Umbrum ad Infinitum

by Pixel_Spark

Discord, The Therapist?

Celestia told the girls over dinner what'd happened, and how Sombra had reacted. Twilight Sparkle looked worried.

"He’s been hurt really badly, hasn’t he?" she whispered "he was petrified of us in that cave..."

"That much suffering would scare anypony," Celestia agreed "it concerns me his first words were a plea that I essentially destroy him. How far has he been pushed to make THAT the first thought, even after waking up in safety?"

"Can we fix 'im?" Applejack asked.

"We can try to reassure him," Celestia sighed "but right now he doesn’t trust any of us. It's a conditioned response, after severe physical and no doubt mental torture. Fully fixing that level of trauma can take a long time. The best we can do right now is coach him to relax around us."

She shook her head, looking concerned as she replayed Sombra's reaction in her head “When he realised I wasn’t going to grant that destructive wish, he tried to provoke me into responding. I had to restrain him, which was when I learnt he's very afraid of physical contact. I must urge you to avoid startling him, if he ever allows me to persuade him to leave his room.”

“Gotcha, no surprises. Or hugs. Or surprise hugs..” Pinkie Pie began to tally the list of things she could do that might startle Sombra and realised she needed to think.

“Whelp, she won't resurface fer awhile..” Applejack joked, looking at Pinkie Pie, who was staring so intently at the table she was surprised it didn’t catch on fire!

"I hope we can figure out what the beast of a brother of Tirek's is up to!" Rarity shuddered "the only lead we have is Sombra!"

"We're boned." Rainbow Dash muttered.

"Maybe a little kindness will help..?" Fluttershy whispered.

"I need to do some research into the Umbrum ponies," Celestia said. Twilight Sparkle's ears perked up and she added "of course you can help me Twilight!"

"Yes!" Twilight Sparkle cheered, making her friends roll their eyes. The Princess of friendship coughed, and assumed some decorum, continuing eating her food.

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The next morning Celestia came to check on Sombra, along with the doctor.

This marked the first time the doctor had tended to Sombra while he was awake, and he was a little apprehensive, and secretly glad Celestia was there as backup.

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Sombra looked up as the door was opened, and the guard announced who it was.

Celestia moved to speak to Sombra first.

“Are you feeling better?” she asked. A pause, in which he seemed to decide he was OK around her, and he nodded.

“The doctor needs to check your injuries, will you be alright with that?”

Sombra looked confused as to why she cared, why didn’t she just DEMAND he obey? He couldn’t fight her after all. But that necklace she'd left with him, did she mean it? These conflicting ideals made it hard to think...

She waited patiently as he battled with the decision, and finally managed another nod.

The doc picked up the medical bag he'd brought with him and crossed over to the bed. At first glance, some of the bruising appeared to be fading, which was a good sign. The Princess had mentioned Sombra had demonstrated a serious fear of being touched, so he went on a visual check whenever possible. The stallion was painfully underfed, he'd lost a lot of weight.

Although he had to do a proper examination to see if the injured ribs were healing, and also remove the brace to check the leg. Sombra did tense up, but he managed to refrain from snarling at him.

But the doctor did detect the way the bigger pony was shaking subtly. He was so tensed up it must’ve been uncomfortable.

“Due to your, ah, circumstances of containment,” he said tactfully as he listened to Sombra's heart-rate “your musculature has cramped up significantly. I'd advise you try moving around more now, your body needs to get used to it again. Understandably its been difficult since arriving here, you’ve spent most of your time in a feverish state. That takes a lot out of you.”

Stepping back, he scribbled some notes “I’ll make some recommendations for your diet now you’re able to get up.”

He winced as he glanced at one of the questions he'd written down “I hate to ask, but it would help greatly. What was the food situation during imprisonment?”

Sombra winced and looked away. But he did eventually speak.

“Nothing fancy,” he said in a dull tone “I don’t really recall anything.”

“The little parrot said you gave him bread?” Celestia said softly.

“Hmm...” The doctor nodded at both statements “I see. I'll make sure to include extra supplements that'll help your immune system. But, memory loss is quite common with what you’ve been through. The memories may well return in weeks, or years, I cant say. But they will return.”

“I’m sure there's somepony out there that can remind me who I am,” Sombra said. His tone was emotionless for the most part, but the undertone of obvious self disgust was clear to Celestia, “I wouldn’t be concerned about THAT.”

The doctor was a mix of surprised and alarmed. Surprised that Sombra had just causally admitted to being somewhat off-put by his own actions. And alarmed by the deadened expression on the stallion's face. He'd shown no emotion this whole time, bar unease at being touched.

After hearing the testimonies from the six young ladies that’d rescued Sombra, he could see why the yellow pegasus had been so upset. What they’d described was the worst case he'd heard in all his studies. The plan had clearly been to leave this pony shattered and unable to mend. He was concerned the one behind Sombra's capture may well have succeeded.

The only thing left to do was a shot of painkillers, to make it easier for Sombra to rest. Then he showed the pony how to remove the brace for his leg if he needed to.

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After he left, Celestia had a suggestion for Sombra;

“There is a secret area in this castle. It contains a relaxing spa pool. My sister and I have kept it working all this time. The water has wonderful properties for aching bones. Maybe it would help you?”

He tried to sit up and winced as he did. The doctor wasn’t kidding, he WAS finding it hard to move.

“But the ponies here, won't you have a riot on your hooves if they should see me?”

Celestia raised an eyebrow “While you were asleep, news of your being here and the circumstances has spread. They are at least accepting of the situation. I said you’re safe here, and I mean it. “

Sombra still didn’t react to her promise, he clearly couldn’t bring himself to believe it.

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But he did agree to Celestia's plan. She walked down there with him, and they encountered only a few guards, who paused to say hello to the sun Princess, and two delivered a brief status report.

“No news so far, your majesty, there’s been no sightings or incidents.” the first one finished.

“I’ve had them keep an ear out for Scorpan,” Celestia said to Sombra, who paled and looked nauseous, the guards noticed “I am in no doubt that he will try to reclaim you. And its not going to happen.”

Sombra shut his eyes a moment, feeling the room spinning.

“-ing sick?” He felt a hoof trying to steady him, and was incapable of stopping himself from automatically flinching away just a little. He felt nausea rising, and forced it down. He made himself stay still, even though his heart was racing in fear.

“It's no matter.” he said shortly. This was close as Celestia could get him to admit he was OK. She nodded.

“Let me know if you hear anything more,” She said to the guards, who nodded, before watching as Celestia said something inaudible to their ears to the shell shocked Sombra. He snapped out of the trance he seemed to be in. He shook his head in response to whatever she said, and she nodded, satisfied, before ushering him on.

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“I didn’t realise he'd be THAT messed in the head...” the first muttered “I heard rumours he'd been tortured, but this looks BAD.”

“Yeah, especially given who this guy is,” the second added “its scary that this other lunatic was able to overpower him and even try a plan like what the Princess mentioned.”

“Is the Princess hoping he'll help US instead?” the first said, raising an eyebrow.

“Lets face it, if by some miracle that guy even HAS a heart and she CAN reach it, how long will it take? If this Scorpan's as dangerous as the Princess seems to believe, and he wants Sombra back, he's not going to wait for long...”

They fell silent, amazed by the fact the situation hinged on Sombra's choices.

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Celestia led Sombra to the secret pool room. The water was heated using specialist spells.

“It's wonderful for relaxing your muscles, just take your time. You will not be disturbed. I will post a guard outside the door, once you're finished, just knock on the door and he'll fetch me.”

Before she left, she put a spell on the various bandages to keep them waterproof, so the Doctor wouldn't have to change them. There was a secret layer to the spell however. The Doctor had stated he was concerned Sombra may attempt to cause himself further injury, after what he'd been through, some variety of post traumatic stress was highly likely. Add to that the fact he'd asked repeatedly was he was going to be put out of his misery, and the Doctor was worried about his state of mind.

Although Celestia did point out she'd seen some improvement in their visit. Sombra hadn’t seemed so hostile, or quite so on edge as the first time he'd woken up in the hospital.

The extra caveat to the spell would alert her if his vital signs altered drastically.

She was going to such lengths to guard him, and Sombra still didn’t understand why she cared. But he nodded when she asked was he alright on his own, and she left.

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He stepped into the heated water. It hurt at first, but he soon seen what she meant. It was...soothing. He could almost believe he wasn't living in a gilded prison, escaped from a nightmare captor.

Taking a deep breath he allowed his whole body to sink beneath the water. It closed over his head, the silence reassuring. Only the thud of his heart beat in his ears. He stayed under as long as he could, before breaking the surface once more. He slumped back against the side of the pool.

His leg still ached subtly, even beneath the waters heated touch. He shuddered as he recalled Scorpan breaking it that first day, and laughing as he stepped on it, forcing the bone to stay unhealed.

He shook his head, he didn’t want to see those memories again.

“Please make it stop...” he croaked to the silent room. Tight bands of panic had clamped around his chest and felt like they weren’t letting up. After a few minutes the panic passed, and he was able to breathe easily once more. Starting to get sleepy, he dragged himself to his hooves and limped unsteadily out of the pool.

A luxurious soft towel was draped across a chair, and he used this to dry his coat. He seen his reflection in the mirrored walls, and seen all the bandages scattered across his whole body. The marks around his neck were fading a little. He pressed one hoof over them, fear returning as he recalled the one that’d inflicted them.

“Why does she care?” he asked thin air, his voice cracking “I’m just a...monster. There’s no place for something like me...”

He slumped to the floor, feeling abruptly overwhelmed. His head was buzzing with so many thoughts…

“They're afraid of you, you know..” Sombra looked up as he heard...his own voice?!

His reflection was staring at him, smirking cruelly.

“W-what?” he whispered.

“Don’t you recall what you did before? They wont let you go so easily. You'll always be imprisoned, even Celestia cant assure a populace you’re the victim in this case.” The reflection laughed “not that it matters. You deserved this, you know that?”

Sombra shook his head, but then faltered. This was just a hallucination, right?

“Come now, don’t lie to yourself..” the reflection snarled “we both know I’m right. For what you did before, this is what you deserve. Stop kidding yourself-”

“Stop!” Sombra gasped at last, the sound dwarfed by the massive room. The reflection sneered, and addressed him once more before fading back to normal.

“Deny it all you want, you know she wants something from you. What will she do to protect her precious kingdom, and get the information YOU have?”

Sombra closed his eyes, feeling sick. After several minutes the feeling faded, and he suppressed it as best he could. So when Celestia was summoned by the guards, she didn’t see any noticeable difference in him, just that he looked sleepy.

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The doctor was waiting back at the room, bearing some food and drink.

He spoke with Celestia while the patient had his first decent meal since waking up in the world at Scorpan's hands. Sombra was surprised by how much he was able to eat, and how good it felt to have some proper food. But after being virtually starved for days on end, after only a half or so of the food, his stomach ached and he stopped.

The doctor asked some more questions, which Sombra answered in the same monotone as before, then they left him to sleep.

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They left his room under a guards supervision, in case he fell ill again, and the doctor impressed upon Celestia how concerned he was by Sombra's lack of reaction.

"He's suppressing so much Princess, it's going to damage him eventually. He needs to talk about it, there has to be somepony he will trust. If he doesn’t, then…" he shook his head sadly.

The whole time, Discord had been following the doc, disguised as a particularly bizarre looking bee. It occurred to him his hypnosis could get Sombra to spill the beans. The real question was, did he know what to do with an emotional pony? There was a high chance he'd touch upon Sombra's fears, and the pony was already in a fragile mental state.

He decided to try, he could always hypnotise Sombra again if he needed it. There was a slight risk this may not work, but if doing this meant stopping Tirek's mad brother, he was prepared to give it a go. He had no desire to see history repeat itself...

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Sombra looked up as the guard suddenly fell asleep standing up, and felt a fresh tremor of fear hit him.

"Its just me~" the voice and owner were familiar, Sombra was sure he'd seen him before, he'd helped him..sleep...

"On Flutter's honour, I’m not here to hurt you!" The Draconequus said grandiosely. Seeing Sombra looking still as freaked out, but now confused, he coughed and abandoned the theatrics. Aware of Celestia's news bulletin regarding Sombra's fear of contact, he made it quick. He shot over and poked Sombra's nose swiftly, seeing the pony's expression shift for a split second, to one of fear, then go slightly distant as his mind relaxed under the hypnosis.

"Spill it," Discord said absently, as he looked around the room "what’s rushing around that head of yours? What can you recall?"

What followed was an itinerary of torture directives, and threats against not just Sombra, but the princesses. All of it spilling out, in that same emotionless voice. It was as if he was merely reciting a passage from a book, not detailing the worst nightmares of his life. Some bits made Discord wince, they sounded so bad.

"Why is he so angry at 'Tia and the other ones?" Discord asked when Sombra finally hesitated.

Sombra blinked once "because they didn’t even try to help him," he mimicked Scorpan "they just locked him up again!"

"Pfft! That guy was BEYOND help!" Discord snorted.

"It's his brother, he still loves him. And thinks he has a good side left." Sombra said dully.

"Why YOU? Could he not learn dark magic from some place else?"

"He needs me." Sombra said distantly, and Discord wondered if he had stockhorn syndrome, where a captive begins to bond with a kidnapper. It seemed unlikely though. It was obvious Scorpan had detested Sombra, holding only feelings of disdain for him.

"Why does he need you so badly?" he asked, regardless. Sombra shivered, fear showing in his eyes now;

"I'm the only one of my kind alive, he wants to use me to fulfil an ancient prophecy.."

"Of what..?"

Sombra shook his head "I don't know, I cant remember..." he said, his voice shaking "but it was the reason he wouldn’t kill me. I kept hoping. I cant stand not knowing if it’ll ever stop, even in this place. Will it ever stop?!"

The tremor in his voice alerted Discord to the fact Sombra had reached breaking point. He turned to face the bed, where Sombra was staring at the bedspread, unaware of the crystalline tears falling to its surface. He was shaking worse then before, too.

"What good did torturing you do?" Discord muttered, frowning.

"He said he had to break me," Sombra spoke like a child discussing a mere toy, a broken laugh backing this up "he couldn’t risk my getting away. He kept saying he'd stop hurting me if I just gave in, but I didn’t believe him..." his voice had reached a more frantic pitch "you cant fool a monster. I know how he thinks! Afterall, am I not the same?!"

"Puhlease!" Discord snorted "you’re a cuddly little colt compared to that thing and his foul relations!"

“I don’t….I cant...” Sombra couldn’t explain what was hurting him, he was still too locked up in his nightmares and fears. He let his body go slack, slumping to the bed covers, head pounding with so much pressure. It had to go somewhere, and it sought the most base of expressions. He seen his vision blur, felt the same overwhelming force that accompanied the onslaught of fearful imagery.

He buried his head in his hooves, the muffled sounds making Discord feel sorry for him. They needed what Sombra knew of Scorpan, and they needed it fast. But Sombra was in no state to weather such an intense storm. He needed someone to protect him.

In an oddly sympathetic move, he placed a paw on Sombra's head, hearing the sobbing still as the pony tensed up. Under the hypnosis, Sombra didn’t register the contact as a danger, didn’t feel the debilitating terror a simple touch had so far visited upon him. Moreover, it was the warmth of the gesture that startled him into silence.

"Fluttershy, the sweet little yellow one. She can be a friend if you let her. They ALL can. WE all can." Discord said, adding the last bit as an afterthought. He used his magic to calm Sombra's mind, the poor pony looked like he needed it.

Sombra slowed his breathing as the spell sunk in. Discord stepped back, hoping it'd worked. Sombra looked a little calmer now as he looked up at Discord...

He tried to speak, but began coughing instead. Discord looked for a glass of water, then had an idea.

He snapped his fingers, making a set of glasses appear along with a tiny pink rain-cloud.

"Watch this!" he cackled in amusement, snapping his fingers and making the tiny cloud rain chocolate milk into the glasses "ta-da!"

“What is that?" Sombra asked.

"You've never heard of chocolate milk? Good grief man, just drink it!" Discord set one of the glasses between Sombra's hooves. Sombra regarded it curiously before trying a bit. His ears perked up slightly, and a flash of hope seemed to glance across his eyes as he he slowly finished it.

"The best, isn’t it?" Discord finished his glass and threw it behind him, where it vanished.

Sombra nodded, looking drowsy as he regarded the empty glass "its...nice..."

The two words were filled with more hope then Discord had detected since the rescue mission to retrieve this pony. He made the glass vanish, and tapped Sombra's nose again, telling him to sleep.

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He snuck out the door, a snap of his fingers awakening the guard, who was none the wiser about what’d happened. He was tiptoeing along the hall when-

"What did he tell you?" Celestia spoke as if from nowhere, making Discord yelp.

"Don’t do that!" he scolded, "and what on Equestria are you talking about?"

"You think that disguise fooled me?" she said. He paused, opened his mouth, then thought better about answering. She continued, entirely unfazed.

"I'm aware of your hypnosis spell, and it at least would ease what Sombra's suffering."

“So why not ask me directly?"

"You seem to work better on your own initiative, since regaining your bond with Fluttershy." Celestia said "I guessed the process would be easier on Sombra this way."

"Smart ass.."

Celestia merely raised an eyebrow.

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They went to her office for tea, so Discord could tell her what he'd managed to gain from Sombra. He added Sombra had hinted at being afraid of being in so much pain he'd want to die again...

"I was afraid of that..." Celestia sighed "it ties into his first reaction to seeing me."

"He said the same thing?" Discord said.

She nodded "Yes, he was begging me to make the pain stop."

Discord flashed back to Sombra's tears, seen the fear in his eyes.

"I'd say he's afraid of us wanting the same thing from him. Information, magic. And if he cant remember it, what will you do to him? That’s what seemed to strike fear into him.”

"We'll find a way to help him, nopony should have to go through what he did.”

Author's Note:

Pineapples. That is all.

Comments

[Mother3Forever]

Ok, I'm hooked.

[Princess OtakuGeek]

Thank you for the new chapter!

[Mother3Forever]

Forgot to follow you a few hours ago. Fixed.

[grim dash]

*grads Sombra and pets him will singing a Lola-bye* its okay he can’t hurt you anymore and I won’t let him.

Also where is Luna in all of this?

[Coco Candy]

I want to hug Sombra but I can't

[Amos Anon]

Pineapples. Safe word. They belong on pizza. Fight me.