Reacquiring The Throne

by Unknown Ficwriter

Making Amends

Sombra, the self-proclaimed king of Equestria, bore an unfathomable amount of malice for all of its inhabitants. No one knew why or what brought on such hatred. He just appeared one day and began wreaking havoc upon reaching maturity. After his last encounter with The Bearers of Harmony, everyone believed him gone for good.

However, things have a way of returning when you least expect it in Equestria. Deep within a cave, nestled deep inside its many gem-rich caverns, resides the shadowy presence of Sombra. After years of bidding his time, his body had finally regenerated. Time meant nothing to Sombra for he knew his existence was eternal.

A series of soft clops sounded as his newly formed hooves touched the rocky surface of the cave floor. "It's good to be back," he said while stretching. Once limbered up, he lit his horn to survey his surroundings. Due to the exposed gems, he was immediately bathed in hues of red, blue, yellow, and purple.

As he neared the exit the temperature turned cold. Emerging into the moonless night he realized he'd regenerated in the northern territory. Shifting to his gaseous form Sombra flow high into the sky. With the help of a location spell, he darted off toward the Crystal Empire. Zipping through the frigid wind with ease, he increased his speed as the empire's altered biome came into view.

As he passed through the barrier he was forced back into his physical form. Before realizing what had happened, Sombra had crashed into the crystalline road below. The grinding of armor against crystal screeched briefly before Sombra teleported atop the nearest building. Before the spell reached completion he spotted several lights flick on.

Several voices could be heard from his hiding spot. Since none of the ponies knew what caused the ruckus, Sombra decided to wait until the coast was clear. While resting he wondered what caused his sudden transformation. His pondering took a back seat as the sound of silence once again ruled the night.

In the event the guards might have been alerted, he opted to travel by rooftop the rest of the way. It wasn't long before he reached the center of town. As expected the palace entrance was guarded, wanting to avoid unnecessary confrontations he searched for an alternative entrance. Circled the palace he came to a balcony which would lead straight into the throne room.

While realizing the balcony would be guarded, Sombra teleported onto it anyways. As he rematerialized both guards prepared to attack. Unfortunately for them, Sombra blasted them with a sleep spell. The clanking of armor and spears sounded as the guards slumped onto the marble. Peacefully asleep, Sombra made his way to the throne room undeterred.

Before revealing the secret passage he made sure he was alone. The stairs were revealed as the floor disintegrated in a wave of smoke. Wanting to conclude his business before anyone noticed he sprinted the rest of the way. Opening the door to the laboratory he walked to the opposite side of the room. Keeping an eye on the doorway for any interlopers he directed his magic onto the center of the floor.

The touch of his magic caused the exposed floor to evaporated to reveal a medium-sized chest within the floor. As he looked upon the crystal orb, several old diaries, and a framed photo inside a smile came to his face. While the contents didn't seem like much they reminded Sombra of simpler times.

As several clops echoed in the stairway Sombra closing the chest and waited for their arrival. While he'd hoped to be gone before being discovered their presence changed nothing. The guards, led by Shining Armor, began to file into the laboratory. Demanding Sombra to surrender, Sombra's eyes began to pulse emerald green as they stared at each other.

Ignoring his demand, Sombra patronized them with a slow wave. Not surprised at Sombra's disregard he repeated his demand while gathering magic. Despite his confident posture, Shining Armor hoped he'd grown stronger through the years. Not giving Sombra a chance to attack Shining Armor attempted to stun him.

Unfortunately, before it could connect, Sombra deflected it with ease. Enraged every unicorn joined in the fight, unfortunately, Sombra continued to deflect every spell cast at him. Unwilling to watch their fellow guard ponies struggle a zealous pegasus attempted to turn the tide. Unfortunately, the reward for her bravery was a blast of energy to the chest.

The unconscious pegasus was launched backward and would've slammed into the wall if not for her fellow guards. Caught by their magic the downed pegasus was eased onto the floor. Leaving her care to other guards the unicorns continued to fire off spells. While known for taunting and belittling his opponents the lack of anything of the sort was strangely unnerving.

He concluded the lack of an attack was due to the sheer amount of magic hurled at him. Which was a solid hypothesis until he noticed the almost joyous expression plastered on Sombra's face. Struck with a sense of dread, Shining Armor broke off his attack to look behind him. Instead of seeing his troops an impenetrable wall of black smoke obscured his view.

Panic gripped him as he found himself immobilized once the wall expanded past him. Unlike before he could now see his equines-in-arms. The sight he beheld chilled him to the bone as he glanced at their terrified expressions. The source of terror was soon discovered as the injured pegasus hovered in the air. Pulsing around her body were several spheres of darkness.

Anger by the fact that Sombra had turned his guard into a trap, Shining Armor mentally cursed Sombra. Meanwhile, Sombra was emerging from the secret staircase when a stern voice called to him. With an annoyed sigh, he turned to face whoever dared challenge him. His mood unexpectedly lightened as he spotted Princess Cadence with them.

After hearing her generic threat Sombra open the chest but stopped as the tip of a spear was thrust inches from his face. Without fear or concern, the spear was ripped from the guard's grip before being shattered. Shards of metal clattered against the floor as Sombra looked up. Warning them of his dwindling patience before returning to the open chest.

While casually spoken the implied threat chilled the air itself. After recomposing themselves the guards signaled to wait for a better opportunity to strike. Pulling a book from the chest he held it high so they could see the cover. As he'd surmised its faded insignia immediately caught their attention. Perturbed by the sudden development, Cadence inquired how he came across the book.

To which he refused to answer without her word to uphold his demands before answering. When asked what his demands were Sombra merely shook his head. Realizing he'd never divulge his intent without procuring her cooperation first the princess sighed in frustration. Wanting to speed up this encounter he assured her that the empire and citizens would not suffer by his hoof.

While severely doubting his word, Cadence found a bit of comfort upon hearing his declaration. While relieved of some tension it didn't make her decision any easier. If he was to be believed then the detachment of guards and Shining Armor were unharmed. If not then the same fate surely awaited her.

The knowledge that Equestria had Celestia, Luna, Twilight, and her friends as guardians set her mind at ease. After a quick huddle with her guards, Cadence conveyed her compliance if the book was proven to be genuine. To their surprise, Sombra brought the book to hover in front of her. As her magic made contact with the book it began to pulse sky blue.

To everyone surprise, a transparent projection of Princess Amore appeared above the book seconds later. Its eyes opened as if waking from a long slumber. The guards kneeled before their former princess as the projection looked over them. Spotting Princess Cadance, it relayed words of encouragement ending with how proud she was of her.

As the book fell to the floor, tears welled up in Cadence's eyes. As she collected herself Sombra removed several other books and laid them on the floor. While retrieving the book from the floor, he conveyed his demands before hoisting the chest into the air. Sombra made his way to the balcony once Cadence took the book.

Stunned at his sudden shift in personality Cadence asked what he'd hope to accomplish. Stopped by her words he momentarily stared into the night sky before vanishing with the chest. Although nothing was said Cadence got the feeling of relief from him.