//------------------------------// // Puppetry // Story: The Triumphs and Demises of a Sombric War // by Michael Hudson //------------------------------// Celestia stood outside the Crystal empire’s capital, gazing upon the walls. She had her banner of peace flying, despite knowing that there was little hope for such a thing to come. Sombra was not the type to give in, even if she were to begin a siege. Besides, the guards on the ramparts looked at her through green slits, symbols of their armor glowing bright. Sombra would not have enslaved them to his will if he did not have a plan to use them. But then why did he not meet me in the field where we could fight, but instead let me simply walk up to his capital? She was still musing upon this thought when a new unicorn, clad in black armor walked onto the rampart. While he moved to the protected gate, Celestia could see his horn glowing red, the same symbols as were on the barrier in front of the capital. The red cloak he bore was akin to Sombra’s, but he was too short of stature for such a thing to be possible. Finally, the dark blue stallion turned to look over the ramparts, his black mane covering one of his red eyes. “Good day fair princess. Whatever is it that brings you to the beginning of good King Sombra’s territory? Perhaps to offer your loyalty, and hoof in marriage?” The stallion chuckled as Celestia scowled. “Where is Sombra? Is he suddenly too cowardly to face me, or does he know he lacks the troops to dare fight back against the might I bring to crush him with?” The stallion rubbed his chin. “An interesting thought there. Can the maker of toys truly ever run out of supplies for his customers? Or is the folly in thinking that he has not had the time yet so as to out do the demand?” Celestia grit her teeth as she rose in the air. “And what is that supposed to mean?” He nodded to her, before whistling, and she saw more guards with carts and weaponry begin to climb onto the ramparts. “I’m sorry. It only just occurred to me that I never introduced myself. My name is Night Watch, regent for King Sombra. and the Crystal Empire. I am to run the empire while he is preoccupied.” Celestia’s horn began to glow, as so did the unicorns behind hers did as well. “Do not think you can fool me like that! Sombra would never allow another to rule in his place. Besides, if something did not happen to him, why would you dodge my question?” The stallion tapped his chin, humming to himself. “I suppose you could indeed be right. A thousand years ago, he probably would have killed me for offering my plan. Now though, I get to gleefully watch you squirm as I try not to ruin the surprise.” Celestia’s eyes narrowed, but her horn stopped glowing. While she had come ready for a fight, and part of her was itching at the mockery that was going on before her, she knew that to attack immediately would be to attack blind. He knew something, and she hated that. “What must I do to know of this surprise?” A short bark of laughter escaped Night Watch, before he wiped a tear away. “Wow, you are a delight Celestia. Oh, how I wish I were less loyal than I am, but when a man makes you a king when you were once a petty thief, that’s a bond you have to respect. Sorry, but you will not know the truth, until it’s too late.” She searched his eyes for anything she could use, anything that would break him. His frown gave a hint to his regret to the action, but she had dealt with murderers and thieves, and most of them were hard to break when they talked of bonds. If Sombra had placed him here to stop her, she doubted that anything she could do would ever get him to speak. She turned back to her forces, and cleared her throat. “Magical battalion two through five, get ready to break this barrier!” Night Watch’s shoulders slumped before a sigh escaped his lips. He had hoped to help Sombra find his empire a thousand years ago, but it seemed now that he would never see it. At least I’ll have given him another day to give her Tartarus with. Good luck, my liege. (Three Nights Before) “So, how many?” “About thirty from my count. Do we have the strips?” “That’s too few. We should find a more suitable target. If we’re all making a comeback, I want-” “Shut up Knife! And yeah, we have them. I wish we could equip them better.” “It’ll be fine. Sombra’s enchantments are plenty strong enough, and surprise is the best thing they’ve got.” “Knuckles is right. I just hope Sombra is okay-” The dark brown stallion stopped, with the other five unicorns freezing, looking behind him. There stood a large black stallion, a rune on his chest that barely glowed in the dark. His green eyes shone like small wisps of ghastly flame, and his bared teeth told them all his mood. He looked down to Cloak, the stallion he had stopped from speaking. “Is okay with what?” The stallion backpedaled to his compatriots. While they had vowed loyalty to the shadow king, they knew that things like the illusion he wore to hide his identity and giving up the empire could have done nothing good for his temperament. “With such a small town sir. We won’t have many troops after this.” Sombra shook his head. “We are not looking for troops. We are simply looking for bodies. You all said thirty, correct?” He watched as the one mare nodded. “Good. Each of you can take five with you, while I move on. I could take this whole town in one night if I had to, but that’s only due to my power and familiarity with such magic. You all will need back up, and I want you all to split up from here, understood?’ They all stared at their king for a few moments. They had followed him a thousand years ago expecting to be able to gain loot, protection, and maybe even a title, which would be hilarious to them, as all of them had been some sort of criminal. Now they were being told Sombra didn’t even plan to take these minions away from them. The mare stepped forward, her blood red coat off setting the darkness of the night, while a blue eye shone through her dark green hair. “Sir, are you not furious? This is highly… irregular for you.” He glanced to her, and nodded. “I understand your concern Backstab, and don’t care. You all have your orders, and if you are not acting on them within five minutes, I decide that thirty six soldiers should be a good starting number.” All six of the brigands nodded, feeling much more comfortable with this sort of leadership than the calmer attitude of before. As they ran into the village, leaving the treeline they had been hiding in, Sombra grimaced to himself. It was not for lack of skill in his men. They may have been criminals, but they were some of the best he could find, and as long as they got their pay and power, they were normally happy. At least, a thousand years ago that was how it worked. No, his annoyance came from their worries, for they were correct. He hated this. Every fiber of his being wanted to be on the Crystal Plains, going horn to horn with Celestia. She was his end target, and putting the princess under his hoof was his dream. However, Night Watch had persuaded him to this route, and no matter his misgivings, he knew this was better. If all of Equestria was fighting themselves while being unable to figure out the roaming puppet masters, they would win, and if this gained them victory, he would consider his honor restored. Not this honor, but the honor lost a thousand years ago, and had festered while he had been unable to seek his revenge. Now, he would get it, and use Celestia’s own ponies to do it. Over the next few weeks and months, Sombra’s plan went into full motion. At first, no one noticed the border towns disappearing, and while he would have easily been crushed by the larger Equestrian force, they could never find him. Even when they came over an enslaved pony, nopony could help them, as it was a brand of magic not seen in almost a thousand years. Add to that the soon to be found reports of six Sombras, and it became like finding a needle in a haystack. The problem then went on to become exponential. Just as soon as the Equestrian garrisons and armies were getting untangled and ready to protect their towns, or move to towns where they were likely needed, the bombs on the railroads started going off. Traps placed on the rail lines to destroy them, and making catching up to these small groups next to impossible. And when they were caught, it was not by accident, and they were not small. By six months, half of Equestria was part of the mindless horde, and marching upon the capital, regardless of health, food, or conditions. Sombra did not care about them, as they were not his people. They were a means to an end, and now he could fight beside them, only adding their unstoppable force. Taking the capital was never to be easy though, The pooled forces their fought hard, hiding behind the walls, and trying to keep the creatures on the other side. They could only withstand so many pegasi and unicorns bypassing them, and after six days of valiant defending, Backstab threw open the gates, triumphant, and bowing as Sombra passed her. The throne room’s doors swung open, and Sombra watched from the entrance has the fully armor clad legion that was his own muscled their way in. His enchantments wafted off of their bodies, a black ink that flung into the air as the runes glowed from activation. Not even these were enough to beat Celestia though. The problem was, Sombra didn’t care about beating her, he wanted to control her. He floated one piece of armor up behind her, and clasped the choker around her throat. He smiled, as his royal bitch’s eyes became green.