Beware that you do not lose the substance by grasping at the shadow.
~Aesop
Her world was dark and blurry, sounds seemed to roll into each other like waves, indistinguishable from each other. Ever so slowly, the haze from her senses began to lift. She was lying in something soft that smelled like bleach, and all around her voices were speaking in hushed tones.
"The perimeter is fully established, if Sombra ever returns he shall be immediately detained. Mayor, I need you to maintain a patrol, we can't take the risk of a miscapture."
"I know this aint the time to ask princess, but is Twi gonna be ok?"
"I hope so my little ponies, with the element of magic shattered, I place my faith in your friendship to bring her back to full health."
My element is gone!? she thought with shock.
"Pardon me princess, but I don't think it was Twilight's health that we're worried about. That brute did something to her mind you said, who knows what terrible things he's done to her?"
"My answer must be the same. The spell I've spent the last several months working with princess Luna and princess Cadence on is designed to specifically target the black magic of Sombra and eradicate it. I used it on Twilight in the hopes that I could remove his dark influence, but the spell record was, disturbing. I'd expected to see Sombra's magical signature on the destroyed black magic. Instead it matched Twilight's. I fear this means Sombra employed a much more subtle influence, through lies and illusions, that guided her down a terrible path. Therefore it is once again my hope that you girls and your friendships will succeed in bringing her back fully to us."
That made sense, she'd been using black magic quite frequently beforehand. But what was the part about lies and illusions?
This time, Rainbow Dash spoke up, "We're sorry, princess. We've failed you, failed Twilight, and even the elements themselves."
"Do not blame yourselves my little ponies, if anypony is to blame it's myself. To underestimate Sombra is a fatal error, a fact he has proven time and time again in the past. I should have known he had something sinister in mind. Instead I put all of your lives in danger."
Twilight felt the cold touch of a gold-clad hoof upon her skin as the princess continued. "And because of my lack of foresight, Twilight has to bear the full cost of my mistake." Twilight opened her eyes, there was her beloved mentor looking down upon, eyes old and wise, and so very very sad. "My...fault", Twilight managed to croak out. "My Idea." Her friends all began to clamor around her, all asking the same basic thing. Are you alright? "I think so, yes." She responded. A frown touched her face, "what happened to Sombra?"
Their faces all darkened with an emotion she knew only too well, one she new to be quite a powerful source of evil magic; hatred. Celestia spoke up first, "He escaped into the bedrock before I could destroy him, but don't worry, we've set up a special protection spell around the Crystal Kingdom, Canterlot, and here in Ponyville in case he tries to return. In the mean time Luna and I will take turns scouring the lands for him. He will be allowed to run rampant no longer.
"What do you mean, destroy him?"
"We have devised a spell dear student, that destroys dark magic upon contact. Since he has given himself over completely to the ways of darkness, the spell will recognize that they are one and the same, and end him."
Twilight shivered, the cold steel in her mentor's voice was nothing like her normal self, it was like listening to a complete stranger.
"Now you must rest Twilight, you and Sombra's other victims need time to heal."
Other victims? Dread welled up in Twilight's gut, she had to see this for herself. She leaped out of bed with still half-asleep limbs, and dashed for the door to her room. Behind her the alarmed calls of her friends to stop and wait were completely ignored. She dashed down the Hospital hall and ran into a nurse, who after some persuasion relinquished the location for the other 'victims'. Heart beating as fast as the panic in her own mind she burst into their room and froze. Carrot Top... Cloud Chaser... The quills and sofa clerk... Cherry Blossom... Time Turner... Mrs. Cake...Lyra. The pony behind every single NPC she had ever terrorized, tortured, or destroyed, every single one, were lying comatose in their hospital beds. And there were dozens of them.
Not Sombra's victims, her victims. Faintly she heard her friends asking her what was wrong. They had managed to follow her here and were standing right behind her, yet they all seemed so far away. It didn't matter, now was not the time to wallow in guilt. Her victims needed her help, and needed it now. Horn glowing with a brilliant violet aura, she focused everything she had on their minds, looking deep for a way to bring them out of their comas. Moments later, she lay sobbing on the floor.
"Twilight, my most faithful student, please tell us what is going on."
"Please tell the doctors that these coma patients will recover within a period of 2 to 3 weeks. I've placed a memory spell in each of them, so that their subconscious can forget the event that caused them to become comatose in the first place, and the reason why they are too afraid to wake up."
"That's amazing Twi! How did you figure it out so fast?"
Turning to Apple Jack now with tear-filled eyes, Twilight responded, "Because I'm the one that did this to them, and I'm the reason they're all too terrified to wake up from their subconscious. Sombra created semi-intelligent golems using the shadows of these ponies as a means of practice while he taught me dark magic. The shadows must have remembered what I did to them, and that memory now sits deep within their minds. Their only escape, is to forget.
For the very first time, nopony spoke. Nopony offered her condolences or comfort. They all just stared in shock, incapable of imagining what horrors could cause a pony to be too terrified to wake up, to even dream or think. They tried to hide it, but in their eyes was the same look that she saw herself with. She was a monster.
Several months later.
The sunlight played gently across her wings through the partial shade of the oak tree. Next to her was a babbling brook, flowing nonchalantly over the many rocks and fish in its path. By the banks the grass grew tall and wild, early morning dew still fresh on their blades. Somewhere above her was the nest of a morning lark, trilling jofully into the crisp blue atmosphere. It was a beautiful day, but Twilight wasn't watching it. Instead she lay quietly in the shade and listened, her eyes trailing off into her memory.
"Heya Twilight, watcha dooooin?"
The sound of Pinkie's overly enthusiastic greeting caused a smile to tug at the corners of her lips, and she greeted her in return. "Good morning Pinkie, I'm just relaxing and listening."
"Oooh, that sounds fun! Watcha listening to, music?
"Of a sort, I'm listening to the music of nature. A little filly once said by a brook or river was the best spot to listen, and I'm beginning to agree with her."
"That sounds super duper! Who was she?"
At this, Twilight's eyes lost their glimmer and her smile faded once more. Thinking of Indigo Melody just meant thinking of her brother.
"It doesn't really matter anymore."
Life in Ponyville had become almost trance-like for the princess. Everything looked and smelled and sounded the same, but there were constant reminders everywhere. Perimeter patrols were tense and alert, stalking around town in pairs. The still fresh concrete erasing the caverns beneath her basement from existence. The townspeople all greeted her kindly enough, but that was all they ever did. Quick hellos to be polite and keep in good graces, and even faster retreats as they hurried quickly onto other business. The worst was from the recovered coma patients, who all treated her nicely, and would even strike up conversation with her; and yet there was always the look in their eyes, like a memory was just on the edge of their minds, one they were curious, and both deathly afraid of. A memory, that they couldn't for the life of them understand why Twilight was triggering.
Worst of all though, were her friends. They still hung out together, attended Pinkie's parties, and helped each other out with their normal lives; but at the same time everything was different. She was like a glass doll they all danced around careful, afraid she might break. They were all so concerned with protecting her and helping her, that inevitably every conversation would turn to the one topic that hurt the most; Sombra.
"I swear if I ever see that varment again I'll dent his head in!"
"While a lady shouldn't give in to violence, I do certainly hope to be around to see princess Celestia deal the finishing blow for what he did to our Twilight"
"Why let Celestia have all the fun? I'm ready to give him the beating of a lifetime, Rainbow style!"
"He's taken much worse than what you could ever beat into him."
She hadn't meant to say it, it just slipped out before she'd realized what she'd done. It was too late to go back now though, because all conversation had stopped and her friends were all staring at her with that cautious look they now wore so well.
"Sugarcube, I know what you've told us, about the 'memories' he's shown you. But you just gotta remember that it was all fake, nothing he could have shown you was real. He lied right from the very start. Then, because we weren't there to help you more, he hit you right in the soft spot."
"Then how am I supposed to know what is real from what is fake AJ?"
Why did it always come to this? Sombra was a lier, a brute, a monster. Her friends wouldn't even let her take the blame for the ponies she'd forced into comas, saying that it was all Sombra's doing, his influence, his fault. So where did that leave her, Twilight Sparkle? Had she really been deceived from the very beginning when she saw his family murdered. Sombra had shown her his memories, his thoughts, his feelings, and now she had to believe that everything, all of it was fake? Was her world meant to simply be defined by others now? She wasn't Twilight Sparkle, princess of Equestria and beloved student of Celestia anymore. She was Sombra's victim, Sombra's target, the confused alicorn that had been lead astray by the big bad meany.
"Sweety, this is real, here with us and surrounded by your friends. Sombra's lies were designed to drive you away from us, but he should have known better because our bonds are far stronger than anything that villain can come up with!"
Well intended as that proclamation was, it only made Twilight feel worse as she nodded in pretend agreement, just to make the conversation end. If all of those memories had indeed been lies, then why had they done exactly the opposite? There was nothing there to make her think anything less of her friends, nor even Celestia despite Sombra's strong despise of her. Everything had been about reaching an understanding, a feeling she sorely missed. Her friends didn't--couldn't-- possibly understand, for they would not accept Sombra as anything other than a pure blackhearted demon, and she still couldn't decide if they were right or not.
Indeed there was one thing she did know for sure, one thing that she felt in her heart that made her silently call out for help, knowing that there would be no answer. She'd foolishly thought everything could return to normal after her training, she would have come to understand Sombra, and then helped him to reform, and life would be even better in Ponyville for her success. Instead, where there should have been love and laughter all she could find was caution, hatred, and worst of all, pity.
She was oh so terribly alone, surrounded by her friends and a village of hundreds.
"I think I'm just gonna go home and get to bed early girls. I'm feeling pretty tired today."
The silence was deafening, the thoughts running through each of their minds so obvious upon their faces they might as well have been yelling them. Is it something we said? Is it something we did wrong? It was Applejack who finally voiced the question, "Are you alright Sugarcube?"
It's always a bad idea to lie, especially to the element of honesty, but she did so anyways. "Just really tired AJ, I'll be feeling right as rain in the morning." Yep, the element of honesty knew how to spot a lie better than anypony else, and the look on Applejack's face only confirmed that she saw straight through Twilight's thin deception. Thankfully, she decided to let it go.
"Alright, and don't worry about spike waking you up none, he's having a sleepover with Applebloom and her friends over at Rarity's. You should be able to get a nice and peaceful-like sleep tonight."
"Thanks girls, I'll see you in the morning." She smiled once more to give her words sincerity. Once again her friends were no fools however, they could all see how it always failed to reach her eyes.
11:38pm that night
Twilight lay in her bed unable to go to sleep, clutching a pillow to her like a lifeline, a lifeline woefully lacking in warmth or the steady rhythm of breath. "Why can't things go back to the way they were before? Why do I have to feel so alone when I'm with my friends, what's wrong with me?"
"To what before are you wishing to return, Princess?"
Twilight froze, holding her breath and listening closely to see if she had been imagining things. Finally she replied, "what do you mean?"
"You know exactly what I mean Princess. Are you wishing to return to a time before your attempts to reform me, or perhaps for some of our time after that point?"
It sounded like his voice was coming from just behind her, patient and teasing as always. Could she just be imagining things?
"You know, everypony says that everything you showed me, from the very beginning, was just a great big manipulation."
"And what do you believe?"
This took her by surprise, she was expecting him to defend his side of the story, to convince her why his was correct and not what Celestia and her friends where telling her, just like they had done before him.
"I don't know what to believe anymore."
"Remember Twilight, that emotions are the source of magic. They give it shape and form, and you yourself realized that it is due to our emotions that the world is shaped around us. So let me rephrase my question for you....What does your heart believe?"
She turn around now, the beginnings of tears in her eyes. There he really was, not a figment of her imagination, not a phantom from her memories. There he was standing so tall and proud, with those big, stupid, adorable eyes of his. Her heart told her that it ached like it had been emptied, and now it was about to be filled again. She didn't answer, she needed to know first...she needed to know what it was that his heart said. She sat up and reached tentatively forward, unsure of how to proceed. He in turn leaned forward, so close now, so very...very close. She was so nervous and uncertain, yet excited at the same time. And then it happened, he closed the distance between them and was kissing her, kissing her as she had never been done before.
And she was passionately kissing him back. She could barely breathe, and when their kiss broke her breaths were short and ragged, and she couldn't care less. He'd come back for her, and what she had felt, what she had known in her heart to be true was oh so real. She was happier than she'd ever felt as he nibbled up and down her neck, stopping just beneath her ear to put into words what she couldn't have even hoped for.
"I love you, Twilight."
Her heart fluttered and nearly stopped, the remnants of tears in her eyes now tears of joy rather than isolation. She latched her limbs around him as tightly as she could, never wanting to let go as they kissed and kissed again. Hooves ran through each other's manes, hers soft as velvet, and his as wild as a lion's. His warmth filled her to the brim now, their coats creating enough static friction to light a lamp. He was hers, and she was utterly his, and as the most passionate and filling night of her life began, she finally answered his question.
"I love you too Sombra."
The next morning.
"Heya Twilight! The girls told me you went to bed early cause you were feeling down, so I brought a cupcake over from the sleepover to help cheer...you...."
Startled out of her sleep Twilight twisted around to find Spike standing in the doorway to her bedroom, jaw agape and a ruined cupcake on the floor where it had fallen. Beside her Sombra grumpily raised his head to peer at what had woken him up early.
"S-s-s-spike! I s-swear I can explain!"
Baby though he was in dragon years, Spike was still old enough to know what happens when two adult ponies are in the same bed together. What was even more shocking, was that the one next to Twilight was none other than Sombra! He snatched his eyes away from the scene before him and dashed back out the door on his way out of the library.
"Oh no, oh no oh no oh no oh no oh please no SPIKE WAIT!"
Twilight was out of bed and dashing after him immediately, she had to stop him before everypony found out, before it was too late. As she left the library and gave chase to him outside, she saw a small scroll tied with a red ribbon burn up in green flame. Whoever that letter was going to, there was no stopping it now. Behind her she heard Sombra shout her name as he dashed after her, only to shortly thereafter roar in pain and rage. She watched the sky around Ponyville turn into a golden dome of light as Sombra appeared out of her library. Before he had gone another 3 meters, the golden dome pulsed once and disappeared, 5 spears of light crashing through his flesh in every direction, pinning him solidly to the ground.
"Sombra, NO!"
In another part of Equestria, the middle of 3 transcribed circles began to pulse a vibrant red on the necklaces of the three other princesses. At the same time a brand new letter appeared at Celestia's feet, she didn't even need to read it know what it would say. Sombra had returned to Ponyville, and it was time to finish him.
"None of my spells are working on these spears! Can't you just turn to shadow and escape?"
Grunting with pain Sombra shook his head. "These spell-spears have me completely pinned, I can't use any of my magic, and they've drained me of the strength to physically break free too. You have to leave, now, before Celestia comes and sees you trying to help me!"
"No! It's too late for that now, Spike's already seen us together. Besides, you've already covered up for me once, I can't let you do it again."
"Heh, hope you didn't take any offense when I called you my slave, I had to sound convincing after all."
"Don't worry, when Celestia gets here, I'll get her to stop, then we can talk this through, we can work it all out I know it!"
"You still believe that you can have both me and your friends don't you." When she nodded firmly, he chuckled softly. "It'd be a miracle if they would allow it, and I stopped believing in such things a long time ago."
"I've gotcha Twilight, hang on!" With a gravity defying yank, Twilight found herself hoisted into the air by her cyan pegasus friend. Dropped back where Spike was waiting the rest of her friends caught up and made sure she was alright before glaring daggers at the trapped Dark Lord just a hop skip and a jump away. It was at that moment that Celestia made her grand entrance, a pillar of solar brilliance connected the heavens to the ground directly in front of Sombra. As that light faded, she stood tall above him, cold hatred hardening her features.
"It seems you were foolish enough to return here after all Sombra. That mistake will be your end." From her necklace all three remaining lightning bolts popped out, and joined together to form an even more powerful spear. Sombra simply growled at her in hatred, his final act of defiance.
"Please no, Celestia stop!" Twilight's mentor turned in surprise at Twilight's voice. "Please, I know it doesn't seem that way but I've seen the good in him and I know its real, we can work this..."
"No, Twilight." Celestia interrupted. Her tone reminded her of a certain long dead mayor of Stalliongrad. "No more second chances, no more allowing this fiend to do whatever he pleases, it ends here."
She raised that dreadful spear again. Twilight had to convince her, she couldn't let this happen. "Celestia you can't! I...I love him!" This froze her mentor mid-motion as she turned her head in shock at her beloved student. Spike chose this moment to pipe in as well, saying "When I came to her bedroom this morning I found them there, together...in bed."
The look Celestia and her friends had been giving her was nothing compared to what they were leveling on her now. Twilight wanted to curl up in a ball and hide under their incredulous stares, but she had to bear it for Sombra, they had to realize how serious she was. Maybe then they would...
"YOU VILE CRETIN! HOW DARE YOU PLAY AROUND WITH MY STUDENTS HEART AND THEN DEFILE HER! GO BACK TO THE CURSED HELL FROM WHENCE YOU CAME! Celestia screamed, her face contorted by raw fury.
Time slowed down to a crawl. Why wasn't she stopping? Why did Sombra have to die? A memory flashed through her brain, she'd seen this scene unfold before. A glimmering weapon, a single victim about to be executed by the leader of the group as the rest watched and cheered them on. But this time the victim Sombra, and in his place Twilight stood instead. This time was different because Twilight knew she had the power to stop this from happening.
The spear had finished rearing back, it was about to begin its deadly plunge. Sombra was looking at her, smiling, speaking ever so slowly those three precious words; a silent "I love you." It was that was needed to push Twilight over the edge of shock and indecision, into action. She gathered her magic to her, with all the power of her love, her desperation, her despair. Eyes turned green with dark power, she focused everything she had into that one single thought. Make Celestia STOP!
Faintly in the background she heard her friends call out in alarm and grab her, trying to turn her restrain her, turn her away, but it was far too late for that, Twilight could hold the energy back no more, and so launched it at full speed toward her beloved mentor. There was so much power concentrated into that small orb that it had become an unstable semi-solid. As such when she launched it from her horn there was a sonic boom powerful enough to rip her friends away and throw them in every direction. In the same instant the spear was a mere hoof-length from driving through Sombra's skull when her attack broadsided Celestia with the force of a thousand dragons.
Time stopped moving in slow motion, and Celestia was ripped off her hooves, rocketing into town with enough speed that the vacuum left behind her passing caused a deep furrow to be plowed through the earth. Losing momentum near the center of town, Celestia once again touched ground, and was plowed 80 meters into the bedrock. Fully destabilized now, Twilights attack returned to raw energy all at once. The resulting explosion vaporized everything withing a 100 meter radius of the princess instantaneously. Luckily, only the princess and town hall were hit by the blast. The latter was far less resilient however. It looked like a giant bite had been taken out of the buidling, and with fully 2/3 of it's base gone it stood for but a few seconds longer before collapsing onto the prone ivory form lying in the crater beneath.
Twilight was absolutely still. Nopony could have survived that, she'd killed her beloved mentor, she'd killed Celestia! A scream of fury and despair rang through the air. Far above a blue alicorn had arrived in time to see a large building collapse on her sister, and she was flying as fast as her wings would allow down to the site of impact now. She had to move, Twilight couldn't face Luna, not like this. Around her, her friends that were still conscious groaned in pain, but she had no time for them. With a mighty cleave of magic Twilight destroyed all five spears of light and dashed back into her library, her sanctuary. Sombra hurriedly followed after her and locked the doors behind him.
Twilight was in the middle of a full-blown panic attack mixed with meltdown, telling herself over and over again "I killed her I killed her I killed her I killed her I killed her" between breaths in her hyperventilation. "Twilight! Calm down and listen to what I have to say. Believe me when I say Celestia has survived far worse than that. You did NOT kill her."
"But, but I..."
"No buts, I've tangled with Celestia in the past, and I was doing my best to kill her outright. Do you really think you could do more damage with that attack than what I did back then? No? Good. Now Luna is already here, it won't be much longer until Cadence and then half the royal army arrive as well. What do you want to do?"
Twilight stared at him incredulously. What did she want to do!? She'd just assaulted princess Celestia, harmed her best friends, destroyed government property, and assisted in the escape of an enemy to Equestria! How could he in his right mind be asking her what she wanted to do!?
"You still have a chance you know, to go back to them. You've done so much for them, they would forgive you in time. You don't have to throw your lot in with me."
She couldn't believe it, he was offering her a way out, a choice when there shouldn't have been any. But it meant choosing between him, and everything and everyone of her old life. That was a lot to lose.
Outside, Cadence landed among the element bearers. Three lay unconscious, but alive. Two were groaning in pain and trying to rise. Rainbow Dash lay whimpering trying to gently get off of her left wing, which was pinned beneath her at an impossible angle. To the right of her, Applejack was trying to walk on three hooves, her right fore-hoof was held gingerly above the ground, most likely sprained or fractured.
"What happened here?"
"It was Twilight miss Cadence, we'd captured Sombra and Celestia was about to finish him off when Twilight claimed she loved him, and when Celestia didn't stop, her horn got all dark and nasty looking, and before I know it I'm on the ground watching Celestia get knocked into next Tuesday."
Cadence blanched at this. The idea of anybody loving Sombra was a hard one to swallow, but she could feel something in the air, something very real and very powerful. She also knew love had a bad habit of making the irrational perfectly reasonable. She had to get to Twilight, and fast.
"Please tell me, where did she go?"
"The only place a stressed Twilight would ever go, back to her library."
As Cadence dashed of to the oak tree, AJ added in a whisper. "Good luck Sugarcube, I don't wanna lose my friend, so bring her back to us safe and sound."
Back in the tree, Sombra noticed Twilight's mounting indecision, and with a bit of quick thinking, came up with another possible solution. "A third option Princess, would be to finish what you started."
"What do you mean?"
"You first set out to reform me, no? You still have that option, I can take you into a place called the Shadow Realm. There you shall face your greatest challenge ever, your own darkness, and you shall have to make the final choice on what your path through life is. Maybe you will succeed against it, maybe you won't. At least this way, you will still have the chance to get everything you want."
Turning to the middle of the room, Sombra slowly rent the very fabric of space right before her eyes. A gate of nothingness framed by pillars of black flame ripped open in the air, despite the atmosphere's screeching protest.
"This is the gate to the Shadow Realm, Twilight. Step through or not, the choice is up to you. Either way, I'm proud to have taught you, and immeasurably thankful to you for reminding me what it is to love." With that he was gone, stepping through the black portal without even a look back. A moment later Cadence came bursting through the front door of her library. Seeing the dark gateway, she had but one word, one questioning plee for her. "Twilight?"
Twilight looked away from her sister-in-law. No matter how hard it was, she had to take this chance, for Sombra, for her friends, and most of all for herself. "Tell everypony for me....I'm sorry." The black portal disappeared as quickly as it had opened as Twilight leaped through it, leaving Cadence standing in the Golden Oaks Library, completely alone.