The cry of the princess brought a deathly chill over everypony who heard it. Their breaths hitched, and their bodies tensed as they saw Cadance fall to the ground.
“At last,” King Sombra yelled, “freedom!” With a surge of power, he sent his dark energy forward. The Crystal Ponies broke into terrified flees as some of them were consumed by his magic. The empire broke into utter chaos as fear took hold.
Celestia stood by her sister, who was speaking with Steel Bastion. While her sister talked, she felt something was wrong. She did not know what it was, but something was nagging at her heart.
“That poor griffon,” Steel Bastion said, true sadness in his voice. “Her family, her village, was killed—and then she was consumed by that same evil.” He took off his helmet, his eyes watering. “We must stop Yogg-Saron.”
You have failed, Celestia. I am already within the heart of your subjects…
The princess cringed, putting a hoof to her head as she felt the overpowering voice.
“What is it, your highness?” the general asked, rushing over and helping her up.
“It… i-is Yogg-Saron. He says that we have failed.” She took a slow breath. “He is overwhelming my mind like never before.”
She screamed as she felt something bursting from her chest. Luna shrieked as she saw a small pool of black sludge drop from her sister’s body onto the floor. The liquid formed the shape of Prince Sorin.
“You fools,” he calmly said, “you failed to realize that I am Yogg-Saron.”
“You lie!” Luna shouted. “You’re just trying to make us think he is evil, but we won’t fall for your trick!”
He chuckled. “What I tell you is the truth. The kiss I gave you was a lie…”
She shrank back and her ears flattened. “H-how… How do you know about that?” Even though she was asking him, she knew the answer deep down inside. Tears came to her eyes as she stared at the warm face that had comforted her.
“Because, as I said, I am Yogg-Saron. Or rather, Sorin is me.” He walked around the room. “Did you never notice how strange the name ‘Sorin’ was? Is it not unlike any other name of a pony you have heard?” He got into Luna’s face, making her shrink to the floor. “Didn't you find it odd that he suddenly became an alicorn with no purpose? That he was able to find the perfect words to play your heart like a string?”
Now sobbing, Luna whispered, “N-no…”
Sorin stepped back, raising his head as he laughed. “You placed me in the heart of an empire, and now it will fall into my hands.” He turned to Celestia, giving off a smile that made her feel sick. “Thank you, my dear Celestia.”
Steel Bastion stabbed his spear into Sorin, but the prince had already turned back into liquid. It crawled across the ground, seeping out a window before he could catch it.
“It can’t be,” Luna muttered in shock. The one pony she cared for was all just a lie? A means to an end?
“There will be time to cry later, sister. We must gather our army and race to the Crystal Empire!”
“Your highness, only a small part of our army is in Canterlot,” Steel Bastion said, watching the princess pull Luna to her hooves.
“Then get them ready immediately, and get every flying chariot we have for them. You will lead the army, Bastion.”
“Me?”
“You are a general, are you not?”
“I am.” He put his helmet back on, saluting. “It will be done.” He raced off to gather his soldiers for battle.
Luna cried on Celestia’s shoulder, barely able to stand. “W-why?”
“I don’t know, little sister. But we must hurry. It is no coincidence that he revealed himself, meaning he wants us to waste time to get to him. If we do not do as he wants, we may yet catch him when he is unprepared.”
Luna lowered back to all fours, wiping the streaming tears from her face. She nodded, a look of courage appearing on her face.
Celestia placed a hoof on her sister’s chest. “Do not let him control your emotions. We have lost too much to him already.”
The royal sisters ran out of the room. Yogg-Saron snickered as he listened to them leave from just outside the window. They were playing right into his hands. His wispy essence sped away in the direction of the rest of his body.
Sorin stood over Cadance’s bleeding body, laughing. He could feel the fear of the ponies seeping into the Crystal Heart, beginning to taint it. All the negative emotions were turning it into a twisted vessel, one that he could use to inject his blood into the planet’s heart. All he had to do was wait for it to fully transform.
Sorin grunted as he was blasted by magic from the back. Sliding across the ground, he saw Shining Armor race over to his injured wife. His horn no longer had tiny shards on it, and he started to heal his fading Cadance.
Sorin got to his hooves, about to punish the puny prince, when King Sombra appeared beneath the castle. The king strutted forward, looking to the scene of the fallen princess, her blood still on Sorin’s horn.
“Well done, my servant,” he said. “You have delivered the Crystal Heart to me.” He slowly trotted towards the artifact.
“No.”
The king paused, snapping his head to look at the prince. “‘No?’ You serve me and will bring me the Heart.”
Sorin said with a grin, “I’m afraid I’ll be taking it for myself, wretch.”
“Who are you to defy me, little alicorn?”
He broke into an outright laugh, drawing a strange look from the king. “I am not a pony, nor am I some mere prince. I am Yogg-Saron, the God of Death.” Black smoke formed around his eyes, his body darkening further. He charged his horn with his blood, mixing it with the drops of Cadance’s conductive blood and launching it at the Crystal Heart. As it hit, the Heart turned black, his corruption beginning to saturate it. He could feel it start to swell with power. In only a few moments, it would collapse in on itself, achieving his goal.
“What is a king,” Sorin stepped towards Sombra, “to a god?”
Growling, Sombra charged at the alicorn, ready to rip him limb from limb. He fired a bolt of shadow, but the prince easily dodged it. He threw up a hoof, prepared to strike, when his enemy then teleported.
Sorin appeared behind Sombra, striking him with a blow of immense strength. Surprisingly, he took it with minimal damage.
This may prove more annoying than I thought.
Sorin ducked, avoiding a quick punch. He backed up as a flurry of blows came towards him. One landed on his armor, forcing him back and bending the metal. He fixed the plating with his magic, snarling at his adversary.
He lunged forward with speed unseen by Sombra, quickly whipping him across the jaw. Sorin hit the ground, causing it to buckle. His foe tripped, falling to the ground. He leaped at the downed unicorn, ready to finish him.
Sorin tensed as he felt Sombra’s horn drive itself into a small cavity between his armor and his neck. The pony below him had a look that said he had won—but he was wrong.
Sorin’s body melted away, turning to liquid and wrapping around Sombra’s neck. He grappled with the volatile liquid, trying to pry it from his throat. He sent out a wave with his horn, causing the fluid to fly back. He stood to his hooves, the Crystal Heart only a short distance away.
Twilight went over to her friends, who were just as baffled as she was. They watched as the black pool coagulated, forming Sorin’s body again. That sent a chill down their spines.
“He is fighting Sombra. Maybe he isn’t that bad?” Applejack offered, knowing that she was lying. She just hoped that there was some explanation for their friend’s actions.
“No,” Twilight said to her. “Whatever he is doing is for him alone. He already hurt Cadance. What is he going to do now?”
Sombra was only a few feet from the Heart, but Sorin sent out a tendril of his blood. It raised into the air like a serpent, striking at the unicorn. It hooked into his back, pulling him away from the Heart.
“No!” he shouted, getting pulled to his hindlegs. The tendril flung him away, throwing him to the side and returning to the rest of its body.
Sorin got to his hooves with a huff and looked over at Sombra, who was lying on the ground. He went to the very center of the empire, feeling the Heart reach the point of no return. It was too late, his blood too far etched into the relic for it to stay stable any longer. It spun faster, black energy spewing as the crystals holding it turned black.
Sorin opened his wings, embracing his blood and giving it one command. “Foolish mutt.”
“N-no,” Sombra managed to say, the Heart cracking apart. A high-pitched shrill rang out as it collapsed upon itself, everything around it caving in as well.
A wave of purple light washed over the empire, blinding everypony as the Crystal Heart released a torrent of dark energy. Everything faded as Yogg-Saron’s blood was sent straight down, tearing through rock as it surged towards the planet’s core. Everything and everyone was forced back as the shockwave went over the land.
As the light faded, everypony looked where the Heart once was. Now, there was a large chasm that went deep into the ground. Hovering above the abyss, a look of triumph on his face, was Sorin.
“You are too late, Sombra. You are all too late!” The mad alicorn cackled maniacally. “My blood has touched the heart of this world, and now my power is unfathomable!”
“Why are you doing this?!” a lavender unicorn shouted to him. He looked at her with a cold stare.
“So I may bring about the downfall of Equestria.” She gawked after hearing his calm statement. “So I may bring about the end of this pitiful kingdom and rebuild my empire.” He flew forward, landing at the edge of the chasm, more crystal chunks falling into it as black smoke rose from within.
“Now that my blood has infected the heart of the very planet, this world shall be mine!”
“No.” The gathered army marched behind Celestia. They were standing in front of the crystal castle, the pony who used to be their prince looking at all of them with a look of pure malice.
“Princess!” Twilight shouted after seeing her mentor.
“How kind of you to join us, Celestia,” Sorin yelled to her while giving her a glare. “Even in this form, I can send fear into the hearts of your soldiers, so I suggest you leave while you still can. However, I would enjoy making them suffer.”
“March forward,” she commanded while trotting towards him, her ponies doing the same.
“So be it.” Sorin opened his wings, his eyes glowing brighter than before. He floated into the air, massive ethereal wings of shadow extending from his sides. The sky itself seemed to darken as everything around him lost its color, fading away.
“You shall see my unbridled fury firsthand!” The soldiers charged forward. From Sorin’s wings came countless wispy streams. They weaved through the air, racing towards the small army in their path. As they came closer, the ponies could see the faces at the end of the wisps.
The captive souls tore through the army, consuming all living flesh they came into contact with. The heavily armored guards only received deep burns, but the others were literally eaten alive.
Celestia and Luna watched in horror as the wisps rived their subjects, pulling their flesh apart and devouring all senses of life that they could find. The front lines fell before they could even come close to the prince. The others kept charging, their determination waning as the fury of lost souls grew closer.
Celestia shivered as she felt fear, fear of his power. She had sent her ponies to their deaths, but if they could stop Yogg-Sorin now, it would be worth it in the end.
Sorin continued to hover, watching the lines fall before him. They were barely gaining ground, and yet they ran to their deaths willingly.
“I have always been pulling the strings,” he shouted over the battlefield. He bore his gaze into the princesses, forcing them to heed his words. “I created Nightmare Moon a thousand years ago. I broke free of my prison with the help of the Elements. I slaughtered the innocent. I made Celestia look like a murderer. I assaulted the dreamworld. I made Discord turn to stone. I saved the changelings.” He closed his wings, landing on the ground. “I betrayed you all!”
Luna lost all sense of composure as his words rang within her head. He had been responsible for Nightmare Moon all along. He was the reason she had lost so much precious time with her loved ones, why she had so much difficulty adjusting to modern times. All she had gone through was because of him. For the entire time he had been on the planet, he had been manipulating her.
“Please, sister, you must not wane now,” Celestia told her, trying to comfort her. It had no effect. Celestia turned to her army after realizing the wisps had faded. “He is vulnerable! Get to him!”
Sorin looked at Sombra’s injured form. The former king tried to stand, still trying to resist. Sorin only laughed.
“You were nothing but a stepping stone to my ascension.”
“W-were?” Sombra whispered, his fate seeming all too clear. A tendril shot from the prince, driving deep into Sombra’s chest and lifting him into the air. His mind was blasted by overwhelming power, his very conscience cracking beneath it. His body began to wither, his flesh peeling away as it did. More tendrils ripped through him, absorbing his magic. He thrashed around in their grasp, only making his pain worse as he tried to break free. His senses began to fail as he felt his mind and body being consumed.
With a final roar, his mind was torn asunder, his body coming undone as a result. His broken form continued to decay, limbs falling off as he turned into nothing but a skeleton. The tendrils threw his remains into the air, scattering the bones through the streets.
“Is this the king you feared for so long?” Sorin turned back to the approaching army. They were close now, and soon they would be upon him—just as he wanted. He sent a message through his blood that his battalions would receive. “He is but dust compared to me; a frail boy lost in the realm of savages.”
He raised his hoof, a pillar of rock erupting in front of the castle. He teleported to its tip, overlooking the army that continued to sprint toward him. He could feel his own army was close. He tapped into his blood, ensuring that his voice was heard throughout the empire and all the land surrounding it.
“Arise, Armies of Death!” he bellowed. He looked back, seeing his forces begin to sweep over the empire. He raised a hoof, looking at the Shadowstrikers that flew ahead of the rest of his forces. He thrust his hoof forward, pointing at the ponies beneath him.
“CONQUER MY REALM!”
An ear-shattering screech got everypony’s attention, making them scan the skies. There was a line of shadowy birds swooping towards them, only meters away.
“Incom—” one of the commanders yelled, only to be silenced as a Shadowstriker ripped out his throat with its razor-like talons. His lifeless body fell, the creature jumping to another. The front lines were sent into disarray as the crazed griffons ravaged them. Those who could started to retreat, too afraid to face Yogg-Saron and his corrupted legions. The windigos closed in from above, attacking at the middle of the pony army. There was no escape.
“What have we done…” Celestia spoke as she saw the carnage unleashed upon them. Her sister looked on, too.
“I-it is lost,” she said, making Celestia pause. “The empire has fallen.”
“Are you suggesting we retreat, Luna?”
She nodded. “Yes. We must try and stop him by luring him into a trap.” Snapping back into her old ways, she collected herself and got ready to command.
Sorin saw the ponies begin to retreat, all of them fleeing to escape the creatures that slaughtered them. They ran over a hill, almost making it outside the Crystal Empire. His forces finished off the rest of the Equestrians who could not flee with their comrades.
“Not so fast,” he tittered, launching forward with a beat of his wings. He flew across his new conquest, observing the citizens still stuck inside. They would serve as excellent slaves, just as they did before.
He flew low to the ground, angling up to land at the top of the hill the ponies had raced down moments earlier. He instantly saw Celestia, Luna, Cadance, Shining Armor, the Elements, and even Spike at the border. Caught off guard, he felt a blue and yellow beam crash into him, burning at his flesh. He let out a feral roar as he felt the royal sisters’ magic work deep into him, singing his essence.
He gathered his might, firing a beam of his own out of his chest. It pushed their combined one back, slowly leeching towards the princesses.
“He’s too strong!” Luna shouted. “He’s pushing… our power… back!”
His dark ichor surged forth, crashing into the two princesses with a final push. They tried to react in time, but they mistakenly unleashed a torrent of arcane desolation as a result. The ground trembled as a shockwave spread over it, cracking apart and shifting uncontrollably. The tremors continued, the Equestrian forces trying to get to their hooves and run.
“I will break you sisters,” Sorin yelled, flying into the air and looking down upon them. “I will make you mine!”
“You will be defeated, Yogg-Saron!” Celestia spat back, finding her stance.
He scoffed. “Do you truly believe that? Do you not see your army quivering before me, even in this feeble form?” His armies were closing in now. “Besides, you know you are a killer, one who wishes to return to their true nature. You cannot deny it for long, Celestia.”
“I may be a killer,” she said so calmly that it made him pause, “but I now know that there are things far worse than me that threaten my ponies—such as you!”
Giving a frown, he turned his attention to Luna, knowing she was weaker than her sister. “Nightmare Moon was one of my finest physical machinations.” The name made her shiver. “I took your emotions and twisted them, making a being just like you that was warped to perfection.”
“Y-you know nothing about me!”
“That’s where you’re wrong, my nightingale. I was a part of you; I know your wants. I know you enjoy spending time gazing at your own sky. I know you enjoy reading your diary from years ago at night. I know you secretly enjoy banana ice cream. I know you get joy from watching other ponies’ dreams.” He smiled at her, the smile she loved to see on Sorin’s face. “You will join me, Luna.”
“No!” Celestia thundered, firing a beam towards him. He caught it in his hoof, tugging on its power and making her cringe. He threw her to the ground, leaving him alone with Luna for a moment. He turned to her, that warm smile gone.
“It seems Nightmare Moon has yet to fulfill her purpose: ending her sister.” He lifted her with his magic, bringing her to his level. He raised a hoof, a ball of his blood swirling in it.
She started to panic as she saw the smirk on his face. “N-no, stop. What are you doing?!”
“Isn’t it obvious?” he tsked. “I’m bringing back Nightmare Moon.”
“No!” she shrieked, eyes turning to dots.
He put out his hoof, his blood squirming towards her. She thrashed in his grip as it grew closer, but he did not budge. Every motion she made only made her feel more trapped than before.
Memories of being held within her own mind began to flood into her head, all the fear of those times coming back. Nightmare Moon had attacked her conscience, literally prying her from control of her own body, forcing her into a cage. There she was held, getting whipped and beaten every day until she was finally set free by the Elements. She was forced to watch everything she did as Nightmare Moon, which only worsened the pain.
“Please, no!” His blood was mere feet away. “Please,” she pleaded, her fear taking complete control, “I-I’ll do anything not to be trapped within her again!”
His blood stopped moving. Sorin cocked his head. “Anything?” She did not object. She simply sat there, too ashamed to say anything else. He had already broken her. “Don’t you see, Celestia?” The alicorn looked with her mouth agape, horrified at how easily he made a toy out of her sister. “You will break as well. It may just be your sister that breaks you.”
“Release her from your curse!” she demanded.
“I did nothing to her. She is willing to serve. I could instead exploit Nightmare Moon, but she would only want my throne. So instead, I have a willing servant.”
Sorin projected his voice across the entire world, already able to use his blood in the planet to do so. Like thunder, he spoke.
“Hear me Equestria, and know that your end comes soon, for I am Death itself, and your world shall be mine. Your two princesses proved useless against me, and one of them has already broken. I will break the other, and then your rulers will both be at my feet.
“Gather your forces and face me at the Crystal Empire, for I shall take this world by force. Come. Come! Face your DOOM!”
Behind him, his armies swept over the hill, pouncing upon the ponies who were still stuck or dragging behind. The crystal castle turned black as it was transformed into another of his citadels. The streets turned to shadow as all hope inside the Crystal Ponies was lost, the skies darkening with them.
“My empire… is reborn…”
Sorin watched his enemies flee, screaming, as his minions ravaged their bodies. Celestia got to her hooves, rushing to get to her ponies. She ran up to Steel Bastion, who was trying to fend off the dark armies. Slicing through a changeling’s head, he turned to her.
“We must regroup! Without order, we will all die here!”
She blasted a windigo, causing it to fall from the sky. “I will hold them off; just get out of here!”
Realizing she was not going to be coming back with him, he tried to object, “But princess—”
“No.” She charged her horn. “This is my fault to begin with. I brought us here, and I must be the one to stop it. Tell Twilight and her friends to get the Elements and gather all of Equestria’s forces to fight him at the border.”
Nodding with sadness, he saluted. “Yes, your highness.”
She shot into the air, releasing her spell. A golden wall formed behind her ponies, blocking any incoming creatures from getting to them. Those stuck in the wall were melted alive, the others slamming hard into the immovable wall.
Growling, Sorin flew towards her. She saw him coming, teleporting a short distance away and shooting him in the back. He dropped from the sky, crashing into the ground. Some windigos helped him to his hooves, but he shook off their help.
Celestia opened her wings, her eyes becoming balls of pure light as she called upon the sun once again. Yellow rays washed over the battlefield as she was engulfed in a beam of sunlight.
“You’ll pay for that,” Sorin whispered, unleashing his blood. A thick tentacle exploded from the ground, rising to reach her before she could use the sun to destroy his forces. Before she could even react, it wrapped around her. She screamed as she was ripped from the sky, the beam sputtering out as a small fire on the ground.
Looking down at Celestia, who was desperately trying to hold his soldiers off, Sorin decided to toy with his prey. His forces continued onward as the wall fell, but the ponies had a fair distance between them.
“Let them go,” he thundered. His forces instantly stopped, watching as the ponies made their escape. “Let them think they still have hope.”
He walked over to Celestia, who was somehow still fighting. He raised a hoof, the earth around her attaching to her body and binding her in place. He put an anti-magic field over her horn, interrupting the spell she was trying to release. Her head dropped with a defeated sigh. Trotting up to her, he gently lifted her face, making her look into his eyes.
“You tried, Celestia. In the end, you shall be remembered for that at least.” He pulled away, Vultrax appearing at his side.
“Lock her within our new castle. Make sure she is constantly guarded, and have a field put over her horn every hour.”
“Why not just kill her?” the windigo asked.
Smiling, Sorin said, “I have unfinished business with her.” She was swept away by a few changelings, being taken to the dungeon. He followed close behind, ensuring her handling went smoothly. After she was chained and thrown into a magically enhanced cell—not without resistance, however—he went to his new throne in the castle, sitting atop it in waiting.