//------------------------------// // 2: The Father // Story: Let The Crystals Break: The Rise of Sombra // by joe mother //------------------------------// When school was over, Sombra's incident at lunch had being pushed from his mind by more learning. They had learned a few more things in arithmetic, and went over a few things in Equestrian. When the end bell rang, Sombra groaned internally. I wish school was never over. he thought gloomily to himself. He went to the front of the building and waited for Hunter to come out. When he did the two began to walk back home. "How was it today?" Sombra asked. "It was the same," Hunter replied. "We just learned math and science and Equestrian and all that. I just don't like it that much." Sombra smiled and laughed. Hunter disliked school; he found it boring, much like many other ponies. "Well," the older colt began. "It'll help you later in life to get a job and make money. Nopony is just going to give it to you." "How do you know?" Hunter replied, eyes trained on Sombra. "I've read books and asked Mom about it. If she didn't run that shop, we'd have no money." Hunter thought about this for moment. "What about Dad?" he asked. "He should be giving us money." Sombra winced. Their father was always a touchy subject to him or their mother, but Hunter was not around when it happened, nor was he old enough to fully understand what had happened yet. "Hunter," he said. "Dad won't give us any money because he doesn't care about us." "But why not?" the young colt asked. "He's our dad!" Sombra winced again, feeling every moment of the day their dad left like it was happening then. "Why not?" Hunter asked again. "Hunter, our dad left us," Sombra began. "He said some bad things to Mom and he was mean and just plain terrible. He wouldn't give us money because he doesn't want us or like us." "What happened?" ~ "Mom?" Sombra asked, stumbling out into the living room. "Why is Dad yelling?" "Get that child out of here!" The pony that yelled was the father, Catch. "He's my child!" Evangel yelled. "Don't just demand him to leave! Sombra, come here." So he did, clambering to his mother, stopping by her side. "That name! Do you even know what it means!" "I know what you told me it means!" his mom yelled. "And you're just a lying bastard!" "Would I lie about that?!" Catch asked. "Would I lie about the meaning behind a name you found in a Darklight-damned storybook!" "Yes, you would! You're just a monster without a soul!" Sombra had begun to cry, holding his face against his mother's foreleg, matting the fur down with his tears. "Mom?" he asked, looking up at her. "What's going on?" "Don't worry about it, honey," she replied, taking a long look into Sombra's eyes. "It will all be fine." She returned her gaze back to her husband, who was slowly walking forward threateningly. "Take another step and I will hurt you!" she yelled. And Catch lost it, sending a flying hoof at his wife. It hit her and sent her body back in recoil. Sombra fell back in shock, tears flying off of his face. Catch kicked him off to the side, leaving him sobbing on the floor. "What are you doing?!" Evangel cried, shielding her face. "Why are you attacking me?!" "Because I've spent too damn long waiting for you to stop mistrusting me!" Catch screamed in pure hate and rage. "You never found it in yourself to put a little trust in anypony! I see you staring when nopony's looking, the way your eyes look when you think of all the ways they could betray you! "You never trusted me! Your damn husband! You only made sure that all of your insane fantasies didn't come true! You hid all the pots and pans, kept candles and matches out of the house, always locked the doors with five different locks, and kept a book of deadly spells with you at all times! I let it slide, but now I've had it with him! With Sombra! You've named a child something he will eventually come to learn and regret! You know what his name means, and you'd better tell it to him! "So now I've finally scraped up enough money to leave you! I don't want to see you again, you or your damn son!" "Catch," Evangel whispered, stepping forward. "No!" was the reply, followed by a violent hoof against her face, sending her sprawled out on the floor. "But... I'm going to have another child," she said after a moment. Catch grit his teeth, anger flaring through him. "Well, good luck with that! I'm glad I won't have to be around to see the little bastard!" The door slammed as he left, and his sputtering curses were heard for a few seconds as he descended the hill to the town. That was the last time Sombra saw his father. ~ "You're not ready for it," Sombra told Hunter. "You always say that!" the colt replied, pouty. They had finally reached home, and the two walked in to find their mother waiting expectantly for them. "Mom, Sombra won't tell me about Dad!" Hunter complained to her. "And he was right in doing so," she replied, messing up her son's hair with a casual hoof. "So, how was school?" "It was fantastic!" Sombra said happily. "We didn't learn as many things as yesterday, but we still learned stuff!" "Hunter?" "It was boring," the young foal said. "I don't like it." Their mom sighed, but a smile still remained on her face. "It won't be bad in a few years," she told him. They shared a laugh together and went to the kitchen, where hay sat for them. They ate together as a family, as they did every night, enjoying each other's company. However, the time came for two colts to go to bed. "Bedtime, you two!" Evangel said as they finished chuckling to a silly joke by Hunter. "Aw!" the two brother said in unison, both in word and in emotion. "Well, you'll have a hard time getting up in the morning if you don't. Come on." And so they followed her to their bedroom, where their two beds awaited. Sombra and Hunter jumped on their respective beds and allowed their mom to tuck them in. She kissed them both on the cheek and went out, making sure to blow out the candle on the nightstand in between their beds. "Good night," she told them. "Good night," the brothers responded, putting their heads on their pillows. Sombra soon fell asleep, falling into another nightmare. ~ Sombra kicked the rock, feeling defeated. He looked around and felt lost in the vast expanse of crystal trees. Why does the first time I get a teleportation spell right get me stuck on the other side of the Crystalline Gorge? he thought sadly. Mom's going to be so worried. I guess if I could find the ridge, I could wait for her to show up. But he could not find the ridge, as he had been trying to do for the past twenty minutes, and judging by the position in the sky, he had missed dinner. "Gah!" he yelled in frustration. He kicked the rock again, chipping off a bit. That rock is like the Empire. Easy to break unless somepony protects it. "What?' Sombra said in surprise. Why don't I show you the castle of the Empire? Why don't I show you the corruption and the stains of greed? Even though it was posed as a question with a choice, Sombra had none, feeling the ground shift and swirl beneath his hooves as he was moved to the castle. The colors around him began to splice into another, becoming one, and then separated, revealing a stunning marvel of blue crystal. "Wow," Sombra whispered in awe, his eyes reflecting the glimmer of the crystals. "It's amazing." That is just the outside of it. The insides hold dirt and grime, evil in the hearts of so many. Even your leader has committed crimes of corruption and greed. The world shifted again, taking him to a small room, which he was now standing in the corner of. Two ponies were huddled in the middle, muttering to each other. Sombra saw the glint of bits and it was gone, passed from hoof to hoof and shoved into a pocket on one of the ponies jackets. You see? The Empire has many like this, many who exchange lives and prison sentences for coin or sex. It is easy to manipulate their minds with such things, and one day will lead to the Empire's downfall. Sombra's vision buckled, and he was moved to a house out in the village surrounding the castle. A large group of ponies were standing in the house; there was no space to move. "We will not stand for it!" the pony at the very front of the crowd, facing them, said. "We will not stand for the bribery that kills innocent ponies because a politician or an important pony wants it! We will not stand for sex being used as exchange for murder or sending somepony to prison! WE WILL NOT STAND IT!" There was a cry of agreement from the rest of the ponies, who raised a their front right hooves in a display of energy. Only you can fix this, Sombra. Only you... Sombra shot up in bed, a cold sweat covering his body. He breathed heavily for a few moments, then rolled onto his side and closed his eyes.