Twilight Sparkle released a breath of slight exhaustion and looked up at the crystal that she had just activated. That was her first time using that kind of magic, the same dark magic that she was told that King Sombra used. She doubted she would've had much other choice, considering weighing any other possible options would've eaten up what precious little time they had before Sombra breaks into the Crystal Empire.
Her efforts were rewarded, thankfully, as a dark wave flowed out of the crystal and throughout the shimmering throne room. Spike, her dragon assistant, stepped back from the shadow in fear, as did Twilight. The shadow quickly covered most of the floor and revealed a magically hidden spiral staircase. Twilight clapped her hooves together in excitement. "It worked!" she cried with a large, victorious grin on her face.
"Uh… yeah," Spike said with a reluctant gulp.
"I'll be back soon, Spike." The purple unicorn started down the stairs. Spike took a hesitant step towards the steps. "You stay here!"
Spike took a step back and laughed nervously. "If you insist!"
Twilight trotted down the steps carefully, not wanting to accidentally trip and possibly fall down into the seemingly endless abyss. As she walked, she nearly slipped, sending tiny pebbles over the edge. Curious, she used her magic to pluck a piece of crystal off the wall and dropped it into the darkness. She leaned in to hear the crystal as it hit the ground. For a few seconds, she didn't hear anything. She cleared her ear with her hoof and focused on the abyss.
She heard a very slight clink, signaling that the crystal had hit the ground. She gulped nervously. 'That's a long drop,' she thought. She got up and continued down the stairs. The instant she took a step forward, however, she tripped and collapsed down the staircase. She was able to catch herself with her magic before landing on her head at the bottom of the pit. She sighed in relief and teleported herself upright and landed on all fours. She looked around the room she was now in, and discovered a door directly behind her.
"Aha!" she shouted with a smirk as she approached the threshold. Suddenly, the door shot off along the wall to her right until it was on the opposite end of the room. "What in the…?" Twilight ran over to the door, but it again moved away from her. She kept chasing it, and it kept fleeing her. She was getting very irritated now, her horn glowing with slowly darkening purple energy. "Hold still!" She shot a blast of black magic at the crystal that was atop the door's frame, stopping it. She galloped over to it and swung the door open before it could move again. She was welcomed by a blinding white light.
When the light faded, she opened her eyes to behold… the Canterlot Castle throne room. Princess Celestia was dealing with some paperwork in front of her throne, rolling up completed sheets and tying them with the royal insignia.
"P-Princess Celestia?" Twilight asked, getting the white alicorn's attention. "What happened? One minute, I was in the Crystal Palace looking for the Crystal Heart, and the next thing I know, I'm back here! What's going on?"
Celestia gave the young unicorn a spiteful glare, a look that made Twilight back up. She had never seen the princess like this. "There's a simple explanation for that, Twilight Sparkle," Celestia said with disdain in her voice. "You've failed your test!"
Twilight's eyes went wide in shock and horror. "W-what? But I-!"
"Not only will you not advance to the next level of your studies," the princess continued, "but you will no longer continue your studies under me at all!"
"WHAT!? But you didn't say anything about no longer being your student!"
The princess seemed to give little bit of thought to this. She wrapped her wing around Twilight, as if to comfort her. She then shoved the purple mare out of path and said, "Didn't I?" She then walked away, completely ignoring Twilight's pleas.
The young unicorn could only watch as the doors to the throne room slowly began to shut behind the princess. She fell on her rump as tears began to spill from her eyes. She looked to her left, and was mortified to see a stained-glass window with an image of her on her back, cowering as the ghostly form of King Sombra claimed the Crystal Heart and re-conquered the Empire. Malevolent laughter filled the air around her.
This had to be some kind of trick! An illusion! A nightmare! Celestia would never just give up on her! … Would she? She was kind and benevolent! … Right? Maybe she could find comfort in her friends?
That was when she heard six voices, all laughing hysterically. She turned around to see her friends, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, and even Spike, all laughing at her expense, like she was just some kind of joke.
"Look at her!" Rainbow said mockingly. "I think the baby's gonna cwy some mowe!"
"What a loser!" Fluttershy taunted.
"A sack of potatoes is more useful than her!" Applejack claimed with hearty laughter.
"And her mane is just so hideous!" Rarity said with a look of disgust. "I can't believe I even associated myself with somepony so repugnant!"
Pinkie Pie just laughed cruelly as Spike made mocking expressions at the purple unicorn, who slowly back herself up against the wall. This couldn't be happening! This couldn't be real! All her worst nightmares were coming to life right before her eyes.
"Please…" she begged. "Stop!" The others simply continued laughing and taunting her, but they were now leaving the room. The doors were now a third of the way closed at this point.
Twilight moved herself into the nearest corner and cried. The salty liquid burned her cheeks as it abandoned her eyes. Her teacher had left her. Her friends had mocked and abused her. Maybe her family…?
"She's such a pathetic disappointment," she heard a familiar stallion's voice say. She looked out to see her parents, brother, and even Cadance all standing in a circle. Her father had been the one who had spoken. "I'm glad we can finally wash our hooves of her!"
"I know!" her mother agreed wholeheartedly. "I can't believe I gave birth to such a hopeless failure!"
"I can't believe you paid me to watch her all those years ago," Cadance chimed in. "Just looking at her makes me want to vomit! What about you, Shining Armor? What do you think about your sister?"
"I don't have a sister anymore," the white stallion said with glare. The four of them left the room then, none of them apparently aware of Twilight's presence. The doors were now halfway closed.
That was it. Twilight's entire life had just been uprooted in a matter of minutes. Her friends, family, and beloved mentor… they had all abandoned her. She had nothing now. She laid herself out on the floor and bawled her eyes out. She wanted to scream, but her voice was choked by her sobs. As she cried, she could hear the sound of hooves coming closer. Probably somepony else who was about to berate her.
She suddenly felt something touch her head gently. A hoof went through her mane. She didn't know why, but… it felt comforting. Curious, she slowly looked up, her eyes puffy and red. A dark-coated unicorn stood over her, his body covered by plated steel armor and his horn curved and red. He wore a regal red cape upon his back, and his teeth were frighteningly sharp. His eyes were bizarre, having red irises, and the whites of his eyes being sickly green. A strange, purple smoke flowed out of his green and red orbs, giving him a very… intimidating appearance. Despite this, however, Twilight felt oddly at ease seeing his warm smile.
"Poor little filly," the stallion said with a tone of pity in a deep, gravelly voice. "So sad… so lonely… so scared. What makes you so frightened, child?"
Reluctantly, Twilight said, "Everyone… everypony I know… they all hate me now… I didn't do anything wrong… what did I do?"
"Nothing, child. Not yet. This is merely a vision of the future."
"A… a vision?" Twilight inquired. The stallion nodded.
"This is one of two outcomes, young one," he explained. "If you do not wish to suffer like this, then you must choose the only other road available to you."
Twilight wiped her eyes. "What do I have to do?"
"It's quite simple: join me. Unlike Princess Celestia, I will never abandon you. Unlike your friends, I will never mock you. Unlike your family, I will never stop watching over you. Let your anger take hold, and you will have the power to avoid this course of events."
Twilight stared at the stallion. "You… you're King Sombra, aren't you?"
The dark unicorn nodded. "In the flesh… so to speak."
"B-but, you're evil! This is probably all just some trick!"
"Evil?" Sombra replied. "Is it 'evil' to simply want to once again lead and guide one's own kingdom? Is it considered instead 'good' to banish that kingdom's rightful leader? And besides, you and I both seek the same the thing."
"You won't get the Crystal Heart!"
Sombra chuckled. "That's not what I mean." Twilight raised an eyebrow in confusion. "We both seek power. And the best way to obtain power is through knowledge. And I hold more magical knowledge than any other unicorn in Equestria's history. You do wish to master all forms of magic, don't you?"
The young mare hesitated. "I-I… That's none of your business…" She immediately knew that her voice sounded unsure. There was a part of her that admitted to what Sombra had said. She had an endless thirst for knowledge, which in turn would lead to an unquenchable need for power. And all of her being admitted… using the same magic as Sombra made her feel… powerful. Like she could bring down an entire mountain range with a single spell, or turn a full-grown dragon into a harmless newt. It was intoxicating.
Sombra could sense the conflict within her. He leaned in closer to her and said, "Join me, and no one will ever hurt you. All you need to do is give me the Crystal Heart. A simple task, no?"
"Give you the Heart…" Twilight muttered. "You're right. It does sound simple." And with that said, the throne room doors finally sealed shut.
-o-
Twilight finally snapped back into the waking world. The door that had tried to escape her stood wide open, revealing an endless plain of white stretching out before her. Spike was probably still at the top of the staircase above, likely too scared to come down and help her. She rolled her eyes at the thought as she exited the chamber. Spike was the useless one, she thought. Not her.
She found another set of stairs and sighed. This might take a while.