Temor

by Askre

Chapter 8. Arrival in Equestria.

Chapter 8

Prince Temor arched his brow at the green lush landscape that now greeted him. Glancing back, he saw the frozen tundra of the north that led towards the Crystal Empire. Forward however, were green grassy fields with lakes and streams, a forest was also nearby and the occasional cloud in the sky looked very white and fluffy.

“So… this is Equestria,” Temor muttered. In a distant memory he actually found something vaguely familiar about all of this, but it was buried so deep that the prince almost considered it simply a dream.

“Parts of it, at least,” Sombra said and frowned a little. Things had definitely changed in his eyes. The spirit had no recollection of the landscape looking like this beyond the borders.

Temor grunted and glanced at Emerald who was the only one staring in awe. The mare, having been brought up in the dark bleak city under Sombra’s oppressive rule, had never experienced this much color or plant-life.

“Well at least if you run out of rations, you will still have food,” Sombra remarked. His son had to really restrain himself from whirling around to stare confused at the spirit. Instead Temor looked forward, eyed to his side and whispered, “What exactly are you talking about?”

The dead king didn’t vocally respond, instead just pointed towards the green grassy fields in front of them. It took a second for Temor to realize what he meant, the unicorn had to summon a lot of willpower not to sneer in disgust.

“You mean… grass… right off the ground?” He quickly eyed Emerald to see if she had heard his sharp whisper. Fortunately, the crystal pony was still too distracted by the pretty looking landscape to notice.

“We’re on the road, Temor, that means eating what is available to you,” his father snorted. “At least you don’t have to find meat as well.”

Temor cringed at the remark, another reminder to him that he was not a true dark pony. His father’s race had been omnivorous and ate meat products just as much as plants. Being Equestrian, the prince was herbivorous and had never eaten meat in his life.

“Is that a city up in the clouds?” Emerald remarked startled before remembering herself and flinched, half ready to be struck for speaking without permission. She didn’t need to worry, however, as Temor had looked and was equally startled to see in the distance what looked like a city up in the sky.

“Cloudsdale, the ancient capital of the Pegasi Tribes…it looks different,” Sombra muttered and arched his ghostly brow.

“They have a city up in the clouds?” Temor all but shouted, just as baffled as the crystal pony. His father looked at him and was mildly confused.

“Don’t tell me that your most distant memories don’t recall the pegasi city of Cloudsdale?” he inquired.

Temor was a little embarrassed now. Of course he knew that the pegasi did have a city only they could reach, but the young stallion had always assumed it was high up in the mountains, not literally on clouds up in the skies.

“Cloudsdale has never been conquered. It’s mobility and position in the skies makes it one of the most formidable fortresses in all of Equestria. Only Canterlot could arguably be considered more superior due to all the magic that’s contained there,” his father said and continued to stare towards the distant cloud city with a heavy frown.

“What about when Discord conquered Equestria?” Temor whispered and subtly glanced towards his father.

“Didn’t you hear what I said about the mobility? They moved the entire city...guess where?” Sombra looked at him. He noted that Emerald was too engrossed in looking around since Temor hadn’t punished her for speaking up.

“Over the Crystal Empire…your magic and the Crystal Heart kept Discord out…you didn’t mind?” Temor also noticed that his concubine was busy so he risked speaking more directly with the spirit. Sombra’s response was to simply nod.

“Of course, not directly above the city, but within my area of influence. I paid it no mind. The Pegasi were too busy helping the Princesses find ways to defeat Discord and I suppose I foolishly thought that by granting them this sanctuary the Princesses would in the end leave me alone.” The dead king sighed in dismay.

Temor just nodded and started to walk onwards as there was no real point in standing where they were. Emerald followed immediately and behind them floated the spirit of Sombra. The king arched his brow a little when noticing that the crystal pony was occasionally giving the prince a glance.

Curious...I do wonder about you, Sombra thought and for now remained silent, wanting to see how this would develop.

---

The Crystal Empire – King Sombra’s reign.

“Come along, Emerald don’t delay,” Reflective Quartz whispered sharply to her youngest daughter as they made their way down the hallway that lead to the slave quarters. The yellow crystal mare wouldn’t relax until she was back in her room and had counted her foals.

Emerald trailed behind her mother. The little filly had been helping her with the chores as she was still too young to be assigned special duties. During the work, she had spotted a young colt the girl had never seen in the castle before. When Emerald had asked about him, her mother had just shushed her and told her to keep working.

The girl didn’t really understand why there were so many rules, still too young to fully understand that she was a slave just like most of the other crystal ponies. The colt had sparked her curiosity because so far, she and her siblings were the only children present in the castle.

Amber is teaching me to write, maybe I can write him a note, maybe he will be my friend, she thought and smiled a little. Aside from her siblings, she’s never had a friend before.

Her mother sighed in relief when seeing a purple-colored colt sitting outside the door to their room. The boy was a little older than Emerald, close to his teen years. He rose when seeing them arrive. He looked really tired.

“Rubinstein.” Reflective reached to hug the boy. “Where is Amber?”

“Inside,” Rubinstein responded quietly.

Emerald happily greeted her brother who managed to crack a smile at her in response. Other slaves hanging around also smiled when hearing the cheerful voice of the girl. The little family entered the room. On the ground in one corner, lying on blankets, was a purple filly around the same age as Rubinstein, maybe a year or two older. She looked tiredly up when her family entered.

“Amber,” Reflective smiled weakly and walked over to her daughter and they rubbed their heads together.

“Mom… he was looking at me again,” Amber whispered, causing her mother to frown slightly.

Emerald paid little attention to the talk. After greeting her sister, the filly went to her own corner. There, in a worn bag, the girl stored what little she was allowed to own; a few pieces of paper and some chalk to practice her writing and some wooden toys that had belonged to her brother, but once he had gotten older and had more duties, he had passed them on to her.

The filly sat down and for now played with her toys while she thought what she should write the colt. Emerald also wondered how she would deliver the note. The girl didn’t even know where he was staying in the castle.

A knock on the door caused all four ponies inside to look over, three of them with half-dread. Emerald was the only one to show genuine curiosity in her expression. Reflective walked over to the entrance of their room and carefully opened it, half-worried who she would see on the other side. The mare visibly relaxed when seeing the old blue crystal mare on the other side.

“I’m terribly sorry to disturb your rest, Quartz,” the old mare said and smiled apologetically.

“No, no it’s alright, Turquoise. Do you need anything?” the younger mare asked.

“Here is the thing. The king has appointed me as the nursemaid to the young child he’s adopted recently. I was hoping I could count on you to assist me if need be as you are the only one of us here who has children,” Turquoise explained.

Emerald perked her ears when hearing this. Since she usually accompanied her mother during the day, this could mean she could deliver the notes herself. The girl was pretty sure they were talking about the colt.

“I will have to rein Emerald in. She is still so curious… but yes, yes you can call on me if you need me,” Reflective assured the old mare who nodded her thanks.

Turquoise left the little family and Reflective stepped over to where her youngest daughter was still playing. Emerald looked up. She could already guess what her mother was about to say considering what she had just said to the other mare.

“Emerald, it is very important that if we go and help Turquoise that you do not talk with the colt. I know you probably want to, but don’t,” her mother said. It was pretty much what the girl was expecting.

“Okay,” Emerald whispered. One thing she had already learned was that it was pointless to question why.

---

The present.

Emerald stretched her sore limbs, trying not to make any noise. The prince was sleeping right next to her and the mare knew too well not to disturb him. They had walked for a long time before finally making camp near the edge of the forest. They still hadn’t seen any sign of a town or other civilization aside from the still distant cloud city.

The crystal mare sat up and sighed a little. The environment was very alien to her, the noises from the forests didn’t sound like the howling wind of the frozen north, things felt more alive and the magic in the air felt more wholesome. She just wasn’t used to all this - the only familiarity was in the stallion snoring next to her.

I hope they are all right, not trying anything dumb like looking for me, she thought and glanced over at Temor. I just had to get him away. They would have strung him up, considered him just as guilty as the king.

Emerald allowed herself to smile now that the prince wasn’t looking, not knowing that another pair of eyes were watching everything intently. The mare carefully edged herself to the saddlebags and silently opened one and started to rummage through it. She stopped when uncovering an item - an old wooden figure of a pony warrior. The mare didn’t pick it up, just stared at it.

He may not remember the notes and the things we shared, the king finally did something to him, forced him to forget, she thought and reached in to pet the figure. The mane and tail had been crudely painted in a yellow color. But the prince never told him that it was me, that I was his only friend the whole time.

The mare covered the figure up and closed the bag. Carefully, she crawled back to lie next to the prince, thankful that he was a very heavy sleeper.

I don’t know how I’ll get him to remember, but until I figure that out, I must stick by him and ensure he isn’t caught. I owe it to him for never revealing me. Emerald laid her head down and tried to go back to sleep, unaware of the ghostly eyes that had watched her every move.

King Sombra hadn’t missed a thing, seeing the warm smile Emerald gave his son, the wooden toy in the bag and the conflict brewing in her eyes. The spirit furrowed his brow in thought, gliding closer, staring intently at the mare who was starting to slumber.

Is it possible? he thought. Did I guess right that it was you?

Sombra had always known about the notes his son received, yet Temor always claimed it was just him playing. The king knew that the boy had clearly been friends with one of the slaves in the castle. He just never really could pinpoint who, though he had his suspicions.

The toys, the missing confections...I must admit of all my slaves, you always did look surprisingly content with your life, the spirit frowned and now he did wish he could enter Emerald’s mind.

I must admit I chose you to become the concubine of my son based on those suspicions, figuring if it was you, what a cruel irony it would be that you were now the personal slave of the colt you had called friend, who could now do with you as he pleased. Sombra started to smirk but it quickly dropped as this train of thought reminded him of something else. Of course then I had to explain to Temor what concubines were for… that was rather embarrassing.

Then again, carnal desires were never of much interest to Temor. He was always much more intent on his studies, always eager to impress me. His gaze shifted towards his slumbering son.

A soft sound caught the spirit’s attention. He glanced over and saw movements up in the trees. Sombra frowned and wondered if he should rouse the prince. The dead king was about to float over to Temor when the moonlight escaped the clouds and landed on the trees, revealing the faint outline of a few bats fluttering around.

Sombra snorted and relaxed a little, returning his gaze to the sleeping ponies. He scowled when hearing whimpers coming from Temor. The spirit floated closer to his son and seeing that he was still asleep could only conclude that the prince was having a nightmare.

---

The Crystal Empire – King Sombra’s reign.

Private Iceland or Temor as he was now called, screamed in both fear and pain. The colt struggled hard against the magic that held him in place as dark magic energy kept pouring into his horn. Over him stood King Sombra. The stallion showed no emotions as he held the boy in place with his dark powers and kept pouring a portion of them straight into him.

“Stop! Please! It hurts! I will be good! Stop, please!” Temor sobbed, but to no avail. This hurt so much more than the spells and potions the dark king had poured into him in the lab.

There was no response from the king. He just kept pouring his magic into the colt despite the pleas. Nearby stood Turquoise, cringing and her heart stinging at hearing the cries from the child, but the old mare didn’t dare interrupt her master.

Finally, the procedure stopped, Temor bolted off the moment the magic hold was released. Sombra didn’t follow. Instead he just glanced at the old slave. She shivered at the cold, emotionless gaze of the king.

“Bring him back to me,” Sombra snorted.

Turquoise could only bow before she reluctantly went to chase down the fleeing colt. The King waited, casually examining the steel hoofguards on his right hoof while doing so. After a little while the slave returned, forced to drag the protesting and crying colt with her.

“S-sorry my lord. He hid inside a closet,” Turquoise whimpered, feeling almost ill for having to bring the child back to the king.

“I don’t want to hear your pitiful excuses, slave. Bring my son to me!” King Sombra growled and his eyes flickered green for a moment.

“No, no I don’t want to go… no!” Temor cried as the old mare was forced to push him towards the towering, dark stallion.

“It is your Equestrian blood that is making this procedure hurt so much, Temor,” King Sombra growled as he once again grabbed Temor, but this time with his normal red-colored magic and forced the colt to stand in front of him.

“But your dark pony ancestry is already welcoming back the dark magic that was natural to your ancestors but has been weeded out of you through centuries of breeding with lesser races.” Sombra allowed a smile to cross his muzzle as he looked at the tear-stained face of his adopted son. “You may not recognize it now, but you will one day look back at this day and thank me for giving back to you what was robbed from your ancestors.”

Temor didn’t have the courage to shout that he would never thank him. The colt just wanted to run away, hide somewhere and preferably stay there forever. All he did was stare back, whimper and shiver. He flinched as much as he could while held in the red magic aura when an iron-clad hoof was placed on his back.

“I will make you strong, bring your ancestry forth. You have already taken the first step, but there are many more to take. You will leave now with your nursemaid and she will prepare you for the literary part of your studies. I expect to see you in the library within an hour,” the dark voice of the king told him, surprisingly gently compared to the harsh tone Sombra had spoken in just moments earlier.

---

The present

Temor bolted up from his sleep, breathing heavily, sweat pouring down from his body. The young stallion scrambled to his feet and almost ran forward blindly, but the prince stopped just before he crashed right into a tree.

“Sire?”

The prince looked back and saw Emerald watching him with concern from the spot they had been sleeping in. Temor didn’t respond. Right now his eyes were wide open with fear and he was still breathing heavily and it was taking him a moment to calm back down.

“My lord, are you alright?” the crystal pony risked asking. It was clear to her that her master had woken up from a powerful nightmare.

“I’m fine!” Temor snarled between his teeth and looked away. The stallion fixed his eyes on the tree in front of him, seething as he tried to calm down from the memories that had plagued him during the night.

He was right. It was for my own good. I needed those powers. They were my birthright. I’m a dark pony. I’M A DARK PONY! NOT A WEAK, PATHETIC EQUESTRIAN WHO CRIES HIMSELF TO SLEEP EVERY NIGHT! The prince was pretty much screaming internally, trying to force the memories away and bury them.

Calm down...father is watching me...must not show weakness. He wants me to be strong. Must be strong. Finally, Temor took a deep breath and let it out slowly, marginally calming down when remembering that the spirit of his father was present. He just couldn’t address him while Emerald was directly watching them.

“What time is it?” the prince turned around and could see the moon lowering in the horizon and the first light of the sun beginning to show itself.

“I-I can make you breakfast, my lord,” Emerald offered and when getting a silent nod from her master, moved to the saddlebags.

Tartarus, I hope father didn’t see that,Temor thought as he walked back to the campsite and sat down while waiting for his food.

The prince failed to see King Sombra emerge from the shadows of the tree he had nearly crashed into. The spirit was staring gravely at him - he hadn’t missed a thing and could already guess what his son had been dreaming about.

My son, Sombra thought. I’m… I’m sorry.

End Chapter 8

Comments

[Starlight Nova]

How'd you come up with Temor's name?

[Askre]

7954306 It's Spanish for fear, when figuring out a name for Temor, I felt that Sombra would not want to keep using his old Equestrian name and would rename him with something that in his mind would be a more proper name. Since Sombra is Spanish for shadow, I figured I would stick to the theme and started to search for appropriate words. In the end I found Temor most fitting.

[Revluc_The_Pony]

Sombra feels remorse for what he did.