//------------------------------//
// Dark Reflection 
// Story: Elements of Heroism Special: Reflections 
// by Bahamut0 
//------------------------------//

Burst stood staring down Mirror Sombra in the throne room. "Are you sure that you're ready to do this? Because once you start this face-off with your dark side, there's no turning back."

"...How?" Mirror Sombra asked. "How did you manage to triumph over your darkness so easily?"

Burst sighed. "Like I said. I didn't triumph. I accepted it. I made my peace with it, and took the time to understand it. But that's because I never tried to supsress it or hide it. I've always known it was there. But for the most part? We get along really well. You? You've been too scared to even face it. Chances are? It's gonna be really angry at you."

"Oh..." Mirror Sombra gulped nervously. "...Is it too late to back out?" Burst nodded, and Mirror Sombra sighed. "Very well. So how do I begin?"

Burst shrugged. "For me? I faced my dark side in my dreams during a moment of heart break. You? You're going to have to look inside yourself and find it. And because you've kept it suppressed for so long, it'll probably be easy to find."

"Couldn't I just have someone magically drag it out so I can face it in the real world?" Mirror Sombr asked nervously.

Burst shook his head. "No. That would mean you're still scared to face it within your self. You can't take the easy way out of this. But let me give you some advice. Your dark side only has power if you keep acknowledging that it's not part of you. Ignoring it or saying it isn't a part of you only makes it stronger. And it also makes it harder to confront. But even with this hint, chances are you're going to have quite the ordeal. Plus, you putting this off is only gonna backfire."

"I get it..." Mirror Sombra said with a sigh. "You're right. No more delaying this." A dry laugh escaped his lips. "Truth be told? This is probably something I should've done long ago." Mirror Sombra closed his eyes, and shut the rest of the world away. And in doing so, he found himself within what he assumed to be his mind. Not a moment later, a door appeared before him. Made of sickly and jagged dark crystals. "Here goes nothing." Mirror Sombra reached out, and opened the door. He saw a throne made of dark crystal. Sure enough, he saw his dark side glaring at him from on top of the throne.

"I've been expecting you." Dark Side greeted. "But I've no wish to fight you. Instead, I wish to aid you."

Mirror Sombra blinked. "Help me with what?"

"Isn't it obivous? The thing you want most." Dark Side then conjured up an image of Celestia with his magic. "The one that you love so much. But there's a new obstacle in your path to being with her." The image then shifted to Burst Stream. "He's replaced you. You've waited so long. Loved Celestia so patiently. And what do you have to show for it? Being cast aside for him!" Dark Side then smirked. "But if you let me out, then I can make it so he's no longer a problem."

Mirror Sombra took a deep breath, and stared down his dark side. "No. It's true. I love Celestia with all of my heart. She's everything I've ever wanted. And everything I know I can't have." A bitter chuckle escaped his throat. "Our worlds aren't meant to intersect. The romance I had with her wasn't meant to last." Mirror Sombra said sadly. However, a small smile soon crept across his face. "But Burst? He can make her happy while I can't. He can actually be there for her. More than I could without risking our worlds merging. And if I truly love Celestia...then I should let her go."

"No..NO...NO!" Dark Side screamed! "You won't lock me away again! I won't go back to being ignored! For too long you've shut me out!"

Mirror Sombra steeled his gaze. "Then let it all out. I'm more than willing to listen."

"...What?" Dark Side asked with a puzzled look on his face. 

"You heard right." Mirror Sombra said with a nod. "Go ahead. Scream. Yell. Howl about how I've done you wrong by keeping you locked away. Because you know what? You're right. I have wronged you. I've wronged myself. I've denied a part of who I was simply because I was afraid it would become all I would be. But I was wrong." Mirror Sombra held a pleading gaze at his dark side. "I'm sorry. For all that I've done to you. To us..." He then reached out his hand. "I accept you."

Dark Side slowly walked over to Mirror Sombra. "All I ever wanted to hear." Dark Side soon reverted to a mass of darkness, and merged back into Mirror Sombra. 

Back in the real world, Mirror Sombra slowly opened his eyes. Burst noticed, and smiled. "So? How do you feel?"

"I feel...better." Mirror Sombra said with a smile. "More...whole. Did you feel something like this when you made your peace with your darkness?"

Burst shrugged. "Something like that. Now. Try to access the new power that comes with accepting and understanding your dark side."

"Right." Mirror Sombra focused, and the outer edges of his eyes soon were framed by a royal shade of purple. And his regular magic now crackled with an aura of black lightning. "This is incredible!" He then powered down. "So what happens now?"

Burst smiled. "Now we take the fight to the badguys. How do you want to go in your highness?"

"My world's Celestia would expect me to use strategy or conventional tactics. But now that I'm no longer scared of myself?" Mirror Sombra smiled confidently. "I've got no reason to be scared of her. Hope you're used to doing things explosively. We're storming the Castle of the Dark Sisters."

Burst then spun his Twin Burst blasters. "Then let's rock and roll."