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// Chapter 16: Unofficial Contract 
// Story: The Company We Keep 
// by Ice Star 
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He met my surprised gaze with his own unamused glare, paired with a disdainful scowl. I noticed that he now had a translucent look about him. He saw this and grimaced slightly.

"How did you get here and when?"

He paused before fiddling with a book in his forehooves. I couldn't make out a title or cover. Then, he finally spoke: "I left the castle after you did, it's as simple as that."

"What is that book?"

"I'll get to that in a minute," he said tersely.

"What makes you think I can trust you on that?" Would it be worth it to leave without the Reflector Star? I don't think so, although, perhaps that book can help. So far, every other little thing appears to help me... or harm me. If I were feeling suicidal I could attempt to steal it from him.

He arched an eyebrow. "Have you ever completely trusted me, in any form, on anything?"

No, you may have been my friend, but you're still a violent loose cannon that often spouts nothing but pure crazy. That craziness may be true sometimes, but I still don't entirely trust you as a friend or as an enemy. There's something about you that's always scared me.

"Yes," I replied with almost as much cool indifference as he had, and find that it's hard for me to muster. "Now, I would like if you told me what you were planning, King Sombra." I stressed his name crisply, like Auntie might, but found that it sounded awkward when I said it.

"Pink One?" Hearing that nickname from him is still unsettling. It was supposed to be kinda sweet, wasn't it? Now it just feels demeaning.

I'm still debating if I should stay and talk to him. "What is it?"

"Don't ever refer to me as 'king' again. I'm not a king, I'm not a ruler, and I never wanted to be."

Oh? Then please tell me why you committed regicide and usurped an entire country. It would certainly clear up a few things, like why you're responsible for the murder of so much of the populace. I personally think you would have made an amazing gardener. You seem to be the kind of guy who likes to be surrounded by flowers. Hey! Maybe you'll work in the garden where I'm a statue forced to bear witness to Opal Charm's rule. I may be skeptical about some of the things you declared, and wholeheartedly believed others, but this has to be the biggest load of nonsense you've ever said. History knows you were a king.

"Okay then, Just Sombra  tell me what you're planning."

He kicked the book over to me and rolled his eyes. "There. That's what you're looking for."

I squinted harder at the book, no wonder I wasn't able to make out the title before - the book was charred and blackened by what must have been a pretty fierce fire. "This is not what I'm looking for."

"'Don't judge a book by it's cover', Isn't that something you ponies like to say? Maybe you should adhere to your foolish words of supposed wisdom, it certainly makes your stupidity much more amusing at times, since ponykind just loathes anything that diverges from the ideals that they'd never admit to."

I flipped open the cover with my hoof and tried to ignore just how wrong his words were. Most of the pages were damaged and missing as well, I'd ask what happened but I don't think he'd tell me. "There's nothing in here, Sombra."

"Another brilliant conclusion by the silly pink princess: The assumption that books only have one page and everything is going to be given to you without even the slightest hint of a challenge. Appearances cannot be deceiving, they are deceiving. Let me know when you write the thesis about your shallow easy-philosophy, I'll be sure to read it with the smuggest possible disgust. No better yet, I'll dictate it entirely and you can be the editor, nopony likes editors like you. I'll even make sure I spell everything atrociously just to give you a harder time then needed, after all, I'm certain that your life is just so easy, little pink throne-warmer."

I successfully ignore him and flip a few more pages of the book and am surprised to see that some of the text is still legible despite all the missing pages that I skim. I imagine that I could still read this another time. When I reach the back cover I notice a strip of indeterminate cloth wrapped around an object that appeared to be about the size of my hoof.

Could it be...? I begrudgingly brought it closer to my face for inspection when I felt a wave of nausea, no doubt an affect of the spell.

Sombra took a few steps forward and wrapped his hoof around the cloth, which canceled the spell. "Don't."

He grabbed it from the air and unwrapped the cloth with magic of his own. His hoof concealed the contents.

"Can I have it, please?"

He continued to withhold the contents and shot me a brief, cold stare. "No."

"Sombra, you were just about to give whatever that is to me! Why did you change your mind?"

"Will you let me heal that?" He nodded towards my cheek where he had hit me, I had almost forgotten about that and felt exposed by him calling attention to it. Would it look weird if I pulled a few curls over it?

"Of course not!" I tugged some of my curls over the mark with a hoof, but it didn't cover the whole thing.

He continued to frown. "Then you won't get this."

"Gods! Sometimes you act like a twisted version of a stereotypical older brother, and a stubborn one at that."

"I don't have any family members," he said flatly.

"Yes, I know you're an orphan."

"I don't have any family members," he repeated dumbly.

"Okay then, so why can't I have the mysterious object you have developed a sudden attachment to?" I held out my hoof in hopes he'd just pass it to me.

"You won't let me heal you, and until you get rid of that magic you won't be able to."

"How I do I know that you won't hurt me? If you haven't noticed you're insane-"

He nodded. "That I am."

"-and not exactly benevolent or trustworthy, even though you're blunter than an oncoming train-"

His left eye twitched. "What the heck is a train?"

I continued on anyway. "-I'm also not sure if you noticed but you're extremely manipulative and sometimes I wonder if-"

Sombra held up a hoof. "As much as it would amuse me to continue to hear you ramble on, I'm going to have to stop you there. I'm not the sort who double crosses simple because I feel contrary, at least, not in these cases. Perhaps I've grown into the habit in the future?"

I shrug awkwardly and he continues. The questions was probably rhetorical anyway.

"You while you are right about me being a manipulator, I have no reason to even attempt to swindle, or be deceptive towards you since you, Pink Princess, have got the upper hoof on this one. I'm a replication of the caster - as well as any mental traumas or other sorts of disorder I would have been experiencing at the time - despite this I cannot come close to doing even half as much magic as the pony I'm based on, being limited to maybe five or so spells that were ingrained in me. I exactly don't care to find out right now. I also am not able to be sustained very well; if I'm not in the location where the spell was cast, which is why I'm quite transparent as of late. Lastly, I should mention that my offer still stands: Let me heal your face and I'll give you this." He tossed the cloth-wrapped whatnot in the air for emphasis.

"Is that some sort of insult?" I asked, kicking lazily at the ground with a forehoof, and feeling a sudden pang for my boots.

He looked up from the parcel, which he had been tossing from forehoof to forehoof while sitting down. The sight reminded me of my home village, Wispgrove, and how my neighbor's cat used to toss toys like that. "No, you're not ugly, just pink. There is a slight difference between the two."

I don't get you, Sombra. "And once more, I'm going to bring up the issue of trust. Even if I let you heal me how do I know that what I'm looking for is in there? It could be a trick."

Sombra raised a hoof to his forehead. "Oh, no! You saw past my most agreeable exterior and have foiled my malicious plans! Whatever shall I do?"

"What!?"

This uncharacteristic dramatic declaration was followed by an expected eye roll. "Obviously I put somepony's kidney in here, Pink One."

"Fine," I snapped - or at least, as well as I could. I've never been a testy or irritable pony.

"I know I am, but I'm also not interested. In anypony. And aren't you married? For shame, Pink One."

Of all the moments to be smug you had to pick now? Sombra, you're exhausting my patience. Plus, I'm wondering  just what would happen if I told you how there was one pony that you were very, very interested in. "I meant that I agree to your terms and conditions."

"I know full well what you meant, although it was remarkably stupid of you to agree without hearing the last part."

There was something else?! "What, do you want me to sell you my soul as well?"

"I can't take souls or make those kinds of bargains, and even though I don't find you particularly intelligent, you have proven yourself far smarter then he was, as easy as that may be." He said 'he' with all the malice and more that I'd expect somepony to reserve for their ex. Or family's killer. Gosh, just what happened to him?

'He', huh? Is this a friend of yours? I think I'll just assume that this 'he' is your friend, or an acquaintance of some sort. Sombra certainly doesn't seem like the type to have old lovers. "So, what is the final part of this lovely bargain I'm making?"

"You have to take that bloody thing out of your left eye."

"Why?"

"You do know what it's doing to you? That amplifies magic, and since you've only got dark magic - which is completely unnatural to you, and when we count in the magic that is natural to you, it becomes downright toxic. That was what was being amplified. Since this particular variety is... umm, well, I won't go into it, details to the demons and all... is corrupting to say the least, you're speeding up a process that would result in the destruction of Pink One as you know yourself, both mentally and physically." 

Huh, that was strange... I always took somepony who made oaths and cursed pretty often, so it's weird that I don't think I've ever heard him say 'demons' before. They're bound to lurk in dark magic, somewhere, aren't they? Ugh, probably should've read up on some folklore during my last trip to Canterlot.

"Sooner or later, you might end up with a horn like mine - one that can properly channel dark magic without any required alterations. In short: you're going from simply injuring yourself to speeding up the process that is causing you to slowly kill yourself-"

"Sombra?" I said, not bothering to try to keep my voice calm.

"Yes?"

"The deal is still on, isn't it?" I squeaked desperately, my voice as small as a filly's

"Most definitely."