clock. An awful smell filled my room. Ugh, my stupid hair. Rarity's gonna say-

And as if on cue, she poked her into my room. "Sweetie Belle! It's time to for-" She wrinkled her nose, immediately placing a hoof over it. "Uhhh, Sweetie? Please take your bath now!" And she immediately vacated my doorway.

I grunted in response, not that she could hear it. I don't bother cleaning my room. Rarity almost faints every time she sees it, I see it as a memento towards my growing success in the field of magic. My heavy gaze dragged across the broken mirror, a fracture sprawled across the surface like a spider web. Then my eyes fell upon the scorched carpet from when I tried to perform an incendiary charm. Beside it lied an opened copy of Spells and Charms for Beginners, Grade 2 that Twilight gave me for my birthday last year, celebrated at the Fashion Boutique.

Such an awful day. She and Rarity were the only ones there, everyone else had 'special plans.' I was furious, bursting into angry tears. Twilight calmed me down while Rarity tried fixing her precious store. I screamed and swore, calling everypony a traitor, said many things I ended up regretting. It turned out that there was truth to Twilight's words.

Rainbow Dash had a storm to organize, Pinkie had to babysit, Fluttershy put together an animal retreat, and Applejack was harvesting the season's apples, as usual. And let's not forget my 'friends.' They conveniently had family matters they had to attend to. I confronted them in class, called them out.

"Why weren't you at my party!?" I glared at them with my milky eye.

Scootaloo put a hoof on my shoulder, I swatted her away. "Sorry Sweetie, I had to visit Cloudsdale for the day." She seemed sympathetic. I didn't buy it.

Applebloom added, "And I had to help Big Macintosh with the plowin'." I almost believed her. I really did. But then I saw the slightest smirk cross her lips.

"What're you laughing at!?" I screamed, slowly approaching her.

She slowly back away saying, "Nothing Sweetie! Honest! It was, uh, a funny joke I heard!" A nervous smile played her expression.

I wasn't going to hurt her, not back then I wouldn't. I heard snickering behind my back. Diamond Tiara whispered to Silver Spoon, "The burnt marshmallow's having a meltdown."

I whipped my head around, "You're DEAD!" and pounced on her. The tiara she so proudly boasted slid across the class upon impact. As I chewed her ear, the bitter taste of blood caked my taste buds.

Ms. Cheerilee pried us apart as soon as the fight started. Tiara was sent to the hospital for minor stitching, I was suspended for three weeks. I haven't talked to Scoot or Apple since then. They think I'm a spaz, awkwardly glancing at me as I walk to my desk. You could say it's my fault for driving them away. Sometimes, I think I do. When I was younger, I thought friends stuck with eachother 'till the end, no matter what. That's what the old mare's tale always said. 'The magic of friendship' my flank. Just tell that to Scoot and Apple.

Well nowadays I just spend most of my time studying magic in these books, trying to bring out my full potential. When I told Twilight this, she nearly flipped to the point to where she volunteered to be my teacher. I disregarded her offer, saying I'd rather learn alone, to which she genuinely understood. I feel myself getting a little more powerful everyday, but that's just it. A little's not enough. The only spell I managed to master is the fire charm. It took a year. Pathetic. Twilight mastered at least six spells her first year practicing magic.

I trotted towards the bathroom, the stench of my slipshod hair not far behind. Rarity already filled the bathtub. I clambered in and vigorously scrubbed the flaky rough scalp beneath my mangy hair.

Today was by far the worst day of my life since the accident.

Class began the next morning, as always. I sat in the back of the room with my face buried in my folded front legs. Yeah, I slept most of the time in class. Already failing this term, Ms. Cheerilee said if I don't 'take it up a notch,' then I'll be held back. Rarity took away most of my privileges to motivate me, saying it's for my own good. Do I really care? No. Should I care? Well, considering how I'm eight and still a blank flank, no. I slept through the same old spiel about friendship, had same old dream of me telling my friends in the clubhouse, 'Nah, chemistry's boring. Let's try something else.' And waking up with wet tracks marked down my face.

Then came snack time. I never have anything, don't eat much anymore to the point where you could almost see my ribcage through my fur. Somepony chucked a partially melted marshmallow at my face. Now, this is pretty much routine. It didn't bother me as much as it used too. A pony brings a jumbo marshmallow to class, places it near the heater, and throws it at me.

Today's lucky pony was Silver Spoon, who was laughing it up with the rest of the class.

But what got me was they started insulting me. "What's wrong marshmallow? You gonna home cry to your parents?" Tiara asked in a mocking tone. "Oh, I'm sorry! They don't want a hideous piece of blank flank trash like yourself!" The class's laughter turned hysterical. Oh, where's Ms. Cheerilee?

Why did they have to be so mean? My eyes started to water as the warm gooey marshmallow slid down my scarred cheek. Facing the horde of cackling colts and fillies, I scraped off the sticky food, clumps of it remained matted into my fur.

"Please leave me alone...." I muttered, inaudible to the students.

Caught in a laughing fit, Silver Spoon managed to say, "What about Rarity? She seems to like you!" Obvious sarcasm dripped from her words.

Tiara playfully slapped her. "Don't encourage the girl! Rarity would never love a filly with such an ugly mug!"

As my cries grew louder, the laughter did as well. "Leave me alone!" I yelled. My eyes became to foggy to see if Applebloom or Scootaloo joined in.

Silver Spoon pointed a hoof at me with a nasty smirk on her face. "Look! Look! The marshmallow's gonna have another meltdown!"

Ms. Cheerilee finally walked back into class and saw what was happening. "Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon! See me after class!"

Tiara trotted over to her and said with a deviant smirk, "Aw come on Ms. Cheerilee, were just having a good laugh with our favorite food!"

My face grew blood red. "Leave me alone!" I screamed as tears flowed over my eyelids.

The class's hurtful comments sunk deep, destroying the last shred of humility I had left. My horn began to crackled with green electricity.

I rose from my seat with my hideous face twisted into an even more grotesque anger. Some students stopped laughing and looked up at me in awe and fear.

I took a deep shaking breath, "I said: LEAVE ME ALONE!" And I vanished in a flash of green light.

I apparated to the only place I could think of, Lake Alicorn. I come here often to collect my thoughts. It's away from Ponyville, along the outskirts of town. It's a calm, tranquil place uninhabited by any noisy seagulls.

The first thing I did was bury my face in the sand and scream. Then I crawled to the shoreline and rubbed water into my reddened eye, the one that still had color.

I peered into the shimmering lake surface. A stranger looked back up at me. "Look at you." I spat. "You're PATHETIC!" I slammed a hoof into the water. The splash disrupted the image but soon pieced itself back together.

In reality, I haven't truly sobbed like this since I awakened from the accident. It felt great actually, three years of compressed insults and pranks being let out at once. I could never do this in Ponyville, they'd all hear how loud I was.

A sudden pressure was felt on my shoulder. It was rough but gentle too. The hand was a large furry lion's paw. At first, I jumped, thinking it was an Manticore. He hasn't attacked yet, and I couldn't spare the mystery. My gaze traveled up the owner's arm to see his face.

Though it was silhouetted against the afternoon sun, I could make out the two odd horns on the top of his head, one crooked and the other curved.

He spoke in a smooth, attention-grasping voice, "Now now little one, what's the fun in crying if there's no one to hear it?" His mouth curved into a devious grin.

One in the Same

"What are you? And what do you want?" I asked with a depression thick voice.

The creature simply said, "Oh, I'm just a good old friend of Princess Celestia just passing through the......peaceful town of Ponyville."

The being stopped flapping his small contrasting wings and knelt beside me. I examined his odd features. This.....thing looked like he was made from a jigsaw puzzle of different animals. We both stared across the vast body of water in an awkward silence. There was just something about this creature that seemed very familiar. I just can't put my hoof on it.

Out of nowhere the creature became frustrated. He hovered a couple inches in the air and said, "Oh for pete's sake! You don't remember me? Class field trip? Almost four years ago? Plunged Equestria into everlasting chaos?"

It suddenly hit me. "Oh, right. You're Discord, the chaos guy. My sister talked about you, said you're annoying." My voice was flat and monotone, devoid of any emotion.

The draconequus folded his arms and rose a single bushy eyebrow. "'The chaos guy' she says. I'm Discord! Lord of chaos and mischief!"

My eyes closed half-shut. "Then why aren't you doing any of that now? How'd you get set free anyway?"

He fell to the ground and crossed his legs, facing me. "I've been free only mere months after the incident, so it's been about four years. I don't make the same mistakes twice, darling." He spoke in a darkened tone, but soon returned to his exuberant demeanor.

"So, instead of doing entirely out of the ordinary things that would make the ponies suspicious, I only create chaos through more....subtle actions." He gave a sullen groan. "It's so BORING! If only I could find a way to defeat those insipid ponies, then the world would be fun again!"

I paid careful attention to every word, but I had to ask once more, "How'd you escape?"

He ran his eagle claw through the sand as he recalled the tale, "Well, after those wretched ponies turned me into stone, the Princess threw me away!"

I said an exaggerated, "No way!"

He nodded his head. "And you won't believe what actually freed me."

He arced his snake-like neck and I leaned in, actually interested in hearing this. In a loud, over dramatic whisper he said, "At the dump, two ponies were fighting over a silly corn muffin."

I attempted to suppress laughter, placing both hooves over my mouth. Discord retracted his head and pointed an eagle finger at me. "Oh, I see a smile on that face!" Not wanting to stop his comedy act, Discord materialized a glass of chocolate milk in his hand.

"This one always knocks 'em out!" He said enthusiastically. He tilted his head back and drank the milk. But instead of the milk being drunk, somehow the cup itself was consumed and the formula remained in the glass's shape. Discord threw the milk behind him and it exploded rather cartoonishly.

A broad grin etched my coarse lips. Together, Discord and I started to laugh hysterically. I couldn't even remember the last time I had so much fun.

But there's one thing that still irked me. "Why're you doing this?"

The being shrugged. "I live to be random, my dear. But I do enjoy making others laugh." He took a deep sigh as a bottle of soda appeared in his lion paw. He used the one pointed tooth jutting from his upper lip as a bottle opener and pried the cap off. When it opened, an explosion of streamers and confetti fluttered out.

Setting the random item aside, Discord asked. "Now tell me my dear, what's the problem?"

I glared at him with the grimmest of expressions. He seemed unfazed. "Don't you see? I'm a freak! A hideous monster everypony laughs at. Even my sister hates me." A series of unpleasant memories from the past three years made tears cloud my eyes.

Discord stroked his silvery beard. "Ah yes, Rarity. You're her little sister, no doubt. What was your name? Ah, yes. Sweetie Belle."

I pounded the sand. "Nopony likes me anymore. They all think I'm hideous, a monster."

"I don't think you're hideous." I turned to look at the being who just said that. I was so taken aback I was at a loss for words. I could only manage to say a stuttering, "Wh-What?" I searched his glowing yellow eyes for any hint of deceit.

He repeated himself, "I don't think you're hideous. Now me on the other hand, oh dear." I wiped my eyes and gave a little snicker. Discord continued in a humorous tone, "Let's just say you won't be seeing me on the fashion runways of Fillidelphia."

We both shared a good laugh at his remark. This was the happiest I've been in my entire life, and it's with the largest threat to ponies in history. Discord took a deep breath, stuck a finger in the lake, turning the crystal clear water into what looked like....melted butter?

The draconequus sighed and said in a calming tone. "Nah, you're not ugly."

Thinking he was lying to me, I sprung up on all fours and said, "Is that some sort of sick joke."

Discord fluttered a few inches above the ground. He arced his head down to my eye level. "This is not a joke child. I can't justify other's appearance when I look like......this." He stared down his body of mismatched body parts. At that moment, I realized something: Discord didn't seem to care about his appearance, yet he knows he's the very definition of a freak.

In out-of-character words of wisdom, Discord philosophied, "Your appearance shows who you are, child, don't run away from it, embrace it. Look at me, I'm a chaotic mess of different animals. So what'd I do? I turned into a crazy off the walls super-powered maniac!"

I gave a lopsided smile and nodded, taking his oddly brilliant words to heart. Discord disappeared and reappeared hovering above me, grimacing at Celesita's setting sun.

I shifted the sand around my hooves and randomly asked, "Hey Discord? What should I do with my life?"

Of course, being the lord of mischief, had to make his response as obscure and confusing as possible. "All the world is a stage, my dear. Death is the finale, so you must plan out the acts beforehand. You're the director, you make the decisions." He simpered deviously.

I rolled my eyes. "Gee. Thanks." I think I'll look deeper into what he said later.

I looked up. "Hey, I should go. My sister's probably worried sick about me."

Discord teleported in the lake of liquefied butter, turning it back into water. "So long my dear. Perhaps we'll cross paths again soon."

I waved goodbye and turned to make my way home. I wasn't gonna tell Rarity about my new friend, she'll just take that away too.

"Rarity! Just calm. Down." Twilight placed both hooves on her friend's shoulders.

She stepped back and blew into a tissue levitating in front of her. "Calm down!? With Sweetie Belle missing? Did you even hear what those awful fillies said to her!?"

"She's a smart kid. She'll turn up eventually." The lilac unicorn reassured her, followed by the slamming of the door.

Sweetie Belled trotted in with a stern look on her face. Rarity galloped towards her and stood beside her, not making physical contact. "Sweetie Belle! You're alright!"

She glared at her elder. "I'm going to bed." She said flatly.

As she hopped up the stairs, Rarity wrinkled her nose. "Don't forget to take a bath!"

"SHUT UP!"

Twilight flinched at the outburst. She slowly scooted out the front door saying, "Well, I guess everything's in order. I'll see you tomorrow Rarity."

In a sad tone she said, "Yeah, I guess."

Twilight gave her a consoling smile. "It'll be okay, Rarity. When her birthday comes next week, I'm sure she's gonna flip."

The pearl white unicorn beamed with hope. "Perhaps darling, perhaps."

All the world is a stage. You're the director, you make the decisions. You're appearance shows who you are.

Discord's hypnotic words ran through my head. What did all of this mean? Is he telling me to use my power to shape the world? No, that's silly. I'm not even that powerful, even though I'd like to be.

As I lied in bed wrapped in my purple silk blanket, I stayed wide awake just trying to sort out this puzzling creature. Should I even trust him? He's known to be deceptive, but he really did seem like a guy trying his best to cheer up a sad little filly. And you know what? It worked. He really did make me feel better about myself. The very thought of happiness almost seemed like a far-fetched hoax.

Why couldn't Rarity do that? She's so caught up in her work she forgot what being a sister even meant. I might as well be one of those eerie mannequins downstairs, because that's pretty much how she treats me; dresses me up in those gaudy dresses as her way of having fun.

In fact, though it made me sick to my stomach, Discord was more of an older sibling than Rarity was the entire eight years of my life.

We're pretty much one in the same; Freaks cast aside by society, only to wield the most powerful weapon of all time: Betrayal.

Oh sweet Celestia! What am I even thinking? I'm no murderer. I'm just a filly that had some bad luck. That's all.

Eventually, I slipped into a deep sleep. I experienced sweet comforting dreams of burning meadows, sunken cities, and Princess Celestia bloodied and beaten with a pool of crimson beneath her. I sat on the throne, proudly boasting her royal crown as all of Equestria crumbled under it's own ignorance.

Fried Chicken

I skipped school this morning to visit Lake Alicorn.

As I rotted out the door, Rarity greeted me. I didn't make eye contact with her thought she attempted to make small talk. "Hello, darling. Did you have a lovely rest?"

I grunted in response and pressed on, hearing her sigh as I slammed the door.

Honestly, I didn't give a flying feather about education anymore. There's really no point. I wanted to do something worth while, something Equestria would never forget. I thought I could cut a deal with Discord. It's torture, not knowing why I trust him so much. It's just something about him seemed so....right. Upon arriving to the lake, the demon himself was there taking a nap on a levitating hammock.

Before I even opened my mouth, the draconequus removed his novelty red sunglasses and said, "I'd knew you'd return, darling."

Well, tomorrow's my birthday. Yeah, you could tell I'm excited, right? No, I'm not. Rarity's probably gonna give me another dress I'll just throw in the closet.

Speaking of Rarity, I've been avoiding her ever day. Though, that really had no effect on my life, considering how the only difference is that I'm doing it intentionally. Every day I skip school to train in magic with Discord. He was in a laughing fit of disbelief at first, but then realized I was up to the challenge.

It hasn't been easy. I've had a few breakdowns where I got unbearably agonizing headaches. Discord says that's normal, and every unicorn goes through that. I'd writhe in pain, rolling in the sand as bursts of magic shot out of my horn like a loose cannon.

I had no idea it takes so much skill just to cast a spell. I had to concentrate, think of something that relates to the spell, such as snow when casting an ice charm. Steady inhales or rapid breaths are also key depending on the very class of spell, such as destructive or illusion based jinxes.

I learned so much more in a week than I have in a whole year. The books never go into much detail, probably for the 'safety of Equestria.' Then again, these books weren't written by an evil spirit with eons and eons of knowledge and experience.

Like for example, I could only disperse a single wimpy spark of electricity from my horn. But after Discord's rough, grueling, training, I can now send an entire current through the lake surface. It's intoxicating, really. I never even dreamed of becoming this powerful of a sorcerer. But I needed more, though there's no possible way I could do it alone.

As Discord and I sat along the shore, eating fried.....I don't even know what Discord conjured up, I suggested it to him. "Hey, uh, Mr. Discord? Just out of curiosity, is there any possible way to.....become ruler of Equestria?"

The creature spat out his food in a fit of laughter, "Priceless! Simply priceless! Do you honestly think that's even possible? You'd have to deal with the entire royal guard, breach the castle's defenses, complete a ritual as powerful as Celestia herself to access powerful magic, get rid of the Elements, deal with her.......annoying sister, Luna, and finally, defeat the Princess in a duel capable of destroying all of Canterlot." He took a deep breath, "So probably." He said sarcastically.

Jeez, I had no idea it would be that difficult. But the dream I had a few nights ago just seemed so real. So believable.

But then I remembered a pretty substantial event that happened a couple years ago. "What about that Changeling character? She beat Celestia in a duel."

Discord waved a hand in dismissal. "Celestia....wasn't even.....trying." He said in between the last chews of his meal. "The jinx that prohibits powerful magic effects the Princess to, same with me." He stroked his silvery beard. "No, to disarm the jinx, we'd have to complete a series of challenging tasks."

"What?" I asked with hope glistening in my one green eye.

Discord scratched the area in between his horns, trying to remember. "If I remember that old ritual correctly, and by the way, it's been a couple hundred centuries since the thing's been cast, so cut me a break, you'd need the keepers of the Elements of Harmony."

I growled like an angered predator, then sighed. What am I thinking? I pretty much am a monster now, driven on an insatiable hunger for power. Right now, this'd be the turning point where the fallen hero would realize what they're saying. Did I? Absolutely not. I want this power. I need this power. And I'm not gonna let my awful sister and her self righteous friends get in my way.

The spirit continued, flying in a circle for some out of nowhere reason. He almost looked like an uroboros snake. "Just to give you a little history, Celestia and Luna wanted a way so that this spell would never be broken. So they made the keepers of the Elements, at the time themselves, the keys."

So that basically made our job easier, but also more redundant. Discord continued, now leaning against an invisible wall. "You'd need an honest tear, and a, uh, oh right! A loyal 'flash' of an eye, a kind blood 'donation.'" He giggled at the emphasis he put on 'donation.' "A hair of laughter, and-" He took a pause to chuckle, knowing I'll like this one, "a generous amount of flesh. Oh, and they all still have to be alive." He could no longer contain his building laughter.

That's not funny. I'm going to have to dismember my sister without killing her? That's just messed up, even by my standards. "Why does this seem so cryptic?" I asked.

Discord leaned over, his eyes locked in mine. "Because," He began in a serious tone. "Everything was dark back then, my dear. Equestria wasn't always the bright and cheerful place it is today." His eyes popped open in realization. "In fact, it still isn't. I'm just the only one who sees the strings."

I was a bit creeped out by his statement. Walking back home, I said, "Well, I'll see you later Discord."

He waved an eagle claw at me saying, "Think about this ritual hun, I'm sure you'll find a way!" Then he morphed into a batch of balloons that rose into the air.

As I walked home mulling over this insane ritual, a stranger grabbed me and pulled me into the abandoned Sugarcube Corner. The assailant shoved their hoof in my mouth, muffling my screams. To see his face, the tip of my horn lit up, illuminating the darkened shop. I could see the outlines of planks sealing the windows, preventing any outside light to come in.

I let out a muffled gasp once I saw the captor's face. Scootaloo? She ungagged me and set in a hasty whisper, "Sweetie Belle! What the hay's goin' on?! Why're you conspiring against Equestria with that Discord thing?"

My eyes shifted around as I tripped over my words. "I, uh, what're you...uh, I have no idea what you're talking about."

She frowned. "I wasn't born yesterday, Sweetie! I saw you talking to him! You haven't been in school for weeks! We're all worried about you! Your sister's worried about you!"

I struggled in her grasp to no avail, trying to keep concentrating on my light spell. "No you're not. None of you care about me." I said matter-of-factly.

Scootaloo looked hurt, like she actually expected me to believe her. Her ruffled purple mane went over her left eye as the other searched my blank face for any signs of emotions. "What gave you that idea?"

My grotesque face twisted into an even more hideous scowl. "Are you kidding? None of you talk to me anymore, everypony laughs at me, my own sister doesn't even give me a hug!" My voice cracked as it always did when I got angry.

Scoot actually looked sympathetic. "Sweetie, things change over the years. Allot. Applebloom and I have simply been too busy-"

"Hanging out with Diamond Tiara." I snapped.

She was taken aback, but continued. "Rainbow Dash is in the Wonderbolts now." That, I did not know, caused a surprised gasp that made me look weak. "Fluttershy owns a retreat for abused animals," Let them die, I thought bitterly. "Applejack and Applebloom are still trying to cope with the loss of Granny Smith and run the farm after the entire batch of apples were poisoned last year." Well boo-hoo for them. "And you know this one already, Pinkie Pie adopted Pound Cake and Pumpkin Cake after their parents died in the fire that happened here two years ago."

My heart actually ached for a brief moment, but was replaced with anger when I realized nopony ever told me that. I just though the cakes moved out of town, and this place got condemned or something.

"Don't you see Sweetie Belle? Ponies change. Nothing ever stays the same." Saying nothing, I glared at her with my milky eye, actually causing her to shift from hoof to hoof uneasily.

"Uh, Belle?" She cocked her head to the side.

I looked down at her fully grown pegasus wings, which she uses to fly now. Took her long enough, right? "And this should change my mind because......?"

Her jaw dropped in disbelief. "What's gotten into you?! You used to be a sweet little filly that would never hurt a fly, let alone try and overthrow the Princess!"

I gave the slightest smirk. "Like you said, things change."

She stepped back from me, allowing my front hooves to fall to the ground. A look of horror and confusion sprawled across Scoot's face. "You're a monster! Discord has done something to your brain, I know it!"

I took a small step forward, making her actually flinch. "This whole town has had it coming for a while! Even if things change, that doesn't justify the chicken scratch I went through for THREE YEARS!" Both of us actually shook at the tone I was using. "THREE YEARS! The most miserable, gut-wrenching years of my whole life! No filly EVER should have to go through that! Does Celestia care? NO! Does my sister? NO! Do you? NO!" Scootaloo was now back up against the smoldered counter. "Does Discord? Yes. Yes he does. I'm aware of the dark things that happen underneath this peaceful land. What I'm doing is a favor." I gave a psychotic grin, followed by an insane cackle. Maybe I am crazy. But oh well. It's better than reality, by a long shot.

Instead of cowering, Scootaloo actually tried to hold her ground. "Don't worry Sweetie. I'll let Twilight and her friends now about Discord. We'll cure you, promise."

I shot her an eerily disturbed grin. "You're gonna run away, chicken?" I reminded her of that horrible nickname fillies called her when she couldn't fly.

Her face flushed into a bright pink. "Shut up, burnt marshmallow!"

I ceased my crazed giggling. She just crossed the point of no return right there. I concentrated as hard as I can, locking my knees, thinking of the sun, focusing on a puzzled Scootaloo. Her eyes widened in fear, staring in horror at the jet of fire emerging from my horn and shooting towards her like a fountain.

She was a goner before she even had a chance to run. Her beautiful orange coat was now a hideous charred black. The feathers on her wings burnt from the tips, the extreme heat eventually forced her uncovered eye to burst like a juicy grape. Scoot's tears evaporated before the were even shed as the massive flame engulfed her tiny frame. She clambered and bumped into the already scalded counter and tables. Instead of screaming, like I hoped she would, she released mangled and twisted cries of agony.

The whole time she stumbled around the room like a drunken peasant, I watched contently. My emerald eye occasionally twitched as I softly sang, "You're the fire in my eye.....It'll burn until I die."

Finally, Scootaloo's charred corpse tripped into the wall, still burning in the dimming but still hungry flame.

I was simply ecstatic.

Then happy.

Content.

Confused.

Shocked.

Appalled.

Scared.

Depressed.

And finally, an overwhelming blend of all these emotions hit me like a tidal wave. I collapsed to the ground, bawling into the foreboding darkness of the scorched Sugarcube Corner. What's wrong with me? What have I done? And why does all of this have to happen to me?

A Change of Heart?

I ran home as fast as I could, away from Scootaloo's barbecued corpse. As an extra precaution, I made sure the fire was put out, just to prevent anypony from discovering the grisly scene. Luckliy, nopony was around when I bolted out the door. It felt weird, running away like a coward, from murdering your ex-best friend. I ignored my breakdown, considered it as just a little speed bump. I think I'll just completely forget about what happened back there. Dwelling on it won't change anything. Tumbling through the front door of the Fashion Boutique, Rarity sat on a pillow drinking some tea in her inspiration room.

When she saw me, she let out a surprised gasp. "Sweetie Belle! You got your cutie mark! But....what is it?"

Huh? What's she talking about? I reared my head and shifted my flank to the right. Oh my gosh....this can't be right. My cutie mark was that of a small flame.

Rarity noticed it to, and she eyed me suspiciously. "Sweetie? What have you been doing?"

I bolted up the stairs and locked my door behind me. I just can't believe this! Why, out of all the thing I've done, did I get a cutie mark for committing murder? That's life for you, I guess.

An echoed voice filled my room, and a familiar one at that. "Well done! Well done! I bet you're real happy you got your little cutie mark, eh darling?" Discord.

"Why this?" I asked in an annoyed tone, "Why did it have to be this?" Then I noticed the source of his voice was from a spider hanging by a thread in the corner of my room. Two misshapen horns protruded from his head, giving it away.

"Now, now, darling. Don't be ashamed of it, embrace it! Your specialty is fire, use it! But I also have a new piece of information for you." My ears stood up at his statement. "Tomorrow's your birthday, and after some eavesdropping, I know that all six of the Elements will be attending it. You know what to do, and save Rarity for last. Make it....inconspicuous as well." Ideas and plans formed in my head as he continued in fascinated tone, "I also have a spy in the castle, Trixie. You probably remember her."

Yeah, I remembered. That egotistical loudmouth who pretended to be a bigshot? Right as I wondered how that useless waste of life even got into Canterlot, Discord answered that like a mind reader. "She wants to see Equestria crumble too, and form a Utopia like us. She's gotten more powerful with magic over the past few years and has earned the right of being Celestia's court mage. I told her of our plan, and she asked me to give you this parchment. Study it tonight my dear, I'll see you soon."

The spider vanished in a small flash that faintly illuminated my darkened bedroom. In it's place, a small folded sheet of parchment drifted to the floor. I opened it and levitated the note towards me. The paper was torn and stained with dark coffee splotches, and the handwriting was barely legible.

The ink was neat enough for me to make out though. It said:

Holy Arms Spell

The Great and Powerful Trixie apologizes for the rough description, but this spell would certainly help against Celestia's elite guards. Just think of a sword or knife, and your horn will be cocooned in a burning light capable of cleaving through even the most durable of metals. It take some time to master, but shouldn't take too long.

Good Luck.

-TGAP Trixie

Why does she talk in third person? No matter, I'll fix that later. But for now, this spell seems critical for battling Celestia's guards. Let's get started.

I stayed up until four in the morning trying to get this spell right. I think I've got it, but it's still a bit rusty. After training, I collapsed to the floor and fell into an unshakable rest, only to awaken at ten.

If Discord's information was reliable, then my sister and her friends should be here, waiting for the birthday girl to get up. As I sneaked down the creaky old stairs with my saddlebag slung over my back, I heard giggling and faint whispers, signifying the presence of her friends. It seemed that no one heard about Scootaloo yet. Thank Celestia she's an orphan.

I galloped down the stairs with a fake smile, pretending I'm actually happy to see everypony. They all cheered, "Happy Birthday Sweetie Belle!"

I gave a wider false grin, yet deep inside, a small portion of it was genuine. It made me a bit happy to see all of these familiar faces after a few years. That's really thoughtful.......though it still doesn't justify them for abandoning me. But this party! Y'know, I think Rarity may actually have the smallest sliver of compassion after all. There were purple, white, and pink balloons strung up around the dining table, streamers, presents stacked up on the coffee table, and a tall, almost wedding-like birthday cake. Hey, I may be an evil twisted monster, but I'm still a filly inside. No! I can't get blindsided with bought love! This is just some trick to get me to worship Rarity again.

.......Right?

Everypony, apart from Twilight and my sister, looked a bit different. For one thing, they were all a bit taller than I last remembered. Rainbow Dash was wearing her blue and yellow Wonderbolts uniform, the goggles were set on her forehead just above her cerise eyes.

Applejack still wore that iconic brown sheriff hat, her mane was cut shorter and no longer bound to a red hair tie. It just fell to the base of her neck. Other than that, she still looked the same. But still, I really liked her mane.

From what I heard about Pinkie Pie losing her landlords/employers and having to take care of their kids, I expected her to look like a train wreck. But no, she's still the bubbly frizzy haired pony that never gets tired of smiling.

Fluttershy's pink mane concealed the left side of her face and was cut short at the chin while the other half fell all the way to the ground. Her tail even looked slightly more curled.

And finally, though I'm still trying to believe this, but is that Spike? He was about the size of a pony now, most of his baby fat was shed, making his face look more angled and ferocious. But in his emerald green eyes, I still saw the warm little guy that was madly in love with my sister. His green spikes were more curved and sharp, his nails grew longer, and the most notable of changes were the dark purple set of wings folded neatly against his back.

"Hi, everypony!" I said with a little sweet laugh at the end.

For the past hour, we all just mingled with one another and enjoyed ourselves. I, of course, stuck with the plan to get all of these ingredients. What? Did you really think my old 'friends' coming to my party would change my mind? Well, it didn't. It's gonna take allot more than that.

Fluttershy poked her head out the windows and sang to the birds resting on Rarity's birdbath nearby. I snuck out the front door, slid under the windowsill, and slipped a hoof behind a shutter. Please forgive me Fluttershy, she's the only other pony I actually still like here besides Twilight. I slammed the shutter as hard as I could, smashing it against her face. The pegasus whimpered and pinched her bleeding nose with both hooves.

"Oh, Fluttershy! I'm so sorry!" I said innocently.

"It's okay, Sweetie. You didn't see me there." She pressed a tissue against her nose.

I waited patiently for Fluttershy to throw her bloody tissue in the garbage. Once she did, I crept over to the trash can, plucked it out, and placed it in my saddle bag. That's the kindest blood donation I've ever seen! Thanks Fluttershy!

Now for the honest 'flash' of an eye. What does that mean? Flash? Dash? Lash? An eyelash? Oh, that's easy. Rainbow Dash was talking with Spike about her performance in the Wonderbolts, not like anypony cares. So what'd I do? Act like the stupid filly I'm supposed to be, took a running start and just threw myself at her. I collided with her face as planned. We tumbled to the ground, Spike then helped us both up. Seriously, he's so much stronger now too! I can't get over that.

"Woah, watch where you're goin' speedy!" Rainbow said jokingly.

I carefully examined the ground around us and found a single eyelash lying on the light blue carpet. I levitated it into my saddle bag. As I walked away, I think I heard Rainbow Dash shudder at the fact that she actually touched me.

For an honest tear, I walked up to Applejack, who immediately flinched at the sudden sight of me. Yeah, real nice.

"Hey Applejack?" I asked innocently, "what's that?" I pointed to a random point on the ceiling.

She looked up to where I pointed and I 'accidentally' kicked her in the shin. "Oh, sorry Applejack! I just thought of this new song I was working on and it's just so catchy! I couldn't help but dance! Could you ever forgive me?"

A lone tear rolled down her cheek as she rubbed her shin, releasing a pained whistle from between her clenched teeth. "Yeah, it's all good partner."

Without her noticing, I levitated the tear from her cheek and dropped it into a small, thimble sized beaker.

Pinkie Pie hopped around the room around the room this whole party, saying 'hi' to everybody. I concentrated really hard, focusing on one strand of hair in her poofy tail, and sure enough, a lone strand was plucked out. Pinkie yelped and rubbed her bum, scanning the room with a puzzled look on her face. Well, now I have a hair of laughter. So that just leaves me with.....a generous amount of flesh.

How was I going to do that? And just like that, Rarity said, "Gather around everypony! It's time for my little Sweetie Belle to open up her presents!" Oh great. "Starting with her big sister's!" She said in a sing-song voice. This is gonna be good.

We gathered around the present table, everyone muttering excitedly. Rarity levitated a big blue box towards me, grinning excitedly. She dropped it in front of my place on the floor, shaking with excitement. "You're just gonna love it darling! And there's two presents from me."

I chewed open the shiny blue paper, revealing a decent sized white box. I flicked open the cover with my scarred snout and found a......what in the hay was this!? It's a dress! A flippin' dress! I can't believe the nerve of this girl! It was a rather beautiful light blue gown with white lacing and designs all around the puffy shoulders and rim at the bottom. Other designs were made in that rare gold silk that was near impossible to find. The insides of the white designs were lined with thousands of different gems and rubies, not a single one looked the same.

But did I like it? No. I didn't. I hate dresses, and Rarity knows it. Or at least, I think she does.

Applejack gave an amazed whistle and said, "Man, that's some fancy apparel your sister put together for ya."

I slowly shifted my gaze up to my grinning sister, her deep blue eyes glistening with pride. "Well, little sister, it took me years to make it, but I finished it. Don't you love it?"

"No." I growled. "I hate dresses."

Rarity looked offended to the point where she looked like she was about to cry. Oh jeez, get over yourself. Her friends were rather shocked as well. What? Did they think I'd actually go all 'Thanks Rarity, I love you!' over this dress? They don't know anything about me!

Rarity held a hoof up. "Wait, Sweetie! This'll change your mind!" I sat back down and let my face soften. But not much. I still kept a stone cold glare on her.

She continued nervously, "It took three years of savings from the store to get enough money, but I can finally afford your face operation! Isn't that wonderful? You get to have your old life back!" Everypony smiled happily, waiting for me start prancing around the store like a filly in a candy shop.

I stood on all fours, ready to pounce. 'Old life back?' She doesn't even know the half of it. "I don't want that operation."

Everypony's eyes widened to the size of dinner plates. Rarity was slack-jawed, "What?! I thought that's what you always wanted!"

I gritted my teeth. "Things change. I now realize who I am, and what I'm destined to do." Rarity was at the point of tears. What's wrong? You don't want your sister to remain a hideous freak? "I'm beautiful in my own right. It's something you'll never understand, big sis. A very close friend of mine, Discord, has shown me more care in a week than you have my whole life!"

Twilight gasped, "Discord's warped her mind! We have to stop him!"

"No Twilight. He didn't. He just made my life worth living." I forced down the tears brimming my eyelashes.

Rarity's mascara ran down her cheeks as she tried to say, "Sweetie Belle! I'm sorry...I-I just thought-"

"'Sweetie Belle I just thought-' shut up!" I mocked her. "You think I would like a dress? That's why you avoid and abandon me in the market place for? A DRESS!?" My voice cracked, making everypony jump.

Rarity wiped off her mascara with a handkerchief. "Please Belle, you know I love you! Fine. I'll admit it. I'm not the best sister in the world, but you have to understand that you didn't live with me until a year before that accident! I barely even got a chance to know you before you became all secluded, hiding in your room, skipping class!" She bit her lip as everypony just watched our argument escalate.

"You knew enough! Even before then, I tried helping you, and what did I get? Nothing! You just yelled at me!" Tears streamed down my one good eye. "Is this what it takes to love me, big sis?" I said softly, my voice shook sullenly. "A dress and you wanting the beautiful Sweetie Belle back?"

Rarity broke down into tears once more, collapsing to her stomach, "No! I always cared about you! I-I just thought you wanted to be normal again. G-Good int-t-tentions. That's it."

I choked on a sob and said, "Then why don't you hug m-me?"

Her eyes sprang open as she broke into tears once more, "I-I just, uh, I don't want to get sick!" She slowly rose up on all fours.

I took in a sharp breath of air. My eyes flamed with pure hatred as I screamed to the top of my lungs, "IT'S NOT CONTAGIOUS!" I looked over at the cake and saw a large chef knife beside it, telekinetically pulled it towards me, catching the handle in my mouth.

"I'm gonna make you proud big sis! You, your friends, and that tyrannical whore Princess too!" I pounced at her with the knife.

The others screamed "Sweetie! Don't!" as I hopped on her back, landing parallel to her with my gaze locked on her cutie mark. Hmm....that seems like a good enough spot. She tried bucking me off as I dragged the razor sharp blade through her flank, along her diamond cutie mark. My legs wrapped around her torso tightly so that I wouldn't fall off. Rarity unleashed a bloodcurdling scream and crumpled to the ground as I drew the stainless steel blade through the cutie mark, carving her like a turkey. The job was done in seconds. Rancid blood caked my lips when I bit down on the meat and tore it out. I felt the others trying pulling me off her. Spike's scaly hands wrapped around one hind leg and Applejack lassoed the other. Rainbow Dash hovered above me with her arms wrapped around my waist, trying to pull me off.

No way was I getting off. Not without my prize. I was on her like a leech. Twilight magically pulled at my saddle bag as I placed the hunk of meat into it's pouch. Rarity squirmed and writhed beneath me as blood poured from her deep jagged wound. The thick scarlet stained her precious blue carpet. I finally released my grip, making the sudden decrease in resistance force everypony off balance and flinging me into the wall. My spine released a sickening crack sound upon impact. No, fight the pain! I slowly got up and reared my head, taking one last look at the lumbering ponies struggling to get regain their balance. Rarity was still screaming and crying at the horrible pain.

It actually unnerved me a little......No! Be strong Sweetie! This whole town's gonna be on your flank in minutes! Get to the lake! I galloped out of the Boutique, passing by groups of dumbstruck ponies staring at my blood caked mouth and saddle bag.

Four jets of fire lashed out of my horn, whipping in different directions, setting buildings and trees ablaze. Mares, colts, and fillies alike ran away from the flaming starfish barreling down the stone path. Ponies screamed 'What's happening?' or 'Who is that?' as they dashed out of their burning homes. Flames devoured the dry wooden huts and apartments as if they were drenched in gasoline. I smiled the whole time. The old Sweetie Belle is truly gone now.

When I arrived to the hill that led down to the lake, I looked back and saw the several patches of smoke rising from Ponyville, and heard the echoed screams that were loud enough to reach my ears. My smile grew wider.

When the Death Belle Tolls...

"Alright, now this is gonna hurt for just a second." Twilight told the despaired Rarity. The tip of her horn glowed a bright orange. Slowly, the lilac unicorn pressed her horn against Rarity's gushing wound. It made a sizzling noise on contact, making her release a pained hiss. "I know, I know, but I needed to cauterize the wound." Twilight turned her attention to Spike, who was doing his best to mop up the blood stained carpet. "Spike, take up a letter." The large dragon sifted through the Boutique's front desk and found a quill and paper.

"It hurts so much....." Rarity whispered as Fluttershy tearfully wrapped a bandage around her lacerated flank, circling around her back left leg.

"You're okay Rarity...Really,...it's fine." Blatant lies were heard in Fluttershy's panicked tone. The remainder of the hot sticky liquid instantly seeped through the white gauze, causing the horrified pegasus to cover it over several rounds of bandages. After burning through at least several feet of gauze, not a single splotch of red was seen.

Fluttershy let out a sigh of relief as Rarity struggled to get up on all fours. She flinched the very moment she put pressure on her leg, alerting Rainbow Dash to rush to her side for support.

Rarity let out dazed sigh and said, "Thank's Rainbow Dash, sorry about your lovely uniform."

Her gaze fell to Rainbow's Wonderbolts uniform, which had a long tear running along the side revealing her sky blue fur. When Sweetie so suddenly let go, Rarity's surprisingly sharp horn sliced through Rainbow's suit. "Nah, it's okay. Spitfire's got warehouses of these things. But really, you should dull that horn or something. It could poke your eye out." She gave a joking smile.

Rarity gave a hesitant laugh, still feeling like she ruined everything, ruined Sweetie Belle, and possibly ruined Equestria. Once she got comfortable maintaining her back left hovered above the ground, she nudged Rainbow to step away. Rarity hobbled over to the red leather couch and laid face down. "I'm sorry girls. This is all my fault." She mumbled into a pillow.

Applejack sympathetically placed a hoof on her friend's back. "Now don't go thinkin' that! It ain't your fault!"

Rarity picked her head up, revealing fresh tears rolling down her cheeks. "Yes it is! I should've shown Sweetie Belle more love and care! Not making her that stupid little dress! She hates dresses! If I was more of a sister and listened, then she would still be the cheerful little filly that I single-handedly destroyed!" She buried her face into the golden laced pillow and released a series of muffled cries.

The orange pony rubbed her hoof along Rarity's ruffled violet mane. "Shut yer trap, Rarity! You know it ain't your fault! Those horrible kids at the school bullied her relentlessly, from what Applebloom told me. It's nopony's fault!"

Rarity reseted her chin on the arm of the couch and said, "But I....I should've been there! She-She always tried t-talking to me 'bout it, but I always pushed her away! Generosity, HA! I'm the reason for turning her into a monster!"

Rainbow Dash fluttered overhead and landed on the back of the sofa. "She was possessed by Discord! She told us that herself!"

Rarity shot daggers at the brash pegasus. "She really hates me! I saw it in her eyes! She wasn't possessed by that horrid brute!"

Fluttershy knelt down next to Applejack. "I'm sure if you explain that you didn't want to get sick from touching her, I'm sure she'll eventually understand."

The pearl white unicorn let out another round of tears, frightening the soft spoken pegasus. "That was a lie! A horrible ugly lie! I never wanted to touch her! She's just so gross!" Rarity stopped to choke on a sob. "Listen to me! I'm saying this about my own sister for Celestia's sake! I'm a horrible pony! I love her! I really do!" Seeing Rarity like this unnerved Fluttershy. Though she's been over-dramatic before, it's very clear that she's being serious right now. But the timid pony knew she had to be strong, for Rarity.

Applejack, whose nerves were wearing thin, slammed her hoof on the coffee table, making the sobbing unicorn flinch. "Get a hold of yourself, partner! A true sister wouldn't lie on her victorian fancy couch and cry about what could've and should've happened! What's done is done! But we can still get our Sweetie Belle back before she does something she'll regret!" Her words had a sharp edge to them, but her expression looked sincere.

Rarity whipped her red and blue eyes. "You're right Applejack! We must get to Canterlot and save my little sister from that possessive brute! I may be a terrible sister, but Discord is just using her to overthrow the Princess! It's time to set things right!"

Rainbow Dash shot a hoof in the air and cheered, "All right! Now we're talkin'!" Applejack smiled proudly and Fluttershy gave a meek, "Yay!"

As if on cue, Spike's massive claw held a raveled scroll between two fingers. He took a deep breath and gently blew a tiny green flame onto the scroll, causing it to vanish in thin air.

To his left, Twilight Sparkle turned to look at her friends and said, "We've already sent a warning to the Princess. Pinkie Pie's dropping her kids off at an old friend's house, Cranky, and she went to Fluttershy's to feed the animals."

"Wonderful." Fluttershy whispered, feeling like a huge weight was lifted off her shoulders now that Rarity's happy and her animals are fed.

Twilight continued, "Spike, you stay here and help put the fires out! Come on, I can see market street burning up from over here! Let's go! Let's go!" She ushered the large dragon out the door as he said, "Okay! Okay! I'm going!" Once Spike was out the door, he sprang open his seven foot wings and took off.

"Alright girls, once Pinkie gets back-"

"I'm here!" The pink pony cheered as she hopped through the doorway.

Twilight looked around awkwardly, "Okaaaaaaay. Let's head to my place and get the elements!"

The ponies all cheered as they marched out the fashion boutique, Applejack allowing Rarity to use her as support.

"You did great in there, child! Absolutely astounding!" Discord gave a slow clap as he descended from the sky.

I grimaced at him as he landed softly on the coarse sand of the lake shore. What took him so long? I've been waiting here for ten minutes! Hang on a second, "How'd you know what happened?"

He gave a shrewd grin. "I was the punch bowl!"

"Ew!" I gagged, remembering I actually drank some of that.

"Oh, quit your whining! It's time to make history my friend! Now, hold on tight!"

Without even telling me, he wrapped his tail around me and teleported us away from the beach in a blinding flash.

I recuperated slowly, trying to blot out the high pitched ringing in my ears. When I opened my eyes, I found myself standing right in front of the the Canterlot gates, on top of the stone bridge lined with several different gargoyles of famous ponies. The gates were sealed shut, as if somepony already told us we were coming. But how? Aside from feeling numb form the teleportation, I also felt suddenly lighter. I turned to discover my saddle bag was gone.

"Hey! Where's the bag!? And the ingredients?!" I snapped.

Discord's yellow marble eyes shifted down towards me. "The sacrifices were destroyed the moment we passed through the barrier, destroying it. But why the rush? Let's have some fun, shall we?" He turned his back and shot out both fists, firing a green laser at one of the waterfalls down below.

The waterfall was turned into molten hot lava, creating an ear-piercing shriek of steam and a thick cloud of mist engulfed the lake surface . Laughing, he disappeared in a red flash. Dozens of colored flashes in different points around the city below spread like a virus. In just a matter of ten seconds, he reappeared beside me, laughing.

"Oh, child! You should've seen what I just did! I turned the streets into flypaper, turned a toupee store into a colony of spiders, And-And I made one fellows salad come to life! He-He thinks it's aliens! Ha-ha! Isn't that great?!"

Discord was certainly enjoying himself, but I wasn't. In an irritated tone I said, "Let's get on with this."

The spirit slouched his shoulders. "You're no fun." He folded his arms like a child and pouted. With a flick of his wrist, the steel gates were turned into soap, falling apart under the afternoon heat in thick sloppy chunks.

Then a sudden, urgent thought entered my head. "What about Rarity and her friends?"

Discord wrapped his serpent tail around my shoulders. "Relax my child! Enjoy life while you can! It's a short but beautiful struggle! After what I did, the Elements will certainly be held up for an hour or so."

I quirked a brow. "What'd ya do?"

"No! Get away! None of you are laying a single hoof on my Tom!" Rarity held a book close to her chest.

Twilight let out an exasperated groan. "No! Not this again! Fluttershy, hold her down!"

A dull yellow and pink pegasus floated by and smacked Twilight in the back of her head. "Why? So you could have old Fluttershy back?"

Twilight turned towards the drab suited pegasus lying on a bookshelf. "Rainbow Dash? Please help!"

She gave a lazy yawn. "Not my problem." She shifted the transparent blue goggles over her eyes.

Twilight smacked herself in the forehead and collapsed to the ground.

"You're not one for originality, or you?" I asked in a pensive tone.

Discord shrugged. "Eh, it's kinda my thing."

We marched through the ruins of the blue soapy gate. Before we pushed open the massive wooden doors, Discord snapped his fingers and it began to rain chocolate milk from fluffy pink clouds.

10 minutes earlier, Celestia's P.O.V.

Let's see here, I have that speech to make tomorrow morning, I have to visit Las Pegasus, and then Luna has her Modernization Lesson after lunch.

As I checked tasks off of my list, a rolled up parchment appeared beside me and fell to the ground. Ah, another letter from my faithful student, Twilight Sparkle, telling me about another thing she learned about the magic of friendship. She's such a good kid.

I levitated the scroll and unraveled it.

Dear Princess Celestia,

This is a warning of great urgency, and I know it will be a bit hard to believe, but please hear me out! Discord, the God of Chaos, has been freed from his stone prison and is now on the loose to plunge Equestria into darkness forever. But there's more! He's done something to my friend's little sister, Sweetie Belle! She talked about bringing Equestia into a new Utopia and she thinks killing you will make that happen! Please don't brush this off as some petty assassination! She's gotten really powerful and seems to have some sort of plan. My friends and I will be there ASAP with the Elements of Harmony, do whatever you can to protect Canterlot.

Please be careful,
Your faithful student,

Twilight Sparkle

I dropped the scroll and bolted out the door.

"Luna, please wake up!" Celestia nudged her sister's shoulder.

Luna lazily brushed the Princess away and wrapped herself more tightly in her constellation patterned blanket. "Luna, this is an emergency! I order you to get out of bed!"

"I order you to get outta my room!" She snapped, still half asleep.

Celestia tightened her jaw. "I know you get cranky if you don't get your sleep-"

The dark Alicorn levitated a pillow and tossed it at her sister. Celestia simply took a small step aside, barely missing the projectile. "Damn it, Luna! Stop acting like a stubborn filly and look at me!" Her voice echoed throughout Luna's chamber, stacked high with books on modern speaking, behavior, and communication text books. Her star patterned curtains were drawn, concealing the day time light she used to sleep. A series of dark blue carpeted steps led up to her queen sized bed with the enraged Celestia leaning over it.

Her older sister's enraged tone made it clear that Luna had to get up, now. Her wavy blue hair, not being brushed in two years, was messy and unkempt, giving her a rather tomboyish look. "What do you want, big sister?" Her aqua blue eyes were half closed.

"Read this letter." She slammed Twilight's note in her face.

The note glowed a dark aura as Luna quickly skimmed through the lines, her eyes slowly widening at the seriousness of the situation. "What do we do?" She rested the black crown over her ruffled mane.

Celestia explained as her younger sister hooked the black necklace above her shoulders, adjusting it so that the crescent moon was in the center. "I want you to alert the royal guard."

"Is that it?" Luna asked in disbelief as she slipped on her silver hoof covers.

"Of course not." Celestia gave a wry smile. "Knowing our old friend, Discord, he'll probably cause some chaos along the way. Resolve the issues, save civilians. I'll protect the castle."

"Gotcha." Luna gave an enthusiastic nod. Unexpectedly, Celestia wrapped her forelegs around her neck. "Be safe, little one."

Luna, maturing allot from the humble princess she once was three years ago, rolled her eyes and returned the hug. "Yeah, you too."

Together, the princesses rushed out of Luna's room, ready to take on whatever challenge may lie ahead of them.

No Gods, No Masters, No Lords, No Tyrants

We entered the spacious main lobby of the castle. The sides were lined with massive stained glass windows that led to the very end of the room, where a red carpet traveled up to Celestia's golden throne. Oddly enough, she wasn't here. What was here were at least two dozen royal guards standing in rows of four, all wearing identical enchanted armor.

The one up front, a burly unicorn with short cropped blue hair was Captain Shining Armor. He spoke in a commanding tone, "I'll give you one chance to surrender now."

He's been waiting his whole life to say that, hasn't he? I wonder how Twilight will react when I kill her older brother. Discord's combination of his menacing grin plastered and the sickening sound of his knuckles cracking put the guards on edge, readying the spears clamped to the armor's siding.

Shining Armor's horn illuminated a light blue. "Just give up, you cannot defeat the royal guard. We will stand by Celestia until the end, and Equestria will stand tall."

Very slowly, my chapped lips curled into a malicious grin. "Standing under the flag of the Sun? Hmph, Equestria's my utopia now, and you're not part of it."

As if he took that as an immediate threat, he cried out, "Charge!"

Wow, for a captain, he makes some pretty poor choices. And the way he said charge, I instantly sensed fear in his tone. He's actually afraid of me!

I closed my eyes concentrated, trying to drown out the thunderous hooves drawing ever so closer. Come on! Shield and sword! Shield and Sword! Knives! Spikes! Disembowelment! Beheading! I thought of everything that related to bladed weapons.

And soon enough, a blinding light encased my horn, growing almost as tall as the Princess herself. I spread my forelegs, shifting into a battle stance as the Holy Arms occasionally spurt a tiny ray of light.

The expressions on the stunned guards were a strange mix of fear and confusion. They still held their ground though, taking my stance and readying their spears in front of them.

My gaze shot to the left for a brief moment to catch Discord resting on a lawn chair, sipping a martini.

Shining Armor stood before my soon-to-be throne, his horn shot a blue energy blast through the air, arching over the crowd, and narrowly missed me.

He fired again. I ran towards the crowd of Royal Guards. They let out their childish battle cries and charged towards me, confidence gleaming in their dark brown eyes. It's like they always say: Overconfidence will be your downfall, and these thugs will be no different.

I swung my head to the left, cleaving through two pairs of forelegs with little effort or resistance. The two soldiers up front cried out as they fell on top of one another, writhing in pain as their bloody stubs of trenchant bone clawed at the glossy tiled floor. The other soldiers stood in shock until three tripped over eachother trying to carry the wounded behind the crowd.

Still concentrating on my spell, I slit the neck open of another soldier. He fell to the ground, choking on his last breath. The next row of mincemeat jabbed at me with their spears. I ducked and jumped over one, using the momentum to hop on another and behead the guard. His head landed with a rather comical thud.

Five surrounded me. I hopped on one hoof, dipping my head low to the ground, and spun, like a record. My horn sliced through all five pairs of legs, causing the limbless ponies to fall to the ground, screaming in agony as blood spurt across the carpet like a water fountain.

My pyro cutie mark was coated with blood, hooves caked with the raunchy goo, as well as some splotches along my stomach. I felt like vomiting at the putrid smell filling my nostrils. No matter what happens, I'll never get over the nauseating scent of blood. I soon snapped back into reality when a guard narrowly missed me with his spear.

I swung my head, cleanly slicing through his weapon and finally running under him, my Holy Arms dragged through his stomach. I stopped about a few feat behind my adversary and turned. He stood for a moment, twitched, and fell to the side, his entrails splayed across the dark red carpet.

Three more guards stood before me, their eyes glazed over with tears of fear. This is the royal guard that vows to protect Celestia? A bunch of crybabies? Disappointing, I must say. The one on the right leaped toward me and spun to the left, his weapon slicing through the air above my head. I jumped to his back, arched my head, and brought my horn down like an ax. Holy Arms cleaved through all three with little effort.

Their halves collapsed over each other with their innards sliding out in a rather sloppy manner. I reared my head. One last, horrified guard stood before me and the stone faced Shining Armor. The few remaining guards tried making a retreat for the door earlier in the battle, though from looking at the remains by the soapy gate, it seems Discord warped their minds into fighting eachother.

He floated above the dull gray and red diced corpses, laughing hysterically. With a devilish grin, I turned my attention to the last guard. He readied his spear. Even though I was several feet away from him, I swayed my head to the right. And from my Holy Arms, a wide arc of blinding energy emerged, singing the carpet beneath it and causing the abandoning guard to explode in a chili-like explosion on contact.

Shining Armor set his jaw. "You're not a real pony. There's somethin' else about you." He declared. Was this guy really that delusional?

From the doorway to my right, a vibrant pink alicorn ran to the captain's side. Princess Cadence? She actually lives here? Oh, right. They got married. Sorry for forgetting, but after the wedding, everything just kinda died down for me.

She nestled her head underneath her partner's chin and said, "My love will make you strong, sweetheart."

Oh brother, I think I'm gonna gag. Her horn illuminated a bright pink as Shining Armor's lit up a dark blue. Soon, the captain was surrounded by a pink overshield while Cadence shot a corresponding beam at him. "You're mine now!" He yelled.

Has this guy ever been in an actual fight? And does he really need his wife to help him? What a dork!

Well, I know how to fix this. Shining Armor barreled towards me. I jumped and ran towards no him, but Cadence. The whole time she kept her eyes shut, concentrating on the spell, unaware of the incoming threat. I closed my eyes on impact. The impalement made a satisfying hiss of evaporating blood and flesh releasing steam like a boiled lobster. A splash of warmth showered my face. I opened my eyes to find it was ricocheted blood. My Holy Arms was lodged through the Princess' neck, protruding from her back.

Her eyes froze open. Gasping breaths lasted only a few moments before she passed. Her body went limp. I violently removed my modified horn, royal blood soaring through the air like a common peasant's. Why couldn't that Chrysalis hag do this in the first place? It would've spared me that incredibly cheesy 'love conquers all' garbage at the wedding.

Shining Armor was beyond petrified. He just blankly stared at me with his mouth agape. Now vulnerable, I took the opportunity to make the kill. Since he wasn't wearing enchanted armor, just some royal attire, I wanted to try something different. I removed the Holy Arms spell, feeling like I just removed a dragon from my shoulders. My horn crackled with black electricity. Shining Armor made one last, tearful charge but it was far too late for that.

A dark shaded lightening bolt weaved through the muggy air towards my foolish adversary. Upon contact, the captain writhed and twitched as the electricity tore through his nervous system. Blackening his nerves, the dark magic rippled through his bones. The marrow within rippled. Finally, the ebony lightening detonated. Sloppy chunks of meat showered the room.

The puddle of blood where Shining Armor once stood kinda looked like......a pretty butterfly.

Discord applauded as he flew towards me. "Bravo child! Bravo!"

I furrowed my bottom lip. "You could've helped."

The demon rubbed the back of his neck, looking embarrassed. "Oh sorry, I didn't tell you. I can't really do offensive magic. Just that." He pointed at the diced up guards by the front gate. "That kind of magic just doesn't really interest me."

I rolled my eyes. "Yeah, whatever." And we made our way to the staircase that led up to the rest of the castle.

There she was, on the other side of the rooftop. Princess Celestia. The chocolate rain was somehow replaced by a normal overcasting sky. But how? In fact, where's all of the chaos Discord made?

The trip through the castle was surprisingly uneventful. Like, did she only have those twenty four guards? Where's Luna? And Trixie for that matter?

And here we were, face to face, standing on top of the tallest tower in the castle, appropriately Celestia's room. Discord slammed the door shut. "Princess Celestia...." He growled, "it's been far too long."

Celestia sprang open her massive feathered wings. Is that supposed to scare us. "Stand down, Discord. Release the child or I'll banish you farther than the moon itself."

He hovered beside me, flapping his contrasting wings. "Oh, like your sister?" He gave a short laugh. "Or are you gonna banish me?"

The Princess' eyes widened. "Don't you dare-"

The corners of his mouth stretched to his ears, literally. "What's wrong? You don't remember the rebellion five hundred years ago?"

She slammed her hoof. "The child doesn't need to know that." Her voice shook on the last word. And how the hay does she know what I do and don't need? Oh yeah, I forgot. She's a Princess, and if you don't obey, you get banished.

Discord continued his remark. "The ponies that wanted a new leader, you don't remember? A shame. I heard they were banished to the other side of Equestria. Five hundred years of disease, hate, and neglect transformed them into the hideous creatures you now refer to as 'Changelings' am I not correct?" He stroked his goatee. So the Changelings were really ponies? That's really a shame. And it's all because the Princess wanted to remain on top. A tyrant is what she is.

Celestia's eyes darted around. "You..You don't-don't try to warp the child's mind!"

I grimaced, "Shut up! Just shut the hay up! This is my choice! And I'm gonna make Equestria a better place, staring with you!"

The large alicorn gasped, "What did you do to her!?"

Discord patted me on the back, "Oh, I was just there for her. Remember that letter? Three years ago? The writing was illegible, so you threw it in a fireplace?"

I felt like screaming, but I forced the urge down. I remember writing to the princess in hope of gaining some morale. I never heard back.

She stuttered over her words. What? You don't have some snappy remark now?

Discord was on a roll, "And what about the Elements of Harmony? I sincerely doubt they just appear at random in any six ponies each generation and become the 'best of friends.'" He said the last part in a tone mocking Celestia's.

Celestia tried to collect her thoughts. "But...It's for the safety of Equestria!"

"At the cost of one's free will! And in this case, Twilight, Applejack, Fluttershy, and the rest of those unbearable twerps! You predetermine the wielders of the Elements before they're born! You steer their lives into meeting eachother!"

"Silence!" The princess boomed, her voice echoing in the distance.

The demon of mischief continued, "That little 'sonic rainboom' come on! At least try and be a little less obvious! Rainbow Dash being banished from Cloudsdale, forcing her to live in Ponyville. Applejack's parents dying in that carriage accident, bringing Rarity and her parents to the funeral." He listed these horrible acts on each finger. "Fluttershy being born with a 'natural' flight weakness, forcing Rainbow to stick up for her. You're lucky they aren't here to see this! What'll happen if they discover their great leader is just another common Canterlot snob out for her own benefits."

The princess was at a loss for words, and so was I. How could she really do this? I actually looked up to her! Everypony did! She's like a mother to all ponies, but really, she a liar and a cheat. Just like Rarity.

I took a step forward. "You ruined everypony's life!" She stood her ground.

"Don't do this, my child." She asked in a gentle tone.

I flared my nostrils, "I'm not your child! Not anymore!" My voice cracked. "Equestria's gonna be a whole lot better without you!"

"Princess Celestia! We got here as soon as-" Twilight cut off into a gasp when she and her friends, wearing the Elements, apparated in a pink flash on the right side of the rooftop. "Discord! Sweetie Belle!" She exclaimed.

Discord bowed, "The one and only."

What seemed like a meteor crashed to the left of the circular rooftop. A scarred Trixie, pounding Luna with her hooves, was blasted in the chest by an energy blast from the Princess' horn. She skidded to a stop to my right and got up. She looked exactly the same from when I last saw her, same curled silver hair, same blue coat. The only difference was her violet magician outfit was a darker shade of blue, the same as Luna. I suppose she wore a hat too, but was supposedly knocked off during her fight.

Everypony stood still, exchanging glances with one another. "Looks like we got a little stand-off here." Discord remarked.

At a spur of the moment, he slithered through the air towards the Elements like a snake in the grass, cackling like a maniac. Trixie, growling like a manticore, fired an icy blue laser at Luna, who in turn fired a black one. The two were caught in a laser duel. That just left me and Celestia.

I charged towards her. She took a stance, her horn illuminated a bright yellow. I tackled her with both hooves in front, knocking her off the side of the castle.

A/N: The next chapters gonna be one big fight scene between Trixie and Luna, the Mane 6 and Discord, and of course, Celestia and Sweetie Belle.

Who Dares Wins?

The black electricity from Luna's horn dominated Trixie's. When her tapering blue projectile reached the tip of her horn, a small explosion knocked her off her hooves, sending her plummeting off the side of the castle. The blurred sight of the nearing concrete ground snapped her back into reality.

Casting a pink aura around herself, Trixie ducked under the bridge and bolted towards Canterlot. A bolt of dark lightening narrowly missed her. She reared her head and saw the princess of the night blotting out the sun. She fired another bolt, Trixie dipped to the side and managed to dodge it. The blast set several patches of grass ablaze.

Luna fired another blast, hitting Trixie in her hind leg. She cried out, losing her concentration on the spell and fell towards the abandoned streets below. Right before she hit the ground, Luna swooped in and rammed the unicorn through a restaurant window and pinned her against the bar, slamming one hoof over her throat.

Seething with profound rage, Luna said, "We trusted you! We gave you everything, and you betrayed us! You betrayed Equestria!"

Gasping for air, the mage said with a smug grin, "Trixie gives no thanks to you!" She spat, "Discord taught us everything, gained your trust, and struck when the iron was hot. This land will be reborn under a better rule than a traitor and a tyrant." She evoked horrible memories of Nightmare Moon, making Luna smack her across the face.

"Trixie feels no pain." She sputtered. Her left eye was bruised shut, though she managed a faint smirk underneath the dark soot and burns splotching her cerulean face.

Luna tried to reason, "Your childish vendettas from your fillyhood is not worth the lives of hundreds. The god of mischief deceives you! And when you're least expecting it, he'll stab you in the back! Are you really that clouded by your own ego?"

Caught off guard, Luna was sent spiraling out of the store from a blast of Trixie's sapphire. It's icy glow slowly dissipated as Trixie caught her breath, her eyes darted around the room, looking for something. She stood on her hind legs and peeked over the bar. She found several cold meals abandoned during Luna's evacuation.

Then she found a rack holding a plethora of knives.

Luna tried regaining her composure, gently rubbing the burning wound originating from her chest. She got back up to all fours, still a bit wobbly. She looked into the darkness of the restaurant across the street, eyeing the faint magenta glow deep inside. From the foreboding darkness, a cleaver lobbed towards her. She gasped and shot her head to the side, though the blade managed to cut a portion of her wavy mane. The cleaver lodged itself deep into the concrete wall behind her, the lock of sparkly hair drifted to the ground.

Trixie stepped out with four varied knives orbiting around her. "I do not have an ego." She stated, "Not anymore. Discord taught me discipline and pride in exchange for his teachings. And I know I can't trust him, I just want Equestria to have a brighter future." She tossed another knife, Luna leaped to the side.

"You're blind, clouded by the demon's lies!" As she said this, a lamp post behind Trixie illuminated a vibrant blue. The light shot a concentrated beam at the oblivious mage, catching her black cape on fire. The unicorn broke Luna's concentration by pelting her with two butcher knives, one missing and the other lodging deep into her shoulder.

Luna howled in pain, bit down on the handle of the knife, and ripped it out, sending almost coal colored blood into the air. Trixie tore off her cape, panting heavily. She grimaced at the princess. "You've been here for only three years!" Her horn cast a light pink glow. "What do you know about how ponies act? You're a mess; acting like a teenager, not actually going out and talking to any one because 'Tia' said so." She shot her hoof out into the mountainous terrain in the distance. "I lived out there, got chased out of towns, shunned by my own family because I'm a 'useless hack.' Just try living out there for a day, then you'd be a goner!" Trixie's horn was encased in a cone of neon pink lights, opening up a similarly shaded vortex the size of an Ursa Minor.

Luna absorbed her words, almost taking them to heart. "No!" She stated. "My loyalty belongs to my sister!"

The vortex exploded in a shower of azalea sparkles, revealing a golem that embodied every horrible memory of Trixie's past. It appeared to be a normal sized alicorn made entirely of flames. It landed like a feather, making a sizzling sound on the cool cobblestone path. It's blood red eyes glared at Luna with the hatred of an awakened dragon. It stretched out it's massive wings, casting a wide berth of smoke into the air.

Luna dragged her hoof across the ground like a bull ready to charge. The golem did the very same. Trixie's bruised face grinned with joy as she her horn encased itself in Holy Arms.

Twilight shot another energy blast at Discord. He curved his serpentine body around it and did a back flip, whipping her with his tail. She was flung to her back, gripping the stinging area of her face. Fluttershy gasped, "Twilight!" and floated up to the demon. She reared her body and bucked him in the jaw. Realizing what she did, she gave an urgent, "Oh, I'm so sorry!"

He swiped his eagle claw at her, creating four parallel lacerations across her chest. The wounds were no more serious than a paper cut, though the very sight of blood made Fluttershy faint. Discord rolled his eyes.

"One down, five to-OOF!" He was cut off when a cyan blur darted by and clotheslined him. He didn't fall though, he managed to land on his hands. He ducked under Rainbow's second fly-by. Rarity barreled towards him with fiery determination in her eye. Discord actually charged towards her on all fours like a dragon, even hissing like one. When their skulls made contact, Rarity was flung back by the sheer strength of the demon.

"This is more fun than I had last time!" Discord claimed.

He felt something tighten around his mid-section, a rope. "Alrigh' Rai-bow!" Applejack shouted with the rope in her mouth, pulling to keep Discord from running away. Except he wasn't moving at all, he just stood there like a statue with an irritated expression on his face.

With one finger, the spirit tapped the rope, turning it into a snake. Horrified, Applejack emanated it and attempted to run, except the snake coiled itself around her, constricting her of any movement. "Two down, four to-AH!" A powerful blast actually managed to knock the demon off his feet.

What was that!!? He thought. What pony could obtain such a powerful arm of weaponry? He reared his head very slowly, trying to spot the attacker. Pinkie Pie was reloading another bog of confetti into her cannon. "A party cannon?" He asked in disbelief.

Pinkie nodded enthusiastically, "Yup! I never ever leave home without it! I use it in parties, celebrations, and on big jerks that hurt my friends!" The demon rolled his eyes.

Discord teleported in front of the cannon with a shiny orange bowling ball. He stuffed it into the barrel of the cannon right as Pinkie fired another round. The pressure built up inside the cannon until it finally exploded. The discharge sent Pinkie flying into the tower wall. She peeled herself off, groaning.

This is too easy. The demon thought.

Rainbow Dash bolted head on towards Discord. At the very last second, he ducked under the lightening fast pegasus. She crashed head on into the tower wall. She collapsed to the ground beside Pinkie Pie.

"Alright," Rainbow groaned, "Discord was not this difficult last time."

The demon snickered, "That's because I wasn't facing a bunch of washed up foals playing hero and trying to defend their miserable Princess."

Twilight Sparkle and Rarity stood between their friends and Discord. "That's something you'll never understand Discord," The studious unicorn claimed. Discord folded his arms with a content smile. "No matter how many of us fall, there'll always be another who stands for the Princess."

"Oh, like your brother and foal sitter?" He tried holding back laughter, trying to keep a straight face. Twilight's eyelashes brimmed tears, "Wh-What?" She asked, the knot in her throat getting ready to tear.

Discord conjured a glass of lemonade and sunglasses in his hands. He placed the shades over his eyes and took a sip. "Let's just say 'chili' is too clean of a phrase to describe their grisly demise."

Twilight began to sob. She collapsed to her stomach and tried wiping the tears away, refusing to believe the god of mischief. But she just knew in her heart that his words were true. Rarity stroked her friend's mane, brushing it out of her eyes. "It's okay darling, it's okay." Her consoling words meant nothing to the bawling unicorn.

To seemingly no one, Discord said, "I didn't even have to lift a finger for that one!" The glasses and lemonade vanished in a flash. He made a malicious grin towards Rarity. "Little Miss Rarity. I bet your sister has something special planned for you." She got up on her hind legs and took a fighting stance.

"Don't listen to him, child!" Celestia pleaded.

"SHUT UP! I'M TIRED OF EVERYPONY TELLING ME WHAT TO DO!" I hollered, ignoring the stabbing cramp in my hind leg from when the princess blasted me into a dress shop.

I stood in the frame of the broken window with my horn illuminating forest green. The suburban cul de sac we fought in was nearly demolished from our vicious magic exchanges, which was really just I shoot something at her, then she does the same, repeat.

Celestia had minor scrapes and burns littering her body, though the only notable one was a rather nasty gash carved into her haunches from when I conjured a small hail storm. The wound ran down the middle of her solar cutie mark, dividing it in two. The tyrant continued, "I'm not telling you what to do, little one. I'm just saying Discord can't be trusted." The blood oozing down her forehead clashed with her pearl white coat.

I bared my teeth, "Stop lying to me!" I shot a funnel of blaze from my horn. It arched through the air, towards the hovering princess. She flapped her powerful yet bruised wings in a steady rhythm to keep afloat while her horn bathed her in a golden light that warded off the spell like a common housefly. Knowing it was useless, I ceased the attack.

"Please, heed my words," She begged, "I know how you feel, my sister was banished to the moon for a thousand years and I regretted doing so ever since. But she knew it was for her own good, and she forgave me." The princess said in a somber tone, but finished with a warm smile.

I had a hunch at what she was implying, and I didn't like it. A violet pentagram appeared before me. From each corner, a small fire flickered. The symbol shot a series of the burning projectiles at Celestia. She did the same, but the shots were yellow.

Each bolt collided with eachother, cancelling both out. What's she doing? She doesn't want to fight? Pathetic. Still concentrating on my rune, I levitated a piece of rubble from a demolished building towards her and dropped it on her head, breaking her concentration and bringing her closer to the ground.

Before landing, she gave one last powerful flap of her wings, creating an other-worldly gale that knocked me off my hooves. I crashed into a melon cart with a recent gash crawling up my right foreleg. Is this how the great princess treats her faithful subjects? Oh wait, I'm not faithful. I want change so I get thrown around Canterlot like a rag doll.

She landed on the ground and folded her wings, ruffling them a bit. "Please child, accept the fact that this is a fight you can't win. Stop this foolishness, and I may just forget about your punishment."

I grimaced up at the high and mighty princess. "I've been punished for three years. Equestria's been punished for over a thousand. The times are a changin'," I glanced up, "and the moon with it."

The princess' magenta eyes widened. "What?" She breathed.

Struggling up to all fours, I kept my eyes trained on the moon. Or half of it. What did that crazy pony do? Did she kill Luna? And is that what happens? The moon just falls apart? Even though the sun was still present in the astonishing blue sky, the moon was faintly seen, and it looked like it was breaking in half. One of the pieces broke into smaller pieces.

Celestia looked like she was about to cry. I'm dead serious, I think I'm gonna laugh. With her voice cracked, she shouted, "Luna! No!" Her massive feathered wings sprang open, about to take flight.

I'm not gonna let that happen. Not without me. "Oh no you don't!" I clamped my jaws on her variegated tail. She seemed to have ignored me, as she leaped into the air and began scanning for Luna. Another good trait of Princess Celestia: Considers family being more important than the future of Equestria.

I kept telling myself not to look down, and my jaws shut tight.

Angry flames devoured the once grand houses of Fern St., now just smoldering piles of cheap splintery wood.

Princess Luna, covered head to hoof in deep bloody scars, fearfully backed up against a dilapidated carriage. One of her dark tufted wings was now reduced to a bloody stump dripping scarlet onto the grimy cobblestone path.

Trixie, lookie bruised but faring better than the princess, stood tall with a psychotic grin on her face, Holy Arms still sheathed her horn casts long shadows down the street.

Luna held her hooves above her head in mercy, "Please Trixie! You're my friend!" She gave a nervous smile, "Remember that prank we played on 'Tia? Wasn't that funny?"

Trixie wiped the blood trickling down her split lip. "Trixie doesn't befriend swine."

She bent her head back, getting ready to deliver the final blow. Tears fell from Luna's sapphire eyes. "No! Ple-"

The Holy Arms pierced Luna's heart, killing her instantly. Trixie dismissed the spell and looked up at the clear blue sky. She had to squint to see the faint silhouette of the now shattered moon, broken into hundreds of asteroids burning up in the atmosphere.

Trixie stood on her forelegs and shouted into the sky, "I, THE GREAT AND POWERFUL TRIXIE, HAS VANQUISHED THE TYRANNICAL PRINCESS LUNA FROM THIS WORLD! Bring me my next challenge, for I will conquer them all!" Celestia landed with an Earth shattering thud.

Trixie's face immediately fell and she backed away nervously. Celestia's gaze shifted from Luna's eviscerated corpse to Trixie. A single tear slid down her muzzle.

At that moment, Sweetie Belle released her grasp from Celestia's tail and stood beside Trixie. "I won't let you hurt her!" She screamed.

A content smile splayed across Trixie's face. Celestia closed her eyes and said in a disordered voice, "You.....my sister...." Her eyes sprang open, revealing them to be devoid of any features or color, just an eerie white glow. She slowly rose into the air without the use of her wings and shouted, "FEEL THE WRATH OF THE SUN!" Her echo repeated in the distance.

The sun was brought closer to the earth, dangerously close. It began to rain hell on Canterlot, literally. Massive fireballs and meteor pelted the city, destroying buildings, burning forests, and even striking the castle in some places. One blew right through a tower, causing it to become unstable and plunge into the ocean.

The sky turned from bright blue to a dark red as the sun's wrath continued it's onslaught. Celestia remained suspended in the air, concentrating on her forbidden spell.

Trixie and Sweetie Belle swerved in and out through alleys and crater filled streets, trying to avoid the fireballs. As they passed by a bank, one meteor blasted right through the roof and out the other side, sending debris and dirt rocketing through the air.

"Young Belle, what in Equestria is that!?" Trixie exclaimed, pointing up at the rainbow arching over the castle. The scarred filly realized what it was.

She held a hoof out to the court mage and said, "Hang on!" She reluctantly grasped it and the two were transported out of the area in a green flash, just as another asteroid crashed through a nearby apartment and imploded it in a furious burst of concrete and flame.

The rainbow arching high in the sky barraged Discord relentlessly, turning the lower half of his body into stone as he screamed at Celestia's damned sun in defiance. The six ponies, regaining strength earlier in the fight, stood in formation as Twilight hovered above them and donning the crown of Magic.

Trixie had no idea what was going on, though she seemed hurt to see Discord in peril. I won't let this happen. Not now. Not ever. I galloped towards the Elements of Harmony, seeing a red hot fireball zip past our rooftop and instead taking out the support column of a nearby tower, causing it to give out under it's own weight. The structure broke upon impact against the side of the mountain. Pieces and debris rolled down the side, into the lake below.

I tackled Twilight Sparkle out of the air, breaking the Element's trance. The crown slid across the roof, rendering the necklaces useless. Twilight landed with a pained 'Oof!'

I ran off her and galloped towards Discord, who was getting a feel for his thawed legs. Trixie proudly walked to the other side of our master.

The others rejoined Twilight, helping her up. At this moment, I realized the fire storm came to a halt and the sun was pushed away, though the sky was still dark red.

Discord gave a slow clap. "Congratulations everypony. You eight" He looked at me and Trixie as well. "have certainly made Old Equestria's final hours a grand one indeed. Yes, the land may be burnt to ash, but from these ashes, paradise will be born." His monologue actually brought a tear to my eye. Yes, we still had Celestia to deal with, but we pretty much did it.

We won.

Ranibow Dash drifted above her friends, "It ain't over 'till it's over!" She jeered. Faster than a bullet, she bolted towards us and tackled me to the ground. She vigorously pounded me in the face over and over again to the point where blood was gushing from my scarred snout like an overripe grape.

I ignored the throbbing pain and the urge to cry. I gave her a dastardly grin and groggily said, dazed from her beating, "Is this wha ge's you wet? Beatin' o-er girls?" I gave a wheezy laugh, still remembering the hilarious rumor that went around three years ago that Rainbow went 'the other way around' with special someponies and she was so ashamed of it. I'm actually not sure what road she takes with that stuff, but damn is it funny.

The Wonderbolt dressed pegasus widened her eyes and uttered a disbelieved, "What!?"

Before I could answer, Trixie levitated her off of me and tossed her back to her other worthless friends. "Nopony touches that filly." She said defensively.

I trotted back to my place beside Discord and shot her a thankful grin. She accepted it and gave a friendly wink.

When I got back in place, Rarity finally spoke up. She was was the only pony that didn't have a determined expression like her friends. She looked sorrowful. "Sweetie Belle. Please, stop this. I want the old Sweetie back!" She sounded like she was about to cry.

"No!" I seethed. "You're just gonna throw me aside, like always!"

Her gorgeous blue eyes glanced at my new friends, then at me. "Sweetie, this isn't the crowd you should be following! I need you! I never realized how important our bond is until recently." She formed a reassuring smile.

I straightened my face. "You're eight years too late for that."

Her smile sulked. "Sweetie," She began as she started to cry. Here we go. "You're the most important thing in the world to me. More important than those stupid dresses, more important than Canterlot, more important than myself. I love you Sweetie Belle. And if you don't believe that, that's fine. But I believe it." Defying every emotion I've been feeling for this unicorn the past three weeks, I felt tears starting to seep from my eyelids.

She continued with a smile beneath the flow of tears sliding down her cheeks. "I'm sure we can work something out with the Princess. We could get you all sorts of perks and protection, we'll give you all the love and care that was missed out on the past three years, we could tell the public you were possessed." More lies to the people of Canterlot. But still.... "I accept you for who you are. And do you know who taught me that? You did. So come on home Sweetie, we're waiting." She held out hoof, reaching out to me. Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, and even Applejack started to cry as well.

I could no longer hold back. I just released the floodgate of emotions welling up inside me for the past week. But I don't know what to do! Rarity, she seems so sincere. She truly does love me! It's what I've always wanted! But Celestia.....

That tyrannical monster must be silenced. She has too. I can't let Equestria continue to rot knowing all of these dark secrets. And I can't abandon my new friends, the ones who stuck by me when I was feeling hopeless, Discord especially.

And like a flippin' mind reader, Discord gently placed his eagle hand on my back. I wiped my eyes and looked up at him. He had the best poker face I've ever seen. There was no possible way to read what he's thinking. Trixie was making gagging noises at the entire scene.

"Go to her, little one." Discord assured.

I looked up at him in shock, thinking this is some kind of joke. "What? Are you for real?"

He nodded. "I'm sure Trixie and I will rule Equestria without you." I had no idea if he was being serious or fibbing.

My mind was in complete chaos right now. What do I do? Should I be with my sister? Or should I turn Equestria into a utopia? My desires or the land's right? I took a few steps away from Discord. The smile on Rarity's tear soaked face grew wider, her friends' as well.

I looked back at Discord, and then Rarity.....

and made the best choice.

Victory, But for Who?

I walked back to Discord, feeling like I just ripped a piece of my own soul out. I couldn't bring myself to look at Rarity in the eye. She faintly whispered, "Sweetie Belle...." Before choking on a sob.

Discord gave his trademark grin and Trixie rose her eyebrows in surprise, like she really thought I'd pick my sister. "I'm sorry, Rarity." I kept my back turned to her. "But I can't pick my own desires over Equestria." I turned to see she was crying softly, her friends gathered around to console her.

Rainbow Dash, being the hothead that she is, flies up and says, "Well we're still standing here! So if you want to get to the Princess, you're gonna have to go through us!" She pounded her chest to show she was physically talking about herself.

Trixie humorously rose an eyebrow at the six ponies, aside from Fluttershy still comforting Rarity, entering a battle pose. Rainbow Dash was the only one that looked ready to fight. The others seemed reluctant. And like a miracle, the battered and beaten Princess Celestia landed several feet beside the Elements, near a chipped edge of the rooftop. She glared at us with fresh tears streaks going down her face. She looked different. Like, she seemed tired and worn out. The heavy panting was a dead giveaway.

"Princess Celestia?" Twilight whispered.

The alicorn winked at her, like they had some sort of secret plan. Just the very sight of her made me want rip her throat out, and she knew it. I ran towards her with my face twisted in a scowl and Holy Arms extending from my horn.

From the corner of my good eye, I saw a cyan blur rushing towards me, then get blasted back by an orange energy beam. Discord yelled, "Hold off the Elements as long as possible! We're so close!" A choir of hooves rushed towards them as I neared the Princess.

She looked at me with disappointment in her glossy eyes, like I was making a bad choice. The sound of magic being cast and hooves connecting with flesh was heard in the background.

The Princess took one last desperate stand to stop me; she fired a stream of wavy yellow energy from her horn. I swerved around it and swung my head to the left. The tip of Holy Arms sliced through her left foreleg, almost cutting it clean off. She collapsed to her side, gasping in pain.

She looked up at me with reddened eyes. "Please...." She whispers.

I rose my horn, about to strike once more, when I suddenly heard Rarity's voice. "Sweetie Belle! Please don't make me do this!" What's she talking about? No! No distractions, I'm so close now!

I swiped my sword of light through her once unconcealed wing, nearly amputating it. Blood poured from her wound onto the fine marble rooftop. She was actually crying now. The Princess Celestia was crying. This is turning out to be more fun than would've ever dreamed of.

Rarity begged once more, "Please Sweetie, I'm begging you!" I ignored her.

I brought up my head, charging up one last mighty strike. I brought my horn down with exerted force. Just as the Holy Arms began to slice through her neck, splaying blood over her cream colored coat, something like a freight train hit me, knocking me clear off my hooves. I landed on my back with the assailant standing above me.

Warmth was felt sliding down my neck. I opened my bruised eyelids and found Rarity standing over me, tears brimming her eyelids and her horn covered in a thin layer of blood. My blood. It took me only a second to realize that she punctured my neck with her horn. Though the wound wasn't deep, I knew I'd only last a couple minutes tops.

Rarity placed both hooves over my wound, crying softly and whispering to herself repeatedly, "I'm sorry, I'm so so sorry..."

I can't believe she actually did that though, killed her own sister. I wouldn't have done that, not at this stage. But Rarity did. "Is this what it takes?" I whispered, using much energy to do so. "Is this what it takes for you to actually hold me again?" I felt tears starting to slid down my coarse cheeks.

Rarity ran a bloody hoof through my lanky hair, pushing it aside, and gently kissed me on the forehead. "Please don't think like that." She whispered. "I want our last memory together to be a good one." Her voice cracked on a sob.

I felt a knot in my throat tighten. "Okay..." I muttered before breaking down into tears. Rarity hushed me and she set her head over mine, like we always used to do. At this point, I noticed the fighting has stopped. Everypony was probably watching us. But I actually didn't care.

I got what I always wanted: Rarity truly loved me. It's like all the pictures I drew in my coloring book, except this is reality.

And I managed to kill Princess Celestia! Sure, I won't be alive to see it, but a utopia will be born. Equestria's free....

Twilight Sparkle was heard tearfully crying out, "Princess Celestia!"

And a familiar, melodic voice strenuously said, "It's okay my little ponies, nghn, I'll be fine."

My reddened eyes shot open. I used all of my remaining energy to sit up and see the Princess struggling to get back up.

I started screaming like a maniac. "NO! NO, YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO BE DEAD!" A new round of tears blurred my vision. "THIS WASN'T SUPPOSED TO HAPPEN!" Blood sputtered out of my mouth.

My sister, with tears pouring from her eyes like a waterfall, looked into mine. She gently placed her blood caked hooves on my shoulders and slowly set me back down on my back. All the same thoughts were running in my head. I can't believe I failed! Everything I've done was for nothing! This was just one whole pointless journey!

Rarity sat her haunches on my stomach and rubbed the side of her face against mine. I coughed up more blood that splashed up to my sister's face. She didn't seem to mind at all. My face was probably an even more disgusting concoction of blood, tears, and scars.

But in the end, Rarity really didn't care. Trying to keep me alive as long as possible, she placed her hooves over my punctured neck. I felt the warm blood seeping under and dripping to the cool stone rooftop.

My sister's tears splashed down onto my face. "Sweetie Belle," she began, taking a pause to sniffle, "you're the most important thing in my entire life, and I don't know what...." She took a deep breath, trying to hold her composure together, "I don't know what I'd do without you." Her affectionate smile shook, the bottom lip quivered. The whole time, her beautiful blue eyes were focused on me.

"I know this...pretty speech won't make up for all the years I've neglected you. And I'm sorry." She took a deep, shaking, breath. "I'm sorry that you had to live such an awful life.....And I'm sorry for that." She couldn't hold back any longer. She cried the hardest she ever have in her entire life. Burying her face into my small torso, her cries of sorrow ached my heart. The release of choked sobs made me feel numb. I feebly rose a hoof and ran it through her silky purple mane.

In between dying coughs and tears I said, "It wasn't an awful life," She looked up at me with reddened eyes, anticipating my response. "I had you for a sister." I gave a wobbly smile and began to choke on my own blood.

I began to feel the warm blanket of death slide over me. Rarity got off my stomach and wrapped her forelegs around me and held tight. "I love you so much Sweetie, and I'm sorry for everything." I took one last glance at her bandaged flank.

"I'm sorry to-to-" I couldn't breath, my lungs felt constricted. Slowly, my vision darkened until the last voice I heard was Rarity's, though I couldn't understand what she said.

I was glad the last thing I heard before I died was her. And in my book, that's better than any utopia. And I didn't die alone. I died beside a loved one.

My big sister, Rarity.

Rarity gently placed Sweetie Belle's body back down on the pavement. Everybody, even Rainbow Dash, even Celestia silently wept for the tragic filly. The Great and Powerful Trixie levitated a blue silk handkerchief under her eyes, wiping the mascara running down her face.

Discord was the only one not shedding tears. He looked rather shocked. He gave an amazed sigh and said, "Wow, you actually killed her."

Rarity's sorrow was replaced with newly found anger. "What are you talking about!? You never cared about her! If you did, then you would've done something about it! You could turn the roof into ice, my horn into dust, transport Sweetie to some island but you didn't, did you? You never gave a damn about her." She marched over to her friends, who all gave silent nods of condolences.

The demon's face twisted into a hideous scowl of hatred. "You know what?" He spat. "You're right. I didn't care. You and your hubris egotistical race makes me sick!" His marble yellow eyes gazed up and down Rarity's figure. "I refuse to live in this society of conceited fools like yourself." He threw his arms in the air. "Come on! Do it! I'm serious, I won't run, do it! Turn me to stone and continue to live your petty life of self indulgence!"

He teleported beside Twilight's tiara and reappeared over her head, placing it behind her horn. Discord stood before the Elements and made a target appear over his chest. "Fire when ready, ponies!"

They glanced at eachother, thinking this is some sort of trick. But they could tell from the look of the enraged demon that he was deliberately doing this. He wanted to be defeated. "Come on, do it!" He impatiently tapped his foot. "I don't even want to be in your kind's presence, all your talk about friendship and harmony makes me gag!"

The ponies complied. The ascended into the air, all firing the shapes of their Elements, intentionally missing Discord. They were bathed in a white orb that fired a rainbow into the air. It arched back down, twisting and turning, barraging the god of mischief. He was turned to stone from the feet up. He didn't scream. He didn't fight.

And when the technique was over, Discord's statue was him with his arms folded and a passive expression on his face.

Everypony waited in silence, overlooking the carnage engulfing Canterlot. Trixie bowed her head to the Elements and Celestia, not saying a word.

The princess limped over to her and said, "You do know banishment will not condone your sins." She hinted at execution.

Trixie nodded. "I know." She whispered, sounding like she was about to cry.

Twilight Sparkle placed a hoof on Rarity's back, who was staring across the rooftop at Sweetie Belle's serene carcass. "It'll be okay, Rarity. We'll help you get through this." Her friends joined her at her sides, even Celestia.

"You girls are the best friends a pony could ask for." The unicorn said.

Celestia wrapped her good wing around the group, encasing them in it like a blanket. "I know what it's like to lose a sister, Rarity. Luna will be greatly missed throughout Equestria."

Twilight's panged heart glanced up at the shattered moon and back down at the demolished Canterlot. "What'll happen next?"

Celestia looked out into her setting sun. "Now we have to rebuild, tell the public what happened."

Rarity stared at the mighty goddess with pleading eyes. The princess knew what she was asking. "What happened to Sweetie Belle was a tragedy in itself. She was corrupted by neglect and lies, and we payed the price. I won't lie to the public Rarity, but I will tell them about your sister's tragic downfall and not spare any details."

The pony of generosity nodded in compliance. Together, the group of eight looked out into the sunset hidden behind the scorched mountains and smoke rolling into the sky.

But we all now this isn't over yet. Nothing ever is. Because everything in life is just another chapter in a really long story.

Discord's Epilogue

Well, this is it. I'm at the end of the road. I've been her for what, fifty years? Sixty? I lost count. Do you know where the Princess put me? At the bottom of the ocean of course. Heh, maybe I'll get lucky if two sharks fighting over a meal, eh?

Right?

Ugh, what's the use? I'm beaten. It's all over for me. The death of the Sweetie Belle child was my fault. Her annoying sister did have some truth to her words, that if I cared I would've done something, but I didn't.

Surprisingly, I did care about the child. Her plight reminded me of my own; a freak cast away by society. And I would've saved her. Honestly. But seeing a pony kill a loved one is far more entertaining than ruling Equestria. Is that strange? Yes, but if you actually question that then you don't know a thing about me.

Although I'm encased in stone, I still have a strong presence in Equestria, and I know all...

At the child's funeral, in which most if not all of Canterlot and Ponyville attended at the castle, Princess Celestia told the tale of how Sweetie Belle was horribly scared after an 'accident.' Students from her class confessed what they said to her. Let's just say those fillies aren't the most popular in Ponyville now. Rarity went up and gave a rather beautiful speech on her sister, and how neglect and anger morphed her into a monster. Many tears within the crowd were shed. Crocodile tears is what I'd call 'em.

Nobody would've cared, of course not. If she committed suicide at the lake, then she'd probably just be thrown into a ditch or something. She wouldn't have this million bit funeral with the entire populous of Equestria attending. Of course, everypony saw me as some heartless monster for warping the filly. Yeah, the Princess and the Elements convinced the fools that I dragged the 'fragile one' into darkness and convinced her to overthrow the princesses.

Bullshit. Pardon my language, but the tyrant ruined my image even further for 'using a frail and impressionable filly for my own gain.' Another lie added to her bulging file.

But everypony wept for their fallen ruler, Princess Luna. Celestia took it the hardest. She didn't talk to anyone for weeks aside from a few 'yes' or 'no' questions. In her memory, the land celebrates August 5th, the day the moon goddess died, as a sort of somber memorial of her.

Speaking of the moon, the Princess used the Elements of Harmony to create another moon.

I'll just give you a moment to take that in.

She created a moon. Crazy right? But alas, it didn't have the same mythical presence the real one once had. And of course, as you can guess, it was Celestia's duty to raise the sun and moon once more.

I'll go over the Elements current state quickly, because the very thought of them makes me want to gag.

Twilight Sparkle became Celestia's new court mage, replacing Trixie. Don't worry. We'll get to her in a second. Anyway, Twilight wrote several books on destructive magic and even decoded Celestia's strange 'God Form' she used when fighting Trixie and Sweetie. It shed a new light on the Princess, but not one of fear or unease, but of praise. Life's funny like that, y'know? And while we're on the subject, her slave-I mean 'assistant' Spike. Well, if you don't know yet, dragons age allot slower than ponies. By the time the unicorn was a senior, Spike would just be a teenage dragon. And remember when I said I created chaos through more subtle means? Well, I aged him allot faster. And with the ponies vague knowledge on dragons, they considered this to be normal. After two years, the full grown Spike had to leave Ponyville and join his own kind. It was a tearful departure, making me wish that if I wasn't frozen with a passive expression, I'd be laughing at the whole thing.

The creepy one...what's her name? Ah yes, Pinkie Pie. She rebuilt Sugarcube Corner, dedicated it to Mr. and Mrs. Cake, and ran it as a fun yet respectable business. And I just want to say, remember the whole subtle chaos thing? Well, I may have 'secretly' filled the room with hydrogen, and may have made the teeniest tiniest spark to turn the sweet shop into a barbecue. 'Experts' concluded it was a gas leak that killed the Cakes. Anyway, yeah. Pinkamena Diane Pie: Mother, baker, and a few screws short of a toolbox.

Not much happened with Rainbow Dash. She performed for the Wonderbolts, fulfilling her petty dreams of fame and glory. I think she hooked up with Spitfire or Soarin', I'm not sure they all look the same to me. Dash went into retirement when reaching an old age and concluded she was pretty happy with her life. Applause for you, my conceited self-indulged friend.

Fluttershy remained a virgin her entire life. I don't know, I just find that really funny. With my inner child aside, she too lived a pretty normal day to day routine of taking care of animals. She acted as a shoulder to cry on for Rarity, but besides that, nothing much happened with this one. She'll always be a shut-in that was afraid of her own shadow. Speaking of that, she died on a mission given by Celestia to vacate another dragon sleeping in a cave near Ponyville, like they did so many years ago. And like last time, the dragon assaulted her friends, causing Fluttercry to gain a ball of confidence and stand up to the beast. But unlike last time, the dragon didn't cry like a baby, he just gulped the pegasus in a single bite and went back to sleep. The dragon still lives there to this day, tears were shed at the funeral yada yada. Let's move on.

Applejack and Big Mac took care of the farm. They bucked apples, had their little family reunions, acted imbred. You know the drill. Little Applebloom was hurt when discovering the news of her ex-friend, Sweetie Belle. She felt guilty for abandoning her to the point where she hucked herself off a cliff. Weird kid, am I right? Yeah, another funeral, more sadness. Applejack went into a depression but quickly pulled herself out of it and handed down her sister's bow to her child, Apple Blossom. Would you like to know who the father is? Well too bad. And I don't think you even want to know. Trust me.

And finally we come to Miss Rarity. She was depressed for at least three months, and it took all of her friends to pull her out of it. She still runs the dress shop with a nice picture of her and an un-wounded Sweetie Belle propped up on her desk. The Element of Generosity donated huge amount of money and clothing to the less fortunate countries of the planet. Ugh, disgusting. Every year she visits Sweetie Belle's grave in the Canterlot gardens and leaves a note or gift there. The letter is just some gushy crud about her feelings too the whole event. and how much she loves her. Eugh, gag. Let's move on.

The Great and Powerful Trixie. What a dreadful life she's had. Imagine Sweetie Belle's last three years and spread that out over an entire lifespan. That's Trixie right there. She was bullied, abused, unpopular, and even raped by the entire Royal Guard. She begged to the Princess, but there was no evidence of corruption within the guard. There was though, but Celestia didn't want to create a public uproar about the first rape in Equestria in three hundred years. So she just dropped the whole case. Yes, the egotistical magician made some bad choices and boasted to get people to like her, but that doesn't justify the pain she's endured for thirty-three years.

She was publicly executed. Furious Canterloins chucked tomatoes and other rotten foods at her as she set her neck on the chopping block with her head hanging over the basket. Celestia made some spiel about justice, deceit, and compromise while Trixie pleaded mercy the entire time. Realizing salvation wouldn't come, the wizard used her last ten seconds to start blurting out all of Celestia's crimes and misdeeds, such as the origin of Changelings. The hooded pony brought down the ax without haste. The crowd cheered, not even mulling over what they had just heard.

No one knew about the horrible acts Princess Celestia committed. Only me.

And after all that's happened, I still can't take my mind off of Sweetie Belle. I was there for her when no one else was. She was sort of like a daughter to me. Yes. You heard right. The god of chaos and mischief considered a scarred filly as his daughter. Go figure. She held a dangerous and uncontrollable weapon: Anger. Sure, I manipulated that to try and rule Equestria. But still, at least I cared. And in all honesty, I never saw this alliance coming. I just assumed the filly would be loved like she used too. But no.

If it wasn't for her accident, then she would've lived a happy and normal life. That one little stupid accident ruined all of that. Quite tragic.

It almost makes me me regret tampering with that chemistry set all those years ago.

The End

Alternate Ending coming soon!

Alternate Ending: I Came, I Saw, I Conquered

I brought up my horn for one last, fatal strike. As I brought the Holy Arms down, my ears pricked up. The sound of one's hooves rushing towards me drew closer. In the blink of an eye, I pointed my cutlass at the direction of the offender. It took me only a second to realize it was Rarity. Building up to much speed to stop, she ran into my blade, piercing her neck. The heated tip dotted with sizzling blood protruded from the back.

I looked up and around my horn to see her sapphire eyes were locked in my emerald pair. Through gritted teeth I said in a low voice, "You little snake in the grass....Whose side are you on anyway?" She passed before she could answer. A single tear rolled down her cheek.

I tore out the Holy Arms, splattering speckles of blood into the air. Rarity collapsed to the fine cut cobblestone floor with her neck sticking together by a couplet of tendons. Her pool of crimson spread like wildfire.

I turned to see her friends were still fighting Discord and Trixie. They didn't even notice one of their best friends die. My attention was redirected towards Celestia, who was struggling to get back up on her hooves, seething at the excruciating pain burning at her side. With my sword burning brightly, I made a long yet fast incision along her spine. She cried out in horrible agony, drawing the attention of the others.

Discord and Trixie backed away from the Elements with malicious grins.

I dispersed my Holy Arms to join them. We all stared at the group wearing evil grins as they eyed Rarity's rotting corpse and Celestia's mangled one. I gave no thought to killing either of them. They were monsters and traitors. How could Rarity give that meaningful speech and then try to stab me in the back? That's how a coward fights.

I expected the ponies to break down into tears, but the situation seemed to be more than they could take in. But from a look in their eyes, I could tell that they were devastated.

"You.." Twilight began faintly, "You killed your own sister....and the ruler of Equestria....How dare you!" Angry tears brimmed her eyelids.

For some reason, that comment really got to me. "How dare me!? How dare you!? Do you really think the Princess was doing a good job? She wasn't! I-" Before I could continue my rant, Discord's leathery eagle claw placed itself upon my back. I looked up at him to see his stern expression. An expression that said, 'Keep your cool.'

I closed my eyes and inhaled deeply, venting all anger. I calmly opened my eyes, staring down the stiffened group of ponies. Rainbow Dash looked furious, but she wasn't an idiot. She knew she couldn't beat us now. With the Element of Generosity gone, there's no way to stop Discord.

The sun above the sky turned dark red, casting a scarlet template across the land. Everypony stared up at it in awe. Several violent solar flares were seen leaping out of the surface, massive enough to be seen from here. The bottom soon began to darken. It was as black as coal within seconds. Darkness began to swallow the entire sun until it reached the top, shadows across the rooftop grew in size as the sun's flames were extinguished. Within minutes, the ball of fire was no more. All that remained was a still lump of charred rock, though some canyons along the surface were filled by luminescent magma.

Nightfall was cast across the land, stars pasted over the entire sky. It was breathtaking. The absence of the moon was noted, though barely mulled over. It seems that everypony forgot about Princess Luna like they did 1000 years ago.

"Do you have any idea what you've done!?" Twilight screamed, "Without the sun, we can't grow our crops!" The ringleader's speech cast a wave of anger over her associates, Applejack in particular.

But I'm no fool. I knew what would happen and I was well prepared for it. Discord crossed his arms and pointed his nose up in the air, "I have a plan, Ms. Sparkle. What's a Utopia without a sun, right?" He said sarcastically, causing Twilight's face to flush. Trixie snickered at her displacement.

I spoke again in a bratty tone that reminded me of Diamond Tiara. "I'll make Equestria grow into the prosperous land it was meant to be. And with the help of these two, it's gonna happen." They still didn't seem convinced. I noticed Pinkie fondling with her balloon shaped necklace. "The old ways are gone, my subjects. No more Elements, and no more gods. The sun and the moon can be rebuilt. We have the resources. And the-"

I was cut off by Applejack's insipid notions. "Do ya really think all 'o Equestria's gonna be gung-ho about this change in leadership?" Her words dripped acid. It's entertaining to see somepony who really hates you but knows there's nothing they could do about it.

"They'll learn, eventually." I stated simply pacing from left to right with all eyes on me, I concluded that there was nothing more to say to these foals.

Rainbow Dash exhaled wildly from her nostrils like a raging bull. Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy both had tearful looks in their eyes, still looking at Rarity's lifeless carcass. They didn't know what to think. A.J. seemed about as angry as Twilight and Rainbow. They all looked like they were trying their best to remain strong. Pfft, so self-righteous.

These ponies were the closest friends I've ever seen. It must be nice to have those. Every thought, every plan is one they agree on together. Why not manipulate that? So I stopped pacing and said, "I'll give you all two options here: Leave and live, or stay and die. Your choice."

They all did a simultaneous gasp. I edged them further, "You all, or most of you, have something to live for. Do you really want to lose those just because of a little 'Old Equestrian' pride?" I felt Discord give me a rough pat on the back and Trixie's lips curved into an detrimental arc.

And just like that, Pinkie Pie took a single step to the right, away from the group. I noticed she left her necklace lying in the place she once stood.

Her friends gawked at her as she blinked away tears. Twilight tearfully shouted, "Pinkie, c'mon we can't let them win!"

She gave a quiet sniffle as her puffy hair bounced rhythmically with her cries. "I'm...I'm sorry Twiley. But I-I have a family now. Please understand." Her cries ceased as soon as they began, though the vibrant pink earth pony didn't smile. Not even a smirk.

And with that, Fluttershy drifted towards Pinkie and landed beside her, also leaving her butterfly shaped Element behind. She instantly broke down into tears, though I could barely make out her crying about 'the animals' or something like that.

Twilight was now sobbing too. She tried wiping her eyes but too no avail. And finally, Applejack unclipped her necklace and trotted over to the weeping duo, her face emotionless, her eyes dry as a bone.

Tears flowed down Rainbow's face. "No A.J.! Not you too!"

Applejack's green eyes burnt with hatred, not breaking their stare from me. "Ah'm sorry everypony, but ah got a family too feed 'n a farm ta take care of." Her voice shook with somber emotions.

And that just left the stubborn Twilight and Rainbow Dash. The Wonderbolts clad pegasus shouted, "I refuse too live in a land governed by a traitor!" She hovered over Twilight, whose horn was covered in a magical pink glow.

"You'll pay for-for all of this!" She shouted with tears running down her cheeks.

I turned and walked through my associates, towards the edge of the rooftop. "I'd love to stay and chat, but I have a land to rebuild." I shouted behind me, "Fluttershy! Pinkie! Applejack! Kill them!" I could sense their hearts dropping to the pits of their stomachs.

"NO!" The country-esque earth pony screamed in defiance.

Without straying from my steadfast trot, I angrily screamed into the premature night, "Kill them, or I kill your whole family!"

Trixie galloped towards my side and Discord teleported on the other. At the edge of the roof, all looked out into the lush rolling planes accompanied by the tranquil night backdrop. At that moment, I felt scared. Really, I was honestly scared. How could I rule this entire land when I haven't even graduated elementary school? And like a mind reader, Discord sat on the edge with his stubby mismatched legs dangling over the ocean below, patting the spot beside him for me to sit down.

I sat on my haunches with a nervous smile played across my lips. Trixie mimicked the act and plunked down beside me. Discord wrapped his lion arm around both of us and looked up at the cold dark rock we once called the sun. For some reason, this brought me reassurance. Like everything was gonna work out in the end. If it weren't for the back and forth screaming behind us, this moment would be perfect.

Nothing was happening between them. They were just doing the predictable 'please don't make us do this!' with eachother. It would be much easier if Twilight and Rainbow submitted, though it wouldn't be as entertaining.

"Discord?" I asked, not looking away from this beautiful picture.

"Hmmmm?" He said in a dragged, comical tone, knowing what I was going to ask.

"When they're done," I motioned my head to the squabbling Elements. "I want you to tear this whole place down."

12 Years Later....

Dear Diary,

Today is my 20th birthday, though it's not my actual birthday, I consider it to be. It's the fifteenth anniversary of my accident and may I say, it's my favorite day of the year. And it's not because I get presents or that it's an international holiday, but because it gives me a moment to reflect on all of the achievements I've obtained for making it a year further in paradise. If I explained every last detail, then this entry will probably fill my whole journal, so I'll only talk about the necessities.

After Discord demolished Canterlot, all of Equestria was confused and frightened. They were just children. And children need a mother. Trixie gathered ever pony, pegasi, unicorn, mule, and cow to the ground zero of the once prosperous city. There I stood on a podium in front of the demolished front gates and made a speech directed to each and every one of them, describing how I took the place of Celestia as ruler of Equestria. As expected, there were revolts, tears, and mobs. Thankfully, Trixie cast a bubble shield around the stage.

Over their cries of protest, I calmly explained how terrible life in Equestria was, it's flaws, and the macabre celebrations we offered to a liar. That last comment peeked their interest. I levitated baskets and baskets of files documenting every heinous act and lie the Princess committed. To convince them, I explained that these will be compressed into a book the following year. Who knew it would've became such a success?

The crowd remained silent, confused on how they should've felt at the moment. I suspected that, for I have gone through that phase as well. How would you feel if the pony you always believed in was, in reality, just a common crook? On cue, Discord worked his magic. He re-lit the sun. It's beautiful orange glow bathed Equestria in warm light. The sudden brightness forced everypony to lurch away. But after adjusting, they gaped at the now independent ball of flame. It no longer required assistance to rise, same went for the moon.

When I explained this, the massive gathering began to cheer. I enthusiastically annotated how this once dreadful land will rise from the ashes like a phoenix. I told them not to fear the future, or relish the past, but embrace it. The dark times were over, and this applauding crowd truly believed in me. No longer did they worship Luna and Celestia. Nowadays, they use Nightmare Night and the Summer Sun Celebration to ridicule these once praised gods.

A week after that, Ponyville was fully rebuilt. It seemed that everypony forgot about my rampage through the market, which was welcomed. I didn't want to rebuild Canterlot. For three years, it remained as an ugly reminder of the past. But the area was soon cleared and made way for the massive yet humble town of Maneland.

You may be asking yourself, dear reader, where I live. And the answer is simple. I live in a hut. That's right. A cottage, high up in the mountains. Is it two stories tall? Nope. It's all one big room with a fireplace, a bed, a desk, a bookshelf, and a kitchen. Pretty roomy, but nothing fancy. I don't dress up in any fancy gowns either. I do wear a golden tiara lined with valuable purple gems, though it kinda comes with the job. The citizens of Equestria questioned why the queen doesn't live in royalty. I pleasantly replied with, 'Because it's impractical. And please, don't address me as Queen Belle. Just call me Sweetie Belle, okay?'

Though my statement was deemed odd, my subjects gladly referred to me as Sweetie Belle, only sometimes calling me 'queen' or, more often, 'your highness.' Mayors or ambassadors of each town, even from places as far as Las Pegasus or Manehatten, have come to me personally and asked if there should be a day of celebration in my honor. I chose today's date, October 8th, to be my holiday. 'But they don't need to worship me,' I told them, 'just make donations to hospitals or rehabilitation clinics.'

I didn't think they'd take that literally. Now this date is internationally known as 'Sweetie's Celebration.' I was actually flattered by the notion. To this day, it's been celebrated every year for twelve years. At press conferences, reporters ask me why I chose to have donations made to clinics. I jokingly said, 'Have you seen this face?' to which they all laughed.

But in all seriousness, accidents, burns, and injuries similar to mine are very expensive to mend and heal. Though I wear my scars with pride in what they stand for, the less fortunate don't see it that way. Ever since the holiday was created, patients have been fully mended and healed within a week. Hospitals used the spare money from surgeries and discovered multiple medical breakthroughs to the point where they found a way to cure mental disorders and physical deformities. I was the ruler of Equestria for five years at that point, and already it became a land where there were truly no weaknesses.

Trixie became my most trusted advisor, helping me make critical decisions and really lending a hoof with running the country. She even became my most closest of friends. Coming from a similar background, she and I had allot in common. When we visit Ponyville, Cloudsdale, or Maneland, townsfolk treat us with the utmost of respect. Though I humbly accept it, Trixie sometimes gets a swelled head. Though she has morphed into a very mature pony over the years. She's starting to become a little aged, though she refuses to admit it.

And now you're probably wondering what my feelings are on Rarity. Nopony ever even dared to ask me that. The first couple of years, I felt nothing of it. But over time, I felt guilty, lonely even. I have a memorial of her beside my front porch that bears a framed picture of her and I at the Sisterhooves Social, one of the happiest days of my life. I'd give anything to relive it. The headstone has the logo of her Fashion Boutique and a sentence engraved on the bottom said, 'Rarity: A rare sister that will truly be missed.'

Now what of my old companion, Applebloom? She's my friend now. Hard to believe, right? Well, to put it short, I waited seven years to talk to her, and when I did, I came to her and offered the apple family a huge grant to repair their aging farm. Even after this gesture, Applejack still despises me. I can see it in those sabre cat eyes of her's. Applebloom apologized up and down for abandoning me. I was still pretty ticked, but I've matured over the past several years. What happened happened, and there's nothing we could do about it. All's we could do is push forward. I offered her the gift of friendship, she accepted. Applebloom acts kind of as a messenger for me now, which is good, because I'd always have to go to the town personally to retrieve letters and bills.

And speaking of Applejack, what happened on that night on the rooftop? Well, I'm somewhat happy to say there were no deaths. Twilight and Rainbow Dash saw that the others really didn't want to fight, so they just accepted what happened and moved on. They all still hate me, no matter how many promises I lived up to to make Equestria better. Honestly, I don't care. They're all still friends, and they have their own little holiday in memory of Rarity and the sacrifice she made. I dropped in on them unexpectedly last year at a dinner party in the Fashion Boutique, to which they all reluctantly bowed down to me. I ensured them that I'm just a friend wanting to make things right, though the nasty looks in their eyes made me realize how much they despise me, and they always will. But that's okay. I completely understand. So instead of throwing salt in the wound, I just don't talk to them period.

Rainbow Dash still performs for the Wonderbolts. Three years ago, I awarded their fifth victory in the row. Spitfire and the others were honored to be in my presence, but Rainbow Dash glared at me the entire time. It was actually kind of unsettling. Scootaloo's mysterious disappearance kind of 'broke' Dash in a way. She probably suspects I had something to do with it, but I didn't say. Really, I was going to tell everypony what happened with her. But I was far too late in the game at that point. I didn't want to be like Celestia, I really didn't. But there's nothing I could do at this point. Maybe someday I'll tell the world what happened, but not now.

Pinkie Pie is still a bubbling happy-go-lucky pony who runs the newly refurnished Sugarcube Corner and is the adoptive mother of Pound Cake and Pumpkin Cake, both attending their respective colleges of Demolition and Magic Mastery in Maneland. Whenever I see her though, her hair does that weird thing where it deflates.

Applejack runs Sweet Apple Acres with Big Mac and Applebloom, still the cornerstone of food in Ponyville. I've funded it multiple times whenever it seemed to decline. Mac and 'Bloom seem grateful, though A.J.'s still holds a grudge. At Rarity's Memorial Dinner, when I dropped in, Applejack came to me before I left. She said in a loathing tone, 'Ah appreciate what yer tryin' ta do, but it doesn't justifah what happened. Just leave me n' mah friends alone, and ah won't buck ya in the jaw. Are w' clear, yer highness?' She had allot of nerve to say that to the queen, but I just simply nodded and walked away. For some reason, her words rattled me a little.

Fluttershy still runs the Animal Retreat at her cottage. She seems to be the only one who forgave me, though there's still some resentment. Or maybe that's just her timid nature, I'm not sure. Nothing much is going on with this one. She's healthy and happy, so that's fine.

If Rainbow Dash hates me, then Twilight Sparkle despises me. She absolutely refuses to even look at me when I visit Ponyville. From what I've heard, she still runs the library and hangs out with her friends, so that's alright I guess. I don't think she even cares about how the Princess predetermined their lives for the Elements of Harmony. Now that's dedication.

And finally there's Spike. After six years, he became to big to fit in the library, so he had to join his own kind. But before leaving for good, he visited me. I was terrified, expecting him to attack, as he was big enough to crush my hut with his tail alone. But he actually just shared some words with me about how much Rarity meant too him, and how he misses her every day. But he doesn't hate me, he understood my predicament and knew what I had to do. Spike handed me a large sac of scrolls and said I could write to him if I ever wanted to talk. Inside the bag was also a picture of him and I dancing at Shining Armor's wedding nine years ago. On the back were instructions on how to send a letter through him. I gave him a meaningful hug before he flew off.

Jeez, this entry's getting to be allot longer than I thought. But one last thing I'd like to mention was probably the greatest achievement I've accomplished in my twelve years as queen. I wrote a letter to King Nevermore of the zebra country, Panetta, Lord Ramses of the griffon country, Valorikus, the dragon high priest, Aldunax, and the Changeling Queen, Chrysalis. It offered these proud rulers an invitation to join me at the Everfree Forest Temple, unarmed. Surprisingly, they all complied.

The roofless temple was too small for the dragon priest to settle in, so he perched himself along the edge and craned his head down to us. Aldunax's presence was an intimidating one, though he wasn't like other dragons. The amber colored beast was wise, saying how he hasn't been in a room with the king of every country since the Nightmare Moon incident. Ramses wasn't as hospitable, though it was obvious just from his appearance that he wasn't a very kind being. Equestria and Valorikus has always had a tense relationship, explaining the prejudice most griffons had against ponies were because Celestia and the prior griffon king had a dispute. Apparently, Celestia thought it was her business to tell the griffons how to treat others. By nature, the winged creatures are vile and brutish, and they didn't take too kindly on being told how to behave. They cut their training programs with Equestria, rendering inexperienced Royal Guards. That explains why they were such pushovers.

King Nevermore was a rather built zebra that looked as if he stole every piece of jewelry from Rarity's dresser. He told us of how his kind were annexed by ponies as savage enchanters. In reality, Panetta is a dying, diseased, country that always gets invaded by the Changelings and Dragons. Aldunax argued how his kind would get chased out of any other land while Chrysalis explained in disgust how the griffons killed half of the Changeling army when they were traveling along the border of Valorikus. Nevermore said how Celestia tried to keep sending supplies to Panetta, but she never sent enough to stabilize the entire populous.

The argument was escalating. I knew I had to do something. As they fought, I quickly thought over each species predicament and came up with a solution. I explained to Aldunax how if he could teach his 'children' how to be less violent and more peaceful, then they could live in Equestria, and maybe over time, the other lands. He thought over the idea and finally agreed, saying how Equestria has the largest gem resources on the planet.

I asked Ramses if he could put the past behind us and move on. He refused, so I delved into explaining how Celestia is gone and the griffons shouldn't hold a grudge over a dead rival. He considered the option if I allowed the griffons full access to the mines around Equestria. I asked why, and he said how Celestia cut trade routes with Valorikus after they cut their's. The major exported product were minerals to build houses. For hundreds of years, the once proud cities were dilapidating and their economy crumbled. I had no idea Equestria was such a powerhouse in the world. Then again, Celestia was always tight-lipped about that stuff.

I suggested the zebras to be moved into Equestria in exchange for some of their advanced tonics and allowing Panetta to become a land for any of the five species. Nevermore agreed without even giving it a second thought.

And I offered Chrysalis how the Changelings are welcomed back into Equestria. She said it's been hundreds of years since they were willingly allowed into the 'homeland.' I said they have to be civil and they have to take up jobs. She said if that's the price to pay, she'll take it.

So after five years, where are we today? Well, after three years, the Changelings moved into Equestria and Old Panetta. Things were tense at first between the ponies and ancient alicorns, but the insectoid ponies eventually settled in. To this day, there's still some unease. Changelings live in separate neighborhoods in nearly every town, whether this is some trait of the horde or tradition, I'm not sure. Over time, they've grown to be more friendly with the once hostile race. The ancient ponies, not having their cutie marks, chose jobs they actually wanted to do. When seeing this, my subjects started to take up occupations that completely contrasted their cutie marks. There aren't many ponies that actually did this, but it still made a bit nervous. Then I realized something marvelous: They're growing. It seems that each race is helping eachother grow.

The only place that seems to have every species living in harmony is Old Panetta, which has become the cornerstone of true peace. There, every race, big and small, lives there in tranquility. Speaking of that, the zebras arrived to Equestria were surprisingly welcomed by my subjects. It seems that times really have changed. The zebras were cured of their diseases by our advanced medical treatments and they were taught better social skills by the griffons.

Griffons rebuilt their mighty cities with our minerals and they in turn rebuilt the royal guard. I never dreamed of having a Royal Guard. Twenty four of the toughest, bravest, most loyal ponies in Equestria led by the tough-as-nails Sergeant Gilda. The all live in a massive barrack at the base of my mountain and they accompany me whenever I go on business or trips to other towns. Not many griffons live in Equestria, due to the far superior and newly rebuilt country of Valorikus. But they are grateful for my hospitality and even built a statue of me in the capitol, Olnetsia. I've grown to be rather fond of griffons, as they are a very honorable race.

The dragons were the toughest for anypony to get used to. Being widely known as an aggressive and violent race, dragons were alienated from any other group. To this day, they still are, but dragons don't bother ponies if they're left alone. Some of the bolder towns around the world use dragons as a massive locomotive flight transport in exchange for gems and other treasures. It always brings a tear to my eye. I did it. I united the entire planet into one great society.

Now you may be thinking that life here is absolutely perfect. Well, for the most part, it is. But there is, especially in my earlier years, assassins from a group called, 'Celestia's Iron Hoof.' These fools are ponies who worship Princess Celestia and believes that if she can't be Princess, no one will. They were just a minor annoyance at first, causing minor vandalism or defacing property, but then they started getting violent; attacking me on sight in broad daylight. I didn't care though. They were disorganized, clumsy, and timid. When I obtained my new royal guard, my first order was for Celestia's Iron Hoof to be eliminated. They did so in a single afternoon. Very efficient.

There are other things I'm constantly worried about, like the thought of our economy crumbling. Or what if one race decides to attack the other? What if the griffons get 'invasive'? Or if a dragon destroys a town over getting woken up? So much could go wrong in just a matter of seconds. But I won't think that way, I can't. I'll just enjoy the present and not get too pent up about the future.

There's one last thing I would like to address in this entry. Discord. What became of him? Surely being free to cause all the chaos in the world would cause problems, right? Well, he's gone. A week after I became queen he left. It was a rather tearful good bye. I thanked him for everything he's done and asked where he's going. He said there's many worlds out there with more inhabitants to play around with. Utopia was made, and he didn't want to ruin it. Kind of OOC for the god of mischief, right?

Well, it wasn't the last time I'd see him. In fact, he came to my doorstep last night. I embraced him and he returned it, commenting on how much I've grown and healed. He was right, I've grown to be about as big as Princess Luna. Discord revealed that it was his doing, explaining how the queen should be taller than her subjects. While it made sense, I wish he told me that before he left. I've been wondering for years why I was as tall as Big Mac when I was just fourteen, and then about as tall as Luna when turning eighteen. Even my subjects questioned this, and I didn't have an answer. As for the 'healed' part, my fur around my lips, nose, and mane grew back. Now the only thing reminding me of the accident was a pink scar going down the left side of my face and my right eye remained to be a featureless milky white. My pink and purple mane were soft curls that just barely went past the knees of my forelegs. My tail, donning the same color, almost brushed against the floor. I have to say, I'd never thought I'd look this beautiful again.

Discord and I sat down and shared a few laughs. He told me all about his new 'home' and how chaotic he made it. He described the aliens as looking like a cross between a jellyfish and a dragon. An odd but entertaining image. But Discord wasn't here to visit, he came with a message. A confession. He told me how it was him who tampered the chemistry set fifteen years ago. Twelve years ago, I would've been furious, doing everything in my power to turn him into stone. Was I mad? No. Not at all. In fact, I simply said, 'Thank you.' He stared at me quizzically and asked why I, surprisingly, wasn't mad. I just replied with, 'For everything.'

-Sweetie Belle

The End