//------------------------------// // Prologue: The Corruption of Twilight Sparkle // Story: The Reign of Empress Twilight Sparkle // by Blue Note //------------------------------// Prologue: The Corruption of Twilight Sparkle The streetlamps in Ponyville usually kept the small town relatively well lit on the standard night, but this night was different. The flames seemed to flicker, sending the shadows dancing in the dim light. A small haze from a light drizzle obscured a dark figure moving from shadow to shadow. Glimpses of a grey coat and wild black mane could be seen moving towards Twilight Sparkle’s Friendship Castle. Every once in a while, the shadowed figure would stop and peek through a window in the town. The slumbering town was blissfully unaware of his presence, and the disaster about to befall Equestria was not even tickling their minds. As they slept soundly, the dark figure’s grin broadened. With no witnesses, his job would be a lot easier. King Sombra, formerly of the Crystal Empire, slipped in through the large double doors of the castle. After quickly checking his magically constructed map, he headed in the direction of the room of one Princess Twilight Sparkle. A ghost of a smile played across the dark mages’ lips as he silently slunk towards her bedroom. When he finally came upon it, his mouth cracked into a true grin, his fangs flashing in the dim torchlight. Slowly, he cracked open the door and slipped inside the Princess’ private retreat. Sombra looked inside the darkened room and spotted his prey. Twilight lay, peacefully asleep, unaware of the intruder in her home. Sombra slowly inched his way into the room. Just as he was making decent headway, he tripped on an unseen stack a little ways into the room. A clatter of books startled Twilight out of bed. She immediately cast a Magelight spell in order to see her intruder. Upon seeing Sombra, she immediately hopped out of bed and into a defensive stance. “Sombra? How are you still alive?” she cried. “I am not so easily defeated, little princess.” Sombra smirked. “The Crystal Heart can’t kill me. I will take back my kingdom, and you are going to help me.” “I will never help you! I would never betray Shiny or Cadence like that!” “I’m not saying you have a choice in the matter. Even you cannot escape my influence.” Sombra’s horn produced a black aura, and a red beam shot from his horn straight at Twilight. She hastily erected a shield, but the first beam broke it. Sombra rapidly cast a spell, sending another beam at twilight while she was reeling. When this beam hit her, a pulse of Dark Magic pulsed inside the room. Black smoke crept up Twilight’s figure, soon engulfing the princess. After what seemed an eternity to Sombra, the smoke cleared, revealing Twilight, eyes oozing black smoke and mouth turned up in a wicked grin. Her newly acquired fangs glinted in the light of her spell, and her horn was sharp and curved like a saber. Sombra’s own smile was much the same. He was proud of his handiwork. Corruption, a spell he developed himself, forced his state of corruption on foes of equal or greater power, and an alicorn was the perfect test subject. “Well, I guess you got me, Sombra,” Twilight remarked. She smirked. “Guess we can do something…fun together.” She slid over to Sombra, raising her foreleg to brush her fetlock through his mane. The smug grin Sombra wore faded, replaced with a look of slight confusion. He had designed the spell to make the target evil, but she almost seemed to be coming onto him. With a sudden lurch, Twilight brought Sombra’s lips to hers and darkened her horn. Unaware of what the youngest princess was planning, he found himself drawn into the heat of the kiss. Soon, however, he noticed something wrong: he felt his heart beating faster. Quickly breaking off the kiss, the former king scowled, preparing himself in a defensive stance of his own. Twilight’s wicked grin remained, and she slowly let her magic fade. “Well, I have to give you props. You prevented me from draining you dry. I guess that I will accept you as a subordinate.” Sombra cocked his eyebrow. “Subordinate? I was going to take you as a partner. Why would you think I would let myself be a subordinate?” Twilight laughed. “Simple. You need to get into the empire, and I want power. So, if I get you into the empire, you can help me gain more power. Trust me, I can make it worth your while.” Sombra chuckled. “Very well. If you insist on helping me take over, then I can make you my Queen.” “No. I don’t want to be just a Queen. I will be Empress. I will be the one in control, and you will work for me. If you don’t accept my terms, then I will kill you now and take over myself.” Sombra relented, “Very well. Let’s go.” Twilight’s horn darkened, and she and Sombra vanished into the night. * * * * The sunshine lanced through a crack in Starlight Glimmer’s curtains. With a yawn, she stretched her forelegs and hopped out of bed, ready to start the day. Trudging towards the kitchen, Starlight began to worry. The castle was to quiet. It was one thing if Spike slept in, but usually sounds of Twilight’s cooking could be heard from the kitchen. Today, however, the castle was dead silent. Upon her arrival in the Kitchen, Starlight’s observation was confirmed: no sign of food, coffee, or Twilight. Frowning, she headed off towards the libraries: perhaps Twilight had lost track of time studying in one of them. However, as she passed by Twilight’s room, she felt that something was off. Looking inside, she could feel in her core traces of some foreign magic. Whatever it was, it saturated the room and made her quite uncomfortable. The disheveled bed looked like it had been slept in and left in a hurry. Panicking, Starlight galloped off to the first library. After her tour of the libraries, Starlight’s worst fears were confirmed. Twilight was missing. Whether kidnapped or fleeing, Starlight didn’t know, but she knew that someone needed to know. Just as she was turning around to find Spike, he opened the door. “Hey, Starlight, do you know where Twilight is?”