Sombra and Luna were escorted through the crystal palace to the front doors, ceremoniously greeted by the guards along the way.
Sombra had to admit, he seriously believed, for a few moments, that they were welcomed guests about to bless the state with their power.
The throne room lavishly put on display the power of the Empire; the crystal construction, the purple and gold drapes, the large back and front doors, and the crimson carpet that led straight up to the throne greeted Sombra and Luna at the door.
Sombra's jaw fell open, his heart temporarily stricken with awe. Clean, sparkling, luxurious, far greater than the average home of any creature he had ever met before. Even the royal sisters tended to use vibrant coloration sparingly.
Princes Amore sat on her throne, gazing towards the double doors that allowed Sombra, Luna, and a few flanking guards to enter the room. Her shiny coat seemed almost translucent, though the hint of pink and red caught Sombra's eye.
Her weary orange eyes scanned the newcomers with scrutiny, as if filing away every inch of her guests' profiles. Her attention lingered particularly long on Sombra, perhaps because he stuck out even more so than Luna did.
The room being filled with bright colors and light, no surprise that he would be the center of attention. Both literally and mentally, Sombra knew that it would be a long walk to the throne.
One of their escorts stepped from his place and cleared his throat, preparing to announce their arrival.
"Presenting Sir Sombra and his, err, friend?"
The guard paused, looking towards Luna with a questioning look. Someone had obviously forgotten to ask her name, much less her affiliation with Sombra.
"Sir Sombra huh?"
Amore sat back in her throne, her mind likely going through any other ponies of that name, "Unrelated to Captain Sombra of Celestia's Army I presume?"
"Of course, no relation," Luna said, not wanting to give the guard a chance to think about an answer, " Sombra is a popular stallion name among this branch of the unicorn tree."
"Right." Amore did not seemed convinced, but did not challenge the response, instead shifting in her seat.
"For the past few months the dreams of my subjects, and myself, have been haunted by a strange mare bearing similar colors as to your own coat, miss...?"
"Timore. Timore Noctis."
Sombra blinked, trying to keep a straight face at the name Luna had given herself. Luna seemed to be walking on rather thin ice here, as no doubt anything resembling timid and nocturnal might make the princess all the more suspicious as to their identity.
Amore did not challenge this either, but rose from her throne and trotted down the eight steps to her throne. Her eyes remained firmly planted on Luna, no doubt sizing up the validity of the name.
After all, Luna was still disguised as a pegasus, and she may have heard that they were seen walking here rather than flying in.
"Well Timore, the mare in question calls herself Nightmare Moon, for some reason, and claims that she can only be defeated by somepony wielding dark magic and a red horn like a rhinoceros. Sombra here fits that description very well."
Sombra nodded, but Luna once again took up the call for speech, intent on selling the idea to everyone present.
"Indeed, Sombra's knowledge of dark magic is vast. All he needs is to spend one night and he can rid any resident of that mare's influence!"
Amore by this point stopped walking forward, and flicked an ear to the guards. "It does seem too good to be true."
Sombra noticed the gesture, and heard the most of the seven guards positioning themselves at the door. Two others flanked the princess, just a few steps behind her.
All of them wielded spears, and in no short order Sombra could have guessed that he and Luna were about to be under attack.
Or, Amore merely sought to gauge their reaction from what appeared to be the preparation for an attack.
Captain Sombra, happily married stallion of war, would have probably started advancing on the princess, as between a hostage situation and laying flat the entire crystal guard, the former seemed the most plausible to live through.
Of course, Sombra could not be himself here, so he would have to improvise. A sly smile found itself on his face, the stallion licking his lips slowly, deliberately, while eying the princess with a hungry expression.
"Well, if you are in disbelief, a one on one session is not out of the question. I am a stallion of many talents, the private chambers of fantasy and nightmare both bend to my touch."
A few guards in the room snorted, Amore's personal guard went rigid, a hoof wrapped around their spears as if preparing to throw in response to Sombra's words.
Luna glared at Sombra, as if trying to convey her displeasure for the very suggestive sentence that he had put together on the fly.
Amore, oddly enough amused, smiled broadly, eyes settling on Luna.
"A personal session with me is above your current credibility score, but I think your companion would be more than willing to play along, since she is so intent on selling you off as a miracle worker."
Even in her magical disguise Sombra caught the very brief scowl that almost fully emerged upon Luna's face.
"But, I am not..."
Amore silenced Luna with a raise of her hoof, anticipating her refusal quite well.
"As long as you are in the Empire, then the mare will strike, so you will do fine."
Luna would not be so easily defeated.
“Surely one of your guards would serve better?”
Amore chuckled, then teasingly mocked the perceived wariness for Luna to allow Sombra to demonstrate his abilities using her as a trial run.
“What is the matter? You do not trust Sombra to rid you of any nightmares that should befall you?”
Luna laughed uneasily, waving her hoof dismissively at the accusation.
“Come now, it is just that such impromptu sleeping is not what I am used to.”
Luna gave Sombra quick glance, as if permitting him to speak again.
Sombra smiled, figuring that payback for dragging him out here in the first place always tasted better on request.
“I am such a good nightmare banisher; a test on you will ensure this deal’s success. Do not worry, I will be gentle.”
Sombra knew he was going to get it later on, but in this moment, he relished in the restrained frustration of the alicorn disguised Pegasus.
Defeated at last, Luna Trotted around in a circle and then curled up. She gave the appearance of trying to sleep, though Sombra highly doubted that the mare would just fall asleep in the still semi-threatening atmosphere.
No sooner had Luna closed her eyes did Sombra, and everyone in the room for that matter, recoil backwards. Sombra had not even done it intentionally. A dark aura filled the air, icy grip choking the very breath from the ponies present.
“Oh she is good,” Amore commented, looking towards Sombra, “Well Sombra, you should get started.”
Sombra strode over confidently to Luna, horn glowing a bright red. His eyes flashing green, Sombra exhaled a purple mist onto Luna’s face, no doubt giving her the signal for something to happen.
Moments after exhalation, the mist expanded, and began swirling above Luna like a raging thundercloud its Pegasus prey.
Luna twitched and groaned, crying out, “No, no!” It seemed as if she were in the grips of a terrible nightmare.
The guards shifted, edgy from this display, perhaps reminded of their own nightly terrors. Amore inquisitively took a step forward, as if to get a better look at the process.
While Sombra knew that Luna would be faking this he could sense that something was off about all of this. His gut told him to prepare for retaliation for his earlier comment earlier than planned.
As if on cue, Luna lashed out in her sleep with her hooves, striking Sombra straight in the chest.
The air knocked from him, the stallion found himself sprawled out on his back, coughing and gasping for air. Recovery came only after a few minutes of this, by which time the amount of fear welling up in the room had dramatically increased.
While he had been focused on himself, Luna seemed to undergo a series of spasms; within the span of a few seconds, a new, dark presence surrounded her. She cried out again, but this time, Sombra could not make out the words.
Hopefully this odd display merely was Luna trying to both convince Amore of their charade and get payback on Sombra for his sultry commentary.
At least, he hoped that was the case.
When the swirling ended and Luna's form could once again be seen, no longer sleeping there was a pegasus mare; a tall alicorn stood in her place.
But this alicorn clearly was not Luna, or at least not the Luna that Sombra knew.
This new pony bore the same cutie mark and stood as tall as Celestia, towering over even Sombra this point, scanning the room with cat-like eyes.
When it opened its mouth, a harsh cackle like thunder emitted instead of words.
The black coat became encased in purple armor, the previously bare head donning a matching helmet. The mane still resembled the night sky, but instead of flowing, it seemed alive, eagerly willing to obey the bidding of its master.
The many crystal guards in the room looked pale as ghosts, their shiny coats losing their luster. They looked like regular, scared shitless ponies now, much to Sombra’s personal amusement.
Indeed, Luna was quite good, as even Amore froze in place.
“Tremble in fear, little ponies, for the time of eternal night is coming! And you, my enemies, know what that means for you!”
The pony’s voice resounded and echoed off the very walls, sinisterly mocking the very fear that almost everypony felt. Sombra would have smiled had he not the lingering concern that Luna might be getting too involved in her role.
After all, he still needed to somehow best this without appearing to win too easily.
While Amore's two personal guards remained resolved in their position, the discipline of the fringe guards unraveled like a tightly tied rope knot untied without releasing the tension.
The five guards who had been shaking before dropped their weapons and fled, crying out in panic, “Nightmare Moon! Gallop for your lives!”
The two fringe guards with some mettle left in them joined the princess and her two personal guards, spears shakily held towards the spectral invader. Amore shook her head, over her initial shock and terror, and then stared at Sombra critically.
Sombra could feel a scolding coming his way, for Celestia wore a similar look the last time he had come back from campaigning.
“What is the meaning of this? How dare you bring Nightmare Moon, the mare who has tormented my subjects for so long, into my own throne room!”
Sombra turned towards Amore more hastily than he would have liked, for he feared that his cover may have been blown from this display. He spoke far more confidently than he should have, considering he had absolutely no control over the situation.
“Do not worry princess, this is naught but an illusion brought on by the drea…”
Sombra did not finish his statement; Nightmare Moon swiftly closed the very short distance between them and, with one of her long arms, swatted his body faster than he could register her initial movements.
Like a pest of sorts smacked off by a horse tail, Sombra went flying, rolling to a halt only when he came into contact with the half-opened front doors.
He narrowly kept from being impaled by the cast aside spears from the more cowardly members of the guard, far too much luck playing into his favor at the time.
Dazed, confused, and creeping fear beginning to take hold, Sombra realized that he may have underestimated this “illusion” of sorts. This Nightmare Moon might seriously be the real deal, and he had almost let her nearly break every bone in his body.
Sombra spat a few bits of blood onto the floor while he struggled to his hooves. His heart rate increased dramatically, every instinct in his body telling him to flee with the less dutious set of guards, adrenaline numbing any potential pain from his injuries.
Instinct, thankfully, was not all that the pony ran on.
“I retract that, maybe you are more than an illusion,” Sombra admitted, using his magic to pick up one of the fallen spears, “But that only makes you more vulnerable to tangible attacks!”
Sombra hurled the spear at Nightmare Moon; the body turned to a strange mist, and the spear seemed to go right through it.
Sombra scolded himself for not thinking straight, for even if he had struck, it might would have done more harm than good in the long run.
“Amore, I think it is high time that we were leaving!” one of the guards frantically stated, attempting to reason with the princes.
Amore took a moment to think before looking at Sombra again. Sombra did not like that look, so filled with smug expectation and a desire to see him succeed.
“No.” Amore then turned to her guards with a malice that made even Sombra cringe a little bit. Her voice dripped with subtle venom as she spoke, not wanting there to be any confusion as to her decision on the matter.
“I am going to make sure I appropriately punish the cowards who fled and abandoned their charge and comrades, but Sombra here has yet to prove himself. If she wins here, then we might as well hand her the crown, for there is no alternative.”
Nightmare Moon’s eyes lit up, as if that changed everything. Sombra uneasily felt oddly better, as if his earlier injury really had been nothing more than a mind trick of sorts. Then again, it could have been his adrenaline still pumping.
“The Crystal Heart would do.” Nightmare, her voice now more level, outstretched her wings as if to prepare for flight, despite the lack of flying space in the throne room..
“I would rather die than grant you the crystal heart!” the guards seemed to regain their bravery with the mention of their relic being in danger; Sombra had to wonder what they valued more, life or that magical jewel.
What kind of princess put more stock in a jewel than her own safety?
Nightmare Moon laughed, her laughter again echoed off of the walls while thunder cracked in the background.
“I can arrange that!”
Her horn began to glow a bright blue, a reminder to Sombra that Luna was supposed to be acting. He was not so sure anymore though, just how much was acting, and how much was just her. What was illusion, and what was reality.
What he did know was that if she got her hooves on the Crystal Heart, then while he might be complete early, he might not ever live to see another day while she remained in this mad state.
“Do not try to engage her,” Sombra warned, taking a few steps back from the danger, “That is an alicorn, and I need not remind you the power of Celestia.”
Comparing her to Celestia seemed to enrage the pony, the glowing brightening considerably. Sombra knew not why his statement evoked such a reaction, but he did know that he needed to start moving before she turned on him again.
No sooner had his hooves understood the directive did a blast of magic let loose from Nightmare’s horn. Although he dodged the actual beam, the shockwave from the resulting explosion sent him into the air, conveniently careening through the double doors
Sombra magically opened the door and rolled into the hallway. Not wasting momentum, Sombra managed to right himself just in time to hear the terrified screams of the guards.
With that distraction in place, more guards began to rush towards the throne room, concern written on their faces and spears at the ready. Sombra passed by them all, smelling the fear of what they might would find, and knowing that he did not want to be around for mayhem.
For lack of better grasp, the pony mindlessly ran through hallways, twissts and turns that he thought he had mapped out more appropiately beforehand.
He soon found out just how off he indeed had been, only one reasonable conclusion coming to mind after passing the same unicorn head statue three times in five minutes.
Somehow, just that quickly Sombra had managed to get lost.
Finding himself going in circles, Sombra ended up back at the throne room’s front doors. The sounds of battle were ongoing, and despite everything, Sombra had to check up on progress. When he opened the doors, however, he found far more than he had bargained for.
Corpses, charred and mangled alike, were scattered across the floor; Amore, having not lost her resolve, attempted to command her forces in an organized attack on the alicorn.
However, Nightmare Moon bested them all; a blast of magic there, misty asphyxiation there, the elusive mare kept up a one pony fight against the Crystal guards.
Their numbers dwindling with each assault, the Nightmare did not let up, blood covering her hooves and mane, the latter of which lashed out at any pony foolish enough to try to flank her from behind.
Sombra could only stare in wonder. No wonder the guards had been so terrified of her previously; dreaming something like this for a week would put him on knives as well.
A hoof tapped him on the rear, causing him to jump at least a foot in the air. The startled captain, upon landing back on his hooves, stared at one the guards who had earlier fled.
“Sombra, really, how long have you been just standing here?” the guard inquired, “Luna cannot hold them off forever.”
“You could fool me,” Sombra muttered before he realized that the guard had specifically referenced Luna using her actual name..
The guardpony’s eyes flashed green, a smile creasing his lips.
“Come on, most of the guard is either running around scared shitless or defending the princess. ‘We’ are the few who are left to guard the Heart.”
It only just now begun to register an answer to the question of who he was talking to. Or at least, what he was talking to, and how they seemed to know more about what was going on than he did.
“I did not expect to be working alongside changelings,” Sombra commented, closing the throne room doors, slightly muffling the sounds of the one alicorn fight.
The changeling laughed while he led the way down the hallway, apparently amused by Sombra’s response.
“Consider this a mutual benefit situation. It’s classified how we benefit, but I assure you Sombra, we are here to make your job much easier.”
Sombra wanted a full explanation, but that would have to wait. The changeling picked up the pace, now outright dashing, still in guard form. Sombra followed, not wanting to get left behind, lest Luna forget who her allies were.
The changeling led Sombra to a towering flight of stairs somewhere in the palace. Sombra dared take a look upwards to estimate how long it would take to get to the top. Seeing no end in sight, Sombra groaned.
“You have got to be kidding me!”
The white staircase wound upwards in a seemingly limitless spiral, as if the very heavens welcomed the top, and then watched it carry on past the stars.
Not only that, but the room was entirely unfamiliar, Sombra coming to terms with the fact that he may have been led astray by this changeling.
“I know it looks daunting, but it is merely an illusion that the ponies came up with,” the changeling reassured Sombra, “It is much easier going down than up.”
Sombra looked at the changeling quizzically. “These stairs go up. What have you been chewing on?”
The changeling laughed and, as a demonstration, walked forward.
“It was in our intelligence report, one I presume you did not get. These stairs are meant to deter invaders; the trick is to go down instead of up.”
The changeling hopped onto the first set of stairs, and then became encased in a green magic. The changeling flipped perspectives, and as if gravity made an exception for this insect in diguise, the changeling began sliding up the stairs.
“I have got to get me one of these troll staircases,” Sombra commented, watching the changeling go further and further upwards. It would make a fine addition to his Canterlot garrison re-design plans, he reasoned.
Repeating the changelings actions, Sombra found gravity slightly less kind to him, and rather than sliding up the stairs like his predecessor, he found himself falling off the second set back down to the first.
A few attempts later and he managed to reach the end, a few new bruises to show for it. His steps became somewhat labored, his earlier injuries beginning to make themselves known the more the unicorn calmed himself.
Here, at what looked to be the top of the castle, stood guard dozens of crystal ponies; all of them green eyed and smiling. This explained the 'cowardly' guards who were willing to abandon their princess to the fury of a raging alicorn.
In the center of the room, above what looked to be some sort of a water well, was the crystal heart, its light radiating a strange warmth that even Sombra could not deny demanded sheltering.
“The guards shelter the heart up here whenever there is a serious threat to the Empire,” the changeling from earlier explained with a smile, “Only the guards know about its location; the local populace have no clue.”
Sombra, though pleased at finding the Heart at last, had one lingering question. “So what do we do now?”
“Bask!” The changeling looked towards the heart with a smile, swooning ever so slightly alongside his comrades.
Sombra was not sure to whether he should be disturbed or angry. His mind would have settled on merely disturbed had a distinct sound from below not caught his attention.
The faint cries of terror stricken residents reminded Sombra that Luna was awaiting the signal to end the madness; there was no need for more ponies to die than necessary, if they were actually dying down there that is.
“I am going to have to borrow that for a moment!” Sombra channeled dark magic to his horn, and then shot it at the Heart.
The heart deflected the dark magic right back at Sombra, levitating him in the air until he touched the ceiling.
Flailing, the unicorn managed to cancel the magic out and land on his hooves, much to the amusement of the changelings, who all snickered in unison. It was kind of creepy, Sombra thought, but greater concerns were his.
“Dark magic will not work against it,” the changeling stated, “What do you need it for anyways?”
Sombra looked at the creature as if he had just suggested that he should jump off of the highest tower of the tallest building without his horn attached blind folded!
“Nigthmare Moon, is down there slaughtering the guard of the crystal ponies as if we were at war with them! She is likely awaiting the go ahead that we seized the heart!”
“The fewer of them around, the better,” one of the other changelings piped, “After all, they were going to have to be dealt with anyways.”
Sombra growled, but did not voice his objections. He was no pacifist, but he did not cater to trusting the word of these changelings, who were indirectly sapping at the resident’s love and vigor with their very own Crystal Heart.
Wait, if the changelings could sap at the love of the residents through the Crystal Heart, then that meant that all Equestria had to do was have the buggers seize the Heart and then invade.
The Heart would have been powerless to stop them, and for all of Amore' cunning, not even she could won against the full brunt of the Equestrian military.
He could go back down the stairs, but that would take far too long. The mayhem needed to end much sooner than that.
Utilizing standard magic, Sombra horn glowed red, the Crystal heart soon being encased in his magical grip. This time, the heart resisted in a very striking way; it jabbed at his mind, purging his thoughts of any sane emotion.
Instead, all he could think about was a purple mare and her foals, eagerly awaiting his return home.
Sombra felt warm and fuzzy, but when the changelings looked towards him as if he were something to eat, he quickly pulled the Heart down and readied his descent down the stairs
“Sorry about that, I guess we got a little greedy there,” the first changeling apologized, tracing a hoof sheepishly on the floor, “You have the Heart; we’ll report back to the Queen, and then link back up with you at your coronation.”
Coronation? For a brief moment Sombra thought that he might become an alicorn for his actions here. Just think of all the power, the prestige, the opportunities!
Then he thought better of it; it was more likely that he steal the Crystal throne and be crowned King than actually be ascended for his efforts. It had been a nice if not short lived thought though.
Sombra thought of the place that he wanted, the throne room, specifically, right in front of the front doors. With that image in his head, Sombra channeled magic into his horn, teleportation spell at the ready.
Upon execution, Sombra found himself just mere inches away from getting stomped on by Nightmare Moon.
Rather than flinching and bracing for impact, the captain instead used the Heart like a blunt weapon, slamming it against Nightmare Moon’s reared up body like the head end of a war hammer.
The surprised alicorn fell back, and the two guards awaiting their end near Sombra’s hooves looked up in bewilderment.
“Begone ye terror of the night!” Sombra chanted, surging magic into his horn in an overly flashy display of power, “The power of thy wickedness is naught to me now!”
Rather than standing down as she should have, Nightmare Moon stood up, eyes flashing dangerously from Sombra to the Crystal Heart.
No doubt the mare weighed her current options, though Sombra had no intentions of leaving to chance that she choose to just take the heart from him and leave him for dead.
Before Sombra could release his magic, he felt a tug on his strength; as if it had a mind of its own, the Crystal Heart took on a red tint, moments before it fired a beam of magic at Nightmare.
Though she turned to mist, the beam still struck true, and for reasons unknown to Sombra, they still seemed to affect her body. The red aura completely surrounded her form, engulfing it in a bright red light of sorts.
“Noooooo!” Nightmare wailed, vanishing in a poof of smoke and sparkles. Again, it seemed a bit flashy for Sombra's taste, but anything to get this part of the mission over.
Left in her place was the still disguised Luna, completely clear of any signs of battle. In fact, the previously mangled guards stirred again, their gasps of breath dramatically suggesting that they were coming back to life.
More likely though they were never actually dead, but Sombra did not toy with the idea that had that not worked, he could have been among them.
With the heart in his grasp, Sombra boldly stepped up to the awestruck princess, a confident smile on his face.
“Was there ever any doubt?”