King Sombra’s dark influence was obliterated by the Crystal Heart, and the villain is well and truly dead. But when he attempts to steal the afterlife of an innocent victim, a human spirit is left hurtling towards Equestria, where this unfortunate soul is revived into the only vessel available: the reconstituted body of King Sombra himself.

Thus, a cheerfully oblivious alien is crammed into the form of the most evil and malicious being Equestria has ever known. Not that Shining Armor and Cadence know this, of course. As far as they are concerned, the King is back and he’s lost his fricking mind.

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My name is Sombra Lucent. I am a resident of the Crystal Kingdom, hailing from the upper class sector. I am making this journal entry to archive my recent magical studies of artifacts and our history.
For as long as our people can remember, our kingdom has been the heart of Equestria. We keep balance and harmony across the land, and take great pride in our duty. Our love is their love, say they say.
But I want to find the source of all of this. I want to discover why the Crystal chose us in this otherwise desolate tundra of cold and ice, and what effects it may have on the kingdom itself. All of this exposure to the crystal has given our coats a glorious shine, and we as the shining guardians of Equestria have been aptly named 'Crystal Ponies'. But while our role in this world is strong, we are also quite fragile in mind and in body.
I have left the kingdom, braving the snow and ice to locate answers to our past and the origins of the crystal. I also hope to find some way to improve my magic and perhaps bring new ideas and studies to what I consider an otherwise crumbling society. They need a leader, they need to stop with their dreams of a crystal princess because in all this time of waiting and legend, there has never been one present among us. She is just a bed-time story for foals at this point, and I refuse to accept the praise and reliance on something that simply isn't there.

"Learning to trust your instincts is a valuable lesson to learn."

Mere months after the events of "A Canterlot Wedding," the memories of cold shoulders and dismissals remain fresh in Twilight Sparkle's mind, which causes her to question her ability to face the next task that Princess Celestia bestows upon her.

Alone, she must find a way to protect an entire empire. She's afraid and unprepared, but when a mysterious stallion lends a hoof to her success, she soon discovers a friendship that threatens to blossom into something much greater.

(6/9/2016): Made it to the "Featured" page again! You're so awesome, guys!

(( "Of Magic and Masquerades" is the first story in the Crucibles of Harmony series. It is an alternate take on "The Crystal Empire," with some alternate events from Season 3 and minor Twilight/Sombra shipping. ))

When the once proud ruler of the Crystal Empire is turned into nothing more but a colt, he must question how to deal with the sudden loss of power, and figure out how he's going to return to being the tyrant he once was.

Thanks for proofreading the first part of this for me goes to Rust and ABronyLife42.

Sunset Shimmer has grown and changed from who she was. For a long time she's kept to her own path through life in the human world and kept her silence from across the rift that separates her from Princess Celestia.

But there's something important to say and a lot of healing still left to do.

It's time they talked again.

Finalist in the Forbidden Knowledge event on http://writeoff.me/. A big thank you to everyone who critiqued and reviewed the story there.

After Twilight returns from the Human World, Celestia is desperate to know of her former student, Sunset Shimmer, and what happened to her. Upon learning of the horrible things her former student has done, Celestia breaks down in tears as Twilight asks why she was so important to Celestia and why she never told anypony. Celestia tells the story of her and Sunset. How they were so close, and how one secret ruined everything between them.

Spoilers in comments.

Thanks to Biker_Dash, ugugg93, and The Abyss for edit and Pre-reading

Thanks to SilFoe for letting use the art

With Celestia out on vacation for a week, Cadance sees a fine opportunity to spend some time with her Auntie Luna, who's now in control of Equestria for that time. She's always known Luna to be a bit... different, but she never thought she'd find herself suspecting her Auntie Luna of trying to take over Equestria again. Is she simply over-thinking things, or is something truly the matter with Auntie?

Set mid Season 2.

Featured on: 1/30/17!
Also, this is now my 5th story to have 100 likes!
Also pt2, this story was featured in SA Review #104! Check it out here!

SPOILERS IN COMMENTS
Preread/Edited by MLPMatthew419 and Mocha Star

All of Equestria is united in celebration for the return of their beloved Princess Nightmare Moon. But when Celestia and everypony else recieve her she's skeletally starved, filthy, and very nearly dead. Meanwhile, while everypony's eye is turned, a lusty Blueblood pursues Twilight Sparkle, intent on adding her bloodline to his own so his family might step closer to godhood. (Alternate Universe, there never was a Princess Luna)

Death is the end. Once you die that’s it. There’s nothing. Driven by the desire to confront the mare who killed him, Sombra makes his return known at the doorstep of the Ponyville library. As the battle between Sombra and Twilight intensifies, a second motivation behind Sombra’s attack comes to light. This ulterior motive threatens not just Ponyville, but Equestria as a whole. They say death is the end of life, but for some, it’s only the beginning.

Cover art provided by: Valkyrie-girl
Art used with permission

Fathers serve as role models for their children. However, when your father is the cruel and evil dictator of the Crystal Empire, all you can do is run. It doesn't help that you look identical to him either. Where do you go? What can you do? How can you live when everypony thinks you are the evil tyrant?

Special Thanks
Wolframclaws (cover art)
Raaron (proofreader)
Unimportant (editor)
LupoMikti (proofreader)
FloydienSlip (proofreader)