The dense forest that had greeted them behind the beach darkened as they went deeper into it. The evening sun heralded an hour when it would soon become even darker.
Twilight and Spike walked side by side after taking one of the day's short breaks, keeping a safe distance from their 'new companion' as they tried to ignore the heavy silence that had settled in the place from the moment they entered the wooded area.
"You know I don't like this at all, right?" Spike whispered as he took a brief look at Sombra. If he had heard him by chance, he gave no sign of it.
"I know, Spike, you've told me several times," Twilight rolled her eyes as she tried to make sure that her light didn't suddenly go out. "And several times I have explained the situation to you. That's not to say that I like to just trust and let him guide us."
"Couldn't you cast a spell to make sure what he says is true?" He asked in a whisper as he looked at the unicorn. "What if it's just a trap to get rid of us and have the clear path to try to conquer the empire again."
"But I've got what it takes to get back..." Twilight stopped suddenly as a grimace pursed her lips.
What assurances did she have that he simply hadn't lied to them? That he only sought a way to get them to trust him even minimally before leading them into some horrible trap? After all, he was the only one who seemed to know the place, and that was something that caused too much intrigue.
Spike waved a claw disdainfully.
"You know very well that he could have deceived us."
Twilight looked down as her mind kept thinking of anything she could do to get out of that situation. However, she picked it up again when she realized something important.
"Then why didn't he leave when we fled to the open sea, or why didn't he attack us the second time?" She asked with a slight frown on her expression. "He could have abandoned us on that beach and left." She touched her chin with a hoof, really surprised by it all. "If I didn't have what he needs to get out, he wouldn't have any reason to have waited."
"Hpm, maybe you could have a point there," Spike muttered, though he added in a rather worried tone. "I just hope you're very careful, Twilight."
"Always, Spike," She said, flashing a slight smile that was meant to reassure him. "Anyway I can't use my magic much cause of the state it's in, certainly not with that strange barrier inhibiting it... For now, the most I can do is levitation and maybe some teleportation. I have to take care that it doesn't run out completely..." She gave her horn a light tap before letting out a weary sigh. "So maybe you don't trust him, but at least trust me." She finished with an encouraging smile. "I won't let anything bad happen to us."
Spike frowned as he climbed onto her back and softened his gaze a bit more.
"Luckily I can do that," he said as he clutched Twilight's mane. "But I don't even know why we whispered," The dragon continued in the same low tone of voice. "It's not like I care if he listens to us."
Suddenly, the pony in front of them stopped, and it didn't take long for Twilight to imitate him. She raised an eyebrow as she slowly approached him until she was more or less beside him, still confused when he just closed his eyes and seemed to concentrate on something.
"What's going on?" Twilight asked in an inevitable attempt to break the silence that had been created... Even in the dark forest.
He simply ignored her, opened his eyes again and resumed his way. And in the end this only provoked more indignation in the mare. Twilight slammed a hoof into the ground after letting out a rather angry snort, this time refusing to move from her spot.
"We're not going to walk in this darkness any longer," she emphasized her words forcefully. "We have to find a place to spend the night."
The stallion stopped and turned his gaze slightly in her direction. Twilight felt an unpleasant sensation run through her as her gaze met those glowing red eyes that seemed to give off a fairly obvious trace of annoyance. However, her stance remained firm in spite of everything.
"It's getting dark and if we continue like this we'll soon be left behind, my light can't shine brightly enough," She clarified while frowning in disgust.
"Twilight," Spike said with a murmur at his friend's somewhat provocative tone.
The unicorn slowly approached, and Twilight had to look up because of the height difference when he stopped in front of her. She made a great effort not to be intimidated, which somehow ended up working.
"If you had a modicum of sense, you'd make sure you weren't left behind," Sombra replied in a deep voice. "That is, unless you want to find out whatever is hiding in this place."
Twilight frowned suspiciously at his words, not too surprised by his utter lack of empathy. After all, it wasn't for nothing that he was known as one of the most dangerous villains who had ever threatened the peace of her land. Twilight took a step back as she organized her mind's thoughts, then spoke again.
"What do you mean by what's hidden here?" She asked with a faint trace of suspicion in her voice.
He turned again, though Twilight thought she saw the glint of an arrogant expression on his face as he resumed his path once more.
"Nothing compared to what's near you.
Oh no, she wasn't going to take that.
Twilight frowned again and let out a growl of growing annoyance as she moved quickly. Spike jumping off her back in surprise at this. This time she didn't feel like playing along.
In a sudden turn of moment, Sombra stopped and looked down at the mare who suddenly found herself in front of him. His face, once expressionless, now took on a marked frown.
Twilight, on the other hoof, wasn't about to be ignored again. She stepped forward, decreasing the distance between them and put a hoof on his chest with only one intention in her mind to reaffirm.
"Listen! I also know that we don't trust each other, but you said it yourself: you need me to activate that item and we need you to get us out of here. So for now we'll have to help each other! Whether you like it or not!"
Sombra looked away to something beyond her, something that seemed to be on his mind. Twilight was well aware that if it were up to him, he would have left them to fend for themselves long ago. Deep in her mind, she imagined that he was looking for something else from them, and for some reason, that only made her misgivings undiminished. Quite the opposite.
"Fine," Sombra conceded with a grunt as he pulled away from her. "If only to reclaim what belongs to me."
With a jaded expression on her face, Twilight pulled away from him and moved on with Spike by her side. This time she led the way on her own and set out to find an area clear and covered enough for them to rest.
Luckily it didn't take her long to find an area where the trees didn't grow so close together, even though the lush foliage didn't allow them see the night sky beyond their level.
Twilight thought she heard Sombra's snort behind as them made they way to the small clearing.
"You've got the place you want," His deep voice echoed as she turned to confront him. "I don't care what you do now."
Sombra walked away from them to find a place to settle. Twilight followed him with her eyes until he seemed to disappear into the darkness of the nearby trees.
She gave a small sigh and turned to the fire that Spike had created with his breath after picking up and arranging some branches in front of him. The night had become too cold for no apparent reason.
Although she couldn't see him anymore, Twilight knew that the stallion was somewhere close enough to both of them, but at least long enough away to provide for his own comfort. However, it wasn't as if she was too worried about that fact. All she hoped was that he wouldn't come up with the sudden idea of leaving them at some moment.
"Twilight, are you okay?", Spike asked looking in her direction as he wrapped his arms around himself. He had stayed too close to the fire to keep the cold away from his body.
"Yes, Spike, just... a bit tired," She let out a sudden sigh after putting the bag down beside her, as she searched for something inside. "It's been an exhausting day, with everything we've been through it's no wonder I'm like this."
With her magic she pulled out her scarf and two neatly folded objects, which she then unfolded to reveal a pair of layers that she had brought as a spare. After all, she had never known what could happen, as she finally found out very well.
"You won't be cold with this," She walked over to Spike to wrap the scarf around his neck and leave him one of the cloaks. She smiled nervously when she realized something. "I'm sorry if it's too big for you."
Spike looked at himself, then waved a claw nonchalantly.
"It doesn't matter, this is enough." He curled up closer to the cloth. "So, Twilight... Are we going to stick with what you said?"
The alicorn looked back at the spot where the dark stallion had disappeared. Then sighed resignedly.
"I wish I had another option, but I guess it's the best thing to do for now."
"Maybe so," He replied with a slight shrug. "On the other hoof..." He began once more as he lowered his gaze. "I wonder what this strange island is... It's something that leaves me very intrigued."
She frowned and touched her chin with a hoof as the thoughts in her mind swirled on a new occasion.
"Well, considering the way we appeared, I suppose the glass mirror we found in the cave had something to do with it," She deduced as she put her hooves together. "It seems like it's a kind of portal and we somehow managed to activate it. Do you remember what happened before that happened?"
"If you're referring to the time when we were being attacked by an evil unicorn shrouded in shadows, for more information black magic practitioner, yes, I remember," He replied with an obvious sarcastic expression as he crossed his arms. "It turns out that same unicorn is the one you made an apparent truce with to guide us across the island, and that it's possibly leading us into a trap instead."
Twilight gave a few quick blinks at the way he had chosen to respond to her. Then she closed her eyes and sighed infinitely tiredly. Though she could understand him in a certain way.
"I wasn't talking about that and please Spike, don't keep reminding me of our situation," She finished in an exhausted voice after making a slight gesture of denial. "I was referring to the moment when we saw that violet glow shining through the side of my backpack. That glitter turned out to be the crystal lily I picked up for my research."
"But crystal lilies aren't purple," Spike replied.
"That one was, after all we don't know the species completely," Twilight nodded as her face showed a slight convinced expression. "When I picked it up, I could feel my magic getting stronger... As if the aura of the flower was flowing towards me."
"So you're saying that flower is magical?" He concluded.
"I know it's magical, Spike, after all it's in the Crystal Empire. It has the same magic that allows the crystal ponies to take on a crystalline appearance."
"But despite that, crystal ponies can't do magic as such," He retorted.
"They can't control magic like other species do, but they have a magical component to their own body," Twilight clarified. "What I mean is that the reason why this flower not only seems to be a living being that possesses its own magic, but is also able to channel it into other creatures to increase its power, is also new to me."
Spike took a moment to analyze the information that the alicorn had just shared with him. Then he ended up blinking in surprise when he came to a conclusion.
"That means that when you increased yours... Did it cause you to unconsciously activate the mirror portal?"
Twilight nodded and cracked a pleased smile when he came to the same conclusion as her.
"How is that possible without knowing some kind of spell?" Spike asked again.
"It's all related somehow," Twilight said, then shrugged. "I just don't know how yet, but I'll try to figure it out in the meantime."
"Maybe he knows," The dragon suggested.
Twilight wrinkled the expression on her face, knowing full well who he was referring to.
"Maybe..." She glanced briefly in a certain direction. "But it's not a priority at the moment."
"I suppose not," Spike said with a yawn as he settled into his cloak. "But now I just want to worry about my dreams..."
Twilight also made a place in front of the campfire and settled herself on the ground near it with the intention of following his idea, too exhausted by the events of the day to worry about anything else.
But as she curled up in the soft, warm fabric of her cloak against him, her mind turned one last time to the thought of a possible pair of crimson eyes watching over them. The thought made her a little uneasy, before she finally settled in as she allowed herself to be dragged into the world of dreams.