Through a miraculous and cruel twist of fate, Sombra has survived death yet again. However, his many defeats have left him broken and near feral, and the Princesses see no option but to lock him away. Starlight Glimmer, seeing more than the rage and hate the others see, feels pity for the fallen king, and offers to take Sombra under her care to try and reform him.

She quickly finds out Sombra's more broken than anyone believes, and it's going to be a rocky road to redemption, but even the darkest shadows can take solace in the starlight.

Cover art drawn by my sister, linked in the art itself.

Years before the liberation of the Crystal Empire, King Sombra invites six citizens to feast in his castle on the last night of each month. Seldom few are ever seen again. Now a young pegasus who will become known as Guest Number Five has been invited to dine with the King, although his own plans for the night might just lead to everyone's salvation.

Five courses. Three chapters. Served up over three nights.

There are three of them, all Alicorns living to the desert land south of the Everfree Kingdom, which is the land that will one day be Equestria. They are a family of three: an elder sister and the younger kin she raised long before Celestia and Luna had even been born.

Elinora of the White Flame rules wisely, alone until the others are of age and get their marks. Hasad is charismatic and an excellent mediator. Stellaura is nervous, paranoid, and wants nothing more to be like her brother and please everyone, including herself by overcoming her inferiority complex. All of them have their own wishes for the world.

Only one of them will have their wish fulfilled.

Major spoilers in the comments and groups! The cover art is by turnipberry but was edited by me. Contribute to the TVTropes page!

Thorax and Pharynx are taking a hike outside the hive when they stumble across a shady intruder sulking somewhere in the field.

Pharynx vows to properly capture and contain this tyrant, no matter how burly and attractive he may be.

This story was a collaboration with eemoo1o. Feel free to check them out and read their stories, they really deserve more attention.

This story is a sequel to Divine Move

Gods cannot die, so what happened so long ago that ended in the total collapse of Pre-Equestrian civilization?

After many years of unspoken tension mixed with isolated peace, those that remained have received the cryptic message many never wished to see. When such events unfold, Princess Luna recalls a desire she thought she had all but buried and leaves Equestria without a word, only to be followed by the enigmatic and arrogant Sombra.

Now Luna and Sombra – whose ways have remained undecipherable to every princess so far – try to use what knowledge they have to save the world and themselves.

Book Five and Final Book of Sombra's Odyssey. The cover art is fan art drawn by dragonofruin with edits that were done by me. Beware of the numerous unmarked spoilers in the comments! With some help from: NorrisThePony and an anonymous user. The gore and violence tags are for descriptive injuries in the scenes featuring combat, which is only a small portion of the story. The original version was rated Pretty Good in this extremely spoiler-heavy review by PaulAsaran! Contribute to the TVTropes page!

King Sombra isn't totally destroyed by the Mane Six's blast in Canterlot, but he's banished back to the Frozen North and is severely weakened. Determined to take revenge, he's eventually imprisoned by Princess Celestia and has a choice to make: reform himself to use his magic for good, or be turned to stone.

Takes place during Season 9, just after Sombra's defeat. Also assumes you've seen Season 9 so beware of spoilers!

2/18/2023 - This made it to the featured box on the day it was posted I'm SHAKING??? I'm so grateful aaaaa

3/6/2023 - Featured again!!!

Lately, Princess Cadance has been feeling inadequate. She's spoken of this briefly to Twilight Sparkle at the Starswirl the Bearded Traveling Museum, but her longing for a grand adventure is really starting to get to her, as are the thoughts that she isn't doing her best.

When help comes in the unlikeliest of places, Cadance finds herself getting more than she bargained for, starting with her companion of circumstance: King Sombra.

Book One of Sombra's Odyssey. Takes place in between seasons 4 and 5 of MLP:FiM canon. Proofread by: NorrisThePony and ElderXelpud Spoilers in the comments. The cover art is assembled from a piece by sugarberryart, plainoasis, and Pedro Hander. This story is a rewrite of Crystalline. Contribute to the TVTropes page!

After discovering King Sombra planning his latest scheme in their clubhouse, the Cutie Mark Crusaders soon learn they have a lot more in common with the tyrannical King than they might've thought.

Can two groups of blank flanks get along long enough for all of them to succeed? Or will Sombra's need for revenge instead lead all of Ponyville to ruin?

Edited by spigo.

No important political meetings to attend? Check! No letters to answer? Check! A magical and child-safe gift for Flurry Heart that she's sure to love? Check!

Her schedule was clear. Shining and Cadence were off on vacation. She'd prepared all her materials. Twilight Sparkle was more than ready to spend a fun-filled weekend babysitting her favorite niece.

But she wasn't prepared for King Sombra's return. Nopony could prepare to be trapped with him inside a storybook of fairy tales.

And nopony's ever ready for an unhappy ending...

Proofread by: Alicornpriest

Winner of November 2017 NaPoWriMo: Goal of 50k smashed!

Now Featured on Equestria Daily - First hit the Featured Box on April 28th!

Now with a dramatic reading by AShadowOfCygnus!

Sombra.
The name that makes ponies everywhere tremble.
The name that is the definition of cruelty.
The name that strikes fear into the hearts of all that hear it.
And that's really all that anypony can say. Ponies everywhere wonder what really goes on inside the head of the legendary crystal tyrant. What dreams and thoughts of malice could possibly sustain such cruelty?

What actually goes on inside Sombra's head might surprise everypony...

A big thanks to the amazing Mickeymonster for letting me use the cover art. Check it out here!