//
A bit of an info dump chapter I guess. but also pretty important in a way. The time is really going fast. I managed to get a girlfriend and break up with her between this and the last chapter XD Honestly she was nice , but she turned out to be too young for me,(slightly under the "half my age plus 7 rule")(even if technically legal under my country's law) and I found out that she was basically from some messed up family circles from the countryside than made me want to sing sweet home Alabama XD And when she said to me "age is just a number" and even her mother tried to keep us together I knew I had to run haha...
Jeez, my life🤦...
//
With her story coming to an end, Radiant Hope looked down, unsure of what to expect from her loosely matched listener.
Discord for his part felt a mix of emotions. Pity... sadness for what the mare had to endure...but for the most part...understanding.
His arms tightened around Hope, whom he had never let go from the very beginning of her story, and he couldn't help but sigh.
"I'm...I'm really sorry Hope... What happened to you...I..." He hesitated unsure of whether he should say what was about to say.
Hope's story had reminded him of things, that he had long ago promised himself to keep buried deep in the past. Would...would she understand?...
Hope looked up, hoping to see Discord's expression, to at least see whether he truly felt sad for her situation or just put on a fake mask...but She...She was surprised to find much more in his eyes than just empathy.
He understood her.
Not just her words, but everything....And, he was clearly struggling with his own thought.
She instinctually reached over and caressed his chest with her hoof...
"It's alright...I won't judge you...Just like you didn't judge me..."She said in a soft voice, hoping that those few words would relay her meaning.
Discord's myriad of emotions suddenly calmed as a silent understanding went between the two, prompting him to finally speak.
He didn't know if that was the correct decision, but at that moment he felt like he could really trust her...It has been such a long time since he considered trusting someone...ever since...Her...
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It's wasn't always like this... Discord...he wasn't really one to seek power...
Living in Chaosvile, his Chaos Dimensions, he would spend days enjoying the unpredictability of his small but Inherently Chaotic world, or travel around different plains, causing mischief, never really interacting with other beings who would most likely reject him for being so different from what they considered normal. he never really cared. It was always like this...
That is until the day she appeared... Crashing into his house, in the deepest part of Chaosvile.
She was just like him... her body so beautifully chaotic. And her powers... shapeshifting and reality bending, to the level that even left him, the Spirit of Chaos amazed by how powerful she was.
And she seemed to like mischief just as much as himself...
At least...that's what he thought at the time...
Her name...Her name was Cosmos...And she came from very far away. With no place to call Home...
He would not have wasted such a chance!
Speaking to your own clone, while fun, was not exactly a long term solution, and even he would occasionally appear in another dimension, impersonating a member of the resident sentient species in order to have at least some other interactions than with just himself...
Cosmos became a pleasant change... a companion...a friend...and... someone he fell in love with...
They would often travel together...causing mischief, or just playing around...
Her sweet words made him go around, fulfilling all her whims...He thought she loved him...He...He thought she shared his feelings...
But he was wrong...
It all started when they came to Equestria...
That place...it was one of his favourites. All those peace loving ponies...it was so fun causing a little havoc here and there. Mischief was his favourite pastime so he thought that Cosmos would join him, maybe cause a little chocolate rain here, or a slippery pathway there...or maybe turn the sun into a croissant shape and the moon into a donut? Those Princesses would freak out for sure, and he was quite certain they could probably do that with their powers combined...
But Cosmos...she didn't act like he expected...Her actions... Why...Why was she so adamant on ruling Equestria? what was the point anyway?
And then, she wanted to dispose of the Princesses...
The amount of times he had used illusions to keep the two sides from meeting eachother should have given him a hint that something was wrong...but...he Didn't want to admit it...His Cosmos...she wasn't like that right?
Well he got his answer some time later when she tried to turn one of Celestia's school's into a towering inferno...that...that was too much, even for himself!
And when he tried to confront her about it, the truth finally came to light. Everything that he cherished about his companion turned into dust by a few simple words of Cosmos, who at last failed to hide her true nature...
"You want to know what I am? I'm Malice Personified! Of course I used you! What goes better with malice than chaos! And if you won't join me as my companion, you can sit at my feet as my dog!"
Her words reverberated in his head as her overwhelming magical power enveloped him, and his form suddenly changed into that of an actual dog...
What happened after was pretty simple.
Escaping from her clutches, and then allowing himself to be apprehended by King Aspen and the King of Abyssinia who brought him before Celestia, Luna and Queen Novo, the Royals accusing him of creating all the chaos around them.
Discord of course denied doing so before being found by Cosmos who appeared before them, finally ready to finish off the leaders of all the most powerful Races in order to become the unquestionable ruler of everything.
At that moment Discord begged the others to banish Cosmos and even offered to help them do so, finally accomplishing it by combining all their powers together.
Like this...Cosmos was gone...banished into the sky to form a new Constellation called "Andalusian".
As for discord...he put everyone to sleep and made them forget about Cosmos, finally taking all the blame for the havoc she had caused on himself.
And after that? All was just history...
Driven by guilt, Discord embraced his fake persona, and then tried to take over Equestria, knowing full well that he would be stopped by the Elements of Harmony in the hoofs of the princesses.
A thousand years in stone...and then...he ended up here, thanks to Starfall and an overly horny Celestia...Eh how the mighty have fallen...
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"...And then I ended up here, partly as a prisoner, partly as a test subject and recently even as a bit of an assistant. It wasn't really that bad here so far all things considered. although I still miss all my amazing powers... If I could turn that accursed record player into a chihuahua with a theremin or something of the likes, this stay would have been a thousand times more enjoyable..." Discord said trying to lighten the topic with that last remark but it was clear that recalling all his past without hiding any details was a tough ordeal for the Draconequus.
Listening to his story, Hope couldn't help but sympathise with the Spirit of Chaos. In a way, both of them had a similar experience.
Their closest companion... someone that they cherished to the point of love, ended up betraying their trust and turning against the entire world, hurting them in the process to the point where they almost completely lost hope of ever regaining trust in anybody. Not only that, but both of them ended up literally stuck in stone for what amounted to around a thousand years in either case...
The coincidence was jarring, and the fact that they met eachother in such a bizarre situation didn't escape their notice.
But neither of them regretted meeting the other.
In their current situations, it was as if fate brought them together, and right now...they...
They were happy...
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Pinkie Pie was just eating some "Crystal Pie" served at the banquet in the Crystal Empire, when her body suddenly shook in a particularly weird manner.
She looked around and said to nopony-
"Huh.. Something big just happened..." only to shrug her shoulder and continue to eat without care...
*SLAP*
"Ouch!? Meena! Why did you do that!?" Pinkie Pie asked upon getting slapped on the back of the head by her clone sister...
"Don't you think you should tell Starfall about this? that was one big Pinkie Sense reaction if I were to tell..." Meena pointed out with a raised eyebrow and Pinkie gave her a sheepish smile while massaging the back of her head.
"alright, alright, I'll do that as soon as I finish this yummy, delicious pie..." She said while licking her lips as her gaze moved back to the large dessert...
She would of course forget to tell Starfall about it later but Meena was already satisfied with reminding her once...
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