"You ready?" Spike called out from behind his curtain.
Twilight smiled. "As ready as I'll ever be. Now come out already!"
Spike pushed aside his curtain and struck a pose. The little dragon was wearing an outfit that she recognized as the Masked Matter-Horn, complete with fake wings and horn, all fitted for a dragon. She banged her hooves on the ground in applause.
"A wonderful job on the costume." She praised. "Are you all packed and ready for comic con?"
"Eeyup." He said. A moment later his cheeks bulged and he let out a belch that heralded the arrival of a letter from Celestia. Before the scroll could hit the floor, however, Twilight's magic enveloped it and brought it forward. For a moment she silently read it before rolling it back up.
"It looks like Celestia would like me to come to the Crystal Empire as soon as possible." She announced with a hint of worry in her voice.
Spike sighed. "Well then, I guess we'd better get going. I'll go change."
Twilight's eyes widened and she put a hoof out to stop. "Wait, what do you mean by 'we'?"
"What, did you really think you'd go without your Number One Assistant?"
Twilight's surprised expression melted into a determined. "No. No offense, but you won't be coming with me."
Spike shrugged. "Okay. Then I'll stay here."
"You won't be staying here either."
Spike looked at Twilight in confusion. "Then, where do you want me to be?"
"I want you to go to your convention in Manehatten."
"What?! But, don't you need me?"
"Of course I do." She said with a smile. "But you've been over the sun and moon excited about this convention for months and I couldn't stand it if you just dropped it for my sake."
Spike blushed. "I haven't been that excited." He said weakly.
Twilight cocked an eyebrow incredulously. "You turned down Rarity's offer to make your costume when you started making it." She said completely deadpan.
"Okay first it's not a costume, it's cosplay. And second, Rarity was still beautiful when she gave me pointers."
Twilight giggled. "I'm sure she was."
"But the point still remains," Spike said. "I mean, I am excited about this convention. I've been preparing for months and you're letting me go on my own, granted you only agreed when Big Mac offered to keep an eye out for me since he's got family business there at the same time, but that's still pretty cool. But how can you tell me to leave you when you need your Number One Assistant?"
"Because I care for my Number One Assistant." She said gently as she put her hoof on his shoulder. "And my Number One Assistant has been dying to go to this convention for months. Go and have fun. And don't worry about me. I'm fairly confident that I can handle almost anything Celestia can throw at me. And let's not forget I have five friends I can ask to accompany me. At least one of them is sure to be free."
Spike shuffled in place for a moment. "Well, if you're so sure..."
Twilight hugged him. "I'm sure." She answered. "Now get going. You can't leave Big Mac waiting."
✴✴✴✴✴✴
It was around evening when the train pulled in and out walked Big Mac with a tired Spike draped across his back. During the trip, the two had hit it off well and were already planning on getting together this weekend to talk about hoofball. Spike on his part was excited. True he enjoyed reading comics and going to conventions in costume like any other geek, but on the other hoof (or claw) he also enjoyed sports. Big Mac was also looking forward to this get-together. While he was a hard worker and dedicated to his family and Sweet Apple Acres, that didn't mean he didn't enjoy himself once in a while. After all, Granny Smith always told them that dedicating themselves entirely to work wasn't healthy for a pony and who was he to argue with his grandmother. And thus, Big Mac found himself a hoofball fan.
Both didn't know each other very well, and so were very surprised to find the other was a fan. And by the time they pulled into the station, they had scheduled a time to hang out. Which brought them to the present, with Spike dozing on his back as his sister, who had met them at the station, helped carry the luggage. Applejack had explained that Twilight was a little busy with things and couldn't come with her. She may have explained why, but Spike was just too tired to hear her and knowing Twilight it was probably studying. As they walked to the castle, Applejack filled her brother in on what had been going on while they were gone, and all of it sailed over his head as the rhythmic motion of Big Mac's pace threatened to knock him out.
After what seemed was too short of a time, Mac stopped and Spike found himself being lightly shaken by Applejack. "Hey there Li'l feller. We're here."
"Here?" He asked blearily as he observed his surroundings, not recognizing the castle at first. "Right. Here." He said as he slid off Big Mac. "Well, I'll see you around Mac." He said tiredly before letting out a yawn.
"Sure thing buddy." He said with a smile. "Now go an' get some rest."
Spike only nodded before proceeding up to the castle with Applejack following with his luggage. Spike was just too tired to say anything. As he walked into his new room (awesome! First a throne now my own room!) he encountered Twilight coming out of the room next to his.
"Oh, hey Spike." She greeted as she took his luggage. "Sorry I couldn't come to greet you at the station. How was your trip?"
"It was good." Spike almost slurred his speech in his exhaustion. "The convention was fun and the Oranges were very hospi....hosp....hos....nice, even though I was a dragon."
"That's very good to hear." She said in a pleasant voice that made him want to faint right then and there. "You look pretty exhausted, so it might be a good time for you to go to bed. We can talk later."
"Talk....later.....sleep." Was all he managed.
Twilight only smiled and began guiding him into his room and onto his bed. He felt like he'd never seen a more beautiful bed in all his life before he passed out.
✴✴✴✴✴✴
Spike woke up feeling rested and refreshed. As he made his way downstairs, the smell of pancakes tickled his nose. "Morning Twilight!" He announced as he entered the dining room.
"Good morning Spike," Twilight said gently.
"Good morning Spike."
"Ya know you didn't need to make the pancakes. I'm fully capa-" Spike mentally halted on a dime when his brain fully registered the second voice that said good morning. Judging by its pitch and tone, it was definitely a colt's voice but it definitely wasn't any colt's voice that he was familiar with.
Spike blinked then examined the room once more. It didn't take long to spot the young colt sitting at the table in a highchair. Spike narrowed his eyes and scratched his chin. There was something familiar about this colt yet at the same time different. Judging by appearance, Spike would've guessed that he was round three or four. His coat was a dark grey and his mane was onyx black while ruby red eyes stared at him in curiosity. Eyes that Spike had seen somewhere before. It didn't take very long for the puzzle pieces to fall into place.
"WAAH!?!?" He cried out and he jumped back. "What the hay is Sombra doing here?!"
✴✴✴✴✴✴
Cadence gave a sigh as she smiled. Ever since Auntie Tia had shown them this room a few days prior, Cadence had spent as much time here as possible in here reading. The books she'd read were amazing and in their time had been considered ancient. Cadence had even found a few spell books written by Starswirl himself. It had all been so exciting and fascinating at the same time. But then there was one question that still demanded an answer. Who built this place?
Celestia and Luna knew about this place, so it stood to reason that they would know something about who built it. But the two had been tight-lipped about that and Cadence wasn't one to press the issue which left detective work as the only means to discover the answer. At first, she thought Starswirl had built it, but she quickly shot that down. While there were some Starswirl books, they were only a token amount compared to the rest of the library.
Plus it didn't make any sense to her for the ancient wizard to make a private library in another country when he lived in Canterlot. But in her investigation, she'd found a spell journal with the two sets of hoof writing. One she recognized from the other journals she'd read as Starswirl's. The other was a more stylized cursive with little flourishes that she could only assume belonged to whoever built this library. And judging by what they'd written, they were really good at following Starswirl. Celestia often told her that when Starswirl really got into his magic formulas, not even she could follow him.
Evidently, there was somepony who could not only follow but also match Starswirl the Bearded himself. Not to mention the very existence and construction of this very library spoke of great magical skill and power alongside enough influence to build it here in the castle.
'Powerful, influential and a genius.' Cadence hummed in thought. 'Wonder what other surprises this mystery pony has up their sleeves.' Cadence couldn't help but giggle as she slid the journal back into place. This was getting pretty fun. She had yet to guess if this pony was a stallion or a mare since the hoofwriting gave nothing away. She was practically bouncing on her hooftips. If it was at all possible, she'd like to meet this pony.
It was at that moment that she saw something she hadn't noticed before. A desk. It was a very simple desk made of crystal that jutted right out of the wall. Above and flanking it on the wall were two small crystal ledges that still held large half-burned candles. When she approached, she found only three items on the table. Neatly set to the side were two quill pens. One was long and white with a pen made of etched Rhinegold with a golden gem decorating it. The other was a little shorter than the other and dark blue with a pen made of etched Mythril silver and studded with a silvery white stone.
For a minute Cadence examined the quill pens in curiosity. Something about these feathers was familiar but she decided to set that aside for another time and turned to the third item, a journal that sat dead center of the desk. Unlike the pens, the journal was unusually plain aside from the buckle that secured it. Running a hoof across the worn black cover, it suddenly occurred to her that this was probably the personal journal of the pony she was looking for.
Undoing the buckle, she gently lifted the cover to the first page where a single word had been written in the same script as earlier. There, written in swooping cursive with a flourish was a name.
Sombra
Cadence immediately slammed the cover shut as her train of thought hit a grinding halt. 'WHAAAAA????!!!!!'
✴✴✴✴✴✴
"Uh, on second thought, maybe I should go with them." Fluttershy hastily cut off Spike's hoofball itinerary. "In case they need me."
"Looks like it's time for a road trip," Twilight said with a smile.
"Well, suit yourself." He said with a casual shrug as they left. "But he has a Hock Fetlock rookie card I plan on sweet talking into these hot little claws."
Twilight suddenly halted just before stepping out the door. "And you'll keep an eye on Sombra, right?"
Spike's eye widened and his scales paled as he remembered the castle's third occupant. "Wait, you mean me?!"
Twilight cocked an eyebrow. "Who else do you think I'm going to entrust him to?"
"Cheerilee takes care of kids all the time. Lyra and Bon Bon wouldn't mind either along with just about every other mare in Ponyville!" He waved his arms in the air for emphasis.
"All true," Twilight admitted. "But might I remind you that this is King Sombra. You are the only one, aside from my friends, that I feel comfortable with leaving alone with him." Fluttershy raised a hoof to begin to speak, but Twilight cut her off. "No Fluttershy, you are not staying."
Fluttershy wilted a little. "Why not?"
"Because we need you," Twilight said as she turned to address Fluttershy. "And in any case, if you hadn't agreed to come with us willingly, I would've pointed out that you're cutie mark on the map is with our cutie marks, not in Ponyville, indicating that all of us need to go wherever the map is pointing."
Fluttershy wilted even more. "Oh. Alright." She whispered.
Applejack placed a hoof on the pegasus's back. "Hey, don't worry about it Sugarcube. Ah, know for a fact that there's a train line that extends that far. No idea why, but at least that means that the' trip'll be safe."
Fluttershy brightened as Rainbow Dash let out a groan of disappointment. "Oh good." The shy pegasus said happily.
"But the point still stands," Twilight said, turning back to Spike. "You're the only one I can trust to keep an eye on Sombra while we're gone."
"Well, when you put it like that...." Spike reluctantly.
"Don't worry Spike." Twilight soothed. "If something bad happens, send a letter to Celestia. Otherwise, keep a close eye on him."
"Alright." Spike capitulated. "But please don't be gone for too long. I'd like to be able to enjoy this weekend."
"We'll be back as soon as we can," Twilight reassured. With that, they left Spike alone with King Sombra, the former tyrant. Turning his attention to the table, he quickly spotted Sombra. The colt had pulled himself onto his throne and was currently studying the map with wonder as he stuck his hoof through a mountain. It was going to be a long weekend.
✴✴✴✴✴✴
As the train went along, Twilight watched as lush forests transformed into wide deserts. She wasn't really paying attention to the change of scenery. Her mind was elsewhere, namely back at the castle where she'd left her Number One Assistant with King Sombra. Needless to say, she was a little worried.
"Hey Sugarcube, you alright there?" Applejack asked. "Ya look a little distracted there."
"Sorry." Twilight apologized. "I just can't stop thinking about Spike alone with Sombra."
"Honey, you got nothin' ta fret about." Applejack said soothingly. "Spike's a big dragon. He can take care of himself and Sombra. They'll both still be there when you come back."
"Yeah, I know Spike can take care of himself," Twilight said. "But I still have some reservations about Sombra. He was once a tyrant, remember? I still don't trust him entirely."
"Trust is somethin' ta be earned, that much is true." Applejack said. "But Y'all still need ta give folks the chance ta earn that trust." Applejack paused as she felt the train begin ta slow. "Now buck up an have faith in Spike and Lil Sombra. Our stop's coming up."
✴✴✴✴✴✴
Spike didn't think it was at all possible for a tyrant to become annoying, yet here he was a little annoyed. Ever since Twilight and company left this morning, Sombra had followed him everywhere as he did his chores and got ready for Big Macintosh's visit. And nothing Spike said could get him to stop. True Sombra helped him out when he could, but it still irked him a little when Sombra just wouldn't leave Spike alone.
"Aaaaagh!" He exclaimed at some point and Sombra halted. "Why do you keep following me?! Don't you have anything better to do?"
Sombra shook his head. "Not really." When Spike had first met Sombra, the colt's grasp of language was much more simplistic. But since then he had improved immensely. "I just want to help you out."
"Why?" Spike asked exasperatedly.
"Why not?"
Spike threw his claws up into the air and was about to retort when there came a knock at the door. "Mac's here." He said. "Stay near and don't embarrass me."
Sombra nodded and followed Spike as he went to answer the door.
✴✴✴✴✴✴
"Aw C'mon! Please!"
"Eenope."
This was it. The moment of truth. After hours of discussing hoofball and hoofball stats, Spike finally had a shot at getting that Hock Fetlock card.
"How about three Field Goal cards for your Hock Fetlock?"
"Uh-uh."
The only problem was that Big Macintosh wasn't willing to trade.
"What about both of my Princeton Prance special edition cards?"
"Nuh-uh."
And Spike was quickly running out of options.
"Thunder 'All Score' Hooves?"
"Nope."
"GAH!!" Spike exploded then stomped to the kitchen to get himself something to drink and to clear his head. It was halfway through his drink that he realized that Sombra hadn't followed him. At this point, he could care less. He needed the quiet anyway. Just as he was thinking that he heard a small set of hooves rushing towards him followed by a bigger set close behind. An instant later, Sombra burst into the room gleefully while Big Mac stood in the doorway.
"Spike! Spike! Look look look!" Sombra shouted in excitement as he showed Spike what he had in his hooves. Spike instantly spit out his drink. There, right in front of his muzzle, was the coveted Hock Fetlock rookie card.
"I-you-how?!" Spike spluttered out.
Big Mac chuckled. "The little guy is amazingly persuasive." He answered.
Spike studied Big Mac for bruises or any sign of magical persuasion, but he didn't see any sign that the big guy had been threatened in any way. In fact, he looked satisfied with a small hint of pride in Sombra who was now examining it closer.
'OH COME ON! How is that even possible?! I've been trying to bargain with Mac for the better part of an hour and I'm not out for five minutes and he gets it?!' Spike bowed his head, his pride taking a heavy blow. Then Spike suddenly found the card held out in front of him.
"Here. For you." Sombra said as he hoofed it to Spike. Now both Spike and Big Macintosh were rendered speechless.
"I.....what?" Spike managed as he stared at the card in his claws.
"Well I don't really like hoofball, but I saw how much you wanted that card and so I got it for you," Sombra explained before smiling.
Both jaws dropped. "Y-you got this for me?"
Sombra frowned in confusion. "Uh-huh."
"Why?"
"Because I wanted you to be happy." He answered simply. "Are you happy?"
Spike blinked. He had no idea what to say or how to feel. "I...I...I guess I am." He finally said, suddenly not wanting to disappoint the little guy. Sombra instantly beamed and his expression became one of pure joy that could rival even Pinkie's. The rest of the day passed without any more significant events. After tucking Sombra into his bed in the room next to his, Spike lay on his bed and stared at the card in the dark.
'Why would he do that?' He thought. His memory instantly answered for him.
<Because I want you to be happy.>
'And what about you?' Spike blinked. 'Where did that come from?' He wasn't sure why, but suddenly he was wondering if Sombra was happy and that thought alone was enough to intensify the already existing whirlwind of confused emotions. On one claw, it was King Sombra, Tyrant of the Crystal Empire. He still remembered the terror he'd felt when he and the Crystal Heart was falling towards him. At that moment, he had thought he was going to die.
On the other claw, however, this Sombra had been nothing but nice and helpful. He'd even gotten the Hock Fetlock rookie card just for him. How was it possible for anypony so evil to be so nice. Spike had the sneaking suspicion that there was something that he was missing but he couldn't put a claw on what.
'Agh! It's too late to be thinking about this.' Carefully he put the card away and pulled the blankets up. As he drifted off to sleep, he thought he heard a whimper.
✴✴✴✴✴✴
It was strange having no cutie mark and not in a good way. Twilight still remembered that feeling. The feeling of some part of herself being pulled from her very being. And now here they were trapped in this room until they accepted their way of thinking. Pfft. As if that'd ever happen.
But even though they were in a tight spot, Twilight's thoughts kept turning to home. And Spike. And Sombra. She didn't completely understand why, but she was a little worried about Sombra. Ever since he came into her life he'd been sneaking into her bed because of his nightmares. She wasn't sure how he'd react if she wasn't there. She kept on imagining a magic surge, just like back in Canterlot. She wasn't sure how she could handle coming home, only to find the castle blown up. And then there was the fact that she'd promised Spike she'd be home as soon as possible. And so it was imperative that they escape.
Plus she couldn't stand those speakers blaring Starlight Glimmer's 'philosophy'.
✴✴✴✴✴✴
"Hey, Sombra?" Spike called out as he pushed open Sombra's bedroom door, only to find the room empty. "Sombra?" At first, Spike almost panicked and sent a letter to Princess Celestia. Then he remembered Twilight saying that Sombra tended to sneak into her bed in the middle of the night. He may as well check her room before flying into a panic. As he approached the room in question, he saw that the door was partially open. He could've sworn it was shut yesterday.
'Well, at least I'm on the right path.' He thought as he nudged the door open the rest of the way. At first, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. The bed was still made and everything was just as Twilight left it.
"Sombra? You in here?" He called out. His sharp hearing quickly picked up a tired, surprised squeak. Getting down on his claws and knees, Spike peeked under the bed and found Sombra curled up and pressed against the far wall, blinking and rubbing the sleep from his eyes.
"Sombra?" He asked. "Did you sleep under here?"
Sombra nodded then unfurled himself from his own tight ball and crawled out from under the bed. Spike was beyond baffled and a little concerned as the colt stretched himself.
"Why?" He asked.
"Twilight wasn't home, so I hid under the bed."
"Hid? Hid from what?"
Sombra didn't answer immediately. Instead, he glanced away and wrapped his forelegs around his body as he fought against trembling.
"The Darkness."
✴✴✴✴✴✴
When Big Mac came, he brought a pad of paper and a box of crayons. His reasoning was that 'he may as well bring something to keep the little guy happy'. They picked up where they'd left off and gone on talking hoofball till noon, at which point Spike had to get lunch ready while Mac had to return to the farm. Since his sister hadn't come home yet (along with the rest of her friends) the responsibility of the farm fell on his shoulders.
After finishing his morning chores, however, Granny Smith had told him that she could hold down the fort until noon. Till then he could hang out with Spike. While Spike was a little disappointed in cutting things short, he was a bit more concerned about Twilight and the others and had been internally debating on whether or not he should send a letter to the princess. He eventually reached a compromise. If Twilight and the others weren't back by tomorrow morning, he was going after them come Tartarus or high water. And if he found them in danger, he was sending Celestia a letter.
With this personal accord reached, Spike pulled on his apron and got to work. When he was done, he smiled proudly. It wasn't always easy to make hayburgers with fries, but he made enough for both himself and Sombra. And speaking of which... When Big Mac had given him the pad and crayons, Sombra had made himself comfortable in a corner of the room and hadn't moved from there, save for bathroom breaks and drink runs.
As he approached the still drawing colt, Spike's foot brushed against a piece of paper. Spike scooped up the paper and studied it in surprise. As far as drawing went, Sombra's picture was better than colts his age. Almost pro level, but still some childish charm. But that thought was only secondary to the subject matter of the picture. Spike remembered the first time he'd seen Sombra. A towering cloud of black smoke with terrifying eyes. The three figures in the picture looked like that only different. There were curling red horns like ram's horns instead of unicorn horns. And emerging from some point in their dark bodies were long arms with claw-like talons. And to top it all off, the lower down you went, the three entities bodies ran together like they were one being. And those piercing eyes were solid green with purple smoke pouring from the corners.
Spike shivered. "Sombra, what is this?" He asked, gesturing to the picture.
Sombra looked up from drawing another rendition of the same beings as they loomed over a curled up pony. "That's the Darkness." He said in a whisper. "They're always in my nightmares every night."
Spike glanced at the picture and steeled himself. "What kind of nightmares?"
Sombra squirmed uncomfortably till Spike grabbed a hoof. "They're all different but the same," Sombra explained, quivering. "I'm a prisoner in my own head and the Darkness is there. I don't know why, but I always know them as the Darkness. And then they hurt me. Sometimes they say things. Other times they make me watch other ponies get hurt by me. I don't know these ponies, but I don't want them to be hurt. Sometimes my body is fighting these really pretty mares with wings and horns and then they throw me in ice while their crying and everything becomes cold."
As he spoke, Sombra bunched in on himself and was near tears. Spike was shocked. He hadn't expected anything like this and it forced him to reevaluate his thoughts on Sombra. It was one of those worlds flipped upside down moments and he wasn't sure which way was up. He would need to think about this some more. Then he remembered why he was here in the first place.
"Hey, Sombra. Lunch is ready. You wanna eat?"
✴✴✴✴✴✴
The rest of the day went past in a blur for Spike since he was still trying to steady his world following this earth-shattering information. It wasn't until late in the evening that Spike actually had a chance to think about this. Sombra sort of remembered when he was a tyrant, only from a different angle that Spike didn't see coming.
'A prisoner in his own head.' That one thought rang through his head. He then pulled out the picture that he'd picked up earlier and spread it out to look at. Thinking back it made a certain amount of sense. The change in personality was a bit too sudden for it to be anything else.
'So at one point, Sombra was a good guy.' Spike mused. 'And then the darkness came.' So few of the Crystal ponies remembered King Sombra's reign. Those that could remember that he'd done some horrible things. But even those ponies memories were incomplete since nopony could remember what life was like before then, much less when King Sombra came to power. As far as they knew, he was just there.
A thought suddenly occurred to Spike. 'What if he'd been a good king before he was a tyrant?' It made sense as he thought of it. What if at some point, Sombra had been a good king beloved by all the Crystal Ponies. When whatever happened to Sombra happened they would've felt so betrayed they suppressed their own memories. Or something like that. And while all this was going on, Sombra was living a nightmare in his own head.
Suddenly, Spike's sharp ears caught muffled whimpers and sobs coming from the room next door. 'And speaking of nightmares...' Spike stowed away the drawing and walked to Sombra's room. The little colt was curled into a ball and pulling his blanket close while tears streamed down his cheeks like overflowing rivers.
"Sombra," Spike said gently as he placed a claw on his shoulder and shook. "Hey, Sombra. It's just a dream. Wake up!"
Sombra suddenly jerked awake and scrambled away so fast that he fell off the other side of the bed. Spike winced then crawled over to the edge and peeked over. Sombra lay there on the ground staring into space with wet eyes.
"Hey, you okay? That was a pretty hard fall." Spike asked.
Sombra didn't answer immediately. Instead, he buried his head in his hooves and began to cry again. "Why?" He whimpered. "Why can't I stop them from hurting those ponies? I can't do anything right. I'm useless."
Spike blinked and turned his gaze to Sombra's sketch pad. Flipping through its pages he found that some of the pictures were of those things he called The Darkness engaged in various sadistic activities. It was enough to make Spike's blood boil. Instantly he ripped the offending pictures from the book and shredded them before igniting the scraps. Soon there was nothing left but a pile of ash on the floor. Spike then returned his attention to the crying Sombra and reaching down, pulled him back onto the bed.
"Hey listen to me." He said. "You aren't useless. Far from it in fact. I mean, not just anypony can get a Hock Fetlock rookie card from the most stubborn stallion in existence in less than five minutes." Sombra gave a small smile before it instantly melted away. Spike then pulled him into a hug as he ran his claws through his (remarkably soft) mane. "You are an amazing, kind, smart colt. Far from useless. And if anyone thinks otherwise, then they can go jump off a cliff." That elicited a small snort from him. "Those dreams are just that. Dreams." How could he justify telling him that his nightmares might actually be suppressed memories? "So how about I sleep here with you for tonight?"
Sombra nodded his head and they both lay down on the bed, Sombra still held in Spike's arms since the colt refused to leave his grasp. It wasn't long before his breathing indicated that he was fast asleep. Spike moved the colt little ways away from him and brushed a lock of his mane from his face. The little dragon remembered reading about this kind of thing in one of Twilight's books about mental conditions. In emotional and physically stressing situations, ponies would often suppress memories, sometimes even their entire lives.
Whatever happened to Sombra while he was in the grasp of The Darkness could definitely qualify as emotionally taxing. Not to mention what happened in the Crystal Empire, which could definitely count as physically taxing. Thus when he was brought back to life, he had no memory of his previous life. And now the really bad memories were showing up as nightmares. Poor guy was having a really rough time of it. It's a wonder he was sane. Spike pulled Sombra close to him. The little guy needed someone. And Spike was going to be one of those someones.
✴✴✴✴✴✴
It felt good to have a cutie mark again. The feeling that had been sent through their bodies when they reunited with their cutie marks was amazing and indescribable and as they celebrated with the townsponies, Twilight couldn't help but feel like she was forgetting something.
"Twilight!" Twilight swiveled around at the sound of Spike calling out her name and found herself being practically tackled by the dragon, but had kept her footing.
"Spike? What are you doing here?" She asked as she returned the hug.
Spike pushed away from her and folded his arm while shooting here a stern (but adorable) look. "You've all been gone for two days! Why do you think I'm here!? Yesterday I was mere inches away from sending a letter to Celestia! Then I told myself to give you guys a chance but if you weren't back by this morning, I'm coming after you to see what's going on. Then I'd send a letter to Celestia. Depending on the situation of course."
Twilight then pulled Spike close with a smile. "Thank you for coming all this way just for us." Twilight suddenly remembered something and pushed Spike away. "Wait a second. What about Sombra?"
"I brought him, of course," Spike said.
"TWILIGHT!" Sombra ran right into her with enough force to merely leave her winded instead of bereft of air like last time. "We were so worried about you."
"I wasn't that worried," Spike said in an attempt to put up a tough guy act.
"Sure you were," Sombra said. "I could tell on the train."
"Alright," Spike said bashfully. "I'll admit I was a little anxious."
"Okay, Spike." He said, releasing his death grip on her leg. "Ooo! Cookies!" He turned to Spike who chuckled warmly.
"Go on you scamp." He said. "Look's like it's safe."
As Sombra skipped up to Sugar Bell's table to retrieve his prize, Twilight shot a questioning look at Spike who watched Sombra with a warm look. "Okay, what'd I miss?"
Spike shrugged. "Just some male bonding. Hey, I'd like some of those too!"
✴✴✴✴✴✴
Cadence stared at the very plain journal in front of her like she expected it to make the first move. She didn't know why she'd taken the book from the room, but at the time she'd been in such shock she barely registered picking it up and taking it with her. It didn't make any sense to her. When she pictured anything built by King Sombra, she imagined everything a bit more dark a foreboding. Not something so beautiful. It just felt like there were a few pieces she was missing.
She glanced at the journal. 'A few pieces I might find in there.' That thought made her pause as she built up her nerve before she grasped the book, undid the clasp and opened it beyond the first page.
Entry #1.....