//------------------------------// // Memory // Story: Stolen Memories // by ShootingStar81 //------------------------------// Silence. It was a disquieting feeling, were one to actually be there. A silence so utterly complete, one could hear their own breath, listen to their heartbeat when it would otherwise be unheard. Even the dust settled upon the air before it was shifted about at the slightest gust, even the tiniest of motions. Time itself seemed as if to pause here, having forgotten it's passing in such a forlorn place. Slowly but surely, one could feel a thrum in the air. It was not something that could be heard, or truly felt. It was the illusion of a feeling, created by a mind that was brushed by the touch of magic, hovering on the very edge of perception. Since magic was connected to the deep emotions of the world, love and hate, sorrow and joy, sensing it's presence tended to lend those emotions, depending on the magic's purpose. It was with this in mind that one could feel something that had become commonplace in the recent events across Equestria. Emptiness From the shadows that swallowed the expansive locale like a hungry fish devours a worm emerged a solitary figure, a pony, to be precise., this one being adorned in resplendent armor. Though it had dulled with the appearance of age, it was clear it had been lovingly crafted, intricate patterns and designs lacing it's entire form. Most of this pony's body was hidden by the armor's thorough coverage, revealing very little of it's wearer's features, save for piercing green eyes that focused intently on something before them. As the thrum of magic began to fade from the air, a dull glow lit the center of an immense chamber, so large, in fact, that the light issuing forth failed to reach it's outer limits. As it dimmed like a dying star, one could make out a crystalline ball, not unlike a snow-globe in appearance, but with shockingly impressive details. Within this particular one was nothing less than what appeared to be a life-like copy of the Crystal Empire, beautiful beyond expression, forever suspended in it's utter perfection. Green eyes narrowed intently as they focused on the orb itself, seeming as if to stare through it. Slowly the pony's hardened expression began to soften, an almost wistful look coming to what features could be seen beneath their helmet. Images tugged at the corner of their mind, the way one might struggle to recall something, like a distant memory, only to have it continually slip just out of reach. Closing their eyes, the pony seemed as if to concentrate with all their might, struggling to catch hold of just one of these images. A sharp intake of breath broke the silence, sounding almost like a strike of thunder against the imposing stillness that permeated the chamber. Eyes went wide with a mixture of fear and awe as their mind lit up with color and sound, a myriad of images flashing through their mind. They opened their mouth, even worked their tongue as if to speak, but no words came forth. It was as though they had fallen into a fathomless lake, struggling for air yet unable to find it as memory rushed back in a torrent so great it brought them to their knees. I...I...remember... ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ It was...eerily clear that day. Like a sense of foreboding hung on the air, grasping at the very edge of my senses, but easily overlooked. The skies were clear, and given the late spring season, the flowers were even in bloom. As the sunlight struck the structures in our crystal city, it cast brilliant rays of light of every color and form, lighting our city in a splendor few can imagine, and fewer still can match. Of course, I had little mind for such things, for as vigilant as I was, it was easy to understand how I could have overlooked the finer details, not to mention that sense that eluded me at the time. It was always easy to miss such things...when she was here. I was...a royal guard. Captain of the guard, to be exact. I had been elevated to the status soon after the Crystal Empire was founded, when we returned with the Crystal Heart. The ponies had something to rally behind, a purpose, a greater calling. It drove us on to be more than we once were, and my heart swelled with pride to know I had been a part of it. However, more than pride, I felt love. Love unlike any I had ever felt before. True, to be touched by the Crystal Heart itself is to feel a connection to all ponies it touches, a kind of love that takes your breath away and leaves you gasping for more, even as you struggle to make sense of it...but this? This was more. She was...well, I would say beautiful, but no word I know could describe it. Emberheart was everything one could want in a mare. Of course, the shallow became enamored of her outer beauty, which she did have, to be sure. I had seen that all along; we grew up together! She had a coat the color of the most azure waters you could imagine. Her mane was like gold, as if it had been kissed by the sun, and shone with such radiance that I would have believed such a thing had she claimed it. to be so. Her eyes were the deepest violet you could imagine, like amethysts yet undiscovered beneath the mountains, untouched...unblemished. She was perfection to behold by the naked eye, and most would have loved her merely for that...but once again, I knew her for more. She had a heart that burned with love and kindness, charity and devotion. So fierce was this that it had even been what earned her the cutie mark she had become known for; a ruby heart emblazoned with wings of flame. I once told her, upon seeing it, that my heart could soar on passion's wings simply by knowing her. She just smiled and shook her head as sweetly as she every did. That was her way...kind, sweet, caring. She loved the ponies so intensely that she sought out the Crystal Heart when Sombra made mention of it and it's power, that it could use our love to strengthen our people, our bonds, and perhaps do the same for all of the world. Sombra...to even think that name leaves a bitter taste in my mouth that refuses to be subdued. He was...no, IS a unicorn of remarkable power and skill. He was once one of us, though now I am unsure if he was every truly one in heart and soul. He seemed to be, showing the same care and consideration as Emberheart herself. He did much to direct her to great ends. Discovering the Crystal Heart, learning it's abilities, even founding our great empire. He was even first to voice the idea that Emberheart should become our queen. That had been a tragic moment for me. She would make such a queen as to be the envy of all of the world, but...it would also mean I could lose her forever. I could not bear such a thought, for you see... I loved her. With every inch of my heart, I loved her. Things changed at a meteoric rate after that. The empire itself was founded, and Emberheart was chosen to be our queen. I don't think she truly desired to be, but she wanted the ponies to be happy. That was always her way. She always wanted to be there for the ponies, and so she silently agreed to the status. I was crestfallen, knowing that her newfound position in the empire would be an impossible void between us, and in desperation, I sought a way to still be close to her. It is why I applied to become one of the royal guards. Imagine how I felt when I not only became a guard, but the guard captain. I couldn't help but think she had a hoof in that, and it made my heart soar, to believe she could care about me in turn. Dark times followed after the first few months. Sombra, initially her advisor in all things magic, became more brooding as they days drew ever on. When confronted about it, he was always evasive, answering questions as if they were riddles, giving half-answers that didn't truly address the questions you asked. Not long afterwards, he disappeared entirely, for reason we didn't yet know. Emberheart instructed us to remain vigilant for his return, and so I was sure to keep several of the guards on the lookout for him. Of course, I had no idea just how terrible his return was going to be...and what it would cost us. It was that very same day, where this story started, with the foreboding feeling I had easily overlooked. I was foolish, blind...and it cost us, cost HER dearly. So enamored of Emberheart was I that I overlooked the signs that day until it was too late. I had spent most of the day talking to her. Just...talking, like we hadn't done in a great while. It had been such a welcome change over the usual rigor of royal duties that I had become lost in conversation, or perhaps, lost in her eyes. I cannot wholly remember, but I do remember what happened next. Nightmane burst into the throne room unannounced, and with such fear writ upon his face that I didn't immediately scold him for the brash intrusion. He spoke gibberish at first, both trying to talk too quickly and winded beyond measure. Needless to say, we were confused until he had calmed enough to better explain it; Sombra had returned, and was laying siege to the empire! According to Nightmane, the city was surrounded by shadow, and Sombra himself marched upon the palace unimpeded. The guards were proving ineffectual at slowing him, which only alluded to the power he had gained. I quickly began to organize a defense, with the purpose of covering for Emberheart's escape. My blood ran cold that day, when she refused to simply be whisked away. I should have known...her love for the ponies was so great that she would never abandon them. Her fate would be the same as theirs, and though I loved her for it, I feared I would be unable to stop Sombra. Magic was a terrifying force on a good day, but in the hooves of one such as he? I shuddered to think of what he was capable of. My only hope was what Abacus had taught me, about true magic and the strength of the Crystal Heart. I hoped it was enough even as he assaulted the palace itself. He spared little time in breaking our defenses. None could stand before him, and even I began to fear the power he had come to wield. He was strong before, but now? It seemed as nothing could slow him, or so much as give him pause. He was upon us in minutes, shattering the throne room doors like so much glass, leaving only our elite guard between him and the conquest of the empire. I could see it on his face just then, that smug certainty that the day was already his. I cannot say why, but that enraged me more than anything should have, and I barked out the order to attack even as I charged into the fray, my lance at the ready. They were cast aside as a heavy boulder parts water that crashes against it, sending my best guards sprawling across the chamber. I leveled my lance at him and readied for what was to come, focusing inward in hopes that I could draw on whatever power it was Abacus had tried to explain to me. Imagine my surprise when Sombra failed to cast me aside moments later...or, perhaps, his own when he realized he couldn't. For but an instant, fear gripped at his heart, and I roared like a manticore as I struck at him. He stepped to the side just in time to avoid my killing strike, but I wounded him, even badly damaged his armor, just before I wheeled around to deliver as powerful a kick to his head as I could muster from my hind legs. Staggering back, Sombra was clearly dazed, clearly unprepared for a pony that could combat his magic. Little did I realize that I had still lost. That fear in his eyes was replaced by a hatred I'd never seen before, never even imagined when he glared at me. I could almost feel my soul wither before such a piercing gaze, but I tried to fight. However, when next his horn glowed, I was powerless against him as he hurled me back, slamming me to the floor with such force that the crystal itself cracked. I felt the wind knocked from my lungs, my lance separated from my armor as it slid across the chamber, out of my reach. I struggled to get upright even as every muscle in me ached, but he was on me in a flash. With eyes that glowed an intense, angry red, he glowered at me. Though I felt my resolve withering before his hate, I snarled back at him, defiant to the end. That was going to cost me, or so I discovered. With enough force to light my vision up with colored sparks, he struck my face, the motion of his blow knocking my helmet off. I even heard Emberheart gasp at the strike, which only steeled my resolve. I even managed to spit in his face despite the pain in my own, but he didn't seem to notice or care. That actually unnerved me more than anything. When next he brought his hoof up, he had a crystal so black it seemed as if to rob light from the very air. "Let this remind you of the cost of your defiance," he muttered to me as he pushed a jagged edge against my face. Starting above my right eyebrow, he carved a long, crescent cut around my cheek and jaw line, a wound deep enough to scar visibly. I clenched my teeth against the pain, and even managed not to cry out in pain. I wasn't going to give him the satisfaction, and I didn't want to break in front of her...not in front of Emberheart. Of course, my silence only seemed to anger him further; he eventually threw the crystal aside, drew his foreleg back and struck me across the face once more. I managed one last look at her before it came to an end. Emberheart...my beautiful queen. She looked so crestfallen just then that I felt my own heart sink, and what was worse was that HE saw it. He saw me look at her, and his lips curled into a most vicious grin. Those last words echo in my mind whenever I close my eyes... "You think you've won some little victory today? You think what you've tried here will reflect upon you in any light? Darkness claims us all, just as it will claim you." Then, he touched that accursed horn of his to my forehead, and I could feel it...pulling. "Love is a memory and nothing more. I can strip you of it as easily as I have cast aside your defenses. You will serve as a reminder to the rest...a reminder of the price of defiance." He grinned in such a way as to send chills up my spine, even as I felt myself being torn away. "Darkness take you!" I glanced once more upon the face of my beloved Emberheart, only to see that she had bowed her own head in defeat. I had failed her, failed the empire, and what's more, I had no idea what Sombra was planning to do now. I soon discovered it would not matter. Mere moments later there was nothing. I felt...empty inside... ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Slowly life returned to the features of the armored pony as they began to blink, what little light was to be found casting deep shadows on their pallid face. Slowly they brought a hoof up, removing their helmet with slow purpose, allowing their gray mane to spill out from beneath it. Rust-colored features made the majority of his coat, save for a lengthy scar that formed a crescent on the right side of his face. Glistening in the light, a single tear rolled down his cheek as he stared intently at the small globe that held the Crystal Empire. He stole them from me. My memories...my life...my love... Gazing for a long while at the globe, he seemed as if lost in deep thought, eyes refusing to budge as he clung to ghosts of memories brought back by the sight of the empire. Eventually, he brought his hoof back up, slowly adorning himself with his helm once more as his expression returned to a more somber state. Once his hooves were free again, he gently took the crystal globe in hoof, making his way to the outer reaches of the massive chamber, toward one of many pedestals that lined it's furthest walls, just out of the light's reach. Gingerly setting it upon the pedestal, he gave the globe a final, longing look before he turned back, slowly moving away from the pedestal as he murmured something softly under his breath. "Never again. Never again..."