Chapter 18: Midnight Hour
Princess Luna frowned as she watched the stallion pacing on the balcony, staring to the south, where Chrysalis castle was located.
"I should never have let her go without me," he muttered. "Canterlot would have managed without me, but if something happens to her because I was not there..."
'Is it really just a coincidence?' Luna thought. 'The way he looks, the way he sounds, his knowledge of Dark Magic, even that look in his eye like he know's something nopony else does... Everything points to Black Knight being King Sombra. Everything except the word of my sister and Twilight.' Luna's frown deepened as she took in his worried expression. 'And the way he acts. He said Twilight saved his life but is that really enough to warrant such a reaction from him? And a telepathic link. Why would Twilight agree to something like that with a pony she just met? Unless...'
Luna's expression became thoughtful as she turned away from the pacing stallion. Signaling a nearby guard, she said, "Keep an eye on our... guest. I shall be overseeing repairs to the city until my sister returns."
They were nearing their destination, and most of the journey had passed in silence when Spike decided he could not take it any longer. "Do you think Twilight's alright?" He asked Celestia from his position on her back.
Glancing over her shoulder as she flew, Celestia gave the young dragon a reassuring smile before saying, "Twilight is one of the most gifted unicorns I have ever met and she has her friends with her. I'm sure she'll be fine." Facing forward again, her expression became worried as she thought, 'However, Black Knight seemed quite certain about what he said. I may not have known him long, but despite the fighting and danger over the last few days, that was the first time I have seen him lose his composure.'
Seeing a castle coming up, Celestia swooped down, quickly spotting a group of ponies standing outside. As she approached, she heard them arguing.
"Ah just rescued mah sister," Applejack said adamantly. "I ain't about ta put her at risk so soon."
"This is Twilight we're talking about!" Rainbow Dash protested. "She's our friend and she obviously needs our help! Don't you trust her?"
"It ain't about trust," Applejack replied with a shake of her head. "Normally, Ah'd trust Twilight with mah life, but there's obviously something wrong with her. Ya saw what she did up there."
"Applejack's not saying that we abandon her, just that we get the fillies to safety and get some help," Rarity cut in. "Surely Princess Celestia will know what to do."
"I certainly hope so," the alicorn in question said as she landed next to them.
"Princess Celestia!" The group cried in unison, relaxing visibly at her arrival.
Spike jumped off the princess' back and asked, "Is Twilight alright? Where is she?"
Immediately, the tension returned. It was Sweetie Belle who answered. "She's still up there," The filly said, pointing one hoof to the top of the castle.
Spike rushed towards the front door of the castle but was brought up short as a pair of hooves wrapped around him. "Um, you m-might want to wait for the princess to go first," Fluttershy said, holding him with surprising firmness. "You wouldn't want to see w-what's up there..."
Up close, Celestia could feel the Dark Magic that filled the castle. Even so, the magic she felt from the top floor dwarfed that in the rest of the building. Looking closely, she also noticed dark purple crystals protruding through some of the upper windows.
"Wait here," Celestia said as she entered the castle slowly.
Ignoring the strange room of stairs, she began making her way upwards. Hearing a sound, Celestia followed it to its source. As she drew nearer, she realized the sound was somepony crying. "Twilight?" She called softly as she approached the doorway it was coming from. "Are you alright?"
"Stay away!" Twilight sobbed. "I don't want to hurt anypony else..."
Stepping into the doorway, Celestia saw Twilight sitting in the center of the room with her head buried in her hooves, surrounded by dark crystal formations. Stepping into the room, Celestia gasped as she noticed what else was in the room.
The shredded remains of dozens of Changelings spread across the floor, walls, and ceiling.
Dawn had broken and Sombra was still keeping watch from the balcony when he saw a familiar form streaking through the sky towards him. As a multicolored blur landed next t him, he demanded. "Where's Twilight? What happened?"
"Woah, calm down. Twilight's fine now," Rainbow Dash said. "Although, Celestia's still worried. That's why she stayed on the train with the others and sent me ahead."
"Hmm, so they are returning by train, then," the stallion commented, already turning to head to the station as he did. 'Thank crystal,' the former tyrant thought. 'I have put too much time and FAR too much effort into my interactions with Twilight for it all to be ruined now. Still, depended on what happened, it may all have been for naught, regardless. Not to mention, if she had died, I doubt I could find another such gifted student for another thousand years.' Nodding to himself, he added silently, 'Yes, that's all it is. I only care about her because of her usefulness.'
"Hey, no need to rush," the pegasus said, cutting into his thoughts. "I'm way faster than any train, so it'll probably be at least an hour before they get here."
Stopping and looking back at her, Sombra asked, "What are you suggesting?"
"Well, Celestia told us about how you help fight off a bunch off super-powered cockatrices while we were dealing with the Changelings," Rainbow Dash replied. "So, I was thinking we could find out which of us is tougher. I'm not about to become known as second best in Ponyville."
Giving an indulgent smile, Sombra said, "Perhaps once we return to the village. I'm afraid I wouldn't be able to focus, given the situation. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to await Lady Twilight and the others."
As she watched him leave, Rainbow Dash frowned and muttered, "Darn it, I guess I owe Rarity five bits. He really is obsessed with Twilight. After all, who wouldn't want to spend time with me?"
As the train pulled into the station, Sombra quickly scanned the disembarking ponies for the mare that had caused him such worry. After all the others got off and headed towards the castle, he finally saw Celestia and Spike exit the train, with Twilight lingering behind them. When Celestia saw him waiting with a concerned expression, she said something to her student before scooping the baby dragon onto her back and trotting towards the castle as well.
Sombra frowned as he approached the mare who was standing by her lonesome. Once they were alone, he asked, "What is going on with your friends, Twilight? It would appear that they are avoiding you."
The young mare seemed to curl up slightly as she replied in a sad tone. "They're scared of me."
Frown deepening, the stallion asked, "What are you talking about? I thought they had accepted your use of Dark Magic after you rescued them from the Changelings."
"They did... until I faced Queen Chrysalis," Twilight answered slowly. Looking up for the first time since her arrival, Sombra's eyes widened when he saw the mare's own, aglow with Dark Magic despite her obviously not casting a spell. Without further prompting, she went on to explain. "Everything she had thrown at us, I had overcome so easily with my Dark Magic and... I got cocky. Chrysalis took advantage of that. She threatened to kill the fillies we had come to rescue. I... I attacked her but it turned out to be a trick... I almost died. But then... it was like something snapped inside my head. I stopped caring about lessons or how to focus my spells or what we had come for or... or even my friends. All I cared about was the insect that had dared to attack me. I healed myself, I don't even remember how, and then I... I...
Seeing tears beginning to course down his student's face, Sombra hesitated before doing something he had not done to a pony since the day Radiant Hope had gotten her cutie mark; he hugged her. It was awkward at first, he barely remembered how to do it, but Twilight sank into him gratefully. "Ponies' minds are fragile things, Twilight. Given what happened, I'm not surprised you suffered some sort of psychotic break."
"That's not it," she protested, some part of her wanting him to know the truth, no matter how shameful. "I just stopped caring. I stopped caring about what my friends thought of me and... I stopped caring about the Changelings lives. I... I killed them, Sombra. A whole room full of Changelings... I tore them apart with their own shadows..." Twilight's voice dropped to barely a whisper, filled with something akin to fear, "and I enjoyed it..."
And part of you still does. A voice in the back of her mind whispered.
Unaware of the mental comment, Sombra said softly, "There is nothing wrong with enjoying power, Twilight. The Changelings brought this upon themselves, and you defended yourself. You are my student, and I shall never abandon you."
"But it wasn't self-defense, not really," Twilight protested, only looking more miserable. "The first few perhaps. After that, they tried to flee and I... I sealed the exits with crystals. I didn't just defend myself and my friends, I slaughtered them."
"I do not think I have ever seen you beat yourself up so much, and you are Twilight Sparkle," Sombra said with a chuckle, trying to lighten the mood. "So... that is saying something."
"I killed them, Sombra. I shredded them into pieces," Twilight protested, as tears continued to course down her face. "I'm putting the ponies I love in danger. How could I do anything but beat myself up? I hate this Dark Magic, it's turning me into a mo-"
"Do not dare, Twilight Sparkle," the former tyrant growled, a note of anger entering his tone. "If there is anypony around here that knows a thing or two about being a monster, it is the self-declared King of them. You made a mistake, it is what ponies do. I know you can overcome this and you know it, too. You are the one who gave me a second chance, who showed me that our past actions need not define our future. Feeling sorry for yourself is not going to change the past. There is nothing you can do about the mistakes you have made unless you push forward and learn to fix them."
Sombra lifted her head with a tendril of shadow as he continued so that she looked him in the eyes. "You are not a monster, Twilight. You have one inside you, just like everypony else." For a moment, his voice was filled with regret, revealing beyond a doubt that he spoke from experience. "The only way to become a monster is to stop fighting back." Just as quickly, his usual confident grin was back on his face. "The only way to tame that monster is to become it... and to force it to become you."
And there we go! Sombra struggling to understand his feelings and Twilight struggling with her own mind. At least everypony's okay... well, except for the Changelings, but they are not in any condition to be complaining any time soon.
Also, some new cover art for the big twist. 
Will Sombra be able to help Twilight regain control completely? What of Luna's growing suspicions? Find out in future chapters of 'A Somber Tale'!
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So... Chrysalis is dead too? A little anti-climatic if she is.
7282970 What, Twilight suffering a mental schism wasn't interesting enough? There was only so much I could do without raising the rating, which I wouldn't want to do for a single scene.
ooooh, that last bit was very nice.
As curious as I am about whatever Luna is planning, I want to see how things will go with the rest of them now. Her friends are avoiding her and I know Celestia must have an opinion or three on all this.
Darkness looms over the unsuspecting ponies of Equestria, Will Sombra's affections for Twilight be the silver string that keeps her sanity grounded? Or will an Overzealous Princess of the Night, leading a righteous Hunt, Slay the truth behind the enigmatic 'Dark Knight'...?
Tune in Next time for another gripping episode of;
A Somber Tale: FIENDship is Magic!
7283046 Ha! Nice! Perhaps I should hire you as my outro narrator.
7283059 bruh, hired or not I got you!
...Twilight forgot steps two through ten, didn't she?
7283077 Maaaybe~
Nice reference, by the way.
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Only fitting considering the presence of Sombracard.
Twilight stop feeling sympathy for the enemy. Save your emotions to those more deserving.
7272778 I actually cringe when I read the first chapters of my story now. I still run into issues with incorrect word usage, but I know I'm doing a lot better than when I started. That's to be expected.
I'll likely start reading this soon. You know, as soon as I can tear myself away from MLP Time loops again >-<
The premise sounds good.
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Mild blood gets it a gore tag.
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Chrysalis is usually a not-insignificant character/villain in the stories she's in, so the fact that she wasn't specifically called out as getting killed (off screen no less) it makes me wonder, not to mention she also apparently knows dark magic and has a teleportation-like spell at her disposal.
I mean, I think changelings are awesome, but I get the feeling that for this story they were kind of a one-off appearance, so a definitive "dead" or "not-dead-but-not-showing-up-again" would be nice.
I... THIS IS NOT THE TIME FOR SUCH A BET!
Nice job on this chapter! The plot thickens more!
Great new art as well!
...Yanno, I'm okay with this.
Twilight, dear, you didn't slaughter them. You were pro-actively defending yourself from future attacks. I mean, you didn't lose sight of who the enemy was and attack your friends and allies. This just means you need a little more control, a little more focus. Besides, how many times have you killed every mothertruker in the room? Oh, none before? Then chill, practice, and get some control and it'll be good.
And best of all, you know you can do it again if you need to. I mean, c'mon, that's kinda hot. You ripped dozens of changelings apart with your mind. That is dead sexy.
Honestly, I'm not the one to have for sympathy for the devil. I read the Chrysalis comic arc and I thought she definitely needed to die then, so I'm not too shaken up about this. Hell, I've got a couple of stories I'm working on in the background where changelings go too far and get mass slaughtered. Kinda hard to feel bad about that.
But I do get that for Twilight the character this is a big line she crossed and she's hurt and frightened and so are her friends. I just hope that Sombra here can get her to understand that it doesn't need to be the end of the world. Although one wonders if the little speech he gave her after getting off the train is his usual facade of caring or him slipping more and more towards being a normal pony. Towards, mind you, not necessarily meaning he'll ever get there.
Because that's an interesting idea, Twilight and Sombra sorta meeting in the middle. Not really evil, just... Capricious at times. Capable of violence. A little pig-headed, but still with a heart of gold.
Yanno, like most humans.
Aha, I thought something was off!
*they're
There is a determiner.
belonging to or associated with the people or things previously mentioned or easily identified. "Parents keen to help their children."
belonging to or associated with a person of unspecified sex. "She heard someone blow their nose loudly."
used in titles. "A double portrait of Their Majesties."
They're is a contraction of they are. "They're happy."
There as an adverb:
in, at, or to that place or position. "We went to Paris and stayed there ten days."
used when gesturing to indicate the place intended. "There on the right."
at that point (in speech, performance, writing, etc.). "‘I'm quite—.’ There she stopped."
in that respect; on that issue. "I don't agree with you there."
used in attracting someone's attention or calling attention to someone or something. "hello there!"
used to indicate the fact or existence of something. "there's a restaurant round the corner."
There as an exclamation:
used to focus attention on something. "There, I told you she wouldn't mind!"
used to comfort someone. "There, there, you must take all of this philosophically."
I only spotted this mistake because of Lord Sergal's comment!
Other than that, great story! I'm really enjoying it and can't wait for what happens next, keep up the good work, you can take my like and favorite!
This is getting really interesting!! Can't wait to the next chapter!!!!
So... is Chrysalis dead? It was never specified if she was among the scattered changeling gore.
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I can sense your anger. It makes you strong! Gives you focus!
7283215 A new tag for one vaguely described scene? If I had described Twilight doing it, sure, but just saying 'Oh, there are body parts' doesn't really classify as gore.
7283242 You'll just have to wait and see.
7283270 Thank you! So many writers think you have to either redeem Sombra or corrupt Twilight, never even considering a middle ground. And bringing it to the point where Sombra saves Twilight from herself? That's where things really get fun!
7283399 Lol, already fixed, but thanks.
7283484 You'll just have to wait and see.
That cover... damn it's amazing^^
7283668 Well, to be fair, we all love the ponies and their good natures, and as a sucker for good redemption stories I do tend to like seeing the villains do a turnaround. Although going completely 180 never seems organic.
But yes, it's an interesting idea, but I think seldom seen due to the fact that it's rather harder to carry off. Hopefully you can do it, and so far it looks good.
Although I do hope the end result is a biiiiiiiit towards good more than evil. Yanno, so Twilight/Sombra are like, the Diet Coke of evil; just one calorie!
7284002 Much harder to pull off but so much more satisfying when you succeed!
7283077 Steps 2 through 10?
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In the YouTube series Hellsing Ultimate Abridged by TeamFourStar, Alexander Anderson gloats about killing Alucard. Integra Hellsing, Alucard's master, asks "What about steps two through ten?", at which point Alucard reforms in a swirl of shadows and simply states "You dun goofed."
7284921 Yes, but what are steps 2 through 10?
7284926 It's never specified. That's part of the joke.
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They really should have separate tags for blood and gore.
The excitement is really high. I cannot wait for the next chapter.
Yeah, I think this is about the part where Sombra's concern for Twilight's well-being is starting to go beyond that of a master/student relationship. Interesting.
7290325 1. Fair enough, but how do we know she would even have agreed to go? Sombra may have thought of this himself, and he didn't want to leave her.
2. Exactly! She did nothing. She knew, that, by merit of being what he was, living in his home town with the people he grew up with that every year he was caused extreme pain, which would eventually kill him, and she didn't do the simple, and much less heartless, thing of sitting down with him, explaining what he was and why he had to leave! Heck! She could even have spoken with Radiant Hope beforehand, explained why he had to leave, and persuade her to go with him so he wouldn't collapse into self-pity and possibly evil/rage!
Furthermore, not only was she the evil one, she was the short-sighted, stupid, evil one! If, as you say, she was giving him a chance to be something more, did she not realise, as she definitely knew what he was and what the Crystal Heart would do to him, that it he would eventually have no choice but to eliminate the Crystal Heart. 'Ah!' I hear you cry 'But he could have just left!'. Yes. He could have. And been miserable and alone, no doubt giving in to self-pity and eventually rage, blaming the Princess for his cursed existence and becoming evil anyway.
7288935 Indeed, the dynamic is certainly starting to shift.
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You both make valid points, and while I'm personally more inclined to agree with RexDraconum, Ozymandias brings up quite an interesting AU possibility. Imagine a world where, after having his Dark Magic awakened, Sombra retreated from the Crystal Empire, perhaps freeing the Umbrum at a later point through less direct means. It could certainly lead to a far different Equestria, with such a major power added to the mix.
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Actually, if he decided to leave with her, he wouldn't have run off and bumped into his mother. Thus, he would've still been a "normal" unicorn, unaware of the Umbrum.
And really, why in the world wasn't his first thought "I'm going with her"? He doesn't like the Crystal Empire. The only thing he likes is Radiant Hope. It's kind of logically inconsistent, when you think about it. But I guess if he did the thing that makes sense, there wouldn't have been a story for that issue of the comic, sooo...
7291092 Princess Amore knew what he was and Sombra's more needed him to free the Umbrum. It's not unthinkable that one or both of them would have used some magic to keep him from wanting to leave.
Plus, as much as he hated it, the Crystal Empire was his home. For some, abandoning their home can be as difficult as leaving a loved one.
Take your pick of reasons.
Wow Sombra that was a very heroic thing to say
7296390 Which part?
I see this ending the same way that either the dark ending of Kiss of the Dark did, or the story Lost into Shadow did...
And if it does, I will have but one thing to say.
7299178 Not quite Kiss of the Dark, and I have not finished Lost in Shadows, although after hearing the comparison, I'll have to do that soon.
The cover art shows Twilight as Alicorn, but will she still be able to ascend after what happened?
7303171Sorry but I wouldn't want to spoil anything. You'll just have to wait and find out.
7312571 To be fair, this story has a better than 25:1 like-to-dislike ratio and is rated in the top 7k stories on a site with over 100k. That's easily in the top 10%, and that's without being featured on EQD. Considering the story is less than a year old, I think it's doing plenty well, already.
7283131 If you like time travel, look forward to the sequel to this story. I won't spoil anything by saying more, at the moment.
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Lol, if you think that now, just wait!
7314358 High praise indeed! Thanks!
7285038 They do, they're called teen/gore and mature/gore.