Divine Move

by Ice Star

十六 (The Chess Master)

The inside of Canterlot castle is airy and bright and the floor feels pleasantly cool under my hooves. Knowing Celestia, I expected there to be heavier ornamentation inside and the pointless baubles of a vain mare like herself smothering every surface.

She's got the most authoritative look possible on her face but I imagine that she looks much more like somepony's stern mother since there's absolutely nothing frightening about Celestia. I imagine that all she's going to do is remind me to say 'please' before I take the life of her purple student and 'thank you' afterwards.

The architecture, which isn't an eyesore like the crabby goddess that storms through it, is actually quite tasteful and done in the same colors as the outside, although I think it could use some green here and there since purple really is a dreadful shade of almost anything. I've only ever seen it pulled off once.

Right now, it isn't the castle that I'm that amused with, it's just a relief to find something around here that isn't boring. Celestia is who I'd like to play with here, since you can learn a good deal about a pony or an Alicorn simply based on their magic. And even if you don't, it is always useful to know.

She's a smothered flame, a pointless wall of her own creation surrounds herself as she chokes her own ability. Maybe in a long fight she could draw out a steady stream of power, but I don't think she could control it well, much less work around whatever mental block is also altering her energy. If I were to get a short burst of raw power, something so sheer and only controllable enough for me to properly aim, then I imagine she could be overwhelmed.

Whatever she's locking in there must be doing more harm than good since she feels like a wall: unmoving and still. Flexibility, in a general sense in magic, isn't admirable either. But to be so rigid that she'd break at the first real hit isn't even a preferable alternative. A wall is hardly a proper obstacle since all will go through, over, or under it.

Walls are weak, they wear and fall. She's naturally burning with raw power that even in this state feels like its shaking the halls. This twisted barrier isn't right and that self-imposed wall should crash down so she finally can realize just how much of a fool she must have been. She hasn't hobbled herself, she crippled her own form and cut the lame flesh that remained as if she feared it could heal of its own accord.

Any lesser sort, a regular unicorn perhaps, who tries this would most likely make a mistake and end up killing themselves. All creatures have magic, and while it can be hidden it can't be smothered without consequences.

But Celestia? All those lingering prejudices are attacking her and she doesn't even try to stop it. If I could make somepony else feel this, I don't think they could bear the power. I only met her face to face once and we stood across a throne room then, her eyes were glowing and I could barely focus, because...

I'm jerked out of the only good memory I can say I've ever had before I picked up the pieces, even if it took a while to realize it. There's no sadness, no melancholy, no anger, hopelessness or tears that lurk in there, all obvious signs of misery have not found their way into this one cherished thought. There's so much that happened after, it's really quite a mixed bag but that one moment...

There's a sigh caught in my throat and the harsh gleam of a gold shoe points to a door brimming with a mix of enchantments that I can't discern from one another without feeling like I'm grasping at straws before retreating back into my own mind, utterly confused. This isn't typical and not being able to sense things like this makes me feel numb.

The lovely company I've got looming over me scowls somewhat, as if that'll make me take her seriously before she opens the door with a quick burst of magic.

I tuck the memory of that corrupted crystalline hallway away and prepare to simply hope I can pass the latest obstacle soon enough to bridge the distance between us and return the favor somepony did so long ago, even though it really doesn't feel like that when you've lived as long as I have.

I look away, so even her mane is no longer within my field of vision even if her presence still makes my skin crawl from the light magic she possesses. That stuff can burn, or rather it will if I come in direct contact with too much of it. Even without being hit by a nasty blast of the stuff it still makes me vaguely nauseous to be around somepony who just has this wave gushing from them without a care of what they're doing. The room, whose contents I have trouble seeing since they're on my left side and I don't quite care, hums with different magic, no doubt cast by Celestia herself, that doesn't feel so disgusting.

I know I'm going to have to step in there anyway if I'm going to topple the order she so foolishly thinks she can maintain over me by pulling apart her wall brick by brick, and so it is that I cross the threshold.

The feeling changes and the magic turns in the air, warping around me so even when I pause briefly it feels like I'm still moving. Something's not right, I can feel something twist. There's now a click of the door behind me. I see her horn glow and there should be more magic around me, but now I can't-

...

I rubbed my eyes and surveyed the room's interior. Did the windows have to be so big? They let in too much light. The room Celestia had set up was circular with no furnishings or anything that decorated the clean white walls other than small flourishes that could be found on the rest of the castle's halls. Everything else was bare too except for a small table and two chairs. As I stated before, the windows were large and were probably cleaned recently. Sunlight poured through their panes, as bright, obnoxious, and glaring as the princess who controlled it. Gold aura, belonging to none other than the princess herself, cloaked the clear glass, tinging what could be seen of the spires with the same hue.

At least it isn't purple, I thought with a sneer.

I plopped into the chair that would allow me to turn my back to the light. She takes the other chair across from me, her posture makes statues look natural and her gaze disapproving. She wraps her hooves possessively around the teacup that sits out. Curls of steam come from it, showing that the beverage is partially cooled. The pot it came from is not far away, although when she poured herself a cup she appeared to spill some, since a few drops have found their way onto the cream colored folders she just picked up with her magic.

Celestia’s horn was still glowing from closing the door, only now it holds a folder open and a pen that was lying about.

I can't see what's inside but I see that the most chaotic thing in this room is the vaguely shuffled folders, which there are a couple of, and the papers in them. My head is propped up with my hoof and I glare at Celestia dead-on, who tries to act like she's too good to notice me.

There's everything between us.

She scrawls something down. Since her pen wasn't in contact with the paper's surface long, I'm going to presume it was my name.

"How old are you?"

Such a professional tone. I bet it's as dead as the rest of her since she's nothing more than that crown and a few prejudices to go with an uptight demeanor that just makes me want to-

"Don't roll your eyes at me like a foal, I asked you how old you are."

"Aleph-null," I reply with a flat tone and without hesitation.

She almost drops her pen. "What?!"

"Somepony hasn't read up on their set theory."

I'm promptly ignored as she takes a sip of her tea.

"You're very dense you know. I think I can see the light bend around you."

"Just what do you think you're doing other than taunting me?"

"Well, for starters I'm bored as Tartarus since my latest toy has proven that she's just as pompous as she always has been, but I think I'll manage. Outside of that, well isn't it obvious? I'm just sitting here rattling things off in an utterly eloquent and dramatic fashion, since unlike you I tell it as it is. In the back of my mind I wonder if it's going to rain anytime this week. Such profound thoughts when compared to yours. I'm also propping myself up with my right forehoof so I can give you this perfect scowl and hard stare that is absolutely tired of your crap. Just look at this poise! If you were to ask me, and of course assume that I won't add in my own feedback anyway, I think I look pretty damn sexy while doing so."

Celestia just scowls, her eyes angry as predicted. "You're nothing more than a vain tyrant with no understanding outside of their petty and vile existence. Oh, and I will note this for you since your own cruel ignorance towards anything but your own delusions seems to block out everything else: few ponies understand some of the profanities you speak, as they are from a bygone age and have only found their way into a few parts of modern society."

"Really? Do you think you're one to talk, Celestia? In my 1,123 years never have I met somepony who spoke their own faults onto another as much as you do. You do not speak of the true nature that is the Right-Honourable Sombra as you'll find I'm far from petty in every way you can imagine, and then some. I'm hardly delusional, and whatever you think my nature is remains unspoken since you haven't specified a single accusation against me."

After hearing what my age is, the pen moves once more before hanging back in the air. "I cannot believe my own niece vouches for you, a monster of the worst kind. I need not hear your brutal justifications of somepony who has never loved and bears few traces of equinity. You're nearly a demon."

Wait a moment... 'nearly'? What's she going for here?

"You still refuse to tell me why I'm so awful, in your opinion. Just because I'm out of your league doesn't mean you need to get all worked up since I'm sure there's closed-minded beings worth less the lowest filth that even the light of your sun does not touch somewhere."

The pen resumes its angry scribblings and Celestia's gaze drops to meet her paper since I have yet to find anypony who can look me in the eye for long. "You're a brutal killer who has ended hundreds without losing even a wink of sleep as you dwelled within a stolen castle and sat on a stolen throne. You'll steal the most precious things from any creature as if they were nothing, and laugh as you do it. You do not obey any kind of order and treat the laws and customs of any land as though they were optional. The only emotion you have within you is a sadistic and perverse delight that you get from twisting the knife, as it is called. Emotion does not matter to you, and I doubt you have any understanding of it. You waste no time in hurting others in any way through lies and betrayal to get what you want as if such a bloodlust could be satisfied. It is you who refuses to acknowledge others as anything but your inferiors as you believe you can get away with anything. I trusted Cadance in thinking that you could be altered so you could be made to view your own flaws and accept humility and own up to everything you have done, if only to acknowledge it was all your fault. What you did to Twilight Sparkle showed otherwise, and I've let you run free and commit petty crimes for long enough."

I don't swallow my growing rage, but I refuse to show it. I've only ever heard more lies from the one who called himself the king. She knows nothing, and as with everypony else she hasn't and cannot change. She seems to think that my silence equals defeat as well, even though the strongest pony I know is the one who hardly speaks.

"You are the most obdurate creature to ever walk this world," Celestia hisses, "I offer you one last chance to save your profane existence."

'Last' chance? She does realize that I can still fight her quite easily, correct? Apparently not. Knowing her, she's probably just going to assume she can use those stunted god-powers of her and pontificate everything to me as I bleed out. Power is nothing, and neither is a physical weapon since form and intellect are the true victors, and I imagine she'll be speechless when she finds out that I still have some raw power on the side. "What could this possibly be?"

A twisted brand of pointless, unearned gloating shines within the flat purple of her eyes. Her mouth curls into the slightest traces of a haughty smile around the edges and not a word is exchanged between us.

She's so foalish. Gods, it looks like she wants somepony to give her a medal along with a whole wreath of roses, but only after she's got the monument and the town criers record her name for ages to come. And what might it be for? Nothing! She's allowing herself to feel vague traces of victory over absolutely nothing. Is she attempting arrogance? If that is the case, then she isn't doing it right since there is nothing to warrant her even fancying herself as such. My arrogance is completely warranted, after all I am the Right-Honourable Lord Sombra and I can back up every claim to those who even have the nerve to doubt me, and that would only be for my amusement as well. Me, petty? Unbelievable. "What might this latest attempt to humor me be?"

"I will be generous enough to offer you reformation if you own up to all you crimes and rid yourself of dark magic as much as possible and surrender yourself to those higher than you so that you might be taught how things really are. I have yet to select your main teacher, but they will be chosen from Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, and Twilight Sparkle who you will have-"

"Are you kidding me? This is the biggest load of-"

Celestia tries to look somewhat threatening here but just comes across as stern and disapproving but not much else. "I'd watch what you speak next since I've already been patient enough so far, and I will not tolerate any more attempts at corruption to my little ponies. Just what is it that you think you say most of the time?"

"Well," I begin while tapping one of my left forehoof lightly on the table's surface, "I alternate between golden wit, the truth, a healthy amount of threats that I will go through with if pushed hard enough, plenty of snark, and ironic humor that is not grasped by weak minds like yourself. I bet that mane occupies the space where your brain would be."

Her pen won't stop scribbling whatever notes she's been scrawling so angrily and she still won't meet my gaze for more than a few moments. "Do you hear yourself? You're no different from your time on the throne, and even before that. I'll have you know that after my sister's banishment-"

That's what she's chosen to call the events that the potion revealed to me? A 'banishment'?! How professional of her.

"-I returned to that valley, finally with an understanding of what I'd done, especially when I found the old journals we had left there. They gave me insight into my own flaws, my sister's sadness, and your heartless cruelty. Since nopony could read them, I gave the artifacts to the museum you visited under Twilight Sparkle's guidance, which was newly established at the time."

I know where this was going. It's a lie, it's always lies with her and I know that if I want to survive this ordeal I can neither say that anything isn't so or that it is, because that really would be the filthiest lie of all.

I'm Sombra, the demon summoned by the stupid servant of Starswirl the Bearded. But if there's anypony that would hate demons, that is an unforgiving and spoiled monster it's her, the royal nag that sits before me. This disgusting leech might snap and end me, and maybe even an entire wing of this castle in her carelessness, on the spot. She can't handle any kind of truth because she's a weak and vile thing who glorifies herself and the mindless ponies that she holds like precious gems. She may not harm them or show them cruelty but her deeds make her tyrant to me and that's all the word I need.

Because of her I can feel bile rising in my throat at the thought of just having to pretend I'm him, the other tyrant of this matter. They're both disgusting, merciless equines that only seek to wear those wretched crowns. Everything because of those, stupid, worthless jewels that are as dead as the one that wears them! They seek power and I saw what it did to Onyx, how it took a mindless twit and allowed him to... to... Well, I hope power does the same to her as well!

"I know you're a heartless creature, equinity is lost on you," She goes on and on, in that tone.

Why does she pretend to know anything? I'm not heartless, nor will I ever be. I know more than most what it means to have a heart and a small part of me, the artless little voice that never gets its way but nonetheless can be quite vocal in certain matters, wants to just scream it now and see how it affects her, even though she'll probably twist it to suit her and further make me out to be everything I'm not.

"You're a heartless, violent, and insolent unstable mess of an equine shell. You might as well be a weapon for how much you kill, and how much you relish in it all, Onyx."

I stop playing her game, everything that's been built up gets to show in my eyes, my fangs, the mane that has a smoky quality to it. She's so oblivious, the pen no longer scrawls it's nonsense and papers fall to the floor, a few sprinkles of crimson dance on each. Through it all I can see that despite those red spots, the name she wrote stands out clearly...

Onyx 'King Sombra' 'Kawblance'

1,123

It goes on and on like she does, attempting to list everything I've done, some of the 'offenses' are recent while others are what I'm despised for in the Crystal Empire even though she counted wrong, or her source was false since there's about twenty missing deaths that should be tallied there.

Fate is no longer in its sheath, the cold blend of steel and platinum along with whatever was in the Alicorn Amulet rests at her neck, the curve of the scimitar blade is covered in a faint sheen of blood. A few specks even landed on the red veins of crystal that creep across the cold metal.

"Call me Onyx one more time and you'll see just how insolent I can be, Little 'Lara. We'll see if you're still fit to play princess after."

The magic on her horn dies and the golden light cannot save the pen from falling to the ground. Once the last shreds of light are gone, she smiles warmly at me as my own magic goes with hers, but not of my own accord.

No, no, no, no...

After all that vanishes I can feel everything and know exactly what she's done. I feel the panic rising in my throat, and everything else... my horn won't light...

...my horn won't light...

...she keeps smiling...

...my horn won't light, I thought I tripped... that stupid smile...

...I should have felt it, shouldn't I?!

...I would have...

I gulp hard, since each breath is shaky now. On the papers I can see a date neatly written in the corner of the first page: June 20th.

That's today's date.

June 20th. June 20th. June 20th.

...MY HORN WON'T LIGHT!

Comments

[Kaleido]

"Aleph-null," I reply with a flat tone and without hesitation.

"I will be generous enough to offer you reformation if you own up to all you crimes and rid yourself of dark magic as much as possible and surrender yourself to those higher than you so that you might be taught how things really are. I have yet to select your main teacher, but they will be chosen from Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, and Twilight Sparkle who you will have-"

classic celestia, delegate to her unpaid "underlings" in the form of the elements (ok twi is probably paid, what with being a princess and all, but the rest are almost certainly not)