King Sombra’s dark influence was obliterated by the Crystal Heart, and the villain is well and truly dead. But when he attempts to steal the afterlife of an innocent victim, a human spirit is left hurtling towards Equestria, where this unfortunate soul is revived into the only vessel available: the reconstituted body of King Sombra himself.

Thus, a cheerfully oblivious alien is crammed into the form of the most evil and malicious being Equestria has ever known. Not that Shining Armor and Cadence know this, of course. As far as they are concerned, the King is back and he’s lost his fricking mind.

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In which Cadance I of the Restored Empire is given a very unusual Hearth's Warming gift.

Now with a Spanish translation by the gracious SPANIARD KIWI!

Bit is the first of her kind, a pony that was made from carved crystal and supernal circuitry. For many years she worked, obedient to the will of her master in endless repetition. She knew nothing else, not boredom, not satisfaction from her work, not anger or resentment or joy. Existence was obedience to directive, purpose fulfilled.

But around her, the world was changing. Her home wasn't Equestria, but the last surviving Crystal City, defiant to the Windigos and the imperial decree of Alicorns alike. She did not know, and could not care, how much the ponies of Zircon suffered under the rule of their king. But she was there the day those whispers united in a defiant chorus.

When the fires were still smoldering, she returned to her work. Generations came and went, and still she labored. It was all she was, all she knew, all she wanted. Until the day her last broom broke.

For the first time in her existence, Bit doubted.

Daily for the first four days, because Christmas. Updates Thursdays after that. Edited by Two Bit and Sparktail. Cover by Zutcha.

A story about finding the center of the maze.

Aphid is a changeling, stuck in a cage in a circus sideshow. Azure Blue is a colt from the Crystal Empire, the heir of a wealthy family... and looking to make a purchase.

There are some things money can't buy. A changeling's freedom should be one of them...

Cover Art Provided By Pen Mightier.

Pandinus Imperator (You can call him Pan, he won't mind) is knocked back in time during the Canterlot Invasion, and accidentally kills King Sombra on arrival. Instead of being executed, the changeling is surprised to find himself being hailed as a hero, and is promptly put on the throne as the new monarch, the Crystal Emperor. However, Pan now faces a great many problems, among them Celestia and Luna, who seem certain that the changeling is secretly up to no good, as well as several political factions secretly plotting to undermine his reign. There's also the tiny problem of the constant snowstorm that threatens to cut the city off from the outside world permanently.
The Crystal Ponies need a hero now more than ever before. Why did they get a changeling instead?

We Has A TvTropes.

While not truly a part of Bucking Nonsense's Changeling-Verse, the same rules regarding changeling abilities and society apply.

Cover image provided by gabapple, used with permission.

Sombra was not always the heartless ruler that ruled the Crystal empire with an iron hoof. He once had friends, a home, a lover...
But his thirst for knowledge and power led him down a dangerous road.

By chance or the powers that be, Sombra is deemed worthy of a second chance to correct a thousand year old mistake. History ignores intentions however, only recording actions. Can Sombra find a way to bring peace to his heart and those he cares for, or will the darkness from his past consume him?

Image, story idea and OC used with permission.
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Inspired by StasySolitude's animation. (Watch to provide a bit of clarity/backstory!)
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Art by StasySolitude for this fic;
Chapter 8 Picture:
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There are rules for surviving in the Crystal Empire. Shining Facet knows them well, and only hopes her daughter can learn quickly. After all, they say that things are different now—but sometimes it takes more than flugelhorns and crystal-berries to heal old wounds.

Placed 2nd at the Write-Off round The Morning After

Edited by Dubs Rewatcher

Feeling broken and defeated, Trixie Lulamoon leaves behind the Country of Equestria, and all of the ponies within it that don't want her there, in search of a new land that she may either call her home, or her final resting place.

She discovers the Crystal Empire, and to her shock, the ponies there aren't nasty, hateful creatures, but are actually kind, and welcoming to this new Unicorn stranger in their land. Appletini and Azure Eminence offer to help Trixie in rebuilding her career, and promise that she doesn't have to go back home if she doesn't want to, and the broken Unicorn slowly begins to feel right at home in this new land.

Hearth's Warming Eve is supposed to be a happy event—Cadance knows this, but all she ever feels is lonely. Now, with Shining Armor gone and a freak snowstorm battering her kingdom, it's up to Cadance to salvage the holiday and teach her crystal ponies to care for one another.

A story about finding your family, on the coldest night of the year.
— Featured on Equestria Daily

This story is a sequel to How Much Is Freedom Worth?

Aphid, a changeling, is now free of the cage that held her, and the life she'd been forced to live as part of the changeling swarm. Employed now as a maid for the family that helped free her, she struggles to understand something that she's never had before...
Freedom.
But the past has a strange habit coming back to haunt us, and it seems as if every employee in the Mason de Bleu has a secret... including Howe, the changeling who serves as the head butler.

Cover Art Provided By Pen Mightier