Darkness within the Twilight

by Mordy

Prologue: A Somber Meeting

Darkness. An endless void of nothingness. This abyss was without warmth or comfort. It was empty, cold, and without a sense of hope. Yet for the lavender alicorn that walked methodically through this empty and barren plane, it wasn’t any of that. She looked upon it and thought differently; calm, soothing, peaceful, and strangely relaxing.

Princess Twilight Sparkle had been in dark places before, but none of those times ever brought such feelings to her senses. Here however, she felt almost right at home. As if she had been here before, but she dismissed that idea, as how could an empty plane be recognizable?

Unfortunately, even with the feeling of ease, it did not mean she was without worry. Being lost and alone in some random dark void wasn’t exactly the best position to be in. So, she did the only reasonable thing she could think of, call out for somepony to help her.

“Hello?” Her voice echoed around her like she had spoken into the cavernous maw of an Ursa Major’s cave. Her ears perked up as her voice carried around her and her shoulders sagged with the weight of her pink and yellow coronation dress. The element of magic began to feel heavier upon her brow as loneliness began to descend upon the princess.
She kept walking forward as her golden hoof slippers clipped clopped off the floor. After a moment she tried to examine said floor, but closer inspection revealed; well nothing. She could see her hooves plain as day, but the ground was indistinguishable from any kind of recognizable terrain. With a sigh she voiced her foremost thought in hope that some revelation would come to her, “Where am I?”

Though the dark didn’t answer her question; remain silent it did not. Twilight squinted her eyes as she thought she saw and heard movement from within the abyss. She frantically turned her head this way and that trying to track the movement of her invisible guest or possibly host. Her efforts were fruitless and with an annoyed tone she called out, “Who are you?”

She listened closely as her ears swiveled and realized that the movement had completely ceased. This was most certainly not a good sign, but that didn’t deter her. With a deep breath to calm her nerves she shouted with all the dignity and authority a new princess could muster, “Show yourself!”

The entity started to move again and when she heard a voice speak from behind her she grew a little worried that somepony was able to get that close to her without her sensing them. Strangely enough she didn’t feel threatened, even if the voice was sinister.

“AH HA HA… at last we meet face to face….” Twilight turned her head slightly to face her assumed host and was greeted by green eyes with dragon like pupils and irises of a dark red as he finished speaking, “…Twilight Sparkle,” King Sombra stepped out of the darkness. His eyes were leaking a magical purple mist, as though his very being was overflowing with magic. It seemed to be a common side effect to those who dipped into dark magic, something Twilight was familiar with.

The dark gray unicorn was whole instead of a shadow like he had been when Twilight first caught a glimpse of him back at the Crystal Empire. He proudly wore his armor and crown and she couldn’t help, but stare at his smooth and curved horn. She wondered for a moment if that was another “perk” of his dark magic’s or if he had merely been born that way. Regardless, realizing who was in front of her made her scowl, “What do you want, Sombra? And that’s Princess Twilight Sparkle to you!” She decided to add that last part trying to get the message across that she was not to be trifled with.

She continued to stand firm and glare at him even as he casually strolled up alongside her with a bit of boredom and aloofness. There weren’t any threatening motions in his gait as he approached, “Ah yesss… my apologies, I wasn’t invited to your… coronation,” He looked her up and down, barely taking in her features as Twilight retained her scowl, “I must say, you wear your new wings well,” He complimented, but his sincerity was questionable.

When he was finally standing side by side with her there was a bit disappointment on his face. It seemed like he was looking at something tragic and he voiced his thoughts to her, “Although, your new title is hardly befitting somepony of your stature.”

Twilight leaned away from him, more out of suspicion than fear. He was currently breaching her comfort zone and she leered over at him, “What’s that supposed to mean?” Her tone was very distinct of her distaste for him.

Sombra seemed to catch the hint and for a moment seemed to be sincere in his following apology or at least act it, “Oh, I meant no offense, my dear! I simply have to ask,” He paused for a moment to lift up his hoof, “Why be a princess…” a glowing ball of sickly green appeared in his hoof as a purple flame erupted around it and within this flame a dark silver crown with a very familiar six pointed pink star as its center piece at the head, “…When you could be a queen?”

Twilight was flabbergasted by the unexpected compliment and suggestion, “Wh-What?” She stared at the crown with her mouth agape. If somepony had told her a few days earlier she would be a princess, she would have thought they were crazy. If they had told her she was capable of becoming a queen though, her mind wouldn’t have even been able to comprehend the very notion of it.

Me, a queen? I couldn’t… Twilight’s mind raced at the thought. I mean, maybe, but I’m not ready for that. I’m not ready to rule, though Celestia seems to think I’m capable. If I read the right books I might be able to do it, but would being a queen make me evil? No, I guess it would mean I’d have more control over the kingdom. How would I even become a queen? She looked at the way Sombra was holding the crown and her mind jumped to a hasty conclusion. Wait, is he proposing to me?! He’s a king or was a king. Is he still a king? I guess marrying him would make me technically a queen, but I’m not ready for marriage! I haven’t even dated! Do you even need to be married to be a queen? I don’t want to marry Sombra! He’s evil and just so… so… old….

Sombra began to speak, completely ignorant of Twilight’s thoughts, “Back at my castle, when you first used dark magic… you took to it like a fish to water. But you’ve barely scratched the surface. There is so much more you do not know!”

Oh no, he’s about to propose. What do I say, what do I do? Twilight’s eyes were wide as dinner plates and to Sombra he merely thought he had her undivided attention.

He put on a cocky smile as he lazily looked over to the magically floating crown in his hoof, “But I know. I could teach you magic even Celestia cannot hope to control.”

Oh, thank Celestia and Luna! I thought he was about to ask me to marry… wait a second why does this sound familiar? I feel like I’ve heard this speech before. A quick realization put her thoughts back on track. Oh no, he’s not going to really start that old spiel is he?

“It’s funny; we’re not so different, you and I.”

Twilights bent her ears back and tried not to grown. Oh, he is. I can’t bear to listen to this.

“We both…“ He was quickly interrupted and he looked very peeved that his monologue was halted.

“Stop right there, Sombra!” Twilight shouted sternly as she went back to glaring at the unicorn king.

“What?” The irritation in his tone was very clear. It was just bad manners to interrupt a villain in the middle of a monologue. You don’t do that unless they’re at least half way through or if it is an emergency, like the hero escaping.

Twilight pointed an accusing hoof at him, “I’ve heard this bit a hundred times in a hundred stories!” She was really glad she wouldn’t have to suffer though such an overused villain rant. The fact he even got out such an overdone line to try and compare himself to her already had Twilight beyond irritated, “You’re gonna say we’re not ‘Not so different,’ rattle off a bunch of traits you think we share, and try to convince me to join your side!”

She stood up with all the dignity she could muster and motioned to herself, “Well, let me tell you, ‘Your Highness’, we are nothing alike!” As she spoke her confidence and voice grew louder, “I earned my friends, my wings, and my crown!” She started to even get angry as she spoke, “You took your throne by force and enslaved other ponies for your own selfish gain!”

Twilight stomped right up to him and stared right into his eyes completely ignoring the floating crown, “I got to where I am through love and friendship!” She lightly slammed her hoof accusingly against his metal chest plate, her gold slipper making a slight clinging sound as it pushed against his armor, “You tried to get there through fear and violence, and you were defeated for it!” She gave a little sneer and decided to rub salt into the wound, “Twice!”

Sombra face remained indifferent as she retracted her hoof and closed her eyes for a moment trying to calm down as she continued to speak, “You are not my equal. You’re not even a real king,” She then made the final verbal slap to his face, “You’re just a clichéd bad guy straight out of a mediocre fantasy book.”

For a moment Sombra just frowned and looked at her with pity. Not quite the reaction Twilight had been expecting. The crown with her cutie mark emblazoned onto it popped out of existence without even a glance from the insulted king. He spoke very calmly to her, “So, I’m just a ‘clichéd bad guy’, eh?”

He looked away from her in thought, “From a ‘mediocre fantasy book’?” For a moment Twilight felt a bit of guilt, thinking she had actually hurt his feelings. That was, till he spoke up again, Dark purple energy suddenly bubbled around his horn and his eyes glowed completely green, “…a PLOT TWIST!”

From around Twilight dark, glowing purple tentacles erupted from the ground, surrounding her. She jerked her head around to look at them, her eyes wide with fear and her new wings flared instinctively. However, her reaction time was far too slow. The tentacles in front of her snatched at her fore hooves as she reared back, pulling her back to the ground and making her lose one of her golden slippers. Next, one of her wings became entangled and though she tugged and pulled with her feathery limb, but the constricting tentacle refused to let go.

She saw more tendrils appear as one shot toward her face and wrapped itself around her neck, choking off her supply of air. She gasped and gagged, desperately for even the slightest breath. With all her might, Twilight struggled against the onslaught, but more tentacles kept emerging, ripping away her coronation dress and keeping her bound.

Sombra let off a deep sinister laugh as he cockily marched over to the constricted princess, “Final chapter, Scene One,” he taunted her as he got closer, “The big, bad villain kills the plucky young protagonist,” Twilight continued her struggle, but with each passing second her strength waned and Sombra kept up his speech, “Fade to black.”

She looked pleadingly at him for mercy. Anything at all. Hoping for some small amount of goodness in the old unicorn's blackened heart, but she realized she would find none as her vision began to fade and he spoke his next words, “End scene.”

Twilight started to cry, from the pain, from the thought of dying, and from the fact she was all alone. Her mind screamed for her to resist, to struggle, but her body lacked the energy to continue. She could barely register and focus on what Sombra was even saying as he got right up into her face, “How’s that for a change of pace… princess?”

Twilight closed her eyes in defeat, tears pouring out of her as she seemed to resign to her fate. She was about to lose everything. All that she had worked for and gained would amount to nothing. She would disappoint and bring her friends and loved ones a terrible sorrow from her sudden departure. That very thought tore her heart asunder.

I don’t want to die…

Then why are you fighting it?

Fighting what?

The pain, the fear, the end, the fury, the sorrow. You deny those feelings or you let them rule you, but if you embrace them you could have anything! They can give you strength beyond measure.

They can?

Yes, all you must do is accept and acknowledge them then ask yourself, “What do you want?”

I want… to live.

What else?

I want to see me friends again.

Good, and what do you want of our terrible host?

I want… I want…

Yes?

I want him to… SUFFER!

Twilight’s eyes shot right open, glowing completely pink as a dark purple mist erupted from the sides of her eyes, very similar to the way Sombra’s did. Magic began to overflow from her as she gritted her teeth and her horn was illuminated in a dark violet aura.

The purple tentacles began to shift in color to a bright pink and loosen their grip upon Twilight. The one around her neck was the first to let go, allowing her to take a deep breath of air as she was completely released.

Her wings flared as she hovered in the air and stared menacingly at the unicorn king with her new pink tentacles poised to strike their former master. Sombra had barely anytime to react as the tendrils lashed out at him. He barely managed to take a step back before they all struck, one of them snapping like a whip against his right eye.

Sombra landed indignantly face first into the ground of the endless dark plane while Twilight landed with all the grace of a princess as she dismissed her dark tendrils. Each one of the pink tentacles bubbled and melted away from existence and one gave a slight goodbye wave as if faded into nothing.

The dark magical mist faded away behind Twilights closed eyes and as it did she collapsed the floor. She was exhausted and looked like a wreck. Her dress was ruined and her mane was such a disaster that it would make Rarity faint. She took deep, greedy breaths of air trying to regain her stamina.

To her dismay she heard King Sombra stir, groaning in pain as he struggled to get back up from her recent attack. A hiss escaped from his lips and when he turned his head to her they both took noticed to the large scar that ran vertically across his eye, practically blinding it.

Twilight expected him to be enraged, but then he started to chuckle and gave a sly toothy grin in her direction, “What did I tell you, princess?” His sadistic smile seemed to get even wider, “Not. So. Different.”

Twilight just stared back at him because truthfully, she didn’t know what to think…