By the time Gilda and I returned to camp everypony was asleep. We had located the mine that we needed to descend too and it was just over the next hill. I set out to get some more firewood for the fire before going to bed.
The darkness was still unsettling to me and it took a conscious effort to contain the fear of King Sombra. I had gotten better at resisting his influence but could still tell he was watching me. I realized I had wandered too far into the forest and gotten lost. I decided to fly above the treeline with the firewood to get back to camp. I leapt into the air but landed with a resounding thud.
I looked back in confusion only to see my wings were gone. The firewood had vanished as darkness closed in on me. I'd had enough of this.
"Show yourself you coward!" I shouted at the darkness. In front of me a shape stepped out of the darkness, taking on the smoking form of a unicorn nearly twice as tall as me. He had grey armor that reflected none of the faint moonlight, and a menacing red horn.
"Fool, I should have ended you when I had the chance." The figure glared at me and I could again feel my emotions go numb and I could feel only hopelessness. "When you were trapped in my tomb with me for eons, you ponies were my only source of food and amusement. By the time I drew enough power to escape my prison from you ponies, it was a mercy to murder the lifeless husks."
I stood rooted to the spot listening to his story. I remembered being in the tomb, being trapped and floating through the darkness. But I remembered when we had awoken and my fellow soldiers had attacked him. They weren't lifeless husks, and my sergeant had been casting a protection spell...
"You don't seem to be recalling events correctly, let me help you" Sombra spoke. Suddenly we were standing back in the tomb. Sombra floated above the shattered sarcophagus, and around him were the lifeless bodies of 12 ponies, a mix of pegasai and unicorns. Near the entrance to the tomb were two weak ponies, a unicorn who seemed to be casting a protection spell and me.
"Your foolish sergeant somehow managed to protect you, but look at how you limp out to go get help! You don't even realize that you never left. Your still trapped in the mines with me!" Sombra began laughing and I could feel myself surrendering to his power. The room was getting dark and I wanted more then anything to embrace the void.
"Comet, you must warn Celestia--" I interrupted the sergeant with my hoof. I was suddenly standing next to him again, Sombra glared at us as the protection spell faded. I stepped forward to meet my end when I heard the melody. I thought it was another of Sombra's tricks, but I could see a confused look on his face. There had been no music in the tomb that night. Could this be... another dream?
The darkness was vanishing, I could see Sombra's mouth moving but hear no sound. I could feel warmpth and a tugging as I was pulled back to the waking world.
~*~
I awoke shivering with the sun just rising. I was back in the camp, and Lyra was playing her lyre. To my right, Zecora had been mixing up a brew. "What happened to you pegasus, I've never seen night terrors such as this." Zecora leaned in and gave me some red potion which I accepted. It seemed to ward off the chills I was feeling.
"I had another nightmare, only this time I knew it was a dream. King Sombra approached me again, he seemed desperate but also more powerful. What ever he's trying to do in the Crystal Kingdom he's close, but he's also worried. I don't think we have much time to destroy his remains before he is re-imprisoned. And if he is imprisoned, the tomb will seal and it's only a matter of time before he escapes again." I got up and saw that the whole camp had been packed up.
"Lyra, how did you know about the music?" I asked. "I remember when you were in the hospital and you told me you could hear my music in your coma, I thought it might help you get back" Lyra replied.
"Thanks Lyra, you saved my life. I was so close to giving in to Sombra's will" I added.
"Ugh come on, if your telling the truth let's crush this guy and I can go back as a hero to all gryphons" Gilda snorted.
~*~
The journey to the mine didn't take long, nor did the descent down towards the tomb. "It should be just around this corner ahead and across a short bridge."
"The Great and Powerful Trixie commands... I mean, why don't you ponies go first?" Trixie blurted.
"Hah, I'll go first then" Gilda smirked and headed around the corner. The bridge was ahead when the ground started rumbling. Big Mac shouted out "CAVE IN!" with a volume I hadn't heard him use before. Once the trembling stopped I tried to explain "Last time that happened it was shortly before King Sombra was trapped. The tomb is just ahead, we need to destroy his remains.
We all crossed the bridge and my worst fears were realized. King Sombra's sarcophagus was shattered. This meant the prison would no longer work. Luckily I should still have time to burn his remains. "Come on Gilda, we've got some remains to torch!" I called out to her.
"Hah, this was too easy" Gilda mocked "What's the worst that could happen torching some smelly old bones."
We walked towards the sarcophagus as we heard a dark laughter from outside. We all looked back just in time to see a very pissed looking King Sombra across the bridge.
"I can't believe those insolent fools reached the Crystal Heart! But they can banish me as many times as they want. Just because I can't reclaim my throne doesn't mean I can't destroy the rest of Equestria!" King Sombra began to cross the bridge. "My prison is destroyed and after I destroy you ponies I'll have all the time in the world to plan my invasion."
"Hurry up you must, destroy the bones with no further fuss!" Zecora reached into her bag and threw a vial at King Sombra that shattered in a flash of smoke behind him. Apparently it did not have the intended effect "I could use a new idea or two, if anyone has a clue."
Big Mac stood in the doorway to impede Sombra's path, and then Trixie leapt out onto the bridge.
"The Great and Powerful Trixie commands you! YOU SHALL NOT PASS!" Trixie planted her feet and her horn began to glow. She created a small magical barrier on the bridge to impede Sombra's progress. She then stomped her fore hooves, shattering the half of the bridge he stood on.
"Hahahahaha! Foolish pony, I can fly! What possible use could breaking the bridge serve? You on the other hand, can not fly!" Sombra reached out and knocked Trixie off the bridge. She hung on by one hoof and shouted up to us "Quit standing there and torch the bones!" before letting go.
I turned around and lit the torch on fire while Gilda covered the bones in fuel. I tossed the torch down while Gilda forced her way past Big Mac and dove after Trixie.
"What? NO! This can't be!" King Sombra stood across the bridge, bathed equally in shadow and fire as his link to the physical world was destroyed. "CURSE CELESTIA AND HER LITTLE PONIES!!! I WAS SO CLOSE!!!" He continued to swear as he burnt into nothingness.
I started helping everypony out of the tomb and flew them across the bridge. We were very relieved when Gilda flew up carrying Trixie shortly later. No one had known our names before today, and they might never. We had still managed to put our differences aside and save Equestria.
Everyone was overjoyed as we set up camp for the night. There had indeed been treasure in the tomb and we planned to sell it to the nearest pawn shop and split the bits 6 ways. There were some pieces of armor and jewelry in the tomb, one in particular that Trixie seemed particularly interested in. She kept talking about the amulet with the drawing of an alicorn on it and how she would have to study it when she got back home. We still sold it to the pawn shop though she seemed sad to see it go.
~*~
I was back in the apple orchard, it was a calming place. The full moon was out and the mare I had been expecting to see since I went to sleep stepped out from behind a tree.
"Princess Luna, your looking well" I stated.
"Thou hast done us a great service." Luna spoke with authority.
"Your welcome, I was just wondering why not have the elements of harmony do it? Or yourself?" I questioned the goddess.
"Comet" Luna chuckled and began to speak more casually. "It was your task to complete and we are proud of you. You were not meant to be trapped with Sombra, nor did we expect him to curse the Crystal Empire to vanish until we released him from his prison. Clearly we could not release him, and so we wept for the Empire."
I sat down listening as the princess of the night spoke to me. "We knew he would escape one day, and we knew some ponies had been trapped with him. It was our hope that when the time came, somepony would be able to lead others back to the tomb and destroy the tomb. Had we not needed all our strength to preserve the Crystal Empire we would have surely aided you."
"I understand, I guess my only other question is what now? Can you tell me where my family and friends are?" I asked.
"They are in the Crystal Empire now, I can take you there if you wish" Luna told me.
"Actually, I'd like to stay with my friends from Ponyville. I'll visit my parents before I head back south. Oh, and thank you Luna. I know now you were trying to reach me in the nightmares, you helped me resist Sombra's influence."
Luna smiled before stepping back behind the tree and said "As I would have done for any of my subjects."