Dreams of Broken Promise

Dreams of Broken Promise

The Origin of Discord

The dark reaches of earth opened up, ready to consume those who fall into the shadowy embrace of nothingness. A lone unicorn stood on the edge of the precipice, awaiting his quarry. From the darkness came a harsh scream. The sounds of pain and torture emanated from the tunnels, bearing with it the essence of despair. The blue unicorn trotted through the wide maw of the cave. Moonlight shone through holes in the ceiling, covering the cave with twisted visages. An unpleasant air hung over like a crushing fog. A chill ran up his spine, something was not right. Broken cries of fear continued deep within. From the shadows a bitter, mocking laugh rang out. Turning to face his adversary, the unicorn brought himself face to face with his quarry.

“Starswirl the Bearded! A pleasure indeed, I presume my subjects have treated you well?” The voice from the dark asked.

“No more foolish games, changeling!” Spat the unicorn, disgusted at her apparent lack of regard for the innocents they had slaughtered. “We have seen thy darkened tombs, we have witnessed countless feedings. We have even bared witness to thy hatcheries and the birth of a new queen. The time of thy judgment has come, the guilty lay before thee and surrender.”

“Surrender? To the likes of you? Do you think me so petty, to believe I would simply kneel before you? You dare challenge the queen in her own domain?! I daresay Starswirl that our majesty will be more than willing to destroy our last great threat. Seize him! “

Out of the darkness came a small band of changelings, the leader was carrying a large chain attached to a collar. The collar was covered in small needle-like spikes, designed specifically to strangle and maim the victim. Starswirl released a powerful arc of magic directly at the large changeling; the spell sent him into a sharp stalactite killing him instantly. The other foul creatures swarmed ever closer to the unicorn. They closed in around him, blocking off all available escape routes. Directing his horn upward, Starswirl unleashed a massive torrent of energy, trying desperately to dislodge the sharpened gems above.

“Not so fast little unicorn! If you so much as shatter a pebble, this whole cave system comes crashing down. Burrowing those you so recklessly tried to save! Just give in; you know this quest is futile…”

“We will never falter! This land shall not become home to you fiends!”

“We shall see about that!”

Redirecting the spell, Starswirl aimed towards the one who had spoken and released the pent up energy. It struck the dumbfounded changeling head on, tearing apart the very atoms that made up the now lifeless corpse. The group surrounding him quickly dispersed, terrified of this powerful unicorn. A single straggler tried to stop him but was simply unmatched by the wizard. A single concussion spell was all that he needed. Starswirl stepped over the unconscious changeling, his mind focused on the task at hand.

The huge underground labyrinth stretched from the fertile lands of Equestria to the east, to the misty swamps of Griffondal to the west. Many who have ventured into the caverns have either, vanished, been eaten alive or been driven insane by its denizens. Very few have ever made it out alive, fewer still could recount there ordeals. But still Starswirl continued on, determined to stop the changeling invasion. The sickening smells and the intense heat from within would have made a normal unicorn collapse, buried forever in this pit. And still he would not falter from his quest.

Unknown to the rest of the world, a relentless army of chaos stood silently in the bowels of Tartarus. Starswirl himself was the first to stumble unto this revelation. The king and queen bestowed the power of guardianship to the unicorn, a task befitting those of great worth. He alone stood against the might of the changelings, horrific creatures that fed off the emotions of their victims.  Even now as he came ever closer to the lair of the queen, he could feel the emotions being twisted and consumed by spite.

The tunnel opened up revealing a huge cavern littered with small green eggs. In the center stood a throne covered in a thick, tenebrous membrane similar to that of a shell or carapace. Seated upon its strange surface was a creature that bled malevolence, its sinister green eyes staring unblinking into the face of the intruder. The creature slowly rose from its seat, revealing the rest of its body. A slender, equine like appearance gave way to its hideous insectile wings that buzzed and hummed as the creature lowered itself from the throne. Its skin was the color of onyx, devoid of any light. The long legs tapered off to a fine point, riddled with hollow scars. From its jaws protruded two sharpened canines, designed for the sole purpose to feed. A long flowing mane seemingly formed of spiders silk, rolled past its shoulders revealing the feminine aspects of the changeling. Before Starswirl stood a creature of unimaginable evil, the very cavern breathed with the sheer force this being spewed forth.

“Welcome to the Hatchery, my little unicorn! I believe you have come to vanquish my hive? A noble cause, but alas I cannot let you do so. My broodlings will make quick work of you, Arise my subjects! Destroy this fool!”

Suddenly the cavern came alive, thousands of changeling larvae burst forth from their eggs. Their hungry cries echoed through the Hatchery. The queen merely watched as her children ambushed Starswirl, leaping upon his back and stripping away the raw emotions. He struggled under the weight of the frenzied horde, desperately he thought of all the known repulsion spells he could think of. Only one came to mind but the sheer amount of energy would render him paralyzed, if only briefly. Consuming his vast magical reserves, Starswirl quickly became engulfed in a bright silvery light. Partially blinded the queen stood up and tried to stop the spell, recklessly firing bolts of green lightning in every direction. Several shots hit her own children, causing them to explode in violent spurts. But still Starswirl held his ground, slowly charging his repulsion shield. The young larvae became increasingly vicious as they felt a violent surge of power coursing through the unicorn.

The air began to crackle and bend, the very fabric of his magic altering the forces of nature around him. The ground began to heave beneath them, a loud thunderous roar echoed through the tunnels. Starswirl felt his very body becoming unstable, a sign of powerful magic. Screaming at the top of his lungs, the unicorn flared with arcane rage. His eyes shone with the same silver light now wrapped around his horn. The energy was released; a massive shock-wave of pure magic tore through the changelings, sending them to the far flung corners of the hatchery. Several of them ended up impaled on the stalactites hanging from the ceiling, raining small droplets of acidic green blood down upon him. The changeling queen stood up; shocked at the sheer multitude of lifeless spawn.

“You dare?! You decimated my entire brood!! I WILL FEAST UPON YOUR SOUL! The Black Widow shall consume your lifeless husssk!”

“You finally reveal thine self to thee, heartless wench? Arrogance is a villain’s greatest threat, but thou greatest ally. To the depths with thy, cur!”

With a bloodcurdling cry the queen leaped toward Starswirl, pinning him to the ground. Her fangs snapped shut, inches from his face. The unicorn fought hard, trying in vain to set her off-balance. The changeling began to feed. His emotions were swiftly devoured, leaving him hollow and devoid of hope. It seemed the situation was dire. As his mind grew grey and cold, a lone memory drifted into the conscious mind.

“Starswirl. Thou are hereby expelled from the College of Arcane Mastery: For reckless and dangerous behavior resulting in the death of one, Alistair Moonhoof. Do thou accept these charges?”

“I do, sir!”

“And what pray tell caused such grievous injuries?”

“A mutant changeling, sir!”

“Why in Tartarus were thou experimenting with those fiends?!”

“The feeding of emotions and the purpose for that which could be weaponized as a demoralizer, sir!”

“A noble cause, but foolish for such a young, brazen mage. Thou are hereby dismissed! Next!”

With a heavy heart Starswirl left the magistrate, a look of utter dismay plastered on his face. The other students glared, spat, and abused the poor unicorn. Even the teachers refused to acknowledge his existence, glancing up only to avoid contact. As he trotted back to his home the sudden pang of guilt thrust itself into his heart. How could he be so stupid? Letting such a young colt willingly be drained of emotion! And for what, a useless weapon that could be easily countered? He wished that it was simply a dream, that those events would cease to haunt his waking mind.

“Starswirl?”

“Starswirl! Wake up!”

A voice from the dark called to him, it was the ghost of Alistair calling from beyond the veil.

“You must wake up! The longer you dream, the more emotions she consumes… Please, for the land will be lost under her rule.”

“I must…wake up!”

The cavern suddenly rushed back into view, resulting in vertigo. The changeling felt her power growing with each bite, but something felt off. Starswirl started to kick and struggle against her, the venom slowly leaving his body. The unicorn tried with some effort to raise his magic from the depths of his heart. A small trickle of silvery vapor slipped from his horn. The queen laughed at the futile attempt at magic, was this the greatest the world had to offer? This would be an easy victory. The vapor started to form a solid shape, a dragon of magical energy began to form.

“A creation spell? But how? Only the most powerful arcane users can control it! No! I will not fall to some weak magic trick!”

“Thou hath underestimated thee! I will smite your ashes!”

With a surge of energy, Starswirl stood up and threw the changeling off. The dragon flared its gossamer wings, its form now completely solid. A burst of arcane fire erupted from its jaws, striking the queen full bore and burning her wings. A cry of pain escaped her lips, her wings now lying in smoldering ruins. Turning his attention from the cries of agony, Starswirl directed the magical construct to release a torrent of flames upon the eggs. They snapped and popped as the intense heat consumed them. A look of pure hatred sat upon his brow.  The screeches of death doing nothing to sway his hoof. The changeling queen could do nothing but watch as her life force began to fade.

“Thou disgusting vermin will never see the light of day! As for you!” He roared pointing towards the weakened broodmother, “I shall hang thou corpse over the battlements and it will serve as a warning to the rest of thy kind!”

“Why do you hold so much hatred for us? We simply wish to have our pl-“

“Shut thou slanderous mouth, wench!”

“You may hate us, revile us even. But please, I beg of you, protect my last egg. Raise him as you would a son, teach him the means to love, to become something I could not. “

“Why would we raise such a foul creature? Its very existence is a crime against nature!”

“Try to summon just a small amount of sympathy, if I had defeated you…you would be granted a hand of mercy. We are not the pure evil creatures that we are perceived to be. If raised by someone as pure as you, he could usher in a new dawn for my species! Please, protect him!”

“If thou words are sincere, I cannot turn down such an honorable request." His face softened slightly, "On a single condition, if he begins to develop immoral thoughts or harbors only to destroy. He must be purged from existence.”

“I accept your proposal, take the egg and raise him well!”

“And what about thou?”

“Leave me! I wish to see the embrace of death among my children.”

Starswirl took the small unhatched egg from her grasp, the throes of death taking her with them. He stared at the green egg, wondering on whether he should destroy it or honor his promise. A small black shape squirmed within, hungry for food. One small blue eye stared up at the unicorn, curious of this new being. A small smile crept onto the old unicorn’s face, a moment of sadness swept through his mind as he thought of his parents that had died long ago. He had decided to honor her sacrifice, the loss of one’s parents is unbearable, but the loss of one’s children is greater. He thought about the creatures he had destroyed and felt an agonizing wave of guilt.

“We will raise thee as we would a filly or colt, thou will become a force for light. I christen thee Discord, a fitting name for a creature of chaos.”