The Tragedy of Prince Sombra

by LayTheBlackToRest

Almost like Shakespeare

Author's Note:

The following is an alternative account of the how King Sombra came to be. I hope this history adds depth to what little is known of or heard from Sombra in the show. This account lends itself to elements of the “Fall of the Empire” storyline being developed by Silly Filly Studios (http://www.youtube.com/user/SillyFillyStudios), but is in no way tied to their production. It has simply been a source of inspiration.
At this time, I do not intend to use this alternative historical account to develop a fanfic. Anypony may use this story for the purposes of their own writing. Just toss a note in the summary for credit for any inspiration :)
No, I have not read any Sombra fics yet, so I have no idea if the main idea behind this story has already been done. This idea simply stuck me while heavily dosed on klonopin. Criticism is good!

By all means, if it turns out I have simply rehashed someone else's idea, let me know either I will give credit or simply delete this.

Enjoy these anti-depressant ramblings!

Dear Princesses Celestia, Luna, and Twilight Sparkle,

Life in the Crystal Empire continues to be a joyful experience and my visit to Ponyville with Princess Twilight gave me new energy to take on a new project. It is on this matter that I have decided to write to you all. The crystal ponies know little of their own history and I believed it would be worthwhile to begin preliminary work for them to rediscover the wealth of their past. I will, of course, soon help the crystal ponies publish professional volumes of my research. Early editions will be forwarded to the Ponyville library ;)

Yet I must concede I wish to hear your input before announcing my work to the rest of the Crystal Empire. Even Shining Armor, as directly honest as he is, considers it best for the well-being of Equestria.

I have yet to begin arranging my work into appropriate volumes, so I have included copies of an entry to my journal summarizing the tale I realized during my studies. I apologize in advance for the prose in my entry; I was thinking of it as something of a rough draft and I hope this does not harshly bring back bad memories. I imagine it must be strange to read about oneself in such a setting.

I look forward to hearing your thoughts.
With much love,

Princess Cadence

Enclosure:

From the journal of Princess Cadence of the Crystal Empire,

One must wonder how Princess Celestia, millennia old, could know so little of the Crystal Empire, save for being weary of its return. Even the Princess of the Night knew the rise of the Empire to its former glory could not be permitted. As a source of love and prosperity, the Crystal Empire could only be an asset to all of Equestria, yet both Princesses knew of some associated element to dread: The unicorn whose heart was a black as night.

I, Princess Cadence, now of the Crystal Empire, have researched all I can to explore the history of the Crystal Empire to help bring it a cultural identity. During King Sombra’s resurgence, Twilight discovered hidden regions within the Crystal palace. After careful exploration, I found endless rooms of tomes which contain records and accounts from the far past, beyond anything available in the Crystal Empire’s libraries. What I have found is that the rise of the Crystal Empire is inseparable from the arrival of the unicorn whose name is now said with distain.

Who, however, was King Sombra? Princess Celestia could admit to Shining Armor and myself, and later to Twilight that there was little she knew of the Empire itself, so how much could she have known about the origins of King Sombra? What I have inferred from my readings has woven a tale that rivals the tragedy of Nightmare Moon.

King Sombra was not always the dreadful tyrant that legends foretold. The Crystal Empire did not always have the Crystal Heart as its beacon of hope, love, and prosperity. Before the grand city of the Crystal Empire was built, the crystal ponies struggled to develop the sustainability of their community. The windigos, after all, naturally inhabit the North. One day, a unicorn arrived to their town, downtrodden and weakened by a harsh life. Sombra’s contributions to the community lead to his popular appointment to the title of Prince of the Crystal Ponies. Driven by new enthusiasm, everypony began to restructure their town to an organized and beautiful city, serving as a symbol of the power of good will towards all. It was Prince Sombra’s fair rule that brought the Crystal Empire to greatness.

However powerful a unicorn he came to be, however, Prince Sombra remained nonetheless a mortal unicorn. With the consultation of his advisors, it was decided that a solution was to be sought for the long-term betterment of the Empire. Prince Sombra’s good heart would inevitably perish if it remained tied to his mortal form, but if it could be made into an external force, then the Empire might permanently keep its loving nature.

For the sake of his subjects whom had turned his entire life around, Prince Sombra urged his advisors to research any form of magic they could to make the Empire’s stance as a beacon of hope last, eventually drifting to the realm of darker magics.
A solution was indeed found, appropriately reflective of the Prince’s precise objective. The Prince’s heart would be made externally tangible and permanent. In repayment for the new life the crystal ponies gave him and the fostering of his loving heart, Prince Sombra would sacrifice the power his grown heart had attained. In honor of his ponies, this new artifact would become the Crystal Heart. The cooperation of his advisors demonstrated further led him to believe that his rule over the Crystal Empire was no longer necessary. After the creation of the Crystal Heart, Prince Sombra intended leave his position as Prince behind and help manage the formation of a democratic republic. After the new government was established, Sombra would be free to live a complete and happy life in a generously offered estate.

With the course set, Prince Sombra and the most powerful of the crystal ponies gathered to use their combined magic to synthesize the Crystal Heart from the beloved Prince. As fate would soon have it, dark magic should never be underestimated…
The creation of the Crystal Heart was the only good that came from the magical genesis, and as it would later prove, a costly good. What occurred had two notable effects. The best of the crystal ponies were extremely weakened by the event and most shut themselves off to extensive magic, fearing being near-impossibly drained ever again. The effect on Prince Sombra was far more significant and tragic.

It seems to have been thought that only the sheer power of Prince Sombra’s heart would go into the Crystal Heart. Instead, the dark magic involved took all. What remained in the now-broken Prince was a void of good, ripe for dark magic to twist into cruelty and malice. Prince Sombra was left with a drive to achieve, but no direction for anything other than darkness, the only thing he now knew. With any strong opposition disposed from shaping the Crystal Heart, it did not take long for the corrupted Prince to ensnare and consolidate the Crystal Empire. The Crystal Heart he kept, lest he face the possibility of being usurped, and Sombra redefined himself as King of the Crystal Empire. Steering the King’s mind was to ensure control of what was his. HE built this Empire and none should pose a threat to taking what was his. The King enchanted his subjects slaves; should any thought of rebellion begin to percolate, their minds would be wiped.

It took the intervention of Princess Celestia and Princess Luna to overcome King Sombra, who banished his dissociated self to the barren ice of the artic north. Unlike their overthrow of the God of Chaos, it appears that was a new form of combat for them; they faced not free chaos, but malicious and powerful evil. Chaos merely serves as the antithesis of the order necessary to sustain a good world beneficial to joyful life. Evil, however, demonstrates spite and absolute control over all within its grasp. Discord’s power was always undefined. It roams freely, tending towards destruction but not purposefully (unless Discord himself acts it). King Sombra’s power was purposeful and gave him the will to dominate all life.

Both the Solar and Lunar Princesses indeed knew little of the Crystal Empire; I believe they had merely responded to outlying news that sometime was amiss in the North. I imagine neither forgot the battle with Sombra after they returned to their kingdom. Some lore professes that King Sombra somehow corrupted Princess Luna and catalyzed her later transformation to Nightmare Moon. If such were true, why could Princess Celestia not have been corrupted instead, or as well? As the elder sister, if the evil within Sombra sought power, the Solar Princess would be most promising.

As the years since the defeat of King Sombra past, most forgot the Crystal Empire even existed, save for the Princesses of Equestria. The lack of love for her devotion to creating beautiful nights for her subjects nurtured bitterness within Princess Luna. As perceived rejection grew to cloud Princess Luna’s mind, the Lunar Princess perhaps could not help but recall the battle with King Sombra. The purpose behind which he commanded his power surely meant that mastering one’s own darkness could bring the Princess focus and strength worthy of the love of her subjects.

History, from there, is already known… I must admit I am troubled and saddened by the culmination of my endeavors to know the history of the Crystal Empire. The tale of Nightmare Moon has always been a tragic one in Equestria history, but who knew that King Sombra’s could, perhaps, be even more heart wrenching. I do not think I will ever be able to look at the Crystal Heart the same way again. I am unsure what I am to do with my historical thesis now.

Comments

[kniznik]

Good read, but why does it say incomplete? The story seems complete as it told us the story of prince Sombra. Wonder what has yet to come.
Poor Sombra. Luna gets redemption, Discord gets a second chance and reformation. All Sombra got is to be blown to kingdom come.

[LayTheBlackToRest]

4030173 If inspiration strikes me again, I might elaborate on Cadence's findings; perhaps write about Sombra's tale before he found the crystal ponies (or anything along those lines). I'm not the best with establishing dialogue between characters, so if I flush out this story it will be in similar form as this journal entry.

[Harmony Charmer]

Oh my, Gosh, I love this! I live how you decided not shove Nightmare's creation with Sombra's backstory; little been there, done that, ya know?

And the fact that it was Cadence who found the records make it all the more powerful, but she gets to learn from the primary source, rather than someone who already found it~

[Starlight131]

bad story

[LayTheBlackToRest]

4049368 How so?

[LayTheBlackToRest]

4907508 When I get a fresh batch of sumthin-sumthin, I'll write up something special. I've had plenty of thoughts in mind.

I typically need some sort of 'booster' to get the motivation to actually write out some of the stories in my head.

[LayTheBlackToRest]

4960941 I hardly plan on taking meth. If you want though I could easily tell anyone three ways to make it WITHOUT using psuedoephedrine.

[Compass The Pegasus]

4963542
Honestly, I don't see any major problems.
Just a few grammatical errors here and there.

Nice Work