Old Mare Luna

Chapters

Chapter 1 - After the beginning of the end
Chapter 2 - Visitors
Chapter 3 - An unexpected journey
Chapter 4 - Acquaintances
Chapter 5 - There Is Still Another
Chapter 6 - A flurry of traumatic events
Chapter 7 - Trainwreck
Chapter 8 - Old wounds
Chapter 9 - The beginning of the end
Chapter 10 - Run
Chapter 11 - Rescue Mission
Chapter 13 - Heartless
Chapter 14 - Destination Reached
Chapter 15 - The King Is Dead
Chapter 16 - A Dazzling Escape
Chapter 17 - Welcome to the Show
Chapter 18 - More Familiar Faces
Chapter 19 - A New Equestria
Chapter 20 - Let's Find The Magic
Chapter 21 - We're in the endgame
Chapter 22 - Let The Games Begin
Chapter 23 - The End Of The End
Chapter 24 - The Last Problem
Chapter 25 - Epilogue
Chapter 12 - Home on the Range

Chapter 1 - After the beginning of the end

Nopony knows what happened the day the elements fell. All anypony knows is that they disappeared and evil triumphed and the bad guys have been calling the shots ever since. Not even the princesses survived their attack. There were rumours that one survived but what happened to that one was the biggest mystery of all. Some say they hurt that princess like never before, sparing her because they broke her so badly she might as well be dead. Others say she just grew tired of defending everypony from their nightmares, whether they be dreams or real monsters, and retired to a simpler life. Either way, nopony has seen her since and she hasn't even used the traditional Canterlot voice in a long time. Tartarus, she hasn't even flown in a long time either, always wearing a cloak that covers up her wings.

Somewhere, in a land far away from Equestria but still owned by one of the villains, a dark blue alicorn trotted back to her home in the middle of the desert land. The home looked like a very rustic place, a far cry from the castles that the alicorn princesses once inhabited. On her way home, she had flashbacks to the last time she defended Equestria. Memories of her kneeling down in despair, caked in blood. However, a young regal voice snapped her out of those memories.

"Mother?"

The alicorn looked to her son, a young alicorn colt wearing a cap and a jacket to hide his wings, pointing to a broken down piece of machinery. The colt had a dark blue mane and coat that he inherited from her and bright green eyes that he inherited from his father.

"The rock harvester broke down again. I tried to fix it up but it appears we are going to need a new motor."

"Hmm, unless we come across some lucky charms that magically fix the old one, I'm afraid that the chances of getting a new motor are slim."

"So, what do you suggest we do?"

"Heavy-lifting, Gail."

The mother alicorn rested on a fence, looking at all the rocks she and her family managed to harvest. A unicorn stallion with a blonde mane, green eyes, and a white coat walked out of the house and near his wife. He also had his daughter, a young alicorn filly with the same white coat and blonde mane as her father but the same beautiful blue eyes of her mother. Like her sibling and mother, she was also covering up her wings, this time using an adorable little dress.

"I'm afraid Abraham wouldn't even give me twenty bits for the boulders," the alicorn mother said, "I told him they were clean but he wasn't willing to take any chances after last time."

"I wouldn't blame him," the stallion said "How much did he lose? Five-hundred."

The mother sighed while her unicorn husband walked up to her and rested his arm on her shoulder.

"What are we going to do, Luna?"

"I'll think of something."

It eventually became suppertime and everypony gathered at the dining table to gorge on the father's hayloaf. The dining room looked decrepit, with cracked windows, rotting wooden cabinets and broken toasters and microwaves.

"You know," the unicorn said "A friend of mine is willing to give us thirty-five bits for the BrayStation 4. Forty more if we throw in that life-long battery."

"We are not selling the children's electronics, Morning March."

"It was just an idea, sweetheart. After all, rent's due in two days and we got nothing else to give Tirek that is worth anything."

"We don't mind, mother" Gail spoke up "We barely got time to play on the BrayStation anyway."

"Even if that were the case, I'd rather not. None of us have even finished playing Brayman Legends yet."

After that little discussion, everypony continued eating their supper, with the alicorn filly pulling out her GameColt Advance after she was done. The topic of Brayman Legends also brought a question into the filly's mind.

"May I ask you something, mother?" she said in a voice that sounds like a higher-pitched version of her own mother's voice. "Is it true that you used to be a princess that saved the day? Thought I might ask because Sweet Buck told me."

Morning March looked at Luna, worried that their daughter might have brought up some bad memories. Thankfully, Luna answered her calmly.

"Well, we didn't always save the day. Or at least I didn't. I was a princess but the real ponies that saved the day were a group that wielded the Elements of Harmony."

"What are those?"

"Magical artefacts that, once wielded by a pony or a group of ponies that possess loyalty, honesty, kindness, generosity, along with the ability to bring laughter and use magic, can be used to defeat whatever evil force opposes them."

Luna then solemnly looked to the floor. While she remembers the time Celestia and she used to use the elements on foes of their time like Discord, she also remembers the time she spent a millennium on the moon as a result of her own jealousy and her sister being forced to use the elements against her. She then teared up a bit, excusing herself before walking outside for some fresh air and to look at the sun, or what she can see of it since there is nopony to move it and she hasn't moved the moon in centuries. Morning March then followed pursuit.

It was evening and both Luna and Morning March were staring out into whatever sunlight they can see from all the dark clouds the villains and their cronies use because they did not know how the weather worked. While there are drying tears on Luna's face, she was feeling slightly better.

"You understand that Jade didn't mean you any harm, Luna."

"I know. It's just that it brings up some bad memories. She looks up to me and yet I have not even told her about my time as Nightmare Moon and the resulting punishment!"

"These things take time, Luna. I'm sure you'll tell her eventually."

"It's not that! We're also behind rent! Do you have any idea what Tirek would do to us if we don't pay him in time?!"

"I would suggest you and the kids take him on but I've heard he's grown to the size of a mountain. Oh well, we can only hope. Besides, this is our first time in thirty years that we've missed paying him."

"It doesn't matter to him! He can't look weak in front of Chrysalis and Grogar, so he has to punish us for it!"

"Just tell him we'll pay him double."

"Considering how he really wants our magic and is using us as an ace in the hole should he ever try to betray Grogar, I don't think he would even care about how much we pay him."

Author's Note

If you came here for the action, I'm afraid you're going to have to wait. I'd give it until the next chapter until you lot get to see some violence.

Also, fun fact, you know this line here:

All anypony knows is that they disappeared and evil triumphed and the bad guys have been calling the shots ever since.

There was a typo that, instead of "shots", said "shits". I would have left it in but there's only so much levity you could bring to a serious story until it loses it's seriousness entirely. Also, having it in the second sentence would kill the mood entirely the same way Venom saying "like a turd in the wind" in the trailers for his movie killed the horror movie vibe the trailers were originally going for.

Chapter 2 - Visitors

The morning afterward, or what could be considered the morning afterward, Gail walked outside of the house telekinetically holding a shotgun. He sat down on an armchair and proceeded to inspect the weapon. Luna walked in on him and was less than amused.

"Put down the gun, Gail. Not only is it dangerous for someone your age to use but it is also unnecessary. If there are problems, we can simply talk them out."

"It's alright, mother. I wasn't even intending on using it for lethal force. Just thought I'd give Tirek's goons a warning shot should they give us any trouble."

"The only way they'll give us any trouble is if they think we are going to attack first."

"For buck's sake, mother! I was only trying to help!"

"And watch your language! I will not have anypony in this house use such foul words!"

"Uh...Lulu?" Morning March said in an intimidated tone "Tirek's forces have arrived for his money."

Luna and Gail looked at three towering centaurs who had their chariots pulled by their gargoyle slaves. One was a thin-looking centaur with black hair styled into a bang over one of his eyes, as well as a spiked collar around his neck and an assortment of silver rings on his fingers. Another was morbidly obese and was wearing a cap and, while balding, had a bushy moustache on his face. The third one was a female with poorly aligned teeth and stringy ginger hair that was covered in dust.

"Miss Bittak," Luna said, addressing the female centaur.

"Luna," Bittak said, addressing her right back.

The two male centaurs that accompanied her got out of their chariots and walked towards Luna, with the big one cracking his knuckles and taking a moment to spit at the ground.

"Lord Tirek knows you don't have this month's rent, Luna," Bittak said, her crooked teeth giving her a lisp "Which is why he sent reinforcements today. You've met Otak and Charek before, haven't you?"

"Once or twice during my travels."

"Well, since they heard you used to be the princess of the night protecting the ponies of Equestria from nightmares, they thought this might become a real nightmare for them. I tried to explain you've given up fighting for others as well as yourself but they really wanted to see what you can do."

"So, what's it going to be, ex-princess?" the big one said, his voice being deep and guttural "Are ya gonna take yer punishment, or are we gonna flatten yer stupid little rock farm?"

Luna didn't answer them. She just stood there stern and silent, waiting for them to make the first move. This made the centaurs annoyed by Luna's stoicism at this moment.

"Ya deaf, old mare?!" the thin one shouted in a raspy and nasally voice that acted as a contrast to his chubbier companion, "We asked if ya gonna take your beating or what?!"

Luna inhaled deeply before exhaling and slowly charging up her horn. The big one looked on in shock before Luna blasted him in the face with a massive bolt of magic before flying up and pounding him into the ground with a magically-enhanced blow to the face, cracking his skull open in the process. The smaller one charged at Luna but Luna quickly ducked her head down then raised it back up to impale the centaur through his chin all the way to the roof of his mouth with her horn. The centaur gurgled on the blood that was flowing from his mouth, most of which spilling onto Luna, who was snarling like an animal all the while. And then she heard a voice.

"Luna!"

That voice snapped Luna out of her daydreaming. Five-hundred years of seeing the worst Equestria and beyond has to offer has made Luna more prone to acting out fantasies of bloody retribution in her head as a defence mechanism. Luna could have easily wiped the floor with the centaurs if she wanted to. She could have easily shouted at them so loudly they would be sent to the moon themselves. She could have even cast an illusionary spell that makes it look like spiders are crawling all over them. But she wasn't going to do any of that. She was going to set an example for her foals. If she were to teach them that if one was to settle conflicts, one must learn to turn the other cheek instead of relying on brute strength.

"Well?" The big centaur said

"Yes, Otak. I'm ready for my punishment."

"Good," Otak said, smiling while cracking his knuckles again.

Luna closed her eyes and bowed her head down in preparation for what the centaurs are about to do to her. Otak made the first move by grabbing Luna's head and slamming it into the ground, breaking her nose in the process. Charek then joined in by jumping on top of Luna's ribs and using his forelegs to stomp them into paste while Otak made good work of Luna's face.

"Oh Luna," Bittak said in a mockingly concerned tone "How the hay did they mess you up so bad you won't even defend yourself from some grunts?"

"What she said," Charek said "You and your sister managed to banish our Lord Tirek to Tartarus once upon a time!"

Luna was wavering in and out of consciousness, her vision blurry and her ears ringing. In spite of her body being borderline mangled by the centaurs, with massive puddles of blood beneath her, she can barely feel a thing. She wondered if it's because she didn't care at this point or they are beating her up so badly they damaged her nerve endings. But luckily for her, a gunshot managed to make the centaurs stop.

"Thou shalt CEASE!" Gail said while holding onto his shotgun, using enough volume in the last part of that statement to make her mother proud.

"Heh, this kid is funny," Charek said.

"Yeah, just be glad we got a sense of humour, little foal!" Otak threatened.

The centaurs then hopped back onto their chariots and gestured their gargoyles to fly.

"Double next month!" Charek shouted, "Or you'll have to take it up with Tirek!"

When the centaurs left, Morning March and the alicorn foals quickly ran to their wounded mother. While she was coughing blood and one of her eyes were swollen shut, she smiled with a mouth filled with broken and missing teeth. They all immediately picked her up and carried her into the house so she can heal and get some rest.

The darkness covered the sun to signify what is meant to be the night, and everypony has been keeping an eye on Luna in her bedroom. Rather than the comfortable king-sized beds Luna used to have as a princess, hers was a wooden bed with a less than memorable mattress and a pillow that had wool in it rather than feathers. The room itself was a beige-maroon colour than the dark blue one would expect from Luna. As Luna's family kept an eye on Luna, hoping she'd get better soon, there was a knock on the door. Morning March went to open it and standing before him was a hodgepodge of animal appendages. Naturally, this made him take a step back.

"Hi there," Discord said while grabbing one of March's hooves and shaking it "My name is Discord, former lord of chaos and friend to your wife. Speaking of which, where is the poor mare anyway?"

"How do you know Luna?"

"We met when she and her sister turned me into stone. As you can see, I got better. Then her sister's student and her friends turned me back into stone again. Annoying, I know. But they decided to give me a second chance and, after one relapse, I'm her friend now. While she is not my B.P.F.F.I.T.T, she is the only one that's still alive so..."

March just gave Discord a bewildered look. He knew that Luna had faced Discord once with her sister but he never imagined that they would become friends.

"I see...Follow me this way. And please, don't touch anything."

March then showed Discord to Luna's room, with Discord walking closer to Luna's bed and then ducking down in an exaggerated observing pose while stroking his beard. While Luna and Discord haven't been that close as friends, it still warmed her heart to know at least someone was still alive. Discord then grabbed a chair and sat down on it.

"Aw, it doesn't look that bad! Just drink some milk and you'll be right as rain."

"I'm curious. Why did you knock on the door and ask to be invited in?"

"Well" Morning March said, "He didn't really a-"

"Ah ah ah," Discord said while putting a finger on March's mouth "I believe she was asking me."

He then turned back to Luna while still keeping a finger on Morning March's mouth.

"I would have teleported in here but A. It took five-hundred years for me to realize that such thing is rude. And B. I tried doing that but I got the wrong address and wound up in Tirek's lair instead. Guess what happened next."

"I see," Luna said before grimacing in pain. Clearly, she has not healed from the beating Tirek's goons had given her and it pained her to talk. While alicorns do have a potent healing factor, which explains why they can live for millennia, it is not as strong as a draconequus' healing factor and it is also more painful too.

"If you don't mind me asking, what happened to turn you into mashed moon pie?"

"My rent was late and those brutes under Tirek's service came over and punished me for it."

"So you're telling me that you got beaten up by mere henchmen?! Then again, given the Tantabus incident, I suppose you prefer taking punishment rather than doling it out."

Luna just gave Discord an unamused glare.

"Anyway," Discord said "Allow me to cut to the chase. Since that I am now depowered, and since you are in debt to Tirek, I think we can help each other out."

"Explain."

"There's this guy in the Badlands that wants me to pick up a package and deliver it to him. I promised him it would be quick but I just had to go on a little detour, didn't I? And since you've gotten me into this mess, you're gonna get me out of it."

"How am I responsible for you accidentally walking into Tirek's lair and having your magic stolen in the process?"

"Because you're the only friend I have that's still alive! Ahem, any more questions?"

"Yes. Is this delivery legal?"

"Luna! I'm shocked that you would think I would do such a thing as break the law...again. But then again, we live in a world overrun with all sorts of felons so what is legal anyways?"

"Something that obeys the law" Luna deadpanned.

"Anyway, we're getting off-topic here. If you help me get this delivery over to the Badlands, I'm willing to give you at least half of what they are paying. So, what do you say?"

"What would someone like you need money for?"

"To pay for nachos and Mountain Dew that really does come from mountains. I was intending on having a slumber party with the Smooze but it appears we will have to postpone that, won't we?"

Luna sighed before giving Discord a pained but friendly smile.

"I'll join you on your merry quest, Discord."

Author's Note

By the way, yes, I was listening to Johnny Cash's Hurt while writing this chapter (more specifically, the bit with the centaurs beating the crap out of Luna):

And here is the violence I promised all of y'all! Consider it my Easter gift to everyone.

Chapter 3 - An unexpected journey

The next morning, Luna was getting prepared for her trip with Discord. She put on her cloak and walked out of the door of her house, with Morning March and the foals quickly following suit to give Luna one quick goodbye.

"Are you sure you want to do this, Lulu?" March said in a concerned tone "The Badlands are hardly nice and that is not even getting into what sort of ruffians you might come across!"

"Do not worry, March. It will only be a couple of weeks, and I will return with enough bits to keep Tirek off of us for a long time."

Luna then rested one of her forelegs on Gail's shoulder.

"Gail, I want you to look after your father and sister in my absence. Moreover, Jade, I want you to promise me you will behave."

"I promise," Jade said.

Luna and Jade then quickly embraced one another, with a single tear rolling down one of Jade's eyes. After that, she walked toward Discord, who was wearing a backpack on his back and was tapping his hoof impatiently, and got into a position for Discord to mount himself on her.

"Took you long enough," Discord said "I was starting to get a cramp. Alternatively, was that was a result of my long travel to your house? Anyway, allons-y!".

Discord then jumped onto Luna and quickly pulled out a submarine sandwich from his backpack like it was a sword, pointing it to the sky triumphantly. However, before they could head off, Morning March ran towards them in a hurry.

"Before you...go, darling," Morning March said, panting as he did so "May I...have a word...with your...friend?"

Discord then hopped off of Luna and followed Morning March back into the house, with March closing the door behind him.

"I know you do not know me that well" Morning March started nervously "But I want you to do something for me."

"And what might that be?"

"Promise me you will keep my Lulu safe. The children and I love her with all our hearts, and I dread the thought of her being in danger...or worse."

"Oh do not worry, I am sure Luna can take care of herself."

"Please promise me she will be safe!"

Discord smiled. Morning March's concern for Luna and his dedication to her safety reminded him of the same feelings he has for Fluttershy. Knowing this, he decided to make sure that Morning March would never have to go through the same pain he went through.

"I promise," Discord said as he rested one of his arms on March's shoulder.

They then walked out the door with Discord hopping back onto Luna, once again unsheathing his submarine sandwich.

"Now, where was I? Oh yes. Ride like the wind!"

Luna turned her head towards Discord and looked at him.

"You do know where we are going, right?"

"Oh, of course. Here is this map of Equestria that I was so fortunate enough to grab on the way here. Be careful with it; I only have the one."

Discord then pulled out a map from his backpack and handed it over to Luna, who telekinetically pulled it towards her face. The map was separated into territories, with the unknown lands, Trottingham, the Griffish Isles, and Griffonstone all belonging to Tirek, the Dragon Lands, the Forbidden Jungle, the Haysead Swamps, the McIntosh Hills and the Mysterious South all belonging to Chrysalis, Los Pegasus.

Appleloosa, Ponyville, Baltimare, and Fillydelphia all belonging to Cozy Glow, and the Crystal Empire, Canterlot, Cloudsdale, and Yakyakistan all belonging to King Sombra. Alternatively, all of Sombra's territory did belong to him before he decided to challenge Grogar's authority. He took a gamble and painfully lost, which resulted in Grogar taking over his territory. On the map was a blue line that started with the unknown lands, the starting point having a blue arrow and text saying "We are here", and going through the train tracks of Griffonstone Station all the way to the Badlands, with an arrow pointing to the Badlands and text saying "We need to be over here," all of which is blue. While it may look like an easy trip to Griffonstone Station, the fact is, only Tirek knows that Luna is alive, and that means that there is a good chance he would tell Cozy Glow and Chrysalis about it. Once they know about it, there would be no place where she is safe and no telling what could happen next.

After Grogar took care of Sombra, he used his magic to alter the helmets of Sombra's forces to make them obey whoever is in charge of their territory, along with teaching them the spell Sombra used to manifest those helmets in the first place.

As Luna and Discord travelled to their destination, everything suddenly became darker, as if it was night-time. Discord fell asleep during the travel, with Luna having to prop him up with her magic as well as using her magic to look at the map. They made it to what appeared to be a city filled with old huts with roofs made of burnt straw. Luna moved the map from her face and noticed there were dozens of charred griffon corpses, with one right next to her. This made her jump to her left in fright, with Discord falling off of her and waking up in surprise. While Luna was disturbed by what she had just seen, Discord was still a bit groggy and has yet to notice where they are. He then picked up the map that Luna had dropped on the floor.

"Odd" Discord said, "I thought we would have reached Griffonstone by now."

"Discord, we are in Griffonstone!"

Discord moved the map down and noticed dozens of scorched griffons.

"Oh."

"Who could have done this?"

Discord then heard a menacing noise that sounded like growling and gurgling and turned to see where it was coming from. Moreover, what he saw was a barely humanoid creature made entirely out of molten lava oozing from the ground.

"Lava Demons" Discord said.

"What?" Luna said, turning to Discord.

"A race made by Grogar using nothing but lava. They were eventually sealed away by the dragons with some help from the ice orgs. However, since Chrysalis needed some help in ruling the Dragon Lands, Tirek took all the dragons' magic and, with nothing to keep them imprisoned, they slaughtered all of the dragons and moved onto Griffonstone. There were rumours that Grogar created them to thin out Equestria's population should they prove to be too much. Although interestingly, they have a leader of their own named Lavan and, like Sombra before him, he also wishes to have all of Equestria for himself."

"Of course he does," Luna said, rolling her eyes.

Luna and Discord then slowly walked away from the lava demon and started walking around the abandoned buildings of Griffonstone, hoping to find any survivors that will help them out. Unfortunately, more lava demons showed up and proceeded to pummel both of them. Discord then quickly passed his backpack to Luna, hoping she would use her magic to protect it. Noticing this, the lava demons pounced on Luna with one of them getting up to kick her back down should she ever try to get up again.

"What is the matter, my little pony?" the lava demon said in a guttural tone "Are you gonna fight back?"

"You may do as you wish, foul demon, but I refuse to strike back!"

"Well, that is stupid!"

The lava demon knocked Luna out with a punch to the face, which resulted in her dropping Discord's backpack. The punch also burned Luna's face, leaving a patch of scorching flesh on her right eye and cheek.

"Try not to burn the stuff!" The lava demon ordered his comrades.

They carefully opened the backpack up and noticed it was filled with vials of a glowing purple liquid.

"What do you think they are?" One lava demon asked

"They are potions!" The lead lava demon announced, "I heard that someone has been making potions that can give ponies the power of four alicorns and two draconequi!"

"Ooh! That would certainly please Master Lavan!" another lava demon said.

The lead lava demon nodded contently. " Yes, I think he will be quite pleased with what we found here today.

But before any of them could make a move, a wave of water splashed over them, and they steamed and wailed in agony as they turned to stone. The last one to turn looked at where the source of water came from and noticed Discord panting while standing next to a big metal tub that had been turned over.

"Has...anyone...ever...told...you...guys...you...need...a bath?"

Discord himself then collapsed to the ground. When he woke up, he was facing Luna, who was checking to see if he was all right. Discord noticed that Luna's eye was still swollen from where the lava demon had punched her.

"Are you okay?" Luna asked.

"I should ask you the same question!"

"What do you mean?"

"I told you how important this package is and even thrown it to you so it doesn't get in the wrong hands or hooves and you just stood there and let those Lava Demons beat you up and take it?! You know, I was willing to let that moment with Tirek's goons slide because your rent was late and Tirek didn't want to look weak in front of the other villains, but come on! While you were standing there getting your flank kicked, I took them out with a bucking bathtub! What happened to the brave mare that protected ponies from their nightmares?! What did they do to you, Luna?"

Luna closed her eyes and bowed her head in shame, having flashbacks of when she was taking on Sombra, Chrysalis and their minions.

"They...broke me."

Author's Note

It's been five hundred years since the heroes fell. Five hundred years since the villains carved up Equestria amongst themselves, creating a lawless empire. Nopony quite knows what happened on that day, the day that evil won, leaving only memories of the age of heroes.

One pony doesn't want to remember. Luna, once known as the princess of the night, hasn't taken up what was meant to be her royal duties in a long time...and nopony knows why. Taking root in a faraway land, Luna is content with raising a family. But there's no such thing as the simple life anymore. Luna's peaceful world is threatened by Tirek and his goons - and they want their rent money...money the poor alicorn rock farmer doesn't have.

Discord, the former spirit of chaos and disharmony, calls on his old friend. Discord is crossing the lands, bound for the Badlands, with precious cargo, and he needs somepony to travel with. But Discord doesn't want the pacifist Luna has become...he wants the mare that battled nightmares and turned him into stone with her sister at her side. Luna can't afford to turn down the offer, but can she afford to face her past?

Special thanks to Darkiplier1383 for helping me out on this story. Also, special thanks to The Force and DmitriTheWriter for editing this chapter.

Chapter 4 - Acquaintances

Soon afterwards, Luna and Discord made their way to Griffonstone Station, only to find it was a burnt wreck of what it once was. Their hopes of catching a train from Griffonstone all the way to Baltimare where they can walk to the Badlands from there were dashed when they noticed a busted-up train covered in soot with a big gaping hole in the engine.

"Well..." Discord said while stretching "How about we rest here and continue our journey tomorrow, whenever that is."

"I believe we’ve already had enough rest after that encounter with the lava demons."

"Suit yourself. Just don't complain when you get leg and hoof cramps."

And so Luna followed the train track all the way to the Crystal Empire. As she made her way, the skies eventually became clearer to the point where it almost resembled morning. After spending what felt like hours sleeping, Discord woke up and decided to have a little chat with Luna to pass the time.

"So...how's life been treating you?"

"I have seen better days but I feel like it is an improvement in comparison to my banishment to the moon,” Luna replied. “How about you?"

"Just between you and me, I think Grogar and his underlings should have killed me."

"How so?"

"I have my reasons, some of which are too painful to talk about at the moment, but the number one reason is because I consider it an insult that they spared me, like I was less of a problem in comparison to the Elements and their friends! Starlight Glimmer and Trixie got taken out within the first hour but they basically ignored me! Was it because I used to be an enemy to the Elements or was it because they think I'm a joke? Hello, I can rip the fabric of reality, people! Or I did up until a certain encounter. But apart from that, they didn't call me the spirit of chaos and disharmony for nothing, you know!"

"Regarding that 'certain encounter', if you were so powerful, explain how Tirek managed to take your magic away?"

Discord shrugged. "Sometimes, things happen."

As Luna walked forward, she noticed crowds of helmet-wearing crystal ponies patrolling the Empire. The design of the helmets looked exactly like the ones Sombra used for his mind-controlled forces but with a few key differences, the most notable being a pair of black metal horns that almost resemble those of a ram. Their helmets were also a blue tint in colour instead of the dark grey Sombra's helmets had, and their eyes were glowing yellow instead of green. Luna quickly pulled her hood over her head to avoid gathering attention. Discord meanwhile just grabbed the map from Luna and used it to hide his face. As Luna looked around while walking to her destination, she noticed some ponies who were not under Grogar's control selling figurines and memorabilia of the princesses and their allies.

"Discord," Luna whispered.

"Yeah" Discord said.

"Does it seem unusual that there are ponies selling memorabilia of Grogar's enemies?"

"True, but if it keeps the populace in line and if there's money to be made, he turns a blind eye to it."

"I see."

Luna then faced forward before a unicorn ran up in front of her. The unicorn had a small red moustache and a white coat, along with a pair of blue eyes.

"Ah Discord, my old friend!" the pony said excitedly, facing Discord all the while "It's me, Flibberty! I believe you helped me and my brother Gibbit con some of Grogar's forces out of their hard earned bits. Well, if you consider money pillaged from these poor unfortunate folk as 'hard-earned'."

"Shh!" Discord said while pulling the map down from his face "Could you keep it down? Luna and I are trying to be inconspicuous! Do you have any idea what Grogar would do to us?"

"My apologies, Discord. Anyhow, did you get the message from Praiseworth?"

"What message?"

"I'll take that as a no. So, what brings you to this fine empire of ours? Well, not actually ours, per se, but you know what I mean."

"Nothing much. Luna and I are just heading to the Badlands, we were merely just passing through. Although I suppose a quick pit-stop wouldn't kill us."

"Splendid! Praiseworth's in the garage. I'll lead you there," Flibberty trotted back towards the town.

"Who's Praiseworth?" Luna asked Discord as they followed Flibberty.

"Just somepony who helped me through a tough time. Then I helped her through a tough time."

"Might I ask what that 'tough time' was?"

"For me or for Praiseworth?"

"Whichever one you want to start with first."

"Would you believe me if I told you I once spent half a century as a marriage counsellor?" Discord asked.

"Given your nature, no."

"I won't deny my methods are unorthodox and I have had the odd complaint, but I'll have you know that I had a 100% success rate."

Discord then quickly pulled the map back up to continue hiding his face as he noticed one of Grogar's mind-controlled minions staring at him and Luna. However, the minion did nothing and walked in a forward direction away from them. As Luna continued following Flibberty, she noticed a line of ponies chained up and being forced to carve crystal statues as Grogar's cronies look on. As she continued walking, she also noticed broken statues of King Sombra made out of black crystals, then a statue of Grogar displaying Sombra's head while wearing the fallen king's cloak and armour. They then finally made it to Praiseworth's garage, where an Earth pony with a brown coat and a black mane with hazel eyes was working on a motorized carriage. In contrast to the rest of the Crystal Empire, the garage was not made of crystal but of marble walls painted beige. There were also machine parts everywhere and a toolbox next to the Earth pony, along with the motorized carriage the pony was working on being hooked up in the corner. The Earth pony noticed the travellers Flibberty brought with him and walked up to them. She then pulled down the map from Discord's view and struck him across the face.

"I'm not sure I really deserved that," Discord said, a little disoriented as a result of the slap.

"Well, it was only a matter of time, wasn't it, Discord?" The earth pony said.

"What do you mean?"

"You giving my husband and daughter ideas about being heroes."

"I don't think I remember that. I remember having drinks with him but that's just it. Everything else is a blur."

"And now they're off on a crusade to take down the rulers of these lands, starting with Chrysalis!"

And at that moment, Discord suddenly remembered having a laugh and a pint of cider with Praiseworth's husband, Settler. They were at a saloon in Appleloosa, which was filled with ponies all wearing fake smiles lest they want to face Cozy Glow's wrath. While most beverages in Cozy Glow's territory are alcohol-free, Discord managed to sneak some booze in.

"Now this is real cider!" Settler said while laughing.

"Of course it is! I just snapped my fingers and now we're drunk!" Discord said while hiccuping.

While Discord was downing a big barrel of cider, Settler had a look at the other patrons.

"You know what would be nice, Discord. If you could just snap your fingers and make everything normal again."

"I don't know if I could do that. Last time I tried being normal, I nearly faded from existence."

Both drunkards had a hearty laugh and a sigh before Discord hanged his head low and solemnly stared at the bar they're sitting at. Settler seemed to pick up on Discord’s melancholy and began to feel a tinge of concern.

"You still miss her, don't you?"

"What do you mean?"

"You know what I mean. That pegasus you liked. The one that made you go from being a tyrannical overlord of chaos into one of the greatest friends I ever had. What was her name? Butterfly? No, that's not it. Ah, Fluttershy! That's the one."

A tear rolled down Discord's cheek as he reminisced about the good times he had with Fluttershy. He honestly thought her and their friends could have handled it the same way they handled every other time Equestria was in peril. And the worst part of it is he could have done something to prevent it. But he didn't. Equestria's heroes are dead and it's all his fault. Then Settler put a hoof on Discord's shoulder.

"Hey, I'm sorry, man. Guy-to-guy, if I was separated from Praiseworth, I don't know what I'd do as well."

"Do you really consider me one of your friends?" Discord said while looking at Settler, his eyes starting to water.

"Of course I do! You saved my marriage. Sure, there were some bumps along the way but, in spite of your name, you sure know how to solve disagreements between ponies rather than cause them."

Settler and Discord then hugged and continued to drink their cider.

"Hey" said Settler "I got a crazy idea and I know you'll be with me on this one."

"Go on."

"Flurry Heart and I are thinking we should set up our own superhero group or something like that to take back Equestria. Since she thinks that Chrysalis killed her birth parents, she wants to avenge them. And once we've done that, we take out the other baddies."

"Are you sure? Even if she's adopted and an alicorn, I don't think Praiseworth would be happy about Flurry Heart taking on all those villains. Celestia and Cadence have been dead for centuries, and I don't think one alicorn is enough to take them down."

"Well, I already know that! That's why I'm suggesting we form a team, just like the element bearers of old. What do you say? Sounds like a good idea?"

Author's Note

In case any of you readers are wondering, yes, Flibberty and Gibbit are descendants of the Flim Flam brothers. Guess the apple doesn't really fall far from the tree, even if that tree has been planted centuries ago and is stone dead at this point.

Oh, one thing I forgot to mention regarding the previous chapter. The lava demons and their leader Lavan are based on villains from G1. Just a little trivia for all of y'all.

Chapter 5 - There Is Still Another

Discord finished remembering the drunken conversation he had with Settler and looked back to a very angry looking Praiseworth.

"In my defense," Discord said in an attempt to justify himself "It was all his idea. I was merely the yes-man."

"I know it was Settler's idea and I'm angry with him enough as it is, but the fact that you weren't there with him and Flurry Heart meant they got captured by Chrysalis and are now going to be executed!" Praiseworth shouted.

"When exactly did they go out to try and take down Chrysalis?” Discord asked. “Because the morning after we had our discussion, I was hungover, then I got a call on that very afternoon from somepony wanting me to collect a package and deliver it to the Badlands. Afterwards, everything went all pear-shaped because I had the misfortune of encountering Tirek on my travels."

"We're running out of time here so are you going to save them or not?"

"Of course we're going to save them!” he turned towards his alicorn ally. “Right, Luna?"

"Where has Chrysalis taken them?" Luna asked.

Discord then moved the map towards Luna's face and pointed at Chrysalis' territory in the southeast corner. Praiseworth then walked towards the map and pointed to a more specific location within Chrysalis' territory closer to the southern edge.

"Chrysalis has built an arena within the Forbidden Jungle. She usually captures former members of her hive and forces them to change into her most hated enemies so she can have the satisfaction of killing them again," Praiseworth explained.

"It appears we can save your family after we have delivered the package to whoever Discord promised it to in the Badlands." Luna said, noticing just how close the Badlands is to the Forbidden Jungle. "However, I will not help in taking down Chrysalis."

"What?!" Both Discord and Praiseworth shouted in unison before giving each other a look.

"I've made it a rule of mine to never use my power again lest the other villains hear of it and hunt down my family," she said.

"And yet Tirek seems to know about you and your family" Discord deadpanned.

"That's different. I hid away while his brother was still ruling and, after Tirek killed Scorpan, he found out about me and had his henchmen keep an eye on me ever since. Not once did I try to fight him. Not even after I had met Morning March."

"Oh, for Scorpan's sake!" Discord exclaimed. "Look, if you help us out, I'll pay you double!"

"Pardon?" Luna tilted her head.

"You're in debt to Tirek, right? If I pay you double, you won't have to worry about being in debt to him again for a long time," he said.

"Well, if you insist..."

Luna and Discord headed due south for the train station, hoping to take the Friendship Express all the way to Canterlot, if indeed that could still be done. When they arrived at the train station, it looked like it had been through a war, with charred remains of train tracks and dying embers of flame strewn about. The only structure still standing was a guard tower carved from stone in the midst of a puddle of lava. An earth pony was hanging on for dear life, his white coat dirtied by mud and his black mane dishevelled and burnt.

"Are you okay?" Luna called to him.

"Lava demons!" the pony said in a quivering voice. "They're here! I climbed to the highest point but everyone else. Th...they..."

Luna quickly used her telekinesis to help the shaken earth pony down and away from the puddle of lava surrounding the tower. Discord looked unamused.

"Oh, so when it comes to saving strangers, it's perfectly fine to use your powers. But when my friend and one of your own fellow alicorns are in danger, suddenly you don't want to use your powers! What gives?!" Discord said.

"None of Grogar's forces are around, nor are any other felons. I only helped him down. I didn't need to fight anypony."

Luna then continued walking forward while the Earth pony she rescued started kissing the ground, happy he has returned to land. As Luna walked forward, she pondered on what Discord said, noticing he mentioned a "fellow alicorn".

"Wait, what fellow alicorn do you mean?" Luna asked.

"Why, Flurry Heart, of course!" Discord said.

"Flurry Heart as in the daughter of Cadence and niece of Twilight Sparkle Flurry Heart?”

"Is there any other?" Discord said.

"I thought that monster Sombra killed her along with Cadence and Shining Armor!" Luna said.

"Well, about that..."

500 years in the past, Discord was waiting for Twilight and her friends (Fluttershy especially) to show up at Canterlot Castle, knowing that Sombra's forces have laid siege to it. Growing impatient, he conjured a watch on his wrist to check the time. Suddenly, he heard a misty sound and a haughty laugh from directly behind him.

"They're not coming, you know," a deep but prideful voice said.

Discord turned around and noticed Sombra standing behind him, wearing a smug grin on his face.

"Being a former villain myself, I know how this works,” Discord said. “You monologue for a bit, the heroes show up to stop you, and then they go out for some shawarma."

"Do you really think your friends could possibly defeat me?! I am Sombra!!! I am invincible! All beings shall soon bow before me! Ahahahahaha!"

"I'm no psychoanalyst but I believe your biggest weakness is your overconfidence," Discord deadpanned.

"Your faith in your friends is yours, Discord!"

"Not really. They have beaten you before and they can beat you again," Discord said.

"Actually, it was Princess Cadence and Shining Armor that have defeated me the first time, which is why I'm having my forces capture them as soon as they retake the empire so I can have the pleasure of executing them myself. And their little alicorn filly too."

As Sombra let out another malicious cackle, Discord thought about the suspicious lack of heroes kicking down the door to win the day. It's not like Twilight and her friends to show up this late. He decided to quickly teleport to Ponyville to see if perhaps they were there. All he found there were some charred and impaled corpses against a burning red sky filled with smoke from the remains of houses that were. He teleported back, shaken by what he had seen.

"Like my work?" Sombra gloated. "Since one of your friends is related to Cadence and Shining Armor, I believe now would be a good time to save them. Unless of course, you want her to be angry with you forever because you stood there idly while allowing her relatives to suffer a painful death."

"I'm certain Celestia and Luna are helping Cadence and Shining Armor out," Discord said.

"Ohohoho, I heavily doubt that. But if you want to check, by all means, do,” Sombra said. "After all, I will be too busy redecorating to be going anywhere so I'm sure you're friends will have arrived by the time you get back."

Feeling uncertain, Discord mulled over his options. Should he quickly teleport over to the Crystal Empire or should he wait for Twilight and her friends to show up?

Well, they have done things like this numerous times before, Discord thought.. Really, the only time in which they were in trouble was when Chrysalis returned. I know almost for certain they can handle this on their own. Why would I need to wait?

After a quick thought and a snap of his fingers, Discord teleported north to the Crystal Empire.

Author's Note

Well, this is certainly different. Take that, those who accuse me of retreading Old Man Logan! :rainbowlaugh:

Really, I think the only reason why Sombra canonically lost the second time around is that he made that same fatal mistake most villains tend to make: He didn't just kill the heroes.

Chapter 6 - A flurry of traumatic events

Discord noticed Shining Armor and Cadence fighting valiantly in the distance as more and more ponies under Sombra's control began cornering them. He quickly teleported over to them and snapped his fingers to make a trap-door appear under some of them, causing the ponies to fall down on top of each-other.

"My leg" one of the ponies said in a dull tone devoid of any emotion.

"Glad to see you, Discord" Shining Armor said before he and Cadence looked around as they were pushing back Sombra's forces.

"Where's Twilight?" Cadence asked

"I was wondering the same thing myself" Discord replied "You'd think by now she and her friends would have teleported to Canterlot and blasted Sombra with the elements by now."

"Have you tried calling the other princesses for help?"

"I did but I can't seem to find them anywhere. I know they tend to sit at the sidelines and let Twilight and her friends handle things, but since that even I'm starting to have doubts about this being one of those times where they win, you'd think those two would show up by now."

Eventually, Discord, Cadence and Shining Armor managed to clear a pathway for them to run at, with a line of mind-controlled ponies being covered in ice cream, flex tape, and bubble gum. But just when they thought they could escape, a dark crystal formed out of the ground and impaled Shining Armor through his left hind leg. Shining Armor cried out in agony as the crystal tore through his leg, falling to the floor in the process.

"Shining Armor!" Cadence shouted out as she quickly ran to her beloved.

Soon enough, Sombra's forces have caught up to everypony, with Discord trying to hold them off for as long as he could while Cadence helped Shining Armor up. And then he saw a black cloud of smoke form into King Sombra.

"Aw, did I do that?" Sombra said before letting out another evil laugh.

Cadence was staring daggers at Sombra at that point, tears welling up in her eyes. She then charged up a blast of magic and zapped Sombra as hard as she could, but Sombra dodged the attack quickly. She kept attacking him in rage before Sombra decided to forego her attempts at wounding him and just made a crystal form straight from the ground and into her chest. The crystal went through Cadence's heart like a knife through butter, with Cadence coughing up some blood as it did so.

"No!" Shining Armor cried out as he tried to get back up. But it was no use as Sombra decided to drive more crystals through Shining Armor until he looked like a bloodied pin cushion, with one crystal even gouging out his right eye.

Discord turned around and was shocked at the brutality of Sombra's murder of Shining Armor. While Sombra is currently giving Trixie a run for her money in terms of smugness, it is clear to Discord that Sombra isn't fooling around this time. And then he heard Cadence whispering something.

"Dis...cord...take...F...lurry...Heart."

Cadence, with what little strength she had left, pointed to Flurry Heart, who was bravely defending herself from Sombra's forces. Sombra noticed this and gleefully shot a lethal blast of magic at Flurry Heart's way. Discord quickly ran and blocked the attack by jumping onto Flurry Heart. He picked her up and quickly tried running to somewhere safe. But Flurry Heart was making it difficult. She tried escaping Discord's grasp by flying and crawling over him but it was no use. She was crying as she did so, wanting to protect her mother and father. But it was too late. Cadence bled out from her injuries and Shining Armor was pierced head-to-hoof on Sombra's crystals. Discord quickly opened up a portal to his home in Chaosville and pushed Flurry Heart in there before entering himself and closing the portal behind him. He sat down and panted in fear as Flurry Heart's crying grew louder.

Hours had passed as he kept checking to see if Sombra and his forces have disappeared by now. But they haven't. More and more ponies wearing helmets showed up every time he checked, along with the places he checked being covered in more and more of Sombra's crystals. He also checked to see in the Mane 6 are at their homes or any other place they could be. But they weren't. Their homes were either barren or destroyed. And what's worse is that all of Ponyville has been entirely consumed by the Everfree Forest. Whenever he tried to get some rest after more and more checks, his fear for the lives of his friends and Flurry Heart's uncontrollable sobbing made such a thing impossible. The last time he tried getting rest, he covered his ears with his pillow. After enough tossing and turning, he gave up and shouted something he wanted to say to Flurry Heart ever since she got here.

"Shut up!!!"

While Flurry Heart immediately went quiet after that outburst, Discord's anger faded away as he looked at Flurry tearful face. He sighed as he laid back down on his bed, wondering how Fluttershy can handle so many needy creatures. She makes it look so easy.

"What am I going to do with you?"

In spite of Flurry Heart's silence, Discord still had difficulty getting some rest. He tried telling himself that Fluttershy and her friends will come back eventually to save the day. And since the sun in Equestria hasn't moved yet, it might as well be a day that never ends until they come to save it. But that didn't work. Nothing worked. What felt like years had past and Discord still waited for Fluttershy and her friends to show up and make everything go back to normal. He waited but they never came. Then, he heard a knock on his door. He opened it up, hoping it would be Fluttershy. But instead, it was an old blue ram.

"Who are you supposed to be?"

"I am Grogar, emperor of Equestria."

"Grogar? I thought you were a fairy tale for little foals."

"You aren't the first person to make that assumption. I suppose when one has hidden away for as long as I have, one does become a legend. But I assure you, there is always a bit of truth in legends."

"Well, 'Emperor Grogar', what do you want?"

"To offer you a gift."

Grogar then walked backwards and motioned his left foreleg to a box. The box was the size of an adult pony and was purple in colour, with the edges made of gold. Discord opened the box and what he saw inside was the one thing he never wanted to see.

"Fluttershy?"

Author's Note

More violence and feels from yours truly, now with a cliffhanger that will have you waiting two agonizing weeks to find out what happens next. Enjoy. :twilightsmile:

Also, I said this once but I shall say it again:

Take that, those who accuse me to retreading Old Man Logan! :rainbowwild:

Chapter 7 - Trainwreck

Discord stared in horror at the content within Grogar's box. It looked like Fluttershy but there was no life to be found. Instead, she was perpetually frozen in pain and terror. Gone was the smooth yellow coat and pink mane she had, replaced with burnt flesh and darkened wisps. Her beautiful blue eyes were gone too, with nothing to fill them in except for a small puddle of pus and crust that almost looked like teardrops. Her wings were all shrivelled up as well, a far cry from the lovely pair of wings Discord so admired. Discord just knelt down, his mind processing what he just saw. How could fate be cruel enough to take the one pony who saw the good in him that even he didn't see? Suddenly, he heard hoofsteps coming from behind him.

"What's wrong, uncle Discord?" a young female voice said.

Discord turned around and noticed that Flurry Heart was no longer the little filly he once knew. He knew he tried his best to look after Flurry but, in his mind, he always pictured her as being forever young. Did the Elements' disappearance mess him up so bad that he couldn't even remember the time he spent with Flurry Heart? He then turned back to Grogar, who was wearing a wicked smile on his face.

"Ah, so the rumours are true. An alicorn did live. I was right to come here after all," Grogar said.

Discord glared at Grogar, not liking what Grogar was implying.

"Here's the deal, Discord. You hand over the princess and I will bring back your beloved Fluttershy. Deal?"

"And why should I trust you?" Discord crossed his arms.

"Because it was I who brought King Sombra back, and it was I who cast him back into oblivion when he tried to challenge me."

"Two words: No. Deal."

And with that, Discord slammed the door in Grogar's face. Grumbling under his breath, Grogar opened up a portal back to his castle in Canterlot.

"You'll come around eventually, Discord," Grogar said "I wouldn't be leaving you alive if you didn't. You may be a lord of chaos, but I am the Father of Monsters."

As soon as Grogar left and the portal closed, Flurry Heart looked at the front-door before looking at Discord.

"Who was that?" she asked.

"Nopony much. Just a travelling merchant," Discord said harshly.

Discord checked out the window to see if Grogar has left. When he had done that, he turned to Flurry Heart to ask her a simple request.

"Flurry Heart, could you step outside for a moment? Uncle Discord needs to do some home redecorating."

Seeing no reason not to, Flurry Heart complied. She stepped outside of the house as Discord closed the door behind. What followed were the sounds of furniture being thrown out the windows and expensive china being smashed to pieces as Discord screamed in frustration. Flurry Heart looked through one of the broken windows in shock. While Discord has lost his temper a few times, never had she ever seen him this angry before. Discord then knelt for a moment, panting. He then noticed Flurry Heart staring through one of the broken windows. And with a quick snap of his fingers, everything became the way it was before Discord smashed everything up. He then quickly opened the door for Flurry Heart, pretending he didn't just have a meltdown. As time passed, Discord found it increasingly hard to sleep. Every time he lay in bed at Chaosville's nominal nighttime, his mind was plagued by horrific visions of what was once Fluttershy crying out to him, repeating the one question Discord didn't know the answer to:

"Why didn't you save me?"

Centuries have passed by like leaves in the wind. Discord had tried asking any other necromancers he could find to help him bring Fluttershy back, but they either refused or their attempts at bringing her back ended in failure. Soon enough, he fell into a deep depression and, when Flurry Heart was proving too much of a hassle, decided to give her up for adoption.

In the present, Luna and Discord had finally made their way to the train station, in which they bought their tickets and sat patiently as they waited for their train to arrive.

"How did you meet Praiseworth and her family?" Luna asked, attempting to make small talk with Discord to pass the time.

"Simple. I set up my own marriage counselling office within Manehattan. Since they were visiting relatives there, they noticed the sign on the building where my office is that said 'Dr. Iscod, PhD in Marriage Counselling', so they walked into my office and talked about their problems. Mainly, it was that Settler was something of a scoundrel and a deadbeat. Since I've been there, I gave him some pointers about how to be a better pony over some ciders. Well, that and I gave up Flurry Heart for adoption and we can both agree that he's been a better person ever since having somepony else to look after."

"I admit, I'm surprised you would voluntarily help out other ponies," Luna said.

"Well, Fluttershy makes it look so easy and...well, since she's...no longer with us, I thought I'd help out. I've also done animal care. Although I can assure you that having drinks with a bunny rabbit is not the wisest idea I ever had."

Discord chuckled lightly before giving a mournful sigh.

"Anyway, what about you and that unicorn stallion who opened the door for me?" Discord asked to change the subject. "How did you two meet?"

"He was a native from Canterlot who wanted to move somewhere a little quieter," Luna said.

"I don't know about that. Ever since the bad guys took over, everypony's been quieter."

"He was trying to move a cart of rocks up a mountain and I helped him with it. We then made some small-talk and, after going to a place he knew that made the best wine bits can buy, we talked about our interests and misfortunes and...Well...One thing led to another, and-" Luna was suddenly interrupted by the roar of a steam whistle as a train pulled into the station.

"All aboard!" the conductor shouted.

The Friendship Express has arrived and, while the paint has worn off and the colours are darker than they used to be, it was still the same old engine it was five hundred years ago. Luna and Discord immediately made their way onto the train, flashing their tickets at the conductor as they boarded.

The train made its way to Baltimare, until, underneath all of the passengers, the train began to shudder violently. Ponies near the windows gawked and screamed as cracks began to open up in the earth.

"Well that can't be good," Discord said, his eyes glued to the window.

Suddenly, the train dropped off into a pit of lava where the train track used to be with a crash and the rending of steel. Everypony on board immediately fell unconscious from the impact.

Two hours passed before Luna woke up within the sinking wreckage of the train. She lighted up her horn and jumped out of a broken window of one of the carriages before galloping to the top of the wreckage.

"Discord?!" Luna shouted. "Are you okay?!"

She then heard growling noises and looked down to where they were coming from. From there, she could see lava demons looting the charred corpses from other ponies that were on the train.

"It's okay!" Discord said. "I'm over here!".

Luna turned around to see Discord sitting on a big rock that was also sinking rapidly into the lava. Discord then quickly hopped onto Luna's back and, seeing no other option, Luna flew out of the lava pit with the lava demons climbing onto one another in an attempt to grab her and Discord. They then landed near Baltimare, hoping nopony else saw Luna flying.

"I just noticed something," Discord said. "The train tracks go to Appleloosa as well. We could have waited for the train to Dodge City instead of going to Baltimare."

Luna telekinetically lifted Discord off of her back, placed him right next to her, turned around and smacked him hard in his jaw.

"I may have deserved that," Discord said in the same disoriented tone as he did the last time he was slapped that hard.

Author's Note

Guess there's more than one meaning to the term "trainwreck", am I right, lads and lasses? :raritywink: And for those wondering how Fluttershy wound up in such a state:

Also, regarding that "leaves in the wind" sentence, you have no idea how hard it was for me to resist changing it into something that references another Marvel property. Damn you, Tom Hardy!

Speaking of references, anyone notice a running gag involving Discord?

Chapter 8 - Old wounds

Luna and Discord continued on their travels once again, heading towards Dodge City. Along the way, they caught a glimpse of Ponyville in the distance. Luna winced as memories of that day flashed in her mind, something Discord took notice of.

"Too many memories?" Discord asked. "I know how you feel."

"I'd rather not talk about it."

Ponyville looked different from what it was five-hundred years ago, with the buildings being overrun with vines from the Everfree Forest and dark crystals when Sombra tried to take over. The residents were all wearing helmets similar to the ones used by Sombra and Grogar's forces, except this time, they were coloured with tinges of pink and the residents' eyes were glowing a light blue. They also had smiley faces painted on them. It was a sight that disturbed both Luna and Discord. In the centre, there was a big rectangular crystal with Cozy Glow's face carved into it. While Sombra actually succeeded in taking over Ponyville, it immediately became part of Cozy Glow's territory after Grogar put Sombra in his place and took his life.

"Hey there, friends!" the crystal rendition of Cozy Glow said in that sickeningly sweet demeanour of hers. "Just remember, friendship is power. And if none of you are my friends, I'll put you all to sleep!"

It sickened both Luna and Discord that a pony would threaten to kill somepony else while acting all innocent about it. Eventually, they made their way into a bar in Dodge City for some rest and refreshments. The bartender, wearing an unnaturally wide grin, walked up to the two of them as they sat at the bar.

"How can I help you, friend-a-reenos?" the bartender said, his voice having a hint of fear in it in spite of the jolly demeanour.

"Cider," Luna and Discord said simultaneously.

"And some hayburgers, if you please," Discord added on.

"Okely dokely lokely," the bartender said, turning away to pour their drinks from the keg behind him.

Luna and Discord looked around the bar. There were ponies that were wearing the helmets they saw at Ponyville sitting amongst unhelmeted ponies at the bar, and the ones that weren't wearing any helmets had very wide smiles that seemed forced. Luna wondered if Celestia ever had to smile like that during her exile. Suddenly, Discord broke the silence.

"I messed up," he said.

"How so?"

"Settler's right. All of this could have been prevented with a snap of my fingers. I really wanted Fluttershy and her friends to win like they always did that it never occurred to me that they would actually lose. I thought this would be another one of those close-calls they always had, like that time where I turned them against each other."

"I know how you feel. When I was Nightmare Moon, I had been using illusions and even trying to kill them before they confronted me. When I smashed the Elements in front of Twilight, I thought I had finally achieved victory. Then they used their friendship to restore the Elements and save me from the darkness. After that, they taught me that Nightmare Night brings happiness to my subjects despite coming about from my darker moments. Celestia had told me of the various times they saved Equestria from certain doom that, when we decided to retire, we thought they would have it under control."

"I know, right?! And when I betrayed them to Tirek and lost my magic the first time around, I was not expecting them to win because of what I did. And yet they still managed to win! Really, the only time I can think of when they didn't save Equestria was when Chrysalis and her hive returned and replaced everypony except Starlight and Trixie with changelings. And even then, Starlight, Trixie and I wouldn't have rescued them if they didn't make us see the error of our ways!"

Both Luna and Discord sighed, wondering how did everything go to Tartarus so quickly.

"Well, here are your drinks, fellas!" the bartender said, slamming two mugs of cider onto the counter in front of Luna and Discord. "I wasn't interrupting your conversation, was I?"

Luna turned towards the bartender. "Do you mind if I ask you something?" she asked.

"Heck, shoot!" the bartender said.

"Do you ever wish that you were born in some other time period, a time when you wouldn't have to answer to some power-hungry despot all twenty-four hours of the day?"

"Well, judging by your descriptions, the world five hundred years ago certainly seemed a lot more i-diddly-dyllic," the bartender said. "But I was born in this time period, and I've still managed to keep a smile on my face!" While this was indeed technically true, the likely forced smiles painted on his and half the patrons' faces did not help his case in Luna's eyes. She sulked back down, her chin resting against the counter.

"Oh well!" Discord said in a slightly cheerier tone. "At least you seem a little more like your old self."

"That's exactly what I'm afraid of," Luna said grimly.

"What do you mean?"

"You know what I mean..."

Luna then had a flashback to Sombra's attack on Ponyville. She was covered in blood, panting and snarling like a rabid animal, her fury being fueled by fear. Fear for her subjects. Fear for her friends. Fear for her sister. Surrounding her were the bloodied forms of Chrysalis, Sombra and all sorts of other monsters either lying on the ground or impaled on one of Sombra's dark crystals.

"I have no interest in atoning for my sins by playing the part of the hero, Discord," Luna said. "I love my husband, our foals, and the little life we made for ourselves. I'm only doing this so we can pay off our debts to Tirek."

Sitting at the table behind them, there were two Earth ponies, one with a yellow coat and a black balding mane, the other with a blue coat, ginger mane, bushy moustache and a pair of green eyes. The moustached pony walked up to them.

"Well, excuse us, fillies," the moustached one said in an Appleloosa drawl "Ah didn't realize tonight was..."

Luna can tell from the mocking tone of the Earth pony that he found her pain to be funny. In a fit of rage that, up until that point, had been long since been pent-up, she slammed the moustached pony's head into the bar, growling like a ferocious beast and looking ready to tear somepony's head off. One quick look at the pony's terrified face snapped her out of it. Horrified by what she was doing, she quickly ran out of the bar. Discord immediately began running after her. Luna ran as quickly as her legs could carry her, flashbacks of that one day running through her head. And right behind her was Discord, trying his best to catch up to Luna. When he finally caught up to her, they were both in the middle of a desert. Luna was sobbing hard, tears running down her eyes like waterfalls. Discord could tell that Luna wasn't telling her something.

"What happened to you, Luna?"

Luna slowly regained her composure and looked at Discord.

"Sit down, and I'll tell you everything."

Author's Note

Now you lot will only have to wait two more weeks until the big reveal. Trust me, it would be worth the wait.

Chapter 9 - The beginning of the end

"You want to know what happened?" Luna asked Discord. "You want to know why I haven't been doing my duties or protecting my subjects?" She sighed resignedly. "It all started was on the day Sombra returned. The day Grogar had assembled Tirek, Chrysalis and Cozy Glow together to take over Equestria."

Five hundred years in the past, Twilight and her friends were desperately trying their hardest to stop the Everfree Forest from getting into Ponyville, with little to no avail. Then Luna and Celestia flew down from the skies, destroying the invading vines with only a couple of blasts from their horns.

"I know we're supposed to be able to handle things on our own" Applejack said, "But I've never been happier to see two ponies in my whole life!"

Just when they thought they could get all the help they need, Star-Swirl teleported right next to them, ready to assist them.

"Nopony is meant to handle this on their own," Star-Swirl declared.

"Star-Swirl!" Twilight called out. "The Tree of Harmony! It's-"

"Destroyed. I know," Star-Swirl said matter-of-factly. "I alerted Celestia and Luna about it as soon as it happened."

"I-I am so sorry, Star-Swirl. There was nothing I could do, and…"

"It's fine. Really, it is," Star-Swirl said. "Trees can be replanted, but ponies like you can't be."

Star-Swirl walked to where the princesses were, lifted himself up, and blasted away the vines with a powerful wave of his magic before descending in between the princesses and using powerful blasts to keep the Everfree Forest at bay.

Twilight then ran up to Celestia. "But Sombra's taken control of Canterlot and placed its citizens under his spell!" Celestia and Luna exchanged worried looks as they realized they left Canterlot defenceless.

"Then, you must go, Twilight," Celestia announced. "Go, defend Equestria. We're all counting on you.".

But little did everypony know that, rather than redecorate the throne room, which he can do later, Sombra watched as Twilight and her friends teleported in front of the castle that was protected by his mind-controlled forces.

"So those little ponies have freed themselves from their little prison" Sombra mused to himself "Perhaps I should have destroyed them when I had the chance. Ah, but where's the fun in that?"

He then looked into the distance and noticed Luna, Celestia and Star-Swirl blasting away at the writhing mass of vines coming from the Everfree Forest.

"No matter, I have one last trick up my sleeve."

While blasting away at the vines, Luna was suddenly struck by a blast of magic, knocking her down. When she got back up, Celestia and Star-Swirl were nowhere to be found. Instead, she was face-to-face with Sombra and Chrysalis.

"Hello there, Luna," Sombra said, "I hope you're ready for the big one".

Luna tried to attack but Sombra used his magic to slam her into a tree.

"Do you have any idea how many villains you, your sister and those meddling little foals have faced? It was only a matter of time before somepony organized all that latent talent."

Luna was then surrounded by foes from Equestria's past, some of which were even residents of Tartarus. Luna pawed at the soft earth beneath her and charged at the monsters in front of her.

"We've brought our greatest minds together and worked the whole thing out" Sombra boasted. "What chance do you and your little friends have for beating us this ti-"

Before Sombra can finish his sentence, Luna compressed the air in front of her into a blade and impaled him through his black heart. He impaled sharply and staggered back, eventually teleporting out of sight. While Celestia and Luna never had to take a life for the sake of Equestria before, she felt there was no other way. Especially considering how Sombra was destroyed the last time he returned. She then started attacking the other villains facing her. She slashed them into ribbons with spinning blades of wind, blasted them into dust with navy blue beams of magic, even stomped their heads into red paste for good measure. She was starting to grow exhausted, frustrated at the absence of her sister and their mentor.

"Where the Tartarus is everypony?"

Soon enough, Chrysalis, looking relatively unscathed, started attacking, throwing Luna into one of the dark crystals Sombra left behind. Luna screamed as the crystal cut into her abdomen. She fell to the floor and looked at the gash left by the crystal. She quickly got up and charged into Chrysalis before blasting her with a powerful beam of magic. She then flew up and noticed that her worst nightmare, the Tantabus, had returned as well and, in a fit of panic and anger, blasted the Tantabus as hard as she could. She hovered back down to earth, exhausted by the amount of energy that attack had cost her. It was enough for her to be pinned down by Chrysalis, who had survived Luna's previous attack. Luna then quickly charged at Chrysalis and started throwing punches at Chrysalis with bursts of magic in between. They fought for about ten minutes but it felt ten times longer, taking chunks out of each-other all the way. In spite of all the injuries Luna was receiving, she was not going to give up. She can tell that the villains are through playing around this time. She shuddered at the thought of what Chrysalis would do everypony once she got her hooves on them. With all of her strength, she impaled Chrysalis through the heart before pulling out, knocked her down onto the floor and started beating in her head until it was all swollen and Luna's hooves were aching, roaring animalistically all the while. When Luna finally stopped from exhaustion, one word managed to escape Chrysalis' bloated, bruised mouth.

"Why?"

But Chrysalis did not say it in her voice. She said it in Celestia's. This caught Luna off-guard. Everything started fading away and standing right next to her was King Sombra, no worse for wear.

"My my my," Sombra said in a mocking tone. "Did you really think you could do this alone, Luna? Did you seriously think you alone could defeat all of us?" Sombra scoffed. "And they say I have delusions of grandeur."

Luna looked down in horror as "Chrysalis" turned into Celestia, all bloodied and bruised as a result of Luna's vicious attack on her, with a gaping stab wound in her chest. And then looked around to see piles of pony corpses covered in blood, some of them scorched as a result of Luna's magical attacks. There were even some ponies impaled on the dark crystals Sombra was fond of making. And right in the centre were the burnt remains of Twilight and her friends, all with petrified faces of terror.

Back in the present, Luna simply stared off into the campfire she and Discord made. While Luna was overcome with a wave of guilt and grief, Discord just glared daggers at her. Luna then turned to Discord and noticed the hate-filled look in his eyes, something she never expected from the happy-go-lucky if mischievous draconequus. And then Discord seized Luna by the throat and brought her closer to him.

"You killed Fluttershy?" he snarled, his tone devoid of his usual cheeriness.

"I...I didn't know!" Luna said through gasps of air, choking because of Discord's grip on her. Tears were running down her eyes as well. While Discord felt very tempted to unload five centuries of grief onto Luna in the most painful way possible, he realized that's not what Fluttershy would have wanted.

"I-I'm sorry," Discord said mournfully as he let Luna go. "It's just that I missed her so much that I thought, maybe if I found out who took her from me, I would feel better. Maybe I would finally be able to accept it."

"I know how you feel. I thought about subjecting Sombra to every horrendous torture he dealt out to everypony else before finally ending his evil once and for all!" Luna sighed. "But, alas, that is not the way we do things. Or rather, not the way we did things."

"I spent one century in the stage of denial, pretending that a pillow was Fluttershy. After that, I spent the next century smashing everything in my house in a fit of rage. The century after that, I was begging for anyone, even Grogar, to bring Fluttershy back. I spent the century after that in my house sinking into a deep depression. I thought that when I get to the stage of 'acceptance', the pain would go away. But it didn't. Not even when I met new friends."

Luna and Discord gazed mournfully at the campfire, thinking about the past. Eventually, storm clouds gathered above them and it started to rain, putting out the campfire. Discord then turned back to Luna.

"You know how I said Tirek stole my magic?"

"Yes, why?" Luna raised an eyebrow.

Discord snapped his fingers, making the rain stop and reigniting the campfire.

"I lied. I just wanted an excuse to hang out with the only friend I knew from before all of this that was still alive. I'm sorry for dragging you into this."

"It's okay, Discord. I understand."

Author's Note

Yeah...yikes. When I said you didn't want to know what happened to Fluttershy, I wasn't kidding. Anyway, I bet this moment would have definitely been worth the wait for you readers. That said, this story is far from over and there are plenty of chapters to go.

Chapter 10 - Run

After telling Discord what happened to her and everypony else, as well as Discord revealing secrets of his own, Luna layed down for some rest and fell into a slumber. When she woke up, she noticed she was not in the desert anymore. Her surroundings had changed to the lush, deep green of a jungle.

"Hmm, that's odd," Discord said before noticing Luna was awake. "I was supposed to meet up with Settler and Flurry Heart, but they're nowhere to be found. Judging by our location, I'm guessing Chrysalis must have rebuilt her throne."

"Where are we now?" Luna asked.

"Well, since you now know I have had my magic all along and I promised Praiseworth we were going to save her family, I figured we'd cut to the chase and enter Chrysalis' territory. But it appears that Chrysalis has rebuilt her throne, which disables all kinds of magic except changeling magic."

"Typical..."

"I know, Luna, I know." Discord began to scan the jungle for any potential paths to Chrysalis' hive. "Hey, at least it can't get any worse."

As Discord said that, there was a roar in the distance. He then noticed two bright white eyes lurking within the shadows of the trees. The eyes eventually grew bigger until the creature possessing those eyes pounced out of the trees and roared at Discord and Luna. The creature looked like an Ursa Major, but instead of being coloured blue like the sky at twilight, the stars on its body shone against a black backdrop of midnight, with clouds of inky darkness surrounding it's already vague form. And since neither Discord or Luna can use their magic, they were entirely defenceless against this beast.

Discord took a few steps back as Luna glared daggers at him. "I stand corrected."

"Run!"

Discord quickly hopped onto Luna's back as she galloped away from the shadowy Ursa Major as fast as her legs could carry her. But no matter how fast she ran, the Ursa Minor wasn't too far behind. Soon enough, they eventually encountered a creature even bigger than the Ursa Major: a winterzilla! The winterzilla roared at the Ursa Major, scaring it away.

Discord then looked at the fluffy white titan in surprise.

"I don't remember winterzillas being that big."

The winterzilla then disassembled into changelings, all hopping off of one another. Then they were all consumed by a big blast of magic, teleporting everypony from where they were to what appeared to be a secret hideout. The walls of the hideout were made of a dark red rock, like the inside of a volcano. There were windows that gave a view of the Badlands from afar. Chrysalis' monstrously huge hive towered over the mountains in the distance, as if she was trying not command nature itself to bow before her. Suddenly, Luna and Discord heard the sound of hoofsteps behind them, and turned around to find its source, who was none other than Thorax.

"Hi there, Discord," Thorax said. "I hope you didn't get teleportation sickness. It's just I'm relatively new to using spells that don't involve changing my appearance."

"Thorax, old buddy old pal! Thanks for saving us from that Ursa Major shadow thingy!"

"Oh, it's no problem at all. After all, it was you who helped me teach the other members of the hive that they don't have to feed on others to get the love they need, along with Starlight Glimmer and Trixie of course. I only just returned the favour."

"Yeah, those were good times. Though we were only there to save Equestria, but especially Fluttershy."
While Discord was happy to see another old familiar face, he immediately turned away, still mourning over Fluttershy.

"I'm terribly sorry about what happened to Fluttershy," Thorax said, placing his hoof on Discord's shoulder in sympathy. "I knew how close you two were."

"Yeah...so anyway, about this place, is all magic allowed here, or just changeling magic?"

"Only changeling magic, I'm afraid."

"Well, if that's the case, then could I get a favour from you?" Discord asked. "You see, I have some friends that need saving over at Chrysalis' arena, and I was wondering if you could give us a ride over there."

"Of course."

Flurry Heart and Settler sat in their cell waiting for Chrysalis and her mind-controlled henchponies to come in and prepare them for execution. They heard crowds cheering in the distance, signifying the only time those ponies can feel anything. Unfortunately for them, the only time those ponies feel anything is when their hearts leap with joy as they see some unfortunate prisoner get torn apart by whatever monster Chrysalis has at her disposal.

"Larvas and gentlegrubs!" Chrysalis loudly announced to the crowds that packed the amphitheatre's seats. "The great and powerful Chrysalis shall introduce you to two of those pathetic foals that have tried to stop me! Presenting Starlight Glimmer and Trixie!"

Flurry Heart and Settler knew that the ponies Chrysalis had mentioned weren't the real Starlight Glimmer and Trixie. They were instead former members of Chrysalis' hive that teamed up with the two of them to take down Chrysalis once and for all. The only reason they were co-operating with Chrysalis' charade was because Chrysalis had threatened to murder their loved ones if they didn't. Since Chrysalis was denied her revenge on all the ponies that had crossed her, courtesy of King Sombra and his forces killing them all before she could, the only times she can feel a sense of satisfaction is by taking it out on the hive that had disowned her as their queen.

"Please!" the changeling pretending to be Starlight cried out. "Just tell us what you have done with Flurry Heart!"

"Ah yes," Chrysalis said with a sadistic smirk. "The daughter of Cadence and Shining Armor. Since I was robbed of the chance to kill them myself, I'm going to do something extra special for her!"

Flurry Heart and Settler winced at what Chrysalis' promise just said. Then they heard the iron bars of the rooms the beasts were in lift up. They closed their eyes and put their hooves over their ears as they heard the sound of growling bugbears and the tearing of flesh as the crowd cheered on and Chrysalis laughed like a madmare. They shuddered at the thought of what state the changelings' bodies were in now. Then they heard a banging at their cell door.

"What's the matter?" a guard said in a monotone, his eyes glowing green. "If you think this is bad, you should try living in Grogar's territory."

"Or Cozy Glow's," another guard said in the same monotone, his eyes glowing the same shade of green as his companion as they exchanged stilted laughs with each other.

Since both Grogar and Cozy Glow have proven themselves to be control freaks par excellence, and Tirek has a tendency to absorb the magic of those around him, some ponies and other creatures moved to Chrysalis' territory within the Forbidden Jungle for whatever bit of freedom they can get, as well as a bit of bloody entertainment. While Chrysalis feeds off of their love for bloodshed to the point that most of the ponies in her territory are emotionless husks that only express themselves when an execution or a gladiator game is being held, they considered it a small price to pay. Bread and circuses were the law of the land.

Author's Note

Sorry it took so long. The WiFi on the camp site was acting up.

On the bright side, at least I managed to upload it today.

Chapter 11 - Rescue Mission

Luna, Discord, and a great number of changelings hooked up to a sleigh and observed Chrysalis' arena from a distance. They were standing upon a mountain that was a rusty red in colour. Discord was sitting on Luna and using a telescope he conveniently found on the mountain to get a closer look at the arena.

"Can you see Flurry Heart anywhere?" Luna asked.

"I would but, thanks to Chrysalis' anti-magic throne, I can't see through the walls." Discord replied.

Discord then noticed the abundance of guards Chrysalis' arena had. He was surprised at the amount of ponies that flocked to Chrysalis' territory before realizing that Chrysalis provides more mutual benefits for her and the ponies under her rule. They provide her with food, she provides them with entertainment. This was marginally better than the deal other territories gave out, which amounted to 'do as we say or die' in which it was inconveniently easy to not do as the leaders said. However, a significant portion of her subjects tend to die from starvation, their near-emotionless states making them apathetic to their own needs except for the desire to be entertained.

"Good thing I've got a plan for this," Discord said.

"I trust this plan doesn't involve any violence," Luna said dryly.

"That honestly depends on whether using this sleigh Thorax provided us to smash through Chrysalis' arena and bust Flurry Heart and Settler out through the hole we made counts as 'violence'."

"We're gonna what?!" one of the changelings hooked up to the sleigh blurted out while the rest looked at Discord as if he'd gone mad, despite the fact that Discord was never that sane to begin with. Discord then hopped into the sleigh, with Luna following him, and the changelings quickly ran off the mountain and flew the sleigh towards the arena as quickly as they could. Had they known that Discord's mission to rescue Flurry Heart would become a suicide mission, they probably would have refused, but they were simply in too deep now. Luna and Discord braced themselves as the changelings zoomed right into where Chrysalis has been holding Flurry Heart and Settler and smashed straight through the wall. Flurry Heart and Settler gaped at the massive hole in the cell wall that wasn't there five seconds ago, then turned to Discord, who was ducking down within the sleigh. Discord then took a quick peek at Flurry Heart and gave her some reassuring words in an exaggerated Canterlot accent.

"Don't worry, love. Cavalry's 'ere."

The changelings morphed into Chrysalis' mind-controlled soldiers and charged right at the real soldiers until they clashed into a big ball of violence. Nopony was sure who won since all the combatants now looked alike. Everypony who was still conscious could hope for was that everypony was all on the same side. Discord pressed a button near the cell door that contained Settler and Flurry Heart to release them. And then Flurry Heart then walked up to Discord to give him a smack, causing spittle to go flying everywhere.

"I suppose you didn't deserve that one either?" Luna deadpanned.

"No, that one I definitely deserved," Discord said while rubbing his cheek where Flurry Heart had slapped him.

"Where were you, Discord?!" Flurry Heart angrily demanded.

"What happened to Uncle Discord?"

"Do I look like a filly to you?"

"Well, when you spend half a millennium mourning the one pony who truly cared about you..."

Settler cleared his throat to indicate Diiscord's statement was inaccurate.

"...At the time" Discord corrected himself. "As well as go perpetually sleep-deprived, your memory can get a little funny. Also, I was hungover and, while spending some time recovering, had a call from this guy who wanted me to deliver a package to him, and-".

"Must have been real important if you put a 'package' over the safety of your adoptive niece and her new guardian!" Flurry Heart said.

"Heh, I forgot you had your aunt's dry wit."

Flurry Heart then noticed Luna still sitting within the sleigh.

"So the legends were true," Flurry Heart said. "The princess of the night still lives."

"I am no longer the princess of the night," Luna solemnly corrected Flurry Heart. "Now I am just a simple rock farmer trying to make a living for my family.".

Luna stared at Flurry Heart, still somewhat amazed at how all grown up she was now. However, there was something missing about Flurry Heart. It's as if the innocence she had as a filly was taken away from her, leaving behind a cynical carapace in its place. Right next to Flurry Heart was an Earth pony with a brown coat and a white mane tied up in a ponytail, along with a white beard that was nearly as long as Star-Swirl's. He was also wearing a pair of round sunglasses, with his eyes being a milky blue. She assumed that the Earth pony was Discord's friend Settler.

"Well then," Settler said to break the silence. "While we could have a quick catch-up, I'd like to remind everypony that Chrysalis will notice the guards haven't shown up with us, so..."

Settler looked at the changelings disguised as the guards, with everypony else doing the same.

"Do we have to?" one of the disguised changelings whined.

"Come on, you know Chrysalis is starting to get suspicious by now," Settler said.

"Ugh, fine. Let's get this over with…"

Meanwhile, on her throne perched directly above the arena, Chrysalis lounged about impatiently, waiting for her guards to bring Flurry Heart and Settler before her so she could personally kill them herself in a fight to the death. The crowds' excitement was also dwindling as well, slowly going back to the emotionless husks Chrysalis' feeding has turned them into, their cheers becoming more and more dull and unenergetic. Soon enough, her "guards" walked up to Chrysalis with Flurry Heart and Settler in chains.

"Took you long enough!" Chrysalis said in an annoyed tone.

"You will never get away with this, Chrysalis!" Flurry Heart cried out defiantly.

Chrysalis laughed before walking to Flurry Heart and slightly pushing her head up with her hoof to make Flurry Heart face her.

"Oh, but I already have. I've been getting away with it for five hundred years!"

Chrysalis then gestured towards the centre of the arena so the "guards" could take Flurry Heart and Settler there. Flurry Heart then looked at the puddle of blood and viscera that a pair of bugbears were buzzing around. The bugbears, mouths covered in blood, clawed at each other to fend for whatever scraps remained, if indeed there were any scraps left. When they reached the centre of the arena, Chrysalis walked closer to the edge of where she was standing to address her audience once more.

"Today is a glorious day!" Chrysalis announced. "For today, the last princess of Equestria shall die! Mwahahahahaha!"

"Ahem," a voice said behind her. Chrysalis turned around and noticed Discord pointing towards a dark blue unicorn wearing a dark grey hooded cloak.

"You missed one," Discord said mockingly.

The unicorn then uncloaked herself, revealing herself to be Princess Luna as she spread her wings majestically.

"She wasn't going to fight you at first, but when I told her she can't access her full power here, I think that might have eased any fears she had of accidentally killing you. So what do you say we give the audience what they want?"

Author's Note

Black and blue. Fight night. The greatest gladiator match in the history of the world. Night vs Parasite. Alicorn vs Insect. The former Princess of the Night vs the former Queen of the Changelings!

Well, it doesn't sound that exciting in comparison to other battles in and out of canon but, since these two are on equal ground now, I can assure you blood will be shed in equal amounts.

Also, did anyone notice what the minor running gag of Discord getting slapped is a reference to? I know this story is more serious than what I usually write but sometimes you got to have a little bit of levity in these things otherwise you will get Darkness Induced Audience Apathy.

Chapter 13 - Heartless

Luna and Chrysalis have been fighting for what felt like twenty minutes. While Chrysalis could have used her changeling magic to her advantage, she wanted to take her time with Luna to enjoy the satisfaction of killing one of the two sisters. Chrysalis tried striking Luna but Luna quickly blocked the attack, pulled down the leg Chrysalis tried to strike her with and counterattacked. But Chrysalis quickly dodged the attack and delivered a strong attack to Luna's stomach. While that slightly weakened Luna, she was still quick enough to block another blow from Chrysalis. But Chrysalis was quick enough to land a few kicks into Luna's chest before delivering a stronger blow in that same area. The attacks were starting to take their toll on Luna, with her coughing up blood as she struggled to stay up. Chrysalis ducked down, charged in and stabbed Luna through the chest with her horn before kicking her to the ground.

"How disappointing" Chrysalis gloated "I was hoping you would be more of a challenge. You should have stayed in hiding, princess."

Chrysalis charged up her horn, ready to finish off Luna.

"Any last words?"

Despite bleeding out, Luna managed to give Chrysalis a confident smile.

"Yes. You have lost."

"What?"

Luna pointed to Chrysalis' throne, which was being attacked by the changelings that transported Luna and Discord to the arena, with Discord helping by smashing it up with a mallet.

"My throne!" Chrysalis roared out.

She charged at Discord to get him to cease the destruction, but she was not quick enough to stop the final breaking blow. However, as the throne collapsed into pieces, she plunged her horn into Discord's heart. Discord cried out in agony as Chrysalis dug her horn even deeper into where she had stabbed Discord. Chrysalis relished in the pain she is causing, but Discord managed to whisper an important word of advice with a weak smile.

"You...should have gone for the head."

But before he could snap his fingers, a sudden burst of a dark green bile-like substance splattered all over him, resulting in him falling over. When he got back up and wiped the substance out of his eyes, he noticed Chrysalis' head was no longer attached to her body. The body laid on the floor, its legs twitching and convulsing as the substance oozed out of where Chrysalis' head used to be. And right next to Chrysalis' lifeless headless body was Flurry Heart holding a sword while she and the sword were covered in the substance.

"Good advice" Flurry Heart quipped.

Discord then looked down and noticed the now dismembered head was still stuck in his chest. He pulled it out with no fuss and looked at the shocked expression on Chrysalis' face before dropping it to the floor in disgust. Settler ran up to the two of them before making a loud declaration to the ponies freed from Chrysalis' control.

"Attention everypony! The bug queen is dead! You are all now free!"

Flurry Heart gave a slight chuckle, which resulted in Settler and Discord looking at her.

"What's so funny?"

"I wouldn't really call them 'free', Settler."

"What do you mean?"

"It's more like 'under new management'."

Flurry Heart telekinetically lifted Settler up and threw him towards Discord, resulting in him falling onto the floor again.

"What are you doing? I thought we were here to free everypony and avenge your parents!"

"I was, but then I realized that the ponies here were nothing more than a bunch of crooks that not even Grogar would want to be associated with. They don't deserve freedom."

Flurry Heart turned towards Discord and lifted him up before electrocuting him with her magic.

"What's the matter, Discord? Afraid to use your power against little old me?"

Discord looked at Flurry Heart in shock. Since when did she have a penchant for cruelty? Fortunately, he knew what to do.

"Now look here, young mare" Discord said, trying to sound as stern as possible "You are going to sit in that corner over there and think about what you've done before I-".

But before he can finish his sentence, Flurry Heart electrocuted him again before throwing him into a wall.

"Really, Discord? Are you really going to talk to me like I'm still the baby filly you rescued from the bad guys? Maybe you would have noticed that and tried to be a better uncle instead of spending centuries whining about your 'Fluttershy'."

That last comment struck a nerve with Discord. Enough that he shot a blast of magic out of his hand and into Flurry Heart's chest. Flurry Heart gasped for air as she looked down at the burning wound Discord left in her chest before kneeling down. After a while, Discord snapped out of his anger and stared at his now trembling hand, horrified by what he just did. But what nopony was counting on was for Flurry Heart to suddenly float up and be consumed by an orb of dark magic. The magic malformed her into a dark reflection of herself, her eyes morphing into those of a serpent, her teeth sharpening into white daggers, her head becoming more rounder, with the rest of her body being encased in a magenta armour. And in the centre of Flurry Heart's chest was the glowing scar left from when Discord struck her. The monster Flurry Heart has turned into let out a sinister cackle after completing her transformation.

"F...Flurry Heart?" Both Discord and Settler asked in fright.

"Flurry Heart?" The creature said "I am Heartless Maelstrom! And I shall succeed where everypony else had failed. By destroying you, Discord!"

Maelstrom fired several attacks at Discord, which Discord either dodged or turned into ice cream. She flew swiftly into Discord and delivering a cracking strike to his ribs before sending blow after blow to his face and firing a shot directly into his chest, just like he did to her. Maelstrom chuckled maliciously at how much pain she was causing Discord.

"Flurry Heart?" Discord asked weakly "Why are you doing this?"

"Oh don't pretend to act all weak, Discord!" Maelstrom said with contempt "I know what you're capable of and I know that what I'm doing to you is merely a warm-up. But if you want to know, my reasons are the same as yours when you took over Equestria all those centuries ago. Because I want to!"

Maelstrom then charged up a very powerful attack, intending to finish Discord off once and for all, if not severely injure him.

Meanwhile, Luna was still lying in the centre of the arena, healing from the injuries Chrysalis has dealt her. She then looked up and noticed the corrupted Flurry Heart about to destroy Discord. She sighed as she tried to get up.

Curse you for dragging me into this, Discord Luna thought to herself.

As Maelstrom was about to blast Discord into oblivion, Luna flew into Maelstrom as fast as she could, catching her off-balance and making her miss Discord and Settler. When Discord and Settler noticed they were still in one piece, Discord quickly snapped his fingers to teleport Settler, Luna and himself out of the arena and into the Badlands.

Author's Note

Even though I'm not sure this had been edited (though I made a few edits myself), I'm glad I managed to have time to upload this chapter. I'd hate to leave you readers blueballed for even longer.

If the way this chapter is formatted looks different, it's because I'm still in London and I did this on my phone.

Chapter 14 - Destination Reached

With their journey finally over, Luna, Discord and Settler sat down and waited for the ponies Discord was delivering the package to show up. Everypony was exhausted, having just escaped a grim fate from the unlikeliest of sources. Discord seemed to be the most shaken up, his body trembling and his breathing a little shaky and rapid, almost on the verge of crying.

"You still shook up about Flurry Heart?" Settler asked, concerned for his friend.

"Her parents gave her to me and trusted me to look after her, the same way Luna's husband trusted me to look after Luna. And yet here we are having barely survived an attack from the very alicorn filly I was supposed to protect all those years ago. How did I screw up so badly?"

"Hey, it's not your fault buddy," Settler said.

"Yes, it is! If I have learnt to move on sooner, maybe I could have been a better guardian to her!"

"Don't beat yourself up, mate," Settler said. "Grief is a hard thing to get over, even if you are a thousand plus year old draconequus. Especially if it's a pony that saw the good in you and helped you become a better person."

Settler then passed a handkerchief over to Discord, who loudly blew into it. He then passed the handkerchief back to Settler.

"Thank you," Discord said in between sobs.

"My pleasure, though it would be nice of you to keep that thing away from me," Settler said.

As everypony continued waiting patiently, Luna glanced at Discord's backpack. She caught a glimpse of some vials with a purple glowing liquid inside, guessing this must be the package Discord was delivering.

"If you don't mind me asking, Discord," Luna said, "What is inside those bottles?"

Discord then looked at Luna and quickly moved the backpack to the front of him away from her.

"That's classified," he said.

"Well, since they're apparently so important that you gave me Tartarus for nearly letting it slip into the hands of the lava demons, I thought I might satisfy my own personal curiosity while waiting for your acquaintances."

As Luna said that, a chariot pulled by some bat-ponies flew through the sky and descended right in front of everypony. The door facing them opened up and what walked out of the door was an Earth pony with a small red moustache and a white coat, along with a pair of blue eyes. The Earth pony bared a striking resemblance to Discord's friend Flibberty.

"Discord, my friend!" the pony said excitedly, "So good to see you! I thought you would have been captured by Tirek's forces or some other unfortunate incident like that."

"I've had worse, Gibbet," Discord said with a shrug.

"Why the long face?" Gibbet asked.

"We've...had some trouble," Discord said, with everypony else nodding in agreement.

"Oh...Well, I trust the package is still safe and sound," Gibbet said casually, "Mind if I take a look?"

"Be my guest."

Discord handed the backpack over to Gibbet, who took a good look at the potions before turning away and gagging.

"Why does it smell like mouldy salami?" Gibbet asked.

"I didn't bring a bigger backpack. So, what do you think?"

"I think you've done a fantastic job," Gibbet said, "Soon we'll have our own army of super-ponies with strength rivalling that of Tirek and Grogar combined. They'll never see it coming!"

Luna raised an eyebrow at that statement.

"What do you mean by that?" Luna asked.

"Simple, my alicorn friend," Gibbet said, "These potions give those who drink them the magical power of four alicorns and two draconequi. Or that’s what I heard anyway. No idea how they were made and, in all honesty, I don't think anypony wants to know."

Discord then leaned close to Luna and whispered in her ear.

"Gibbet and his brother Flibberty are resistance members trying to take down Grogar and the other villains once and for all."

"I see," Luna said.

Luna then looked at the chariot and noticed a hooded unicorn sitting inside. The unicorn's horn was glowing with a dark aura. Before she could warn Discord about this shady individual, she, Settler and Discord were shot up with several dark crystals. The crystals were small and merely stuck to them, depowering them in the process.

"Good job, Flibberty!" Gibbet said as he turned towards the chariot.

Discord could only stare in shock as a hooded unicorn walked out of the chariot. The unicorn unhooded itself and was revealed to be Flibberty.

"Why?!" Discord said.

Flibberty chuckled. "Simple, my draconequus friend. We like money. Grogar has lots of money. He pays us to pretend to be resistance members so we can deliver real resistance members to him so he can execute them personally. Speaking of which, nothing personal."

And with that, Flibberty and Gibbet whipped out some batons and knocked everypony out.

It was another day at the School of Friendship, but with one big difference about it. Namely, that Starlight has been left in charge of the entire School of Friendship. While Twilight and her friends headed off to the Crystal Empire to deal with Sombra, Starlight sat in her office organizing a school trip. She thought the best way to commemorate Twilight ruling all of Equestria, as well as to make sure she knows she's being appreciated, was to have the students from the School of Friendship take a tour of the castle in Canterlot that belonged to the two sisters.

While making her way over to the city with Spike, she noticed that everypony in Ponyville looked a little...off. Their eyes were blank and glowing a sickly green colour, their faces devoid of emotion. She then felt a chill behind her. And when she turned around, she was face-to-face with King Sombra, whose eyes were glowing the same shade of green as everypony else. Sombra then blinked menacingly at Starlight. Within a brief moment, everything changed. Starlight was no longer in Ponyville. Instead, she was in a dark void facing a group of ponies whose cutie marks were all equal signs, just like the ones when she ran her own town. She noticed a puddle of water right next to her and took a quick look at it. Her reflection looked exactly like how she did before encountering Twilight Sparkle.

Author's Note

As I said earlier, the apple doesn't fall far from the tree regarding the Flibbertygibbet twins.

And here everypony was thinking their journey was about to reach an end. Then again, the simple life doesn't really exist in this universe anymore.

Chapter 15 - The King Is Dead

King Sombra walked through the castle of the Crystal Empire, summoning dark crystals throughout its labyrinthine halls. There were some royal guards that resisted his control, all of whom Sombra impaled them with his crystals. As he kept walking, he heard one of the impaled guards murmuring something unintelligible.

"What are you whispering, guardspony?" Sombra asked. "Was it a prayer?"

Sombra moved closer to the guard while grinning sinisterly.

"I can assure you there are no alicorns today. Only me."

As Sombra walked off laughing, Grogar observed him from his afar on a snowy mountaintop. He was impressed at how Sombra much was capable of, even defeating the two sisters. However, he was there when Sombra's declared that he would rule all of Equestria while having the element bearers at his mercy.

"That arrogant fool!" Grogar muttered to himself, "Does he really think he can alter the deal behind my back and get away with it?"

Grogar trekked back to his lair. When he arrived, he noticed Tirek, Cozy Glow and Chrysalis all holding hooves, or hands in Tirek's case. He felt a sense of relief knowing that they were now learning the benefits of teamwork, even though he can't help but sense that at least one of them would plot to betray everyone else and take Equestria for themselves. He gave a small chuckle to himself at the ridiculous notion of any of those three plotting to betray him, something that did not go unnoticed and caught the attention of the trio of baddies.

"Golly, what's so funny, Mr Grogar sir?" Cozy Glow asked in that faux-innocent tone of hers.

"Oh, nothing much, just thinking about King Sombra and what I'm about to do to him."

"Did he succeed?" Tirek asked.

"He did, surprisingly," Grogar replied before walking to his crystal ball.

The ball showed them Sombra's bombastic declaration of him ruling all of Equestria.

"However, it appears his pride has gotten the better of him. After I have dealt with him, we shall carve up Equestria amongst ourselves."

The ball showed a map all of Equestria, divided into colour-coded segments. The blue representing the land Sombra has already conquered, which will belong to Grogar once he has dealt with him. The green represents the land that will belong to Chrysalis, the pink representing the land that will belong to Cozy Glow, and the red representing the land that will belong to Tirek. They all smiled and laughed maliciously at the territory they will soon own. Grogar then walked away and teleported to where Sombra would be.

Sombra was walking through Yakyakistan, his mind-controlled forces not too far behind. The yaks charged at them but Sombra just simply stabbed them with his crystals or made them fall under his control. As he continued walking, he was now face-to-face with a familiar blue ram.

"King Sombra," Grogar said in a furiously deep tone, "We had a deal. You only get to reclaim your throne in the Crystal Empire. Nothing more, nothing less."

"Why would I need to honour your deal? I have already killed three of the princesses and I have broken the remaining one so thoroughly I didn't even need to kill he-"

But before Sombra could finish that sentence, he felt a tight grip around his neck. He then noticed the yellow jingles on Grogar's collar were glowing and that Grogar was wearing a sinister smile on his face.

"Your arrogance knows no bounds, I see. You broke the agreement we made. Now you shall learn the price for treachery!"

Grogar lifted Sombra up and threw him into a yak hut before lifting him up again and slamming him into the ground. Sombra tried to defend himself but Grogar's attack made him a bit groggy. Before he could give an attack of his own, Grogar threw the disoriented Sombra into one of his own dark crystals, which pierced straight through his black heart. Sombra screamed in agony as Grogar drove him even further into the crystal, which was now being soaked in Sombra's pitch black blood. Grogar then used his magic to grab a spear that belonged to one of Sombra's mind-controlled guards and sliced straight through his eyes, eliciting another pained cry from him. He rammed the spear through Sombra's skull before using the spear to pull the top half of his head clean off. As the near-headless Sombra gurgled on his own blood, his brain exposed as a result of Grogar's last attack, Grogar pulled the spear out of Sombra's skull and used it to stab right through his exposed brain before pulling the spear back out and raising it triumphantly above his head, brain still attached to the spearhead.

"The king is dead. Long live the king!"

Back in the present, Grogar was busy looking at a glass cabinet filled with all sorts of trophies he collected during his conquest of Equestria. In the centre was a long white horn and a tiara resting upon a red cushion. Below the horn were three smaller horns, one of which formerly belonged to Princess Twilight Sparkle. He then heard a guard walk into the room.

"Some may consider this to be morbid," Grogar said to the guard behind him, "but I believe that the horn of Princess Celestia herself is probably my greatest trophy of all. The beasts of my time wore the skin of their fallen foes. I don't see how I can't do the same."

"Emperor Grogar, the Flibbertygibbet twins have captured some resistance members," the guard announced,
"Should I send them in?"

"You may."

The guard whistled while making a gesture to tell the Flibbertygibbet twins to come in. The twins were carrying an alicorn, a draconequus, and an Earth pony behind them with their magic, all tied up, unconscious, and covered in little dark crystals. Grogar turned around and looked at the backpack they also brought with them with a smile.

"I see these are the potions I've been hearing rumours about."

"They say it can give those who drink them the power of four alicorns and two draconequi,." Flibberty said.

"Well then, they have yet to meet me."

Grogar then noticed his captives waking up. Knowing who they were, he waited for them to regain consciousness. The navy blue alicorn was the first one to wake up.

"Ah, Luna. What a pleasant surprise. And here I thought the only alicorn that was still alive was Flurry Heart."

Luna looked over Grogar and noticed a cabinet filled with horns, wings, hooves, even a few pelts.

"When Sombra told me he broke you, I thought he meant he left you for dead," Grogar said before kicking Luna in the chest, "Guess I'll have to do it myself."

Grogar walked over the unconscious draconequus and Earth pony before zapping a jolt of magic at the draconequus. The zap wasn't enough to kill the draconequus but it did jolt him awake.

"Discord. Have you reconsidered my offer?" Grogar asked.

"Nope." Discord groaned as he tried to rise to his feet, eventually flopping back onto the floor. "Perhaps you should have visited when I was going through my bargaining phase."

"How unfortunate."

Grogar then looked a the unconscious Earth pony lying beside Discord. While Grogar had no idea who this pony was, if the pony was against him, he would serve as a reminder of what happens when one defies Grogar. Grogar stepped back and addressed Luna and Discord.

"Here's the deal. Since you two have experience in ruling Equestria with an iron hoof, or fist in your case, Discord, I will spare your lives if you submit and swear fealty to me."

Discord then laughed at Grogar's statement, something that annoyed the ram sorcerer to a slight degree.

"What do you find so amusing?!" Grogar bellowed.

"Well, I hate to break it to you, Grogar, but we don't do evil bad guy stuff anymore. Lulu over here has taken up rock farming while I have been helping ponies with their marriage problems. While neither of those are as fun as causing a bit of chaos, as far as I'm concerned, my brand of chaos is much more fun when I have somepony to share it with."

"You're joking."

"Does a pony that correctly guesses my original plan for a tea party that involved green tea that turns you green, ginseng tea that actually sings, furniture that rests on the ceiling, and stairs that go nowhere sound like I'm joking to you? How many ponies do you know that knows you so well that they anticipate whatever chaos you might bring to the table?"

"If a pony can predict what you're going to do, then you are a poor lord of chaos indeed."

"Heh. Then clearly, you've never met my cousin, Eris."

Grogar grew weary of Discord's prattling and teleported him, Luna and the Earth pony into the dungeon beneath the palace so he could prepare for their execution. He smiled as he walked out of the room and passed the Flibbertygibbet twins, imagining the satisfaction of killing the princess of the night and the lord of chaos in just one day.

Author's Note

Riddle me this, Sombra. What do you get when you try to screw over an ancient evil overlord?

So, our heroes have been captured by Grogar's forces and are about to be executed. How are they going to get out of this mess? Find out next time in two weeks!

Chapter 16 - A Dazzling Escape

The dungeon Luna, Discord and Settler were laying in was a dark, damp place, with walls made of dark grey bricks and had streaks of dried blood staining them. There weren't even any steel bars or doors, just brick and mortar from top to bottom. Behind them was a small window very high up, which was the only source of light within the dungeon. It would be so simple to climb up there if it weren't for the fact that everypony's magic was disabled by the small black crystals attached to them. Having nothing better to do, Settler decided to sing a little song.

Nopony knows the troubles I saw

Nopony knows my sorr-

But before he could finish that lyric, Discord grabbed Settler's mouth to stop him from singing.
"Settler, I know the situation we're in is hopeless, but could you sing something a little less depressing? I've only just snapped out of that phase, you know."

"What do you suggest?" he asked.

"Something like this."

Discord snapped his fingers in an attempt to summon a harmonica before realizing he was still covered in those magic-sapping crystals. So instead, he cleared his throat and inhaled while preparing for his little ditty:

When I was a little draconequus and the sun was going down...

Luna just groaned, for she was not in the mood for singing. In fact, she wasn't in the mood for Discord's antics, period.

"Please tell he isn't..." Luna said to Settler before Discord's singing interrupted her.

The darkness and the shadows, they would always make me frown...

"Yep, he is," Settler replied.

I'd hide under my pillow

From what I thought I saw

But Granny Discord said that wasn't the way

To deal with fears at all

She said, "Dissy, you gotta stand up tall

Learn to face your fears

You'll see that they can't hurt you

Just laugh to make them disappear.”

When Discord was singing that last note, he, Luna and Settler were quickly whisked away from the cell by some luminescent magic before being transported to separate guillotine frames placed on a tower in front of a crowd of ponies. Some of those ponies were under Grogar's control, others were just felons who enjoyed a good show. Grogar himself then walked up to the podium to address his subjects.

"To those who still have their free will, allow me to show you why you should never abuse such a privilege in this time of ours. These two had the choice of joining me and they refused, while this puny pony accompanying them willingly went along with their little rebellion. For this, they have been sentenced. To death!"

The crowd cheered as Grogar slowly raised his forelegs up in the air before putting them back down. Grogar then walked behind his captives and charged up a powerful spell that would instantly destroy them in a spectacular fashion. Luna, Discord and Settler closed their eyes as they prepared for the inevitable. But instead, they heard a slash. Discord quickly opened one of his eyes, with Luna and Settler slowly following suit, and noticed Grogar's throat has been slashed wide open, with one of his guards holding a bloodied spear. As Grogar lowered his head, the magic in his collar dissipated as his wound quickly healed. He then quickly used his magic to telekinetically grab the guard by the neck and choke him. And then some other "guards" quickly ran up to Luna, Discord and Settler and unlocked their restraints. As they were being freed, the so-called guards whispered into their ears.

"Follow us if you want to live."

Seeing no reason not to, they complied and ran. The guard Grogar was choking however quickly morphed into a dark green metamorphosed changeling with a pair of red horns and purple eyes.

"Ah...Pharynx," Grogar said sinisterly, "I take it things did not go well between you and your queen."

The bells on Grogar's collar glew a brighter yellow as he used his magic to break Pharynx' neck, slowly twisting his head off and crushing the decapitated body into a crumpled mess. He then dropped the head and turned towards where his captives should have been, only to find that they had escaped.

Meanwhile, Luna, Discord and Settler were following the disguised ponies that saved them as they headed due west. Eventually, after a long trek, they hid away in a forest. And that's when the ponies took off their disguises and revealed themselves to Luna, Discord and Settler. One was a yellow earth pony with a poofy orange mane that had yellow streaks, another was a pinkish-purple earth pony with a dark purple mane that looked liked bananas and had green streaks in it, and the third one was a blue earth pony with her mane done in a ponytail and having dark blue streaks. The three of them had the same purple eyes. After seeing their faces, Settler can't help but ogle at the three pretty mares standing before him.

"I know I'm a spoken-for stallion but helloooo nurse!"

The blue one blushed and chuckled at the compliment while the pinkish-purple one just rolled her eyes. The yellow one, on the other hand, strutted seductively towards the excited stallion before making her way behind him and giving him a swift kick in the horseapples, something which made Discord wince as he immediately covered his own unmentionables with his hands and crossed his legs. Settler groaned as he knelt down, his forelegs trying to reach his unimpressive stallionhood.

"Do you think I deserved that, Discord?" Settler asked.

"That honestly depends on the context."

"In this context?"

"Maybe."

The yellow one then trotted back towards her fellow earth ponies.

"How many times has it been that we meet somepony who turns out to be a creep?" The pinkish-purple one asked.

"I dunno," the blue one replied, "But I think he's kinda cute."

"Didn't you just hear him say he's spoken for?" the yellow one asked the blue one.

"Yeah...what does that mean?" the blue one replied.

"It means he's married."

"Oh...right..."

"It's okay, darling," Settler grunted as he got back up from his debilitating injury, "Out of you three fine fillies, I think you're the cutest."

The blue one blushed again as the pinkish-purple one rolled her eyes again and the yellow one did a facehoof. Meanwhile, Luna turned her head towards Discord.

"Discord?" Luna whispered.

"Yeah" Discord whispered back.

"Did you say your friend here had marriage problems?"

"Yes, and I, being the kind soul that I am, fixed them in my own special way."

"I'm starting to understand why he had those problems in the first place," Luna said.

"I was thinking of castrating him during one of my sessions, but I felt that was overkill."

"Care to tell us something?" the yellow pony asked Luna and Discord, noticing the conversation they were having behind Settler's back.

"Nothing much," Luna replied, "Just talking about the two greatest miracles in recent Equestrian history; the earth pony you assaulted still being married, and Discord being responsible for the marriage not ending yet. Now that's out of the way, would you care to introduce yourselves?"

"We're the Dazzlings."

"With dazzling looks like yours, I'm not surprised you'd call yourselves that," Settler quipped before laughing, which earned him another sudden decrease in his chances of having foals, courtesy of the yellow pony.

Author's Note

Discord singing his own version of the laughter song. You're welcome. :twilightsmile:

And yes, this is slightly earlier than when I usually update the fic. What can I say? I wasted the one promotion per week (one promotion per two weeks in at least one group) on a story involving psychic monkeys and brain-hacking aliens.

So, with Luna and Discord's situation being even more of a mess, a lot of bad ponies knowing those two are still alive, and a massive power gap in the wake of Chrysalis' death (even though Heartless Maelstrom/evil Flurry Heart is pretty much filling the void), how are they going to get out of this one this time? And more importantly, what are the Dazzlings doing here and why are they ponies? Find out next time in two weeks.

Chapter 17 - Welcome to the Show

Outside of Canterlot High School, the Dazzlings were observing Sunset and her friends from afar, trying to figure out how to get back into Equestria so they can get their magic back. In order to avoid being spotted, they were wearing their hoodies and hiding behind a statue of a rearing horse. Unfortunately, their cover was nearly blown because Sonata noticed a cute little squirrel scurrying towards her.

"Aw, it's so cute!" Sonata said, distracted by the adorableness of the squirrel.

The squirrel then quickly ran out of Sonata's sight, but not quick enough for Sonata to lose it when she decided to chase after it. The squirrel ran up the statue and Sonata, in her haste, tried to climb the rearing horse. She rather clumsily fell down. Or rather, she fell right through where the statue was placed. The other two Dazzlings, who bore witness to the event, quickly chased after Sonata for her safety. And when they did so, they were sucked through a portal into what appeared to be another world. The travel rendered the both of them unconscious. When they woke up in what appeared to be an empty castle, they were face-to-face with Sonata, who appeared to have transformed into an earth pony.

"Hey, guys!" Sonata said excitedly, "I got my hooves back!"

"Yeah, but you also turned into a pony," Aria said in a snide tone.

"So have you!" Sonata retorted.

Aria and Adagio looked at the mirror that they apparently came out of and noticed their new equine forms.

"It must be a side-effect of the travel here," Adagio said, "But no matter. While earth ponies have the least magic in comparison to the other pony tribes-"

"And zebras!" Sonata interrupted.

"Ugh, and zebras, they still have a powerful magic dwelling within them."

"So does that mean we can sing again?" Aria asked.

"Let's find out."

The Dazzlings tried singing a basic melody together, but it came out completely tone-deaf. Their voices were still missing the beauty their original singing voices had, but it was a start.

"No, but we will gain our magic back eventually. Maybe even our true forms as well," Adagio said.

As Adagio tried sinisterly walking away with her two sinister sisters, she and they had difficulty controlling their new equine bodies. They frequently bumped into one another and various suits of armour that appeared out of nowhere in the corridors. Unfortunately for them, their commotion gained them some attention, as they heard hoofsteps heading their way. They noticed a shadow that looked like a goat with big curly horns. Soon, they were face-to-face with a terrifying blue beast of legend.

"Is that who I think it is?" Aria asked nervously.

"Impossible!" Adagio said in shock, "You're a fairy tale designed to scare little fillies!"

"Wait, who is this guy?" Sonata asked, oblivious to the fact that her sisters are terrified of the ram standing before them.

"That is Grogar!" Adagio said, while Sonata kept looking confused, "The father of monsters?! The first emperor of Equestria who was said to have been the most powerful being in Equestria?!"

The blue ram standing before them observed the two frightened mares and one absent-minded mare, wondering if he had seen them before.

"I know you three. Aren't you the sirens that were banished by the pillars?" Grogar asked.

"How did you know?" Adagio asked in response.

"I have been doing my research, as well as hiding in the shadows, watching the events that have transpired after my first reign of terror ended."

Grogar walked closer to the intimidated Adagio.

"I trust you still have the ability to serenade ponies with your songs."

"We've tried that. It didn't work," Adagio said.

"Prove it."

The Dazzlings tried singing again, but they were still as tone-deaf as before. Grogar growled before letting out a low, sinister chuckle. He couldn't tell what was more amusing, the sirens losing their ability to sing or the fact that they were now trapped in less powerful forms. Seeing that they were of no use to him, Grogar charged up his magic to disintegrate them on the spot, the jingles on his collar glowing as he did so. But after seeing the mares get more and more scared, he decided it would not make a difference if he spared them and killing them would just be a waste of his magic. So he teleported them out of his castle instead. As he did so, he quickly glanced back at the Crystal Mirror. He trotted towards it and touched it, the mirror itself making a rippling motion as if it was made of water. He made the assumption that the mirror was how the sirens got back to Equestria in the first place. He pondered at the thought of using the mirror to conquer whatever world was on the other side before dismissing the idea entirely. The best scenario would be a rival warlord he'd have to either negotiate with or kill, while the worst scenario would be he'd have more heroes to deal with. Not taking any chances except seven years of bad luck, he grabbed the mirror and smashed it into the wall with as much force as he could muster.

"Two worlds divided once more."

The Dazzlings looked around at their new surroundings, checking to see if they were all in one piece. Their new location was a small village with buildings overrun by vines and dark crystals. The ponies that walked the streets were all wearing slightly pink helmets with blue glowing eyes. Adagio couldn't tell if she should have been amused or frightened. On the one hoof, the Pillars were nowhere to be found. But on the other, there were strong implications that Grogar was behind this. Deciding to lay low and try to be inconspicuous, they made their way towards a boutique to purchase some clothes to conceal their identities. Then suddenly, an image of a young pink pegasus filly with a light blue curly mane was projected from a giant crystal in the centre of the village.

"Hi there, friends!" the filly said in a sickly sweet tone of voice, "Just thought I'd give everypony another morning reminder that the bestest friends a pony can have are the ones that do whatever they ask, without question."

Any fears Adagio might have had were dissipated by the possibility that the filly presented was in charge of the village they are in. As they were selecting dark hooded cloaks for purchase, Adagio walked up to the dark pink pony who owned the boutique and asked her an important question.

"Hi there. We are new here, and I was wondering where we could find the filly that made the announcement this morning?"

"Our greatest friend ever, Cozy Glow?" the owner said.

"Yes, her. We would be honoured to see her in person."

"Sure thing. She's in a castle near the School of Friendship. Since the castle looks like a tree made out of crystals, you should have no problem finding it. Well, that's what I heard from other ponies. And since honesty is the best policy around here, I think I can trust the words of the other townsfolk here."

"Thank you."

The Dazzlings equipped the clothing they just bought and headed for the castle the owner talked about. She was right when she said they would have no problem finding it. As they made their way to the entrance, there were a pair of guards wearing the same helmets as the ones they saw before. Surprisingly, the guards let them in immediately, almost as if this Cozy Glow was expecting them. The guards then led them to Cozy's throne room. But when they opened the doors, the Dazzlings saw something they were not expecting. Sitting at the table was a corpse-like mare in a wheelchair with vines connected to crystals digging into her back. The mare looked like the Cozy Glow they saw back at the village, but with some truly horrific differences. Her skin was a thin veil of flesh barely covering her bones, her nose was shrivelled up and her limbs were nothing more than hooves attached to bloodied bones. Instead of the bright blue curly mane and tail she had back at the town square, Cozy had a mane and tail composed only of mere dark blue strands that were held together by a torn headband and a knot respectively. Her eyes appeared to have rotted away as well, having been replaced with dark empty sockets. The sickly mare then turned her head towards the Dazzlings, her flesh tearing and her bones cracking as she did so, and smiled at them with whatever facial muscles she still had.

"Wanna be friends?" Cozy Glow asked in a raspy voice, a dark mimicry of the sickly sweet tone she once had.

Author's Note

If you were wondering how Cozy Glow survived all those years, now you know.

Sweet dreams. :twilightsmile:

Chapter 18 - More Familiar Faces

Back in the present day, Luna, Discord and Settler followed the Dazzlings even further into the Undiscovered West. The west was one of the only few territories along with the South Luna Ocean and the Celestial Sea that had not been claimed by any of the villains, seeing as it was filled with uninhabited forests and mountains.

"So then what happened?" Settler asked the Dazzlings, hoping they would continue talking about how they survived their encounter with Cozy Glow.

"I'm not entirely sure what happened next. The crystals she was connected to grew a blindingly bright blue," Adagio replied, "The next thing we knew, we were in this cave with a unicorn, an earth pony, a hippogriff and a changeling."

"Heh, sounds like you were under Cozy's control for a little while. Though weren't you supposed to be seeing your worst fears while under the spell?"

"Not exactly," Luna answered, "The spell Sombra used is an advanced version of the Persuadere spell combined with an inverted version of the Fiducia Compelus spell. I presume Grogar gave his own variation of the spell Sombra used to Cozy Glow and Tirek."

"And why do you know all of this?" Settler arched an eyebrow.

"Star-Swirl taught me about the Fiducia Compelus spell and how it was supposed to create trust within ponies. But then ponies started abusing it to make other ponies do things they wouldn't normally do."

"Such as?"

"Murdering their families."

Settler winced when he heard that. He wasn't sure what was worse, somepony who'd murder their own family or somepony who would force another pony into murdering their family. Soon enough, everypony managed to reach a cave within one of the mountains. The inside of the cave was a dark grey, and was illuminated by bright cyan crystals within the walls. As they continued walking, they noticed other ponies standing near the end of the cave. On the right was a light blue stallion with a bulky build and a long beard that was as ginger as his braided mane and his tail. On the left was a hippogriff with a yellow coat and a blue, plumed mane, decorated into waves. And in the centre was a yellow unicorn with white hooves and a dark orange mane, beard and tail with lighter orange streaks in each of them. The unicorn was also wearing a pair of reading glasses and a dark blue cape with turquoise stars attached to it. Luna and Discord could easily recognize the unicorn and stallion as Sunburst and Rockhoof respectively, but they had no idea who the hippogriff was. As soon as he caught sight of her, Rockhoof charged at Luna and pounced on her, placing his forehooves onto her throat to choke her.

"You killed Star-Swirl, you treacherous witch!" he began to throttle her violently.

The other two, along with Settler's help, tried to pry Rockhoof off of Luna, only succeeding when the Dazzlings joined in too and restrained him. Luna got up and rubbed her forehoof across her neck, panting as she did so. Discord then raised a hand and finger.

"If it helps, she was brainwashed by King Sombra into doing that,." he said.

"Thank you," Luna said, turning her head towards Discord's direction, "Although your help would have been appreciated in getting Rockhoof off of me".

"I would but I still got these crystals stuck on me and I'm maaaaybe a bit ticked off still after hearing the whole 'you killed Fluttershy' thing."

Luna gave Discord an unamused stare before looking to Sunburst.

"Sorry about Rockhoof, Princess," Sunburst said, "He thought you had gone nightmare again during...that day."

"Apology accepted," Luna replied, "And in all fairness, I probably deserved that."

"Oh, and my name is-"

"Sunburst. You were a friend of Starlight Glimmer. I believe we have met before when we were finding out what happened to Star Swirl."

"Oh good, you remember me. I thought you wouldn't recognize me because it has been years, centuries even, since we last met."

"And who is the hippogriff?"

"Oh, me?" the hippogriff answered in a perky tone, "I'm Princess Skystar, or I was a princess, then this big bad goat guy called Grogar invaded our home and enslaved everypony into working in the mines of Seaquestria. I didn't even know we had mines."

"Ah, so you are the daughter of Queen Novo."

"Yeah," Skystar said before her cheeriness was replaced with melancholy as she looked down at the floor. Luna could tell by Skystar's expression that Novo was another casualty in Grogar's conquest of Equestria.

"My condolences," Luna said.

"Just one little question," Discord said while holding his paw up in the air again "Are you guys going to betray us? Mainly it's because the Flibbertygibbet twins sold us out to Grogar when I delivered the potions to them."

"I am so sorry about that," Sunburst said nervously, "I honestly thought that, since they liked to undermine Grogar and his accomplices as much as we do, we thought they would be interested in our cause."

"Oh, I know those guys. Trust me, the only thing they're interested in is money. The only reason I didn't see their betrayal coming was because I thought we were friends." Discord sighed as he put his palm to his face. "This is like that Tirek situation all over again. And I thought the one most likely to relapse into villainy out of the two of us would have been Luna."

Luna then glared at Discord again, to which Discord gave a shrug and a goofy grin.

"What? You got to admit, you and Celly did have quite the sibling rivalry."

"True, but you were the spirit of chaos and disharmony."

"Yes, but chaos isn't necessarily a bad thing. Besides, I never argued with Fluttershy while you still bickered with your sister."

"I'm sure you and Fluttershy had some disagreements in the past."

"Maybe, but most of them were my fault."

"Most of them?" Luna said with a smirk.

"Okay, all of them! Happy?"

Luna then turned her head towards Sunburst again.

"We're getting off-topic here. So tell me, Sunburst, how did you survive all these years?"

Author's Note

If I remember correctly, Ficudia means 'trust' or something along them lines. So, in summary, the Fiducia Compelus spell compels those under it to trust the spellcaster. Kinda like this (more specifically, at 0:51 - 0:56):

Chapter 19 - A New Equestria

Sunburst was sitting at his desk in his humble abode, conducting research on the migration patterns of cockatrices in the odd event that they might become a problem for any future gatherings. Then suddenly, two ponies wearing helmets burst through the front door of his home. In between them was Starlight Glimmer, except there was something...off about her.

"Starlight, are you okay?" Sunburst asked.

Starlight stared at him with green glowing eyes. Sunburst knew she was under the influence of some malicious magic. Whether it was a curse or somepony controlling her mind was a mystery, although the latter would be bitterly ironic since he knew what Starlight did in that town. Sunburst cautiously trotted towards the entranced Starlight, tilting his head in curiosity.

"If I didn't know any better, you appear to be under the effects of the-"

Before he could even react, Starlight punched Sunburst in the face, sending him flying halfway across the room. Sunburst groaned in pain as he collected himself.

"Note to self: Don't talk to a mind-controlled pony even if it's your best friend," he said to himself.

Sunburst heard a nefarious laugh echo across the room. In front of Starlight emerged a dark cloud of magic that formed into a unicorn whose heart was as black as night. It was King Sombra.

"You! You did this to Starlight, didn't you?!"

"Why, I merely put her under my spell, Sunburst," Sombra said.

"How do you know who I am?!"

"I read your friend's mind, of course." Sombra trotted towards Starlight and caressed her head. "It's amazing how somepony with the ability to influence an entire town as well as strip them of their destiny falls into my possession. Mwahahahaha!"

"What do you want?"

"A little bit of entertainment and to test the arena that I intend on using to celebrate my conquering of Equestria. Starlight, would you kindly?"

"Yes, my lord," Starlight replied in a monotone.

Starlight trotted towards Sunburst and slammed his head into a nearby bookshelf, knocking him out instantly.

When Sunburst woke up, he was in a colosseum made entirely of crystal. He looked around and noticed many ponies in the audience that were under Sombra's control, some of which were even wearing helmets. And on the other side of the arena was Starlight, still under Sombra's spell. Above and behind Starlight was Sombra sitting on a crystal throne eating a bowl of purple grapes. The sky was a dark red and there were cries of anguish in the distance. What did Sunburst miss out on while studying in his home?

Starlight trotted towards Sunburst while Sombra looked on with a manic grin. Sunburst knew his friend was still in there, he just needed to find a way to get her to resist Sombra's control. Good thing he read up on the various ways to snap a pony out of somepony else's influence.

"Starlight. I know you're in there somewhere. You have to fight this!"

Sombra laughed in the distance. "That is your plan of defence? Convincing your friend to resist me?! The lack of imagination in regards to how you wish to win this is staggering!"

Starlight levitated Sunburst and threw him into one of the walls, causing it to crack and shards of crystal to fall to the ground.

"I'm your friend, remember? You enslaved a village and nearly destroyed time because we once went our separate ways!"

Sombra raised an eyebrow at that comment.

"Okay, that might not be the best example but know this! I will not fight you!"

Sombra yawned in a bored manner.

"Are you finished spouting out cliché after cliché?"

"Not yet!" Sunburst replied defiantly.

Sunburst's horn glew. He fired magic directly into Starlight's forehead, clearing away the darkness and the fear that engulfed her mind. When he was done firing the spell into Starlight's mind, the green glow from Starlight's eyes was gone. Her emotionless expression slowly changed to one of confusion. And in front of her, she saw Sunburst kneeling down from exhaustion.

"What's going on?" Starlight asked, "How did I get here? What happened?"

"King Sombra has taken over Equestr-"

A sharp crystal erupted from the ground and pierced Sunburst's stomach and went straight through his back. Sunburst screamed in agony as Starlight watched in horror. Sombra's eyes flashed an ethereal green in an attempt to bring Starlight back into his thrall. Starlight placed her forehooves to her temple and knelt down in agony, her head feeling like somepony removed her brain, dipped it in liquid nitrogen, put it back in and went to work with a hammer. Sombra, having grown bored, lifted himself from his throne and made a crystal staircase to exit the arena.

"Kill them," he ordered the ponies under this thrall "And once you have done that, you may assist me with taking over Yakyakistan and any other unconquered lands."

The mind-controlled ponies got out of their seats and trotted towards Sunburst and Starlight in droves. Starlight collapsed from the pain of trying to resist Sombra's control of her. Sunburst felt cold. He knew he didn't have enough magic left in him to try and free Starlight from Sombra's control again.

"Starlight," Sunburst pleaded weakly, "Don't go."

Starlight slowly got up again, her eyes closed from falling into unconsciousness. When she opened them up again, they were glowing the same green as before.

"Just give up," Starlight said blankly.

Sunburst closed his eyes and prayed for a quick death. He knew there was no way out of this but he hoped his friend would be the one to do the deed instead of somepony else due to her being the closest to him. He heard the sounds around him fade out into nothing, a result of the blood loss caused by Sombra's attack on him. And in that moment, he let out his last breath. Or that's what he assumed was his last breath.

Sunburst groggily opened up his eyes. The room he was in was a turquoise colour, decorated with stickers of cartoon fish and vegetables. There was a brown shelf filled with folders next to a square device of some sort. He stretched out his forelegs and noticed they became longer, with five sausage looking things on the end of where his hooves should be.

"What happened to my hooves?!" Sunburst shouted.

"It's a little weird at first but you get used to it."

Sunburst looked over and saw an orange-yellow ape creature wearing a leather jacket.

"Sunset Shimmer, a friend of Starlight Glimmer."

"Oh. How is she?"

Sunset bowed her head down in sadness. "I'm sorry. She didn't make it. I tried to save her but Sombra's forces pulled her away from me."

Sunburst fell into an equally depressed state. If he managed to survive, he hoped Starlight would make the same miraculous recovery as well. He looked at whatever replaced his left hoof.

"Is there any way to turn me back to normal?"

"There is. You just go through this portal hidden within the statue. However, it only opens once every thirty moons."

"But what about everypony else in Equestria?"

"I'm afraid there's nothing we can do."

Author's Note

Part one of how Sunburst had survived the onslaught. And yes, I do believe time works differently in the Equestria Girls world than it does in Equestria. Mainly due to the fact that I presume Sunset left Celestia tutelage around the time Twilight was about to do the entrance exam.

Chapter 20 - Let's Find The Magic

Sunburst looked at his new form in a mirror. While there were changes to his physical features, such as losing his horn but having a shorter face and longer limbs followed by weird sausage appendages of varying sizes, his clothes were the most notable change. Instead of the starry cape he was fond of wearing, he is instead wearing a hoodie with the same colours and patterns of his cape. He was also wearing a pair of saggy trousers that were light grey in colour.

"Was I wearing these clothes when I entered this world or did I arrive naked?" Sunburst asked Sunset.

"You arrived with them on," Sunset replied, "You can change into something different if you like."

"Interesting. A portal to another world that not only adapts your body to match the environment but also changes your clothing and even automatically gives you clothes when you're not wearing any."

Sunburst then tried to lift up his hoodie. After a few clumsy attempts, he found a little hole in the centre of his abdomen and a very nasty scratch above it.

"Huh. You would think being stabbed by a big crystal would have left a bigger scar," Sunburst said while pointing at his belly hole.

"Uh...Sunburst? That's your belly button," Sunset replied, "This is where the crystal scarred you."

Sunset pointed towards the scar above Sunburst's belly button.

"Oh. Yeah, that makes more sense."

Sunburst tried to walk out of the room only to fall flat on his face. Sunset quickly helped Sunburst up.

"I had the same problem when I first came into this world too."

"Well, I got two and a half years, give or take, to learn how to walk on two hoo-I mean feet. I think I might learn how to walk like you in no time."

Two centuries and fifty years have passed since Sunset rescued Sunburst. Two centuries and fifty years since Sombra's conquest of Equestria and eventual usurpation by Grogar. Many have tried and failed to end Grogar's reign of terror, as well as those of his flunkies. The ponies of Equestria saw mares of steel die and dark knights fall.

Grogar admired his new collection of statues within the Canterlot gardens. One of the latest in his collection was one of the Pillars of old, Rockhoof, charging into battle. But in his new state, he will not be going anywhere any time soon. And right next to Rockhoof was Princess Skystar of Seaquestria, petrified at the sight of her mother's death. Grogar ought to know since he was the one that killed her mother, Queen Novo. Grogar pondered if he should have Discord petrified and added to his collection.

It's not like it didn't happen to him before Grogar thought to himself If he will not join me, then he can join them.

Grogar trotted away back into his castle while letting out a small sinister chuckle.

Sunburst had been gathering all the knowledge he could get on the knowledge of the world he was in. He was surprised that, in spite of this world's apparent magic-less state, there were many forms of magic in this world. The most popular of which was the theatricality and deception of stage magic, something he's familiar with due to Trixie being particularly skilled in that area. But tricks are only going to get him so far so he dug deeper. There was demonology, witchcraft, even Tarot cards that can be used to predict the future. Absorbed in all this information on the magic of this world, Sunburst had nearly forgotten that thirty moons have passed.

"Time flies when you study all the magic this world has to offer," Sunburst said while looking at the clock in his room.

Sunburst quickly ran outside towards the horse statue that, according to Sunset, contained the portal to Equestria. Sunburst touched the bottom of the statue, causing it to ripple. Knowing the time was right, Sunburst took no chances and jumped right into the portal.

When Sunburst woke up, he was in a very dark jungle. He considered it odd since Sunset said he would wake up in the room where the Crystal Mirror was kept. He instinctively lit up his horn and looked at where his human hands used to be and, to his delight, they have turned back into hooves. He became even more happy when he realized he got his cape back.
He traversed his way out of the jungle. When he made his way out, he saw in the distance how much has changed in his absence. Ponyville is covered in crystals and overgrown brambles, the sky is a dark crimson, and in the distance within the mountains appeared to be a giant broken-down police box surrounded by hundreds of tombstones. He knew Sombra's rule would be a dark time but he never imagined the scale of death and despair that he saw before him. If nopony else alive or willing to stop this threat, then we would have to use the magic he learned in the human world as well as recruit any survivors of this terrible regime in order to put an end to it.

How hard can it be? Sunburst thought to himself Starlight used to go on adventures with Twilight and her friends all the time.

Sunburst pondered at that last thought, for it felt inaccurate.

Okay, maybe not all the time but it's best not to think about what she did before she met Twilight and tried to end all of time. After all, she made up for it by saving everypony from the changelings.

Sunburst winced at when Starlight told him about her dark past. He would rather keep a positive memory of his fallen friend than imagine what she did simply because destiny had different plans for them. Then he remembered the last time he saw Starlight. It was a painful memory that he knew he wouldn't forget, with the last words she said to him echoing in his head.

"Just give up."

Author's Note

(one swear-filled tirade at my editor for missing the deadline again later)

:twilightblush:

On the bright side, at least the chapter looks good even without any editing.

EDIT: Nevermind. Turns out he was ill.

(one retraction of the swear-filled tirade later)

Right then, let's pretend that didn't happen. :twilightsmile:

Chapter 21 - We're in the endgame

"So that's how I managed to survive all these years," Sunburst said while relaying his story to Luna, Discord and Settler "I travelled back to Canterlot and I managed to find Rockhoof and Skystar petrified within the Canterlot gardens and I knew just by looking at them they were the real deal. And since time works differently in the other world than it does here, I jumped back into the portal to the other world in order to find out how to turn Rockhoof and Skystar back to normal. But, unlike the last time I was in the other world, I was instead stranded on an island in the middle of nowhere."

Before Sunburst could continue his story, he noticed Settler snoring loudly before suddenly waking up. And in the corner was Discord getting the crystals attached to him plucked off by Rockhoof. Luna was the only that was paying attention. It appeared that everypony except Discord had their magic-inhibiting crystals removed.

"What did I miss?" Settler asked in a dazed tone.

"Not much," Discord replied, "Just how he managed to survive all these years."

Discord winced as Rockhoof pried another crystal off of him with his shovel.

"Ow! I knew this would be like ripping off a Band-Aid or two but I didn't know it would be that painful!"

"Just hold still and you will have your chaos magic back in no time," Rockhoof said.

"I certainly hope so. I don't think I could survive this world without my magic."

"Hey, Sunburst!" Skystar shouted excitedly "Could you tell them about how we're going to stop Grogar by using the power of the Elements?"

Luna raised an eyebrow at that statement.

"How do you plan on using the power of the Elements? I would have assumed they were destroyed during Sombra's conquest of Equestria."

"Oh, they are but Sunburst found a way to give everypony the power. It's a little gross so I will have Sunburst tell you. Trust me, it's a doozy!"

"Well, if you consider using the remains of the Tree of Harmony as well as a few dead alicorns to be 'a doozy'," Sunburst said.

"And where did you get these dead alicorn remains from?" Luna asked.

"Grogar's trophy room," Sunburst replied, "I snuck in when he was busy holding another public execution."

"Ooh, are you talking about those potions you asked me to deliver to the Flibbertygibbet twins?" Discord asked.

"Yes."

"You forgot to mention your way of harnessing the Elements also contained traces of my blood as well as Flurry Heart's."

Luna gave a disturbed look at Discord's direction before turning towards Sunburst.

"I believe the magic used by ponies and other creatures have some sort of symbiotic relationship that is within their blood," Sunburst explained.

Luna turned towards Skystar.

"You were right. That is disgusting."

"Wasn't there another draconequus who volunteered to give a blood sample?" Skystar asked Sunburst.

"Yes, there was," Sunburst replied, "Can't remember who, though."

"I think it may have been my cousin Eris," Discord said.

"Ah yes, I remember her," Luna said, "She once stole my magic and planned on using it to give everypony bad dreams."

"True but I thought she would represent an element to some extent so I asked her to give a sample of her blood for me. By the way, did you know she has some griffin ancestry in her?"

"That would explain why she looked less like you."

"Well now, you can't expect every draconequus to look alike. That's why history books say 'a body made up of other parts' instead of detailing the specific parts."

"Good point."

Sunburst trotted over to a chest and opened it, revealing it to be filled with vials of the potion.

"In order to harness the full power of the Elements," Sunburst explained "We mixed in the remains of the elements with the blood of those who represent the corresponding elements. Twilight being magic, of course. Cadence is kindness, since love is associated with kindness. Discord is laughter because, I must say, he is actually pretty funny when he isn't being annoying."

"Thank you," Discord said.

"You're welcome. And the rest were merely assumptions. Eris being generosity, Celestia being loyalty and Flurry Heart being honesty."

The moment Sunburst finished that sentence, hoofsteps echoed throughout the cave. Entering the cave was a dark alicorn accompanied by a quintet of ponies. While only one in the group of ponies was a pegasus, they were all dressed like darker versions of the Wonderbolts. The pegasus had a spiky dark blue mane with streaks of lighter shades of blue. Another was an earth pony with a dark pink mane styled in a ponytail with a turquoise streak. The other members were a pair of unicorns, one with a short purple mane and the other with a white mane styled in long pigtails, and an earth pony with long green hair.

"What was the old saying, Discord?" the dark alicorn said, "Speak of the draconequus and he shall appear?"

Sunburst recognized that voice. It sounded familiar but a lot more sinister than he remembered. When it hit him, he came to a horrifying realization.

"Flurry Heart?!"

Discord woke up extremely hungover. Another drinking bender with somepony whose name he had difficulty remembering to help him numb the pain of losing Fluttershy. He looked around and noticed he was lying on his couch in his home. He doesn't even remember coming home to Chaosville. He got up and held his head in his lion paw before snapping his fingers to spawn a blender and a plate of fried eggs, bacon, and French toast. The plate poured the breakfast into the blender, with the blender mixing the breakfast into a less than pleasant looking concoction. When the blender had done its job, Discord grabbed it, opened the blender and slurped the blender down before chucking away the remains of the breakfast. The breakfast exploded on impact.

"Ugh!" Discord moaned "Best hangover cure, my a-"

But before Discord could finish his sentence, his answering machine beeped.

"You have two new messages."

"When did I get an answering machine?" Discord asked himself.

"Hi, Discord. It's me, Settler" Settler's voice on the answering machine said "We're standing outside of Chrysalis' arena ready to storm the place. Let me know when you're ready."

"Oh, now I remember!" Discord said to himself "Settler! That's the pony I was having drinks with. Didn't he have marriage problems?"

The answering machine beeped again, playing the next message.

"Hey, Discord," Sunburst's voice on the answering machine said "It's been a while since we spoke but I found a resistance somewhere in the Badlands that wishes to join forces with my resistance! I need you to deliver the potions to the Badlands if that isn't too much trouble for you. Meet me in the usual place if you remember where it is."

Discord slumped over and fell off of his couch. He tried in vain to get up but kept falling over and knocking down some of the upside-down pictures floating on his wall, with one, in particular, falling on top of him. He picked it up and looked at it. It was a picture of him, Fluttershy and the rest of their friends having a laugh during Twilight's absence since Twilight herself was busy reorganizing her bookshelves for three days. Tears dropped onto the picture as Discord looked at it in a mix of nostalgia and sadness.

A crystal ball rolled over to Discord's side, interrupting his train of pleasant but painful thoughts. He was going to use the ball to pretend to be Grogar so he could teach his friends some friendship lessons of his own, as well as dispose of the remaining ne'er do wells that now rule over Equestria. Had he known Grogar was real, he would have chosen some other mythical overlord. He picked up the ball and within it showed Luna getting the snot beaten out of her by a pair of centaurs. Looking at his answering machine, Discord had an idea.

He was going on one more adventure with one of his remaining friends.

Author's Note

That moment when your editor missed the deadline second time in a row:

Then again, since he was ill last time, perhaps I could cut him some slack. :derpytongue2:

Anyway, this fic is coming close to its end. Only four chapters to go. I admit, it's going to be hard accepting that my magnum opus as of this writing would be finished so soon. But hey, all good things must come to an end.

Chapter 22 - Let The Games Begin

Everypony stared at the corrupted Flurry Heart, now known as Heartless Maelstrom, and her flunkies before them. While Discord, Luna and Settler knew how she came to be, everypony else was in shock as to how such an innocent foal like Flurry Heart could turn into the monster before them.

"Here's the deal, everypony," Maelstrom said, "Grogar wants specifically Discord this time. If you surrender him to us, we will grant you a quick and merciful death."

"What does Grogar want me for?" Discord asked.

"I didn't ask. Grogar simply trotted up to me while I was enjoying my rule of what was once Chrysalis' territory and, when he asked if I was willing to bring my honorary uncle to him, I was all too happy to oblige."

Sunburst looked at Discord with anger in his eyes.

"Okay," Discord said to Sunburst and the other resistance members, "I knew my relationship with Flurry Heart was a bit strained but how was I suppose to know it would be enough for her to go Nightmare?! I thought she would have inherited her mother's love!"

Luna looked at the dark Wonderbolts before her, for they reminded her of her time as Nightmare Moon and how she nearly tricked Rainbow Dash into abandoning her friends.

"I suppose it is fitting of you to have dark reflections of the Wonderbolts at your side," Luna said.

"Well, it's not like we're into some dusty old relics like Grogar is!" the pony-tailed unicorn said "We're the Shadowbolts!"

Luna put a forehoof to her head, since that was the same name she gave the dark Wonderbolt illusions all those centuries ago. "Please tell me the ponies you brought with you are mere illusions," she said.

"Nope, we're totally real," the unicorn said.

"Wait, who are the Wonderbolts?" the pegasus asked.

"You insult the memory of the heroes who wore the uniforms before you and you do not even know who they were?!"

"Like I said," the unicorn spat, "We're not into dusty old relics."

Maelstrom stepped in front of her cohorts. "Alright, we're getting off track here, everypony. So, either you surrender Discord to us or we make things...less than pleasant."

"And why should we cower before you?" Luna asked, "You and your gang of bullies are inexperienced in comparison to us who have spent centuries honing our craft."

Luna pointed towards Rockhoof and Discord. Discord smiled, believing Luna has truly gotten her fighting spirit back.

Maelstrom and the Shadowbolts gave menacing smirks at Luna.

"Good. That will make me and the Shadowbolts defeating you that much more satisfying."

Maelstrom pawed at the ground and charged at Luna, with Luna quickly dodging the attack and throwing Maelstrom into one of the crystalline walls. Luna trotted backwards out of the cave and flew upwards, with Maelstrom charging at her again like a bullet. The Shadowbolts rammed themselves into the other resistance members, in which they fought back in return. Rockhoof turned away from Discord and charged in at the false Wonderbolts, shovel in mouth. The Shadowbolts went down like a line of bowling pins, but they weren't down for long. Three of the Shadowbolts cornered the Dazzlings, only to be hit on the head by a staff-wielding Sunburst. The rest of the Shadowbolts charged at Sunburst, to which he rendered them unconscious by swinging his staff around while making kung-fu noises. As everypony was getting into the fight, Discord looked at the crystals still attached to him.

"Well then, it appears I will have to get these off myself." Discord grabbed one of the crystals and tried with all his might to pull it off, but to no avail.

Suddenly, a portal appeared underneath him, causing him to fall into the unknown and land on his head. The landing instantly rendered him unconscious.

Discord woke up with a massive headache.

"Uugh. Have I been drinking again and was everything I experienced beforehand an alcohol-induced hallucination?"

Discord observed his new surroundings. Seeing the cabinet containing all of Grogar's "trophies", he realized he had been teleported back to Grogar's lair.

"Nope, it was all real," Discord said bluntly to himself.

Discord heard hoofsteps coming from behind him. In the corner of his eye was a shadow belonging to an all-too-familiar ram. The shadow grew bigger until Grogar himself appeared just under it. The ram turned his head towards Discord and smiled menacingly at him.

"Discord," Grogar said, "Darling."

Discord tilted his head in confusion of that last bit. Grogar looked down at his hooves and chuckled in a voice that was a mix of his own and a feminine voice that Discord hoped he would never have to hear again.

"Oh deary me, I'm still wearing the Halloween costume."

Grogar let out another demonic laugh as he morphed into something far more monstrous. He grew taller and more slender. His hooves split into a pair of blue clawed hands that would have belonged to a dragon. His teeth grew sharper and his head became more pony-like. His horns shrank and formed into a pair of antelope antlers. Discord stared at the monstrous she-devil Grogar had transformed into, who finished laughing and licked her lips in a lecherous manner.

"So much better, wouldn't you agree, dearie?"

"C-Cosmos?!"

Sunburst and the rest of the resistance members watched in awe and suspense as Luna faced off against Maelstrom. They were surrounded by the unconscious Shadowbolts. Both Luna and Maelstrom were flying in the air, with Luna soaring ever so slightly higher than Maelstrom. Maelstrom fired a blast from her horn at Luna's direction, to which Luna dodged swiftly, and glided down before flying back up. Maelstrom followed suit and fired bolts of magical energy in Luna's direction, missing her every time except one. The last shot hit Luna straight in the chest, causing her to violently spiral back onto the floor.

"Luna!" Sunburst cried out.

Maelstrom flew up into the air and laughed maliciously. As Maelstrom was distracted by her own hubris, the Dazzlings quickly trotted towards the wounded Luna and helped her up. They carried her back into the cave. Sunburst levitated six vials of the potion towards Luna and the other resistance members. When he tried to give one to Discord, he noticed that Discord wasn't there.

"Uh, guys?" Sunburst asked, "Have any of you seen Discord?"

Luna looked around, observing the unconscious Shadowbolts on the ground and the maniacal alicorn in the sky.

"Grogar must have used Maelstrom and the Shadowbolts as a distraction so that we would leave Discord defenceless and his for the taking," Luna realized.

"Oh no!" Sunburst said, "Well, if there's any time to find out if this potion works, this is it."

Sunburst gave Luna one of the vials, which Luna steadily drank. The taste was surprisingly bitter but it didn't matter. She struggled to fully get back on her own four hooves in her wounded state but she managed to do it. She and the other resistance members trotted towards Maelstrom and, using the power of the Elements, floated towards her. The power of the Elements surrounded them in a light rainbow coloured aura. Maelstrom snarled at them and charged up her horn, ready to attack them. She fired at them, with the resistance firing a massive rainbow coloured blast in retaliation. Maelstrom tried to struggle against it, but she was quickly overpowered.

"What! No!" Maelstrom cried out as she was quickly engulfed in the rainbow.

A rainbow-coloured explosion surrounded the area as the resistance floated back down onto the ground. Floating down in front of them like an alicorn from the stars above was a little baby alicorn. No longer was she the hate-filled beast known as Heartless Maelstrom, but was instead the cute baby filly known as Flurry Heart. Luna levitated the de-aged Flurry Heart towards her. Gone was the cynical look in her eyes, instead they have returned to a look of curiosity. Flurry Heart stretched out her forehooves and giggled happily at Luna, which was enough for Luna to give a little smile back.

Jade always wanted a little sister, Luna thought to herself, Perhaps I could do a better job at raising Flurry Heart than Discord did.

Settler trotted up next to Luna.

"Aw, she's adorable!" Settler said, "How in the hay did a cute little thing turn into the monster we fought beforehand?"

Flurry Heart grabbed on the Settler's beard, much to his discomfort, and placed it in her mouth.

"You know, Luna. I think you can have this one."

Luna and Settler shared a lighthearted chuckle. Skystar flew right next to the two ponies.

"Hey, what's happen-Oh my gosh! That is the most adorable little filly I have ever seen!"

Adagio stood behind Luna, Settler and Skystar and cleared her throat, which immediately got their attention.

"I hate to break up the baby shower but we still got an evil overlord to kill," Adagio said.

Author's Note

Surprise! Grogar was Cosmos the whole time!

Since that it turned out Discord was pretending to be Grogar in canon but, in this story, he and Grogar are two very different individuals and Cosmos is Discord's ex-girlfriend in the comics, I figured it would make for a neat twist.

Anyway, three more chapters to go so stay tuned. :pinkiehappy:

Chapter 23 - The End Of The End

Discord stared in shock at his former acquaintance from back when he plunged Equestria into a state of unhappiness. She looked...different. She was wearing a set of golden armour with the star gems responsible for her release embedded into it.

"How is this possible?" Discord asked, "I saw the founders of Equestria and the other rulers of their time banish you into the stars!"

"Oh, did you really think I would be locked away forever, darling?” Cosmos replied, “I had someone on the outside help me."

"Who?"

"Remember your cousin, Eris? She just happened to stumble upon one of my star fragments and, after recognizing my voice when I told her to find the rest, gladly teamed up with me. She mostly wanted revenge on Luna for defeating her all those years ago but, truth be told, I couldn't care less about what she wanted. So once she freed me, I stabbed her in the back."

Cosmos snapped her fingers to conjure up a blade made of platinum.

"I thought this would do the trick but, by the time I decided to check out where I left her, she was nowhere to be found. I suppose that's what happens when you try to make a godkiller sword of your own. Only does half of the job in comparison to the real thing."

"Wait. If you're Grogar, and you knew where I lived, why didn't you reveal yourself sooner?" Discord asked.

"Because 'Grogar' is an idea that inspires fear, darling. He was the first emperor of Equestria and the father of monsters, after all! I don't know about you but I considered that the role of a lifetime."

Cosmos strutted towards Discord and slowly caressed his beard, twirling it around in her draconic fingers.

"I knew the remaining ne'er do wells like Tirek, Chrysalis and Cozy Glow wouldn't listen to me since all mention of me was stricken from history. But if I came to them in the form of a legendary foe that would make the inmates of Tartarus itself tremble with fear, I knew they would listen to me. And as for Sombra, I heard stories about how his rule over the Crystal Empire was an unpleasant time and how his heart was as black as his mane. Even though the stallion had more edges to him than bismuth, I thought he would make a great asset to my little club. And boy, did he not disappoint! It's a pity he got too full of himself though. Oh, what am I doing telling my plan to you, darling? After all..."

Cosmos leaned in towards one of Discord's ears. "It was you who gave me the idea," she whispered.

Cosmos snapped her fingers again, conjuring the crystal ball Discord intended to use when he was planning on pretending to be Grogar.

"All seeing, all knowing crystal ball, who is responsible for it all?" she said.

The crystal ball showed Discord drawing on a whiteboard his plan to prepare Twilight for becoming the next ruler of Equestria.

"Using your chaos for good? That, I cannot abide, darling. Personally, I prefer you use it for evil. After all, what goes better with malice than chaos?"

The crystal ball showed Fluttershy's charred corpse in the coffin and the corrupted Flurry Heart, much to Discord's horror and heartbreak.

"Then again, even when you tried to be good, you still put ponies in harm's way. You know, for someone that doesn't like killing things, you still manage to cause a lot of death and destruction, which is a bit amusing when you realize there's nothing chaotic about a literal dead horse. Have you ever considered that your 'friends' would have actually lost for once? Or that the bad guys might have actually learned from their mistakes? So many flaws in your little confidence trick, so little time to count them all."

Discord knelt down in shock and despair. He stared despondently at the floor. Cosmos was right. It really was all his fault. He thought of the plan he made all those years ago. He sat back and watched as all Tartarus broke loose. He was responsible for killing Fluttershy. But worst of all, his negligence turned an adorable baby filly into a cynical mare that wanted to watch Equestria burn. Cosmos knelt down and whispered in Discord's ear again.

"Face it, darling. You're a slave to your nature, like me. When you were wreaking havoc without a care in the world, you were happy. But then you insisted on using your chaos for good when that miserable pegasus entered your life! And look how that turned out!"

Cosmos conjured the box containing Fluttershy's remains and held them right into Discord's face.

"And even when she was dead, you insisted on helping ponies out. I honestly thought you were going to accept my deal to resurrect her in exchange for Flurry Heart but you didn't TAKE IT!"
Cosmos grabbed Fluttershy's head and crushed it into dust, with the rest of Fluttershy's body crumbling away into nothing. This was enough to snap Discord out of the anguish Cosmos put him through with her words. Instead, he felt nothing but rage. Any fear he had of Cosmos was now gone, replaced with a burning desire to make her pay for everything she did. He swung a fist right into Cosmos' nose, causing her helmet as well as herself to fall onto the floor. Cosmos stared at the blood dripping from her nose onto her hand.

"You dare?" Cosmos snarled, "You dare?!"

Cosmos attempted to throw a wild haymaker Discord's way, to which Discord grabbed, pushing her with all his might straight into the cabinet. He quickly grabbed Cosmos' helmet, ripped the star gem clean off and threw it onto the floor, shattering it instantly.

"No!" Cosmos cried out, "What are you doing?!"

"Something I should have done a long time ago."

Cosmos grabbed one of the unicorn horns from her now broken cabinet and lunged at Discord with it, managing to stab him in the jugular. Discord gurgled as blood spilled everywhere and he tried to pull out the horn in his neck. When Cosmos tried to swipe at him, he pulled out the horn and stabbed it right through one of Cosmos' eyes. Cosmos screamed as Discord dug the horn even further into her eye before thrusting it out, eye attached.

"My eye! You treacherous knave, I’ll see you slain!"

Cosmos rapidly swung and clawed near Discord's direction. But try as she might to slash him to ribbons, he kept dodging. Fully healed after pulling the horn out, he kicked her heels, which contained the other two gems, and destroyed them with little to no effort. As Cosmos crawled around with no idea of her surroundings, Discord manifested a gargantuan mallet and smashed her into a pulp as the gems on the rest of her armour broke into tiny little pieces. Cosmos, with her one good eye, stared at Discord in a pitiful manner.

"Discord, please," Cosmos pleaded, "We can talk about thi-"

Discord grabbed Cosmos by the throat. He was in no mood to listen to any more lies and monologues from her. He squeezed Cosmos' throat with all his might and yanked it out from the rest of her neck. Cosmos tried to scream in agony but all that came out was blood and gurgling noises. Discord punched the bloodied throat back into her mouth with enough force to make her fall onto the floor. Not satisfied, Discord knelt down and began pounding Cosmos' face in with his bare hands. He unloaded half a millennium of unbridled agony onto her until there was nothing left of the top of Cosmos' head but a red mushy paste. When he was done, he looked to his side and saw Luna, Sunburst, and the others stare at him in open-mouth horror. Discord then looked at his own hands. They were red with the blood of who he once considered a companion.

He had never taken a life before. He used to be willing to dangle ponies over pits of fire for the fun of it but he made sure they would never suffer any burns of any degree. He did drive ponies insane and occasionally mutated them as well as other creatures but he knew deep down the effects wouldn't last. It was just fun and games to him at the time. As far as he knew, it only stopped being a game when somepony got hurt. He shivered as he tried to stand back up, horrified that in the first time in his very long life, he actually killed someone. Was this how Luna felt when Sombra made her kill Fluttershy and her friends? What would Fluttershy have thought knowing Discord did this? Was he a monster like Cosmos? He fell to his hands and knees and let out a scream of anguish. He sobbed as the guilt of all the things he had done as well as the things he didn't do crawled up his throat and into his head. Luna slowly trotted over to the pained draconequus and placed her forehoof on his shoulder in sympathy.

"It's okay, Discord."

Author's Note

Holy shit, I nearly forgot to update this!

Imagine me forcing you guys to wait for an emotional moment like that! Anyway, the story is near its end. Only two more chapters to go.

Chapter 24 - The Last Problem

Discord and Luna stood outside of Luna's family home, with Luna carrying a suitcase full of one trillion bits in her mouth and with Flurry Heart on her back. It was certainly more than what Discord had promised but, after the rough adventure they had, Discord felt Luna needed to be compensated. The sky was maroon with a hint of orange, which gave the atmosphere a bittersweet sense of peace. Luna placed the money down and Flurry Heart sat on the case full of bits to guard it.

"I'm thankful for your generosity, Discord, but I assure you you didn't need to pay me that much. The original price you negotiated would have sufficed," she said.

"I suppose it's some of Rarity's influence, Celestia rest her. After all, it's the least I can do after putting you through a nightmare of a time. Especially when I could have done this from the beginning."

Discord snapped his fingers to summon a pot of gold, then snapped them again to make the gold disappear. They shared a little laugh before letting out a sigh each.

"Well, I must be going," Luna said, "Morning March and the kids will be worried sick about me. Next time we meet, Discord."

Luna levitated Flurry Heart and the money and trotted towards her home, happy that her adventure had finally came to an end.

"Oh, and one more thing," Discord said.

"What is that?"

Discord ran towards Luna and hugged her. Luna was surprised at how quickly Discord dashed towards her as well as the fact that she never considered him a hugging person. Nevertheless, she embraced him right back.

"Thank you," Discord said, "For everything."

"It was my pleasure," Luna replied.

They let go of each other and Luna continued her journey back home as Discord sat down and watched. Discord may have dragged Luna through Tartarus and back but Luna felt the adventure was worth it. Deep down, she missed being a part of the action. And with Chrysalis and Grogar, or rather Cosmos, gone for good, that meant Equestria would be just a little safer. There was still the matter of Tirek and Cozy Glow, along with the deaths of Chrysalis and Cosmos leaving a power vacuum, but she felt like she was ready for anything this life can throw at her now. And there was also the fact that she now has a new addition to her family, Flurry Heart. It wasn't a happy ending, but it wasn't a sad ending either. It was just bittersweet. She finally arrived at the door. She took a deep breath and opened the door with anticipation.

"Morning March! Jade! Gail! I'm home!"

When Luna looked through the open door, the inside of the house was dark. Luna trotted in cautiously, hoping that nothing bad had happened in her absence. She stepped in a semi-dry puddle and looked down at her forehoof. The bottom of her hoof was now covered in a sticky crimson substance that was slowly turning maroon. She trotted back and put Flurry Heart and the money outside, fearing for the worst. She lit up her horn and, to her horror, she found the mangled corpses of her husband and children. Morning March was lying on his front, his leg bones sticking out and his neck bent at an unnatural angle. Gail was lying on what's left of her back, having been viciously bisected with a hole where her stomach used to be. Gail was lying on his side, covered in blood and riddled with shotgun bullets. There was a blood-spattered note next to Morning March. Luna picked up the note to find out what it read.

Dear Luna,

After I heard the news from my gargoyle messengers about Chrysalis' death, and I got bored of waiting for my rent money, so I had my goons turn your family into a fine red smear. Or at least I hope that's what they turned them into.

Regards,

Lord Tirek

Luna knelt down and stared at the lifeless bodies of her family. And it was at that moment that all the pain she felt let itself out as she put her hoof to her mouth and sobbed. The tears mixed with the blood on her hoof. She was in so much emotional pain, it felt like she was never going to stop crying. She put her hoof down as her cries suddenly turned into chuckles. The blood of her loved ones was smeared on her face like macabre make-up meant to look like a smile. Her chuckled eventually turned into manic laughter. She threw her head back as her laughter grew louder, tears continuing to run down her face as she did so.

Discord was still sitting outside of Luna's home. When he noticed Luna had put Flurry Heart and the money outside, he knew something was up. He snapped his fingers and teleported towards Flurry Heart in order to keep her and the money safe. While he could easily snap a new case of bits into existence, he knew the same could not be said for Flurry Heart. He wasn't sure he could trust himself with Flurry Heart since he proved himself to be an irresponsible guardian beforehand, but as long as Luna doesn't take too long, he and Flurry Heart should be fine. He then heard muffled sobs within the house. Sobs that eventually turned into laughter. He could tell from the sound of the laughter that the sobs beforehand were not of joy.

He looked up at the sky and noticed the moon had started moving. It eventually covered up the sun. Discord peeked through the open door and saw Luna floating in the air as she was slowly engulfed in a dark aura. When the darkness dissipated and Luna was back on the ground again, she had changed. Her head was rounder, her coat was as black as night and she was wearing light blue armour.

"Uh...Luna?" Discord said, worried for his friend.

Luna chuckled maliciously at what Discord said. She turned her head around and stared at Discord with her now reptilian eyes. She wore a smile filled with teeth as sharp as knives.

"Luna is gone. I am...Nightmare Moon!"

Two of Tirek's goons, a gargoyle and a centaur, washed themselves in the open showers. The night sky lit up the shower room they were in.

"Look at that!" the centaur said, "The moon's out!"

"Do you think that princess who owes Tirek money decided to take up her old job?" the gargoyle asked.

"Probably."

While the centaur sang a little ditty while cleaning himself, the gargoyle was engulfed by a blue starry mist and disappeared without a trace. When the centaur turned around, he noticed the gargoyle was gone.

"What in the..."

A disembodied gargoyle arm fell into the shower. Then a leg. And a hand. The centaur became showered in body parts and viscera. He looked down at the floor in horror and looked up to see a pony-shaped monster descend upon him with a wicked smile.

At the tavern near Tirek's lair, Charek was having drinks with a pair of gargoyles that routinely carry his chariot for him.

"Bloody Tartarus, Charek!" one of the gargoyles said, "I can't believe how dull this guy is!"

The gargoyle pointed towards the other gargoyle, who was sniffing a bloodied llama doll.

"Stealing their BrayStation, I can understand" the gargoyle continued "But what kind of pleasure does a grown adult get from a bucking doll?!"

"What?!" the other gargoyle said defensively, "It's adorable! And it smells like strawberries."

Charek put his head in his hand, trying to contain his laughter.

"Oh man, that's too messed up even for me!"

As they continued laughing, the lights suddenly went out.

"Hey, who turned out the lights?!" Charek shouted.

The lights spontaneously turned back on. Charek looked next to him and saw the gargoyle that was holding the doll was missing his head and the arm holding the doll.

"What the buck?!"

The lights went out again. When they were turned on, the other gargoyle's torso was spinning around the fan on the ceiling. His intestines were wrapped around the fan as the fan slowly spun around.

"What the buck is going on?!"

Charek stumbled about in the darkness, falling on his flank in the process. He noticed a flashlight next to him and turned it on. And the last thing he saw was an animal made of darkness with blue snake eyes and a sadistic grin filled with sharp pearly whites.

In a cave within the mountain that Tirek made his lair, Bittak was discussing with him what Luna will do to him and his forces.

"Do you think Luna's going to come here looking for revenge? Bittak asked, "Even though there's only one of her and dozens of us?"

"We slaughtered her family like they were cattle and put them on display." Tirek smiled at Bittak. "You bet your rump she's coming here."

News of a monster slaughtering all of Tirek's men spread throughout the castle outside of Tirek's lair. A squadron of gargoyles was deployed to look around. Near the stairs to one of the towers, they encountered Charek.

"Charek," one of the gargoyles said, "Did you find anything?"

Charek just stood still.

"Charek? What's wrong?"

The gargoyle took a closer look at Charek. He appeared to be strung up like a crude marionette. His throat was slit open and his eyes were half-open and rolled up into his head. A dark being emerged from behind Charek and flashed the gargoyles a wicked smile as it let out a small laugh.

Within his lair, Tirek reminisced about his fight with the late Princess Twilight Sparkle.

"If a mere bookworm with all the power of the princesses can put up a good fight, let's see what a lone mare with nothing to lose could do."

Tirek heard a knock on the side of the cave entrance. In the shadows was a familiar draconequus.

"Discord. I commemorate you on coming out of hiding,." Tirek said.

"I got bored."

"Are you here to enjoy the show?"

"Hardly. You know that I don't like murder."

Tirek smiled at Discord. "That's not what I heard."

"Yes, well, I don't have that much fight in me anymore so do what you must."

"Are you surrendering?" Tirek asked.

"I guess you could say that." Discord closed his eyes and spread his arms out. "Come on then. Do your worst."

"If you insist."

Tirek lifted Discord up with his magic and absorbed all of Discord's power. He felt the chaotic magic surge course through his veins. As Discord fell to the ground, Tirek grabbed him and squashed him like a bug.

Discord, the former spirit of chaos and disharmony, was no more.

Nightmare Moon was surrounded by the dismembered corpses of all the centaurs and gargoyles she had killed. Her animalistic smile was stained with blood. She panted heavily and giggled between intervals. She then raised her head into the air and looked at the mountain Tirek was residing in.

"LORD TIREK!" Nightmare Moon shouted in the ancient Canterlot voice, "SHOW YOURSELF AND FACE ME!"

Nightmare Moon heard a chuckle from the mountain.

"If you insist, Princess."

Tirek galloped from the cave and landed right next to Nightmare Moon, sending her flying into the air. Tirek was a lot bigger the last time Luna had seen him. His hair was longer and messier and his beard extended right down to his chest. Nightmare Moon flew higher and shot a massive blast of magic at Tirek's direction, which Tirek merely swatted away with little to no effort. Tirek fired a blast of magic of his own, which Nightmare Moon barely managed to block. Tirek then telekinetically pulled Nightmare Moon down onto the ground and stomped on her like the insect he thought of her as.

"Peace has cost you your strength, Princess."

Nightmare Moon teleported from underneath Tirek's hoof and charged into his mouth, managing to chip three of his teeth. As Nightmare Moon continued to fly past, Tirek shot another blast of magic at her. Nightmare Moon shot back, resulting in them blasting at their respective magic like a game of tug-of-war.

"Rumour has it that Discord was carrying potions that grant those who drink it unlimited power!" Tirek shouted over the sounds of the magic.

Tirek increased his power even more, forcing Nightmare Moon to duck down. Tirek continued to fire his magic at Nightmare Moon, with Nightmare Moon narrowly avoiding the beam as she flew under it.

"They said the power was equal to that of four alicorns and two draconequi! Makes your family seem powerless in comparison, don't you think?"

Nightmare Moon snarled at Tirek and charged at his mouth again.

"SILENCE!" Nightmare Moon bellowed at Tirek.

She knocked out an even bigger chip from one of his teeth with an uppercut powered by her magic. Tirek roared in anger and pain. Enraged, Tirek swatted Nightmare Moon down with his bare hand. He lifted the corrupted princess up and slammed her into the ground harder than before. He repeated the process again and again before finishing her off with a massive stomp.

"If this is me with the power of all of Equestria and the Lord of Chaos himself, imagine how powerful I will be once I get the potions!" Tirek lifted the battered alicorn with his magic, licking his fractured teeth as he did so. "That is, if you live long enough."

He threw Nightmare Moon into his mouth and swallowed her whole.

Twelve hours have passed since Tirek's fight with Nightmare Moon. Tirek lounged in his lair, pleased with himself about how he easily managed to take down the other sister. Between killing the lord of chaos and the princess of the night all at once, today was a good day. A delivery gargoyle flew into his lair.

"I got a sample of the potions you requested," the gargoyle said, "It wasn't easy and the ponies guarding them put up a bit of a fight but I managed to get one."

"Did you kill any of the ponies?" Tirek asked.

"Uh...no. There were too many of them." The gargoyle looked behind him. The castle was in ruins and decorated in the blood and disembodied corpses of Tirek's men. "Say, what happened back there?"

"I killed Luna's family. She wanted revenge."

"Luna as in the pacifist?"

"She was."

"She did this?!"

"She did indeed.”

“But weren’t we keeping her and her family alive as our little secret to stop a war with the other gangs?!”

“That was the plan. And now, since Chrysalis and Grogar are dead, I made her my lunch," Tirek said.

"But what about Cozy Glow or Lavan?! How are we going to fend them off if we don’t have an army?!"

"I don't need an army anymore. With these potions combined with the power I have acquired over the years, I will be unstoppa-urgh!"

Tirek clutched his stomach and keeled over.

"Are you okay, Lord Tirek?"

"I'm fine, just some...indigestion," Tirek said.

"Didn't you say you ate Luna?"

Tirek looked down at his chest, which was glowing a dark blue colour. The blue light within glew brighter and brighter as he held onto his chest. His face contorted into one of agony. He screamed until a dark alicorn burst out of his torso. Nightmare Moon flew out of Tirek's chest, covered in his intestines and the remains of his heart and lungs before landing onto the ground.

"Congratulations, my lord," Nightmare Moon quipped, "It's a filly."

Nightmare Moon looked at Tirek as all life faded from him and he bled out and collapsed onto the floor. She flew off into the night sky as the remains of her now dead foe flaked off of her.

Author's Note

While it's sad that Luna's family is dead and Discord committed suicide by Tirek, I think it's fair to say I had a lot of fun writing this chapter. :twilightsmile:

Chapter 25 - Epilogue

One month had passed since the death of Luna's family. One month since the passing of Discord. The sky was a light purple with hints of cream. Luna, now freed of her dark side once more, knelt down at the graves of Discord and her family. Settler, Sunburst and the rest of the resistance was there with Luna. The graves were covered in tulips and had pictures of the deceased placed on them. There were also things placed on the graves that represented what the departed loved doing while they were alive.

"Sorry about your family, Luna," Settler said, "They were good ponies, weren't they?"

"The best," Luna replied.

"Yeah. And Discord was good too. Who would have thought a creature of pure chaos would become such good friendship material?"

"Indeed. It was I who convinced Celestia that Discord deserved a second chance," Luna said.

"Really?"

It was many centuries ago. Luna observed the statue of the recently petrified draconequus. His face was no longer the overconfident tyrant she and Celestia fought prior to his escape but was instead one of an individual who didn't want to go back to being imprisoned. Luna knew what it was like to be alone. She knew what it was like to be imprisoned. She wondered if Discord thought the ponies of Equestria didn't appreciate his brand of chaos the same way they didn't appreciate her night. Then again, chocolate rain isn't really considered healthy and some of Discord's games did leave psychological scars on the ponies back then. But, with the benefit of hindsight, perhaps Discord wasn't trying to be malicious. Perhaps he just wanted to play a game. In many ways, he was like a child that didn't know what he was doing was wrong. Nopony knew where he came from so it wouldn't be out of the question to say he had an alien sense of morality. She saw Celestia flying next to her.

"If you're wondering why Discord looks different, it's because he was freed from his imprisonment and I tasked Twilight Sparkle and her friends with stopping him. If it weren't for her friendship letters to me, I was worried he would have won."

"Well, you always did know how to keep Equestria safe, sister."

Both Luna and Celestia stared at the statue.

"May I ask you something, sister?" Luna asked.

"You may."

"Do you think Discord's magic could be used for good?"

Celestia gave Luna a puzzled look.

"Think of it this way. Your protege and her friends freed me from my own darkness and helped me integrate myself back into Equestrian society. Perhaps they could do the same for Discord."

"Even though he ruled Equestria in a state of unrest and unhappiness?" Celestia asked.

"Yes. But I tried to plunge Equestria into eternal night. After all, his brand of chaos is merely cotton candy clouds, chocolate rain and headache-inducing patterns and placements. I have seen worse from within the dream realm, especially from my own nightmares."

Celestia pondered at what Luna said.

"Twilight did tell me of how Cerberus was distracted from his duties guarding Tartarus," Celestia stated, "Seeing as how there had been frequent monster attacks as of late, I suppose we could use the extra help in capturing them. Especially in regards to an old acquaintance of his."

"Lord Tirek?"

"Precisely, if he took the opportunity to escape."

Celestia trotted back towards the castle.

"Before I have Twilight and her friends free him, I need to cast an enchantment on the element so he will not steal them again. Let us hope they succeed in this task I will give them."

"The one known as Fluttershy seems kind enough," Luna said, "Perhaps she would have better luck in believing the good in Discord than the others would."

"I certainly hope so, sister."

"Wow. Now I'm surprised he didn't mention you before in conversation. Oh well, at least he is now reunited with Fluttershy."

"I was surprised at how quickly they became friends, considering how she was scared of me the first time we met."

Luna and Settler sighed in unison.

"So, what are you going to do now?" Settler asked.

"Simple. I shall take Equestria back from the corrupt, piece by piece, and give it back to the ponies and other races that inhabit this once beautiful land."

"Well, you and Flurry Heart could always join us." Settler pointed towards the other resistance members, who were still bowing their heads down in mourning.

"I would but I'm afraid I must travel my own path. Besides..." Luna looked at the tombs of her family with sadness in her heart. "I already lost one family as it is."

Luna saddled Flurry Heart onto her back and prepared herself for the perilous journey ahead.

"Do you really think you'll succeed in taking down all the other rulers?" Adagio asked, "I know I'm a part of a resistance trying to bring law and order back to Equestria but, given how Chrysalis and 'Grogar' are dead, how do you suppose you'll take down any budding warlords who wish to take advantage of the power vacuum you and Discord made?"

"I suppose it is worth a try. I was once a princess. It would make sense for me to fight for the land I once ruled. I don't see any other options left for me." Luna lifted up Flurry Heart as Flurry giggled happily. "Besides, I have a little partner of my own so I know that I won't be going on this quest alone. After she and I take back Equestria, hopefully, she will be a much more benevolent ruler in the future."

Luna placed Flurry Heart back on her back and trotted off into the sunset. She knew this was no longer a world of fairy tales filled with magical charms and romance. She knew that a happy ending was barely possible at this point and that her opponents will have no problem killing her. But if Chrysalis and Tirek failed to kill her, what are the chances of whatever new foes that come her way to succeed? After all, she kept her head down long enough. She bore witness to the horrid events and abominations this life had to offer. It was about time she made it right. She knew she may struggle with her inner urges from time to time but, with Flurry Heart at her side, she knew she wouldn't be a slave to them for long. Even though she was an immortal alicorn that had lived for centuries...

She felt like a new mare.

Author's Note

My magnum opus. Finally completed.

Heh. Feels so weird knowing this story is now finished, considering it is my longest story to date and that it was the first story I did after the first three Captain Goodking stories. It's also the story where my writing had improved significantly, allowing me to work on other dark stories like Prisoner of Fate and A Cozy Tale. Not only that but my more comedic stories (with the possible exception of Red and Purple) feel like a marked improvement from when I started out. But hey, all good things must come to an end.

Chapter 12 - Home on the Range

At Luna's farm, Morning March had been trying to figure out how to turn the BrayStation on. Since the wires connecting the console to the plug were loose and exposed, it made turning the thing on more difficult than it needed to be. Gail came down the stairs and noticed Morning March fiddling with the BrayStation.

"Uh...Father?"

"Yes, Gail?"

"You're probably going to electrocute yourself doing that."

"Maybe. I've been trying to switch this bloody contraption on so we can do something as a
family to celebrate no longer being in debt to Tirek."

"How do you know if Mother's friend will pay her enough money that we won't have to worry about Tirek?"

"Just a hunch. It wouldn't hurt to be optimistic, you know."

Soon enough, the BrayStation turned on and the television sparked to life along with it as well.

"It's working!" Gail said excitedly.

"As I said, a little optimism never killed anyone," Morning March said. "Now, should we continue Brayman Legends or should we pick a different game?"

"I've got one!" Gail said while levitating a game with the words "MOON" written in big white letters on the cover. The cover also featured what appeared to be a unicorn space marine in dark blue armour telekinetically holding a shotgun. Gail then turned the case around so Morning March could get a good look at the back, with Morning March quickly raising an eyebrow.

"I'm not entirely sure your mother would appreciate you playing a game like this."

"Why not?"

"Well, for one thing, it looks extraordinarily violent. And another thing is that she tends to get sensitive when the topic of the moon or the night are brought up."

"Well, since I have heard tales about how her and Aunt Celestia used to take on all sorts of baddies, and I figured what better way of reigniting that heroic spirit in her again than by killing Nightmare Forces on the moon."

"I'm very certain she would rather talk to them than 'frag' them with a 'BBG 9000', whatever those words mean. Also, I don't think this game would be appropriate to play around your sister. Where did you get that game anyway?"

"I borrowed it from a friend of mine," Gail said.

"I see. Well, you better give it back."

"Can't I play it while waiting for Mother?" Gail pleaded. "It will only be something to warm up the BrayStation until her return."

Morning March ducked his head down and sighed before looking back up to Gail again with a warm smile.

"Fine, you can play it while we wait for your mother. Just try and make sure your sister doesn't see any of the more gruesome elements."

Gail then excitedly hopped down towards the BrayStation and took out the MOON game from its case. He slid the disc into the console and waited for it to load up.

"While you' are occupied with that," March said. "I'm going to help out your sister out with some rocks.".

March walked outside to help Jade push some rocks onto a cart for delivery. But as they did so, they heard a rumbling noise, getting ever closer to them as the ground beneath them began to quake. They turned to where they thought the rumbling noise was coming from and noticed a big centaur with a moustache walking towards them. It was Otak, one of Tirek's payment collectors, returning to their home once again.

"O-Otak! What are you doing here?" Morning March asked. "If this is about the money, I can assure you Luna has it all under contr-"

But before Morning March can finish his sentence, Otak grabbed him by the throat and pulled him right up against his face. The centaur's black eyes and yellow pupils glaring at Morning March's terrified face, like they were piercing through his very soul.

"Rumour has it that yer wife has been making moves in Dodge City. Since you, her, and the little foals 'ere are Tirek's little secret right now, wouldn't it be a shame if Grogar found out about it through the other rulers?"

"It's...just a...delivery!" Morning March choked out.

Otak then growled at Morning March, before giving a sinister chuckle and dropping the frightened unicorn to the ground. He looked down as March got up and coughed from the pressure Otak had on his windpipe.

"Well, you better hope that wife of yers is carrying big bags of gold bars. That's bound to be worth the trouble her and her little draconequus friend be causing."

Otak then knelt down and gave Morning March a forceful pat on the back.

"Here's a little secret about yer wife's friend. He used to be an associate of Tirek. Also part of his dad's royal court, apparently."

"If that's the case, then why did Tirek absorb his magic?"

"D'you have any idea how powerful draconequus magic is?" Otak asked. "Most alicorns like yer wife and yer kids could only dream of wielding such power. And since our Lord Tirek loves magic and power, I think you can put two and two together."

Otak then got up and went back to the way he came before giving March one quick look.

"Oh, and one more thing. Do you really trust Discord to keep yer wife safe, considerin' what he did in the past?"

"I have suspicions about that, but he seems nice enough and, as much as I hate to admit it, my Lulu was no saint either,". Morning March said. "She told me about how she envied the adoration her sister and the day got in comparison to her and the night and tried to usurp her, corrupting her into the very thing she swore to protect Equestria from. The past is not today, you know."

"Yeah, well old habits die hard. Who's to say yer princess didn't get jealous again and murdered her sister in a fit of rage? Who's to say Discord would fulfill his bargain? Sibling rivalries can get ugly and being chaotic doesn't mean being predictable."

"What are you suggesting?"

Otak turned around and walked back towards Morning March. He bent down and gave him a crooked smile.

"I'm sayin' all it takes is one bad day to make the purest of hearts go dark." Otak then shrugged his shoulders and laughed. "Or at least that's what I heard anyways. Well, see ya when I see ya."

As Otak walked off, Morning March gave a quick look towards Jade, who had witnessed the whole thing.

"Father?" Jade asked innocently. "What did you mean when you said mother became the very thing she swore to destroy? I thought she was a good princess."

And that's when Morning March realized he revealed his wife's darkest secret in front of one of the children. He stared at Jade in shock, along with wondering how he's going to explain to a little filly that even good ponies do bad things.

"W...well," Morning March stammered. "S...see, the thing is..."

He sighed, clearly not having the strength to do this. He walked up to Jade and sat right next to her.

"Your mother was a good mare, and she still is. She and her sister did defeat Tirek, King Sombra and even her funny little friend Discord in the past. But unfortunately, at the time, she didn't get the respect she felt she deserved. While everypony enjoyed her sister's days, they slept through her beautiful nights. That in of itself wouldn't be so bad if it weren't for the fact that she didn't get so much as a 'thank you'. This made her feel bitter and neglected, enough that she took it out on her sister. One day, she raised the moon while the sun was still up, which unleashed a magical energy that transformed her into a monster known as Nightmare Moon. Nightmare Moon was eventually banished by your Aunt Celestia for a thousand years, only returning on the longest night. Luckily, on that day, a brave group of ponies wielded the Elements of Harmony to restore your mother to her old self."

"Father?"

"Yes, Jade?"

"Do you think Mother will turn into that monster again?"

Author's Note

And now you know how Gail knows how to use a shotgun. :rainbowlaugh:

You know, it's nice to take a break from all the carnage and misery in order to focus on the other characters in this story. Would have went straight first into the violence but, under Darkiplier1383's advice, I decided to dedicate a chapter to Luna's little family. You know, get a glimpse of their usual lives and see how they're doing without Luna around.

And for those hoping to witness Bedbugbowl (that's what I'm calling the Luna v Chrysalis fight but not the chapter the fight will be in), you're going to have to wait until the next chapter. Sorry for blueballing you but hey, these stories take time. You don't rush into things just because the plot demands it. That doesn't create investment, it creates a distraction. That's why you have all these anime and TV shows that have season-long story arcs. As the old saying goes, life's a journey, not a destination.