Exiting the machine, the group of ponies found themselves in drastically different surroundings. The place was completely underground, with only narrow bridges of ice and crystal formations around to stand on. Most of the ground had broken away, revealing crevices that went down into blackness below.
Standing outside were Princess Celestia and Princess Luna, illuminating the place with their magic.
“Woo! What a groovy beat!” Pinkie Pie said as she bounced out and hummed along to it.
“Pinkie… what are you talking about?” Rainbow asked, not hearing anything, but the pink pony didn’t answer.
“You’re here! And not a moment too late!” Celestia said, smiling. “This is where Sombra was once imprisoned, but as you can see, he’s no longer here.”
“Though somepony else has been,” Luna said, gesturing to some hoofprints nearby, and a wrecked machine that appeared to be the remains of the phase distorter that had been stolen.
“Cutie Mark Crusaders, if you’d be so good as to retrieve the parts I’d told you to from the wreckage,” Whooves ordered. “By my calculations, she has already taken what she needed, luckily none of which we don’t now have right here!”
“Cutie Mark Crusaders, time machine makers! YAY!” the three fillies cheered, rushing over and filing through the remains, finding several parts and removing them.
“Twilight, if you please?” Whooves asked. “Just insert the machine parts where I tell you to,” he explained. “Distortion module goes right there…” he said, gesturing to the side, and Twilight used her magic to attach it. “...the little Timey-Wimey Ball goes in there…” he continued, gesturing to a slot inside, and Twilight complied. “...and that green button goes right there,” he added. “Now, Princesses, focus your magic on the crystal piece to give it a charge, I need your magic if we’re going to make this work!” Whooves ordered.
Celestia and Luna nodded, their eyes glowing brightly as their wings fanned out, and twin beams of magic fired into the crystal. In seconds, their eyes turned green, and their magic became something far more malevolent-looking.
“Princess Celestia! Princess Luna!” Twilight cried out.
“No, no, no! No worries, my dear!” Whooves said. “It requires a charge of dark magic as well for the machine to trace Sombra. Much like the Alicorn Amulet would...” Whooves watched as the princesses finally ceased, and the charged crystal floated into a casing atop the machine. “Ahhh, excellent!” the Doctor said proudly. “Now, for one final procedure before you are sent through.”
“Ooh! Are we gonna need to be turned into robots because living matter can’t go through time?” Pinkie asked excitedly. “I’ve never been a robot before… you think it’d feel weird?”
“…Personally I’d rather not,” Rarity said. “I think one robot version of me is more then Equestria should ever have to handle. No offense intended towards myself of course…”
“No, no. Nothing like that,” Whooves said. “Honestly, what in the world gave you that ridiculous idea? I’d think such a change would severely hamper your natural abilities,” he asked with a facehoof. “No… you’ll gain a charge of the magical essence the crystal ponies have helped gather. The princesses will bestow it onto you, giving you their qualities and ensure your time travel via Sombra’s magic does not have any adverse effects on you.”
“Well then let’s get this little makeover done already!” Rainbow said.
“There’s one other thing… the time machine will only remain in that period temporarily. While you should have plenty of time to stop Sombra, you must return to it as soon as possible to make it back home,” Whooves warned.
“I… understand.” Twilight said.
“Risks or not, we came way too far to quit now!” Rainbow declared.
“Yes… I’m… I won’t go back now. I’ll stay by you to the end,” Fluttershy said.
“Ya can count on me. We’re all in this together ain’t we?” Applejack asked.
“Well, after all we’ve been through, it’d be shameful of any of us to turn back,” Rarity said.
“This is gonna be superciting!” Pinkie Pie squealed.
“Well… you heard my friends. We won’t let you down!” Twilight said with a smile.
“Please… come back, okay?” Applebloom asked, she and her friends staring up at their friends and family with large, sad eyes.
“Doncha worry, we will!” Applejack said with a smirk.
“When we get back, I’ll take you out flying, squirt, and that’s a promise!” Rainbow said, patting Scootaloo on the head and prompting a giggle from the filly.
“If anything should happen, Sweetie Belle… oh whoever am I kidding? I’ll be just fine, Sweetie Belle,” Rarity said, giving her little sister an affectionate nuzzle, which she returned right away with a hug.
“I guess we’re ready…” Twilight said.
“Very well. I wish you the best of luck, faithful subjects,” Celestia said as she and Luna charged their magic again, this time a translucent image of the crystal heart appeared, and a bright flash of light emitted from it, bathing the six ponies in it. When it faded, the six now had shimmering, crystal coats and manes, much like the crystal ponies of the Empire did.
“Indeed, good luck,” Whooves said as they entered the machine. “Press the green button to return when you’re done… and do try to not get yourselves killed!” he said with a nervous smile.
A moment passed.
“How does this work?” Rainbow asked from inside the capsule.
“Wait! I think this is it! The yellow lever?” Pinkie asked.
“Yes!” Whooves said, facehoofing, and the sound of it being pulled could be heard. Immediately, the machine whirred to life and began to shine with light as it levitated off the ground, time and space rippling around it as it winked out of existence, travelling into a distant era long ago...
~
“I think we’re here…” Twilight said as she felt the machine come to a stop and opened the door. Before her was what she gathered to be the same cave, but it looked noticeably different now.
Everything was now covered in black crystal, sparks of purple lightning crackling here and there and jagged spires seemed to grow and recede on the narrow, crystalline paths that stretched ahead in the strange, subterranean world illuminated by a dull purple light, and a chilling, otherworldly echo could be heard all around them. The place all looked like something from some terrible nightmare.
“Th-this place is awful creepy…” Fluttershy said, poking her head out as Twilight emerged from the capsule.
“Eh, it’s not that bad,” Rainbow said, flying out and looking around.
“Well, we best get goin’ ta findin’ Sombra already. He can’t be too far,” Applejack said, looking down the path ahead as Pinkie Pie bounced out of the capsule behind her.
“Well he certainly has a rather drab taste in décor,” Rarity mused.
“Girls… I don’t think we’re alone here…” Twilight warned, gulping as several black crystal spires jutted out of the ground and began to reshape themselves into equine forms similar to the creature Rainbow remembered facing at the beginning of her adventure.
“More of those Darkrystal things! Let’s bust on through!” Rainbow shouted as the Darkrystal guards finished forming themselves, glowing green eyes peering through the visors of their helmets, assuming they even were helmets at all.
Quickly, Applejack took out her lasso, grabbing one and flinging it off the side of the path, sending it plummeting into the deep chasm below.
One Darkrystal pony charged up its jagged, bladelike horn and shot a fireball at them, causing the six to scatter apart. Satisfied, it approached, only to be tapped on the shoulder. Turning, it found Pinkie smiling at it and a second later, it was blasted away by the force from her party cannon. The crystalline guard tumbled across the ground and fired several magic bolts at her, but Pinkie managed to avoid them, giggling with each dodge of an attack.
Fluttershy cowered back for a moment, but then took a deep breath and glared angrily at the two that approached her, causing them to pause and look at one-another briefly, buying Rarity time to blast them both from behind with her magic, but it only seemed to anger them.
“Twilight, dear? A little help?” Rarity asked.
“On it!” Twilight said, firing a starstorm that immediately blasted the two Darkrystal guards to pieces. “That must be their weakness,” she mused.
“Makes sense! That bug-robot-thing that came back through time and got me on this whole crazy thing did something like that with the one I first ran into!” Rainbow said, grabbing one with her forehooves and spinning in the air, sending it off the side of the cliff as well.
With the Darkrystal guards defeated, the spires jutting out of the chasms around them suddenly seemed to grow, splitting apart and growing several jagged spikes, currents of dark magic crackling around them as the six progressed further and were greeted at the end of the path by a set of stairs.
“Figures…” Twilight muttered.
“What?” Applejack asked, cocking an eyebrow.
“Sombra… I swear he has a thing for stairs,” Twilight muttered, recalling the time she had searched for the Crystal Heart.
“Maybe he just has a really big slinky collection?” Pinkie suggested, before gasping audibly. “GET DOWN GIRLS!” she shouted, drawing out her party cannon again and firing it at a trio of floating, silvery diamondlike gems that Rainbow recognized had attacked her when she’d headed to Fun-Fun Village. “Whew! That was close!” Pinkie said with a smile as she looked down at the shattered gems.
…Turn… back … a deep, mysterious voice whispered through the halls, louder then the chilling echoes and causing the six to freeze in their steps.
“Oh my!” Fluttershy said, shaking a little.
“That was a mite unsettlin’…” Applejack muttered.
“We must be getting close,” Twilight said. “Come on!” she ordered, leading her friends up the stairway. As they ascended, more black spires erupted from the steps, and several more Darkrystal ponies emerged from them; these ones resembling pegasi.
“Twi! Get a barrier up! I got these guys!” Rainbow said with a grin as she spread her wings and took to the air, flying around the Darkrystal pegasi while Twilight hurriedly summoned a barrier. One of the pegasi raised its hooves up, its eyes flashing yellow as it summoned a bolt of magical lightning. Rainbow recoiled for a second, only to discover the lightning bolt reflected off of her and struck the enemy, blasting it out of the air. Looking down, Rainbow reached under her element necklace and remembered the badge she still wore that Rarity had given her. “…Thanks, Rarity…” Rainbow said with a smile, smirking at the surprised black crystal constructs and flying straight at them at tremendous speed. In the past, she could barely harm them, now with her new strength and speed at their fullest potential, she was able to stand against them, knocking both backwards with enough force to send them crashing into the walls of the cavern. Two more flew at her, one firing another lightning bolt but getting the same results as it redirected back at the construct. Seizing an opportunity, Rainbow flew straight at it, uppercutting it and then turning and bucking another nearby, then flying swiftly around them to get them caught in a vortex and sending them flying out of control over the sides of the cliffs. “Alright… rate me!” Rainbow said, landing and smirking at her friends.
“Not bad, Rainbow,” Twilight said with a smile.
“Though you surely will admit, had I not made that badge, you’d have surely lost,” Rarity pointed out.
“Eh, I’m sure I’d have figured out a different way to handle it,” Rainbow replied.
“WHOA!” Twilight suddenly shouted, firing a blast of magic at a remaining Darkrystal pegasus that swooped down from above at them and sending it plummeting into the dark depths below. “Figured out a different way, huh?” she asked Rainbow with a smug smirk.
“Hey, I still took most of ‘em out!” Rainbow protested.
“I’m very happy for you, Rainbow. If that’s worth anything…” Fluttershy said, patting her friend on the back.
“I guess it is,” the pegasus said with a shrug, accepting the consolation from Fluttershy.
“Well don’t be gettin’ too proud, Dash, There’s still more on the way,” Applejack said, gesturing behind them as more crystal spires grew from the path, forming into more Darkrystal guards.
“They’re never gonna stop!” Twilight said. “We need to hurry and stop the problem at its source!” she said, and the six galloped down the path as fast as they could; pursued by a growing number of black crystal pony constructs. Twilight slowly fell to the back, firing several magic bolts to keep their pursuers at bay so they could get more distance, but as they came to the end of the path, more stairs greeted them. “Quick! We’ll teleport up!” Twilight said, her friends gathering around her and they immediately teleported up to the final stairs, gaining a little more distance. As they looked down, however, they noticed the Darkrystal guards had stopped at the foot of the stairs and slowly backed away as the sinister, mysterious voice they’d heard earlier let out a soft but terrifying laugh.
“Okay, ah made it a general rule when scary stuff gets scared, it ain’t good…” Applejack said, and as if to answer her question, a deep growl was heard below. Looking over the edge, the six noticed a large, black serpentine figure gliding about in the pits below, drawing ever closer as it rose up, its green eyes glowing brightly as it charged forward, letting out a terrible roar.
“My WORD! What is that thing?!” Rarity shouted, stepping back as the beast revealed itself. It was easily the size of the sea monster they’d faced on the way to Saddle Arabia, though it appeared to be made of black crystal. The towering creature hissed at them and fired out a blast of purple lightning at where they stood, which Twilight readily countered with a barrier.
“Well he sure looks nasty!” Pinkie said. “Dunno if my party cannon’s gonna be able to handle something like that…” she mused.
“Hold on!” Twilight yelled, charging up a starstorm spell and firing it at the beast, raining down a series of magic bolts that blasted off chunks of its body, causing it to recoil in pain before lunging forward, its jaws wide open.
Rarity focused on some of the debris around her, floating it with her magic and sending it at the beast, smashing chunks of black crystal in its face and making it jerk back. The monster hissed loudly and opened its jaws again, this time with crackling purple electrical energy gathering within and firing it at them.
A blur of shimmering rainbow color, and Rainbow Dash flew into its path. The sheer power of the blast was unlike anything she’d felt, to the point she could even feel pain even with the badge on. However, as she grit her teeth and resisted the pain as best she could, she could feel it gathering into the badge and redirecting itself back at the creature that had sent it, blasting it in the face and causing it to howl in pain, collapsing into the pits below, Rainbow herself beginning to fall along with it.
“RAINBOW!” her friends cried out.
Suddenly, Rainbow felt herself being held in the air. Opening her eyes she saw Fluttershy’s smiling face looking down at her and realized her friend had caught her. “Whoa… I’m surprised you’re not this fast more often!” she said.
“Only when I have to be,” Fluttershy replied. “Now why don’t we go deal with that big meanie who’s probably waiting for us?” she asked with a smile, looking at the path ahead that lead to a darkened entrance to another part of the crystal tomb as she flew back on to the path and set her friend down.
“Ah reckon he’s right in there,” Applejack said.
“I would imagine so,” Rarity replied.
“Well, if he’s in there, we’d best not keep him waiting!” Rainbow said, feeling reinvigorated again.
“Will you be okay, Dashie?” Pinkie asked, looking the pegasus over.
“Yeah, I’ll be fine.” Rainbow said with a smile. “Still got the king to deal with, right?” She asked. “And Rarity? Thanks for the trinket. Total lifesaver!”
“Good of you to finally say so, Rainbow Dash,” Rarity said.
“Are we ready, girls?” Twilight asked, looking at the dark passageway that stood before them.
“Ready as we’ll ever be,” Rainbow said. And without another word, the six friends approached the waiting entrance and continued onward.
~
The inside of the passage was much darker then the caves before it, columns were lined with numerous jagged spires that seemed to jut out in every possible direction, and down below was just empty blackness. The air was warmer, and currents of purple energy crackled along the columns and riding up towards a platform that awaited at the top of a long, narrow stairway made of black crystal. The strange echoes were gone, replaced by an eerie silence.
Cautiously, the six walked up the stairs, looking around them and seeing numerous tubes that appeared clear but of an organic nature that connected into the top of the stairway, the spires occasionally lighting up and shooting charges of crackling dark magic into one-another as they drew closer to whatever awaited them.
Fluttershy paused suddenly.
“What’s wrong?” Twilight asked.
“Did you hear that?” the pegasus asked, looking around. “It sounded like a… skittering…” she said.
“Ah didn’t see nothin’,” Applejack said. “…But it does feel like we’re bein’ watched…”
“Whatever it is, I don’t see it,” Rainbow said, looking around at the columns for a moment.
As they continued to ascend the stairs, Twilight paused, certain she’d seen a shape scurrying along one of the columns in the shadows. Narrowing her eyes, she saw it wasn’t there now, but made her horn light up, staying alert as she and her friends continued their upward advance.
Seconds later, the six ponies reached the top of the stairs, and beheld the sight that stood before them on a vast platform.
Positioned on a large pedestal of some sort, framed with countless spires growing from the base of it and in a large frame around it which countless tubes fed into, was a crystal heart, identical to the one kept in the Crystal Empire, though far larger and completely black. Surges of dark magic crackled and danced around the frame that it drifted over.
“Is this… Sombra?” Twilight wondered aloud as her friends stared agape, speechless next to her.
Suddenly, the ground trembled, and the large black crystal heart made an odd, beating sound as a smoky form began to gather inside of it. As it took shape, it became a black, glaring image of Celestia’s face; with malevolent, glowing green eyes. It then shifted and morphed into an image of Luna’s, then it sneered, its grin spreading impossibly wide as it twisted into an image of Twilight herself, then Applejack, then Rarity, then Fluttershy, then Pinkie Pie, and finally Rainbow Dash, before turning completely red and shrinking down, green light surrounding it as it became the left eye of the grinning face of King Sombra himself.
Sombra sneered down at them, smoke trailing around his ghostly form contained within the dark mockery of the Crystal Empire’s prized treasure and sending a chill down the ponies backs, leaving them unaware of the skittering sound from above as a large, spider-like shape slowly descended from the shadows and landed behind them…