A Raven’s Quest

by Chemtest

Death

I burst into the throne room of the Crystal Palace. I pant as I face towards Beast. He smiles as he turns toward me, “Just as planned. You are tired, are you not?”

I growl, “I have enough left to fight you.”

I charge at him with an overhead swing. He simply raises his hand, and bats my scythe out of the way. He summons a sword coated in fire in his other arm. He stabs forward as I charge into him. His sword goes right through me, “Fool! Do not underestimate me! I have the power of both you and Vogrim combined!”

He drags the sword out of my body, and backhands me. I fly to the ground far away.

He laughs, “Good work, brother. You’ve got yourself in the perfect position to die. Allow me to-“

He’s cut off as a spear comes out of the shadows. The crystal weapon stabs right through him, and is dragged out just as quick. Sombra laughs from behind him, “You’re in the perfect position to die.”

Beast slowly turns around to face Sombra, “You stabbed me. Impressive, if nothing else.” He swings with his sword, a lazy swing with minuscule power. Sombra easily blocks it, his spear reflecting the fire back. Beast looks impressed, “You blocked me. You are a worthy warrior. One who burns with dark power. Your death will be quick, and your afterlife sweet.”

Sombra blends back into the shadow to back away, “I will never bow before another ever again! I am no demon for you to control!”

Beast smiles, and ignites the torches all around the arena, “Your shadow is naught against the flames. Your body shall soon be mine.”

Beast moves at a speed comparable to light as he stabs forward at Sombra. Sombra manages to side step the swing barely, the sword cutting right through his armor.

Sombra stabs forward, and stabs deep into Beast. But Beast just drags him further in with his spear. Sombra stands in front of him, barely able to see the sword coming towards him. Sombra’s neck bursts with blood as it is slashed by Beast’s sword. Beast grabs his head, and tosses him over to me.

I summon up enough strength to crawl over to Sombra. I crawl over him as his neck continues to spill more blood, “No, come on Sombra, stay with me. I can fix this!”

Sombra’s eyes widen for a second, and I figure out why really quick. His spear stabs through the both of us, impaling us two to each other and the floor.

I feel my life start to slip, and I take a final look into Sombra’s eyes.

That look seems to create some sort of connection between us as our minds fade away.

—(Inside)—

Perhaps I should be more honest with you. Raven, you and I both know we’ve kept secrets from each other. Now, I apologize, and plan to rectify that.

What secrets?

Our true pasts.

You never asked.

And you wouldn’t have told me if I did. Just like I didn’t tell you mine.

Well, what about what you told me?

What I told you had pieces of truth within it, that much is true. Discord infected the Crystal Heart, and there was a king who led his people away from Discord. The king never was me, though. King Ligero Noche. My father.

So it was your father who led the people away from Discord?

Yes, though Discord did not take us squandering his ‘gift’ very good. Our group left from Maredrid, but we picked up a large following from every city we passed by. This mass exodus was easily seen by Discord, who decided to have fun. He saw the Queen was with child, and snapped. The effects were only seen when I was born.

What happened?

He made me grow bigger than any mare should deliver. But to seal the deal, he gave me a long, sharp horn. It ripped into my mother as I was born, killing her. So I was born in a pool of my own mothers blood, with bright glowing green eyes. My father didn’t take it well. He called me a demon and blamed me for the Queen’s death. He took it out on me.

How so?

I endured abuse none should ever go under. Everypony despised me. Guards would poke me with their spears, children would beat me up, and the adults would always glare at me. The worst was my father though. I strived to please him anytime I could, learning the arcane arts from a young age to impress him. Each week brought on a new form of torture. It only became worse the more I tried to impress him. The worst, however, was when his friend decided to work on me. Vogrim fled to the Empire after killing Ordirus.

Wait, Vogrim tortured you?

And many more. With so little actions, he managed to do so much. The only reason Discord was driven mad was because of Ordirus’s death. They shared a strong bond as brothers, which Vogrim broke. The King allowed Vogrim asylum, and allowed him to use me for his experiments. The pain caused on me was unbearable, yet I somehow did bare it. Until Vogrim had to leave one day, on the eve of my tenth birthday. When the actual day came around, my father gave me a mission. He said that in order to be able to lead people, one must lead himself first. To train warriors, one must be a warrior within themself. He sent me to the Everfree Forest, in the middle of Discord’s reign.

Whenever you were ten?

Yes. It was his way of trying to kill me once and for all. But I didn’t die. I thrived. My already impressive arcane knowledge grew immensely as I went from simple tricks to full on offense. I learned how to attune myself to the shadow within the dark forest, and travel using it. I could travel nearly anywhere nearly instantaneously if there was shadow on the way. From one side of the forest to the other in a few seconds, long as the canopy shaded enough. I learned to summon crystal from naught, and how to hunt with it. It started with rabbits and other small game. My genetics messed up enough by Discord as to where I could eat meat with no consequences. Then I started to learn more. I could outrun the wolves within physical form, I could easily hunt down and kill hydra, I was smart enough to hunt basilisks. I lived in there for twenty years, honing myself in every way. I only started to think about leaving when I saw the chaos outside dissapear, and the forest start to change. I found the Spirit of the Everfree in a glade I meditated in many times before. She was different than she was before. Infected with Necromancer mana, left by Vogrim. The wolves started to die out and be replaced with monsters made of wood. The basilisk and chicken combined into a cockatrice. I decided it was time to leave and head back.

What did you see when you got back?

Everyone was shocked, or confused. My body was no longer scrawny or weak as it was before, my horn no longer as protruding. I was a stallion who exuded authority, and strength. I marched into the Palace, and met my father. He was next to a mare much younger than he was now, with a teenager stallion next to them. He made a new family. He yelled at me, called me a demon and a bastard back from the dead. He shot me with a bow, and locked me inside the library I spend so much of my childhood within. I came to with most of my blood gone, and close to death. I saw a book lying on the floor though. A dark book, one I hadn’t seen before. The stench of unfamiliar magic surrounded the library, one I now attribute to the Totem of Purification. I don’t know why, but it’s mana surrounded that book. I crawled over and looked in. A spell to make one grow stronger, that was all within. I wasted no time casting it, and thus accepting the darkness within myself.

What did it do?

It corrupted my mind, stole it from me, left me as a passenger in my own body. It made my eyes bleed a purple flame, and covered my body in metal armor. The same armor I have always worn. It gave me many new dark magics, which I used to blast out of the library and into the throne room. Father stood up as he saw me, reaching for his crossbow to shoot me once more, the demon I now was. He never made it out of his seat, a crystal imbedding him to his throne through his chest. It was with a single moment of clarity I let the mare and child escape. They were the Cadenza family. That is when I started my dark reign. I was only able to break free when I met you, as you shared a similar condition. Now, I believe it is your turn.

I lived on Tel’la De Rus, born in a small village. I was never one for physical conflicts, so I was bullied by my classmates. It got pretty bad, I almost died here and there. School wasn’t going to do shit, that’s just how the world works. One day, a man came to our village. A wizard of many tricks. He was one of the first Necromancers, and he took pity on me when he saw me being bullied. He taught me Necromancy, and I was a natural at it. So much so that I already had the Beast that comes with Necromancy before I even learned it. From then on I lived as a pariah, my few interactions with people being them wanting to slay me, and me going to save the world.

So, all is revealed?

Yes. Sombra, you know we cannot survive if we fight separately.

That is why I shared my past. I feel a connection here. We must work together.

Yes we must. In...

Unity.

—(3rd person)—

Raven and Sombra are no more. Their bodies gone, merged into each other. In their place is a single body.

As big as Sombra with Raven’s coat color. Eyes that glow green, and have green flame coming out of the back. A long, red, yet otherwise normal horn coming from between black hair tossed around messily. A cutie mark that seems to represent the ‘King’ with skulls impaled by crystals replacing the suit, and the image in the middle replaced with a dark figure that has green glowing eyes. The figure holds out a weapon that is a halberd, made out of a spear and scythe.

This very same weapon lays next to the body, who slowly starts to rise.