Son of Shadows

by Sir Shining Armor

Amore

Chapter 4: Amore.
~Sombra POV~
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Sombra led the way forward as they trudged onwards, shielding his face with his hoof against the blizzard. To anypony without proper winter gear, this would be difficult, if nigh impossible just to stand for more than a few minutes - yet his wife and son were holding on thanks to the protective spell he had cast for them - along with the coats he provided for them.

In between stretches of searching miles of icy wasteland, his family took refuge in a system of caves they had found just outside the borders of the Crystal Empire. Although still cold and drafty, it kept them out the ice and snow. At night, the wind blew even more mercilessly - another reason to stay inside. Several times he had tried to venture out alone, but Hope insisted that she stay by his side - as did Shard. Once she had her mind set on joining him, there was no convincing her otherwise.

Just one more piece, he kept telling himself. And then Amore will be restored.

The problem therein was actually finding the darn thing.

A millennium ago, Sombra had cast a spell of concealment on the last piece, ensuring that nopony could detect the shard without using a level of Magic on par with his own - when he was at his height. It could still be found if one was persistent enough, but that would be difficult - especially since this was a place of eternal, unchanging winter. Things were not helped by the fact he had to use the majority of his power keeping the ice at bay - casting a protective energy shield around himself and his family that held out the wind. It meant he had to look with his eyes instead of trying to sense its presence. For all he knew, it could be a thousand miles away, or it could just be a few feet ahead.

The only solution then was to keep looking and keep hoping.

All the while, he could feel his family growing more and more miserable. Not that he blamed them, of course, but they had insisted on coming along and seeing this through to the end. It was for that, that he loved them - but it also meant they were suffering too.

Grimly, Sombra applied more power to the spell and expanded the shield a bit more - giving them a little more space to look.
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~Shard~

Ahead of him, Father put a bit more effort into the spell - expanding the shield's radius. Outside it, the winds blew fiercely - threatening to engulf him and his parents - or bury them under tons of snow. Yet still, Father kept at it despite the strain it was causing him. Several times, when it seemed the shield was faltering, Mother had cast a spell of her own - and each time the shield was renewed. A healing spell, Shard knew - meant to restore his stamina and help keep up his strength. Mother had said once that she specialized in such.

A part of him wished that he knew more advanced Magic. That way he might help with this search. He felt so useless. He was so foolish for asking to come along.

Before they had departed, Shard demanded that he go with them wherever they went - even if it was the coldest region of the north. Father had tried to refuse, of course, but Shard gave him that look that let him know he wouldn't let up. Gradually, his resolve weakened and he agreed - on the condition that he stay close to Mother at all times - and if there was any danger to immediately turn tail and run. Not that he intended on doing that, of course. There was no way that the Midnight Rider would ever run from a fight. Even if it was with the biggest, meanest Dragon in Equestria - he'd still do all he could to help his parents.

He just wished he could do more. Maybe if he tried his hoof at Magic...

Shard... A voice called over the wind, somewhere to his right.

Shard blinked, looking around. He could have sworn he had heard somepony say his name, but it hadn't been either of his parents - and there was nopony else in sight. Maybe the cold was slowing his wits. He kept on walking, silently.

Shard... The sound came again. This time he was sure he had heard it. He tugged at his mother's leg.

"Mother, did you hear that?"

"Hear what, sweetie?" She asked. "The wind?"

Shard shook his head. "No, not the wind. Somepony was saying my name."

"Sombra," Hope called to her husband. "Did you call for Shard?"

Father turned around and looked at him quizzically. "No, I didn't. Did you?"

"No." Hope answered. She looked back down at her son. "Who did you hear calling you, Shard?"

"I heard it somewhere around there." Shard said, pointing with his hoof in the direction he heard the voice from. "It sounded like a mare, I think. That way."

His parents exchanged glances. Suddenly the shield flared even brighter for a moment. Shard took that as a good sign - and without waiting for them to follow, he started off in that direction, his eyes scanning the icy tundra. Before he knew it, Father was following him.

"Hello?" Shard called over the wind, hoping that the voice's source would respond. "Are you there?"

No answer.

The wind started to pick up around them - and even Father's shield started to falter.

Not one to give up, Shard raised his voice. "I can't help you unless you tell me where you are! Give me a sign or something!"

Still no reply.

Behind him, Father sighed. "Maybe it was just the wind." He offered. "Come on, it'll be dark soon. We should head back to the shelter before then."

"Come along, Shard." Mother called after him. Before she could wrap her foreleg around him, Shard felt something - like a tingling sensation. Then came a realization. With that, he lowered his head, pointed his horn in that direction and invoked his Magic. The rush of power made him dizzy, but he held on - and his body felt like it was on fire, but he remained standing. The aura around his horn took on a bright green color - and a second later it shot through the snow, piercing the wind and layers of ice.

He looked up as the spell's energy was expended - his legs feeling like rubber.

And he found himself staring straight into the eyes of another Unicorn. Somehow, he could tell she wasn't all there - almost like a ghost.

She stood a full head and a half taller than him - and her coat was a soft shade of pink - as was her horn, though she had a long, curly red mane that stretched down almost to her hooves. A sky blue crown rested atop her head - along with what appeared to be a heart-shaped headpiece - and the Cutie Mark at her flank vaguely resembled a blue snowflake. When she opened her mouth to speak, no words came out - but a voice echoed in his head, light and soft and feminine. It sounded vaguely like Princess Cadance, but older and a little weary too.

You have done well, Midnight Shard.

"Who are you?" He replied, awestruck at the sight of the Unicorn. He bit his lower lip. "Are you Amore?"

Indeed. The ethereal unicorn replied. Though you may not understand it now, you have saved more than just your family. Your role in the coming battle is more important than you can possibly imagine.

"What are you talking about?" He asked, confused. "What battle?"

All will be explained. The voice and the unicorn started to fade away. For now, you and your family must return to the Crystal Empire. She will be waiting for you there.

There came a flash of light - so bright and intense that Shard had to shut his eyes against it. When he opened them, Amore had disappeared.

"Shard..." Father murmured behind him. "You might want to take a look at this."

He turned, finding himself staring face-to-face once more with Amore, only this time, she was frozen in stone. All the pieces that his parents had collected had somehow assembled right before him into the shape of the former unicorn. Both Mother and Father stood with their jaws agape at the sight.

"Sombra, look." Hope said to her husband, smiling. "That's not all." She pointed at Shard. Sombra's expression turned from surprise to delight as he looked down at his son.

"Shard, it's your Cutie Mark!"

Shard's eyebrows shot up as he turned and examined his flank. His father had spoken truly - a mark had appeared: A gem with what appeared to be a magical aura surrounding it. It dawned on him suddenly that, that was his destiny. To find rare objects - and items of great importance. So that was why he was so good at Archaeologist!

"I could hear her voice in my head." He said. "She said something about ... how I was important." He struggled to remember the rest. "And she said to head back home to the Empire."

Sombra nodded. "That sounds good to me. Now that we have Amore's shards, we can finally restore her." He put his foreleg around his son and pulled him into a hug - tears forming in his eyes. "And of course, we have your Cute-Ceañera to plan as well. Hopefully it'll be in time for the Crystal Faire!"

Author's Note:

Hey guys. Sorry this took so long. Been working full-time hours, even though I'm supposed to have a part-time job. Funny how that works.

As always, don't forget to comment, rate and stay awesome.

Comments

[Sir Shining Armor]

7506352 Thank you! I appreciate the comment - and the favorite.

[Grekoy]

Wow. Even Amore is shipping Flurry and Shard. Great chapter.

[Sir Shining Armor]

7507294 Thank you!

[PonyPawz]

Sweet. Can't wait for the next