new cutie remarked
Chapter 1: one-shot
A New Cutie Remarked
…
"Welcome home, Twilight." Starlight sneered from the crystal seat. Grinning amusingly, she enchanted a scroll from a turquoise colored magic wave. The scroll glowed and fired a magic beam onto the table.
"What are you doing, Starlight?" Twilight demanded in sheer surprise.
"I can tell you, but I then I'll ruin the surprise." She said, grinning maniacally.
The table glowed surrounded itself by bright energy swirls. Reacting instantly, Twilight aimed her horn and fired a beam of her own magic, but her counter attack seemed to have no affect against the large wave of alchemy. The power of the scroll manipulated the table and forced a hollow doorway of magic to appear.
With a one last maniacal grin, Starlight was pulled into the portal leaving Twilight and Spike stunned with disbelief.
…
Starlight found herself in Cloudsdale, only she knew it was in the past. She looked around and past the gloom, watching the Pegasus moving around here and there. She began walking on the clouds safely and headed for her destination. Before long, she saw a young Pegasus filly being oppressed by two slightly older colt. They appeared to being mocking her from the tears that were slowly being shed by the yellow filly.
Nearby, a blue rainbow mane filly saw what was happening and flew towards Fluttershy and the bullies.
A wild smirk covered Starlight's face, muttering "On time," her horn glowed and fired a beam at Rainbow Dash, encasing her in crystal.
She blinked out of her spot and appeared next to the fillies, startling them frighteningly.
"EEP!" Fluttershy yelped in fear and shielded her face with her small wings.
"Whoa!" The bullies exclaimed in union and took a step back. "Where did you come from?"
Starlight just smiled wickedly at them and used magic to freeze them on the spot. "I'm from somewhere beyond your understanding. Now here is the deal, if I catch you messing with this filly again, I will make you wish you were never born. Got it?"
The frozen bullies, mumbled, unable to move.
"I'll take that as a yes," Starlight smirked and in a blink of an eye, the magic barrier surrounding them vanished. "Now treat her as an equal."
The bullies nodded, trembling in terror.
Starlight looked at Fluttershy who was shaking in fear and unable to move a muscle. "Take care of yourself Fluttershy. Things will be very different for you."
Fluttershy just cringed, not speaking.
Starlight turned around and walked away from the scene. She then reopened the portal and jumped into it, vanishing instantly afterwards.
A distant away, young Rainbow Dash grunted, unable to break free from her petrifaction prison.
…..
;;;;
A portal appeared in the present and Starlight Glimmer departed from the spinning hole of energy. Proud of her accomplishment, she looked around with a smirk at the new future she created only to star in stun disbelief.
The surrounding lands were desolate. There were no trees, grass, no sign of any life form whatsoever. The only thing that separated itself from the hundreds miles of dead desert were a few mountains that could be seen on the horizon, bleak and empty. A great burning wind blew, carrying clouds of dust around.
"W-what is going on?" Starlight stuttered, taking another look around her. "There is nothing here. Where is everypony?"
A male voice broke the empty silence. "They are gone."
Starlight gasped when she saw two figures before here. One was Discord, the Spirit of Disharmony who was said to be reformed. Next to him was the princess of moon Luna. But they looked different.
Discord's body had a few big scars. He held a cane in his lion paw and was leaning on it as if he was limping. While he still had his stag antler, his goat horn was only a stump.
Luna was taller and her muscular body was covered with scars and her horn was a broken stump.
"Luna, Discord?" Starlight exclaimed. "What is going on? Where is everypony?"
Discord's face scowled. "I said they're gone. Are you hearing impaired? Maybe I can fix that." He snapped his eagle claw and suddenly Starlight's ears were big like a rabbit.
"Hey!"
Luna glared at Discord. "Discord, knock it off. This is serious."
"It was just a joke," He said scowling as he restored Starlight's ears to their normal size again.
"How did it all happen?" Starlight asked. "And what are you two doing here? And why do you look awful?"
"Watch your language, girly," Discord said angrily, causing Starlight to flinch.
"It's a long story," Luna said wearily.
"We should tell it somewhere more comfortable," Discord said, glancing at Luna. "Luna?"
Luna nods and her broken horn glowed, spouting sparks. Discord's held out his free eagle claw which also glowed. Suddenly they all disappeared and reappeared in a dark cave. The air was cooler than the hot burning sun outside which was huge relief.
"Where are we?" Starlight asked.
"A cave," Discord replied annoyingly. "Maybe you need glasses." He raised his paw, about to perform a spell.
"Discord, don't." Luna warned.
"You're no fun." Discord pouted with a groan.
"So what is going on? Why is everypony suddenly vanished? Why are you two together and…?" She quickly cut herself off, not daring to go any further.
"Why we don't look our best?" Discord teasingly offered.
"Well yeah," Starlight mumbled.
"As I said, it's a long story." Luna said with a sigh.
Discord then spoke angrily. "To make a long story short, you went back in time, prevented a friendship and destroyed Equestria in the process."
"What?" Starlight exclaimed. "How do you know I went back in time? And how could stopping the Rain Boom do all this?"
"Wait," Discord interrupted. "It would be better if we showed her."
Luna frowned.
"Come on." Discord begged.
Luna sighed, "Very well."
Discord and Luna used their magic and a magical screen appeared in thin air.
"When you changed the past, Twilight and the other got their cutie marks a few weeks to a month later and the circumstances were different," Luna said.
Discord conjured up a bag of popcorn. "Yeah, check out the Mane Six's changes."
Starlight looked at the image, showing the Man Six. She saw them working, playing or whatever.
"The rest of Equestria played out mostly the same as it did in the original timeline, with a few differences." Discord said before munching more popcorn. "Here a few of them."
The screen showed Celestia with a familiar white unicorn.
"That's Rarity." Starlight exclaimed and pointed at the screen. "What is she doing?"
Luna glowered, "When Twilight didn't impress Celestia that day, Celestria kept her eyes out for other possible students. Rarity was one of several failed students."
"Failed students?" Starlight wondered, taking another glance at the screen.
Discord then groaned and continued, "Yeah, failed students as in they didn't excel the way Twilight did. Rarity became selfish and vain, and went rogue, Celestia had to lock her up. But wait, it gets better."
Then screen then staticed to Twilight on a preforming stage, wearing a cape, a pointed hat and beard. Next to her was a blue unicorn with a similar shaped cape colored in purple.
"Wait that is Trixie." Starlight exclaimed. "And why is Twilight wearing a beard?"
"Well she didn't excel in her studies like she did in the original timeline," Luna explained. "She became a simple performer and partnered with Trixie. As for the beard, she was still an admirer of Starswirl the Bearded, even starting a fan club."
"She didn't get many followers for her club," Discord added. "But she seemed content with her life."
The screen then cut to a huge dragon roaming a wilderness. He was purple with green spines.
"It's a dragon?" Starlight said, unable to figure out its importance.
"Not just a dragon," Discord said. "It's Spike. Twilight's friend in the original timeline. In this one, they never met. His new caretaker spoiled him. Since a dragon's heart is prone to greed, which makes them big, Spike became big and nasty. He went on a rampage till he forced out of Equestria."
Then the screen changed to factory sitting on the horizon, surrounded by ruins.
"What is that? What is going on?"
"Industry gone mad," Discord said. "Here are the two masterminds behind it."
The screen then showed an office. Inside were two unicorns in fancy suits and hats. One was examining a chart on the wall, another was looking at a notebook.
"Things are skyrocketing," The one at the chart said.
"Oh certainly, brother," The other with the notebook said. "But the land is nearly depleted. We will need a new location. Any ideas?"
The one at the chart was silent. "Oh well there is Ponyville, but they will likely resist. We need to convince them that our enterprise would be good business."
"How right you are. We just need to find the right words."
"Who are they?" Starlight asked.
"Flim and Flam," Discord said. "Too con ponies in the original timeline. Heads of Flim Flam Industries in this one. The land you saw was their handiwork. Lovely view, isn't it?"
Starlight Glimmer couldn't believe it what she was seeing. "But how did they destroy everything?"
"They didn't," Discord said. "Seriously, you're getting ahead of the story."
Luna looked wearily. "This is a long story. Right now you're seeing the first changes resulting from your actions."
Discord frowned. "But things went really bad when Miss Nightmare here first escaped her imprisonment a few weeks ahead of schedule."
"A few weeks? What do you mean?"
Discord sneered. "The magic of Equestria was weakened due to what you did in the past."
"But how?" Starlight said.
Discord sneered. "Oh, all will be revealed in due time. Pun intended."
Luna looked grim as the screen displayed a bad memory. On the screen, Nightmare Moon was laughing, surrounded by a dark purple mist. The scene then changed to her confronting Celestia.
Discord giggled. "You're quite a looker, Luna."
Luna glowered at Discord, who grinned sheepishly and held out his popcorn bag.
"Popcorn."
Luna just glowered before wearily looking back at Starlight. "In the original timeline, I escaped my imprisonment and Twilight learned the magic of friendship and used the elements of harmony changed me," Luna said. "In this timeline, my sister was alone. She was forced to flee while I reigned supreme for weeks."
The screen showed a dark castle with the Moon high in a starless sky. The scene then changed to inside. There stood pony night guards, among them was a blue Pegasus with a rainbow colored mane and tail.
"That's Rainbow Dash!" Starlight exclaimed. "What is she doing?"
"She was head of my army during my reign." Luna wearily. "She didn't represent the element of loyalty in this timeline."
The screen then showed Nightmare sitting on her Throne, dark and ominous, with some earth ponies dressed in black attires. One of them was Rarity, looking very dark and primp.
"Rarity is serving you too!" Starlight said.
"And the time traveler earns a prize!" Discord said, snapping his fingers and a trophy cup appeared in front of Starlight.
"As you saw earlier, Rarity became very different too," Luna said. "She was slightly vain in the original time, but she was kind and generous. In this one, she is vain and self absorbed. My rule appealed to her."
Starlight felt slightly sick, before the images on the screen changed once again. Celestia stood firm, glowing brightly, the elements of harmony floating around her. Nightmare Moon was high in the sky, the moon shined brightly behind her. She fired her magic horn at Celestria, but a magic shield deflected the blast.
Celestria then generated a rainbow that zoomed towards Nightmare Moon who screamed in agony. With a flash, Nightmare Moon vanished. Celestia looked into the sky, with a somber expression. She then focused her magic and soon after, the sun rose again.
Luna lowered her head. "My sister managed to get the elements of harmony and used them to imprison me again."
"Wait?" Starlight exclaimed. "Why did you get imprison again in this timeline? And why are you free now and not…Nightmare Moon?"
"Because details in this timeline are different," Luna said. "The elements of harmony changed me in the first timeline because a part of me wanted to be good again. In this timeline, the desire for redemption was absent."
"But how-" Starlight's mouth suddenly disappeared. She grunted in shock and glowered at Discord.
"You should really stop interrupting, Starlight." Discord said, tapping the wall with his cane. "You'll get all your answers at the end of the story. But if you want to skip to the end, just go outside the cave and look around."
Luna smiled cruelly. "You want to skip to the end instead of learning in due time?"
Starlight's eyes widen, her grunt indicated the otherwise.
Luna glanced at Discord. "Discord."
Discord tapped his cane and Starlight's mouth reappeared, panting anxiously. "Sorry. Please continue."
"Now it's my story," Discord said as he munched his popcorn. "I escaped my imprisonment like I did in the original timeline, only a little sooner too. Then I threw Equestria into chaos."
The screen showed Ponyville gone mad. Some houses were floating in midair. There were storm clouds on the right and a bright sun on the left. And there were Twilight and Trixie dressed as clowns, and running in fear. Not far behind, Discord was chasing them on a unicycle, wearing a crown, cape and holding a scepter.
Starlight looked tense.
Discord conjured some 3D glasses and leaned back with a smile. "I never looked better."
"Discord will you stop?" Luna snapped irritably.
Discord scowled at Luna but complied. "I also stole the elements of harmony to prevent my imprisonment again. Celestia was powerless against me for weeks."
The screen became fuzzy and changed to Celestia who was magically holding the elements of harmony, before her was Discord. The Spirit of Chaos looked panicked and teleported away just as the elements of harmony produced a rainbow flash that engulfed Equestria, restoring everything to normalcy.
"Eventually she found the elements and restored Equestria," Discord said wearily. "I barely escaped being turned into stone that time. But I laid low till an opportunity presented itself."
The screen then showed Nightmare Moon on top of a mountain, glaring down at Equestria.
Luna sighed. "The magic that was imprisoning me weakened during Discord's reign and I escaped. I also thought it best to lay low and wait for an opportunity to take over."
"Then the Changelings invaded," Discord said grimly.
Starlight saw the Castle of Canterlot. Celestria and others were encased in cocoons in the throne room. Queen Chrysalis was laughing wickedly while many Changelings stood like an army.
Discord continued, "They had infiltrated Canterlot during Cadence and Shining Armor's wedding and captured Celestria and hid the Elements of Harmony. There was some resistance, but let's face it, it's hard to defeat enemies who can transform into those you trust most."
The screen then showed a forest with a encampment, consisting of ponies wearing war paint, armed and on the watch. Among them were a yellow Pegasus and a pink earth pony. They were all glaring.
"Wait, that's Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy?" Starlight exclaimed. "But they look different."
Discord shrugged. "Different timeline and you wonder why things are different."
Suddenly there were several small explosions on the encampment, engulfing most of the inhabitants with sticky webbing.
A pony that looked like Big Mac chuckled wickedly and turned into a Changeling, there was a sudden panic. A few ponies tried to free their friends when suddenly a swarm of Changelings appeared in the sky and headed towards the encampment.
"Fluttershy, run!" Pinkie shouted, unable to break free from the webbing.
"Not without you!" Fluttershy shouted back, trying to cut the webbing.
Changelings began to surround the imprisoned ponies and others chased the ones that were retreating. But Fluttershy didn't retreat. She held out her spear, glowering at the Changelings surrounding her. With a yell, Fluttershy attacked them with a ferocity that didn't suit her.
Starlight winched, disturbed by the violence.
"She has a fire that she didn't have in the original timeline," Discord commented. "It's interesting that she still became friends with Pinkie in this timeline despite your interference."
The Changelings dominated Equestria," Luna said solemnly. "Meanwhile, the Crystal Empire reappeared along with King Sombra."
The screen then showed the Crystal Empire. There were dark clouds in the sky, shooting lightning. Ponies were all around, staring in stark terror. King Sombra was standing on a high tower, his red eyes glowed, a devilish grin on his face.
"With no one to oppose him, he retook his Kingdom," Luna said wearily. "He converted his subjects into soldiers under his control and began a conquest of Equestria."
The screen then showed an army of ponies, wearing dark armors marching forward. Suddenly a swarm of Changelings appeared and charged at the mind controlled armies.
Starlight winched, disturbed by the violence unleashed by the ruthless enemies.
"It was pretty nasty," Discord said with a frown. "Mind controlled pony soldiers with a dark unicorn king on one side, and shape changing Changelings on the other, and a few freedom fighters caught in the middle."
The screen then showed Zebra Zecora along with AppleJack and several other ponies. A few Changelings were attacking on one front while several of Sambra's soldiers were on the other.
Zecora wore a medallion that glowed and was surrounded by a magic shield. "Run!" She ordered her followers as she charged at Sambra's forces.
The few ponies ran one direction. A changeling pounced on one pony, but then got blasted by a dark energy blast, turning them into stone.
The remaining Changelings attacked Sambra's forces, but got overpowered. Meanwhile, the four remaining ponies ran for it, an orange earth pony was in the lead.
"That's AppleJack!" Starlight exclaimed.
"Yeah, she hung in there," Discord commented.
The screen cut to AppleJack and the three ponies who were hiding behind a hill, panting.
"Okay ya'll," AppleJack panted, taking charge. "We need a place to hide."
"But we lost Zecora and Max."
"There is nothing we can do for them," AppleJack said. "Right now, we need a place to hide.
A female pony looked in one direction and froze. "Guys?"
The others looked and froze. It was a squad of Sombra's forces.
"Run!" AppleJack shouted as they ran in one direction.
The screen became fuzzy again.
"Sombra was winning the war," Discord said. "Or rather, he was till my plunder seeds grew."
The screen then showed a desolated area. A plunder seed plant grew. It grew very fast. The scene then shifted to a battle. Changelings and dark warriors were fighting and suddenly several clouds appeared and started randomly fired purple lightning.
The Dark Warriors suddenly went into a trance, then they became random. One was jumping on one leg, another did a backflip. Another made a funny face. Others did equally absurd acts.
The Changelings just stood there, bewildered by how their enemies were acting.
"It was chaos," Luna said. "The Plunder Seeds disturbed Sombra's magic. He lost control over his slave armies. The Changelings weren't immune to the chaos either.
The screen then showed Discord appearing amidst a war torn landscape, grinning with glee.
"I, then returned to Equestria to reinsert my chaotic reign," Discord said wearily. "I was sure I had won, enjoying the lack of order and structure of my rule. I neutralized Sombra, trapping him in a dark cave and I turned Queen Chrysalis into a bug." His uneven eyes grew bleak. "Then things took a turn for the worse that even I didn't enjoy it."
The screen showed a black dragon. She was wearing a headpiece, bracelets and a medallion. It then showed some biped cat, dressed in a red robe. Then a giant bat, black as night with red eyes.
"Okay, let's cut to the chase," Discord said, turning the screen fuzzy. "Tirek escaped Tartarus in the original timeline. But in this timeline, every ancient evil escaped their imprisonment in Tartarus. There were a lot of them."
Luna looked grim. "They had been lying low, growing in strength, waiting for a chance. Equestria was very vulnerable at this point."
The screen then showed several creatures, a Griffin, a Dragon, Tirek and Discord lying on the ground, battered and bruised. A gargoyle was flying over them, grinning.
Unable to stand, Tirek glowered up at him. "You will pay for this."
"Says the powerless Centaur," The Gargoyle sneered. "Face it, I allowed you to soften each other up so I could deliver the final blow of this battle."
Discord opened his eyes and weakly pointed at the Gargoyle but nothing happened. The Gargoyle grinned and pointed a wand.
"You lost too, Discord. Give up."
Discord frowned, glaring at the victor of that battle. "You should really look behind you."
"You expect me to fall for that old trick?" The Gargoyle sneered.
Suddenly a pie struck him from behind.
Grinning, Discord vanished while the Gargoyle let out a yell.
Discord appeared elsewhere. "Boy, that was close." He shuddered. "Maybe I should lay low for a while."
The screen then changed. It featured a dragon with magical powers fighting a swarm of Windigo who flocked around him, creating ice and snow.
"For months, they struggled against Discord, and each other, trying to become all powerful," Luna said sadly. "I too came out of hiding trying to come out on top."
The screen showed Nightmare Moon, surrounded by dark purple clouds. Before her was a black mass with red eyes. On her left was a bearlike monster. On her right was a plant monster, vines ready to strike.
Luna blasted the bear with her magic horn, while vines wrapped around her. Her purple mist zoomed at the plant, shredding it. The black Mist generated clouds of smoke at the purple mist, causing an explosion.
The scene then went fuzzy. It showed the land of Equestria. The lands were barren and lifeless. It then showed Canterlot. The castle was in ruin and there were hardly anything left of the city. Other areas were simply barren and empty with no sign of ever having life. It then showed Tirek, thin and weak, walking slowly across a border, leaving Equestria.
Discord sighed. "Before long, Luna and I were the only ones remaining. But we were never the same." He touched his broken goat horn. "Get the point? Or lack of point?"
"I too carried scars from the fighting," Luna looked down. "My foes were gone, but my powers were crippled."
The screen then showed Nightmare Moon standing before a waste lands. She was scarred and her horn was broken, but her expression was sad.
It then changed and showed Discord, equally maimed, a table with a tea set floated before him. A small sun floated on his left while a small moon floated on his right. He conjured a cookie and ate it, looking very grim. Then the screen vanished.
Discord sighed, leaning backwards. "My magic isn't as good as it once was. I can still bend reality, but not as the same as before. Also, I can't heal myself." He gestured to his leg. "I can't walk without a limp," He gestured to his wings. "I can't use these, though I can still levitate and teleport. But what really grinds my beans is that I can't fix this." He gestured to his broken goat horn and snapped his Eagle claw. His head flashed with light for a second, but nothing happened. "It's bad for my image."
"But as crippled as we were, Equestria was worse off." Luna added. "The infighting had destroyed the land. Everyone had either perished or left. For the first time in my life, I regretted becoming Nightmare and all the harm I had done."
Discord crossed his arms and rolled his eyes. "Yeah, while she was becoming Miss Repentant, I was off somewhere feeling sorry for myself. I wanted a land of chaos, not a dead land."
"I later sought out Discord," Luna said. "I lacked the power to heal Equestria myself, but I thought if we could combine our magic, we might be able to heal Equestria."
"Don't think I'm an Angel," Discord added. "I only agreed because it suited me."
"So why didn't you do it?" Starlight asked.
"We were about to a few weeks ago," Luna said. "But when we combined our powers, we had visions. We saw Equestria's history, but it was different."
Discord looked pleased. "I figured out we were having visions of a different timeline." Then his smugness was replaced in a scowl. "We examined the visions many times to understand them. We also saw that you had changed history, creating the timeline we are living in now. We knew you would return eventually and decided to wait."
Luna looked intensely at Starlight. "Starlight, your quest for revenge has created this world we are living in now. But you can still make it right."
Starlight Glimmer couldn't fathom what she was hearing. "But how could the friendship of six ponies be so important? No one is that special!"
"All friendships are important," Luna said. "But the Mane Six are magical, and that makes their friendship an intricate part in Equestria's existence."
"If you like, I could give you a list of other possibilities to why you plan backfired badly," Discord said, conjuring a list. "The Mane Six weren't the only ones having a special connection to the Sonic Rainboom. Did you honestly think it didn't have a positive influence on other ponies?"
"Well…"
"Let's view more," Discord examined the list. "The Mane Six did get the Cutie Marks eventually, but they weren't the same. They didn't influence other ponies at certain points in history. Granted, others were there to make up for their absence, but the fact is that interfering in that pivotal point in history affected other points, growing into problems and bigger problems."
"My sister never got an apprentice," Luna said. "When I escape, she was alone and our reunion didn't become happy like it did in the original timeline."
"I never learned the magic of friendship like I did in the original timeline," Discord said bitterly. "I never knew Fluttershy, but based on the visions of the other timeline, I can see she was amazing. I never met her all because of you."
"I didn't mean for this." Starlight protested.
"Well it happened," Discord growled. "Maybe now you'll use that time spell to fix things."
"What do you mean fix things?" Starlight said.
"Starlight, you're the only pony to perfect a time travel spell," Luna said. "No one has ever done it before. You're the only one that can go back in time and restore the timeline."
Starlight became livid. "Restore the Timeline! Why would I do that?!"
Discord scowled as he held up his cane which turned into a club. "All you need to know is that if you don't fix this, I will make you wish you were never born."
"Enough!" Luna shouted. "Discord, this isn't the answer."
"Oh the heck with answers," Discord declared. "She ruined everything and she's the only one who can fix it. Since she won't, I say we make her do it."
"Are we any better than her, Discord?" Luna asked. "You tried to throw Equestria into chaos and I tried to cause eternal night. What gives us the right to judge her for her deed?"
Discord groaned, his club changed back into a cane again. "I hate it when you make sense, Luna. Seriously, where's the fun in making sense?"
Luna looked sadly at Starlight Glimmer. "Why won't you restore the timeline?"
"You want to know why?" Starlight shouted. "I'll show you!"
The screen reappeared, displaying two fillies. One was clearly Starlight Glimmer. Another was a red orange pony."
"My friend Sunburst and I were very close," Starlight said, her voice choked with emotion. "But then he got his cutie mark."
The flashback showed Sunburst getting his cutie mark.
"His parents saw he had potential and sent him to Canterlot School." She said sadly. "I never saw him again."
Discord frowned. "What does this have to do with anything?"
"You are so stupid," Starlight shouted. "He got his cutie mark and got sent away. It ended our friendship."
Discord scowled, raising his lion paw.
"Discord, don't." Luna said.
Discord crossed his arms, glowering at Starlight.
Luna looked at Starlight. "So that is why you created that town of equality?"
"Yes," Starlight said bitterly. "I was trying to create a town free of the inequality of Cutie Marks and Twilight and her friends ruined everything."
Luna was very grim. "So you changed to past to get revenge on Twilight for ruining your plans."
"Yes," Starlight answered. "They deserved it."
"Okay," Discord cut in, "you do realize that your first plan is nonsense and your revenge plan is totally stupid?"
Starlight became livid. "You don't understand-!"
Suddenly a gag covered her mouth and ropes tied her legs together. She struggled, unable to get free.
"You don't have to yell," Discord growled, "I'm crippled, not deaf. But if you think I don't understand you, please. Nonsense is my specialty. You consider a cutie mark bad. Ironic, considering you have a Cutie Mark."
Starlight Glimmer struggled against her restraints.
"And if you don't think your revenge was stupid, look outside," Discord added. "You destroyed everything! How dumb can you be?"
Starlight stopped struggling. It slowly sank what she had done. She had destroyed Equestria.
Luna's broken horn glowed and the gag and ropes came undone. "When Sunburst left, it hurt, didn't it?"
Starlight nodded tearfully.
Discord glanced at Luna and then looked at Starlight. "One thing I don't get. Why you didn't keep in touch?"
"I tried," Starlight said desperately. "But he stopped writing to me. His new home was more important than our friendship."
Luna looked sympathetic. "You never made any new friends because you were afraid to lose them."
Starlight glowered. "Yes. What is your point?"
Luna looked intense. "I understand why you took away ponies' Cutie Marks. But Cutie Marks don't end friendships. Many friends have ended for reasons beside a cutie mark. And some last for reasons involving a cutie mark."
Starlight became tearful. "But…"
"What you were doing those ponies was wrong," Luna said sternly. "Just like it was wrong for me to bring eternal night and Discord to cause chaos."
"Hey, leave me out of this!" Discord shouted defensively.
Luna looked back at Starlight. "You lost a friend, Starlight. But ruining other friendships was very wrong."
Discord groaned. "Even if you don't care about others, what about you? Do you want to live in a dead land of your own making? You didn't turn out better in the new timeline by the way."
Starlight hesitated. "If I do restore the timeline, what will I do then? I have nothing."
"You could be friends with the Mane Six." Luna suggested.
Starlight's eyes widen. "What, are you crazy? Even if I wanted too, they wouldn't want me."
Discord glared at Luna. "Yeah, I have to agree with Starlight here. Why would they want her?"
Luna seemed to consider that.
…
In the waste lands, all was quiet except for the wind. Suddenly there was a flash and Luna, Discord, and Starlight reappeared. Starlight held an orb in a telekinetic grip.
"When you restore the timeline, you will appear in the presence of the original timeline," Luna said. "Remember, when you find Twilight, show her this."
Discord sulked. "Yeah, knowing them, they will accept you after seeing it, though it's more than you deserve."
Starlight hesitated. She used the time spell. The portal appeared and she was pulled through it.
…
Past Starlight Glimmer was about to put her plan into action when suddenly a portal appeared and…another Starlight appeared.
"What?" She exclaimed. "What is going on? Who are you?"
"I'm you from the future," Starlight said. "We can't change the past."
Past Starlight became indigent. "Are you crazy? Twilight's friends cost me everything. They deserve to lose everything too."
"You don't know what you're doing," Starlight argued. "I did what you did. When I return, Equestria was destroyed. As much as I hate to admit it, Twilight's friendship is important."
"I don't believe you!"
"Then who will you believe?" Starlight argued. "I am you. Who do you trust more than yourself?"
Past Starlight hesitated. "But we can't give up. Twilight and her friends should pay for what they did."
Starlight's horn glowed and images of a desolate wasteland appeared. "That's the future we will create if we go through with our plan. I know you don't want it because I don't want it."
Past Starlight hesitated. Then she let out a yell of frustration. "So what do we do?"
Starlight hesitated. "Make things right. That's what we have to do."
Past Starlight grunted. "Fine. So what now?"
A portal appeared. Starlight looked scared. "Face the future."
Both Starlights were pulled into the portal. Past Starlight turned into purple mist and fused into Starlight, eliminating the paradox.
Starlight Glimmer then appeared in the throne with Twilight and Spike.
"Twilight, she's back!" Spike exclaimed.
Twilight's horn glowed menacingly. "What have you done, Starlight?"
Starlight looked fearful. Then she sighed. "Nothing."
Twilight relaxed her stance, puzzled by this turn of events.
Suddenly there was a flash of light and Discord appeared.
"Discord?" Starlight exclaimed in shock.
Twilight was also shocked. "Discord, what are you doing here?"
"Well I was having a chocolate milk shower," Discord said with a shrug, "but then I sensed a magical imbalance. I figured something was wrong or at the very least fun."
Discord extended his neck till his face was inches from Starlight's face. "And who is your new friend here?"
Spike scowled. "She isn't our friend."
Starlight winched and then looked down. "It doesn't matter."
Discord withdrew his neck, rubbing his beard with his lion paw. "What is this?" Picking up the mystical orb and note from the floor near Starlight.
"Discord, what are those?" Twilight asked.
Discord examined the two objects. "Well this is a time spell by Star Swirl the bearded," He said, looking at the orb. "This is strange. I sense magical imbalance, like it doesn't belong here. I also sense two other things."
"What?" Spike said.
Discord's eyes widen. "I sense my own aura, and Luna's!" He stared intensely in the orb. "But that impossible unless…"
"It's from an alternate timeline," Starlight said. "But it doesn't matter."
Spike eyed. "Why?"
"Because I lost everything," Starlight said, hanging her head. "Just do to me as you see fits."
"Oh I disagree," Discord said as he put a glowing finger on it.
Suddenly a screen appeared, displaying Discord and Luna from the alternate timeline.
"Twilight, if you're seeing this please listen," Alternate Luna said. "Starlight Glimmer went back in time and changed an important part of your past, creating this Timeline."
The images then changed, displaying vast wastelands. Twilight, Spike and Discord gasped in horror. Starlight looked down.
The image then went back to the alternate Discord and Luna. "Discord and I have convinced her to restore the original timeline. But please, show her the magic of friendship. She deserves another chance just as much as I and Discord here did."
"Oh," Alternate Discord groaned, rubbing his head.
The message ended.
"That was the future?" Spike asked.
"An alternate present," Twilight clarified.
Discord was flummoxed. "I can't believe that was me. I would never look that awful."
Starlight Glimmer hung her head. "I know I don't deserve your forgiveness and I accept whatever punishment you decide."
Discord glanced at Twilight. "I don't suppose you're really going to punish her, right?"
Twilight looked at Starlight and then at Discord. "I think we should give her another chance."
Discord shrugged. "Whatever."
….
Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Fluttershy and Pinkie entered the throne room and gasp. It was Twilight and Starlight Glimmer.
"What is she doing here?" Rainbow Dash demanded.
"Take it easy, Rainbow Dash," Twilight said quickly. "She isn't here to cause trouble."
Starlight Glimmer looked sheepish.
"We're listening." Rainbow Dash said.
There was suddenly a flash of light and Discord and Luna appeared.
"Discord? Princess Luna?" Twilight exclaimed. "What are you doing here?"
"Discord told me I had to be here." Luna said.
Discord shrugged. "Come on, Twilight, this concerns me and Luna. I want to be here and I also want to see the look on Luna's face when she hears this story."
Princess Luna looked awkward. "Are we intruding on something private?"
"No, I guess you can stay." Twilight conceded.
…
Twilight finished her story leaving them either amazed or stunned.
"Wow," Rainbow Dash exclaimed. "I knew my Sonic Rainboom was special, but I didn't know that all of Equestria depended on it."
"Or that we were so important." Pinkie added.
"It wasn't just us," Twilight said. "That rainboom influenced others beside us. All friendships are important."
"I still can't believe you went back in time like that." Applejack said.
Discord shrugged. "Yeah, I can travel back in time to relive past events, but even I can't do that."
"Starlight has to be pretty powerful. Pinkie Pie said in amazement.
Luna glanced at each other Discord while Spike and other glanced at each other.
Applejack looked at Starlight Glimmer. "So are we just supposed to accept her?"
Luna spoke. "Everyone can change."
"That's true." Discord concurred.
Twilight looked at Starlight. "Starlight, if you are willing, I can teach you the magic of friendship."
Starlight looked uncomfortable. "How do I begin?"
"Well you first make a friend," Twilight glanced at the others. "And right now, you have…" She paused as she mentally counted those present. "Eight."
Starlight looked at the others and saw approval in the faces of everyone.
Discord then moved forward, smiling. "Well since we're friends, I guess I s hould give you something to remember me by." He conjured up a medallion and handed it to her.
Starlight looked at the image on the Medallion. It had face and Discord.
"Uh, thanks." Starlight said awkwardly.
Luna came forward smiling. "If you need anything, Starlight, find me."
Starlight felt relieved and a strong bond with Luna.
Discord scowled suddenly "OK, our new friend has eight of us? Or gets to spend time with her first?"
There was a pause as the others considered Discord's question.
"If its alright, I like too," Rarity offered.
"Then ME!" Pinkie shouted, raising her hoof.
Starlight smiled, feeling a relief she hadn't felt in a long time.
"Come dear." Rarity said, getting up. Starlight followed.
"Well I have to go." Luna said, raising her wings and flew out of the room.
The others also began to take their leave. Fluttershy was heading down a hallway when Discord appeared in front of her.
"Discord, what is it?"
Discord looked at Fluttershy. "I just want to say I'm glad we didn't lose our friendships, Fluttershy."
"Oh," Fluttershy said. "You mean like in that Timeline Starlight created?"
"Yes," Discord said. "I love chaos but I didn't like what could have happened to us.'
Flutter touched his lion paw with her hoof. "I'm glad we didn't loose our friendship too."
The Lord of Chaos smiled.
…
The End