Swallowed whole, freezing my flank off, and floating in empty space; just what I had in mind when I decided to step through the mirror. The blackness of this unknown place faded away and revealed my surroundings. Crystals... Jagged spires, cracked surfaces, and distorted reflections are just the start. Before me, Luna and Twilight, both lying on the ground unconscious and the source of the shadows sitting atop a jet black spire.
“You!” I screamed, attempting to get his attention.
“So, you’re the one I’ve been hearing about,” said the darkness. “Shame, I was expecting much more; you’re less imposing up close. Don’t worry, though, I’ll make sure you aren’t a nuisance any longer.”
“And exactly how do you know who I am? I don’t think we’ve met before, King Sombra!”
The king looked at me seriously for one moment, squinting his eyes and grinding his teeth as if he were ready to blast me with his magic. He then chuckled.
“I have my sources. And mind you, they’re much closer than you think.”
Things were getting stranger and stranger the more I stood and stared at Sombra. My legs felt numb and my gaze was locked at his shadowy figure. Only when I broke free from his hypnotic trance did the environment change to a much more disturbing sight. It was the Crystal Empire but it wasn’t quite like it. The ground was a crater with buildings slanting to the center where the castle stood tall and proud amidst the destruction. With it’s razor-sharp crystal tips, the mythical green flares that I’ve only heard from the accounts of Starswirl the Bearded lined the tops of the now imposing and intimidating structure.
The ground shook with great intensity and spires sprang out from below me, encasing me in an unbreakable prison. I used my teleportation spell to get out but I was always sent back in. Left and right, I was back where I started. My world’s Twilight told me about how Sombra’s magic was capable of things normal unicorn magic couldn’t do. Space was distorting around me and yet everything is right where it should be. The scenery changed into a dark prison cell. I don’t know where I was but the crystalline bars that kept me secured are still in place. I don’t recall seeing a prison anywhere throughout my travels across my Equestria but seeing myself stuck in a cell makes me concerned about the freedom of this world. Along with that, Sombra’s words also left me worried. Sources. His sources. Somepony’s been watching me. There were plenty of suspects but all that would be sorted out later. Right now, escaping this prison was my priority.
Luna and Twilight were locked in my cell, along with a fourth pony. White coat, blue mane, and a broken horn... wait, this may be the proof Twilight needs to see to prove my innocence. I needed to make sure this pony is alive, though. I went over to the body and began examining it for vitals. A pulse, a breath, anything that could give me an indication of life was what I was after. My hoof ran through the seemingly dead body and just as I reached the nape and around the neck, my wish was granted. The first vital signs - a pulse! It was weak but I can calm down knowing my innocence can still be proven. I called to Luna who was just waking up.
“What is it Shining Armor?” Luna said, rubbing her head with her hoof.
“You need to see this! Look familiar to you?”
Luna examined the body, her eyes focused on the body then back at Twilight who just so happened to be getting up. My guide was silent as if waiting for something to happen.
Twilight then approached me, eyes still blood-red with anger but this faded quickly when she saw the body. Her mouth was agape. Using her magic, she turned the body over and judging by her surprised looks, I guess she had a lot of apologizing to do.
“I... don’t... ugh!” Twilight began, tapping the stallion’s right cheek with her hoof. “Can you hear me? Are you alright? Just groan, or blink, or... just do something! Anything!”
There was a soft grunting sound.
Twilight smiled and hugged him. It makes me feel jealous especially after getting the cold shoulder back in the graveyard. Still, I’m happy things started to lighten up.
“Tw...Twilight?”
“Brother? Are you alright?” Twilight replied.
“Yeah. I guess...” said the duplicate. Or maybe I was the duplicate. I think I should be called the duplicate now since this isn’t my world.
“Who’s this?”
“I’m, uhh... you. Well, not really you but...” I said. “I know you’re confused about all of this but I’ll gladly fill you in on the details later. Right now, we gotta find a way to get out of this cell.”
“I know a way,” said the Shining Armor of this world, “but you’ll need to use the kind of magic only Sombra can perform. He wouldn’t want anypony escaping so easily.”
“And how do you know this?” Luna asked.
“I’ve seen him do it a couple of times. He’s been personally bringing captives in and out of the prison. I’m not sure if his magic works like regular unicorn magic but it’s worth finding out. Luna, can you replicate his magic?”
“I’m afraid not. Maybe Twilight can?”
There was no need for a reply. Twilight already had the cell door opened and was waiting for us in the hallway. Shining Armor then gestured for Twilight to come in once again, no words spoken.
“Shouldn’t we be getting out of here, brother?” Twilight asked.
I know we should but now’s not the time. The guards will be coming in soon. Best we can do is wait a few hours because they’ll be here a while. No use sending ourselves to death row because of a failed escape plan. We wait.”
Twilight turned back to the door and closed the cell.
Everyone gathered around the stallion and sat. We all took his advice to heart and just waited.
“How did you end up here, Shining Armor?” Luna asked. “We haven’t seen you since you disappeared a few months ago.”
“Funny story. I was taking a break from a scouting mission just outside the Crystal Empire when I got knocked in the back of the head. I should’ve been paying more attention but that’s pretty much it. After that, it was just plain horrible. Sombra tortured me, pushed me to my limits, wanted to see me break. He threatened to attack Canterlot and get mom and dad. He told me he’d do terrible things to them. I called his bluff but I really don’t know. Is mom and dad alright?”
Twilight looked uneasy. She couldn’t look at her brother. She just stayed silent and looked at the ground, squinting her eyes for a moment before closing them as if she was at the graveyard.
“No,” Shining Armor briefly paused. “Tell me, Twilight; are they alright?”
Twilight looked at her brother, this time her eyes glinting with tears running down her cheeks. She quickly embraced her brother and sobbed. Luna and I watched, helpless as the two now shared a common discomfort. I wouldn’t know the first thing to do if I ever lost mom and dad. I couldn’t help but think of disturbing images. Images of mom, dad, even Twilight and Cadance. My family. And all of that taken away...
“Is there anything else you’d like to let us know, Shining Armor?” Luna began. “We’ve been hearing stories of you attacking fellow rebels. Does my sister’s death remind you of anything?”
“Celestia? She’s... dead? No. No no no no no no! It can’t be. All I remember was that Sombra broke off my horn and forced me to drink something. After that, I remember nothing. He once said he needed me for his so-called science project but I have no idea what it was or what it would do to me.”
My duplicate attempted to get up on his feet but dropped back down hard. For a moment, I thought I heard the unsavory sound of rib cracking on impact with the ground. My ears wished they hadn’t heard it. Twilight and Luna quickly came to his aid and propped him up on a nearby wall. Luna then proceeded to the door to keep watch while Twilight spoke to him. Probably catching up on all those times they have been separated. The lack of sleep was already imminent but only now did the feeling of fatigue get to me. My muscles strained, my head throbbed violently... all that stuff happening at the same time. Considering that we’d be here for a few hours, I drifted off to sleep, hoping that the vivid nightmares from before would finally end.
They didn’t.
Now the images were more detailed. And disturbing. One moment, I saw Celestia’s crown covered in deep crimson blood. Another, a vortex shrouded in shadows with a figure standing directly below it. The third one had the silhouettes of ponies of various races, all summoned before King Sombra, with purple and green eyes as if they were under his spell. And finally, the sight of Ponyville in ruins with three ponies standing atop the ash and debris. Their colors were faded but some hint of a spectrum was on one of them, while the other had a faint yellow coat. The last one was pale. The rest of their bodies were covered in a blurred black veil of shadows that I can’t penetrate. All these dreams were only in my head and yet they’ve all proven something true. So far, Celestia’s murderer was identified; the method is still unclear, though. These were lucid dreams and they can show something everyone’s been missing out on. The last of the images proved to be too much for me to handle. Sombra’s horn lit up revealing his face, then the rest of his body. A spear raised above me, soaked in his aura. With one swift move, he jams the spear right into me.
“NOOO!!!”
Luna was at my side looking confused.
“Are you alright? Something bothering you?”
I looked around and I see Twilight and her brother still at the corner.
“Not really. Just a bad dream.”
The air seemed stale without the wind blowing against my face, even while laying down. With each passing morning back in my world, the sunshine didn’t wake me up, it was the cool breeze of the north that would pick me up. Getting used to it was one thing but getting used to waking up with a cold sweat only a nightmare would give is something else.
“Shining Armor,” Luna said, “those dreams... how long have you been having those?”
“Not long ago. Even before I arrived, I’ve been having some but the longer I stay here, the more terrifying they get. You’ve got something to do with this, don’t you?”
“No. I may have the ability to enter one’s dreams but I haven’t been doing it lately. With everyone focused on the revolution so much, no one’s been getting enough sleep.”
Across the cell, Twilight and Shining Armor are still in conversation. Though faint, the sounds of subtle sobbing and reassuring tones pierce the empty void of the cell. With Luna and I silent, we simply listened, hoping to find some reassurance for ourselves as well. Right now, we all needed something to pass the time and with morales so low, every bit of strength we can muster up for the time being will be a blessing.
“... it’s not your fault brother. We can’t be sure if you really did all that.”
“But Twilight, I’ve been seeing myself in those situations. Every time I go to sleep, those... things, they just keep coming back. Last time I had those nightmares, the voices kept telling me I did it. I’m sorry but I just can’t get back on my feet with those voices reminding me of what I did. The only way I see making things right again is if I have to wipe myself from existence. What’s the point in living if all this guilt will keep things from going back to the way they were.”
“And what is the point of dying? Ending this now won’t make things any better for you. For us. What would mom and dad think? Brother... we need you to come back.”
“I... I’m sorry, Twilight. I need to be alone.”
Twilight approached Luna and I, head bowed and eyes closed. Her hoofsteps echoed through the cell. Quite deafening but at this point, any sound that breaks the deafening silence is welcomed.
A defeated Twilight came to rest by my presence, seemingly tired from talking with her true brother but still had that look of uncertainty. An uncertainty that was concerned for him. I can tell she was feeling this way; back home, Twilight would do to the same thing when she doesn’t know how to react to a situation. She’d have a glass-eyed stare that looked at something once, stared at me, and quickly turned to look at something else.
“What do you think, Luna?” I said, staring at the other Shining Armor. “You think he’s telling the truth?”
“I’m not sure at all. Most dreams are usually conceived by whoever is dreaming them unless something is influencing the content. Fears, for example, have a very powerful influence on the dream and can often put weak-willed or timid ponies on the defensive, sending them to the parallel “nightmare” dreamscape. There are times when I enter other ponies’ dreams and I can converse with them, helping them overcome their fears. This one doesn’t seem to follow the rules of the dreamscape.”
“And how does that work?”
“When ponies begin to drift off into slumber, they usually enter the blissful dreamscape. I call it ‘Elysium’ as most would associate it to peaceful dreams. When some anxieties come across the dreamer, they are often placed into a median world where they come to terms with whatever is bothering them. From there, the dreamer can either return to Elysium or enter the nightmare dreamscape. At that point, I will enter the dream to ensure the dreamer can recover. There are some exceptions, though. Ponies can instantaneously enter the nightmare dreamscape if their worries overwhelm them but the source is always from themselves, not from another.”
“Can you do something?”
“I can go into his dreams and see what’s bothering him. I have a good feeling King Sombra had something to do with it. We’ll need to wait, though; I can only enter his dreams if he is asleep and we still need to worry about getting back home. I’ll have all the time I need to investigate once we get back to Ponyville.”
“Understood,” I replied. “Shining Armor, it’s been a while now since the patrols came by, is now a good time to move?”
My other self, still groggy. was propped up and waiting by the cell door.
“Now we move. Follow my lead; if we keep our heads down, we can escape through the underground tunnels. They’re not far from here and I doubt Sombra knows about these escape routes.”
Shining Armor moved through the gate, already unlocked by Twilight moments earlier. Luna and I followed close-by. The shadows were our allies now as we moved through the eerily silent halls past the currently empty cells. One can only imagine the kinds of torture Sombra put his prisoners through. In one cell, bones litter the floor with a lock of red hair and a blue feather tucked away in a corner. In another, some rotting foodstuffs on a cracked plate. Couldn’t tell what it was but I was sure it was something I would never eat. The walls were strewn with the edifices of the king himself, posed in numerous gallant stances that make him more of a hero than he really is. Then again, there is that cult Cheerilee mentioned a while back. Talk about a serious god complex...
Guards roamed the halls in pairs, patrolling every nook and cranny there is. We nearly got ourselves caught twice when the guards came out from a room next to a Sombra statue in a niche but Twilight cast a cloaking spell on us just in time. Well, it’s technically a spell that would affect the guards by preventing them from seeing us but it’s a cloaking spell nonetheless.
“We’re coming up on the tunnels now,” Shining Armor began after minutes of stealthily bypassing security. “Keep close and we’ll be out of here without a problem.”
It was a silent trip to Ponyville from the underground tunnels. The minecart, though cramped, served its purpose well. Good thing there were other carts lying around. Shining Armor would occasionally touch the remnant of his horn while Twilight was fiddling with a clear crystal shard she pried loose from our cell’s wall. Luna kept to herself with eyes closed the whole trip. I took the liberty of commandeering the cart and eased it through the underground railway system. Ponyville was still the same; same dilapidated building facades, the same gloomy faces roaming the streets, and the same suffering that permeates from the overall atmosphere of this once glorious town.
I arrived at a run down shanty set up just along the outskirts of the town; Sweet Apple Acres was just a few steps away. Twilight joined me as we bade Shining Armor and Luna farewell for the time being.
“I know it isn’t much but make yourself at home.”
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” I replied. “This? My new home? Aren’t there any run-down buildings in town that can function as a makeshift house?
“Look, you may be used to whatever luxuries you have back in your world but this is my reality. You accept whatever is given to you as a blessing. Either that or you can sleep out in the rain considering that it can rain whenever the clouds fancy. Your choice.”
I remained silent. Twilight walked back towards the town and I turned my back on her to face my new home.
“Oh, and I expect to see you in the hospital in a few hours,” Twilight added. “We have matters to discuss.”
A blanket, pillow, and mattress and a pillow was all there was to see; it’s nothing like home but it will have to do. Twilight was right, the rain could pour at any moment and just as I lay my head down to rest, the loud thumping of the raindrops on the crude aluminum roof kept me up for some time.
Something did bother me more than just the sound of the raindrops. The escape. It all felt too easy.