10. The Plotting Begins
"King Sombra!" Sweetie Belle shouted out as she stood her ground against the Tyrant. At once their bodies began to glow as white tattoo-like markings appeared on them. Strange inscriptions surrounded their limbs and torsos, but what was most peculiar was the ones around their hooves and neck. These tattoos almost seemed like shackles.
"Amazing..." The alicorn of the group said as she stepped closer. Twilight, strangely enough, felt the need to put on a white lab coat and glasses as she observed the master and familiar, perhaps simply for formalities. "Does this happen every time?" She asked as she inspected their coats up close.
"Only when I call Mister Sombra by his title." The filly said as her tattoos began to dim. The magic of the curse she had placed on herself and Sombra seemed to have 'timed out', so to speak since she took too long to give a command.
"That must be some sort of trigger that activates the binding's properties..." The mare said as she began to write on a clip board. Sombra, on the other hoof, was much too busy looking around the room they were in to care how close the mare was to him.
They had been called to Twilight's castle, and by the chatter of the ponies he overheard on the way here, it was brand new to the town. They were in the basement of the crystal building where Twilight seemed to have a strange assortment of items all foreign to him. Made of metal and wires, strange contraptions surrounded them. Some gave off strange glows and light patterns, others made weird noises and buzzed which irritated him to no end. All weird and unique in their own right making it hard to focus on a single object.
"So what sort of things can you make Sombra do?" Twilight asked the filly as she began to connect her to a strange machine.
"Uhhh, anything really." She responded, not exactly sure as to what to say.
"Can you give me an example?"
"Well, I told him to find the gems that were stolen by the Diamond Dogs and he was able to get to them!" Sweetie Belle said with a large grin, one that was almost masked by a large helmet Twilight placed on her head.
"Isn't that, I don't know, just following instructions?"
"Well, no...Mister Sombra, tell her what you told me." Sweetie Belle said as she turned to the stallion mesmerized by all the technology.
"Twilight Sparkle, you're an insufferable filly." He said quickly, not even sparing them a glance as he continued to poke around the gadgets.
"Haha, very funny." Twilight said as she rolled her eyes at him, already tired of being in his sarcastic presence.
"No no, I mean the part about the radar."
Sighing, Sombra hesitantly obeyed. After all, the more the mare knew about the curse they were under, the easier it would be for her to find a way to break it. He really didn't want to cut his time short by aiding in that endeavor, then again, he didn't know very much about the curse either. Perhaps there was a risky advantage to being studied. Maybe he could find a few loop holes to abuse from all of this research and if he was lucky, even a way out.
"When the filly told me to find her sister's gems, the curse pointed me in the right direction."
"What? How?!"
"Simply put, I get a wave of pain whenever I disobey an order from her. So if I were to get further away from the gems she wished for me to retrieve, it would send a warning signal. All I had to do was walk in a random direction, if it wasn't a direction that brought me closer to them, the curse would tell me." Sombra said as he sat down, gesturing with his hoof as he spoke.
"R-Really? That's very odd." Twilight said as she looked down at her notes. Skimming the words she had written down, she quickly turned to the filly with a almost hesitant expression. "Sweetie Belle, would you mind doing a little experiment with me?"
<=•=>
"Sombra, jump fifty meters into the air!" Sweetie Belle shout out. Sombra was bound to do as she said and jumped up, though it certainly wasn't the distance he was ordered to do. Landing, Sombra had a strange expression on his face as he looked himself over, almost amazed to find himself unharmed.
"That's odd." He mumbled to himself.
"What is?" Twilight question as she moved forward, the wind blowing her mane to the side along with her long lab coat. She had asked them all to follow her to the roof of her castle so they could perform this little test. Certainly a more open location compared to the basement. Being the top of an already tall structure, it gave an amazing view of the entire town.
"I'm in no pain even though I didn't do exactly as the filly asked. "
"Just as I thought..." The mare said as she continued to write stuff down on her clipboard. "Now Sweetie, I want you to give Sombra the exact same command, only this time, use his title."
"O-Okay." The filly said as she took a step forward. Taking a deep breath, she began to command her familiar. "King Sombra, jump fifty meters into the air!"
Sombra's coat shined bright as his tattoos bled out into view. His eyes were set ablaze in purple flames as his power from his days as a Tyrant slowly returned to him. Just as he was commanded, Sombra kneeled down slightly before propelling himself up.
In a flash, the dark stallion darted through the air until he had reached the specific height. It was definitely the right height since Sombra felt himself come to a sudden stop even though his momentum should have kept him going. At this distance, he could see out for miles and miles, but his eyes were glued on only one location: Canterlot.
"Amazing." Twilight spoke out softly as she shielded her eyes from the sunlight that caught her gaze from looking up. Crashing down, Sombra's hooves broke several crystal tiles as his tattoos began to fade away.
"This certainly explains a few things..." Sombra said as he looked down at himself, the surge of power he had felt suddenly escaping him and leaving him in a rather weakened state.
"When Sweetie Belle calls you by name and title, it opens up the binding all the way and makes you accomplish whatever was asked of you, no matter the size of the task." The mare said as she began to make her way to the stallion who was still hypnotized by his body and its inner workings.
"I'm not too sure if it's any task, but certainly a task the Tyrant of the Frozen North could pull off." He said as he gears in his mind began to turn. This certainly changed the playing field. With a soft stare, Sombra looked over at the filly who was coming his way and smiled.
"Hmm?" Sweetie Belle asked out as she turned her head to the side slightly. "What is it? Do I have something on my face?"
"Nothing, I was just thinking." He responded as he ruffled up her mane, causing Sweetie to giggle at his actions.
"Thinking about what?" Twilight asked.
With cold eyes, Sombra turned to her and spoke in a hard tone. "Never you mind." His voice sent a chill down Twilight's spine. It was an eerie feeling to see him smile like so, almost with some evil intent behind it. The fact that he had been so willing to help with the research also made her worried. Was he being so kind because he knew Sweetie Belle shouldn't allow him to fight? Or did he have something else in mind?...
"Hey Twilight," A rather small dragon said as he made his way onto the roof of the castle. Sombra was all too familiar with who this drake was, after all, he got a really good glimpse of him back when he was killed. "Rarity is here to pick up Sweetie Belle and...and..."
Spike's nonchalant expression soon became filled with horror as he saw who was in company of Twilight. His jaw dropped open as his eye widened at the sight of Sombra who leered at him intently.
"K-King Som-Sombra?" Spike asked out, not willing to believe his eyes.
"What is it?" Sombra asked with an almost exaggerated movement of his mouth, most likely to expose his long fangs which shinned in the light of the sun. Spike gulped at the stallion facing him before taking a nervous step back. "Cat got your tongue?" The stallion finished before taking a single step forward.
"Sombra!" Twilight shouted as she stepped between her assistant and him.
"What? I can't greet the drake?"
"You weren't going to greet him." Twilight said as she narrowed her eyes at him.
"And suddenly you can read my mind hmm? "
"I know that you're still bitter about the incident at the Crystal Empire."
"So what? I am just supposed to welcome each one of my murderers with open arms?" Sombra asked as he waved his hoof around, though as he spoke, Sweetie Belle's expressions shifted to a troubled one.
"That's not- It was you attacking us that made us do that!" Twilight defended. All the while, the filly began to quietly shuffle towards her dark guardian. Her heart ached at the thought of Sombra being murdered, and it only irked her more that it was her friends who were responsible.
What made it even worse was that they didn't feel even the least bit bad about what they did. They defend their acts with the same line. 'Sombra is a Tyrant.' What did that even mean anyway? He had clearly said that he never took that title, rather, it was given to him by Princess Celestia and Princess Luna. That meant that he never saw himself as one.
"Umm." Sweetie Belle began. "Let's get going Mister Sombra." She said as she pulled on his grey coat, pulling away the stallion's attention towards her. Though annoyed at first, Sombra's gaze softened as he saw the worried and puffy face of the filly. It was almost like...she was hiding a face full of sorrow.
"What? Go where?" Twilight asked as she looked over at the filly who was currently trying to mount and ride Sombra. The stallion seemed a little pestered by her actions, but didn't protest, most likely because he had no choice in the matter anyway.
"I'm going to meet up with Scootaloo and Applebloom. We agreed to get together after our school was broken down." Sweetie replied as she found herself in a comfortable position back on Sombra's back. Her face still showed signs of emotions she was trying to hold back, but Sombra decided against pointing them out. Instead, he simply followed the gesture to begin to move.
"But we're in the middle of doing research on your binding!" Twilight shouted as she began to run to them. "Not to mention we're supposed to keep Sombra hidden!"
"Don't worry!" Sweetie Belle shouted out as Sombra jumped from the roof top. "If anypony gets close I'll tell him to become my shadow!"
"That's not good enough!" Twilight shouted out, but it was no use. They were both gone in the distance as Sombra jumped from rooftop to rooftop. With a disgruntled sigh, Twilight stared into the horizon for a while before speaking to Spike. "Sweetie Belle used to be more obedient than this, Sombra is a horrible influence on her."
"I'm still surprised he is even here to begin with!" Spike responded as he joined the mare. There they stood in silence for a moment, the wind the only sound that echoed in their ears.
"So... what should I tell Rarity?"
<=•=>
"That really wasn't necessary." Sombra said as he ran. The speed at which he was traversing the town was almost overwhelming for the filly on his back, but she seemed to make do just fine despite the lack of a safety harness.
"What do you mean?" Sweetie Belle asked back as she pulled herself to Sombra's head where she stared at him with an innocent smile.
"You seem to have a hard time hiding your emotions." He responded as he jumped again. In quick succession, Sombra jumped from rooftop to rooftop to keep away from the busy streets of Ponyville.
"...Is it that obvious?"
"Very."
"I just...I don't like hearing that you were...you know."
"Killed?"
"Don't say it like that!" Sweetie Belle shouted out as she tried her best to keep from falling off of him.
"There isn't any other way of saying it filly."
"I just can't believe my sister and Twilight did something like that."
"Perhaps it does come as a shock to you since you're so young, but killing to keep yourself alive is common in the world. It happens in nature all the time."
Sombra continued to run as he spoke, Sweetie on the other hoof began to look down at the ground as they moved through the air. She was not really willing to hear the truth of how nature works if it involved others losing their lives.
Her eyes opened in amazement as she noticed something peculiar about the ground. They didn't have a shadow. It was given that she didn't have a shadow to cast since Sombra was her shadow personified, but neither did he. Neither one of them gave off a shade in the sun, making it impossible for the ponies below them to even notice them moving over them.
"Filly." Sombra spoke again, not willing to let the conversation go. "I do not resent them for what they did. I told you already, I understand what did and why they did so."
"So why are you so mad about it. If it doesn't bother you, why do you keep bringing it up?"
"I am not bothered by the fact that they killed me. I am bothered by the fact that they don't listen."
"Wait, I'm not following." Sweetie Belle said as she clung to Sombra's long mane as he took a hard jump before landing on a lone rooftop near the edge of town.
"They call me a Tyrant, an Evil Overlord, a Dictator, but they never asked me of what good I brought to the Empire I ruled. I do not mind being killed if it was because they thought I was a danger to their lives. I just hate that I was killed because they saw me as evil and nothing else."
"But yesterday you told Luna you were evil." Sweetie Belle said as she adjusted her weight on his back so she may see his face better.
"Because...I am. "
"You're not making any sense Mister Sombra."
"Perhaps one day I will explain it to you." He said as he reached up to his spiked horn. In a sad expression, he gently touched it and held it a moment to think before speaking again. "But for now, I have one question for you."
"And what's that?"
"Where exactly did you say we were meeting your friends?" Sombra asked as he turned back around, looking over at the entire town he had blindly crossed. "I thought that you would have told me when to make a turn, but we've reached the end of town and we've still to see your friends."
"Oh right..."
"You weren't lying were you?" Sombra asked as he narrowed his eyes at her.
"Uh...kind of...I just wanted to get you away from Twilight since I thought you two would start to fight." Sweetie Belle said, but just as she finished her sentence she felt a sting at her forehead.
"Ow!" She yelped out as she held to her forehead. Sombra had flicked his hoof at her head to gently scold her.
" Niña, lying is bad." He said as he continued to stared over at her with an unamused expression.
"Sorry." Sweetie Belle said softly as she held back a single tear that was trying to escape her eye.
"Now." Sombra began, making the filly shift her expression back to normal. "How about we actually go find your friends? That way it would be like if you had actually told the truth."
"Huh? But I don't know if they're busy or not."
"It's either that, or we return and tell your sister that you lied to Twilight." Sombra said as he began to walk.
"Applebloom's house is that way!" Sweetie Belle shouted out as she enthusiastically pointed out with her hoof. This new found spark of zeal came out of the blue. No doubt she would get quite the scolding if they returned to her sister at this moment.
"Good, then let's get going. " Sombra said as he began his gallop again. As he jumped away, however, a thought scratched at the back of his head.
Why had he been able to flick Sweetie Belle with his hoof when previously he was unable to harm her even if he tried? Was there something special about it this time?
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Niña!?
King Sombrero has begun to surface! EVERYONE RUN FOR YOUR LIVES, HE'S GOING TO START SPEAKING SPANISH AND DO THE SALSA!
5162889
i2.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/newsfeed/000/416/433/197.png
5162889 !se ha convertido en el destructor de mundos tiempo todos corren! if you say Its actually death then you are wrong openhimer mistranslated the line.
5162889 pony.cscdn.us/pic/user/2013/12/58927b75da0f3d05bd03d6ac64dcab0e.jpg
5162889 ¡Dios mío!
I can't wait to see the reactions of Applebloom and Scootaloo
Judging by the title, we can only expect at least some ulterior motives.
There's a redundant too since Sweetie is only specifying one specific instance of when their tatoos glow and not several.
The fact that he had been so willing to help with the researched also made her worried
Or did he have something else in mind?...
K-King Som-Sombra?...
Spike gulped as the stallion facing him before taking a nervous step back
Sweetie replied as he found herself
but Sombra decided against pointed them out
Not to mention were supposed to keep Sombra hidden
1. Research.
2. Either switch place for the ellipses and question mark or just remove the ellipses.
3. Same as 2.
4. Faced.
5. Oh my gosh, Sweetie managed to change genders?!
6. Pointing.
7. We're.
I think Sombra has to deal with helping the CMC avoid catastrophe of the explosive kind. Alot. Either that or he gets covered in tree sap, turns to shadow and reemerges all clean and fancy
CUTIE MARK CRUSADER UMBRAMANCERS/NECROMANCERS/TERRORMANCERS!!
Welp Ponyville is borked.
5163088 You're always so good and fast at catching these things. My errors would have minimized had my editor caught up with all the chapters, but that hasn't happened yet
Anyway, I am always grateful that you take the time to help me improve my story 
Amused*
Or is amuzed American spelling?
Also, me! I'm ready!
5163132 It's no problem but I just happened to be on at the right time so it's just nice timing
5163135 I'm not sure. Microsoftword says amuzed is correct, but google chrome says it isn't
Cutie Mark Crusader King Makers YAY!
It looks like King Sombra is part lawyer, like any competent tyrant. I'm guessing that in time Sweetie's commands will turn out more like monkey's paw wishes in that he will fulfill the letter of the command but not the spirit in which it was intended.
Twilight's (rightly) concerned about the influence of King Sombra on Sweetie, but what about the influence of Sweetie on King Sombra?
this is going to be good
Because he's starting to love her like his own daughter!
i2.ytimg.com/vi/rT-5MX6C3VM/0.jpg
Strikes of love always hit
I'm kinda seeing a parallel between sombra and Stalin. Both leaders rose to power and forced their countries to modernize at great expense to the population. (In a short summary). However I don't think sombra actually killed anyone deliberately, if that makes sense. Maybe its just me trying to see the best in him
5163147
It's 'amused.' You're version of Word is mistaken. I tried it in three different programs and each one said it was incorrect spelled with a 'z' and this comment box autocorrects the 'z' to a 's.'
I'm guessing that Sombra was able to flick Sweetie with his hoof because he meant it as a corrective measure and there was no malice or serious intent to hurt in the gesture.
I think the reason Sombra could do that was because he was not intending to hurt her with that flick.
5163447 And stalin only killed those he saw as threats to him and the country.
5163500
Well, "threats". But yea that's where I was going. Of course I don't want to equate the two cause I want to like sombra, but yea.
Love this chapter, ladling with Sombra's Spanish.
I find these typos amusing! X3
Spike the Drake!!
Ahh, research, always a good idea. I wonder if they've thought to have Sweetie order King Sombra that he cannot harm Equestria or break any of its laws (my first thought was 'harm anyone', but that might put him in a situation where he cannot act to save Sweetie from something).
5163593 I think it's been stated that Sombra has a couple of "master" orders which trump all others in any given situation.
Those orders being "stay alive" and "protect Sweety Belle".
The adorablness has been doubled by 20%!
5163525 im not sure what typos your seeing. Drake is another word for dragon. also commonly used for male dragons in a lot of stories.
5163525 A drake is a male dragon. So, yeah, Spike the drake.
5163408
so true and one piece ftw
I wonder who Niña is?
5162889 Si si. Me gusta comer gato... Mas gato! Mas gato!
5163147 Microsoft tends to suck, but then again so does google...
Heh Sombra is actually starting to CARE about sweetie belle. It actually shows quite clearly in their interactions, such as when he scolded her lightly for lying. the the fact that Sombra was able to flick her forehead is EASILY explainable. He was able to do so because he WASN'T trying to HARM her
Anyways keep up the great work, and update soon!.
P.S: if your going to use Spanish words and phrases, can you please for the love of Luna put a translation of them in your authors notes? I kinda hate having to use Google for a translation all the time
I think it might be that Sombra just detests dishonesty.... HAHA! Sombra has something in common with Applejack. Who's house are they going to now?
5164192 Heheh, I was trying to pull an Assassin's Creed where I would use just a single word or phrase in another language that people could figure out through the context. Though I suppose I might have failed on that regard. I'll go ahead and do that, I'll look back through my chapters and do so for all of the spanish Sombra spoke.
5163944 Niña is Spanish for girl. that's all. Considering how Sombra translates to 'Shadow', it makes sense that he's know some Spanish(or the Equestrian analogue to it).
Shade is Sombra in Spanish.
You know nothing, you have no proof.
Vaporizes into nothingness.
This story is simply delightful. Very unusual, yet interesting and fun to read. Keep up the good writing.
5163752
5163851 ooooooh, well, ya learn something new everyday~ ^^
5165024 AKA: Internet
5162937 Ohmygoshilovedat.
You know, Sweetie belle (a little filly) ordering Sombra (a powerful being, and kind of a legend) to do anything for her.. This reminds me of a movie I once watched.
Spell of the Unown - Pokémon, anyone?
i.imgur.com/lZSGS8s.jpg
Except for the fact that Entei wasn't an evil tyrant..
If this is still mostly following the main show plot-line, I really hope at some point along we get a Discord Cameo.
5165372 Woah. You're right. That really is similar (except the evil tyrant part)!
I bet sombra is going to get inducted into the CMC
What if Sombra writted something in paper with spanish words to make Sweetie Belle say as command to him?
"King Sombra ataca a X pony" (King Sombra attack X pony") or something.
Just sayin'
I'm enjoying this fanfic so much, by the way.
5165948
If that's the case, then God help us.
I'm ready to see Sombra interact with the CMC!!!
5167608 I placed a link in the author's note to previews for the said comics. If you feel like getting the whole story, this youtuber has them all in video format