“Icarus make sure you come home, we don’t want to talk with foal services again” A feminine voice called out.
“Yea sure, Sorry” Icarus called back.
He floated down to the ground from his cloud. It always took a while for him to get up on them. Usually with the help of one of his foster parents or a friend not that he had many of those. Having only one wing was only a handicap he had been given.
“I’m over this, once I get out of here things will be better. I hope” Icarus said to himself. It was currently the middle of the night. He was running away from home for a multitude of reasons.
The first reason was that even if his foster parents did help him get into Cloudsdale, his home. They had other biological foals, and only accepted Icarus as a test. He heard them say many times that he was their test child to see if they were ready. Once they decided they were ready, they had their daughter, Eris Moonglow. Since then it had been a long 7 years of being seen, treated, and talked to like he was less.
Snapping out of his thoughts Icarus looked at his watch, “My train leaves in 20. I gotta go!” he exclaimed. Getting off his cloud watched his cloud float back up for a brief moment. Then turning to the train station in the small town below Cloudsdale. He walked up to the train conductor who stopped him.
“Ticket please.” The conductor said flatly. Grabbing the ticket out of his saddle bag with his teeth. The Unicorn used his magic to inspect the ticket. Once he was satisfied he used a ticket punch to signify his ticket's validity.
“Am I uh…Good to go now?” Icarus asked. The conductor hadn’t given the ticket back yet and was staring down at him.
“Don’t I know you from somewhere?” The conductor asked. Tilting his head to he looked over the coffee colored Colt. He saw aa near floral pattern for his cutie mark, and the singular wing resting at his side.
“I highly doubt it, could I please just get on?” Said Icarus. He was growing impatient because he wanted to leave as soon as possible. The last thing he needed was to get dragged back to Cloudsdale. Worse yet start bouncing around homes again.
“ Say, You’re the colt tha-”The conductor stopped. He looked into Icarus’s Amber eyes and decided to not press the issue. Coughing into his hoof he floated the ticket back to Icarus’s bag and stepped aside.
“Thanks, I guess,” Icarus said looking down. He boarded the train and hopped into his seat. He saved for so long to be able to afford a personal train car. The only thing his foster family had done for him was give him an allowance. It wasn’t much but saving while he paid for school was all he could do. Sitting by the window, Icarus took a look at the night sky and yawned. He was tired but at least if he could make it Manehattan, or Baltimare he could get into a school of some kind.
“I hope to Celestia, things change” Icarus mumbled. As the train whistle sounded, he felt the train move. His heart leapt at finally getting away from it all. Closing his eyes he drifted off to sleep. Dreams of a new life played vividly in his head as he left for the dream world.
Icarus awoke to the smell of smoke, and burnt leather, Groaning, he realized he was lying on the window of his train car. He propped himself and wiped his eyes with his wing. Looking around to see seats strewn about. The train car was sideways and Icarus could only sigh realizing this would only hinder him.
“Plans derailed like the train…Great,” Icarus said. He felt his saddle bag behind him and after standing up he put it on. Carefully stepping around the broken glass and uprooted seats. He made his way out into the open. It was cold, fiercely so and he knew where he was at. The Crystal mountains, and he knew the crystal empire was on the other side. Looking for survivors he saw nopony around and heard nothing. Save for the howling wind in his ears, the creaking of the train car below him.
“Let's see if anypony is still here…” He thought. Walking along the train car's exterior he shivered and looked for a way back in. Seeing a latch he tried his best to open it. After about a minute of lifting and shivering he got it. He dropped into the train car, and looked around. Icarus saw a cloak on a seat in the back. Walking over carefully, avoiding the falling glass he retrieved it. Still not seeing anypony around he sighed. Putting the cloak on he realized it was a little short on him.
“Better than nothing I guess. So no ponies around, and the closest city presumably The Crystal Empire. I'll gather what I can and set off,” Icarus said to himself.
He then proceeded to put the hood up on the cloak and scavenge around the train cars for supplies he could carry. Finding some carrots, and small fruit snack packs he tucked them away. Figuring this would be good enough he jumped up on some seats. He pulled himself out of the car back into the windy tundra. He found his way off the train car and began to walk in the direction of the mountain pass. Looking down he noticed hoof prints in the direction he wanted to go.
“So they just left me, nothing new I guess” Icarus mumbled. Following the tracks he set off in hopes of seeing town. Not like he had much of a choice, if he waited he ran the risk of Foal services taking him back to Cloudsdale. Or some monster coming to wreckage to kill him. The cold journey sounded better than being berated and ignored by his foster parents or being monster food. So Icarus walked, and walked into the tundra doing his best to stay warm with the cloak he found. He walked for hours, and when he could no longer see the train wreckage. Suddenly his legs felt heavier and he was losing feeling in his legs.
“That isn’t good, I have such a long way to go-”Icarus paused. He left hoof wasn’t listening to him anymore. Swearing to himself he did his best to press on. Yet he didn’t make it further than 10 feet before he collapsed into the snow. Panicking he began to flail around trying to try and stand back up. Despite his best efforts he couldn’t get back up and slowly started to close his eyes. Suddenly dying in the snow right there didn’t seem too bad, and it solved his problems.
“There are worse ways to go. At least I got away from them…”He thought. Closing his eyes he drifted. The best sleep he had ever known overcame him and he was welcoming it with an open heart.
Icarus felt his mind slipping away slowly like the snow he fell upon. That was until he felt a jolt where his right wing used to be. Following this he saw a vision of his mother and her open wings. Her pale blue coat in contrast to her bright citrine eyes. A sight he had longed to see again in person. Finally he could see his mother again, in whatever afterlife there was hopefully. As he approached the apparition, it began to fade as he got closer.
“No No Nooo” Icarus screamed. He sat straight up, and felt tears running down his cheek. Looking around he noticed he was in a cave, next to a fire.
“Why are you so noisy for a half dead pony?” A deep voice said. Icarus looked to the corner of the cave and saw a pair of red red eyes. No outline of any kind, just a pair of floating eyes.
“What?! Half dead? Who are you?” Icarus asked. He was growing worried that he’d been captured by bandits or something. The disembodied eyes did not say anything for a moment. They just stared back at him, silently observing him. Before the eyes closed and emerged a black unicorn. A curved broken black and red horn, and a pitch black coat of fur. Icarus just stared at him, he was…So cool and his appearance was familiar.
“Hmm yes half dead, traces of frostbite, dehydration, and…desperation” The stallion said smiling. Icarus figured frostbite and dehydration were easy to figure out but, desperation? That had to be the stallion in front of him projecting. It was weirder because he wasn’t wrong either.
“And how do you gather that I am desperate?” Icarus said, trying to move. Failing at moving he gave up and skootched closer to the fire.
“Hmm, call it intuition, not many come through this mountain on foot. Even fewer Pegasi without the gift of flight” The voice said. Icarus didn’t know why he was saved but he was extremely grateful.
“ I'm Icarus, and you are…?” Icarus tilted his head to the side. “What is your name?’ he asked. The dark stallion pondered for a moment taking a seat opposite Icarus. Before smiling a rather unsettling toothy grin.
“My name, it has been a while since anypony has had to ask. It is Sombra, King Sombra to be precise” Sombra said. Expecting the stallion to flee in fear after hearing his name Sombra stared at Icarus. After a few minutes passed of the 2 now having a staring contest, Icarus broke the Silence.
“Like the one from the newspaper and history books?!”Icarus exclaimed. Sombra grimaced hearing this.
“So you have heard of me, and yet you do not flee? You must be ignorant or have a death wish” Sneered Sombra. Looking away from Icarus and towards the now raging snowstorm outside the cave.
“Well considering you saved me, I feel like if you wanted me dead you would have done so” Said Icarus. This made Sombra turn back to him with a look of confusion on his face.
“S-Saved YOU! Me?! You were simply on the path to my cave. N-No more or less” Sombra stammered. He was a ruthless King and a worthy foe to Celestia. Yet this colt thinks he was important enough to be saved?!
“Yup, and frankly I couldn’t care less.” Icarus stated. “Not like I have anything to return to anyway” Looking down at the fire now. His gaze was sad and broken, a gaze Sombra understood with his entirety.
“Abandoned, and hurt. I know that look anywhere” Sombra said. He couldn’t help but feel for the colt in front of him. Icarus reminded Sombra of his brother back when his whole family was together.
“Yea tell me about, bullied for having one wing, and told I was a test child by my adoptive family, and my parents are dead.” Icarus said. Tears were in the corners of his eyes but refused to fall. He was in the presence of a continent famous villain. He couldn’t show weakness in front of him. At least that’s what Icarus thought.
“Hmm yes, the loss of loved ones. I know that feeling all too well. It's why I tried to use the Crystal to bring my brother back.” Sombra said. He didn’t know why he was sharing with this colt, but he felt compelled to comfort him.
“I-I’m sorry I shouldn’t burden you with my problems. We have our own right?” Icarus said. Finally getting some feeling in his legs he wiped his eyes and slowly got up.
“You are correct, but why do you move about? You are hurt.” Sombra inquired. Not that he really cared about what happened. Or did he care, he was unsure why he even helped this Icarus.
“I would hate to bother you. You have done enough and I’m sure you want to stay hidden.” Said Icarus. Stumbling and bracing himself against the wall he made his way to the exit. As Icarus got to the exit he hit a magic wall.
“Come. Sit. It would do nothing to soothe my conscience knowing I sent you out into that” Sombra said motioning to the snow storm. His eyes closed as he sat next to the fire. Icarus realizing he couldn’t force his way out anyway returned slowly to his spot. As he sat down he reached into his saddle bag. He pulled out 2 carrots and used his wing to poke Sombra.
Flinching Sombra looked at Icarus, “What are you!…Oh.” Sombra saw what Icarus was doing. He used his magic to grab the carrot from Icarus and looked away. The 2 sat in a comfortable silence around the fire. Listening to howling wind outside the cave, and the crackling of the fire. Icarus finished his carrot and yawned laying down, the soothing sound of the fire and Sombra’s presence put him at ease.
“You are recovering, rest for now.” Sombra said. He noticed the colt dozing off and gave him a small smile. Icarus saw this and smiled back at him catching Sombra off guard.
“You aren’t as bad as everyone made you out to be. I don’t care what anypony says, you're pretty cool” Said Icarus. He went back to dreamland smiling at the unicorn.
“Hmph say what you want Colt” Sombra said looking away. When Sombra noticed Icarus was finally asleep he sighed. He remembered Icarus’s eyes, the Amber red and how he was reminded of his late brother. Along with Icarus’s final statement, it made Sombra feel… something. He wasn’t quite sure yet but it wasn’t bad. Did Sombra care about Icarus? Shaking his head, Sombra closed his eyes.
“Whatever this feeling is, It’s quite nice” Sombra said grinning to himself and dozing off.