Twilight multitasked. She channeled magic into a blade which erupted to life in the air a hoof away from her right side, and she channeled magic into a barrier in the air and then inside of the barrier until an orb burst to life, burning intently from the raw magic she poured into it. She strode forwards with purpose, and in a few hoofsteps, she walked out of the clearing and into the jungle.
She kept part of her mind focused on the task at hoof, and another part was dedicated to staying aware of what her spell was telling her, while a third part went over what she knew and what her spell was saying could mean.
Of course, there was only one thing that the presence of chaos magic could indicate, but she didn't understand why she would be detecting it, nor why she would be detecting it within Fluttershy's proximity. She slashed through a vine, burning through it and causing the unsupported segment to collapse to the ground. She proceeded forward unimpeded.
She skillfully navigated the dense foliage and underbrush, making her own path as she strode along, never once pausing for a second, nor pausing for anything that impeded her movement. She made quick progress, and she scrutinized the cave where Fluttershy and the chaos magic were. 'If you lay a hoof on her...' The Inquisitor would pay one trillion fold for any harm he caused her. She would make sure of that.
She came to a stop and switched tactics. Getting there by hoof would take too long, teleporting would be faster, even if it meant she could be teleporting into a trap. She poured magic into a teleportation spell, then appeared near the mouth of the cave, in a clearing. Twilight immediately scanned her surroundings intently and focused on each detail her spell told her about. There was chaos magic in the vicinity, but Fluttershy was the only other pony in the region covered by her spell. After she was sure that nothing was going to surprise attack her, she redirected her magic into an intense scan of the small clearing.
She wasn't going to relax, no matter what her spell told her. After a few more seconds, she lowered her horn and swept across the treeline, daring anything hidden from her magic to attack her. Nothing happened. She slowly lifted her head back up and squinted at the trees. Eventually, she pulled her gaze away from the forest and directed it at the mountain itself.
The grayed rock was crumbling from weather and erosion, but somehow still managed to look like it shot straight up from the earth below it. She shook her head and pushed the thought aside, then took a deep breath and walked towards the mouth of the cave. She slowed as she peered inside the cave. The stone inside the cave was a dull gray and the tunnel was egg shaped, with a relatively smooth floor. She could see that the cave hit a dead end, then sharply turned to the left. She could see light coming from the tunnel, and she thought she could make out a voice, but she wasn't sure who it was or what it was saying.
She took a deep breath and prepared her magic further. The Inquisitor wouldn't be expecting her. She had the element of surprise. She smiled and stepped forwards, then paused mid-stride. 'I could level the mountain... he wouldn't survive that.' The thought made her clench her jaw. It was tempting. She wouldn't have to fight him and risk him winning. Even with chaos magic, she doubted he could survive what she was considering. There were a dozen different things she could have done. Collapse the mountain on him. Compress the mountain until it exploded. Melt the mountain.
'No!' She grunted and gritted her teeth. 'I'm not sacrificing her to kill him... Even... Even if...' Fluttershy wouldn't help him. She knew that for a fact, but part of her mind betrayed her, suggesting that maybe Fluttershy was helping him. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. 'No. She wouldn't do that.' She told herself.
She opened her eyes, then refocused on the task at hoof. She levitated her blade closer to her head and scrutinized the blade. 'Maybe it's a good time to put my alicorn senses and instincts to the test... Although that may be dangerous,' she thought. She turned her attention to her orb. A quick spell later, and the magic flowed away from the orb and back into her horn.
Twilight took a deep breath as a warm breeze blew through the clearing. She looked into the cave and hesitated. A few seconds later, she lifted a hoof and set it down onto the stone of the cave. As expected, the stone was cold, but it wasn't wet like she expected. She frowned at that but pushed it aside as she walked into the cave.
She extended her magic, scanning the cave as she walked deeper into it. Nothing other than the chaos magic was amiss. She found it curious. She had expected there to be spells in place that would react to her presence, but there were none. Despite the lack of spells attempting to kill her, she still didn't let her guard down.
The further into the cave she walked, the more anxious she grew. Each hoofstep felt like an eternity, but if she rushed it, she might lose her advantage of surprise. Or worse, trip and make a fool of herself.
She forced the thoughts back with an iron hoof as she reached the edge of the turn. She pushed her body against the cave. The rough stone pushed back against her and bit into her coat. The rock was by no means sharp, but it wasn't pleasant either. The unevenness of the rock caused it to push harder against her in some areas, while other areas were indented, leaving a pocket of air between her body and the cave wall.
She slowly exhaled, then peeked around the corner. The cave snaked to the right, blocking her view. The light grew brighter at the end. She grunted and sharply shook her head, then pushed away from the stone wall and spread her wings out as she walked into the cave. She paused as she reached the bend, stopping to listen for any voices to reveal something she didn't know. Silence greeted her. She briefly contemplated waiting there, hoping that the Inquisitor would say something about Celestia or Luna, or any one of her family.
She suppressed the boiling storm of emotion she felt and pushed forwards. She pulled her blade close to her body as she slid around the corner so that she could defend her open side from attack if the need arose. She prepared herself so that she could create another blade of magic in a split second as soon as the need arose. At the same time, she prepared a barrier spell to defend herself, along with several offensive spells she had learned in the past three years.
The first thing she could tell was that the room was a circular room, one that almost looked artificial in nature. The walls were rough but far smoother than she imagined possible by natural means. The second thing she saw was that the room was illuminated like it was daylight, but there was no visible source of light. The concept perplexed her, but after a second of thought, she wasn't as impressed as she had been. As she slid around more, she saw two more things that drew her attention, ire, and confusion.
"Fluttershy..." she said, still not believing what her eyes told her. Three years. It had been three years since she had seen the mare, and she looked almost identical to the night when she was betrayed. She was a little more ragged and looked tired, but it was the same pony. The yellow pegasus's head shot back towards her, sending her flowing pink mane flying aside, only for it to resettle on the other side of her neck. Fluttershy's mouth fell open in shock. Fluttershy stared at her, unable to process what she was seeing. She knew it was Twilight, beyond a shadow of a doubt, but she couldn't believe the alicorn was her, nor that she was there. Twilight took in her expression, shock, surprise, and fear.
Twilight averted her gaze from the pegasus and fell into a combative stance as her eyes fell on Discord. "Discord..." she growled threateningly. She poured more magic into her horn, debating on just crushing the statue to dust, or collapsing it until it ceased to exist. It wouldn't have been a percent as fulfilling as cutting his body to pieces, however.
"T-Twilight!?" Fluttershy finally spoke, nearly screaming. The scream broke Twilight's focus and she looked at Fluttershy, startled by the mare's scream. It reminded her of her dream, and she felt a cold chill run down her back. Her heart skipped a beat, Fluttershy's look of horror brought back unpleasant memories from her nightmare.
Twilight steeled her resolve and glared back at the statue, then paused. 'Why... are you a statue?' she wondered. It didn't make sense. There was no way that he was that stupid. Or perhaps she was just out of the loop. Maybe the Inquisitor finally slipped up and ran into a cockatrice, or something. She slowly rose from the combative stance and sauntered into the room, not breaking contact from the statue. He looked unamused. She averted her gaze to his eyes. They held a hint of something. It took her a few seconds to realize it was a hint of fear. She snorted, "Serves you right..." she grumbled. She threw her horn down and prepared to cast her spell that would free him from his stone prison.
"Twilight, wh-what are you doing!?" Fluttershy asked, jumping to her hooves. Her wings shot out as she jumped between Twilight and Discord, then she propelled herself into the air and hovered at the same height as Twilight held her head. She shivered under Twilight's firm glare but didn't back down.
Torturing him to death was well worth the risk that he would manage to kill her and Fluttershy. It would be a slow, drawn out death, one that he certainly deserved. She would be the judge, juror, and executioner. She welcomed all three roles and found it fitting. The Inquisitor had taken so much from her, so she would return the favor, but not before taking every scrap of information he had about how he killed her family and their last minutes. Even though she knew it would hurt her to find out what happened, she felt she needed to know. It would have been easier to simply break through his mental defenses and take what she needed, but she knew that wouldn't be easy. Even before learning that he had chaos magic, she knew his mental defenses were strong. She knew from personal experience, years prior. She would rip the information from him, but not through mind magic, she would force him to divulge it and make him beg for mercy. She wouldn't hesitate now, not like last time. She was in control, complete control of the situation.
"Fluttershy," Twilight started coldly. "Move aside. Now," she commanded.
"N-no!" Fluttershy shot back firmly.
Twilight held her firm gaze on Fluttershy for several seconds. Both of them were locked in a war of wills. Neither of them blinked, and despite Fluttershy's fear, she held her ground. Twilight held back her magic, she wasn't about to be responsible for Fluttershy's death. Fluttershy may have betrayed her, but she was innocent in her eyes. She didn't deserve to die. Eventually, Twilight relented and lifted her horn away from Fluttershy and Discord.
"Th-thank you..." Fluttershy said softly, still hovering in the air between them.
Twilight looked at her sternly. "You had better explain what is going on, Fluttershy," she quipped.
Fluttershy winced, then slowly flew to the ground. "U-um... well... It-it's kind of... a long story..."
Twilight tilted her head and looked at her sideways. "He's not going to escape, correct?" she asked bitterly.
Fluttershy sighed despondently and looked at the ground, "No..." she said softly.
Twilight tilted her head to the other side, pondering Fluttershy's reaction. She looked passed her and at Discord. She squinted. It felt wrong. Discord was the Inquisitor. But it was wrong. Her senses told her it was wrong. Her senses told her Discord wasn't the Inquisitor. She pulled her head back slightly at that thought. 'You're the only being who can use chaos magic! You have to be the Inquisitor...' She gritted her teeth and met Discord's stone gaze once more. 'You... a victim?' She opened her mouth to say something but thought better of it. 'Tirek... you were a victim, once...' She swallowed and turned her attention back to Fluttershy, then released her hold on her twin blades, which promptly dissipated. "What happened?"
"W-well... you... you remember when Discord disappeared?" Fluttershy looked up from the ground and at Twilight with big, pleading eyes. She was on the verge of tears. Twilight felt her tide of rage dwindle at the sight. Fluttershy truly believed Discord's innocence, unlike her. Twilight nodded but remained silent. "The Inquisitor... he was responsible for it," she said in a whisper.
Twilight squinted at Fluttershy and furrowed her brow. "Fluttershy, that doesn't make sense. I fought the Inquisitor two weeks ago. He wielded chaos magic against me, Fluttershy. Only Discord has that kind of magic! Not even Lord Tirek could use chaos magic when he had Discord's magic. Chaos magic is strictly Discord's magic."
Fluttershy recoiled like Twilight had struck her. The look of betrayal on her face stung Twilight, and it showed. Over the next few seconds, Twilight's expression softened. "Give him a chance, Twilight... please..." Fluttershy meekly asked. Twilight met her gaze and slowly nodded. "The Inquisitor... he... did something to him. He took some of his magic, most of it, and left him here like this..." She swallowed. "I-I've tried to... to get him free, b-but I c-can't..." she sobbed, hanging her head forward. Her gentle pink mane fell forward and hid her face, but Twilight could picture it all the same.
Twilight swallowed. "You want to set him free?" she asked. After a few seconds, Fluttershy slowly lifted her head and looked at her pleadingly while nodding her head and trying to smile. "Do you have proof that he isn't the Inquisitor?" she asked.
"H-he's been here f-for five years, Twilight... I've been here with him for almost three years... never once has he..." her sentence died as more sobs escaped Fluttershy's mouth.
Twilight sighed, then straightened her stance and looked at Discord. 'Well, I guess I was wrong, then, now wasn't I?' she rhetorically asked herself. 'I guess I should not have jumped to conclusions...' It was a bitter pill to swallow, but she forced herself to recognize her error. 'Wait...' She squinted at Fluttershy and scrutinized her. She was Fluttershy, and not an imitation. Her magic told her that much, and she wasn't a threat to her. "How do you know any of this? If Discord is imprisoned in stone again, you shouldn't be able to-"
"H-he... told me..." Fluttershy whispered. She lifted her head and stifled her sobs long enough to continue, "He.. he called out to me, when... when they were killed, Twilight... He told me where he was, and... he gave me some of his magic."
Twilight raised an eyebrow at her story.
"I'm... I'm so, so sorry, Twilight..." Fluttershy said as she lowered her head once more, this time lying down and resting her head on the cave floor. She clenched her eyes shut, but tears still flowed from them like a river. "I-I know how much they meant to you..."
Twilight sighed and shook her head. "Fluttershy, it..." She wanted to say it was fine. She wanted to berate her for not listening to her. She wanted to hug her. She wanted to yell at her for betraying her. She sat down on her haunches, lit her horn and pulled Fluttershy over to her, then wrapped her arms and wings around her, holding her gently in her embrace. "Shh..." she coaxed, "It'll be alright..." Fluttershy wrapped her arms around her barrel and pressed her head into her chest, then her sobbing intensified, despite it being muffled.
For the next hour, the two sat like that, Fluttershy sobbing into Twilight's chest, and Twilight attempting to comfort her and calm her. Eventually Twilight was successful, and Fluttershy's sobs died, but the pain was still there. It took another fifteen minutes for Fluttershy to pull herself away.
"H-how do you do it?" Fluttershy asked. She lifted her head up and looked away from Twilight's chest and met her eyes.
Twilight looked at her quizzically. "Do what?" she asked.
"H-handle... it. Princess Celestia and Pr-Princess Luna are... they're..." Fluttershy swallowed, she couldn't bring herself to say it. It brought on too much pain. Both princesses were her friends, but Twilight had been closer to them than she had ever been. Twilight had known Celestia most of her life, and Fluttershy knew how much Celestia meant to her.
Twilight nodded her head and sighed. "I can't answer that, Fluttershy," she said somberly. "Even if I could, I don't think you would like my answer... I've changed a lot in three years..." she trailed off, grimacing. Some of the changes were for the better, but most weren't.
Fluttershy cracked a smile and let her eyes wonder over Twilight's body. The mare had matured well, and she reminded her of Princess Celestia. She wanted to break down again at the thought, but she tried to look on the bright side of it. "You... look beautiful, Twilight... not that you didn't look beautiful before, I just mean that-"
Twilight smiled, "Thank you, Fluttershy..."
"You look... like her," Fluttershy trailed off, once more lowering her gaze to the floor.
"I've grown and changed a lot, yes... Rainbow Dash says I look like her too," she replied.
Fluttershy perked up at the mention of her long time friend's name. "You... you've talked to Rainbow Dash?" she asked.
Twilight smiled and nodded. "Yes... She's... helping me. I am... currently... Well, It's..." she trailed off, groaning and shaking her head. "You remember that night, correct?" Fluttershy's smile faded. "I teleported to Canterlot immediately after I left. I talked to Princess Celestia and Princess Luna... they didn't believe me either... or maybe they did, I don't know..." she shook her head. "Celestia cast a spell on me, though. As soon as... she and Luna were killed, their magic sought me out. When my brother, sister, and niece were killed-"
Fluttershy looked at her in horror and wrapped her arms around Twilight again. "H-he killed them all!?" she asked, shocked and afraid. Fluttershy's ears fell to the sides of her heads and she clenched her eyes shut as another wave of emotion overtook her.
Twilight wrapped her wings around Fluttershy as the mare held her tighter than before. "Yes..." she said absently. It took two hours for her to calm Fluttershy's sobbing, and to get her to stop apologizing for something that wasn't her fault. Eventually, Fluttershy's cries died down and the mare fell asleep emotionally exhausted. Twilight ran a hoof through Fluttershy's mane and pondered why she fell asleep. After a few seconds, she looked around the room again. There was no sign of a bed or anything, and she sighed at the thought that she had been sleeping on the ground for as long as she had been there. She had no idea how tired Fluttershy was, but she knew that emotions could be very draining, from personal experience. She shifted her weight so that Fluttershy was in a more comfortable position. Twilight was content to sit there with Fluttershy sleeping on her, but she still needed answers. She thought about how to get those answers, 'I could wait for Fluttershy to wake up again, but that could be hours... I could...' she trailed off and looked at Discord's statue. 'Am I going to regret this?' she wondered. She mulled it over for a few seconds, 'No, I'm capable of dealing with this...'
She lit her horn again, then gently levitated Fluttershy off of her. She used her magic to create a plush mattress for the pegasus to lay on, and then gently laid her down on it. She watched Fluttershy sleep for a few minutes before she turned her attention to Discord. "What happened?" she asked. As she expected, there was no response. She re-prepared her spell, then pointed her horn at Discord, and released it.
A bright lavender light filled the room. When it died down, Discord lay in a heap on the floor, with his eyes spinning and his tongue sticking out of his mouth. "Discord?" she asked. While still not entirely trusting him, her senses, the time she had been there in the room with him, and Fluttershy had managed to temper her wrath towards the Spirit of Chaos.
At the sound of his name, Discord blinked, then groaned as he pushed himself up. He rubbed his eyes and looked at Twilight in surprise. For a few seconds, both of them stared at each other, unblinkingly. Discord broke it first, he averted his gaze from her and then searched for Fluttershy. "She's sleeping," Twilight said. Discord smiled and turned back to her. Twilight stepped forwards, "What happened?" she implored.
Discord looked at the ground and sighed. For a few seconds, he looked despondent, then he lifted his head and looked at Twilight with a sharp expression. "That nuisance of a unicorn that you call the Inquisitor stole my magic and trapped me here," he said in disgust.
"I fought him two weeks ago. He used chaos magic. Care to explain that?" she snapped.
"I just told you he stole my magic," he scoffed.
"We both know that you're the only being capable of using chaos magic, Discord," Twilight said threateningly.
Discord's expression softened. "If I could explain it, I would. But I can't."
"You can't?" Twilight questioned, annoyed by Discord's answer. Discord nodded. Twilight closed her eyes and took a deep breath, then slowly exhaled and finally opened her eyes again. "Fluttershy said you told her how to find you and that you gave her some of your magic."
Discord grimaced and nodded. "I felt it, you know... When it happened. Celestia and Luna..." he closed his eyes and clenched his fists. He opened his eyes, and Twilight was surprised to see that he looked like he was fighting back tears. "I... I am so sorry, Twilight. If... If I had known, I would have... prevented this," he ended in a bitter but soft voice. "I... also felt what happened with... Cadance and..." he trailed off and averted his gaze from Twilight.
"I'd rather not talk about that," Twilight said gently.
Discord turned back towards her and flashed her a smile. "If it's any consolation, you do look good now."
"Thank-"
"So how does it feel? Having enough magic to rip reality apart?" Discord asked as he slithered through the air and curled around her neck, then looked her in the eye, pressing his head against hers. "Not that you could rip it apart like I could, but you have potential."
"-you." Twilight shook her head, then levitated him off of her with his magic. She looked him in the eye, "You know what they did?" she asked.
"Oh of course I do," Discord chirped. "I am quite sensitive to things of that nature, remember?"
"Regardless..." Twilight shook her head, then looked around the room again. "How is it light in here?" she asked.
Discord looked towards Fluttershy, and his expression became solemn. "It's her will. She still has some of my magic, and she's been using it to keep it light inside this room ever since she found me..."
Twilight looked at Fluttershy. She furrowed her brow in thought. "Is that how she managed to come... here?" she asked.
Discord nodded. "I... was able to send her some of my magic, so that she could make the journey."
Twilight nodded absently. "The Inquisitor didn't take all of your magic, did he?" Discord shook his head. "How much do you have left?"
Discord looked at her sideways and grinned. "Right now, Fluttershy has more chaos magic than I do."
"Why her?" Twilight asked.
"You know why," Discord answered.
Twilight smiled at him. Discord rolled his eyes and looked back at Fluttershy. "Rainbow Dash was surprised when I told her Fluttershy was able to cross the ocean... and so was I, quite frankly. I guess the chaos magic explains that."
Discord nodded absently. "You didn't answer my question," he stated.
Twilight licked her lips and looked at the ground. After a few seconds, she shook her head. "Having as many issues as I do makes me less capable than you seem to think I am..." She looked up at him. "What am I supposed to do?" she asked. "I'm broken, and I'm sure you can tell that."
"You don't look broken, and you're doing a good job at keeping yourself under control," Discord replied with a smile.
"I lose control all the time. I just... I haven't snapped. I could have killed the Inquisitor. I had the chance, and I should have taken it... but I didn't. I lost control. I let my emotions get the better of me, and I failed."
Discord shook his head and chuckled. "I think you worry too much, Princess."
Twilight looked away from Discord. "I'm not Celestia, and I'm not Luna..." she trailed off, not knowing what else to say.
"You'll do fine, Twilight. Surely Celestia told you that she intended for you to be her successor, right?" Discord asked as he walked over to her and leaned against her.
Twilight watched him and nodded. "She did... But I'm not the same pony that I was three years ago..." She sighed. "I... I wanted to kill Rainbow Dash when I saw her again. I... I almost did kill her. Part of me still wants to, I think. But... I'm so glad I didn't." She took a deep breath and slowly exhaled.
"You didn't, and that's what counts. You controlled yourself," Discord replied.
"I wanted to kill you," Twilight said, smiling at the thought. After a few seconds, the smile left a frown in its wake. "I... I thought you were the Inquisitor... I... knew, that you were him... But I was wrong," she admitted, nodding her head. "I was wrong," she repeated.
"Oh, Twilight," Discord shook his head dismissively. "Everypony makes mistakes, and you will too."
"I can't... afford to, though," Twilight replied through clenched teeth. "If I do, I could die. And if I died, the Inquisitor would win, and..." she trailed off. "So many would die..." She swallowed, then continued, "And what if I snap? How many would I kill?"
"Princess Celestia has complete faith in you, Twilight," Discord stated.
"And look where that got her. She's dead now," Twilight replied gravely.
"You're her legacy," Discord countered. "You will live up to her, and then some." Discord smiled, then stood up and walked over to Fluttershy. "I could feel how much you wanted to kill me, Twilight. Despite that, you didn't," he said nonchalantly. Twilight looked away from him. "I think you'll do fine," he said happily. Twilight looked back at him, only to find him lying with Fluttershy, curled around the mare, stifling a yawn.
Twilight regarded the sight suspiciously. "You're tired?" she asked.
Discord lifted his head from Fluttershy and looked at Twilight evenly. "I haven't slept for five years, you'll have to forgive me if I want to take a short nap before continuing our conversation."
Twilight raised an eyebrow at him, not buying his explanation. "You were sealed in a stone prison for how many thousands of years before?"
"I don't have a lot of strength right now, Twilight," Discord finally admitted. Twilight's expression softened and she nodded in understanding. Discord hesitated for a second, then laid his head down beside Fluttershy's head and closed his eyes as he pulled Fluttershy close to him.
Twilight smiled and shook her head. "Sleep well, my little ponies..." she trailed off and turned around.
"I'm a draconequus, not a pony. Ugh..." Discord groaned.
Twilight didn't reply. Instead, she walked back out of the cave.
Fluttershy stifled a yawn as she started to wake. She nestled back into the comfort of the bed and Discord's embrace, unaware of either, but knowing that she was content. It took her a few seconds to grow curious about why she felt so comfortable. She remembered Twilight showing up, talking to her for a while, and... crying into her. She tentatively opened an eye and looked across the room. She felt panic as her eyes scanned the room for Discord. She didn't see him anywhere.
Fluttershy struggled out of whatever was holding her, eliciting a familiar groan from it. She paid it no mind and shot up, looking around the room, trying to find Discord. He had to be there, Twilight wouldn't have abused her trust like that. The statue was gone, and there wasn't even dust or debris left where it had been standing. Her heart ached, and she felt like she was going to breakdown. "N-no..." she whispered. Her wingbeats slowed down and she found herself on the cave floor, lifting a hoof to cover her mouth. "T-Twilight... wh-why?" she asked.
"Fluttershy..?" Discord mumbled as he pushed himself up.
Fluttershy turned around at a speed that put Pinkie Pie to shame, then tackled Discord quicker than Rainbow could have imagined. "Discord!" Fluttershy all but screamed in joy. Discord reeled from the shock of her embrace and found himself almost gasping for air. It felt like Fluttershy was trying to squeeze him into two pieces, but he found that he enjoyed it, if only for being able to hold Fluttershy again. "I-I missed you s-so much..." she sobbed as she pressed her head into his chest.
Discord pushed himself back up off of the bed and held Fluttershy tightly to his chest. "I missed you too, Fluttershy..." he trailed off, closing his eyes and resting his head against Fluttershy's head.
"H-how?" Fluttershy sobbed out.
"Twilight freed me," he answered, unable to contain a smile. Fluttershy nuzzled his chest, and he returned the gesture, nuzzling her neck.
"I-I thought... she was going t-to.." Fluttershy trailed off, clenching her eyes shut.
"Shh..." Discord cooed. "It's fine... She's a smart mare..."
"W-where... where is she?" Fluttershy asked.
Discord opened his eyes and scanned the room for any sign of Twilight, but found none. "I don't know... but I imagine she is close by," he answered.
As if on cue, Twilight calmly walked into the room, smiling at them. That didn't draw Discord's attention as much as the state of her mane and tail did. "Sleep well?" she asked.
Fluttershy pried her head away from Discord at the sound of Twilight's voice. She met Twilight's gaze and smiled. "Thank you..." she said, then laid her head back against Discord's chest. Twilight nodded, and Fluttershy sighed. It took her a few seconds to remember what Twilight looked like. Fluttershy turned back towards Twilight and her jaw parted. "T-Twilight... y-your mane..." she said in a hushed voice, entranced by the beauty of her flowing mane.
Twilight nodded. "It's... a long story... But... I think I can shorten it if you'd like?" she asked. Fluttershy nodded. "Well," Twilight started. Discord sat down but still held on to Fluttershy, like he was afraid to let her go. Twilight mulled over the sight for a few seconds. It made her smile, and it reminded her of herself. 'I know why you're doing that, but...' She shook her head. "I suppose the shortest version I can give you is that I now have the magic of six ponies, Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, my sister, my brother, my niece, and my own magic. I recently took control of the sun and moon from the Inquisitor's council, and since then, whenever it is night, my mane and tail are like... this..." she motioned at her mane with a hoof. "I also have some of their memories, and I have their special talents," she added. "And I've grown. A lot..." she shifted her weight. "Questions?" she asked.
Fluttershy didn't know where to start. After a few seconds, she finally spoke, "Why... are you here?" she asked. "How did... you know where I was?"
Twilight lit her horn. There was a flash of lavender magic, and when the light died down, the Elements of Harmony were held in Twilight's magic, and she was smiling. "I tracked you down with your Element," Twilight answered as she levitated the gem out to Fluttershy. "Though..." she looked at Discord, "I did not expect to find you... here." Discord looked at her wryly. "As to why... I am here, I was looking for you, Fluttershy." Twilight looked back at her and smiled warmly.
"You were looking for me? W-why?" Fluttershy asked.
Twilight sighed. "That... is another long story..." she trailed off. "You're my friend... When you all... betrayed me, it... it hurt. I... wanted to..." she trailed off and shook her head, she didn't need to tell Fluttershy that. "I found Rainbow Dash a little over four weeks ago. The Inquisitor wanted her to find me and convince me to surrender. Needless to say, I didn't. I saved her life from some wolves, then... sort of took her prisoner. Of course, after that happened, I knew it was a matter of time until more of his soldiers found me, so I decided to speed up my plans to..." Twilight paused and steeled her resolve. "To kill him, and make Equestria my own..." She gauged Fluttershy's reaction, and to her surprise, Fluttershy didn't seem horrified. She pushed it aside and continued, "Along the way, I ran into some scouts, and took one of the unicorns with me... Then two weeks later, we went to Canterlot and I tried to kill the Inquisitor. I lost control and failed, and he almost killed me in the process." Fluttershy closed her eyes at that. "Afterward, I... teleported... the three of us away, and since then I've been recovering and... realizing that I'm not as sane as I was three years ago and that I need help."
Discord looked at her quizzically. "Not as sane as you were three years ago?" he asked. Twilight sighed and met his gaze, expecting him to scoff at that. "I'm assuming that has something to do with the spell Celestia used on you, considering that I know what it did."
Twilight nodded. "Yes," she said simply.
"And you want... us to help you?" Fluttershy asked.
"I just... want you to be close. I needed to know that you were okay, Fluttershy... I had no idea where you were, or what had happened to you. I wanted you to be safe, and I want to keep you safe..." Twilight answered. She looked down at the floor. "So far as the help goes... Having friends seems to help me." She looked back up. "I want to bring you back with me," she said. "I can protect you both. Once I deal with the Inquisitor, Equestria will be mine, and... while I will be... very, very busy for... several years, I would appreciate it if you were there for me."
Fluttershy smiled brightly, then looked at Discord pleadingly. Discord smiled at her. Fluttershy turned back towards Twilight and nodded, "We'll... come back with you. It's... it's been so long since... I've talked to anypony other than Discord... I... want to see them again. How.. are they doing?" she asked.
Twilight swallowed. "Well, Rainbow is... she's... she's... okay... Rarity is... in Manehatoon, and I've heard she's doing good. Spike is with Rarity, and he's doing good. He used to communicate with Princess Ember regularly, but I don't know if that's the case now... Applejack... I don't really know how she's doing... I have no idea what happened to Pinkie... so I need to find her... Starlight's in Canterlot, she's on the council that used to move the sun and moon... I... don't know if she's still in Canterlot now, though..." she furrowed her brow in thought. "I kind of put them out of a job... but I would think they'd still be in Canterlot."
"O-oh..." was all Fluttershy could say.
Twilight shook her head, then glanced around the room again. "Either of you... know what this place is?" she asked.
Discord and Fluttershy shared a curious glance, then looked at Twilight. "What do you mean?" Fluttershy asked.
Twilight walked over to a wall and put her hoof on it, then slowly dragged it down, noting the texture of the stone. "This cave has to be artificial in nature, it's too smooth to be natural..."
"The cave was already here when I got here," Discord commented dissmissively.
Twilight brought her hoof back to the ground, then turned towards Discord. "Speaking of that... what were you doing here?" she asked quizzically.
"Well, I was investigating a magical imbalance. When I got here, I found that infernal unicorn... He was using dark magic. Some spell I hadn't seen before. When I inquired about the nature of the spell, he attacked me. I, being me, of course, used my magic to defeat the spell. But it didn't affect the spell, and then it hit me and... you know the rest," Discord explained casually.
Twilight squinted at him and pulled away from the wall. "A dark magic spell that... resisted chaos magic and turned you into stone?" she asked. "That... that spell doesn't exist," Twilight said. "I studied every dark magic spellbook I could get my hooves on while I was in exile, never once did I find a spell that would resist chaos magic."
Discord shrugged. "I didn't think that was possible either, but I distinctly remember that being how it happened."
Twilight frowned in thought, then lit her horn and walked over to Discord. "If I may?" she asked.
Discord looked at her wearily. "What?" he asked.
"I want to check your memories," Twilight stated. "Rainbow's memories had been manipulated..."
Discord batted a claw at her and broke out into laughter. "Oh, Twilight! Good one, a unicorn managing to manipulate my memories!" His laughter stopped, and his amused expression was replaced by a cold glare. "What a laugh," he said dryly.
"Humor me," Twilight commanded.
"Bah! Fine. But no snooping around, okay?" Discord turned away from her and folded his arms while lowering his head so that it was level with her own head.
"You have my word that I will not look around anywhere but that event five years ago... But it will go easier if you think about it and open your mind to me," she replied.
Discord groaned. "Fine, fine... But, don't say I didn't warn you... You know who I am, and you're risking your sanity by looking into my mind..." He smiled at her.
Twilight tilted her head away from his and squinted at him. "I just want to see your memory, not..." She shook her head. Twilight took a deep breath, then lowered her head and cast her spell on Discord. Immediately she recoiled, then fought through vertigo and managed to focus on her task. After a few minutes of searching that felt like several eternities, of which each was more confusing than the last, she finally found the memory she was looking for. Instead of viewing the memory, she scrutinized it with her magic and examined it.
The feedback was overwhelming, and she had to shut her eyes to process the sheer number of links. There had to have been thousands of them, and each one made less sense than the last. She grunted, knowing it would take her years, if not centuries to try to understand Discord. After a few minutes, she realized the hopelessness of her situation, then switched tactics, looking for links that weren't chaotic, links that made sense.
She found less than twenty links that made sense, and each one was linked to a memory that made no sense. It gave her a headache. She couldn't even tell if the memory was accurate or if it had been manipulated. She tried examining one of the links itself. It took her several minutes to decide that the link was natural, then she went on to the next link. It felt completely different from the last. After a few minutes, she grimaced and moved on to another, which again felt completely different from the previous two. She cut the magic to the spell and depowered her horn, then opened her eyes and sharply inhaled.
"Well?" Discord asked expectantly. He wasn't even trying to hide his smirk.
Twilight closed her eyes and let her breathing stabilize over the next minute. Finally, she opened her eyes and met Discord's gaze. "If I ever suggest doing that again... don't let me."
Discord smiled sheepishly and chuckled.
"What did you find?" Fluttershy asked.
Twilight looked at her, opened her mouth to speak, and then shook her head. "Just..." she shook her head more intensely. "Can we leave?" she asked. "Originally I had planned to visit Rarity and Applejack, and then find Pinkie Pie... but now I'm... concerned." She turned to Discord. "You're not the Inquisitor, and he managed to imprison you in stone. He nearly killed me once before, and I'm worried. I'm probably being rash, but I think I need to talk to Starlight Glimmer about this development. Maybe she'll know more about it." She frowned as she considered her options.
"Um... are you sure that's a good idea?" Fluttershy asked, drawing Twilight's gaze back to her. "I mean... you said she was on the council that used to move the sun and moon, and that you put her out of a job..."
Twilight smiled. "She'll help me," she said simply. "A lot can happen in three years, but I know she will help me..."
Fluttershy tentatively nodded. "You're probably right, but... what if she doesn't?"
Twilight stopped smiling. "Well... if she doesn't, there's a reason I'm going alone..." she trailed off, letting the words hang in the air. After a few seconds, she shook her head sharply. "Come on, Rainbow will be happy to see you... and I think you'll like my new student... Her name's Zenith Star..." she trailed off and turned around while channeling more magic into her horn.
"U-um..." Fluttershy started, glancing at Discord. "Twilight, d-do you think we can... stay here for another day? I-I mean, if that's okay..." she trailed off softly. The aura surrounding Twilight's horn died, and she turned around and looked at her quizzically. "I-I mean... I... you just freed Discord... And... well, maybe it'd be better if we rest for another day before leaving?"
Twilight pursed her lips and thought it over. "I... I can allow this," she said gently. "Rainbow and Zenith should be fine... and I could use some rest... I am still recovering from my battle with... with him."