Part Five: Scarlet Sky
Celestia stood on the marsh, in her mind she was alone her maging bursting forth and enveloping her horn in a golden-white burst of light. She opened her fierce magenta eyes and watched proudly as the sun steadily began its descent.
Purposely, she kept it slow on its course. She had been leading the former tribes ponies to the land south, which they previously believed to be either non-existent or destroyed. The currently absent tribal leaders and their advisers would meet her at 'the tallest mountain they had ever laid eyes on'. Their age was ending.
Celestia knew that mountain, for it was not unknown to her. She had already been at the Unicorn Court trying to help with the winter brought forth by the windigos. Her sun, which was how she had come to think of it now that she alone was the one who moved it instead of thousands of unicorns doomed to die. Celestia could still remember the first time she raised the sun - which was also, when Luna and her found the Tribes. They had only been fillies of 11 and 14 mortal years then.
After that came the Unicorn King's decree: the mysterious fillies would be assigned a guardian. That guardian was Starswirl - who at the time was young and had no beard-an obscure (and unpleasant) hermit with the biggest knowledge of mystery and magic the unicorns had. And so they became the wizard's adopted daughters whether he liked it or not, while in reality he and everypony else treated them like mere apprentices which suited Celestia just fine.
Indeed she would go to Mt. Canterhorn, and guide the procession of a few million-some ponies with her.
From behind her a streak of flaming orange flew, a blur to the nobles murmuring praises at her feat. Their praise turned to shock when the flying flame perched on Celestia's back, now still, revealing herself as none other then Philomena the phoenix.
Celestia allowed herself a small smile as she caught sight of her friend.
Philomena chirped and squawked out a message only she and Celestia could understand.
Instinctively Celestia's composure returned, both part of her calm, mature nature and the affects of hanging around the Unicorn Court and other political activities.
She turned to the nobles of all tribes, who were eager to find a 'new', better, home.
"All is well towards the rear of the party, my sister has ensured this."
Like a flock of birds the nobles resumed their chatting, although the song they sung was not sweet. She heard every awful word they said about her sister.
Trying to stay at collected - on the outside - she turned away from them, Philomena on her back and kept walking glad that her shimmering, multicolored mane hid her expression.
Her coat may have been white with the faintest hint of pink but young Celestia's face was as red as the sky was, sun still setting.
...
Luna inhaled deeply, and exhaled softly taking in her surroundings. They had left that dreaded frozen waste. They really had, and now after all these years she was going home with all the family she had at the moment: her sister.
She should be happy but instead as she walked silently across the tundra that had long since become a marsh she had crossed so many years ago she knew she wasn't.
She looked up, turquoise eyes locating the end of the procession of the ponies descended from ones who fled from the same lands they were returning to a couple millennia ago.
Starswirl was not among them, and that simple truth relived her. She had not seen him throughout the entire journey and she never wanted to. Luna hoped his valley was frozen over.
The thought of her happiness that should have been continued to nag her. She was going home. Shouldn't she be happy? They had even found ponies and were establishing a new kingdom. It wouldn't be ruled by her and her sister yet, but it couldn't be that bad. Maybe things would change.
Luna wondered bitterly which sister she was returning with: the one who laughed and cried with her, joked with her, adventured with her, practised magic with her, told stories to her, counted stars with her, and told her not to shove all the clover in her mouth or the other one...
The sophisticated one who turned her back on her when Luna was sad, and yelled horrible things at her when she was angry. The sister who treated her like a shadow.
Perhaps they were not really two sisters after all, Luna thought, perhaps the one We had just does not love us anymore.
She swallowed and shivered slightly even though it wasn't cold. Tia changed didn't she? As soon as we found the tribes something in her...something had disappeared. Her smile was never real, she hid what she felt except for the few times she taunted me and then she became some sort of shrewd monster. A politician.
Tia never used to do this. Maybe once we get home she'll return to her senses, she might apologize.
Luna was the sort who never lost hope. Hope that her sister be alright, hope that they would see their friend Discord again, hope that they would find the parents Tia refused to talk about. She never lost her hope in anything even though sometimes it hurt her much more to keep it then it would to lose it.
She still wished on stars as well, even though she knew her sister did not. Sometimes she wondered if Celestia was her sister in name only, for she had become a stranger to Luna.
The ponies a few paces in front of her began to chatter a bit loudly among themselves and one of them pointed their hoof to the sky were Celestia's sun was dipping below the horizon. She heard them talk about how much they wished it didn't ever have to be night. They hated the dark, they all did.
Luna looked up at the sky, her horn glowing with the magic aura the same hue as her eyes, as she reached for the moon. She tried to block everything out, telling herself she would live once they returned the castle, even though the whole of this 'new' Equestria had is her home the castle in which she was born was a special kind, the home were it all began.
Even though she didn't specify what this 'live' was, even to herself. Luna repeated it over and over in her head like all the other mantras of her childhood, as she fixed her determined gaze on the last bits of the deep scarlet sunset, as red as the anger and despair that would cause her to snap in the years that followed.
...
Onyx slammed his hoof into the snow and screamed. How much snow did he have to walk through?!
He was certain he was heading in the right direction. He'd been traveling for months but unfortunately he didn't remember much of anything since the last time he was here he had so foolishly believed that Starswirl wasn't lying. That he would have a home.
Onyx bit his lip. Since when did he think like this?
No, wait. That wasn't his thought at all. Sombra was the one who thought that. Yes, clearly it was Sombra.
Sombra, who could use magic effortlessly while all he could make was failed cabbage loaves since everything exploded in his face.
Except this. He would not let this fail.
Onyx kicked at the snow and trudged on shouting half-thought out complaints to the sky even though he didn't listen to what he was saying.
The book was right: he would have everything he ever wanted and no one would have the power to stop him.
He just had to kill to get what he wanted. Starswirl was just the start, he knew that.
When he went to the Crystal Empire, when he saw that shining blue-white spire jutting out of the Gemheart Mountains he would be a different pony.
He would be a 'Sombra' of sorts. He wouldn't be known as Onyx and nopony would ever know the real Sombra was just some insignificant piece of property that was just drifting around in his head.
Onyx picked up his pace a bit, his desire to see blood like an invisible chain that instinctively tugged him in the right direction, hooves meeting the snow like some sort of code that guided him toward what his twisted mind craved. He glanced up and saw the sky, a sunset having more color then he could ever recall seeing before-even though he rarely looked at the sky.
It made him smile, and reminded him of his lifelong wish.
A moment later his world went black and he knew why: Sombra, the enemy he would never stop fighting had decided to take what was Onyx's.
Onyx would always fight, he would fight to be the best at anything.
The last thing he saw was the sky above him. A constant reminder.
He was an artist. This white world was his canvas and he would paint it as red as the sky.
...
Sombra had to look at the world through a mirror half the time. He lived in a world where he couldn't run from anything or anypony. He could only trust himself, what he learned, and the knowledge he had within him.
He could see the bias in Onyx's memories. He knew that his origins were used to justify the way he was treated, and he knew it would only get worse.
Onyx was easier to read then a book. He had some sort of control over Sombra now but one day...that might change.
Sombra hinged his whole life on that one word: 'might'. To him it was a definite 'would'. Maybe even a 'will'?
...That will change...
He raced across the snow, nothing more then a blurry shadow galloping at full speed. He knew he was better then Onyx especially since unlike Onyx he was getting stronger.
Eventually, Onyx would figure out how to use dark magic. So far Sombra had four kinds of magic: his own, the dark magic, arcane magic (it came from Onyx, but they both used it differently with varying degrees of proficiency), and regular magic.
But it didn't matter because no matter how much Onyx figured out, Sombra was always and would always be better.
Sombra would have his own life.
Onyx could never win and he could never loose.
Sombra looked up at the stars that were not yet there, as he stood a solitary soul against an endless white.
The sky was almost the same color as his eyes.
He smirked and kept going, even as snow began to fall, into the unknown mess that was his life.
Unfortunately, it only got worse.
...
Four very different ponies saw the very same sunset, and while it may have not been the most important day of any of their lives it was the one moment they were likely to ever share, these fighters.
One moment. In one day. Within one year. A single moment framed by one thought, for they all knew, that somehow this can't be all.
I will-
-rule!
-kill!
-live!
And so they did, once they made it through the snow that was the first of many obstacles.
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7495096 He's a bad seed. You can't really help those bratty types.
Glad you're enjoying the story though.
At this rate, I'll need a folder specifically made for Icy stories
This was your intention wasn't it
7894723 I'm not a witch!
7896621 I don't believe you
7896629 Umm... well...
7896636 hrmmmmmmmmmmm
7896643 Err...
7896652
Before I read this, what is the Gore and Dark tag for ?
And how bad does it get ?
8128519 The gore tag is for descriptive injuries, a character who is a sadist, and a scene where it is implied that the same character - a pony - eats meat.
Just as six certain ponies of the future see a rainbow that destined them to be Equestria's protectors, four certain ponies of the past see a sunset, that though has no relevance to their futures, brings them together in some way.
...Inevitably causing many, if not all, the problems said protectors will protect Equestria against. Whoops.
Fate really is a cruel thing, huh?