//------------------------------// // 01: The Return // Story: Return of Amore // by AzuraKeres //------------------------------// Sombra’s sigh echoed through the dark catacombs of a tunnel. He had ventured yards beneath the surface, finding only silt and the pervading blackness. The darkness has made the stallion weary, but he knew this is where he is needed. It is where her last piece lied. “How on Equestria did you fall so deep into this hollow place?” Sombra’s voice resounded into the depths of the underground tunnel. The path narrowed the more he pressed, with many holes he climbed into. If not for his night vision, a pony could find themself lost here. The silence did nothing to mend the stallion’s mind. Sombra had descended these caverns for hours with no knowledge of its end. With no creature around to talk to, he could rely only on his thoughts and memories to accompany him. And the more his thoughts would drift, the more she would appear. Princess Amore, once a ruler of the Crystal Empire who showered her undying love for her ponies. To Sombra, Amore was the closest he could call a mother. Though her grandeur beauty was overwhelming, her calming voice and gentle smile soothed him. He felt he could rely on her for anything. And yet he cursed her to a horrible fate. Sombra stopped himself before diving into another hole. His breath went ragged. He placed a hoof on his pectoral and slowed his breathing to calm the swift cadence in his heart. He will never forget the shock on her face. Even before being saved from the darkness, that reaction of his betrayal continued to haunt him. She had so much faith in him, and he shattered it to pieces. “I’m sorry,” Sombra said within the black space. His apology echoed through the catacombs. A light then pierced through the hole before him. Though it burned his eyes, Sombra rushed inside the hole to find its source. It had to have been her. She must have heard his grief. And there it was. A pink shard shone with the pitch blackness. Sombra descended before the shard and rushed it into his hooves. He wondered if she truly heard his voice. He’s known Princess Amore to be clairvoyant for the pain of others. To think, even as broken shards, she would still think of others over her own well-being. “I’m not worthy of your pity,” Sombra whispered to the shard, rubbing it softly. He stared deep into the pink aurora within the shard, hoping he could find an image of Amore somewhere. She never appeared, but not for long. “But I promise you, I will do everything in my power to make right for you.” Sombra cloaked himself in red robes when he returned to a small town. The place was mundane and uneventful, a perfect place for him and Radiant Hope to take shelter in. Their forage across Equestria for Amore’s missing pieces required a base where they could safely store their collection. Sombra favored building a cabin out in the wilderness, but Radiant urged him to stick close to society. He has one without the kindness of creatures for a long time, and Radiant wanted for him to connect to the creatures. Though Sombra cherished her enthusiasm, he did not hold confidence for others to share her perspective. Sombra grew wary of passing residents. He did nothing to startle them, however; he was anxious for the worst if just one of them recognized him. After all, it wasn’t so long ago when he reigned over the lands as the infamous Umbra king. His threat to ravage the lands in darkness had no doubt frightened the hearts of many. He couldn’t imagine most ponies to look past it for the foreseeable future. It was his stigma that will forever follow him through the rest of his life. Sombra finally entered his cabin on a street. He let out a relieved sigh when his presence was no longer in the open. However, his breathing came to an abrupt end when a violet mare pounced on him with a tight hug. “What took you so long?” Radiant Hope asked, her face pouty. “You said it wouldn’t take long.” Sombra reciprocated Radiant’s warmth with his own. Having her within his grasp numbed all the pain inside him. She was his remedy who gave him peace and direction. “I know,” Sombra said with a gentle smile. “You gave me the correct location of the shard, however, you refrained to detail how deep it fell below the surface.” “You have it?” Radiant pulled her head back and gaped at him. She breathed in awe when Sombra presented the pink shard from his saddlebag. “That’s right,” he confirmed. “The last one.” “Then what are we waiting for!” Radiant harnessed her magic and snatched the shard from Sombra. Before Sombra could respond, Radiant had already scurried inside a latch from the living. He chuckled. Her eagerness never has a dull moment in his life. Sombra followed Radiant down the latch, entering their basement. There, he came upon a stone figure. From their venture across the jungles, the canyons, the sea, the desert, and the snow lands, the pair had pieced all their discovered pink shards together in this room. The assembled pieces displayed a glimmering aurora inside. As for the outlines, they carved into Princess Amore’s figure. A pink silhouette of her majesty. Radiant whisked the final shard into a small crevice on the figure’s forehead. She beamed a smile at the figure, placing a hoof on its pectoral. “Come back to us, Princess,” Radiant said before casting magic to conjoin the shard with its relatives. Sombra walked to Radiant’s side and placed a hoof on her shoulder. “She will,” he promised. “I will make it so.” Sombra summoned his magic and infused its purple aura into the statue. Knowing that Amore’s imprisonment resulted from his magic, it only makes sense that he can dispel it. A glittering light expounded from the statue, piercing through its solid confines and encroached on the room. The pair guarded their eyes, overwhelmed by its intensity. But soon, that powerful light had finally dissipated. Sombra and Radiant uncovered their eyes and awed at who stood before them. There she was. In all her beauty and prestige, Princess Amore walked amongst the land of Equestria once again. “Princess,” Radiant breathed. She was at a loss for words. For a long time, she wondered what she would say to her when she met Princess Amore again. But when the moment came, she could only bear witness to her grandeur. She missed it so much. Radiant, however, snapped out of her daze when Princess Amore suddenly collapsed to the floor. Radiant and Sombra rushed to her side, hoisting her head towards them. “Princess Amore!” Sombra said. Her body felt icy in his hooves, but he could feel her body rise and fall with her breath. “I’ll take her to the living room. Add some wood to the fireplace.” Radiant nodded and ran out of the basement. Sombra dropped Amore along his back. Feeling her breath behind his ears, it finally registered to him she was finally back. A mute elation sparked through his body along with rivaling anxieties for when finally woke. Regardless, Sombra carried Amore out of the hollow basement and laid her on a carpet near the living room fireplace. Radiant joined the two with blocks of wood to dispense into the dwindling flames of the fireplace, providing it nourishment to blaze again. Radiant disappeared into a room and returned with a red blanket to sprawl over Amore’s body. She then laid next to the Princess, using her natural warmth to vanquish the cold within Amore. Sombra joined Radiant in her endeavor. Moments passed with the pair listening to Amore’s breathing. Her lungs breathed slowly, but within time it gained its natural pace. And then her eyes fluttered open. Her amber eyes enamored Sombra. They had always looked at him with wisdom and love that he would imagine from a mother. “Princess Amore,” Sombra said, his face ecstatic. Amore’s tired eyes swiveled between Sombra and Radiant Hope. Radiant tried to jerk in her tears when met by the Princess’s gaze. But she couldn’t contain herself anymore and dived at the Princess for a hug. “Princess,” Radiant bawled. “I’ve missed you so much. It’s been hard since you left us.” “What?” Amore narrowed her eyes at the mare, confused. “I don’t understand.” “You’ve been gone for a millennium, Princess,” Sombra informed her. His heart quivered at Amore’s confused expression, but he bottled down his anxiety. All for her sake. “We have a lot to talk about.” Amore rubbed her cheek. “A millennium? Wait, before that. Who are you two? And, where am I?” “You don’t remember our faces?” Radiant asked. “It’s me, Radiant Hope. And this is Sombra. You remember us, don’t you, Princess?” “Why do you call me Princess?” Amore questioned. “Is that my name?” “No,” Sombra said, his voice cracked. “That can’t be.” He raised from the floor and cradled the Amore’s face in his hooves. “Please tell me this isn’t so. Please, you have to remember us. I have to apologize for all the wrongs I’ve done to you. You can’t—" “Sombra,” Radiant said after surprising Sombra with a hug from behind. “It’s okay. We can fix this. We’ve just moved a step closer to getting her back.” Amore observed the two. The grimace on Sombra’s face sparked a disturbance in her heart. “I’m sorry,” Amore apologized. “Did I say something to have upset you?” Sombra assured the Princess with a smile, though it was weak. “You have nothing to apologize for. You have shown nothing but love and kindness to me. It’s time that I’ve finally returned the favor.” Amore stepped out of a train, remarking back at the machinery with wondrous eyes. The instrument impressed the tall unicorn with its ability to transport them miles through the snowy lands while keeping its passenger well heated. And her stupor continued further when she stood before the crystalline constructs before her. The endless bounds of gems shimmered under the sunlight. “This place is extraordinary.” “Does any of it remind you of anything?” Sombra asked, stepping to her side with a red cloak concealing his face. “Nothing, unfortunately,” Amore confessed. “Are you certain that I come from this place?” “You were its Princess,” Radiant said, stepping to Amore’s other side. “Among all the gems of the Crystal Empire, you were the one that ponies treasured most.” “Before I took her away,” Sombra mumbled. “No,” Radiant stated, stomped before Sombra to grab his cheeks. “I won’t have any of that.” “But none of this would happen had I simply talked with her like she suggested,” Sombra argued. “I let my anger cloud my decision, and because of that, I—“ Radiant silenced Sombra with a kiss. His eyes widened at Radiant’s endearing smile. “No more burying yourself in what-ifs. From now on, we look at our present and future.” “Oh, my,” Amore said, flashing a cheeky smile at the two. “I did not think you two could be so daring within the public.” “What?” Sombra stammered. The impish expression on Amore was new to him. “It figures your fascination in romance would never leave you,” Radiant snickered. “You were always invested in the love life of all of your ponies.” “Since when?” Sombra questioned. “Since forever,” Radiant said. “It’s filly talk, Sombra. You wouldn’t understand.” “Speaking of which,” Amore said. “What shall we do about the attention we are attracting?” The trio noted eyes of ponies gawking at them, specifically at the tall unicorn in a crystalline garment. “I’m not sure how to deal with this.” Sombra tugged his hood forward. He pressed onward, grabbing Amore’s forehoof to follow him. “Let’s get you out of here.” As Sombra and Radiant guided Amore through the streets of the Crystal Empire, she met with the eyes of the residents. They appeared stunned and slack-jawed at her presence. “Maybe I should have brought a cloak as well,” Amore said. “You have nothing to be afraid of,” Radiant assured. “That goes for you too, Sombra.” “I don’t think ponies will take solace in their tyrant waltzing back in their home,” he retorted. “Tyrant?” Amore said. “It’s not important,” he snapped. “Let’s just hurry.” The crystal guards defending the entrance of a grand castle welcomed Amore and her group with welcoming hooves. To think her status would garner such a reaction still baffled Amore. It was just too hard to believe that she reigned as this Kingdom’s Princess. And yet the natives continue to prove otherwise. Amore could draw nothing from her memory. No beginning or end that could provide any context of her predicament. If not for Sombra and Radiant Hope at her side, she feared where her mind would be right now. They walked the halls of the castle, guided by a crystal guard who promised them to the throne room. However, the pony they hoped to meet revealed herself at the end of a hall. A pink Alicorn stood slack-jawed from afar. She then dashed through the hall at an unceremonious speed and pounced on Amore with a vigorous hug, nearly knocking Amore off her balance. “Mother,” Cadance whimpered. “It’s you. It’s really you.” “Mother?” Amore questioned, perplexed by this sudden revelation. “Ah, then you must be Princess Cadance. Sombra and Radiant did not mention that my daughter happened to be an alicorn.” Cadance pulled her head back from Amore, gazing at her with befuddled eyes. “What?” “Cadance!” A white stallion emerged from the hall with a small alicorn foal in his hoof. “You shouldn’t run off like that. You spooked Flurry…” He paused when he noted Princess Amore before Cadance. “It is her.” “Um,” Radiant started. “You two did get the letter I sent, right? I think it walks you through everything we know.” “Well, yes,” Shining said. “But from your history, it just sounded too good to be true.” Cadance looked towards Sombra. The stallion tugged his cloak to hide his face. “This happened because of what you did to her long ago, isn’t it? When you crystallized and…” Cadance pulled back from Amore and took a deep breath. Just as Cadance collected herself, a pink blur dashed past her and stuck itself upon the shoulder of Amore. Amore picked the blur that revealed to be Flurry Heart, who waved its hooves wildly to grab her. “Now who is this cute and adorable creature?” Amore cooed, poking a hoof on the filly’s belly. Flurry giggled and nibbled upon Amore’s hoof, which made Amore coo again. “That is my daughter,” Cadance answered. “Her name is Flurry Heart.” “Oh, my.” Amore gaped at the filly. “Then that would make her my granddaughter. Goodness, to think I would learn to be both a mother and grandmother in one day.” “Are you alright?” Shining asked, joining with the group. “I’m sure this is a lot to take in.” “It is,” Amore confessed. “But I will never process this without a calm mind. I shall follow the flow set before me until I can grasp my bearings.” “You were always one to be calm under any circumstance,” Cadance said. “No matter how bad things seemed, you held yourself and every pony together. You always gave them hope everything will be alright in the end. It’s what I aspired to become when I became Princess.” “And it would seem you have done well for yourself. I know this may sound hollow given my loss of memory, but I want to say that I am proud of who you became. I can see from how well the city is that ponies entrusted their faith in you.” Cadance placed a hoof on her pectoral to catch her breath. A tearful smile came upon Princess Cadance as she responded, “You don’t know how much it means to hear that from you. I promise mother, we will get your memories back.” Cadance hugged Amore again as Flurry rubbed her face against the coat of her mother and grandmother. “Welcome home, mother.”