The group of friends couldn't believe their eyes. Two weeks of research, mathematics, calculations and theories all culminated in a spell that took the combined might of the Twin Princesses to power only for it to fail its main objective ultimately. And yet, here standing before them, was the man they had spent so long trying to bring back.

Many questions ran through their heads, Twilights most of all, but none of that mattered. He was back. And as the group shouted their excitement after a moment seeing their friend back, safe and sound, they recoiled upon closer inspection of him. Even Ghost seemed momentarily stunned.

The thick fabric trousers were positively drenched in blood, all but staining the medium-beige deep maroon, dried blood clinging to his still pale skin in large patches and clumps across his exposed torso as well as his hair. And he looked, for all intents and purposes, exhausted. His hair was heavily dishevelled, more than a few strands sticking out wildly in a tangle of thick locks of white. His breath was long and deep, as though he had run for several miles non-stop while his eyelids drooped over his eyes.

As he stepped closer to the group and strode towards Discord with purpose, his eyes flickered over them before settling on them fully, his steel blue orbs running over each of their faces individually, as though he was scanning them for every detail they had. There was a moment, for a split second, when he looked as though he didn't recognise any of them as his brow furrowed in thought, seemingly racking his brain for who these people might be. His face slowly softened, the edges of his mouth twitching before curling fully, a sudden and full recognition passing over him.

"Percy?" Applejack asked tentatively, taking a small step towards the larger man.

"Hi guys," He said softly, pure relief and warmth filling his slightly wavering voice.

"Uh and who might you be?"

Snapping his head towards the Spirit of Chaos, his eyes immediately changed to cold, calculating and disdainful, his lips pursing while his shoulders, which had already been tense, rose and hardened, the muscle rippling beneath his pale complexion. Saying nothing, he continued his stride.

"Oh, hold the phone," Discord said, summoning another newspaper, holding it up and shifting his gaze between it and the quickly approaching man, tossing it over his shoulder again with a laugh. "You must be Percival Felwinter! Gee golly willikers, and here I thought I wouldn't be able to meet you!"

The air around them slowly became cooler, a cold ruthlessness permeating from Percival as his strides towards the trickster Spirit never broke. The girls all flinched away, almost physically feeling the bloodlust flowing off the man as the occasional clacking of his prosthetic filled the otherwise tangible silence.

"What-" Almost immediately cut off, Percival appeared suddenly before Discord in a shocking burst of speed, fast enough to be confused for teleporting but the hard gust of wind smacking the Spirit of Chaos in the face said otherwise. "Oop."

Instantly teleporting away in a flash of light, he appeared behind him at a distance, a shocked and confused look plastered across his face. "Okaaay, certainly not what I expected but it's already more than what the Princesses gave me."

Whipping around at an astonishing speed, Percival's cold expression turned to one of anger and rage. "You hurt even a hair on either of them, I'll be sending you back to the demons in pieces!"

Grinning slowly, Discord straightened, absentmindedly wiping away a crease in his suit as he flared his collar. "So what if I did? What's a cripple going to do to a man such as myself? You're fast, I'll give you that, but there's only so much a single man can-"

Cut off once again, Percival sped the Trickster, his fist solidly colliding with Discord's cheek and sending him flying back as his attacker rolled his shoulders. Rising to his feet, he grasped both sides of his head, spinning it in place before catching it, vigorously shaking it to rid himself of his daze.

"That...actually hurt," He said, gently rubbing where Percival had struck him. "Wha-"

"Girls," Percival said suddenly, all eyes snapping to him. "Get to safety. He's mine."

"Heck no, we ain't-"

"I will repeat myself once," He said, his voice low and wavering slightly, as his body shook subtly. As he turned to face the group of friends, they instantly saw the slowly spreading blood beneath the thin layer of membrane, the blood vessels popping harmlessly, but disturbingly. "Go."

Noting the chilly seriousness in his voice, none of them wanted to argue and simply nodded, gathering together quickly as Ghost and his ward locked eyes, the two offering simple nods as the skull-masked man stepped closer to the group as they vanished. Looking back to the perplexed agent of chaos, Percival's slowly reddening eyes squinted. Reaching his hand out, a deep plume of smoke and embers filled his hand, his flat-backed, blade materialised within his grip, a soft smile gracing his lips as he held the blade close to him, almost sniffing the blade as he softly closed his eyes.

"It has been too long, my friend," He said gently, the runes lighting up and pulsing a soft pink in an almost excited pattern. "I even thought of a name for you."

"Are...you talking to your weapon?" Discord asked slowly.

"It happens way more than you'd think," Percival replied, hefting his sword onto his shoulder, straining his neck as it cracked and popped.

"Sure," Discord rolled his eyes. "Listen, Bucky Barnes, I don't know what your problem is or what your beef with me is, but this is going to go one of several ways, so pack it in and go on your merry way before I pack it in for you."

"Cute," Percival said as a slow grin crossed his pursed lips. Bending over at the waist, a line of bright lilac fire ran down the length of his back, jets of concentrated fire following alongside it, a foot long at his shoulder blades and tapering off as they met at his tailbone. His hand hardened, gaining a scaly quality before bursting into flame, his foot doing the same, mimicking the same lilac of his back. Staring back up at Discord, he grinned fully. "I was about to tell you the same thing."

They stood for a moment, the tension between them palpable, a silent agreement that words were no longer necessary. Percival moved first.

The air around him distorted, crackling and fizzling around him as the searing flames shot from his back, his body becoming a blur as he launched himself at Discord with a powerful lunge. His blade sliced through the air with a deadly grace, aimed directly at Discord's heart. But Discord merely smirked, snapping his talons and causing the space around him to distort. In an instant, the blade passed through where his chest should have been, but there was nothing—Percival had struck empty air.

Before Percival could recover, Discord retaliated. With a wave of his lion’s paw, he summoned a storm of cotton candy clouds that erupted from the ground beneath Percival's feet. The clouds swirled around him, their fluffy pink exterior hiding the razor-sharp, sugar-coated spikes within. The clouds tightened, constricting around Percival like a vice as the diamond-sharp edges pierced his skin, but with a fierce growl, he unleashed a burst of fire, disintegrating the clouds and shattering the spikes into a million harmless pieces.

But Discord was relentless. He followed up by snapping his talons again, and the ground beneath Percival's feet suddenly turned to soap, causing him to slip and slide uncontrollably. Before he could regain his footing, Discord conjured a swarm of parasprites—small, ravenous creatures with insatiable appetites—that descended upon Percival, biting and tearing at his flesh. The man grunted in annoyance, swinging his sword in wide arcs to slice through the swarm, but for every parasprite he cut down, two more took its place.

"Enough!" Percival roared, his voice echoing with a thunderous timbre. He slammed his sword into the ground, unleashing a shockwave of violet energy, vaporizing the parasprites in an instant. The force of the shockwave also sent Discord careening backwards, his chaotic form twisting and writhing as he fought to regain control.

Percival didn’t give him the chance. With a burst of speed, he closed the distance between them, his sword a whirlwind of steel as he unleashed a flurry of strikes. Each blow was calculated, precise, and aimed at vital points with the intent to kill. But Discord, ever the Spirit of chaos and trickery, continued to evade, his body shifting and warping in impossible ways to avoid the blades. He split himself into multiple copies, each one taunting Percival as they danced around him, their laughter echoing in the destroyed town.

Percival’s frustration grew, his attacks becoming more vicious, more desperate as he tried to land a hit on the elusive Discord. But with every false strike, every clone dispatched, Discord's taunts grew louder, more mocking. The chaos entity’s copies multiplied, filling the air with a cacophony of laughter that grated on Percival’s nerves.

“Is that all you’ve got, Percival Felwinter? I expected more from the Saviour of Las Almas!” Discord’s voice echoed from all directions, the multiple copies of him sneering as they continued to dodge and weave.

Percival gritted his teeth, his anger fueling his power. He needed to think, to outsmart the chaotic trickster. His mind raced, sifting through the various techniques and strategies he knew. Then, it hit him—if Discord was chaos incarnate, then perhaps he needed to embrace a little chaos of his own. A small taste of his own medicine.

With a deep breath, Percival closed his eyes, focusing on the energy within him, the fires on his back raging hotter. Slowly, deliberately, he began to let go of his control, allowing his instinct and senses to surge forth to the forefront. His demeanour changed, his posture relaxing as his face lost all emotion. His eyes snapped open, now glowing a deep, sangria.

Without warning, Percival exploded into action. His movements were no longer calculated but wild and unpredictable, matching Discord’s chaotic energy with his own. He struck at the copies with reckless abandon, not caring whether he hit the real Discord or not. His attacks were a blur of purple and steel, each one more powerful than the last. The sheer force of his strikes tore through the chaos-infected air, rending it asunder with each swing.

Discord’s copies began to falter, their laughter turning to grunts of surprise as they struggled to keep up with Percival’s newfound ferocity. One by one, they vanished into white smoke, unable to withstand the onslaught. The real Discord reappeared, his expression no longer one of amusement but of genuine concern, his brow now furrowed. He realized that Percival was no longer playing by the rules, that the man had seemingly let go of his inhibitions, just as chaotic and unpredictable as himself.

“You’ve become quite the wild card, haven’t you?” Discord muttered, his tone more serious now.

Percival didn’t respond with words. Instead, he roared, the sound shaking the very earth beneath them as he charged at Discord, his sword blazing with purple energy. Discord barely had time to react, his body twisting unnaturally to avoid the deadly blade. But Percival was relentless, his prosthetic letting out a loud boom and a fireball as he was redirected back towards Discord in a moment.

Realizing that he couldn’t win by playing defence, Discord decided to up the ante. With a snap of his talons, he summoned a vortex of chaotic energy, pulling in everything around them—debris, rubble, even the very air itself. The vortex swirled with a menacing intensity, threatening to consume everything in its path.

But Percival was undeterred. With a mighty leap, he propelled himself into the heart of the vortex, his sword at the ready. The chaotic energy tore at his body, ripping the swiftly healing flesh from his muscles, but he pushed through, barely reacting to the chaos that surrounded him. He reached Discord, who was at the eye of the storm, and with a fierce cry, he brought his sword down in a devastating cross-slash.

Time seemed to slow as the blades connected with Discord, the impact sending shockwaves through the vortex. Discord’s eyes widened in shock, a look of disbelief crossing his face as the energy of the sword coursed through him. The vortex began to destabilize, its chaotic energy spiralling out of control.

For a moment, there was silence, as if the world itself was holding its breath.

Then, with a deafening bang, the vortex imploded, the force of the explosion tearing through the already dishevelled town, kicking up dust and debris through the air. Discord hurled through the air as well, colliding with several buildings before sliding to a halt, cleaving a small crater into the ground. Percival landed a short distance away as the trickster rolled onto his back and began backpedalling, desperately trying to escape as he spotted the rapidly approaching, fire-wreathed man.

Letting out an almost crocodile-like bellow from his throat, Percival mindlessly threw away his sword, the implement clattering to the ground with a loud clang as he settled on top of Discord. Trying to push him off, Percival's fist collided solidly with Discord's elbow, the bone instantly shattering as it fell limply to the ground. Grabbing his unbroken arm, the man on top braced it against his knee, bending the appendage over it, snapping it. Screaming in pain, Discord's eyes widened in shock and horror, locking onto and peering past the lilac flames of the man who locked him in place with his knee by his chest.

"No, no, I know those eyes," Discord whispered, his already pale completion becoming paler as sweat dripped down his brow. "How-"

Rearing his fist back, Percival shot it forward square into Discord's face, instantly silencing him as a crunch filled the air. Then again then again. Over and over until his jaw hung loosely and his eyes became swollen shut. Percival paused for a moment, his breath heavy as his glowing eyes gazed at Discord's slowly healing face. His punches quickly gained a rhythm, becoming faster and faster, outdoing Discord's healing.

Pausing again, Discord's face had swiftly been replaced with a mess of red, tender flesh. Teeth were missing as his dislocated jaw hung loosely from his socket, both eyes were swollen completely shut and his black and white hair died a sickening crimson. Rearing back for one final strike, his arm suddenly stopped, a pressure ceasing his momentum. Peering over his shoulder, Applejack tightly gripped his arm, her action comparatively small compared to the force he could generate, but it was enough of a presence to stop him.

"Percy, stop! Yer killin' him!" She shouted as the others skidded to a stop, Ghost being the only one who was undeterred by his actions.

"Jeez man, relax!" Rainbow Dash joined in.

Shaking her off with ease, she stumbled back into her friend's arms as the man turned back to the near-debilitated Spirit of Chaos still lying on the ground, wheezing through swollen lips. Going to strike, his fist was once again stopped.

"Let......go," The sound was unnatural, more of a growl mimicking speech than actual words. But the words were unmistakable.

"Look at 'em!" She shouted, pointing towards the mangled mess that was Discord. "You done near killed the man! Is that not enough!?"

"No," He growled, again easily wrenching his arm from her grip, instead now turning to face the group.

Before any of them could respond, Percival suddenly jerked, the sound of wet squelching filling the air as they all recoiled and gasped, even Ghost was highly unnerved. Peering over his shoulder, Discord wore a smug grin under his swollen features, his taloned hand embedded through his pale stomach. And yet, Percival made no reaction. Almost ignoring the wound entirely, he reached down and tightly gripped Discord's talon, the Spirit jerking back, futilely trying to wrestle his arm from his iron grasp. Pulling his hand forward, the group watched in horror as Percival stopped once his below had pushed through before leveraging it against the inside of his wound, snapping Discord's elbow again before letting him go.

The instant Discord's arm left his stomach, Percival felt his feet leave the ground as the world around him spun. Landing on his feet with his back to the group of friends, his wound immediately started healing, the opening steadily closing as he turned around.

Standing between him and the very slowly healing Discord were Celestia and Luna, hair only ever so slightly out of place, faces etched with perplexed, relieved and shocked expressions.

"Percival?" Luna whispered.

Relaxing his posture, the fire wreathing his body disappeared with a distinct fwoosh as his eyes softened. "Good to see you two again."

"What.....how?" Celestia asked simply, words failing her.

"Question of the millennium, Chief," Percival said, fondness filling the nickname as though he hadn't used it in some time, despite the rigidness in his face.

"We have so many questions."

"I know." He said, beginning to walk back towards the Lord of Chaos before the twins stood in front of the one-armed man.

"What do you plan to do with him?" Celestia asked, her voice low.

"Kill him," The man replied simply, starting to walk again.

Celestia, however, blocked his path again, her halberd in hand as her younger counterpart moved to the down Spirit, joining the other two Unicorns as they healed his grievous wounds as Ghost stood a small distance from the group with his arms folded, occasionally glancing between him and his ward.

As he stopped, he grit his teeth slightly, shaking his head as he looked into random space, his eyes moving rapidly, as though he were deep in thought. A light flashed out from behind the solar matriarch as a shockwave spread from the now stonified statue of the Lord of Chaos, his statue falling to the ground with a dull thud. The world around them shifted, the oddities and chaos corruption dissipating, everything turning back to the way it was. Sighing deeply, Percival looked around before turning his body towards his home.

"Where do you think you're going!?" Rarity shouted as he moved away.

"Home," He said quietly, exhaustion clear as day in his voice.

"Ya need to go to the hospital!" Applejack joined in.

Looking down at his pure dark red body, the wound in his stomach fully closed as other wounds tore open anew, steadily closing as well. Whether from the brawl with Discord or ones from before, it didn't matter to him.

"I've had worse."

"Be that as it may, we still need to have your...arm and leg looked over," Luna said hesitantly. "Who knows what manner of curse could be upon you!"

"And then there's still the matter of where you disappeared to!" Celestia added.

Percival stopped in his tracks, his head hanging as he sighed deeply, his tense shoulders drooping. Turning back, he lifted his stump for them to see and they flinched upon seeing it. "It's an amputated limb. Nothing more, nothing less," He said simply, the group glancing to the Element of Honesty who nodded solemnly.

"As for where I disappeared to..." He continued, his gaze cast downward. There was a moment, a split second, almost imperceivable, that the man's eyes darkened, images flashing through his head. The Princesses almost missed it, but they knew the look well. The look of someone who would rather leave the topic well alone. "Well...let's just say it wasn't pretty."

Turning away to head in the direction of his home, Rarity rushed out in front of him.

"Wait," Rarity said softly. A loud pop sounded in front of them as a familiar purple coat materialised within her hands. "You'll want this back."

A small gasp escaped the man's lips as he tentatively reached out for it, gazing at it longingly before putting it over his widened shoulders, slipping his remaining arm into the sleeve and pulling the collar to his nose, inhaling deeply as he closed his eyes.

"Thank god you still fit comfortably," He whispered, letting go of the collar and gently pulling the fashionista into a tight hug, one she happily returned as Applejack joined in, slowly followed by everyone else, the Princesses unfurling their wings and wrapping it around the small huddle. Even Ghost joined in.

"It's good to have you back Percy," Applejack whispered, feeling the tension slowly leave the man's body as the rest joined the consensus.

"Thank you," He whispered back, breaking the hug with a deep sigh. "Now if you'll excuse me. I just wanna go.....home."

Turning around without so much as another word, Ghost followed close beside him, clapping heartily on the shoulder as the pair walked off towards their home. The eight watched him as he left, many questions screaming throughout their minds, many of which they knew would have to wait to be answered, whether it be the next day, or years down the line. For now, however, the Paladin quietly made his way home, towards the comfiest bed he knew, looking forward to a good night's sleep.

Author's Note

The final part of my first ever multi-part chapter, hope you guys enjoyed reading as much I enjoyed writing them
Things have been quieting down a little so I found myself with a little time to spare to get these out, hopefully that continues

Please point out any mistakes I may have made
Constructive criticism is always appreciated
Until next time, TTFN!