Restart

by Netap

Rating: mature
Tags: Tragedy, Profanity, Adventure, Discord, Violence, Death, Drama, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Alternate Universe, Zephyr Breeze
Length: 4030

Zephyr Breeze is the last pony anyone would think of to save the world.

Discord won.
The Elements of Harmony are no more. Equestria is in for another thousand years of chaos.
Again.
How many times has Discord won now? ten? twenty?
When you win all the time, winning gets boring.
But just making yourself lose on purpose isn't fun.
So he goes back in time to throw a Pegasus shaped wrench into his own plans.

Maybe this time it'll be more exciting...

Published 2022-04-14 17:30:00 UTC
Last updated 2022-07-30 14:21:06 UTC

Reset

Beneath Canterlot castle exist a dungeon.
A dungeon as some of you might know is where prisoners are kept for questioning.
Why are we starting in a dungeon you may ask?

Well, it's obviously because the story revolves around one of the inmates in this dungeon.

What crime did said Inmate do in order to get locked up.
Well that's simple isn't it? Let us go back to the time at which the crime took place.

It was a beautiful day, The sky was blue, the sun shined bright, the wind was soft, a perfect summer day.

In the gardens of Canterlot castle. A seemingly one sided discussion was going.

"So your plan now is to place a bomb on my statue? That's your plan? Your not going to talk to one of the guards again? warn the princess for the seventh time?" A disembodied voice asked the perpetrator.
The Pony who is currently is in the process of placing a bomb on a statue depicting an abomination against nature.

"Warning the princesses didn't work the past six times, why would it work now? Anyway, Should the bomb manage to destroy your statue before you're released, it should hopefully kill you." The Aquamarine Pegasus told the voice, Placing the active time bomb on the back between the wings of the statue. "And should I get caught leaving the premises, I'll be thrown into an interrogation again. Maybe something will change, hopefully something will change." The Pegasus scratched his scruffy chin.

He really should shave sometime soon.

Eh, it wont matter.

"Now where are they?" The Pegasus looked around until he spotted a pair of guards doing their routine check of the gardens.

"Hello, good soldiers of the castle of Canterlot. It's a nice day were having today isn't it?" The Perpetrator started.
One of the guards looked at him and nodded "Indeed it is, do you need any help finding your way around?" The first guard started,"Wait a minute! The gardens aren't open to the public today, it's a Tuesday! Who are you and what are you doing here?!" The second guard points his spear at the Intruder.

The Pegasus looks around him, "Who, me? Why I'm Zephyr Breeze, And I just placed a bomb on that statue over there." He said, pointing at the statue.

Seeing as the guards aren't doing anything, he gets a bit agitated.
Incompetent guards like him are the reason his in this predicament in the first place.

"Are you going to arrest me or are you just going to stand there?" Zephyr asked the two guards. Did they not hear him perhaps? Are they really so slow as to miss the blatant threat to the security of the nation he just told them he committed?

Looking at each other, the Guards decide to "Yeah um, we're just the garden checkers. We check for threats in the garden,
We are trained at all about what to do in this situation" Guard 1 said.

"Hahahahahaha! These are the royal guards?! It's no wonder I took over the world so easily, They cant even arrest a single pony!" The disembodied voice surrounding Zephyr laughed out loud.

Zephyr chose to ignore the voice, as he knew already only he could hear it.

"Listen, I don't think you understood what I just said." Zephyr began, looking into the eyes of both guards. "I placed a bomb on the castle grounds. Not some bath bomb to add color, not a glitter bomb for parties." He stepped closer to the two untrained guards.
"Not a joke bomb, not a party bomb, not a toy bomb either," another step "Not a bomb for birthdays that explodes into a song" Closer "Not a baby gender reveal bomb, that blows into blue or pink confetti," Now standing with his chest pressed into the muzzles of the now terrified guards.

"A real Bomb! A real bomb that explodes into FIRE and SMOKE! A REAL BOMB THAT DESTROYS EVERYTHING AROUND IT! That is the type of bomb I just currently placed in what should be one of the most secure places in ALL OF EQUESTRIA! Your job is to arrest me and diffuse the bomb! SO WHY AREN'T YOU DOING EITHER OF THOSE!" Zephyr yelled out at the two guards.

Looking at them now, you would think they'd start crying for their mothers.

Once upon a time, Zephyr looked up to these ponies, they stood out like a beacon of hope, with their shiny golden armor and confident gait, you would think they would be the most reliable ponies out there.

Oh how wrong he was.

And then the very air shook.
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM

Everypony in the castle could hear the explosion. From the bottom of the dungeons to the top of the towers.
If you were on the castle, you heard it.
If you were near the gardens, you felt it.
And if you were a statue of a Draconequus, nothing happened to you.

"It seems the bomb didn't work Zephy, What will you do know?" Discords disembodied voice asked the Pegasus who looked at the fire he started, giggling at how the Pony hunched down, another failed plan to add to the list, how many are they on now? thirty one? Thirty two maybe? Who cares. The Despair that Zephyr is showing at his failure is so hilarious.

It was a good plan, he must admit. Destroying the statue that is.
The only problem is that if the statue was so easy to destroy someone would have already tried to do so long ago.
He looked so hopeful, Maybe this time it'll be different, Maybe he wont need to wait for the chaos spirit to escape before he tries to stop it. So much hope, only for his failure to fill him with more despair.

Truly, choosing Zephyr as the one to save the world was both the worst and best idea he had in a very very long time.

"Do you know where you are" The interrogator asked the Pony who planted a bomb in the castle.

Zephyr looked like a mess. he's been crying for four hours straight. Oh, How bad he must feel, Failed to hurt anypony. what kind of monster would plant a bomb in the castle of princess Celestia? Who would dare harm a hair on her mane!?

It was the interrogators job to find out.

Looking the interrogator in the eyes, Zephyr answered. "I am on the third floor below zero in the dungeons of Canterlot castle"

That brought a pause to the interrogator, How could Zephyr know which floor he was on, he was blindfolded before being brought here.

"I am on the fourth jail cell from the right." How could he possibly know?!
Looking at the mirror to his left, Zephyr continued "Behind that mirror, Captain Shining Armor and the new princess Luna are listening in." Zephyr looked back to the shocked interrogator before continuing, "In twelve seconds somebody will come in to bring you coffee, accidentally spilling it on your bag." He said before looking at the small knapsack containing documents the interrogator brought with him.

Now the interrogator was shaking, Did he have an accomplice telling him of the surroundings? How would he know the exact location of his whereabouts otherwise? How will he know that- "Excuse me sir, Your coffee." A guard entered the room holding a plate with two steaming cups of coffee at that moment.

How could he have known? It should be impossible for him to have known that, is that his Talent? His Cutie Mark doesn't match up.

Who are you really Zephyr Breeze?

"please lay them on the table, thank you" The Interrogator told the guard who brought the coffee with her.
Placing one cup in front of him, another in front of the prisoner. Turning around in order to leave, The Mares tail spilled his coffee onto the documents in the bag.

How? How could Zephyr Breeze have known that would happen?! HOW?!

"We have seen enough!" An Alicorn shouted out loud as she walked into the interrogation room, the guard captain following behind her.

"We shall take over the questioning from here on, Door Knocker, you are to leave the interrogation to us." The Princess of the night told the interrogator.

Even with all the questions plaguing his mind, Door Knocker knew not to argue with a princess, especially one whose temper left her on the moon for one thousand years. Taking his now coffee soaked bag and half empty cup of coffee, he turned to leave.

"Oh, and leave that drink you have here, you wouldn't need it we're sure!" The Lunar princess told Door Knocker, Levitating the coffee cup away from him.

As the princess sat down in place of the interrogator, sipping from the half empty cup of spilled coffee, Zephyr fought back on why he's doing all of this.

Each times he's thrown into the dungeon, each times he's questioned about what he tried doing, each time he failed to sneak into the castle, each time he was caught, each time he tried building a bomb, each time that monster sent him back to try again.

"You really should be thinking of other things right now, like how you're going to get out now? You can't tell anybody why you tried, what a genius plan it was. Bravo, you outdid your own stupidity" Discords mocking voice laughed in his ear, Of course Zephyr didn't have a plan. He's not the smartest, He's no secret agent that can figure out in ten seconds how to save the world.

"I never planned on escaping capture" Zephyr told Discord. So what if everyone heard him? would it change anything?

"What do you mean? You broke into the castle carrying a bomb with no plan of escape?" Shining Armor asked Zephyr, who seemed to be ignoring the captain.

"The plan was to blow up your statue, All of this was a test run. We can now check mark breaking the statue off our list." Zephyr explained to Discord.

"Are you even listening to me? Answer our questions!" Shining Armor banged his hoof on the table. Spilling Zephyr's cup of coffee in the process.

Zephyr look at the captain, then at the princess, and then opened his mouth, "In four days Discord will escape his Statue, I know this because every time he escapes, he beats the Elements of Harmony and sends me back in time. Me explaining this will mean nothing to you as I've just broken his first rule, I will know proceed to die a painful death and wake up two weeks bac~CK!" Zephyr then proceeded to cough up blood and die.

"Didn't even wait for my return, You just offed yourself." Discord looked down at Zephyr as he drowned in his own blood and saliva, Looking at the Princess and Guard who stared with hollow, empty eyes at the Pegasus dying in front of them, not reacting to a thing. "Let's see what you do next, Will you try a bigger bomb? Will you ask your sister to gather elements of harmony again? You sad, stupid, pathetic excuse for a hero" And with a snap of his talons, Everything was Reset.

Author's Note

Hello reader, Netap here introducing you to my first MLP based story. This is going to be way different for me, as I usually right shitty self inserts on Wattpad, this will be my first time using an existing character as the MC.

Usually when I write stories I try to use underused characters that barely get enough screen time, give them a chance to shine. And what better example than Zephyr Breeze, a character who only had around 20 minutes of screen time in the whole show. such a letdown for a family member to one of the main cast.

Some of you might have noticed already but this story has taken a lot of inspiration from Re:Zero. and other media of that genre.

Hopefully you'll enjoy this story 😃

Replay

At the end of harmony

Zephyr Breeze didn't know how it happened.
One minute he was styling up a mannequin with a spunky new and bedazzling wig.
The next everything was wrong, The floor was on the ceiling, The sky was smelled like popcorn and the screams from outside his now ruined apartment sounded in C-major instead of the usual B-minor.

Everything was wrong.

So Zephyr, like any good Pony raised on the teachings of princess Celestia and Harmony did what he thought must be done.

He hid under a blanket.

A panic room would've been more appropriate considering the, well, panic he was going through. Sadly, his cheap apartment doesn't have such a room installed.
Lousy landlords.

"What is that thing?!" "Run Away!" "Where are the princesses?!" Princesses?

Oh yeah, there's now another princess in Equestria. Some princess called...

A princess called...

What was she called again?

"She's called Princess Luna." The Chimera next to him whispered.

"Luna, That's the princess's name, yes..." Now with his knowledge of the modern political climate restored Zephyr can focus on more important things. Such as, Why have the screams from outside stopped or who the stranger under his blanket with him is.

Wait...

There's a stranger with him...

*Screams*

What's going on? Who is this fellow? How did he get into his room? What was the screaming about? WHY IS HE PANICKING?!

WHAT IS GOING ON?!?!?!?!

"Well that's not mighty nice is it now?" The chimera said as he made a movement with his Lions paw and Zephyr's screaming mouth was zipped shut with an actual zipper.

Grabbing at his now zippered mouth trying to open it in his panicked state might not have been the best decision in his life, pointed at by the fact that his panicked hyperventilating is running him out of air faster than he can breath.

"So I came here with a proposal for you, a deal you may- Oh, your unconscious." Discord noticed the passed out Zephyr on the floor, A healthy pony shouldn't have that much foam coming from their zipper mouth, no sir!

"We can't have this talked if your on the floor like this. wait just a moment" And with a snap of his finger, if you can call bird talons finger, He disappeared from the room and left the passed out Zephyr lying there.

Looking at the turquoise Pegasus tied the chair he created, Discord can see something truly extraordinary for a pony.
But he can keep that to himself, I mean, Why should he tell the future hero of Equestria that his talent, that his cutie mark, the thing that everypony has, is the perfect talent for a slob that can't do anything.

His talent is 'taking it easy'. this is going to be so fun to watch him do something serious, Ooh I just cant wait!
Oh, he's waking up.

"Wakey wakey eggs and bakey, Good morning princess" He told the now awake pony.
Oh, his panicked looking around, his terrified visage, the way his eyes widened when they saw him.
He truly is, a perfect candidate.

"Who are you? What do you want from me?" Zephyr whispered in fear. Oh Sun-butt, Did you not teach about me in school?

"I'm Discord, The Spirit of Chaos, and I just took over the world" Discord explained to the terrified little Pegasus.

"..."
"...?
"... What?" Zephyr asked.
"Oh, I took over the world, It's mine now." Discord told him.
"How can you take over the world? The Princesses wouldn't allow that!" Zephyr, seeing a hole in Discords explanation, decided to point it out.

Now, usually when a stranger who just told you that he is the new owner of the land you walk on and the air you breath, you don't point out to him that it can't be true.
Usually when that happens, The stranger kills you, of course he would kill you, he's mentally unstable and has your life in his hands.
When you say that to Discord however, Something else happens.

He shows you that you're wrong. "The Princesses? What Princesses- Oh! You mean, These Princesses?" pulling up the curtain behind him that Zephyr was sure wasn't there previously, The Chimera reveals three statues made of some sort of crystal. They also have party hats on them but that doesn't matter.

"Are- Are those?" "Yep, Princess Sky face, Princess Dream catcher and small little Princess Pink heart, just how I left them" Discord told him.

Seeing the rulers of his nation transformed into statues in front of him, doesn't really puts Zephyr's mind at ease.
It does the total opposite.
"Oh no oh no oh no oh no-" Zephyr repeats out loud like a mantra.
"Oh yes yes yes. These are the rulers of Equestria, brought down to mere garden sculptures. Lets see them pass a full millennium where nobody cleans them of bird droppings, hah!" Discord laughed.

Looking at the monster that turned the princesses into sculptures, Zephyr remembers something his sister wrote to him in a letter a few months prior.
"What about the elements of Harmony? They'll beat you! They did so to Nightmare Moon, they can surely defeat you too!" Zephyr exclaimed, Of course the elements of harmony could beat him, A group carrying magical artifacts that managed to defeat the malevolent 'Mare in the moon', They should be able to defeat every threat to Equestria!

Not only does it have Princess Celestia' s own pupil, It also has Rainbow Dash, the fastest Pegasus he knows and also his very own big sister Fluttershy, She might be a huge coward, but she's the kindest pony he knows! They could easily-
"Are these the elements of harmony you speak of?" Discord asked as she shoved a crystal orb under his face.

Looking at the orb, Zephyr almost starts to cry.
There they are, The elements of harmony, Equestrias biggest hope, all of whom are colorless and trapped inside large cages.

"isn't that your sister over there? She looks sad, do you ever visit her? such a naughty sibling." Discord whispers in his ear before dodging a hoof aiming at his smirking face.
"Let me out of here so I can punch you!" Zephyr shouts at the Chimera as he shakes his lower body, trying to escape the bindings that bind him to the chair.

"I will, just a few more minutes." Discored told the now angry Pegasus.
"What did you do to Fluttershy!? I will break your face! Come over here!" Oh how rude, with a snap of his talons, Zephyr's mouth is once again zipped shut.

"You see, I chose you to play a little game of mine" Discord explained to the thrashing pony, "The rules are simple, You can't tell anypony that I'm going to escape, or you lose. You can't tell anypony of what will happen in the future, Or you will lose. If you die, you lose. if I escape, you lose. The only way for you to win is to stop me. Easy isn't it?" Discord told Zephyr.

Thrashing even harder in his seat, Zephyr tries to extend his hoof to punch the Chimera in his stupid face.

"The game will begin when I snap my fingers, and we will continue playing until you win. Have fun!" And with a snap of his talons, Zephyr Breeze disappeared.

"You have two weeks, boy. The clock is ticking, Heheheh Hahahaha HAHAHAHAHAHA! THIS IS GOING TO BE SO MUCH FUN!" And with another snap of his talons, Discord disappeared as well.

Author's Note

Chapter 2 of Restart, Hope you readers have fun.

Rethink

Somewhere in the forests near Cloudsdale, three Pegasus Foals are sitting around a campfire.
One Filly is happily cooking marshmallows, the other filly is looking around their campsite at all the shadows the trees in the forest are creating, the last Pegasus, a colt, lays down on one of the sleeping bags the group brought with them, and hums himself a tune.

The sun had already set, the fire was warm and relaxing, and the parents were camping a few hundred meters away, far enough to give the children privacy but still close enough to come and check on them when needed.

"Hey! Why don't we tell Spooky ghost stories!" The energetic Filly started, the Marshmallows she ate smudged on her cheeks.

"Bu-bu-but, ghost are scary... What if one of them tries to catch us while were talking. Will it *gulp* eat us?" The timid Pegasus replied, shivering from the idea of talking about ghosts in such a scary location such as the woods she finds herself in.

"Come on Fluttershy! You know that ghost's aren't real, nothing will eat us, Its gonna' be fun, I promise!" The energetic filly replied to the young Fluttershy.

"Okay Rainbow Dash, if you promise." Fluttershy told the energetic rainbow maned Pegasus, "Zephyr, do you want to join us?"

A bomb didn't work.
Trying to kill Discord after he escaped didn't work.
The Elements of Harmony didn't work.
"You do know that the elements never actually worked because of my genius machinations" Discord said, Zephyr Ignored him.
"Why are you ignoring me, Come on, Whats the next plan? How are you going to stop me this time?"
Maybe he should try the Elements again? Try and stop Discords plan by making sure the elements keep working fine.
"So you did hear me, Why are you still ignoring me then?"
But how will Zephyr make sure that all the elements work at the discord fight?
"Oh no, If only you had some sort of existing relationship with one or more of the current elements of harmony. Specifically those who do not hold the honesty, generosity, laughter or magic element, whatever shall you do?"
If only Discord could shut his stupid trap!

Wait! Zephyr does know two of the Elements personally!
If he could learn about the other four, He might hatch a plan to stop Discord from breaking them apart!

The Elements could still work!

Now, Zephyr has 14 days until Discord leaves the statue again.
Ten days from now is the Grand Galloping Gala, four days after that Discord makes his entrance.

"I have ten days to think of a plan to save the elements," Zephyr whispers to himself.

"So you have a plan now? C'mon, tell it to me." Discord leans closer to the Pegasus.

Zephyr, Ignoring the chaos spirit, Grabs his wallet and a bag of spare toiletries before leaving his apartment and heading to the train station. But not before buying the winning lottery numbers of the month.

If he'll finally beat Discord, he'll also enjoy enough money to retire comfortably at his age.

"So your plan is to learn enough about the Elements of Harmony in order to save their friendship from breaking apart when I make my fantastical debut?" The spirit of chaos only visible to Zephyr says.

"Hopefully it'll only take two weeks, I really don't want to do this for several loops. Zephyr replies, keeping his voice down to not look suspicious to the other passengers.

"And what will you do if this plan doesn't work?" Discord asks, a smug grin painted on his hideous face as he leans closer to Zephyr, almost whispering in his ear, "What will you do then?"

Zephyr doesn't answer the chaos spirit, only thinking on his word, "What will I do indeed..."

Author's Note

Hi, This chapter is shorter than the others because I just didn't really feel like writing it.
As you can probably guess, I'm not good at writing at all.
Tell me explain in words how a building looks like and you will imagine that i'm describing a square with a triangle on top of it, I'm bad at descriptors.

But I also have so many Idea's that I want to write about, and the only way to improve is to keep trying.

I apologize for the terrible writing, but please bear with me for a few more chapters.