Chapter thirty six

With a snap of his eagle claw, Discord commands a tea pot and small cup to hop their way over to him as he now sits back in a chair he summoned the same way while watching the game of Splatter Spell take place with his sister in law and the guards that have taken it upon themselves to join in the game. As much as the chaotic prince may want to join in the fun and take up the red teams fight, just so he can try and wipe the floor with Lulu.

It would be far too unfair for Discord to join one side with a team of his own. Considering his magic can best so many of them without even trying. The only ponies in Equestria who could manage to put up a fight, on their own that is, would be that of the two regal sisters, and possibly a soon emerging Twilight as her magic expands (though she would still need the Elements to contend with him).

On the other hoof, if it was an entire team against him they may stand a chance. He may be the spirit of chaos and everything that causes it… but that doesn’t make him unstoppable. Watching the aunt of his children have as much fun as a foal would at a birthday party, he listens to the laughter as Luna lets painful, but harmless, magical bolts shoot off from her horn while one by one she helps to take out those on the opposing team. While at the same time the mild groans from those she hits fill the air as they wander off the training field and to the side lines defeated.

“I think she is getting to good at this game now…” one Red Guard remarks as several blue splotches pepper his uniform, “that last one clicked me right between the eyes, heck if it wasn’t for my helmet I would probably have a black eye by now.”

“Oh quit your complaining Simmons, it’s still pretty fun,” another on the same team tries to ease him, “at least it’s kinda fun? I mean gets your heart rate up, and does do some good when it comes to combat.”

“Though Princess Luna will always be on the blue team, so we probably won’t stand a chance… ever.”

“That’s because she is blue after all…” Discord mutters while they stand closer to him than they had realized at first, “I mean it would seem rather pointless to have her dress up in a red uniform when she already wears one of her own.”

“She doesn’t even wear a uniform though?” one ponders the reasoning behind this matter, “or any padding for that matter.”

“Let’s face it, she doesn’t really need any pads when the princess never gets hit,” his companion explains, getting a chuckle out of the prince as he lounges and watches the mare in question enjoy herself.

Luna herself puts her back against a barrier as she tries to figure out her next move. There aren’t many red soldiers left at this point, and she is left panting, struggling to catch her breath while she glimpses around the corner at the opposition. Avoiding the red splatter that lands right next to her, now checking to make sure she wasn’t hit and put out of the game.

“Your fine, Luna!” she hears her brother in law yell out, “come one lets finish this one up!”

“Give me a minute!” she calls back to him, whipping around the corner and firing off several shots, more than anything to provide some sort of cover fire, while her teammates make their way on the opposite side.

Hitting another red team member, she puts her best hoof forward and tackles another. Firing point blank in to him before the others have a chance to react. Though as she turns around to face another, she is met with a very different kind of spell… a green blast sends the princess hurtling in to a wall, as an alicorn shaped hole is made from the impact while she goes through to the other side.

The sound of the impact gets Discords, and every other pony’s attention as they look over to see if she can get up herself from such a hit, not even thinking to look back at the one that actually caused it. Emerging from the hole rubbing the back of her head, Luna tries to shake it off while sending a death glare to the one that caused it. Both she and Celestia may be on the border line of immortal when it comes to the years they can live for, and on top of that having a body that is more resilient to damage of sorts when combat is involved.

Never the less though, the pain they can feel is as real as it comes, and if something breaks, burns, tears, cuts or scrapes. Then it will still take time to heal just like any other pony, though it does take more to get to that point. Feeling the painful pounding in her head, she knows more than well that there will be a rather large dose of aspirin in her future before she sleeps tonight, but first things first.

Dealing with the one who either gave her a taste of her own medicine, or took it too far.

“You are supposed to stick to one spell, Guard!” she yells at the royal sentry while he stands there as several of the others look back at him, “did you forget that rule?”

“What’s the matter, Princess?” Discord takes up the role of the joker as he yells out to her, “a little torqued that you got it handed to you by a fellow guard?”

“Next round you’re going against me, Dissy,” Luna snaps back at him with a single hoof pointed towards the prince. Soon turning it towards the guard that put her through the wall, “now you, what is your name?” she asks him. Though the princess of the night gets no response, only a growing smirk on his face in return, “…did you hear me? I asked what your name is?” still not getting an answer. The two guards that came to the side lines, stand still next to the prince as they look at one another and to their comrade trying to figure out what his game is.

“What is he trying to do?” one asks, “Disobey a direct order from Princess Luna?”

Though Discord is the first one that catches the slight glimmer in his eyes the moment the silent guard’s horn starts to flicker. After all, it’s the same look he has before causes some sort of trouble in the kingdom, “no… he just has a different motive…” he mutters before another blast makes its way towards the lunar princess.

Forcing her to dive out of the path of the bright green projectile as it punches a large hole in the same wall where she was just sent though. All of those that were once in the game and still are take a stance aiming at the mystery guard in question while he now starts to change himself at the moment. In an instant the facade that he produces around him is wiped clean as the true form takes hold. The dark appearance of a changeling stands there before them as his literal holy form cracks its neck to get ready for a fight. Hissing at the princess as she gets up from the ground, and sees the true attacker that they now have to contend with.

‘Well, it’s only one at least…’ Luna mutters in her head while she charges up her own horn.

Though it isn’t long before a small blast takes place in the side lines of them, as they see several of the once players take to the sky from the impacts and crash back down on the ground. Looking over to the area they see a sight that many hoped they would never get to relive. At first a dozen more changelings appear before them, then soon more come crashing down as they dive bomb from the skies and land amongst the group. Each recovering in record time as they ready themselves.

“I just had to say something…” Luna mumbles as she face hooves herself at the moment, firing off her own attack and sending three of them at the same time off skipping across the training field.

The opening offence sets off a chain reaction as the guards that were once pitted against one another now take up arms against the changelings before them as they switch over from the harmless paint spell to something more lethal. The creatures themselves also break out what weapons they brought, for the ones that aren’t as skilled when it comes to magic. While some of them even wield both enchantment and blade as they combine their talents with one another to the fullest.

A changeling sends his blade in to the chest of a guard, pulling out the sword using his telekinesis to bring it back to him as blood spews from the wound, just as he elbows another in the lower jaw. Firing off a bolt in to one’s head, the spell causes the back to blow out, while swiping the blade expertly across the soft neck of the one he hit with his elbow. The evil snicker of the kill plasters his face, as he feels the rush of combat flow inside of him as he fulfills his lifelong purpose. Lunging across to down another guard with a quick stab to the temple.

Locking eye contact with another target, the changeling charges up a spell and sends it off towards another guard, though that attack is surprisingly blocked by a simple protective aura. Looking through it, he sees that the guard’s horn isn’t lit up, so he couldn’t have stopped it. In the mist of combat, he hears a snicker and looks off to the side. Luna standing there with her own horn glowing as she chuckles to herself.

Pounding a single hoof in to the ground, it kicks up the surrounding gravel as Luna hurtles it at the creature to stun him as she grabs a dagger from a fallen soldier. Blocking her opponent’s quick attack that he throws out as he tries to strike her through the haze of the grout in his eyes. Having such a smaller weapon then him isn’t helping the counter as even with her added strength of having trained with actual weapons and not just magic, he still manages to push her back.

‘He must be an actual soldier, not just a random spy of some sort,’ Luna concludes when she watches him parry her blade expertly, and attempts a quick swipe at a changeling who has done this probably their entire life.

Though she has far more years of experience on him than he ever could. Using her magic, she zaps him with a quick shot of built up electricity using his blade like a lightning rod. Giving her that split second she needs to finish the job. Exterminating the skilled opponent with a stab through the lower jaw and up in to his cranial cavity. The princess watches the life fall from him as she almost pities the loss of such talent, though she doesn’t get time to seek another.

A rather powerful kick from a broad-shouldered, strongly built changeling causes her to flip end over end as he lifts up his battle axe. The brutish build changeling, bent on cleaving her in half from where she lays there, still trying to get her breath after the hit. The thoughts of praise that he would get for having finished off a princess, Luna for that matter, fill his mind as he brings the blade over top his own head.

That though will never come true, as a he gets a tap on the shoulder.

“Excuse me there…” he turns his head and sees the figure of Discord standing before him, cracking his neck and knuckles as he joins in the brawl, “nothing personal, but if anyone is going to cause anarchy in Equestria,” he socks the changeling in the face and sends him clear across in to a wall, splattering the creature like a bug to a windshield, “…that will be me.”

The prince helps his counterpart up as he puts on his own combat gear with a simple snap of his talons. In a shroud of smoke, armor plates decorate his entire body, covering him in a full suit to protect him for the fight. All of which, is decorated with all sorts of symbols, text, and pictures that would depict a disharmony between creatures, and war breaking out with nations of the world.

Horns protruded from the back of his suit, while his own wings do the same as more spikes and razors break free along it like a dragons spines long its back and down to the tip of his tail, as his shoulders protrude out several of their own. Giving him even the look of a soldier that has made his way clear out of Tartarus, as the bright golden etching, adorns itself across the onyx plates and a pair of blood red decorative cloths cover along his groin and flank.

“Oh-h-h…” Discord purrs, “it’s good to be back…” he says almost with too much joy in his tone while rolling his shoulders.

Because while many hoped they wouldn’t see another changeling attack. Discord is one that almost waited for it to happen, so he could take out a little built up anger he had at the race for what they did to his wife.

Though he hasn’t a clue what she is contending with now.

“Well don’t you look terrifying,” Luna notes as she takes a stance with him, nearly back to back as she bucks a changeling in the jaw breaking it in two.

“You haven’t seen anything yet,” he grins, clapping his hands together.

As he extends them out, a glowing shape takes form between them as he gets to the full length. A massive war hammer is produced, almost as big as himself as he wields it with ease in one arm while a shield takes shape strapping itself to his other. Bashing a changeling in the face as he lunges to try and attack. Discord flips around and crunches the helpless victim in to the turf with one slam of his weapon, as the ground starts to shake from its very use. The combat skill of the prince is rather impressive, to that even of the Princess, who has never really seen him in real combat for that matter.

Though when you are a creature of chaos… war is something that you probably specialize in, seeing as it is nothing but mayhem to begin with.

Blocking another attack with now the very handle of his blunt weapon, Discord watches as the creature bites down on it as he head butts him and flings him off as a projectile in to a group of his friends. Now hurtling his hammer in to them with on mighty swing, as it crushes those that don’t manage to scurry out of the way. Bringing out his own magical talent, Dissy, with a single snap of his fingers, causes a few of the changelings in front of him to start to float off the ground to an easy knee height.

Not having a single clue on how exactly to counter this, they all struggle to get their footing as they just start to kick as if they were swimming in midair. The prince lines up a shot with his hammer and brings it back around him at the ready, “…Four!” he yells out like playing golf as he hits them all at the same time in one stroke. Sending the make shift golf balls up in to the sky, and a few even hitting various parts of the castle in their travels.

“You’re enjoying this two much!” Luna yells at him as she throws the same dagger in to the hoof of a changeling as it pins him for an instant, allowing her to spin kick another as she draws the fallen’s blade and finishes the job with the first.

“Says the pony that sounded like a sociopath while she fought with her own guards in ‘training’,” he reminds her while a lone enemy manages to knock him back with a powerful magic attack. That is before the princes sends back his own attack. Clenching his lion paw in to a fist he hurtles the gauntlet, arm included, at speed and caves in the face of the changeling before the armor, and arm, seats itself back on his elbow, “Seriously you make me even look tamed.”

“A little enthusiasm in battle never hurt anypony.”

“Tell that to the guards you whooped…” he taunts, bringing up his goat leg in to the gut of another as he sends him in to the air.

Giving the perfect chance to bring the hammer up as well and hurtle him straight up in to the sky. Trailing the small blur of a changeling, Discord sees a slight twinkle like a star as it seems he has left this world… for good. Though to his dismay, Discord looks around and sees more changelings than he may have hoped for still there in front of them. The thought of getting over run by them isn’t one that he likes to dwell on in his mind right now.

Thinking quickly for a solution. He brings up the hammer, clearing his head, as he sends it in to the ground. Causing the very surface to shake as it cracks open for but a moment in a gape. Most of the critters don’t have time to move or fly out as they fall in to the crevasse. After but a second, their screams get snuffed out in the instant the crack snaps back shut and crushes them in one go. Leaving the others that were there to witness what the prince of chaos, just managed to do to their friends and comrades. Being swallowed up by the very ground that they stand on, isn’t something that they look forward to doing in their future. Discord looks at a few of the survivors that stand there in a trance and grins at them with his one snaggle tooth.

“So colts…” he twirls his weapon, urging them to fight almost, “wanna play?”

None of the creatures answer, as they see a bright flash of what looks to be a green firework set itself off in the sky in the distance. With that they know that their work here is done… for the moment. Each of them take to the sky in record time and shoot off, so as not to stick around for the wrath of the prince himself to take hold.

Luna looks up in admiration at what her brother in law just accomplished in an instant, “Remind me to learn a spell that will open up the ground, and eat my enemies…” she says to him while standing by his side.

“Well they aren’t actually ‘eaten’” he corrects her, lightly kicking the ground below him with the dragon leg of his, “just crushed by the very dirt we stand on… so I wouldn’t go digging around here in that case.”

“Excellent point, however,” Luna looks to some of the smoke left over in the sky from the spell that called the changelings off, “That spell that we just saw, wasn’t a combat spell. It was a signal…”

“Good eye, ‘Church’,” Discord pauses for a moment to let the comment sink in, “now who do we know that would be leading the changelings?”

“I have a good idea about that one…” Luna rolls her eyes, ignoring his first remark. Until her ears notice the silence between them and she looks up to see the look on his face, “Discord… what is it?”

“Whatever the queen hoped to accomplish with this little brazen hit and run can wait,” his voice comes out cold, as his mind starts to realize something that should have been the first thought to appear as a parent, “Where are Havoc and Rose?” he asks to her.

In only a few seconds, Luna soon shares the same expression that he has on his face. Now the both of them dart off in to the castle, determined to find the two young ones.