Prologue - Pt. 1
The doors to the Hall of Chronicles were pulled open as a soldier ran through. The soldier was dressed in the standard issue Equestrian Royal Ground Force uniform, and fitted with a harness that held a scroll. Their conversation interrupted, Princess Celestia and Princess Luna turned to give the soldier their attention as he approached them, multicolored light passing over his white coat as he passed the many stained-glass windows and his hoof-steps echoing off the stone walls as he hurried into speaking distance.
“Your Majesties,” the soldier gasped as he came to a stop, out of breath, “I bring an urgent report from the northern border!” Sweat dropped from his coat as he turned his head to free the scroll from its harness.
The soldier had hardly gotten the message loose before Princess Celestia grasped it with her magic and relieved him of it. In seconds, Celestia had the scroll unfurled and quickly scanned the message written upon it, her eyes widening as she read. When she finished, Celestia passed the scroll to her sister before nodding to the soldier.
“Thank you, you may rest in Canterlot before returning to your station.”
The soldier bowed his head, “Thank you, Your Majesty,” and wearily made his way out of the hall.
Luna's eyes also widened as she finished reading the report. “My sister, it appears we have run out of time. We can no longer wait and bide our power, we must stop Sombra.”
The white alicorn princess nodded to her sibling, “Yes, little sister. With the shadow from Sombra's influence on the Crystal Empire drawing closer to our borders, we will have to succeed as we are. Together with the Elements of Harmony, I believe we have a strong chance of defeating him.”
The two royal sisters then turned towards the door behind which lay the Elements of Harmony.
-----
A little unicorn colt, only a foal, sat in his crib, babbling and giggling at the sounds he was making. His coat was pitch black in color, his mane and tail were a stark white, and his eyes were a soft indigo, all of which reflected light like dazzling crystal. At the sound of a soft voice, he looked up into a pair of matching indigo eyes belonging to a golden amber unicorn mare with a brown mane and tail. She was smiling down at him, but her eyes looked sad and tears fell from them. Soon another face appeared over the little colt; a unicorn stallion who's coat, mane, and tail matched the colt's, but with brilliant green eyes. His voice wasn't as soft, but came in hushed tones as he spoke to the mare.
The two faces looking down on him did not reflect the light in the same dazzling way, but they both smiled down at him. He smiled back with an incoherent babble up at them, and for a brief moment, they both sparkled and reflected the light just as he did, before fading back to subdued colors. The two spoke to each other again in a different babble; he was too young to understand them yet, but he could see them occasionally looking away from him, tears streaming from their eyes.
Suddenly, a loud booming voice reverberated through the walls of the house. The faces flinched away from the sound for a moment before the colt felt himself being lifted out of his crib by a golden sparkling wave of magic. It always felt really comfortable when the amber one carried him like this, and he let out a happy string of babbling nonsense in response. The golden one smiled at him as he was carried into another room, this one with no windows, the dark one following behind her while continuously casting wary glances behind them.
The loud booming voice reverberated once again, this time causing the house to shake, causing the golden one to cry out in panic. The dark one soothed her with hushed tones as they settled the little colt onto the floor. The golden one was now no longer smiling, but openly crying as she pressed her face into the dark one's chest. He rested a hoof across her shoulders as he continued to speak to her in hushed tones for a moment. They then both looked directly at him and began to speak to him, but he didn't understand a word of it. He babbled back up at them, thinking it was a game.
Once more the house shook with the sound of a deep voice. The two went quiet, tears streaming down their eyes, as they leaned their heads forward so that the points of their horns touched and began to glow. The wave of golden magic that enveloped the colt was soon joined by a shining silver magic, the two colors twisting and winding together. The magic suddenly brightened until the colt had to close his eyes against the blinding light. When the light had settled, the magic waves had solidified. He could still see the two looking down at him through the transparent solidified magic. He tried to babble at them again, only to have his voice echo back at him.
From behind them, the colt could hear a low rumble begin, steadily getting louder. Dark crystals began to burst through the walls from all sides. The golden one shrieked, the dark one pushing her to the floor and trying to put himself between her and the crystals. The little colt watched as more and more crystals broke through the walls, destroying the room. Suddenly, a bright blinding light flashed so quickly the colt did not have time to shield his eyes. The last thing the colt felt before he passed into unconsciousness was the solidified magic shaking violently around him.
-----
The clouds rushed by in white blurs as Celestia and Luna flew to the North. The situation was far too dire for the royal carriages, which were only used for formal visits. Flying under their own power was much faster, and the two sisters had no time for pomp and circumstance. They'd only left Canterlot Castle several minutes ago and the temperature was already beginning to dip, the landscape below changing from blurs of greens and yellows of the fields into the all encompassing white of snow and ice. A lone spire began to rise far off on the horizon; the two sisters nodded to each other their acknowledgment that they were almost there.
Their destination, the Crystal Empire, was usually an oasis in the frozen North; the inhospitable weather kept at bay by an unknown power of the empire; however, ever since King Sombra usurped the throne, that power had been secreted away. Instead of the empire's beautiful influence shining across the land, there was only darkness and obsidian crystals. This influence affected the neighboring territories as well, including Equestria. If Sombra was allowed to continue his reign, his influence could possibly engulf the entire world. Celestia and Luna were determined to ensure that didn't happen. Sombra's abilities were amplified by the unknown power, formidable even to the two princesses, so they agreed to bide their time and their power for as long as they could until they were a match for him.
Now the entirety of the Empire was in view in the distance; they were nearly there. Luna marveled at the sight. She'd never been to the Crystal Empire before, and though it was now covered in darkness, Sombra's influence had not completely eclipsed the empire's former beauty. She squinted when she noticed several dark spots in the air directly before them, they were getting larger by the second.
“Elder sister...”
“I see them, little sister. It would seem we've been spotted; Sombra has sent us a welcoming party.”
Luna laughed softly, “They must be fools to try and stand against us.”
Celestia smiled in agreement as the dark shadows rushed ever closer. Within seconds, the shadows were upon them.
Up close, the sisters could see that they were shadows in the vague shape of ponies. The shadow ponies bore no facial features to distinguish one from another, save for their toothy grins as they closed in. The alicorn mares had no trouble in keeping the shadows at bay by simply bucking them away. The shadows' grunts could be heard as they were sent flying, only to be replaced by another wave, and another. It seemed there was no end to the sisters' assailants; by the time they'd repelled one wave, another was upon them, and shortly after the first would return.
Finally, a spark flared in Celestia's lavender eyes. “ENOUGH!” A furious yellow wave emanated from her horn, obliterating all the shadows simultaneously.
Luna watched, intrigued, as the remnants slowly dissolved into thin air. “Fascinating, they weren't sentient beings at all. It appears Sombra manipulated dark crystals and fashioned them into underlings to do his bidding...”
Both sisters came to a sudden halt at the sound of a lone pair of hooves clopping together slowly. During the battle, they had unintentionally moved towards the spire of the empire's central castle. The sound was coming from the balcony, on which sat King Sombra.
The dark king brought his fore hooves to the ground as he stood up, grinning mockingly up at the royal sisters. His dark red eyes were startling; the whites of his eyes were not white, but an acid green, with waves of purple mist flowing from their outer edges. He wore steel guards on his neck, lower legs, and hooves. Upon his back and flank he wore a stereotypical king's red velvet cape lined with white faux fur. Upon his head rested a steel helmet crown, through which protruded an irregularly sharp red horn. With a steel gray coat, black mane and tail, and pointed fangs, he was a formidable sight.
A deep, booming chuckle reverberated from the dark figure on the balcony, “and to what do I owe the pleasure of this... royal visit?” as Celestia and Luna allowed themselves to drop until they were hovering side by side at the same elevation--though at a cautious distance--as the dark king. Far off on the horizon, dark, boiling storm clouds began to surround the empire.
Celestia pointed a hoof at Sombra, “You know why we're here, Sombra. Your crimes against the Crystal Empire are self evident, and it is far past time you answered for them. You are to relinquish the throne and submit yourself to our custody.”
The demand elicited a booming laugh from the dark figure on the balcony, “Tell me, Princess, did you honestly think you and your sister could just waltz into my empire, state your demands, and expect me to simply lie down and give in?”
Celestia cocked her brow, “Frankly? No, I did not. But then, I wasn't expecting you to be intelligent either. The way I see it, that's two for two.”
Luna smirked at her sister's quip, clearly amused; Sombra, however, was not amused at all. His confident grin turned to a dark scowl, his eyes flashing. “Come now, Celestia. Base insults? They don't become you. Though, I dare say that if I am unintelligent, what does that make Luna?”
Celestia and Luna looked at each other, confused. Celestia's eyes widened as she looked further and spotted a black crystal floating right behind her sister. “Luna! Behind y-” The crystal exploded with a blinding flash; Luna cried out as she was struck and plummeted to the surface.
Celestia immediately attempted to dive for her sister, only to be cut short by a blast of dark energy cutting right across her path. “Nah-ah-ah, Princess! I'm afraid we haven't finished our exchange just yet.” Celestia glared at Sombra, at the obstacle between her and her sister.
“You cannot possibly imagine the repercussions of what you've just done, Sombra...” she continued to glare as her horn began to glow yellow with her magic, her eyes narrowed to slits. The two were in a face-off, lightning flashes reflecting in their eyes as they stared each other down.
-----
"Ugh," Luna groaned as she came to and forced herself to her hooves, shoving off small pieces of debris in the process.
She took a quick scan of her surroundings; she had landed--or crashed, as it were--in a section of the empire which appeared to have been destroyed. Specifically, she had fallen onto the remains of a demolished home. The shard remains of Sombra's dark crystals were scattered all over, and there wasn't a single living creature to be seen.
For a moment, Luna's gaze saddened as she thought of the lives Sombra had destroyed, of those he was still tormenting for his own dark designs. But there was no time for grief right now, she had to get back to the battle, to her sister. The blue princess gingerly tested her legs and carefully unfolded her wings to ensure she hadn't taken any serious damage. Satisfied that she'd only received a few bruises, she crouched in preparation for flight when a sound gave her pause.
A little foal's cry could be heard from somewhere in the wreckage on which she stood. Eyes widened in shock, Luna's gaze darted around as she tried to pinpoint the source. Perhaps a family had managed to survive the destruction, and they were caring for a little one.
“Hello?" Luna called out, "Is anypony there? Do not be afraid, I am not your enemy.” No voice answered her call, save for the continued wailing of the little foal lost somewhere in the debris.
The wind began to pick up, and distant thunder could be heard rolling in from the horizon. She had to get back to her sister, but if there was even a chance that somepony had survived, she had to do what she could. The blue alicorn began to carefully follow the sound of the cry, occasionally slipping on a loose board or piece of debris.
“It's alright, little one. I am here to help!” she called, though the foal sounded as if it were too young to understand her just yet. Sure enough, the tiny voice only continued to cry out, but it was getting louder; she had to be getting close.
Soon, it sounded as though the foal was right in front of her. Carefully, Luna lifted a piece of debris out of the way, and there sat a squalling little colt. His coat was black as pitch, his mane and tail a stark white, and his eyes were shut tight as he cried out. Wrapped around his hind left leg was a shard of black crystal. Luna puzzled for a moment over the ground around the little colt; ash and dust covered the floor boards immediately around the foal, except for a perfect circle upon which he sat, which was relatively clean and untouched. He must have been shielded by magic when his home was destroyed. But magic of that strength is not possible from just one unicorn, not to mention to protect a space even as little as that would have required an exceptional amount of magic... Tears came to Luna's eyes as she realized what it must have cost for this little colt to survive.
Gathering her composure, Luna gently scooped up the foal with her magic. Almost immediately, the foal stopped crying and opened his eyes. Luna gasped, for his eyes were a soft indigo in color, but his pupils were covered by a milky haze. The foal tried to rub his eyes with his hooves and blinked several times, and appeared as though he was about to cry again, but the gentle rock of the magic holding him put a smile on his face and he simply closed his eyes. A playful babble escaped his lips before he quickly drifted into a nap, apparently exhausted from crying. Several different thoughts and emotions surged through Luna at once, but she was brought back to reality when she heard an explosion far overhead.
Sister! I am coming!, she thought.
Drops of water slowly began to patter to the ground around the princess and the foal. Lightning flashed and the wind was building up to a roar; Luna couldn't leave him here. Debris from the battle or the storm could cause him harm, and there was nopony near by she could take him to. Spreading her wings, Luna quickly took off from the ground, toting the little colt in front of her as she quickly made her way to the outskirts of the empire. She hit the ground running before slowing to a stop, and with her magic she created a small shelter of reinforced stone.
“I am sorry little one," Luna said in a gentle tone, "but I must leave you here for now. I will return for you soon and find a family to take care of you.” The little colt hardly twitched a hoof in his sleep as she settled him gently into his shelter. She separated the spell from herself and gave it a life of its own so it could continue to comfort him in his sleep.
Luna bowed her head for a moment before spreading her wings and taking off, flying as fast as she could back towards the central spire, back to her sister.
-----
The storm had arrived, having shifted into high gear; rain pelted heavily to the ground in sheets, the lightning flashed continuously as it struck the taller structures of the empire, and the roar of the wind competed with the thunder. Celestia grunted as she dodged another of Sombra's dark bolts of energy. It was as they had originally feared; Sombra's power, combined with the mysterious power of the empire, was too much for just one of the royal sisters alone. It was all she could do to avoid his attacks. Luna's continued absence also fed Celestia's concern; the blast had been close, but like Celestia, Luna was an alicorn. Alicorns had a naturally higher resistance to physical harm; surely it couldn't have hurt Luna so bad that she couldn't return?
Luna, where are you? I need you!
As if summoned by her thoughts, Luna finally returned.
“I am here, sister!”
Celestia's relief was almost palpable, but Sombra refused to let up on his attack, giving her no time to respond. Luna took up a position some distance from her sister and began firing silver bolts of energy of her own at the dark king, forcing him to let up on his barrage on Celestia in order to avoid Luna's attacks.
Celestia smiled at her sister's strategy; if the two of them stayed spaced apart while attacking Sombra, he would be forced to divide his attention and his attacks between the two of them. Celestia quickly began firing golden bolts of energy as well. The tables had turned, but only slightly; the royal sisters' attacks only occasionally struck the dark king, and while he was no longer able to keep either one of them pinned, he was still able to keep them at bay.
Suddenly, when one of their attacks managed to strike Sombra, he cried out and crouched where he sat, ceasing his attack. Incensed by this sudden opening and chance to end their struggle, the two sisters immediately began to rush at the dark king to finish him off; however, before they could reach him, he sent out a shock wave of energy, knocking them back to roughly where they had been. Refreshed, the dark king began his attacks anew and the battle resumed.
Luna cursed under her breath; they'd nearly had him, but they didn't have time to close in on him. Defeating Sombra seemed an impossible task, but then Luna thought of the little one she had rescued below. Her fury flowed through her anew; Sombra could not be allowed to continue his reign.
The battle over the empire continued as the storm raged on. Several times, the lightning would strike one of the combatants, but with their magic it was redirected harmlessly away. The sisters would occasionally manage to strike the dark king as he continued to send barrages of dark energy to keep them at bay.
Once again, Sombra took one hit too many and crouched where he was.
“Little sister," Celestia urgently called out, "we must use our last option!”
Luna nodded. If this didn't work, then all was lost. Wasting no time, Luna flew over to her sister and the two began to rise higher up into the air. For a short moment, Celestia and Luna gazed into each other's eyes before closing them and pointing their horns toward each other.
Celestia's horn began to glow with golden magic, Luna's with silver. A hole was pierced through the roiling storm clouds, casting a brilliant beam of sunlight down onto the balcony where Sombra crouched, still temporarily immobile. He glared up at the sisters with unfettered hate in his eyes as the light cast them into silhouettes. Six shimmering orbs of different colors appeared in a circle above the royal sisters as their eyes suddenly opened, both casting glowing white glares upon their enemy.
As Celestia and Luna crossed their horns together, the six shimmering lights spiraled down and exploded through their magic into a spectral beam and struck King Sombra. The dark king roared as the light sapped his power and struck away his armor. The battle appeared to be won, but Sombra wasn't finished.
“None shall have what is mine!" Sombra screamed, "I curse the Crystal Empire with my last breath! May it vanish for over a thousand years, when I will return to reclaim my throne!”
As the words left his mouth, his form was changed into mere shadow. The power of the Elements of Harmony opened a gaping maw in an icy glacier beyond the borders of the Crystal Empire, banished the shadow into it, after which the ice slammed shut with a deafening rumble that echoed out across the Crystal Empire and the frozen wastes.
The two sisters sighed in relief as the storm slowly broke into peaceful white clouds, but their relief was short lived. A shimmering ring of light shot up around the borders of the Crystal Empire, and slowly shrank inward; everything in the light's path vanished as the ring moved closer towards the central castle, until at last it too vanished.
With the power of the empire gone, the inhospitable icy weather of the north wasted no time in reclaiming the land. True to Sombra's curse, the Crystal Empire had vanished, not to be seen again for over a thousand years.
-----
Celestia and Luna bowed their heads, their magic shielding them from the harsh weather.
“A bitter sweet victory, my little sister.”
Luna nodded, and then gasped as her mind had calmed down enough to remember.
“Elder sister, when I was on the ground, I found a little foal who had survived Sombra's wrath-”
Celestia gave Luna a sympathetic smile and interrupted, “Little sister, he will have vanished with the rest of the Crystal Empire. Safe, but frozen in time.”
Luna shook her head vigorously, “No, sister; to keep him safe from the storm and possible debris from our battle, I pulled him to the outskirts of the border and created a small shelter for him there; doing so may have also kept him safe from Sombra's curse!”
Luna's excitement was rooted in concern, for the shelter she placed him in would not last long against the harsh weather that would have relentlessly closed in on it. Luna folded her wings part-way back and immediately dove towards where she had left the little colt, her starry mane and tail streaming behind her.
Luna hit the ground running as she landed near the shelter. As soon as she was within range she used her magic to hold the cold weather at bay, much as the Crystal Empire's mysterious power once had, but to a smaller degree. Celestia soon followed, landing a short distance away.
“Luna...” Celestia began, mistaking Luna's concern for misguided expectation of the colt still being there.
“He is still here, elder sister!”
Celestia stopped short, “...What?” she quickly ran over to stand beside her sister.
Sure enough, the little colt whose coat shimmered like a black diamond was still asleep, albeit his face and fidgeting suggested the noise of the howling blizzard just beyond Luna's magic was disturbing his otherwise peaceful nap.
Celestia turned her gaze on her younger sister, “Luna...”
The blue alicorn returned her sister's gaze, “I know what you're going to say, sister; that while my intentions were honorable, my actions inadvertently separated this foal from his parents, that he will have grown up and died of old age centuries before his family will return. But I haven't told you everything I discovered when I found him.”
Luna then explained how the colt had to have been protected from a large number of Sombra's exploding black crystals, that it would have required at least two unicorns to have provided a strong enough shield, and that the unicorns who had cast the spell would have to have sacrificed their lives to do it.
Celestia closed her eyes for a moment, “The foal may have extended family that survived.”
Luna shrugged, “Perhaps, perhaps not. Many ponies lost their lives under Sombra's cruelty. In any case, it doesn't matter now. What's done is done. All that can be done now is to ensure that this little one has a future.”
Celestia nodded as she opened her eyes and gazed off in the direction of Equestria, “That will be an easy task, considering he has just found himself in the care of the leading monarchs of an entire nation.”
Luna smiled, “I will assume responsibility for him, my sister. But it may be best if his regular lessons were from a school outside Canterlot. I wouldn't want him to grow up like one of the 'upper crust'” she said the last two words with a hoof to her chest and her best imitation of a snooty mare.
Celestia laughed, “do not be too harsh on them, little sister. They do not have the centuries of experience we do, but they will learn, eventually." Luna allowed a slight shrug of concession, but still with a good-natured smile on her face, before Celestia continued. "That being said, I agree that humility should be one of the priorities in this one's upbringing; between his unique origins and his sparkling coat, he'll have far too many things that could go to his head.”
Celestia looked down at the little foal again, and narrowed her eyes as she spotted the black crystal wrapped around one of the foal's hind legs. “Sister, have you noticed the crystal on his leg?”
Luna narrowed her eyes in scrutiny until she spotted it, “No, the rest of his coat shimmers so, and is of the same color, I had not noticed it.”
Celestia lowered her head as her horn began to glow with a golden hue. Her magic reached out to the crystal in an attempt to remove it; however, despite her efforts, her magic appeared to have no effect on the crystal. With a grunt of frustration, the white alicorn released her focus, “I can't even get it to budge. If it's anything like the crystals Sombra used on you and this foal's home, we can't just ignore it.”
Luna shook her head, “No... I know your power is greater than mine, sister, but I would still like to try.” Luna then lowered her head as Celestia had done, her silver magic beginning to glow and it reached out to the crystal.
This whole time, the foal had slept peacefully, but he was beginning to awaken. When he opened his eyes, the pupils of his eyes were still covered by a milky hue.
Luna nodded before Celestia could say anything, “It appears that the flash from the explosion has blinded him, it may be permanent.”
This time, the colt did not seem as disturbed by his inability to see. Either he was still comforted by Luna's magic which was still cradling him, or perhaps he just thought it was still dark. Perhaps as an attempt to create light so he could see, the foal instinctively began emitting sparks from his horn as he tried to reach out with his magic. His eyes shut tight in concentration, the little foal gave it his best, and managed to emit a small wave of indigo magic, which immediately began to move toward's Luna's silver magic.
Just as Luna's magic had reached the crystal, the foal's magic reached hers. Luna gasped as her body went rigid and her eyes stared straight ahead.
“Sister? Luna? Are you okay? Luna! Can you hear me?” If Luna could hear Celestia, she showed no sign of it.
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So is the foal is king sombra's son?
2076876 No, he isn't. I wrote that bit from the foal's perspective so I know it's a little vague, but the stallion and mare who were with him during that part were his parents. The booming voice coming from outside the house is Sombra.
(Hoo, took me awhile to figure out how to get this reply in the right place XD)