My Little Pony, Friendship is Magic: Stallion Edition

by SuperPinkBrony12

Chapter 58: Reunion and Research

Shining Armor slowly opened his eyes, struggling to adjust to the light. As he did so, he could hear the voices of some of his friends, albeit faintly.

"Hey, guys, I think he's finally waking up!" Braeburn called eagerly.

"Oh thank goodness, I was starting to worry that he'd never come around." Thunderlane replied.

"It's a miracle he's still alive, I thought for sure Sombra would've killed him by now." Soarin commented.

At last, Shining Armor's eyes adjusted to the bright light, and he saw that he was resting in a bed within the confides of the Crystal Castle. All of his friends were standing by his bedside, and if the looks on their faces were anything to go by, they had been worried sick.

"Hey there, sleepin' beauty," Big Macintosh teased "Finally decided to wake up did ya?"

"I must say, you have quite the tendency to make us worry. Your sister could barely focus on her job after you rushed off and took on Sombra all by yourself," Fancy Pants commented "You're lucky to be alive. If some of the crystal ponies hadn't found you lying in the road in the middle of the empire, I shudder to think what might have happened."

"Sorry I made you worry, guys," Shining Armor apologized "But King Sombra was closing in fast, I knew I had to do something to fend him off."

"Well, at least you'll be happy to hear that Cadence was able to put up a dome around the entire empire. As long as it's in place, Sombra can't set hoof in here, unless he wants to be destroyed." Soarin told Shining Armor.

Shining Armor turned his head slowly, and looked out the window. Sure enough, he could see a bright glowing dome outline that covered the entire empire. But it seemed to occasionally fade for a second, revealing an outside world that looked void of all life, and consumed by darkness.

"Why does the dome look like it's struggling to stay up?" Shining Armor asked.

"Princess Cadence has been using her magic to help spread light and love throughout the empire," Thunderlane explained "At least, that's what she told us. But it's putting quite the strain on her, she hasn't been able to rest, and barely eats and drinks."

"I've got to help her! Shield spells are my speciality!" Shining Armor said heroically, and tried to light up his horn. But he failed to produce even a few faint sparks, and it was now that he became aware of a great pressure emanating from his horn, as if something were stuck to it.

"Ah yes, I was just about to mention that," Fancy Pants commented, and showed Shining Armor a mirror that looked at his horn in greater detail "It seems Sombra left you with a small 'souvenir' of your encounter."

Shining Armor looked in the mirror, and nearly gasped in shock at what he saw. Several small black crystals clung tightly to his horn, thus preventing him from doing much of anything with it.

"Those crystals have made it impossible for you to perform any sort of magic," Fancy Pants explained in a glum tone of voice "As long as they're in place, your magical capabilites are useless."

"Is there any good news?" Shining Armor asked his friends.

"Well, your sister and her friends managed to talk with some of the crystal ponies while you were out cold," Braeburn spoke up "They didn't uncover much, King Sombra seems to have erased most of their memories from before his time. But they did learn from one pony about a library, and Twilight came by just a short while ago to mention that's where she'd be."

"A library? Sounds like as good a place as any to do some research into the empire's past," Shining Armor said, as a smile appeared on his face "You guys see if you can't pry anymore information from the Crystal Ponies. I'll head over to the library, and assist Twilight and her friends with their research. Hopefully, we'll uncover something useful."

"Just don't try to do too much at once," Thunderlane warned "You've been out of comission for quite a while, it may take time for your body to fully recover. Don't overtax yourself."

"I won't, I can promise you that much." Shining Armor replied.

"Then, I guess we'll be going. See you around." Soarin called, and he, Thunderlane, Braeburn, Big Macintosh, and Fancy Pants all left the room.

---

"How very wise of you to send your friends away," a fiendish voice echoed from afar "You wouldn't want them to be around when they discovered that the crystals have not completely restricted all of your magical capabilites."

Shining Armor looked all around, but he couldn't see anyone besides himself. Even so, he knew who the voice belonged to. "Where are you, Sombra?! Show yourself if you're not afraid!"

"I don't have to show myself to the likes of you, at least not while that dome your wife has cast remains in place," King Sombra chuckled fiendishly "But thanks to those crystals I planted on your horn, you are a part of me. I can come and go as I please."

"Then leave now!" Shining Armor demanded "You will NEVER control me! Just as you will never get your greedy hooves on this empire!"

"Oh, I think you'll find that I don't need to even lift a hoof to reclaim what is rightfully mine," King Sombra taunted "I just need to wait until that pathetic excuse for a princess you call your wife runs out of energy. When she can no longer maintain that dome, I will swoop in, and capture the empire without breaking a sweat. And there's nothing you can do to stop me!"

"Big words coming from somepony who has to constantly hide behind shadows and spells!" Shining Armor said angrily, before he suddenly felt a great burning sensation well inside his forehead. He squinted, and tried in vain to prevent what happened next. His eyes became a sickly green in color, as his horn sparked violently with an alternating green and purple aura. Fortunately, the show faded as quickly as it had arrived.

King Sombra laughed "Do you see now, Shining Armor? You can still cast dark magic. Either at will, or on my command. Lucky for you, I can't maintain this mental link all the time. Every second I stay inside you, is a second that my body starts to decay. If I remain in your mind for too long, my body shall fade away completely. So, I must be going. But don't worry, I know for a fact that we will speak again." And with that, King Sombra's voice slowly disappeared, but not without one final evil laugh.

---

Shining Armor shook his head, and took off for the library as fast as he could "I've got to find some way to ensure King Sombra can't reclaim the empire," he thought to himself "I just hope my mental defenses are able to keep Sombra's influence to a minimum until then."

Comments

[kahnac]

Always love the hero/villain dynamic which involves the villain getting inside the heroes head, and continuously taunting them. Trying to break their spirits, and ensure they're easier to kill. You already make Shining Armor more awesome than he was before by writing this series. But i'm alot more happy seeing the potential of a growing rivalry between him, and King Sombra. For some reason, I always feel like those two would make excellent archenemies.:)

[Yoshifan30]

dang I just notice something during this story Shining armor Always get his mind control alot No wonder he so over the edge right now