Chapter Three: The First Discordant Age.

***

7,000 BNM: The birth of the First Discordant Age: the Draconequus Discord - unknown to the ponies, one of the Questioners - begins a reign of terror. In this assault, he forges massive armies of chaotic creatures with which to threaten Equestria, and is met by force from Princesses Celestia and Luna. During this time, Equestria also contends with the first Adamantine insurrection. This age is marked by near constant conflict, strife and turmoil, and there are only a rare few years of peace.

***

Chaos Reigning.

Above the world that would become his playground, a Draconequus took stock of his creations. They charged around on Equestrian soil, waiting for the their dear "father" to address them. Claws scraped across the dirt, teeth were shined with tongues as long as pythons and every shape that glared up at their ruler, their Discord, had its own unique laugh. The laughter filled the air. Discord’s creations were overjoyed at that moment, a moment of celebration. They roared with pride whenever Discord floated over them, bowing to him in all his glory.

Alas, although they were eager, the Lord of Chaos didn’t think they were quite done yet. Oh, they were very, very close, but as the old saying goes, "you never say the punchline without the full joke".

Was that the saying?

Regardless, their time would come soon. A time of madness, death, destruction, cakes (well, maybe not cakes - though that would be fun) - a time that would be the ultimate test for these ‘pony’ creatures, the ultimate way to discern, once and for all, whether they would be worthy for what was to come next (relatively speaking).

As he surveyed the horde, he looked amongst them, making adjustments as he went. This one needs more horns. That one shall melt the very ground it walks on. I mustn’t forget to give this little cherub a nasty bite. Little taller on that one… ah, perfect. He’s too blue. Hm. Now he’s not blue enough - ah, there we go.

His peers had wanted him to test them. Fair enough, this was his test. Any fool could solve a puzzle or plan against an enemy. Discord was forging enemies who were puzzles in their own right. Puzzles that changed every day. Puzzles who would devour you if you weren’t sharp enough. Many were mishmashes of existing creatures of Equus. Every combination that a mind could imagine (and several and no being would ever dare try to) was now at his beck and call for his mission. Delightful.

Discord clapped his hands once. The sound was heard by all of his horde and they silenced themselves. The time was just about right. Divine Right had been an amusing foe for the Princesses but it was time for a more personal touch.

With a snap of his claws, the centre of the massive horde began to rise up. The creatures moved away from it as the ground twisted and convulsed into a tower. Discord took his seat on the "throne of reasonable comfort" at the very top of his monument.

"This day shall be the beginning of our glorious campaign," the Lord of Chaos declared, his voice echoing around the battlefield.

The horde roared with with praise for their master. They grew louder and louder the longer Discord refrained from speaking. The ground beneath them shook from an army's worth of paws, hooves and other legs stomping down in primal glee.

Discord had his army, now it was time for the ultimate test for this world. He raised his hands to quieten them back down.

"This world holds so much potential," Discord began again. "But those who live here don’t know about it yet. It will be up to us to educate them on it. Don’t feel bad for them, they are much simpler than you or I, they don’t know about the grander schemes at play. Worry not about their weapons, magic and whatever else they will no doubt throw at you. You have... my blessing. Me. I gave you all life, so you know you have purpose when I speak to you directly. The others in this world don’t have that same advantage. I think we should fix that. We should show them just how they could meet their maker. Be it through the mind, body or soul."

There was a wave of disturbing chuckles from his creations. It died down as he started to speak again.

"You may be wondering what our plan of action is." Discord tapped his nose. "I’ll let that be a surprise. If you knew all the plan straight away there would be no surprise, and surprises are fun. That’s rule one. But to give you a little hint - step one of the plan is simple… go. Have fun."

Discord began chuckling to himself. The only sound that could be heard for miles was the Lord of Chaos chuckling at his own joke. That chuckling grew into laughter and that laughter grew louder and louder. All of the horde that he had created joined in with their master. What’s a good joke if you can’t share it?

As they continued to laugh, Discord stopped. "I nearly forgot something."

He snapped his claws and suddenly the horde had their weapons. Jagged spears, swords crafted from the fangs’ of beasts long since dead, daggers that literally hungered for blood to the point of snarling in their owner’s hand, whips that were smart enough to find their target themselves after the wielder was killed, so many options for mutilation in the horde.

"Go!" Discord declared. "In any direction you desire, it doesn’t matter, just go and show them exactly who you are and what we can do."

Discord’s forces marched on to war in their destinations. Many of them were stampeding alongside larger creatures. The ground shook with every step, parts of it cracking to reveal more creatures of Discord that had less obvious ways of meeting opponents. They were all delighted to go off into war for their creator.

His horde’s laughter could still be heard as Discord watched them go off into the horizon. Discord stood there in silence, alone with his throne. It wasn’t until the laughter had faded from his ears that he spoke.

"And I do mean ‘we’."

***

The Horns of Hell.

Between the spurs of the Canterhorn and the Foal Mountain, there ran a river called the Maressissippi. Across that river, there was but one bridge, right at the pass between the two mountains, where the river was narrowest. The bridge itself was stone, wide enough for twenty Unicorns in full armour to march across, side by side. It had been built in the days of Adamantia, one of that kingdom’s many great achievements before the madness of Divine Right.

Upon that bridge marched a column of Earth Ponies and Unicorns, clad in full, golden plate armour, mail undershirts visible through the gaps. They held long, elegant spears at the ready, and the Unicorns levitated large, ornate shields alongside. Stood at the head of this column, in battered golden armour, a fresh cut still above her left eye, was Celestia.

The Alicorn carried herself with dignity, ignoring her remaining injuries and the weariness that had been pressing down on her for months. She had stood at the forefront of nearly every battle, leading her ponies as she had many times before. Now however the threat seemed too great for her to face. The endless horde of abominations that ravaged their lands was unlike anything she had faced before. Every battle had been a harrowing experience and the damage to herself and her once beautiful armour was a testament to how deadly and relentless her foes now were.

"My lady?" a soft voice spoke from Celestia’s side. The Alicorn turned to regard Twilight Star, a newly commissioned captain. She was a young violet mare, with a shock of blue through her otherwise white mane.

"Captain," the Princess replied. "What is our situation?"

Star sighed, looking notably distressed. "We have one thousand Unicorn marksponies, two thousand Earth Pony spears, and a full three companies of shieldbearers. Less than a third of what we’d hoped."

"Less than a third is better than none at all," Celestia said quietly. "And it will have to do. We always expected to have the disadvantage in numbers."

"I know, my lady, but -" Star began.

"Have faith, Captain," Celestia said quietly, a look of determination on her face. "I will die before Equestria falls - and it will take a lot more than these abominations to end me. You know the plan."

Star nodded, and turned back to the column. Celestia closed her eyes, and let the noises of battle begin to wash over her.

"PONIES!" Twilight’s amplified voice rang out over the column, "TAKE FORMATION! SHIELDBEARERS AT FRONT, PIKES BEHIND! MARKSPONIES TAKE POSITIONS AND PREPARE YOURSELVES!"

The moment the violet mare had finished speaking the ponies of the column sprang into action. The Unicorns carrying shields rushed in front of the Earth Ponies, planting their shields on the bridge with an audible clang. Though only a single line thick the shields carried weighty enchantments that made them almost impossible to shift. The Earth Ponies immediately moved behind them, lowering their pikes so that a bristling wall of steel points was pointing outwards. Behind the phalanx were the rest of the Unicorns, all of whom were testing the wind or taking breathing exercises, readying themselves for when they would have to unleash a hail of spellfire.

Celestia felt forlorn as she watched the army prepare itself. There were so many new recruits, and too few veterans. Most of the ponies had been suddenly levied from the city’s population and had never seen combat before. That was the grim calculus of this war, however - they would always lose many. But as long as they held…

"Enemy on the horizon!" somepony screamed. Suddenly a horn blared, and then Celestia opened her eyes, looking ahead.

Sure enough, past the far side of the bridge she could see them. A horde of monstrosities - bipedal, quadrupedal, some with more legs than an insect, some with no legs at all that slithered or flew on debased wings, some that were mockeries of the pony form. Every one of them bore some horrible deformity, horns bursting out of spines, enlarged limbs, horrible growths that writhed and undulated with minds of their own. Those that had eyes all had the same psychotic glee that promised nothing but an eternity of pain and violation to everything that stood in their way…

"By the White Horse," Twilight Star said, her eyes widening.

"Captain, to your duty," Celestia said sharply.

Star looked up at Celestia, swallowed audibly, nodded, then down. She opened her mouth, and began yelling.

"STAND FIRM! DON’T GIVE AN INCH! ON MY SIGNAL, FIRE AT WILL!"

The order was repeated by officers along the line. Star’s horn glowed softly as she prepared to signal. The horde continued charging, the sound of their guttural screams and yelling getting louder as they got closer to the bridge. Somewhere from amongst the horde, a deep, throaty horn could be heard, blaring into the air.

"Ponies of Equestria," Celestia said, her voice soft and yet carrying to every pony in her army. "The beasts of tartarus are upon us, but we will not falter. We will hold - for Equestria, for your families, for freedom!"

"GLORIANA!" her soldiers screamed around her. "GLORIANA!"

Celestia brought her glaive to bear and flapped upwards, summoning a shield of golden energy as bolts of corrupt magic flew from the Abominable Horde towards her. she narrowed her eyes at the creatures, and her next words simultaneously chilled and cheered the hearts of her soldiers.

"Let none survive."

"CHARGE SPELLS!" Star yelled out. From her horn, an amber light shot out and exploded into a flower-shaped arrangement. Across the bridge, one thousand horns lit up.

There was a moment’s pause, where Star looked up at Celestia. The Diarch looked back down at her, and nodded once.

"MARKSPONIES FIRE!" Star yelled, her horn shooting a red light into the air. A moment later, a thousand spells lashed out from the horns of the Marksponies, sailing over the defensive line, past the bridge, and into the front ranks of the horde. Concussive spells smashed apart bodies and vaporised limbs, incineration spells set blazes that burned through the ranks of abominations. More exotic destructive spells created micro-vortices and miniature glaciers that disrupted the charge and broke the front row… but like a flood, the horde continued, undaunted.

Celestia scowled, and she looked down at Star, who nodded. A blue spell shot into the air, and the Marksponies began firing at will, their spells becoming more sporadic but nonetheless equally destructive, tearing through the ranks of monsters.

Celestia brought her glaive up, focused, and suddenly a beam of pure light shot out from the weapon, channeled through her own magic. The beam incinerated anything it touched, carving a massive scorching tear through the land - and any abominations - as it continued on its path of destruction. She paused after a few moments, breathing heavily, and blinked as a spell shot past her ear. Her eyes widened as she realised her shield had disappeared.

"My lady!" Twilight Star called up to her.

Celestia growled. "HOLD!"

The ponies below her braced themselves as the horde reached them… and then they hit.

Shields budged back inches as the weight of impossible bodies smashed into the enchanted metal. A great ball of oozing flesh undulated forward, crushing other monsters in its path before it crashed into the shields. It failed to push the enchanted wall of steel even an inch but instead began to undulate over it. Foul smelling meat spilled over the Shieldbearers and down onto them. Pikes sank into the mass and snapped as the weight of the monstrosity broke them. Ponies screamed as they were smothered by the monster. On top of the beast, a small head with mismatched eyes laughed uproariously as it felt the pathetic creatures suffocate in its rolling folds.

Twilight Star, at the head of the line behind the Shieldbearers, growled, her horn glowing, as a beam of orange energy hit it straight in the centre of the mass, penetrating through its core. Suddenly the thing began glowing from within, and a moment later it exploded, showering gore and entrails over the defenders.

"Captain!" the ponies around the young mare cheered. "Captain Star!"

"HOLD YOUR LINE!" Star yelled back, firing a spell at some of the creatures forcing their way through the hole in the shieldwall. "GET ME MORE SHIELDBEARERS, NOW!"

More Unicorns moved up, but there were already abominations amongst the pikemen, forcing the Earth Ponies to defend themselves from the various assorted monstrosities. Star drew an ornate blade and charged into the fray, cutting through one creature whose back was turned, before moving to block another blow. The creature attacking her was a six foot beast, tall and muscular with two legs, arms and a giant club. She blocked another blow, and she fell to the floor, her telekinetic hold broken and her head ringing from the impact. Her eyes widened as the thing loomed over her…

And then its head exploded.

"BACK TO THE PITS THAT SPAWNED THEE, ABOMINATIONS!" a strident voice called out, as Celestia swept down, her glaive lashing out and cutting through more of the creatures as she settled on the ground with a snort. She blocked a strike from another tall beast, before swiping her glaive and cutting it in half. She stabbed forward, impaling another, before using her magic to shove a dozen of the creatures backwards beyond the line and into their own comrades, with more of the monsters being shoved over the edges of the stone bridge and into the dark water of the river below.

"Shieldbearers!" Celestia called out, panting. "Now!"

New Shieldbearers moved into position, taking up the shields of their fallen comrades and raising the enchanted devices up with grunts of effort. Celestia turned to look at Twilight Star as the sound of the horde banging on the shields subsided slightly.

"Art thou alright, Captain?" the Diarch asked, slipping into a more formal cadence.

Star pulled herself to her hooves, shaking from the impact. "I… will be fine, your highness."

"Good," Celestia said. She turned to look at the shield wall - so far, the shields were holding, though the horde was pushing away at them. She scowled.

"My lady, what now?" Star asked.

"Now, we wait for our reserves," Celestia said. "And hope my sister has a good sense of timing."

***

Princess Luna of Equestria looked around at the assembled Pegasi, their armour and spears gleaming. These were her personal forces, the Legio Noctrum, named in part for her long-dead daughter (I a only glad you died before witnessing the horrors I have seen…). Their armour, dark blue and purple, glinted in the sunlight.

Amongst these Pegasi were a few, more unique ponies. Their wings were not feathery, but leathery and bat-like. These were the Thestrals, a race of ponies that Luna had opened diplomatic ties with over a thousand years ago, who had since sworn their best and brightest to her service. She had, in their time of division, brought unity amongst the Thestrals’ disparate groups, ending the internecine warfare of their clans that had lasted generations. Though they were not common, being only a small population who lived in the dark caves of the Smokey Mountains, they were devoted to Equestria’s ideals of harmony and tolerance, and moreso to Luna herself, the mare who had shown them the way to unify with their distant kin. Though many ponies were… dubious about them, Luna trusted them implicitly.

"My lady," Nachtkrieg, chief of the Half Moon clan, said, approaching her with bowed head and kneeling before her. "Our forces are prepared. We estimate that we can reach the bridge in twenty minutes, pushed to the limit."

"We cannot push ourselves too hard," Luna said quietly. "We must arrive with the strength to fight."

"Then we will be there in a little over an hour, but can your sister afford that time?" Nacht asked.

Luna sighed. "She will have to."

Nacht nodded, before turning to his soldiers. "To the skies! We fly to war!"

"SIDERA SOMNIATA!" the Thestral soldiers yelled in return, before spreading their wings as one and taking off. Luna smiled as their forces flew off, before turning to the Pegasi Captain, an auburn-maned stallion named Thunder Crash.

"Are we prepared, Captain?" she asked.

"We’ll bring down the lightning, your highness," the Captain replied with a cocky smirk, "or I’ll hand in my rank and go live in a hole at the end of this."

"For your sake, Captain, I hope your skill in battle outmatches your wit," Luna said, smirking in return. She turned to the Pegasi. "Equestrians - to the sky! To Princess Celestia! To battle!"

"Bring the thunder!" Thunder Crash yelled, taking to the sky. His forces, displaying the blue sky and yellow lightning of the Pegasi elite, followed him, shouting their own war cries. Behind them heavy Sky Chariots lifted into the air, Unicorn Marksponies sequestered in the back. Everypony was filled with the same energy as their brash commander.

And, her own wings spread and the Gladius de Lune at the ready, Luna followed.

***

"HOLD!" a sergeant shouted somewhere down the line as a spinning, multi-segmented creature with bladed limbs threw itself over the shieldwall. It skewered itself on the pikes behind as Earth Ponies thrust into the carnage. The battle had taken a heavy toll on the Equestrian forces, every breach of the line leading to dozens of deaths.

The whooping screeches of the Abominable Hordes threatened to drown out the orders of the overtaxed officers. Ponies everywhere were starting to flag. The battle had been harrowing for the Equestrian army, the death toll, the relentlessness of their foes and the disgusting abilities displayed by their opponents all serving to weaken their morale.

Suddenly an enormous beast loped forward. It stood three metres at the shoulder, with massive bulging arms and horny armour covering its back and fists. It’s head was rimmed by a mane of spikes and when it breathed noxious gas burst forth from its nostrils.

Twilight Star saw the monster bearing down on them, and her eyes widened in horror.

"BRING IT DOWN!" she screamed, amplifying her voice so she could be heard.

The few Marksponies that heard her let loose with all of their might but their shouts simply bounced off of the beast’s armour or were ignored by it. In an instant the monster had closed the distance between it and the shieldwall, crushing smaller monsters in its path, and slammed against it.

In an instant the wall was pushed back. Enraged that it hadn’t flattened the ponies in front of it the monster raised its gnarled fists and swung at the Shieldbearers. Reaching over the shields the monsters claws swept the line, snapping pikes and ponies alike. In a few seconds it had crushed or crippled six Shieldbearer Unicorns and punched a hole in the line.

Celestia, further along the line, looked over at the creature and groaned. She was already tired - her body was aching in a half dozen places, and she felt something suspiciously similar to a pulled muscle in her left hind leg. She raised her glaive, intent on charging the creature, but then, to her surprise, a dozen Earth Ponies got their first, barreling towards the monster, pikes thrust forward.

"Fer Equestria!" one of them yelled in a heavily-accented voice. "Bring that varmint down!"

"I’ve got the head!" one of them yelled, pulling a sling out and starting to throw rocks at the creature’s armoured head. This did little other than annoy it, but it was enough to keep its attention.

"What’s that thing even made of?!" the accented pony yelled in irritation. "Hey, help me get behind it!"

Two of the ponies speared the creature in the guts, though that did little other than enrage the beast further. It reached down and grabbed one, breaking the poor stallion’s back, but that bought enough time for the accented pony to get behind the thing, where he took a blade out and stabbed at the vulnerable rear legs. The creature howled in pain, falling to its knees, and the remaining soldiers eagerly stabbed at its exposed belly and throat again and again until it finally went down, screeching all the way.

"My lady!" Star yelled over to Celestia. "We can’t hold this much longer!"

Celestia spun her glaive and charged at the hole in the line, feeling herself beginning to flag. She ignored her fatigue and pressed on, ramming into one of the creatures and knocking it to the ground, before snapping its throat with her hoof. Growling, she charged head first at another, goring the thing’s throat with her horn, before shoving it off with a snarl.

"DAMN YOU!" she screamed, shooting a spell at one creature and incinerating it. "FLEE IN TERROR, ABOMINATIONS! I AM THE MARE WHO HOLDS THE SUN!"

Her horn flashed again, and dozens of the creatures suddenly burst into flame, as Celestia’s mane began flickering, the power surrounding her seeming to warp the pink mane into blue, fiery energy. Her eyes flashed with power as more of the creatures died in fire.

"Your highness!" Twilight Star yelled. "Are you alright?!"

She didn’t answer aloud, but within her mind, the Diarch felt a conflict - she felt wrong, but at the same time she had never felt so exhilarated in all her life.

I feel it! Celestia thought, her eyes flashing again. I feel the power! The power of the sun itself…! It hurts… it hurts so much… but it is a good pain…!

"BURN!" she yelled at the creatures. "BURN… WITH… ME!"

The creatures seemed to hesitate as Celestia rose up, taking to the sky once again. Her mane and tail, fiery and blue, flickered as she spread her wings wide. The horde, for the first time since the battle had begun, stopped in their relentless charge and seemed to take a step back.

"Flee, you miserable wretches,," Celestia said, her voice tinged with unnatural power as her eyes, blazing orbs of white light, turned upon them. "Flee for your worthless lives before I turn you all to ash. Flee to the ends of the world, and maybe you will avoid my wrath. Flee."

Almost as one, the horde paused. Many of them were stricken with terror that they had never experienced before in their warped existences. Some collapsed in fear before her but most simply stood, unsure of what to do. Their foul instincts drove them to attack, to ravage, to despoil and violate. But now more primal drives were telling them to obey her and flee.

Before them the ponies were warily reforming their line. Shields were raised, pikes were lowered and breathes were held as the remains of the Equestrian army waited to see what their princess would do.

Suddenly a deep rich sound cut through the silence that had descended on battlefield. It was the noble sound of an Equestrian warhorn. Ponies and abominations alike all turned their heads to the sky as the sound echoed down from the clouds. Even Celestia, deep within whatever madness was overtaking her, raised her head and regarded the noise.

"Now my ponies!" the Royal Canterlot Voice boomed down from the clouds. "Strike them down. Strike from the skies. For Equestria!"

In that instant thunder went off overhead and lightning bolts rained down from the clouds, impacting in the center of the Abominable Horde. Dozens of foul beasts were hit by the cascading electricity of the storm. Explosions rocked the great host as beasts were catapulted into the air, horrific burns and tears covering their bodies.

The horde reeled once again, terrified by the fiery Alicorn before them and the suddenness of the storm above.

A moment later the clouds parted and revealed the cause of the lightning strikes. The ponies of Equestria cheered as hundreds of Pegasi appeared, every one of them armed and armoured. Sky Chariots were amongst them, crewed by Unicorn sharpshooters and that their head was a regal blue Alicorn garbed for war and bearing a beautiful shining blade.

"Now my ponies," Luna once again shouted in the Royal Canterlot Voice as the horn sounded, "To Celestia."

***

The moment she had finished speaking, Luna folded her wings and dove. Behind her, wings outstretched, came the Thestrals, spears pointed downwards.

In an instant, they were amongst the abominations on the bridge, blades and spears at work. The bridge became the heart of a melee, a melee in which the warriors fought like ponies possessed by some great spirit.

Speaking of ponies possessed…

"Sister!" Luna called out, landing near her sister. Celestia… was breathing heavily, her eyes wide. Whatever glow had surrounded her a moment ago had receded, leaving her shaky and sweating. "Art thou alright?!"

"Luna," Celestia said simply, "I have never been more pleased to have you by my side." She closed her eyes. "We cannot hold the bridge."

"I feared as much," Luna said dourly, looking to the battle.

Even the elite Thestral forces were having difficulty against the abominations. She could see, with a twinge in her heart, Nachtkrieg and his bodyguard fighting against the most monstrous of the creatures, the clan leader himself being torn apart by a vicious beast. Near that, she saw the brave, foolish Thunder Crash fall to a spear lodged in his chest. Undaunted by the mortal wound, Crash threw himself at the best that dealt it, and the two fell together over the bridge.

"Then we must end this together," Celestia said quietly. She turned her head. "Captain Star, where are you?!"

"Here!" Star’s voice came from the melee. The captain appeared, a cut above her forehead and one eyes bruised, but otherwise seemingly undaunted. "I stand ready!"

"It is time to enact our contingency," Celestia said quietly. "Send the signal to retreat."

Star nodded, a slight twitch of her lip the only sign that she disagreed. "As you command." She turned to the line. "PULL BACK ACROSS THE BRIDGE! SLOW AND STEADY!"

A horn rang out signalling the withdrawal. The Shieldbearers, tired but re-energised by the arrival of the reinforcements, began retreating slowly, allowing the ponies behind them a quicker pace. Some members of the horde tried to charge the shields, but Celestia and Luna took to the skies, their horns lashing out and smashing into the creatures. Any they missed were caught by Thestrals and Pegasi.

After a few tense minutes, the bridge was clear of ponies. Celestia and Luna shared a glance, before the Lunar diarch turned to her forces.

"Retreat!" she called.

At her cry, the Pegasi divisions and Thestrals retreated, flying to land near what was left of Celestia’s army. Celestia, breathing heavily, nodded to Luna, who turned her attention to the bridge as the Abominations began crossing, unimpeded by Equestrian forces.

"Now!" Celestia said. Luna’s horn glowed… and the bridge exploded. The ancient Adamantine construction shattered beneath the power of the spell the Lunar diarch threw.

For a moment, all was silent. Most of the horde opposite was confined to the land of the other side of the bridge. A few, twisted wings bearing them aloft, tried to cross, but Twilight Star motioned and a squadron of Marksponies began firing spells, clipping the creatures from the sky as they crossed.

Celestia and Luna landed on the Equestrian side of the river, breathing heavily.

"This is ridiculous," Luna said. "How much longer can we continue this fight?"

"As opposed to what?" Celestia asked, smiling tiredly. "We cannot surrender."

"I was not suggesting surrender," Luna replied. "I was suggesting we seek whatever intelligence guides this monstrosity and annihilate it!"

"There is no way of knowing if this force even has an intelligence guiding it," Celestia said with a shrug. "At best, we would be searching for something we do not know, have never seen and know not the origin of."

"But we would be searching," Luna retorted.

Celestia shook her head, before looking across to the horde. Most of the creatures were screaming, yelling in their foul tongue.

But… right there, was that…?

The diarch could see a single figure standing still and silent on the opposite bank. It had a griffon claw and a lion paw, a pony head with a goat horn and an antler, and a dragon tail. It seemed almost to be regarding Celestia with narrowed eyes. She narrowed her eyes back at it, and then… it was gone.

"Sister?" Luna asked. "Art thou alright?"

"Yes," Celestia said quietly. "Yes I am."

Whatever that creature was, she had the feeling she would meet it again.

***

4,600 BNM: The First Discordant Age ends with the defeat of the Discordant Legion and the apparent banishment of Discord (who retreats to resume his observation of the two sisters).

***

Defeat is not the end.

Luna, after all these years, had been right.

The last five years of the conflict had seen it finally peter out to embers. Though Equestria had been shattered by the war, their battered, weary forces had managed to break the back of the last horde - the last Discordant Horde, as it had come to be named.

The creature that led the horde, the beast that Luna had spoken of as a theory so many years ago, had revealed itself. Its name was Discord, the self-styled Lord of Chaos and strife. It had revealed itself a long time ago, showing up at the head of a horde of Discordant beasts. Its power was… uncertain. It had claimed then to have created the horde, which in and of itself was terrifying.

Now, Luna and Celestia approached the dark, ruined fortress where it made its home, with the intent of confronting this Discord in his lair.

The approach to the fortress was eerily quiet. Dead lands surrounded them, nothing visible and nothing tangible… and yet a sense of threat surrounded them, ever present. The fortress probably wasn’t helping that image: it loomed over the wasteland, tattered spires and parapets leaning over, creating an unnatural sense that the thing was looking down at them.

"Why did we walk?" Luna asked quietly.

"No way of knowing what air defences they have," Celestia replied quietly.

"And so we get to stand at the base of this thing and let it… loom," the Lunar Diarch said, raising an eyebrow. "I can’t say I wouldn’t prefer the idea of dodging spells."

Celestia grinned. "Well, we’re here now."

It still surprised her that she and her sister could joke as they did. Luna… had gone through a period of being very quiet and morose. Almost three centuries of it, in fact, since her great grandson had died in his sleep aged one hundred and two. After that, Luna had stayed out of the business of the line she had spawned. She had no part in their lives. Surprisingly, the line still ran strong, even after the death of many thousands of ponies. That death, though, had naturally led to years where Celestia didn’t even smile, and Luna had almost never dropped her livid scowl.

Still, Luna’s sense of humour seemed to have returned, albeit tempered and subdued. That, at least, was something Celestia was grateful for.

The fortress itself was easily accessible - a stone bridge led to the gate, which lay broken and open. The courtyard was empty and foreboding, and the wind whistled through it. Except… it wasn’t just the wind. Cold laughter could be heard throughout the fortress.

"Have the little Princesses come to play?" a voice whispered through the walls of the fortress as the two stepped into the centre of the courtyard.

"Yes," Luna called back. "We have come to play ‘end the abomination-master and stick his head on a pike’!"

"Ooh, sounds fun," the voice whispered back. "But I know a better one."

Suddenly, a translucent figure dashed out of the shadows, charging at the two of them. As one, they brought their weapons to bear and engaged the figure, which dashed between the two of them, swinging a blade around and blocking their blows. A deadly dance began, the three spinning, blocking and stabbing - and then Luna slashed with the Gladius di Lune and the figure dissipated.

"What trickery is this?" Luna demanded, shocked.

"Oh, come now," the voice of Discord mocked. "You did not genuinely expect it to be so easy."

Celestia growled as another shadow-Discord appeared, charging at them. She leapt ahead, her glaive impaling the shade before it could even move.

"We can kill as many of these shades as you can throw at us," Luna called out. "You may as well face us yourself."

In answer, three more shades leapt down at them from above. Luna leapt up into the air, bisecting one as it jumped, and Celestia engaged the other two, her glaive spinning and blocking the creatures’ blows, before Luna landed, taking one on herself. Luna dodger a slash and stabbed, impaling her foe, while Celestia blocked the blow from her enemy, before decapitating the shade. A moment later, they were alone again.

"You know," Discord’s voice said, "I think I believe you."

There was a flash of light, and suddenly Celestia and Luna were thrown backwards.

And there he was.

Discord, the Dragon Horse, the Lord of Chaos, stood before them. He was surrounded by a bright light, silhoeutting his form, and he had one paw stretched out to point at them.

“You two little fools have made a grave mistake in coming to this place,” he intoned, his voice full of portents of doom. “This is my domain! Here, I am the master!”

Luna yelled in frustration, before firing a beam of magic - it bounced off the glowing figure.

“Before my might, there is no power that you have that can stop me!” Discord continued, practically ignoring the attack. “The armies you slew can be remade! The victories you won can be undone! The ponies you thought you had spared the blade will feel it's edge -!”

“NO!” Celestia yelled, and suddenly her horn flared… and she was no longer standing there.

In her place was the figure Luna had only seen once, and her eyes widened in shock at horror as she saw it again. Celestia’s mane had become fire, flickering and waving like the flares of the sun itself. Her coat had darkened to a dull grey compared to the light that flared around her, and the pupils of her eyes had narrowed as she glared at Discord.

“What’s this?” the Dragon Horse asked, sounding almost amused. “Have you decided to show your true power?!”

“You will not touch the ponies of Equestria again!” the not-Celestia yelled. “I will scour you from all creation first!”

She fired a beam of magic at the Lord of Chaos, who held up a law to block it, though this time he seemed almost to struggle as she kept firing.

“You must know you cannot prevail,” he said.

“No,” Celestia replied. “I don't know that at all!”

She took a step forward, and Discord took a step back. She took another, and so did he. Suddenly she reared up, and the Dragon Horse disappeared in a flash, the beam of energy the not-Celestia had been firing levelling most of the castle behind where he had stood.

With a sudden gasp, Celestia, free of the unnatural glow, collapsed to the ground exhausted. In a flash, Luna had come to her side, eyes wide with worry.

“Sister?” she said softly. “Celestia?!”

Celestia’s eyes opened weakly. “Luna? What happened? Did we win?”

“Yes,” Luna said softly. “Yes, we won.”

“Hooray for us,” Celestia said with a chuckle, before passing out.

***

The figure of Discord stood on a cloud, watching the two sisters as they walked home, both limping from the fight. Of course, his attention wasn't really on them at all, now.

Verdict?

“Uncertain,” he said. “She transformed briefly to a higher state, more powerful than her normal form. It seemed to affect her personality though.”

Suggestion?

“I keep watching,” Discord said quietly. “These… Alicorns… there's a lot of potential, but with only two full samples at present it will be difficult to use them as a basis for the whole lot.”

There was a pause as his colleagues debated this. He closed his eyes, hoping they made the right choice.

Very well. Remain. Continue.

And then they were gone.

Discord sighed, before summoning a cold drink. He didn't need it, but it made him feel better.

“Right then,” he thought. “What to do next?”

Author's Notes:

I'm back!

This scene actually took a good long while to do, especially for the massive battle in the middle. There were a lot of choices about history et al to be made during it. Still, now that it's done, I feel really proud of it. With thanks to The Void and RoyalPsycho for their stellar input as always. Hope you enjoy the update :-)

Jed.