Celestia was lost in fear and confusion.

She was trapped in a cage of crystals, powerless to free herself. Beside her was a warrior from a land she never imagined, capable of things she’d never thought of. Around them both was a ruined hall, once grand in stature and form now sullied with battles twice. There were no guards around her, no friends dear, and no family close.

The only other souls nearby were enemies both she and her close ally loathed.

Discord stood tall above them both. His snake like form nearly curled around their crystalline prison. A mocking smile hung over his lips as his mismatched red eyes watched them.

She watched him slither and float through the air, kept safe from her fury by the thin wall of translucent material between them. His talon arm scratched over the pink crystal, mocking her. Her horn glowed with a rage she could barely contain.

Her companion was little different.

He watched the other being that stood outside of their prison, donned in leather, a cape of rags, with a head of fire and aura of evil. This man watched the trapped princess and warrior with arms crossed, approaching them with slow but powerful strides. Just as plain as his evil intentions were, so too was the confidence he held.

“Aren’t you excited, Link?” Discord spoke from above them both. The green-garbed warrior paid the Spirit of Disharmony no mind at all. “I’ve reunited you with your long-time friend and enemy. Oh, I think this counts as my good deed for the day.” The smile the draconequus wore was nothing short of electrified.

“Discord,” Celestia spoke with a voice straining against her own rage. “Who is he?”

“I am the enemy Link fought all his life against.” The power behind the voice forced Celestia to turn. The man was far taller than Link, a giant by many standards, easily as tall as the draconequus was. “I tricked a king into giving me his land, and lured Link into giving me the power of the gods.”

Celestia was stunned silent.

“But he won in the end, that time.” The green man smiled as he spoke of his own defeat. “I should thank him for it. For without it, I would not have the chance I have now. I would not be this close to a god, this much closer to obtaining my goal.”

Ganondorf slowly walked around their prison, opposite to the path Discord took around them. Celestia heard Link’s boots slide on the floor as he followed the man. She heard her own golden boots do the same.

“And he’s got some pretty wicked goals, too.” Discord spoke from behind them. “I thought I was being ambitious, but this guy really takes the cake, not to mention how he does it. When I saw how he tricked Link here into trapping himself in a different realm for seven years, why… I-I almost think I shed a tear.” The alabaster alicorn shot the draconequus a vicious scowl, watching as he mockingly wiped a dry eye.

“If Link was able to best this monster once before, then I see no reason for him not being able to do so again.” Celestia threatened carefully. She hid a smile as she saw Discord’s eyes widen, perhaps in shock. But as soon as words passed his lips, she knew it was just another ploy.

“Why by golly you’re right!” He mockingly spoke as he pumped a balled paw. “Why didn’t I think of that? Doing the same thing and getting the same results. Why, it almost sounds, I’d dare say predictable!”

Link never moved his eyes from the Gerudo man, smiling as wickedly at the Hylian now as he did during their first meeting, all those years ago. The hatred had yet to smolder, and the evil had yet to dissipate.

He was no less dangerous now than he was during their climactic battle atop his castle.

“The god is right,” Ganondorf spoke again. Link heard the princess next to him turn. “You know better than any other life the depth of my plans, Link. Why would I try the same thing again when the first resulted only in failure?” His palm extended, placing itself over the crystal prison.

Celestia watched the monstrous appendage, covered in thick black leather and muscled more so than many other creatures in her land. Her mind could not stray from thinking of the power that was held in that one hand.

“That is why fortune fell on me when Discord brought me back from that cursed realm, trapped between life and death.” The smile grew even sharper. “He gave me an offer that I wouldn’t have refused even if I was still king of Hyrule. He offered me the power to reclaim what was mine, and to take what I deserve. He would give me the power to do all the things my plans require.”

“Oh but don’t get so hung up on the details now.” Discord interrupted the man. “It was really actually pretty easy. I mean, Hyrule doesn’t have any Elements of Harmony. No, they have gods that think it’s a good idea to drown a land in a hundred years of rain instead of just, say, killing something.”

If she could, Celestia was sure her coat would have turned a shade whiter. She could hear Link next to her, clenching his fist against the guard of his sword. Her pink eyes glanced up to his own blue ones, looking to see the depths of rage within this silent warrior.

If it weren’t for the blue of his eyes, she would have sworn she was looking into fire.

“What…” The princess began carefully. “Have you done to Link’s homeland?”

The gleeful smiles that came from the mad draconequus and evil man did nothing to calm the flames within Link’s eyes, neither did they settle her restless heart.

But neither spoke. Instead, Celestia watched with a careful gaze as Discord turned his mismatched eyes from her within her prison to the leather armored giant. Ganondorf’s gaze was an expression she was, uncomfortably, familiar with.

The evil was there, the vileness as well, but above both of those unharmonious qualities, she saw the outlines of something… good.

Fond memories.

The hand he had across their crystal prison turned. He rose and fell on the pink glassy material, creating a dull, but loud, echo inside their cage. Both princess and warrior grit their teeth at the noise. The back of his glove was across the dome, and his hand was clenched like a fist.

That was when Celestia saw his hand begin to glow.

It was no different than Link’s. A pyramid of three triangles, outlined in shining gold. It emerged from the back of his hand with an almost heavenly aura, a radiance Celestia was, fearfully, comfortable with. Her breath caught in her throat, holding itself there as the triangle atop the hollow two glowed brightly, filling itself with a golden power.

“That, is the Triforce of Power.” Ganondorf spoke darkly at the princess’s expression. “He who holds it commands unimaginable powers of magic and might alike. Enough to conquer a kingdom. It has made me, nearly, immortal.”

Celestia flashed her gaze to Link, hoping to spy some false words reflecting from the evil man’s speech. The rage that continued to boil across his features, however, was all she needed to know the horrifying truth.

But then it got worse.

A second triangle, the last Celestia had not seen, began to glow as well.

CLANG! Clang. Clang.

The alabaster princess jumped in her coat as she heard the sound of metal falling on the floor. It took only a glance to see the sword of her ally laying across the ground.

It took a steady gaze from both eyes to see the Hylian kneeling with wide, terrified eyes.

That was when Ganondorf began to laugh, and Celestia began to scream.

“What have you done?!” Her voice bellowed within the prison, watching with only the faintest glows of satisfaction as the prison shook. The man, however, didn’t waver in smile or form.

“I killed his precious princess and took the power she held from me.” He brought back and slammed his fist against the prison, shaking the air within again.

“I took the Wisdom of Princess Zelda. I took from her the knowledge of the gods, their wisdom, and their plans. And with the fall of its bearer, with the death of Princess Zelda, the kingdom of Hyrule became but ruin.”

“And like I said, the Gods on high there didn’t think it would be in their better nature to descend and, you know, save the people who worship them. Wonder how that feels, worshipping something your entire life only to see it fall out from beneath you.” Discord mockingly spoke as he let his talon run through his goatee.

“They thought it would be more fitting to a drown their entire world than to save it.”

Celestia’s horn hummed with energy. Discord paid her as little mind as any moment before now.

“You’re a monster.” She hissed at the spirit of chaos. Her eyes turned with daggers towards the green skinned man. “Both of you.”

“No need to compliment us princess.” Discord mockingly spoke. “We’re just making sure you’re brought up to speed. After all, it’ll be awfully hard for you two to enjoy the show when you don’t even know what it’s about.”

Princess Celestia’s carriage shook with each breath she let in, legs vibrating with every ball of air she released. Every part of her, feathers to fur, wanted little more than to unleash the full strength of her magic towards the two. Her mind played with the idea of seeing this cruel man turn to ash before the mad god would howl in pain.

But she didn’t. Instead, she did what a true leader of her ponies should do. With one final breath to control herself, she spoke.

“What are you planning to do… now?”

“Now there’s the million bit question!” Discord announced with a cheer and point of his claw. “It’s not what I want or need, it’s what I’m going to do that matters. Finally some pony understands.”

“You will see what we have planned.” Ganondorf continued where the draconequus left off. “But not by the words we or any other speaks.” Celestia’s lips curled into a snarl, her brow knit in unbounded rage.

“How then?”

“With your eyes, of course.”

Ganondorf pulled his fist away from the prison, both triangles on the back of his hand still glowing with a powerful light. The light, Celestia watching, began to bleed from his hand, surrounding the thick muscled appendage and rough leather around it. The green, the black, and the brown were all slowly surrounded by the liquefied gold.

It pulled backwards, reaching behind his massive head and fiery red hair. It glowed behind him like an undeserving halo, shadowing his eyes with the same darkness that consumed his heart.

Then his fist of light slammed on the prison of crystals.

Celestia and Link were gone in a flash of gold.

Discord cheered to the empty hall.

“YES!” The mad god flew into the barren hall, ruined with battle. “I DID IT! THEY’RE GONE! YES! OH, YES!!”

He snapped his claw. A pillar turned into sand.

He clapped his paw to his claw. The stone throne grew legs and ran through an open hole in the wall.

He screamed to the rafters above. They turned into glass and rained to the ground.

Ganondorf walked through the broken double doors before the deadly shards touched the stone below.

His massive boots echoed down the hall he walked, barren of light aside from the faint glow of candlelight. His sharp golden eyes looked ahead, walking with a clear destination, but enjoying the time it would take to get there. The smile chiseled across his lips was evident enough.

Discord celebrated his victory with chaos and destruction. Ganondorf let his take root. When it grew into a grand tree, a testament to his power, then he would lord and display his power. For now, it was useless to celebrate when there were none to despair.

He turned another corner, entering another long barren hall. Still he walked on, the heavy thud of his boots the only sound the walls heard.

Just before Discord flew into the hall Ganondorf journeyed through.

“This is perfect!” Discord cheered as he flew into the air, letting an explosion of fireworks erupt around him. “I’ve waited so long for this moment!”

“And what moment would that be?” Ganondorf asked from far beneath the Chaotic God. “Victory?”

“No, no, no.” The multi-formed creature dismissed. “Victory is never difficult. You of all people know that. There’s no fun in just having victory by itself. It’s like eating a cake without candles, or getting an “A” without effort. It’s so empty.” The draconequus fell backwards in the air, letting his elongated form hang over an awning with his lion paw over his head. Ganondorf offered him only a glace of his eyes before he continued to move down the hall.

“Humiliation then?” The Gerudo King offered. His large form turned down another empty hall, sharp eyes already sighting the exit at the far end. Discord hovered above him as he continued to walk.

“Close, but you’re still a bit shy of getting a gold star, or triangle in your case.” There wasn’t a reaction offered to the clear taunt. “Come now Ganny-poo, I know you know what I know. It’s why I’m me, you’re you, and you’re perfect for the job I’ve got for you.”

Now Ganondorf stopped.

“You want to break them.” There wasn’t a question in his tone. It was stated like an absolute fact.

Ding! Ding! Ding!

A bell rung like siren above the Gerudo King’s head.

“And two points to the Evil King.” Discord congratulated, to the annoyance of the man continuing to walk. “I knew you knew, just like I said. After all, it is for much the same reason you play the game you do.”

“I play no games.” Ganondorf spoke strongly as he continued towards the opening at the end of the hall. “I follow the plans I create for victory. Rebellions only grow when you hold victory. Hope can be kept by the weak even as the strong continue to rule. Complete and total victory is only held when your enemy is crushed, their spirits destroyed, and their kingdom yours.”

Discord didn’t suppress his chuckle in the slightest.

“And that’s why you are perfect for the job.”

The draconequus flew ahead of the Gerudo king, flying to the opening at the halls end. He reached it in second, and flew into the night air as he did so, out into the free starless night air, and out of Ganondorf’s view.

The Evil King continued to walk, letting his cold smile stay chiseled across his lips. This wasn’t a game. Not to him. But that didn’t mean was unaware of the rules. All good plans were made and kept in the dark. This was no different.

This wasn’t a game to him. This was just another step to another plan.

“I know that smile.”

The sharp feminine voice caused the Gerudo King to still. He was not frightened, nor shaken, but he was cautious. As powerful as he was, in mind, magic, and body, he was a stranger in magical lands, as alien to every creature and power as they were to him.

Fortunately, he knew this voice.

Ganondorf turned to see a woman leaning against the wall of an adjacent hallway. Her arms were crossed over chest, sharp golden eyes looking into this own. Her smile was just as piercing, possibly even more wicked. Light garbs and cloths of red flowed down her form, cut into pieces, but hanging with great care. It was no uniform the Gerudo King was familiar with, but he knew enough about the strategies of others to know its purpose.

It appeared to be light, flexible, easy to move in. It wouldn’t stand to a blade, let alone an axe or hammer, but he was sure this woman would be able to move as deftly across the field of battle as a cat did chasing a mouse. This cat, however, had more than just claws.

“I’m glad you recognize me still.” Ganondorf spoke with all of his strength behind his voice. It was deep, commanding, and just as dark as his soul. The woman’s own grin turned vicious.

“You’re a hard man to forget.” She spoke easily enough. “But that smile of yours, I’ve seen it more than once, on more than one person.” A thin digit from one of her hands pointed at the man’s strong face, aiming towards his twisted lips. They didn’t flinch.

“Oh?” He asked, letting to one of his muscled hands raise to his chin. “And where have you seen this before?” He made sure to turn his smile into a vicious grin.

“On the faces of assassins before they kill.” She never let her own smile falter.

“On the lips of generals as they killed their kings.” She leaned off the wall, elegantly walking towards him.

“But mostly,” she continued, looking up to the man who stood a full two heads above her. “Across the lips of traitors, thinking of the moment when they will strike.”

They smiled at towards one another as the silence between them grew as sharp as the gazes in their eyes and ends of their lips.

“You’re a dangerous woman.” Ganondorf spoke honestly.

“And you’re a cunning man.” The woman offered back.

“Are you planning to stop me, or tell the mad god about me?” He was not expecting a straight answer. Who would?

“No, not yet at least.” She softly admitted. The red clothed woman spun on her heel, turning till she faced the balcony Discord had flown to and up from. “You’re interesting, to say the least, and it would be a bad idea for me to rat you out. Provided, it would definitely earn me some kind of praise from that thing that brought us here, but I trust you both about the same. Besides,”

The woman turned again, letting the shadows of the night sky behind her silhouette her form. She kept that sword sharp smile, kept that sharp glint in her eyes, but now offered a aura the Evil King could visibly see. He was right before. She was dangerous.

“It did turn to you when it wanted a plan.”

Ganondorf was only too proud to admit it.

“Indeed he did, Princess Azula. Indeed he did.”

The Evil King walked on then, carefully passing the woman who gave him the same feeling as that of a killer or thief. She very well could have been both. He was too, after all.

The pounding of his boots was dulled by the carpet, but the sound of her shoes clicking behind him was clear and audible to his ears.

The night sky came into view the moment he passed the archway, letting the beauty and spectacle of a castle’s spire prove itself to him again. He breathed in the crisp air with a slow breath, taking it in until the leather over his chest gave a muffled cry of strain. His smile had yet to fall.

It was odd, even to him, seeing a sky black as shadows, no clouds nor stars across it. There were no lights to pattern the black canvas, or even other objects to drift across it. Like the desert he hailed from, and the land he ruled, it was barren of life.

Except for a castle sitting in the sky.

Like a chunk of land ripped from the earth, it hovered over the land far below. Spires and walls and towers of stone decorated its surface, in a size larger than almost any other structure Ganondorf had ever seen. No temple in the lands of neither Hyrule nor castle from lands far and wide compared to the size of the structure.

He didn’t need to think or imagine to know that creatures on the ground, both near and far, would see the object with some form of terror. This was not a new star, nor even a display of celebration. It was a colossally sized piece of land, larger than the mountain and castle he and Azula were standing on, floating in the sky like a cloud.

Ganondorf smiled all the brighter at the thought of the ponies far below, looking up in terror and awe.

Azula, just beside him, stared up at it with just as much marvel. She had seen feats of engineering across the world. Blimps that reigned fire. Metal that swam through the sea. But a castle, hanging in the sky? It was something she thought as possible as controlling the spirits.

Then again, it was a spirit that made it possible.

Discord was hanging like a cloud in the air, claw and paw spread wide as he faced away from the castle they stood in. It was beyond her sights to see, but she could tell he was smiling, laughing, and probably even crying with joy.

“So were you serious before?” She asked the taller man next to her, golden eyes never drifting from the castle in the sky or the spirit that was cackling in the air. She heard the leather groan as Ganondorf turned to look at her.

“About what?” His deep voice spoke to her.

“About what you and Discord were talking about. Not just beating them, breaking them.” Her hand stretched to the castle in the sky, her palm not even able to cover the entirety of the massive structure.

“It’s the only way you can guarantee victory.” She turned to face him now.

His smile was gone, replaced with a face she instantly thought belonged to a king.

“I wouldn’t say that. Once you win, you just have to make sure no one else has power.” She twisted her palm until it was between them, three fingers raised in the air.

“You can kill them.” Her ring finger fell.

“Enslave them.” Her middle finger fell.

“Or break them.” Ganondorf finished for her as her index finger turned her palm into a fist.

“Exactly.”

“Except killing everything leaves nothing to rule. Enslaving everything means nothing can grow. And trying to break something after you’ve already won is like trying to crush ice after it’s melted.”

He held up his fist, to making sure she could compare the size of it. It was easily the size of her entire head. The power contained in it was something she didn’t want to test.

Especially when she saw two triangles glowing over the heavy gauntlet.

“But if you break the enemy you are trying to beat, you will rid yourself of the chance for others to keep their hope. Watching the person they put their faith in giving up, running away, or being killed in tears is an image that no soul can forget. Besides,” Ganondorf focused on the Princess of the Fire Kingdom.

“Wouldn’t you want to see the thing you hate most being broken?” His smile was as wicked as the words he spoke.

Azula was silent.

Yes, she did want to see that. To see the woman who had frozen her in ice and chained her to a grate being left in tears as she, herself, stood above her with laughter rolling from her lips. Then, she would watch the broken body and spirit burn in fires of blue, turning into nothing but ash.

The idea was something she didn’t soon want to be rid of.

“So why couldn’t you win?” She asked the Demon King. “Why did you lose?”

“I did win.” He spoke it with power that shook the stones they stood on. It made Azula’s smile falter. “I was the king of the Hyrule and the Gerudos. The power of the gods was, is in my hands. I was close, so close, to gaining the power of the Sacred Realm.”

His dark eyes turned to the sky above.

“But he couldn’t be broken.” Azula traced his eyes. She thought it was going to land on the castle above, and be for one of the heroes Discord had sent away. But it wasn’t. She thought then it could be for the draconequus now sailing through the air like the care-free spirit that he was. But that wasn’t it either.

There was an object sitting in the sky, even higher than the temple worthy of giants. Like the lone star in the sky, the only essence of light, hanging over the canvas of black. But it was not of the soft white, but of sharp pink. It was not a round sphere, but a jagged crystal.

What it was, was clear.

Ganondof’s eyes were focused on the crystal prison hanging in the sky.

“Link.” She spoke for him. “You couldn’t break a single man? Even with all the power of the gods?” Azula let her voice taunt him, already pushing her weight onto her heels. If he we to strike, she would be able to move.

Instead, he gave her a glower of utter disdain. She was almost satiated by the heat behind it.

“Don’t underestimate the strength of Courage.” He spoke simply. “Many others ventured into the dungeons that he did, temples that I had changed and altered until they were deathly traps of horror and madness. I watched guardians and sages alike fall to them, kneeling in the horrors I had created with my power.”

With a harsh turn, he faced the ominous castle again, watching as the draconequus flew closer to it, shrinking until he was nothing more than a spec to the titanic shape.

“But he wouldn’t falter.” Azula hid her smile within herself. She noted the detail about this man carefully before she spoke on.

“But didn’t you already fix that? I can’t say he was too pleased with seeing that new piece of jewelry in that glove of yours.” His stern gaze only made hers grow.

“It damaged him, of that I cannot deny, for I am immensely proud of it.” The ghost of a smile came and left the Ganondorf’s lips. “But he has endured such loss before. Whatever you saw, and did see, was nothing more than the shock and discomfort of the news. Allow him a day, maybe only half, and he will be ready to face me again.”

“Then what it is your plan to break the rest of those warriors then?” Azula asked, this time with far more care than a mocking tone. “You don’t strike me as the kind of guy to make the same mistake twice. But from what I heard, you told Discord to make that based off of temples and ruins from your own world. The same trick rarely works twice, especially if it didn’t work the first time.”

For a moment, the evil king was silent. He turned from her, staring out over the castle’s balcony again. His golden eyes resting on the monolith floating in the air, a gem eternally within vision, yet out of reach.

“Do you even know the purpose of that temple?” The tone was as mocking as Discord was. The Princess of the Fire Nation gave a hard look to the Gerudo King. It only made his lips curl into a sick smile.

“Enlighten me, please.” The coldness in her tone was easily a match for the flames she could conjure. His sick smile grew malicious, but Ganondorf spoke on.

“The mad god of chaos knew every creature that was going to be involved in this. From those that would pull from the portal, and those that would be pulled from it, the same as we were.” His fist clenched for a moment, but relaxed as he spoke on, eyes trained on the crystal prison far above.

“Each of those warriors, ponies, and animals above has a strength, or trait, that makes them strong. Whether it be the strength of their body, their mind, or their spirit, they can overcome many obstacles. However, that does not mean they can overcome every obstacle.” Ganondorf’s hand extended in front of him, showing the Evil King the two triangles on the back of his palm. Azula watched on, memorizing every detail.

“They have limits, boundaries, and things that keep them from growing. It would be easy to focus on the weakness in someone, use that to grab victory from beneath him or her. But if you make them lose in the area they are most proud, their spirit will dampen, and their hopes fall.”

“And when they lose hope, they lose the will fight on.” Azula finished for him. Her smile, as careful as it was, had returned. “I stand by what I said before. You are a cunning man.”

“I don’t need your words to know it.” Ganondorf smiled as he let his arm return to his side.

“So you asked Discord to split them up into groups.” Azula spoke, attempting to lead Ganondorf on. “You paired them with their strengths.”

“Correct,” he admitted. “I made sure that each and every wing of the temple of above was made for the pair that would be thrusted into it. Rooms of ice, ceilings of fire, floors of sand, and everything else that has been the end to both man and beast before.”

“Sounds like fun.” Azula slyly admitted, spinning until she was leaning against the small guard of the balcony.

“You did make sure that we would be able to watch, right?” She twisted her gaze until one eye was left wide and accusing, the other squinted with mischief. Ganondorf paid it little mind.

“I was told that the other human Discord brought forth would be responsible for that.”

Azula smiled at the memory, fighting herself to hide a choke of laughter.

“Him?” she asked. “That guy was one of the most pathetic excuses for a man that I have ever seen. He had no strength, no talent, and he was sobbing about his daughter to no end.”

“I did not say I admired or enjoyed him, only that he would take care of giving us sight of what the warriors are doing in the castle of my creation. Which leads me to my question.” The Evil King put his power and will behind his voice as he spoke to much smaller woman beside him.

“What is your purpose?”

“Me?” Azula asked mockingly, a single digit of her lithe hand place above her covered breasts. “Shouldn’t that be obvious by now?”

“Pretend it isn’t. Indulge me.” The Princess of the Fire Nation held a hand in front of her mouth as she mockingly held back another chuckle of laughter.

“It’s very simple really. Discord gave us the means. You gave the warriors their path. Our pathetic third member makes sure we get to see everything, including the grand finale. That is where I come in.” Pushing off the balcony, she turned towards the mighty structure floating in the sky, letting her arms extend in front of her as she spoke.

“What you don’t understand is that sometimes, you have to break things by force. I enjoy ploys, tricks, deception, and thievery in as many forms as you do, but at least I know that there is a time to strike. Ganondorf, it’s simple.” Azula made sure that her smile was malicious and sharp, no less deadly than the lightening she could summon through her hands.

“I was the one who chose the final foe for every group up there.” The careful gaze in the Gerudo King was questioning her words without moving his lips. There was silence between them, broken only by the occasional whistle of wind around them.

It was the Evil King that broke the silence.

“You knew of the temple that I designed.” Her smiled didn’t falter. “And of the groups that were being made.” Her eyes sparked with pleasure. “Why ask then?”

“To be sure.” She began. “You are planning something larger than all of this.” Azula motioned towards the giant castle again. “And this is already larger than most things I’ve seen, but not all.”

“What is your point?”

“I just had to make sure I could trust you for now.” Her golden eyes fell back on his own. “If you were to lie to me about something as simple as what you are doing for Discord, then I’d have to make sure you were done away with. I can’t have myself being surrounded by untrustworthy people, now can I.” The gaze in the taller man’s eyes had yet to soften.

“Just think of it like this,” the Princess of the Fire Kingdom started. “If you lied to me now, I wouldn’t be able to rely on you for anything.”

“You’re speaking of using me like a tool from a shed.”

“Were you thinking any differently of me?”

The two stared at one another for a time, neither moving a muscle and neither revealing a chink in their words. One held a smile of confidence. The other had an expression of apathy.

Slowly, Ganondorf let his stern features slide into a knowing grin.

“I look forward to working with you, Princess Azula.” The Fire Princess smiled.

“I’m sure we’ll be mutually beneficial to one another, King Ganondorf.”

Extending their hands, the large gauntlet of the Gerudo King dwarfing the near petite frame of the smaller woman, the two shook with one another.

“I have to go now.” The Princess of the Fire Nation watched as the Dark King turned from her, walking back into the castle behind them, barren of life. “The plans may be set, but I have more to create. Where one plan may fail, another must exist to replace it. For now farewell.”

“Wait a moment.” Azula calmly ordered. Ganondorf stilled at her voice. She paused, letting the silence turn pregnant as she continued to watch him. With a slow breath inwards, she voice her question.

“What is your goal?”

“Goal?” He mimicked her.

“The goal you taunted in front of the knight and princess, the thing you keep speaking of, alluring to as being greater than the power of Gods. What is that?” Her brows knit themselves in neat knots as she waited. With a soft, yet utterly wicked, smile, he answered.

“Something I am sure you will one day see.”

Ganondorf disappeared into the castle behind them. The Fire Princess watched him walk until he was nothing but an echo in the barren halls.

Azula turned back to the colossal structure, watching it in the air. She could imagine, easily, the ponies and warriors that had been gathered in that ruin hall being tested and toyed with in the innumerable amount of rooms. She could see some failing, leaving those they were with in distraught tears and broken spirits.

The few warriors and ponies that survived would be enraged by the news that not all had succeeded, that some had failed, and that they’re chances for success were slipping. They would fight hard, but not as hard as if their numbers were greater. Soon, they would all fall to the power that the monster Discord held.

It was a plan that would never work.

Fortunately, she had one of her own.

At least now she knew she was not the only one who did.

Her wicked smile never faltered

“Up and down and around the bend.” Discord sang to himself as he sailed towards the colossal structure in the sky. He weaved and spun through the air in time with his song, letting the bubbly energy within him lift his chaotic spirit to heights he hadn’t felt in centuries.

“And this is just with a few appetizers. The first dish isn’t even brought out yet, and I’m already feeling stuffed!” He cackled aloud as she held his claw and paw outwards, letting them spin like propellers as he flew towards his goal.

The closer he came to the colossal figure, the more he was dwarfed by its size. It brought a sense of salivation to his lips, looking up and seeing something so great hanging in the dead night sky that it would be viewable from every corner of Equestria.

Knowing what it was for made him drool.

His legs touched down on the hanging earth, letting clumps of dirt fall free from their fragile grasp, sailing down to the earth far below.

“Now let’s see.” He spoke to himself as he walked upside across the surface of the monolith. “He did say the spot would be right around… here.”

Discord snapped his finger, and then he was gone.

He reappeared in a room completely different from almost anywhere he had stood before. Through all the stone, through all the earth, through all the hanging magic that kept the monolith in the air, Discord found himself in one of the most unlikely of rooms.

A room filled with metal and technology.

It was large, grand, easily matching the size of the once sacred Hall of Elements. Sheets of slick metal were screwed and secured across every visible surface, from the walls to the ceiling and even the ground. Lights danced through the room across tracks, shimmering from thin exposed sections like little fireflies scurrying in a group beneath a tree’s bark.

The air hummed with activity, working with a power he could easily imagine, and yet had never touched. It was as simple to him as air, but just as foreign as every creature that had come through the portals so far. It was an entire room made of something Equestria had never seen before.

Discord pranced across the room.

“This is excellent!” He cheered again, performing a small twirl in the air. “An entire room filled with things Equestria has never seen! Televisions, electricity, circuitry, and so much more!”

The mad god turned his mismatched eyes towards the center of the room.

“And you are the one have to thank for it!”

His claw pointed towards a small platform, raised above the rest of the smooth metal floor. On it knelt a small figure, an ant in comparison to the room entire. A speck of dust compared to the colossal castle they were hidden within.

Discord flashed out of and into appearance next to the lone figure. He stood tall above the small form, crouched over an open panel of metal. The form was clearly human, dressed in short leave coat, long enough for the edges to drag across the ground. Human, obviously, but the details of what he looked like were completely hidden by his hunched form.

“I give you the materials and time, and you give me a room that I can literally call the center of a new world.” Discord spun again on the back of his hoof, admiring the alien room he was surrounded by.

“And it’s just so… unnatural!” It was not a word one was used to hearing as a compliment. “The sharp edges, the bright yellow, the sleek steel, not to mention the power it’s all using! No magic, no fire, nothing but the power you seem to create.”

“It’s not creation.” It was the first time the man had spoken since Discord had appeared. “It’s a conversion of natural energy sources into a usable form of electricity.” Silence was kept at bay only by the dull hum of power through the panels around the two.

“That’s it?” Discord asked. “No witty remark, no sarcastic comeback, nothing? Just… that?” The disappointment in the voice of the chaotic god was as plain as the metal he stood on.

“Nothing else to say.” The man continued. “Not until I get this done.”

His hands moved to his sides, lifting up the metal shoot that stood there. It slid across to him as he pulled, grinding across the floor as the harsh sound of metal on metal vibrated through the massive room. It fell into place with a sharp clang, hiding the work he had done.

Standing, he turned to face the draconequus, wearing a smile that hung over a mask.

“Or if you want I could stop, you know, pull up a chair, maybe get a nice chat going between us. It could be fun! I could tell you about how many bandits I’ve killed, or you could tell me of how many times you’ve been beatin’ by ponies with magic.” The man extended his hand outwards in offering.

“Do you want to start?”

Discord was fighting himself, caught between wanting to snarl with rage, but also curl his lips with glee.

“All at once I’m remembering why I love and hate you. I’m sure it’s a feeling a lot of people have towards you.” Discord bowed the same way the man did in front of him, extending his paw forwards as his sinister smile grew deep.

“Your daughter, for example.”

The man’s mask grew furious in a second.

“Aw, why so blue, handsome? Did I strike a nerve or two?” Discord watched with a hideous smile as the man’s hand twitched left and right, reaching for, then pulling back from a small holster along his hip. His slithering tongue wet his lips.

That was when Jack turned away.

“Aw, so soon? We were just starting to have fun!” The man stalked away from the multi-formed creature, fists clenched at his sides as his jacket jerked with every step he took.

He stopped and knelt in front of a small podium made of the same yellow steel as the room he was in. Just barely taller than half his height, it had a small pane of glass over the top of it, and an open panel in front of it. His hands reached inside, pulling at the wires within.

“Don’t be too offended Jack, it’s not like I can help it. I have my charms and you have yours.”  The man was mute in both response and action to the draconequus’s luring words. Instead, he focused his heterochromatic eyes on his work, letting his mind work out every calculation he need. His fingers deftly spun the wires, resistors, and capacitors together, twisting the metal lines before covering them in a light layer of bendable plastic.

“I know you get focused on your work, but you can’t have too little time to talk. C’mon, I can get something witty from you, right?” The multi-formed creature asked, but still the man did nothing.

Jack heard a pop of magic outside his line of sight. He didn’t flinch or falter in his work, continuing to connect, solder, and weave wires together.

“You know, I remember watching you and thinking, “That’s the kind of guy who knows what I’m trying to do.” But now… eh, you’re rather dull. A little gray maybe.”

The man still refused to give a response to the mad god, working diligently on the system in front of him. His hands lifted a metal sheet, placing it over the wiring, hiding it from view. Reaching backwards, he brought forth a small automatic screwdriver. He quickly went to work securing the metal in place.

“Oh come on, I know I’m not that boring,” Discord whined. “Don’t get me wrong, I’m glad you're clearly so excited to get this done, but really, you gotta learn to relax some. Let go. Let you loose, you know?” The man’s fist rapped across the metal twice, creating a dull boom with each impact. Secured, he stood up and turned to face the monster.

He drew a gun from his hip as soon as his eyes fell across Discord.

“There we go!” The master of chaos cheered. “That’s what I was expecting. And all it took were a few more actions and few less words. Too bad I love to hear myself talk.”

Discord continued to twist his claws through the hairs of the girl beneath him.

Jack scowled in rage.

“Get away from her. Now!” The gun in his hand slowly hummed, filling itself with energy.

“Why? So you can go back to feeling dull and lifeless? That’s useless. I’d much rather see you trying to kill me than outright ignoring me.” The brow across Discord’s mismatched eyes furrowed as his lips twisted in savage glee.

But his claw slowly slipped out of the girl’s hair, leaving the black fibers to fall back in place.

“Then again, if I have to deal with a bit of predictability in order to get a whole world of chaos, I think I can live with that.” His paw lifted itself, rubbing over the girl’s forehead.

“It’s too bad she can’t.”

BOOM!

Discord vanished from the air as a stray bullet sailed through where he once stood. The ring of impact echoed across the metal chamber, vibrating like the clap of thunder.

“There we go!” The voice cheered above him. Jack wasted no time in turning his gun towards the ceiling, only to see the twisted draconequus embedded in one of the screens high above.

He was either deep in outer space, looking through the lens of a camera hanging in orbit, or he was prancing about in that mystical realm only magic could access, looking through the black screen like a shattering looking glass.

Jack scowled regardless.

“That’s better to see.” Discord commented as his paw pounded on the screen, causing a dull boom to echo through the spacious room.. “Get mad. Get angry. Get ready to fight. That’s what I need right now. I need you make sure every pony sees what’s going to happen. That’s all. You just need to make sure the entire land can see what we do.”

“They will.” Jack spoke harshly. “I’ve built systems a hundred times more complicated than this without magic.”

“Good.” Discord vanished from the glass high above him. The “pop” of magic behind the man was indication enough of where the draconequus was now. He didn’t bother to turn with his gun. It would just be another senseless display of force. “Then what’s left for you to do?”

Jack’s eyes looked forwards, looking at the child he cherished more than anything else, still as stone, and white as a cloud. She looked just like an angel.

“Once I turn it all on, it’ll be ready.”

“Well done,” Discord congratulated. “But, I really must be off,” He announced with a sudden spin body and flick of his claw. “Equestria must still be dreadfully confused about this tiny… well not tiny development. And I wouldn’t want to leave them confused for too long, otherwise, they might not appreciate the beauty of watching chaos grow and harmony die.”

Jack watched mutely as Discord laughed to himself.

“So do be sure to fire up that display soon. I would hate to look like a fool to those foolish ponies. Until later, ta ta!”

In another flash of light, Discord was gone, leaving Jack alone in the room of metal, hidden from the outside world. He released a tense sigh from his lips, watching the empty space the draconequus had once occupied. His heterochromatic eyes looked downwards to the gun in his hand.

It was his own model, his own design. A near flawless piece of weaponry that served as his side-arm from the years he had ruled Hyperion, expanded across Pandora, and killed hundreds of bandits.

It was as useless to him now as the mask on his face.

Jack turned back to the raised platform, only steps away from him. He approached without hesitance, walking up the steps until he stood side by side with the monitor he had programmed seconds before Discord’s entrance and the chair laid back with his beautiful daughter across it.

He let his hand brush over her forehead, moving the black strands that clung to her pale skin. He traced the flesh down her cheeks, her neck, ending at her shoulder.

His fingers played with the tubing that was inserted around her, keeping her alive with the same substance that had made him the most powerful man in the galaxy. Thick, purple, and toxic to the touch.

He turned from her, looking towards the lone console. It was well designed, sleek and sharp as everything else he had a hand in developing and making. His fingers danced a pattern across the dead screen, bringing life to the console. It hummed with activity like the room around him, flowing with power.

“Angel.” He whispered the name as his eyes turned to the still form of the young girl behind him. “It’s time to wake up.”

His thumb pressed on the console.

The body behind him jerked with life.

The humming presence of power in the room rose in volume, vibrating the metal platform he stood on, forcing him to grit his teeth. His daughter’s body jerked left and right, arms flailing upwards as her legs curled inwards. The wires whipped with every motion she made.

But he watched on, determined, eyes never shaking.

A scream ripped through her lips, then a groan, then a gurgle. The wires around her sparked, arcing with high enough levels of voltage to send him into a seizure. All it would take was a moment of bad luck, and he would be dead.

But to protect himself would mean leaving her side.

He swore he would never do that again.

Then it was done. She didn’t shake, she didn’t stir, and the wires didn’t spark. It was then a dead, monotone voice rose from his daughter’s pale white lips.

“Power reaching maximum output. All connections confirmed. Monitors coming on screen.”

High above the pair, black hanging glass started to shimmer, reflecting like pools of water before sparking with life.

All at once, images began to dance across them, colors and shapes that were moving so fast, they were impossible to recognize.

“Calibrating satellites with sub orbital rotation. Maximizing magnification of scopes. Enabling low level X-Radiation Video Feeds.”

The man watched the screens mutely as their blurred dirty forms began to change. The explosions of colors slowly stilled, shapes hardening within the clear glass frames. He could see land, trees, homes, but more than anything else he saw what he wanted to see.

The monolith of a castle floating above the dead night sky.

Each of the screens slowly began to zoom into the horrendously large object, focusing on different points of the display. The fine details of the bricks and stones became clearer and clearer the closer the screen approached.

And then blackness took over the screens again.

Individually, one by one, the screens began to change again. Different colors began to bleed into the dark screens, slowly hardening into definite shapes. But each screen showed something different. They were no longer different views of the same castle, multiple visions of the same colossus.

Now they showed different beings.

He looked to the screen hanging over a far wall. It showed a pony of fur dark and black, wings large and powerful hanging from her sides. A boy was by her side, gripping a sword that looked more malicious than the child holding it, edged and carved in purple and black. They both tread the ground in front of them carefully, each moving with a slow and deliberate pace. It was a good move to, because the walls around them were ablaze.

Jack turned his head, looking at another moving frame. This was of an old man wearing robes that looked like they belonged in a bathroom stall. He walked with strong strides despite the size of his beard. His lips moved in silent talk with the stallion at his side, unicorn to be precise. The pony spoke as well, but neither removed their eyes from the path ahead of them, dark and wet as it was.

Jack’s eyes then turned to the screen directly above him, and he had no intention to hide his vicious scowl. He watched a tall woman with blue hair and a painted arm walking up a gloriously decorated set of stairs. It spun ahead of them, turning out of view. But behind her walked a boy more timid than anything Jack had ever seen, gripping his gown tightly. Between the two was a pony far smaller than of the others, a coat as white as snow. She looked ready to cry as well.

“All monitors are online, feeds establish. Do you have any further requests?”

Jack’s eyes left the screens around him, looking instead at the frail form of the girl resting on the chair in front of him. She looked ready to snap, like even the faintest of winds would break her bones and spirit, if they weren’t broken already. He approached her, wearing a smile he had no trouble producing.

“You’ve done a great job, Angel.” He whispered over the body of the young girl. She stared up at him with empty eyes.

“Thank you, Dad”

Leaning down further, he embraced the child beneath him, holding her tightly against her. He felt her arms snake around his own neck.

Jack brushed his hand through his daughter’s hair, savoring every touch and sensation he felt. A slow breath entered his lungs, keeping at bay the tears that threatened to spill over. He gently whispered into her ear.

“My love is vengeance.” He held his daughter closer.

“That’s never free.”

Discord hovered freely in the air, his gaze focused on the monolith of his creation, but another’s design.

Inside that massive temple existed enough horrors to drive any being mad, and just as many monsters inside waiting and willing to finish the job. His mismatched eyes starred beadily, greedily, towards the floating mountain. Without even knowing the creatures within, it was a testament to his chaos enough.

It was enough to make him cry with joy.

But then his joy turned to jubilation.

The once dirty and jagged outside of the mountain began to spark, electricity arcing and spreading across the hard material. It was slow at first, slower than he cared to watch, but as the intensity grew, so too did the sound.

It sounded like nails down a chalkboard, the screams of infants, and the last breath of loved ones all conjoined into one terrible ear grating sound. Discord found it hard not to dance.

The harsh stone smoothed under the rippling power of the electricity that arced and conjoined over it, flattening into smooth metal and simple shapes. But just as quickly as the surface began to flatten out, so too did something else begin to crawl over it.

It was different than the sharp blue of electricity, and far from the same thing as the earth that was still covered far beneath. Instead, they were pictures, moving and mobile.

Every surface had a different picture.

Every surface was telling a different story.

Discord didn’t have to count to know how many there were.

“Fourteen.” He whispered. “Fourteen different tales of chaos and destruction, each one playing out differently than the other, each one more alien than the next.” Laughter wasn’t strong enough a word to describe the euphoric sound that ripped from his longs.

“It’s gorgeous! And the best part is, now it REALLY BEGINS!”

Discord slammed his claw and paw together.

A boom of thunder echoed across the land.

“WELCOME TO THE TEMPLE OF CHAOS!” Next Chapter: Within the Caverns Estimated time remaining: 9 Hours, 46 Minutes