Winter in the Crystal Empire was, and would always be, a sight to behold. Entire armies of snowflakes were falling down onto the ground, covering the buildings and the rare trees in snow. There was not a single place outside of the roads where one wouldn't drown in the snowdrifts, get bogged down in these fluffy white piles. The wind peacefully carried the snowflakes, played with them, made them dance and do pirouettes.
Many kids slogged through the snowy streets, looking either bright or a bit frustrated, for it was every child’s most favorite time: time of school. The imperial education system gave kids three months of rest in the summer, and several holidays throughout the whole year, like the Emperor's birthday, or the anniversary of a great battle or victory of the past, but that was about it. So, children always had to keep their minds occupied with mathematics, geometry, the grammar of their Crystallian, and in addition to that, the language Common.
It was a language created in association with several other countries, specifically the Gryphon Dominion, a strong kingdom located in the south, and the Conglomerate of Mountains, made up of doglike creatures living in the mountains far to the north. They seemed to only live by trading the minerals they dug up. Considering that the Crystal Empire was rich with, minerals, precious crystals, and metals, the Conglomerate tried to invade one time, but got pushed back so hard they gave up on this idea and resorted to trading. They still argue with the Emperor, asking to give them the lands Empire captured during the war back. But the most important part of this treaty that had given birth to a common language was the part of Great Fields. It was a short name for three tribes of ponies living right nearby the Crystal Empire, at the western border. These three tribes were: the Pegasi Republic, Earthville and the Unicorn Kingdom.
The three neighbors had quite a long history between each other and the Crystal Ponies, mainly because they were very alike. Crystal Ponies were quite similar to Earth Ponies from Earthville, having no particular features, except that the inhabitants of Great Fields were all dim-skinned. Unicorns were quite similar to crystal unicorns; the difference was, again, the fur and skin. However, the Pegasi were almost legendary in Empire for their ability to fly without using any devices except for the pair of wings each Pegasus had from birth. Earth Ponies and Unicorns, however, were never amazed by the flying ponies, having lived near them for Abyss knew how many centuries.
Earth Ponies were quite known in the Crystal Empire, for their agriculture being the reason for the Empire being in a financial crisis right now; unable to produce their own bread, they had to buy it from Earthville, who always held the Empire at a short leash, always reminding them of their inferiority when it came to trading and farming. Unicorns looked upon their crystal counterparts with indifference, rarely interacting with them. The Pegasi Republic preferred to avoid the Empire as well, only sometimes engaging in negotiations. They were rarely seen anywhere, and so became a role model for kids in the form of toys, who were amazed at their ability to fly.
All of these children would study at school when they were a bit older. History was a tough subject, but some liked it a lot. Sombra was one of them even though he didn't like going to school very much. Just like right now, as he was slogging through the piles of snow, looking down into the ground with a small rucksack dangling behind his back and an emotionless face all the way through the beautiful landscape.
Sombra stopped for a minute and looked at his reflection in a frozen puddle, right in the centre of the road. He hadn’t changed that much. He’d grown a bit, his cheeks were no longer light and meaty, he’d lost a few pounds and his limbs had become longer. His eyes looked tired, with tiny trails of pulsating veins in the corners. A long twelve hour sleep would be ideal for him, but the maximum he was able get was five hours, for the nightmares, depicting the horrible pictures he could never forget, tormented him.
Several years have passed since that night. Sombra was in the second grade, eight years old. Because of Willemite's death, the family was unable to afford a good school, and he’d been forced to go to the municipal school, which provided much less comfort for their students than a normal school would. But at least the books were given away there without the need to buy them.
The memories had imprinted themselves deep within the boy's memory, still hurting him, but over the years, Sombra managed to suppress the silent anger and sorrow. The wound caused by betrayal stopped bleeding. He’d never seen Star Gem since that day, and he hoped they would never meet again at all. The image of his mother lying in a pool of her own blood was a common guest in his nightmares, but he started to get used to it. He had maintained the state of melancholy quietly weeping in the corner only for several months, but it still left him unwilling to communicate with other children, who, mostly, looked bright and happy.
Sombra was an outsider in his school. He never participated in any games that kids from first to third grade used to play, preferring to always stay away from the crowd. He was never bullied, for others considered him to be either not right in the head or just not worthy of their attention, thus other kids avoided him as well. Good, because Sombra hated talking to others, for he feared he’d reveal his secret.
He looked more closely at his reflection and opened his mouth, examining his teeth closely. Several days after he’d used the Visio Aeternum, they’d changed dramatically, became much longer and sharper, even reminding him of the teeth a carnivore would have. It took him quite a while to get used to it, having to be extra careful when eating.
So far he managed to hide this from his father. Thankfully, they didn't talk that much and Amethyst was oft too drunk to look into his son’s mouth anyway. After his wife's death, he descended into drinking and gambling with nopony to keep him in line anymore. The only reason they still had money was because he sometimes went to beg on the street, and even giving Sombra some. He had to learn to survive on several coins for a week. The dinner in the school's cafeteria, thankfully, wasn't too expensive.
Sombra sighed loudly as he approached the gates leading to the school yard. The children were still playing there, throwing snowballs around and building castles. He ignored all the fun, went around and continued his way onward. Suddenly, another colt his age with brown mane and dark-maroon colored skin, a bit more plump than Sombra, joined his peaceful walk.
"Hello, Sombra," he greeted in a calm tone, and Sombra turned to him.
"Oh, hi, Iron Wheel, didn't see you there," he said in a bit of a tired voice.
Iron Wheel was his only friend at school, because he was an outsider just like Sombra, but mostly because he was considered mad. He was quite skilled at creating mechanisms, mostly very simple and small, but his dream was to create a machine that would allow crystal ponies to fly without being affected by the wind. He studied the design of air-balloons, which were quite common in the Crystal Empire, and called them useless and defect, since they were very dependent on wind. He drew complex schemes of an engine he would create, but teachers only laughed at him, considering such an idea to be impossible. Feeling lonely, these two became friends, sticking together and discussing interesting topics. They didn't tell each other about their families too much, however, as each had their own secrets to keep.
"Yeah, because I am that hard to notice!"
Sombra didn't reply, only continued walking towards the door leading to the hall. Iron Wheel grinned, knowing that his dark colored friend wouldn’t reply. He wasn’t much of a talker anyway. Most of their conversations went like this: Iron Wheel talked, Sombra listened, if he listened at all. He was mostly just staring down onto the floor or at the wall, as if seeing something there. Iron Wheel didn't mind his kinks since he was the only one who listened to his 'genial' ideas anyway.
"Oh, what did I want to tell you? So, I've been thinking about more effective designs for the hull and..." Sombra didn't listen to him. He didn't tell anything interesting anyway. He just needed a pony to not call him idiot when he talked about this stuff. Instead, Sombra was deep in his own thoughts, thinking of what he should do after school.
Going back home and then having to hear and smell his father's drinking was an unbearable idea. He couldn't get used to the stench of low-quality alcohol. Every time Amethyst passed him by, Sombra had to grip his mouth in order not to vomit. And his drunken screams made the boy wish he’ been born deaf, adding that to the constant nightmares, who in turn resulted in countless of sleepless nights.
It was much warmer inside the school than outside, at least that was something the school could afford – a heater. Both boys cleaned their hooves from snow and proceeded to head for the upper floor, where all the classrooms were. Iron Wheel and Sombra were in different forms, so the young, striving engineer went to the left and the grim, dark colored unicorn headed for the door right nearby the entrance to the stairs. He had a lesson of mathematics now, which he wasn't a big fan of. He’d never been a friend of exact sciences.
***
"The first time is always rough, I heard... But I hope you can teach me a thing or two later about this business. I'm sorry again, if I caused any trouble... I just wanted to make you happy again."
"I..ha...te....you."
"Sombra...forgive...me."
The scream, since the moment it had seeped into Sombra's ears, stayed there, echoing again and again. Louder and louder every single time. Sometimes, he loses track of what the other pony is speaking, for he cannot hear them over the insane shrieks that tear his eardrums into tiny shreds.
"You...f...freak..."
”This was something unreal!"
The whistling of the wind as she falls sometimes cut through the endless veil of screams, bringing a vain hope of freedom, of release from this nightmare, which disappears as scarily fast as it had appeared. But right after the fresh wind, comes the horrible impaling pain, striking him right in the head. It splits open his skull as the bloody puddle under his body grows in mere seconds. Sombra wants to run, but the ocean of blood is slowing him down. He hears growling and roaring behind his back. Something is behind him. It approaches quickly, without hesitation. Sombra runs and runs, but what hope had he? He cannot escape it. Hopelessly, he falls down, refusing to accept death by the mysterious creature, and drowns himself in his own blood.
He wakes up in the middle of the field, completely surrounded by white fog. It's so thick that he can only see several meters far. The ground is harsh and covered with broken glass. It cuts and rips into his hooves, forcing him to quickly move in every direction - if he stays too long, the glass would go too deep into his feet.
In the distance he hears a voice, calling to him. He recognizes it – it's his mother, Willemite! He makes his way with haste, following the sound, and soon starts to notice a silhouette in the thick fog. It is certainly a pony, and Sombra believes it's her! He runs towards her, wants to scream, but something is stuck in his throat, and he's only able to run.
But the closer he gets the more unclear and vague it becomes. The glass cuts, but he doesn't care, crushing the shards with no regard for his own safety.
Suddenly, this shadow extends its hoof forward, and the fog disappears, revealing its inhabitant. Willemite, with her eyes wide open, but they are completely white, with neither color nor emotion. She looks pale, staring somewhere in the distance, with her hoof extended towards the horizon.
Her lips start to move slowly, her voice is filled with cold despair, sorrow and fear. These words make Sombra stop in his tracks and stare into her blank eyes.
"Save me," she whispers, and Sombra backs away slowly.
"Save me," she speaks, and Sombra turns around to start running.
"Save me!" she screams, as he runs as fast as he can, tears filling his eyes, endless guilt overwhelming him.
"Save me!" one last shriek reaches him, before the boy falls into endless abyss, where long, oozing tentacles are waiting to devour him.
***
"Ehem!" a loud cough startled Sombra and he sprung up in surprise, turning his head left and right, trying to realize where he was. Several seconds after, he sighed with relief.
He was in his classroom. The blackboard was over several desks in front of him, and a few bookshelves lined up by the walls, containing numerous handbooks on mathematics. The walls were white with the paint getting dim and dark in several corners because of the old age. The school wasn't well maintained, but it still held up.
Mr. Fizz, Sombra's teacher, looked at him with disdain as the boy turned his head towards the elderly crystal pony. He had a water blue coat and white mane. He also had a strange defect when speaking. He would hiss, or pronounce letters as sibilant consonants, when there clearly weren't such.
"I as-sh-sume you enjoyed your nap during the lesson?" he asked, and Sombra realized that he’d fallen asleep during the lesson. The only thing he remembered was how he’d put his head on his desk to let it rest for a second. It seemed he’d been unable to fight back the sleep. He turned away, still a bit terrified by his dream. Mr. Fizz sighed, and looked at the exhausted foal with a trace of sadness and sympathy in his eyes.
"Sorry... I... just—" Sombra started speaking, but words came out as unrecognizable blabber. He tried to speak up, tried to talk louder, but failed, as the clod in his throat got bigger and bigger. The clod of fear, terror, pain and hurt. Sombra really wanted to just get up and run away from the classroom, but he held back, preparing himself for a tirade of scorn and complaints.
"Lis-shen, Sombra. You're a nice boy, I can see that. Your only problem is that you need to get some sleep. S-sh-imple as that," Fizz said, sitting down on the chair right nearby Sombra. "You just fell asleep during class. That’s not the sign of bad manners — though, in some cases it is — but a case of a very exhausted pony."
"No... I just...uff..." Sombra said, feeling his limbs becoming heavy. He really felt horrible right now. His forehead was covered in cold sweat, and the clod in the throat seemed to be going up.
"Let's put it like t-sh-his: I'll stick up for you, and you rest tomorrow. Don't go to school, just sleep and rest. After that, you'll get much better, aight?" the teacher continued, and Sombra just nodded silently. He wanted to thank Mr. Fizz, but he’d left quickly, probably wanting to give him some breathing space.
Sombra sighed loudly and looked down onto the floor. Most kids would consider this a blessing. He would rather go to school than stay near his father. Anywhere but near him.
He swallowed, trying to push the clog away from his mouth and went to the cafeteria. His stomach had already started to bother him a bit, and a few sandwiches certainly wouldn’t hurt.
***
The cafeteria room was one of the most visited places in this school, outside of the principal's office. The wall paint of the room, a special layer of colored crystals that had all the colors of the ocean, had been scratched or even torn away in many places, making the lighting in the room not as stable as it should be. The light sometimes flickered, which often caused Sombra to feel horrible pain in his eyes. He always had to watch out for flickering and bright flashes, or else he had cringe in pain, as it felt like he had sharp razor plunged into his eyeballs.
He walked past the tables, towards the one he considered his personal. It was in a dim lit corner, away from other children. Iron Wheel didn't sit with him, in fact, he didn't visit cafeteria at all, claiming that he had a good breakfast and going somewhere afterwards. Sombra analyzed the babble Iron Wheel sometimes spilt, and came to the conclusion that he had himself a good place outside where he could construct the models for what he presumed to be the machines that would amaze the whole Empire.
He quickly put his bag on the table and looked inside, digging through books in search for money. He was sure he’d put it somewhere here, between the mathematics and geography stuff. After about a minute of vain search, he remembered that his father hadn't brought anything back from his recent run around the neighborhood. Wasted everything on ale, and returned home in half dead state. Sombra had to sleep with an open window in order to fight back the retching that tormented him through the whole night because of the atrocious smell.
He sat down on the bench and put his head on the table. He was so tired; his eyelids were closing on themselves, but he couldn't sleep, since the smell of food, even though a bit foul, made his stomach produce gastric juice, causing the sucking feeling in the throat. Sombra tried to suppress it, but the thoughts of freshly baked bread with butter were clouding his mind.
He used to eat so many sandwiches back when mom was alive. He could eat a dozen of them, and she would still give him more. After a good, nourishing lunch, they would always go for a walk, since food assimilates faster if he was outside, she’d told him.
Sombra missed her so much. He missed those days of fun and happiness with Willemite beside him, surrounded by ponies he loved. No worries, no pain, no hurt, no hunger. It’d had all been so peaceful, but now these moments were but memories he wept over.
The sudden pain in the stomach, like a sword thrusting through his organs, made him cringe, almost to the point of tears. He held back, and just pressed his head harder against the table, trying to drive away one pain with another, but it didn't help. He felt the muscles in his throat convulsing and contracting as they pushed something out of him. He covered his mouth and closed his eyes, trying not to breathe in the smell of food.
Finally, the retching stopped, but the stomach ache persisted as Sombra just rested his head on the table, trying to lose himself in good memories. But only the visions of that dreaded night came to him: the cold darkness seeping into his mouth, growing through his stomach, scratching his eyes with tiny claws.
Oh, how he wished it was all just a nightmare, just a bad dream; that the sharp teeth in his mouth were naught more than a pillow that he was chewing; that the horrible pain in his stomach was just Willemite, pushing him gently, asking him to wake up. He wished he would just open his eyes and see her smiling face looking at him, asking him to come to breakfast.
Hopes and memories were the only thing that wouldn’t hurt him. But they left so quickly, their life was shorter than that of a spark. It shed light on the world, tearing through darkness, but died just as quickly, leaving the void to devour the world once again. Since the day his dreams became haunted, he had never had a day when he wouldn't stop and think for a moment of what was, and of what was long gone.
The pain struck his insides once again, this time far stronger than last time. He gripped his belly trying to calm down the craving for simple food, but the pain was getting stronger and stronger. It was like a hedgehog, spinning and dancing inside of him.
"Are you alright?" a soft voice suddenly reached Sombra's ears. He slowly turned his head towards the side the voice was coming from and saw the speaker.
A young mare, a unicorn of Sombra's age, which differed greatly from anypony he'd ever seen in this school. She had long curly mane, the color of light amber, with a small pink ribbon that gathered this long cascade into a tress. Her coat was the color of lavender, which quickly caused a memory of one of his walks in the park. The dim lighting in this part of the hall made her look much less bright, but it was clear she would sparkle in direct sunlight in a barrage of beautiful colors.
Her complexity gave away a girl who didn't have a problem with food. She was quite round in the sides, but she wasn't fat; a right word would be well fed, which was clearly seen by the healthy color of her pretty face, which had very smooth lines and likeable appearance. The ripe red blush on her cheeks was more the result of warmth than shyness.
Her eyes were pale blue, and they were pinned right at Sombra. He finally managed to suppress the horrible pain and straighten up. Sitting curled up like that was rude.
"Oh, what?" Sombra said, forgetting what she’d talked about.
"I asked if you were alright. You just sat there, holding your belly, staring at the wall. Are you hurt?" she asked gently, coming closer to him. Sombra felt warmth coming from her body.
"I'm alright. I was just resting," Sombra lied, trying to sound cold, but the sucking feeling in throat made him stutter and lower his voice.
"Somehow I don’t believe you. If you feel bad you should go to the medical ward," she stated, looking at him with incomprehension. "Come on, I’ll get you there. Some treatment and you'll be right back up on your hooves!"
"No, I feel alright. No need to help me. Just leave," Sombra moved further away from her and closer to the wall. This girl was annoying. Why was she pestering him? For what reason? He'd never seen her before, and Iron Wheel never told him about her bullying him. She was either new or had been very inactive.
"Come on, don't be such a grump. I just wanted to help, that's all," she assured, taking a long and careful look at Sombra. "Oh, I know what's wrong. You're hungry!"
With those words, she quickly ran away, and before Sombra could sigh with relief, she returned, carrying a small box. She put it on the table, opened it and took out a few sandwiches with butter. Sombra's belly growled at the very second he set his eyes on the delicious food.
"Oh, I can see the hunger in your eyes. Here you go!" the young mare said, and placed the sandwiches before him. At first, Sombra wanted to refuse the gift, but the butter looked so delicious. It was slowly flowing onto the surface of the bread, with light showcasing its color in all its glory. The boy could no longer hold back and attacked the sandwiches like a wild demon, gobbling them up in seconds.
"Woah! You must be very hungry," the girl said, amazed at the ferocity Sombra torn her gifts apart.
"Thank you...so much!" Sombra said, chewing the delicious bread.
"Oh, you're quite welcome," she replied and smiled. Sombra was stunned for a second.
Her smile was just hypnotizing. She smiled in a very specific fashion: raising the edges of her mouth and looking right at you with care and softness in her pale blue eyes. This smile was warming as a fireplace, beautiful as a flower.
"Oh, I think I'll have to go! See you!" she said, and quickly run away, grabbing the box along with her. Sombra looked towards her. She left, just as he wanted, but that smile...
It was so strange, so pure and innocent. It got inside his memory and found itself a nice corner to live in. And the fact that this girl shared her food with him — just like that—, for no charge, just because she thought he felt bad. ‘Who was she,’ Sombra wondered, ‘What grade was she from? What was her name?’
Sombra noticed that he’d started caring too much about some random stranger. He shook his head, driving the useless thoughts away and just finished up eating. She just helped him, nothing more. Who knew, mayhap she did that because she’d lost a bet. He should really stop being so trusting. Last time he’d trusted a pony from outside his family, it’d ended in a tragedy. Sombra didn't want any more tragedies. He’d felt enough pain, enough for the rest of his life.
The cold breeze was blowing harshly as the storm was getting stronger and stronger. The peaceful fall of snowflakes turned into a powerful hail of snow, piling up on fur and hair in seconds. The kids quickly put on their coats, scarves, and hats, and ran towards their parents, greeting them in front of the school.
Iron Wheel put on a light brown cap and that was about all he had to wear. He seemed to be almost immune to cold, no matter what storm was outside, he always felt alright, and didn't feel the cold of the snow scratching his hooves. Sombra, however, was far less lucky.
Without anything to wear, he endured mostly on the heat his body produced, which wasn't much considering how little he’d eaten. He also had to go home all on his own, and that was probably a good thing. He wouldn't want his father to show up at his school in his state.
But today, Iron Wheel and Sombra walked alongside each other on par, with both of them seeming unaffected by the blizzard. Some kids and their parents turned around and looked at the two with confusion.
While passing through the school yard, they both were silent, fueled and warmed by their thoughts. Iron Wheel was probably drawing yet another construction in his head, imagining every little detail, every small line, and how it would look when it was complete: yet another brilliant invention.
Sombra, however, was completely drowning in questions, and every single one of them was about that girl. Who was she? Why did she approach him? Why did she speak to him? Why did she help him? What was her name?
"You seem to be even more depressed than usual," Iron Wheel stated, interrupting Sombra's train of thoughts. At first, he wanted to ignore his supposed friend, but decided to share this strange experience.
"No, it's just that... I've met a girl today. Well, not exactly met, she hath approached me herself," Sombra started speaking, when Iron Wheel interrupted him.
"Alright, stop. That's never a good sign. She is either a bully, or a spy from bullies. Which one?" he asked. Being the laughing stock of the school earned him a strange paranoia. He didn't trust anypony until he’d made sure they weren't bullies.
Sombra thought about it for a second. She wasn't a bully, that was for sure; she wouldn't help him if that was the case. Besides, bullies had never bothered him anyway. She might be a spy, but how could a despicable lying spy have a smile so pure and innocent as hers? Her look had gotten imprinted into Sombra's memory, but it’d been the smile that’d drawn his attention. It stuck, like a picture from stone cut by masters of old with great care and attention. It was simply marvelous.
"No, she's neither of these things. She is no bully..." Sombra said, and looked to the left, through the thick wall of falling snow. He could see so many ponies running towards their parents, and his soul let out a silent shriek each time he saw a mother in the crowd. Suddenly, a trembling outline, a shadow hiding behind the many colorful bodies of other ponies, caught Sombra's attention as it walked through this noisy gathering.
This figure reminded him of that girl so much.
Grappled by interest and curiosity, Sombra quickly pushed Iron Wheel towards the approximate location of the girl and dragged him along, trying to chase her down, or at least get a good look. The snow was deep and rough, sometimes leaving scratches on Sombra's unprotected hooves. Iron Wheel tried to fight, unaware of what was going on.
"What the Abyss? Where are you dragging me, pray tell? Let me go!" he demanded in an annoyed voice, greatly displeased that he was violently taken away from his thoughts of mechanisms.
"Keep quiet!" Sombra hissed quite angrily, which seemed to shut his friend up. They both followed the vague silhouette, tearing through the endless snow on the ground, and the one falling from the sky.
Suddenly, the girl stopped, probably to look around. When it seemed like she was about to turn around, Sombra quickly pushed Iron Wheel into the bush and jumped inside it right afterwards. The cold snow got stuck to his belly and chest, but he quickly swiped it all away and looked through the leafless sticks of the bush.
The girl looked very happy, enjoying every moment of the raging blizzard. The snow that struck her in the face didn't even faze her as she opened her mouth, letting all of it fly in and melt into water. Then she jumped right into a big bank of snow, not far from the bush the boys were hiding in. Sombra was able to make out what she was wearing.
Her fur coat looked incredibly expensive; it was probably imported from the Gryphon Dominion. It looked fuzzy, soft, and warm, making sure not even the strongest wind could tear through its thick layers. She was also wearing a light green scarf, like a leaf freshly torn from a tree. It was such a nice change from the palette of white and grey that dominated in this time of year.
"Here she is. Look!" Sombra whispered to his pal, and Iron Wheel lazily got up, swiped the snow that got stuck to his face because of his ungracious landing, and mumbled something under his breath. An angry glance from Sombra was enough to persuade him and take a look. He slowly made his way forward and looked over Sombra.
"Hmm, I have never seen her before. She must be new," Iron Wheel concluded. "Though, I did overhear some girls talking about a new student in their class."
"So, what did they say?" Sombra asked impatiently, trying to keep his voice down. Meanwhile, the girl started shoving her face right into the snow and swimming in it like one would in a pool. She was definitely having lots of pure childish fun despite being dressed so fancy.
"Hmm, can't recall. I think they said her name was Krystal," Iron Wheel replied. Sombra turned away from him and continued to stare at this strange mare, having fun with snow.
"Krystal..." he repeated quietly. This girl was so strange. So much questions about her and not enough answers. She was as unexplored for the young unicorn as the neighboring countries were for a bird in the cage. She was mysterious, and it attracted his attention like a fire attracting a firefly, following its path to impending death.
Sombra didn't know what to do about this now. He was mystified by this mare, it angered him. For so much time he had been able to avoid unneeded interest, and now, he sought some because of some mare.
He sighed heavily as Krystal was finally done with her childish game, got up, shook the snow away, and continued gracefully prancing her way home.
"Are we quite finished? May I go home now?" Iron Wheel said, looking angrily at Sombra, but he didn't even turn.
"Yes, go," Sombra dismissed him, and he left, without even saying goodbye. But the dark colored unicorn didn't even notice that. He was far too engulfed by thoughts and guesses. He tried to answer the questions he couldn't understand without any help whatsoever.
After about an hour of staring into the howling wind, carrying the snow around, he came to the conclusion that he should keep an eye on this mare. Whoever she was, she’d helped him, and that was very strange and suspicious. Sombra decided that she was up to no good. Nopony had ever approached him like that before, offered help without asking anything in return. Maybe she planned to stab him in the back, and was now trying to get closer to him just like Star Gem did.
Sombra drove away the memory of that atrocious villain, and looked around, checking if there was anypony near. After making sure he was alone, Sombra sighed heavily and looked into the darkening sky with sorrow, for it was time to go home.
There wasn’t any place worse than home.
***
The old wooden door let out a pitiful creak when Sombra gently pushed it. The hinges had gone rusty long ago, for nopony had oiled them for a long time. The young unicorn sighed and went inside the house after swiping away the snow that got stuck to him during his trip through the raging blizzard. He lost his way while looking for a correct path, and came much later than even he had expected.
The snowflakes fell from his mane and fur onto the floor and melted away within seconds, turning into small droplets of water. Sombra looked around the corridor. There were black stains on the rug, a few scratches on the walls, and a picture in the crooked frame.
It was the picture of Sombra's family. Nopony ever even moved it from the wall it had been hung upon. The paper started yellowing at the corners, the glass had been shattered long ago, and it was tilted to the left a bit. Sombra came closer and looked at the fallen symbol of perfection.
Just like his family, this picture was slowly dying. His mother was barely seen as her image was scratched and overwritten with black ink. The long dark trails were going down from the place where she once gloriously stood. Sombra had put so much work in this picture especially her... Now, it was naught but a piece of paper with something scratched on it, being an eyesore to both him and Amethyst.
Amethyst refused to keep such a reminder around and smashed the picture by throwing a cup of ink into it. He screamed about Willemite betraying them, calling her a whore, a sellout, a roadside slut. It hurt Sombra greatly since he knew the truth, but he was far too afraid of his father to tell. His tantrums and drunken rage fits caused Sombra to lock his door for the night.
The boy shuddered at a thought of spending the whole next day here, along with him.
Suddenly, the sound of a glass bottle falling down and shattering into hundreds of pieces reached Sombra, serving as a signal to run to his room as fast as he possibly could. He would close the door, hide in the bed and pray that his father wouldn’t break down the door. He quickly dashed towards his safe haven, but the sounds of hoofsteps, chaotic and random, reached his ears.
Sombra was just inches away from his room when suddenly something stood in his way and he crashed right into it. The floor greeted him with a few splinters, piercing his skin in several places.
"Watch where ya... goin’..." drawled Amethyst, reeling from side to side, his nose red from alcohol. The stench coming from him was unbearable. Sombra slowly got up, while trying not to look at him.
"Please, let me in," he pleaded quietly.
"What did y’say? I can't hear that bitchy voice o’ yours. Speak up! Are ya a stallion or what?!" Amethyst growled, his voice unstably changing tones, hurting Sombra's ears with its unbearable volume.
"I just want to pass," the boy said trying to raise his voice, but the sound, coming out of his mouth was just as weak as it’d been before. Amethyst spat to the side and turned his muddy eyes towards him.
"'Want t’ pass, 'please', bleh-bleh! You are such a failure!" he screamed and started circling around Sombra, like a vulture around a fresh corpse it was about to devour. Sombra looked down onto the floor, trying to hide from his sight.
"I wanted a son, not some spineless wretch. But, why am even I surprised? You’re a son of a cowardly whore!" he mumbled in his unstable voice as Sombra barely held back from just shoving him away and entering the room.
"Please... let me pass. I am tired, I want to sleep!" Sombra begged, but Amethyst looked at him with laughter born out of confusion in his eyes.
"Oh, he's tired! Tired because of what?! Ya don't do anything around here! You just eat and sleep in my house! You waste my money that I earn with sweat and blood, ya disgrace!" he spat as he spoke. Sombra swiped the drops away from his cheek, and sighed. He couldn't bear to hear so much lies from him. The only food he ever had was at school. He starved at night, and now, he had to listen to accusations and lies. But there was nothing he could do.
"I work from dawn till dusk to feed you, support you, try to turn you into a real stallion and you just leech away on me! You good for nothing runt, you don't even understand how I feel! What it is like to be a responsible pony, to work your damn croup off the whole day only to see your stupid face at home, with your mouth wide open, ready to gobble up another dish of food!" he mocked, standing so close to Sombra he could smell the vile concoction he’d drunk today. The boy couldn't take it anymore as everything inside him turned into pure emotion.
"You don't even go to work!" Sombra shouted, surprised by the power he’d put into these words. As his father looked at him, Sombra realized what a mistake he’d made, and closed his eyes, trying to hold back the tears. Tears of anger, tears of frustration and resentment for the false accusations aimed at his mother and him. But the worst was only waiting behind a corner.
Amethyst's hoof was heavy, packing a lot of a punch as he put all the strength he had into that angry smack. Sombra fell down on his knees, pain piercing his right cheek where the hit had landed. He felt the metallic taste of blood, touching his tongue, and several drops fell down onto the floor, leaving red trails on his lips. He tried to get up, but before he could even move, another powerful punch went straight into his jaw. He fell down, holding back the scream. The rough surface of the wooden floor scratched his cheek.
He opened his eyes, feeling the cold tears streaming down on their own accord. He could no longer hold anything back, but before he could say anything, Amethyst placed his hoof right upon his throat, pressing harder and harder every second, threatening to choke him.
"What did you say, whelp?! What did you say?!" he screamed loudly, right into Sombra's face, so he could hear him. The boy could only let out a few coughs. The blood started accumulating in his mouth as he couldn't do anything to spit it out or swallow it. The pain pierced his throat, making it even harder to breathe.
"P..khh...please...s...hkh...stop!" he barely managed to whisper through the blood in his mouth. Amethyst looked at him with drunken enjoyment and finally let him free. Sombra quickly turned around and spat out the blood, barely holding back from vomiting. The muscles in his throat continued to contract, allowing him only to cough and utter disgusting belching sounds. Amethyst turned away from the sight.
"Argh, disgusting! I ain’t gonna clean that up," Amethyst said with a twisted expression on his face.
Sombra couldn't even reply, as his stomach started pushing out whatever was within it, for the taste and the sight of blood made him too sick to contain anything inside right now. He covered his mouth with his hooves, trying to hold it all inside. The bile was crawling up his throat as though it was alive, sending spasms throughout his body . His face became sickly green, and his vision started to blur. He looked down, staring at the puddle of blood mixed with saliva wherein small crimson bubbles in some places swam.
"You… weakling!" Amethyst hiccupped between the two words, and slowly reeled back to the kitchen. He almost fell when going through the doors, but leaning on the wall helped him to hold his balance.
When his stomach finally calmed down, Sombra lowered his hooves. They were covered in blood; it continued to drip from his mouth. The salty taste was still present in his mouth, but he couldn't do anything about it, nor did he want to. He felt so small and pathetic to the whole world.
His body was convulsing, every single nerve was shaking and trembling, demanding him to do something, smash, crush, destroy something. The anger and frustration in his soul was too great for him to hold back, as he rushed to his room, quietly growling to himself. He left the mess behind him, too infuriated by his father to do anything he asked.
Barely holding back all the rage, demanding him to smash something open, he jumped onto the bed, bundled up in a thin blanket, barely protecting him from cold and buried his face in the pillow. It became a little wet from his tears and small drops of blood on his lips.
In his head, he processed all the memories he had concerning Amethyst: how he helped him when mother told him to get out, how they sometimes played in the park together. Not as often as with Willemite, but it had still been very fun. Amethyst knew so many fun games to play.
He wanted to sacrifice all these tender moments he had for a chance to cause him pain. Hit him in the face, break his bone, stab him with a knife, and twist the blade
"I hate you so much.... I hate you so much!" Sombra whispered quietly to himself, imagining so many ways he could harm his father, make him feel miserable and pathetic, just as he’d made him feel now. The child couldn't forgive all the pain, couldn't forget the suffering he endured during these two years. It was the first time Amethyst had beaten him up so badly. First time! All others were endurable, but this he could not forgive. Never.
Sombra continued to entertain himself with the pictures of his father's suffering and dying, as he slowly slipped into the land of dreams. This time, he didn't fight it back; too weak to do anything besides imagining Amethyst's demise.
Even though his thoughts were such a mess right now, he was absolutely sure of one thing: he'd not be staying home tomorrow. He’d go to school, and it wouldn’t even matter what happened to his health. Even if he died... that'd probably be for the best.
***
The wind slowly seeped through the crack in the wall and flew through the room, making the edges of the blanket shudder. Sombra shrank into a fetal position, trying to keep himself warm from the sudden breeze. He continuously moved his lips, as if saying something. The clotted blood on his lips made them feel rough, which caused him discomfort, making him turn around in his bed even more often. He was, probably, in the middle of another nightmare.
Meanwhile, the wind made its way through the room and towards the desk. It hadn’t changed that much at all. Several of the pencils were gone since Sombra had to use them for school; the pictures he drew were still hanging on the wall, a little bit yellow and faded from age. They fluttered gently in the breeze, the iron nails attaching them to the wall preventing them from flying away. However, there was only one picture lying on the table that was completely separated from all others.
The black and white bird was incomplete. It was still missing the upper body and the head. The tail, the body and the legs: it all had already been completed long ago. Judging from what was done, the bird would look pretty lifelike, especially bearing in mind that it’d been drawn by a child.
And yet, it would never be complete. Never. This bird, that once flew into Sombra's room and impressed him so much that he had to start drawing it, was long gone. It left the Crystal Empire, migrating to warmer regiments of the world. And on its wings, it had carried away many things Sombra valued and loved.
The bird would never return, it took the toll for its beauty in this house, from this pony, and now, it would take its last gift.
The wind picked up the drawing, as it slowly moved and fell from the table. The wind played with the piece of paper for a minute, making it dance and perform full twists, as it dragged it towards the window. The paper hit the rough surface, slowly sliding down to where the crack that appeared here from several hooligans throwing a rock just a few months ago was. When it finally reached its destination, the paper slipped through this crack and flew away into the raging blizzard that continued to rage upon the Empire.