//------------------------------// // Imprisonment/Epilogue // Story: The Heart of Shadows // by TheSilentAuthor //------------------------------// Sombra slammed over and over into the icy wall despite his body lacking psychical form. "No, no, no, no!" he screamed. Sitting there he tried forming his body again but to no avail. What short of magic was this? It was nothing like he had ever seen preformed. Clinging to the icy roof he slowly felt his mind begin slipping into darkness. He almost went completely out until a knocking sound jolted him back up. Peering through the ice he could make out a figure standing on top of him. His heart raced as he could see that the figure was Celestia. She was glaring at the with a look of sadness and anger on her face. Sombra tried calling out to her but his throat produce nothing. Pushing right up against it he forced his words right out of his body. "Happy now?" He shouted. She jolted as she obviously heard the words and began trying to say something back. Sombra could not hear a word she said He could see a small tears begging to fall off her eyes.. "Why are you shedding tears for me. You're the one who locked me up in here" Sombra said. Celestia stopped for a second looking up off into the distance. Whatever it was it made her smile. "Celestia you will pay for this! I will get out of here and you'll will regret everything." He managed to screamed. She looked at him, her tears began to dry. He gazed in horror as Luna came into view. Then he heard a slow knocking sound almost like tapping right above him. Luna had a smug look on her face as she knocked on the ice. Celestia's gaze was now filled with fire and hatred towards him, shaking him to the very core. "Sombra." Celestia voiced echoed in his head. "Can you hear me?" "Can you hear us?" Luna repeated. Sombra could barley tolerate their voices, it was so loud for it seamed that they where right in his ear. "Yes I can and do you mind turning down the volume a bit thought?" "You don't ever ask me for something do you understand me?" She shouted. "Now that I have seen what you have done first hoof I can not think of a more proper punishment for you then staying hidden from the rest of the world. For as long as anypony has known you, you have been a kind and shy pony. Guess that you were just playing everypony for fool in the end. Even I was tricked into thinking that you were diffrent than the other power hungry monster that my father use to fight." She said flashing her mane over to one side. "So taking my physcial body want do you any good, soon I will find a way out of this prison." Sombra smirked. "Thats where you're wrong Sombra for you see I plan on more than just letting you sit here waiting for you to figure out a way to get out. I plan on sending you into a darkness filled with depression like the one you created for your own empire." Her horn began glowing with magical aura. "Before I send you away Sombra tell me one thing. Why? Why enslave your ponies? Why did you become this monster?" Sombra didn't respond he was muttering words to himself. "Answer me." Celestia said. The dark king continued with his own words paying no attention to her. Celestia began feeling agitated. "Answer me." She repeated. Sombra just kept on ignoring her. Celestia slammed her hoof against the ice. "ANSWER ME!" A sudden chill ran up her spine as she soon began hearing Sombra's laughter echo in her head. "Oh you would love to know wouldn't you? Poor Celestia, always wanting to know the truth behind actions but sadly I will give you none.Thats right the reason behind this whole thing will be my little secret. Just a little tip to keep your mind busy for the rest of of your pathetic life. So go ahead do you're worst destroy me, banish me, make me suffer. All I say is one thing to you my dear, if you do go through with destroying me I swear the consequences will be so terrifying that it will never leave your heart at peace." Sombra hissed. Celestia stood there feeling fear take over her body. It was as if Sombra had brought out all her fears from within her and soon she began imagining terrors. "Yes let the fear flow." Sombra chuckled."This is only the taste of what you shall recieve if you destroy me. But I can promise you that if you release me not only will allow these nightmares to go away but I swear to never do harm upon anypony again." Celestia began trembling allowing the fear to attack her will. "Come on Celestia let me out, free me." Sombra begged. Her mind went back to the image of the crystal ponies. The look on they're faces began flashing back filling her with righteous anger. Soon her fears began melting away and she reagin her composure. "Sombra you are here by banished for all time. For your crimes against the crystal empire, for your crimes on everything good ponies stand for. Never again will you feel the sunlight beam upon you coat. NOW BEGON!!!!" Rasing her horn she beamed a powerful arua that passed through the ice striking Sombra with full force. "Good by Sombra and good riddance." Luna spat. At that moment the whole earth began shaking causing the two princesses to fall to the ground. "What in Equestria was that?" Luna asked. Celestia noticed a purple aura begging to fall from the sky circling the crystal empire. Within a span of a few second all the buildings, trees, rocks, and the crystal ponies vanished before her eyes. Nothing stood between her vision it was if the empire never had been there to begin with. Both Luna and Celestia looked at each other with great confusion. The wind was the only sound that was around for miles. Off in the distant the Canterlot army stood dumfounded by the sudden disappearance. Celestia began hearing Sombra's dark laughter. "What did you do?" She cried. "I told you that the consequences would be terrifying." Sombra laughed. "Whats is the meaning of this Sombra where is the crystal empire?" Luna shouted at him. "Now, now I shall explain. You see Celestia when you went on about banishing me I whip up a little spell of my own. As you can tell when I heard you were coming up my way I prepared something in case I was unable to win. Unfortunately it lookes like I had to resort to it. You see I created a spiritual link between me and the empire through a powerful black magic spell. Whatever happens to me happens to the empire. So Celestia banished me forever in darkness so my kingdom will follow." Celestia slamed her forehooves into the ground. "This isn't funny Sombra put the empire back." "I can't." Sombra smiled. "You see Celestia black magic isn't really that easy to get rid of but hey I tell you what I got a another surprise for you." Celestis swallowed. "What." "The empire will eventually come back but at a price." Sombra hissed. "What price?" Luna asked. "You see when you were so busy telling me about how you were going to banish me I created a counter for your spell. One that would reduce my sentence to somewhere between one to ten thousand years." Sombra grinned. Celestia gazed in horror "What thats impossible the spell I used-" "The spell you used is weak compare to my own but yes in thousands of years the empire will return but so will I. And if you two haven't been enslaved or destroyed by others I will personally come and end your lives." Sombra hissed. A sudden shift in his soul began pulling him into a subconscious, this must be the banishment. Celestia kept pounding on the ice yelling at Sombra to bring back the empire. "Farewell Celestia and Farewell Luna." Sombra laughed. On the outside he rejoced but on the inside he felt a shot of depression. His mind began fading fast, slowly being consumed by the ever growing darkness that was soon to be his prison. His mind settled on Chrysalis, a small remainder of him felt the same passion and warmth that he felt around her. Soon questions began filling his mind. "Will the spell that I gave her work? If so will she be able to outlive my banishment? No, no of course it will for I have willed it to be so." Sombra said. He then tried tapping into a form of communication using his magic to send a message to Chrysalis wherever she was. "My love, sorry we are not going to be able to be together for a really long time. But once I am free we will smite down our enemies." He felt himself fading out, everything around began to seem less real as if he was in a dream. The image of the princesses and Chrysalis soon became more and more distant. As he felt his mind go numb he began smiling to himself. "I will be back" Sombra said as he disappeared into the void. Soon the King of the crystal empire was no more. Chrysalis kept running through the snow that had now began falling heavily. She stopped as she felt the ground begging to shake around here. Turning around she could she the once tall towers of the capital where now gone. Deep down she could tell something terrible happen. "No." She said out loud. "He couldn't have? They couldn't have?" Her feelings began bubbling up inside of her. "Sombra please be alive." She said. The snow had cleared for a little bit so that she could see the whole scene that now played out before her. Off in the distance she could see that the city was indeed gone. Also her eyes could see that the two Canterlot princesses where now rerouping with thier troops ready to head out. "No, no you will not take him away from me! I will find him and we will be together again." She said galloping forward towards their direction. She tripped as she clumsily went on and fell to the ground. Lying their she felt sadness take over her. "Sombra, I will help you even if it kills me." Closing her eyes she let the snow fall on her. Epilogue The events of that day forever burned into Celestia's and Luna's mind leaving the two shaken by it. Though the empire had now vanished the memory of those who were tortured still burned in the minds of them. Celestia kept the last words of Sombra in heard head. Maybe one day the empire would return and she had to be ready. Luna kept the same mindset as her sister did but after tme she began losing hope in all of it. Then there was little Octet. Nopony knew what happen to her. Until years later when tales of an Alicorn who lived among woodland ponies were begging to circulate. The stories mostly consisted of her living a life that was quite common despite her naturally born differences. She had a family and their dissidence eventually returned to the state of royalty in the land of Equestria. As time went on other threats emerge in the land but both sister were able to defeat them through the power of the elements. Still they waited for the return of the great crystal city. In time Sombra's threats did prove to be true. The empire returned as did the dark hearted king. Despite this he was once again defeated by the forces of good. The crystal ponies had returned to the living world after all those years and it seemed that everything was heading in a bright new direction. 1000 years later The snow blew round and round causing all who saw to be blinded. Her heart began beating heavily as she watch them dig around. "Well have you found anything." She said almost giving up hope. Her servant stuck his head back out from the ground shaking it to say no. She bit her lip, she didn't want to give up but what if the news she heard was true? Could he really be dead? No he couldn't be not that easily. Soon she heard a commotion coming from behind her. "My queen, my queen I found something for you." A skinny changeling gargled, approaching her. Her eyes lit up with excitement. "Bring it here, don't keep me waiting." The changeling bowed and presented a long curvy red object to her. Upon seeing it she let out a gasp. "Could it be." She grabbed to examine it. "It is his horn!" "Forgive me ma'am but what good will that do us?" The changeling asked. Chrysalis smiled to herself thinking back to the days before the fall of the empire. Sitting in the throne she remembered what Sombra told her what his safe plane was. "You see my dear this magic I have learned has taught me so many things. Even if those princesses shatter me physically I will still be able to survive." "But how my love?" "Magic can have many abilities that others may say that are impossible but this one is really true. The spell in which I referring to allows me to be able to reform myself if my body is destroyed. All it takes is will power." "What if that doesn't work?" "My then I will need your help then wouldnt I?" "Me, what good would I do if you're broken?" "Magic my dear can be taught to anypony no matter they're level of skill. Now the spell I am about to teach you is a fail-safe spell just in case if I cant pull my self together." "But what if we're separated?" "We will be together eventually. Oh and take this." "What is this Sombra? Some kind of poison?" "No, no my dear it's magic in a bottle. Think of it as me giving you more time in case I get captured." Chrysalis hugged the horn close to her chest. "Soon we will be together again my love. Then we shall seek out all of those who separated us. This time with you by my side will be victorious. We will shall bring a fury like nopony has ever seen before. Somewhere in there I know that can you hear me. Please still be alive." Deep down somewhere, somehow Sombra felt her passion light through him. "My beautiful queen" He smiled.