A King's Return

by Maulkin

10 - Of Learning and Lassitude

“WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!”

Flying is awesome. You can't debate it; flying is simply the best thing there is. Yeah, I had lost my hands in the trade, but let's be honest; hands are overrated. Because fuck the ground, I had clouds.

I flew from one cloud to another, using them as both cover and resting areas, and looked at the suburbs in the distance. It all looked so tiny from up in the clouds, it was hard to imagine I lived down there. Harder still to imagine I could fly right back there without much effort at all. I couldn't hold it in any longer; I laughed with pure joy as I felt as if the sky itself was open to me, as if even the most remote places in the world were within easy reach. The thought of flying across the country on a whim, or even across the ocean and to a whole different continent... The very possibility made me feel drunk. My head was literally and metaphorically in the clouds.

Unfortunately, that would have to wait. It'd taken a bit of cajoling on my part, but I'd managed to convince my parents to smuggle me to some remote and uninhabited mountains for a day or two. They thought it was too risky at first, but finally relented when I told them I'd be going whether they took me or not – I couldn't stay in that house any longer. Being cooped up bothered me even when I had a human body; with the new pegasus body and all the energy and instincts that came with it, I was going crazy. I had to fly; it was a biological imperative, and the longer I ignored it the more irritable and jittery I became. It didn't help that James seemed to be going off the deep end. Seriously, what was with him? He'd always been a bit of a dick, but ever since the transformations he'd gone from “annoying prick” to “antisocial, sociopathic a-hole”.

It might not be all his fault, though, I thought. I'd turned into a pegasus, and while I was still 'me', it still affected my thought processes, mood, and behavior. While I didn't watch the show myself, I knew enough to figure he wasn't wearing a 'normal' unicorn's body. I blushed sheepishly, slowing to a glide as I approached a fresh cloud and landed with a small 'fwomph'. Maybe he wasn't entirely to blame for his sudden craziness; the stress of the past few days must have been getting to him, and if he had some crazy, evil instincts to go on top of that, it could have made him snap like he did. With a wince, I realized I may have been a bit too hasty in bucking him across the face. I'd have to apologize, I realized. That was all there was to it.

Still, no sense worrying about later; it was a beautiful day with some crazy awesome updrafts, and I fully intended to enjoy myself. Let tomorrow worry about itself, I thought, and don't let it poison today's joy. “Roller coasters ain't got nothin' on me!” I cackled to the wind, going into a steep dive and buzzing the treetops, startling a flock of birds into flight as I passed.

I was still grinning like an idiot as I landed in front of my parents a few minutes later, breathing hard but still full of energy. All in all, they were taking things surprisingly well – after the initial shock, they seemed to have mostly accepted that I was still the same person even if I was in a different body. Still, some things never change...

“Stop walking so close to the edge!” my mom said, her teeth grinding in consternation. She hadn't my flight nearly as relaxing as I had, it seemed.

I rolled my eyes. “Oh, right. I could fall off. Then what would I do?” I deadpanned, flapping my wings pointedly. I considered 'accidentally' tripping off and hovering back into view after her inevitable scream, but that would probably be pushing it.

Dad, meanwhile, just chuckled and watched the exchange. While he never – well, rarely ever – did something to freak her out, he'd known about her fear of heights for longer than I'd been alive. “Stop taunting your mom,” he said, carefully keeping his face out of mom's view so she wouldn't see the amused look on it. At least one parent didn't have agoraphobia.

We'd set up camp in the middle of a copse of pine trees near a cliff edge, giving us both privacy and a great view. Anyone looking our direction, if they could even see me against the blue sky, would just assume I was a bird. Open sky, clean air, and privacy – it was the perfect place to camp for a few days while I got used to my new body... and got away from my brother while he worked out just what the hell was wrong with him, and maybe calmed down a bit.

“If you two are done teasing me,” mom said, pouting with exaggerated offense, “we've got dinner to make.”

I'm not going to lie, mom's a great cook. At least, she is when she's not experimenting, but even then it's usually okay. So it came as no surprise when she pulled out a cooler full of various vegetables, as well as a wok and some oil. “I was thinking some sort of Indian stir-fry,” she said proudly, looking through the ingredients. It really, really did sound good, and I certainly could do with a good meal after all that flight practice... which made what I had to do all the harder.

“I don't think I'll be having any,” I sighed, trying not to look too longingly at the food as my pony nose caught the delectable scent.

“What do you mean, dear?” she asked distractedly, setting the wok up over the fire and pouring some oil into it. Damn her and her delicious meals...

I kept my eyes resolutely on her and forced myself to say it. “I've got to get used to foraging for food, because we're probably going to have to live off the land. For a while.”

She stopped, her back towards me. I could hear her breathing heavy, and it broke my heart when her voice choked. “Y-you can't seriously think of going after him... That's suicide! Please, you're still happy and alive, this can still work! We'll take you flying every week – no, every day!” she said, finally turning to me, her face the picture of a mother's misery.

Oh crap. She was crying. Fuck fuck fuuuck... I felt like the world's biggest asshole as I forced myself to keep going. “I know, but we're not the only ones he's done stuff to – there are innocent people all over the country – all over the world, maybe – who are in the same position, and we need to find them and group up so we can beat him. We have to find him, and somehow make him turn us and everyone else back. I know, it's risky... But I can't just live like this forever. I can't get a job like this, and I can't keep living off your charity. Please mom, please don't cry...” Dammit, it's not fair, she can't cry, that's emotional blackmail... I completely deny any and all allegations that I was crying – my eyes were just watery from the propane fire's smoke.

I am eternally grateful for what my dad did next. While mom tried to come up with some excuse to make me stay, he stepped in and hugged her from behind. “Honey, it's okay... It's his decision to make, and for what it's worth, I think he's right. He can't live like this forever; it wouldn't be right for him or us. And he can't just ignore people that need his help. It's not in his nature.”

I stood there awkwardly for the next few minutes while he calmed her down and reassured her that everything would be alright, and that we wouldn't be going it alone, etcetera etcetera ad nauseam.

When dad finally managed to get mom calmed down, she gave me a sheepish smile. “I still don't want you to go,” she said candidly, “but... it's your decision to make. Just, please be careful? It won't do anyone any good if you...”

“It's alright,” I mumbled, more somber than I ever remember being. “If it's too dangerous, we'll back out and try something different. You didn't raise fools, mom.”

Alright, fine, I'll admit it; when she hugged me, I may have hugged her back. Just a little bit. Still, it went better than I expected – there was no yelling and no harsh words were exchanged, so all in all I think it went well.

When we'd all calmed down and talked it out, everyone felt a bit better. Mom still didn't like it, no matter what I said, but at least she understood my reasons and respected my choice. Dad didn't see many other options, so he accepted my decision as informed and reasonable. It was settled; I'd rough it out in the wilderness and try to see if I could live off the land, camping out in a tent with basic survival equipment. I tried to insist on staying on my own out there while they went back home, but they had a point; if I caught some sort of parasite or other illness, or was attacked, I had no way to contact anyone – thumbs were a prerequisite for using a cell phone. So, they'd be camping nearby while I tried to live off the land. Also, it had other benefits...

“Oh!” mom said, giving a giggle as she wiped the last of the tears away, “I forgot! I made a pie for dessert... I don't suppose you'll be wanting any, though. I'm sure you'll find some nice berries.” She smiled sweetly, and started putting the pie back in the cooler.

Oh that evil, wonderful woman.

I regarded the pie with eyes like saucers, snapping my mouth shut so I didn't dribble all over the ground. Was that... was that crumble on top? And she – no, no, that's not fair! She brought ice cream too! Oh that was low...

“...Just one slice,” I mumbled weakly, folding like wet newspaper.

An hour, two thirds of a pie and half a pint of vanilla ice cream later, I slumped to the ground with a grateful burp and fell into the warm embrace of sleep.

***

It was a good thing Luke left; if he hadn't, James would have undoubtedly been clocked out twice in as many days. The way things were going, I wasn't sure I wouldn't have done it myself!

'No, that's not right,' I chided myself. 'Forgive him, he's probably just stressed. Give him a bit of time, and he'll come around. We can work this out together. We've been friends for years, and he may be a stubborn ass sometimes but he always comes through.'

I lifted a hoof to my chest, breathing in deeply as I reviewed all I'd done. Maybe I'd been too hard on him, but what was done was done; all I could do now was wait, and hope he would calm down. Satisfied I'd done all I could, I let it go. I exhaled, releasing with it all the stress and worry I'd been feeling over it, and set my hoof firmly on the ground. It was in God's hands, and I just had to have faith that He would take care of it. Satisfied, I went on to the next order of business; getting a handle on this whole magic situation.

I was torn; magic was something that was condemned by the Bible, so I'd been raised to believe. But the practices referred to in the Bible called upon 'familiar spirits' and other entities to do one's bidding, or involved ritualistic sacrifices, or acting as mediums, or other sinful or spiritually dangerous activities. I did a bit of research, and the magic in the show didn't seem to include any of that – shoot, it didn't even use badly mangled latin like in Harry Potty. It seemed that a unicorn (or alicorn) just concentrated and poured some sort of 'energy' into their horns to make stuff happen – like they had the natural ability to manipulate some unknown form of energy. In short, there didn't seem to be anything in the occult to it, nor demons, or anything spiritually dangerous. It seemed like Equestria just operated on a different set of rules than Earth, rules which included the manipulation of unknown forms of energy.

What made up my mind for me was my friends. We'd all decided we were going to try to fight this 'Discord' character, whoever he was, however powerful he was. I couldn't hold a gun, not without heavy modification, and there was no guarantee a gun would even work against something like him. No... I needed magic. I needed to stand with my friends and be able to defend them. What he could do, I had to be able to undo; what he severed, I had to be able to mend. I had to be able to stand up against the enemy that 'prowled like a lion, seeking whom he may devour'. I wished there was another way, but it was the only tool at my disposal.

Still, I prayed – for protection against evil spirits, for guidance in following God's will, for wisdom in knowing what I would NOT do. Some of what I could do might have been innocuous, yes – levitating objects, creating light, igniting things, etc – but what they showed in the children's show probably wasn't the extent of what magic could do. There could very well be ways to use magic that weren't right under any circumstances, things which stained a person's soul... Perhaps irredeemably. I shuddered at the thought. Those things I would not do, could not do, no matter how desperate the situation. With that in mind, I set off to practice.

I stepped out back, intent on training in the peace and tranquility of the morning sun, but a snore from the garden told me I wasn't alone. There, in the shadow of the eaves, was James. Sleeping on a pile of rocks, rather than a bed, like a slumbering dragon. Ooookay. Odd choice of bedding aside, I neither wanted to wake him from his peaceful sleep nor did I want to talk to him right at that moment. I'm not proud of it, but I was still frustrated with him. So, with a sigh, I trotted quietly back into the house to practice in the living room.

Magical exertion, I learned, could be just as tiring as physical exertion. The bucket of bagged water I tried to levitate strained my limits, and it took me several tries to even get it off the ground. By the end of the practice session, though, I had managed to lift it clear above my head. I felt much more tired, yes – but I could also tell I was getting better at it. I grinned triumphantly at the bucket, wiping a trickle of sweat from my brow, and lifted it once more. I was definitely stronger than I had been just minutes before. Perhaps the rules of the magical weren't so different from the rules of the physical world.

Still, I was exhausted. I needed sleep. No, I needed to shower, THEN sleep. And perhaps a snack... Cake sounded delicious. That must be why Auntie liked it so much, if she exerted herself like this every day just to raise the sun-

I caught myself in the thought, confused, and laughed. 'I must really be tired,' I thought, amused as I trotted into the shower and turned on the water. 'I really thought Celestia was my aunt, for a moment there!'

One hour, relaxing shower, and slice of leftover cake later, I climbed into my clean bed and fell into a calm, pleasant dream.

***

“Nyaaargh... What the fuck.” I opened my eyes, feeling as tired as I had when I went to sleep earlier that morning. It was late in the afternoon, and the sun was in my eyes. Stupid sun. Stupid Discord. Or, rather, 'Discord' with air quotes. 'Stupid insane bastard who just thinks he's Discord but actually isn't because he's stupid and insane' just didn't roll off the tongue right.

I laid on the pile of milky quartz, trying to bully my brain into full wakefulness. As much as the sun smarted my eyes, it did help make me alert. It wasn't long before I could contemplate the vision – dream meeting? pain in the ass clusterfuck? – and break it down.

Okay, so, he thought I was really Sombra. Well, that might have been useful, if he was afraid of Sombra, but clearly he wasn't. To him, I was apparently just another toy for his amusement. My nostrils flared and my eyes narrowed at the thought. Well. We'd just have to prove him wrong. Before we killed him, of course. There was no way we'd ever let him live, not after what he'd done to... To us. And all those other people, of course. My own grievances weren't even a factor! No, we had to kill him for the good of everyone.

I considered that line of thought. I'd never killed someone before, though the thought of killing 'Discord' didn't really disturb me. Still, I'd thought about it on a technical level. Toxins, explosives, shrapnel, blades, traps, good ol' fashion guns... If it were an ordinary person we had to kill, it wouldn't be very difficult – especially with magic. But we weren't trying to kill an ordinary person; we were trying to kill someone who was more magically powerful than we were, and, while mad, was apparently quite crafty and devious. Even if we could try every method at our disposal at once, while he least expected of it, his death wasn't assured. We simply didn't know enough about him, or if he could even be harmed by conventional attacks. No... We needed magic. Something he wouldn't expect – or at least something he couldn't easily counter.

'What does a man who fancies himself a Draconequus fear?' I asked myself, deep in thought. Sanity, stoicism, logic? Obedience? Law and justice? There was a tingling at the back of my head, the words seeming to glow like neon in my mind's eye. But no... It was something else. Those were all part of something... larger. Grander. And then the epiphany struck me; what an agent of chaos fears is order. The very thought sent a shiver down my spine, the concept seeming to fit perfectly. It was like... Like I was born into order. Like I was made for it. I suddenly felt a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach; that wasn't the first time I'd had those thoughts. Those dreams with the black unicorn, with the Sombra analogue, how...

No. That was nonsense. I wasn't 'born into order', I just had an ordered mind. Yes, if I were a Dungeons and Dragons character, I'd definitely be on the lawful end of the spectrum – so? Lots of people are naturally more 'ordered' than others, just as some people are more chaotic. It meant nothing; they were just dreams, just random bits and bobs from my subconscious arranged by my unconscious mind into a coherent narrative. They were nothing more than that, and they certainly weren't proof that I was Sombra.

Still... I had his body. That meant I probably had a measure of his power – and if it took the elements of harmony to defeat him, he was almost certainly a powerful unicorn. I grinned at the thought. The body might be strange, but I could certainly appreciate the power that came with it.

“Let's see what this horn can do,” I practically purred, looking for something upon which I could inflict as much damage as possible. Ah – a spare cinderblock, no doubt left over from some backyard project or another. Sturdy, solid, resistant to heat and corrosion and all manner of physical harm... Perfect!

First, the heat. Levitation was alright, but it wouldn't cause any direct damage. The odd spell I'd cast a few days prior was promising, though; direct thermal damage was a possible avenue of attack, and if I could do it suddenly and powerfully enough I might have even been capable of small explosions. The difference between a block of candle wax and a jug of gasoline, after all, was mostly in the time it took to burn.

Remembering back to the time I accidentally cast that spell, I tried to get back into the same frame of mind. I was... frustrated. Angry, even. Well, that was easy enough – I was certainly frustrated and angry right then, at least a little. All I had to do was 'feed the fire', as it were.

I glared at the piece of masonry as if it'd done me some grievous personal ill, and concentrated on directing the flow of magic at the rock. At the same time, I thought of that vile, cackling, unsymmetrical face. How he taunted, how he laughed... How he hurt me. How he inflicted this curse on me.

How I'd make him hurt worse than he'd hurt me.

That did it; I felt the flow surge, no longer like a trickle of water but like an arc of plasma, a jet of flame. I watched in satisfaction as a spot on the rock started to sizzle and smoke, slowly turning cherry red. Hrrmm... Still a small spot. Not much bigger than a silver dollar. 'Pathetic,' I thought in disgust. 'Sombra, your body's capable of much more than that!'

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I screwed up my face, and imagined I was using the spell on 'Discord' himself. I imagined him screaming in agony as I sent a dart of pure heat through his heart, killing him... The spell grew stronger. The spot had grown to the size of a grapefruit, the center starting to sag and bubble as it turned to molten slag. Still... I could do better.

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I imagined him begging for mercy, pleading for his life. I imagined my satisfaction as I ignored those pleas, and instead started burning him alive, piece by piece. I relished the thought of his anguished cries of pain, his unbearable suffering as he was under my complete and total control... The spell grew stronger still. Much stronger. The torrent of magic filled the air, flowing through me and out of my horn, leaving a scar in the air itself as it shrieked towards the stone like a demon. Most of the brick's surface was glowing white hot, and I had to step back before my mane caught fire.

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“Shut UP!” I shouted, turning and glaring at the bird, furious that it would dare to interrupt my practice. I locked my eyes on the infernal little beast and saw it for a single moment. Then it exploded in a puff of feathers and flame. Shocked, I watched the glowing embers and chunks fall to the ground and cool, the only remains of the tiny singing bird.

I stared at it for a moment, the flow of magic slowing to a stop as the chunks and feathers cooled. “...Well,” I mumbled, “that was interesting...”

Note to self; don't get distracted while casting a powerful spell. And definitely don't change your focus.

Still, it was overall a successful test; much of the brick's surface still glowed slightly, even in the sunlight, while what remained looked like the remains of a lava flow. I had plenty of power, it seemed – I didn't know the exact amount of power necessary to raise a cinderblock's temperature to melting point, but I was sure it was quite high – and all it took to unleash it was... Was hate. Pure, unbridled hatred, and a will to utterly destroy. I wondered briefly what a good idea it was to perform hate-based magic, but dismissed it. Power was power; I had to use what I had, and that 'thermal-destruction' was the only offensive one I had at my disposal.

I wasted no time spraying the block and the errant birdy-cinders down with a hose – that much heat could cause a fire, and though I was still annoyed with Mary I had no intention of burning down her house. Then I grinned – Mary would definitely want to learn that spell! Who wouldn't? I could melt things with my mind. I don't care who you are, that's awesome. I started trotting to the house, head held high with the new accomplishment, proud to share my knowledge with other, less talented people...

...And promptly face-planted, my legs not obeying me. I flopped down on my side, panting and gasping for breath as I realized just how much that spell had taken out of me. My vision blurred as my heart gave slow, weak beats. I belatedly realized how close I'd come to killing myself from the exertion. I shuddered, wondering what would have happened if I'd tried for more...

Yeah... I wasn't getting up anytime soon. I laid there on the dirt, trying to steady my breathing as my heart beat fitfully, the edges of my vision dark. I needed rest. I needed it right then and there. Even as I felt hunger start to gnaw my insides, I closed my eyes and let go. One minute, a trembling breath and a feeble cough later, I sunk to the ground and fell into a deep, dark oblivion.

***

One by one we realized we were once more aware and conscious. One by one we looked around and found ourselves in a shimmering glade woven of starlight and aurora borealis, glimmering under the bright summer moon. One by one we saw her, in all her majestic glory; the monarch of the strange neverthere of dreams, the Princess of the Night. She regarded us imperiously, and we each instinctively knew that her will was supreme in the world where we were only transient guests.

“We need to talk,” she said curtly.

Author's Note:

Updated this, too. Again, not much to change.

Comments

[TheMainManeMaineBrony]

Well, that escalated quickly.

[Flash_Magnus]

This is getting interesting.

[Steelclaw]

Great chapter, though I suggest inserting a solid line or something to show where the scene changes. It was a bit confusing when everyone here is written in the first person perspective.

[Maulkin]

3538168

Ah, thanks! I included them in the document, but I guess they didn't save as '***'s.

[yrfoxtaur]

poor burd.

man sombra!james is super messed up. He should go read that CS Lewis book some more.

[ABitterPill]

Well, I've read the two "Sombra" Five Score takes I'm aware of, and I gotta say I like this one far more. The pacing of this one is better, the reactions of characters involved seem better to me.

It's been enjoyable to read and I look forward to seeing it update again.

[Maulkin]

3688048
Awww, thanks! Yeah, Christmas and final exams have kicked my plot and devoured my time, fortunately things are calming down now. I've got a good portion of a new chapter written up, but I'm not sure I'm happy with it. I'll be taking a fresh look on Sunday, and pruning and/or building upon as necessary.

[JustFin]

Wow, "Sombra" is getting more evil by the minute, and not even realizing it. I wonder if they can get him back to "sanity" , if at all.