We both walk into the dungeons of the palace, ready to flee those who will become the leaders of the Empire. I walk in first, and see a pink alicorn in one cell, and a white unicorn in another, “Prepare yourselves, for you are about to be freed.”
The Alicorn looks up as I enter, “You defeated Sombra?”
He walks in behind me, and I tilt my head a tiny bit with a smile, “In a manner of speaking, yes. Sombra is no more the all evil king of Corruption, but now normal.”
The white unicorn turns to Sombra, “You mind telling us who this foal is and why he is here?”
I smile and answer for him, “My name is Ravens Breath, Necromancer. I am here because Celestia commanded me to be.”
The alicorn takes her turn, “Aunt Celestia sent you? Any proof?”
I fumble around in my bags, and pull out her letter, “Commands from her, right here.”
I hand them to her, and she reads it. She nods, “He wasn’t lying, this is her hoofwriting. So, you really redeemed Sombra?”
Sombra speaks up now as he unlocks their cells, “Yes, he did. Did you two not notice the huge shockwave of cleansing light?” He smiles at the two of them as they shuffle out of the cells, “You two have a Fair to plan for, I suggest getting to it.”
We walk out the dungeons, and Sombra looks out the window to see the sun about to set.
He knocks on a wall three times, and a false door opens. He motions inside the room where a bed awaits, “Sleep until morning graces the Empire. Your sleep shall be safe here.”
———
My vision is assaulted by light as I hear three knocks on the wall. I have none of it, and try to close my eyes closer, only to have Sombra rouse me, “Come along, Raven. You wouldn’t want to miss the Fair, would you?”
I sigh, and open my eyes. I get off the bed, and trudge into the hall, “You know, I spend way to much of my life awake. After spending a thousand years staring at the same wall and not being able to do anything, I enjoy my sleep.”
Sombra snorts, “And I spent a millennia in a dark void, watching as my body pieces itself together piece by piece. Sleep is a nightmare now.”
I smile, “You know? I think you are the only being I’ve ever met who I feel a kinship with.”
He nods, “It is the same for me. I mean, we’re both Lords of Darkness, we’re both good, spent a millennia doing nothing, I don’t think there’s any being out there that has a closer story to mine.”
I nod, “Yeah, all’s true. So, Sombra, friends?”
He looks at me for a second, before smiling, “Yes, Raven. Friends. Amigos.”
I smile, it only growing in size as I look out the window, “Holy shit. That’s a big Fair.”
Sombra nods, and shatters the window, “If you sound so excited, go ahead down there and participate. I shall stay behind, I have a speech to prepare.”
I nod, and throw myself out the window to the streets below. I land on all four hooves, and quickly throw myself into having fun at the fair.
I walk to a booth, where a crystal pony sits. It’s one where you go up to a pony and they try to guess your age. I walk up, and sit in the chair in front of the pony. He smiles at me, “Here are the rules, young one. One, if I guess your age correct, you pay fifty cents. If I guess wrong, with a five year margin, you get a prize.”
I smile, “Alright then.”
He then takes a while, and examines me. He looks at my teeth, touches and feels the deathly state of my hair and coat, examines my horn, and even looks into my eyes for a little bit.
He rubs his chin for a bit, thinking, “I’m told to be the best in my field, and yet you seem like a mystery. Your coat and mane are taken care of like you were a foal, true, but everything else says different. Your horn looks like one that would be on a very old pony, with so many spirals. And your eyes, they speak of many different ages. Old, young, middling, they just can’t seem to decide.” He nods, “Taking all of these factors into account, it is hard to decide. You seem to either have some messed up genetics, or really good illusion magic. So, I will guess, thirty to fourty.”
I smile, and shake my head, “I’ll take the Ursa Minor.”
He smiles, “The large one?”
I nod, “The largest one.”
He hands me a huge Ursa Minor from the shelf, almost as big as I am. He waves goodbye as I leave, “How old are you anyway?”
I turn, and face him with a smile, “Three thousand five hundred sixty seven.”
I walk away from the booth, and some snake creature seems to slither by me, “Excuse me.”
I look back as I see a strange chimera slither into the seat I just sat in. A soft voice speaks from in front of me as I look at the odd creature, “Oh, I’m so sorry, Discord just can get really excited sometimes. And... wait. Aren’t you the foal Twilight is keeping over?”
I turn to face a yellow pegasus with a pink mane, “Well, yes, I am. My name is Ravens Breath.”
She smiles, “Fluttershy, I’m one of Twilight’s friends. I’m so sorry if Discord hurt or made you uncomfortable. He just isn’t used to blending into crowds.”
I’m about to respond, but I hear a shout from behind me, “Wait a single nanosecond!” The chimera, named Discord, appears next to me. First, his head goes flying to in front of me, and his body follows, his neck like a slinky. He looks at me from his position in front of me, “Aha! I knew I saw something off!”
Fluttershy slightly raises her voice, “Discord, please. This is Ravens Breath.”
He smiles, “Yes, I suppose you would need a new name to fit in. Ravens Breath is oddly fitting. Ravens Breath, master Necromancer of Tel’la De Rus!”
I instantly send the stuffed Ursa to a pocket dimension, and rip Talons out of a holster. I point the gun right at Discord, “You had better explain how the fuck you know that name.”
He doesn’t answer, no, Fluttershy does. She snaps at me, “Raven, language.”
I look at her, to see her look disappointed. I sigh, “Discord, can you explain how you know that name, please?”
She nods, “Better.”
Discord looks with slight fear at my gun, before smiling, “Why, telling you now would take time away from the Fair! I can tell you later, Raven, when you’re on the train back to Ponyville. All will be shared there, I swear it upon the name of the dead world.”
I hold the gun up for a few more seconds, before smoothly holstering it. I nod, “Fine.”
He smiles, “Excellent. Either way, you need to be prepared for what Celestia is about to do with Sombra.”
I detect no dishonesty in his tone, and snap my head to face the palace. Sombra walks outside, and begins his speech.
I instantly sprout my wings of bone, and fly to the palace as quick as I can. I crash through the already broken window, and start to rush through the halls to the throne room.
I barge open the door, and see Sombra walking back inside. He sees me, and tilts his head. I instantly respond, “Celestia is about to do something to you!”
He opens his mouth to respond, only to have it be cut in half by a sword. Sombra collapses to the ground, dead. Celestia smugly grins as she stands on the balcony, sword grasped in her magic, “I do have to commend you, Raven. You got him weak, and for him to turn his back.” She spreads her wings, “I will never trust you, Necromancer, know that. But, I will extended to you my mercy for you to live in Equestria freely. Remember who rules over you next time you think of being smart.” She takes off from the balcony, heading for Canterlot.
I rush to Sombra, and summon up all the power I have. Her sword is enchanted to kill Necromancers, but it also just makes my job harder. I use all dregs of my power I have, and focus on bringing Sombra back.
With one final surge, he chokes back to life, gasping for air as his face melds back together. He looks over at me, “You saved my life, La muerte estaba tan cerca. Thank you, Raven, thank you so much.”
I smile as I hug him, “Don’t worry, Sombra. We are far from done with Celestia.” I can feel the fire of rage burn within me, “She will pay, she will face justice, and she shall face Death.”