Dreams of Broken Promise

Over the next few days Discord began to develop a close bond with his adopted sister. He was her shadow, always curious to watch Aurora use strange and wonderful spells. She didn’t really mind her captive audience, Discord even volunteered as a test subject on several occasions. Starswirl was in and out of the castle, never staying in one place for long. Perhaps he was searching for something, out there in the vast Everfree Forest.  Whenever he returned home his demeanor shifted like the tides. One minute he was driven, focused, the next he would be agitated and quick to anger. Even young Discord quickly worked out to avoid these moods.

Aurora tried every day to find a food source for the little changeling, but nothing seemed to satisfy him. She soon realized that no matter what they tried he would always need to feed on powerful emotions. Aurora decided her best option would be to love him as much as she could. Out of all emotions, love was the most powerful and the most draining once Discord begun to feed. He tried with some effort to only drain what was needed; guilt wracked his young body with each bite.

“Mistress Aurora, We are so sorry. Why do I need to do this? Can’t we feed like a normal pony?”

“Discord, you are not a pony… you are something different.”

“But I have hooves and wings! That would make us a Pegasus, yes?”

“I’m sorry but you are a completely different creature. Thou art a creature called a changeling; they feed on the emotions of others. At a certain age they develop the ability to shape shift.”

“Shape shift? What is that?”

“Thou would take on the form of another, a perfect clone. Thou voice would change to mimic the host, allowing access to another’s emotions.”

“So we are paraspits?”

“Parasites yes, but you can change that… we have hope that thou can change.”

The young changeling sat quietly, his mind struggling to grasp the idea of him being born evil. He could not believe that he could steal the lives of others, replacing them, consuming the emotions of loved ones.

“But if we were born monsters, how can we change?”

“In many ways, right at this moment your self will is keeping the hunger at bay. Many ponies cannot control their inner desires any more then another. Thou are a kind soul, under our guiding influence thou will become a force for good.”

“And if we do not? Will thou destroy us?”

“That won’t happen, we swear it!”

Discord tried with some effort to ignore the raging part of his mind. It screamed and boiled, rising In waves of primal fury. Deep down a hollow voice repeated the words, Thou are a monster, an abomination. They will betray you... No! We cannot be lead into the dark; We must break free from these bonds! We must honor our dear, departed mother… her sacrifice will live on. His determination amazed Aurora, such a young child dealing with so much. Perhaps her master was right; there was room for him to change. She wondered whether the changeling horde were simply misunderstood, fear shrouding them in a black cloud of mistrust. Returning to her studies,, she took one last fleeting look at the sweet changeling infant; His piercing blue eyes staring deep into her soul.

Back In the royal quarters of Canterlot, the king and queen listened intently to Starswirl’s debriefing. They gasped as he told of the viciousness of the broodlings, scars still braided his skin from the sharp piercing teeth. The king asked whether the queen was eliminated and with heavy heart Starswirl recounted his ordeal with the brood mother, the crushing depression still fresh in his mind. He mentioned his guilt at killing so many defenseless spawn, but alas those words rang hollow.

“Guilt? For beasts of pure chaos? Why should we feel depressed to destroy such foul creatures?”

“But My Lord, she offered her hoof in peace; her last moments were to grant me guardianship over her child. She wanted him to be brought up under my guiding influence, to beckon a new age of peace between Canterlot and the nation of Az’uru.”

“Preposterous! A treaty between thy beautiful nation and those fiendish hell spawn? Not in a thousand years! Thou art to destroy this child… ending their corrupting force forevermore!”

“No! We refuse to stoop to such low levels to end a war!”

“Thou would disobey a direct order from thy king?!”

“If it was against the kingdoms best interests we would!" Snapped the unicorn, a sudden rage burning in his heart.

“You, dare! Guards! Seize him!”

The door suddenly burst open, revealing the true king. The usurper blinked slowly, surprised at this sudden turn of events. He reeled towards the fake queen and struck her hard and fast, a bloody ball of spit shot from her now shattered face.

“You foolish wench! You said the king was drugged! We almost had the brood-killer in our clutches, but now our ploy has been discovered.”

“Changelings! We should have known…”

“Guards he is a fake! Kill him!”

“Not so fast changeling vermin!”

Starswirl shot a beam of magic towards the shape-shifted parasite, shattering the fragile disguise. In its place was a simple changeling peon, a pathetic excuse for chaos incarnate. He stared in silence, unsure of his next move. The guards quickly surrounded him, drawing their long spears towards his throat. A brief flash was followed by the sounds of fading laughter. It seemed the changeling had used a teleport stone, sending him through the locked gate and back towards the forest.

“Starswirl art thou alright? It seems we need to update our security…”

“No hard feelings sire, for a second there we believed thou wanted to eradicate the changelings without a second thought.”

“Thy would, hath we not received word of thou brave deed to raise one of your own. Our kingdoms would benefit greatly from a peace treaty… Thou shall be hereby knighted for your bravery and resolve under a military situation.”

“Thank thou, your majesty. We won’t disappoint! Perhaps we should arrange a play-date between Discord and the lovely Luna, a friendship such as theirs would help to bolster our relations.”

“We shall see, for now we request that thou continue to raise him. We wish thou well on this crucial mission! “

Starswirl returned home, determined to teach Discord the true magic within. Night and day he raised the young changeling, honing his skills in combat, subterfuge and telekinesis. The increased aging began to show its early affects. Discord rapidly developed, his intellect far behind. In less than three weeks he was already maturing through his teenage years. It appeared a constant diet of emotions impacted on a changeling’s metabolism. Starswirl searched through spell book after spell book trying with increasing difficulty to find a way to reverse the aging. Soon he would be a full grown changeling with the mind of a child, a dangerous combination.

They tried starving him, but that only seemed to hinder Discords mental progress. Only one option sat before them,

“The Zebra tribes are our most logical choice, their mystical brews seem to cure any and all ailments. We even heard rumor that they perfected a potion of reincarnation. We must delay no longer! Come, Discord!”

“Master Starswirl? May we join thou on this… quest?”

“Aurora, your love for him seems to be developing strongly. We may need thou to help him cope with such a big change. Come if thou wish.”

“Thank you!”

At dawn’s first light they set out, the forests thick twisting vines seeming to beckon them. Its sheer size amazed Discord, he felt a steady beat of excitement coursing through his veins. He’d only ever been in the tower, the outside world hidden from his view. They trekked through the forest over five long days, hunger began to burn at the weakened changeling. Overnight he got desperate and drained just a figment of emotion, he’d aged another year just from the barest amount of magic.  Fear began to dig its claws into Discord, What if he never stopped aging at this rate? What if he hurt the ones he loved? Aurora noticed the pained look on his face and gave him a reassuring smile, hoping he would focus on something less upsetting.

Light began to appear through the trees, a sign that the forest labyrinth had finally reached an end. Before them sat a large village within a grove, several strange tree huts were scattered throughout. Within its center was a massive thorny tree, a fearsome tiki doll was set above the doorway. Zebras of all shapes and sizes were congregated around the main hut, a young female was hunched over a large cauldron. She stood muttering a strange incantation and dipped a single hoof in the bubbling mixture. As she withdrew her hoof, a strange form began to materialize within the depths of the brew. A single red eye stared out towards the crowd, searching for something of interest. All of a sudden its gaze shot towards Discord, it focused upon the changeling and began to call him ever so slightly. Starswirl felt the red hot energy emanating from his son. The young zebra trotted towards the party, a look of horror etched in her features.

“What is this? A single little changeling here in our midst? Explain yourselves to me!”

“First answer this simple question, what is that thing and why is it so focused upon young Discord?”

“That my unicorn friend is a Loa spirit! It seeks to shed light on hidden truths, perhaps there is more to him then you thought?”

"To answer thou earlier question, we are searching for a potion to reverse aging. It seems the energy he consumes boosts his age considerably. That creature there is merely an infant, in spirit and mind but not in body."

“Ah I see! Well it seems you are in luck; I have just the tonic for such a thing!”

The strange red eye released the changeling, its search apparently over. Discord hovered in place, strange visions blooming into life before him. He saw a single unicorn trapped within a crystal prison , his eyes glowing with sinister magic. The black skin seemed to be almost ethereal, a strange smoke-like vapor twisted around his flesh. A single red horn grew from his forehead, emitting a single beam of black magic. The scene abruptly changed, leaving Discords mind reeling. Now he saw a strange dragon like creature, his features a combination of animals. Before him stood six ponies with strange necklaces wrapped around their necks. A rainbow shot out of the lavender colored pony, striking the single creature full in the chest. Rapidly his flesh turned to stone, leaving nothing but a statue in its place.

A single voice spoke to him through the fading visions; The power of desire is powerful, hungry for release. The one born of chaos shall fall prey to desire, lest his heart remain pure. The one born of night shall be his saving grace. But beware, the power of fear looms over them both. Heed these warnings young Discord, we will meet again soon!

Wait! We don’t understand!

In time you will…

“Discord are thou alright?” Starswirl was watching him closely, a look of dismay broken by a single smile.

“Yes! We wish to become our younger self once more.”

“Come in my child, let us restore you to your normal self.”

The bitter taste of the potion washed over his lips, a creaking, groaning sound was heard as bones and cartilage shifted to their rightful size. In mere seconds he had reverted to an infant, his speech becoming slurred. Discord yawned wide and promptly fell asleep, his sudden transition weakening his now fragile body.

“Thank thee witchdoctor!”

“A pleasure, here take these brews. They each carry a powerful emotion and will be useful in harnessing food for the creature. “

Starswirl took the flasks and placed them in his pack, leaving just enough room for the now tiny Discord.

“We must be on our way, we have a long journey back…”

“Oh don’t worry about that, just use my teleporting brew!”

“Is there anything thou voodoo can’t do?”

“Not much… “

Far in the north, beneath the frozen wastes, the changeling hivelord roared deeply, his primal rage brought on by the failure of his peons.

"What do you mean you failed?! It was a simple assassination, any idiot with your abilities could have done it! That traitorous whore gave him that changeling...Starswirl must be destroyed! But it seems I need to take matters into my own hooves!"

"But sir... he wiped out her entire hive...If it wasn't for him we would still be at war with her forces."

"You blustering fool! If he raises that infant they will have an in depth guide of our weaknesses. He could easily slip past our defenses and destroy my empire! You will return to the surface and destroy the child! And if any of the royal family crosses your path... Destroy them! The less of them, the more hope becomes torn."

"Yes, sire! I will not fail you!"

"If you do fail, I will impale your head on a stick and consume your flesh!"