Out of Darkness

by Sir Shining Armor

Chapter 9: All is Lost.

Chapter 9: All is Lost.
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~Sombra~
One hour before.

The journey through the Everfree forest proved to be as tense and filled with dread as the battle Sombra had fought against his mirror-counterpart 16 years before. Now, he was only going into this fight with the element-bearers instead of the royal sisters. The years had been kind to them, of course, and they did still possess the same power as before, but Sombra felt uncertainty growing in his chest. They were about to go into battle with a legendary figure - a being even older than the royal sisters. Older even than Equestria for that matter.

"Get ready everypony." Said Twilight ahead. Sombra looked up; conjuring his sword in the process. "Here comes some more Wights."

Since their mission began, Sombra and the element bearers had occasionally stopped to fight the Wights, both to aid the defenders in Ponyville and to sharpen their skills. Though he was loath to admit it, Sombra's prowess had waned in the years since the battle. He had taught Shard how to fight, yes, but the boy was a gentle soul; he despised violence. With that, he had instead obliged only to teach him to defend himself - and had encouraged Hope to teach him her healing magic.

The thought of his wife and son gave him strength and the moment the first group of Wights appeared, he was first into the fight; hacking and slashing them apart with single blows. Twilight and the others joined him - their movements still sharp despite their advancing ages. The Princess of Friendship herself seemed more powerful than ever - casually trotting through the skirmish and disintegrating Wights with but a flicker of her magic. Individual combats raged through the forest - with Applejack, Rarity and Rainbow Dash contributing the most.

Sombra swept left and right - his sword hacking off the heads of two in as many swings, but he doubled over in pain as a sharp stab came into his side. Not from any weapon of the enemy, but from his own body. Soon, every cadaver was dispatched in short order, but by the end of it Sombra was exhausted and found himself leaning on a nearby tree for support - trying to catch his breath.

"It sure feels good to be back in action." Said Applejack, stretching her legs out. Small pops and the sound of bones cracking could be heard. "Been too long since we seen a good ol' fashioned fight."

"Speak for yourself." Said Sombra, giving her a wry grin. "I guess I'm not as spry as I used to be."

"Don' tell me your starting to feel your age already?" Applejack replied with a laugh. "Even Granny can move better'n you - and she's almost pushin' one hundred."

Beside him, Fluttershy put a hoof on his shoulder. "I can give you my chiropractor's name if you need it."

"I appreciate the gesture, Fluttershy, but I just need a minute." Sombra stood up to his full height, ignoring the pain in his joints as he did so.

"Are you sure you're up to this, Sombra?" Twilight asked, concerned. "Nopony asked you to come along - and we all understand if you want to head back to your family."

"You sure you'll be able to keep up with us, old man?" Said Rainbow Dash. "Even at thirty eight, I'm still the fastest flier in Equestria."

"No, thank you Twilight." Said Sombra. "Hope normally heals me anytime I have the aches." To Rainbow he grinned. "But rest assured, even at fifty, I can still throw down with the best of them."

It took a few more minutes, but he eventually found the pain subsided, he stood up and they were on their way.

On the journey forward, they compiled notes - what little they knew for certain was that Grogar had declared himself Emperor of the land that was to become Equestria and that he had clashed with the unicorn, Gusty the Great and her warriors. Supposedly, at full power, his strength was greater than that of a thousand armies. Even without his magical bell, he was likely to be more powerful than any other opponent they had faced before.

"I think it is likely that Grogar has spent the last few thousand years rebuilding his strength - watching us, studying our weaknesses." Sombra said. "I had heard of him back when I was in power, but never did I think he was real."

"I remember Granny tellin' us stories of him when we were foals." Said Applejack. "S'pose then that he's as powerful as they say. This could be the fight o' our lives."

"We've fought big scary things before." Said Rainbow Dash casually, hovering above them with a cocky grin. "He'll fare no better. As long as we got the elements, he can't beat us."

"Don't be so sure of that, little ponies." A dark voice said all around them. The element bearers froze - and Sombra raised his sword. All of them scanned the surrounding forest - finding nothing.

"Am I goin' nuts or did I just hear a voice?" Applejack wondered aloud. "Y'all heard that too, right?"

"I heard it too. And has anypony noticed it's too quiet?" Said Fluttershy meekly. "There aren't any animals around." She looked down at the ground beneath their hooves. "Not even the bugs are out."

"Come on out, goat!" Rainbow shouted, putting her hooves around her mouth. "We're here to kick your flank!"

"Such confidence." Said the voice, sounding amused. "Come then, little ponies. Try and defeat me if you can."

"Nopony move." Said Sombra, suddenly feeling very cold. "This was not a good idea."

"Sombra, self-proclaimed 'King of the Monsters'."

"You know who I am?"

"Of course. How could I not recognize one of my own creations?"

That got everypony's attention. Most of all, it got the former King's.

"What do you mean?!" Twilight demanded before he could speak. "Sombra is not an Umbrum anymore!"

"Indeed. A pity that he is no longer a shadow-pony. But then, who do you think created the Umbrum? It was I."

Sombra's jaw fell in shock.

"Still, Umbrum or not, there is still much power in him. The potential to reawaken the darkness within you remains. Join me, Sombra and Equestria will be ours!"

"You might have created the Umbrum, but he's our friend." Said Pinkie, putting her foreleg around his shoulders. "Besides, doesn't that mean you owe him like... a lot of birthday presents? What kind of creator are you, anyway?"

"Uh, thanks Pinkie." Said Sombra, gently removing her leg. "Still, I am Umbrum no longer. And I will never join you!"

"You cannot hide what you are deep inside. Pretend to be everything you are not; friend, husband, father - but you are and always will be... a monster."

"No, I am no monster, not anymore." The former King felt his anger rise, drowning out the fear. No creature threatened his family! "I stand with Twilight Sparkle and her friends."

"Then you will die."

Before their eyes, a shape appeared before them. A ram, as the legends said - with long, curved horns, red and yellow eyes, white mane and curiously a red harness around his neck accented with gold studs.

Sombra charged, aiming a stab with his sword. Before he could raise it, Grogar's horns flared with a gold aura and conjured a number of tentacles. The first of them grabbed his blade, effortlessly dispelling the magic it was composed of. A second wrapped itself around his legs - halting him right in his tracks. Ordinarily, his momentum would have caused him to flip onto the ground when he reached the end of their length, but these were stronger than any chakns. With a grunt of exertion, he tried to pull himself free - to no avail. Struggle as he might, his restraints held.

"Slow and old." Said the ram, circling him with a cruel smile. "You were a fool to give up your immortality. But then, even at your height, you were no match for me."

Sombra glared straight down at his captor, his "creator" with undisguised hatred. Yet, despite his defiance, somewhere inside he knew this fight was over before it began. Grogar was right; age had turned him into a shadow of his former mighty self. With his dark magic sustaining him, his body would have lasted indefinitely at his peak, but turning mortal had robbed him of that and the rage that fueled him.

From the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of Twilight pawing at the ground with a hoof.

"Let him go." She said coldly. "Or we'll..."

Before anypony could blink, a gold aura appeared around her throat, choking the wind out of her. Five separate tendrils reached out from the ground and wrapped themselves around the other element-bearers, preventing them from moving as well. Even Rainbow Dash was ensnared and jerked to the ground before she could fly away.

"No!" Sombra cried, wriggling against the unbreakable restraints. The harder he tried to resist, the more they dragged him down. Despair panged in his chest, along with a twinge of fear as Grogar approached. Not for himself, but for his family. Even the thought was too horrible to imagine.

"I will keep the bearers with me, to watch while I destroy your precious elements." Said Grogar looking down at his captives. "And as for you, Sombra, I spare you only that you may reconsider your actions. I will give you twenty four hours to find a way to regain your dark power. And then you will submit to me."

"And if I refuse?" Sombra spat, still trying in vain to break free.

"Then I will return you to the darkness from whence you were spawned."

With a gesture, Grogar sent the former King tumbling back - straight through a tree - all the way back to Ponyville.

Author's Note:

Hey guys. I wanted to make this chapter a lot earlier, but life got in the way time and time again. In the down time, I've been brainstorming and thinking of ways to implement Season 9's story into my own. Since Grogar boasts he's more powerful than all of the other villains combined at a fraction of his power, I thought it would be prudent to show that off.

Let me assure you that I'm not a fan of the Worf Effect trope as it's called, so this is the last time that'll happen. Everything that is happening is for a purpose.

Just imagine what's happening as my parallel to Season 9. Different timeline and all that.

Also, in this version, Grogar created the Umbrum. How will this troubling news play into these events? You won't have long to wait!