The Kings of Chanceby The_Creation_MareChaptersChapter TwoChapter ThreeChapter FourChapter FiveChapter SixChapter SevenChapter EightChapter OneChapter TwoDuring the time I was out, I sort of felt this odd peace… Like, maybe if I had died, it would be okay. It was like I was floating in suspended animation. Once and a while I could hear a noise, a faint little whisper, or a feeling of being moved. Sometimes it would feel like I would come to, only to have that vague vision fizzle away into blackness again. I was disoriented of course, but I couldn’t keep track of anything- which way was up or down, where my appendages were, time, or sleep… I was happy, though. The nightmares didn’t come. After some time had passed, I started to feel things on my skin and sometimes I could hear a couple distorted words, but I still couldn’t see correctly. I didn’t even know if my eyes were open. Again, quite some time had passed, and I could start to move certain parts of my body, but it would only register as a twitch. I could feel a pain on my wrists and ankles, and one in my stomach. I think my mouth was as dry as a bone too, but it also could just be numb like the rest of my body that isn’t hurting. Gradually, I could clench my jaw, which hurt like hell. I could take in deeper breaths, and I think I could actually feel everything. I couldn’t open my eyes. That didn’t bother me, which I think it should have. I couldn’t hear much except for the occasional whisper or the shifting of objects. I didn’t care about that either. It suddenly donned on me that I was in intense pain. My head, my face, my arms and legs, even my chest hurt like nothing I’ve ever experienced. I realized I couldn’t even breathe normally without a sharp pain racing through my body. I decided to sleep; maybe that’ll pass the time and hopefully ease the pain… I don’t know how long I had slept for, but I woke up panicked for a little. I still couldn’t open my eyes and everything hurt and… I couldn’t move. Oh, no. I was restrained. And I couldn’t see. Paranoia settled in as I tried to stay still and do a silent check of me and my surroundings. Nothing felt broken, but I could be wrong. My back right hoof felt the worst. I did, however, feel a crusty residue on parts of my face and sides. It felt like I was at a 140 degree angle, I think. I was vertical with my front hooves crossed above my head in an awkward manner. Some leather-type material bound me to whatever I was against. Maybe it was a wall. I checked my surroundings next. I listened hard for anything. Nothing. I silently sniffed the air without moving my head, trying to get an idea of what was around. I smelled something metallic, something sterile, and a sickly sweet smell. The air was cold, too. Was I in a hospital? I couldn’t be… They wouldn’t have restrained me like this. I had immaculate hearing and smelling, but nothing popped out at me. That is, until I heard a soft clop-clop, clop-clop coming from somewhere above me. I hated that. I couldn’t see it, but I could hear it. The paranoia got more intense as the sound got closer and louder. I thought I heard conversing, but it could just have been my mind playing tricks on me. Then, all was quiet. “Well, good morning, sunshine.” That voice. My heart and my breathing stopped. My thinking stopped. Everything stopped. A weight was lifted off of the top part of my face, halfway between my snout and my forehead. I realized then I was aggressively strapped down by something, covering my eyes. I hadn’t noticed the pain it was causing until it was taken off. I think my eyes were swollen pretty bad. Through the tiny slits of my eyelids, I could make out two figures. The ones from my nightmares. I heard a chuckle. “Well, well, well. Look who finally decided to wake up,” The voice that was speaking I didn’t recognize, and my eyes hurt too bad to open them to look. The same voice started speaking again, with exaggerated haughtiness. “No nightmares at all, your sleepiness?” Laughter from both of them arose, making my face burn. How did they know about the nightmares? “Oh, leave her alone, Sombra. Can’t you tell she’s so sleepy that her eyelids have turned purple?” More obnoxious laughter. My tongue and mouth were as dry as dry could be, but I managed to say something. “…Piss… off.” Their laughter ceased, and I could feel their stares bearing holes through me. I smirked and breathed heavily from the pain that racked my body. I can’t submit to them. I know that’s what they want. Suddenly a claw gripped my throat, and a paw silenced me, covering my nose and mouth. “What?” I couldn’t breathe at all. I couldn’t even swallow. “Mmmnnnfffnnnn” was all I could say, trying to be as loud as possible without my head hurting too much. His grip tightened on my throat and I tried desperately to struggle and breathe, but I had no such luck. Sombra started to giggle quietly as my face started turning different colors. I thrust forward and sideways, trying to get free of his grip. “Oh, stop struggling. You’re only making it worse. In fact, this is your first lesson: Obedience.” First lesson? Was he crazy? My dry lips cracked under his paw and I tasted blood. I’ll let him win this round. As much as I hated doing so, I stopped struggling, and prayed to Celestia he would let go soon. A few seconds passed, and he finally let loose, allowing me to drag in huge gulps of air, choking here and there. He stood there, staring at me and grinning. “Very good, Shadow Spec-” I shot my head up and immediately cut him off. “Don’t you dare finish that sentence, don’t you dare say my real name,” I huffed. A look of amused confusion sprawled across Discord’s face. It returned back to his usual grin, though. “Why ever not?” He knows. I know he knows. He knows I know he knows. He just wants me to spell it out for him, which I’m not going to. “Well, anyway, Pegasus-” he spat on the word ‘Pegasus’, “You’re ours now. From here on out, you will address us as either ‘Sir’ or ‘Master’. Understood?” Was he serious? I wasn’t going to call either of them any of those names. I stood there, looking at the ground, panting. I didn’t know what to say. I didn’t want him to choke me again, or maybe even worse, but I didn’t want to- “Understood?” He got up close to my face, breaking my train of thought. I slowly looked up to meet his eyes and nodded. Verbal words are promises and gestures are just that, right? As if he read my thoughts, he held my chin with his claw and looked me dead-on. “I need you to speak your answer, Chance.” He said calmly. How did he even know my nickname? Sombra chimed in. “Speak, you mutt.” My face burned and I quietly said “Understood…” Discord leaned in closer. “ ‘Understood…’ what?” Tears threatened to push through, so I had to bite my tongue. “Understood… Master.” He let go of my chin and patted my head. “Good girl,” He said with a smile. “You might be easier to break than I had thought.” Think again. I hung there, fighting back tears, welcoming the pain my body has housed. “Discord,” I half panted, half demanded. He raised an eyebrow. “Yes?” I looked up at his general direction. “Why can’t I remember anything before I woke up here?” He bared his teeth and laughed heartily. “You’ll find out soon enough, my little pony.” He walked away with Sombra, leaving me wherever it was they bound me. After I made sure they were gone, I cried. Full-blown crying. Shaking, hyperventilating, and choking on air, I wept until I couldn’t muster the strength to anymore. I hung there, devoid of any emotion at that point, wondering what I could do to get out. I’ve seen many shows and movies where convicts and crazy ponies wiggle out of their straps and gallop to freedom, but I couldn’t even see what was in the room. All I knew is that I was in a grey, plain, basement-like room. I was in pain, I literally could not remember anything before I woke up here, and I had a hatred fill my gut and let it overpower my thoughts. I will get out of here. And I will kill Discord and Sombra. __________________________________ I don’t know how I was able to sleep like this. I was somewhat vertical, and my arms were bent at a weird angle and behind my head. Probably to make it harder to break loose. I awkwardly twisted my body this way and that way, trying to get in a comfortable position. I twisted and twisted and twisted. Good thing I’m flexible… Otherwise this would have been painful. Somehow I twisted so far that I actually spun myself around onto my stomach, untwisting my arms and crossing my legs. “Whoa,” I whispered to myself, shocked that I actually did that. Relief washed over me and a lot of the pain went away. I couldn’t help but sigh because it was so good not to have constant pain. I wonder if Discord will get mad that I flipped over… Oh, well. I’ll cross that bridge when I get to it. I slept a rather fitful rest, but it was sleep nonetheless. Hopefully I’ll be able to see tomorrow. Author's Note Yay, chapter 2 is done~ Again, any criticism is welcomed in the comments section. Chapter ThreeI woke up who knows how long after I had fallen asleep. I didn’t open my eyes, not because of fear that they were still swollen, but because I was afraid if I did open them, Sombra or Discord will be standing there. I was still on my stomach, but it was still possible for somepony to get up in my face. I listened to see if I could hear anything. Not a peep. In fact, the silence was so thick, it almost hurt from the incessant ringing. To my surprise, my eyes flitted open the moment I told them to do so. They still hurt pretty bad, but at least I could see. I was in a darkened room, but all I could make out was a long table with a cloth that fell to the floor and a staircase leading up, and another one leading down. The faintest of light made its way through the upper staircase. It looked like that blue-gray you often see during early winter mornings. Since no one was around, I decided to try and wiggle loose. I used my front hooves’ restraints to lift me up and bring tension off my back hooves. After a moment of brief struggling, they were free. The moment they went back to their normal position, pain struck through my spine like lightning, causing me to let go and fall through the rest of the restraints. I fell on the concrete floor, hurting every inch of my body. At least my right arm cushioned my head. I yelped loud on instinct, and immediately covered my mouth and forced myself to crawl under the table to hide. Each little movement sent waves of pain through my body, but I didn’t want to be caught by those two monsters. I laid on my side, not moving, barely breathing, and tears moistening my eyes. Please don’t come down here, please don’t come down here. I hoped like nothing else that they didn’t hear me. Just as I thought it was safe to move around again, something grabbed my tail and pulled me out from underneath the table, hoisting me upside-down into the air. I couldn’t even thrash around because the pain was so unbearable. I wanted to cry, to whimper, to be a total wimp and hold Dante again. But not now. I had to be strong. Shutting my eyes tight, I waited for the worst. “Oohhh, we have a little Houdini in the making,” Discord sneered. He threw me hard against the wall and I hit my forehead. I cried out softly. “Ahn…” I didn’t speak or look up or even dare move. I doubt I could even do any of those things, anyway. I whimpered quietly, tears on the brink of poring out. I heard Sombra walk over and kicked me in the ribs, shooting searing pain all over. At least he didn’t buck. I hid my face in my hooves and let the tears drip onto my fur. “I hope that hurts,” Discord flatly said. “We were actually going to grant you food and a shower today, since you smell like a barn and I can see your ribs. But after that little stunt, I’m not so sure anymore. What do you think, Sombra?” “I think we should at least feed her, you know? We don’t want her to die just yet.” Food. Dear Celestia. I didn’t realize how starving I was, until I remembered the intense pain in my stomach. How could I have forgotten food? Or even water? I then felt my whole body being moved, but I couldn’t tell how. I looked up and saw Sombra was half dragging me across the floor with a levitating spell cast from his horn. “Come on, you little annoyance…” He said that as if he was bored. He trotted with me over to the staircase that led downward, the concrete scraping my skin, creating new wounds and reopening old ones. Struggle was obviously futile, so I just took it and bit my tongue. He reached the first step with no sign of slowing down, and dragged me tail first down the stairs. Panicked, I took all of my strength to put my front hooves in front of my face and forehead so I wouldn’t hit it anymore. A scraping thunk, thunk, thunk, thunk and the sound of hooves was the only thing breaking the silence as we went down the stairs for what seemed like an eternity. I could tell Discord was right in front of me, following Sombra. As if he could tell I was thinking about him, he said, “You know, you’re a lot tougher than I had expected. Sombra and I actually made bets on when you would start bawling and break,” He chuckled. “Of course, I lost.” He sneered. I could hear Sombra chuckling to himself as we finally hit what I hoped was the bottom floor of wherever we were. This room was well-lit, and I could smell something unfamiliar cooking. I could hear a fire crackling and popping. Maybe they were making food. With hidden excitement, I lifted up my head to see what was cooking. I wish I hadn’t. There, hanging from the ceiling by a meat hook, was an animal. Half of its meat had been taken off, leaving entrails dangling from its stomach. I stared at it in disbelief. Upon looking at it closer, I realized I recognized what it was. It was Tonrar. I started to immediately throw up stomach acid. I was screaming and bawling and throwing every colorful curse word I knew at Discord and Sombra. Sombra started to cackle, tending to the fire which was cooking my best friend. I was shaking uncontrollably, gagging and unable to throw up anymore. “What the hell is wrong with you!?” I screeched. I got up and starting pounding my front hooves on Discord’s chest, even though I was too weak to do any damage. He pushed me off and I fell on the ground, still sobbing. “I guess we know what triggers your feelings,” He said, amused. Sombra then lifted me up with his horn and sat me down on a chair at a table, and strapped me in with even more leather restraints. Tears blinded me, and I thrashed around, screaming hoarsely. “TONRAR!” I started to cry hysterically and bellow obscenities. “Oh, shut up. It’s not that bad. Try some,” What? I opened my eyes to see Sombra eat a piece of the cooked meat. I just stared at him, jaw open. Discord took this opportunity and held my jaw in place, so I couldn’t close it. What are they doing? WHAT ARE THEY DOING? I frantically thought. Sombra took a chunk of meat and brought it up to my mouth. I screamed louder than I thought was ever possible. He forced it into my mouth, and then let Discord shut my jaw and cover my lips so I couldn’t spit it out. Tears were streaming down my face, and I was puking the little stomach acid I had left into my mouth. He moved my jaw up and down to simulate chewing. I tried desperately, so desperately, to make this stop. Unfortunately, straps covered most of my body, so I couldn’t even move my head from side to side. After the meat was a warm mush, he covered my nose and lifted up my head. “Swallow,” He commanded. I knew that he wouldn’t let me breathe if I didn’t. I had no choice. I had eaten my pet. My best friend. I couldn’t cry anymore, so I just sat there, disheveled. They fed me more and more until there was a bulge in my stomach. I had thrown up twice, maybe more. After that I had just lost all strength. Things started to make sense, I think. The metallic smell I had encountered when I woke up was blood. Tonrar was yelping when I blacked out, Volk snarling, trying to save him. I wondered why I could remember that and nothing else. I couldn’t remember the faces of my friends, or even their names. I sat there, lost in thought, while Discord and Sombra tidied up or whatever they were doing. My parents? Nothing came to mind. Do I even have a sister? A brother? Still nothing. Was I a good student to Celestia? How can I remember Celestia and none of my friends or family? I groaned in frustration and depression. Was I a good friend? I fell asleep in the chair, having nothing else to do. I dreamt of a cold, barren wasteland that used to be Ponyville. Everypony was covered in blood, their bodies a mangled mess, patches of fur missing in some spots. Body parts were strewn across roads and yards. Sounds of sobbing and moaning and cries for help was the theme song for this wretched vision. The sky was a golden-red and masked with black, puffy clouds. I could smell sulfur and blood and fire. Fires ate houses, charring bodies. Then, suddenly, everypony dead or alive, slowly turned their heads towards me and pointed. “Your fault… This is all your fault… Why didn’t you protect us…!? You made this happen…!” The dead ponies crawled towards me, the luckier, alive ones ran. I couldn’t move or even scream. I thought I recognized some faces, but that hope faded as the memory flew away from my grasp. They all dog piled onto me, crushing my bones and tearing at my flesh. Pure hatred and disgust filled their eyes. I then woke up with a start, seeing Discord and Sombra tugging away the straps. They both looked at me without turning their heads. “I hate you both,” I spat. Discord slapped me with his paw. “Shut up.” When I was loose, I immediately mad a run for it, galloping toward the stairs. I had to run under Tonrar’s corpse because it was the fastest way to the stairs. Blood dripped onto my back. Halfway up the stairs, Discord materialized in front of me and I ran into him, falling backwards and tumbling down the stairs. “Are you ever not going to run into me?” I brought my wings up and I pushed off the ground as hard as I could. Sadly, the ceiling was low, so I couldn’t escape their grasp for long. Every flap of my wings hurt like hell. I collapsed onto the table and got covered in Tonrar’s entrails. I pushed off the table with my wings and flew horizontally, knocking things over and kicking flaming logs into the air. “Holy shit, calm down,” Sombra yelled. Discord grabbed me and held me so I couldn’t move. I struggled for a good three minutes, then stopped out of exhaustion. “Finally…” Sombra said under his breath. Fresh tears streamed down my face as I hung my head. “I don’t care if you tried to escape twice today. You need to wash up. Especially now that you have you dog’s blood all over you,” Discord said, smirking. With his claw, he grabbed me, holding me by my abdomen. He floated up the two flights of stairs, to the room above where I was kept. I had shut my eyes to try to stop the migraine I had. A few doors opened, we went left and right, and he finally stopped and lifted me up so I would be face-to-face with him. I looked at him with no emotion. He stared at me. It was hard to tell what he was thinking. He put me down and left, closing the door behind him. “You have 10 minutes, Chance. We need to show you something when you’re done,” Great, I thought. Can’t wait. I laid on the floor for a minute or so. I finally got up and looked around. It was a pretty big bathroom, with an intricately designed shower surrounded by a glass wall. Shampoo and the works lined the wall of the shower. I looked at the shower floor and saw clods of white hair. That… Is disgusting. Is that Discord’s? I grimaced and turned on the water to push it down the drain. While the water was on, I wondered if I could just make a run for it now. I looked under the door and didn’t see anything. I tried the knob, but to my surprise, it was locked from the outside. No locks on the inside. Oh, wonderful. Now he could barge in at any time and watch me shower. I looked back at the floor and saw that it was free of nasty hairs. When I stepped into the warm stream of water, my whole body stung. I had to wash out the cuts and scrapes, otherwise they’d get infected. I just won’t use soap on them. I watched as the water going down the drain turned different colors: brown, maroon, bubbly-white with soap, and black with dirt. Finally the water ran clear. I was so thirsty that I opened my mouth and drank the water falling down in streams, and after having my fill, I got out. Just in spite of Discord, I shook like a dog (even though it hurt) and got water everywhere. I started to chuckle when the door opened, and his face peeked through. He looked all over the room and then back at me, shock turning to irritation. “Ugh,” We stared at each other for a long time, and I felt my face burning. I wasn’t sure why. “Time to go.” “Where?” I said flatly. “Just obey and do as you’re told,” He said with obvious annoyance. “Come with me.” He went back behind the door and I followed. “Sombra, the mutt is ready.” “Took it long enough.” “Can you not call me a mutt?” They both laughed. “…Fine, I just won’t call you Master.” They shot me dirty looks. “Listen, mutt, ‘Master’ is a title. ‘Mutt’ is a degrading term. We’re kings, so you will treat us as such.” I sighed. “And what are you king of, Discord?” A pause. “You. I am your king. And you will obey.” A weird look sprawled across my face, a mix of confusion and disgust. He looked off into the distance. “And obviously I’m king of chaos, if you haven’t already put two and two together.” An awkward silence filled the air, and Sombra cleared his throat. “We should probably get going.” Discord grunted and went to get something out of a drawer. He pulled out a rag and a vial with clear liquid. He looked over at me and smirked, sprinkling the liquid on the rag. “Uhhh…” I said, unsure. I think I knew what that was. He floated off somewhere and I wanted to watch him, but Sombra levitated me and kept me from moving. Discord brought his paw up to my snout with the rag pressing against it. It was chloroform. I held my breath until I felt a hoof strike me in the stomach, causing me to gasp. Instantly, I felt numb and everything started to fade away. I had blacked out. Author's Note This is the only chapter I'm going to submit today... I made it longer than usual to compensate for two, so... Yeah. Criticism is welcome, like always.♥ Chapter Four(This chapter will be told from Discord’s point of view, continuing from the last chapter.) The Pegasus finally stopped struggling in my arms, going limp. “…You didn’t hit her that hard, did you?" “Why do you care?” He turned around and started walking away. I hoisted her over my shoulder and followed him. I waited as his horn glowed a magnificent yet subtle red color. The rift opened up, allowing us to enter. The void was the same as always, bleak and free of anything. Almost like deep space without the colorful stars. Although it was very dark, a constant light lit the whole of the void, but there were no light sources. No actual defined horizon or sky or visual depth played a part in this dimension. You could hear a low, moaning wind blowing somewhere, but you couldn’t see or feel it. We walked the correct ways to the center to avoid looping and starting back where we were. Finally we reached the middle, an obvious place where it was a little brighter and the floor was a lighter gray color. I set her down on the floor and wrapped a collar around her neck, and then attached that to a chain which hooked to a spike in the ground. The good thing about being a draconequus is that you have opposable thumbs. Chance won’t be able to take off the collar because she lacks fingers. Before we got here, I had fixed a muzzle onto her, keeping the rag in place and preventing her from waking up. I took that off and threw it backwards, and Sombra caught it with his horn. I sighed and looked up at the black and indigo “sky”. Things close to resembling stars dotted this sky, but vanished once you look at them dead-on. You could see them in your peripheral vision, though. “Ahh, the void is looking so lovely today, eh, Chance?” I heard a small gasp and I had to smirk to myself. I guess she didn’t know I knew when she awoke. “This is your new home, now. You will be kept here while certain… ‘errands’ are taken care of in Equestria.” “What? We’re not in Equestria? What do you mean, errands?” I chuckled, amused by her confusion. “No, we’re in another dimension, where certain physics that apply to Equestria are not played here. It’s quite fun, really.” “…The errands. What are you planning to do there?” Without answering her, I turned and flew away. “Wait, come back! You can’t leave me here!” “Oh, don’t worry. I’ll come back for you once I’m done with Ponyvi- I mean, with the errands. And I certainly can leave you here. Just watch me.” Sombra was long gone now, probably bored. I left the way I came, mentally noting when to turn this way or that, even though there weren’t any visual aids. Chance couldn’t have seen me once I turned the first corner. The void was a strange place that Sombra and I both created. Its purpose was many; a prison, a safe house, a meeting place, et cetera. I had gotten the idea to keep her here because it was no easy task to find your way out of here, even if you’ve passed through hundreds of times. Sombra and I came up with the most brilliant plan ever thought. Since Chance has such an interesting psyche that it’s so simple yet almost impossible to understand, we chose her. She’s friends with just about everyone in Ponyville and Canterlot. She even personally knows the Princesses. That makes her a wonderful pawn. Basically, my plan is to terrorize the two towns and make it look like Chance was responsible. Oh, yes, it does sound trivial, but in actuality, it will be one of the worse things to happen in Equestria’s history. I designed a bomb that will help us do so- but this is no ordinary bomb. It is designed to go off in intervals, each blast a weak pulse of fire, metal shrapnel, and utter force. The first blast will be the worst, causing the most damage, sending the lesser-wounded ponies outside to help the hurt. The pause between the first and second blast will also be the longest, to ensure the most ponies are outside to feel it. The second blast will send buildings tumbling down, scorch trees and fields, and render many ponies’ senses useless- sight, hearing, and feeling. Hopefully it’ll blind them with shrapnel and debris, deafen them with its loud boom, and numb them with fire and multiple scrapes. The explosion’s height reaches above the clouds, to make sure any Pegasi don’t try to flee its wrath. Sombra will cast a spell over Ponyville and Canterlot to make it so nopony can get out, but the explosion can get in. Then, he will make a hologram of Chance walking through the streets, with a look of sick joy pasted on her face. She will be called to help the others, but the hologram will just smile and walk away. Now, with the matter of the Princesses, I will personally break their horns and clip their wings as they’re under piles of rubble. I’m still debating whether or not it’s worth it to kidnap and kill them. I would love to have them watch as their subjects burned and died, knowing they could do nothing to help. It’s going to be glorious. Quite a few hours have passed, and it was nighttime. We decided to detonate the bomb during the night because Celestia will most likely be sleeping in her castle, vulnerable and unaware. All was silent as we made our way to the detonation location. We placed the bomb, about the size of a few beach balls, in a field between Canterlot and Ponyville. To be honest, the silence was a little disconcerting… Luna should have spotted us relatively fast. Something didn’t feel right. Ignoring my instincts to abort the plan and get out before anyone sees, I stayed and triggered the detonation to go off in 3 minutes- just enough time to pop back into the void while destruction is wrought. I had to admit, I was feeling giddy about having a foolproof plan that will surely rid this world of Celestia. I looked over and nodded to Sombra, who then opened the rift to enter the void. We made our way to the center of the void because it will probably take around 10 or 15 minutes for the bomb to stop pulsing, and we needed to make sure Chance hadn’t escaped and ventured too far into the void. She was, indeed, there, sleeping like a lazy oaf. She must’ve heard us and woke up, immediately scooting backwards away from us as far as her leash would go. “Oh, nice to see you too.” She flashed me a dirty look and I smirked in return. It was always so amusing to watch her attempt to hate me. “So, I guess those things we needed to do are done. I just need to go back and check up on things later.” “Which is…?” “None of your beeswax, mutt.” She sighed, annoyed, and slumped forward. “Slouching is bad for your posture, you know.” She looked up at me and had a look on her face that obviously said ’screw off’. I decided then would be a good time to go back out and see how much damage the bomb had caused. Without saying anything, I left, with Sombra following closely behind. I heard her groan, probably in frustration. I stopped in my tracks, receiving a deliciously evil idea. “Wait a minute, Sombra… Let’s take her with us. You can cast an invisibility spell on her so she won’t be seen, but she will still be able to see what happened. You’ll be in charge of her, though, when I take care of the loose ends.” Sombra’s face perked up, probably enjoying that idea. “Sounds… interesting.” We looked over at her, confusion written all over her face. I flew over and untied her chain from the ground. Holding her in my arms, I covered her eyes. I didn’t want her seeing the way out. I knew she was smart and could easily remember the directions to turn. “Hey…! Let me go, you jerk! Stop touching me!” She tried fighting back, despite my amazing strength keeping her from squirming free. “Uncover my eyes! Stop! I need to see!” Ugh. Annoying. “Shut up, you weak-minded mule.” She stopped after that and I chuckled quietly. We got outside and I released Chance, holding her leash. She was probably strong enough to try to escape, and I didn’t want to take any risks. As she recovered from my grasp, Sombra cast an invisibility spell on her, but made it so only he and I could see her. “What… Where are we? What’s that smell? How did we get out of that pla-” Sombra groaned and hoofed her in the mouth, causing her to fall. Blood trickled down her snout and she looked more shocked than in pain. “…You could have just told me to be quiet.” He scoffed and looked at me, waiting for orders. I told him to have Chance see all her ‘friends’, but keep her restrained enough that she can’t interfere. I gave him the chain, which he held with a levitating aura, and flew off to Canterlot. I heard Chance look up and say “Ho…ly…”, shocked and probably on the edge of sobbing. Again. While she was sleeping, I was able to mix in visions of the disaster here into her dreams. Like I said, sometimes her mind is weak. She can’t handle something like this mentally; enough of this and she’ll be easier to break than a toothpick. I flew to Celestia’s castle, looking for any signs of movement to tell me where the princesses are. I heard a few stifled gasps from the ponies below me, probably seeing me and knowing I had caused this wonderful array of destruction and death. I had nothing to show I had found any of Equestria’s rulers. Not even a glimpse of white or indigo. I started to feel uneasy as the search went on. Surely they would be under here. Maybe they were in a deeper part of rubble. I sighed and started digging through heaps of rock and brightly colored stone. Finally, after a few minutes of searching, I had an idea. Mimicking Twilight Sparkle’s voice, I called out, “Princess Celestia! Princess Celestia! Where are you? Say something!” Nothing. I had hoped even that would bring her out. “Oh well. No use beating a dead horse. Or, in my case… A dead Alicorn.” I broke out laughing. Sometimes I crack myself up. Since nothing was to be done here anymore, I flew back to Sombra and Chance. I saw Chance in the air, tugging at her leash. “Let me go! I need to help them! LET ME GO!" Tears fell freely down her face. “But you can’t remember your ‘friends’. Why help complete strangers?” She shot me a look that could kill and said, “Discord, you wouldn’t understand, would you? You have no friends.” Anger filled me and I lifted her up by her leash, holding her abdomen and preventing her from using her wings. “How many times do we have to tell you to shut up?” She kicked and grabbed at her collar, presumably choking. “Fuck you,” She hoarsely said. “Okay, that’s it. We’re going, Sombra. Now.” He opened the rift again, and we walked through. I didn’t bother to cover her eyes as we went through the maze of turns we had to take. I dragged her by the leash as she squirmed on the floor, trying to breathe. This time we went a different way, to a place with “correctional facilities.” By the time we got to a small, enclosed room and I let the leash go slack, her face was a light indigo color, and she started gasping and coughing. “You’re going to go through your second lesson. Respect,” I said. “You do realize what ‘fuck you’ means, right?” She looked up at me with a look of disgust and maybe even horror, and I smirked. I went ahead inside, dragging her along. “Stop with the dragging…” She said. “Then keep up and follow like a good girl.” She did, however the chain was still pretty taut as she hesitantly walked with me. We went through the door and entered the small, dark room, filled with different supplies, a fireplace, and a chrome table. The anger was still present as I aggressively strapped her to the cold metal table and turned on a bright light hanging above her. “Can someone tell me what’s going on?” She said, annoyed. “Shut your trap, you annoying little pest.” I turned the brightness of the light up, almost blinding her, so she couldn’t see much. I grabbed a dirty piece of broken glass from the floor and leaned on the table, tracing the sharpest end of the glass lightly around her cutie mark. “So, your ‘cutie mark’, I assume it symbolizes creativity, hm?” “Y-yeah. So what?” Her voice started to tremble, trying hard not to show it, and I grinned. I knew. “I can be pretty damn creative as well.” I stopped tracing it and started to carelessly shear the fur on her thigh, shaving the image of the mark off. “What the hell are you doing!? St-” “Do you need another hoof mark on your face?” Sombra growled from a corner of the room, and she went quiet. I intentionally nicked her skin with the glass here and there, causing her to squirm. I did the same on the other side when the whole image was but a patch of reddened skin. When I was finished, I went to the fireplace. “So, when I said I was creative, I meant it. Take this, for example,” I held up an iron rod that had been sitting in the fire, glowing a magnificent orange color. On the end was an piece of metal in the shape of my skull. “I captured my horns perfectly, don’t you think?” I giggled. “I can’t see a thing with this light in my face, you a…” She cleared her throat at the end to try to hide her mistake. “You can’t? Here.” I moved the light out of the way and held the hot metal close to her face. “Holy-! Get that out of my face before I get burned!” I laughed and brought it back over to me. “Oh, don’t worry, my little Chance. I won’t be burning your face.” I heard her quietly sigh in relief. “You’ll be getting a new cutie mark, though.” Her head shot up and stared at me. “Excuse me?” I nodded to Sombra, who held her chin backwards, keeping her from making much noise. I lifted the metal to her thigh and turned it horizontally. Chance was hyperventilating, probably knowing what I was doing. I grinned and stuck the metal onto her skin and waited. She tried to flail, making weird noises and whimpers. “Chance, if you squirm you’ll make the image look weird…” I whined. “And if you want to keep your mobility, you’ll stop this instant.” She stopped moving. Threats are the best. After the image had time to burn into the skin, I moved to the other side. Chance watched me and I watched her. Her face was soaked. “Don’t cry, it’s almost over.” I placed the brand on her skin again, and she flinched, staying in a weird, tense position. She was probably trying her hardest not to make any noise. When the metal was done doing its job, I stuck it in a bucket of water. “See? That wasn’t so bad. And you have a lovely new talent: Being mine. Now that you have this cutie mark, you’ll be mine forever. In sickness and in health,” I held my hands together close to my face and swooned, exaggerating the implications of her new mark. I looked at the swollen, blistered burn and then at Chance, who Sombra had released. She was shutting her eyes tightly and biting her lip. I still wasn’t finished. “Chance, I can look into your head. I know your fears, what triggers paranoia and anxiety. And much, much more,” I said, walking over to a drawer. “I know. I know everything about your psyche. Like sensory deprivation and suffocation, for starters.” I heard her shift uncomfortably. I pulled out a shot with a vile full of cloudy liquid, a switchblade and a bandana. I went back over to her and told Sombra to hold her head in place. With some effort, I managed to tie the thing around her eyes. “Stop, please let me see, please! I need to see!” She started to hyperventilate again. “So, this shot contains a special kind of fluid. What it does is almost immediately paralyzes the victim temporarily. If I stick this in your calf, almost everything will be immobilized, except for your breathing and speaking abilities. Speaking might just feel like your whole mouth is kinda numb.” I stood still, not making any sounds for her to tell where I’m at. “…Get it over with! Stop toying with me, and just do it!” “Oh, but there’s no fun in that, now is there?” I stuck the needle in her skin, where I had cut away her fur. She jerked one way and squeaked, taken by surprise. I giggled. She finally went limp and I could hear her heart rate speed up. “Still alive?” I mocked. She growled in response. “Good. So now you can’t see or move. What else could I deprive you of without killing you?” I got up onto the table and on top of her, with my knees pressing into her chest. “Maybe we can start with air…” I wrapped my claw around her throat firmly. I brought the switchblade out and lightly pressed it against the indent in her neck. “Now, what’s my name?” “Discord.” I tightened my grip and pressed the blade down harder. “Wrong. My name is Master. At least, to you it is. When will you speak?” “Whenever I damn well please.” The anger I felt returned and I slashed a long gash in her neck. I made sure to avoid any vital arteries. “Wrong. You will speak when spoken to. Do you deserve to be mine?” There was a long pause. “Answer me!” She sighed. “…Probably not.” She said, voice breaking. My grip on her neck tightened even more. “Will you ever try to escape again?” She swallowed hard. “No…?” I chuckled. “Good girl.” I loosened my grip a little. The questions and answers went on for about a half an hour, gaining some progress. Sombra finally left after falling asleep a few times. This left me to ask more interesting questions. I took off her blind fold when I was sure Sombra wasn’t in hearing distance. “Listen, and listen well. I’m not a mind reader, per se, but I can read your psyche. It’s an open book. I can tell your deepest, darkest hopes and desires,” She looked at me with confusion and shock. “Yes. I know,” She squirmed underneath me. “But I also know your fears and deep-rooted instincts. I kno-” “Yes, Master, I know you know. You know I have a thing for pain and being owned and all that crap. But what I don’t understand is why you did any of this.” The words flooded out of her mouth. “Well, you see… You’re very precious to your friends and family back home. You’re very easy to break. In fact, you might have already been broken. After you’re completely broken and you’re on my side, and the whole town of Ponyville is a disaster along with Canterlot, you will finish off every last pony alive.” Those last four words came out surprisingly full of anger and hate. Both of us looked confused. “How did you perfectly describe the dreams I’ve been having lately?” I grinned and chuckled. If she only knew. Author's Note Okay, sorry about the late publish. I've been going through frequent writer's blocks throughout this chapter. That's probably why it has a varying speed... Anyway, the next chapter will be back to normal, and all other chapters unless stated like I did in the beginning of the chapter. Chapter FiveI laid there on the table with my face burning worse than my new burn marks. I stared at Discord, barely hearing the words he said after I blurted out the truth. How did that freaking happen? Why did I even call him Master? I can’t believe I just told him that. He probably knew, anyway. Ugh. Shame and embarrassment and a hint of guilt flowed freely around my body, and I wanted to hide my face. Stupid, stupid Chance. Now he has an upper hand on you. “I think you’ve have enough punishment for now,” Discord said, facing the fire. “What do you think?” “Um, uh… I- I, eh…” I stammered. Why can’t I even talk? He turned around and got within a few centimeters of my face. “Unless you want me to go further…” I looked for words to say, but found none, so I gulped hard and shook my head. “Hmpf. Figures. No more fun for Discord. Oh, well… I’ve got more important things to do than watch you cry and whine.” He went through the door, leaving me still on the table. “You’re not coming back, are you?” I said, more to myself than him. I sighed and looked at the ceiling, deep in thought. I think at one point I had fallen asleep. I had this weird dream where I felt like I was under water, intentionally going deeper and deeper. I tried to reach out to something underneath me, but no matter how fast I swam, I could never touch it. Suddenly the water got freezing and everything went black. I heard a snarling “Wake up.” and realized Sombra had thrown a bucket of ice water on my face. “Sombra, what the hell!?” He growled and punched my snout again. I felt something pop, and blood started trickling down in a steady stream. “You will speak only when I ask you a question. Understand?” I stared him down and decided another hoofed face wasn’t worth it. “…Yeah.” “Good. Now, since Discord is away for the time being, I’m allowed to have my share of games with you,” I gave him a weird look. “Meaning I can ‘train’ you like the mutt you are.” Shit. I think I know where this is going… He went and grabbed a bunch of wiring connected to a black metal box, and set it next to me. He wrapped a single metal wire around my right forearm. Oh. Oh, no. I know what he’s going to do. “Now,” he said, with a restrained yet unsettling glee, “Answer my questions wrong, you get punished. Answer them right, and you won’t. Depending on how many questions you get wrong, I might intensify the pain.” I swallowed hard. His horn glowed and I lost my vision as if I had gotten up too fast, and suddenly all of my memories came back at once. It was painful and I jerked to one side and gasped. “Twilight… Twilight!” I panted, still unable to see at the moment. Then, without warning, an equally painful shock came from my arm and surged through my body. “SILENCE. You do not listen well, equine.” I wanted to scream, to fly and get as far away from here as possible. All my friends. I remember seeing most of them back in Ponyville, in pain and the worst look on their face. I started to cry silently. I could have saved them. Sombra held up a picture of a familiar pony. It was Pinkie with her trademark mile-wide grin. I gasped inwardly, recognizing her. “Friend or foe?” What was he talking about? “Friend,” I quickly said. “Wrong.” He switched on that box and sent surges through me, amplified by the water he had thrown on me. It hurt pretty bad, but not enough to satisfy his needs. “You have no friends, only attackers and enemies.” He intensified the electricity to strengthen his point. He turned it off, and waited until I looked at him. “Princess Celestia.” He said. My ears perked up at the name, and in return I got a stronger dose of pain. I could feel muscles tensing up involuntarily. He stopped it once more, and held up another picture. This time it was a picture of my best friend, Tonrar. Only he was beaten and broken and twisted in grotesque and unnatural positions. That’s it. I snapped. “You BASTARD SON OF A BITCH!” I started to bawl and scream and flail, despite the extremely intense, sharp pains of the electricity. I didn’t care. I went bat shit insane, and an adrenaline rush allowed me to somehow rip off the restraints on all four legs, and I brought up my wings and launched myself as hard as I could at Sombra, hoofing him hard in the jaw. He doubled over in shock and pain and I took that chance to dislocate a shoulder. I was on top of his chest now, beating away at his chest and throat. He bucked me off and I flew across the room, hitting my head on a table. I looked up just in time to see him awkwardly charging at me, so I dodged and he hit the same table as I did. I laughed. “Smooth, ya asshole.” He stood there, not moving, but breathing really hard and growling. “I… am going to fucking… murder you.” I felt cocky even though I was in pain both emotionally and physically, and it was funny to see him mad, so I said, “Is that a threat or a promise?” He looked up at me and his whole demeanor screamed hatred and anger. His eyes were crazy as he lunged towards me. Uh oh. I flew as fast as my body would allow out of that room and into the void, remembering where I was chained to the floor. I would have tried losing him by turning the corners a bunch of times, but I really didn’t want to get lost here. As soon as I reached the spot, I stopped and turned around to see if he had followed me. Big mistake. He was right there, blood oozing from his nose and mouth. He pinned me down with a spell and started to laugh maniacally. He lost it. He brought up his hind legs and was about to end my breathing when Discord tackled him to the ground away from me. I heard curses and punches landing and struggling. I couldn’t see what was going on because the spell rendered me literally immobile. Finally that stopped and the spell on me was released. Panicked, I started to fly away, but Discord snapped his fingers and my wings were gone. I fell and a collar was put around my neck again. Great. I got up and looked at the ground. Without moving my head, I looked to see Sombra not too far away with a black eye and a scowl on his face. “So, Chance, look at these amazing souvenirs I got when I was out.” Discord held out what looked like some white feathers, indigo feathers, and a white horn. He also had a few pieces of dark blue and off-white chunks of… stuff. I looked away, half knowing what they were. “Oh, come on. It’s not that bad here.” He picked me up from underneath my arms and held me above the ground so I would look into his eyes. “Look at you, you’re all messed up. Sombra, what did I say about your harshness level?” Sombra just dropped his jaw in complete shock. “I told you not to hurt her. I guess I’ll have to do this my way, like I do with everything else.” He set me down and created a hammock out of nowhere between two palm trees. “Now,” he said, “You got your memories back, right?” I shifted my weight, making the leash he held clink quietly. “Ah, yes, good. But I have to break some news to you,” He paused. “Your ‘friends’ thought of you poorly, you know.” “That’s a lie!” I snapped back. “Is not. Think back. Remember when Rainbow Dash said you could make it to The Wonderbolts? Or when Miss Sparkle said you could get into one of those high-end colleges? Or how about when the pink one said you could have won that bakery contest if you had entered? Those were all lies. They all think you’re not good enough, sadly.” I thought back, and it did seem like that was true… “I'm good at some things…” “Well of course. They just think you’re not good enough. They laugh at your failures. They don’t take you seriously. Rainbow Dash thinks you can’t fly, Twilight thinks of you as a fool, Pinkie laughs at you, Rari-” “STOP IT STOP IT STOP IT. Get out of my head! I know what you’re trying to do, and it won’t work!” I started squirming, trying to get that damn collar off. He lifted me up by the collar, choking me temporarily, and set me down on his chest. His jaw tightened and took a deep breath. “Now listen. I don’t yell at you… A lot… And I’m certainly nicer than afro-corn over there,” I heard a growling sigh come from somewhere. “Basically they all thought you were never good enough, and that you were a nopony, and you would have never been able to get somewhere in life. Sad, really,” He paused again, letting the information sink in. “I, on the other hand, don’t think that at all. You could have been a great achiever. Flown in a rocket ship, invented something amazing, wrote successful novels. I actually think they were all just jealous of your capabilities.” I felt my eyes water. My friends really thought that? Were they just agreeing to shut me up? Shock overwhelmed me. I really thought they cared… “Oh, and one last thing…” I looked up at him and he put his paw under my chin and grinned. “Obey your Master.” He slid his paw off my chin and suddenly my eyes widened as I felt a strange, hypnotic peace take over me. Everything made sense just then. Nopony was my friend. They were all enemies. I hated them. Hated them with every fiber of my being. They all scoffed at me behind my back, I knew it. I felt angry, hurt, betrayed. I wanted revenge… No. I wanted more than that. I wanted them dead. I needed the satisfaction of seeing their blood spatter everything. Who will be inferior then?! I lowered my head and growled, wallowing in hate. “Chance, my dear, I need your help with something.” I looked at him without moving my head, hatred the only thing I felt. “Yes, Master?” I said gruffly. He grinned. “Remember these little things I picked up?” He held up the pieces of horn and feathers with his paw, and snapped his fingers with his claw. The items had turned into two long spears with feathers at one end, with sharp as hell spear points. My eyes lit up and I grinned ear to ear; I knew what these were. Discord chuckled. “I knew you might know what these are. You are clever, after all.” These were the horns, feathers, and bone pieces from the princesses of Equestria. The only way to kill an alicorn is by impaling them with a weapon made of their horn and feathers. The bone was to ensure the death. It’s complicated. “Anyway, what I need your help with, is to go into Ponyville and bring down the princesses. I already broke off their horns and was able to get a few feathers and some bone fragments,” I looked up at him, unsure if I can bring out the responsibility that now rested on my shoulders. “You want to make Master happy, don’t you?” I perked up my ears. “Of course! Master’s happiness is important!” He smirked contently and snapped his fingers, returning my wings back. He took off my collar and led me out of the void. I held the two spears tucked underneath my wings. We entered Ponyville, which was still a wreck. Discord had some fun too, by the looks of it- a chocolate rain hurricane raged through the town, surprisingly not knocking houses off their foundations. I looked up at him for direction. “You’ll probably find everypony you’re looking for in a shelter of some sort. This chocolate rain hurricane probably isn’t the best for wounded ponies.” He laughed. “Yes, Master.” I started to walk into town, hatred gradually building up in me. I had to focus on finding the two pitiful excuses for princesses and end them, and anypony who gets in my way. Author's Note WHOA WHAT A TWIST Sorry this was published so freaking late, you guys. I was dealing with a bunch of emotional crap and had major writer's block to boot. It's here now, though. I actually have a feeling this won't reach anywhere near 30 chapters... 20, tops. Oh well. We'll just see where it goes. Chapter SixI walked down the street, looking in windows and in alley ways. A long time passed by, and I had thoroughly searched Sweet Apple acres and every large building. No luck. I walked back into town, frustrated. Where was everypony? They had to still be here. I suddenly picked up a familiar scent in the air. I can’t remember what it was, but it felt comforting, so I followed it through an alley way. I kept walking until something caught my eye. It was a smudgy, minorly cracked mirror leaning against a building. Looking into it was mesmerizing. I saw myself- mane a mess, cuts and bruises covered my body, the burn marks on my flanks, but what really captured my attention were my eyes. They didn’t look like mine. Wide, puffy, discolored, almost wild. I couldn’t look away, but that was okay. I felt confused, content, and almost like a weight lifted off my shoulders. No. I shook my head and reared up on my hind legs, smashing my front hooves onto the glass. I was suddenly filled with rage. Something was happening looking into that mirror, and I just instinctively broke it. I shook my head more. Ugh. What was happening? I was losing my grip on what I thought was real. I growled and swatted my head. Conflicting thoughts ran through my mind. I couldn’t put a hoof on it. I knew I was supposed to do this, think that, carry out this deed. But… I… I couldn’t think straight. My mind was clouded with happy memories of friends and clashing thoughts of rage and hate, like I knew I was supposed to be their friend, but I also felt the need to just maim them. I cried out and started beating random boxes and banging my head against the side of a building. “WHAT AM I SUPPOSED TO DO!?” I collapsed and shook with rage and confusion and sadness. I think I was on the edge of hyperventilating. Was I going insane? I looked at the glass shards and had a momentary thought of just slitting my throat. Half of me said kill, half of me said protect. I picked up the sharpest shard and slowly brought it up to my throat. If I do this, Master will be displeased… But I can’t do it… I hated them but I loved them at the same time. Heh. Maybe I’ll find peace if I’m gone. I’m not good enough… I… The tip of the glass touched my throat and I was about to make one swift movement when I heard somepony yell my name. “Chance! Chance!! Oh my Celestia! Volk, Chance is okay!” I cringed and that twinge of hate came back. I clenched my hoof and looked up to see Twilight running to me with tears in her eyes, and Volk limping along by her side. I secretly slid the spears under a box. “Chance, where have you been!? Are you hurt?” She came up to me and hugged me tight. I sort of hugged back. Volk jumped on top of me like he used to do, and for some reason that sent the all too familiar waves of pain through my body. I collapsed sideways and hit my head against a garbage pail. I sucked in a sharp breath and shut my eyes. He immediately got off and whimpered. “Chance! Are you okay?” “I just hit my head on some metal, what do you think?” I shook my head, trying to shoo thoughts away. I looked at her and she looked taken aback at my remark. “Sorry, I’ve just been through a lot…” She looked me over. “Looks like it.” I noticed her look at my flanks and I shifted. “What is-” “Nothing. Promise. Where are the others?” She looked at me weird and hesitantly said, “All of the remaining ponies alive went to another location to live temporarily given the explosions that happened,” Oh, wow. I forgot about that. Twilight looked pretty messed up, burns and long hairline scratches here and there. I guess she didn’t get the full force of the blasts. Should I be happy about that or angry? Twilight interrupted my thoughts. “I decided to come back here with Volk to see if there was anypony left.” I looked down at Volk and for some reason, I wasn’t all too thrilled to see him. I patted his head so I wouldn’t seem out of sorts, and he wagged his tail, happy to see me again. “Where are the princesses?” I said. “Um, they were attacked by something and they had to be held in a secret location inside the mountain where Canterlot is built. They’re in comas,” I had to bite my tongue to keep from smiling at that remark. I don’t know why I wanted to smile. Happiness that they were safe? Happiness that they were hurt? The truth of what actually attacked them? “And all our friends are there, too. Everypony else is in Fillydelphia for the time being.” “Oh. Okay. Cool.” A long, awkward silence sat in the air. “Chance? Are you sure you’re okay? You went missing before all of this happened, and you were talking about your recurring dreams of Discord, and I thought-” “I’m fine, Twilight. Just a little beat up from the bomb. I decided to go for a walk in the forest when that bomb went off, exploding some trees and knocking me down. I was trapped in a small grove with a trunk blocking the way, but I finally managed to push it away.” Why was it so easy to lie then? I never lie. “Oh my goodness, well I’m glad you’re okay.” Sure you are. “Uh, Twilight? Can we go see the others? It’s kind of wet out here…” “Oh, right, I forgot about that for a moment. Let’s go.” We walked for what seemed an hour to the mountain supporting Canterlot. We entered the tunnel for the trains and I followed Twilight as she lit up the darkness with her horn. We reached a recess in the wall I hadn’t noticed before. She entered, and moved a boulder with a levitating spell. We passed through, and she re-closed the entrance with the boulder as I looked around. We were in a long hallway, like one that you would see in a hospital. I was expecting some huge cave-like structure, but it was as if I had walked into a building. Weird. I continued walking, and I heard Twilight run from behind me, passing me and turning left. Volk stayed by my side, quieter than usual. I think he sensed something about me. “Girls! Girls! Guess who we found!” I heard hooves moving and bodies shifting, and I stopped in my tracks. That conflicting feeling was back. Did I want to see them? Eh. Just go with it. “Ooh! Doughnut Joe!? I could use a doughnut right about now!” I winced. Pinkie’s voice was so shrill. “Uhh, no. Even better.” Twilight said. “Even better!? What can be better than doughnuts!?” I turned the corner, and everypony’s attention was directed to me, huge grins growing on their faces. All of them looked as scuffed up as Twilight. They all galloped over to me except Pinkie. “CHAAANCE!!” She screeched as she somehow got over to me in less time than everypony else. Pinkie physics. “Chance is waaayy better than doughnuts! Except for triple-iced and double-sprinkled chocolate covered doughnuts. Those are the best. No offense, Chance.” She grinned and hugged me along with everypony else. They were all talking at once, so I couldn’t make out what they were saying except for a few bits. “…thought you were dead! So glad you’re not…” “…poor squirrel's nest burned up…” “…wicked trick you need to see…” “…OATMEAL? Are you crazy? Never gets old! Hahaha! And he said…” “What are these horrid cuts and bruises?” That last part caught my attention. I didn’t want any of them to see my flank, so I sort of gently pushed them all away a few inches. “I’d love to catch up, girls, but is there a shower nearby? I haven’t had one in a couple days… Long story.” Rarity scrunched up her face. Typical. “Of course, sugarcube! It’s right down that there hallway. Take a right, and you’ll get to the showers. Glad you’re home safe, Chance.” I smiled. “Thanks. Uh… One last thing? Has anyone seen my hoodie? Or my stuffed wolf?” I sheepishly asked. They gave me such comfort and a sense of security, to be honest. “Oh… When we went looking for you at your house, we couldn’t find your hoodie, but your wolf was spared, underneath some rubble. It’s over by our beds.” “Oh wow, okay, thank you. …Hey, Rarity?” “Yes, darling?” “You don’t happen to have any sewing materials and stuff, do you? I could really use a new hoodie…” I looked down at my bruised arms and ribcage and back at her, smiling awkwardly. “Why, yes! Of course! I never go without my emergency boutique-in-a-kit! I’ll get on it right away. Same as the old one?” “Yeah, that would be awesome, thanks. Maybe just a little bigger down my body, if that’s okay for you.” “No problem, darling. Now, go wash up and take your time- I’ll most likely have it done within a few hours.” “Thanks, dude. I really appreciate it.” I smiled again and walked down to the showers, hoping nopony saw my flank. I don’t know how they would react to seeing Discord’s face where my cutie mark should be. Probably negatively. I got to the showers, which was actually just a big bathroom like the ones in fancy mansions. Big and luxurious. This place was so random. I expected a makeshift bunker carved into the cave wall of the tunnel. Nope, weird hallways and luxury bathrooms. Okay then. I walked over the plush carpet to the mirror over the sinks. Just as messy as before, just sticky with chocolate rain. Ugh. Some color seemed to come back into me, though, which I guess was good. Maybe it was stress. I debated whether to use the shower or the huge bathtub. The streams of water from the shower will probably open up wounds, so I went with the bathtub. Filling it with warm water, I laid halfway over the edge of the tub, thinking of nothing in particular. I snapped out of it when the water touched my face. Oops. I got in, the hot water burning my scabs momentarily. I stopped and hissed in a breath. Take it slow, smart one. I eased myself into the water, enjoying the warmth and the steam. It burned my wounds a little, but that was fine. I think I started to enjoy pain. Helps me remember weird facts of life. I soaked in the tub for who knows how long. The warmth made me sleepy, so I figured to just rinse off the dirt and wash my mane. Body soap would probably sting. I did so, and felt somewhat better than before. I got out and looked at the water. Light brown and small debris like twigs floated around. Gross. I drained the water and dried myself off. Suddenly I was extremely thirsty, so I went to the sink and drank as much as my stomach would hold. “Ugh.” I leaned with my face on the counter, looking at myself in the mirror. “Look at what he did to you. I probably deserve it, anyway. You can’t let him treat you that way. Stick up for yourself. But… he’s… I can’t.” Now you’re talking to yourself. Freak. I got off the counter and walked over to the plush carpet, curled up in a ball, and slept. This time no dreams came when I slept. It was nice. Dreams are bad, I realized. They don’t do you any good. Meanwhile, most of the other ponies sat in a large kitchen area, all at a long dining table. Rarity sat at her sewing machine. “I’m very Concerned for Chance, girls.” Twilight said, looking at the table. “Oh, me too. She looked just awful. Poor thing.” Fluttershy said in her famous half-whisper voice. “She does look pretty beat-up. Not to mention skinny,” Applejack said, looking through a cookbook. “Would ya have any kind of clue as to what happened to Chance, Twilight?” Twilight sighed, looking at her friends. “I have a vague idea, but I’m not sure if it’s what actually happened.” Everypony leaned in slightly, curious and attention drawn. “Before the disaster happened, she was having… recurring nightmares. Of Discord.” Pinkie gasped. “DISCORD!?” Applejack shushed her. “Discord? The dope that was a claw away from ruining our friendship and Ponyville?” Rainbow Dash angrily said. “Yes, girls. Discord. After Chance and I hung out all day, I heard a yelping come from her dogs, but I thought they were just playing, so I thought nothing of it,” Volk whimpered and rested his head on Applejack’s leg. “But after that, everything went quiet. I guess that’s when she went missing,” She thought for a moment. “Actually, the story she told me didn’t add up at all.” “Story? What story?” Rainbow said, confused. “Well, when I saw her, I asked her what had happened. She cut me off and basically said she went for a walk in the woods and the blast knocked a tree over her, trapping her in a grove for a while.” Fluttershy gasped. “Oh, no.” “But what’s weird is that the blast happened a few days after we spent the day together, which is the day I’m guessing she went missing. She also moved when she saw me look at her flank. I thought I saw something other than her cutie mark there.” Applejack got up and said something to Pinkie, who happily followed her to the kitchen. “We’re listenin’!” She yelled to Twilight. “So?” Rainbow said to Twilight. “I connected some things together, and it sounds like she’s covering for something… Or someone...” She trailed off, leaving Rainbow Dash awkwardly sitting at the table with Fluttershy. “Hey y’all, is it alright if I make vegetable soup for dinner tonight? I know it’s Chance’s favorite, and I want her to have something nice.” “And I’ll make death by chocolate cupcakes! She loves those!” Pinkie said, bouncing up and down. “That sounds wonderful.” Fluttershy said. I woke up probably hours later to the smell of food. My stomach immediately growled. I forgot how starved I was. Literally. I pushed back the memory of eating my pet back into the depths of my mind. I can’t think about that. I wanted to sleep more, but the constantly growing pain of hunger kept me awake. I groaned and got up, heading for the door. I was a few feet away from the door when somepony knocked, making me jump. “Chance?” It was Rarity. “Sorry, I fell asleep…” I opened the door, and she was holding up a brand new hoodie, just like the last one. “I know it’s not much, but it was just like your old one.” She smiled and handed it to me. “Oh my gosh, Rarity. Thank you so much. You have no idea how much I love hoodies.” She giggled. “Oh, yes, I know. By the way, Pinkie Pie and Applejack made dinner for all of us. I guess you woke up just in time! Oh, wait… Did I wake you up?” I let out a breathy chuckle. “No, don’t worry, you didn’t. I smelled food, which woke me up, and the hunger kept me from going back to sleep.” “Ah, yes, okay. Take your time, Chance. You look like you’ve been through a lot.” She walked away, presumably to join the other ponies to eat. I closed and locked the door and walked over to the mirror. I glared at myself again. I think I hated myself for some reason. I pulled the hoodie over my head, leaving the hood up. I sighed contently. It felt so good to have it on. So secure. A little big, but that’s the way I liked it. I turned to look at my flank. The hoodie covered the brand. Good. I went to the kitchen, where everypony sat and ate. A huge pot sat on the stove, with trays of cupcakes on the counter next to it. “Chance!” Pinkie yelled, jumping in front of me and scaring the life out of me. “Hehe… Oops, sorry. But guess what! A.J. and I made your favorites- vegetable soup and death by chocolate cupcakes!” “You… Know what my favorite foods are? That was honestly surprising. I thought everypony didn't care about me, like Master had said... “Of course, we love you and know everything about you!” She bounced away to the table to eat. “You can just grab a bowl over there and put as much soup as you want into it. We have plenty, sugarcube, so eat as much as your little belly can hold, alright?” Applejack said, a mixed look of concern and care on her face. “Okay. Thank you so much for making this, I really like your cooking.” Applejack laughed. “Aww, shucks. Thank ya kindly. And making it was no sweat off my back- I love cooking.” I went over and picked up a bowl, ladling soup to the brim. Suddenly it glowed purple, floating to the table. “Let me get that for you.” Twilight said, smiling. She placed it down in an empty spot between Rainbow Dash and Applejack. “Thanks.” I said. I sat down, grabbed my spoon, and took a bite. It was probably the best thing I have ever eaten. My stomach growled louder, so I guess it agreed as well. “Is it good?” Applejack said, elbowing me. “Applejack, good is an understatement!” I took bite after bite, seemingly hungrier by the second. “Well thank you! But you might wanna slow down there, Miss Appetite. Don’t want a belly ache.” As much as I hated to, I agreed, and slowed down. The first bowl was gone within a couple minutes. I got up to get another bowl, which was gone faster than anypony could finish their first. Another bowl. And another. Finally, after four bowls, I was full and satisfied. “Wow, and I thought Applejack and I had big appetites.” Dash said. I rested my head on the table and chuckled. “Ohh, man. You have no idea how awesome it is to be full for once.” I said, eyes closed. “You have to have room for cupcakes, Chance! You love, love, love chocolate!” Pinkie exclaimed. I had to agree with it. I do love chocolate. “Pinkie,” I laughed. “You know I’m always hungry for your baked goods. I’ll have a couple now, I guess. I don’t want to overdo it.” She cheered and brought me a couple with the most icing, which I happily ate. “How can you be so good at baking, dude? These are awesome.” “Glad to hear that! Anything for my Chancey!” A twinge of annoyance sparked in my head. “Well, it’s getting pretty late, girls. We should probably get to sleep soon.” Twilight said. We all agreed and got up. I followed them up a small flight of stairs I hadn’t noticed before. We entered a room that looked like a big bedroom, filled with several beds, each accompanied with a desk and curtains to drape around for privacy. Each pony went to their bed, which left me a bed of my own. I got excited. First night of sleeping on a normal bed in days. I grinned and walked over to it, pulling the curtains and plopping down. I snuggled into the covers with my stuffed wolf and fell asleep within five minutes. I didn’t sleep long, however. Maybe an hour. I woke up randomly and couldn’t get back to sleep. After countless tosses and turns, I finally just decided to go for a walk. I got up quietly, holding my stuffed wolf, and walked out of the room. Twilight said the Princesses were being kept around here somewhere… I wonder where. Remembering the spears I had hidden, I thought getting them was a good idea. I went back into the room and placed Dante down. I pulled the curtains as quietly as possible, and then left again. As I passed through the doorway, Rainbow snorted in her sleep and I winced. I felt a surge of hate flow through me again. A thought of smothering her with a pillow crossed my mind, and I shook my head to clear it away. I silently flew through the building, heading out. I reached where I had entered, only to see the boulder again. I had forgotten about it. Damn it. How will I get out now? I tapped on the rock with my hoof, ear pressed against it, listening to see how dense it was. Maybe I could move it. Solid thunks rang through the room. I sighed. There’s no way I could move it. I turned around to go back to bed when I saw Twilight inches from my face. “Uhh… Sup, Twilight?” No answer. “…Twilight?” She looked like she was about to fall asleep. I poked her face. “Twilight? You okay?” She shook her head and gasped, snapping awake. “Oh, hey, Chance… What are you doing here?” She groggily said. Ignoring her question, I said, “Were you sleepwalking?” She laughed as if she was high. “Sleepwalking? Who sleepwalks?” She leaned to one side, eyes closed. “Twilight.” Nothing. “Twilight!” She woke up again. “Hmm?” “Can you move that fire truck out of the way? It’s blocking the sunlight for my pencil.” I said. Talking to sleepwalkers was so much fun. “Oh, sure… Tell your council I’m sorry for the delay…” I had to bite my tongue to keep myself from laughing. She lit up her horn and moved the boulder. “Go back to sleep, Twilight.” “Mhmm.” She turned and slowly walked back to the room. I flew outside, happy to have fresh air. I remembered exactly where that alley where I had hidden the spears was. I have a photographic memory, so it was easy picking out the exact alley and the exact box. I landed and saw the same smashed mirror, the same beat up boxes. I found the box where I had placed them, which looked like it was moved slightly. I didn’t think anything of it; the wind probably jostled it. I picked up the box, ready to grab the spears and find the princesses. What I saw sent a shock through my chest and dissolved in my hooves. The spears weren’t there. Author's Note Yay, more plot twists! I apologize for the length of this... I needed some dialogue. Chapter SevenI stood there for who knows how long, just staring. The spears have vanished. My mind went a thousand miles an hour. Who stole them? What if I’ll be caught? …What if it captured the attention of the Princesses and they destroy them!? That’s it. That was the final thought. Maybe Discord took them… maybe he has an alternative. No, wait… he’ll go through the roof if he finds out I lost the spears… I sat, thinking and staring at the empty box. Okay. Maybe… I can go find the Elements of Harmony and hide them… And… They’ll have no way of stopping Discord. Yeah, that’s good. I’ll do that. I knew exactly where the Elements were hidden. Twilight told me, along with the other 5 ponies she calls her friends. I got up and turned around but stopped short. I suddenly started to violently throw up what I had eaten a couple hours ago. I kept throwing up and couldn’t stop, stomach acid burning my throat and mouth. Hatred and anger replaced what started to feel like newfound positivity. I started shaking, baring my teeth, which were dripping in blood from biting my tongue so hard. I rocketed to Canterlot Tower, where the Elements were kept. Everything was a mess. I kicked stones this way and that, desperately trying to find the box that contained the Elements. I know it was a long shot, seeing as how the Elements were probably relocated during times of disaster, but I kept digging. My hooves and wrists started to bleed and bruise from lifting boulders and rubbing against shards of glass. I huffed, and took a break for a second. I should try searching in another area. I walked over the debris, liking the feel of shards of glass, metal, and rock digging into my hooves. Guessing where the general area of where the Element chamber was, I took a shot in the dark and started hauling boulders over again. I hurried more this time, wanting to get back before the others noticed I was gone. One thing I should mention, though- with the Princesses down, there was nopony to raise and lower the sun and moon. Nopony knew how to do so, not even Twilight, so time was frozen in a period of both dawn and dusk. And Twilight thought herself to be skilled in that category of magic. Yeah, right. I thought being in a mix of dawn and dusk was pretty cool, though. The moon lit up the ash and every white or pale surface, giving off a ghostly glow, while the dim sun halfway up the horizon cast shadows thirty feet long, and gave things a nice silhouette. I growled and huffed, lifting up one last boulder with all my strength, which happened to be the heaviest sucker of the bunch. I strained and tried lifting with my back, which was a bad idea. I fell forward, and the boulder caught my wing and smashed it into the ground, grinding it against sharp debris. I screamed every curse word out there, punching the rock and digging my hooves into the ground. For some reason, I thought it would hurt more. Maybe I’m used to all the pain Sombra and Discord inflicted. I snarled through my teeth and looked for something to lift the boulder up with. I found a metal rod the size of my arm, and stared at it. I couldn’t reach it. I just sat there, practically emanating anger and spite. I lurched forward and heard a sharp snap, grabbed the rod, and retaliated back, wincing and grimacing with the sharp pain. I picked up a rock and placed it near the boulder, and stuck the rod under the boulder and rested it against the rock. I panted and let out a low growl, lifting the boulder with more ease than before. I lifted my wing out, when something caught my attention. The Elements. I shot forward, grabbed the box and pushed backwards in the blink of an eye, but the boulder caught the tips of my hooves, pinching the skin and bursting the blood vessels. I could already see the bruises forming, but I didn’t care at all. I had the Elements. I brushed off the dust and opened the box, revealing six shiny ornaments, as if they were kept in a box and shined every day. I closed it and slid the box under my good wing, and quickly limped to the portal. I looked around to make sure nopony had followed me, and entered. “WHAT DO YOU MEAN, YOU LOST THE SPEARS!?” “Exactly what it means, you fuck.” Sombra punched me in the jaw, thinking that would turn me submissive, but that only fueled the hate that was growing in me. I shot upwards and punched him in the throat, which stunned him for a second. I brought his head down crashing against the hard ground. He flipped forward, catching himself. He bucked, kicking the air out of me and sending me to the ground. He jumped and landed on my bad wing, twisting his hooves into the already broken bones. I instinctively brought my hind legs up and I kicked him in the stallionhood, making him get off of me and limp to one side, whimpering. Snickering, I got up, shook myself off and looked over to see his face in front of a cloud of darkness, racing towards me. Shit. I was frozen in an iceberg, coated with liquid nitrogen. So cold… I started shaking uncontrollably. I couldn’t move, and I was frozen for eternity, it seemed. I couldn’t remember a time when I was warm. I couldn’t see. I squirmed, trying to fight against whatever was pushing against my chest and squeezing me. Suddenly I was released, and I was back in Ponyville, and everything looked… normal. I saw Twilight and ran over to her, about to ask her a billion questions. “Twilight!” She happily looked over, and her expression turned from happiness to disgust and irritation. She turned back to whatever she was doing, and I stopped, confused. “Twilight?” I walked over to her. “Shadow Spectre, I suggest you leave me alone.” She used my real name. She never does that, nor does anypony else- they all know I hate my real name. I stepped backwards, taken aback. “E-Excuse me?” “GO AWAY!” She shot around, turning to me. She pushed me away from her, making me fall over on my arse. I just stared at her, tears welling up in my eyes. I ran to Sugarcube Corner. Pinkie loves me. She’ll know what’s up. I burst through the door. “P-Pinkie?” I said through the knot in my throat. “Ugh. What are you doing here? I told you I never wanted to have anything to do with you ever again, Shadow!” She threw a bag of flour at me, and I ducked. It sent a wave of flour cascading on to me. I ran outside, Pinkie’s laugh ringing through my ears. I ran to Sweet Apple Acres, the tears mixing with the flour and making a mess. I ran up to her barn. I heard voices. “Creativity my ass, Big Macintosh. She’s just an annoying mare with ADHD.” “Eeyup.” I stepped through the door, heartbroken and at a loss for words. “Well lookie here. It’s little Miss Screw Up,” She looked at me disdainfully. “I take it that flour was from another failure?” “I-” “Shut up and get off my property before Big Mac makes you leave.” “I thought you were my friend!” I sobbed. They both laughed, sending shocks of pain I never felt before through my heart. “Well you thought wrong. Now leave.” I ran out, sobbing. What was happening? My friends hate me. One of my greatest fears is losing my friends… I flew up to Rainbow Dash’s cloud home. “Dash!” I said through tears. “Dash, I need you!” Her head popped out, looking like she was about to hurt somepony. “Yeah? Does it look like I care?” She stifled a laugh. “How are you even flying? You’re never good enough to do anything.” I shot towards Fluttershy’s cabin. She’s the last one on earth that would treat me like this. I knocked frantically on her door. “Flut- Fluttersh…shy?” I tried to say through my sobs. She swung her door open. “What.” Her facial expression told me she wouldn’t be as kind as I had hoped. “Ev… Everypony hates me!” I sobbed. “Aw, boo hoo hoo!” She slammed the door in my face, leaving me there sobbing uncontrollably. I ran to where my house would be. Volk is the only one who would stay my friend, even if everypony else had deserted me. I went inside, seeing him sleeping in his usual spot. “Volk! All the girls hate me, and I…” I flew over to him, and scooped him up in a hug. He didn’t take kindly to that. He bit down on my arm and drew blood. He squirmed and pushed off of me, baring his teeth. “Volk… Not you too, buddy…” I reached towards him and he snapped at my hoof, drawing more blood. I flew deep within the Everfree Forest, not bothering to go find Rarity. I passed by Zecora’s cabin, and kept flying. I flew for at least half an hour, and the woods suddenly cut off and went straight down. A cliff I never knew was here was suddenly inviting me to jump down. I landed and stared down at the vast chasm. It went further than just a ninety degree slope. I brought my wings up and down again, pushing me off the ground, and hovering above the nothingness. Suddenly my wings felt like they were being torn off, and stopped working. I plummeted down the cliff, screaming as loud as I could. I finally reached the ground, but it wasn’t over yet. It was steep- toosteep. I landed on my leg, which snapped in front of me. I saw the bone shoot out of my skin. I fell backwards, grinding my back on pebbles and rough rock. More open air. I was in a weird position, and my hooves were being sanded down on the cliff as I fell, but I couldn’t move them. I finally pushed off and landed on my side, bounced and rolled over, hit my head, my side, my back. I clawed at the ground to try and stop myself, but it was no use. My hooves were gone, and the fleshy, sensitive part shown through, making it extremely painful and difficult to get a hold of anything. I just gave up and pushed off one last time, getting open air again. I flew down head first. I realized there was a lake at the bottom, not solid ground. I tried using my wings, but t was no use. I hit the water with a sharp sting. I sank like a rock, even though I knew how to swim. I couldn’t swim to the surface, and I couldn’t breathe. I hated water. I hated deep water. I hated the thought of having water above my shoulders, and I was enveloped in it. I started to panic. I flailed, hoping to get to the surface. Nope. I continued to sink, the pressure building in my ears. Just as I thought my head would explode, I hit the bottom. I still couldn’t get to go up, as if something was holding me down. Okay, maybe this isn’t so bad… It’s a peaceful way to die, right? I let out all of the air I had inside me. I sucked in water, and it was painful- it stung my insides like acid. I waited. And waited. It took forever until I finally blacked out. This is it. Goodbye, world. I awoke with a jolt, sweating like a pig, hyperventilating, and covered in tears. Sombra was laughing his ass off. It took me a second to realize what he’d done, and it made me furious. “SOMBRA, YOU TITANIC DOUCHE!” I screamed at the top of my lungs. I was apparently still crying pretty hard. I curled up in a ball, and I saw Discord out of the corner of my eye. My eyes widened and I thought about high tailing it out of there. I didn’t want him to know I lost the spears. “Discord. Want to know what your little pet managed to do?” “Sombra, you better shut the hell up or I’ll end you.” I got up and stared at him. “Now, now, Chance, let him talk.” “But-” “Be quiet.” I huffed and curled up again, looking at my purple hooves. “She lost the spears.” He paused, waiting for Discord to explode. “Did she?” He said, all too calmly. He floated over to me. “…And what are these?” I looked up through my tears, and saw him holding the box that contained the Elements. I forgot about those. “Th- the Elements… I figured since I… misplaced the spears, I would go and find the Elements so they wouldn’t be able to stop you…” I curled up more tightly, afraid he would hit me or something. Instead, he scratched my head. “Good girl,” He said approvingly. The praise sent good feelings through me, and I leaned into his paw, but he floated away with the Elements. Sombra stared at me, upset that Discord didn’t punish me for losing the spears. I stuck my tongue out at him and he growled, knowing he could do nothing to me while Discord was here. Discord came back over and raised an eyebrow questioningly at my broken wing. “It, uh, got caught underneath a boulder while trying to get the Elements…” Sombra snickered and I shot him a dirty look. “I’ll fix that.” Discord said. He snapped his fingers, and my wing was just like normal. My hooves were still bruised and I had the cuts and burns and everything else Discord and Sombra so kindly gifted me with. “Go find the Princesses now. You’re losing time.” Discord looked at me seriously. I knew I better fulfill his wish soon, otherwise things could get messy. I flew back out of the portal and back into the mountain. I walked quietly through the doorway and made sure nopony was up yet. I took some vegetable oil Pinkie had left out and I poured some on the floor next to the boulder that blocks the entrance. I heaved and pushed the rock back into its original place, cleaned up the oil on the floor, and flew back up to the bedrooms. Everypony was still asleep. Good. I snuck back into my bed and I laid there, waiting for the others to get up. Hours passed when Applejack got up. I watched her through the slits of my eyes, pretending I was asleep. She stretched, yawned, and started to walk out the door. “Oh, no you don’t.” Rarity’s voice came from behind me, and I heard her scramble to get out of bed. Applejack grinned and ran downstairs, Rarity following. “You always get up early and always take all the hot water!” She whined. I heard scuffling and grunts and finally a door slam. “Ha!” Rarity exclaimed, and I faintly heard a huff coming from Applejack. Rainbow Dash groaned and flipped over in her sleep. I couldn’t find the Princesses while everypony was close to getting up. I’ll wait until night time again, and look for them then. In the meantime, I felt the need to find out if everypony dislikes me like Discord said. I got up, made sure my hoodie covered the burn marks on my flanks, and headed downstairs. Volk followed me, and I made sure to keep a safe distance after going through that nightmare. I still felt like he knew something was up with me, watching me with a skeptical yet cautious eye. I walked over to the kitchen and sat down at the table and sighed, tapping my hooves on the table, anxious and worried and upset all at the same time. “Somethin’ wrong, sugarcube?” Applejack asked with a worried smile. “Uhh… No. I’m just tired.” I said, trying to sound friendly. Clashing thoughts of rage and utter depression and paranoia raced through my mind. That vision Sombra cast upon me didn’t help my already tattered psyche one bit. “Aren’t we all?” She chuckled, and went back to cooking breakfast. “Ya want somethin’?” I grimaced as the thought of the sour taste of bile and blood came flooding back from last night. “No, thanks. Maybe later.” A while passed, and Applejack was still cooking who knows what. She hummed as she worked, which was kind of soothing. Rarity finally came out of the shower with her hair up in curlers, looking content. “Anything good for breakfast this time?” She said, taking a seat. “Just the usual- pancakes, waffles, muffins, and orange juice.” Applejack said, not bothering to look up from whisking a bowl of batter. “Ohh what I would give to have some of Canterlot’s divine luxury food.” Rarity whined. She can be so irritating sometimes. I clenched my jaw and refrained from saying anything mean. “Come on now, Rarity, we’ve got to make do with what we have. We’re lucky we even have anything at all. This place we’re stuck in has emergency reserves that will last for as long as it takes to get Ponyville cleaned up.” Appejack said, trying to hide the shadow of despair in her voice. Pinkie jumped down the whole flight of stairs and came happily bouncing over to the table, with her mane in more of a mess than usual. Fluttershy sheepishly followed, still sleepy. Rainbow Dash was probably sleeping in. “Mornin’, girls!” Applejack said. They all exchanged greetings and small talk, as Twilight trotted down and over to us. She looked serious, and something about her threw me off. I bit my lip nervously. What if she remembered last night? I shifted uncomfortably, remembering that awful vision I had of the girls all abandoning me as their friend. I kept my gaze low and hoped it wasn’t true. I had to find a way to see what they really thought of me without causing suspicion. I was busy looking at my purple hooves when Pinkie blurted out, “Hey! Why is almost all of my oil missing!?” My heart skipped a beat. Everypony looked at each other questioningly, then all eyes fell on me. Surely I was sweating enough to fill a pool, but I calmly said, “Oh, uh… I had to use the oil to get my hooves unstuck from the bottom of the fridge…?” Everypony made a weird face. “Because, I had accidentally dropped a cookie and it rolled under there, and I thought I could get it out by lifting the fridge, but it was too heavy…” I gave a sheepish smile and held up my hooves, hoping they believed me. Pinkie giggle-snorted. “Oh, Chance! You and your clumsiness!” Everypony looked convinced except Twilight, who still looked really focused and off. Maybe she was just tired. The day went on and I subtly tried to find evidence that they truly didn’t like me, to no avail. It seemed they all loved me dearly. At the end of the day, after countless hugs and support from telling each of our stories about where we were the day the bomb went off, it felt as if a weight was lifted off my shoulders. I was deep in thought, laying in my bed before dinner. Nopony hates me, thank Celestia. But why was I so convinced they did? It felt… normal to have them hate me before, as if they actually did. Discord’s words felt soothing, felt trustworthy, felt right. It felt like my eyes were opened to a new world, a new world of hatred and dysfunction. So, was he lying? Or… “Chaaaance~! It’s time to eat!!” Pinkie burst through the bedroom door, startling me out of my thoughts. “Oh, uh, okay. I’ll be down in a minute.” She happily trotted away, and I plopped back down on my bed and heaved a big sigh. I waited another minute and finally got up and went downstairs. I sat down and rested my head on the table, eyes half closed. Everypony was quiet, eating daffodil sandwiches. Suddenly I blurted, “Hey Twilight, Discord can… hypnotize ponies, right?” I looked down at the table, wishing I hadn’t said that. She stared at me, finished chewing and swallowed, and slowly said, “Yeah… I guess so. That, and ‘Discording’ others, which is sort of the same thing, but it turns you into the opposite of yourself,” “Why do you ask?” She said, staring at me even more intensely than before. “I, uh, just… Was wondering. That’s all.” I bit my tongue. I was getting worse and worse at lying. “Uh huh…” She stared at me, I stared at the table, and there was an awkward silence between us all. I should just run off and fly into the portal and stay there, risking both Sombra’s and Discord’s wrath of wimping out. I can’t let them find out what and whom I’ve been dealing with. I pushed my chair out rather abruptly and said “I have to go.” “Where, pray tell?” Twilight pushed. “Uhh… Out.” I turned and started to leave, but something was holding me back. I turned around and saw everypony looking at me with a worried expression. They looked sad for me. I scrunched up my face, hoping to not let anything blurt out. I took a deep breath and quickly said “Discord knocked me out the day I hung out with Twilight and kept me hostage Celestia knows where and they beat me and made me eat Tonrar and shaved off my cutie mark and branded me with his face and Sombra was there too and he would beat the hell out of me even though you thought you vanquished him and Discord is the one who made the bomb and he’s planning on killing the Princesses and made me hate all of you because I thought you hated me and I… and I… I…” I broke down sobbing harder than I’ve ever sobbed before. Guilt and sorrow and embarrassment and doubt and anger and everything else ravaged my mind. I couldn’t look up or stop crying, but I felt multiple hooves envelop me in an embrace. I continued crying, and nopony said a word. I was scared about what they would do or think of me. “I…” I tried speaking, but I started choking on my sobs and the knot in my throat. “Shh, it’s okay. It’s okay. We’ve got you, and we all love you. Discord and Sombra won’t be able to hurt you anymore.” Flutteshy’s voice. It sounded angelic. “We’ll whoop his butt for what he did to you!” Rainbow Dash. “Amen!” Applejack. “Yeah!” Pinkie. “Those horrid monsters won’t see it coming!” Rarity. Somepony lifted up my chin, and I opened my eyes. It was Twilight. She smiled, big and warm. “Chance, don’t you worry. We’ll fix everything and make Discord and Sombra pay.” A while went by, hugging and talking things out. It felt so good to vent everything that happened. Everypony was understanding, and I couldn’t care more that I had them as my friends. I left out the parts that went against them, like the spears and hiding the Elements, however. “So, Chance. Have a plan?” Rainbow was fired up, ready to beat Discord and Sombra into oblivion. “I have an idea, but we would need to be on guard and ready to act when the time comes,” Everypony nodded in agreement. “I thought it over, and I have a pretty solid plan. …I think. Discord sent me here to get rid of you all, along with the Princesses. Enough time has passed to have him think I completed the deed. I’ll return to him, say I completed the task, and he’ll come out of hiding to survey the land. Since the Elements were destroyed in the blast, I think Twilight should cast a spell to make a magic cage that would drain his energy to the point where he can’t use his magic or harm anyone; same with Sombra.” “I think I can do that.” Twilight said confidently. “Good. Then it’s settled. Follow m-” “My little ponies, how wonderful to see you all in good health.” It was Celestia, Luna by her side. Twilight jumped up and ran to her, embracing her in a hug. “Princesses! You’re out of your comas!" The others followed, I just sat there awkwardly. They both looked really scuffed up. Their wings were torn up, their horns were missing, and scars covered their bodies. I guess they healed fast. After the six ponies and two alicorns caught up, Twilight asked me if it was okay if she informed the Princesses of what happened, and I reluctantly agreed. “Oh, my goodness. That’s terrible.” Luna said. “Yes, they must be stopped at once.” Celestia urgently said. “Don’t worry, Princesses. We have a fool-proof plan to stop them. Stay here so you’ll be safe.” Twilight said hopefully. They both nodded. “Godspeed, then, my faithful student.” Celestia said. The six ponies followed me to the field where the portal was at. I didn’t want them to know the precise location of it. I told them to be on guard, having them face the opposite direction of the portal, telling them Discord and Sombra would be there in a few minutes. I had brought a large blanket used for a picnic of ten. I was asked what it was for multiple times, but I always said, “You’ll see.” I had made fake blood and covered myself in it, messed my hair up, and cut myself to make it look like I completed the deed. “Doesn’t that hurt?” Rarity asked. I informed them after being through all the pain and torment the two put me through, something simple like a cut has no effect on me. I entered the portal and made my way to Discord, panting. “I did it… I killed them all.” I said with a scowl. I stood there, facing the ground and clenching my jaw. Discord started to laugh victoriously. “Yes!” Discord floated around, laughing and praising me. I have to admit, the praise felt good, even if I didn’t earn it. “Time for me to take my rightful place as king in Equestria.” He said, almost growling. We headed out, Sombra by Discord’s side, grinning malevolently. I hope this goes well. We exited the portal, and Discord was stunned to see the six ponies in front of him. Twilight brought her head up and strained to cast the spell I made up, and she couldn’t. I knew she wouldn’t be able to. I didn’t want her to. I flew up, rammed my hooves as hard as I could against Sombra’s and Discord’s faces, and threw the blanket over them. “Run.” Author's Note Wheeeeeeeeeew. 6 months and nothing uploaded... Sorry about that c: More plot twists, yay! Things will be turned upside down for the ponies... Just you wait. *Discord laughs in the distance* Chapter EightThe ponies scattered and ran for their lives. Discord and Sombra were screaming profanities and struggling against the blanket I threw over them. I heard them cursing each other and me, failing to get free quickly. I bit my lip, unsure and hesitant, regretting what I had done. I flew as fast as I could as far away as possible. I passed by a house and I heard Rainbow urgently call my name, so I snapped back and flew towards her voice. The six ponies were huddled behind a checkout counter in a shop. I flew inside and started to frantically board up the doors and windows. The others followed heed, and soon we had the entrances blocked. I started to hyperventilate. “Guys, we need to hide. Seriously, like I’m freaking out and-” “Darling, calm yourself. We’re okay as long as we have each other,” said Rarity, placing a hoof on my shoulder. I took a long, deep breath. She may be right. “Why didn’t my spell work?” said Twilight, a look of extreme concern and fear on her face. “No idea…” I said, lying. I shuddered and I quickly looked around, mapping out the place in my head and taking note of all possible entries and exits and routes and weapons. Luckily, there was a hidden cellar right underneath the counter. We heard Sombra’s thundering hoofsteps and Discord’s wrathful growling and screaming only a couple blocks away. I had to cover my mouth to keep from yelping. I shoved all of the ponies into the cellar and shut the door. Somepony turned on a light and I went into the far back and hid in a box, scared out of my mind. The full force of what my actions have done finally hit me. “We’re all gonna die!” Screamed Pinkie, and Applejack had to cover her mouth. “No. Worse,” I said, tears in my eyes. “Those two are sadistic demons; they won’t bother to grace us with something as sweet as death.” Suddenly everything started to shake. The walls, the ground- everything. That’s when the lights went out. Screams of terror filled the room, and I scooted myself under a shelf so I was almost completely hidden. I covered my ears and bit my tongue, afraid I may have just gotten my friends killed. Then the screams just… stopped. Complete silence so thick it hurt my ears. I didn’t dare move, so scared I had to make sure I didn’t piss myself. “Chaaaaance…” I heard Discord sing in a disturbingly calm sing-song voice. “Little Chance, little Chance, come out come out wherever you are…” I started choking on my own sobs. That’s when I decided enough was enough. I just snapped. I flailed out of my box and entered a pony-less room, headed out of the cellar, and darted out of the back exit. I just ran, ran harder and faster than I have ever run in my entire life. Tears of pure anger streamed my face. “You.” Discord growled through his teeth. I suddenly found myself hoisted upward and upside down, dangling from my tail. I started kicking and flapping my wings in a flurry of red feathers. “DISCORD, I SWEAR TO CELESTIA I WILL FUCKING RIP OFF YOUR HORNS AND SHOVE THEM UP YOUR EYES IF YOU’VE DONE ANYTHING TO THEM. I WILL RIP OFF YOUR WINGS AND CRAM THEM SO FAR DOWN YOUR THROAT YOU’LL BE SHITTING FEATHERS FOR DAYS IF I DON’T KILL YOU FIRST. YOU HAVE NO IDEA THE PAIN I WILL INFLICT-” Sombra bucked me in the throat and then in the stomach, knocking the wind out of me and making me choke aggressively. I was violently thrown on the ground and hit my head so hard I couldn’t see anything for a minute. I struggled to get up, but then massive hooves came crashing down on my head. I heard a sadistic, mocking, restrained laugh coming from both Sombra and Discord. “I don’t think so. See, you have the order wrong. I,” A dragon claw pressed me hard against the pavement, ceasing my struggles. “…am the one who threatens.” He yanked back my mane, making my head shoot upwards in an awkward angle and making it even more difficult to breathe. “I am the one who decides who wins.” He grabbed my throat with his paw so hard it felt like my eyes were about to fly out of my head. I was thrown hard against a building, and I struggled to get up and kill those two. Sombra bucked my face with the force of a train and my head smashed against the wall, making my nose bleed like a faucet. Suddenly I was aware ponies were screaming my name, begging me to get up and be okay. I strained to gain vision and saw the ponies locked in a magic cage, only something was wrong. None of them had their wings or horns. “Is that all you’ve got?” I slurred, staring at the two and making a feeble attempt to smile. “Oh, no. Definitely not. I need to make an example of you to your little friends.” Discord snapped his claws, which made another cage appear; only this one had the princesses in it, looking as frightened as fillies. I immediately got up and stumbled over to Sombra, ready to punch his lights out, only my punch turned out to be a soft swing of my arm which he easily moved away from. He tackled me to the ground and pulled my arm backwards so far I heard a snap, which sent scorching pain throughout my body. I flailed to get free, flapping my wings. I managed to get up, ready to fly away, when Discord brought me smashing back onto the pavement. “Pesky things, aren’t they? We need to get rid of them.” I couldn’t see what he was doing, but I heard the other ponies gasp. Sombra held me down on my stomach, leaving my wings free. I struggled as hard as I could, knowing what was to come. I started begging, pleading for my life. Suddenly I felt a searing pain in my lower wing, near the socket. I snapped my head around to see what was happening. They were cutting my wings off. Not magic, not some kind of painless way of removing them, but a dull, rusty, serrated blade. I started kicking and flailing, cursing them and promising to twist their heads off and feed them to timber wolves. The pain continued, as if Discord was deliberately cutting slowly. I tried with all my might to get away, but to no avail. He didn’t even bother to cut all the way off; instead he broke it off, leaving the nub of the joint still intact. I screamed so loud I could hear Sombra wince. “Oh, don’t be such a wimp. We still have one to go,” Said Discord menacingly. Same thing with my other wing- careless cutting and slicing, sending splatters of blood all over the ground and soaking my body. I could see my own feathers and bits of bone and flesh littering the floor. I gave up and started to sob, making tears and blood smear my face. I started screaming as loud and hard as I could, promising death and curses. Blood got into my mouth and I started coughing and gagging, threatening Discord and Sombra even louder. “Mm,” Discord said lazily, “That needs to go as well.” He turned to the horrified ponies, positioning my struggling body so that they could see me clearly. I started to cry silently, disappointed I had let them all down. Not even that. I may have doomed their lives to a certain crimson fate. I brought all this upon Ponyville… Maybe even Equestria. I mouthed 'I love you all' to the ponies before I closed my eyes and looked away, tears streaming down my face. My head was suddenly jerked backwards. Sombra pried open my mouth with his hooves, and my eyes went wide with fear. I tried to get away, but the pain in my back prevented me from doing much wiggling. Discord blocked the view, getting in between me and the ponies. He got up in my face and did a sort of grimacing smile, one that I’ve never seen before. It made me almost throw up with fear. I started begging as much as I could with my mouth wide open. He then grabbed my tongue with his claw, holding it still. Everything went in slow motion then. I heard everypony crying out, pleading, threatening, crying. I tasted metal- a blade was in my mouth. He started to saw away at my tongue, making my mouth and head explode with fireworks of pain. Blood flooded out of my mouth and down my chin, down my throat, and all over Discord’s claw and paw. His claw slipped and made the blade shoot through my cheek. I heard him chuckle grimly. I couldn’t move any part of my upper body from the searing pain. He finally finished cutting away my tongue and backed away. I fell to the ground and writhed violently, gallons of blood pooling around me. I threw up multiple times- deep, heaving waves of bile. I slipped and hit my head on the ground, making me panicked and disoriented. I started at a fast stumble, trying to get away from Discord. I was choking on blood and saliva and bile, and I couldn’t swallow so my mouth hung open, dripping with vile liquids. I could hear frantic screaming coming from the trapped ponies, mixed with maniacal, roaring laughter from Sombra and Discord. In my frenzied stumbling, I tripped over my own hoof and fell to the ground. I did my best to open my eyes to see where I was. I was some distance away from the others. I saw most of the ponies crying; looks of mixed disgust, concern, and fear dominate their faces. I gave a choked cough, sending a spurt of blood onto the ground. I dazed off, almost blacking out from the pain. I was jerked upward by my mane. “Get up. I’m not done with you yet,” Growled Discord. “These troublesome hooves of yours…” He trailed off, clicking his tongue and shaking his head disapprovingly. He looked at Sombra, who nodded his head. Sombra walked over to me and I weakly shoved myself away from him. I tried saying “fuck off” but a painful sort of gurgling took its place instead. He snarled, reared up, and brought his tremendous weight down on my ankles, shattering them easily. I let out an ear-piercing bubbly scream, drowned out by blood. He twisted and jerked my legs this way and that, setting them in unholy positions. I could hear my bones snapping and cracking, popping and tearing, jutting through my skin. My entire body was saturated and caked with blood. I was surprised I hadn’t died of blood loss yet. Sombra picked me up above his head and brought me back down on to the ground harder than ever before, sending new sparks of pain through my body. My legs were useless, and now I was completely immobile and unable to speak or make any coherent verbal communication. Discord lifted up my limp body by the neck and showed his victory to the trapped ponies. “This,” he said, dropping my body to the ground with a hard thump, “is what has become of your little hero. Not so high and mighty now, is she?” He chuckled sadistically. “Ohh, the fun I will have with you all.” He looked over the two alicorns and my friends, cut up and unkempt, missing their respective appendages. He floated onto his back, lying back in mid-air. “I want to play a game,” he proposed. “Been a while since we’ve done that, hmm?” I could hear Rainbow Dash desperately beating her hooves against the cage, trying to get free. Fluttershy was sobbing. Pinkie Pie was screaming about what she’ll do when she gets her hooves on Discord’s “meanie face”. Applejack was comforting Fluttershy, assuring everything will be alright. Rarity had fainted long ago from the sight of blood, flesh, bones, and vomit. Twilight was staring Discord dead in the eyes, ready to face whatever comes. Luna and Celestia were all staring as well, surprisingly silent. (And useless without their horns or wings.) “My game,” Discord said, “Is quite complex. I’m not so sure your mule brains will comprehend how to play it, but I guess I’ll have to dumb it down. “You will all be released into the Everfree Forest. I will have a magic barrier around the woods. Step beyond it and you will get torn to shreds.” He paused, making sure they understood. “The object of the game is easy: survive and play by the rules. Do what I say. Break a rule and I will personally tend to the troublesome pony. You will each have a varying set of tasks you will need to complete. Some alone, some not alone.” “Well, that doesn’t sound too hard…” Twilight said quietly. “Oh, but there’s a catch,” Said Discord. “You will all have your memory wiped, not knowing who you are or who anypony else is. You will not know anything but being an ‘earth pony’ set off into the woods with other ponies. You will not know what dangers lie ahead of you, nor will you know how to combat them without your precious friendship,” he sneered. “Best part is, I get to watch it all!” He started to laugh in a crazed manner. I think he finally snapped. The ponies collectively gasped and murmured frantically. “However, since I’m nice, I’ll choose what you get to remember and what you don’t. I’ll give you all a set of instructions on what to do. Complete them, and you win. But when the last pony standing goes, game over. I win.” “What do you mean ‘when the last pony standing goes’!?” Cried out Rainbow Dash. Discord just grinned. “You’ll see soon enough,” he said darkly. I stirred, not sure what I was trying to accomplish. I wanted nothing more than to help my friends. Discord looked over at me through the corner of his eyes, and I stopped writhing, afraid he’ll do me more harm. “Of course, I’ll need some time for preparation…” Discord said lazily, still looking at me with a look of deep thought. I cursed him, hoped to some greater evil that he would die in the most agonizing way possible. “Dear Sombra, do be a dear and take care of these lovely mares for me while I’m away, won’t you? I’ll take the red one. I have plans.” Discord gripped my tail and lifted me into the air and carried me off, making my hooves drag on the ground. I started crying, knowing he had some kind of malevolent deed planned for me. We reached the portal, which he carelessly threw me into and followed through. I groaned when I hit the floor, smelling that familiar stench of dried blood and sulfur. Discord said nothing as he dragged me into the room where they tortured me. He flopped me onto the cold steel table and rummaged through the drawers. I gurgled questioningly, wanting to at least know what my fate will be. “Hm? Oh. I have special plans for you, my dear Chance. You’re going to thank me when I’m through with you,” Discord said in a giddy, dark voice, as if he was excited to see me suffer even more. He probably was. Sombra stared at the ponies trapped in their cages like wild animals. The ponies stared back. “You don’t talk much, do you?” Rainbow Dash asked with an audible tang of hate. Sombra growled, his eye twitching in irritation. “Thought not,” Dash sneered. “King Sombra,” Celestia finally spoke up, “Whatever you have planned, don’t do it. Discord is only using you to do his bidding. He’ll certainly kill you after he’s-” Sombra lunged at her cage, violently knocking it over and sending the princesses onto the ground. He bucked it hard against a building. The other girls cried out, desperately asking if Luna and Celestia were okay. “SILENCE!!!” He roared, lifting up the cage with the other six ponies in it with his horn. He sent it flying through a building with ease. “I cannot do much damage to you mules. Discord has other plans for you,” He growled through clenched teeth. “So shut the fuck up.” He hesitantly brought the cages back into their original places, wishing he’d let the cages rot on the ground. The ponies were quite battered, so none of them said anything. There wasn’t really anything to say, anyway. They were doomed to an uncertain fate and their best friend is most likely being torn to shreds by Discord. They lost their horns and wings and they were trapped. A feeling of immense dread loomed over them like a thick storm cloud. Fluttershy wouldn’t stop crying and the rest just sat and stared at their hooves. Sombra kept watch like a hawk all day, making sure none of them got loose or tried anything funny. Not like they could escape a magic cage, anyway. The sun and moon were still in a fixed stasis, so night didn’t really come. Sombra went into a house, presumably to sleep. Twilight was planning a way to escape, and a couple other ponies were asleep as well. Hours went by. Sombra was still asleep. ‘I’m hungry’ was the most popular thing being said. Applejack was laying with half of her head poked out of the cage in a half sleep, half awake state. Suddenly her ear twitched, picking up a sound in the distance. She lifted up her head and shushed everypony so she could listen better. Snap. “Do y’all hear that?” She asked. “Hear wh-” Twilight started to say, but got cut off by the sound of timber wolves howling. “Oh, no,” Fluttershy said. “We’re mutt food!” Cried Pinkie. Rarity had to quiet her, afraid she’ll wake up Sombra. Suddenly Volk came sprinting out of the Everfree Forest, followed by a huge pack of timber wolves. Quiet gasps of joy came from the cages as Chance’s pet wolf jumped around the cage, delighted to see everypony wasn’t dead. “Volk, get out of here!” Applejack said quietly. “Either you’ll end up timber wolf food, or Sombra will…” She didn’t even want to finish the sentence. Volk tilted his head, a knowing gleam in his eye. He stayed put and the pack of timber wolves caught up. Everypony backed up against the cage, trying to get as far away as possible from the vicious beasts. They were huge compared to Volk; towering, long-fanged apex predators capable of tearing a pony to shreds within seconds. They surrounded the cages, their hot breath shooting like steam vents onto the ponies, making them shiver with fear. The ponies all looked to Volk who just wagged his tail. “What’s happening?” Rarity asked. “I… I don’t think they want to hurt us,” Twilight said. “I think Volk brought them here to help us!” Just as they were about to start cheering, Sombra stalked out of his dilapidated house, baring his teeth and breathing heavier than a pony who had just run a thousand miles. Discord poofed next to him, looking quite pleased with himself until he saw the unexpected visitors. “What are those things doing here!?” Discord shouted in fury. The horde of timber wolves all turned to face the two, forming a massive barrier between them and the ponies. Volk was in the center, baring his teeth and foaming at the mouth, ready to kill. However, something was wrong. There was a sudden, split-second flash of emerald that seemed to fill the entire world. The timber wolves were gone, leaving Volk standing by himself. He looked around, petrified. He glanced over at the ponies for a fraction of a second, as if to say sorry. He high-tailed it back to the forest before he could get hurt. Discord roared with laughter as the ponies exchanged looks of confusion. What just happened? Had Discord made the timber wolves vanish? “Well, as entertaining as that was, we have a game to play,” Said Discord, wiping a tear away from his eye and pulling in deep breaths. “What happened to Chance!?” Screamed Pinkie Pie. “Gone,” Discord said like it was a waste of breath, flicking dirt from his claw. “Anyway, let’s go.” He snapped his claws and suddenly they were all in the deepest part of the forest. Lush green brush and massive trees grew way over their heads, alive with color and birds. Vines draped the branches which little animals scurried across to get to one tree to another. Berry bushes dotted the forest, which Twilight instantly recognized as edible and sweet. She also saw some that were also sweet, however deadly and poisonous. Those could dissolve your insides. It seemed the bomb hadn’t affected the forest for some reason, hence the massive pack of timber wolves. Discord snapped his claws again and a colossal light green, transparent dome surrounded the forest, which seemed to go on forever. “Don’t forget,” Discord chimed, “Step beyond the dome and you die… Oh, wait.” He started laughing hysterically, pleased with his ironic joke. “Here comes the fun part.” Snap. The cages vanished. Snap. The ponies were in different locations, away from one another. Snap. Memories wiped. “Let the games begin.” Author's Note Apologies for the shortness of this chapter; I wasn't really feeling the creative vibe, you know? More chapters to come, let me promise you that. (Maybe just not as soon as I like it to...) Chapter OneThat face. It always starts with that face. That twisted, menacing, one-fanged face. And it always ends the same way. Failure. Loss. Loneliness. Helplessness. Emptiness. Death. I woke up with a start, heart racing, a cold sweat beading across my forehead. I checked the clock, even though it was still dark out. 3:46. I plopped back down on my bed, trying to regain my breath. I turned over on my side and curled up into a ball, shaking furiously. I held my stuffed wolf Dante, hoping to calm down. Then suddenly I felt as if I was being watched. I slowly turned around to face the window above my bed and peeked through the curtains. There, against the light of the moon, was the same claw as the one in my nightmares. I screamed and grabbed Dante and ran all the way across the room and hid. I think I was hyperventilating. What seemed like hours passed, and nothing happened. Just the sound of the crickets outside dared break the silence. I peeked over the shelf I was hiding behind and saw that it was just a branch from a tree outside my house. I sighed and regained my composure, hugging Dante in a tight grip. This had to stop. I decided to run over to Twilight’s house so I could talk to her about my nightmares, and honestly, I didn’t want to be alone for the rest of the night. I haven’t told anyone about the scares I get every single night, but this is too much. I knew it meant something. Constant recurring dreams of mine always mean something. I quickly grabbed my favorite black hoodie, put the hood up, held Dante in my mouth and ran out the door, flying towards the library. I flew up to her door and stood there, hesitant to knock. I didn’t want to wake a friend at this hour. I sat and held Dante in my arms, about to cry, when the door opened. “Chance?” I looked up through the tears to see Twilight’s concerned face. “Are you o-” I jumped up and hugged her, sobbing and shaking uncontrollably. “Chance, what’s going on? What’s wrong?” I couldn’t speak through all the tears. I tried to, but I just ended up choking and coughing. “Come inside, it’s freezing out here.” I hated crying in front of other ponies, even my friends. This was the first time anypony has seen me cry. Sniffling and blinking away the tears, I looked down at the floor, afraid to look at Twilight in the eyes. I guess it was a superiority thing or something. I gulped hard and wiped the rest of the tears away, and finally looked up. Twilight’s eyes were glistening with tears as well. “Chance, please. Tell me what’s wrong. Why are you crying? I’ve never-” Everything came out at once, like a flood. I looked down and took a huge breath. “I didn’t wanna wake you, Twilight, but these horrible, horrible nightmares. Every night. EVERY NIGHT, HE’S ALWAYS THERE, LAUGHING AND TORTURING ME. And I know I’m dreaming, but it’s like he’s there, preventing me from waking up. I finally am granted that peace when he makes sure I’ve seen everything. All my friends, my family… Gone. And it’s all my fault. And I know he’s played you, Celestia, all the pony folk… He hasn’t changed at all. He’s gonna come back soon, after he gets me first.” I looked up at her, tears streaming my face again, tears dominating hers as well. “And you wanna know the worst part? It’s been happening for months, Twilight. Months.” She knew what that meant. She knelt down next to me and held me, stroking my hair the way she knows I like it. “Shh, shh, shh. It’s okay. Everything’s alright, I promise. He won’t get you. Who is he, anyway?” I pried her off of me to look in her eyes. “Promise you won’t tell anyone or freak out?” She smiled warmly. “Pinkie promise.” I sighed deeply. “It was Discord.” Her eyes bulged from her head, obviously taken by complete surprise. “Oh, my gosh. We have to tell-” My look stopped her in her tracks. “I mean, don’t worry. He won’t get you. I promise I’ll protect you, alright? Luna and Celestia and all our friends and everyone in Ponyville will protect you.” She put her hoof under my chin and lifted it up so I would look at her. She smiled and so did I, tears burning my eyes. “Twilight, can I ask a favor? I mean, if it’s alright with you…” “Of course.” I smiled awkwardly. “Do you think… Maybe we can spend the rest of the night reading books, and then watch the Princess raise the sun? I would kill for some company right now…” She laughed. “You don’t have to ask me twice for a night of reading.” She grinned and galloped to the Science Fiction section, our favorite, and pulled a few of the shelf and happily trotted back. “Thank you, Twilight. You have no idea how much this means to me.” I smiled and almost started to tear up again. I’m usually not this emotional, but the nightmares really have been taking a toll on my mind. “No problem! After all, you are one of my best friends.” She opened her book and started to read. That’s what makes you a target for him… I thought. I looked down at the one books she gave me, one of the Star Trek ones. I giggled silently. She always knows what cheers me up. We spent the rest of the night reading, and talking about different subjects, mainly astronomy and ancient history. Sure, I was athletic, but I loved to learn. We watched the sun being raised, and went and grabbed a nice breakfast with Pinkie and Applejack. I’m happy Twilight didn’t mention the horrible dreams I was having to them. After that I forced her to get some rest, even though she insisted she was fine. Her baggy, droopy eyes said otherwise. After constantly telling her she needed to do so, she finally agreed and walked me to my house, a little cabin on the outskirts of Ponyville. I didn’t like company all that much. My huskies Tonrar and Volk heard us and ran over to greet Twilight and I. Tonrar tackled me and licked my face while Volk wagged his tail and nudged my neck, and I couldn’t help but laugh like a maniac, and Twilight had to stifle a giggle as well. They finally let off, and ran away, playing with each other. I got up and looked at Twilight, grinning ear-to-ear. “See what I have to deal with every time I get back from somewhere?” We continued to walk towards my cabin. When we reached my front door, I looked up at the sky, and was taken aback at how late it had gotten. It looked to be about 4 or 5 in the afternoon. Twilight looked at me with half concern, half worry. “Well, Chance, I know you seem happy right now, but I know better. I’ve dealt with nightmares before. You’re most likely going to have them again tonight, but don’t worry. I’ll be here for you. Just come by the library again and we’ll hang out for a while, okay?” “Okay, Twilight. Thank you.” She put a hoof on my shoulder and smiled, then walked away. “Tonrar, Volk! Allons-y! Time for dinner, guys.” At the word ‘dinner’, their heads perked up in my direction and ran towards the house. The good thing about these huskies is that they’re vegetarians. I make sure they get their protein and stuff by mixing vitamin powder in with their water, and they don’t seem to notice. I made a vegetable stir-fry and gave them most of it, saving some for me. They ate it happily, then took off running outside to play again. I looked out my window and saw Twilight looking at something. Probably an interesting flower or plant. Suddenly I head both Tonrar and Volk yelping and snarling. Panicked, I turned around to start running to them when I ran into something. I fell to the ground and hit my head, making me see stars. I felt a grip on my arm. It was a claw. I heard a chuckle. It was him. “Twi…light…” I tried calling to her, but fear and pain overtook my body. I tried screaming. Nothing came out but a hoarse gurgle. I tasted blood. He started to cackle now. “No… Please…!” Tears poured out like a tsunami, but I didn’t have the strength to sob. A blunt object hit the base of my skull and I blacked out. Author's Note I will get the next chapter done as quickly as possible. Any criticism is appreciated, whether it's good or bad. I think I might actually turn this into a novel-type thing (around 30 chapters) if it doesn't escalate too quickly. Also, I've noticed this is the first Fic of its kind on here, I think. No one thinks of Discord or Sombra to be sadistic? ...Weird. Maybe it's just me being weird.
Chapter TwoDuring the time I was out, I sort of felt this odd peace… Like, maybe if I had died, it would be okay. It was like I was floating in suspended animation. Once and a while I could hear a noise, a faint little whisper, or a feeling of being moved. Sometimes it would feel like I would come to, only to have that vague vision fizzle away into blackness again. I was disoriented of course, but I couldn’t keep track of anything- which way was up or down, where my appendages were, time, or sleep… I was happy, though. The nightmares didn’t come. After some time had passed, I started to feel things on my skin and sometimes I could hear a couple distorted words, but I still couldn’t see correctly. I didn’t even know if my eyes were open. Again, quite some time had passed, and I could start to move certain parts of my body, but it would only register as a twitch. I could feel a pain on my wrists and ankles, and one in my stomach. I think my mouth was as dry as a bone too, but it also could just be numb like the rest of my body that isn’t hurting. Gradually, I could clench my jaw, which hurt like hell. I could take in deeper breaths, and I think I could actually feel everything. I couldn’t open my eyes. That didn’t bother me, which I think it should have. I couldn’t hear much except for the occasional whisper or the shifting of objects. I didn’t care about that either. It suddenly donned on me that I was in intense pain. My head, my face, my arms and legs, even my chest hurt like nothing I’ve ever experienced. I realized I couldn’t even breathe normally without a sharp pain racing through my body. I decided to sleep; maybe that’ll pass the time and hopefully ease the pain… I don’t know how long I had slept for, but I woke up panicked for a little. I still couldn’t open my eyes and everything hurt and… I couldn’t move. Oh, no. I was restrained. And I couldn’t see. Paranoia settled in as I tried to stay still and do a silent check of me and my surroundings. Nothing felt broken, but I could be wrong. My back right hoof felt the worst. I did, however, feel a crusty residue on parts of my face and sides. It felt like I was at a 140 degree angle, I think. I was vertical with my front hooves crossed above my head in an awkward manner. Some leather-type material bound me to whatever I was against. Maybe it was a wall. I checked my surroundings next. I listened hard for anything. Nothing. I silently sniffed the air without moving my head, trying to get an idea of what was around. I smelled something metallic, something sterile, and a sickly sweet smell. The air was cold, too. Was I in a hospital? I couldn’t be… They wouldn’t have restrained me like this. I had immaculate hearing and smelling, but nothing popped out at me. That is, until I heard a soft clop-clop, clop-clop coming from somewhere above me. I hated that. I couldn’t see it, but I could hear it. The paranoia got more intense as the sound got closer and louder. I thought I heard conversing, but it could just have been my mind playing tricks on me. Then, all was quiet. “Well, good morning, sunshine.” That voice. My heart and my breathing stopped. My thinking stopped. Everything stopped. A weight was lifted off of the top part of my face, halfway between my snout and my forehead. I realized then I was aggressively strapped down by something, covering my eyes. I hadn’t noticed the pain it was causing until it was taken off. I think my eyes were swollen pretty bad. Through the tiny slits of my eyelids, I could make out two figures. The ones from my nightmares. I heard a chuckle. “Well, well, well. Look who finally decided to wake up,” The voice that was speaking I didn’t recognize, and my eyes hurt too bad to open them to look. The same voice started speaking again, with exaggerated haughtiness. “No nightmares at all, your sleepiness?” Laughter from both of them arose, making my face burn. How did they know about the nightmares? “Oh, leave her alone, Sombra. Can’t you tell she’s so sleepy that her eyelids have turned purple?” More obnoxious laughter. My tongue and mouth were as dry as dry could be, but I managed to say something. “…Piss… off.” Their laughter ceased, and I could feel their stares bearing holes through me. I smirked and breathed heavily from the pain that racked my body. I can’t submit to them. I know that’s what they want. Suddenly a claw gripped my throat, and a paw silenced me, covering my nose and mouth. “What?” I couldn’t breathe at all. I couldn’t even swallow. “Mmmnnnfffnnnn” was all I could say, trying to be as loud as possible without my head hurting too much. His grip tightened on my throat and I tried desperately to struggle and breathe, but I had no such luck. Sombra started to giggle quietly as my face started turning different colors. I thrust forward and sideways, trying to get free of his grip. “Oh, stop struggling. You’re only making it worse. In fact, this is your first lesson: Obedience.” First lesson? Was he crazy? My dry lips cracked under his paw and I tasted blood. I’ll let him win this round. As much as I hated doing so, I stopped struggling, and prayed to Celestia he would let go soon. A few seconds passed, and he finally let loose, allowing me to drag in huge gulps of air, choking here and there. He stood there, staring at me and grinning. “Very good, Shadow Spec-” I shot my head up and immediately cut him off. “Don’t you dare finish that sentence, don’t you dare say my real name,” I huffed. A look of amused confusion sprawled across Discord’s face. It returned back to his usual grin, though. “Why ever not?” He knows. I know he knows. He knows I know he knows. He just wants me to spell it out for him, which I’m not going to. “Well, anyway, Pegasus-” he spat on the word ‘Pegasus’, “You’re ours now. From here on out, you will address us as either ‘Sir’ or ‘Master’. Understood?” Was he serious? I wasn’t going to call either of them any of those names. I stood there, looking at the ground, panting. I didn’t know what to say. I didn’t want him to choke me again, or maybe even worse, but I didn’t want to- “Understood?” He got up close to my face, breaking my train of thought. I slowly looked up to meet his eyes and nodded. Verbal words are promises and gestures are just that, right? As if he read my thoughts, he held my chin with his claw and looked me dead-on. “I need you to speak your answer, Chance.” He said calmly. How did he even know my nickname? Sombra chimed in. “Speak, you mutt.” My face burned and I quietly said “Understood…” Discord leaned in closer. “ ‘Understood…’ what?” Tears threatened to push through, so I had to bite my tongue. “Understood… Master.” He let go of my chin and patted my head. “Good girl,” He said with a smile. “You might be easier to break than I had thought.” Think again. I hung there, fighting back tears, welcoming the pain my body has housed. “Discord,” I half panted, half demanded. He raised an eyebrow. “Yes?” I looked up at his general direction. “Why can’t I remember anything before I woke up here?” He bared his teeth and laughed heartily. “You’ll find out soon enough, my little pony.” He walked away with Sombra, leaving me wherever it was they bound me. After I made sure they were gone, I cried. Full-blown crying. Shaking, hyperventilating, and choking on air, I wept until I couldn’t muster the strength to anymore. I hung there, devoid of any emotion at that point, wondering what I could do to get out. I’ve seen many shows and movies where convicts and crazy ponies wiggle out of their straps and gallop to freedom, but I couldn’t even see what was in the room. All I knew is that I was in a grey, plain, basement-like room. I was in pain, I literally could not remember anything before I woke up here, and I had a hatred fill my gut and let it overpower my thoughts. I will get out of here. And I will kill Discord and Sombra. __________________________________ I don’t know how I was able to sleep like this. I was somewhat vertical, and my arms were bent at a weird angle and behind my head. Probably to make it harder to break loose. I awkwardly twisted my body this way and that way, trying to get in a comfortable position. I twisted and twisted and twisted. Good thing I’m flexible… Otherwise this would have been painful. Somehow I twisted so far that I actually spun myself around onto my stomach, untwisting my arms and crossing my legs. “Whoa,” I whispered to myself, shocked that I actually did that. Relief washed over me and a lot of the pain went away. I couldn’t help but sigh because it was so good not to have constant pain. I wonder if Discord will get mad that I flipped over… Oh, well. I’ll cross that bridge when I get to it. I slept a rather fitful rest, but it was sleep nonetheless. Hopefully I’ll be able to see tomorrow. Author's Note Yay, chapter 2 is done~ Again, any criticism is welcomed in the comments section.
Chapter ThreeI woke up who knows how long after I had fallen asleep. I didn’t open my eyes, not because of fear that they were still swollen, but because I was afraid if I did open them, Sombra or Discord will be standing there. I was still on my stomach, but it was still possible for somepony to get up in my face. I listened to see if I could hear anything. Not a peep. In fact, the silence was so thick, it almost hurt from the incessant ringing. To my surprise, my eyes flitted open the moment I told them to do so. They still hurt pretty bad, but at least I could see. I was in a darkened room, but all I could make out was a long table with a cloth that fell to the floor and a staircase leading up, and another one leading down. The faintest of light made its way through the upper staircase. It looked like that blue-gray you often see during early winter mornings. Since no one was around, I decided to try and wiggle loose. I used my front hooves’ restraints to lift me up and bring tension off my back hooves. After a moment of brief struggling, they were free. The moment they went back to their normal position, pain struck through my spine like lightning, causing me to let go and fall through the rest of the restraints. I fell on the concrete floor, hurting every inch of my body. At least my right arm cushioned my head. I yelped loud on instinct, and immediately covered my mouth and forced myself to crawl under the table to hide. Each little movement sent waves of pain through my body, but I didn’t want to be caught by those two monsters. I laid on my side, not moving, barely breathing, and tears moistening my eyes. Please don’t come down here, please don’t come down here. I hoped like nothing else that they didn’t hear me. Just as I thought it was safe to move around again, something grabbed my tail and pulled me out from underneath the table, hoisting me upside-down into the air. I couldn’t even thrash around because the pain was so unbearable. I wanted to cry, to whimper, to be a total wimp and hold Dante again. But not now. I had to be strong. Shutting my eyes tight, I waited for the worst. “Oohhh, we have a little Houdini in the making,” Discord sneered. He threw me hard against the wall and I hit my forehead. I cried out softly. “Ahn…” I didn’t speak or look up or even dare move. I doubt I could even do any of those things, anyway. I whimpered quietly, tears on the brink of poring out. I heard Sombra walk over and kicked me in the ribs, shooting searing pain all over. At least he didn’t buck. I hid my face in my hooves and let the tears drip onto my fur. “I hope that hurts,” Discord flatly said. “We were actually going to grant you food and a shower today, since you smell like a barn and I can see your ribs. But after that little stunt, I’m not so sure anymore. What do you think, Sombra?” “I think we should at least feed her, you know? We don’t want her to die just yet.” Food. Dear Celestia. I didn’t realize how starving I was, until I remembered the intense pain in my stomach. How could I have forgotten food? Or even water? I then felt my whole body being moved, but I couldn’t tell how. I looked up and saw Sombra was half dragging me across the floor with a levitating spell cast from his horn. “Come on, you little annoyance…” He said that as if he was bored. He trotted with me over to the staircase that led downward, the concrete scraping my skin, creating new wounds and reopening old ones. Struggle was obviously futile, so I just took it and bit my tongue. He reached the first step with no sign of slowing down, and dragged me tail first down the stairs. Panicked, I took all of my strength to put my front hooves in front of my face and forehead so I wouldn’t hit it anymore. A scraping thunk, thunk, thunk, thunk and the sound of hooves was the only thing breaking the silence as we went down the stairs for what seemed like an eternity. I could tell Discord was right in front of me, following Sombra. As if he could tell I was thinking about him, he said, “You know, you’re a lot tougher than I had expected. Sombra and I actually made bets on when you would start bawling and break,” He chuckled. “Of course, I lost.” He sneered. I could hear Sombra chuckling to himself as we finally hit what I hoped was the bottom floor of wherever we were. This room was well-lit, and I could smell something unfamiliar cooking. I could hear a fire crackling and popping. Maybe they were making food. With hidden excitement, I lifted up my head to see what was cooking. I wish I hadn’t. There, hanging from the ceiling by a meat hook, was an animal. Half of its meat had been taken off, leaving entrails dangling from its stomach. I stared at it in disbelief. Upon looking at it closer, I realized I recognized what it was. It was Tonrar. I started to immediately throw up stomach acid. I was screaming and bawling and throwing every colorful curse word I knew at Discord and Sombra. Sombra started to cackle, tending to the fire which was cooking my best friend. I was shaking uncontrollably, gagging and unable to throw up anymore. “What the hell is wrong with you!?” I screeched. I got up and starting pounding my front hooves on Discord’s chest, even though I was too weak to do any damage. He pushed me off and I fell on the ground, still sobbing. “I guess we know what triggers your feelings,” He said, amused. Sombra then lifted me up with his horn and sat me down on a chair at a table, and strapped me in with even more leather restraints. Tears blinded me, and I thrashed around, screaming hoarsely. “TONRAR!” I started to cry hysterically and bellow obscenities. “Oh, shut up. It’s not that bad. Try some,” What? I opened my eyes to see Sombra eat a piece of the cooked meat. I just stared at him, jaw open. Discord took this opportunity and held my jaw in place, so I couldn’t close it. What are they doing? WHAT ARE THEY DOING? I frantically thought. Sombra took a chunk of meat and brought it up to my mouth. I screamed louder than I thought was ever possible. He forced it into my mouth, and then let Discord shut my jaw and cover my lips so I couldn’t spit it out. Tears were streaming down my face, and I was puking the little stomach acid I had left into my mouth. He moved my jaw up and down to simulate chewing. I tried desperately, so desperately, to make this stop. Unfortunately, straps covered most of my body, so I couldn’t even move my head from side to side. After the meat was a warm mush, he covered my nose and lifted up my head. “Swallow,” He commanded. I knew that he wouldn’t let me breathe if I didn’t. I had no choice. I had eaten my pet. My best friend. I couldn’t cry anymore, so I just sat there, disheveled. They fed me more and more until there was a bulge in my stomach. I had thrown up twice, maybe more. After that I had just lost all strength. Things started to make sense, I think. The metallic smell I had encountered when I woke up was blood. Tonrar was yelping when I blacked out, Volk snarling, trying to save him. I wondered why I could remember that and nothing else. I couldn’t remember the faces of my friends, or even their names. I sat there, lost in thought, while Discord and Sombra tidied up or whatever they were doing. My parents? Nothing came to mind. Do I even have a sister? A brother? Still nothing. Was I a good student to Celestia? How can I remember Celestia and none of my friends or family? I groaned in frustration and depression. Was I a good friend? I fell asleep in the chair, having nothing else to do. I dreamt of a cold, barren wasteland that used to be Ponyville. Everypony was covered in blood, their bodies a mangled mess, patches of fur missing in some spots. Body parts were strewn across roads and yards. Sounds of sobbing and moaning and cries for help was the theme song for this wretched vision. The sky was a golden-red and masked with black, puffy clouds. I could smell sulfur and blood and fire. Fires ate houses, charring bodies. Then, suddenly, everypony dead or alive, slowly turned their heads towards me and pointed. “Your fault… This is all your fault… Why didn’t you protect us…!? You made this happen…!” The dead ponies crawled towards me, the luckier, alive ones ran. I couldn’t move or even scream. I thought I recognized some faces, but that hope faded as the memory flew away from my grasp. They all dog piled onto me, crushing my bones and tearing at my flesh. Pure hatred and disgust filled their eyes. I then woke up with a start, seeing Discord and Sombra tugging away the straps. They both looked at me without turning their heads. “I hate you both,” I spat. Discord slapped me with his paw. “Shut up.” When I was loose, I immediately mad a run for it, galloping toward the stairs. I had to run under Tonrar’s corpse because it was the fastest way to the stairs. Blood dripped onto my back. Halfway up the stairs, Discord materialized in front of me and I ran into him, falling backwards and tumbling down the stairs. “Are you ever not going to run into me?” I brought my wings up and I pushed off the ground as hard as I could. Sadly, the ceiling was low, so I couldn’t escape their grasp for long. Every flap of my wings hurt like hell. I collapsed onto the table and got covered in Tonrar’s entrails. I pushed off the table with my wings and flew horizontally, knocking things over and kicking flaming logs into the air. “Holy shit, calm down,” Sombra yelled. Discord grabbed me and held me so I couldn’t move. I struggled for a good three minutes, then stopped out of exhaustion. “Finally…” Sombra said under his breath. Fresh tears streamed down my face as I hung my head. “I don’t care if you tried to escape twice today. You need to wash up. Especially now that you have you dog’s blood all over you,” Discord said, smirking. With his claw, he grabbed me, holding me by my abdomen. He floated up the two flights of stairs, to the room above where I was kept. I had shut my eyes to try to stop the migraine I had. A few doors opened, we went left and right, and he finally stopped and lifted me up so I would be face-to-face with him. I looked at him with no emotion. He stared at me. It was hard to tell what he was thinking. He put me down and left, closing the door behind him. “You have 10 minutes, Chance. We need to show you something when you’re done,” Great, I thought. Can’t wait. I laid on the floor for a minute or so. I finally got up and looked around. It was a pretty big bathroom, with an intricately designed shower surrounded by a glass wall. Shampoo and the works lined the wall of the shower. I looked at the shower floor and saw clods of white hair. That… Is disgusting. Is that Discord’s? I grimaced and turned on the water to push it down the drain. While the water was on, I wondered if I could just make a run for it now. I looked under the door and didn’t see anything. I tried the knob, but to my surprise, it was locked from the outside. No locks on the inside. Oh, wonderful. Now he could barge in at any time and watch me shower. I looked back at the floor and saw that it was free of nasty hairs. When I stepped into the warm stream of water, my whole body stung. I had to wash out the cuts and scrapes, otherwise they’d get infected. I just won’t use soap on them. I watched as the water going down the drain turned different colors: brown, maroon, bubbly-white with soap, and black with dirt. Finally the water ran clear. I was so thirsty that I opened my mouth and drank the water falling down in streams, and after having my fill, I got out. Just in spite of Discord, I shook like a dog (even though it hurt) and got water everywhere. I started to chuckle when the door opened, and his face peeked through. He looked all over the room and then back at me, shock turning to irritation. “Ugh,” We stared at each other for a long time, and I felt my face burning. I wasn’t sure why. “Time to go.” “Where?” I said flatly. “Just obey and do as you’re told,” He said with obvious annoyance. “Come with me.” He went back behind the door and I followed. “Sombra, the mutt is ready.” “Took it long enough.” “Can you not call me a mutt?” They both laughed. “…Fine, I just won’t call you Master.” They shot me dirty looks. “Listen, mutt, ‘Master’ is a title. ‘Mutt’ is a degrading term. We’re kings, so you will treat us as such.” I sighed. “And what are you king of, Discord?” A pause. “You. I am your king. And you will obey.” A weird look sprawled across my face, a mix of confusion and disgust. He looked off into the distance. “And obviously I’m king of chaos, if you haven’t already put two and two together.” An awkward silence filled the air, and Sombra cleared his throat. “We should probably get going.” Discord grunted and went to get something out of a drawer. He pulled out a rag and a vial with clear liquid. He looked over at me and smirked, sprinkling the liquid on the rag. “Uhhh…” I said, unsure. I think I knew what that was. He floated off somewhere and I wanted to watch him, but Sombra levitated me and kept me from moving. Discord brought his paw up to my snout with the rag pressing against it. It was chloroform. I held my breath until I felt a hoof strike me in the stomach, causing me to gasp. Instantly, I felt numb and everything started to fade away. I had blacked out. Author's Note This is the only chapter I'm going to submit today... I made it longer than usual to compensate for two, so... Yeah. Criticism is welcome, like always.♥
Chapter Four(This chapter will be told from Discord’s point of view, continuing from the last chapter.) The Pegasus finally stopped struggling in my arms, going limp. “…You didn’t hit her that hard, did you?" “Why do you care?” He turned around and started walking away. I hoisted her over my shoulder and followed him. I waited as his horn glowed a magnificent yet subtle red color. The rift opened up, allowing us to enter. The void was the same as always, bleak and free of anything. Almost like deep space without the colorful stars. Although it was very dark, a constant light lit the whole of the void, but there were no light sources. No actual defined horizon or sky or visual depth played a part in this dimension. You could hear a low, moaning wind blowing somewhere, but you couldn’t see or feel it. We walked the correct ways to the center to avoid looping and starting back where we were. Finally we reached the middle, an obvious place where it was a little brighter and the floor was a lighter gray color. I set her down on the floor and wrapped a collar around her neck, and then attached that to a chain which hooked to a spike in the ground. The good thing about being a draconequus is that you have opposable thumbs. Chance won’t be able to take off the collar because she lacks fingers. Before we got here, I had fixed a muzzle onto her, keeping the rag in place and preventing her from waking up. I took that off and threw it backwards, and Sombra caught it with his horn. I sighed and looked up at the black and indigo “sky”. Things close to resembling stars dotted this sky, but vanished once you look at them dead-on. You could see them in your peripheral vision, though. “Ahh, the void is looking so lovely today, eh, Chance?” I heard a small gasp and I had to smirk to myself. I guess she didn’t know I knew when she awoke. “This is your new home, now. You will be kept here while certain… ‘errands’ are taken care of in Equestria.” “What? We’re not in Equestria? What do you mean, errands?” I chuckled, amused by her confusion. “No, we’re in another dimension, where certain physics that apply to Equestria are not played here. It’s quite fun, really.” “…The errands. What are you planning to do there?” Without answering her, I turned and flew away. “Wait, come back! You can’t leave me here!” “Oh, don’t worry. I’ll come back for you once I’m done with Ponyvi- I mean, with the errands. And I certainly can leave you here. Just watch me.” Sombra was long gone now, probably bored. I left the way I came, mentally noting when to turn this way or that, even though there weren’t any visual aids. Chance couldn’t have seen me once I turned the first corner. The void was a strange place that Sombra and I both created. Its purpose was many; a prison, a safe house, a meeting place, et cetera. I had gotten the idea to keep her here because it was no easy task to find your way out of here, even if you’ve passed through hundreds of times. Sombra and I came up with the most brilliant plan ever thought. Since Chance has such an interesting psyche that it’s so simple yet almost impossible to understand, we chose her. She’s friends with just about everyone in Ponyville and Canterlot. She even personally knows the Princesses. That makes her a wonderful pawn. Basically, my plan is to terrorize the two towns and make it look like Chance was responsible. Oh, yes, it does sound trivial, but in actuality, it will be one of the worse things to happen in Equestria’s history. I designed a bomb that will help us do so- but this is no ordinary bomb. It is designed to go off in intervals, each blast a weak pulse of fire, metal shrapnel, and utter force. The first blast will be the worst, causing the most damage, sending the lesser-wounded ponies outside to help the hurt. The pause between the first and second blast will also be the longest, to ensure the most ponies are outside to feel it. The second blast will send buildings tumbling down, scorch trees and fields, and render many ponies’ senses useless- sight, hearing, and feeling. Hopefully it’ll blind them with shrapnel and debris, deafen them with its loud boom, and numb them with fire and multiple scrapes. The explosion’s height reaches above the clouds, to make sure any Pegasi don’t try to flee its wrath. Sombra will cast a spell over Ponyville and Canterlot to make it so nopony can get out, but the explosion can get in. Then, he will make a hologram of Chance walking through the streets, with a look of sick joy pasted on her face. She will be called to help the others, but the hologram will just smile and walk away. Now, with the matter of the Princesses, I will personally break their horns and clip their wings as they’re under piles of rubble. I’m still debating whether or not it’s worth it to kidnap and kill them. I would love to have them watch as their subjects burned and died, knowing they could do nothing to help. It’s going to be glorious. Quite a few hours have passed, and it was nighttime. We decided to detonate the bomb during the night because Celestia will most likely be sleeping in her castle, vulnerable and unaware. All was silent as we made our way to the detonation location. We placed the bomb, about the size of a few beach balls, in a field between Canterlot and Ponyville. To be honest, the silence was a little disconcerting… Luna should have spotted us relatively fast. Something didn’t feel right. Ignoring my instincts to abort the plan and get out before anyone sees, I stayed and triggered the detonation to go off in 3 minutes- just enough time to pop back into the void while destruction is wrought. I had to admit, I was feeling giddy about having a foolproof plan that will surely rid this world of Celestia. I looked over and nodded to Sombra, who then opened the rift to enter the void. We made our way to the center of the void because it will probably take around 10 or 15 minutes for the bomb to stop pulsing, and we needed to make sure Chance hadn’t escaped and ventured too far into the void. She was, indeed, there, sleeping like a lazy oaf. She must’ve heard us and woke up, immediately scooting backwards away from us as far as her leash would go. “Oh, nice to see you too.” She flashed me a dirty look and I smirked in return. It was always so amusing to watch her attempt to hate me. “So, I guess those things we needed to do are done. I just need to go back and check up on things later.” “Which is…?” “None of your beeswax, mutt.” She sighed, annoyed, and slumped forward. “Slouching is bad for your posture, you know.” She looked up at me and had a look on her face that obviously said ’screw off’. I decided then would be a good time to go back out and see how much damage the bomb had caused. Without saying anything, I left, with Sombra following closely behind. I heard her groan, probably in frustration. I stopped in my tracks, receiving a deliciously evil idea. “Wait a minute, Sombra… Let’s take her with us. You can cast an invisibility spell on her so she won’t be seen, but she will still be able to see what happened. You’ll be in charge of her, though, when I take care of the loose ends.” Sombra’s face perked up, probably enjoying that idea. “Sounds… interesting.” We looked over at her, confusion written all over her face. I flew over and untied her chain from the ground. Holding her in my arms, I covered her eyes. I didn’t want her seeing the way out. I knew she was smart and could easily remember the directions to turn. “Hey…! Let me go, you jerk! Stop touching me!” She tried fighting back, despite my amazing strength keeping her from squirming free. “Uncover my eyes! Stop! I need to see!” Ugh. Annoying. “Shut up, you weak-minded mule.” She stopped after that and I chuckled quietly. We got outside and I released Chance, holding her leash. She was probably strong enough to try to escape, and I didn’t want to take any risks. As she recovered from my grasp, Sombra cast an invisibility spell on her, but made it so only he and I could see her. “What… Where are we? What’s that smell? How did we get out of that pla-” Sombra groaned and hoofed her in the mouth, causing her to fall. Blood trickled down her snout and she looked more shocked than in pain. “…You could have just told me to be quiet.” He scoffed and looked at me, waiting for orders. I told him to have Chance see all her ‘friends’, but keep her restrained enough that she can’t interfere. I gave him the chain, which he held with a levitating aura, and flew off to Canterlot. I heard Chance look up and say “Ho…ly…”, shocked and probably on the edge of sobbing. Again. While she was sleeping, I was able to mix in visions of the disaster here into her dreams. Like I said, sometimes her mind is weak. She can’t handle something like this mentally; enough of this and she’ll be easier to break than a toothpick. I flew to Celestia’s castle, looking for any signs of movement to tell me where the princesses are. I heard a few stifled gasps from the ponies below me, probably seeing me and knowing I had caused this wonderful array of destruction and death. I had nothing to show I had found any of Equestria’s rulers. Not even a glimpse of white or indigo. I started to feel uneasy as the search went on. Surely they would be under here. Maybe they were in a deeper part of rubble. I sighed and started digging through heaps of rock and brightly colored stone. Finally, after a few minutes of searching, I had an idea. Mimicking Twilight Sparkle’s voice, I called out, “Princess Celestia! Princess Celestia! Where are you? Say something!” Nothing. I had hoped even that would bring her out. “Oh well. No use beating a dead horse. Or, in my case… A dead Alicorn.” I broke out laughing. Sometimes I crack myself up. Since nothing was to be done here anymore, I flew back to Sombra and Chance. I saw Chance in the air, tugging at her leash. “Let me go! I need to help them! LET ME GO!" Tears fell freely down her face. “But you can’t remember your ‘friends’. Why help complete strangers?” She shot me a look that could kill and said, “Discord, you wouldn’t understand, would you? You have no friends.” Anger filled me and I lifted her up by her leash, holding her abdomen and preventing her from using her wings. “How many times do we have to tell you to shut up?” She kicked and grabbed at her collar, presumably choking. “Fuck you,” She hoarsely said. “Okay, that’s it. We’re going, Sombra. Now.” He opened the rift again, and we walked through. I didn’t bother to cover her eyes as we went through the maze of turns we had to take. I dragged her by the leash as she squirmed on the floor, trying to breathe. This time we went a different way, to a place with “correctional facilities.” By the time we got to a small, enclosed room and I let the leash go slack, her face was a light indigo color, and she started gasping and coughing. “You’re going to go through your second lesson. Respect,” I said. “You do realize what ‘fuck you’ means, right?” She looked up at me with a look of disgust and maybe even horror, and I smirked. I went ahead inside, dragging her along. “Stop with the dragging…” She said. “Then keep up and follow like a good girl.” She did, however the chain was still pretty taut as she hesitantly walked with me. We went through the door and entered the small, dark room, filled with different supplies, a fireplace, and a chrome table. The anger was still present as I aggressively strapped her to the cold metal table and turned on a bright light hanging above her. “Can someone tell me what’s going on?” She said, annoyed. “Shut your trap, you annoying little pest.” I turned the brightness of the light up, almost blinding her, so she couldn’t see much. I grabbed a dirty piece of broken glass from the floor and leaned on the table, tracing the sharpest end of the glass lightly around her cutie mark. “So, your ‘cutie mark’, I assume it symbolizes creativity, hm?” “Y-yeah. So what?” Her voice started to tremble, trying hard not to show it, and I grinned. I knew. “I can be pretty damn creative as well.” I stopped tracing it and started to carelessly shear the fur on her thigh, shaving the image of the mark off. “What the hell are you doing!? St-” “Do you need another hoof mark on your face?” Sombra growled from a corner of the room, and she went quiet. I intentionally nicked her skin with the glass here and there, causing her to squirm. I did the same on the other side when the whole image was but a patch of reddened skin. When I was finished, I went to the fireplace. “So, when I said I was creative, I meant it. Take this, for example,” I held up an iron rod that had been sitting in the fire, glowing a magnificent orange color. On the end was an piece of metal in the shape of my skull. “I captured my horns perfectly, don’t you think?” I giggled. “I can’t see a thing with this light in my face, you a…” She cleared her throat at the end to try to hide her mistake. “You can’t? Here.” I moved the light out of the way and held the hot metal close to her face. “Holy-! Get that out of my face before I get burned!” I laughed and brought it back over to me. “Oh, don’t worry, my little Chance. I won’t be burning your face.” I heard her quietly sigh in relief. “You’ll be getting a new cutie mark, though.” Her head shot up and stared at me. “Excuse me?” I nodded to Sombra, who held her chin backwards, keeping her from making much noise. I lifted the metal to her thigh and turned it horizontally. Chance was hyperventilating, probably knowing what I was doing. I grinned and stuck the metal onto her skin and waited. She tried to flail, making weird noises and whimpers. “Chance, if you squirm you’ll make the image look weird…” I whined. “And if you want to keep your mobility, you’ll stop this instant.” She stopped moving. Threats are the best. After the image had time to burn into the skin, I moved to the other side. Chance watched me and I watched her. Her face was soaked. “Don’t cry, it’s almost over.” I placed the brand on her skin again, and she flinched, staying in a weird, tense position. She was probably trying her hardest not to make any noise. When the metal was done doing its job, I stuck it in a bucket of water. “See? That wasn’t so bad. And you have a lovely new talent: Being mine. Now that you have this cutie mark, you’ll be mine forever. In sickness and in health,” I held my hands together close to my face and swooned, exaggerating the implications of her new mark. I looked at the swollen, blistered burn and then at Chance, who Sombra had released. She was shutting her eyes tightly and biting her lip. I still wasn’t finished. “Chance, I can look into your head. I know your fears, what triggers paranoia and anxiety. And much, much more,” I said, walking over to a drawer. “I know. I know everything about your psyche. Like sensory deprivation and suffocation, for starters.” I heard her shift uncomfortably. I pulled out a shot with a vile full of cloudy liquid, a switchblade and a bandana. I went back over to her and told Sombra to hold her head in place. With some effort, I managed to tie the thing around her eyes. “Stop, please let me see, please! I need to see!” She started to hyperventilate again. “So, this shot contains a special kind of fluid. What it does is almost immediately paralyzes the victim temporarily. If I stick this in your calf, almost everything will be immobilized, except for your breathing and speaking abilities. Speaking might just feel like your whole mouth is kinda numb.” I stood still, not making any sounds for her to tell where I’m at. “…Get it over with! Stop toying with me, and just do it!” “Oh, but there’s no fun in that, now is there?” I stuck the needle in her skin, where I had cut away her fur. She jerked one way and squeaked, taken by surprise. I giggled. She finally went limp and I could hear her heart rate speed up. “Still alive?” I mocked. She growled in response. “Good. So now you can’t see or move. What else could I deprive you of without killing you?” I got up onto the table and on top of her, with my knees pressing into her chest. “Maybe we can start with air…” I wrapped my claw around her throat firmly. I brought the switchblade out and lightly pressed it against the indent in her neck. “Now, what’s my name?” “Discord.” I tightened my grip and pressed the blade down harder. “Wrong. My name is Master. At least, to you it is. When will you speak?” “Whenever I damn well please.” The anger I felt returned and I slashed a long gash in her neck. I made sure to avoid any vital arteries. “Wrong. You will speak when spoken to. Do you deserve to be mine?” There was a long pause. “Answer me!” She sighed. “…Probably not.” She said, voice breaking. My grip on her neck tightened even more. “Will you ever try to escape again?” She swallowed hard. “No…?” I chuckled. “Good girl.” I loosened my grip a little. The questions and answers went on for about a half an hour, gaining some progress. Sombra finally left after falling asleep a few times. This left me to ask more interesting questions. I took off her blind fold when I was sure Sombra wasn’t in hearing distance. “Listen, and listen well. I’m not a mind reader, per se, but I can read your psyche. It’s an open book. I can tell your deepest, darkest hopes and desires,” She looked at me with confusion and shock. “Yes. I know,” She squirmed underneath me. “But I also know your fears and deep-rooted instincts. I kno-” “Yes, Master, I know you know. You know I have a thing for pain and being owned and all that crap. But what I don’t understand is why you did any of this.” The words flooded out of her mouth. “Well, you see… You’re very precious to your friends and family back home. You’re very easy to break. In fact, you might have already been broken. After you’re completely broken and you’re on my side, and the whole town of Ponyville is a disaster along with Canterlot, you will finish off every last pony alive.” Those last four words came out surprisingly full of anger and hate. Both of us looked confused. “How did you perfectly describe the dreams I’ve been having lately?” I grinned and chuckled. If she only knew. Author's Note Okay, sorry about the late publish. I've been going through frequent writer's blocks throughout this chapter. That's probably why it has a varying speed... Anyway, the next chapter will be back to normal, and all other chapters unless stated like I did in the beginning of the chapter.
Chapter FiveI laid there on the table with my face burning worse than my new burn marks. I stared at Discord, barely hearing the words he said after I blurted out the truth. How did that freaking happen? Why did I even call him Master? I can’t believe I just told him that. He probably knew, anyway. Ugh. Shame and embarrassment and a hint of guilt flowed freely around my body, and I wanted to hide my face. Stupid, stupid Chance. Now he has an upper hand on you. “I think you’ve have enough punishment for now,” Discord said, facing the fire. “What do you think?” “Um, uh… I- I, eh…” I stammered. Why can’t I even talk? He turned around and got within a few centimeters of my face. “Unless you want me to go further…” I looked for words to say, but found none, so I gulped hard and shook my head. “Hmpf. Figures. No more fun for Discord. Oh, well… I’ve got more important things to do than watch you cry and whine.” He went through the door, leaving me still on the table. “You’re not coming back, are you?” I said, more to myself than him. I sighed and looked at the ceiling, deep in thought. I think at one point I had fallen asleep. I had this weird dream where I felt like I was under water, intentionally going deeper and deeper. I tried to reach out to something underneath me, but no matter how fast I swam, I could never touch it. Suddenly the water got freezing and everything went black. I heard a snarling “Wake up.” and realized Sombra had thrown a bucket of ice water on my face. “Sombra, what the hell!?” He growled and punched my snout again. I felt something pop, and blood started trickling down in a steady stream. “You will speak only when I ask you a question. Understand?” I stared him down and decided another hoofed face wasn’t worth it. “…Yeah.” “Good. Now, since Discord is away for the time being, I’m allowed to have my share of games with you,” I gave him a weird look. “Meaning I can ‘train’ you like the mutt you are.” Shit. I think I know where this is going… He went and grabbed a bunch of wiring connected to a black metal box, and set it next to me. He wrapped a single metal wire around my right forearm. Oh. Oh, no. I know what he’s going to do. “Now,” he said, with a restrained yet unsettling glee, “Answer my questions wrong, you get punished. Answer them right, and you won’t. Depending on how many questions you get wrong, I might intensify the pain.” I swallowed hard. His horn glowed and I lost my vision as if I had gotten up too fast, and suddenly all of my memories came back at once. It was painful and I jerked to one side and gasped. “Twilight… Twilight!” I panted, still unable to see at the moment. Then, without warning, an equally painful shock came from my arm and surged through my body. “SILENCE. You do not listen well, equine.” I wanted to scream, to fly and get as far away from here as possible. All my friends. I remember seeing most of them back in Ponyville, in pain and the worst look on their face. I started to cry silently. I could have saved them. Sombra held up a picture of a familiar pony. It was Pinkie with her trademark mile-wide grin. I gasped inwardly, recognizing her. “Friend or foe?” What was he talking about? “Friend,” I quickly said. “Wrong.” He switched on that box and sent surges through me, amplified by the water he had thrown on me. It hurt pretty bad, but not enough to satisfy his needs. “You have no friends, only attackers and enemies.” He intensified the electricity to strengthen his point. He turned it off, and waited until I looked at him. “Princess Celestia.” He said. My ears perked up at the name, and in return I got a stronger dose of pain. I could feel muscles tensing up involuntarily. He stopped it once more, and held up another picture. This time it was a picture of my best friend, Tonrar. Only he was beaten and broken and twisted in grotesque and unnatural positions. That’s it. I snapped. “You BASTARD SON OF A BITCH!” I started to bawl and scream and flail, despite the extremely intense, sharp pains of the electricity. I didn’t care. I went bat shit insane, and an adrenaline rush allowed me to somehow rip off the restraints on all four legs, and I brought up my wings and launched myself as hard as I could at Sombra, hoofing him hard in the jaw. He doubled over in shock and pain and I took that chance to dislocate a shoulder. I was on top of his chest now, beating away at his chest and throat. He bucked me off and I flew across the room, hitting my head on a table. I looked up just in time to see him awkwardly charging at me, so I dodged and he hit the same table as I did. I laughed. “Smooth, ya asshole.” He stood there, not moving, but breathing really hard and growling. “I… am going to fucking… murder you.” I felt cocky even though I was in pain both emotionally and physically, and it was funny to see him mad, so I said, “Is that a threat or a promise?” He looked up at me and his whole demeanor screamed hatred and anger. His eyes were crazy as he lunged towards me. Uh oh. I flew as fast as my body would allow out of that room and into the void, remembering where I was chained to the floor. I would have tried losing him by turning the corners a bunch of times, but I really didn’t want to get lost here. As soon as I reached the spot, I stopped and turned around to see if he had followed me. Big mistake. He was right there, blood oozing from his nose and mouth. He pinned me down with a spell and started to laugh maniacally. He lost it. He brought up his hind legs and was about to end my breathing when Discord tackled him to the ground away from me. I heard curses and punches landing and struggling. I couldn’t see what was going on because the spell rendered me literally immobile. Finally that stopped and the spell on me was released. Panicked, I started to fly away, but Discord snapped his fingers and my wings were gone. I fell and a collar was put around my neck again. Great. I got up and looked at the ground. Without moving my head, I looked to see Sombra not too far away with a black eye and a scowl on his face. “So, Chance, look at these amazing souvenirs I got when I was out.” Discord held out what looked like some white feathers, indigo feathers, and a white horn. He also had a few pieces of dark blue and off-white chunks of… stuff. I looked away, half knowing what they were. “Oh, come on. It’s not that bad here.” He picked me up from underneath my arms and held me above the ground so I would look into his eyes. “Look at you, you’re all messed up. Sombra, what did I say about your harshness level?” Sombra just dropped his jaw in complete shock. “I told you not to hurt her. I guess I’ll have to do this my way, like I do with everything else.” He set me down and created a hammock out of nowhere between two palm trees. “Now,” he said, “You got your memories back, right?” I shifted my weight, making the leash he held clink quietly. “Ah, yes, good. But I have to break some news to you,” He paused. “Your ‘friends’ thought of you poorly, you know.” “That’s a lie!” I snapped back. “Is not. Think back. Remember when Rainbow Dash said you could make it to The Wonderbolts? Or when Miss Sparkle said you could get into one of those high-end colleges? Or how about when the pink one said you could have won that bakery contest if you had entered? Those were all lies. They all think you’re not good enough, sadly.” I thought back, and it did seem like that was true… “I'm good at some things…” “Well of course. They just think you’re not good enough. They laugh at your failures. They don’t take you seriously. Rainbow Dash thinks you can’t fly, Twilight thinks of you as a fool, Pinkie laughs at you, Rari-” “STOP IT STOP IT STOP IT. Get out of my head! I know what you’re trying to do, and it won’t work!” I started squirming, trying to get that damn collar off. He lifted me up by the collar, choking me temporarily, and set me down on his chest. His jaw tightened and took a deep breath. “Now listen. I don’t yell at you… A lot… And I’m certainly nicer than afro-corn over there,” I heard a growling sigh come from somewhere. “Basically they all thought you were never good enough, and that you were a nopony, and you would have never been able to get somewhere in life. Sad, really,” He paused again, letting the information sink in. “I, on the other hand, don’t think that at all. You could have been a great achiever. Flown in a rocket ship, invented something amazing, wrote successful novels. I actually think they were all just jealous of your capabilities.” I felt my eyes water. My friends really thought that? Were they just agreeing to shut me up? Shock overwhelmed me. I really thought they cared… “Oh, and one last thing…” I looked up at him and he put his paw under my chin and grinned. “Obey your Master.” He slid his paw off my chin and suddenly my eyes widened as I felt a strange, hypnotic peace take over me. Everything made sense just then. Nopony was my friend. They were all enemies. I hated them. Hated them with every fiber of my being. They all scoffed at me behind my back, I knew it. I felt angry, hurt, betrayed. I wanted revenge… No. I wanted more than that. I wanted them dead. I needed the satisfaction of seeing their blood spatter everything. Who will be inferior then?! I lowered my head and growled, wallowing in hate. “Chance, my dear, I need your help with something.” I looked at him without moving my head, hatred the only thing I felt. “Yes, Master?” I said gruffly. He grinned. “Remember these little things I picked up?” He held up the pieces of horn and feathers with his paw, and snapped his fingers with his claw. The items had turned into two long spears with feathers at one end, with sharp as hell spear points. My eyes lit up and I grinned ear to ear; I knew what these were. Discord chuckled. “I knew you might know what these are. You are clever, after all.” These were the horns, feathers, and bone pieces from the princesses of Equestria. The only way to kill an alicorn is by impaling them with a weapon made of their horn and feathers. The bone was to ensure the death. It’s complicated. “Anyway, what I need your help with, is to go into Ponyville and bring down the princesses. I already broke off their horns and was able to get a few feathers and some bone fragments,” I looked up at him, unsure if I can bring out the responsibility that now rested on my shoulders. “You want to make Master happy, don’t you?” I perked up my ears. “Of course! Master’s happiness is important!” He smirked contently and snapped his fingers, returning my wings back. He took off my collar and led me out of the void. I held the two spears tucked underneath my wings. We entered Ponyville, which was still a wreck. Discord had some fun too, by the looks of it- a chocolate rain hurricane raged through the town, surprisingly not knocking houses off their foundations. I looked up at him for direction. “You’ll probably find everypony you’re looking for in a shelter of some sort. This chocolate rain hurricane probably isn’t the best for wounded ponies.” He laughed. “Yes, Master.” I started to walk into town, hatred gradually building up in me. I had to focus on finding the two pitiful excuses for princesses and end them, and anypony who gets in my way. Author's Note WHOA WHAT A TWIST Sorry this was published so freaking late, you guys. I was dealing with a bunch of emotional crap and had major writer's block to boot. It's here now, though. I actually have a feeling this won't reach anywhere near 30 chapters... 20, tops. Oh well. We'll just see where it goes.
Chapter SixI walked down the street, looking in windows and in alley ways. A long time passed by, and I had thoroughly searched Sweet Apple acres and every large building. No luck. I walked back into town, frustrated. Where was everypony? They had to still be here. I suddenly picked up a familiar scent in the air. I can’t remember what it was, but it felt comforting, so I followed it through an alley way. I kept walking until something caught my eye. It was a smudgy, minorly cracked mirror leaning against a building. Looking into it was mesmerizing. I saw myself- mane a mess, cuts and bruises covered my body, the burn marks on my flanks, but what really captured my attention were my eyes. They didn’t look like mine. Wide, puffy, discolored, almost wild. I couldn’t look away, but that was okay. I felt confused, content, and almost like a weight lifted off my shoulders. No. I shook my head and reared up on my hind legs, smashing my front hooves onto the glass. I was suddenly filled with rage. Something was happening looking into that mirror, and I just instinctively broke it. I shook my head more. Ugh. What was happening? I was losing my grip on what I thought was real. I growled and swatted my head. Conflicting thoughts ran through my mind. I couldn’t put a hoof on it. I knew I was supposed to do this, think that, carry out this deed. But… I… I couldn’t think straight. My mind was clouded with happy memories of friends and clashing thoughts of rage and hate, like I knew I was supposed to be their friend, but I also felt the need to just maim them. I cried out and started beating random boxes and banging my head against the side of a building. “WHAT AM I SUPPOSED TO DO!?” I collapsed and shook with rage and confusion and sadness. I think I was on the edge of hyperventilating. Was I going insane? I looked at the glass shards and had a momentary thought of just slitting my throat. Half of me said kill, half of me said protect. I picked up the sharpest shard and slowly brought it up to my throat. If I do this, Master will be displeased… But I can’t do it… I hated them but I loved them at the same time. Heh. Maybe I’ll find peace if I’m gone. I’m not good enough… I… The tip of the glass touched my throat and I was about to make one swift movement when I heard somepony yell my name. “Chance! Chance!! Oh my Celestia! Volk, Chance is okay!” I cringed and that twinge of hate came back. I clenched my hoof and looked up to see Twilight running to me with tears in her eyes, and Volk limping along by her side. I secretly slid the spears under a box. “Chance, where have you been!? Are you hurt?” She came up to me and hugged me tight. I sort of hugged back. Volk jumped on top of me like he used to do, and for some reason that sent the all too familiar waves of pain through my body. I collapsed sideways and hit my head against a garbage pail. I sucked in a sharp breath and shut my eyes. He immediately got off and whimpered. “Chance! Are you okay?” “I just hit my head on some metal, what do you think?” I shook my head, trying to shoo thoughts away. I looked at her and she looked taken aback at my remark. “Sorry, I’ve just been through a lot…” She looked me over. “Looks like it.” I noticed her look at my flanks and I shifted. “What is-” “Nothing. Promise. Where are the others?” She looked at me weird and hesitantly said, “All of the remaining ponies alive went to another location to live temporarily given the explosions that happened,” Oh, wow. I forgot about that. Twilight looked pretty messed up, burns and long hairline scratches here and there. I guess she didn’t get the full force of the blasts. Should I be happy about that or angry? Twilight interrupted my thoughts. “I decided to come back here with Volk to see if there was anypony left.” I looked down at Volk and for some reason, I wasn’t all too thrilled to see him. I patted his head so I wouldn’t seem out of sorts, and he wagged his tail, happy to see me again. “Where are the princesses?” I said. “Um, they were attacked by something and they had to be held in a secret location inside the mountain where Canterlot is built. They’re in comas,” I had to bite my tongue to keep from smiling at that remark. I don’t know why I wanted to smile. Happiness that they were safe? Happiness that they were hurt? The truth of what actually attacked them? “And all our friends are there, too. Everypony else is in Fillydelphia for the time being.” “Oh. Okay. Cool.” A long, awkward silence sat in the air. “Chance? Are you sure you’re okay? You went missing before all of this happened, and you were talking about your recurring dreams of Discord, and I thought-” “I’m fine, Twilight. Just a little beat up from the bomb. I decided to go for a walk in the forest when that bomb went off, exploding some trees and knocking me down. I was trapped in a small grove with a trunk blocking the way, but I finally managed to push it away.” Why was it so easy to lie then? I never lie. “Oh my goodness, well I’m glad you’re okay.” Sure you are. “Uh, Twilight? Can we go see the others? It’s kind of wet out here…” “Oh, right, I forgot about that for a moment. Let’s go.” We walked for what seemed an hour to the mountain supporting Canterlot. We entered the tunnel for the trains and I followed Twilight as she lit up the darkness with her horn. We reached a recess in the wall I hadn’t noticed before. She entered, and moved a boulder with a levitating spell. We passed through, and she re-closed the entrance with the boulder as I looked around. We were in a long hallway, like one that you would see in a hospital. I was expecting some huge cave-like structure, but it was as if I had walked into a building. Weird. I continued walking, and I heard Twilight run from behind me, passing me and turning left. Volk stayed by my side, quieter than usual. I think he sensed something about me. “Girls! Girls! Guess who we found!” I heard hooves moving and bodies shifting, and I stopped in my tracks. That conflicting feeling was back. Did I want to see them? Eh. Just go with it. “Ooh! Doughnut Joe!? I could use a doughnut right about now!” I winced. Pinkie’s voice was so shrill. “Uhh, no. Even better.” Twilight said. “Even better!? What can be better than doughnuts!?” I turned the corner, and everypony’s attention was directed to me, huge grins growing on their faces. All of them looked as scuffed up as Twilight. They all galloped over to me except Pinkie. “CHAAANCE!!” She screeched as she somehow got over to me in less time than everypony else. Pinkie physics. “Chance is waaayy better than doughnuts! Except for triple-iced and double-sprinkled chocolate covered doughnuts. Those are the best. No offense, Chance.” She grinned and hugged me along with everypony else. They were all talking at once, so I couldn’t make out what they were saying except for a few bits. “…thought you were dead! So glad you’re not…” “…poor squirrel's nest burned up…” “…wicked trick you need to see…” “…OATMEAL? Are you crazy? Never gets old! Hahaha! And he said…” “What are these horrid cuts and bruises?” That last part caught my attention. I didn’t want any of them to see my flank, so I sort of gently pushed them all away a few inches. “I’d love to catch up, girls, but is there a shower nearby? I haven’t had one in a couple days… Long story.” Rarity scrunched up her face. Typical. “Of course, sugarcube! It’s right down that there hallway. Take a right, and you’ll get to the showers. Glad you’re home safe, Chance.” I smiled. “Thanks. Uh… One last thing? Has anyone seen my hoodie? Or my stuffed wolf?” I sheepishly asked. They gave me such comfort and a sense of security, to be honest. “Oh… When we went looking for you at your house, we couldn’t find your hoodie, but your wolf was spared, underneath some rubble. It’s over by our beds.” “Oh wow, okay, thank you. …Hey, Rarity?” “Yes, darling?” “You don’t happen to have any sewing materials and stuff, do you? I could really use a new hoodie…” I looked down at my bruised arms and ribcage and back at her, smiling awkwardly. “Why, yes! Of course! I never go without my emergency boutique-in-a-kit! I’ll get on it right away. Same as the old one?” “Yeah, that would be awesome, thanks. Maybe just a little bigger down my body, if that’s okay for you.” “No problem, darling. Now, go wash up and take your time- I’ll most likely have it done within a few hours.” “Thanks, dude. I really appreciate it.” I smiled again and walked down to the showers, hoping nopony saw my flank. I don’t know how they would react to seeing Discord’s face where my cutie mark should be. Probably negatively. I got to the showers, which was actually just a big bathroom like the ones in fancy mansions. Big and luxurious. This place was so random. I expected a makeshift bunker carved into the cave wall of the tunnel. Nope, weird hallways and luxury bathrooms. Okay then. I walked over the plush carpet to the mirror over the sinks. Just as messy as before, just sticky with chocolate rain. Ugh. Some color seemed to come back into me, though, which I guess was good. Maybe it was stress. I debated whether to use the shower or the huge bathtub. The streams of water from the shower will probably open up wounds, so I went with the bathtub. Filling it with warm water, I laid halfway over the edge of the tub, thinking of nothing in particular. I snapped out of it when the water touched my face. Oops. I got in, the hot water burning my scabs momentarily. I stopped and hissed in a breath. Take it slow, smart one. I eased myself into the water, enjoying the warmth and the steam. It burned my wounds a little, but that was fine. I think I started to enjoy pain. Helps me remember weird facts of life. I soaked in the tub for who knows how long. The warmth made me sleepy, so I figured to just rinse off the dirt and wash my mane. Body soap would probably sting. I did so, and felt somewhat better than before. I got out and looked at the water. Light brown and small debris like twigs floated around. Gross. I drained the water and dried myself off. Suddenly I was extremely thirsty, so I went to the sink and drank as much as my stomach would hold. “Ugh.” I leaned with my face on the counter, looking at myself in the mirror. “Look at what he did to you. I probably deserve it, anyway. You can’t let him treat you that way. Stick up for yourself. But… he’s… I can’t.” Now you’re talking to yourself. Freak. I got off the counter and walked over to the plush carpet, curled up in a ball, and slept. This time no dreams came when I slept. It was nice. Dreams are bad, I realized. They don’t do you any good. Meanwhile, most of the other ponies sat in a large kitchen area, all at a long dining table. Rarity sat at her sewing machine. “I’m very Concerned for Chance, girls.” Twilight said, looking at the table. “Oh, me too. She looked just awful. Poor thing.” Fluttershy said in her famous half-whisper voice. “She does look pretty beat-up. Not to mention skinny,” Applejack said, looking through a cookbook. “Would ya have any kind of clue as to what happened to Chance, Twilight?” Twilight sighed, looking at her friends. “I have a vague idea, but I’m not sure if it’s what actually happened.” Everypony leaned in slightly, curious and attention drawn. “Before the disaster happened, she was having… recurring nightmares. Of Discord.” Pinkie gasped. “DISCORD!?” Applejack shushed her. “Discord? The dope that was a claw away from ruining our friendship and Ponyville?” Rainbow Dash angrily said. “Yes, girls. Discord. After Chance and I hung out all day, I heard a yelping come from her dogs, but I thought they were just playing, so I thought nothing of it,” Volk whimpered and rested his head on Applejack’s leg. “But after that, everything went quiet. I guess that’s when she went missing,” She thought for a moment. “Actually, the story she told me didn’t add up at all.” “Story? What story?” Rainbow said, confused. “Well, when I saw her, I asked her what had happened. She cut me off and basically said she went for a walk in the woods and the blast knocked a tree over her, trapping her in a grove for a while.” Fluttershy gasped. “Oh, no.” “But what’s weird is that the blast happened a few days after we spent the day together, which is the day I’m guessing she went missing. She also moved when she saw me look at her flank. I thought I saw something other than her cutie mark there.” Applejack got up and said something to Pinkie, who happily followed her to the kitchen. “We’re listenin’!” She yelled to Twilight. “So?” Rainbow said to Twilight. “I connected some things together, and it sounds like she’s covering for something… Or someone...” She trailed off, leaving Rainbow Dash awkwardly sitting at the table with Fluttershy. “Hey y’all, is it alright if I make vegetable soup for dinner tonight? I know it’s Chance’s favorite, and I want her to have something nice.” “And I’ll make death by chocolate cupcakes! She loves those!” Pinkie said, bouncing up and down. “That sounds wonderful.” Fluttershy said. I woke up probably hours later to the smell of food. My stomach immediately growled. I forgot how starved I was. Literally. I pushed back the memory of eating my pet back into the depths of my mind. I can’t think about that. I wanted to sleep more, but the constantly growing pain of hunger kept me awake. I groaned and got up, heading for the door. I was a few feet away from the door when somepony knocked, making me jump. “Chance?” It was Rarity. “Sorry, I fell asleep…” I opened the door, and she was holding up a brand new hoodie, just like the last one. “I know it’s not much, but it was just like your old one.” She smiled and handed it to me. “Oh my gosh, Rarity. Thank you so much. You have no idea how much I love hoodies.” She giggled. “Oh, yes, I know. By the way, Pinkie Pie and Applejack made dinner for all of us. I guess you woke up just in time! Oh, wait… Did I wake you up?” I let out a breathy chuckle. “No, don’t worry, you didn’t. I smelled food, which woke me up, and the hunger kept me from going back to sleep.” “Ah, yes, okay. Take your time, Chance. You look like you’ve been through a lot.” She walked away, presumably to join the other ponies to eat. I closed and locked the door and walked over to the mirror. I glared at myself again. I think I hated myself for some reason. I pulled the hoodie over my head, leaving the hood up. I sighed contently. It felt so good to have it on. So secure. A little big, but that’s the way I liked it. I turned to look at my flank. The hoodie covered the brand. Good. I went to the kitchen, where everypony sat and ate. A huge pot sat on the stove, with trays of cupcakes on the counter next to it. “Chance!” Pinkie yelled, jumping in front of me and scaring the life out of me. “Hehe… Oops, sorry. But guess what! A.J. and I made your favorites- vegetable soup and death by chocolate cupcakes!” “You… Know what my favorite foods are? That was honestly surprising. I thought everypony didn't care about me, like Master had said... “Of course, we love you and know everything about you!” She bounced away to the table to eat. “You can just grab a bowl over there and put as much soup as you want into it. We have plenty, sugarcube, so eat as much as your little belly can hold, alright?” Applejack said, a mixed look of concern and care on her face. “Okay. Thank you so much for making this, I really like your cooking.” Applejack laughed. “Aww, shucks. Thank ya kindly. And making it was no sweat off my back- I love cooking.” I went over and picked up a bowl, ladling soup to the brim. Suddenly it glowed purple, floating to the table. “Let me get that for you.” Twilight said, smiling. She placed it down in an empty spot between Rainbow Dash and Applejack. “Thanks.” I said. I sat down, grabbed my spoon, and took a bite. It was probably the best thing I have ever eaten. My stomach growled louder, so I guess it agreed as well. “Is it good?” Applejack said, elbowing me. “Applejack, good is an understatement!” I took bite after bite, seemingly hungrier by the second. “Well thank you! But you might wanna slow down there, Miss Appetite. Don’t want a belly ache.” As much as I hated to, I agreed, and slowed down. The first bowl was gone within a couple minutes. I got up to get another bowl, which was gone faster than anypony could finish their first. Another bowl. And another. Finally, after four bowls, I was full and satisfied. “Wow, and I thought Applejack and I had big appetites.” Dash said. I rested my head on the table and chuckled. “Ohh, man. You have no idea how awesome it is to be full for once.” I said, eyes closed. “You have to have room for cupcakes, Chance! You love, love, love chocolate!” Pinkie exclaimed. I had to agree with it. I do love chocolate. “Pinkie,” I laughed. “You know I’m always hungry for your baked goods. I’ll have a couple now, I guess. I don’t want to overdo it.” She cheered and brought me a couple with the most icing, which I happily ate. “How can you be so good at baking, dude? These are awesome.” “Glad to hear that! Anything for my Chancey!” A twinge of annoyance sparked in my head. “Well, it’s getting pretty late, girls. We should probably get to sleep soon.” Twilight said. We all agreed and got up. I followed them up a small flight of stairs I hadn’t noticed before. We entered a room that looked like a big bedroom, filled with several beds, each accompanied with a desk and curtains to drape around for privacy. Each pony went to their bed, which left me a bed of my own. I got excited. First night of sleeping on a normal bed in days. I grinned and walked over to it, pulling the curtains and plopping down. I snuggled into the covers with my stuffed wolf and fell asleep within five minutes. I didn’t sleep long, however. Maybe an hour. I woke up randomly and couldn’t get back to sleep. After countless tosses and turns, I finally just decided to go for a walk. I got up quietly, holding my stuffed wolf, and walked out of the room. Twilight said the Princesses were being kept around here somewhere… I wonder where. Remembering the spears I had hidden, I thought getting them was a good idea. I went back into the room and placed Dante down. I pulled the curtains as quietly as possible, and then left again. As I passed through the doorway, Rainbow snorted in her sleep and I winced. I felt a surge of hate flow through me again. A thought of smothering her with a pillow crossed my mind, and I shook my head to clear it away. I silently flew through the building, heading out. I reached where I had entered, only to see the boulder again. I had forgotten about it. Damn it. How will I get out now? I tapped on the rock with my hoof, ear pressed against it, listening to see how dense it was. Maybe I could move it. Solid thunks rang through the room. I sighed. There’s no way I could move it. I turned around to go back to bed when I saw Twilight inches from my face. “Uhh… Sup, Twilight?” No answer. “…Twilight?” She looked like she was about to fall asleep. I poked her face. “Twilight? You okay?” She shook her head and gasped, snapping awake. “Oh, hey, Chance… What are you doing here?” She groggily said. Ignoring her question, I said, “Were you sleepwalking?” She laughed as if she was high. “Sleepwalking? Who sleepwalks?” She leaned to one side, eyes closed. “Twilight.” Nothing. “Twilight!” She woke up again. “Hmm?” “Can you move that fire truck out of the way? It’s blocking the sunlight for my pencil.” I said. Talking to sleepwalkers was so much fun. “Oh, sure… Tell your council I’m sorry for the delay…” I had to bite my tongue to keep myself from laughing. She lit up her horn and moved the boulder. “Go back to sleep, Twilight.” “Mhmm.” She turned and slowly walked back to the room. I flew outside, happy to have fresh air. I remembered exactly where that alley where I had hidden the spears was. I have a photographic memory, so it was easy picking out the exact alley and the exact box. I landed and saw the same smashed mirror, the same beat up boxes. I found the box where I had placed them, which looked like it was moved slightly. I didn’t think anything of it; the wind probably jostled it. I picked up the box, ready to grab the spears and find the princesses. What I saw sent a shock through my chest and dissolved in my hooves. The spears weren’t there. Author's Note Yay, more plot twists! I apologize for the length of this... I needed some dialogue.
Chapter SevenI stood there for who knows how long, just staring. The spears have vanished. My mind went a thousand miles an hour. Who stole them? What if I’ll be caught? …What if it captured the attention of the Princesses and they destroy them!? That’s it. That was the final thought. Maybe Discord took them… maybe he has an alternative. No, wait… he’ll go through the roof if he finds out I lost the spears… I sat, thinking and staring at the empty box. Okay. Maybe… I can go find the Elements of Harmony and hide them… And… They’ll have no way of stopping Discord. Yeah, that’s good. I’ll do that. I knew exactly where the Elements were hidden. Twilight told me, along with the other 5 ponies she calls her friends. I got up and turned around but stopped short. I suddenly started to violently throw up what I had eaten a couple hours ago. I kept throwing up and couldn’t stop, stomach acid burning my throat and mouth. Hatred and anger replaced what started to feel like newfound positivity. I started shaking, baring my teeth, which were dripping in blood from biting my tongue so hard. I rocketed to Canterlot Tower, where the Elements were kept. Everything was a mess. I kicked stones this way and that, desperately trying to find the box that contained the Elements. I know it was a long shot, seeing as how the Elements were probably relocated during times of disaster, but I kept digging. My hooves and wrists started to bleed and bruise from lifting boulders and rubbing against shards of glass. I huffed, and took a break for a second. I should try searching in another area. I walked over the debris, liking the feel of shards of glass, metal, and rock digging into my hooves. Guessing where the general area of where the Element chamber was, I took a shot in the dark and started hauling boulders over again. I hurried more this time, wanting to get back before the others noticed I was gone. One thing I should mention, though- with the Princesses down, there was nopony to raise and lower the sun and moon. Nopony knew how to do so, not even Twilight, so time was frozen in a period of both dawn and dusk. And Twilight thought herself to be skilled in that category of magic. Yeah, right. I thought being in a mix of dawn and dusk was pretty cool, though. The moon lit up the ash and every white or pale surface, giving off a ghostly glow, while the dim sun halfway up the horizon cast shadows thirty feet long, and gave things a nice silhouette. I growled and huffed, lifting up one last boulder with all my strength, which happened to be the heaviest sucker of the bunch. I strained and tried lifting with my back, which was a bad idea. I fell forward, and the boulder caught my wing and smashed it into the ground, grinding it against sharp debris. I screamed every curse word out there, punching the rock and digging my hooves into the ground. For some reason, I thought it would hurt more. Maybe I’m used to all the pain Sombra and Discord inflicted. I snarled through my teeth and looked for something to lift the boulder up with. I found a metal rod the size of my arm, and stared at it. I couldn’t reach it. I just sat there, practically emanating anger and spite. I lurched forward and heard a sharp snap, grabbed the rod, and retaliated back, wincing and grimacing with the sharp pain. I picked up a rock and placed it near the boulder, and stuck the rod under the boulder and rested it against the rock. I panted and let out a low growl, lifting the boulder with more ease than before. I lifted my wing out, when something caught my attention. The Elements. I shot forward, grabbed the box and pushed backwards in the blink of an eye, but the boulder caught the tips of my hooves, pinching the skin and bursting the blood vessels. I could already see the bruises forming, but I didn’t care at all. I had the Elements. I brushed off the dust and opened the box, revealing six shiny ornaments, as if they were kept in a box and shined every day. I closed it and slid the box under my good wing, and quickly limped to the portal. I looked around to make sure nopony had followed me, and entered. “WHAT DO YOU MEAN, YOU LOST THE SPEARS!?” “Exactly what it means, you fuck.” Sombra punched me in the jaw, thinking that would turn me submissive, but that only fueled the hate that was growing in me. I shot upwards and punched him in the throat, which stunned him for a second. I brought his head down crashing against the hard ground. He flipped forward, catching himself. He bucked, kicking the air out of me and sending me to the ground. He jumped and landed on my bad wing, twisting his hooves into the already broken bones. I instinctively brought my hind legs up and I kicked him in the stallionhood, making him get off of me and limp to one side, whimpering. Snickering, I got up, shook myself off and looked over to see his face in front of a cloud of darkness, racing towards me. Shit. I was frozen in an iceberg, coated with liquid nitrogen. So cold… I started shaking uncontrollably. I couldn’t move, and I was frozen for eternity, it seemed. I couldn’t remember a time when I was warm. I couldn’t see. I squirmed, trying to fight against whatever was pushing against my chest and squeezing me. Suddenly I was released, and I was back in Ponyville, and everything looked… normal. I saw Twilight and ran over to her, about to ask her a billion questions. “Twilight!” She happily looked over, and her expression turned from happiness to disgust and irritation. She turned back to whatever she was doing, and I stopped, confused. “Twilight?” I walked over to her. “Shadow Spectre, I suggest you leave me alone.” She used my real name. She never does that, nor does anypony else- they all know I hate my real name. I stepped backwards, taken aback. “E-Excuse me?” “GO AWAY!” She shot around, turning to me. She pushed me away from her, making me fall over on my arse. I just stared at her, tears welling up in my eyes. I ran to Sugarcube Corner. Pinkie loves me. She’ll know what’s up. I burst through the door. “P-Pinkie?” I said through the knot in my throat. “Ugh. What are you doing here? I told you I never wanted to have anything to do with you ever again, Shadow!” She threw a bag of flour at me, and I ducked. It sent a wave of flour cascading on to me. I ran outside, Pinkie’s laugh ringing through my ears. I ran to Sweet Apple Acres, the tears mixing with the flour and making a mess. I ran up to her barn. I heard voices. “Creativity my ass, Big Macintosh. She’s just an annoying mare with ADHD.” “Eeyup.” I stepped through the door, heartbroken and at a loss for words. “Well lookie here. It’s little Miss Screw Up,” She looked at me disdainfully. “I take it that flour was from another failure?” “I-” “Shut up and get off my property before Big Mac makes you leave.” “I thought you were my friend!” I sobbed. They both laughed, sending shocks of pain I never felt before through my heart. “Well you thought wrong. Now leave.” I ran out, sobbing. What was happening? My friends hate me. One of my greatest fears is losing my friends… I flew up to Rainbow Dash’s cloud home. “Dash!” I said through tears. “Dash, I need you!” Her head popped out, looking like she was about to hurt somepony. “Yeah? Does it look like I care?” She stifled a laugh. “How are you even flying? You’re never good enough to do anything.” I shot towards Fluttershy’s cabin. She’s the last one on earth that would treat me like this. I knocked frantically on her door. “Flut- Fluttersh…shy?” I tried to say through my sobs. She swung her door open. “What.” Her facial expression told me she wouldn’t be as kind as I had hoped. “Ev… Everypony hates me!” I sobbed. “Aw, boo hoo hoo!” She slammed the door in my face, leaving me there sobbing uncontrollably. I ran to where my house would be. Volk is the only one who would stay my friend, even if everypony else had deserted me. I went inside, seeing him sleeping in his usual spot. “Volk! All the girls hate me, and I…” I flew over to him, and scooped him up in a hug. He didn’t take kindly to that. He bit down on my arm and drew blood. He squirmed and pushed off of me, baring his teeth. “Volk… Not you too, buddy…” I reached towards him and he snapped at my hoof, drawing more blood. I flew deep within the Everfree Forest, not bothering to go find Rarity. I passed by Zecora’s cabin, and kept flying. I flew for at least half an hour, and the woods suddenly cut off and went straight down. A cliff I never knew was here was suddenly inviting me to jump down. I landed and stared down at the vast chasm. It went further than just a ninety degree slope. I brought my wings up and down again, pushing me off the ground, and hovering above the nothingness. Suddenly my wings felt like they were being torn off, and stopped working. I plummeted down the cliff, screaming as loud as I could. I finally reached the ground, but it wasn’t over yet. It was steep- toosteep. I landed on my leg, which snapped in front of me. I saw the bone shoot out of my skin. I fell backwards, grinding my back on pebbles and rough rock. More open air. I was in a weird position, and my hooves were being sanded down on the cliff as I fell, but I couldn’t move them. I finally pushed off and landed on my side, bounced and rolled over, hit my head, my side, my back. I clawed at the ground to try and stop myself, but it was no use. My hooves were gone, and the fleshy, sensitive part shown through, making it extremely painful and difficult to get a hold of anything. I just gave up and pushed off one last time, getting open air again. I flew down head first. I realized there was a lake at the bottom, not solid ground. I tried using my wings, but t was no use. I hit the water with a sharp sting. I sank like a rock, even though I knew how to swim. I couldn’t swim to the surface, and I couldn’t breathe. I hated water. I hated deep water. I hated the thought of having water above my shoulders, and I was enveloped in it. I started to panic. I flailed, hoping to get to the surface. Nope. I continued to sink, the pressure building in my ears. Just as I thought my head would explode, I hit the bottom. I still couldn’t get to go up, as if something was holding me down. Okay, maybe this isn’t so bad… It’s a peaceful way to die, right? I let out all of the air I had inside me. I sucked in water, and it was painful- it stung my insides like acid. I waited. And waited. It took forever until I finally blacked out. This is it. Goodbye, world. I awoke with a jolt, sweating like a pig, hyperventilating, and covered in tears. Sombra was laughing his ass off. It took me a second to realize what he’d done, and it made me furious. “SOMBRA, YOU TITANIC DOUCHE!” I screamed at the top of my lungs. I was apparently still crying pretty hard. I curled up in a ball, and I saw Discord out of the corner of my eye. My eyes widened and I thought about high tailing it out of there. I didn’t want him to know I lost the spears. “Discord. Want to know what your little pet managed to do?” “Sombra, you better shut the hell up or I’ll end you.” I got up and stared at him. “Now, now, Chance, let him talk.” “But-” “Be quiet.” I huffed and curled up again, looking at my purple hooves. “She lost the spears.” He paused, waiting for Discord to explode. “Did she?” He said, all too calmly. He floated over to me. “…And what are these?” I looked up through my tears, and saw him holding the box that contained the Elements. I forgot about those. “Th- the Elements… I figured since I… misplaced the spears, I would go and find the Elements so they wouldn’t be able to stop you…” I curled up more tightly, afraid he would hit me or something. Instead, he scratched my head. “Good girl,” He said approvingly. The praise sent good feelings through me, and I leaned into his paw, but he floated away with the Elements. Sombra stared at me, upset that Discord didn’t punish me for losing the spears. I stuck my tongue out at him and he growled, knowing he could do nothing to me while Discord was here. Discord came back over and raised an eyebrow questioningly at my broken wing. “It, uh, got caught underneath a boulder while trying to get the Elements…” Sombra snickered and I shot him a dirty look. “I’ll fix that.” Discord said. He snapped his fingers, and my wing was just like normal. My hooves were still bruised and I had the cuts and burns and everything else Discord and Sombra so kindly gifted me with. “Go find the Princesses now. You’re losing time.” Discord looked at me seriously. I knew I better fulfill his wish soon, otherwise things could get messy. I flew back out of the portal and back into the mountain. I walked quietly through the doorway and made sure nopony was up yet. I took some vegetable oil Pinkie had left out and I poured some on the floor next to the boulder that blocks the entrance. I heaved and pushed the rock back into its original place, cleaned up the oil on the floor, and flew back up to the bedrooms. Everypony was still asleep. Good. I snuck back into my bed and I laid there, waiting for the others to get up. Hours passed when Applejack got up. I watched her through the slits of my eyes, pretending I was asleep. She stretched, yawned, and started to walk out the door. “Oh, no you don’t.” Rarity’s voice came from behind me, and I heard her scramble to get out of bed. Applejack grinned and ran downstairs, Rarity following. “You always get up early and always take all the hot water!” She whined. I heard scuffling and grunts and finally a door slam. “Ha!” Rarity exclaimed, and I faintly heard a huff coming from Applejack. Rainbow Dash groaned and flipped over in her sleep. I couldn’t find the Princesses while everypony was close to getting up. I’ll wait until night time again, and look for them then. In the meantime, I felt the need to find out if everypony dislikes me like Discord said. I got up, made sure my hoodie covered the burn marks on my flanks, and headed downstairs. Volk followed me, and I made sure to keep a safe distance after going through that nightmare. I still felt like he knew something was up with me, watching me with a skeptical yet cautious eye. I walked over to the kitchen and sat down at the table and sighed, tapping my hooves on the table, anxious and worried and upset all at the same time. “Somethin’ wrong, sugarcube?” Applejack asked with a worried smile. “Uhh… No. I’m just tired.” I said, trying to sound friendly. Clashing thoughts of rage and utter depression and paranoia raced through my mind. That vision Sombra cast upon me didn’t help my already tattered psyche one bit. “Aren’t we all?” She chuckled, and went back to cooking breakfast. “Ya want somethin’?” I grimaced as the thought of the sour taste of bile and blood came flooding back from last night. “No, thanks. Maybe later.” A while passed, and Applejack was still cooking who knows what. She hummed as she worked, which was kind of soothing. Rarity finally came out of the shower with her hair up in curlers, looking content. “Anything good for breakfast this time?” She said, taking a seat. “Just the usual- pancakes, waffles, muffins, and orange juice.” Applejack said, not bothering to look up from whisking a bowl of batter. “Ohh what I would give to have some of Canterlot’s divine luxury food.” Rarity whined. She can be so irritating sometimes. I clenched my jaw and refrained from saying anything mean. “Come on now, Rarity, we’ve got to make do with what we have. We’re lucky we even have anything at all. This place we’re stuck in has emergency reserves that will last for as long as it takes to get Ponyville cleaned up.” Appejack said, trying to hide the shadow of despair in her voice. Pinkie jumped down the whole flight of stairs and came happily bouncing over to the table, with her mane in more of a mess than usual. Fluttershy sheepishly followed, still sleepy. Rainbow Dash was probably sleeping in. “Mornin’, girls!” Applejack said. They all exchanged greetings and small talk, as Twilight trotted down and over to us. She looked serious, and something about her threw me off. I bit my lip nervously. What if she remembered last night? I shifted uncomfortably, remembering that awful vision I had of the girls all abandoning me as their friend. I kept my gaze low and hoped it wasn’t true. I had to find a way to see what they really thought of me without causing suspicion. I was busy looking at my purple hooves when Pinkie blurted out, “Hey! Why is almost all of my oil missing!?” My heart skipped a beat. Everypony looked at each other questioningly, then all eyes fell on me. Surely I was sweating enough to fill a pool, but I calmly said, “Oh, uh… I had to use the oil to get my hooves unstuck from the bottom of the fridge…?” Everypony made a weird face. “Because, I had accidentally dropped a cookie and it rolled under there, and I thought I could get it out by lifting the fridge, but it was too heavy…” I gave a sheepish smile and held up my hooves, hoping they believed me. Pinkie giggle-snorted. “Oh, Chance! You and your clumsiness!” Everypony looked convinced except Twilight, who still looked really focused and off. Maybe she was just tired. The day went on and I subtly tried to find evidence that they truly didn’t like me, to no avail. It seemed they all loved me dearly. At the end of the day, after countless hugs and support from telling each of our stories about where we were the day the bomb went off, it felt as if a weight was lifted off my shoulders. I was deep in thought, laying in my bed before dinner. Nopony hates me, thank Celestia. But why was I so convinced they did? It felt… normal to have them hate me before, as if they actually did. Discord’s words felt soothing, felt trustworthy, felt right. It felt like my eyes were opened to a new world, a new world of hatred and dysfunction. So, was he lying? Or… “Chaaaance~! It’s time to eat!!” Pinkie burst through the bedroom door, startling me out of my thoughts. “Oh, uh, okay. I’ll be down in a minute.” She happily trotted away, and I plopped back down on my bed and heaved a big sigh. I waited another minute and finally got up and went downstairs. I sat down and rested my head on the table, eyes half closed. Everypony was quiet, eating daffodil sandwiches. Suddenly I blurted, “Hey Twilight, Discord can… hypnotize ponies, right?” I looked down at the table, wishing I hadn’t said that. She stared at me, finished chewing and swallowed, and slowly said, “Yeah… I guess so. That, and ‘Discording’ others, which is sort of the same thing, but it turns you into the opposite of yourself,” “Why do you ask?” She said, staring at me even more intensely than before. “I, uh, just… Was wondering. That’s all.” I bit my tongue. I was getting worse and worse at lying. “Uh huh…” She stared at me, I stared at the table, and there was an awkward silence between us all. I should just run off and fly into the portal and stay there, risking both Sombra’s and Discord’s wrath of wimping out. I can’t let them find out what and whom I’ve been dealing with. I pushed my chair out rather abruptly and said “I have to go.” “Where, pray tell?” Twilight pushed. “Uhh… Out.” I turned and started to leave, but something was holding me back. I turned around and saw everypony looking at me with a worried expression. They looked sad for me. I scrunched up my face, hoping to not let anything blurt out. I took a deep breath and quickly said “Discord knocked me out the day I hung out with Twilight and kept me hostage Celestia knows where and they beat me and made me eat Tonrar and shaved off my cutie mark and branded me with his face and Sombra was there too and he would beat the hell out of me even though you thought you vanquished him and Discord is the one who made the bomb and he’s planning on killing the Princesses and made me hate all of you because I thought you hated me and I… and I… I…” I broke down sobbing harder than I’ve ever sobbed before. Guilt and sorrow and embarrassment and doubt and anger and everything else ravaged my mind. I couldn’t look up or stop crying, but I felt multiple hooves envelop me in an embrace. I continued crying, and nopony said a word. I was scared about what they would do or think of me. “I…” I tried speaking, but I started choking on my sobs and the knot in my throat. “Shh, it’s okay. It’s okay. We’ve got you, and we all love you. Discord and Sombra won’t be able to hurt you anymore.” Flutteshy’s voice. It sounded angelic. “We’ll whoop his butt for what he did to you!” Rainbow Dash. “Amen!” Applejack. “Yeah!” Pinkie. “Those horrid monsters won’t see it coming!” Rarity. Somepony lifted up my chin, and I opened my eyes. It was Twilight. She smiled, big and warm. “Chance, don’t you worry. We’ll fix everything and make Discord and Sombra pay.” A while went by, hugging and talking things out. It felt so good to vent everything that happened. Everypony was understanding, and I couldn’t care more that I had them as my friends. I left out the parts that went against them, like the spears and hiding the Elements, however. “So, Chance. Have a plan?” Rainbow was fired up, ready to beat Discord and Sombra into oblivion. “I have an idea, but we would need to be on guard and ready to act when the time comes,” Everypony nodded in agreement. “I thought it over, and I have a pretty solid plan. …I think. Discord sent me here to get rid of you all, along with the Princesses. Enough time has passed to have him think I completed the deed. I’ll return to him, say I completed the task, and he’ll come out of hiding to survey the land. Since the Elements were destroyed in the blast, I think Twilight should cast a spell to make a magic cage that would drain his energy to the point where he can’t use his magic or harm anyone; same with Sombra.” “I think I can do that.” Twilight said confidently. “Good. Then it’s settled. Follow m-” “My little ponies, how wonderful to see you all in good health.” It was Celestia, Luna by her side. Twilight jumped up and ran to her, embracing her in a hug. “Princesses! You’re out of your comas!" The others followed, I just sat there awkwardly. They both looked really scuffed up. Their wings were torn up, their horns were missing, and scars covered their bodies. I guess they healed fast. After the six ponies and two alicorns caught up, Twilight asked me if it was okay if she informed the Princesses of what happened, and I reluctantly agreed. “Oh, my goodness. That’s terrible.” Luna said. “Yes, they must be stopped at once.” Celestia urgently said. “Don’t worry, Princesses. We have a fool-proof plan to stop them. Stay here so you’ll be safe.” Twilight said hopefully. They both nodded. “Godspeed, then, my faithful student.” Celestia said. The six ponies followed me to the field where the portal was at. I didn’t want them to know the precise location of it. I told them to be on guard, having them face the opposite direction of the portal, telling them Discord and Sombra would be there in a few minutes. I had brought a large blanket used for a picnic of ten. I was asked what it was for multiple times, but I always said, “You’ll see.” I had made fake blood and covered myself in it, messed my hair up, and cut myself to make it look like I completed the deed. “Doesn’t that hurt?” Rarity asked. I informed them after being through all the pain and torment the two put me through, something simple like a cut has no effect on me. I entered the portal and made my way to Discord, panting. “I did it… I killed them all.” I said with a scowl. I stood there, facing the ground and clenching my jaw. Discord started to laugh victoriously. “Yes!” Discord floated around, laughing and praising me. I have to admit, the praise felt good, even if I didn’t earn it. “Time for me to take my rightful place as king in Equestria.” He said, almost growling. We headed out, Sombra by Discord’s side, grinning malevolently. I hope this goes well. We exited the portal, and Discord was stunned to see the six ponies in front of him. Twilight brought her head up and strained to cast the spell I made up, and she couldn’t. I knew she wouldn’t be able to. I didn’t want her to. I flew up, rammed my hooves as hard as I could against Sombra’s and Discord’s faces, and threw the blanket over them. “Run.” Author's Note Wheeeeeeeeeew. 6 months and nothing uploaded... Sorry about that c: More plot twists, yay! Things will be turned upside down for the ponies... Just you wait. *Discord laughs in the distance*
Chapter EightThe ponies scattered and ran for their lives. Discord and Sombra were screaming profanities and struggling against the blanket I threw over them. I heard them cursing each other and me, failing to get free quickly. I bit my lip, unsure and hesitant, regretting what I had done. I flew as fast as I could as far away as possible. I passed by a house and I heard Rainbow urgently call my name, so I snapped back and flew towards her voice. The six ponies were huddled behind a checkout counter in a shop. I flew inside and started to frantically board up the doors and windows. The others followed heed, and soon we had the entrances blocked. I started to hyperventilate. “Guys, we need to hide. Seriously, like I’m freaking out and-” “Darling, calm yourself. We’re okay as long as we have each other,” said Rarity, placing a hoof on my shoulder. I took a long, deep breath. She may be right. “Why didn’t my spell work?” said Twilight, a look of extreme concern and fear on her face. “No idea…” I said, lying. I shuddered and I quickly looked around, mapping out the place in my head and taking note of all possible entries and exits and routes and weapons. Luckily, there was a hidden cellar right underneath the counter. We heard Sombra’s thundering hoofsteps and Discord’s wrathful growling and screaming only a couple blocks away. I had to cover my mouth to keep from yelping. I shoved all of the ponies into the cellar and shut the door. Somepony turned on a light and I went into the far back and hid in a box, scared out of my mind. The full force of what my actions have done finally hit me. “We’re all gonna die!” Screamed Pinkie, and Applejack had to cover her mouth. “No. Worse,” I said, tears in my eyes. “Those two are sadistic demons; they won’t bother to grace us with something as sweet as death.” Suddenly everything started to shake. The walls, the ground- everything. That’s when the lights went out. Screams of terror filled the room, and I scooted myself under a shelf so I was almost completely hidden. I covered my ears and bit my tongue, afraid I may have just gotten my friends killed. Then the screams just… stopped. Complete silence so thick it hurt my ears. I didn’t dare move, so scared I had to make sure I didn’t piss myself. “Chaaaaance…” I heard Discord sing in a disturbingly calm sing-song voice. “Little Chance, little Chance, come out come out wherever you are…” I started choking on my own sobs. That’s when I decided enough was enough. I just snapped. I flailed out of my box and entered a pony-less room, headed out of the cellar, and darted out of the back exit. I just ran, ran harder and faster than I have ever run in my entire life. Tears of pure anger streamed my face. “You.” Discord growled through his teeth. I suddenly found myself hoisted upward and upside down, dangling from my tail. I started kicking and flapping my wings in a flurry of red feathers. “DISCORD, I SWEAR TO CELESTIA I WILL FUCKING RIP OFF YOUR HORNS AND SHOVE THEM UP YOUR EYES IF YOU’VE DONE ANYTHING TO THEM. I WILL RIP OFF YOUR WINGS AND CRAM THEM SO FAR DOWN YOUR THROAT YOU’LL BE SHITTING FEATHERS FOR DAYS IF I DON’T KILL YOU FIRST. YOU HAVE NO IDEA THE PAIN I WILL INFLICT-” Sombra bucked me in the throat and then in the stomach, knocking the wind out of me and making me choke aggressively. I was violently thrown on the ground and hit my head so hard I couldn’t see anything for a minute. I struggled to get up, but then massive hooves came crashing down on my head. I heard a sadistic, mocking, restrained laugh coming from both Sombra and Discord. “I don’t think so. See, you have the order wrong. I,” A dragon claw pressed me hard against the pavement, ceasing my struggles. “…am the one who threatens.” He yanked back my mane, making my head shoot upwards in an awkward angle and making it even more difficult to breathe. “I am the one who decides who wins.” He grabbed my throat with his paw so hard it felt like my eyes were about to fly out of my head. I was thrown hard against a building, and I struggled to get up and kill those two. Sombra bucked my face with the force of a train and my head smashed against the wall, making my nose bleed like a faucet. Suddenly I was aware ponies were screaming my name, begging me to get up and be okay. I strained to gain vision and saw the ponies locked in a magic cage, only something was wrong. None of them had their wings or horns. “Is that all you’ve got?” I slurred, staring at the two and making a feeble attempt to smile. “Oh, no. Definitely not. I need to make an example of you to your little friends.” Discord snapped his claws, which made another cage appear; only this one had the princesses in it, looking as frightened as fillies. I immediately got up and stumbled over to Sombra, ready to punch his lights out, only my punch turned out to be a soft swing of my arm which he easily moved away from. He tackled me to the ground and pulled my arm backwards so far I heard a snap, which sent scorching pain throughout my body. I flailed to get free, flapping my wings. I managed to get up, ready to fly away, when Discord brought me smashing back onto the pavement. “Pesky things, aren’t they? We need to get rid of them.” I couldn’t see what he was doing, but I heard the other ponies gasp. Sombra held me down on my stomach, leaving my wings free. I struggled as hard as I could, knowing what was to come. I started begging, pleading for my life. Suddenly I felt a searing pain in my lower wing, near the socket. I snapped my head around to see what was happening. They were cutting my wings off. Not magic, not some kind of painless way of removing them, but a dull, rusty, serrated blade. I started kicking and flailing, cursing them and promising to twist their heads off and feed them to timber wolves. The pain continued, as if Discord was deliberately cutting slowly. I tried with all my might to get away, but to no avail. He didn’t even bother to cut all the way off; instead he broke it off, leaving the nub of the joint still intact. I screamed so loud I could hear Sombra wince. “Oh, don’t be such a wimp. We still have one to go,” Said Discord menacingly. Same thing with my other wing- careless cutting and slicing, sending splatters of blood all over the ground and soaking my body. I could see my own feathers and bits of bone and flesh littering the floor. I gave up and started to sob, making tears and blood smear my face. I started screaming as loud and hard as I could, promising death and curses. Blood got into my mouth and I started coughing and gagging, threatening Discord and Sombra even louder. “Mm,” Discord said lazily, “That needs to go as well.” He turned to the horrified ponies, positioning my struggling body so that they could see me clearly. I started to cry silently, disappointed I had let them all down. Not even that. I may have doomed their lives to a certain crimson fate. I brought all this upon Ponyville… Maybe even Equestria. I mouthed 'I love you all' to the ponies before I closed my eyes and looked away, tears streaming down my face. My head was suddenly jerked backwards. Sombra pried open my mouth with his hooves, and my eyes went wide with fear. I tried to get away, but the pain in my back prevented me from doing much wiggling. Discord blocked the view, getting in between me and the ponies. He got up in my face and did a sort of grimacing smile, one that I’ve never seen before. It made me almost throw up with fear. I started begging as much as I could with my mouth wide open. He then grabbed my tongue with his claw, holding it still. Everything went in slow motion then. I heard everypony crying out, pleading, threatening, crying. I tasted metal- a blade was in my mouth. He started to saw away at my tongue, making my mouth and head explode with fireworks of pain. Blood flooded out of my mouth and down my chin, down my throat, and all over Discord’s claw and paw. His claw slipped and made the blade shoot through my cheek. I heard him chuckle grimly. I couldn’t move any part of my upper body from the searing pain. He finally finished cutting away my tongue and backed away. I fell to the ground and writhed violently, gallons of blood pooling around me. I threw up multiple times- deep, heaving waves of bile. I slipped and hit my head on the ground, making me panicked and disoriented. I started at a fast stumble, trying to get away from Discord. I was choking on blood and saliva and bile, and I couldn’t swallow so my mouth hung open, dripping with vile liquids. I could hear frantic screaming coming from the trapped ponies, mixed with maniacal, roaring laughter from Sombra and Discord. In my frenzied stumbling, I tripped over my own hoof and fell to the ground. I did my best to open my eyes to see where I was. I was some distance away from the others. I saw most of the ponies crying; looks of mixed disgust, concern, and fear dominate their faces. I gave a choked cough, sending a spurt of blood onto the ground. I dazed off, almost blacking out from the pain. I was jerked upward by my mane. “Get up. I’m not done with you yet,” Growled Discord. “These troublesome hooves of yours…” He trailed off, clicking his tongue and shaking his head disapprovingly. He looked at Sombra, who nodded his head. Sombra walked over to me and I weakly shoved myself away from him. I tried saying “fuck off” but a painful sort of gurgling took its place instead. He snarled, reared up, and brought his tremendous weight down on my ankles, shattering them easily. I let out an ear-piercing bubbly scream, drowned out by blood. He twisted and jerked my legs this way and that, setting them in unholy positions. I could hear my bones snapping and cracking, popping and tearing, jutting through my skin. My entire body was saturated and caked with blood. I was surprised I hadn’t died of blood loss yet. Sombra picked me up above his head and brought me back down on to the ground harder than ever before, sending new sparks of pain through my body. My legs were useless, and now I was completely immobile and unable to speak or make any coherent verbal communication. Discord lifted up my limp body by the neck and showed his victory to the trapped ponies. “This,” he said, dropping my body to the ground with a hard thump, “is what has become of your little hero. Not so high and mighty now, is she?” He chuckled sadistically. “Ohh, the fun I will have with you all.” He looked over the two alicorns and my friends, cut up and unkempt, missing their respective appendages. He floated onto his back, lying back in mid-air. “I want to play a game,” he proposed. “Been a while since we’ve done that, hmm?” I could hear Rainbow Dash desperately beating her hooves against the cage, trying to get free. Fluttershy was sobbing. Pinkie Pie was screaming about what she’ll do when she gets her hooves on Discord’s “meanie face”. Applejack was comforting Fluttershy, assuring everything will be alright. Rarity had fainted long ago from the sight of blood, flesh, bones, and vomit. Twilight was staring Discord dead in the eyes, ready to face whatever comes. Luna and Celestia were all staring as well, surprisingly silent. (And useless without their horns or wings.) “My game,” Discord said, “Is quite complex. I’m not so sure your mule brains will comprehend how to play it, but I guess I’ll have to dumb it down. “You will all be released into the Everfree Forest. I will have a magic barrier around the woods. Step beyond it and you will get torn to shreds.” He paused, making sure they understood. “The object of the game is easy: survive and play by the rules. Do what I say. Break a rule and I will personally tend to the troublesome pony. You will each have a varying set of tasks you will need to complete. Some alone, some not alone.” “Well, that doesn’t sound too hard…” Twilight said quietly. “Oh, but there’s a catch,” Said Discord. “You will all have your memory wiped, not knowing who you are or who anypony else is. You will not know anything but being an ‘earth pony’ set off into the woods with other ponies. You will not know what dangers lie ahead of you, nor will you know how to combat them without your precious friendship,” he sneered. “Best part is, I get to watch it all!” He started to laugh in a crazed manner. I think he finally snapped. The ponies collectively gasped and murmured frantically. “However, since I’m nice, I’ll choose what you get to remember and what you don’t. I’ll give you all a set of instructions on what to do. Complete them, and you win. But when the last pony standing goes, game over. I win.” “What do you mean ‘when the last pony standing goes’!?” Cried out Rainbow Dash. Discord just grinned. “You’ll see soon enough,” he said darkly. I stirred, not sure what I was trying to accomplish. I wanted nothing more than to help my friends. Discord looked over at me through the corner of his eyes, and I stopped writhing, afraid he’ll do me more harm. “Of course, I’ll need some time for preparation…” Discord said lazily, still looking at me with a look of deep thought. I cursed him, hoped to some greater evil that he would die in the most agonizing way possible. “Dear Sombra, do be a dear and take care of these lovely mares for me while I’m away, won’t you? I’ll take the red one. I have plans.” Discord gripped my tail and lifted me into the air and carried me off, making my hooves drag on the ground. I started crying, knowing he had some kind of malevolent deed planned for me. We reached the portal, which he carelessly threw me into and followed through. I groaned when I hit the floor, smelling that familiar stench of dried blood and sulfur. Discord said nothing as he dragged me into the room where they tortured me. He flopped me onto the cold steel table and rummaged through the drawers. I gurgled questioningly, wanting to at least know what my fate will be. “Hm? Oh. I have special plans for you, my dear Chance. You’re going to thank me when I’m through with you,” Discord said in a giddy, dark voice, as if he was excited to see me suffer even more. He probably was. Sombra stared at the ponies trapped in their cages like wild animals. The ponies stared back. “You don’t talk much, do you?” Rainbow Dash asked with an audible tang of hate. Sombra growled, his eye twitching in irritation. “Thought not,” Dash sneered. “King Sombra,” Celestia finally spoke up, “Whatever you have planned, don’t do it. Discord is only using you to do his bidding. He’ll certainly kill you after he’s-” Sombra lunged at her cage, violently knocking it over and sending the princesses onto the ground. He bucked it hard against a building. The other girls cried out, desperately asking if Luna and Celestia were okay. “SILENCE!!!” He roared, lifting up the cage with the other six ponies in it with his horn. He sent it flying through a building with ease. “I cannot do much damage to you mules. Discord has other plans for you,” He growled through clenched teeth. “So shut the fuck up.” He hesitantly brought the cages back into their original places, wishing he’d let the cages rot on the ground. The ponies were quite battered, so none of them said anything. There wasn’t really anything to say, anyway. They were doomed to an uncertain fate and their best friend is most likely being torn to shreds by Discord. They lost their horns and wings and they were trapped. A feeling of immense dread loomed over them like a thick storm cloud. Fluttershy wouldn’t stop crying and the rest just sat and stared at their hooves. Sombra kept watch like a hawk all day, making sure none of them got loose or tried anything funny. Not like they could escape a magic cage, anyway. The sun and moon were still in a fixed stasis, so night didn’t really come. Sombra went into a house, presumably to sleep. Twilight was planning a way to escape, and a couple other ponies were asleep as well. Hours went by. Sombra was still asleep. ‘I’m hungry’ was the most popular thing being said. Applejack was laying with half of her head poked out of the cage in a half sleep, half awake state. Suddenly her ear twitched, picking up a sound in the distance. She lifted up her head and shushed everypony so she could listen better. Snap. “Do y’all hear that?” She asked. “Hear wh-” Twilight started to say, but got cut off by the sound of timber wolves howling. “Oh, no,” Fluttershy said. “We’re mutt food!” Cried Pinkie. Rarity had to quiet her, afraid she’ll wake up Sombra. Suddenly Volk came sprinting out of the Everfree Forest, followed by a huge pack of timber wolves. Quiet gasps of joy came from the cages as Chance’s pet wolf jumped around the cage, delighted to see everypony wasn’t dead. “Volk, get out of here!” Applejack said quietly. “Either you’ll end up timber wolf food, or Sombra will…” She didn’t even want to finish the sentence. Volk tilted his head, a knowing gleam in his eye. He stayed put and the pack of timber wolves caught up. Everypony backed up against the cage, trying to get as far away as possible from the vicious beasts. They were huge compared to Volk; towering, long-fanged apex predators capable of tearing a pony to shreds within seconds. They surrounded the cages, their hot breath shooting like steam vents onto the ponies, making them shiver with fear. The ponies all looked to Volk who just wagged his tail. “What’s happening?” Rarity asked. “I… I don’t think they want to hurt us,” Twilight said. “I think Volk brought them here to help us!” Just as they were about to start cheering, Sombra stalked out of his dilapidated house, baring his teeth and breathing heavier than a pony who had just run a thousand miles. Discord poofed next to him, looking quite pleased with himself until he saw the unexpected visitors. “What are those things doing here!?” Discord shouted in fury. The horde of timber wolves all turned to face the two, forming a massive barrier between them and the ponies. Volk was in the center, baring his teeth and foaming at the mouth, ready to kill. However, something was wrong. There was a sudden, split-second flash of emerald that seemed to fill the entire world. The timber wolves were gone, leaving Volk standing by himself. He looked around, petrified. He glanced over at the ponies for a fraction of a second, as if to say sorry. He high-tailed it back to the forest before he could get hurt. Discord roared with laughter as the ponies exchanged looks of confusion. What just happened? Had Discord made the timber wolves vanish? “Well, as entertaining as that was, we have a game to play,” Said Discord, wiping a tear away from his eye and pulling in deep breaths. “What happened to Chance!?” Screamed Pinkie Pie. “Gone,” Discord said like it was a waste of breath, flicking dirt from his claw. “Anyway, let’s go.” He snapped his claws and suddenly they were all in the deepest part of the forest. Lush green brush and massive trees grew way over their heads, alive with color and birds. Vines draped the branches which little animals scurried across to get to one tree to another. Berry bushes dotted the forest, which Twilight instantly recognized as edible and sweet. She also saw some that were also sweet, however deadly and poisonous. Those could dissolve your insides. It seemed the bomb hadn’t affected the forest for some reason, hence the massive pack of timber wolves. Discord snapped his claws again and a colossal light green, transparent dome surrounded the forest, which seemed to go on forever. “Don’t forget,” Discord chimed, “Step beyond the dome and you die… Oh, wait.” He started laughing hysterically, pleased with his ironic joke. “Here comes the fun part.” Snap. The cages vanished. Snap. The ponies were in different locations, away from one another. Snap. Memories wiped. “Let the games begin.” Author's Note Apologies for the shortness of this chapter; I wasn't really feeling the creative vibe, you know? More chapters to come, let me promise you that. (Maybe just not as soon as I like it to...)
Chapter OneThat face. It always starts with that face. That twisted, menacing, one-fanged face. And it always ends the same way. Failure. Loss. Loneliness. Helplessness. Emptiness. Death. I woke up with a start, heart racing, a cold sweat beading across my forehead. I checked the clock, even though it was still dark out. 3:46. I plopped back down on my bed, trying to regain my breath. I turned over on my side and curled up into a ball, shaking furiously. I held my stuffed wolf Dante, hoping to calm down. Then suddenly I felt as if I was being watched. I slowly turned around to face the window above my bed and peeked through the curtains. There, against the light of the moon, was the same claw as the one in my nightmares. I screamed and grabbed Dante and ran all the way across the room and hid. I think I was hyperventilating. What seemed like hours passed, and nothing happened. Just the sound of the crickets outside dared break the silence. I peeked over the shelf I was hiding behind and saw that it was just a branch from a tree outside my house. I sighed and regained my composure, hugging Dante in a tight grip. This had to stop. I decided to run over to Twilight’s house so I could talk to her about my nightmares, and honestly, I didn’t want to be alone for the rest of the night. I haven’t told anyone about the scares I get every single night, but this is too much. I knew it meant something. Constant recurring dreams of mine always mean something. I quickly grabbed my favorite black hoodie, put the hood up, held Dante in my mouth and ran out the door, flying towards the library. I flew up to her door and stood there, hesitant to knock. I didn’t want to wake a friend at this hour. I sat and held Dante in my arms, about to cry, when the door opened. “Chance?” I looked up through the tears to see Twilight’s concerned face. “Are you o-” I jumped up and hugged her, sobbing and shaking uncontrollably. “Chance, what’s going on? What’s wrong?” I couldn’t speak through all the tears. I tried to, but I just ended up choking and coughing. “Come inside, it’s freezing out here.” I hated crying in front of other ponies, even my friends. This was the first time anypony has seen me cry. Sniffling and blinking away the tears, I looked down at the floor, afraid to look at Twilight in the eyes. I guess it was a superiority thing or something. I gulped hard and wiped the rest of the tears away, and finally looked up. Twilight’s eyes were glistening with tears as well. “Chance, please. Tell me what’s wrong. Why are you crying? I’ve never-” Everything came out at once, like a flood. I looked down and took a huge breath. “I didn’t wanna wake you, Twilight, but these horrible, horrible nightmares. Every night. EVERY NIGHT, HE’S ALWAYS THERE, LAUGHING AND TORTURING ME. And I know I’m dreaming, but it’s like he’s there, preventing me from waking up. I finally am granted that peace when he makes sure I’ve seen everything. All my friends, my family… Gone. And it’s all my fault. And I know he’s played you, Celestia, all the pony folk… He hasn’t changed at all. He’s gonna come back soon, after he gets me first.” I looked up at her, tears streaming my face again, tears dominating hers as well. “And you wanna know the worst part? It’s been happening for months, Twilight. Months.” She knew what that meant. She knelt down next to me and held me, stroking my hair the way she knows I like it. “Shh, shh, shh. It’s okay. Everything’s alright, I promise. He won’t get you. Who is he, anyway?” I pried her off of me to look in her eyes. “Promise you won’t tell anyone or freak out?” She smiled warmly. “Pinkie promise.” I sighed deeply. “It was Discord.” Her eyes bulged from her head, obviously taken by complete surprise. “Oh, my gosh. We have to tell-” My look stopped her in her tracks. “I mean, don’t worry. He won’t get you. I promise I’ll protect you, alright? Luna and Celestia and all our friends and everyone in Ponyville will protect you.” She put her hoof under my chin and lifted it up so I would look at her. She smiled and so did I, tears burning my eyes. “Twilight, can I ask a favor? I mean, if it’s alright with you…” “Of course.” I smiled awkwardly. “Do you think… Maybe we can spend the rest of the night reading books, and then watch the Princess raise the sun? I would kill for some company right now…” She laughed. “You don’t have to ask me twice for a night of reading.” She grinned and galloped to the Science Fiction section, our favorite, and pulled a few of the shelf and happily trotted back. “Thank you, Twilight. You have no idea how much this means to me.” I smiled and almost started to tear up again. I’m usually not this emotional, but the nightmares really have been taking a toll on my mind. “No problem! After all, you are one of my best friends.” She opened her book and started to read. That’s what makes you a target for him… I thought. I looked down at the one books she gave me, one of the Star Trek ones. I giggled silently. She always knows what cheers me up. We spent the rest of the night reading, and talking about different subjects, mainly astronomy and ancient history. Sure, I was athletic, but I loved to learn. We watched the sun being raised, and went and grabbed a nice breakfast with Pinkie and Applejack. I’m happy Twilight didn’t mention the horrible dreams I was having to them. After that I forced her to get some rest, even though she insisted she was fine. Her baggy, droopy eyes said otherwise. After constantly telling her she needed to do so, she finally agreed and walked me to my house, a little cabin on the outskirts of Ponyville. I didn’t like company all that much. My huskies Tonrar and Volk heard us and ran over to greet Twilight and I. Tonrar tackled me and licked my face while Volk wagged his tail and nudged my neck, and I couldn’t help but laugh like a maniac, and Twilight had to stifle a giggle as well. They finally let off, and ran away, playing with each other. I got up and looked at Twilight, grinning ear-to-ear. “See what I have to deal with every time I get back from somewhere?” We continued to walk towards my cabin. When we reached my front door, I looked up at the sky, and was taken aback at how late it had gotten. It looked to be about 4 or 5 in the afternoon. Twilight looked at me with half concern, half worry. “Well, Chance, I know you seem happy right now, but I know better. I’ve dealt with nightmares before. You’re most likely going to have them again tonight, but don’t worry. I’ll be here for you. Just come by the library again and we’ll hang out for a while, okay?” “Okay, Twilight. Thank you.” She put a hoof on my shoulder and smiled, then walked away. “Tonrar, Volk! Allons-y! Time for dinner, guys.” At the word ‘dinner’, their heads perked up in my direction and ran towards the house. The good thing about these huskies is that they’re vegetarians. I make sure they get their protein and stuff by mixing vitamin powder in with their water, and they don’t seem to notice. I made a vegetable stir-fry and gave them most of it, saving some for me. They ate it happily, then took off running outside to play again. I looked out my window and saw Twilight looking at something. Probably an interesting flower or plant. Suddenly I head both Tonrar and Volk yelping and snarling. Panicked, I turned around to start running to them when I ran into something. I fell to the ground and hit my head, making me see stars. I felt a grip on my arm. It was a claw. I heard a chuckle. It was him. “Twi…light…” I tried calling to her, but fear and pain overtook my body. I tried screaming. Nothing came out but a hoarse gurgle. I tasted blood. He started to cackle now. “No… Please…!” Tears poured out like a tsunami, but I didn’t have the strength to sob. A blunt object hit the base of my skull and I blacked out. Author's Note I will get the next chapter done as quickly as possible. Any criticism is appreciated, whether it's good or bad. I think I might actually turn this into a novel-type thing (around 30 chapters) if it doesn't escalate too quickly. Also, I've noticed this is the first Fic of its kind on here, I think. No one thinks of Discord or Sombra to be sadistic? ...Weird. Maybe it's just me being weird.
