Ch 1: Twisted Reflections
Heroes come in all shapes and forms.
In this exact moment, no pony reacted to be that hero.
Today was a day to celebrate the defeat of a tyrant, to celebrate the end of a time in which there had been no easy way to tell the time that had passed during the terrible reign of he who shall not be named. Today was the celebration of the day the Royal Sisters had returned to face the Chaos Lord in one final battle, one last time, in one final attempt to put an end to his rule and chaotic reign even after he had defeated them, humiliated them, and any challenger that questioned the Lord of Chaos, numerous times.
Those were dark times. Dark times indeed. Where every cup of tea, every bowl of oats, and every piece of fruit sprouted legs, blew a raspberry and then shimmied away from its offending attacker in what later became a foolish chase of trying to literally catch one's food just to get a bite to eat.
He had said it was good for cardio, many had considered it cruel and abusive punishment.
To this day Luna could still recall the legion of pegasi she had led with Captain Brisk Stroke, Captain Sonic, and Commander Leaf Whirl. Even in this icy silence, this tension filled atmosphere that she now stood in with her sister and guards against a creature that had somehow found a way to escape its stony prison, Luna could recall all the attempts that were made to catch fleeing food, crops, and giggling apples the size of elephants that hid behind things that were actually far too small to hide both their girth and their new enormous stature.
Blinking once, much like many in the Royal Gardens, Princess Celestia and many others tried to clear their vision of what they hoped was nothing more than a illusion or trick of the eye. No matter how much they wished it to be false, the fact was staring them right in the face. In the middle of the garden, was not one but two Discords. Except one was not the same as the other.
Instead of mismatched horns there were two normal deer antlers. Instead of mismatched limbs of varying types, there were two matching scaled forelegs that almost looked like lion paws. One tooth did not poke out hazardously from the muzzle, but two lower canines did make themselves slightly visible from the bottom lip to the top. His eyes weren't mismatched nor were they oddly yellow; one pupil wasn't bigger than the other. and there was no lizard's foot on his left nor a horse's leg on his right but two cloven hooves; neither hoof smaller or bigger than the other and a long tufted tail. And his wings were neither different, nor mismatched types.
It was as if Discord had been reborn. No longer a puzzle of different parts but still a chimera by the very definition. A chimera of faded yellow complexion, but a chimera nonetheless. It was like the Elements of Harmony had purified him completely and in their place had left behind his corrupt shell in the form of a statue. A statue that showed no cracks, no signs of falling apart, or any holes that may have signified this new Discord's appearance.
To the Princesses the implications of this was a shock, an unexpected outcome. To all other occupants, they had no idea what this could mean or were too stunned at the possible implications of a second Chaos Era on the way.
Two bright emerald green eyes peered through two full moon lenses of glass, staring down at the ponies surrounding him. And just as they surveyed this foreign depiction unlike what was told in legend, he to studied them. Everyone confused but at the same time the atmosphere slowly stirring and changing.
Several pairs of eyes looked this foreign version of Discord up and down and it was only now some of them began to notice that he held something in his right claw.
A hammer.
In that single moment Princess Celestia felt a troubling thought make itself known as the seconds ticked, and a overwhelming tension began to fill the air.
With a poof of smoke the hammer disappeared, the foreign Discord looked around, and then almost as if he was trying to calm everypony down he offered a small nervous friendly smile. Something meant to disarm and assure others that he in fact did not mean to cause trouble. As if he could sense the oncoming tide, the moment all the shock had left everyone's system, where logic would kick back in and questions or actions would start being taken.
Stunned silence, confusion, shock, all of these moments of cognitive brain freeze began to melt away as each soldier's expression turned just a bit grimmer. In that one instant, Accord knew that the history lived up to its name.
Discord, the statue, had done something awful. What he'd done exactly was up to speculation. Much of the Chaos Era wasn't recorded that well anyway. It was easy to tell because where Discord was Chaos, Accord was Order. He could tell what was purely written on bias and what was actual fact. He could feel it just as easily as you could feel or see the sun. He'd tried to find information as swiftly as he could the moment he found the statue and the moment he felt that presence within it. But it had been a waste of time, and perhaps the biggest mistake Accord, the foreign Discord, could make was smiling. Because if there was one thing Discord was well known for in all the time that had passed, it was smiling in the face of others chagrin.
That smile twisted the knife of fury in the hearts of many of the guards who had been told stories from their own relatives when in the early stages of youth. Stories passed down from generation to generation for those that had suffered the most horrific of shame under Discord's rule. Stories that were told among the young at a campfire in the darkness of night to scare young colts and fillies or up the fear factor where mischief was bound to be explored.
It was commonly told that back then, all those years ago, asylums had slowly filled during Discord's reign. Knights, soldiers, wizards, and even brave peasants of all sorts worked hard to bring down the dictator that had stripped peace and normalcy from the everyday life. Yet despite so many valiant attempts many had failed even when Discord had allowed others to think there were times where someone had succeeded.
Nobles were said to have jailed many and executed the most treacherous during those times. Many had done it for the sake of protecting the public and the Crown. It was often believed that Discord's power had caused many desperate souls to flock to him in the form of a cult or legion of acolytes devoted to being spared from the Chaos Lord's nefarious jape ways. There was only so many times one could listen to a banana list off a number of different peeling puns before groaning in submission and utter defeat. Where in the darkest hours it was Discord who had sown the seeds of doubt among many of the lower class to start revolts and uprisings when they began asking the right questions and getting the wrong answers.
While Accord knew some of this to be a lie, he did know one important thing that put him in a bad spot in this exact moment as soldiers pawed the ground and snorts of disdain could be heard.
It was stated that Discord had played a major role in the many wrongdoings that slowly spread among the noble houses, public, along with most of equinal society. That he was the cause of the decay and economical decline, which could not be ignored or proven false. But if there was anything that had the blame put on him the most, it was the fact Discord was deemed the source of the convicted whom many nobles punished and were deemed to be guilty of insanity, treason, or 'acting against the Crown and the noble equinity that owned the land'.
And while it was true, Discord had influenced many towards rebellion-- it was also true that the upper class had directed the public's ire towards a source more worthy of their hate and anger so that they wouldn't suffer the ire of the masses that they justly deserved.
If Accord's smile did anything, it had the exact opposite effect he had hoped to bring. A friendly smile that acted friendly, was no friend to anypony when ulterior motives were there. In the eyes of many ponies during the chaos, the arguing, the revolts, the confusion-- it was always Discord in disguise who had offered a helping paw, hoof, claw or hand, when things looked as if they would get very bloody. A kind thing to do, to be helped by a stranger in times of need when your country suddenly started falling apart and you had no idea why, what the cause was, or who was causing it.
But to reveal at the end --just as things were reaching their tipping point-- that you were the very cause and master of all the crazy going around, that was as good a right as any to distrust anyone for anything they might do.
And now at this exact moment, nearly two centuries passed, these very guards found themselves in the position to be the next champions and exulted heroes of Equestria when faced with a revived threat, when not too long ago it was believed that the Royal Sisters' final battle with Discord had led to his complete obliteration which was to be commemorated by the creation of the statue made by a still unknown and unsigned artist.
It took one hyperventilating unicorn, one miffed pegasus, and one word from one earth pony commander to change the situation as tension threatened to overflow.
"ATTACK!"
And that's when the inferno blazed, and over a dozen guards rushed in to subdue the perceived escaped prisoner.
In retrospect, Accord should have known better.
Chaos was the opposite of Order. So when he had sensed a weak yet potent chaotic presence coming right from the heart of the Canterhorn Court Grounds, he had thought it might've been something worse.
He had thought that perhaps it had been the very things he had sensed when both Star Swirl and he had been investigating concepts relating to alternate realities and the effects that could come if enemies of Equestria found a means to use something so dangerous if discovered.
Now that he looked back, Star Swirl had been right. There were some things better left untouched or unknown no matter how much good you wanted to do, because once learned... it could never be unlearned. Accord, in this one single moment watched in great disappointment as solders --friends in his world, faces he knew and some he didn't-- all formed a tight front line defense to guard the princesses. And in this one moment, he wished he had never learned.
That was, he supposed, sort of the problem when it came to learning about alternate realities that existed outside of your own. So many new questions had to be asked, so many new opportunities could be found, so many different events could be discovered. Events completely different from the ones that took place in your world. Different histories, different individuals, dragons, ponies...
And completely different versions of you. This, he believed, was a sign.
He didn't know the full details of what had happened in this world as records were exceptionally hard to find and what did exist was layered in nothing but biases in favor of the side of the princesses, which was reasonable. Whatever the case was, one thing was clear. There was nothing he could say or do to appease the riled soldiers prepping to attack as a line of earth ponies and unicorns formed a tight defensive arc around the royal champions of Equestria.
Horns glowed, magical energy radiated in a field of light around their horns, grimaces fixed themselves on every stallion's muzzle and then they fired. Every single shot missed, scorched the ground, and painted the marble walls of those beautiful gardens a grim shade of black.
Such was the grim beauty of battle, Accord supposed. With a thought, he resumed his draconic form, and with a reach of his paw while his 'opponents' prepared to attack again, he snapped two digits and instantly the scorched marks and cracked walls were healed, restored to the way they once were.
Princess Luna blinked into space out of nowhere, and had it not been for his rather unique anatomy, Accord was certain his jaw may have just been broken by the shod of Luna's sleek but firm hoof.
Pegasi jumped into the air with their powerful legs, spread their wings and circled, taking to the skies; off to call reinforcements all while Luna knocked Accord into a pile of shrubs which the draconequus immediately popped out the other side, holding nothing but a pocket watch.
Horns glowed and without hesitation, many unicorns in golden armor fired but not a single spell made it to Accord as Luna blinked out of the range of fire. Instead, everything slowed down as Accord touched the face of the clock and as his digit touched a hand all of time froze, paused, then rewound.
Motions done just a few seconds ago, were done in reverse.
Accord went back into the bushes, Luna's magical blast reversed itself and their fight happened in reverse all while Accord continued to hold the watch and slowly turn its dials back a second at a time.
Pegasi guards that went to call reinforcements, found themselves reversing aerodynamics in the oddest of ways. From flying circles to flying backwards, then landing.
One guard who even sneezed faced the unfortunate situation of taking their sneeze back as time did it's thing and undid everything that led to this whole situation. In just the span of a few minutes, everything was back to the way it was at the beginning. The shock had resettled, everyone stared stunned, and Accord stood at the center of attention once again in a not so friendly light.
It only took a few seconds for the déjà vu to kick in. Then less than a second after before the next command could be given, the voice of royals descended on the gardens.
Enough!
Every hair on the back of every guard stood on end and their ears rose, perked. Immediately, soldiers felt a powerful urge to bow, to obey and unable to resist, every soldier that was within the Royal Garden, stood at attention and withdrew themselves from further combat.
Horns dimmed; muscles rigged and ready to pounce, ceased their movement and wings raised in the universal position of the declaration in war snapped shut.
This was not magic, this was simply the way of the herd. Something Accord was well aware of when revolts had risen in his world and moments had occurred where either his Luna or Celestia or some other high figure were required to put their hoofs down and use their positions to wrestle control of a growing uncontrollable situation. A recognized leader that was respected, was heard. And so they did just that, they obeyed.
Eyes blazing white, mane rising and moving in undulating rhythm, Princess Celestia moved forward as the soldiers parted like the ocean split in twain with her every step and thus a line was formed giving both sisters access to their intruder.
But if there was one thing Accord noted as the two sisters moved to approach him, it was how they did not move as one. The sun moved first, while the moon held back and followed. He did not know what to make of it, but then again he didn't know what to make of the statue that stood frozen in the back, possibly aware or watching everything that was going on.
It was disturbing to think that had things been different, there was every possibility he could've turned out just like him.
"You will leave us at once." Came Celestia's unyielding gaze and it was the only thing that brought Accord back to his senses.
Stunned, Accord did not know what to say. It was hard being friends with a princess in one world, and having her spitting image despise you in another. Jaw dropped, brows risen, Accord wasn't even aware he had taken a step back as if dangerous weapons were being waved around right in front of him without a care for his well being. He felt wounded, even if he did know this wasn't his Celestia or his world, the blow still stung whether it had been intended for him or not.
"Not you", the princess clarified and the alicorn that was only a half a foot taller than the average adult male turned her gaze to the soldiers on her sides. "All of you will vacate the gardens post haste. And you shall not speak a word to another of what you have seen here this day, are we understood?"
The response was immediate. "Ma'am, yes Ma'am! By Sun and Moon!"
"Then if understood, leave Us at once. We must attend to this situation in private. Make certain no attention is drawn to this place and see to it that we are undisturbed and that no House is informed of what happened here this day" Luna dismissed. "And do not fret, we shall make certain no harm befalls any of you. Sol et Luna diriget." The princess finished.
"Et stellae vobiscum!" The army of a dozen plus returned.
The land was damp with dew, and Accord could see that the statue was being taken care of.
It felt odd to see this world's version of draconequus, and not associate them to something else entirely. Chimeras they were, but the mismatched body parts Discord had paled completely in comparison to the orderly parts that draconequus of his world acquired.
Magic senses told him that this Discord's form was the result of something else at work, but what that was he couldn't be certain. Even if they were technically the same individual of two different worlds with two different histories, it just...felt odd. Wrong. It felt...vile to even think that this world's Discord had fallen so low. In the minutes that had went by, turning to an hour or so, he discovered that this Discord never knew Celestia or Luna. Never helped them in the moments where Equestria was attacked and the Pillars were busy, or Clover was off doing something else in another land, handling some other task. He had learned only as much as the sisters were willing to tell him or what they were aware of in terms of what Discord had done during his reign.
In many ways, it did Accord's heart good to know that his... other, hadn't killed anypony or directly harmed anyone else. As far as either Celestia or Luna were aware, the only deaths that had occurred had occurred due to infighting, whether that was truly Discord's fault or not...well, ponies were known to follow the herd.
Instinct sometimes took over reason and function.
So to some degree, Accord found some minute peace in knowing that the worst Discord had done was drive everypony up the wall. Which in hindsight didn't sound good either. Unless you count itching powder and a group of nobles dragging their rumps on the ground to alleviate an itch for the whole peasant class to see particularly horrible or bad considering how low their popularity was with the masses...and their peerage.
Luna however had openly admitted she'd found that scene quite amusing. Accord and Celestia had silently nodded in agreement. At the very least, their equal dislike of the original aristocrat houses was very much the same, even if after Discord's reign had ended an Equestrian Reformation had been brought and in many ways was still in the process of transferring from the old system.
He wondered how different their histories were. If he too had grown up in a race that was not cared for, started out in large numbers, then turned to crime and lawlessness to get by in the cruel world that held nothing back for any intelligent being that was capable of speech, thought, morale, and reason.
Add magic into the mix and the world really did get more complicated, if not several times worse at the things that could be done if one had the talent to be good at using magic at all. Let alone lived long enough to learn what other appliances could be made.
The Draconilis, as they were once known, were a odd race of misfits particular because of their skill in simply making due.
The name 'draconilis' and 'draconequus' derived from Pig Latin, if he recalled correctly, the Swines were the first to give them the name during the attacks each draco tribe launched in claiming their own territory and land back in the days of old. The term draconilis in Common tongue meant "like a dragon", and that was the only meaning it ever really had before their name as a species became the Draconequus, which simply meant 'dragon equine'.
He wondered how much of their history was the same. How many of their kind still existed, if they existed at all.
Sipping tea from a cup he had conjured when tea had been served to only the Princesses, a reasonable situation if there ever was one, Accord stared at his effigy. Himself. Both a version of him and also not him at all. It enamored him but disturbed him all at the same time. As a being of order, a worker for justice, he found himself disgusted with Discord and everything he represented. But at the same time, he found himself pitying him. Yet also intrigued. A conundrum if there ever was. Two beings on the opposite spectrum, yet somehow were the same individual that just happened to be from two different worlds. And as he stared, Accord had to wonder just how confusing this would be trying to explain this back home when he went back.
If he went back anytime soon.
"...Thank you for stopping the guards." The draconequus commented, eyes never leaving the statue. "I know this is confusing and all. I'm confused if I shall be honest considering how little I myself had known. I just sensed...him and thought there was trouble." He paused with a gentle clear of the throat, "There seems to be quite bit of trouble around these parts."
To that Luna merely smiled. The first time she had since his arrival. "You haven't the faintest idea."
Accord smiled back, but it soon turned into a frown. "Earlier, I wasn't trying to free him... at least I don't think I was. That was actually the last thing I wanted, especially considering anything I tried to do to him had no effect. I was just trying to see if I--"
"It's fine, Accord. We understand", Princess Celestia cut in gently while Princess Luna eyed the alternate carefully with a neutral expression that contrasted her sister's concerned.
Silence fell and it did not leave for a good time. It had become their unwanted guest off and on for quite some time through their off and on conversations. Luna had attempted a humorous joke earlier where she had commented on how in moments like these Discord would pop out of nowhere and scare the jeebies out of a pony, most of the time ponies within the court. Perhaps her own way of trying to show Accord that while his concerns were well placed, there had been moments where in the early parts of Discord's reign the draconequus had been easier to deal with and ignore, if not exceedingly obnoxious with his pranks they had never been, well, life crushingly horrible.
Just life crushingly difficult to manage.
Accord had only offered a moment's chuckle then grew silent as soon as the laugh had passed.
A tink of glass on glass caused the draconilis to turn his head, his green eyes turning to look down at the princesses before him. It was so odd staring at a Luna and Celestia from another world. So odd, yet so soothing.
They were not his Celestia or his Luna. They were not the same ponies he knew from his world that were worshiped as deities for what they could do and what they had done. And while it was clear from the reaction of the guards that some things never seemed to change, what really caught Accord's attention was the nature of the Royal Sisters. Their personalities, their mannerisms, the way both of them spoke, the way both of them acted around their guards or those that were in their care...it did Accord much good to know that if anything had changed, he was glad they hadn't.
At least not completely.
Time would tell. He had yet to mention the noticeable difference in their unity. The subtle shift in their balance had changed and to the outside observer it was impossible to visibly see but to Accord who came from a world where both sisters were equals in every form, it was as clear as a torch in the pitch black of the night that since Discord's defeat and the time that had passed since then a small shift, a tiny insignificant crack was starting to form. And in time, who knew if it would heal or grow.
Yes, things were different here. Of that there could be no doubt.
Time changed much as it moved on, and it waited for no one. Just as his world had suffered its own struggles, so had this one taken its fair share. The darkness he could sense in the distant horizons, the things that lurked outside all senses but the attuned and heightened sixth. There was much different about this world than his, so much out of balance and out of order that for all he knew could take centuries, eons to settle everything into place.
His world may not be a master piece, but the looming presence he could just barely feel at the outer regions of his hearing was like an itch that came and went. It bothered him. And was not entirely unfamiliar. Here however, the feeling was stronger. Potent. Like a fog that never let up.
And just like Celestia, just like Luna, he was certain that it bothered them too.
A part of him wanted to ask if they knew anything or had heard any rumors of Discord before he appeared in Equestria and took control. If there were any connections to what he could oh so vaguely feel and what his new friends had told him. But from what he could tell in their early conversation, the only leads he had to go on were rumors of similar strange activity occurring in other nations.
Silence reigned as champ, until Accord broke it by putting his tea cup down. "How is...Star Swirl?"
The frown that came from both Luna and Celestia was not one he had expected. "What?" He asked, almost nervous.
"We, I'm afraid are not certain of how he is...or where." Celestia condoned sympathetically.
Accord blinked, turned, looked at Discord the statue, then looked at Luna and Celestia in disbelief. "I-I didn't. I didn't--"
"No." Luna quelled with a firm tone, her ears pivoted forward and her eyes boring into Accord's own emeralds. Strands of indigo and silver hair shifted slightly out of her field of vision. "You did not and We ask that you do not question any further. The details of such is beyond our own understanding, but Lord Star Swirl and the Pillars are not here. Though Star Swirl did aid us in ending of his reign", Luna admitted with a careful glance to the statue to their southern side.
Exhaling a breath of relief, Accord deflated. "I see."
Again, silence found itself at home till Celestia asked her own question. "Accord, what were you going to do with that hammer?"
In response Accord looked back to the statue. The other him. The him that had become the most powerful magic user in the whole world and hadn't used it for good or evil or revenge or anything insidious or malignant, but used it for what sounded like to him nothing more than his own entertainment. Selfish entertainment, sure, but entertainment regardless.
"If I were to be honest, I do not know. I was not acting necessarily of my own mindset entirely. I suppose I was acting on instinct. I...do not quite know what would've happened had you not all entered when you did. A part of me was going to smash the statue." He admitted, and couldn't help but notice the frown that came from Celestia as her tea cup went back down before it ever touched her lips.
"It wasn't for malignant intent or anger", he clarified "it was just...instinct I suppose. It's hard to explain, much like I'm sure much of what I, he, did was-- is, difficult to explain."
"We see. But why here? As you can see there is no danger here. Not yet at least but there's something bound to happen in time. There always is. But if your theory on the mirrors, the Gates and their ability to access other worlds is true, which from experience We do not doubt or see folly, why was it so easy to come here to our world? Why did you not appear from the mirror?" Luna asked.
"I do not know. I would assume that different Gates have different access points. But how I was able to find this one was...based on what I felt."
"Which was?" Celestia inquired.
Accord turned his eyes to the statue and the two sisters followed his gaze to the frozen Discord.
"Oh."
"You said you used these Elements of Harmony? Was he really that troublesome? That much of a challenge."
"It was the only way to defeat Discord. There was no other way to stop him. Spells did nothing. Spell Circles were things he learned quickly how to break when used in many attempts to seal him. He broke out of them in seconds if not minutes after our first attempt to keep him locked up failed. He even allowed us to seal him just so he could break out again later. Offensive magic he evaded or teleported away from. And then...there was that moment where he figured out how to take away the magic of others in a different way from the Centaurs. We feared that the worst possible solution was if the Elements didn't work, he could simply turn their energy against us. But our best bet was that the Elements would render him weak enough to defeat, we found out quickly though that not even Elements could truly destroy him."
"Why?"
"We", Luna interjected, "believe that Discord's magic was not truly evil by its nature. Chaotic, abnormal, strange, and unnatural, but not pure evil. The Elements, do not possess the power destroy what is not raw darkness. They can only restore balance to that which requires balance. When he used his magic there was no corruption in it, I could feel none, not in the same way the Everfree seems to befoul or produce cretins from within. Discord's magic did not corrupt one from within like dark magic does before spreading like poison. You heard the voice also sister when we used them. Even Star Swirl wasn't certain that the elements could vanquish Discord."
"Yes", Celestia whispered and her nostrils flared as her eyes closed with the recall of the memory. "I wasn't certain they would work either but it was a gamble we had to take. It was why we left the former House of Royals in charge to follow Star Swirl into the heart of the forest. To think he could craft such powerful containers with only the available minerals. I never told him, but he really was the greatest wizard of his time."
"I don't quite understand, what do you mean?" Accord blinked and then readjusted his circular lenses.
"We do not fully understand what happened or where the Pillars even were but whatever they were doing, whatever alerted Star Swirl to our situation, he took one thing from each Pillar, and used those items to forge the gems that would be the Elements of Harmony within the heart of the Everfree Forest. I still don't fully understand how he made them or why they work the way they do, or what forces give them the strength they have-- but what I do know is that the Elements are not meant to be weapons of destruction. The Tree of Harmony's magic is to restore balance in a situation where we cannot do so ourselves or on our own in a manner to prevent senseless bloodshed."
"That doesn't mean they can't be made weapons Sister."
Narrowing her eyes at her younger, Celestia's lips turned to a scowl few ponies ever saw. "As long as we are the bearers, we have no reasons to worry of or do such things. They cannot be corrupted if we are the ones who wield them. Not easily. Besides", Celestia stated with a wing outstretched and draped it over her younger sister's crest, "we have each other to ensure nothing will do us harm. And our subjects will always be there to support us now that we have their genuine favor."
Turning his attention back to the statue Accord could not help but ask a simple question. "Do you think he's aware of everything that we're saying?"
Neither sister replied, and a cold silence filled the gardens as a gentle breeze passed through as the sun had set over the distant mountains.
"I think what really drew me here", Accord continued. "Wasn't just all this...imbalance I can feel lingering in the horizon...but what really drew me here, was him. Maybe it's some sort of connection myself and I have, as odd as it sounds, maybe it's just how our magic works and that we're all somehow in some way connected. You said your Star Swirl created the Mirror and was led to do it by outside help. My Star Swirl was aided in a similar fashion, but where yours worked with you two, mine worked alone till I came in. I don't know if its like that for you Princesses but..." he turned to stare at both sisters and found each one staring back at the statue before looking back at him.
When both sister's shook their head, Accord could not help but feel a tug of disappointment.
So many questions. So many things needing to be answered.
Would they be alright? This wasn't his world so he technically had no reason to care. His home needed him, but they were better off because they had not just the Princess but the Pillars and Star Swirl all there. The Crystal Empire was at its strongest, and while relations with dragons were still horrible and there was the occasional spat with the few remaining numbers of his kind, things weren't bad before he left. In fact, he could tell even while sitting here that little to no time had passed at all.
Like synchronized clocks across different worlds, no matter how much time passed here, time would follow the same line with different events back home.
Accord found himself wondering, should he stay? Should he go back? There was so much that needed to be fixed in this world. He could feel it gnawing at him. It had always been a nagging thought in the back of his mind, but here in this world, that thought had become a powerful ache. A buzz, a need, a desire to fix.
He wondered if the Elements played a role in his changed perspectives. Was exposure to these princesses having some kind of odd magical effect on him like radio waves affected by their surrounding environment? Speaking of which, what were radio waves and how did he know what they suddenly were?
Turning his attention back to Discord, Accord wondered if his other also had some sort of strange magical effect on him in some shape of some form. When he had come to the Gardens, he had been drawn to the chaos, not the people and not anyone else. He followed it like a moth to the flame and made his way in to discover the source only to be snapped out of his daze when he discovered that source was just another version of him.
A him, that he had later found to still be alive within his stony prison. Whatever 'being alive' truly entailed.
Shivers traveled up the draconequus' spine and Accord suddenly felt very uncomfortable at this realization.
Was it pity, empathy, or something else that made him ponder just how lucky he was to be who he was? He had never really thought about how lucky he was in all his years, not just to be alive but to have the friends he had. Through the war with his own kind that were just as large as the ponies in his world, unlike here in this one, he had experienced quite a bit of alienation and in all honesty being a Draconilis (or a Draconequus as most would say) was natural for one to be estranged. In many ways it took after the dragon culture in that sense.
Strength came with overcoming and weakness was not accepted. If you were weak, you died. No reliance, no dependence, freedom and self-discovery. But... even Dragons found their hoards in due time. Things or ones they would burn nations for if not the whole world.
He wondered if Discord's lack of a hoard led to this result and this change in their paths. It also made him wonder how many more Discords there were out there in other worlds, similar or different to this one.
For a long while emerald green eyes didn't blink, they simply stared. A touch made Accord turn to look at whom had disturbed him as he became intangible and when he turned to find his disturbers he found two princesses looking up at him with compassion in their eyes.
"Its okay. We understand that this is difficult. Take as much as time as you need, you shan't be disturbed as our guards are loyal. They will follow our command." Luna stated gently.
Becoming solid once more, Accord slumped. A glow of golden light and with a flash, all the items for tea were teleported away. "Thank you", the Draconilis said with a hint of strain in his voice. Sniffling, Accord opened his palm, whirled his claw, and pulled a card out of thin air into his digits. "If you ever need my help for anything. Anything", he stressed with wide green eyes, "please, don't hesitate to call."
Sliding the card along the table, Accord left it at the center, then pushed one card over to reveal another. Two pure white cards that said in bright bold gold letters, 'Accord. Just A Call Away'.
"All you'll have to do is give me a single call, I promise, I'll be here to help as soon as I'm able."
Smiling warmly, Princess Celestia scooted over and draped a wing over her new friend.
Sniffling Accord turned his attention behind him when he felt another presence at his side. Luna too draped a wing over his long serpentine back and as the draconilis curled around into a ball, the group of three turned their attention to the single most important statue in the Royal Gardens.
"He looks like he had a bath."
"Yes", Celestia said warmly her hoof resting against the draconilis, "we do make sure he is taken care of. We have particularly special someponies make sure he gets proper company and taken care of every week."
Smiling just a little, Accord had to admit. That was nice. "Pigeons must be annoying though."
Luna couldn't help but snort. "Yes, they tend to visit quite often."
Smile growing just a little bigger, Accord was glad that at the very least these two hadn't changed. And if anypony could find a way to change a Discord, it might just be Luna and Tia.
"Thank you, you two. Thank you for everything."
