Umbrum ad Infinitum

by Pixel_Spark


Coronation [Finale]

Inside the strange prison, Sombra had indeed joined the corruption in taking residence inside the Heart. It represented itself as a bleak landscape, black corrosion rapidly eating away at the soft blue crystal that formed the landscape. Sombra touched it with one hoof and was hit with heavy feelings of pain and twisted desire for power...

--You are the same as I..-- a warped voice cackled. Sombra spun, looking for its owner.

"Show yourself!" he snapped.

"As you wish…" the voice said from behind him now.

The Umbrum Alicorn turned once again, and stared. He was facing himself. His OLD self. Back when he was a unicorn, wearing that familiar armor and cloak. The apparition grinned menacingly and strode towards him.

"Yes, that’s right. We're the same. I can sense your magic, your sins. All the pain you caused and still have potential to."

Sombra remained silent, glaring at it. He had to keep his guard up.

"You won't destroy me so easily, we're so similar!" it, no HE, taunted.

Sombra backed away, magic crackling around his horn. He chanced firing at the fake him, but the fake teleported away and the blast of dark magic hit the scenery instead. Sombra seen it crack, and the ground under him shuddered..

"Uh uh..." the illusion reappeared and cackled gleefully "you’re hurting it!"

Sombra faltered, what if he ended up destroying the Crystal Heart?

"Exactly! This is MY home now, you cant hope to just erase me. I'll devour this precious heart, then the rest of this world awaits!"

Something triggered in Sombra's memory. Devour...?

Then he was tackled to the floor as the false him launched its attack. Spikes dug into his back as he impacted the floor and he cried out as a hoof slammed down on the injured wing. The fracture spread, his earlier attempt to patch it up cracking under the pressure....

"I'll tear these things from your body, and with them I’ll be even more unstoppable. I have the pinnacle of dark magic, the darkest heart in Equestria, at my fingertips!"

Sombra wavered, plans to defeat this thing weakening just a fraction. Was he still just a dark-hearted creature? Could all his efforts be in vain, would he always possess a hunger for a fight? For victory above all?

--No, I’m not.--he panicked --I just want to make a life for myself and my ponies!--

But coherent thought was overridden by blinding agony as the thing pinning him grasped the already injured wing and pulled. Searing hot pain stabbed at the base of the wing, and Sombra heard a faint crack. This gave him the clarity to finally think. This thing literally intended to rip him apart, absorb what he was, just to gain power. He couldn’t let that happen, he couldn’t expose the Empire, or Equestria at large, to this twisted thing.

The memory the word "devour" had triggered earlier flashed into his head again now. Back at the parade, he'd stopped a rogue spell that’d been intent on devouring anything crystal. It cared not for flesh and blood, or any other material, it'd just wanted magic-imbued crystal. All he had to do was make a few tweaks-

He shut his eyes, hoping the spell would work. Magic tingled through his body, along with a faint flash of pain...

The illusion representing the spell stared, frowning as his captive suddenly chuckled, the vibrations echoing through the wing he had his teeth sunk into.

He found himself abruptly flung back by a blast of air that seemed to generate from nowhere. He smacked into a rocky outcropping of fading blue crystal, crumpling to the floor. He raised his head, and stared. Instead of a full grown adult, he now faced a small child. A little Alicorn foal, its body formed from solid purple crystal.

Sombra blinked as he realised what’d happened. He recalled the spell as being a small critter, but had assumed it could be applied to his larger form. It seemed it couldn’t handle that much power at that size, it needed a smaller form to divert maximum magic into its appetite. His stomach growled, he was so hungry..but not for crystal. He wanted this inviting darkness as a meal.

The representation of the corruption backed up now, scowling in confusion. What was this idiotic creature playing at? What did it hope to achieve?

"So you’ve made yourself a smaller target? It won't save you-"

He cut off as Sombra became a blur that darted at him at rapid speed. He stepped back, stumbling on unsteady legs and felt the small being strike his shoulder. Intense pain blurred his senses and it snarled, flinging the attacker away.

The little foal reappeared hovering in mid-air, licking his lips smugly. The illusion of corruption looked down at itself, and seen this thing had somehow taken a very literal BITE out of it. Inky shadow leaked from the wound...

"First mistake;" the little Sombra spoke "you gave yourself a form, second mistake; you are darkness too. Third;" he grinned "I have defeated those with an appetite for my magic before."

The fake tried to fire, but Sombra was gone again. More sharp pain on his back, and once again the tiny pony was gone by the time the intruder turned round. At that size, that speed, it was like trying to catch the speed of sound. More wounds appeared in its body as Sombra gave in to the spell. Hit after hit while his target roared impotently.

It ditched the solid form and became a bodiless swirling cloud instead. It laughed, seeing Sombra reappear in the air, head cocked to one side.

"Not so easy to sink your teeth into, hm?" it laughed. But the next second its sense of triumph died, as Sombra merely beamed happily.

"Easier!" he almost sang, and flew into the air, little wings outstretched and hooves raised. The spell altered subtly, acting like a magnet, and he began attracting the darkness to him. It was like a gravitational pull...

The intruding darkness tried to resist, to slip away! But there was nowhere to run- he was trapped inside, and the tables were turned. It cut it losses and made a bid for freedom instead, a last desperate act. It tried to break the walls of its prison and had almost succeeded in making a fissure form when Sombra caught it.

As it was attempting to force itself through, Sombra seen what it was doing. He darted over, plunging into the shadows of his opponent. It swirled around him, drawn like shavings to a magnet, thus following as he put his weight into his little wings and tore back from the fissure. He heard It howl in fury, so close...

It hurt, having this much darkness vying for his attention, and the appetite he'd given himself was being driven crazy by this much power to feast on. A faint glow appeared around his body as the corruption was absorbed by the spell, no...devoured by it.

The intruders screams of fury faded to nothing, as the last vestige of its darkness became a part of Sombra. The glow faded and sputtered and finally vanished altogether.

Sombra fell to the floor, whimpering. Black lightning crackled along his body for a few seconds, then mercifully abated. It'd worked...he could feel his own internal magic assimilating it, his Umbrum side neutralizing its spread.

Seconds passed and he felt his magic regrouping, refuelled by the spell he’d woven. He sighed in relief. It WAS a fairly hefty amount of power though, he felt like he'd just consumed a mammoth amount of coffee, he was twitching softly.

But it was done, he could rest a moment. He felt his broken wing heal, which was a good sign.

Sadly, his peace didn’t last long as he heard a cracking sound above his head and looked up. The crack the creature had made was spreading.

"No.." he panicked, bolting to his hooves and pelting over to where it began. He pressed his tiny hooves to the crack, trying to heal it, but his magic was ineffective.

"Tell me how to help you!" he cried.

"You cannot...not from within.." he recognised the Heart's "Voice" from their last meeting. He looked around, but it seemed to be speaking from inside his head.

"That’s right, I’m darkness. A pure heart and a dark heart cannot co-exist.." strangely, he felt tears well up, matching his childlike form.

"Do not fret," the Heart said kindly "that is not why. You CAN fix what has been broken, but if you do it from within, you yourself will be converted to a type of magic your body cannot support. You will be trapped here, permanently. You could...die."

"Regular magic...love's magic?" Sombra was hit with a sudden introspective thought even as panic chilled him to his core "does that mean I’m incapable of love?"

"Not at all. You have plenty of it within you. Some, you have already given to those around you. And I sense there is one who will someday claim its purest form, one to whom you will offer it."

The tiny Sombra blushed a little at the thought. But he nodded, comforted by these words.

"If you remain here when you try to repair the damage, it will likely tear you apart, such will be its intensity." the Heart's voice continued.

"Alright.." Sombra whispered..."so what do I do?"

"You already answered the question. LOVE magic. As I said, you have much of it within you, you just need to bring it to the front. Forget not, you have a little of my power inside you from when I made you immune to my influence. Use it..." her voice was already fading, strength weakening.

Sombra nodded, and looked up at the crack forming in the wall. He could do this!

Then the whole place shuddered abruptly and Sombra was sent tumbling head over hooves a few feet away.

"What-?" he asked, shaking his head dizzily.

"Your protective capsule, it is breaking!" the Heart cried "you used up a lot of your magic switching to that spell, it is falling apart! You must flee!"

Sombra dove for the way out, finding his body passed easily through it.

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Everything went white a second, then he was hit with a sudden inertia. Opening his eyes, he seen he was falling down out of the sky, and above him spun the Heart. He reached up for it, clutching it to his much smaller than usual body. He buzzed his wings, but they were too little to do much more then keep him hovering in place. He'd never be able to carry it all that way, and already his wings were being bogged down by the rain...

"Love can fix you.." he gasped as the rain soaked into his body. The devouring spell's influence was gone, reverting him back to his normal Umbrum shades.

--I have the power I got from that thing, it plus my magic...it could be enough...--

Down below, the street was deserted. Soon as the crystal pillar had began to crumble the ponies had fled, not wanting to get hurt. They couldn’t see very well with the heavy rain, thus they missed the tiny grey Alicorn and his struggle..

Sombra shut his eyes, bringing up every good memory he had. From his past, the kindness of the orphanage director, the laughter as she'd taught him that rude song. Then it connected to the memory of singing it to the girls and Discord in the present day. How they’d laughed and smiled at him. Memories began to link, reminding him of both every act of kindness he'd received, but also those that he'd given. Offering homes to lost ponies, teaching a scared colt that his magic was safe. Giving a feather to the little filly. Small things and big things. And the love reserved for those special ones, family, friends and more...

The Heart shone so blindingly bright he could barely stand it. It shook in his grasp, and he seen the crack repair itself, fading away to become the flawless undamaged Heart once more.

Like a magnet, he felt it tug towards the place where it resided. He let go, seeing it shoot away with a near sonic boom of blue magic. He tried to right himself in its wake, but didn’t manage it in time. He slammed into the side of a building, the shock winding him and he hit the ground, rolling over into a ball until finally coming to a stop. He winced, feeling one wing sprain…

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The ponies who’d retreated to their doorways to await the next development seen the blue blast and chased after it en-masse. Although one mare thought she seen something and slipped away, running back. Squinting in the rain, she spotted a tiny, injured form curled up on the ground. She looked closer and stared, it count be?

But there was no denying it. It was a tiny crystal Alicorn, in shades of grey, with black mane. A familiar sight indeed.

"Hay, can you hear me?" she asked in concern. Was he badly hurt?

The tiny King stirred, and at last opened his eyes. She sighed in relief, thank goodness!

"Did...it work?" he croaked.

"The Heart? Yes, its gone home now, everypony's gone after it. Was that you doing all that?" she asked. He nodded, staggering to his tiny hooves.

"I had to shrink my form to access the spell I wanted, it required...a lot..."

"When did you get here?" she asked, puzzled. Surely a visit from the Umbrum King would’ve been announced?

"I came on unofficial business," Sombra smiled faintly "earlier today. I had been having nightmares about the heart. Thinking back now, I think they were more like-"

"Visions..?" she suggested. Sombra nodded.

"Are you hurt?" she asked. He shivered, limping a little as he stepped forward.

"A few bruises, but I’m alright. Umbrum crystal is quite hardy."

"How come you're..." she giggled helplessly "so tiny?"

Seeing the slightly withering look Sombra gave her, she giggled even more "I’m sorry, but you are adorable your highness!" the sight of the teeny tiny Alicorn was just too much.

"Cant say I’ve been called that before," the slightly embarrassed King blustered, going even redder, which just amped up the cute factor "this was not my intent!"

"Sorry your highness, cute things are my weakness. Just ask my kids..." she chuckled.

"I need to get to the palace." Sombra recalled Cadance and the others "the Heart, I have to check it is alright!"

The mare nodded and scooped him up. She held him in one foreleg as she ran full pelt towards the gathering crowds. They stepped aside, some frowning at her as she pushed towards the front, then they seen she carried a tiny Alicorn. She set him down at the front of the crowd and he smiled gratefully. Silence reigned along with some quiet "d'awws" amongst the crowd as they realised this was essentially a child Sombra. And he was adorable.

Sombra padded over to the Crystal Heart, wide red eyes full of concern.

"Why isn't it spinning?" he asked.

The Heart seemed drained, like there wasn’t any energy in it. It was repaired, the damage gone and the darkness' corruption was gone. Yet it remained immobile, had his magic not been enough? He began to panic...

Then the royals, plus Corona and Morloc arrived on scene.

"What’s going....on?" Shining Armor trailed off as he spotted the minute Sombra, and barely suppressed a giggle. Corona did a double take, peering down at the little stallion.

"Your majesty?" he asked, baffled. Sombra heaved a big sigh, for a tiny pony.

"In order to wipe out that spell that took over the heart, I had to use a spell I learnt some time ago here in the Empire. But, it could not be applied to a full grown pony, so it altered my form."

"Does that mean you’re stuck that way?" Cadance asked.

Sombra winced "I am not sure, right now I do not have a lot of magic. It has been drained twice in succession. Once to execute that spell, and another to fix the Heart."

"How did you get it back? Where’s the dark spell?" Shining's mind was abuzz.

"It is gone, I dismantled it and absorbed its power myself," He shuddered "it was not a sensation I relished, I feel I must emphasize."

"How did you keep the heart intact?" Cadance queried. Sombra smiled softly.

"It needed love magic. Normally that is what the ponies here give it, and i do not possess that type of magic. But, by converting some particularly powerful memories, combined with the immunity pattern granted by the Heart back when it last encountered me, I was able to..what’s the term, improvise? Seems it was enough to fix the damage at least."

Silence reigned.

"Wow." Shining said, Cadance stared in amazement.

"I didn’t understand a word of that, but, who cares!" Corona declared "you pulled it off, your majesty!"

The crowds took this in and cheered. The Heart was fixed and they had Sombra to thank, that was all they needed.

"Hee hee, he’s so tiny." Shining Armor snickered as the applause died down and a flushed Sombra turned back to face them.

Cadance tried not to giggle, but she couldn't help herself "who knew he’d be so adorable?"

"Laugh all you wish, if you must!" Sombra complained loudly, going very red.

"Can I at least take a picture?" Shining Armor sniggered.

"Not unless you want the camera stored somewhere entirely inappropriate!" Sombra shot back, one eyebrow raised in amusement. Shining snorted loudly as the joke sunk in.

Cadance was biting her lip so as not to completely bust a gut laughing, but Corona had no such scruples. He happily laughed his ass off, and had to make himself stop giggling. Even as Sombra hovered on his eye level and glowered.

“S-sorry your majesty...” The Gargoyle giggled “but that’d be my response also! Maybe I’m a bad influence.”

“You and Discord do share that crime.” Sombra grumbled good naturedly.

Shining Armor finally stopped giggling to himself, and resolved to never forget this particular memory if he couldn’t take a photo!

"The Heart?" Sombra drew attention back to the problem at hoof. He flew back to stand at its base, wondering if there was something he'd missed?

"Oh, that's easy to fix!" Cadance smiled and looked over at the crowd "together, everypony!"

The crystal ponies cheered, even amidst the rain and thunder. They bowed deeply, and the ground began to glow. Sombra, who was sat close by the Heart, fidgeted nervously as the glow intensified. Even though he knew he was technically immune to it, this was the first time he'd gotten this close to it while it was in USE. But he had to trust the Heart. Thus he closed his eyes and felt his nose bump the ground as he joined the others. The ground beneath him shone blindingly, becoming so intense he needed to close his eyes...

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With a colossal boom, the Heart fired its signature magic into the sky, colourful streamers of light blasting the rain-clouds apart, clearing the sky.

Sunshine filtered through as the air calmed, everypony opening their eyes. Delighted murmurs and cooing curiosity rebounded around the massed gathering. Cadance looked at shining, and stared.

"Wow.." she marvelled, for he resembled an Umbrum! Crystal body, with an opalescent white colour at his core, the same style was applied to his mane, with an angular pattern on the blue highlights. "You look like the Umbrum do.."

"So do you!" Shining Armor marvelled at how stunning a crystal Cadance was, her coat glittering. She blushed happily as he nuzzled her cheek.

The last of the light faded, and Sombra waited a few seconds for his head to clear…

“Oww...” he groaned initially, as the world went fuzzy while he adjusted to opening his eyes again.

"Sombra-?" Corona blurted, and he, Cadance and Shining Armor darted round to check he was alright. The crowd were making curious and admiring noises, and they soon seen why.

Sombra was back to his full adult form, to their relief. But several things were different. For one, he resembled his "normal" form, with grey coat and flowing shadow mane. Next, he had a crystal pony’s coat pattern, even down to his eyes. Last but not least was his clothing.

He was wearing a cloak made of purple fabric, which pinned at his left shoulder, falling at a stylish angle. On his hooves were stylised shoes made of a bluish metal. The pattern of them was reminiscent of the curled pattern on the pillar that had held up the sealed Heart earlier. Beneath the collar of the new cloak, Cadance seen a slim silver neckband with a pearly crystal at the front. It reminded her of the oath band Celestia had given Sombra. She'd seen him wearing it after he'd been awoken from crystal stasis. Finishing it off was a headband in place of where a crown would normally balance, and there were subtle stripes of light black and grey shades in his mane.

Sombra looked at himself, taking in the return to his proper height.

"Check it out," Shining Armor said in surprise "the heart pulled a switcheroo!"

"How do you mean?" Sombra asked.

Cadance nodded to the nearest polished wall of the palace "take a look!"

Sombra looked over and seen he looked like a crystal pony. He blinked, surprised by how different it looked on him.

"Wow, so this what it is like!" he chuckled in amazement "it has never been safe for me to be around the hearts magic before."

He looked at his Crystal pony self. Old emotions welled up, and he felt a pang of nostalgia.

“I've dreamt so long of finally seeing this.” he murmured to himself. Those close enough to hear it connected this with the story they knew of him. He'd longed to see the Heart, but its corrosive influence on him as a child had prevented this childhood dream ever coming true.

They caught his eyes now and grinned, congratulating him on a dream coming true! This kindness touched the Umbrum's heart, and he smiled a warm, content smile. Corona seen it and sighed in relief to see his majesty looking happier.

Cadance and Shining Armor stepped up to check the heart, and Sombra realised they now looked like Umbrum's. All the ponies did! In his daze, he hadn’t registered the change.

"How..?" he asked.

Corona appeared beside him, looking quite shimmery, with his coat type. He grinned at his boss.

"Beats me how, sire, but the heart seems to have granted both you and everyone else a little glimpse of your respective looks!"

Sombra winced guiltily, this wasn’t how it was supposed to go. He began pacing nervously, trying to work out how to say it;

"I..I'm sorry about this. It must have been a side effect of my magic-" he faced the crowds closest to him as he spoke, looking concerned and apologetic "This is not how it is supposed to look-"

"Oh, fiddle-faddle, don’t fret!" One older mare grinned at the King, the wrinkles around her eyes giving her a kindly look "Its alright for things to change! And don't you look handsome as one of us~" she gave him a good humoured wink, and Sombra flushed slightly, seeing other mares nodding in agreement.

"Yeah! We look awesome!" another crystal pony piped up.

Sombra was about to thank them for their understanding when he heard Corona's voice barking sharply at somepony-

“Hold it right there!”

Sombra spun round, wings raised in alarm and seen the Captain was blocking the Centaur, Morloc, from slipping away.

“The threats been fixed, but you're not off the hook. I have orders in standing from King Vorak to bring you in, and no doubt their royal highnesses have more than a few questions for you!”

Morloc tried to stammer out a plea to be let go, but he could see the fury and disappointment in Corona's eyes. He looked past the Gargoyle, and seen Sombra standing stock still. He radiated a suppressed tension, wings puffed up like a bird of prey ready to scare a predator away. The hurt in the stallion's expression was the overload of guilt that finally made him wise up.

He relaxed, nodding to Corona as the crowd began babbling to themselves. Did this being have something to do with the Hearts problems? Why was King Sombra so agitated? Those closest could see powerful muscles twitching under his soft grey coat, as if he was suddenly a live wire of energy, and he seemed upset.

“You guys got room?” Corona asked Cadance. She nodded, and summoned a guard to lead Corona and his prisoner.

“Will you be alright with joining me to ask some questions, your Majesty?” the Gargoyle asked as Sombra walked over. Sombra nodded wordlessly.

He waited in that same spot until Corona returned, saying the prisoner was being guarded by the Crystal pony guards. Sombra finally felt able to relax...

“Nothing to worry about, just a prior offence!” Corona said to the crowd “I was given an arrest warrant by King Vorak, with orders to enact it should I find the subject in question.”

The crowds nodded, accepting this and speculating what the warrant had been about? Sombra felt vastly calmer and was even able to relax and smile to the crowds.

Mid smile, Sombra heard a camera flash and looked round. Shining Armor lowered the camera.

“You didn’t say anything about no photos when you weren't teeny tiny! Also, I thought it'd make a good memory.” he grinned cheekily and added “please don’t shove the camera up somewhere unsuitable.”

“Rest assured, your camera will remain outside of you.” the Umbrum snorted, unable to keep from laughing. Shining Armor grinned back, and Sombra knew he wouldn’t forget this day any time soon! He rather liked this Crystal pony look...

As if reading his mind, a new voice spoke from the front of the crowd.

"This is simply sublime~" a fancily dressed stallion with a blue mane and moustache stepped up to the King.

"Fancy Pants, your highness" he declared in a booming voice, bowing grandly while the befuddled Alicorn blinked at him.

"We didn't know you were here!" Fancy Pants continued "You see, I came here with my fiancé Fleur' to do a photo-shoot for her latest magazine special!" he nodded to a stunningly pretty pony with pale pink mane who was standing beside him.

Fleur smiled at Sombra "This style is simply wonderful, your majesty. We're finishing the shoot this afternoon and this will give it an edge that’ll blow the other publications out of the water! Would you be adverse to giving the magazine an interview? I know they’d simply DIE to have your opinion in print!"

"Really?" Sombra was slightly puzzled. What did he have to say that’d be needed by a magazine? Fancy Pants chuckled at his expression.

"Society Magazines, my good stallion! Why, they LOVE an exclusive, and it doesn’t get much more exclusive than the mystery ruler of the Umbrum's! Don’t you read them?"

"I’m living at a building site right now," Sombra smiled apologetically "I am afraid we are a little cut off from the city news."

"Well then you should join us for lunch! We can catch you up on everything." Fleur preened. She hoped Sombra would agree. The magazine would be thrilled for an interview with this reclusive King. Little was TRULY known about him, his personality and hobbies for example! Plus that getup he now wore was gorgeous, and she thought it a crime that it could go unpublished!

Sombra was a little hesitant, but he realised he was still hiding to a degree. Discord had warned him about doing this, saying he needed to stop hiding and let the rest of Equestria see the real him. It was with this in mind that he nodded at last. Fleur made a gleeful noise, and Fancy Pants thanked the stallion.

Sombra looked back at Cadance and Shining Armor, wondering if they needed him for anything?

"Go," Cadance beamed "we can talk over dinner!"

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Sombra thanked them and with Corona in tow, set off after the two new ponies. Any injury he'd sustained had been healed by the power he'd absorbed, so he was in fine health. Pretty hungry though, now he thought about food..

"And a Gargoyle too?" Fleur's eyes lit up "I’ve never met one before!"

"Names Corona, I’m his Majesty’s personal guard for today, also overseer of the Gargoyle/Centaur platoon assigned to King Sombra."

"A whole platoon! My my, this is unprecedented!" Fancy Pants was amazed. Gargoyles and Centaurs were VERY rare, few had ever been seen. They were quiet secular by nature, very self reliant. How had Sombra come to be in possession of a whole squad of them? The papers had spoken of the battle of Canterlot, and he and Fleur both knew every bit of gossip surrounding this King. But that’s all it was, gossip and speculation. This was a chance to get the truth about Sombra. He was notorious for being very tightly guarded, he'd never consented to any interview before.

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Fancy and Fleur filled Sombra and Corona in on the broad spectrum of societal news, and his part in it. Sombra seemed very surprised and highly startled, they noted, when they explained how most magazines were champing at the bit for news about him, but it'd been sparse since he'd left the Crystal Empire.

"And you say you’re at a building site now?" Fancy Pants asked.

Sombra nodded "Yes, I made the decision to live and work there. I felt restless just sitting around the Crystal Empire's palace, I wanted more to do."

"I imagine that sort of work would wreak havoc on your coat!" Fleur mused "yet it looks so sleek?"

"Ah, yes, I have aides and a liaison who ensure i look after myself, as I oft forget when I have a heavy workload!" Sombra smiled, thinking about Excel and the two aides.

“It's true, he horrifies said aides by wandering around up to his flank in cement and plaster dust!” Corona chuckled, recalling their reactions.

"How exciting!" Fancy Pants declared, and Fleur nodded "royalty putting crown and pomp aside to work alongside the populace, the public will just LOVE this!"

Sombra was starting to feel a little lost now. Seeing this, Corona spoke up;

"Just what angle is this magazine looking for? I can safely say his majesty prefers the reality not to be too...embellished. I've seen enough papers in my lifetime to know how “flight of fancy” these opportunities can get."

“Oh, don’t worry!" Fancy Pants said, not wishing to offend the King and discourage him "something on this level, we wouldn't dream of meddling with it! It’ll be a big draw based on you alone!" he nodded to the King.

“We do ask though, if at all possible your majesty, if we could make it...exclusive?” Fancy Pants broached. Sombra frowned.

“Meaning what?” he asked. Fancy Pants hurriedly reassured the King, praying he hadn't just botched it. Insulting his majesty was a sure fire way to getting in trouble!

“Oh not much, just that you save all the details solely for this shoot! Its a big bit-grabber having an exclusive, with royalty and the prestige is through the roof!”

Sombra was starting to recall why he never read those papers. Such pomp and showing off, it baffled him. He caught Corona's eye, who shrugged and rolled his eyes slightly in agreement.

“That is no cause for concern, I have no intentions of talking all day to every news-pony in town I'll have you know!” the King huffed, managing to sound slightly offended by accident. Fancy and Fleur nodded eagerly, thanking him repeatedly whilst sighing silently inside. They thought for sure they'd just scared him off!

--I begin to regret this..-- Sombra thought. This kind of society nonsense felt so...overblown to him. But he knew from Rarity that these magazines had an enormous audience, easily rivalling that of a newspaper and then some!

“You really need to be less….reclusive...” Discord had shrugged during one of their talks “everywhere I go I see newspapers just grabbing at straws for details about you! You never know, it might help your building project if you get the attention of some rich investors?”

“I’m not sure...” Sombra had sighed. Discord scratched behind the pony's ear and added “if nothing else, it’ll be good practise for politics?”

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Back to the present moment, Fleur announced they were at the restaurant. Sombra stared at it, this was one of the fanciest-looking places he'd ever seen!

The staff at the door did double takes but quickly recovered, greeting this surprise guest with the highest respect. By now everypony had either heard or guessed what’d happened with the heart, and many a curious pony took in how the former tyrant looked as a Crystal pony.

The four of them were shown to what Corona deduced was a prime table, and he seen curious and even envious glances being directed at them by other patrons as the group walked by.

The food was, of course, delicious. Sombra and his guard were duly given the most up to date list of scandals and news, most of which flew right over Sombra's head. He did not know who these ponies were, why should he be so shocked at their antics? But he kept a pleasant smile on his face, conversing with them as best he understood.

With food over, and a head full of somewhat pointless information, Sombra wandered with them to the magazine headquarters. Soon as they entered the bustling lobby, all eyes were drawn to the tall Alicorn and his crystal pony style.

More double takes and curious noises followed and Sombra tried telling them there was no need to worry, he didn’t mean to interrupt. They crowded close as they could before he'd even finished his sentence and they followed after him as long as they could before Corona politely motioned them to back up.

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“Glamour Dust!” Fleur called as she swanned in “I’m back, and I brought somepony you simply MUST meet!”

“Fleur, darling, were on a schedule here. We don’t have time to entertain a-” she turned round, and nearly dropped her camera “...King..”

She shot over, camera in hoof, darting this way and that around the bemused Sombra as she spoke.

“Oh my! That outfit, you simply cannot leave without telling me who made it! And goodness those wings are just as impressive in reality as I thought!” She stared intently at said wing “with just the right light-”

“Glamour!” Fleur coughed.

“Oh my!” she gathered herself somewhat “I do apologise your majesty! This is the first time I’ve had the pleasure of seeing you in the flesh. You’re quite a scarcity in news circles..”

“So I have been informed.” Sombra said, unsure how to react to her. Even now she was eyeing him, then looking at her camera.

“His majesty has graciously consented to our conducting an interview!” Fancy Pants told her, and her eyes lit up.

“Well why didn't you say so?!”

“You were too busy being starstruck~” Fluer teased. Glamour blushed, self consciously patting her mane with one hoof.

“Can you blame me darling? Royalty walks in, what am I supposed to do? I'll go grab FrontPage, he'll record it all! I don’t suppose I could tempt you into letting me take a few photos, your majesty? That outfit, and the crystal theme, it just screams photo-shoot!”

She caught sight of the bemused Gargoyle hovering at the King's side, and was equally fascinated.

“Your coat is gorgeous, it shines perfectly!” she enthused, looking hopefully between the two.

They shared glances, and Corona shrugged in a manner that said “eh, why not?”

Feeling utterly bewildered, Sombra did eventually give in. But seeing how blatantly uncomfortable he looked, staring at the fancy backdrops and lights, Glamour Dust suggested they do the shots outside, maybe at the crystal lake?

This was duly scheduled for later, and the excited photographer raced away to grab the reporter.

“How badly are you regretting this, sire?” Corona joked under his breath to his King.

“An unquantifiable amount.” Sombra whispered back, and they shared a brief chuckle.

“This is far out of my league, I regret to say..” Sombra said absently, as they awaited the reporter.

“Eh, it'll probably prepare you for when the empire is ready. You’ll be in a much brighter spotlight then.” Corona said sagely.

“So I have been told. I guess it is easy to forget, working on the site, after all.” Sombra mused.

There was a skidding sound and a clatter at the door. Sombra looked up in time to see a pony, bogged down with notebooks, a camera and some light stands, trip quite spectacularly.

Sombra reacted quickly, grabbing the pony in his magic, and stopping the equipment just before it hit the floor.

“Oh sweet Celestia..” the reporter wheezed as Corona flew over and took the dropped items, setting them down beside an alarmed Fleur and Fancy Pants.

“Are you alright?” Sombra asked, frowning in concern as he set the pony down, steady him with an out-held hoof. “Who thought it a bright idea to put you under that much strain?”

“My boss..” the reporter groaned, thanking the King for his help.

“Hmph, maybe I should speak with her?” Sombra frowned, it bugged him.

“Oh no, there's no need for that your majesty! Please...” the pony babbled, not wanting to cause him any trouble.

Sombra let it go, and returned to the seat where his guard waited.

What followed was a long interview, with a lot of questions. Some he expected, such as updates on the work so far, and how many ponies and other beings were on site now.

When the questions moved onto his personal life, such as asking if he had a special somepony, Sombra got visibly annoyed. Corona seen the wings fluff up, and gave a minute shake of the head to the nervous reporter, who nodded and dismissed the question.

But FrontPage was glad to see Sombra didn’t mind answering questions about hobbies and such things. He was fairly startled when the King informed him he could play the harp!

“Where did you learn that?” he asked the Alicorn. Sombra smiled softly.

“There was a music room at the orphanage. The director taught me some simple pieces. Sometimes, when I wanted to be away from the bustle and noise, I would go into the music room and study the sheet music.”

“How elegant!” Fleur said, clapping her hooves.

“You know, there's a harp that was recovered from the village you helped evac, I bet they could fix it up for you? I think its an heirloom or something.” Corona pointed out.

Sombra hadn’t known about this and looked intrigued at the idea. Could he still remember?

Other interests he spoke of related to reading, and of course studying magic. Especially his own, as his dark and Umbrum magics were quite similar in the way they operated.

He displayed his crystal-creating abilities by weaving sculptures seemingly out of thin air. He produced one of Cadance and Shining and everypony assembled applauded. FrontPage took copious notes, and Glamour went through quite a few rolls of film getting casual shots of the interview and the demonstration of magic!

When Sombra made to disassemble the sculpture, Glamour begged him to let her keep it. Sombra was surprised, but happily gave it to her, making her grin in glee!

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After so many questions Sombra figured it'd keep the populace occupied for weeks, it was on to the lake. Fleur and Glamour bustled around him, angling and moving his wings, getting him to sit on this rock, or by the lakes shore…

One of the most stunning shots Glamour got was by accident. A breeze had picked up, tugging at Sombra's mane, making it frame his face just perfectly. The photo was taken just as Sombra raised a hoof to tuck it back behind his ears, gaze focused in the distance.

“So melancholy yet so poised!” Glamour sighed “its perfect. It shows the calm, steady hoof you will undoubtedly rule with, yet there's an element of uncertainty there too...”

“All I see is my mane escaping...” Sombra muttered softly to Corona, who fought not to laugh.

Not that the giggling Gargoyle got off scot-free. He accompanied the King to get a drink, and as they were walking back, Glamour snuck a few casual shots. She got a nice one of the two of them in friendly conversation, which showed a whole myriad of things about them apparently, that neither Sombra nor Corona understood.

All the staff involved thanked the King and Gargoyle repeatedly as they made to leave. Fleur and Fancy Pants expressed their gratitude for his willingness to speak with them and their magazine! This was the scoop of the year~

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“Captain?” Sombra asked, as they walked back towards the palace.

“Yes, sire?”

“Remind me never to read one of those magazines. I fear my head is full of nothing but nonsense! I would rather read a textbook with practical information then hear about somepony's fashion slip up!” the stallion snorted, shaking his head.

“You and me both your majesty, you and me both...” Corona rolled his eyes “Not my bag, at all!”

“Still, if it helps me learn to deal with bigger scenarios down the road, I should not mock it.” Sombra added, feeling a little guilty. “For all its pointlessness to myself personally, it seems such publications provide an escapism for many ponies!”

“Reading about the rich and famous is as close as being them.” Corona summed up, and the King nodded sagely.

“The knowledge that money and standing are no barrier to occasions of idiocy undoubtedly makes them celebrity ponies feel more real.” the monarch continued.

“Stupidity knows no bounds.” Corona translated, and Sombra couldn’t help an amused laugh. Corona was like Discord, he managed to translate Sombra's long winded speeches into less words. Or funny ones anyway.

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He told the tale of the unexpected publicity at dinner, and Cadance remarked she'd read those magazines, and done shoots for them too. Usually modelling and/or interviews about politics. Shining Armor would sometimes join her, but he pulled a face when Sombra glanced at him.

--Ah, he is none too fond of them either..-- Sombra surmised, nodding subtly at him.

Corona said he was going to get an early night, and thus left Sombra alone to talk with Cadance and Shining Armor.

“The Captain mentioned you were having nightmares, and sleepwalking.” Cadance got to the point. Sombra sighed heavily.

“The recent dreams I think I can attribute to what happened today. They all centred around the Heart..”

“You too..” Cadance murmured, and Sombra looked surprised.

“She’s been having vague flashes of the heart the last few days,” Shining Armor explained “we were just starting to think we'd missed a festival for it or something when things escalated, and you know the rest.”

Sombra nodded.

“But the sleepwalking?” Cadance pressed. Sombra winced guiltily.

“It's getting worse, it-” he sighed “I don’t know if Corona mentioned it, but he had to yell at me to stop me before I injured myself on the equipment. All this time I thought I was sneaking back to bed with nopony knowing, he's had the guard tailing me to ensure I don’t injure myself. Mayhap they thought I would grow out of it eventually. But, its increasing. Not just frequency, but- the depth of the dreams.”

“You mean you're not waking as easy?” Shining guessed and Sombra nodded.

“Corona mentioned it did come very close, he even had to pull me back by my wings to stop me one time. Didn’t even feel it. It is concerning...”

“Sounds worrying,” Cadance couldn’t blame him for looking exhausted “are you dreaming anything in particular?”

“No,” Sombra shook his head “at least nothing I wake up able to recall. I have no desire to injure myself badly, so this needs to stop.”

“I stopped by Lavender Remedy's place before you arrived, she said to stop by whenever you’re ready, she'll do what she can to hep.” Cadance informed him.

Sombra nodded, sighing in relief. He thanked them both, and retired to bed.

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“I'm worried he's pushing himself too hard.” Cadance said once the King was gone. Shining Armor nodded in agreement.

“Yeah, I reward Girder's reports. From the sounds of it, Sombra's pushing himself to be a one pony powerhouse. It's admirable the amount he's gotten done, and I get it cant be easy helping with the sudden influx of refugees. They’re looking to him for help and guidance as well as his own Umbrum's.”

Cadance nodded at her husband “maybe its repressed stress? Girder said he rarely seems to show any real distress, aside from the odd dizzy fit.”

“His brain clearly wants to keep working, so it wakes him up?” Shining Armor shrugged.

“Stranger things have caused sleepwalking, according to Lavender.” Cadance replied.

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The next morning, when informed of Sombra's plans for the day, Corona asked was his majesty sure he didn’t need him for today? Not that he minded having the day off, he just wanted to make sure.

“I will be spending most of it at the therapists office,” Sombra smiled “i hope we can find an answer to why its getting worse, so that I might sleep in peace.”

“Good luck sire,” Corona said simply “take it easy.”

“Of course,” Sombra smiled, then set off towards the waiting carriage.

It delivered him direct to the therapists door, and he stood there a moment before pushing the door open with his hoof. The bell hung over the door jangled merrily as he glanced around the cosy looking reception.

“Just a moment-oh, your majesty!” The voice was warm, kind. Sombra looked over at her. She was a middle-aged mare, with pale purple coat and white mane, and a sprig of lavender was her cutie mark. She stepped around the desk to greet him.

“Welcome, it's an honor to meet you! I'm Lavender Remedy.” she had a soothing, relaxing voice, and her friendly demeanour worked to help even the tensest of patients relax. She ushered the Alicorn into the room that joined onto the reception.

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Sombra settled himself on his stomach atop the big plush couch, while Lavender sat herself in a well loved old armchair that had been in her family for years.

“I have treated many a pony for sleep disorders, your case is not uncommon, your majesty.” she assured him “I just need to know as much about your sleepwalking habits as you can provide.”

Sombra nodded, took a deep breath and began his tale.

Lavender's eyebrows rose slightly when Sombra gave her the whole story. The bits about Corona having to physically manhandle his wings to steer him away from a fenced off trench. The "yelling to wake him" thing got a mention also.

“Not the best method, but if he was worried about your safety, I can understand his method. Ideally you shouldn’t waken a sleepwalker, it could send them into shock.”

“I see..” Sombra mused.

“You say you cannot remember your dreams? I know this sounds absurd, but I think if we try an exercise, we can whittle it down. I’m going to talk you through it.”

She got him to close his eyes, follow some deep breathing exercises, and began to talk him through what had been going through his mind during the days. Anything and everything he could remember...

When she queried him mentioning getting too close to a cave, his eyes snapped open, and the look he flashed her was laden with fear.

“Perhaps this cave?” she asked “you seem very shaken.”

“It's..” Sombra's throat went dry, and he cut off. A low rumble could be heard and she noted just how uneasy he truly was about the subject. Once he'd relaxed, she pressed on.

“I understand its hard, your majesty, but in order to get to the bottom of this, I need to ask why the cave-”

“-I was kept prisoner, chained up and starved...in a cave.” Sombra choked out at last. Lavender felt a deep sympathy for him. The various papers and magazines had brushed over the subject, most just mentioning Sombra had been held prisoner for a long time. Clearly the truth was far worse.

Her face went even whiter as she coaxed the details from him. The torture, Sombra tried to gloss over as much as possible, limiting it to base descriptions. But she got the gist of it, and it sounded barbaric.

Yet there was something off about the way he processed it. Something written in the way he seemed to almost mechanically process his emotions, as if they needed to stay.

So she decided to try something. A basic statement, but his response would tell her a lot.

“Nopony should endure that, for any reason.” she said softly. Sombra winced subtly, before nodding.

“Why do you think that is wrong?” she asked abruptly. Sombra flinched visibly as if he'd been hit.

“W-what..?” he stammered, panic rising. Surely she couldn’t have said, couldn’t have SEEN-

One look at her told him she HAD noticed his guilt. He glanced away, looking at the stylised shoes on his hooves, the ones given by the Crystal Heart.

“Your majesty,” she said firmly “this is very important. You have connections, ties, to these memories that are causing you pain. The chains were around your neck weren’t they? That's why you’re scratching your neck, isn’t it?”

Sombra jolted and quickly clamped the forehoof rubbing at his neck under the other one, pinning it to the couch. His heart was going a mile a minute, panic surging to the fore. This was bad..

Lavender nodded to herself. This confirmed her suspicions. He was triggering this himself.

“Do you believe you deserved that pain in some way, your majesty?" She said, getting to the point. The look of guilt on his face, the way he couldn't speak, only nod, confirmed it.

“Why?” she asked. Sombra shook his head, still unable to voice it. So many things vied for his attention. Why WAS he still punishing himself? The ponies at the site had told him he didn’t need to use guilt to keep himself in line, hadn’t they? He'd gotten his cutie mark that day…

“Taking in what I know about your history, my gut feeling is you cannot fully, deep down, accept that you did not deserve that torture. It had nothing to do with past crimes, it was a madman's plan. You did not attack your captors family or commit a crime against them. You were innocent in this. I think you are substituting it for the punishment you expected the Empire to give you.”

Sombra closed his eyes, guilt kicking at his ribcage “I expected the Prince and Princess to lock me up once they seen me alive again. I wouldn't have blamed them. At the beginning, I couldn’t understand how they could treat me so...kindly. I thought it was just Celestia, negotiating so she could keep a promise she made to me.”

Lavender smiled gently, and shook her head to indicate there was more to it than that.

“I was at the first announcement they made, when they spoke of Canterlot. About how you defended them, despite being so gravely injured. You chose trying to say you were sorry over healing yourself. That took a lot of courage, your majesty. You have shown admirable honesty throughout this whole process. You spoke so honestly to the stadium the day your Umbrum asked us to help you accept your crown. But I seen a lot of residual suffering still rooted deep inside.”

“Am I that obvious?” Sombra tried to joke. To his surprise, she shook her head.

“The opposite in fact, to the untrained eye at least. You hide things very well.”

“Girder does keep saying I have an impressive poker face. Whatever that refers to. I have been meaning to ask him...”

Lavender chuckled “Poker is a game that requires immense skill in hiding what cards are in your hand. Its a game of misdirection in some ways. You aim to psych out your opponent, get them to fold so the money is yours.”

A nod from the King.

“You misdirect everypony's concern, make out as if you're all under control. I think you suffer from what’s known as survivors guilt. You feel as if by surviving, you did something wrong. Add in your expectations of punishment not being met, and some wires have become crossed.”

“Then...you don’t think they should have wanted vengeance of some kind?” Sombra asked. Lavender shook her head.

“You did commit some dangerous actions in the past. But you defended our Prince and Princess when you could have taken them down had that malice still been alive inside. You made the first step, the apology. You deferred the right to be their ruler to the Umbrum's, so they could judge your past. I’ve read every paper I could, to understand what happened. Everypony has. The Princess ensured what they printed was as forthright as you'd been with them. She felt you were owed that. Did you never read them?”

“Only one...the day of the parade.” Sombra admitted.

Lavender smiled “Yes, that was a big moment for you, wasn't it? You came outside to see us all, and you offered them help after seeing their dismay.”

“They didn’t deserve to bear the punishment for that spells attack-” Something occured in Sombra's head, and he stopped suddenly. It was so obvious now...

“Neither, did you.” Lavender said softly, seeing it'd clicked. “You didn’t deserve it, because you did not give in to him willingly. The crystal ponies chose to give you a second chance, and you have not failed them, your majesty.”

“I...you’re right.” Sombra felt about to collapse with relief. He drew in a deep breath and looked over at her. She was smiling encouragingly, like she was proud of him.

“So please, I ask that you leave that nasty guilt in the past, let it go. You’ve done amazing work in proving to us all you’re more than you were before. I for one admire your efforts.”

“I must seem crazy, still clinging to this even now..” Sombra forced a laugh, but it soon trailed off. Lavender shook her head.

“Not so, your majesty. Trauma is a nasty guest, one that cannot be evicted easily. It takes time to heal such scars, and the reactions you're experiencing aren’t uncommon. But what we can do, is close off where it has sway, bit by bit until you are able to fully relax.”

She made Sombra some tea while they took a break….

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Once he'd had some time to relax, she continued.

“I believe we've made some amazing progress in this last hour alone. But we have one more step, find out why you’re sleepwalking. I think your lingering guilt plays a part, but it is small. Something else is at play. Have you been near a cave since then?”

“Yes, I have.” Sombra sighed and explained the two incidents involving the on-site cave. The first where he'd fled the scene and thrown up, and the second time, where he'd saved that stallion...then run off and thrown up. Then the meeting with the Zebras. That one had been exhausting, but mercifully no throwing up. He hadn’t been able to sleep though...

“They all ended in me being sick,” he winced “or wearing myself out.”

“May I ask...did the sleepwalking start before or after this first occurrence? Give it some serious thought.”

Sombra did just that, and the realisation hit him like a tonne of bricks. He'd never considered it might be a case of cause and effect...

“It was after..” he said, almost giddily. She nodded encouragingly again.

“I think we have our answer. The cave is a symbol of your deepest, most primal fear. The darkness, the sense of being compressed. And being held captive, most of all.”

Sombra nodded “I cant stand it, the knowledge nopony could hear me under so much rock.”

He shuddered, wings trying to envelop him again. He made a flustered noise, batting at them to make them settle.

“Is that normal?” Lavender asked, blinking.

“I swear they have an innate connection to my emotions, Ms Lavender. They do that when I’m scared. They go full pomf when anypony startles me, they seem to react to my emotional state.”

“That’s amazing, I’ve never seen wings so responsive. But it tallies with what we're discussing. Your fear is in that cave, therefore ANY cave. I wonder, do you have a map of the work site?”

“Yes, in my memory anyway..” Sombra used his magic to create a 3D map on the table between them.

“Do you remember the places you woke up?” was Lavender's next question.

Sombra paused, thought awhile, then began placing markers in all the spots he could recall waking, or where Corona had followed him. He stared at the scatter of pins.

“This is the most recent one,” he pointed a hoof at the pin denoting where Corona had found him just days prior. “It is the closest of all.”

“Where is the cave?” she asked. Sombra added it's pin to the map and they stared at the evidence in front of their faces. It was clear as day, the sleepwalking pins were meandering slowly but steadily towards the cave, more often than not.

“Do you know what this means?” Lavender asked him.

“I'm trying to go back?” Sombra choked out “why?”

“Because you want to face your fear, but your waking mind doesn’t feel ready, so its excising control over your subconscious.”

“How do I make it stop?” Sombra asked, but she could see he already anticipated the answer.

“You need to do this properly. Face your fear once and for all, but under the right conditions.”

“I don’t know how.” Sombra said, at a loss after several moments pondering “I tried going in there before. It didn’t work...”

“That is because every time so far, it has been for other reasons. The first was your work, the second, to save another. The third, to offer a hoof to the Zebras in need. You've never done it for yourself. You’re the one who deserves the closure, and needs it. When you face it, it must be for YOU.”

“I see.” Sombra nodded, but felt his stomach sink at the thought.

“You don’t have to be alone, is there somepony you can trust to go with you, that can give you that confidence without taking the reins away from you.”

One name popped to mind straight away, and Sombra nodded.

“Then, I want you to write a letter with me. We're going to invite your friend to help you with this.”

As Sombra wrote, Lavender studied how much a weight seemed to have been lifted from his shoulders. He looked happier. Recovering from things like this wasn’t easy, and it could be that events in the future could trigger a relapse. But for now, he was making progress.

When he'd finished, having written Discord's name on the envelope and mailed it off with the special spell, she suggested they have another session in two weeks to see how he was doing.

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She walked him to the door, where he thanked her profusely. She smiled warmly, saying it was her pleasure.

“This is a big step you’re making in coming to me, and discussing all this. You should be very proud of yourself your majesty. I have one last task for you, however.”

“What’s that?” Sombra asked, curious.

“Doing something like this takes a lot of courage, even the smallest step should be celebrated. To reinforce the positivity, I ask you find a way to reward yourself with every step made. And if things don’t go to plan, don’t ruminate on what went wrong, think about how you can make it go right next time. Talk it over with somepony if you need to, never feel like you’re alone. Many of my patients keep records or journals, to help them get their worry on paper. You should investigate and see what techniques are best for you.”

Sombra nodded, amazed at how much there was to her words. He'd never considered such things before. He felt as if more paths had opened up to him now, he felt...freer.

“I think, in time, we can help you live an optimal life, your majesty.” she said. Sombra bowed his head in gratitude, and bid her farewell before climbing into the carriage. The driver shut the book he'd been absorbed in, and drove back to the palace.

Lavender smiled as she shut the door. She'd been surprised when Cadance had asked she keep her day free, all costs paid, for the Umbrum King to drop by. But she understood now, what the Princess had been saying. Sombra's situation was an unusual one, and required specialist handling.

“Good luck, your majesty.” she murmured as she trotted into her office to finish her notes.

As an afterthought, she wrote some instructions and mailed them to the palace so Sombra would have something to follow if he felt lost.

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Discord was idly messing with the dishes, washing them then trying to juggle them when Sombra's letter arrived. The poofing sound of a scroll arriving made him turn and drop the plates. They bounced comically around the room like rubber balls, one even hitting him in the stomach and flooring him as he shot over to the floating scroll. Ducking the plate barrage until it finally ran out of energy, he grabbed the elusive scroll.

As the last plate escaped the confines of the kitchen and bounced upstairs, he unrolled it.

“Ah, Sombra.” he grinned as he recognised the writing “what've you exploded or picked a fight with this time, eh?”

He read the letter, and then re-read it.

Then he nodded and snapped his fingers, teleporting out.

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“Sombra-” he declared grandly as he appeared in the King's room.

“AHH-!” Sombra fell off the bed mid-dismount with a loud yelp, followed by a POMF.

“Sorry.” Discord winced, snapping his fingers and setting him back, upright, on the bed.

“Please, give me more warning than that!” Sombra wheezed.

“Why, were you doing something nau-” Discord began, only for Sombra to jab his muzzle with one hoof. The Kings face was flushed, and Discord admitted to himself it was kinda fun teasing the somewhat easily flustered monarch. Sombra had some adorably uptight sensibilities at times..

“You finish that sentence, and the guard will be extracting you from the back of the couch.” Sombra warned with a glower “what is it with you and the innuendo?”

“Cant help, it's fun!” Discord shrugged “and hay, anything is an innuendo if you think about it hard enough!”

Sombra face-hoofed, groaning.

“Sorry, sorry! I’ll stop, I promise, so as to preserve your innocent little mind, your majesty~” the Draconequus teased, scratching behind Sombra's right ear. Sombra met his eyes and snickered. In truth, he knew a few dirty jokes and whatnot, but no way was he on the same level as Discord, who made it look like second nature. Sombra usually had to think before the rude facet of whatever they were discussing came to mind. Discord's mind went there right off the bat!

“Anyway, my silly Sombra. What I came to discuss was your letter.” Discord set himself on the bed opposite the Alicorn “you sure you're ready to do something like this?”

“Yes, I am,” Sombra smiled “I spoke with a therapist today, at great length. It seems my sleepwalking is connected to my fear of the caves. I've forced myself to go in out of necessity, but I haven’t done it to, well...”

“Help yourself?” Discord guessed. Sombra nodded.

“Exactly.”

“Well, if you need my help stopping you knocking yourself unconscious, count me in!”

“...You’ve been talking to Corona haven’t you?” Sombra dead-panned.

“Yes,” Discord admitted “he was the one who told me you were in your room. He may have said knock first but I wasn’t listening.”

“Surprise surprise.” Sombra joked.

“...What?” Discord feigned being deaf, and Sombra fixed him with a stern glower. They had a stare down for several seconds, before Sombra started twitching and they both cracked up laughing.

“Ahh...hah ha..” Sombra took a deep breath “you never fail to make any composure I have flee the scene, my friend.”

“Lord of chaos, master of the humour. In my mind anyway.” he grinned at the stallion “You’re a success, so I’m gonna roll with the title!”

Sombra chuckled. He felt infinitely better after a good laugh…

“So, when are we going to do this thing?” Discord asked, indicating the letter.

“I figured as soon as possible. I want help work in the caves at least once before the work on it is done.”

“Right, then.” Discord nodded “I'll go with you back to the site, and we can stick you in a cave and have it go right~”

Sombra nodded.

“Then it's settled. Now, go sleep, when are you going back?”

“Day after tomorrow.” Sombra informed him “I have some things to pick up, shipments to order, and spending some time with the Umbrum's. That and interrogate a Centaur with Corona.”

“Who?” Discord asked, then elaborated “I mean, who are you interrogating?"

Sombra explained what the whole thing with Morloc was.

Discord nodded, he could see why Sombra wanted answers, this was a pretty big thing. He said he'd see him in the morning and teleported out.

Sombra curled up under the bed-covers, feeling relief surge through him. Hopefully this would help him stop sleepwalking…

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The next morning, after Sombra spoke of his trip to Lavender, Corona asked was he ready to talk to the Centaur? Sombra nodded, but secretly, he felt a bit ill.

They were led down to the cells, and several guards who'd met Sombra when he'd been there before bowed their heads respectfully as he walked past. Sombra greeted them kindly, seeing many faces he knew.

They were left alone outside the room where the cell was.

“Are you ready, sire?” Corona asked. Sombra nodded, although he looked a bit pale. Corona opened the door and allowed the King to go ahead before closing the door behind the two of them as he followed suit.

Morloc looked up, and when he seen the stallion standing on the other side of the bars, he panicked, backing away as far as he could.

“P-please, don’t kill me!” he begged.

“I am not here to,” Sombra said coldly. Corona drifted up alongside him, giving Morloc a cold, silent look. “I just want answers.”

“H-he was going to kill me! I fobbed him off with that story about you! I didn’t think he was smart enough-”

“You knew who Scorpan was,” Corona interjected “you met him, the King and Queen knew you well. No way you couldn’t have known he was very smart, and most dangerously, VERY driven.”

Morloc looked up at them, seeing the distrust in Corona's eyes and the barely repressed anger in the pony King's.

“What are you..?” he gulped. He'd heard the word “Umbrum” floating around, but it couldn’t be, they were long gone…

“Umbrum ad Infinitum,” Sombra said coldly “we are shadow crystals. You guess right, they and I are connected. I am their King, created to guide them.”

“Infinite Shadow King,” Morloc babbled, staring at him in scared awe “even MY knowledge of you was scarce when I foolishly handed it over.”

“It has been a long long time since they walked this plane. Much of it was spent slumbering in stone.” Sombra said bluntly.

“That doesn’t answer his majesty. Why did you let Scorpan have that knowledge? There is no doubt that you knew spells with which to defend yourself, I seen your collection of books!” Corona said.

“I didn’t want to die!” Morloc pleaded to Sombra again “I’m old, and getting weaker. I didn’t think I could go up against him. He was unhinged, mad even, you know what that’s like-urk!”

For Corona had reached through the bars and grabbed him by the collar of his cloak.

“Don’t you DARE speak that way to his majesty!” The Gargoyle hissed “you have no right. He has worked to escape what he was, unlike Scorpan! Unlike you...”

Morloc nodded, and the Centaur drifted back to beside his King.

Sombra still didn’t speak, and Morloc began babbling again. Why wouldn't he speak?! What punishment was he planning?

“I couldn’t have stopped him, he was crazy! Missed that fool brother of his so much-” he shook his head “I thought it would keep him occupied. But the more time passed, the more afraid I became that he'd come back and kill me, if my information proved useless. I seen him prowling around. So I ran, and I've been running ever since, keeping low. Until that spell escaped and I was forced to come here.”

Sombra closed his eyes, waging an internal war. On the one hoof, his fury at this creature was bubbling away like acid. But yet…

Desperate to get his attention now, Morloc stretched an arm between the bars, grabbing the front of Sombra's fancy new cloak. The King pulled away sharply, wings bristling in annoyance.

“Unhand me!” he snarled.

“Please! I didn’t know this would happen, it was a shot in the dark he got it right-”

“The fact remains he did, and caused his majesty untold suffering!” Corona barked.

“I know I have no right to ask your forgiveness after what Scorpan did to you,” Morloc sighed heavily “it was never my intention. I said it to save my own hide, never thought what could happen were he to work it out. I heard he'd been caught, the papers mentioned a crystal Alicorn, I assumed they spoke of that Princess of this empire, so I ignored it.”

Sombra sighed softly.

Scared and confused, the Centaur bowed as low as he could before the pony who would no doubt have the final say on his fate. And he did the last thing he could, he begged to be spared.

“Please, your majesty-”

Sombra cut him off;

“Doubt it not, there is much of me that wishes to see you attain the punishment you deserve. But no, I will not kill you.”

Morloc stared in shock.

“Nor will I lock you up in MY jurisdiction. While I could hate your mere existence for everything I have endured, there is one deciding factor.”

He stepped back, wings raised to their fullest. “I was able to give my ponies the new lease of life they longed for. I was given a second chance. Forgiven by those that had every right to bay for my blood, my execution, if you will. I may have nearly lost my mind and all hope when I was tortured by that madman, BUT, I gained more than I could have dreamed afterwards. It hurt, getting this far, but I will not allow my desire for vengeance taint what has become a dream come true for me and my kind. My own torment taught me to be mindful of others, of what I did. Close to fading after fighting Scorpan, I realised I wanted to change who I was.”

“What are you going to do?” Morloc shivered as he caught the King's eye.

The stallion took a deep breath, sharp red eyes fixed on the cowering Centaur. What he was about to say seemed to take all his strength, but he forged ahead;

“I'm going to what those in this very Empire did for me. I'm going to forgive you, end it here.”

“Sire?” Corona blinked. Had he just-?

“It may seem crazy, Captain.” Sombra smiled knowingly at the Gargoyle “but I committed as great a crime in my time, forget not. The crystal ponies did not have to forgive me, nor embrace my presence here. But they did. They showed compassion to a pony who was a MONSTER. Turning and inflicting punishment according to my old self's beliefs would spit in the face of all that. So, I wont do it.”

Morloc's mouth opened and shut, he couldn’t speak.

“Believe me when I say this; even being forgiven isn’t easy. You will have to come to terms with it, accept it for yourself. Even forgive yourself should you in time reach such a point.”

Corona was floored. Sombra really did have a grasp on his world that he hadn’t seen in many a year. He could see why King Vorak had been willing to trust Equestrians again, after meeting this pony. His own mistakes had taught him valuable lessons, and now he was teaching another in turn.

“Y-your Majesty...” Morloc finally spoke “I don’t understand..”

“You will, given time.” Sombra said “I want you to walk the same path I did. You can wallow in pity and worthlessness, or you can get up and make something better of yourself. Make something from your past into something for the future. Its the hardest task, but you want forgiveness? That's the way to get it. I was fortunate to learn this.”

Morloc nodded, the King was right. It was the easy way out for him, begging for mercy and expecting punishment. This way, he couldn't run away, he would have to face punishment from himself, not this powerful pony. Unless…

He looked at Corona, realised HE still had warrants out for his arrest on behalf of King Vorak. But Corona was watching King Sombra, and seemed to be contemplating something. He asked if he could speak to the monarch alone, and Sombra agreed. They stepped outside, leaving a stunned Morloc to continue processing the King's words.

They returned some minutes later, but it'd felt like an eternity to the Centaur.

“I have spoken with his majesty, and he has agreed to my plan. I intend to ask King Vorak to place your punishment in his Majesty’s hooves. He above most knows what it is like to claw your way back up from the worst times. That is why I believe his method will work. I knew you when I was a child, you even taught me magic. I know there is still potential for you to make something worthwhile of yourself. And it seems you could do no better than King Sombra.”

Morloc broke down then. He'd never expected such mercy from either of them, let alone BOTH!

The two waited patiently until he could compose himself. He bowed once more, repeatedly thanking them both, he didn’t know what else to say-

“As I said before, this wont be easy.” Sombra said “but I think it can be done.”

“And if that is his majesty's judgement, I’m all in.” Corona backed up.

Morloc vowed he would, if King Vorak granted it, serve under the Umbrum King as his servant.

Sombra called for food and water for the shaken prisoner, and told him he would be held here until Vorak's judgement was known. If his rehabilitation was passed into his hooves, he would be brought to the site. Morloc nodded, wondering what this site was?

He was left to eat and think it through as Corona and Sombra left.

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“Tell me Captain, do you think I have taken leave of my senses?” Sombra asked, smiling faintly.

“No, sire!” Corona said explicitly “I was just...surprised. After everything he caused you..?”

“In a way, it was indirect. He set it in motion to save his own hide. All of us are guilty of such thoughts when in danger. Yes, it was reckless, he should have known what would happen were Scorpan to succeed, but; we are not psychic. Common sense can carry us so far, but we cannot predict will or won't occur past a certain point.

As I said, while the torture nearly shattered me for good, I was given a new life by so many ponies. Taught not to fear myself again, and shown what good I could accomplish. I know its not easy, there are many out there that distrust me still. But now, I know I can prove them wrong, it is well within my ability.”

“You have my utmost respect, sire.” Corona said bluntly. The King smiled genuinely, the warmth behind the gesture clear.

“It cheers me greatly to hear such a thing. Thank you, captain. My experiences to date have both tormented me, yet schooled me in a way I never expected. It wasn’t easy, but I’m getting there.”

“The Umbrum's have a fine future ahead of them.” Corona stated honestly, he really believed it…

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Sombra, Corona and Discord left the Empire a day later, with supplies in tow. Discord could see the nerves written all over his friends face. Sombra had been staring down his reflection in the window for so long it was obvious he wasn’t fully there. It took him a good 30 seconds to notice Discord pulling faces behind him, they were honestly getting pretty creative by that point!

He also noticed Corona, silently busting a gut laughing in the other seat.

“Quit fussing, it'll be fine!” Discord flicked his friends ear in response to Sombra's weary look. Sombra gave him a funny look for the ear flick, but seemed to relax a smidge regardless.

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The new ponies that'd joined the site, namely the zebra's and the towns-ponies, all greeted the familiar sight of the chaos being as he drifted alongside the King. Sombra made sure the supplies for the new ponies, which included educational things for the kids and extra bedsheets etc., were distributed to them, then he and Discord went to see Girder.

Sombra explained what he needed to Girder, and the foreman could see how awkward it was for the ruler to ask such a thing. He was asking the cave work be suspended for one 24 hour period.

“This is on a doctor's orders?” Girder asked. Sombra nodded.

“She is a specialist, deals with sleepwalking, PTSD, various cases like mine.” Sombra said softly. Girder nodded.

“Well I’m glad to hear you’ve found a way to help with that, the guards have been worrying about your late night wanderings. They didn’t want to bring it up to you in case it was a sore subject for you.”

“It will be, if I cant stop this before I give myself an injury!” Sombra joked weakly. Girder smiled faintly, but nodded.

“Very well, your majesty. Will you be requiring any guards with you?”

“Nope, that’s what I’m here for~” Discord said leisurely “he'll be fine!”

Girder had heard enough from Sombra to know the King trusted this Draconequus more than any other in his second chance at life. So he agreed to the Kings request, saying he'd have the place empty and ready for them by afternoon time.

“Good luck, your majesty.” He said kindly as the King made to go “I have a feeling you'll be alright.”

“Thank you.” Sombra said genuinely as he and Discord left.

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From there, Sombra said he was returning to his shift work. Discord followed along out of curiosity.

He watched as Sombra tied back his mane, put his boots and goggle son, then dove right into helping cement a wall. Seeing the ponies all ferrying the bricks back and forth in little loads, he snapped his fingers and the bricks began bringing themselves TO the ponies. They were startled at first, but Discord waved at them and indicated himself. Seeing he wanted to help, the foreman put him and the King together, so while Discord set the bricks, the monarch put them in place with the grout and cement.

Discord being Discord, this didn’t last long before urges to cause mischief arose. The bricks, controlled by Discord’s crazy magic, began goofing about when the chaos lord noticed the ponies weren’t paying attention. A pony made of bricks galloped around the site for a good minute or two before the foreman noticed, and shouted at them all to get back to work.

When said foreman sat down in the overseers raised chair seconds later, there was a loud, drawn-out fart sound. Total silence followed, interrupted by, as the foreman held up a whoopee cushion;

“Discord!”

That was King Sombra.

“How do you know it was me?” the Draconequus objected. Sombra face-hoofed, then reached a hoof up and indicated Discord’s backpack, out of which stuck a spare cushion. Now the chaos Lord face-palmed.

“Blast! So much for hiding in plain sight!” Discord harrumphed.

Somepony giggled and before the rest could help themselves, a full scale laughter outbreak began. The foreman sighed, shaking his head and glaring at Discord.

Discord hastily got back to work, but inside; it was worth it! Moments later, he couldn’t help notice Sombra was ducking his head a little longer then was needed. Unless he was interrogating the tray of grout at his hooves, there was no reason for him to be so still.

Discord lifted his friends mane, catching a glimpse of barely suppressed amusement in the pony's eyes.

“Go ahead and laugh,” he teased “You’re NEVER too old to enjoy a good fart joke! Not even 1000+ years is an excuse-”

“Pfft...” Sombra started laughing softly right as he said this, and those nearby watched the amused King with curiosity. He had a funny, almost reserved manner at times, yet when he let his guard drop, he swore like a veteran.

Sombra nudged Discord with one wing, and the duo settled back to work. As time approached for Sombra to go to the cave, Discord could see his body growing tenser, and he seemed to be spacing out. About 15 minutes before, Sombra excused himself when he thought Discord wasn’t looking and disappeared.

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Naturally, his friend found him not long after. He was sitting on a bench outside the bathroom, looking at a list Lavender had sent to him. Could he do this-?

“Were you sick?” Discord asked as he approached. Sombra nodded, sighing. He put the paper away in his saddlebag as Discord held it out to him.

“You’re thinking about it too much, relax!” Discord snapped his fingers and the familiar sight of a glass of chocolate milk appeared in his hand. This he gave to Sombra and sat with him while he drank it. After that, it was time to head over to the cave. Sombra wrapped his cloak tightly around him, like a comfort against the gnawing worry.

Needless to say, the workers had been slightly puzzled when they were told operations were being halted, but it meant they had a day off, so they weren’t arguing! None of them knew about the Kings request, or what was going on.

To distract him as they walked, Discord detailed his recent visits to Fluttershy. How Angel was being a little troublemaker as always, how many new animals she was fostering and caring for and so on...

“I hope I can see Ponyville soon,” Sombra said as they approached the cave “there are quite a few residents from there working on the teams. They are very fond of their home-town.”

“You'll love it, very quaint and charming!” Discord said airily, then asked “Wasn’t that pony you rescued from Ponyville?”

Sombra nodded. That was Alan Key, who had become a good friend to him, he and several others had been teaching Sombra to play Hoofball in the evenings, using the sites floodlights so they could see.

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Sombra came to an automatic halt as soon as the cave appeared ahead of them. He swallowed a wave of unease, and tried to do what Lavender had recommended, and breathe.

Hearing the pony’s frantic wheeze, Discord scratched behind his left ear, which seemed to help.

“Take it easy.” the Draconequus said calmly “don’t explode on me, I just bathed!”

Sombra recalled Discord making this same joke all the back at the start of his recovery, and felt the claws of panic lessen a little. He smiled.

“Remember how grumpy you were? The face you made when I brought you to the tower. Oh, if looks could kill-” Discord teased good naturedly. Sombra gave him a sarcastic look, but the way his lips curved into a smile gave away his amusement.

“I was like a feral creature back then, so confused and crazy I didn’t know what to do..” Sombra shook his head slightly to clear it “seems like a distant memory now.”

“And that’s all it is, get it?” Discord said sternly, moving his friends attention away from it. Sombra nodded, focusing on what was in front of him now. The cave…

Discord dropped down to walk on all fours, not something Sombra seen him do very often.

“Come on!” The Draconequus chimed, looping an arm around Sombra's neck and steering him forward. He could feel how tense the King was, as Sombra tried to dig his hooves in. With a grin, he had an idea~

He removed his arm from the pony's neck, and instead wrapped his tail around Sombra's midsection, taking off ahead with him. Snow hit Sombra's eyes and he shut them, making an annoyed grunt.

“Discord!! Put me down!” as he always did when threatened, Sombra began yelling quite loudly. And squirming.

“Nope!” Discord said cheerfully, reminding Sombra of all the times Discord had done this to stop him escaping back in the early days. So in accordance with those days, he gave his friend a little zap, which he knew would make the Draconequus laugh. Sure enough, he was dropped onto the ground a second later with an “oof.”

“I win.” he griped, but still refused to open his eyes.

He heard Discord chuckle, and his temper spiked. His eyes opened, fixing their gaze on their snickering target.

“Why would you do that?!” he snapped, getting up and glaring at his friend. Discord just looked amused. Sombra began pacing back and forth, mind racing full pelt. Why would Discord force him to go against what he KNEW he wanted. How could he?

He caught sight of the smug, smirking Draconequus again and lost it “will you stop grinning at me like that!”

“Only..” the chaos lord said slowly “if you take a look at your surroundings.”

“What are you-?” Sombra cut off, realising only now where they were. They were standing in the main section of the cave. It was well lit, bright lights attached to generators dotted around the place. In those short few seconds Discord had covered the whole distance of the passageway and flown them into the central cave. He was at its very HEART. Panic gripped him amidst the anger, and he darted his gaze this way and that. He was in a Cave. A CAVE-

“No no no...” he gasped.

A single splash of water landed on his upraised muzzle as he glanced at the ceiling. He let out a high pitched, terrified yelp and back-pedalled, desperate to get away. He snagged a hoof on the back of his cloak and thus fell over backwards with a thud that knocked the wind out of his sails.

Discord tried, he truly did. But that was just too much. He let out a loud snort of laughter before he could stop himself, and it was swiftly followed by more loud giggles.

Sombra lay there, blinking up at the ceiling, as he heard his best friend laugh his odd little ass off. Discord's amused giggles bounced around the cave like a horde of bouncy balls, unstoppable.

A funny urge was building inside the bewildered pony. Did he want to get angry? Accuse his friend of betraying him? Run as far from this horror as possible?

No. He wasn’t twitching from barely concealed fury.

He wanted to laugh.

His whole body was shaking with suppressed laughter, LONG withheld. This was so ludicrous it was beyond the pale. He was screaming at a drop of water for Celestia's sake! What was his life becoming?

He started softly at first, then his laughter grew louder as it mixed with his friends. The sound echoed around the vast cave, bouncing back to laugh with him.

There was an odd pain in his chest too, he noticed. Like a farewell. The cave had been but a factor in his torment, albeit a big one. But the fact remained that the real culprit had been Scorpan. Wherever he could been held, he would have been scared. He would’ve been rescued too, he knew it. Because the world wasn’t as bad as he'd tried to make it out to be all that time ago. There was always hope.

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Discord grinned as he heard Sombra laugh, he'd done it. As the King's laughter died down, his efforts to take a deep breath punctuated by the occasional stray giggle, Discord walked over to him. He sat next to him as Sombra rolled onto his stomach and patted his back.

“Feel better?” the chaos being asked casually. Sombra looked up at him, the look in his eyes bright and, to Discord's relief, HAPPIER.

Still incapable of speech, the Alicorn nodded, a brief snigger escaping his confines. Discord chuckled at how red faced the pony was. At last the stallion groaned weakly and spoke.

“My sides...” Sombra coughed “ow. I'm blaming you for that.”

“Feel free, I won after all~”

“What do you mean?” Sombra asked.

“You laughed, that means I’m off the hook!” Discord declared smugly. “Them's the rules!”

“Of course!” Sombra said satirically “and when I get to power, I’ll make a law saying if YOU can pull a dumb prank and make me laugh, I wont clobber you!”

“Ooh! That would be delightful!” Discord cackled gleefully, drumming his fingers together. Sombra face-hoofed.

“I'm doomed.” he joked. He sat up at last, taking a deep breath.

“See? Not so bad is it?” Discord said calmly, indicating the cave.

Calmer now, Sombra admitted that while he still felt a little bit of trepidation, this wasn’t so bad.

“This is just the start!” Discord said “you and me, we're going exploring.” With a snap, he was suddenly wearing a Daring Do-style outfit. Sombra stared at his friend, then himself, for what else adorned him, but the same getup. It was rather comfy actually..

“All set!” Discord grinned.

Sombra nodded uneasily and glanced around him. He could see the bit where he and Alan Key had escaped, the cave in slowly being cleared. He walked over to it now, recalling the heavy thud of rocks. He shuddered.

“What was it?” Discord asked.

“This where Key and I fled from the ceiling as it collapsed. He was hurt, I was carrying him on my back. We got clear just in time. If he hadn’t known it was caving in, we could’ve been in serious trouble.”

“You saved the both of you with his help, not a bad thing, eh?”

“No, you’re right. It WAS the most terror I had felt in some time, but...we got out.”

“What made you go into the cave?”

“You know this story already. I sent you that letter.” Sombra was puzzled.

Discord held up a sheet of paper with Lavender’s writing on it. Sombra did a double take, how had he gotten that out of his saddlebags without the pony noticing?

“Many fingers make light work~” Discord waggled them at him “now, stop sidestepping. It's important you talk.”

Sombra, again floored by how easily Discord anticipated him, merely nodded. Seriously, how did he-?

“The answer is a book. With pictures and curse words. Now, go on..” Discord said smugly.

Sombra chuckled softly, turning back to the corridor he'd once fled down, as rocks bounced off the ground behind him.

“He had gone missing earlier that day. A smaller collapse had happened after he was knocked out, trapping him there. Girder gathered everypony for the search, but we were low on flares. So I agreed to stay behind and monitor the ones I had created myself. They reported back using a set of scrolls. I remember somepony saying they’d heard a voice but found...nothing.”

He stared into the distance, recalling his feelings at the time “I thought about how that bird found me all that ago. Through a crack in the cave wall. Had he not investigated and flown to Fluttershy, I don’t think I would be here.”

“Neither would most of Equestria.” Discord remarked as he thought about that day. Sombra nodded.

“So I decided to read back and see if I could determine where it had been located. It was near this very cave. That was when I realised it could be the same as what happened to me. The cave had to be rechecked! I headed out there, but the wind tore the scroll from my hooves. I was on my own.”

He sat down heaving a sigh before “I knew I couldn’t just abandon him, imagine if all of you hadn’t come for me. I'd be dead, or a pawn. He didn’t deserve to meet that fate. The way the storm was getting, and the fact it was growing darker with every minute, I was his only hope. So I forced myself to go in here, and it wasn’t long before I found where he was trapped. I got him out and we high-tailed it back to the others.”

“What happened after?” Discord asked.

“I wandered away from the doctor, wanted to give him some room. I went outside, drifted about in a daze until the flashbacks became too much and I fled, regrettably being sick again.”

His stomach ached in sympathy and he rubbed it with one hoof, wincing slightly. A few deep breathes later and it went away.

“And that's that.” he finished, looking at Discord.

“After that came the wraith, right?” Discord asked. He was munching from a box of popcorn, expression curious. Sombra nodded, watching as a cluster of kernels floated over to him. He scarfed them out of the air before continuing.

“Yes, such a strange and twisted creature it was. So desperate to wreak havoc it would pit an innocent pony against his friends. It wanted me to destroy it in order to stop it, so I obliged.”

“See, you showed that thing who's boss! You used your worst memories to destroy that things hold, that’s quite an accomplishment, wouldn’t you say so?”

Sombra blinked, he hadn't considered it that way. He always focused on what’d gone WRONG, not what had gone RIGHT. Maybe he'd made more progress then he'd credited himself. He heard a party popper go off, and strands of confetti drifted down onto his nose. He sneezed and shook his head.

“Hay, she said to celebrate the little things!” Discord again consulted the paper he'd pilfered from Sombra's bag. The King chuckled, more glad than ever he'd brought Discord along with him. In his usual fashion, he'd pulled the safety mat from under Sombra's hooves, made him see what he was trying so hard to avoid. Truths about himself, his mind..

Feeling bolder, he got up and walked to the spot where, on his first attempt to deal with his fear, he'd barely lasted a minute before he legged it and run outside. Unbidden, he described the whole thing, how a clanging noise had made him flee for the hills. Or a big shrub outside anyway. Then had come the Timberwolf fight, where he'd broken his wing.

Another bunch of glitter followed in the stories wake, and he chuckled.

“Hey, it was a first step!” Discord said cheerily. “Like Flutters always says; “baby steps, everypony. Baby steps.” And you made quite a few!”

Sombra couldn’t help but agree there.

Discord's stomach gurgled, and he raised an eyebrow at Sombra “well, I’d say its about time for dinner! Cant argue with your stomach. I tried, it always wins.”

As he spoke, he snapped his fingers and opened a portal. He reached in and pulled some covered plates of food through from it.

“Already told the cook to leave it to one side.” he replied in response to Sombra's startled look.

Sure enough, Sombra heard a voice go “what the-? Oh, right.” as the portal closed.

He found he was pretty starving himself, and the both of them made short work of the food and dessert. To Sombra's delight, it was made using the crystal berries imported from the Empire.

“Mmmh, thish ish good!” Discord voiced the exact same thought as Sombra, as he swallowed the last bite “could eat that all day!”

“Princess Cadance did say berry exports are one of their biggest. I think I’ll be adding to it once this place is built, I want no shortage of these!” Sombra declared as he decided to be very un-Kingly and lick the plate.

“There's my little monarch!” Discord teased with a grin “already planning your trade agreements.”

Sombra gave him an exasperated look, and Discord cracked up again. But it made him smile regardless. As much as Discord liked to tease, he had a point. These were things Sombra, in his worry to get things right, often forgot.

The Draconequus let out a huge belch, and when he looked at Sombra, he seen the King wore an “oh really?” look on his face.

“Sombra…?” he asked, curiously. But Sombra merely held up a hoof for silence, cleared his throat, and actually out-did Discord's entry.

“Sweet Celestia on a pogo stick!” Discord stared, eyebrows raising high. High enough that they began trying to drift away altogether. “Get back there!” he grumbled, grabbing them from the air and slapping them back on his face.

Sombra watched this and sniggered, yet couldn’t help looking smug himself.

“You win this round, silly Sombra.” Discord admitted at last “but you just wait!”

Sombra's response was a wide grin.

Part of Sombra's plan was to spend the entire night in there. Admittedly, he wasn’t looking forward to it. It would mean being in the total, utter DARK.

Dinner over with, he and Discord ended up discussing the future kingdom, and what plans Sombra had for the inevitable coronation.

Sombra had already decided to ask miss Rarity to design the outfit. She was one of the best designers in Canterlot according to the ponies at that magazine he'd done the shoot for. Pinkie Pie = the party's planner, no contest. In fact, he planned to ask all that’d helped him to not only attend but have their input. They deserved it for all they’d helped him with.

“What about your palace? That needs to be made first!” Discord queried “you cant live in those barracks forever!”

“I don't know..hm, a moment please.” Sombra cocked his head to one side, and began creating a shape out of his magic crystal, the one he'd used to fix that float at the parade. It changed shape several times, before settling on something. It had a very symmetrical look, shining in the bright lights. At its top was a flat roofed tower, which Sombra explained would give him an unfettered look at the stars.

“Pretty sweet,” Discord approved. “Lots of room for your new life!”

“I can name places after those that got me here,” Sombra decided, “I can already bet Princess Twilight would like a library!”

“No question!” Discord rolled his eyes.

“What about you?” Sombra asked.

“Me?” Discord couldn’t lie, he was surprised. But he was also secretly thrilled Sombra had asked him..

“Yes, you.” Sombra chuckled “It goes without saying I wouldn’t be how I am now without you constantly dragging me outside my comfort zone and shoving the truth in my face, dancing and singing all the while!”

Discord looked proud at that description “at your service!” he declared, grinning as he raised an eyebrow. Which promptly ran off with a zoom.

“Hay!” he declared.

Sombra clapped his hooves together, catching the stray eyebrow as it whizzed by him, and bringing it back to its owner.

“Thank you!” Discord took the thing and jabbed it back onto his face. It was now pointing at an angle that made him look stupidly cross. Sombra burst out laughing.

“What? Little more to the left, right?” Discord played along, making the King laugh even harder.

He moved both eyebrows to his nose declaring “Moustache?”

More laughter and the King just shook his head, face flushed from amusement.

“OK, OK, I think I have it!” Discord shepherded them back into place “now, to answer your question...”

Sombra reigned in the laughter, his sides were aching.

“I think it goes without saying it would have to be a joke shop!”

“It’ll be the finest in Equestria.” Sombra promised “I owe you that much.”

A happy grin from Discord was the reward, along with the chaos lord messing the pony's mane again. Then watching in fascination as it settled into place in a second. For some reason the Alicorn couldn’t fathom, this seemed to provide endless amusement for Discord.

Sombra wrote down various things he wanted to remember for the future. As he did, Discord studied the tiny model palace Sombra had created. He could just imagine the real thing, rising above everything else in a grand empire. He observed Sombra now, how excited he looked as he rapidly jotted down plans for this empire of his.

Sombra surprised himself by not feeling an instant surge of dread as the lights went out, leaving the two of them in a dark cave.

Well, except for somehow Discord's eyes were glowing in the dark.

“Seriously, how-?” Sombra could only shake his head.

“I'm the universe's blind spot, best not to think about it too much.”

“Duly noted!” Sombra chuckled, letting his head rest on the pillow. He yawned “if I sleepwalk, for the love of Celestia don’t let me do anything dumb..”

“Will do!”

As he eyelids grew heavier, Sombra tried to puzzle that one out.

“Will let me do something dumb, or..” Sombra trailed off mid sentence. Looking over at him, Discord noticed he'd fallen fast asleep.

“Guess he was more tired then he let on!” the Draconequus chuckled “you always were bad at lying, silly Sombra.”

He gave a loud yawn himself and settle into a light doze. He'd set spells to wake him if Sombra DID get up and wander off whilst still asleep.

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Sombra yawned as bright light hit his closed eyes. Groaning, he opened them slowly, seeing Discord fiddling with a light that he'd placed directly over where Sombra was lying.

“Wakey wakey!” he grinned widely.

“Mhrghrgh?” Sombra asked.

“Not sure what that means, but the kitchen left pancakes, and coffee!” Discord held up two plates. Sombra's stomach guided him to sitting position and he held the plate in his hooves as he ate.

“Did..” the pony swallowed the last of the pancakes and drained the last of his coffee “did your spells go off?”

“Nope, you slept right through.” Discord informed him.

Sombra set his plate and cup down, eyes wide in surprise “you mean-?”

“Yeah, you didn't go anywhere you silly pony!” Discord sat back and grinned “and to think you were worried!”

“Well,” Sombra coughed “I didn’t think I would be able to rest so well in...in here!” he gestured around him.

“You passed out tired mid sentence.” Discord informed him “Even when I got up to go to the bathroom you were sprawled out, snoring away.”

“What in-I do not snore!!” Sombra objected loudly “I’d have woken the barracks up if I did!”

“OK, fine, you don’t snore. But you do sleep sprawled all over the shop.” Discord giggled, flinging his limbs out in a mock-approximation of it “you remind me of a cat.”

“Shut up!” Sombra grumbled, glowering at him. But he couldn’t help but focus on the fact he'd made it through the night. In a CAVE. He felt a surge of happiness, this was something he'd never believed he could do.

Seeing the realisation dawning, Discord released the biggest of the party poppers he'd been hiding. Sombra smiled happily. He looked relieved too.

“Do you think you’ll be able to work in here?” Discord asked.

Sombra nodded, still looking a little bit nervous though.

“Really?” Discord prodded “because I’m not convinced.”

Sombra's expression became resolute.

“Its under control, I know it.” he said, this time with a conviction he believed in.

“There you go!” Discord clapped him on the back, nearly knocking him onto his face.

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They packed up, cleaned up any mess from the confetti and their food, and left. As they were going, Discord spotted the forgotten mini model palace. Checking to see if Sombra was distracted, he stashed it in his bag and followed his friend.

Stepping outside, Sombra looked back at the cave. His wings remained folded placidly to his sides. The events of the previous day had shed a new light on what had once terrified him. His trauma and recovery weren’t complete, not by a long shot yet, but this was a big step towards that goal. He certainly felt like a big weight had been lifted!

They walked back to the site, just in time to meet Girder at his office.

“How did it go?” girder asked. Sombra looked pretty content, a far cry from how he'd looked after being in a cave last time.

“Better than I thought,” Sombra recalled the laughter and pranks, and chuckled “FAR better.”

Girder caught Discord's eye, and the Draconequus gave a grin.

“Great to hear that, your majesty! Do you want to start your shift now?”

Sombra nodded.

They headed outside, Girder going on ahead to see one of the junior foremen. Discord and Sombra came to a halt by the barracks.

“Where are you heading now?” Sombra asked.

“To Ponyville, its tea with Flutter's day!” the Draconequus said eagerly.

“Give her my regards, I hope she’s doing well!”

“Will do!” Discord scratched behind Sombra's ear, adding “you did great, by the way. Make sure you remember that.”

Sombra nodded. Discord gave him Lavenders list back, and then, with his customary farewell bear-hug, the Draconequus vanished.

It wasn't until later when Sombra unpacked his saddlebags, that he noticed Discords notes. He'd written down everything Sombra had done, below Lavenders list and even signed it.

--Thanks, my friend..-- Sombra smiled and set it pride of place on the screen surrounding his sleeping area.

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The day after that, Girder approached Sombra with a very special task…

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The Overseer didn’t glance up from his clipboard as he heard a cart approaching. Why would it be anything strange?

“Ah good, just in time-”

“Where should I place these?” the voice from the carts hauler made the Overseer do a double take. He stared.

It was Sombra.

SOMBRA.

A pony who refused to set hoof in caves due to the torture inflicted upon him by his captor. At least that was what he'd been told. Yet he was standing there in front of him now, looking almost freakishly composed.

“Sire..?” the Overseer blinked.

“Hay, your majesty!”

Sombra turned as he seen a familiar pony trot up. It was the same stallion that'd come to find him after the first cave incident, who'd explained it so understandingly to the others.

“Good morning!” Sombra greeted him.

“How's it going?” the stallion asked, gesturing subtly at the cave around him. Sombra nodded back.

“Very well, as it happens.”

“W-well,” the Overseer cleared his throat “good to see you, your majesty. Could you bring that over to Ball-peen? He's over there, specific hammer cutie mark.” he gestured across the cave. Sombra nodded.

More heads turned as he trotted leisurely across the vast cave. No longer did he feel the rock pressing down on him, he could breathe far more easily. He did feel a little nervous, but he just reminded himself of the progress he'd made with Discords help.

Ball-peen did a double take too, but quickly recovered. He showed Sombra where he wanted the materials dropped, and the bigger stallion soon had them neatly in place.

Sombra trotted out of the cave, to get the cart back to the site. Before he exited, he told the Overseer that Girder was placing him with the cave group for the morning. Then he was gone.

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There was a stunned silence as the King left.

“Did I miss somethin'?” one Manehatten pony piped up “wasn’t he scared witless cos of caves? Some bad things went down in one, I heard!”

“Yeah, he was a prisoner,” another pony nodded “I seen him the first time he walked in here, he looked about to vomit! Think he did in fact...”

“Well he doesn’t seem so scared now!” the same pony that'd defended Sombra's panicked exit before spoke up again now “somehow, he beat it.”

“If that’s true, I’m impressed...” the Overseer mused “wish I could have the same luck with heights!” he shuddered “remind me to ask who his doctor was when he gets back!”

Sombra returned and settled into working alongside the other pony's. Some noticed he did jump when a loud clanging erupted across the cave from him. His wings fluffed up almost protectively, rising just a little and he went a few shades paler. But he calmed down quite quickly, settling his wings down and returning to his task.

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When the lunch bell chimed, Sombra headed for the lunch hall, stomach growling. He felt a little light headed and dizzy. He had been a BIT unnerved by the cave. More than a bit maybe. The clanking sounds had made him jump, but he'd just told himself that it was over now and reminded himself of Discord's advice. The sound of his own laughter echoing around the cave…

The cave no longer seemed threatening now. It was a weird sensation, being so deep inside such solid, cold rock, but he could relax and work without his stomach making threats to disgorge its contents in objection. In time, maybe he could forget about it altogether, trust his wings to stay settled all on their own…

The realisation he'd just passed the next step made him feel dizzy, a mix of shock and elation. Thus, some of the ponies sitting with him at lunch noticed not only that he wasn’t eating, but that he seemed a little jittery.

“You feelin' OK yer honor?” the same Manehatten pony who'd been working with him earlier spoke up now.

“I'm fine,” Sombra managed a smile, telling himself to snap out of it. His stomach gurgled, and he looked at his food. He should probably eat it, shouldn’t he?

Several ponies exchanged concerned looks. They hadn’t seen Sombra most of yesterday, he hadn’t slept in the barracks. Where had he been? At the doctors again?

The Manehatten pony deduced it had to do with Sombra's sudden cave fearlessness.

“Take it easy, ya know?” he said, catching the spacey Kings eye. “Forget about it, ya catch my drift?”

Sombra got the feeling this pony understood.

“It was both easier and harder than I expected..” he mused, staring absently into the distance. He shook his head again, before finally making a start on his lunch.

The ponies heaved a sigh of relief. Whatever that other stallion had said, it'd worked. He'd put his majesty’s mind at ease over something that’d clearly been troubling him.

Lunch over with, Sombra returned to his regular work, out in the fresh air.

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Girder stopped by the cave to speak to the Overseer about Sombra's progress.

“Not playing tricks here boss, but you sure its a good idea to let him in here? What if he's just sitting on his panic the whole time. Aint healthy..”

Girder shook his head “I can assure you his majesty is not battening down any feelings at all, quite the opposite in fact. He has taken measures to deal with the issue, as it bothered him that it was impacting his work.”

“Measures...” the Overseer put two and two together “wait, is that why we got the day off? So his majesty-?”

“Could come here on his own grounds? Yes,” Girder nodded his confirmation “On a doctors orders, he spent a significant amount of time here to settle his feelings on the subject.”

“Sweet Celestia, that cant have been easy. I heard about what happened after he came in here the last two times. I figured he'd wanna stay away for good.”

“I don’t think he feels he can lead an entire empire with it hanging over him. Keep an eye on him in future, but give him space to put himself at ease if he gets startled.” Girder said finally.

“Roger that.”

“Isn’t that your cousin?”

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Later that day, Sombra dropped by Aeris' place, and she picked up on the change in him.

“There is something gone, something you no longer fear. Tell me your majesty, is freedom near?”

“It is not far now,” Sombra smiled warmly, watching the kids, Zebra and Pony, playing in the centre of the room “it's such a relief.”

He discussed it with her, saying that was why he'd been so jumpy during his time in the Zebra's cave. She congratulated him on doing what he had and like Discord, she seen Sombra give a truly happy smile.

Throughout the times he'd been visiting, Sombra noticed many of them had begun calling him “your majesty”. He openly insisted that, since he wasn’t their ruler by any stretch, they didn’t need to worry about it. But Aeris shook her head, insisting it was by choice. He'd rescued them, and offered his home to them. This was HIS kingdom, even if it wasn’t fully built yet. Sombra was touched by their actions, and nodded, accepting this.

Fern came pelting over to greet him, and he spent an hour talking to and entertaining the kids before heading for the dining hall.

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Girder collapsed into his chair with a groan. Another long day over with.

“Ah, you’re here. Good.” a voice spoke from nowhere. Girder shrieked, sitting bolt upright. His eyes fixed on that oddball creature, Discord.

“Are you looking for his majesty?” he asked.

“No, this is a secret. Sombra doesn’t need to know yet~” the chaos Lord grinned.

“Why..?” Girder was suspicious. This guy WAS a trickster after all, but yet it was highly unlikely he'd turn on the King. So what was he up to?

Discord grinned again, and whipped something from his bag. It was a model of a palace. He set it on the table.

“This is a prototype Sombra created when we were in the cave. I'm hoping you can, you know...flesh it out a bit more. He said he was happy enough with it looking this exact shape, it just needs details..”

“I see...” Girder studied it, nodding as he turned it this way and that “it's very majestic.”

“Perfect for a King~!” Discord said brightly “but you know that silly Sombra, he wont raise the issue. He still keeps putting everyone and everything above his own needs. I admire his determination to get things right, but he does go a bit OTT, doesn’t he?”

“Indeed he does, I’ve said as much,” Girder agreed.

“Anywhoo, I’d like this to be a surprise!” Discord announced.

“Bit difficult there,” Girder fixed him with a weary look “we can't exactly build an entire palace of that scope without his majesty noticing.”

“True, Sombra can be absent minded, but not in that department.” Discord tapped his chin with one finger, brow furrowed. Then he grinned and snapped his fingers. A light-bulb appeared above his head with a ding as he declared “I got it!”

“Got what?” Girder bleated, lost by this point. He stared as the Draconequus plucked the light-bulb from the air and put it away in his bag. How this guy managed to bend reality the way he did was baffling.

Discord outlined the plan with Girder, who couldn't help agree it was a solid idea. The fact it had to be done at night was a little odd, but not unmanageable.

“I don’t see why not. It would probably encourage his majesty to remember he is, no matter how much he forgets, still royalty here. He's got to adjust at some point.”

“Then its settled!” Discord grinned “I can build the skeleton of the place, all you guys gotta do is build around it.”

“We'll dig the foundations here..” Girder indicated where they were going to put it.

“Perfect, right at the heart.” Discord approved.

“Next problem is keeping it a secret from his majesty, care to have a light bulb moment for that?” Girder asked as he set his pencil down.

Discord frowned, twirling his goatee around his finger as he thought. It came loose with a pop and he looked alarmed, before casually sticking it back on.

“Happens sometimes.” he said absently. Girder shook his head...what, just….what??

Then Discord’s eyes settled on a form to one side of Girder. On it was written an address, ending in Ponyville.

“Tada~” he sang, snapping his fingers. He explained that he would cart Sombra away to Ponyville for a few days, they could dig the foundations then, as they’d have to be kept hidden as much as possible. Then, the night after Sombra had returned, he'd help build the framework.

“It’ll be the perfect surprise! With my chaos magic, it wont be all that hard, I can put it together in a jiffy. After that, all we have to do is stick it together. Marvellous!” Discord rubbed his hands together, cackling with glee. Seeing Girder giving him an amused look, he coughed and settled down “I mean, he wont guess such a thing will he?”

“I doubt it.” Girder said with a chuckle.

Discord bid him farewell once they'd ironed all the kinks out with regards to getting Sombra off site…

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The next day, Discord sent a letter to Sombra asking would he come to Ponyville with him for Angel Bunny’s party? Fluttershy would SO like him to come. Plus, he'd finally get to meet the Ponyville ponies.

Sombra checked with Girder, who was happy to let him go for a few days. With that sorted, Sombra also asked around site, to see if any Ponyville residents had mail to be delivered. He explained he could bring it there for them? He'd be travelling using Discord's chaos dimension, so it would save on costs and time. He ended up with a sizeable backpack to bring with him as he waited for his friend.

“Goodness me, were only going for three days!” Discord remarked when he seen the big pack plus Sombra's own case.

“Ah, well, this isn’t mine. It is mail for Ponyville.”

“OK, King mail-pony.” Discord rolled his eyes, and opened a portal “lets move!”

Corona and Sombra's aides bid the King farewell, with the former promising he'd keep any eye on things!

Sombra had crafted a new food bowl for Angel using his special crystal, and the cook had picked some delicious crystal berries and fruits to put in it.

“Ponyville looks so tranquil, from what I’ve seen in the photos the girls gave me.” Sombra smiled.

“Oh yes, its very peaceful. Bit too peaceful for my liking..” Discord shrugged.

“Not enough chaos?” Sombra chuckled.

“You know me too well~” the Draconequus said grandly. Sombra shook his head at his friends irrepressible attitude, then he seen the end of the tunnel approaching. They were nearly there…

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“I assume we're arriving on the outskirts,,” he began as they stepped into the light leading out “I don’t want to cause a fuss-”

WELCOME!

Sombra's wings shot up in an instant, going full POMF, as he took a surprised step back, bumping into Discord who was right behind him. Eyes wide, the pony blinked away the last dots of light, seeing that far from being on the outskirts, they were standing in front of what looked to be a town hall. Surrounded by ponies. There was even a huge banner declaring “Welcome King Sombra.”

“Yeah, about that...” Discord drawled.

Sombra said something in his native language.

“Ah, you love me really.” Discord joked, tweaking his ear. Sombra chuckled.

“You’re lucky I cannot get mad at you for anything less then ending the world.” Sombra laughed, seeing a beige coloured mare with grey mane step up to him now and bow.

“I apologise for startling you, your highness. I assumed you'd been informed by your friend. Did he not mention this?”

“Did he heck..” Sombra grumbled. “Discord can be such a goof-”

“I can? Excellent!” Discord whooped. Sombra shook his head in despair. Unfazed, the mare continued;

“I'm Mayor Mare, head of Ponyville. It's a pleasure to finally meet you face to face. We've only ever seen you in the magazines!”

“The pleasure is mine, Madam Mayor. I have long wanted to see this place. Ever since the young Princess and friends described it to me. It is even more beautiful than the pictures show.”

Mayor Mare looked pleased at the compliment “we hope you'll enjoy your time here. There is to be s street party later, we hope you will join us as its guest of honour?”

“I would like nothing better.” Sombra assured her.

“Now, you have some very eager friends here to greet you-”

As she spoke, a pink blur shot over and tackle hugged Sombra, knocking him over in an instant. He landed in a tangle of wings, cloak and pink mane. The surrounding ponies chuckled at this response, seeing the hyperactive Pinkie Pie take down the bigger pony by sheer hug power alone!

“Hello...Pinkie Pie..” Sombra wheezed. She let him up, grinning ear to ear.

The others approached, laughing at Pinkie Pie's inability to restrain herself.

“Classy as ever!” Applejack grinned up at Sombra. He was delighted to see them all, asking how they’d been?

They talked awhile, before Fluttershy timidly reminded them it was almost time for angels party. Sombra assured the gathering crowd he'd see them later.

“Oh, that reminds me!” He took off the big backpack “this is all the mail and packages from the site. Since I was taking an expedient method of transport, I thought it wise to bring this here personally. Do you have a mail pony?”

“Right here mister!” a grey pony with yellow mane and eyes that were at odds with each other flew over, holding out a hoof. Sombra shook it, saying he was pleased to meet her.

“I'm Derpy Hooves!” she said happily. She was a bright, cheery little mare. Sombra could see how she almost radiated kindness and affection.

“Hay Derpy!” Rainbow Dash waved.

“Hay Dash!” Derpy beamed, waving eagerly. She gathered up the big backpack, and said goodbye before flying away towards her place of work.

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From there they made their way to Fluttershy's cottage. Sombra got to the meet the fabled Angel bunny at long last. The bunny looked understandably startled when he seen such a big pony, but seemed to take to Sombra quite quickly. He was certainly delighted with the ornate food bowl, and insisted on eating his birthday meal from it!

Sombra had never seen this much wildlife before, and soon found himself being used as a perch for some colourful birds. He laughed when a large parrot sat on Discord's left horn, and tried to gnaw it.

“Tickles-” Discord snorted, trying not to fidget, to Fluttershy's amusement.

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After the party was over, and Angel was down for his nap. Sombra was given a tour of the respective girls homes. First was Applejack's farm.

“Goodness,” Sombra remarked as he looked around “its huge!”

“Eyup! One of tha biggest around!” Applejack said proudly. Granny Smith and AJ's two siblings came out of the barn, and Granny stared at Sombra in shock.

“Goodness me, yer HUGE!” she declared, and Applebloom giggled.

Sombra turned to greet them, giving a polite bow as Applejack introduced them.

“This is Granny Smith, she runs tha farm. This is mah little sister Applebloom, and this is Big Macintosh, our brother!”

“Hello.” the quiet Big Mac said. He'd gotten used to being the tallest stallion around, but even he had to look slightly up to meet the King's eye.

“Hoowee, lookit these!” Granny was examining one of Sombra's wings, lifting it with one hoof, tilting it this way and that.

“Granny! I'm pretty sure that’s rude!” Applejack coughed.

But Sombra just chuckled, he didn’t mind. He unfurled the wings and Applebloom stared, eyes wide.

“Whoa, Scootaloo will explode when she sees these!”

“Good grief, you're all feathers sonny!” Granny remarked.

“Eyup.” Big Mac added.

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They showed him round the farm, to all the different orchards and where the fruit-bats resided in their little sanctuary. Applejack asked would he like to try apple bucking? Curious, Sombra agreed.

Applejack showed how how to stand, hunker down just slightly…

Sombra gauged the strength of the tree, and gave it a hefty kick with his back hooves. Apples bounced down the tree in an avalanche, leading Applebloom to chase after them.

“Too much?” Sombra asked, looking at the apple ponies. All were staring at him in silence.

“That was almost tha whole dang TREE!” Applebloom wheezed as she returned with apples piled in a small basket atop her back.

“Sure we cant hire him?” Granny asked. Applejack shook her head, smiling.

“Drat. You, Applejack and Big mac, you'd be a force to be reckoned with!”

“I don’t mind the work if you need-” Sombra began.

“Don’t worry Sombra,” Applejack chuckled “were not going to use you as a workhorse, you can relax.”

“Darn.” Granny huffed, but she was grinning, and Sombra decided he liked this elderly pony.

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From the farm to Rarity's boutique. Sweetie Belle did a double take and whistled when she seen how shiny his coat was.

“It's like a gem!” she declared.

“It's a super tough crystal, Sweetie Belle. Makes him very resilient in a fight.” Rarity explained.

“Do you get many of those?” Sweetie asked. So Sombra told the story of the wraith, and Sweetie winced.

“That’s so creepy!” she shuddered.

“They’re an old menace, there are a few scattered legends about them. Thankfully they don’t exist in very many places nowadays.” Sombra assured her.

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Next, he met Pinkie Pie's fellow bakers, the Cakes and their kids. Pound and Pumpkin spent a great deal of time clambering up his tail and treating the big pony like a cosy bed. Their little hooves tickled and Sombra kept wanting to laugh.

Then it was up to the clouds to see Rainbow's home and meet some pegasi. Many did double takes when they seen him, and Scootaloo met what she called the biggest set of wings with a pony attached she'd ever seen!

Last but not least was Twilight's castle, where he'd be staying! She showed him the main rooms of the castle, but good grief the place was big...

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That evening was the street party, and Sombra soon found he had no shortage of ponies wanting to ask a question or two. Some wanted to know how he'd patched things up with the Crystal Empire, others about the new Umbrum empire and most wanted to know about the Umbrum's themselves. Sombra answered their questions as best he could, giving demonstrations of his magic.

As he was heading towards the refreshment table, he recalled he wanted to ask Rainbow Dash a question and turned on a hoof to intercept her as she whizzed by off to one side. In the process of turning, he bumped into a young mare that'd been approaching him. She yelped and fell over with a squeak of surprise!

“Sorry miss!” he caught her before she hit the pavement and made sure she could stand steady before letting go “are you alright?”

“Oh, Yes! I-I’m fine!” she stammered nervously as she glanced about, and Sombra realised she'd dropped something. She followed his gaze and hurriedly snatched it up. It was a copy of the magazine Sombra had done the interview for. The picture of him staring so thoughtfully into the distance had been decided as the best cover shot. Glamour had insisted it showed him off best, and he hadn’t argued. Just shrugged in bewilderment.

“I was hoping...uh,” she coughed, turning slightly red at having made such a bumbling introduction. But he'd already spotted the magazine so she decided to go for broke “would you sign this for me?”

Sombra was surprised. He hadn’t been asked THAT before. But he didn’t see why not. It seemed it would make the young lady happy, so he pulled a pen from his bag and drew an elegant looping signature on the magazine.

“Thank you!” she grinned “my friends are gonna be so jealous~”

“I see,” Sombra chuckled. Seeing his confusion she elaborated.

“I've been following all the papers. I think its really cool what you’re trying to build. My brother is working at your site. His name's Alan-”

“Alan Key, by any chance?” Sombra asked curiously, describing the stallion.

Her face brightened “you know him?”

“I do indeed, he's a friend of mine. He and others have been teaching he how to play hoofball!”

“Yeah, he's a sports geek!” She giggled. She put the magazine away, a faint blush on her cheeks as she thanked him then trotted away into the crowds.

--That was interesting..-- Sombra mused, as he resumed his search for rainbow.

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The three days in Ponyville passed in a blur, he got to spend time with all the girls, trying out making cake with Pinkie Pie, more apple picking with AJ and her family, and Rarity showed him how best to fix his cloak when he tore it. Next, Rainbow Dash showed him how to steer clouds and break them up too. He and Twilight Sparkle spent some time in her library selecting new books for him to read and Fluttershy taught him to look after injured animals.

He even met with the Zebra Twilight had talked about, Zecora. He told her about Aeris and her clan, and the Zebra was glad to hear of a pony warming to zebras so rapidly like Twilight had. Sombra told her she was always welcome in the empire once it was built, and she promised she would visit it someday.

He was sad to leave, and thanked the Mayor for the welcome party, saying he'd love to come back again! He made a note to open a trade link of some kind with Ponyville, he'd enjoyed his time there very much indeed.

Discord hugged Fluttershy one last time before opening the portal. He and Sombra waved farewell to the ponies before disappearing into it.

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“That was wonderful..” Sombra sighed happily as they walked along. He was towing a big box of gifts and souvenirs along with him…

“See, told you you'd like it!” Discord grinned. He seemed to be excited about something, although he wouldn't let slip even the slightest hint to Sombra. Just kept giggling to himself and ignoring how many times Sombra nudged him with his muzzle or wings.

They arrived back on site in no time, where they were met by Girder and Corona, followed by Sombra's two aides.

Sombra noticed Discord disappear on and off through the day, but figured he was off pranking somepony, somewhere…

That night, while Sombra was fast asleep. Discord met with Girder and the others according to their plan, and they set the last part of their plan in motion.

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“Wakey wakey!” Sombra opened one eye and squinted sleepily. Discord's grinning face was just inches from his.

“Discord..?” he mumbled “S'too early..”

“Up up!” Discord pretty much towed him to his hooves, ignoring the pony’s complaints, and by the time Sombra finished yawning, he was somehow already wearing his cloak and goggles.

“Discord?” he asked “what is going on?”

“This way~!” Discord towed him out of the barracks, creeping past the rows of slumbering ponies. When they got outside, Discord suddenly covered Sombra's eyes with a blindfold.

“Ah, what?!” Sombra blurted, stumbling about blindly.

“It's a surprise, trust me, OK?” Discord pleaded. “I know you cant see it, but I’m doing my best puppy dog face...”

Sombra heaved a sigh, but agreed. Thus he let himself be led down the paths between the buildings, wondering what Discord had planned that had him so eager. Hopefully it wasn’t explosive, whatever it was.

At last they came to a halt, Sombra could tell there were other ponies around him.

“Discord- what’s going on?” he asked “even by your standards this makes no sense! Not something I thought I’d ever say...”

“Alright Sombra,” Discord chuckled at his fidgety friend “the waits almost over. We all made something special for you. Think of it as something to look forward to after all your hard work!”

He whipped the blindfold off, declaring “voilà!”

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Sombra blinked as the bright early morning light blinded him, then it came into focus. In front of him was a HUGE structure. One he was sure had not been there yesterday. It was a skeleton frame of a very familiar building.

“The palace..” he said softly. Discord clapped his hands in delight.

“Exactly! I “borrowed” that model you made in the cave, and brought it to Girder!”

Sombra stared at the structure, mind whirling.

Girder grinned at the stunned King “Surprise! What do you think, your majesty?”

It took Sombra several seconds before he could get his brain in order and speak.

“It's wonderful!” Sombra craned his neck back, taking in the enormous building frame in front of him. Excitement began to grow inside, and the ponies noticed him fidget like a child being ordered to sit still and be patient, but failing to do so. A second later all attempts at restrain were tossed regally aside;

Sombra darted forward, bounding from room to room like a foal on Hearthswarming day, wings giving an excited flap. He came to a halt at the centre of the frame, gazing up at the very top, high above him. It was massive, but stunning.

He looked over at Discord and Girder “It is exactly as I imagined it!” He looked so happy all those watching felt proud they’d gotten it so right!

“Score!” Discord grinned.

“How did you get this set up so fast?” Sombra asked breathlessly, trotting back to the assembled group, looking at the ponies and Draconequus gathered around him.

“That would be this guy!” Girder gestured to Discord “he did most of it!”

“Yeah, he held it in place, we bolted it down so to speak!” one of the workers put in. Sombra looked at Discord, who looked about to burst with pride, complete with barely constrained high pitched squeeing noise. What did Sombra think of his work? The pony smiled happily up at him as he spoke;

“This is amazing, you really do know me better then any. I couldn’t wish for a better home.” he said sincerely “thank you, my friend.”

Discord glomped him in a massive bear hug, and Sombra laughed happily, patting his back with one hoof. His mane was ruffled as he was let go, followed by the usual merry giggling as said mane neatened itself almost instantly.

“We'll be assembling this alongside the other homes, your majesty. We'll have your home ready as soon possible! You deserve a home of your own, and this will truly be a palace fit for a King!” Girder promised.

Sombra was overjoyed with their present, and thanked them all very happily. They cheered and celebrated, he liked it! They’d been working late into the night to get it set up so Discord could surprise the monarch.

As the morning bell rang, more and more workers came out and spotted the thing that hadn’t been there before.

“Whoa...what is it?” Corona whistled.

“Looks like a palace to me, chief!” one of his men pointed out. Corona grinned.

“That’s pretty impressive, cant wait to see it finished. Didn’t think his majesty was ever going to get started with that.”

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Months passed, and as they did, the more the palace grew. Sombra watched as, month by month, it gradually morphed into the visions he'd made out of a small crystal.

He noticed extra shifts were forming to work on it, and Girder mentioned many wished to see him have his home ready, he deserved it.

King Vorak was happy to place Morloc's rehabilitation in Sombra's hooves. He trusted the Alicorn to do what he thought best. Thus, the older Centaur came to live at the site. He taught Sombra about the history of magic in their Kingdom, and gradually began to learn to work alongside the ponies. Aeris talked to his often, she could see his regret and offered to help him do some good. So he came to work with the Zebra's as well, mixing potions alongside Timber and Aeris.

In this time, Sombra put in the promised overtime and his Umbrum's accommodation was built at last. They were overjoyed when Sombra came to pick up the first lot. They were granted full solid bodies, courtesy of Umbra and Sombra's magic combined.

During this, Sombra had returned to the Empire several times, to pursue his therapy with Lavender. She was very pleased to hear about his success with the cave. His sleepwalking had finally stopped too, to the relief of his guards and the site foremen.

The more ponies joined the site, the faster it began to grow. Individual houses sprang up like weeds, and soon the refugee ponies and the Umbrum's were able to choose residences for themselves. As was wont to happen, many met partners and there were more than a few weddings as construction progressed. Being the highest authority on the site, Sombra was asked to help preside over many of them. He had to write to Celestia, to ask what she had to do for the wedding of Cadance and Shining..

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Almost a year had passed, but at long last the Umbrum's city was ready, and Sombra could hardly wait for his friends to come stay. They were all coming for the coronation after all!

As promised, he asked Pinkie Pie to plan the party after. Rarity happily made a coronation wardrobe for him, and the others all pitched in to bring their own touch to it!

Thus, three months after everything was built and the ponies lives were just starting in their newly built homes, the official crowning of their precious King was finally due.

Sombra had had all the various royals drop by for visits in the weeks preceding the coronations official announced date, where he unveiled what he'd named after who. Naturally, Twilight was thrilled with having her name on an entire library!

At last the big day arrived. Sombra paced back and forth as Rarity, without even seeming bothered, was able to place the fancy cloak on the fidgety pony. He stood still long enough to put the shoes on, then resumed pacing.

“Don’t fret darling,” Rarity assured him “it'll be fine!”

“I know,” Sombra chuckled “I've already technically taken the job, but this just sort of...hits home, as it were.”

“Makes it feel more real?” Rarity asked. Sombra nodded.

“Twilight was the same, where do you think I learnt to dress a moving pony?” the unicorn giggled softly. “Now, relax. This is the best day of your life, be excited!”

Sombra smiled, nodding as she left to go get dressed herself.

“Hay, looking swanky!” he turned at THAT voice.

“Discord,” he smiled “wonderfully made, isn’t it? Miss Rarity has really outdone herself!”

The cloak had a neck plate style clasp in a style a bit like Celestia's. A high necked cloak with thick fur edging trailed along the floor behind him. It was a pale purple, with a crystallised pattern. The shoes were made of semi-transparent crystal, in a matching shade.

“You look the part!” Discord declared “you should see the size of the crowd out there..”

“I can imagine,” Sombra took a deep breath. As she-who-oversaw-everything, Celestia of course was doing the honours. Her sister, Cadance, Shining Armor and Twilight would all be arranged behind her, by the door leading to the balcony, along with the 5 other colourful mares and Sombra's mother, Umbra.

Discord distracted Sombra a moment by scratching under his chin, soft spot number 2 on the Umbrum King. (1 being his ears of course).

Then there came a knock on the door. Sombra near jumped out of his shoes as Corona stuck his head round the door. He was wearing his fanciest dress uniform for the occasion, as he and Discord were escorting the antsy royal to his destiny. The King and Queen of the Gargoyle/Centaur kingdom were in attendance of course, so they’d brought the required outfits with them.

“Time to go, your majesty!” Corona said, and seen the royal go a bit pale.

“Don’t worry, it'll be fine.”

“I know, it just feels like I’m losing something at the same time I’m gaining it.” Sombra blurted sadly.

“How do you mean?” Corona asked, drifting over to him.

“Well,” Sombra smiled sadly “this last year or so, I have made many friends and acquaintances working on this place. Building it alongside them. I learnt to play hoof-ball...”

“We know, you made it a national sport!” Discord chuckled.

“But now, what with living in the palace and my official coronation...I feel like I’m losing the friends I made. There's going to be a pretty big divide now..”

“There doesn’t have to be, your majesty.” Corona spoke honestly “there's no law saying you cant play in the hoof-ball matches if you so wish. Or go out drinking with your friends. Sure, it might not be as often with your royal duties, but its not going to suddenly cut short!”

“He's right!” Discord patted Corona's floofy mane, and the Gargoyle jabbed him in the side in revenge, making him snigger.

“Your friends, if they're true friends, wont go off and forget about you!” The Draconequus added. Fluttershy had taught him this after all. “And hay, you’ll always have me!”

“You’re doomed.” Corona joked, so Discord flicked his ear as the Gargoyle began laughing. Those two, Sombra decided, shared some very similar personality traits. Smartassery for one!

They turned back to the King as they heard him chuckle.

“Thank you, both of you. Lets go...” he said at last.

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Sombra took a deep breath and stepped outside, flanked by his two friends. Even Discord was dressed up for the occasion, and it was pretty tasteful. The novelty clown shoes were a bit odd, however, but Sombra happily allowed it.

His nerves only grew as he traversed the seemingly endless hallway towards the main room that was host to this event. Spells being cast in the main room by a team of unicorns would allow the event to be broadcast via a magical screen of enormous proportions that was set up outside the palace.

Every guard that stood either side of the hallway bowed reverently to their King. The two at the doors opened it just as a swell of music poured out. Sombra's ears twitched, recognising the historical piece his mother had taught the musicians. This was real…

His wings, which were unfolded to full for the occasion, gave a little shiver and fluffed up a bit. The fact they were so closely linked to his moods was still a mystery. Nopony had been able to explain it thus far.

Row after row of ponies turned to look over at the door, and a deafening cheer echoed around the massive room. At its far end, Sombra seen Celestia, dressed in her finest dress, waiting for him. The other royals all nodded or winked at him, which made him feel a bit better. Next to Celestia, on a cushion being held aloft by Luna's magic, was the crown. It'd been polished and re-set so it looked its absolute best. It'd also been restyled a bit, for it now curved in front of his ears, a bit like his old crown had. Sombra found it to be oddly comfortable, one piece of nostalgia he DIDN'T mind keeping! Difference was, this crown allowed his ears to still poke up out of his mane.

He dismissed these thoughts and took the first step into the room, aware of his two friends either side and the guards falling into step behind him. They came to a halt at the front of the raised area, and Discord scratched swiftly behind the King's ear one more time before he and Corona moved to stand with the others. In the front row, Sombra seen Vorak and Haydon. The King gave him a reassuring nod, and the Queen smiled warmly.

Celestia stepped forward, smiling warmly. He flashed back to how kind she'd been since the girls had brought him to her castle in Canterlot. The effort she'd put in to making a former monster feel safe and sound.

“Welcome, everypony! We are gathered here today to honour a momentous occasion, celebrating not only a long awaited revival of a species of ponykind once thought lost to the ages, but welcoming their leader home..” Celestia smiled out at the crowds.

Pinkie Pie grinned at Sombra, crossing her eyes until Rarity nudged her in the side. He smiled softly before returning his gaze to Celestia.

“What he has accomplished since returning is a marvel. From a painful past, tested in flames of fiercest battle and gentlest mercy, has arisen a phoenix unlike any other. Many would have faltered at the start of the path he has undertaken, but I am proud to say I have watched it unfold. He was faced with the choice of saving himself, or giving his sincerest message to Cadance and Shining Armor. It takes enormous courage to not only own up to your mistakes, but to put your heart into fixing bonds once shattered. From a myth, to a dream, to reality; the Umbrum King has returned home!”

Loud cheering met this sentence, and Celestia nodded to her sister. As she spoke, Luna lifted the crown from the cushion, and floated it over to Sombra. As he bowed his head so she could set it up atop it, Celestia spoke once more;

“Filly’s and gentle-colts, it is my great pride today, for the first time in official capacity, to present to you the Umbrum ad Infinitum, King Sombra!”

As Sombra raised his head, feeling the jolt of excitement that accompanied the crown resting atop his head, the Princess in front of him bowed. As did the others. They smiled happily at him as they straightened up, and Pinkie gave a happy bounce.

“Awesome!” Rainbow blurted, and Sombra caught her eye and smiled.

During the mass celebration, a portal wobbled into existence just behind one of the biggest drapes. A grey mare with all-black eyes and starry grey fog-like mane poked her head around the drape, and caught sight of Sombra. Seeing the wings, she let out a low whistle. She wore a silver chest plate with a red cape, and dainty silver shoes. On her head was perched a crescent-themed crown. She studied this smiling, regal version of the King.

“Not my one, though.” She whispered, popping back into the portal, whereupon it snapped shut. The drape settled back into place with nary a sound.

All of this went unnoticed, in the noise and pomp of the occasion. Sombra met Celestia's eye as he moved to stand beside her, and she gave him a congratulatory wink. He bowed then to the crowds of ponies before him, and more cheering met his ears. Opening his eyes, he seen how many different types of ponies made up the crowd. Excel and other proud-to-bursting Umbrum's (Firefly waving madly), Crystal Ponies including Golden Glitter and her colt-friend and many ponies from Canterlot like Fancy Pants and Fleur. Many a Ponyville resident was there too. Every type of pony he'd grown to know…

It felt like the cheering and celebrating could literally raise the roof off its pillars as he waved to his friends in the crowd. Firefly was buzzing her wings so she could take a photo of him! He felt his vision blur as tears of happiness and acceptance welled up. He'd longed for a moment like this all his life, and it was coming true!

“Go on,” Celestia whispered “say something. They’re all here for YOU.”

He nodded, and as the cheering died down and many teary eyes had been wiped, he spoke.

“If somepony had told me that someday my life would lead to this day, I don’t think I’d have believed them. Growing up, I didn’t have any faith in myself, I became mired in the belief I was a mistake. All seemed lost when my mind finally caved to the onslaught and I became a tyrant. That was where things ended for me, or so it seemed. To be woken again was a shock, especially in light of the circumstances. I was scared, deeply so, when I first encountered Celestia again. I didn’t understand the simplest of gestures, how a touch could be anything but painful. But she showed me kindness beyond anything I’d ever had...”

He closed his eyes, the tears that had been waiting to fall needing barely the slightest brush of eyelashes to patter to the carpet as he got his breath back. He opened them again, speaking to everypony in the room, and to himself in a way.

“Without her, without ALL of the ponies and Draconequus behind me now, I wouldn’t be able to stand here before you. When I found out what I really was, who I was destined to be, I didn’t understand. I felt like an intruder in my own skin, and I tried to deter the Umbrum's from choosing me as their King, believing I couldn’t do them justice. But they refused to discard what they seen in me. It is thanks to the unrelenting support of not just my ponies-” he looked over his shoulder at the ponies watching behind him “but my friends and family too, that I’m here today! This Kingdom is here thanks to the support of so many ponies, zebra's, gargoyles and centaurs.”

He looked back at the crowd, seeing many crying happily as they listened. “Those at the work-site taught me what it meant to properly connect with ponies, and how safe I could truly feel. I learnt how to show those who would not hear me out, what I could really do. I even gained a student, a young pony who has grown in talent so fast.”

In the crowd, a very happy Crossfire blushed and grinned at his sister. She was wearing a dress patterned with feathers, like the ones the King had given her.

Sombra wrapped up his speech at last “I have been given a second chance and I intend to do it right. Seeing all of my Umbrum's free and living the lives they’ve waited so long for makes everything worthwhile. I hope you will be able to look to me whenever you should need anything. The reason I’m here? Is all of YOU.”

Excel practically flew out of her seat, so loud and happy was her cheering. Around her neck was a necklace bearing a crystal. At the start, Sombra had given it to her, and imbued it with the same oath spell Celestia had placed on the ceremonial neck-plate she'd given HIM back at the start. As Excel was seen as their leader, he'd given it to her, but the oath was for every single pony of his race.

It read her heart now, seeing she was content he had become what he'd promised. The crowd cooed in curiosity as the gem glowed, a spark of light flying up from it to alight on Sombra's crown. It sunk into it, the glow fading away. The crown seemed to have an extra shine to it now.

“The spell!” Sombra said softly as he wiped a hoof at his eyes. In a repeat of many occurrences before, a claw brandishing a handkerchief appeared on the edge of his vision. He smiled gratefully at Discord as once more the tears were brushed away by the polka dotted fabric. Sombra seen the pattern and laughed.

“Goes with the shoes~” Discord whispered, nodding.

His friends came forward to congratulate him, and flying tackle hug him (for Pinkie). Once the pink pony let him go, his mother stepped up and hugged him tenderly.

“Well done child,” she whispered “you've become the King we need, and the one we deserve.”

“Thank you,” Sombra whispered back. Celestia beamed proudly as he turned to face her.

“That crown looks perfectly at home,” she smiled brightly “I’m very proud of you Sombra. We all are.”

The other royals nodded.

“Thank you Princess, everypony..” Sombra wasn’t sure what to say.

“Welcome to the club!” Twilight waved a hoof at her own crown and grinned. Sombra smiled back at her, happy to have such support.

“It was an honour to see this momentous occasion, King Sombra.”

The Alicorn turned to see Vorak and Haydon approaching. They bowed to each other and Haydon wiped her eyes with a handkerchief.

“That was beautiful.” she took in how happy Sombra was “you've really grown into your role.”

“I am honoured you consider us such a part of your new home,” King Vorak set a hand on the stallions shoulder “here's to many years of working together, you are always welcome in our home!”

“Thank you both,” Sombra smiled in delight “I look forward to it too!”

“Balcony!” Pinkie swung by on a rope tied to Celestia-knew-what (as Sombra headed towards the door, he did see her studying the ceiling to find where it was tied).

Pinkie did a double somersault and landed on her hooves with a flourish before trotting after the others. Sombra stepped out onto the balcony, seeing how the streets were cram-packed with ponies, zebras and all the other races he'd become acquainted with, waving banners from all over Equestria.

The unicorns producing the spells followed him, showing the magnified view to those down below. They’d heard his speech, seen his closest friends embracing and congratulating the new King.

Sombra raised one crystal-shod hoof to wave to them, and many hooves waved back. There was a whoosh of air as the famous Wonderbolts shot by overhead in a dizzying formation.

“Amazing!” Sombra whispered.

“I know right?” Rainbow Dash snuck up beside him with a grin “but its not over yet, I got a special extra for you!”

She shot off at speed, whizzing up into the sky, getting fast and faster-

Boom.

A colourful sonic rainboom blasted out across the sky, making the crowds and assembled royals clap and cheer.

Sombra hoof-bumped Rainbow as she soared in for a perfect landing. Her dress and mane stuck out every which way, however, to Rarity's dismay.

He looked out at his kingdom, seeing how the light shone on crystal-coated buildings. An empire of glittering hopes and dreams, including his.

“I'm home, everypony” he whispered as his heart ached with the happiness he'd worked so hard for “I’m HOME.”