I sat on my throne, my head resting gently on my paw, thinking about those days so long ago.  I remembered how everything had gone from perfect to broken in a matter of days.  Everything I had ever wanted sat right in front of me, and in a moment of weakness and mercy I allowed it to be plucked from my sight and stolen from me.  I was going to create a perfect, harmless, fun world…  But some ponies just can’t be happy with freedom and fun.  No, some ponies had to have law and order in their lives.  The one pony I thought trusted me to create such a perfect world ended up taking my trust and ripping it to shreds.  It is because of her that I am this way.

My two most loyal servants so easily betrayed me at the first sign of weakness.  Because of this betrayal, I vowed that I would someday seek out my revenge and return Equestria to the way it was while I ruled.  I never would have expected the myths about the Elements to be real.  My ignorance of the truth ended up being my downfall, and cost me three-thousand years of peace and happiness.  It was all because of that annoying, ignorant, insolent little filly…

It was a bright, sunny day.  I sat on my throne with a smile, a beautiful mare sitting at my side, awaiting my orders.  There were four guards in the room, ready to follow my every command.  The room was decorated with crystal windows and golden statues of the founders of Equestria.  A marble statue of me had been mounted above the doorway to the room.  The white-coated mare sat by my side, her beautiful multi-colored mane flowing majestically at her side.  She looked at me with a gentle smile on her face.

I returned her smile with one of my own.  The smile quickly faded as a loud banging sound erupted from the far end of the throne room.  The doors flew open and the guards were sent flying as a blue magical aura collided with them.  A short, thin alicorn filly darted up the path to my throne, something resembling anger in her eyes.  She had always been short-tempered and quick to succumb to temptation.  

She let a blast of magical energy fly from her horn and hit me.  The alicorn at my side immediately leaped from her perch, attempting to calm the filly.  I can’t remember the exact words that were shared by the two, but I remember their actions clearly.  The filly struggled free from the mare’s grasp and let another blast of magic out.  Again, it hit me.  The mare used her own magic to pin the filly to the ground.

I laughed as I broke the mare’s magical aura with my own.  I lifted the filly off of the ground by the throat, my aura wrapping around.  I scoffed, “This is the third time you have attempted to take my life, Lady Luna.  I am afraid there must be some punishment for your insolence.”

The mare’s eyes widened in horror as she watched me lift the filly from the ground.  The filly began to gasp for air and squirm as my aura choked the life from her.  The mare leaped to my side and planted her hooves firmly on my side.  She begged, “Let her go, Lord Discord!  She is but a filly; she is no harm to you!”

I waved my claw at the mare in an attempt to get her to remove her hooves.  I sighed, “Lady Celestia, you know I cannot allow such traitorous behavior to go unpunished.  What would happen if some over-zealous citizen decided to follow her lead?”  I tightened my grip on the filly’s throat.  She let out a squeak of pain.

Celestia applied more pressure with her hooves, her eyes filling with tears.  She sobbed, “Please, milord, you mustn’t!  My sister is a foolishly ambitious filly!  Please let her go!”  Her eyes were filled with genuine sorrow.  Of course they would be; the filly was her only remaining family.

I looked into those eyes and felt my heart flutter.  I sighed as I released the filly’s throat, “Very well then, Lady Celestia.  I will warn you but once more, little filly!  Attack me again and you shall be made an example of!”  Luna fell to the ground, catching her breath.  Celestia darted to the filly’s side.

The guards returned to their hooves and immediately secured the filly.  The largest of the four asked me, “Shall we escort this ne’er-do-well to dungeon, sire?”  He lifted the filly from the ground, despite Celestia’s protests.

I chuckled, “There will be no need for that, Captain Aegis.  Thank you.”  He let the filly go, Celestia catching her as she lost balance.  With a nod, the four guards returned to the door and assumed their posts.  I looked back at Luna as she fell to the floor.

Celestia whispered in her ear, “You simply mustn’t continue these foolish acts of ambition, Sister!  All they will do is send you to your death!”  She helped Luna to her hooves.

Luna spoke softly, “But Sister, things are getting out of hand!  The guards refuse to help those in need, and the criminals are running amok in town!”

Celestia shushed her sister with a hoof, and leaned closer to whisper something else.  I didn’t quite hear what she said.  By the look in Luna’s eyes, I assumed it was some sort of promise to speak with me on behalf of the troubles.  Luna lost her angry expression and stared at me with innocent eyes.

I laughed, “You’re dismissed, Lady Luna.  I would suggest you return to your room and reflect on your actions here today.”  She nodded sheepishly and trotted from the room.  The guards gave her stern looks as she passed.  I scoffed, “You’re dismissed as well, Aegis.  You and your guards can take the rest of the day off.”  They gave me uncertain looks.

Captain Aegis saluted, “Y-yes sir!”  He nodded to his soldiers and followed them from the room.  They shut the door behind them.

It was just me and Celestia left in the room.  She looked at me with gentle eyes.  She took a deep breath and started to say something, but a strange noise interrupted her.

“…you okay?”  A voice called me back to the present.  It repeated, “Discord, are you okay?”  I looked to my side to find the two princesses staring at me with somewhat-concerned looks.

I shook my head, trying to refocus on the events of the present day.  I scoffed, “I am perfectly fine, Tia.  What, are you really concerned about me?”  I smiled, trying to sound as condescending as I could.

Celestia gave me an angry glare.  She tried to hide her true feelings as she said, “Of course not!  But if something is wrong, then it is important we know…”  I could’ve sworn I heard Luna giggle at her sister.

I laughed, “I’m simply reminiscing to the days we use to spend together in this very room.  Do you remember them, Tia?”  I looked at her as her face flushed red.  Luna cocked her head to the side, trying to remember back to all those years ago.  The two of them, although they had been defeated and powerless to stop my upcoming reign of chaos, seemed somewhat content with how things were.  I guess if you can’t beat me, you should join me.

Celestia stamped her hoof, “Of course I remember them!  How could I ever forget?  But stop calling me by that name, Discord!  You have no right!”  She turned away from me, trying to hide the embarrassment written on her face.

I chuckled, warping to her side, “You really ought to lighten up, Tia!  After all, that was three-thousand years ago!”  I floated gently over to Luna’s side.  She looked up at me with anger in her eyes.  Those were the same eyes as all those years ago.

She turned her head away as she scoffed, “All I remember is some tyrannical dictator that nearly killed me!”  She refused to look back at me.

I shrugged my shoulders, “I did indeed try to kill you.  Twice, if memory serves correctly.  But both times it was your sister that came to your aid.  To think that you would end up betraying her yourself in the years to follow is simply mind-boggling.”  I looked at her as her face twisted in shame and guilt.

Celestia asked, “Why do you bring up the past so suddenly, Discord?”

I smiled as I said, “The eyes you gave me when pleading for Twilight’s life to be spared reminded me ever so much of the day your sister attacked me in this room.  You gave me those same tear-filled, big-sisterly eyes.”  She lowered her gaze to Luna, who smiled sheepishly as she remembered the day I was talking about.

Celestia smiled as she looked back at me, “I guess you still have a soft spot in that heart of yours for me, eh?”

I scoffed, rolling my eyes, “Maybe those eyes of yours are magical!  Do you remember that day as clear as I do, Tia?”

She turned her head to the side and closed her eyes.  She sighed, “Of course I do.  Luna charged into the room and attacked you.  You were going to kill her until I intervened.  You dismissed her and the guards.  And then…”  Her voice trailed off as she looked back at Luna.

Luna asked, “And then what, Celestia?”

I chuckled, “And then you made your promise, Tia.  Is that correct?”  Luna gave me a weird look.  Celestia didn’t say a word.

My mind drifted back to those events that transpired right after the guards shut the door.

Celestia took a deep breath and said, “Thank you, milord.”  She looked at me with innocent, loving eyes.

I waved my claw and scoffed, “No sense in being formal when there’s nopony around, Tia.  You’re lucky that I love you so much, otherwise that twerp would be feeding apple trees right now.”  I smiled and winked at her as she approached the throne.

She sighed, “I just wish Luna would learn to be patient…  Are you certain I can’t tell her about the p-?”

I shushed her before she could finish her question.  I snapped, “You mustn’t mention it at all!  Not here in the throne room.  Our secret is only safe in the comfort of our chambers.”

She smiled sheepishly.  “Sorry, I forgot…”

I laughed, “No sense in apologizing.  It was a simple mistake.  Have you heard the word yet, Tia?”  I materialized a small roll of parchment in my claw with my magic.  I handed it to her with an excited grin.

She unrolled the parchment and read the contents to herself.  She looked up at me with wide eyes and cheered, “They agreed to meet here?!  So the peace treaty is…?”  She slapped a hoof to her mouth, realizing that she was speaking out loud.

I nodded my head with a smug grin.  I magicked the letter back to my hand and put it away.  “The leaders of the Everfree and Changeling nations are meeting here in three days to sign the treaty.  Once I get the treaty signed, this whole place will be one big melting pot of happy-go-lucky creatures.  All because of my great idea of freedom and lenient discipline.  Most of the ponies seem content with these new laws, and so the neighboring nations have decided to sign with us!”  I waved my claw around as I spoke, obviously excited by my own success.

Celestia giggled, “Once the treaty is signed, all of the rumors of war will leave the citizens’ minds, and we can all rest peacefully in our homes.”  She bounced with joy at the thought of peaceful rest.

“And then…” I raised an eyebrow, looking at Celestia carefully, “…once I’ve cleared up all of this political nonsense, we can focus on making our relationship official.”

She smiled and cheered with joy, “I can’t wait!  It’ll be nice not to have to sneak around anymore!”  She looked at the door at the front of the room.  “The people just wouldn’t take too kindly to their leader being focused more on romance than diplomatic relations…”  She looked at me with innocent eyes.

I laughed, waving her closer to me.  I whispered, “Once everything is said and done, we can be together without fear.  If the price of a peace treaty is allowing a few criminals to go unpunished for a few weeks, then that is a sacrifice that must be made.”  I planted a kiss on her muzzle.  She giggled and flushed red.

We sat in the throne room and talked for a few hours about our plans for later on.  After the diplomatic meeting was finished and the peace treaty was signed, we could be together without worrying about what the people thought of us.  We made our plans for our wedding and how we would handle the publicity.  After all, a draconequus and alicorn being wed was something unexpected by everyone.

As she set the sun in the western sky, Celestia whispered to me, “We’ll be together forever as lovers and rulers…”  The moon rose in the east, and it was time for the two of us to part for the night.

Three days’ time would bring us all the happiness we could ever imagine.  If only those three days could have come sooner for us…

Tears fell from Celestia’s eyes as she sighed, “It just wasn’t meant to be, Discord.”

I looked at her, a feeling of sadness in my gut and a sympathetic expression on my face.  I said, “I suppose it wasn’t.  If only things hadn’t taken a turn for the worse at the most unexpected time.  We both know whose fault it is, don’t we?”  I shot an angry glare at Luna.  She returned it with a look of uncertainty.

She shook her head in disagreement, “We cannot blame her, Discord.  She only wanted what she thought was best for our kingdom.”  She looked at Luna with a sympathetic frown.

Luna’s eyes widened at these words.  “Wh-what are you talking about, Celestia?  What did I do?”  I could hear the fear grow in her voice.

I sighed, “What you did, Luna, is single-handedly ruin everything I had worked so hard to create.”  I felt anger growing in my mind.  I couldn’t help but feel angry about the subject.

Luna looked from Celestia back to me.  She asked, “What do you mean, I ruined everything?!”

Celestia groaned, “You found the Elements.  You attacked him.  You ruined the treaty signing.”  She gave her sister a disappointed look.

Luna shouted, “That’s absurd!  If you hadn’t joined me, the Elements wouldn’t have worked!  And besides, this man was a tyrant!”

“I was no more a tyrant than you were a stallion, Luna!  I was going to unite our world and bring peace to everypony!  But your impatient ambition ruined that for all of us!”  I screamed, my claw hitting the ground hard in anger.  

Angry thoughts swirled around in my head as I thought back to the day of the treaty signing.  I remembered oh-so clearly how I had been betrayed so thoughtlessly by my own lover and how the Elements had stripped me of everything I ever held dear.  The fire in my eyes revealed just exactly how angry I was.

Luna started to say something, but Celestia shushed her.  I looked at the two with the fire in my eyes and shouted, “Would you two like to see just exactly what happened on that day so long ago?!  Would you like to witness how I remember everything?!”  I snapped my fingers, and the room around us melted away into one very similar.  Figures of ponies appeared all over the room, and the alicorns disappeared from view…

I sat on my throne, a wide grin on my face.  The door to the throne room was wide open.  Pony after pony gathered into the room and joined the crowd on either side of the main walkway.  The guards ensured that the ponies stayed in their designated areas.  Celestia sat beside me, a wide smile on her face.  Luna sat at my other side, her expression filled with discontent.  None of the ponies in attendance aside from Celestia knew anything about the treaty and the real reason the assembly had been called.  In hindsight, maybe they should have been informed.

Everypony had been gathered into the throne room to—unwittingly—await the arrival of the leaders of our neighboring nations.  The treaty would be signed, and mine and Celestia’s wedding would be announced.  In my mind, everypony would cheer and be happy.  The following evening, new laws would be introduced to restrict the criminal activity in town.  Slowly, I would set everything right with everypony.

But there will always be radicals trying to overthrow their leaders.  There was one such group of ponies in attendance that evening.  The leader of the group that referred to themselves as ‘The Celestians’ stepped forward from the crowd with a large megaphone in his hoof.  He called to the crowd of ponies, “Now is our chance, my brethren!  Today, we can unite and overthrow this monster that allows crime to run amok in our fair kingdom!”  

A group of ponies within the larger group cheered and shouted, and in an instant they were breaking from the main group and charging at the throne.  None of us were prepared for this attack.  The guards were easily overtaken, and the two alicorns were powerless to quell the rebels.  I was soon surrounded by the radical traitors.  They advanced; the rest of the ponies were in a panic about what they were witnessing.

I lifted myself from the throne and shouted in a booming voice, “How dare you attempt to claim my life, you insolent ponies?!  You all shall pay for this treason!”  With a wave of my claw, the entire group of rebels fell to the ground, paralyzed in pain.

I lifted the leader of the rebels into the air in the same fashion as I had lifted Luna a few days prior.  With an angry frown, I closed my paw and listened as the pony’s neck snapped and his body fell limp.  The rest of the rebels gasped in shock and fear.  The remaining group of ponies muttered in slight agreement with my actions.  They were content with their freedoms, and the radicals only threatened to ruin that life.

Luna screamed, “Stop, Lord Discord!  There’s no need for such violence!”  She dashed in front of me, trying to take my focus away from the rebels.

I scoffed, “Traitors must be dealt with, Luna.  I can’t have them ruining this day for everypony.”  I lifted another rebel into the air and ended his life.  Luna protested again, but I ignored her.  Another rebel died.

The crowd of ponies eventually calmed down, realizing that traitors, no matter the cause, had only one fate to accept:  death.  They returned to their organized state as the guards returned to their senses and reorganized the guests.  I killed another rebel.

Luna snapped, “STOP THIS MADNESS, DISCORD!”  An extraordinarily large blast of magical energy shot from her horn and engulfed me.  I felt a strange stabbing sensation in my back and a throbbing in my head.

I swatted the energy away from me with my own magic, the spell on the rebels breaking.  They scurried to their hooves and darted from the throne.  Too busy with the crowds, the guards were unable to stop the rebels.  Luna stopped her magical attack and followed the rebels out of the chamber.  The crowd of ponies looked at me with concerned expression.  Celestia darted to my side.

Aside from a throbbing head, I was unscathed by the magical attack.  I shouted, “Guards, find them and kill them!  All of them!  The rebels and Lady Luna alike!”  I slammed my paw on the arm of the throne.  Celestia bowed her head and sighed in disappointment.  She knew she wouldn’t be able to save Luna after a display like that.

The guards nodded and darted from the room, chasing after the treacherous swine.  I looked at Celestia with a regretful frown.  I didn’t want to kill Luna, but it needed to be done.  She accepted this as she nodded at me, a fake smile crossing her face.  The rest of the ponies waited patiently as the guards dragged one rebel after another into the room.  Each rebel met their fate as they were returned to the room.

Finally, the last of the rebels had been executed.  Without saying a word, the ponies in the crowd knew it was over.  Their freedom would not be jeopardized by ignorant and insatiable ponies.  After waiting a few more minutes, Luna had still not been returned for her punishment.  I assumed she had simply escaped, being smarter than an average rebel.

The crowd settled down and the guards removed the bodies of the rebels that had met their fates.  Celestia sat by my throne once again, waiting for the moment when Luna would be dragged through the door by a guard and executed by my hand.  To her pleasure, that moment did not arrive.  The sun began to set in the western sky once more, and I felt the presence of several powerful creatures approaching the town of Canterlot.  I knew it would only be a little while before the treaty was signed and we could move on with our lives.

Just as I began to settle my nerves and relax, the door to the room burst open again, and the stubborn screams of a captured filly filled the room.  Captain Aegis dragged Luna by the hooves to the front of my throne.  Her wings were bound and her horn disabled by a magical wrapping.  She let out screams of fear and defiance as Aegis let her go and walked away.  He bowed low to me, waiting for what was to come next.

I wrapped my magical aura around the traitorous filly’s throat and lifted her in the air.  Celestia clenched her teeth and turned her head away as her sister’s screams became muffled and choked.  I tightened my grip and the screams became gasps for air.  The squirming stopped and gave way to desperate attempts to save oxygen.  

I sighed, “This…This…I bear you no remorse, Lady Luna.”  I tightened my grip.  Just as I was certain her neck was about to snap, three beams of differently-colored light burst from her body and shattered the bonds and magical aura around her.

These beams of light gathered together and manifested themselves into gemstone-like objects.  The gems were orange, purple, and blue.  They emitted a strange and mesmerizing light that tore through my magical aura as if it were butter.  Luna caught her breath as the gems circled around her and gently lowered her to the ground.  She looked at me with a fearful smile, unsure of what was going on and what the gems were.

Celestia looked at her sister with awestruck eyes.  Luna looked at me with fear and uncertainty.  I looked at the gems with horror and disbelief.  Of everything I had ever witnessed, nothing had ever been able to overpower my magic.  Suddenly, these gems appeared and easily dispelled me.

Luna called to her sister, “I’m not sure what this is, Sister, but surely you see this man’s tyranny now!  If even these strange gems are determined to stop him, surely he is bad!”  The crowd behind her considered what she said.  They nodded in agreement.

I looked at the crowd with horror.  I was losing the only ponies that still believed in my system of ruling the kingdom.  All because of Luna and those magical gems!  Celestia stepped over to Luna’s side.  The gems reacted and began to glow different colors from before.  From the three existing gems, three new ones split out.  They were red, pink, and green.  The three new ones circled around Celestia and started to glow.

I looked at the two with horror.  Could this have been planned all along?  Did they intend for all of this to happen, just so they could take me off guard and end my life?  I never would have suspected Celestia, and she knew that.  Celestia looked at me with innocent eyes.  The six gems started to glow, and Luna’s eyes shined a bright white.  Focusing power into her horn, she let out a beam of concentrated magic straight at me.

Celestia made a movement just before the white light clouded my vision.  I felt the pain of a thousand needles stabbing me all over my body.  The light faded, but the pain continued to pulse through me.  Celestia and Luna lay on the floor, exhausted, their energy drained by the gems.  Tears poured from Celestia’s eyes.  I looked down to find my body slowly turning to stone.  I looked at the two alicorns before me, something in my mind snapping.

I screamed in anger and pain, “This betrayal shall not be left un-avenged!  I shall be back one day to reclaim this throne!  The Age of Chaos will be mine one day!”  My mind snapped.  Suddenly, feelings of happiness and love were wiped from my brain.  The only things I could think about were anger, revenge, and chaos.  Whatever those gems were, they had to be destroyed before I could seek my revenge.

I heard Celestia sob, “Forgive me, my love!”  She tried to lift herself from the ground, but it was to no avail.  The gems had drained her of all energy.

The last thing I heard before my body was completely sealed away was the voice of Captain Aegis as he re-entered the room.  He called, “Milord, the diplomats have arr…”  He never got to finish his sentence as he noticed my body becoming stone.  His jaw dropped and his confusion stopped his thoughts.

Behind him, two powerful-looking Changelings entered the room, followed by a single insect-like creature.  If I had only lived another hour longer, my dreams of a perfect world of peace and love with Celestia would have been realized.  But Luna and Celestia betrayed me, and my dreams were stripped from right under my nose.  I made a mental vow to get revenge by any means.  I had no choice now…

The two alicorn sisters let out sobs of regret and anger as they witnessed how they had stripped me of all my hopes and dreams.  Luna was especially saddened by the sight of this memory, realizing that it was because of her that I had become the monster I am.  The two of them were unable to say anything as I plopped back down on my throne.  The anger and hatred was obvious in my eyes and expression.  I refused to speak, wary of just how easily I might snap at them.  I didn’t want to scar them worse than they already were by the memories I locked away in my head.

I wasn’t certain which of us had it the worst.  Luna had to face the reality that I only existed as I did because of her stubborn acts of defiance.  Celestia had to face the fact that she had betrayed me in cold blood and allowed our promise to go unfulfilled.  I had to live with the regret of never being able to create my perfect world, and instead live with the insanity that that day had unlocked in my mind.

Which of us truly had it worse?