Umbra
By
Inky Shades
There are ponies all around me, quiet, nervous as they go about their morning. They’re watching me, but I ignore them. The scent of fresh pastries wafts into my nose from a nearby bakery. Two ponies have their muzzles pressed against the bakery’s wide window. If they got any closer they’d be fused with the glass. Their bodies tense when I pass by them.
A couple fillies run in my direction. One chases the other in play, judging from the high pitched giggles emanating from both of them. There’s not a care in the world in either of their eyes. They appear to be blissfully unaware of the unease that permeates the air around them. The filly being chased crashes into me. She peers up at me, backing away, saying some sicky-sweet apology. I pay her no mind as I continue towards a large tree.
Nopony gets in my way. They don’t dare. They know something is amiss about me. I don’t have to look beyond the hood of my cloak to know that. “I don’t belong here” is what I feel from ponies too afraid to approach me. I know that I don’t belong here, too. However, I have a purpose. I want somepony to tell me to leave their town. I want them to get in my face about it and I want them to physically remove me when I refuse.
My lips quiver at the exciting prospect. Oh, how I want them to try! But they won’t. None of them will. I know it, they know it. They are cowards, spineless worms wriggling at the surface of the earth until the first signs of trouble, in which they retreat into the safety of their holes. And I am the hawk that swoops down from the sky to rip them from their homes so that I may tear into them with my beak!
The relationship I have with these ponies is that of predator and prey. Only a larger predator can threaten me, but those are few and far between. Perhaps the princesses could stand against me like they did so long ago, but even they never truly defeated me. The strongest ponies in all the land, and they couldn’t put an end to me. All they did was seal me away, weakening me, but not killing me.
If the bits and pieces of time I saw through the amulet held true, then Equestria’s had a peace stretching for several centuries, at least. How nopony’s invaded this land of sunshine and rainbows is beyond me. My former adversaries are but figureheads now, hardly worth the time it would take me to storm their castle in the Everfree. No, there’s somepony else who’s caught my eye. Perhaps they’d have the skills I seek.
I first sensed the potential within them during my assault of the Crystal Castle. However, in my arrogance, I underestimated them and paid the price. My body was destroyed. I could blame my loss on not being at full power, but that would be an excuse, unworthy of the King of the Crystal Empire. It’s my fault for thinking tricks and traps were enough to stop anypony discovering the crystal heart. Death was the punishment I deserved for the arrogance I displayed, but I will not make the same mistake twice.
Darkness and light. Ponies would love to believe their princesses can protect them from anything, but that isn’t the case. Light is such a fickle, fragile thing trying to make the world ‘better’. But darkness consumes. It doesn’t try to change the world. It accepts the world for what it is and conquers it.
The tree stands before me, tall, strong. I can’t see a single light behind any of the windows. Have I arrived too early? My lips curl into a grin. Wouldn’t it be unfortunate if Equestria’s defender over-slept? Who would protect this town, then?
In the corner of my eye, I see a stallion approaching me. What does he think he’s doing? I turn my head, our eyes lock. He hesitates upon meeting my gaze. There’s fear in his posture, yet he doesn’t run away. Interesting.
This stallion has an important decision to make, no doubt the most important one in his life. He can turn around and run. It’s the choice of the worm, but it’s the smartest choice for him, at least he’d keep his life. Or he can continue towards me, prove to me that I’m not the only hawk in this town. He’d die, but he wouldn’t die a coward. So which will it be?
He continues to stand in his spot. The conflict in his eyes is too painful to watch. It’s laughable. Then he turns around. I frown. The worm it is.
A passive thought of mine drifts towards the stallion, and a dark purple aura binds his limbs. The stallion yelps as he’s lifted into the air. With a flick of my head, he’s sent flying through the air. He crashes through a house window across from where the library stands.
Nearby, a mare’s scream pierces the morning air. Yes, good, scream louder! Let’s not let anypony sleep through this occasion. But, just in case… My horn sparks as I gather magic. When I feel enough has been gathered, I release it.
A purple sphere hurdles towards the house where the stallion landed. It contacts the wall, sending fragments of stone shooting inwards. Dust obscures my vision of the new hole, but once it settles, I see movement. I suppose I haven’t done enough.
Cracks form between the house’s first and second floor. I don’t even feel the strain when the second floor is ripped from its foundation. For show, I leave the floor suspended in the air.
There aren’t any more screams. There’s silence. From the corner of my eye, I see ponies too terrified to do anything. When I’m sure I have their full attention, I force the second story into the first. As it crumbles, I think I see somepony behind one of the windows. How unfortunate. The house lies in ruins. Only a skeleton remains. This is what happens to cowards.
The silence breaks, but still no defender. Is she a heavy sleeper? Ponies scatter like insects, running this way and that. I fire a spell into a group of ponies and watch as it explodes, launching them in all directions. Making sure my voice is louder than the mayhem around me, I say, “Do you hear them, Twilight Sparkle?” I light a house on fire, earning muffled screams from inside its walls. “The citizens are calling out for somepony to save them.”
Any moment now, I expect to see the door to the tree open, but it doesn’t. There’s no way she can still be asleep. Is she ignoring me? My blood boils at the thought. This is unacceptable. Does she need more encouragement?
I spot a mare peering at me from a corner a few houses down. Our eyes meet, she ducks behind a wall. As if that will somehow save her. Envisioning the mare just behind the corner, I wrap her in a magic field. The look of shock on her face as I drag her to me is priceless.
She struggles against her magical bindings. It’s futile, but she doesn’t give up. My lips curl. The poor thing, but what else should I expect from a trapped animal? It’s only natural to fight for one’s life, no matter how pointless the fight is. Her struggle ceases when we’re face to face.
“What’s your name?” I ask, brushing a strand of her mane from her face. Her eyes are wide as she cringes away from me. “Don’t make me ask again.”
“S-Strawberry Sorbet,” she stammers.
“Good girl. Was that so difficult?”
“Please stop this.” Her tone is meek, it’s like I’m listening to a rabbit.
“Enough!” The door to the tree bursts open. A purple uni—no, alicorn, stands in the doorway. So she’s ascended, interesting.
“I wondered how much more I’d have to do to get your attention,” I say.
“Let her go,” Twilight says, horn glowing pink.
“Uh-uh, I wouldn’t do that just yet if I were you. She’s still in my control. It would be easy to crush the life out of her,” I say, tightening the field around Strawberry’s throat.
“P-Please stop.” Tears roll down Strawberry’s face as she struggles for breath.
I grin when Twilight’s horn stops glowing. She understands. As a reward, I release my grip on Strawberry’s neck. “Smart move, but I no longer need her.” Dropping the magic field in its entirety, Strawberry falls to the ground and scampers away. There’s no need for me to stop her, right now. I have what I want. “So, Twilight, how long has it been since our last encounter? I don’t recall you having wings before.”
Twilight looks at me confused. “Who are you?” She doesn’t recognize me?
“Tsk, tsk, has it been so long that you have forgotten about me already?” I ask. “Or is my disguise truly that effective? Maybe you’d like some help?” I remove my cloak. Twilight takes a step back.
“Sombra!” Her eyes widen. If only I had a camera to capture this moment. “But how is this possible? You died!” She shakes her head.
“Did I? Yes, I suppose so. Death is a funny thing. Most ponies would think it permanent, but most ponies would be wrong.”
“But you can’t stop death. It’s just not possible!”
“Can you not think of a way? Come on, I know you know how I did it. And I thought you were supposed to be smart. Aren’t you Celestia’s protégé?” When she doesn’t answer for a time, I ask, “Do you want me to give you a hint?”
“It doesn’t matter,” she states.
“Doesn’t it, though?” I’m skeptical of her response. She knows the answer, I’m sure of it.
“No.” Her voice is adamant. “Why are you here? What do you want?”
“My, my, such authority, you certainly do act like a princess. I feel the inexplicable pull to answer you. Why I’m here and what I want are one and the same: you.”
“Me?” Her stance lowers. She’s preparing for conflict. Good, I never did like things to be easy. “Why do you want me?”
“The answer should be apparent. You defeated me, even if it was only temporary. Despite my best efforts, you found the crystal heart and finished what the celestial sisters tried to do long ago. Perhaps it was just a fluke, but that’s what I want to find out.”
“You want to fight.”
“It’s a little more complicated than that.” I say no more, removing my cloak and letting it fall to the grass. She moves away from the door.
Twilight’s gaze falls on my chest. “The Alicorn Amulet! How did you get that?”
“Oh, you mean, this little trinket? It’s been in my family for centuries. When mother died, she passed it to father, who passed it on to me. I modified it during my reign. You could say it has part of my soul in it. Oh, were you not talking about how I got it originally, but currently?”
“There’s no way you could’ve known where it was,” Twilight says.
“Well then, I suppose there isn’t a reasonable answer, is there? Now, if you want to continue pointless discussions, we can. Let’s talk about your tiara next.” My response causes an irritated groan to emanate from her. I’d almost forgotten how much fun it is to know more than your opponent.
“Fine, I have another question for you, anyway,” she says.
“Fire away, ‘Princess’.”
“If you wanted me, why not kill me in my sleep? There wasn’t any need for you to involve anypony else.”
“Oh, but there was!” I say. “I told you my reasons for wanting to fight you were more complicated than just the thrill of combat, didn’t I?”
“Care to elaborate?”
“I want to test Equestria’s ‘great defender’,” I say simply. “So far, I’m not impressed. In the time it took you to crawl out of bed, I could’ve laid waste to this entire town.”
“So why didn’t you?”
“It’s not what I came here to do, but just think if it was. Nopony tried to stop me, and the only pony that could, slept.”
“You attacked innocent ponies because you wanted to test me?”
“Don’t sound so disgusted. Be glad it was me and not somepony else. Another may not be as considerate.”
There’s anger in her eyes. “You’re a monster!” Her horn glows pink. We circle each other.
“Call me what you want. It doesn’t change the fact that I have Equestria’s best interest at heart. What good is a defender who can’t even defend a single town, anyway? So I think the real question is: what are you going to do about this?”
Our breaking point is so close. I can feel it. How much more will it take before we snap? Who will fire the first shot? There’s a tingle in my horn. I’m ready. I’ve been ready since my revival.
“I sent a letter to Princess Celestia. She’ll be here any minute. I suggest you surrender peacefully before she arrives,” she says.
I laugh. “You sent a letter to Princess Celestia? Is that what took you so long? Were you trying to find a quill or something?” This is too funny. “You honestly expect her to help you? When it comes to conflict, the princess would rather pass the burden of aid to somepony else.”
“Don’t talk about the princess like that! Do you surrender?”
“I can’t believe a silly mare like you was granted ascension. I guess they’ll accept anypony now.”
“Do you surrender?” There’s exasperation in her voice.
“No.”
A ball of pink magic launches from Twilight’s horn and hurdles towards my face. I concentrate. Crystal shards interlock in front of me, creating a barrier. However, the magic hits before my protection can be fully formed. Wisps of magic flow through the cracks and wash over my face, singeing me. I fire a return shot. She leaps out of the way, and the magic hits the library door, shattering it into thousands of tiny splinters.
She runs in an arc, trying to get the drop on me. This is going to be fun. Purple spheres blow holes in the ground around her. I try to get an accurate mark on her, but she’s nimble. Twilight turns her head towards me, firing a magic beam in my direction. The magic cuts through the air and slices through my cheek, a lucky strike.
One of my spheres gets lucky and knocks her off balance, causing her to crash into the ground. I send a half a dozen spheres at her to finish her off. My magic explodes, kicking up dust. Smoke obscures my view of what should be the charred remains of Twilight. When the smoke clears, I see a shimmer. Twilight rises from the ground unharmed, dispelling her shield.
“Clever girl,” I say, firing more spheres.
She returns fire; our magic collides, exploding into sparks of light. It’s been too long since I’ve had an opponent fight me on equal ground, but do I want the fight to be equal? I smile to myself. No. Let’s test the power of the amulet!
I feel the power of the amulet course through my veins. It’s intoxicating. I want more, but it would behoove me to pace myself. Too much power too soon could be a foolish situation to be in. Power can make a pony go mad, make the mind dull, and I need mine to be a blade.
A wave fires from my horn, ripping up the ground as it travels towards Twilight. She creates a barrier. The wave collides with her protective spell. I can see her strain as she tries to keep her barrier up. The barrier flashes, once, twice, three times before collapsing. Twilight is slammed into the side of a house. The stone crumbles around her. Was that too much?
She staggers forward, charging her horn. A flurry of spells launches at me. With precision, I fire counter spells. Once more, our spells create sparks in the air. “Is this the best you have to offer Equestria?” I ask, walking towards her.
My magic wraps around her throat. Lifting her into the sky, I think about crushing the life from her. She gasps for breath as my grip tightens. Tighter, tighter. Her hooves reach reflexively for her neck. “It’s considered rude not to answer somepony when they ask you a question.”
Her response: a strangled gargle.
I force her into the ground, head first. When I lift her back up, she looks at me with a dazed expression. Then I do it again. She hangs limp in the air, not even trying to fight back. How disappointing. My magic releases, and she falls, crumpled to the ground.
“So is this it?” I ask. “Is this all the fight you have in you? If so, I’m disappointed. I expected more from you, but I guess they don’t make alicorns like they used to.”
Twilight rises on shaking hooves. “I’m not done yet.” Her voice sounds strained, like it’s taking all her will just to stand. By the way her body sways, it is. She spits out a little blood.
I approach her, encasing her body in a magic field. She shakes as my field tries to bring her down to the ground. Her resistance is admirable, but futile. I concentrate harder. Eventually, she is subdued. Struggling on the ground, she looks up at me, equal parts prey and predator show in her eyes.
Placing my hoof on her head, I grind her chin into the earth. “This is where we part,” I say, placing more pressure on her skull. If I was to kill her, then I want to feel the life leave her through my own hooves.