Tomb of Magic

by Ice Star

Chapter 13: Black Hearts and Wolf Blood

For the first time in hours, I looked up from the Runic Journals. The entries in the second book stopped after Selene's wrote her third entry, and there was no explanation was given to why. All the pages that followed were simply blank and aged, as if I was the only pony who'd touched them in all these years.

The hat was very quiet and perfect for reading. It was almost like Sombra had never existed. Sombra! Where was he?!

"Sombra?" I called, pressing my face to the crystal window.

No reply of course, but it looks like we were still moving.

Well, I could always read the third book... and just ignore him. It might be one of the only chances I have before this is all over and I'm safe at home, with my friends. I'll be sure to tell the princess about all the horrible things that he's been up to.

Hmm, books or Sombra. What a difficult choice. I curled up in the chair I had been sitting, fitting myself back into the Twilight Sparkle-shaped groove I had made.

My magenta aura brought the third book, which really fit the description of ancient-looking, to rest on my forelegs. The runes were scratchy and weren't as legible as the previous journals but still clear enough for me to read the thoughts of the one they called Kawblance, who would have been writing with his mouth.

...

Brutal! Bloodthirsty! Pure evil! Who knew 'Lene could be so sadistic? Sure it's not very nice being in so much pain, but wow... I can respect a deed that cruel. I want to do something like that myself and more, more, more! She has silly magic powers and I want magic too! Starswirl's always talking about how unicorns are the master race and blah blah blah and something about trying to cut the brains of the earth ponies and pegasai out. I've only met a pegasus once 'cause the Empire doesn't have a lot of them.

Their wings would be so fun to break - like bird wings but better! I want to break them.

I think I remember Starswirl talking about how he tried to cut out 'Lene's brains once, which would have been really, really cool except this was before I came here and stupid prissy 'Lara stopped him. I wonder how much she got hit for that - Starswirl probably wouldn't have settled for anything less than trying to hit her over the head with a shovel for a stunt like that - he's tried to do it to me before, when he's drunk and stuff. I'm not sure if the story's even true. Doing something to protect 'Lene doesn't sound like anything that 'Lara would do. I wish she'd hurt ponies in less snobby ways and more bloody ones.

But it was amazing, what 'Lene! She, the funny speaker like 'Lara attempts murder then runs into the woods. If it weren't me that was at the bad end, I'd have wish that she'd succeeded. Or even better, if I had been the one to kill somepony.

I wish I could kill others like that... I'm working on it, though. Killing pretty mares like 'Lara would be really, really fun... gosh, I can just imagine it. Oh, and even though 'Lene's a stupid weird freak, she's not super ugly, right? Like, she's not hideous even if she's just... she's dumb and boring, yeah, as well as not-pretty, but I'd still kill her too. And stallions. And Starswirl. And I want super magic powers, so once I start I won't stop.

...

I can't believe that nopony has found her yet, even after three months. 'Lara is still attending the Unicorn Court which means I get plenty of time to myself.

Starswirl doesn't care one bit for me, and the old coot does not even teach me anything like he promised. He has an almost endless amount of books. One of them is mine now. I've had it since I was nine, which was when I got here... and Starswirl was lying! He's just like everypony else. They're always lying and calling me whiny and telling me that I'm disturbed when I'm not around and that everything's my fault. They're super stupid. I'm not really smart because being really smart is stupid, but I'm not going to listen to ponies that are obviously lying. They always lie, right? I lie all the time too, but I'm pretty sure it's sure. I don't know.

The book is really magical. Every time I open it the title and content will change, although if I wanted to I could go back and re-read parts, but I like new things better. The book always makes them addicting, really addicting, so I never read anything twice - that sounds dumb anyway. If I've already read something, I'm not going to read it again. It's hard to get rid of books after you read them too, but Starswirl would never let me get away with burning them here - that's what I used to do at the orphanage. I didn't even like the fire, just that I was hurting somepony and that something dumb was being destroyed. Why'd they teach me how to read anyway? This is the only interesting thing I've read, so maybe I could have just waited for it to teach me?

Today the book is teaching me how to change my appearance. It's neat, I guess, because I could do all sorts of horrible things with this if I was a unicorn - and I really want to be a unicorn - but sometimes I wish that this would be easier.

Outside of hurting ponies, everything's kind of... really... unnecessary. I'm really good at just slipping into something when I do it. I don't feel like the idiot ponies tell me I am. Some ponies say you can read other ponies, but you can't and that's dumb because they aren't books or letters, which can be read. But, I know everything about hurting ponies, and pulling them apart - and other animals. I know how to scare them, control them through pain, keep them in line, and abuse them. I think that's what this book is really helping with.

An hour later, Starswirl stomps down from the upper floors and I gingerly slip the book away into an empty nook, where a brick in the fireplace used to be. Instantly, it shrinks and its blackish color lightens to a gray. If I hadn't put it there, I would have thought it was a brick - it's that good.

"Quit your idle behavior! I have to go and look for that wild runaway, and I will not have the chimney this filthy!" He passed me the chimney sweeping brush, impatiently waiting for me to take it.

"I can't sweep anything, I have a broken wither!" I explained, voice cracking a ton. Did he think my 'skirmish' with 'Lene resulted in no injury?!

Starswirl's eyes flared. "OH, YES YOU WILL!" He cracked me over the head and before I even had time to adjust my sling and I was encased in a teleportation spell of his.

Is it really a wonder that I think murder is therapeutic? It's more than that, too.

The again, isn't it our hobbies that relax us the most? And I want to turn my hobby into my life.

...

Great. Where better to teleport the colt with a broken wither then, I don't know... the roof?!

The Magicspire didn't have a very steep roof, so I was lucky there, and with all the soot on my coat all I had to do was creep over to the edge of the tower's roof and wait in an awkward crouch until Starswirl left. A few minutes later, I saw his form leave.

Perfect.

Once he was gone, I climbed up to the chimney and pulled out a small box hidden there among the dirty bricks. In it were the only things I had: my book which teleported here, a white shirt from the Empire that was too big for me that I wore when it was really cold, and a string of rough gem pieces, a small twinkling sapphire in the center. Those two objects were the only clues I had to who the mangy curs my parents were. I'd had the necklace and shirt for as long as I could remember, and oh the things I remember. The ponies in the Crystal Empire were all horrible, and not in a good way like me. They hurt me, I know the did, and I was going to hurt them for it. I wouldn't quit, not now, not ever!

There was so much soot on my coat, the original color was almost impossible to make out, which was a rather sharp contrast to the untouched state of these objects. Once, during a portrait the Ever So Stuffy Starswirl commissioned, I was able to get most of the soot off with the exceptions of a few patches. That was a year ago.

Reluctantly, I put my things away and lowered myself into the ashy maw of the chimney, which acted as my passage through the tower.

When I find my parents, I will kill them.

And I will enjoy it more than anything ever.

...

Screams exploded from the woods hours later: an angry shout followed by a heartbroken shriek and the howl of a wolf. Eagerly wanting to see what happened, I slid down the chimney, which was unbroken by fireplaces by whatever stupid architect built this place, or maybe it was Starswirl himself, in which case, super stupid. At the main floor I found Starswirl clutching a bloody sword in his aura. He threw down the broken corpse of a white wolf whose yellow eyes were hollow and glassy with death. I'd seen that look hundreds of a lot of times in all the animals I bothered to leave intact in death.

"Curse those animals!" he shouted to nopony in particular. Maybe if I was lucky he'd ignore me and get some ale from the basement and just start drinking. I might be able to run and hide, then. I'm really good at those things - running and hiding. Then, if I'm doubly super-lucky, he'll be too confused to remember much about what happened yesterday and won't beat me when he finds me. Or he'll get worse...

I turned around and backed toward the fireplace from where I came. He always does this and I wouldn't let him catch me, especially since I still hadn't recovered from 'Lene's beating or my 'trip' to the woods.

The echoes of Starswirl's screams climbed higher as I inched upward through the sooty, sooty, hollow. He couldn't get me in here, so I should be fine after waiting a few hours. I hate waiting.

"That wolf let her get away!"

Away? 'Lene found a way out? But how...?

So it is possible. There is a possibility of escape. Well then, it seems as if things have changed. Soon Ol' Starswirl will see his mistakes. I'll kill him. I'll be the last sight he'll ever see.

But everything takes time, including murder, and patience isn't a very familiar concept to me. Though this will all be worth it. I grinned wickedly in this dark recess and whispered to nopony but myself.

"It's such a crime isn't it?"

Author's Note:

Please, always remember that while you should never drink the dish soap, you should never, ever trust weird magic books.

Comments

[nebulaegalaxy]

But weird magic books are fun!

[MayhemMoth]

Gotta be honest, this chapter made me super uncomfortable, for reasons. Both Kawblance and Starswirl act in ways that are not at all comforting for me to read or think about.

Not a jab at you or anything, I enjoy when stories can get a response out of me, but sometimes those feelings are just... Incredibly unpleasant.

[RoyalBardofCanterlot]

Whoa. It's easy to see how he became a monster under those conditions. Celestia's still looking out for Luna even if she's grown more distant.

[GeneralSarcasm]

To be honest, I was not expecting a kawblance perspective from this story, good stuff.

[Bicyclette]

Hmm, books or Sombra. What a difficult choice. I curled up in the chair I had been sitting, fitting myself back into the Twilight Sparkle-shaped groove I had made.

aww that is a nice groove. and yes, easiest choice ever for Twilight Sparkle. she doesn’t get too many of those!

The runes were scratchy and weren't as legible as the previous journals but still clear enough for me to read the thoughts of the one they called Kawblance, who would have been writing with his mouth.

aww has she not figured it out yet?

Their wings would be so fun to break - like bird wings but better! I want to break them.

very normal and sane

I wish I could kill others like that... I'm working on it, though. Killing pretty mares like 'Lara would be really, really fun... gosh, I can just imagine it. Oh, and even though 'Lene's a stupid weird freak, she's not super ugly, right? Like, she's not hideous even if she's just... she's dumb and boring, yeah, as well as not-pretty, but I'd still kill her too. And stallions. And Starswirl. And I want super magic powers, so once I start I won't stop.

oof! this is so straightforwardly sadistic that if it weren’t for all the other hints this would make me wonder if Kawblance was really Sombra, or maybe Sombra is just Kawblance after many years of learning and growing

I didn't even like the fire, just that I was hurting somepony and that something dumb was being destroyed.

very non-disturbed thing to say

The ponies in the Crystal Empire were all horrible, and not in a good way like me.

ahaha that does sound like a younger Sombra

When I find my parents, I will kill them.

And I will enjoy it more than anything ever.

not the typical orphan-child-looks-for-unknown-parents plot, but certainly fitting for the character