Chapters Escape and a Camping Trip
We all watched as Blueblood ran off. Prissy coward. Everypony went up to congratulate Big Mac, apart from myself, Spike and Derpy. I would have to give my congrats later, because I needed to take down the few things that had been put up. I also had to keep an eye on Derpy. Spike packed up his little microphone kit. It just consisted of a little speaker and a microphone that changed his voice. I showed it to him myself when he told me about these Epic Pony Rap Battles of Equestria things. I remember the first one. Twilight showed her mean side, and The Great and Powerful Trixie hadn’t stood a chance. But poor Spike had seen his closest friend curse up a storm. Then again, this rap battle thing had been his idea. I honestly can’t think what gave him the idea. He sure is a strange little dragon. Twilight told me he must have turned on MTV or something one day while she wasn’t there. I had laughed at that. She should have parental controls on if she doesn’t want Spike watching that junk. Then again, she never said that Spike had to stop the EPRBoEs so, whatever.
I finished packing the stuff up when Big Mac walked up to me. “Great job Big Mac! You were awesome!” I told him, giving him a brohoof. Big Mac and I were great friends. Just friends. Nothing else. But anyways, Big Mac smiled at me. “Thanks F.M. Though it wasn’t too hard. A Canterlot pony?” he said, rolling his eyes. I laughed. “Community voted. Can’t control that.” I told him. “Are yall going to the congratulatory party?” he asked me. Nodding, I said, “Eeyup. Just gotta go take this stuff home real quick. I’ll meet you there.” He laughed and shook his head. “Ok. See ya.” And with that, he walked off. He didn’t open up to too many ponies, but like I had said earlier, we’re good buds. That’s why he seemed to talk more than usual when around me. I watched him go and headed the other direction. The thing about Big Mac was that once you got to know him, he could be quite insightful. If I was ever bored, I’d come up to Sweet Apple Acres and talk with Big Mac and AJ while helping them buck some apples. Which reminds me, I heard there would be some of the Apple Family’s famous pies at the party. I started drooling at the thought. I sped up a bit. No way would I miss out on any pies like last time.
“Now dear sister, it’s just a little friendly competition.” I heard Luna say as she and Celestia neared me. “FRIENDLY?! Did you HEAR what they said to each other Luna?!” Celestia all but screamed at her sister. I chuckled to myself. Even being stuck in stone, I still found a way to entertain myself every once and awhile. If only it could be entertaining enough for me to break out of here again. I had felt surges of chaos not too long ago, though they were weak. But as Luna and Celestia neared, I felt the same surges again, just much more powerful. What had her so upset? I listened more carefully, to see if I could figure it out. “Well, you must admit sister, your nephew had it coming. And what did you expect? It is a rap battle after all.” I burst into laughter, though only I could hear it. A rap battle? In EQUESTRIA? If I could cry, I would. And, not only that, but Celestia’s snob of a nephew Prince Blueblood? It wouldn’t be hard to beat him. But I still wanted to know who did. “But It... you’re right. I still don’t know why everypony thought he should go against Big Macintosh...” Celestia muttered. BIG MAC?! That was-
CRACK! I heard. It was loud for me, since it was part of my stone encasing. But the princesses couldn’t hear it as they walked off. That crack would be enough for me to break free! But I’ll wait until tonight, while the guards and princesses trade places. As in, Luna and the Lunar Guards trade places with Celestia and the Solar Guards. It’s so confusing. But at any rate, I needed to be ready, because my time to escape would soon be here.
I pushed open the door to Sugercube Corner and got a pie to the face. “Oops! Sorry!” I heard Pinkie say, giggling. I smiled and licked the pie off my face much like Pinkie herself would. “No worries Pinkie!” I called, heading towards the refreshments. I met up with Soarin. “Hey Soarin. What’s up?” I asked him, getting myself some punch. He looked at me, pie all over his face. “I’ll just come back later.” I giggled. Leaving a blushing Soarin, I headed towards my closest group of friends. We were all in a band that we called The Music Ponies, and it consisted of me, my 3 best friends, and daughter. Well, she wasn’t really MY daughter, but I had saved her from a dragon when she was born. But someone grabbed me by the tail and turned me around before I could get to them. “What the h-” “MELODY! YOU’RE HERE!”
I was glomped by 3 giggling fillies and landed hard on my back. But I laughed all the same. “We were wonderin when you’d get here!” Applebloom said. Standing up, I wiggled out of the Crusaders’ grasps. “Hello to you too girls.” I huffed, my wings hurting like crazy. I heard snickers coming from around the room, but I ignored them. “So. What’s up?” I asked, stretching my wings to see if they were ok. No cracking. Good. “Well, us Cutie Mark Crusaders are going camping tonight to see if we can get our cutie marks as...” Scootaloo stopped and looked to her friends. “CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS OUTDOORSMEN!” they shouted. I facehoofed. Sweetie Belle pulled my hoof off my face. “We need somepony that’s an adult to go with us. Rarity and Applejack are busy, and...” she cleared her throat, “...ANYWAYS, we were wondering if you’d come with us instead.” she finished. Applebloom, using her abnormally strong hind legs, jumped onto my head. Ow. She grabbed my cheeks and looked straight into my eyes, her face upside down. Giving me the puppy eyes, she begged, “PLEASE?” A deep laugh caught mine and the Crusaders’ attention, and Big Mac walked up beside me. “Come on, F.M. Don’t be a party pooper.” he said. Pinkie Pie appeared on my other side. “Party Pooper?! Melody, you’re taking those girls camping, and you’re doing it now!” she cried, and started pushing me out the door. Glancing back, I glared at Big Mac and mouthed, “You’re gonna pay.” He laughed in reply and let Pinkie slam the door close once the Crusaders had exited. Well, they had seen my nightself before, so why not? “We’ve already set up our camp!” Sweetie Belle spouted, hopping for some odd reason. I chuckled and shook my head. “Where to then girls?” I asked. Scootaloo answered me. “The Everfree Forest of course!”
Princesses and Peace? Nah.
The fire crackled as we worked on cooking our marshmallows. “Why did you chose the Everfree Forest?” I asked the Crusaders. They all just shrugged. I pulled my marshmallow away from the fire and took a bite. “HEY! Yall were supposed to wait until it was put in a s’more!” Applebloom shouted. Giggling, I pulled the marshmallow away from my mouth. “Sorry girls. I don’t go camping very often.” “I’ll say.” The other 2 Crusaders laughed when Scootaloo said that, and I just rolled my eyes. “And how often do YOU three go camping?” I retorted, and they all blushed. “It’s ok girls. I don’t mind.” I said, using my magic to carry the chocolate and graham crackers over to our little group. “Are we going to make s’mores, or am I going to have to eat all this delicious chocolate by myself?” Their ears all perked up. “That’s more like it! Are your marshmallows done?” I asked them. They all nodded their heads vigorously. Laughing, I made my s’more and handed the supplies to the girls. They dug into the food, mostly the chocolate, and I just watched them as I ate. Although I would’ve at least liked to have another pie, this s’more, and the hot dogs we had earlier (burnt to a crisp by Sweete Belle) made up for it. Even if I still had the taste of the ash in my mouth.
I watched the Solar Guards go inside, and wiggled, cracking the stone even more. All that was needed was a little push and...
I broke my stone prison, and stretched out my limbs. The smell of fresh air hit my nose and I breathed it in. It smelled of rain. It smelled of freedom. I stepped down from the podium and looked at the horizon. The sun was setting, and I noticed that it seemed... shaky. Must’ve been the conversation that the princesses had earlier. Which reminded me. I could hide until Luna raised the moon, and then pay the princesses a quick visit before I went and wrecked chaos on all of Equestria. I’d attack the castle, then go to the Everfree forest to make sure I wasn’t out of practice when I attacked Ponyville. The Elements had defeated me once, but it wouldn’t happen again, because neither of the princesses would be there to help those stupid elements. I laughed at the thought. Now, for the princesses.
“Your descent was shaky with the sunset Tia.” Luna said. Celestia blushed, and I almost gagged. Much too modest. The sooner I got rid of them, the better. “Just raise the moon Luna.” Princess Celestia replied. Couldn’t agree with you more, Tia. Luna flew out the window and I teleported myself behind Celestia. “Good evening Tia. How are you?” I asked. She faced me and her eyes widened. “Hello Tia.”
I hid in the shadows, waiting for Luna to return. When she finally did, she called out for her sister. “Tia, are you there? Tia?” Luna called out, all in vain. I walked out of the shadows and into Luna’s line of sight. “Hello Luna. Nice job on the moon.” I said. “Discord?! But how...” she muttered, then thought of something. “What have you done with Tia?!” Luna cried, positioning herself to charge. Teleporting myself in front of her, I looked into her eyes. “The same thing I’m going to do with you Luna.”
We finished our s’mores, and I worked on packing up the food, just in case of any forest creatures. The girls worked on setting up their bedding in the tent, so it gave me a few minutes to think and calm down. It wasn’t that I didn’t enjoy the girls’ company, I just liked to have time to … I don’t know, collect myself? Well, whatever it was that I did, since I honestly didn’t know. Taking a deep breath, I took in the familiar scent and taste of the forest. I had been coming to the forest ever since I moved to Ponyville. Nopony had seen me after dark apart from the Crusaders, Big Mac, Rest and the princesses. Not even my fellow band members. I knew that if they found out that the trust bond between us would be broken, and I couldn’t have that. It had taken me 998 years to make friends, and I didn’t plan on losing them any time soon. I sighed, and listened to the silence of the forest. Wait. Silence? That couldn’t be right. I called the girls out of the tent. “What’s wrong Melody?” Applebloom asked me. “Do you hear that?” I whispered. The girls listened. “Hear what?” Scootaloo asked. “Exactly.” I said. “It just doesn’t make sense.”
“MAKE SENSE? WHAT FUN IS THERE IN MAKING SENSE?”
Pain Before Pleasure: An Alien Feeling
I turned around and came face to face with the intruder. It was none other than Discord. Wait. DISCORD?! “How did you get free?” I asked, stepping in front of the girls. I knew that the chances of him hurting them physically was slim, but I still couldn’t trust him. He laughed. “You always did cut to the chase as a filly. A hello would’ve been nice. If you don’t have manners, then at least try the teach the Crusaders some.” he said, tsk-tsking. I growled. “You’re not funny Discord.” His reply was just a surprised stare. “WHAT?!” I snapped, and he flinched. “Well, it’s been quite awhile since I’ve seen you, but I KNOW that even as your nightself that you shouldn’t look like that.” “Discord’s right, Melody. Yall are lookin kinda strange. And scary.” Applebloom said. What was she talking about? We were fine. “If only Lulu was here. Oh wait, that’d be impossible. How could I have possibly forgotten?” Discord said, a mischievous look on his face. We shook in anger. “WHAT HAST THOU DONE WITH LULU?!” We screamed. If he hurt her... Discord had a surprised look on his face. “For over a millenia I have not heard anypony use the Royal Canterlot Voice. But what you just shouted was louder than Luna and Celestia ever were.” Stamping the ground, We shouted, “QUIT STALLING! THOU WILT TELL US WHERE LULU IS, AND THOU SHALT DO IT NOW!” “Melody! Please stop!” Scootaloo shouted. Looking back at the Crusaders, We conjured up a magical bubble that would protect them from any attacks from Discord, mental, magical or physical. They would be stuck there, so they couldn’t get in the way if We decided to attack our enemy. Which was more likely than naught to happen.
I was truly surprised at what I saw. The red had seeped from Forgotten’s skin and into her mane and tail. Her mane and tail also had begun to flow, just a little, much like the princesses’. It was an odd sight and, honestly, a tad frightening. But she was being too demanding. “Couldn't you at least say please?” I asked her. In response she teleported herself in front of me and bucked in in the face. I went flying into a nearby tree. “Ooowww...” I moaned, placing my hand on my nose. The warmth of blood from my nose ran down my lion paw, and I growled . “WILT THOU NOW TELL US WHERE LULU IS?” Melody asked, walking up to me. “You DARE ATTACK ME?!” I screamed, lunging at her. I tackled her and held her down. Raising my talon, I said, “NOPONY ATTACKS ME!” But she bucked me in the stomach, and I let her go because of the pain. But I quickly overcame the pain. Looking up, I saw that she had lifted the Crusaders in the air and was flying back towards Ponyville. “I don’t think so.” I muttered to myself. Then I teleported myself above her a slashed her on the back and wings. She fell to the ground, dropping the Crusaders in the process, before letting out the most horrid noise I have ever heard.
When she opened her mouth, a ear-shattering scream emitted from it. I clamped my hands over my ears and writhed in pain. My ears were ringing, and I felt as if I had gone deaf. I opened my eyes and saw that Forgotten had limped to the Crusaders to see if they were alright. Even though I couldn’t hear past the horrid ringing, I could see that the Crusaders were fine. Forgotten was the one who needed medical attention. The ringing slowly but surely disappeared, and I stood up. That alicorn had some nerve. Using my magic, I conjured up a bubble around Forgotten, pushing the Crusaders away from her. “What the hay?” Sweete Belle exclaimed. Forgotten tried to stand, but the bubble was not big enough for her to do so. She then tried to teleport out of it, but that didn’t work either. “There’s no point Forgotten. You are stuck in that bubble until either the sun rises or your mate comes and finds you.” I told her. Then, using my magic, I picked up the Crusaders and teleported out of there.
“NO!” I shouted, jumping towards Discord. But this stupid bubble stopped me, and made it so I couldn’t stop Discord from taking the Crusaders. I lay on the ground, hating myself for not being able to protect the girls. I couldn’t stand up anyways, and the pain in my back and wings were almost unbearable. I had been defeated, failed to protect those I cared about, and probably got myself killed. I couldn’t help but pity myself, and soon I found myself crying. Usually I would’ve told myself to stop, but what was the point? I cried and cried. And when my tears were all gone, and I was alone in the forest sobbing, I failed to notice the sound of hoofsteps come my way. But then I heard a voice squeak, asking somepony if I’d be alright and a deep voice went, “Eeyup.”, I looked up into a big pair of green eyes. And Big Mac just walked into the bubble and managed to get me on his back and then walked out of the bubble. “Don’t worry F.M. Yall be alright.” My eyes drooped. “B-Big Mac? Is t-that really you?” I asked him. He nodded. “Eeyup.”
Macintosh's P.O.V
Nurse Redheart finished putting the bandages on Melody, and I quietly thanked her. "She mustn't use her wings in any way for a week. You'll be sure to tell her?" The nurse asked me. Nodding, I replied with my normal "Eeyup" and watched her go. The Crusaders sat by Melody, Scootaloo closer than any of them. Scootaloo looked up to Melody, I knew. Nopony knew what ever happened to Scoot's parents, but she was currently an orphan. Melody had told Scootaloo that once she had gotten a permanent home for herself and Rest, she'd adopt her. Melody was just about to move into her new home, though I have a feeling that it may be a while now. I walked up to the bed Melody was laying on, and saw that Scoots was crying. "Please mommy. Please don't die..." I heard her whisper again and again. "Now, don't worry. She'll be fine. She's just gotta stay off ta wings for a bit." I told Scoots, and she looked up at me. "Y-you sure?" she sniffled. I nodded. Melody shifted and moaned in her sleep, and I felt a tightness in my chest. If I found Discord, I'd make sure that he paid for what he did.
I ran outside when I heard Applebloom's scream. "APPLEBLOOM?" I shouted, looking around. Then, out popped Discord from a flash of light, along with the Crusaders. He popped the bubble they were in with his eagle talon and let them fall. " Now that I don't have to deal with you, I can go along my own business. " he said before disappearing in a flash of light. Scootaloo jumped up. "Big Mac! It's Melody! She needs our help!"
I shook my head from the memory and peaked my head outside. Applejack was dealing with some runaway potatoes and flying fries, but she seemed to have it handled. Besides, she told me to, "Be with your heart's Melody." I knew what she meant, though a part of me still had a hard time accepting it. The sun had risen, and fallen, quite a few times since we had found Melody, but since she had been seriously injured, her transformation has yet to take place. "Uhh... Where am I?" I heard melody moan, and I came back inside and walked up to the bed. "MOM... I mean Melody!" Scootaloo shouted, hugging her. "Huh? Oh, hi Scootaloo. Oh, hey girls." she said, noticing the other 2 Crusaders. They hugged her, and I smiled, glad to see she was ok. She looked up at me, and blinked. "Hello Big Mac." she said.
Melody's P.O.V
I felt a scorching pain, but the feel of Scootaloo hugging me made it easier to bear. "Hi Scootaloo." I said, then noticed the other Crusaders as they too hugged me. "Oh! Hey girls." I hugged them back, then looked up. Big Mac stood there, smiling sadly. Then it all came rushing back to me.
" Only you're mate can help you. "
Big Mac simply walked through the bubble and picked me up.
"I think I love him." I said aloud to myself, though I knew nopony could hear me since it was a dream.
I blinked and stared at him. "Hello Big Mac." I said. "Glad to see your ok F.M." he replied. I nodded and wriggled out of the girls' grasps. I stood and jumped down onto the ground, attempting to stretch my wings. But that caused alot of pain, and they were bandaged, so I couldn't. "Nurse Redheart said you need to take it easy, and no using your wings at all." Big Mac told me. I frowned and walked to the door. "That bad, huh?" I asked, though it was more a thinking-aloud statement than a question. I pushed the door open and was welcomed with an apple pie to the face. "Discord." I growled. "There's been chaos and sightings of Discord all over Equestria." Big Mac muttered, walking up beside me. "Even worse than before. The elements are nowhere to be found." I walked outside, ignoring the rainbow colored rain. "And the princesses are nowhere to be found either?" I asked. "Eeyup."
Discord's P.O.V
I popped into the castle's meeting room, where Celestia's and Luna's statues stood. "You're niece has been quite troublesome you know." I said to them, since I knew they could hear me. "Yelling, screaming, even using the Royal Canterlot voice... reminds me of you Luna. Though, she was much louder than either of you ever were, and much more frightening. I think she has a demon stirring inside of her." 'A demon that could be very useful if on my side.' I thought to myself. A mischievous smile formed on my lips. I would get her on my side soon enough. But first, I had some chaos to wreak.
"The same thing I'm going to do with you Luna." Discord hissed before clapping and casting a spell that began to turn us to stone. We screamed in pain. As our limbs, muscles and bones turned to stone, We remembered how painful it had been when banished to the moon. This was much worse. It had felt like a many tiny pinpricks when We were banished, but when another limb was turned to stone, it felt as if a thousands volts enveloped that area, along with somepony stabbing it at the same time. First our legs and tail, then slowly our flanks. But our scream was most likely loudest when the transformation hit our lungs and heart. Our scream echoed through the castle, and the transformation, thank Mother Harmony, sped up to a point that it had finished before We had even blacked out.
We opened our eyes groggily and groaned. "What hast happened?" We muttered, standing up slowly and stretching our wings. A forgotten yet familiar pain swept through our body, and We winced. There was a throbbing pain in our head, and We had to wait a few moments before it just became an uncomfortable pulse. Looking around, We took in our settings, or lack of settings, if one wanted to be correct. We where in what seemed like an endless black void, no beginning, no end. As our memory slowly came back, We began walking. Within what We believed were about 10 or so minutes, We had remembered what had happened.
"Your descent was shaky with that sunset Tia." We said, messing with her. We could see the effects of too much cider starting to affect our dear sister. She blushed, and We couldn't help but smirk to ourselves. "Just raise the moon Luna." she said. We flew out the window, laughing to ourselves. This was definitely something We were going to hold over her head for a long time coming. Diverting our attention to the task at hoof, We focused on the hidden objects that were the moon and stars. Using our strong magic, We enveloped the moon and stars in our magic, and flew up, raising it as We did so. We smiled, loving the sight of our night sky. Twas something only We could create. Smiling, We flew back into the castle and landed gently on the carpeted floor. We looked around, noticing that Tia was gone. "Tia? Are you there? Tia?" We called. We spoke normal most of the time, but when thinking to ourselves, We always used We, for We did not want to lose to old ways. A shadow caught my attention, and We saw that it was none other than... "Discord?! But how..." We asked ourselves. Wait. If he was here, and Tia wasn't, then... "What have you done with Tia?!" We screamed, knowing he had to be responsible for her absence. We positioned ourselves for attack, but he teleported himself in front of us. * "The same thing I'm going to do with you Luna."***
We shivered at the painful memory, and fretted. Where was our sister? Was she ok? A glowing light caught our attention, and what seemed like 2 screens appeared. Both blaring sound, one showed the throne room, many guards and police in there. We realized that that must be what our stone eyes could see. But the other screen confused us. We saw three young fillies, and We saw Discord and heard him speak. "You always did cut to the chase as a filly. A hello would've been nice. If you don't have manners, then at least try to teach the Crusaders some." he said, tsk-tsking. We felt an internal connection with what we realized was our niece, Forgotten Melody, and a part of our mental selves intertwined. "Defend yourself!' We thought, hoping she'd hear us. And, when We did this, We saw and felt what she did.
“You’re not funny Discord.” His reply was just a surprised stare. “WHAT?!” I snapped, and he flinched. "Well, it's been quite a while since I've seen you, but I KNOW that even as your nightself you shouldn't look like that." “Discord’s right, Melody. Yall are lookin kinda strange. And scary.” Applebloom said. What was she talking about? We were fine. "If only Lulu was here. Oh wait, that'd be impossible. How could I have possibly forgotten?" Discord said, a mischievous look on his face. We shook in anger. “WHAT HAST THOU DONE WITH LULU?!” We screamed. If he hurt her... Discord had a surprised look on his face. “For over a millenia I have not heard anypony use the Royal Canterlot Voice. But what you just shouted was louder than Luna and Celestia ever were.” Stamping the ground, We shouted, “QUIT STALLING! THOU WILT TELL US WHERE LULU IS, AND THOU SHALT DO IT NOW!” “Melody! Please stop!” Scootaloo shouted. Looking back at the Crusaders, We conjured up a magical bubble that would protect them from any attacks from Discord, mental, magical or physical. They would be stuck there, so they couldn’t get in the way if We decided to attack our enemy. Which was more likely than naught to happen. “Couldn't you at least say please?” he asked, and We teleported and bucked his face, sending him flying into a tree. If he was going to stall, then We would make him regret it. He had blood coming from his nose, and we heard him groan and put his lion paw on his nose. Then he growled. “WILT THOU NOW TELL US WHERE LULU IS?” We asked him, walking up to him. “You DARE ATTACK ME?!” he screamed, lunging himself at us. He tackled and held us down. He glared at us, his eyes completely red, even the yellow part was. Raising his talon, he shrieked, "NOPONY ATTACKS ME!" But We bucked him in the stomach before had had a chance. Once he let us go, we used our magic to pick up the bubble the Crusaders were in and began flying back towards Ponyville. But a sudden slashing pain in my back and wings sent us flailing, screaming in pain.
Forgotten and ourselves lost our connection then, and We went flying back. Discord had attacked her and three young fillies. We had to figure out where we were, and we needed to right now.
Melody’s P.O.V
I maneuvered around various floating objects, and ducked right before a winged rock slammed into my head. “Damn Discord. That lying, deceiving, horrid THING of a creature.” I said, not to anypony. Though the Crusaders heard it. I had said it quite loud. “Uh, Melody? That was ah little mean, don’cha think?” Applebloom stated. I said nothing, not wanting to scare her, because at this point I was a boiling teapot, ready to burst at the next excursion of heat. Many ponies were fleeing from the squirming vines and what seemed to be killer creatures made from marshmallow, but a burst of magic simply burnt them from existence. I was truly a loving pony, hate not one of my strong points, but at this moment I just wanted to light the Everfree aflame. My itching need to cause violence against Discord scared me only slight, and it was very hard not to strike out at he others surrounding me. ‘What the hay is wrong with me?’ I asked myself, though that thought perished. Big Macintosh and the Crusaders followed me. “Big Mac, why are we just walking?” Sweetie Belle’s voice called. It seemed distant, my thoughts blocking out most everything but my more important senses. So when a bowling ball the size of a tree came rolling towards us, I simply lifted it and threw it somewhere with my magic. “Ah think she jus’t needs to let off sum steam.” Big Mac replied. I knew, somehow, that my horn was letting off steam. Or smoke. Who knew? All I seemed to know at this point was hate, and the heat broiling inside of me. Burning, and there was no water to sate it. “Where could they be?” I muttered. “Who?” Scootaloo squeaked. “The Princesses?” she asked. I growled slightly. “Them too. But I meant the elements. I know where Applejack is, but I haven’t seen hide nor hair of the others. It’s not right.” My voice seemed harsher than usual. “What the HAY IS GOING ON!?!?!?” I mentally screamed, having to stop from the crashing headache it formed. “I thought it was good for me to keep my thoughts to myself.” I rasped, and the group all sidled away slightly. But, the sight of the ever-intruding wildlife brought them back to my sides. Though, there actions were barely noted as my world started spinning, faster and faster until I fell, pain coursing through me. I screamed and curled up in a ball, but it only worsened the pain. “MELODY!” I heard four separate voices scream, but they were so far away. So very, very far…
Discord’s P.O.V
I flipped and flew headfirst into a hot-sauce filled balloon. “Ah, chaos, you never fail me!” I shouted, licking the sauce off of my face. Oo, spicy. Nonetheless, I continued my lazy flight over Equestria, seeing ponies running and screaming. Sad that they knew not how to appreciate chaos at it’s wake. But, that wasn’t my concern right at this moment. A loud boom caught my attention, and a flaming form rammed into me, and we both hit the ground. Hard. The smell of burning fur and the intense heat were enough for me to summon a giant pail of water and pour upon us. With the flames and heat gone, I teleported myself out from under the figure, slight burns still on my body. Looking down, I saw the figure. It was a pegasus with a blue coat, though she was thoroughly singed. And, upon further examination, I saw her mane and tail were rainbow-colored. Realization struck me. It was that dreaded Element of Loyalty, Rainbow Dash! Frowning, I picked her up by the mane and held her at eye level. “Hello. I think I finally figured out why exactly they call you Rainbow CRASH.” I hissed, and her eyes slowly opened, to about half way. “D-discord. This is y-your fault. I-I failed my r-rainboom because of you.” She spat, stuttering slightly. I simply dropped her, and her quiet little cry in pain. “Boo-woo Rainbow Crash. That’s your own problem, not mine.” I told her, brushing my hands off, as if I had touch something absolutely disgusting. Which, for me, I had. “The o-others will g-get you.” I heard her squeak below me. “If you say so.” I said, rolling my eyes. I then moved slightly to catch a hot-sauce balloon, and put it above Rainbow Dash. “Have a little treat!” I said, and using one of my talons, I popped the balloon. The last thing I heard before I teleported away was her screams of agony.
???’s P.O.V
I messed with Melody’s head, pulling the mental strings that would send pain down every part of her. My hiss of a laughter filled her conciseness, and I could feel her discomfort. But her discomfort was the greatest of pleasures for me. I played with her, well toyed with her actually, feeding my pleasure every time the sun set. I was why she transformed. I couldn’t take a physical form, no, I was too weak. But I could change her appearance enough so I could feed off of her displeasure. It was as gratifying as it would get. But when Discord confronted her, her hidden hate bloomed with an unbelievable fury, and someone else also somehow influenced her. They only helped me though, helped me drag her into an area where she and I could have a little talk. And, I watched as her conciseness formed a physical form of her. It had worked. The pain had dragged her to me. She shuddered and stretched, her face still slightly contorted in pain. That pleased me. Oh, it pleased me very much. I summoned a magic, making a somewhat sort of barrier so she couldn’t be woken, and nothing else could reach her inner mind until I was finished. Since she was in my territory, she would play by my rules. I walked up to her and slammed one of my hooves into her gut. Her eyes opened, and she screamed, her face more contorted now than before. She coughed a few times before finally looking up and acknowledging me. “Hello.”